We're having a . . .

Hello everyone, it’s been about a two months since the last blog so it’s definitely time for a big update. Justin’s still going to school and working full-time; however, he’s now only taking 15 units instead of the original 19. This allows him to be home a little earlier on school days and gives him less homework (obviously). He’s a little stressed out with everything but says his family doesn’t stress him out (thank goodness). Even with all Justin does he’s always helpful to me and doesn’t take his own stresses out on our family. Justin’s currently taking and preparing for his midterms and our friend Jeremiah is often over for study sessions (and some good junk food prepared by me).

Jack is still growing like a weed and happy as can be. He’s talking a lot more and his little words are slowly becoming more understandable. Just today we were sitting outside, at the high school football game, and Jack heard an airplane fly over the school; very clearly he said “air plane” and said it several times. I was so excited to hear him speak that clearly and I think he was excited he knew what the sound was. He still loves reading books and his current favorites are The Very Hungry Caterpillar and In My Backyard (a book I found for 50 cents at a resale shop), although he loves reading all books. Jack loves helping us around the house and although at times it's a little hard to let him because it takes longer its fun to see how his capabilities are changing. He's especially helpful when it comes to packing, or rather unpacking, and stacking up boxes. It's amazing to see how fast he's growing and changing and I know he's going to be such a loving helper big brother. Jack likes to point at my belly and he says "baby" and then kisses my belly; he's just such a sweet boy.

Jack has always been extremely active but seems to be even more so now; I’m not sure if he really is more active than in the past or if it’s because I’m pregnant (I think it’s the former rather than the latter). Unfortunately, Jack’s become pickier in his eating and although we still try to feed him what we’re having for dinner, we sometimes have to settle for a hummus sandwich, cereal, or toast. We’re hoping this phase will pass quickly. I guess I can’t complain too much because Jack is happy, healthy, and thriving. Oh yeah, Jack went poo-poo on the potty for the first time (although somewhat against his will because he was originally in the bath tub), but I’ll spare you the rest of the details and just say it’s a step in the right direction. We’ll leave it at that.

The last time I wrote, we were searching for a home. We’ve found one and are currently in escrow! Everything is set to close on the 29th of this month, but that largely hinges on the current tenants vacating the property. Although the house will need some paint and hardcore cleaning it’s generally move in ready and we’re excited about owning our first home. The home, it’s 4 bed 2 bath, is still here in Fallbrook and is only about 5 minutes away from Justin’s work; I promise I’ll post pictures after we move in (if all goes well).

As for me, I’m still coaching cheer at the high school and we have about a month left for football season. The girls are really excited because our freshman football team is currently undefeated! My team has had two pep rallies and we’re now preparing for competition (I can let you know when our games or competitions are if you’d like to come watch). In addition to coaching cheer, I’m taking yoga two nights a week although I’m not always great about going even though I enjoy the class when I do. We found out this past Wednesday that we are having a . . . baby girl! We would have been happy with either a boy or a girl, but are absolutely thrilled to welcome a little princess into our family. She seems to be healthy, thriving at around a pound, and extremely active. It was amazing to see the clarity of this ultrasound compared to the one we had when I was pregnant with Jack . . . it makes me wonder where technology will be in another couple of years when we’re having more children.

Something a little frightening happened yesterday when I was experiencing excruciating pain in my left side. Justin ended up taking me to the hospital where they gave me some fluids and pain medication, and ran some blood tests. The tests all came back normal and they diagnosed my condition as lower back pain. I went to see our chiropractor this morning to get my body straightened out and everything is fine now although I’m a little sore and trying to take it easy, which isn’t always easy with a toddler. I’m am so grateful that Justin works so close to home and that his bosses are so loving and flexible with our family’s needs (we love you Scott and Des and thank you). Other than that whole situation everything seems to be going well with this pregnancy, thus far; we’ll find out more next Tuesday at our next baby appointment (I promise I’ll try to update sooner than two months from now).

