Time Marches On

Holy cow.
Dominic is almost 10 months old. This kid is amazing. He is crawling, like a little peg-legged pirate. If he wants that toy- He will get that toy. He will follow me to the kitchen, bedroom and anywhere else I might want to go.
He copy-cats everything that you do- definitely time to clean up the ol' vocabulary. Kissy noises, clicking his tongue and especially sticking his out at you... adorable.
We have regular dance parties in this house- while doing dishes, cleaning house or doing laundry. So this kid loves music fo sho. Everytime he hears some tune that catches his fancy- he starts dancing. His version of dancing is bouncing up and down on his booty... If he is really feeling the music he will throw his hands up in the air and do his own little hippie dance- I almost died the first time I seen it.
Another big-kids thing he is doing is weaning himself :,(
I cried when he started pushing himself away from me while trying to nurse, only wanting to nurse in the morning and evening. Worried that he wasn't getting enough milk I started giving him bottles with pumped milk.... depleting my work-hours stash that I send to my mom's with him. Even trying to pump more in between work/life couldn't keep my supply up. So I broke down and got some formula...
Am I a horrible person that I was happy when he didn't want it right away? It took a few days of half mommy milk and half formula for him to get used to the stuff and now he is fine with it... breaks my heart a little but I am not selfish enough that I would keep him from getting his nutrition because I wanted to exclusively breast feed... It was time I guess.
I am excited to wear a real bra though- no more nursing bra ugliness for this mama... I can also have a drink now and then if I would like... I guess there are good things that will come along with a formula eatin' little one.
As long as he continues to grow and thrive I will be happy with any decision we make to get him there.

Ookie Mouth

So we went camping... that's another post for another day... and everyone in the world wanted to hold my sweet boy. I'm not that paranoid of a mom- but God I wish I would have been. Someone, somewhere along the line this last week got my boy sick. It started out simple enough... runny nose, grumpy little man wanting to cuddle. Later that night it was full blown misery, 100+ fever and worried mama. Dom is a pretty good little sleeper but while he was sick he was waking up every hour or so and just whimpering/crying until I could get him to go back to sleep. To make matters worse- this was a week that Armando was out of town....
Oh wait, you didn't know about that?! Well with his new job Mondo has to be training in other states... Monday through Friday for the last two months. Lame as hell, I know.
... So I'm doing all this on my own. Yes, I know I have family close by; Yes, I know that they offer help all of the time- It just takes so much time and effort. I have to pack up mine and my son's stuff, haul it over to someone's house and then pack it all back up to go home. If there was a nice way to say, "Don't really want to hang out, but feel free to drop off some food!" I would have done it in a second- alas, there is no way to say that without sounding like a D bag so I was on my own for three days. I watched a lot of Netflix with a hot, doped up little guy on my chest and ate a lot of Campbells and spaghetti.
Some good things did come out of my stay with a sick little guy, I got lots and lots of snuggles. He learned to lounge- he has always either been sitting straight up or lying down- when he was feeling crummy he would just sag into whatever he was next to- now he does it and looks like a chill little dude. He also hasn't slept on my chest since he was a newborn- but for some reason all he wanted to do while sick was put his little head on my chest and snooze the day away- I wasn't complaining, it's one of the best feelings ever.
Lot's of Tylenol later, my poor boy is feeling much better and everyone is healthy in the Solis household.

King of the couch

Work Widow

Armando got a new job- Yay!
He has to travel quite a bit for it- Boo!
Since Armando is such a good teacher/salesman he was not only promoted but also nominated to head up a new training program for Fred Meyer Jewelers managers. A requirement for that position is that he travel for a week at a time for the next few months. Until the end of September my husband will only be home for a total of three weeks and several weekends.
I don't mind being by myself- sometimes I even need it. It's a whole different story when it's you and a baby. There is no one to say, here let me hold him while you make dinner/take a shower/poop in silence. There is no one there to notice you are about to lose your shit when your adorable child is screaming because you wouldn't let him eat paper/stab himself in the eye/lick the carpet. It's hard. I know it's only going to be for short periods of time and it will go quickly but please let me have a small pity party for myself.
Yes, I miss the help that my husband is around the house and with Dom- But I just plain miss him. I miss hearing him play guitar in the other room while cooking dinner. I miss waking up in the middle of the  night to tell him to go to bed. I miss him.
If I was stay-at-home all the time it would probably be easier but since I work 3 days a week it's such a juggle to get him to my mom's, go to work, actually work, go pick him up, run errands, cook food, clean (I use that term loosely) and get everyone to bed in one piece..... just to turn around and do the same thing the next day. Thank God for fake holidays like Pioneer Day so I had a day off!
I'll be so excited to go and pick Armando up from the airport every Friday when he flies back in.
P.S. Am I a horrible person that I'm glad he hates traveling? That way he's wanting to come home just as badly as I want him home??

