Pretty in pink

Milli is now 4 weeks old. WOW! Time has flown by. I just can't believe that it has already been 4 weeks since we have Milli in our home. Dave and I have both said that it feels like we have had Milli forever. She has been a really good baby, with the exception of a few late nights. She is a good little eater and has started to fill our her long little body. She is a big sleeper and doesn't like to be awake for very long. Last night was the first time she smiled at me. She almost made me cry. Her blue eyes had such a sparkle and her toothless grin was the most precious thing I have ever seen. I can't believe how much love I felt for her at that very moment. What a precious gift we have in our home! We just love her.

Nothing to do....

Yeah right! I could write a book on all the things I have to do around the house and out of the house as well... but the kids need me more than usual today, so for a fun time we made some cupcakes. They were so excited that they watched the cupcakes bake for the first 5 minutes or so. We made purple cupcakes for Leah with red and blue food coloring in the mix and "blue" cupcakes for Mylo. (Mylo's cupcakes were actually green because we used a yellow cake mix... he liked them just the same). After the cupcakes cooled we decorated. It was fun and a bit messy... all in all we had a great time. I love making messes with the kids I just wish someone else would clean up for me.

Now who will be the recipients of these delicious treats? Not sure... but Mylo wants to give them to his friends "the Robots", I am not sure who that would be.

Last day of school!

AHHH!!! Its the last day of school for Leah. I can't believe it. Her pre-school teacher has been wonderful. Miss Melanie seems to have a true love for her little students. Leah has really enjoyed her and the time at school. Although the other day she said, "I am tired of school, its hard work". I had to laugh a little... but I told her that was her "job for now, that she needs to learn".

Today, the pre-school class put on a show for the parents. Dave, Mylo, Milli and I went to watch Leah. They presented "Goldilocks and The Three Bears". It was really cute. Leah has been talking about it for a few weeks now and this morning she practiced her part to us. She was the mama Bear. During the play she had to "cook" some porridge... it was fun to see her "pretend" and watch them do their lines. The kids also sang a few songs to us and got a "diploma". After the program and goodbyes we celebrated by going to lunch at Fire House Pizzeria with Adelaide, Lily and Tiffany.

The Pre-school class. Leah is in the middle front row.

Mama Bear, Papa Bear (Brandon) and Baby Bear (Bridger)

Singing a song about some fish in a pond

Leah and Miss Melanie. Leah gave her one of the favorite books "Pinkalicious" a long with a gift certificate to get more books.

It has been a joy to watch Leah learn so much this last year. She has been learning to read few words and its really amazing to me how fast she has grown up. I look forward to the years ahead. She is such a fun little girl and very outgoing...not sure where she got that from ;)

Great job Leah. We are proud of you!

Homemade Cars!

I have been wanting to make these "cars" with the kids for a while now. I had mentioned it to Leah, which was a mistake since she doesn't forget anything any more, so today we finally did it. The cars are made from filing cardboard boxes, we made the tires out of the lid of the box, and the stirring wheel is a plastic plate. We painted them and added lights with card stock. Over all very easy, fast and fun. I really enjoy doing crafty "projects" with the kids and for now Leah really enjoys it as well. Mylo is getting around to enjoying it but is not very patient. The bad part about doing crafty projects with three kids... one is always crying, in this case poor Milli was very sad... so we rushed through it. It was still fun to create something out of things we already had at home.

Black Bean Brownies

Crazy name but really easy to make and GOOD!



Ingredients:

1 Can Black Bean rinsed and drained
1 Box Brownie Mix

Directions:

* Place beans back into can and add water, then puree in blender
* Add pureed bean to brownie mix. Beans replaces the eggs and everything else but the mix.
* Pour batter in greased 9X9 pan
* Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes

I garnished with powder sugar and strawberries. The kids LOVED these brownies and NOBODY could tell that they had beans in them. It lowers the fat TREMENDOUSLY and adds fiber and protein to an already yummy treat. Give it a try and let me know what you think... good or bad, I would love the feedback.

