Santa and dropping the kids off at the pool

Rob's work had a Christmas party for the kids this past weekend at his hangar and Santa and his elves flew in on a P-3. Here is a picture of Santa exiting the plane. The kids had a great time. They are getting to know him rather well because we've seen him alot over the past month. They've had their picture taken with him twice and today we are going to another Christmas party where Santa will be. Here is a picture of the kids patiently waiting for him.
Mariano keeps looking out of our window at the lights on the neighbors houses and says "I think it's going to be Christmas." He doesn't quite get that it is on a certain day that you have to wait for. For example we went to a Halloween party in October and he still asks if we can go to a Halloween party on any given day. Rob & I are ecstatic because....drumroll please......
Mariano is finally potty trained!! Yesterday made it official. He is pooping on the potty now. Or, as Rob likes to say...dropping the kids off at the pool. He made the leap from pull ups to underware. He has been peeing on the potty forever, but refused to poop on the potty for fear of what? We still don't know. All I know is that he is going on the potty now and I hope he never looks back! Yay baby boy!!! Mommy & Daddy are so proud of you. Go baby boy~go baby boy (can you picture me dancing? I am).
Mya has another loose tooth. This one is on the top. One of her front. Everyday it seems a little looser, but it is still hanging on. I'll let you know when it falls out. Here is a picture of her hula dancing in front of the Christmas tree.
And Valentino is still being Valentino. Eating, pooping, crying and being beautiful. Just incase you maybe suffering from withdrawal...I will provide you with a picture:

Mele Kalikimaka

From our ohana to yours.
We love you all.

Santa's Village

We took a little trip to Santa's village this past weekend and I was able to get a couple of pictures. Mariano was having a bad day, but Mya enjoyed herself. We waited in line for an hour. The kids were good considering it was hot and the line was barely moving. Valentino decided he wanted to eat while we were waiting and rather than sit and lose our spot, I opted to stand and feed him (under cover of corse) while we waited. Thats right, Mommas got skillz. He ate, burped and took a nap all while standing in a line. Guess thats why he has such a sleepy expression in the picture.

Little notes

So since Mya has learned to read, she has obviously learned to write too. These days she just loves writing notes to us. And lists too. She has to write a list for everything. She writes a list of stuff that we're going to do on the weekends, a list of what we're going to leave for Santa to eat, a list of stuff she wants for Christmas. All kinds of lists.
The other day I wasn't feeling well and she said that she'd "take care of me" so she made me a "snack"(with a note of course)....here is a picture. Notice the ellipsis. You gotta love that!

Pookie had a visitor...

After






Before

Yes, the tooth fairy visited Mya on Sunday night. She lost her 1st tooth. She was soooo excited. She was very brave and tried to tie a string around it and pull it herself, but the string kept slipping off. So she turned to Daddy and he helped her pull it out. She looks so cute with her little missing tooth. The tooth fairy visited her and left her two dollars and took with her the cutest, littlest tooth you could ever imagine.

Hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. I wish we could all be together.

Save the drama for your momma

So it's starting already. I went up to Mya's room and this is what I saw. Guess she didn't feel like having anyone bother her. I just had to take a picture for ya'll. She loves writing notes to us these days, but this one sure surprised me. And see that big trash bag with the red handles beside her door? That is full of clothes that Valentino no longer fits into. Can you believe that? He's almost 3 months and is wearing at least 9 months, if not bigger. He is growing like a weed. I'll write more later when I get some more time. I just picked up the kids from school and I'm sweating. Sure doesn't feel like November.

More openmeal please...