6 Months

This sweet boy is so big. 

You play with my cross while nursing, or my hair, or my lip. You scratch every little pattern you see. The leather on your rocking chair, the polka dots on your Boppy and especially the beauty marks on my arms. Since dad has such fun arm hair- you choose to grab that instead. You are pulling yourself up and can sit up on your own so well- until you lean too far forward and face plant it. Usually not such a problem- until we went fishing for the first time and you ate dirt- Sorry! Other than scaring yourself and getting a small scratch on your eyebrow you were just fine. Don't listen to what your dad tells you, you didn't have a black eye!

You got the ok on meats and so we pureed you some chicken and pork- Doesn't look the best but you seem to dig it, especially with pears. I was wondering if you would like your food cold- turns out you love frozen mango! Even better than a popsicle right? 

You love mirrors and I love to watch you play with your reflection. Even when it means I have to wipe little lips off of my mirrors. You LOVE tags! Who knew right?! The tags on your pillow, stuffed animals and everything else- you love them so much  I made you a 'tag' blanket with ribbons sticking out all over the place. Still not as good as the real thing, but a close second. 

Love you so much little man- It's such a joy to watch you grow. You like to blow raspberries and stick out your tongue. Bah, Bah, Bah! Momomomomomomomomom and Gahhhhhhhhhhhhhh are your favorite things to say- especially in the car or shopping cart when your voice vibrates with the bumps. I love to hear you 'talk' to me.

Didn't like the grass very much

Look who can pull himself up!

Best buddies

Five Months

Gah! Where has the time gone!! Just yesterday we were bringing you home from the hospital and now you are all over.
You sit up really well on your own in the gorilla stance, facing forward and leaning on your arms. You have perfected the fake laugh and fake cough and love to do it just so we laugh.
Deciding between crying and laughing is sometimes a hard thing for you to do- so you do both. Long gone are the 3-6 month clothes and you are getting so big every day.
You are presenting with all the weird symptoms of teething: drooling, coughing, tugging at your ear and fussiness. My happy little man has been so upset for the last few days- only lots of hugs and kisses makes him feel better... and maybe a little ice for those gums. While I am a nurse, I am not a doctor and I wanted to make sure that it wasn't an ear infection or anything to worry about- Gram took you to the Dr today and she confirmed that in fact you are JUST TEETHING. My poor babe will have to suffer a little bit longer before those chompers pull through.
You are a professional roller-over and it's not just gravity pulling that big head down.
At your four month appointment she said you could start rice cereal and move on to fruits and veggies if you were doing well. You didn't like the rice cereal at all- Yuck! You loved apple sauce- still your favorite- and have had a great time with the sweet potatoes. Peas were not such a success but you really liked the avacado that we tried! Went a little hippy and made all of your baby food so far- let's see how long this lasts :)

I love you more everyday and can't wait to see what new thing that you surprise us with next

Four The Win!

Chanch is getting so big that I can't believe that about four months ago he was in my belly still- crazy! His second round of shots went much better for everyone all around- still the random screaming about 3-4 hours later though-weird.
He is 75% for height and weight but has a big ol' head! He loves tummy time now and is aaaaalmost rolling over. With the help of gravity and a squishy bed he can do it as of two days ago but I don't really count it because it's mostly his own weight pulling him down :)
Because his head has a flat spot where he favors one side we have been doing everything to keep him upright. I got him a Baby Einstein bouncer/activity center thingy- He was terrified of it! Sat in it and cried like we punched him. I've been slowly getting him used to it every morning and he is starting to get the hang of it

That hair is starting to get out of control! Somewhere along the lines of life, my Grandma told me that you aren't supposed to cut a baby's hair until they are a year old- I don't know why and no one can tell me the real reason- Now that my Grandma is gone I can't even ask her. Several Hispanic friends of mine have heard the same thing and everytime I ask they say they waited until a year to cut their kids hair---????

