My beautiful kids

Yesterday, Judi took some photos of the kids and emailed them to us.  She is so good like that, and always sends Paul and I pictures and updates throughout the day. Well, yesterday's pictures were just too precious not to share.  Paul and I just couldn't get over how adorable they look together.  We are so blessed with such beautiful babies.  I hope that Ashley and Corey are always close. 

Corey's 6 Week Photos with the Family

Paul's Mom is super talented with photography and we are blessed to have her take pictures of our growing family.  Corey was wonderful during the entire session. No screaming or crying - just a little tinkle or two because of a chill.  Enjoy!

Special Delivery for Me!

Update: Almost immediately after I posted the last blog update, my coworkers came by my desk with a precious bouquet of flowers and said that they were just delivered for me. I was stunned because I have never received flowers delivered to me at work before! I opened the card and they were from my wonderful husband. He wrote a sweet note saying that he was hoping that these would cheer me up for my first day back at work. It meant to much to me and I was so surprised! He even picked out the little tote the flowers came in to try and match the design of the dress I wore today. How sweet is that?!

I had no idea who these were from...this is me getting ready to open the card.

It matches my dress! :)

Back to the grind!

Well, today I officially went back to work. It was a TOUGH, and I mean, TOUGH weekend emotionally. I know that Corey is going to be in great hands with Judi and the Jaime family, (and be with his big sister each day) but it was more about how the change was effecting me. I really enjoyed being on a flexible daily schedule, which really meant, no schedule which I actually liked. If you know me well, you know that I thrive on daily schedule and gauging my life on what time it is and how to manage getting things accomplished. So this was extremely out of character for me that I thoroughly enjoyed just going with the flow. So what if I didn't brush my teeth first thing in the morning every day, or get a shower until 5pm (or some days not at all!) or slept in until 11am after being up periodically awoken through the night for feedings! I just was okay with going by Corey's schedule and not mine. I was okay that the house was not perfectly clean, or that the laundry piled up. It would get cleaned and washed eventually. It was truly a freeing experience! I knew from the experience of having Ashley that the schedule I so desired would come on it's own. Soon I would have to be up for work each day, and have showered, hair and makeup done and out of the house by 7:30am. So instead of fighting the chaos, I soaked it up because I knew it would come to an end very soon.

I enjoyed having Ashley home with us the majority of my maternity leave. I really got to know her even better! She is growing into an even more wonderful person than I could have imagined! She is so gentle and kind, incredibly funny and unpredictable and I just love that about her. As much as it can be difficult to raise a 3 year old with an extremely independent personality, it is ALWAYS interesting and there is never, ever a dull moment with her around!

I loved watching my children together and just look forward to how they will interact with one another as they grow. Ashley is just crazy about Corey and constantly says that he is her best friend. I really hope that is the case in the future. I want them to be there for each other always!

Well, here I am, sitting at my desk at work, nearing the end of my lunch break. I am doing my best to stay on task, but knowing in the back of my mind it's impossible. I am too busy surrounding my desk with new framed pictures of my family of four and recapping memories of the last 7 1/2 weeks of pure joy. It sounds a bit far fetched that the first weeks at home with a newborn are utter joy, between the endless feedings, diaper changes and exhaustion, but it really was. I can honestly say I loved it all.

Thank you God for blessing us with a second child so that I can feel confident to relish in the chaos. I am looking forward to more....

Corey 'vegging out"

Mother's Day

My first mother's day with two kids!  We had a wonderful day! It all started with Paul and Ashley bringing me breakfast in bed - coffee, yogurt with granola, a banana and toast with butter and jelly.  Ashley made me a flower out of her handprints and started to write Happy Mother's Day but stopped writing on the second "p" in happy.  So sweet!  We decided to go to lunch at Gourmet Burger Grill.  On Mother's Day all the Mom's got a free burger of their choice.  I got a crab cake burger and my favorite sweet potato fries.  YUM!!  Then we went to go miniature golfing.  This was Ashley's first time and she LOVED it.  Ashley wore one of her princess dresses and just looked adorable.  What a beautiful little girl she is!  We had a ball and I am so glad that the weather held up.  It was looking like it was about to downpour the whole time.

Video of Ashley Mini Golfing

Video of Mini Golfing 2
On our way home, we picked up chinese for dinner and just relaxed at home for the remainder of the night.  Ashley and I had ice cream sundaes for dessert and then once Ash went to bed, Paul and I relaxed with Corey in our bedroom watching old home videos of Ashley when she was a baby.  It was such a wonderful day and I had so much fun.

The day before, Paul gave me my gift.  It was so sentimental.  He got me a beautiful "treasure chest" to hold all of my children's future letters/artwork.  It was so sweet and he even wrote a letter "from the chest" to me.  I love it and I love my family.  Thanks so much Paul for making it so special.

My "treasure chest"

The note from the "treasure box"

Out and About

Yesterday, Paul and I decided we needed to get some fresh air, so we went down to Brackenridge Park to ride the train with Ashley and Corey.  It was a beautiful sunny day and we just had to take advantage of the weather.  The last time Ashley rode the train was when she was about 9 months old, so this was like it was the first time.  We had a ball!  Ashley just loved it!