I can’t think of anything else to update everyone about so I’ll end here. You can always comment and ask for updates on anything I may have forgotten. Please know that we love you all and think of you often (even if we haven’t seen or talked to you recently). Oh, last thing before I forget . . . Californians please vote YES on Prop 8. It’s something our family feels very strongly about and we can get you more information if you don’t already know what this proposition entails.

A little family update . . .

So . . . I think my goal for blogging will be every other month because I don’t always seem to have time every month and it’s just about 2 months to the day.

We’ve been pretty busy since I last wrote. At the end of June, Justin and I went to Hawaii (just the two of us) and had a blast. We stayed in Waikaloa on the Big Island and it couldn’t have been a more beautiful place. We swam and snorkeled a lot, visited a botanical garden, swam with a sea turtle, did some night snorkeling with about 12 manta rays (one of the most amazing experiences ever!), visited a volcano and some amazing waterfalls, and just had a great time all around. At the end of July our family went on a cruise with the rest of the Rizzo Clan; thank you Papa Tony! We had so much fun spending time and catching up with the family. Jack ate tons of fruit and French fries and our waiters seemed to become especially fond of him; they always brought him a fruit cup as soon as we were seated and brought an abundant supply of cookies for his dessert. Needless to say, Jack knew who his friends were and also seemed to have fun entertaining our family at meal times.

I had a two day cheer camp with the cheerleaders the day we got back from the cruise. I am so impressed at how well the girls work together, get along, and help their teammates who may be having difficulties. Practices started the following week and we’ve been having practices Monday through Thursday; Jack comes with me and snacks, plays with cars and balls, runs around, and entertains the girls while I coach. He’s such a good boy! So, as of now, cheer and naptime seem to take up most of our days because of the time schedule we’re on right now.

Jack is growing like crazy and is just as cute as ever. He’s gotten so much better at building Lego towers and loves playing with cars and balls. It has become almost an obsession of his. He likes helping with everything even when it not that great of a help and he has now figured out how to work his CD player. I’ll be somewhere in the house, hear his music playing, and then go into his room to find him dancing; it’s so cute! He’s talking more and although he doesn’t usually say “no!” (he just shakes his head) he is definitely gaining an opinion. We love him to death!

Justin’s still working full-time and resumes school in just a couple of weeks. He’s taking 19 units (12 is considered full-time) so it’s sure to be a busy semester. He’s currently working with his uncle on his days off getting a rental property fixed-up and ready for new tenants. Even after his long days he is willing to come home and help me with dinner, Jack, laundry, etc. just to make my life a little easier. I love and appreciate him soooo much and I hope he knows that. He’s just an amazing man and father all around.

Justin and I just celebrated our fourth wedding anniversary on July 31! Can you believe it’s already been four whole years? We went to Ruth’s Chris for dinner and then he surprised me and we went to see The Phantom of the Opera in Downtown San Diego. It was amazing! I loved it and I’m pretty sure he enjoyed it too.

In addition to normal everyday life, we’re currently looking for our first home and we’re praying that we find the right one for our little family before the market starts to rise too quickly. It’s proving slightly difficult to find one that’s in just the right location with the right amount of space, for the right price. However, we have a great realtor and he’s helping us out quite a bit. We’ll let you all know if we find one!

I think that about sums up our lives right now except . . . we’re pregnant! I’m currently about 11 ½ weeks pregnant and we’re so excited! I’m thinking it might be a girl, but who knows—we’ll be happy with either as long as the baby is healthy. I’m totally starving and nauseous all of the time and completely exhausted, as well. But other than that it’s all good; we’ve already been to the doctor and there’s a heartbeat (only one!), the baby’s moving around like crazy and we’re due February 26!

That’s it for now . . . we love you all and hope your families are happy and safe!

Finally . . . An Update!

Okay, so I know it’s been a long time since I last wrote. But it seems like there’s been a lot going on here. In March, we took Jack to Disney’s California Adventure park for the first time. We all had a lot of fun together and with a couple of friends (Justin’s best friend from childhood) and their daughter. Jack liked it, but I’m not sure he even really knew what was going on. We’ll plan on doing Disney again in the future when Jack is a little more into the whole theme park Disney character thing.

