A bit of a Getaway

Every parent whose honest with themselves, understands the importance and necessity of getting away from their children, once in a while. More if you can swing it ;) It's important to rejuvenate your soul. Date nights are a must. For this mama, it's an opportunity to reconnect with my husband without us having conversations regarding poop, or if certain people were "good" today, or if someone peed or pooped in the potty. Yeah, very grown-up, important matters we discuss in our beloved abode. So you see, children can suck the life force out of your marriage, just as much as they infuse it. 

We managed to book a Vegas getaway without our kids last weekend. Thank you Lolo and Lola for watching our cuties while I remind myself what it's like to actually eat food served hot, carry a purse, and have real conversations with Mr. Fliz. Though Vegas wouldn't be the first destination that comes to mind when one needs to rejuvenate one's soul, it has plenty to offer and you don't have to do it up party style. I mean, c'mon, Mr. Fliz and I are not in our 20's anymore. But hey, we scored a promotional deal and took advantage of it. So go over here for a review of the Encore, where we stayed. And for an in-depth, page-turning account of our adventures, click here.

Snippets of the last two weeks

Totally behind in posting pics. But here's a few pics from the past two weeks or so. Crazy holiday schedules and once again, the little rugrats are both sick. Pathetic. But I'm determined to make sure they get better soon because we're traveling, yet again, next week. Enjoy!

Trick or Treat. Micron as a spider & Micro as a dinosaur

Making mini zucchini bread muffins

Our precious Micron making her debut as a flower girl

See, my little girl is definitely MORE stylish than Mama!

A busy life

It's chirping crickets over here. Sorry for the slow posting as of late. In the past week and a half, I've had to deal with two sick kids and having 3 out of 4 family members in a wedding. Suffice to say, it's been hectic in our household. This time of year always is. We pretty much have every weekend booked til the end of the year, and well into the first few weeks of January 2012, too. So goes my life. 

However, I've got quite a bit of "happenings" going on. So there may be more "crickets chirping" on this end than I'd like. This weekend, the hubs and I are going to Vegas, SANS KIDS. Uh huh, you read right. This will be the first time we are leaving BOTH babies with Lola & Lolo. It will make for an interesting weekend, but it's something that needs to be done. Mr. Fliz and I are in need of some serious quality time together. Our little escapades are few and far between. I'll be posting about our Vegas adventures over here next week. 

Oh, and next week is Thanksgiving! Oh geezles! After that, Mr. Fliz is taking both kids with him for a quick trip to the East Coast to visit family--while I, (yeah baby!!) will be doing a girlfriend getaway to San Diego for two days. I would've loved to go with my husband and kids to visit family in the greater D.C. area, but because we're 1) now homeowners, traveling is getting to be very pricey 2) I had promised my best friend we'd take a trip together (long overdue) without our children or our husbands 3) we're going to the Philippines in January (which pretty much ate up a lot of our Xmas funds-so, to my friends & family-pardon the simple gifts this year). It is unfortunate that we're not spending Xmas in the East Coast as we do every other year. This is the second time we'll be missing Xmas over there. Blame it on pregnancies and birth. We'll have to resume our schedule next year. However, huge kudos to my husband with willing to travel with two very young kids all by himself. Even I, have yet to do that. But he's experienced, as he's traveled with he and Micro once before. 

So, you can tell I've got loads on my hands the next two weeks. I'll do my best to post as often as I can.

Stagnant

I've had two babies in three years and that's pretty freakin' tough on my formerly-petite body. So, if you've read some earlier posts, I'm in pursuit of restructuring my life once again. I was a pretty active person before all the baby stuff and am still a runner. Since Micron's birth( having a girl put unattractive poundage on hips and butts), losing the baby weight has been difficult. I had 10 more lbs to lose from baby #1 before getting pregnant with #2. So, I've had to tack on losing those insufferable 10 lbs to my post-baby body. 

As you know, I ran my first race after both pregnancies earlier this year and since then, bought myself a double-jogging stroller and have been running fairly frequently 3-4 days/week while pushing about 40-50 lbs--sounds impressive, right? I began to lose weight and some semblance of toning started to appear. THEN, I joined Bootcamp. It's been two weeks and I've only managed to run twice. TWICE! Bootcamp, ladies, is no joke. It's painful, excruciating on the body, and rewarding in a sick way (if you live by "pain=pleasure"). It's 3 days a week for one hour. And, it sucks kicks ass. I figure, I've grown human beings and organs and pushed those out, what can be worse than that? Bootcamp. 

