One Mother Rambling Through Life

Not only are we baby lovers we are also animal lovers at heart at my home. We have had several cats (we have had horrible luck with cats) and we have had dogs. We started with a beage (technically) named Buddy. He was the sweetest dog ever. He was an adorable stereotypical old english painting looking beagle with a smile on at all times and a zest for living. We had some difficulty housebreaking him. We had him for a couple of years but ended up having to give him away because we were apartmenting it and he needed open spaces. Beagles are space dogs they have been bread for backyards and farm living. These dogs have been raised through the years as great hunting dogs who are excellent on long hunts because they were not only great at tracking since they are hounds but they are also loving and friendly to their masters so they kept them warm on long nights out in the elements and buddy was just that. I loved that old dog. But he moved on to a home that not only had another beagle to feed the beagles social needs but was also a farm so he had room to run and play. I think he was my favorite dog EVER!



While had Buddy we got Spira. A cute kitten who was rescued from the street. Spira, named after the land that Final Fantasy X was set in, was lively and loving. This was Brad's favorite cat because she was sweet and played a lot like a dog would. she loved climbing the chairs and snuggling in bed. We had her a short time and she died one afternoon from I do not know what. I remember getting a call at work from a very emotional Brad that she had died. I came home early and we cried together and buried her in the backyard at Brad's dads place. I don't think Brad ever got over Spira's death 100%.



Still having Buddy after Spira's passing we got Angel. Angel was a first and third pet in a way because she was Brad and his Dad's dog prior to coming to live with us. She was taken to Brad's grandmother's to live for awhile but Brad's grandmother was not a young wisp of a thing any longer and could not take care of Angel and one of Angel's puppies Sissy that she had prior to taking Angel and her home reflected it smelling strongly of Dog urine and making any visiter feel like they smelled of Dog urine as well when they left. So we took Angel who loved hanging out with Buddy anyway. They enjoyed each others company and through a few more cats we had the two of them. Buddy and Angel were not fixed (our young stupidity there and Brad's reluctance to get either fixed because it went against God's order of things, he has since changed him mind there). Sooo Buddy knocked up Angel. Angel is a small terrior that is jet black. So we had terrior and beagle puppies who were adorable. They took on funky beagle personalities with a smaller stature. Angel delierved 9 live puppies that were as sweet as can be. We kept them, yes in our apartment, until they were old enough to be given away and we gave them all away to friends and a few to strangers. They were great fun except they pooped everywhere and were loud. My one expereince with puppies was fun and taught me that I did not want to go there again. After awhile at the same time that we gave buddy away we also drove Angel and one of the puppies to Florida. Angel was given to Brad's mother to keep her company. This turned out to be a great union because Brad's mother recently home and not working due to illness were a great pair with Angel keeping her company and even showing that she knew when Brad's mother was going to have an episode. Angel lives there still to this day.



With Angel and Buddy we got four other cats (not kittens) one died mysteriously, Snow who was ill jumped out the window and ran away, an orange cat went nuts and we returned him to his family of origin and they were relieved to get him back, and Rex was so heartbroken to loose the cat he grew up with and the family he had grown accustomed to that he lost the will to live and we tried to draw him out but he urinated on himself and hid under a table. After only a couple of days he died of starvation becuase he refused to eat. Had he lived we would have returned him as well. That was the last attempt at a cat in the apartment and we took a break from having pets for a little while.



When we moved to Texas and moved into my paretns rental home. While we were there we got Liono and Lucy. Two kittens fro the same litter. Shortly after bringing them home Lucy got ill and we gave her antibiotics nursing her back to health. Once she was healthy she took advatage of an open door and ran away. Liono stayed and we got him fixed. He was a cute tabby who loved cuddling and jumping on our tall bed. We thinnk something happened and that he was too active after his surgery because he mysteriously died one evening.



After getting married and moving into a house we got a great dog that was a mixed breed. Her name was Freckles and she was loving but very very energetic. Freckles was afraid of all men except Brad and would pee on herself when men came around. We think that she was abused as a puppy by a man. She lived with us for about three years. She was made an outdoor dog when we noticed that she not only shed long white hair like crazy but was not getting house borken and we worked 45 min away from home so we were gone 10 hours a day. She loved Stephen but never understood that she should not jump on him. She kept finding her way out of the yard so she could go visiting around the neighborhood. We fixed the fence several times but she would dig her way out. One day she never came home. We were not sure what happened to her but we decided to leave it at that. She was always good at coming home so we knew she was really gone when she did not.



During Freckles time with us we had Lily a cute Kitten given to us by one of Brad's friends parents. She was sweet and hung out with me while I was preggo with Stephen. She would sit on my belly and purr. She ended up having worms and was banished tot he workshop to get that worked out. When Stephen was born we brought her back into the house. Something with giving birth made me really allergic to her and I was brekaing out in hives and Stephen was allergic to her so we ended up giving her away to a nice loving family.



After Freckles ran away we adopted Squall. Squall was at the pound and was scheduled to die the next day. He is a huge Tabby who is sweet and pawed at us through the cage. Squall is a cat who gives hugs and loves cuddling. We adopted him got him fixed and declawed. He does not like Brad but he is my buddy. We have a morning routine where we I get up with Mahalia he gets his wet food for the day. He ollows me around purring and loving on me because he knows that it is time for his daily treat. He is my big baby.



