Things Are Changing Around Here

Within a short time, our house is going to be given a whole new look... a baby look. There will be baby things all over. Neatly, of course. We are still trying to finish projects in our house, but most things will be put on hold while the babies take priority.

The biggest thing will be their bedroom. Currently it is a guest room/office and hang out area for Mono. He's going to be shipped out, along with all his fun belongings. 

Thankfully we have another guest room. That room has two twin beds and also a large desk. Mono and I could easily hold all of our fun and office-type belongings, but neither of us enjoy hanging out up there when we are on the computer or I am doing bills, etc. We will put his fun things, maybe the tv, and things that aren't office-like, in there. 

We've been talking about adding a small, streamlined space on the first floor. We want to do it for as cheap as we can... and it might involve my very first trip to Ikea!!! I have never been there before, but the desk we found might be best purchased from them (for size and price). And my goodness, I am so excited to see the store I've always heard people talk about.

We will each have an equal space... him on one side, my space on the other.

I am dreaming of exactly what little things I want to keep in my section.

My computer, iPod, planner, address book, mailing supplies, checkbook, a filing area, a note book, cute note paper and pens and pencils, a little note book for important info... Oh I am just sooo excited and I can't wait for this project to work out. We arranged a few things to make sure it would work in the space we are looking to put it in, and all looks a go from here! Fingers crossed!

I'm hoping we can at least start this weekend and then during next week, I can accessorize and work on the finishing touches. 

Mono and I are both excited about this. I hope it can come together somewhat quickly. It all depends on when the Ikea trip can be made. It's not right around the corner. This will involve a day trip.

I'll be sure to keep you updated and I will post as soon as I have it done, or maybe even while it is in the works!

She was right!

I don't think I've shared this story with you before. If I have, please excuse me and blame it on my failing memory during pregnancy. 

Months before I was even married, a dear old friend of my family's, who has known me my entire life, told me that I would be having twins when I got married, soon after the wedding, and they would both be boys!

This sweet lady has had an amazing life, but she suffered a stroke a few years back and so sometimes she comes out with the craziest things. She cracks me all of us up!

So, to be honest, I kinda chalked it up to either older age or the fact that sometimes she is a little bit off. 

I thought, Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm having twins. Twin boys. Okay Dorothy. Yep.

But then I got pregnant, real soon after I got married...and found out they were twins... and then found out they were boys! And then... I got scared! haha. She was right!

But, do you know what scared me? Not quite so much that she was right, but the fact that she also said that I was going to have twins again next time! Girls that time.

I should clarify. Scared isn't the right word, because I would certainly welcome another set of twins in our life. Triplets may be pushing it, but twins with open arms!

So now I am so, very curious if she will be right again, or if this time around it will be a fluke...

It kind of makes me want these boys born and to be pregnant again already so I know!

Wouldn't you be curious?!

If another set of twins was coming!?

That familiar font

I e-mailed my Dad today... the names we were thinking for the boys. I wanted him to see it written out, to get his thoughts.

When you get an e-mail from my Dad, you usually know it is from him, just by the look of it...

same font, same color, same size.

So today I opened his reply and sure enough, there it was, his signature blue font telling me how he loved our choices.

We have certainly had an array of reactions to some of our possible baby names. I come from a family that is used to the plain, common, every day names... and that's not what I wanted for our kids.

So, I think we are shaking them up a bit.

Maybe that's a good thing!

Flying away...from my couch!

I need to get away... far, far, away from my couch. I have spent the past few months learning exactly how morning sickness felt. I haven't gotten out much at all except for a few random little outings. Staying inside also gets to me. I feel so cooped up, yet I don't have the energy to do much. I need to fly away... or drive... to my element, my happy place. We have a trip lined up in the near future and I am really looking forward to getting away before I am huge and can't go anywhere far! To have a week to just relax, soak up the beach, salty air, eat yummy food, visit a few places we love, is making my heart soar! Is that crazy? Is it crazy that the beach can do that to me?