On another note, for those of you who don’t already know, we found out we were pregnant in February, but miscarried a month after finding out. I’m so grateful we have each other, great family and friends, and, of course, the Lord. We’re just so grateful to have Jack, and know that he’s happy and healthy.

Jack had a bad case of the stomach flu in April (for about a week) and a cough turned into bronchitis in May. He now has a bit of a runny nose, but I’m hoping its just allergies. Jack is getting so big! He’s much better at running and talks a whole lot more. Although some of his words are only understood by us, he now says: strawberry, cheese, please, doggy, mama, dada, papa, bink, poop, buh-bye, hi, shoes, and I’m sure there’s a few more. He’s mimicking a lot now and thinks it’s funny when you copy what he does. Unfortunately, Jack is hitting and has been in time-out quite a few times for it; we’re working on that and saying please and thank you. Jack likes to pray with us for meals and even tries to say “amen,” he’s so cute! Speaking of cute, Jack is a winner in the Cute Kids Contest here in town and he’ll be in the local paper this week! I’ll make sure we get some copies of the pictures made for some of you.

Right now Jack likes to climb into the bath or shower, wave and say buh-bye; he also likes to climb behind the couch cushion and drive his toy tractors. He helps water my plants, do the laundry and shut the dishwasher. He’s gaining more of a sense of humor and is learning new things each day; we love our son!

Justin has been out of school since mid-May and it has been so great to have him home. We have two whole days to spend time with Justin and on the 17^th I get to spend a whole week with him—just the two of us because we’re going to Hawaii! Justin ran for the San Diego Republican Central Committee, however, he lost the position by about 200 votes. Bummer! He hopes to work on other campaigns (like for County Supervisor) in the future. He has high hopes for the future and I have faith in him.

As for me, I’m pretty much doing the same things I was before: taking care of Jack and trying to be a good wife and mommy. However, there is something new and exciting I’m doing—I’ve signed on with the local high school and I’m now coaching Freshman Cheer. I’m so excited to be doing something that I love! We have a couple of camps this summer and practices start up at the end of July. Plus, I think I may sign up for aerobics and yoga again this summer just for some more fun.

So Justin and I are going to Hawaii on the 17^th for a week and we’re also sooo excited for the Rizzo Family Cruise/Reunion at the end of July! We look forward to spending time with our family this summer :D

I don’t know what else to write, so I’ll plan on writing again and posting lots of pictures after we get home from our trip! We love you all and hope you all are doing well!

Hello 2008!

Hello Everybody and Happy 2008! It’s been a little while since I’ve updated everyone about our family, so I figured now would be a good time because we don’t have anything going on today.

Justin started school in January and is still going full-time. He is gone all day Tuesday (he leaves at 7:00 AM and gets home around 9:30 PM) and most of Thursday (7:00 AM – 5:30 PM). He’s doing very well in school; Justin has already had many presentations and has three big tests today. He studies a lot, sometimes with his good friend Jeremiah (from work and now school), and is up late most nights. He’s still working full-time at the Grand Tradition and he has most Friday and Saturday nights off right now. However, wedding season will soon be upon us and so he’ll be working those nights again. Jack and I try to support Justin in all he does and enjoy the time we all spend together.

Jack is growing like a weed! We had to go to the doctor for him yesterday because he’s sick; it all started with a clear runny nose, then the cough started a week later, and then he became fevered yesterday morning. I’m so glad we went to the doctor! The doc said, “He basically has a mild case of pneumonia,” so Jack’s now on antibiotics and we’ll visit the doc again tomorrow to check up on everything.

On a happier note, his favorite song right now is Little Bunny Foo Foo. He shakes his fingers, claps his hands and says “bop!” Sometimes he’ll just walk around the house clapping and saying “bop!” just for the fun of it. He has learned to climb up on the couch and enjoys walking back and forth across it and has started jumping on the couch. He had his first real “big boy” haircut on Saturday with the buzz clippers and looks like a real toddler now.

