Disneyland Part 1 & 2

Mark got free passes to Disneyland. A VERY generous co-worker had purchased 4-day passes to Disney, but her and her family decided two days were enough, so they handed them over to Mark....YAY! On July 30th, Mark and I went by ourselves. Arrangements were made for Eli to stay with the grandparents that afternoon/night. Mark and I headed out to Disney at about 2PM and were there until they closed. It was a Mommy and Daddy Disney-day (Part 1). It actually was my mom's idea for us to head out in the afternoon and to stay until they closed and she also offered to keep Elianna until we got back...thanks mom! It was really a good day for it. Our longest wait was 45 minutes for Space Mountain, all the other rides were a 5-20 minute wait. Also, we got to see the firework show and Fantastic.

Part 2: On July 31st, the next day, it was Eli's day. I really thought we would be leaving around 2-3PM; I really didn't think she would take much more of it. I was sooo surprised that we stayed until about 7PM, we got there about 11:30AM. She was people watching, she enjoyed the train and carousel ride. I believe we went on 3 rides with her, did a bit of tours and window shopping. She even had her first taste of ice cream! Here are some pictures of the day.

In the parking lot at Disney; in the Mickey level.

The carousel ride. Eli really enjoyed it....I was hanging in there.

The Baby Center is the best! You are able to sit and relax, pump, breast-feed, use a microwave, feed and change your baby. It is a very peaceful and calm setting.

At California Adventure, towards the end of the day. We were both a bit tired.

As a thank you to Mark's co-worker I baked her some blueberry muffins. Thanks again Elba!

Happy Birthday to Mom!

The birthday festivities began on Friday with Mark surprising me by not going to work. It turns out that it was his furlough day (for this fiscal year furlough days will most likely only go until September, thank God!), but he lied to me the night before and told me that his new furlough day would begin next week. He actually pretended to leave work, but he was actually going to the supermarket and to buy items to make me breakfast. He completely surprised me with that; I actually thought we were getting robbed when I heard the door open and footsteps that followed...YIKES! He cut up some strawberries, made eggs, pancakes, bacon and fresh hash browns. It was all very yummy.....Thank you Markers! The biggest surprise was he was planning a picnic at the beach and had a babysitter all lined up.....Momma-Lopez! For Mark to walk onto the sand and sit, that is huge!

Yesterday, my birthday, was a good day. I was planning to go workout at the gym by taking a Zumba aerobic class, but it did not work out, Eli had other plans. So, after her nap, we, the family, took a walk. Since I wanted to burn some calories I told Mark that I would be pushing the stroller, he took care of Marley.

Before we left on our walk, Eli and Daddy posed.

Marley and Daddy in the lead.

Elianna enjoying her sippy.

When we got home we were hungry, so Mark suggested that we go to Carino's for lunch; we got a coupon with the morning paper for them ;).

When we got there Eli was asleep, so Mark and I took advantage and snapped a shot of ourselves.

Someone woke up soon after arriving.

Salmon salad....yummy!

Playing with our food!

Mark's gift to me was to take me out for some crab. I want the type of place where you can get your fingers dirty and lick them when you're done.....and Mark delivered. We went to the Boiling Crab.

Elianna stayed with her Abuelita for the evening.....thank you Mom!

The happy couple ready for their date.

It was in the "heart" of Garden Grove.

The wait was about an hour and a half....pretty popular.

Ready, set...

and go!

6 months old!

Our baby girl is 6 MONTHS! What a fun age. We cannot believe all the amazing changes that have occurred with Elianna. Here are some of the things she is doing now a days.

*She is able to sit on her own for minutes at a time. If she feels that she is losing her balance, she uses her trunk and hands to help her to stay up in a seated position.

*She enjoys suckling and playing with her toes.

*Enjoys her teething toys, especially since those pearly whites seem to be coming in any time now.

*Uses her sippy cup independently when on the Boppy.

*Enjoys a wide variety of veggies and fruits.

*Reaches for everything and anything.

*Talkative!

*She seems to enjoy (what I call) her "sit and play" toys.

*When being put down, she will extend her legs and stand.

*...and as of today, eats strawberries.

Beach Day!

Last Friday, I took Eli to the beach for the first time. In the past, Kimura (my BFF) and I would go to the beach once a week during our summer break; this, of course, was before the babies. I did not go to the beach once last summer due to my pregnancy so I have been ready to smell some ocean air. Kimura was not ready to hit the beach just yet, so Eli and I went solo.

It was a modified beach day. I only planned to be there for a couple of hours. We were not going to lay out or put up the umbrella. What we did was have a nice stroll along the pathway, took some time to get close to the ocean and then went to the park near by for some lunch. Eli LOVED the stroll. Every few seconds someone was passing us by or an airplane flying overhead. As people passed by, Eli would shout out and chuckle, as to try to get their attention.

We were in El Segundo. It was a great day for a stroll not a dip....Brr!

Father's Day

Father's Day started on Friday around here. Since we were honoring three different dads this year, we started the festivities a bit early. On Friday I took Mark out for a meal, only the two of us. On Saturday, we had lunch with my dad and on Sunday we had lunch with Mark's dad....busy weekend! On Father's day, we joined Mark's parents for church and Eli wore a new outfit given to her by her Abuelita. Here's a picture of her and her daddy!

It's a done deal!

As previously blogged, for the next school year I was suppose to go back part time, meaning, working a little over 18 hours per week. When I got back from my maternity leave I was told that would not happen but maybe there could be something worked out. Mark and I had decided that I would be going back 50% or not going back at all. So, since April it has been this crazy waiting game until Tuesday afternoon, when I was presented with my new contract. I had made an appointment with the Personnel Director to find out what exact plan(s) did they have, especially since Friday is the last day of school. I was barely through my second sentence, when to my surprise she showed me the drawn up contract..YAY!

Initially, when I first became pregnant, Mark and I thought I'd take a leave, but soon after, Mark's employer, the City of LA, installed freezes on promotions. Which meant the promotion he had just got two weeks prior was not going to happen, plus furloughs were also being issued! So, the idea of me going part time came from that.

So who is going to care for Eli when we both are back to work? My mom and Mark's mom and they are both very excited to do so. My mom has actually gone on a small baby-shopping-spree.

I can now proudly say, I'm back to mommy-hood and being Mark's trophy wife!

Sewing 101

I've started a sewing routine. I've decided to start with wash cloths so I can get my groove. Hopefully by doing this I will pick up some skills and then venture into something a bit more difficult. So here is my first product and I'm very proud.