ENJOY!

TIP: When cutting any brownies use a plastic knife so it doesn't stick and "tear" the brownies apart. I am not sure where I learned that but it really works.

(Thanks Karalee for sharing this one with me)

Cinnamon Cake

I love this cake! Its so yummy that I wanted to share.

Ingredients:

Yellow cake mix
Lrg. box instant vanilla pudding
3 tbs. flour
4 eggs
3/4 cups milk
1/2 cup oil
1 cup sour cream (I use fat free)

Sugar Mixture:

5 tbs. sugar
5 tsp. cinnamon

Directions:

* Make sugar mixture and set aside
* Mix remaining ingredients in a large bowl until well combined. Batter will be thick.
* Grease bundt cake pan or two loaf pan.
* Dust generously with about 1/2 or sugar mixture
* Add 1/2 of batter into the pan and sprinkle remaining sugar mixture over top.
* Add other 1/2 of batter and spread if necessary
* Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean

This is a very easy cake to make and its very moist. Enjoy!

Happy B-day Esteban!!!!

Feliz Cumple SSSS-teban! I hope you have a great day. You are a great brother and I love you. I appreciate your example in so many ways. I love to watch you play with your kids and see how happy they are because of you. I love to watch you play with Mylo and he LOVES it! You have always been so much fun and make us laugh a ton. You deserve so much and I hope you get it all. You are the best!

Happy B-day! We love you!

Field Trip to the Park

Leah LOVES going on field trips with her Pre-school class. Really, Mrs. Melanie has been excellent and we have really enjoyed everything she has done with Leah and the other kids. Its amazing how much Leah has learned this year. They recently have started to recognize (read) some simple words and I am amazed at Leah's progress this year. She will have her Pre-school graduation next Tuesday so I will hold off until then.

This week they went on a "field trip" to Bountiful Park. They had a great time and it was fun to see what good listeners they are to Mrs. Melanie and to see them play with the kids in the class. Leah has been going to pre-school with Adelaide, one of her best friends (that what she calls her) and they have both taken a liking to this little boy named Brandon. Teacher says that he is a very nice kid and that a lot of the girls in the class like him. Anyway, he is a cute boy and I was excited to see him and put a face to the name. Kids are so cute in the things they do and say... I love it!



They had potato sack races, they played with the parachute and in the play ground. Yeah for Mrs. Melanie being a great teacher!

(Yeah for Sarah sharing the info on how to do this picture montage. Thanks!)

Happy 3rd Birthday Mylo!!!

Happy B-day Mylo-Pylo! We love you so much! You are a joy to have in our family. Three years ago when you arrived in the world you brought the sweetest spirit with you. You have added so much to our family and for that we will always be grateful. These are some things we love about Mylo... just to name a few... because there are way too many to mention.


10 things Daddy loves about you:

1. I love your big boy sentences
2. I love to watch you on your skateboard
3. I love your eyelashes
4. I love that you are always stocked to see your friends
5. I love it when you put your shoes on the wrong feet
6. I love your face when you know the "toy grinch" is coming
7. I love that you think you made the giant hole in my office
8. I love it when you play nicely with Leah
9. I love your fake laugh
10. I love your "boxters"


10 things Mommy loves about you:

1. I love your playfulness
2. I love your cross-eyed face
3. I love that you love EVERYTHING about daddy and want to be just like him
4. I love that you have color coded all of us (Dave - Blue guy, Lau - Yellow guy, Leah - Green guy, Mylo - Red guy, Milli - Purple guy, and Abuela - Orange guy)
5. I love to hear you laugh when you are watching a movie
6. I love it when you are scared of something and cover your eyes with your hands but peek through your fingers... its so cute!
7. I love it when you hold my cheeks with your hands and say "Your beautiful mom"
8. I love to hear you say "I love you"
9. I love to hear you "read" with us. You are such a good little talker
10. I love that you have always been able to joke around with us


10 things Leah loves about you:

1. I love your funny words like "Ganka"
2. I love that you are SO SO SO Adorable
3. I love that you like to play with me
4. I love that you do funny and silly things
5. I love how you dance
6. I love your coocoo eyes
7. I love it when you do whatever I say
8. I love it when you say "I want to eat bananas"
9. I love it when we look at stars together and see the big dipper
10. I love that you love your whole family!


