Princess Says...

"My birthday is coming on!  My birthday is coming on!"
Mommy says: "It is?!  I had no idea!"
Princess says: "Uh-huh."
Mommy says: "Really? When is it?"
Princess says: "It's Friday.  My birthday is Friday."

We celebrated her 2nd birthday almost three weeks ago.

I have no idea where she's getting this from.  I played along anyway.

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Silly Face

Princess loves making people laugh.  Whenever she makes her silly face, she has everyone in stitches.  Sometimes a good laugh is all you need to brighten your day.  Hope this video helps!


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Running Loose

Once Princess got on to the field, she couldn't contain herself. At one point she runs into the camera and almost wipes out.  Sometimes you gotta let the kiddos run loose.  She wore herself out and slept like an angel later on.

A Quiet Homecoming

Princess is usually knocked out when I get home. But, wakes up within a half hour of my arrival. It's like her body is in-sync with mine!

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Bye Bye!

Princess decided to do some research for her latest daycare project.  She was obviously so focused that she didn't want mommy around.

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Pulling A Fast One on Grandma

My baby girl is full of surprises!  I found out from my mom that she turned on the dishwasher!  I couldn't believe it, when I got the phone call.  My mom said she turned around for a second, when Princess hit the on button.  The funny thing is that Grandma didn't notice the machine was on until after she got Princess's dinner ready.  She immediately called me at work to find out how to turn the machine off.  That didn't work because I had no idea know how to work the darn thing.  (I still do dishes 'ol school style. I may be behind on the times, but not behind on the bills).

Anyway, my baby girl pulled a fast one on grandma.

It's amazing how much she can do and how much she can say.  After breakfast this morning she said "up, up!"  She wouldn't stop until I took her out of the high chair.  Right now, we're working on the words, "please" and "thank you."  Before you know it, she'll be saying all kinds of things.  Hey, maybe she can even help with the dishes!

Please share your funny and amazing baby stories!

Fighting Addiction

In Jamaica we call it soother (pronounced soo-da). But in the U.S, I've heard it referred to as a binky, bo-bo, boo-boo, nukie, bah-bah, paci. There are so many ways to say pacifier.  Despite these cute names, I've never been a fan.  It's like crack, babies become addicted to them.  It's just another thing to eventually wean them off of, which could be pretty tedious.  In fact, I made a decision early on to avoid it all together. 

But as Princess got older, teething took over.  Those of you who have been through the teething process with your little ones know exactly what I'm talkin' about.  My Princess would drool so much and her gums would become so irritated.  She was cranky 90 percent of the time.  The only way for her to get relief was to put everything in her mouth.  I figured teething toys would put her at ease.  But, it was a temporary fix and she grew tired of them.  Her teacher at daycare as well as some family friends insisted that a pacifier would do the trick.  I was extremely resistent, but later gave in at almost eight months.  I convinced myself that she wouldn't get hooked.  Boy was I wrong.

The pacifier was a saving grace for her teacher because nap time was no longer a major issue.  My hubby loved it too.  He's been able to put her to bed at night with no problems.  The pacifier didn't just sooth her, it soothed us too.  It also helps when we go out for family dinners.

 
We went out to get a bite to eat the other day.  The pacifier calmed her down while we waited to be served.  But, at some point during dinner it went missing.  My hubby and I didn't realize it until we got home.  Luckily she had another one, so she was able to fall asleep just fine later that night.  Fast forward to the following day.  Like every morning, she ate breakfast and we played around a bit.  When it came time for her to nap, the other pacifier disappeared and she wasn't havin' it.  I tried everything!  Just look at her!

She fussed and cried for what seemed like an eternity, refusing to go to sleep.  Instead of her early afternoon nap, she wanted to file some papers away for her mama.  Hey, who needs a house keeper, when you have a little helper?!  My little Princess did a fantastic job!  She was so excited!

She then decided to organize daddy's contact lenses.

She worked up an appetite from all that hard work.  But, it also wore her out.  So much so that she fell asleep after snack time.

My Princess didn't even need her paci!  But just when I thought I had a light bulb moment, look what I found hiding in my Madela pumping bag.

Now it's back to square one.  I hope to wean her off pretty soon, she getting so big.  I would love to know your thoughts on pacifiers.  Do you love or hate 'em?  Is your child addicted?  Please share!  I'm all eyes!

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Another Baby On the Way!?

As you already know, I am a proud mama of one.  But it seems like every time I get together with friends I'm asked the question, "When are you having baby number two?"  Yikes!  I've always loved kids and I've always wanted to be a mom.  But, I have to admit that it's a lot of work.  Having my baby girl is like having a tribe sometimes!  It can be tough but my hubby and I love parenting, and we love her.

Now all this talk of baby number two has got me thinking, It would be nice to have another little one.  I wonder what he or she will look like.  I was surfing the web and came across this cool site, morphster.com, entered our pics and like magic our baby boy appeared!!!  I almost fell out of my chair laughing when this face popped up.  My co-worker said "it's a face only a mother would love!"

Then I decided to morph our faces again to see what our second baby girl would look like.  Check it out!

 Pretty cool, huh?!!  Our baby boy looks kinda cute in an old man sort of way.  Our little girl looks a little scary though.  I think it's pretty funny how they both look Asian.  They have my eyes!  My hubby and I talk about having more babies all the time.  We can agree that we want to give all of our time and energy to our little Princess.  Maybe someday we'll have another, but just not now.  In the meantime, I'll have fun dreaming about the possibilities of our next bundle of joy.