That is how Mariano says oatmeal. Even oatmeal pies~ he calls them openmeal pies. Another cute thing he says is lasterday meaning yesterday. I think it's a combination of last night and yesterday. Just when I think he's growing up because he has started to pronounce certain words correctly he goes and says something cute again and I realize that he's still my little baby boy. Like he used to say wom instead of one, but now he says it right. Of corse I can't think of any other ones right this minute, but there are more. One thing I can recall right now that made me chuckle was when Mya went to the bathroom the other day and she closed the door. Apparently Mariano thought she was taking too long because he went and knocked on the door. Mya yells out "who is it?" And he says "it's Mariano Aiden Barolin".
Mya told me a cute thing the other day. She said "mommy, I used to think that the people in the stores (cashiers) stood behind those things because they didn't have any pants on."
Out of the mouthes of babes...
Also, due to numerous complaints, I changed the settings so you are no longer required to have a gmail account to publish comments, so feel free to comment whenever you like.
We got Valentino a little activity gym play mat and he loves it. He is under there right now just a talking to it while I blog. He's getting big and sleeping much better lately. The poll is almost over and so far most of you think that he looks like Mya. That is what I think too. We shall see as he grows if he continues to look like her or if he changes. Speaking of Mya, we had a parent teacher conference for the end of the reporting period. Her teacher says that she is one of the best readers in the class and that we should move her on to chapter books because the other books they are reading are very easy for her. Considering she has been read to since she was an infant, I'm not surprised that she is so knowledgeable and loves to read. She's still our little genius!
My sister brought it to my attention that I never did "let you know" how Mya's sleepover went. Well it was fine. Which is how I forgot to write about it. She followed my directions and called me before she went to bed and then called me the next morning to let me know that she was ready to come home. It was so lonely without my baby girl in the house with me that night, but I'm going to have to let go eventually, right? Actually this weekend she is having her first sleepover at our house. She has her best friend Aspen spending the night tonight and her other friend Cori spending the night on Sunday since Monday is a holiday. Busy weekend. Wish me luck!

Momma's got some beautiful babies

Take a stand

Saturday night we went to a Halloween party (see pictures below) and Sunday (today) we pretty much just hung out around the house. As most of you are well aware, we are still trying to potty (poop) train Mariano. Like most kids he holds his pee in until the very last second when he is wincing in pain and can no longer hold it. I've found it to be more convenient and less messy just to keep his little potty in the living room.

He never poops in it, but at least he can get to it before uncontrolled pee goes everywhere. So today he takes off his underwear to pee just like any other day and walks over to his potty. Only instead of sitting down, he turns towards it, stands up and pees! I couldn't believe my eyes at first because I've never seen him do that. Not only did he continue doing that all day, but he also started going into the bathroom, lifting the seat (both) and peeing into the real toilet. We are so proud of him. We've given him lots of praise and just hope that he'll conquer pooping soon too!

Happy Halloween!

Tyrone the crackhead has kids? Who knew!Ariel~ The little mermaid
Who else but Spongebob
Ariel and Little Giant
Our friends~Dog & Beth Chapman
AKA Lance & Angie Rice (with their little fugitive Kanyon)

2 months old

VTB had his 2 month check up today. He now weighs 13 pounds and is 23 inches long. I took this picture of him today and thought he looked just like a little baby doll. He's been a little fussy today because of the shots he had to get.
Mya is having her 1st sleepover tomorrow for her friends Birthday Bonanza Bash. Needless to say, Rob and I are nervous for her. She is so excited! She's probably not even sleeping right now because of it. I'll let you know how it goes.