10 things Abuela loves about you:

1. I love your hands and how you move them
2. I love your sparkly eyes
3. I love your gestures
4. I love your sense of humor
5. I love to see you jump and run, always so bouncy
6. I love your pretend mad face
7. I love to see you put your head in the water like you are a fish
8. I love it when your pants are falling off and you pull them up by yourself
9. I love that you follow Leah around
10. I love your facial expressions

We obviously love Mylo! He is such mellow kid yet he wouldn't let anyone run all over him. He is a smart little kid with much to offer. As he struggles the last few weeks to "fit" in again after Milli's arrival, he continues to be the sweetest thing ever! He loves to be a helper as most kids do at this age. He loves books and appears to be a quick learner. He recognizes many letter and can count to 12. He makes up his own "songs" and makes us laugh EVERY day. We are SO blessed to have you in our life... You are the BEST!!!

Another One Gone!

Leah's second tooth has been loose for a long time. The permanent tooth had already started to come out and we could see it behind her baby tooth. We have been bugging her to loosen it more and more every day. I had just talked to our dentist about maybe having to pull it. My brother Marcos tried pulling it a few days ago, with no success. I tried several times and I was too chicken to pull it out. Dave tried once also, Leah tried everyday but not very hard. Abuela was successful after she tied it with a string. It came out with no problem, just a few tears from Leah. After arriving home from a date with Dave we were welcomed by a crying Leah. Her second tooth has finally come out, with a little help from Abuela. She looks so different with out her tooth and she has a bit of a lisp now, but I think its cute. She was excited to put her tooth in her little tooth treasure box, that she decorated herself, and even more excited to see what the Tooth Fairy would put in its place. She got 4 quarters and nothing made her happier this morning.

My "twothless" princess.

Date Night

Dave and I haven't gone on a date for a while, so it was time. Thanks to Abuela always being so willing to watch the kids at any given time. We know that they will be fed, bathed, the house will be cleaned up and everything will be just fine if she is watching the kids. I didn't do anything fancy. We got some Coldstone and headed up to North Canyon park. When Dave and I were dating we went there one night and talked for hours. It was a great time then as it was last night. It was fun to get out of the house for a while and enjoy each others company. The only bad part... it was a little cold and we were not dressed appropriately for the chilly night. We enjoyed the sunset and really it was wonderful. I love hanging out with Dave we have good laughs and he is a great guy. Of course I took a few pictures... Enjoy!


Ok, not my best picture but still a fun memory.


I had to put this on here. Dave kept complaining about being too cold. We only had one blanket to share and it was not enough. He said he was used to it since he has to fight for the covers every night. He said this is what he has to go through every night... yeah right! He is lucky to have that much blanket...This was a really good time and a very cheap date.

Little Chef

Every once in a while I like to have the kids help me bake. Well, today was one of those days. I asked Mylo is he wanted to be mom's helper to make dinner. We had breakfast for dinner. He got his green stool, his chef hat and apron and was ready to help out. He washed the strawberries, poured the milk and eggs in to the blender and helped set the table. We make pop-up pancakes (I got the recipe straight out of one of my favorite websites MakeandTakes.com). It was SO easy and fun to make. They are super yummy. I had never tried these before and I can't wait to make them again. Here's the recipe and a few pictures of my Little Chef in action. YUM!!!

Pop-up Pancakes
makes 24 muffins

* 1 cup milk
* 1 cup flour
* 6 eggs
* 1/4 cup melted butter
* dash salt
* Preheat oven at 400*

Blend all the ingredients in the blender. Then grease muffin tins. Grease generously so they come out easily when done. Bake them for 15 minutes, or until puffy and golden on top. Use a knife to pry them out, hopefully they were greased well enough and should pop right out. Then top with your favorite topping. We used strawberries, banana, honey, syrup, powder sugar and whip cream. I also added some about a tablespoon of sugar to the mix and a teaspoon of vanilla. They are SO yummy!!!