I am hoping that this time away will rejuvenate me and give me a good boost for the coming months.
I'm also hoping to see my sweet friend while I am down there. Fingers crossed we can make it work!
And before the trip to my element, I get to spend a quick visit with lots of my family and friends!!! I can't wait to see everyone! Oh it will be lovely.

The baby naming process

- family heritage ... check

- Spanish/English twist ... check

- unique and different ... check

- religiously rooted ... check

- personal meaning ... check

- both Mono and I like ... check

- needs to have a suitable nickname if we decide to use it ... check

Picking out four boys names, two first and two middle, proved to be somewhat difficult with all my categories needing to be checked off from above.

We're not really naming these kids after specific family members because it can get too complicated, but there is an area that needs to be included.

I didn't grow up rooted in a specific culture. I'm kind of an American mutt. My husband's family is so greatly rooted in their Cuban history and I love that. I really wanted to make sure that is passed down to our kids, both his side and mine.

As much as I like names like John or Peter, Chris or David.... I just wasn't satisfied. I have nothing against them, but it just wasn't what I was looking for. I couldn't explain myself or back my reason up with examples, so it proved to be hard for a while. I somewhat settled on kind of unique, yet mostly ordinary names, but I just wasn't happy. I finally had the guts to randomly throw out this one name that I liked, that had special meaning to me and, I thought, had a great Spanish twist. It tied a good bit of what I wanted checked off the list in it as well.

Perfect... Until...

I've heard stories of the spouses not agreeing on a name, and thankfully we were able to check that off successfully as well. While we may be in agreement of them, not everyone else is. 

I made a phone call to one particular person and well, let's just say their answer was, "You still have time to think of names..." Meaning, let's think of others, I don't think so... or, yuck! ha.

I had girls names picked out too and they didn't fly so well either... with a person or two... maybe even this specific person that doesn't like my boy choice either.

Guess I have a different taste.

As my aunt told me tonight, "Remember Mare, they are your kids so who cares what anyone else thinks." I have to remember that, even if one of the people that dislikes our choices (at least for one of the boys) is a close member of the family, who for their own sake, will remain nameless.

So I am going to sleep tonight with a name, first and middle, that fits the above check list, for each of our boys. I'll sleep on them and hopefully wake up in the morning feeling fresh and good about our picks. I know we don't have to make our final say until even the day they are born if necessary, but I'd like to have a good, solid idea of what they will be named. So, off to sleep to dream of _____ and _____.

172. long, 3-way chats with my two best friends

173. thinking of baby names and agreeing on them

174. getting our internet and phones back up after they've been down for a while due to local outage

175. time the past few days that I had no internet to read, read, read

176. noticeable relief to my morning sickness

177. family

Amusing Tales of a Pregnant Woman

Well, after this morning, I can officially say that my pregnancy brain is in full swing.

I woke up this morning around 8:05 and laid there for a moment, then realizing that Mono was still in bed, laying right next to me. I didn't know what time it was, but I could tell by how I felt, that it was after the time he should have set his alarm clock for to get to work. So I leaned over him to check the time... 8:06.

I then, shook him and said, "Mono, you have to wake up! Your alarm clock didn't go off!! You're late for work!" With that, he woke up, looked at me for a moment, then picked up his alarm clock, looked back at me and said, "Mmmmaaarreee. (In a tired voice) It is Saturday." And then I began hysterically laughing...and thankfully, so did he.

That has never happened to me before. I seriously thought he had to get up and get to work. It felt so nice to know that it was Saturday and we could just rest and not rush out of bed earlier than either of us like.

Being that we only have a few more months before the boys arrive, we have to enjoy our sleep while we can. I have a very hard time sleeping. I always have. In a way, it is good for me. It has prepared me for the sleepless nights with children. Once I am awake in the morning, that's it. I can nap during the day (but don't), but in the morning, once I wake up, I am up. I can lay there for a little bit, but then I get stir crazy. So this morning, I laid there for a little bit and then read for a little while, and then had to get up. I wish I could sleep a little later in the mornings, especially Saturdays. We need blackout curtains or something to help with the crazy light that seeps into our bedroom.