Tried Google-ing some shiz to find out and people are weird about their kids hair. Some say cutting it before a year gives them 'bad hair' in a lot of South American cultures they actually shave their infants heads so that they get 'good hair' and all kinds of craziness... I guess I'll never know why but I'm going to try and stick it out for a year, We'll see how that goes. 

ComiCon

Salt Lake had it's first ComiCon last September, It was pretty fun and I really got into the spirit even as a big ol' prego:

Since it was such a big success, the 3rd largest convention in America, they decided to do a repeat.

This last weekend was the SLC ComiCon Fan Xperience... basically a comic book convention with a whole bunch of extra stuff: Forums, guest speakers and classes. Since we don't really get that into the whole thing, we just went to the convention part and didn't pay $100 to sit and  listen to some grown men argue about Game of Thrones or whatever nonsense they were talking about. 

Since I love people watching I wanted to bring my camera this year and figured I would dress up too- If you can't beat 'em, join 'em! 

Since I wanted to incorporate my camera into my costume I decided to be Lydia from Beetlejuice. Armando helped and even made me my own Handbook For the Recently Deceased- Not the most extreme costume but I thought it was clever and three different people knew who I was so I guess it was a success!

 

People really get into it and it was so much fun. I can't wait for September to go again, maybe I'll get a little more adventurous with my costume this time.

Former contestants from FaceOff (which Mondo and I love) were making zombies!

This female Predator was awesome

I stole a pic of Edward James Olmos... 

He's a mexican- he should know I am not about to pay $50 dollas for one!

Effie!

I loved her frying pan

Babysitting

My mom retired a few years ago and has been begging for grandbabies to watch ever since... Well it has taken a while but now they are here and it's Gram's turn to babysit.

On the days that Armando and I both work Dom goes to my parent's house and my mom watches him. I have no idea what they do all day but they sure seem to be having fun together- at least my mom does- Dominic pretty much just goes with the flow. He is such an easygoing kid and loves whoever he is with that he doesn't really require too much supervision in the first place.

While my mom was in Texas with Becky, my Tia Fab watched the baby. It actually worked out pretty great because she lives close to McKay and it was super easy to pick him up and drop him off every day. My Tia loved having him and I could relax knowing that he was in good hands. Tia Fab hasn't worked since the Ogden Mall closed down years ago, she never learned to drive and so she stays home- she watched my sisters and me when we were young, she's watched my cousin's kids and now that her grand-daughter has a baby- she watches her great-grandbabies too: It's a tradition :)

Since I struggle with anxiety anyway, I've been waiting for it to rear it's ugly head since Dominic was born. My midwife told me that I had a lot of factors going on that could lead to Post-partum depression: I was a first time mom, I had a Winter baby and a history of anxiety- No bueno. 

As time went on I kept waiting for the other shoe to drop..... It didn't happen. I was emotional every once in a while, sure, but nothing worse than PMS or pregnancy hormones had been.

I was sure that I would begin to be anxious about returning to work... didn't happen then either. Maybe it is because I have the reassurance that I don't have to place my son in daycare but I've had no frantic phone calls to my mom in the middle of the day. No rigid schedules that I'm making my mom stick to while I'm gone. In fact when I dropped him off with my Tia, she asked about a schedule for feeding and I was dumbfounded... "I just feed him when he's hungry" I told her... and I pretty much do. He eats when he's hungry, sleeps when he's tired and pretty much hangs out the rest of the time.

I feel confident that he is being taken care of and I feel so loved when he sees me and his eyes light up or he giggles when I pick him up after work. I love that I am able to get the better parts of both worlds: working and being a mom.

There have been some horrible stories in the news lately regarding daycare centers- abuse allegations, injuries and even a death. It horrifies me and makes me hug by son a little tighter. I'm so grateful that I won't have to ever put Dominic in a daycare- I would just quit and stay at home if we didn't have anyone I trusted to watch him. 

Looking back, I don't ever remember being watched by someone who wasn't a family member. My mom and dad worked opposites for a long time so someone was always with us, my Tia Fab watched us for a while and then my Grandpa watched us when he retired. If my parents went out we stayed with cousins or my grandparents... we asked to sleep over almost every time we went over there anyway so they probably got more date nights than a lot of parents. 

My mom went to Texas for a month to be with Becky when the baby was born, I flew out for a week with my dad and Dom to visit as well. Jen was with me in the delivery room when I was in labor and I was there when Wes came. It makes me appreciate my family so much more knowing they are there to help out.