Little Chef in action. He said his name was Remy.


MMMM!!! So yummy! Mylo and I do good work together. It was fun to make these with him he was a good little sous chef.

Make-up Artist

Leah asked me to paint her toes and finger nails earlier in the day. I told her that when Mylo and Milli were sleeping I would love to do it. While she got all dolled up and her mini manicure and pedicure done we were watching "What Not to Wear" and later watched "10 Years Younger". When we finished she went to play, after about 3 minutes she comes back and says "Mom? Can we make my face beautiful too?".

I knew exactly what was coming. I said, "what do you mean?".

Leah - "What do you call people that put make-up on your face?"

Me - "Make-up artist"

Leah - "What about a boy?"

Me - "Make-up artist, its the same thing"

Leah - "What about weird boys?" I am not sure where she got that "term" but I thought it was cute... "Can we play that you are MY make-up artist?"

It was so cute I had to say yes. I let her pick what color she wanted on her eyes (she said dark purple), she wanted some blush, lip stick, and I curled her eye lashes. Then we brushed her hair and she posed for a picture. She said, "can I go play outside today? I promise I won't get dirty". Well, that only lasted a few hours but still she had a great time getting all dolled up. I love that she is so girly.

Mother's Day Love....

For mother's day Dave did the usual and let me sleep in, well, as much as Milli would allow of course. He took care of the kids by giving them breakfast... as he usually does. Really I am pretty spoiled by him almost every day. I hardly ever wake up with the kids... Its great! When I finally got up and went upstairs I was greeted by very sweet kids wishing me a Happy Mother's Day, flowers on the table along with a card (handmade by Leah) lots of sweetness inside as well. I felt so loved and appreciated by them all. Dave bent over backwards for me and that was very sweet... Next year I will make sure he gets the "breakfast in bed" memo.



I love being a mom its the best thing EVER! These kids can be a handful at times but I love every good, bad, challenging thing that they bring; its so rewarding! I LOVE THEM!!!

Very LOOOOONG Nights!

Milli is still a big sleeper during the day and is still very hard to wake up to feed. She just likes to sleep... DURING THE DAY! She has become a bit colicky during 1-5am and is up almost all that time. I know this will soon pass but honestly... can't she be colicky during the day?!?!? She has been sleeping in our room and everything was fine but now she needs me to put her binki in every 2 minutes, I burp her time and time again, I feed her even though she ate 2 hours ago. Then Dave takes a turn at burping her and giving her the binki or rocking her. I give her gas drops and now I have started Gripe water. I am just not sure what is going on with this kid! i know she is eating enough since she is growing just fine. She seems to be very content, at least during the day. To top last night off, Leah woke up at 2am and had thrown-up. So, we had to take care of her and change the sheets and clean up and do laundry in the middle of the night. I thought something she ate had not agreed with her but today she has thrown-up two more times since arriving home from school. She has a slight fever and is SUPER tired. My "nap-time" was spent cleaning up the floor and keeping the kids happy, instead of sleeping. Yeah, for Dave coming home early and helping relieve some of the stress. At least the floors are clean and all three kids are taking a nap right now. I really don't like the colicky stage or having sick kids but I know that is will be over soon. Still I love my life!!! I wouldn't change it for anything... i would only change the very looooong nights!

Two MOMs I love!

My mom has always loved doing things with our kids. Here is Leah and Abuela making some goodies.