Video of Ashley Riding the Train

After the train, we drove out to the Shops at La Cantera, San Antonio's outdoor mall, to walk around for a bit.  In the food court area, there is a tiny carousel and Ashley just loves it, so we took her to ride the carousel and a little fire truck.

Video of Ashley on the Carousel

There is an outdoor playground in the middle of the mall for the kiddos, and we took Ashley there for some playtime.  

She is such a character!

It was a great little afternoon, and we were really happy to be outside.  To top it off, Corey's last feeding was around 9:00pm last night and he slept until 5:00 this morning!!  Yay!  We have had a couple of really rough nights with next to no sleep, so this was a true blessing!!   I guess being outside was good for all of us!

One Month Old

Wow! Our little guy has been here for a month already!  I feel it has flown by but then other days it feels it's been longer - I guess its because we feel like he has always been here!  He just fits in so perfectly.  The photo above is him at one month old.  He is pictured next to the dog named "Little Bear" that Ashley made for him at Build A Bear Workshop.  I plan to take a photo of him sitting next to his Little Bear each month for his first year.

He makes the cutest sounds and grunts.  Its so funny.  Sometimes, when he is starting to get fussy, he makes this really loud scream that last for a second, and then just goes back to his little fussing noises.  It's hysterical.  It's easier to describe the sound in person, but harder to write!  Overall, Corey is a wonderful baby.  Believe me, he has his moments when we are up at night trying to get him to fall back asleep after a 3 hour stretch, or he has really bad gas pains and just can't get comfortable, or likes to spit up on me after I have just had a shower - but all in all, he is such a sweet boy, and these things just come with the joys of being a parent!

Sitting on his little football chair!

Ashley has just been an absolute doll with her brother.  She gets his binkie when he's crying, puts a blanket on him to keep him "worm" (that's how she says "warm") and talks to him to calm him down if he's upset "it's alright Corey, mommy will feed you her booby soon!"  hahaha, it's adorable! Below are some photos that captures the love and joy she feels towards her little brother.

Whatchu talkin' 'bout sister?  Don't you love the little cowboy hat!?

By the look on Corey's face it seems like he's saying, "Eeee, folks, this girl sure does like to talk!" :)

This was the first time she held him. We kept asking her if she wanted to hold him and she said "later." It took her over 3 weeks, but she asked to hold him and I could wait to snap a picture. :)

Ashley's Godmother, Aunt Terry, made Corey this quilt. She wanted to make a bed for her and Corey on the floor in his room with the blanket.

We have been keeping Ashley home with us after the first week he was born so we haven't really had a chance to visit with the Jaime Family!  We brought Corey and Ashley over for a visit last Monday and I got a picture of Judi with the kids.  We are so blessed to have her watching our children once we go back to work.  It gives us such peace knowing they are in such great care.

Judi in her element! :o)

We have had so many amazing visitors this month helping us by bringing us meals.  We have such wonderful friends and family and are so blessed to have all of you in our lives.  It means a lot to have friends and family who care for and love us.  Please know how much we appreciate your kindness.  It has been so wonderful.  And to top it off....man, you all are such great cooks!!

I'd like to close this entry with a sweet photo of Corey asleep in his crib for the first time.  We are still having him sleep in the bassinet in our room, but earlier this evening I laid him down in there to prepare a bath for him, but when I went back to get him for the bath, he just passed out!  I think he really likes it in there.  Goodnight everyone! Love all of you!

Grocery Store Adventure with Daddy

Earlier this week, Paul took Ashley for a quick trip to the grocery store to pick up some odds and ends.  Lately, Ashley has been playing with her little "play" grocery cart around the house so we thought it would be fun for her to bring it to the actual store and help Daddy shop.  Here is a quick video of their little adventure.

Grocery Shopping Adventure

First BIG outing!

On Friday, the 23rd we went to Sea World for the first time with BOTH kiddos! We had so much fun. We weren't prepared that the weather was going to be so hot, but all in all it was such a beautiful day to be outside. Ashley has been itching to go again so we thought this would be a great opportunity so spend the day together.

We went around lunchtime so we decided to grab lunch at the park. After eating we took Ashley to Shamu's Happy Harbor (little kid play area) and took her on the Shamu Rollercoaster for the first time! She was finally tall enough to ride. Paul took her first and then after loving it, she wanted me to go on with her. It was a blast and she was so excited! Here is a link to the video of her first ride with Daddy! Be sure to catch what she says at the end.

Shamu Roller Coaster Ride

Corey was soooo well behaved. He only got up once to feed and get a diaper change. Although, it was a very messy diaper change. The boy peed as I was changing him all over his outfit, and then decided that was an appropriate moment to do not only one, but two explosive projectile poops! It was quite a scene in the bathroom! :)

We got to see two shows - the Believe Shamu Show which featured a new baby killer whale swimming with its Mommy (which of course brought me to tears with all the extra Mommy hormones racing through my body), and the new Azul show which featured dolphins, beluga whales and acrobatic divers.

We topped off the day with some Dippin' Dots (my first time ever having Dippin' Dots - yummy!) and then headed home. It was so nice going out as a family of four. :)

The kiddos on our new Sit and Stand Stroller. Sooo awesome!!

Corey at his first Shamu show at Sea World.

The Baby Shamu next to it's Mommy. So sweet!

Paul, Ashley and Corey at the Shamu show.

Ashley and Mommy at the show. (ash has a mouthful of french fries!)