Old Dog, New Tricks

So I posted awhile ago about wondering where I was going to be professionally in a few years... well change came sooner than I thought!
For various reasons I left Davis Hospital- while I adored the nurses and doctors that I worked with there- it was best for my and my family that I look elsewhere for work when my maternity leave came to an end.
I started looking in February, hoping to start hearing from employers right away. When that didn't happen I started to panic- What if no one hired me? Did I really want to go back to Davis? Would we live on the streets?! Of course we could live on Armando's salary- things would be very tight- but I was so anxious about it that my mind was running wild about the worst case scenario.
My cousin is a social worker and suggested applying at the hospice company she worked for- I didn't mind working hospice I am just too OCD to have to depend on other people to be really comfortable doing homecare. You have to schedule your day around someone else. Since the patients are home they are much more non-compliant and you are on their turf- literally: you have to be in their house, which is not always clean, happy or safe- no thanks. It was excellent paying but not for me so I was ecstatic when I got an interview with McKay-Dee's surgical center.
When I started applying for jobs I had resigned myself to working on some Med/Surg floor somewhere, probably graves and working all the holidays because I would have the least seniority wherever I went. If I were to land this job at the Surgical center it would be similar hours of what I was working before the baby came: no holidays, no weekends and no late nights.
During the interview they asked if I had any questions- Since it was an OR position, somewhere I had never worked before, I asked "How long do you train?" She looked me straight in the eye and said, "One week."
F@#K, I thought- Maybe if I take really good notes and write everything down.... I guess I could always get an OR Nursing book and reference...
While I was making a gameplan in my head, I hadn't noticed that she had started smiling and was laughing in my face- "We train for 12 weeks"
THANK, GOD.
The rest of the interview went great and we talked more about me being a new mom and what was different from Davis than the actual job.
I was so happy to hear from HR a week later offering me the position- a small raise, three days a week and a load off of my shoulders.
So far it has been great, I'm learning so much and it's awesome to work for a company that believes in taking care of it's employees. Lunch is catered every day for us- so even if we are very busy we all get a chance to eat. Extra staff is always scheduled so breaks and lunches are guaranteed for everyone and you don't have to stay after your day is done to pull cases for the next day. They have a cut-off time in their OR so that Dr's can't keep scheduling cases and therefore keeping staff way after normal hours. I'm really excited for where it will lead me.

Throwback

I hated getting pictures done. It meant foam curlers, blech. If it wasn't curlers it was a tiny hot curling iron- I don't know which was worse. Mom had the blue eyeshadow and my dad had hair!

My sisters and I are all older and have different names nowadays- all of us mother's in our own rights. I love that we only have to be in each other's company to revert back to these same little girls- yelling, fighting and teasing. We will always be there for each other and that's a great feeling. 

Maybe He's Mine?

This kid might be starting to look like me.... finally!

Tres Meses

You are a daredevil. You like when we bounce you on the bed and also when your dad decides to scare the shiz out of me and toss you in the air. You love to see the adorable little guy in the mirror and laugh like a fool when you sit and talk to him. 

We used the stroller for the first time to take you for a walk... you lasted about five minutes before you passed out :) Your dad, unfortunately, was right and your poor little nose was frozen by the time we got home.

You and Randy are still deciding if you like each other or not... but he sleeps in your room every night and barks when you cry so I think he is leaning towards keeping you. You talk a lot and sometimes it does sound like you say, "What?!" "Maaaaaaahhhhhhhhhm" and "Whoah!" 

 We went to Dallas to visit your new cousin Gavin and I was amazed how well you did on the plane. You sat on my hip in the carrier through the whole airport and never cried once... Well maybe once when you were hungry- but that kid in the back screamed the whole time so I think you are ok. 

When we got to Dallas we seen your beautiful little cousin Gavin- He weighed 8 pounds, that's bigger than you but he looked so small compared to your chunky butt.

Day 2 at the hospital with Aunt Becky and Uncle Mike was an adventure. You pooped ALL over yourself and since mom forgot your extra outfit... we had to steal an infant t-shirt from the bassinet in the room. While you are a handsome devil, you are not a newborn size anymore my friend. 

Papa Sandoval says you look like the China Nite guy... he's a butt.