I have been blessed to have great women who have influenced my life in many ways. Particularly, my mom has had one of the biggest influences. She has taught me so many things. She is a great example of serving others before yourself. She has taught me how to clean, even though I hated it when I was a young girl, I certainly appreciate it now. I will never be as clean and tidy as she is but I most definitely try to keep up with my house as my mom did for us. She taught me how to cook, this I have always enjoyed. I learned about different cultures and how to appreciate them and their people. I have so many fun memories with my mom. The other day I was sharing with Leah and Mylo one of the things my sister, Tomi, and I used to do to my mom. We would pretend to look at the clock and say "Do you know what time it is?" my mom would immediately start running because she knew we were about to pin her down and give her "sito sussones". She didn't love this kisses but she loved to fight for it. This was/is one of my favorite memories with my mom and sister. Leah and Mylo "pinned" my mom down (with my help) and continued on this tradition. It was a good laugh.


This is an old picture. Karen, Leah and I went to visit Sarah in California Aug of 2003. Leah was SO tired she fell as sleep on grandma.

My mother-in-law has also been an influence in the short time I have known her. She is a great lady. Also crafty with her hands, she has always done some sort of cross-stitch or knitting. She is very talented. She has mostly influenced my life due to the manner in which she raised her son, my husband. She is a mother of a large family and Dave once told me "my mom never made soup from a can". I know she is better than me and that is why I love her!

I love these two women they are a great part of my life. I am grateful for them and what they have done for me and my family. I also love all the other women young and old that have influenced my life. To all of you....

... Happy Mother's Day!

Leah got pierced!

When Leah was a baby I wanted to pierce her ears. Dave was totally against it so, we never did. Leah has been asking about her ears being pierced for a while now and after I told Dave that two of his nieces got their ears pierced recently and that Leah wanted hers done also, he agreed to let us do it. So off we went today. I figured we should do it before Leah chickened-out. Check out Leah's face just before they actually did it! She didn't cry or anything like that. She is a tough cookie so long as she doesn't have to get a shot. All day she was excited about it and wanted to call her friends and family. I told her that her ears sparkle just like her eyes do. She's pretty excited about and so am I!

Excited, scared or very nervous?


I am not sure what she is thinking but I can only imagine!
"Should I do this?"

Milli's 1st Week!

Milli has been home with us for a week now and I can not complain. She has been a pleasure to have around. We feel so blessed to have her in our family. So far she sleeps a lot, maybe even too much. After arriving home from the hospital we had to take her to get her billi checked; it was high but not high enough for lights. So after putting her in the sun and making her eat every three hours I thought she would start being more alert and awake. Well, she continued to be a sleepy little stinker. It was taking so long for me to wake her up that finally by Friday I got worried and took her in to the doctor to make sure that nothing was wrong with her and that the billi had totally been "cured". I was also worried about her eating habits as she is fine to eat every 4+ hours. I am sorry but I need her to eat a little more frequently. This was my first outing with all three kids, not so bad. They weighed her and the little "chancho" (spanish for pig) is well over her birth weight. She is weighing 8lbs 1oz.! I was shocked! Obviously she is getting plenty to eat. She has gained 11oz. since Monday. Usually they want the baby to be at their birth weight by 2 weeks and Milli has already passed it!!! YEAH for me and her! I feel so much better about everything. She is growing and is really an easy going child, I'm sure that will change as she continues to develop her personality. Regardless, we are so happy to have her here. I look forward to the months ahead. The kids have been super sweet to her and always want to give her hugs and kisses. Dave loves having her around as well and is a very sweet dad. I love to see him with his kids, it truly melts my heart. I am so happy!!!


If you click to enlarge the picture you can see her eyes better. Her eyes seems to be blue, we still have some time to see what color they will really be but my guess is blue. I hope they stay that way.

I love spring!

I have decided that spring might just be my most favorite season. So many great things happen in the spring. For one we can have a cool breeze through the house and the weather is just perfect outside. The trees bloom, the flowers start to grow, the earth looks so green and beautiful. Its just easier to get up and go. The kids finally get to play outside. The kids have had a great time playing outside the last few days and I have really enjoyed it as well. Milli has enjoyed the warm weather, as she just lays in her bassinet under the warm sun and I am pretty sure she is loving it. Dave got some yard work done and we had Nicholas and baby Ax over as well. I feel so well that I wish I could go out and play too. Here are a few pictures of the kids enjoying the recent good weather (of course now its not so sunny).

