please don't take my sunshine away.

Sonny grew some teeth!

...and he told* me to tell you it sucked.

For a chance to win a $100 Babies R Us gift card from BlogHer, go here and leave a comment for my question for you on teething.

 ...then read about how teamBoo made it through!

team Boo ♥'s you


*via head butt to my chin.

a sweet valentine (re-post)

this is me half "a" blogging.

i am having a love affair with a book i'm reading and since its February i figure you will understand (cause February is about "love"...remember?) Ok that's a stretch, but for now i found this old comic post and i think it is worthy of your eyeballs' time.

If i weren't so lazy i'd make you a 2011 version. maybe about a Sonny who is one year this week, only 17 1/2 pounds, and needs to start eating more high calorie foods (seriously, you can see rib cage) but is too in love with my bosom ("can't quit the sugar tit" as my grandma would have said) but that might be too graphic?? 

i'll spare you.

team Boo ♥'s you

Ain't no sunshine

Wasn't that a dirty trick I played in my last post giving u the least amount of info of my sick baby (too tired) AND the most dramatic info (the air vac) in one??

Before I go any further, here's a pic of me and my tuchus ("to-cuss") on a brighter day (cause no one wants to see a baby all hospitalized and stuff).

So let me break it down, but in a short Lamans terms blog kind of way because you are all so sweet to send love his way, but we are not 85 so we don't need a play by play of every medication and doctor visit of all time.

Since sonny was so sick I was keeping a hawk eye on his sweet little self. As time passed he grew increasingly dehydrated and then basically began (and kept on) making quick desperate gasps for air (think freaky mutant human breathing on that Will Smith movie) he also was nearly impossible to wake up. Turns out this boy had a very severe viral lower respiratory infection (and now also a bit of pneumonia) which was slowly clogging each airway with mucous (more or less) Helicopter took him from one ER to children's hospital because, unlike adults who slowly get worse...our babies' amazing little bodies basically run a marathon against those nasty germs and then out of nowhere, BAM. Stop breathing.

No air for Sonny = cardiac arrest = I jump off the nearest cliff.

Yadi Yadi yadda...baby hooked up to breathing machine, lots of other wires...and here we are in PICU (or "pick u" if your cool like that...like me) until those stupid medicine resistant viral bugs go away...but freaking hallelujah for hospitals , right!?

But it was almost this exact date last year that Adam was hospitalized for 9 days...So why not keep that totally FUN torch alive!?

For now, my Sonny is still very sick, but in much more capable hands than my own. And don't even get me started on how thankful i am for miracle machines, and prayer, and smart people, and people who give service, and America, and cute babies with curly hair and shark eyes, and family, and God, and all of you...and helicopters!!!

I'll keep u posted :)

p.s. A "tuchus" apparently means "butt" in Yiddish. I did not know this (until just now when I looked it up) but frequently have the urge to call him one (?)

p.p.s. Thank u for all your fantastic support! (Renee, thanks for making me laugh, as usual. And even all u shy ones who came out of the woodworks to wish my sonny well :)

hey guys, wanna know what is funny about babies?

...everything.

(and motherhood is filled with it)

team Boo ♥'s you

slow motion.

Sometimes the best medicine, for this busy season, is to dig in my heels and force myself to slow down for a minute. Last night I slowed down with Sonny. We played "bang the pan" "robot mom" and "rip out mom's hair."

It was perfect :)

team Boo ♥'s you

cry baby?

Sonny has been really sad and snotty. Now that he's 9 1/2 months he finally decided he'd like a tooth razor to slice my very important areas. This is a series of pictures where he is actually crying, but since he has such a happy reputation to uphold, appears to be smiling. Which I think is pretty messed up and adorable at the same time. Don't be fooled though, this kid is very sneaky. He crawled off the bed twice this week AND almost face planted down the stairs. I think i was busy playing Mario Brothers on DS with Sheamus or something...

;)

team Boo ♥'s you

and i was like, baby baby baby ooooooh

My sister steph finally had her little muchkin! (That makes two for her now) Hopefully people will stop thinking I am the oldest sister since i have "all the kids". I'm the youngest sister, and technically my other older sister has one fetus more than me (cause she is preg and i'm not).

It's because i'm so wise.

Happy Birthday "Sweetie Peetie"

(aka: peter christopher kubal

born 11/15/10)
We've almost gotten all the "pumpkin eater" jokes out of our systems...or the stroking of his little head saying "pretty bird" (the duct tape headed bird on dumb and dumber was "peetie")...almost. There are no free passes into this family...everyone has to pay their dues ;)

team Boo ♥'s you

good day sunshine.

This is what I get to wake up to every morning...

Don't be jealous (or do)

But I strongly suggest you go get your own Sonny D.

team Boo ♥'s you

i got soul but i'm not a soldier.

how i cherish the one on one time i get while nursing this kid. We gaze into eachothers' eyes, i give his curly hair a twirl in my finger, he flips my bottom lip repeatedly with his tiny fingers. I call him my baby bird, his sweet little lips curl into a coy smile...and then...
he craps. 