Jamin' To Vintage Whitney With My Princess

If you ask anyone who my favorite singer was growing up besides Michael Jackson of course, they'd tell you Whitney Houston.  My family couldn't afford cable back in the day, so the only time I was able to see her music videos was when I visited my cousins on Long Island.  We also had all her cds and on weekends I would jam out to all her songs, especially "How Will I Know."  Ask any of my siblings and they'd tell you I was obsessed and would sing all of her songs all throughout our apartment.

Years later I still can't pass up a chance to jam out to some vintage Whitney.  My hubby and I took our little Princess to the mall.  I saw a big sale sign hanging outside of Baby Gap and decided to check it out.  Once we were inside, I heard one of my favorite Whitney songs and couldn't help bustin' a move with my little one and she thoroughly enjoyed it.  I'm sure there were some workers and customers who thought we were bonkers, but who cares.  We had fun!  Check it out!  

Side bar:  I know I look a hot mess, so please be nice.

OMG!!! My Little Princess Went Missing!!

I never thought in a million years, I'd misplace my own child!  I searched everywhere to find her!  After hours upon hours, here's where she turned up!

I found her wondering around in this field of beautiful flowers and as always, she was all smiles!  Wait, before you go calling the authorities on me, I'm only kidding!  I was actually messing around with Photoshop.  It's amazing at all the things you can do!

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Still Suffering From Mommy Brain

When I was preggers, I did and said things that may have given off the vibe that I was a total space cadet.  Some may refer to it as "Mommy Brain."  It's said that expectant moms go through a stage of forgetfulness during their pregnancy which should improve after birth.  One journalist even wrote a book about how motherhood improves our memory.  It seems like my brain is still having a bit of trouble retaining information.  Like any other weekday, I woke up and got my little one ready for daycare.  It was Pirates and Princess day, so I dressed her in this cute ensemble she got from her Godmama Tiff.  Despite early morning rain, sunny and warm weather took over in the afternoon.  So, I couldn't pass up taking a quick pic.

Before heading off to work, I dropped my little Princess off at daycare.  I was running a little behind because of our impromptu mini photo shoot.  I made it in to work with a couple of minutes to spare.  I did the usual afternoon greeting, put my bags down, and placed my lunch in the refrigerator.  Just as I got ready to sit down and log into my computer someone said, "Stacy-Ann, your not supposed to be hear, you have a day off."  I said, "Word?"  I couldn't believe it!  I had no idea I had a scheduled day off!  What was I thinking?  I guess I wasn't really thinking because I've had so much on my mind these last few days.  I didn't want it to be a total waist of a day, so I decided to stop by my hubby's job which is only like five minutes away.  I figured I could stop by for a little while and leave before rush hour.  I must have been there about 45 minutes, when someone shouted, "It's raining!"  I looked outside and it was raining cats and dogs with thunder and lightning to go along with it.  It was coming down so hard that the umbrella my hubby was holding over our heads did absolutely nothing to keep us dry.  I would have taken a pic of us, but my iphone would have drowned!

By the grace of God I found the expressway and headed toward home.  On my way, I noticed that some highways were transformed into streams and were almost impassable.  I arrived at my daughter's daycare within 2 hours.  Then reached my front door about a half hour later.  It took me more than twice the normal commute time, not including picking up my little one.  What an insane day!  I took this video clip while waiting at a red light.  Princess didn't seem phased by this wicked weather because she fell asleep.  You can hear thunder and see lightning in this clip.  It was pretty intense.

I've read that a woman's memory improves after giving birth.  But, clearly mine hasn't.  Not only did I forget that I had the day of from work, I forgot my own forecast!

Sleep Conundrums

I always knew that having a baby meant giving up a lot.  My hubby and I have restructured our lives ever since our little Princess came into the world.  It's something we do willingly because we want to be there for our baby girl.   We may happily decline an invite to a social event just so we can spend time with her.  But, the one thing I must say we reluctantly give up is sleep.  For the first few months, it was a nightmare which is typical.  I don't think I got more than a couple of hours of sleep a night while on maternity leave.  By the time I was ready to head back to work her sleeping habits improved tremendously.  People would ask me all the time if she slept through the night and I'd say "yep."  Everyone was so shocked!  I thought I was blessed to have a baby who didn't wake up in the middle of the night.  Then teething started.  Need I say more?

She went from sleeping through the night to not lasting two hours without waking up.  I could rip my hair out!  I've blogged about her teething conundrums before.  I actually think that old school remedy might have worked.  But, now she refuses to sleep through the night.  She fights to sleep both at night and day. When she finally gives in, she nods off everywhere except the crib.  It's quite comical, but walking around like a zombie at work isn't.  

I know it's only temporary and it will get better.  But, jeez louise...

She sleeps in her bassinet for an hour tops.

Sometimes going ol' school with barriers around her does the trick.

She sometimes dozes off in her highchair after eating.

When I'm not in bed with her, she'd rather sleep in her carrier.

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Just For Giggles

I always have my camera in hand to capture cute shots of my little Princess.  She is always up to something.  Check out this cute video of her falling asleep, while trying to escape the highchair.