Trying to draw Squall out of his hiding all day we got a small tabby kitten named Rinoa (formerly Whispers), On day one she was scared scared scared but Squall was just as scared of her. Out of fear she hissed at everything at all times. On day one she chased Squall hissing into a corner scaring him so badly that he pooped himself and then she scratched at him. On day two they avoided one another. On day three Squall figured out that he was bigger and that she was just loud and when she would hiss at him to bother her he would lay down while she was hissing at him and stare at her.

Woo Hoo! Today I got some of the best news! My step father who is the light of my kiddo's lives and is a very important part of my Mother's life of course is officially in remission. This is awesome news not only because well it is always good news but also we are only 2 treatments into the round of 6. He will finish up all 6 treatments but all of the scans show no baddness! Next week his application will be put in for stem cell transplants. This is a treatment that has shown a lot of positive results! This is exciting but it will mean 3 months of him being away from us in San Antonio which will be hard but all worth it if it helps. I really give this little triumph to the power of prayer. There has been a lot of prayers sent up to the big guy asking for Carlos to be healthy again. Prayer from family, friends, co-workers, the church family, and many many many prayer trees were lit up for this one. But we are happy and relieved to say that we are seeing the light now. Never doubt the power of a well placed prayer. Gotta love things that prove this quote from Matthias accurate: "Sometimes it seems like God is difficult to find and impossibly far away. We get so caught up in our small daily duties and irritations that they become the only things that we can focus on. What we forget is that God's love and beauty are all around us, every day, if only we would take the time to look up and see them."

Okay so for the longest time I really thought that Mom's who went out to clubs or bars were a little less than cool. I am being honest. I was a little uniformed I think. With Stephen I never ever went out to clubs or went out drinking with my friends. I would have GNO weekly and we would go to dinner or make dinner and watch a movie. Simple. Fun. It was okay. But I did that weekly. After I had Mahalia I was dying to get out and do something that was not the same ole same ole thing. So I went O-U-T with the girls for my friends 21st b-day. Woot! It was a blast! I loved getting out drinking a little and dancing. (Disclaimer: I do not condone drinking and driving you should always find a DD or take a cab) So a few weeks later I went out with the girls again and man I loved it. It was not about being seen really but about seeing life and living. I love danicing with my girl friends and laughing about the interesting things that you see when you are out! What a rush! Now I am going out with my girls about once a month and at the most twice (only when there is a special occasion). So with this change I am having a blast with my girls but also getting more time with my babies and hubby. So it is a win win! Look at my fun pics in a slideshow below!

Here we go... A ton of photos of life in general from Mahalia's birth until well now. Enjoy the journey! They are not in any particular order.

To swaddle or not to swaddle that is the question.
Tis better to have arms restrained or arms out.

I am not sure. Stephen slept in a swaddle for the first 7 months of his life. There was no issue really. He started rolling over in his sleep in his swaddle at 7 months which is when we transitioned to not being swaddled. Mahalia started flipping over in her swaddle at 3 months. So here I was not ready to have her sleep unswaddled but her not being able to sleep in her bed because she had no arms to move herself out of the mattress. So we had her sleeping in her swaddle in her swing for a few weeks. But she then started rolling over in her swaddle in her swing. Grrr. Okay okay no swaddle and in the bed not swing. We transitioned this week which was difficult for me. She just started a growth spurt that has her not sleeping through the night again so I am dragging for now. What to do but ride it out. One day she will get back to sleeping through the night.

We have been successfully cloth diapering at home which is awesome. The daycare did not agree to cloth diaper, sore subject for me no matter what the reasons are. But at home we are doing the BG 3.0 and loving em. We have plenty of diapers and they are easy easy to use. We bought some new and some used on the swapping websites. You can't really understand the idea of buying used unless you have been cding because it is so foreign and sounds gross (I know I have been there). But it is perfectly safe and save a bundle when stocking a good stash. We have used two different detergents on our dipes. Sudzy Baby which I loved and now Rockin' Green. Sudzy Baby we had some issues with the stocking times and website difficulties plus the scenting they use is crystals that don't all go away when the wash is completed. It was driving Brad nuts, which I understand, so we switched to Rockin' Green which had a ton of great interviews. The first Rockin' Green experience was not what I expected because I expected quicker turn around on the order but due to new packaging, new location, new formula, and new equipment there were bugs to be worked out. The product is AWESOME! The scents are AWESOME! All of the product is natural and it all is gone after the wash. To come will be a slideshow of my Rocking a soak with Rockin' Green process.

Mahalia is close to crawling and should be really going any day now. As it is she gets up on her hands and knees and rocks LOL! Blazin to catch up to Stephen. Stephen loves his sister and often tries to comfort her when she is crying. They are an adorable pair of rascals growing more and more as the days pass. So here we are. Four person family with a lot of growing room and a lot of time to grow.

Wow things got crazy and here I am month and months later. Baby is here YAY! Mahalia was born on december 21st, 2009 exactly 2 yrs and 6 months after Stephen who was born on June 21, 2007. Strange! She is healthy and happy.

People always tell me not to worry becasye 2nd babies are generally slower to talk walk etc. LOL they are slower when the older sibling is interested int hem and will bring them things and talk for them... Stephen is so busy with his own little life that he does not try to talk for Mahalia and he is not bringing her anything. So she is driven to get to things on her own. She is almost crawling now but even without the word crawling she is definetly getting where she wants to be without any issues. LOL I would love for her to have taken some time to be still but she has places to go. She is so much fun to watch!