Jack’s a little over 22 lbs now and he’s talking a lot more although other people may not understand some of the words: Dada (he screams it when he sees Justin!), mama, bop (of course), quack quack, and buh-bye. Jack is a solid walker now and can find mommy and daddy’s noses, although he hasn’t found his own yet. He loves books and doing everything with them; he reads in the car, pulls our books off the shelves, and carries them around with him. He loves his crocodile xylophone (Thanks Aunt Judy and Trev!) and now pulls it around the house in addition to playing it. He also loves his little ride-on push-car from Uncle Zach and has figured out how to get on by himself! Ahhh, a brand-new skill he has learned: pushing the water dispenser on the refrigerator (darn!). Jack also loves to pull out and play with my spatulas and other (safe) kitchen tools and also our broom. Jack still eats just about everything, but he loves eating frozen peas, cheese (except sharp cheddar), plain yogurt with a bit of honey, blueberries, and strawberries. Oh yeah, Jack loves to march! Our floors are hollow so he can hear himself make big noises and he gets really excited.

As for me, I think I’m pretty much doing the same things as I was before. I love my mommy friends and we still work out, go to playgroup, and hang out together (when the wee ones aren’t sick). I’ve joined a gym and aim to go a couple of times a week; however, with Justin in school, those nights are some of the only time we have to spend together. I was sick for about a week and a half, got better, watched kids for a week, and got kind of sick again. I’m just grateful it’s just my nose this time and nothing else. I’m home with Jack, loving it by-the-way, and tutor two days a week here at home. I still enjoy cooking and trying new recipes all the time and we usually don’t eat the same thing very often, unless its leftovers.

I can’t think of anything else to update you all about except that we’ve sold Justin’s car, so we’re now a one-car family. I’ll try to post another update next month so there won’t be too much to read (and write) every time. We love you all!

Last blog for 2007!

Hello and Happy Holidays to our family and friends! Sorry it has been sooo long since our last blog; a lot has happened with our family since the list time I wrote. We had the fires here in San Diego and we are so grateful that our family and friends are all safe. I’ve had a birthday and am now 23 years-old (woo-hoo) and Jack just celebrated his first birthday! What a year it has been, and a great one at that!

Because I haven’t written since September I’ll just brief you all on just a few things since then. Jack stood on his own for the first time and his third tooth came through in October. For Halloween he was a cute little skunk—we called him “our little stinker.” In November, Jack said his first real word (dog) although we’ve only heard it a couple of times since then. Jack celebrated his first Thanksgiving and he took his first step the day before my birthday (November 26^th).

Jack had his first birthday party on December 8^th and his favorite part was his cake. It was the first time he’d ever had real sugar and he absolutely loved it; Jack had his own birthday cake and ate about half of it (I think most of it made it into his mouth, too). Jack’s now walking a lot more although his preferred method of getting around is still crawling and, oh yeah, he love’s to dance. In addition to the three teeth he already had on the bottom . . . he now has an additional three on the top and I think the fourth tooth is coming through soon. Jack just had his one-year check up and now weighs a whole 20 lbs. 14 ½ oz. and is 28 in. tall and is still growing like crazy. His current favorite foods are: frozen peas, any kind of meat, goldfish, and bananas. Jack has quite the little personality and brings so much joy into our lives.

Justin finished his final exams and has been out of school for about two weeks now. He’s still working very hard at the Grand Tradition and, because wedding season had slowed down, he has even had a few Friday nights off for a night out with me! Justin still loves reading (usual

ly something political) and is actually able to enjoy his favorite pastime now because school’s out! Justin is still an amazing husband and father; he helps out around the house even when he doesn’t really have time and is just as tired as I am. I love him so much.

Both my aerobics and yoga classes have ended, but I’m still working out

with my mommy group most days of the week. We aim to work our five

mornings a week but don’t always make that goal because of sick/ tired babies and an occasional tired mommy. However, I’m really ready to get back into the groove

after the holidays, especially because (da da da daaaaa!) Justin got me a new jogging stroller for Christmas! I’m so excited to break it in! I can’t think of anything else to write about right now

, so I won’t go on any longer. Just know that our little family is happy, healthy, and we truly love each other!

2007 has been a great year; we love you all and we’ll see you in 2008!