My first smile

I finally captured one of Valentino's beautiful smiles on camera. Talk about lighting up a room with just a smile...he can sure do it! He is growing like a weed. He is getting lots of meat on his bones now. We call him "gordito". He is always smiling and cooing. We all just love him so much. I can't believe it's already been another month since I've blogged. He will be 2 months old on the 23rd. Time really flies when you're being pecked to death by chickens having fun!! Yeah, thats it. Life is still pretty hectic these days. Having 3 kids is no joke. Last night was really crazy. As I was trying to cook dinner, Mariano was pitching a fit over something, Mya was calling my name repeatedly and Valentino was in his swing screaming. I did somehow manage to get dinner done and I even got to scarf some down before Valentino wanted to eat again. Ahh, I think I need to double up on my prozac :)
As most of you know, Mya is sporting a new "do" these days. We all love it. I'm especially excited because her hair won't reach her mouth so she can't eat it anymore. I miss being able to tease her with "just eat your hair" when she asks for a snack though. Oh well, she always hated that anyway. Today when she got home from school she looked at Valentino and said "you are so cute today....Mom did you make him cuter?" How adorable is that? She recently just completed level 1 swimming lessons and has begun level 2 now. She is really enjoying it. My poor baby is 6 years old and just now learning how to swim because she has an overprotective mommy who is paranoid beyond belief. Even her swimming instructor can tell that I'm on the edge of my seat as Mya dives down below to pick up a ring. She looks at me and smiles a knowing smile as if saying "relax mom- I've got her". I would love to get Mariano into lessons too, but I don't know if he is ready yet. He isn't too fond of the water. But that could just be another side affect of mommy paranoia. Guess I got that from my mom. She's always been afraid of the water. Makes me wonder how I ever learned to swim. I haven't a clue.
Mariano started PreSchool this week. He goes on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 8:30 until 2:00. He loves it! On Tuesday when I went to pick him up he was napping on his cot and I had to wake him up. He told me that he wasn't ready to go that he wanted to "finish taking a nap at daycare". Knowing that we only had a few minutes until we had to be at swim lessons, I practically had to bribe him to get him to leave. I guess that's a good sign. I knew he'd enjoy being there because he's very social and loves other kids, I just didn't realize how difficult it'd be to get him to leave. Today is Thursday and daddy took him to school this morning. When Rob got back home I asked him how Mariano had done and he told me that when he got into the classroom he announced "hi everyone, I'm back." What a funny little guy he is! I love these crazy kids!

Valentino is a month old already

He's growing so fast. It seems like we've had him forever. Mya and Mariano already love him so much. Rob and I are very proud of our family. We love the way our children love eachother. Rob has started working nights now so that he can get certain qualifications that can't be easily accomplished on other shifts. It's working out good so far---for him. Not so much for me. There are never enough hours in the day. The nights are very hectic. Mya comes home and does her homework. Not much time passes before it is time for dinner, then dishes, then baths, then books, then bedtime. Whew! Might not sound like much, but it would be so much easier with Rob here to help. Notice that cleaning was not in there anywhere. My house feels like a pigsty. I seriously need a maid. Or a nanny. Feels like I'm always rushing to get things done before Valentino wants to eat again. Which seems to be every hour and sometimes even sooner. Otherwise I'm holding him and nothing is easy with only one arm. Ofcorse, there are nights where things run like a well oiled machine. If only I could have more of those....
Mya received an award at school today. She was chosen as "Citizen of the Month". She was very proud and we were as well. They had a ceremony and then a small reception afterwards at school. She is still doing great in school. She insists on reading to her brothers and I every night. She never ceases to amaze me with her extensive vocabulary and her ability to read words one might think beyond her comprehension. I can't wait to see how she changes the world! Mariano is doing great too. My favorite new thing of his is how out of the clear blue he says "I just love you mommy". Makes my heart smile.

Welcome home Valentino!!

He's finally here! Our beautiful new addition~ Valentino Tristan Barolin. He is 1 week and 2 days old today. It feels like he's been here forever. It's strange to think that a little over a week ago he was in my belly and now he is in our house..crying, pooping, and stealing our hearts. It all started last Wednesday. I had a Doctors appointment and left there crying when I was informed that nothing had changed and that his head was "still pretty high". She scheduled me to come in on that following Monday for a follow up. I came home emotionally drained and Rob took care of me and the kids that evening. We went to bed at around 11 and I woke up feeling contractions. I got excited because they weren't the usual contractions. I knew this was it. I recalled the contractions that I had felt when I knew Mariano was on the way. I got up out of bed to make sure they didn't stop (the tell tale sign of "false labor") and they didn't. I started timing them while I did some last minute things around the house before I woke up Rob with the news. It was about 2 am by now and they were starting to hurt, so I went to brush my teeth and Rob woke up asking me why I was brushing my teeth at 2 in the morning. I told him it was time to go and he jumped up asking "are you sure?" I reassured him and he started getting things ready. He took the kids over to our friend Angie's and we were off to the hospital. We got to the emergency room and they wheeled me up to Labor and Delivery. I had called on the way so they were all ready for me. They took us to our room and had me change into a gown. It was about 5 am by now. The nurse performed an exam and determined that I was 3 centimeters. The contractions were really painful by this point, so they kept me there and at 7 am I got my epidural. What a relief! I loved that man who administered that! It was smooth sailing from there. I ended up having some pitocin because my contractions weren't as close together as they'd have liked them to be. I started pushing around 3:30 pm. He was born at 4:09. It was hard, but when they laid him on me, it was the best feeling in the world. He was here at last. Everything I had dreamed of for the last nine months was here, right on top of me, crying...along with Rob and I. We were so proud! We ARE so proud. He is perfect and beautiful just like our other two. Life is so good right now. Thank you God for our precious gift. We will take such good care of him. He is so loved by our entire family. Especially me!

