To Colorado...And Back Again

The last two weekends have been spent in Colorado at the cabin. Our intention was to go up there for a little relaxation...until we saw that high winds nearly ripped part of our metal roof off. So we spent the rest of the weekend compiling a list of things that we would need to fix the roof, clean the yard, wash the windows and other small projects. After a few quick nights back in ABQ, we headed back up to Colorado last weekend to get some things accomplished.
The highlight of our trip was Cienna's first outdoor potty experience. It is a 4 hour drive, and there are stretches of the trip that are nothing but land as far as the eye can see. Of course it was during one of these stretches that Cienna suddenly said that she had to go potty. We asked her if she could hold it. No dice. So we told her that we would pull over and she could go outside. This greatly confused her, as she could not comprehend "squatting" outside. To make a long story short, she peed like a pro....and then told us every 10 miles that she needed to use the potty outside again. We created a monster. (But I think it made Tony very proud!)


See...He Must Have Been Proud. He Took A Picture!


And Lots Of Pictures Of The Fabulous NM Scenery

We have had a great week in ABQ. Our shed and bathroom remodels are almost complete, the hauling business has picked up, and everyday we take time to thank God for all that we have. Tony has done an amazing job of balancing the fire department, his hauling and recycling responsibilities and family time. We even had a chance to take Cienna bowling for the first time!


The Family That Bowls Together, Stays Together

Today is AJ's 8 month b-day. In the last month he started sitting up on his own and CRAWLING! Now of course you can't stop the kid. He is crawling, sitting up, back to crawling, putting everything in his mouth and his newest "trick" is spitting his food out. Nice. The best part about it is that as your feeding him you don't know if the bite that you are giving him is going to go down the hatch or straight back out at your face. Keeps me on my toes. But I am happy to report that he is more adorable than ever.


Tony (AKA "The Baby Whisperer") with AJ = Man Bonding Time


Showing That He Has Mastered Sitting Up

Last but not least, I just had to share this picture of Cienna. She is now officially dressing herself and all I can say is that she must have gotten her sense of style from the Mazotti side of the family!


My Baby Runway Model

Hope that everyone has a great week!

Organ Donor

Well I am finally feeling like my old self. That is due in large part to the enormous amount of help that I received the last two weeks from my in-laws and my mom. Many, many thank yous to all three of you!
It was so nice to have "night nurses" to get up with AJ, change him and bring him to me. Ahhh...that was the life. I also had my night nurses feeding AJ breakfast, lunch and dinner, taking Cienna to the park and doing my laundry. I need to find another non-essential organ to have removed soon!
On another note, my spirited 3-year old continues to challenge me in new ways. My mom experienced this first hand, when she told me that she did not remember me being so opinionated and stubborn at only 3 years old. I immediately said "I TOLD YOU SO! I TOLD YOU SHE WAS MORE SPIRITED THAN MOST! (Ok, I didn't use the word spirited...) NO ONE BELIEVES ME! THEY JUST THINK THAT THIS IS NORMAL!" My mom agreed that she was quite a handful.

Argumentative? Check
Talks With Her Hands? Check
Uses The Word "Flippin" When Describing Things? Check

My mom thinks that she would make a perfect attorney. She has a way of re-phrasing the same question in multiple ways.
Cienna - "Mom, can I have some ice cream?"
Me- "No"
Cienna - "Mom, if I finish all of my dinner do you think that I could have a little dessert?"
Me - "We will see."
Cienna - "I want chocolate ice cream when I finish my dinner."
Me - "No one said that you were getting ice cream if you finished your dinner."
Cienna - "Well, I could have a different treat for dessert. How about chocolate Dippin Dots?"
Me - "Dippin Dots are ice cream!"
Cienna - "No they are not. They are little balls."

And so it goes. This is all day, every day, every conversation.


Notice Where The Stickers Are Missing From?

So now I sit and ask myself...do I need my spleen really? Does anyone happen to need a kidney next week? Because I could REALLY use the help!

Dr. 87104

I am officially gallbladder free! Wednesday morning the last thing that I remember was being told I was getting some "I Don't Care Medicine" and the next thing I knew I was being forced to wake up by a nurse that I wanted to punch in her face. Literally. I kept telling her that I was very angry and didn't want her to talk to me. I am sure that she loved me to pieces. There was only a minor complication during the surgery. Apparently one of the gallstones had already made it's way out of my gallbladder an into my intestine, partially blocking it. They flushed it out and hopefully my stomach issues will soon be solved. Tony arrived with Pops to pick me up. He brought me beautiful flowers. Awww.....



Wednesday night was not fun. I had horrible gas pain in my belly and chest and I no matter how much I walked around or how much water I drank I could not get any relief. I just tried to stay drugged so that I could sleep through the pain. Fortunately for me I had my in-laws and husband there to take care of me and the kids. Being forced to stay in bed was the best!

Thursday. No bueno.

Friday. No bueno.

Saturday. We celebrated Easter a day early because Tony had to leave for the fire station Sunday morning. The Easter bunny brought baskets and eggs for the yard.


The Baskets


Our Little Bunny Cienna


AJ Exhausted After Playing With His New Toys

The fam cooked a fabulous Easter dinner, which we all enjoyed. I enjoyed it until I didn't enjoy it the rest of the evening. It was about this time that I decided that I was never eating again.


Turkey Dinner

Did I mention how fab my in-laws are? My mother-in-law cooked, cleaned, took care of the kids, drove Cienna to her various activities, got up with AJ in the middle of the night and rubbed my feet every day. She is my BFF.


Mimi and AJ

And my father-in-law helped Tony build cabinets in our newly expanded "shed" in the backyard. Today, while Tony was at the firehouse, he finished putting doors on our fancy new storage area. It was a LOT of work. Thanks Pops!


Pops And His Masterpiece

Sadly tomorrow the in-laws leave...but my mom arrives to pick up my slack for the next week while I continue the recovery process. I am looking forward to another week of help with the kids, although I fear my foot rubs have definitely come to an end!