Mylo playing with the water table. He could play for hours.


Leah and Mylo. I love it when they play well together, it makes me smile!


Mylo and Nicholas also loving the warm weather.


Baby Ax. This kid is always smiling. He is so fun!


Milli LOVING the warm sun. She looks so tiny and she has already changed so much!

The FULL Story...

First of all thank you to all of you who called, visited, watched my kids, brought goodies and prayed for us during the last few days. Your prayers were felt and very appreciated.

Thursday morning I woke up at 5 a.m. and had to wait until 6 to call LDS Hopsital to make sure they had room for me to go in and get induced. They told me to be there by 7:30. Dave and I got everything ready and left... I must admit I was a bit nervous for what was ahead but VERY excited about the whole thing. When we got there they were ready for us and I had a wonderful nurse, Liz. I quickly informed her that I was going to have a natural birth, meaning with out an epidural, and she quickly said great, I will help you with whatever you need. So I was very pleased with that. She got the IV going and then the wait started... It was VERY SLOW for the first 5 hours. I was progressing very slowly. The contractions were strong and I had to use some of my hypno/relaxation methods to work through them. Dave was a long side me reminding me to stay as physically relaxed as possible and would stroke my arms or hair (very sweet, I love him for it) Margy, my midwife, came in and broke my water at around 2:37pm. Immediately my contractions got way more intense and a lot closer together. I was constantly having to do my deep breathing exercises as I listened to my hypnosis scripts on my ipod. Dave had me keep changing positions so that Milli would be in a perfect position to come "out". About an hour later I felt some pressure and Liz, came in to check me... I was ONLY at a 4+. I was a bit discouraged as I knew I had a ways to go and this was getting very difficult. About another hour later I hit the wall... as I was laying on my left side I had three contractions that about killed me and I broke down. I got super tense and my body was just fighting it self. I told Dave I just couldn't do it and to get me the epidural. He asked me if that is what I really wanted three times before he went out to tell Liz. No sooner does he go out here come Liz. She had called Margy to tell her to come in. Margy suggested I take some fentanelle, which would take the edge of the contractions. Ok... Whatever! Please just help me! By now it was about 4:45pm. Margy came in checked me and I was COMPLETE! I was ready to push... WHAT!? My body had gone from a 5 to a 10 complete in a matter of 20 minutes. That is why those 3 contractions had been so difficult. The fentanelle never kicked in but for some reason I was able to do it. It was amazing to work with my body to get Milli in to this world. I cannot describe what it was like, it felt like an out-of-body experience. Milli was out in less than 4 minutes. She was born at 5:07pm. It was two and a half hours from water being broken to having Milli in my arms, crazy!

WOW! I just had this baby with no epidural. Is this really my baby that I have been waiting for, for such a long time? I was surprised to see this little blond baby on my belly and I was overwhelmed with every emotion possible. I feel so incredibly blessed to have another daughter of my Heavenly Father to care for and raise. To teach and to love and guide in the best way I know how. I am so eternally grateful for this little princess in my home and in my life.

Here is a slide show of our wonderful experience with Milli's arrival.


Milli's Birth Day!

We are now home. I feel wonderful and Milli is doing really good. She is a good little eater and hasn't cried very much, yet. The kids want to hold her all the time and they are very soft. Mylo loves to give her very little kisses and Leah likes to touch her hair or help me change her or help with whatever I am doing with her. I am sure that will wear off soon but for now I really love that they want to be involved and that they are being so soft.

Milli is here!

Millicent Lee Trevino - born 5:07 PM on May 1st - 7 lbs. 13 ounces 3.5454 kg - 21 inches long 53.5 cm.
Laura and Milli are doing well. We were shocked to see that Milli had super light hair and a lot of it. She loves to nurse - more details to come soon. Thanks for the love and support, phone calls and prayers. It has been a long time waiting and we feel very blessed.