Still Nada....

After lots of contractions yesterday, I was sure that the Dr. was going to give me some good news today. Well apparently they (contractions) were for nothing because I'm STILL the same! She said Valentino's head is still pretty high and that I was maybe a half centimeter dilated. MAYBE?? UGH!!!! So I asked her if she could strip my membranes to try to get some action going here and she did. Hopefully that will do something. I don't know how long I can last like this. The anticipation and misery is God awful! I've got another appointment on Wednesday of next week. She said that if I haven't delivered by then we would talk about inducing me. YES!! Finally an end in sight. I want to hold my baby boy so so bad. Well here come the contractions again, so wish me luck. Maybe the stripping did the trick!

Go shorty...it's my birthday

I'm finally 28. Wheres the Bacardi? Ha ha. You know I can't give away my real age. My sweet lover ordered me to take a nap when he got home while he made me dinner. After a delicious meal and sweet handmade cards from my babies we had some cake. It was so good. I was afraid Valentino might decide to make his appearance on my birthday and have to share his birthday with his Mommy forever, but luckily he stayed put. Now that my birthday has passed he has the green light again. Please baby, come outta there. Mommy is miserably huge these days! He's already not listening like his big brother. My parents are coming on the 28th of this month and I can't wait to finally see them again. Originally I thought that was kind of late, but now I'm starting to think that they'll be in the delivery room with me. Oh baby, please don't make me wait that long....

Sweetest Baby Shower

The gift table
The invitation
Me and Mariano checking out the cake
Isn't it adorable?
This is Angie and her daughter Shayla
Darcy pinning the corsage on me
My darling Mya
Look at all this good stuff!!
Mya opening her gift from Angie
(she got Mya and Mariano big bro/big sis T's)
opening gifts on a beautiful sunny day
Me and sweet Shayla
Diaper cake Angie made

So my dear sweet friend (and neighbor) Angie decided that she was going to have a surprise shower for me on Sunday. She is so thoughtful. If you looked up magnanimous in the dictionary, you'd probably see a picture of her. She's a sweet little southern gal like myself. Except she's sweet. Ha ha. Everything looked extremely beautiful and she decorated and cooked everything herself. You should be able to tell by the pictures how much effort and love she put into this and she has 3 kids of her own to take care of. She's one of those people who can't stand to be idle though, so it was right up her alley I suppose. Anyways, it was a beautiful day and a beautiful shower. I got so much nice stuff from everyone. It was very unexpected and I am truly grateful to everyone who attended and so graciously gave us such thoughtful gifts for Valentino. I wish my family could have been here to help celebrate, but they are back on the mainland gearing up for my sisters wedding! It is on the 18th and I'm so excited for her as I can only imagine her excitement and anticipation of becoming a wife for the first time ever. Unfortunately we won't be able to attend because I am sooooo pregnant that I don't even think I'd fit in an airplane seat. I hope you are able to enjoy the pictures as much as I enjoyed the shower. I just want to give a special shout out to my friends Angie & Lance for putting this all together and making it such a precious day for me that I will forever remember and cherish. So thank you guys for sharing in our joy as we celebrated our son Valentino. We love you both!