I knew my brain was in a fog since being pregnant, not sure if that is normal or not, but I have it. I do some really dumb things... like this morning. When my Mami was visiting last week I was in such a daze at one point, I was kind of walking around the kitchen not knowing what I was looking for. She even noticed I looked like I was in a complete daze. Crazy. I hope this goes away.

Another story for you. Yesterday I had a thought. I wanted to go on a simple and cheap date with Mono. I thought since it was Friday (meatless) we could go to Whole Foods for a slice of pizza. So he came home from work and off we went on our little date. And I loved it. Until I called Papi (Mono's Dad, who is a doctor) to talk to him about symptoms I was having. Sore throat, painful ear, messy nose... I thought it was just allergies until my throat came on. Also, while he was here visiting he saw that I had a white spot on my tonsil. So when I told him my new symptoms he wanted me to go right to a doctor, to make sure now it wasn't strep. 

Thank God it was not strep, though I may have wished for that over what I ended up with. I have a problem with my tonsils and they had to go back there a whole bunch of times with all sorts of things and I gagged and well, maybe a little more than that, but I will spare you details. There is an infection back there and tissue has built up to block where my ear joins (or whatever it is...) and that is why my ear has been so painful and bothersome. So now I have been put on medicine, which I really did not want to do being pregnant, but according to the doctor yesterday and Dr. Papi, this is a safer kind for me to take and not to worry. It's just a small dose too. So I am hoping that after I take this, I am done. Because if this doesn't get better, I'm in for it and it won't be pretty. Now I am just dealing with cold symptoms. Wishful thinking that it was just allergies. My nose is like a faucet. Hopefully it doesn't get too bad.

Today it looks really overcast... again. For the past few days it has looked like it could rain, or even pour, but not a single drop falls from the sky. I am hoping for rain today so I don't have to water all my plants. Plus, rain is always so much better than water from the hose. God's miracle gro is way better than any I can buy at the store!

Speaking of miracle gro...

I better not get any of this on me! Grows twice as big. People, do you see that? Twice! I can't afford to grow twice as big. I'm already going to be ginormous quite large!

The purse challenge

If I haven't said it before, I am a huge purse addict. It's on the verge or over the line of being a sickness. At least that is what I am told. I can't help it. I think it is in the blood because my grandmother is the same way. They don't have to be super expensive. They can be from Target and I am happy. Of course the pricey ones are very nice though... 

There are a few brands I have many of and a few that I can only dream of having.

I figure once the boys arrive, I will be solely using my diaper bag.

I am not sure I am going to want to carry a diaper bag and a purse. 

So my days with my precious bags are limited (for the most part).

I want to get to using all of them before August/September when they arrive, but at the same time, I want to make myself wear the same bag for 30 days straight.

To a lot of people they probably do that normally.

You might just have one favorite bag that you use all the time.

Well, I have too many favorites.

I like to switch it up with my outfit or mood.

Sadly, I've been known to even change my purse mid-day.

Sad. I know.

Maybe I shouldn't have admitted that.

So, do you think, now knowing my sad addiction, I can pull of wearing the same purse for 30 days?

Maybe I should start with a week. Wear the same purse all week long. And if I can survive that, I can add on another week and see how long I can go.

I don't have much faith in myself to be able to do this, but I may try... go one week at a time.

That seems reasonable, doesn't it? 

Currently I'm using my Vera Bradley Hipster in Island Blooms. I love that pattern. It makes me feel like I'm living in Florida!

But what if I wear a purple outfit? Can I get away with keeping this purse with me?

I can't make my outfits fit around my purse all week +.

Do you love something like I love purses? Accessories, shoes, makeup??

I love my accessories and shoes too, but shoes are hard for me. There are so many I love, but for many reasons, it's just not practical for me to have such a love for them.