...the loudest, wettest GOAT smelling diaper I can imagine. I start to panic that it is leaking all over my lap (like the time in Outback with Elyott), I quickly unsnap his onesie and call for reinforcements: a paper towel, burp rag ANYTHING to put under him. One of my kids come running to help (bless their little potty trained hearts) I place the barrier between his bum and my only pair of pants that fit me right now ("what will i wear tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day??") then both Sonny and I breathe a sigh of relief. He eats a little more and finishes off with a jaw clamp and back arch with my poor nip in tow. 

Ah precious moments.

team boo ♥'s you


(*side note: next morning he totally duked me all over my running shorts two milliseconds before i left to the gym. That'll teach me to blob about narrow poop escapes.)

baby torture?

When a defenseless baby has on a red striped shirt and cutoff sweatpants...honestly, how can anyone resist a pirate photo shoot.

what a good sport.

(though not so much when I suction the snot from his nose at 5 am :)

argh.

team boo ♥'s you

one trick pony.

dear fellow new mother bloggers-

What the crap??

how are u still blogging?!?

let alone crafting, working, filling your other children with happiness?

maybe i'm just rusty at this new baby business, but wow.

living life one handed is tricky

[notice the lack of caps...no extra hand for shift button :]

i do, however, have lots of nursing downtime when i play one handed scrabble on my iphone.

sooooo......wanna be scrabble friends instead?

I'm teamBoo on the Words with friends app.
[i might kick your trash though...just sayin' ;]

also we have been basically living outside.
[my sister said it best]

wishing i could be posting more about this precious whirlwind that is this time in my life...

love me still.

team boo ♥'s you

A dream is a wish your heart makes...

The last time I went to the doctor, someone told me that they "had a dog named Sonny!" ....TRULY, what every eager mother wants to hear. Yesterday Sonny and I took a trip outside the batcave for a checkup. And that is when my day went from normal to awesome. I was just minding my own business when a lady came to take a peek...

"oh he's so cute!....Is he Mexican?"

Say what? Doth my ears decieve me? Did Adam secretly pay a stranger to ask me that so I'd shut up already about adopting a child?? (see here and here )

"no.... just a little jaundiced" I coyly replied.

Could it be? Did I actually WILL my body to miraculously make a partially latino child?!? What I couldn't let on was that I maybe peed my pants a little with (dillusional) excitement at the thought (cause let's be real, the kid looks white). However, being of latin decent herself, I figured her a credible enough source to atleast pretend the crazed look in my eye I wore for the rest of the day was justified.... If she only knew what a weirdo I was. Thank you universe for validating my efforts to venture out of the house...and for reignighting my tolerance of strangers that insist on talking to me in waiting rooms ;)

warning: this may be super boring to most of you

details shmetails...

In all of this fresh baby haze

I have left a few of you unsatisfied with a severe lack of details

what kind of a female am i??

(It must be that intoxicating new baby smell)

Sonny, like my two other McGoos, came extremely fast

when I got to the hospital I was 9 cm

(so, for those of you who have not had children

thats like 4 seconds before the baby "turtle heads")

I did finally get to have an epidural (kinda)...Hallelujah!!

(i didn't have time with Elyott or Sheamus)

it wasn't in there 5 minutes before Sonny came out peaceful and very unsquished

just enough to take the edge off what feels nothing short of a train driving out of my hospital gown ;)

he was 7 lbs 15 oz

(my biggest baby by 1 pound)

Elyott and Sheamus are adjusting amazingly!

neither can get enough...

Sheamus asked while Sonny slept "is he a frozen one?....I love this boy!"

and now instead of being worried that we would name the new baby "Sheamus" he wishes his own name was "Sonny"

Elyott runs in the door everyday from school with a new kick in her step ready to greet baby.

She is very proud of being able to hold him while standing

She is so nurturing and loving to both my boys

Such a sweet big sister!

team boo ♥'s you

to sleep or to shower?

{4 am monday morning}

{3 am tuesday morning}

There is no bigger sucker than a new mommy.

[3 hour middle of the night lactation benders, crotch rehab, etc]

I choose to survive it by watching "16 and pregnant" before I go to bed.

works wonders for ones perspective.

to sleep or to shower? 

or neither.

...anything, as long as this kid is happy ;)

team boo ♥'s you

before and after

It is indescribable the feelings I have when a new baby of mine arrives.

basically, how can I pass so much time sitting on a couch looking at this beautiful creation??

but i assure you i CAN 

{and have been}

hours before...

and after

...just one more reason my life will never be the same!

I am in la la LOVE!!!!

{with a little MacGruber }

team boo ♥'s you

we added a boo!

meet our sweet new team member...

{born 2 . 13 . 2010}

team boo ♥'s you!

children's books....in hopes that my kids will be at least a little smarter than me ;)

Since this is Baby #3, this time around, I have asked only for hardcover books for our library stash [yes, I'm a bit of a paperback snob] In this economy, i'd feel like a total jackhole if I were to indulge in buying all the books i covet [and i would be] but here are a few authors always on the tippy top of my wishlist...plus a few others I think your should have ;)

Amy Krouse Rosenthal

also Little Pea (which i have), and Little Oink.

