No easy feat

Happy Mother's Day! I hope all you women, mothers, and mother-figures are having a wonderful day celebrating YOU! One day is not enough to recognize all the sacrifices, effort, love, patience, and energy you put into raising your kids. But, this is our job. A job, though unsatisfying and difficult at times, is something we women cherish, are privileged, and honored to do. 

Raising a human being is no joke. From the moment you decide (or unintentionally) to have a child, to the moments of your last breath, motherhood is a journey ridiculed with heartache, joys, tears, and laughter. Nothing can prepare you for that road. Everyday poses new obstacles and challenges. Somehow, through gritted teeth or ceaseless moments of happiness, we manage to rise to the occasion when we are feeling defeated, scared, unsure, and anxious. 

Today, on my run, on this Mother's Day, I listened to the TED talk given by Pope Francis. I needed to hear it. My morning started off always as a blessing to live another day, to be the support to three amazing kiddos, and as a wife, daughter, sister, and friend. But, it quickly turned into something a bit more emotional. Something inside me felt unstable, unsupported, sad, and a bit lonely. I have much to be thankful for. Granted, there have been some really difficult days, even the last few months have been taxing. I was being pulled in many directions, things that were once familiar, were no longer. Was I losing touch with myself? Have I been too selfish? Too pessimistic? Ungrateful? So, to escape the chaos that was going on in my house (no different than any other day, really), I put my running shoes on, and did what I knew in my heart and in my soul needed, I went for a run. I had to be alone with my thoughts and to heed the inner voice that was calling, a voice that I had left unattended, neglected. 

The TED talk given by Pope Francis, centered me. He talked about tenderness. This world we live in right now is lacking much of it. Our hands are not reaching across aisles to mend differences. We are neglecting our fellow human being. We are too centered on ourselves and forgetting that divided, we fall AND fail. It's not a new message I was hearing, but a message that needed to be addressed, revisited, and a call to take action. I won't preach about politics or get incredibly religious, but the Pope's message is one that needs heeding. As mothers, we are often living in this daily routine of us versus them (them, being our children, our spouse/partner, co-worker, even other mothers). We have forgotten to go outside ourselves and recognize there is a need in this world, this very moment, to harness the power of tenderness. We are our children's first example of sacrifice, of willing to submit ourselves to providing care to another human being that we do not know, nor expect anything from. That is some power. Each of us together can move mountains using our powers. We intend to raise kind, generous of heart, and loving people. However, we cannot do it alone. 

I want my children to know that life is not easy, but inside them they hold the power to live a life that matters, that can make differences, can mend tears in our societal fabric, overcome hate with love. Tenderness, compassion, forgiveness, these virtues are our powers. We all hold them, and as mothers, it's our job, our mission, to ensure these are passed down from within us, to all those around us. It is no easy feat. Life's true rewards are not without sacrifice, challenges, and laden with fear. Alone, it can be done, but together, we become so much more. Motherhood is more than wiping snotty noses, making dinner, nor just whispering words of comfort or encouragement. It is a community, a life calling, a journey, a devotion. 

Fall Escape

It's been a series of mini-getaways since summer. Fall is no exception. We keep truckin' with the best of them. My husband and I have a special place for Yosemite in our hearts. We got engaged at the top of Half Dome, celebrated our 10-year anniversary (along with a presidential visit--hi, Mr. President!) at the Ahwahnee (aka, The Majestic), and recently, finally brought our brood to see this magnificent place for the first time this past weekend.

I grew up with the natural splendor of this incredible national park. I visited Yosemite as a child several times with my family, often bringing others to share its' beauty. It took two times for me to conquer Half Dome in a day. My first try with my husband was while we were dating. We had a late start to our hike that ended with me being concerned that the last two miles or less would result in us hiking in darkness, so we bagged the ascent. The following year, even through some travel mishaps, we finally conquered Half Dome. We hiked up the top as boyfriend/girlfriend, and came down as an engaged couple. It still holds as one of the biggest surprises ever in my life that my love proposed up there. Since then, I've always wanted to go back. As the years brought on new challenges of everyday life, a visit to my favorite place never left my mind.

As a last-minute decision, the Mr. and I thought it was right time to share these imposing granite slabs with our kids. It's rare to secure lodging at Yosemite so last minute, but we luckily we got to use some points to cover a one-night stay at The Tenaya Lodge, located about an hour away from the valley floor. Our family had done some light hiking this past summer and I knew the kids could handle a little more adventurous terrain. We opted for a hike to Mirror Lake (which at the time of our visit, was more of a meadow, compared to early spring/summer). Yes, mM came with us. This girl has been to Europe and several places in her first year of life. What a lucky stinker! Since baby was with us, we had to choose which hike would be safe and yet, somewhat challenging enough for the big kids. Only two waterfalls were still going. Vernal and Bridalveil. The latter was more like a strong mist blowing off the top of the rock. The Vernal Fall hike is ok for the first mile, but becomes more challenging with steep inclines. Mirror Lake, which we had done earlier in the summer (do not take the paved path if you want more "rocky" terrain), was our best bet for a short hike with the all the kids. It's 1.2 miles one way. The big kids loved climbing up and over some huge boulders and probably could have handled rougher terrain. Below are some pictures. Note, these pics were taken two months ago.

This Party of 5

It's been eons since I last did a post. Last year since the birth of mM, I have been going non-stop. In the month of November alone in a span of two weeks, I threw 3 big parties back-to-back. That's not including all the holidays and birthdays in between. Oh and a wedding to attend. Suffice to say, I burned out in no time. Once 2016 hit, I was ready to take it slow and steady.