Unfortunately for my sorry butt, I have missed three classes already because 1) I came back too late from a hair appointment (my instructor would kill me if she read this) 2) it was my son's 3rd bday (not even apologizing for this one) 3) my instructor canceled a class. So here I am, sore as ever. Every other night I come home with a bruised ego and body aches. But all this in vain for a better, healthier me. Granted my lower body is doing surprisingly well (all that running had paid off), but my upper body is discovering pain it didn't know it had. If you've joined any fitness class, regimen, or committed to something you realize after-the-fact has you less than enthusiastic, please share. After the next month or so, I'll let you know my progress (did I just sabotage or help myself considering it's holiday season?) and whether I'll be signing up again for this insane class. As for now, my running has been stagnant and I'm hoping that will change after a few more classes.

Tough Days

I knew it wouldn't take long for Micron to get her "footwork" down. These days, she's been walking a lot, which only translates to, "No, Mama, I'm not getting back into the stroller OR my car seat. Suck it!" Ok, she doesn't "say" that last part, but it sure feels like that's what's going on inside her head as she watches me with beady eyes. Micro, as an infant, would always cry when we put him in his carseat. It became a habit for me to tune him out for the entire 2-4 minutes it took (often depended on how hard I fought back his punches and kicks) to strap him in. It was not pretty, people, not pretty at all. Micron, on the other hand, wasn't so bad. In fact, I know my son was way worse. BUT NOW, NOW is Different. In the past few days since she's enjoying her newfound freedom. She no longer wants to be "contained." And we all know how important containment is to us parents.

The kiddos have been under the weather the past week and it's been no fun for me either. That means we've had to cancel usual playdates and limit being outdoors. The weather has begun to change with early mornings and evenings being cold. It also means frequent meltdowns and lots of frustrations. What's worse is, I've got to get these two in decent condition because they'll be in a wedding this Friday. That's right, my babies are making their debut as the awfully cute twosome they are. You've seen Micro in his first tux in my previous post and this will be his second time as a ring bearer. As for Micron, she'll be wearing her first official "princess-like" dress as a flower girl. I will post pictures once the affair is done. No high expectations for perfect photos. I'll be happy if both can sit still. But, I'll be thoroughly impressed if they look in the same direction too. 

One good thing about all this time Micro & Micron have had, is that they're beginning to play with each other more. At times, it's not always peaceful, but I can see their relationship grow as each spends more time with the other. Each sharing their toys and somehow, they communicate--even though one can't speak words yet. Somehow, Micro understands Micron. It's really heart-warming to see. And that, is my reward.

Happy Birthday to Mama & Dada's Little Man

Micro's 1st tux fitting. Yet again, he'll be a ring bearer. He's making quite a career out of it.

 Each day when you greet me in the morning, I get a little bit sad. Just a little bit. It's because it means you're one day older and becoming less and less a toddler. You'll eventually grow into a "big kid" at some point. But today, Today, is something extra-special. Three years ago, you turned my world upside down and filled my heart and my soul. I get teary-eyed just thinking about you coming into this world and how the first moment I laid eyes on you, I learned the other side of love, a love beyond unconditional, a love so pure. 

You fill my days with joy, sadness, anger, happiness. And plenty of laughter. Lots of it. You say things that take me by surprise that indicate how much you've grown and are still growing. You are fiercely protective of your baby sister even though you're beginning to realize that sharing your toys isn't as fun as Mama says it is. If I were to show any kind of anger towards your little sister, you gently come over to me and say, "Don't get mad at 'Micron' Mama, she little." That melts me each and every time.

Though we teach you plenty of things everyday, you teach Daddy and me so much more than you can imagine. You've taught us a whole new meaning of "love," how to find laughter in the most mundane moments, you've given us a greater appreciation for Choo Choo travel, and you've shown us that a little wink, smile, slight nod here and there, is your way of showing love and affection for us. 

There are days I wish I could bottle you up and keep you just as you are. Well, it won't matter, you'll forever be my baby.

Happy Birthday my Sweet Love!