Audrey Wood

...author of napping house (have it) and King Bedgood (want it)

Judi Barrett

...another classic my library has failed to accumulate is Alexander and the Very Bad no Good Horrible Day (by the same author)

Lauren Child

...cause we all need a good british accent in our reading

Jamie Lee Curtis

all of her books are so good, but oddly illustrated for too young of an audience.

Crockett Johnson

(plus you are automatically awesome if your first name is "crockett")

These ones we have, and I absolutely love.

...a childhood favorite that is extremely hard to find in good condition...my book is on its last leg

(i maybe don't even let my kids hold it :)

Mo Willems

...about being a friend.

Dallas Clayton

...about hopes and dreams!!

(Mo? Dallas?...again with the cute names.)

Besides the obvious classics...what are some of your uncommon finds?

and as always....team boo ♥'s you

don't be fooled....

...I no longer look like this.

it was a good 4 weeks ago.

I haven't gotten to taking another side shot, but from based on my (very tactful) neighbor's jaw drop when i told her I wasn't due until Feb....I'm guessing I am popping out quite a bit more.

For all of you who can't wait until February, here is a creepy baby morph that i did online (which is better than the one we did seven years ago in Vegas, where our daughter looked like a 10 year old neanderthal)...

....hmmm?

and for the sake of my half latina baby dream I'll set aside my exasperation with J.LO

("but she knows what she did"*) and bring you this next combo......

(*make any career moves outside of her Selena role.)

meh.

(then her little half J.LO soul would be partially addicted to one piece denim rompers

or playing the "Bronx" card...and that might put me over the edge.)

Have a fabulous weekend my friends...

team boo ♥'s you

the Wolverine-est

How is it that before an ultrasound, one can drink 32oz of water and pee out 82?

*Sheamus wanted the baby in Mommy's tummy to be a girl because he was under the impression that if it were a boy, that boy would be another Sheamus....and he would have to start all over being a baby again. 

*Elyott wanted a girl because....well she is a girl. and girls are awesome. (va jay jay power!)

*Mommy wanted a girl because...she feared another boy could only be more crazy and inevitably less sweet than the boy she already has.  Plus...she's a girl too (and she has had a girl name burning a hole in her brain for years!)

*Daddy wanted a girl because he drinks things like this...(see below) and having a family of girls would make it seem to make more sense??

So guess what??

ITS A BOYIEE!!!

*Sheamus asked if his name would be "Sheamus".  When I said no, he needed double clarification that he is now, and would always be, the "WOLVERINE-EST" and "Logan-est" of ALL!  (but i think he has it in the bag...see above)

*Elyott cried a teensy bit...but is now excited (cause she's the best most understanding big sister of all)

*Mommy's heart melted at the thought of a baby gorilla #2, and then punched herself in the face for ever thinking that she could be less excited by another boy (but damn those boy names!)

*Daddy (who is, by nature, the worst reaction giver of all) is jazzed too, and has absolutely no shame from his drink preferences (if he were a drinker, you better believe it'd be Appletinis all night long)

...and giggling fourth graders all across the land are glad to have another boy who will carry on the Dikefest namesake!

fat bottomed girls.

{via 9000 }

As a teen I went through years of insecurity and body image craziness, and it wasn't until after i got married  to a supportive (and completely biased husband ;) that i was slapped into the reality of what my body could do: I had a baby. I know it isn't that way for everyone, but for me, something about that transition in my life completely changed my views on what it means to have a healthy body.  I like to feel good, and look good, but mostly....I just love being around. Yet the problem that lies with public outlets and me, is that I am way to tempted to use self deprication to make connections. And my self loathing thoughts on pregnancy might be my favorite subject (well...that, and inverted nipples, and pointing out my occasional lesbian sounding voice). Fabulously, I fear this has caused less of you to want to grab brunch, and more of you to want to just punch me in the face. For it has been lovingly brought to my attention that my "chubby thigh" and "acne mustache" symptoms might be the anti feministic way to celebrate this miracle....and hell, it's possible they're simply a figment of my imagination (a profession of how i feel rather than the way i look) . So I promise I won't hold it against you if you have recently thought anything along the lines of...

"For the love of Angelina and her overflowing maternal willingness, someone get this girl a muzzle!"

But before I ditch my M.O. and start reciting positive affirmations in the mirror, I'd like to profess that it's humor that gets me through these long months of suffrage. Allow me to be frank...I love myself! I looooooove my babies, I love myself an optimistic confident woman, but I do not love pregnancy....i think it was designed to keep a girl humble.  I consider it my bodily donation to take on the single most honorable venture there is in this life.  And despite the more socially responsible coping techniques that exist, the best way i can think to survive pregnancy (and sometimes just straight up motherhood) is to laugh at how ridiculous it can be. This way, instead of pretending my third trimester double chin is glorious (or worse....not there) I rest assured that since not permanent, it is simply more hilarious than tragic. But as always, thanks for keeping me in check friends!

{tie-dye.

 worst adult clothing invention ever?

or

maternity clothing amazingness?}

wanna hear a way smarter version of this?

...listen here, it is so awesome.