You are 14+ pounds of lovin' and 23+ inches. You are holding your head up like a champ and we can sit you up in your Boppy or on the couch. I'm scared you are teething but you are probably just a'droolin' fool. You have had to wear a bib for about a week cause you are drippin' like a faucet. You have discovered your fingers and get quite hypnotized by them. The Cookie Monster that your dad got you after your shots is your favorite, you like to gum on his furry hand and try to fit his eyeballs in your little mouth. 

All in all, you are great :)

Shots! Shots! Shots!

Before I was a mom someone yelling SHOTS only  meant one thing:

Now, sadly, it means something completely different. At Chancho's two month appointment he got his first set of immunizations. He did so well with the heel sticks and blood draws that I figured it would be just the same... It was not :(

Little chunk before his shots

Did all the regular stuff when we first got in. Stripped down and got weighed, 12 lbs 10 oz. Stretched out on the table, 23 inches. Measured his cabezon, etc. After Dr. MacGregor came in and seen him, answered all of our questions, told us we were doing a great job and kissed Dom goodbye, the trouble started. 

The two medical assistant's came in and layed him down on the table. He did really good drinking the Hib vaccine- this kid'll eat anything- so he was all smiles and giggles. They had three shots, one combined and two singles, to give him. They stretched his chubby legs and hit him all at the same time. Bam, Bam, Bam... 

For about two seconds I thought he didn't even notice- then the scream that broke my heart started. 

Dom is a chill little kid, he fusses in the afternoon if he gets too tired and the only time he really cries is when he is really hungry- Until this day I had never heard him scream. 

As the tears formed in my eyes and my heart ached for my son, the two MA's backed away and let me comfort him. I scooped him up immediately and just rocked him back and forth. I felt awful for being the one to bring pain to him, even though I know it's for his own good. 

He did so well on the trip home and was his normal little self, until the Tylenol we had given him before his appointment wore off. Then he started to fuss and squirm and cry these little mewling cries- Poor guy. It was a rough night- no more screams but lots of discomfort on his end. 

The next day it was as if nothing had happened- sunshine and smiles all day. I'm happy that he had no adverse reactions to the vaccinations. I won't feel entirely comfortable taking him anywhere until he has his complete series, but I feel better knowing that we've begun the process. 

Next time my son gets his shots, Mommy might have to take A shot to get through it.

Nine to Five

I love being a nurse- for once in my life I feel like I have a career instead of just a job.... and I have had plenty of jobs.

I started working at 15 for the Snowie stand owned by my friend's parents, it was the best job. I got to read books all day in a little shaved ice shack and got as many free Snowie as I wanted. Plus I worked 5 hour shifts and could ride my bike to work, what's not to love? Oh yeah, getting paid minimum wage and having dyed red hands all summer.

At 16 I worked as a hostess for a Chinese restaurant that I had been going to since I was born. When I applied the owner wrote something in Chinese on my application. After I was hired, one of the waitresses told me what it said, "Cute, can work up front".

During school I got work release to work for a friend's mom. She owned her own company and made lingerie, underwear and swimsuits. Probably not the most appropriate work environment for a high schooler but I learned a lot from my experience there- not always good things.

I was also taking pharmacy technician classes at the time and once I graduated I got offered a job with Walgreen's- the place I had finished my externship with. It was perfect timing because the year I graduated was the same year that Layton, Clinton and South Ogden Walgreen's opened. I worked there for the next 8 years; full-time, part-time and then as needed. It was awesome experience and it put me through college- I can't ask for more.

I graduated, the first time, in 2004 with my Bachelor's in Health Administration- I worked at Primary Children's Medical Center. All of the people I worked with had clinical degrees: nursing, respiratory therapy, etc.... They also got paid 2-3 times more than I did. So.... I applied to nursing school. I could get my nursing degree, come back to my job and make more money. At least that was the idea anyway.

Once I started working as a nurse though, things quickly changed. I have loved nursing more than any other job that I've had. Things are messy and sometimes people are mean- but they are also scared and angry and anything that I can do to make the situation better is so great. Armando asks me all the time, "How could you do that?" I just tell him, "Somebody has to"

I've worked in a rehabilitation center and now in a surgical center and I've loved learning new skills and have made such great friends. In a field where it is 95% female it can be very difficult to go to work every day- Females = Drama. But, when you work with great people it is awesome to go to work every day.

I haven't worked at Legacy since 2012 but still get together with the girls there every few months. I can't wait to see what I'm doing in another five or ten years.