We took our first trip with mM. I am pleased to say, she did exceptionally well! She really is such a laid-back baby. Since birth, she is all smiles and sleeps really well. My MIL calls her a "saint." Our trip took us back East to visit family and for our little boss lady to meet more family members. It was a truly memorable trip. Growing up in a Filipino household, family get-togethers are commonplace and it's really important that my kids grow-up in a similar fashion. However, I don't know whether it's the times are changing, or that kids these days just have more activities dedicated to weekends, but squeezing in extended family time is hard. I'm lucky that I get to see my side of the family often enough that my kids are comfortable seeing their cousins.  All my nieces and nephews nearby are involved in extra-curricular sports or activities, as are my own kids. So it's still hard to find time to get together. In addition, we try to balance some quality family-time with just the 5 of us, too.

At least the past few months have lent to many memorable moments for my kids to remember of time well spent with their cousins from both sides. It really is quite a circus being a family of 5. When we eat out with other families, I'm basically asking a restaurant to seat anywhere from 9-10 people. Insane, right? But it's fun, and I wouldn't want it any other way.

mM is now 7 months old. I seriously want to cry! She's more than halfway through her first year! As with all my kids, I want to savor every little moment while their still babies because this period is so quick and you can't ever have these moments back. I'm talking specifically to my Dad, because he keeps on wanting my babies to grow up. What's the rush?

I do have my hands full, but they've been that way since Micro arrived. Enjoy the updates below!!

It was FFFreezing in February back East!!

Cousin quality time!

Meet the youngest and newest cousin, Sophia. My sister's new addition and the two are only 4 mos apart! Buddies for life.

Valentine's Dance. First and possibly last I'll attend with my date ;)

And then, there were 5

I am not MIA. I just am reliving the blissful, often times tiring (surprisingly, not so bad with this one. did I just jinx myself?), craziness that is infancy. Oh yeah people, I FINALLY gave birth to my third baby! I know, it's awesome! And, guess what? It's a SHE!

My precious mini-Micron (mM) arrived on 8/23/15 at 11:06 p.m. weighing in 6 lbs. 9 oz and all 19.29 inches of her. I won't trouble you guys with my crazy birth story, but let's just say, I AM WOMAN, HEAR ME ROAR! I'm just happy to no longer be pregnant and heaving around several pounds of increased blood volume, water, a 2-3 lb. placenta, and a baby. 

I will admit to you all, I never really pictured myself as having more than 2 kids. When I had both Micro and Micron, I thought to myself--I struck my own personal gold--I have one of each. I can experience raising a boy and a girl (though I'd have been happy with whatever genders God gave me)! The thought of adding another child to our already full, busy, and chaotic lives seemed like a drunken mishap. But it was not that. My husband always wanted to have at least 3 kids (ideally, he'd want 4--but let's just say--NO WAY, JOSE), and when he told me this years ago after having had Micro, I was surprised. I just assumed we both were on the same page and wanted two kids. After Micron was born, it took a few more years for me to become open to the idea of having one more. After all, Micro and Micron are less than two years apart and how I survived those early days with two kids under two were a blur. Thank goodness. But I managed it and both are doing well.

I knew we wanted to try and have a third after my sister's wedding, after Mr. Fliz attained his CFA, and after I got to run a few more races...God is good and great, he gave us one more :)

So, here we are, a party of five. It's been a bit overwhelming at times, but because Mr. Fliz and I have two helpers, we've been lucky in managing the chaos. Micro and Micron dote on mM so much, they are like a second-set of parents. It's a true joy to watch my family grow and open ourselves to this new being. Right now, apart from being knee deep in nursing, changing wet nappies a bazillion times a day, and juggling raising the rest of the brood, I just want to soak all of this in and enjoy what blessings I have. Welcome to the world my newest bud, Dada and I love you so very much.

Hello beautiful! Our mM!

Just pure joy!

Bumpdate

I am in my 36th week of this third pregnancy. After 16 weeks, my nausea and vomiting subsided. It was hard, but I'm in the home stretch now and I'm getting more excited to meet this newest little bud in our family. 

We got our bigger car and the garage is 97% complete. At least we can park both vehicles inside now. Though as any homeowner knows, home projects can be a PITA. Our garage was overdue for a makeover and nothing like a major life change to do that. I owe it all to Mr. Fliz. It was his hard work, effort, and long nights to getting it almost pinterest-worthy. There is still more work to be done. It's neverending!!!

Baby is quite active and I've noticed it has it's patterns. It gets most active after I've eaten or between the hours of 9-11 p.m. and always starts "waking up" around 5:45 a.m. (Hey, little one, if you keep to that schedule post-birth, we're all good ;). Micron has been ever-so-sweet all along this pregnancy. She often talks to my belly and introduces herself. She gives my belly little hugs and kisses and I just hope she'll be that same way once she meets her little sibling. 

Our summer has been quite busy as usual. Right after kids got out of school, we went on a mini-vacation and since then, have been preparing for all things baby. The kids had swim classes in the late afternoon and have been extremely helpful around the house ( since bending down to do laundry is a burden). I stopped doing The Bar Method once 8 months hit. My attendance to classes dropped from 4x/week to twice a week and once I started to get major lower back pain, I knew doing my favorite workout would have to be put on hold. I've been pretty good about being as active as I can during this pregnancy compared to the past two. It's getting more difficult though, I've succumbed to buying a maternity belt in my last month of pregnancy because I just can't deal with being on my feet for hours on end and my lower back paying dearly for it. Walking my dog is my little exercise.  

Amidst all this, our summer has been full of pool time, kids bowling free at our nearby bowling alley, and plenty of family and friend celebrations this summer. Our weekends inevitably become crazier than the weekdays. 

I hope you all are having a wonderful summer. It's going by too fast now. Enjoy it while it lasts.