David & Vanessa + One

Growing on Up

2012-01-25T20:15:00.000-08:00

My baby boy is growing up. He is growing up way too fast actually. I've been having a really hard time with this reality lately. For the last couple of weeks i've been on the brink of tears and have actually had two mini-breakdowns stemming from the reality that he is getting older and that time is not stopping for me to take all of this in.

Gabriel started preschool this monday. He has moved up from his toddler class where he had strong friendships and two amazing teachers- Cintia & Rachel and has started his preschool class with new friends and another wonderful teacher, Jelena.

Personally, this is a bittersweet change for me as a parent. Gabriel moving up to preschool symbolizes so much. I can still remember him as an infant, as if it was yesterday. His personality and spirit has not changed since the time I used to hold him in my arms and look into his beautiful and telling eyes. He is still kind, loving, smart and mischievous. He is still sensitive, deep feeling, and has his old soul. We still have a very special and deep mother-son bond that is indescribable with words. It is because of this special bond I have with him that I know how much he loves his toddler team teachers Cintia and Rachel.

Cintia first became his teacher when his old one left. Gabriel bonded very quickly and deeply with Cintia. I could tell that he connected with her and that their relationship would build into something important. The very first day I met Cintia she told me the sweetest things about Gabriel, things that as his mother I knew and thought as well. But, it was her quick insight into my sweet little child that made me quickly realize that she authentically loved and cared for my son. When I would drop him off in the morning, I always left so relieved because I knew he was in the best hands. She is amazing. Cintia is from Brazil and she embodies that warm latin american culture that I often miss. I am so grateful that Gabriel was able to have her as a teacher.

Rachel became his teacher a few months after Cintia's co-teacher was moved to another department. Rachel was so open and happy about being the new co-teacher, and I think that infectious bright attitude rubbed onto Gabriel. He also built a quick and sweet bond with Rachel. He was sure to include her in our conversations at home, and that's how I knew he loved his new teacher. Gabriel was quick to give her goodbye hugs when he first met her and it was obvious that he felt comfortable around Rachel. Rachel has been so kind to us and always willing to listen to us talk about the cute things Gabriel does at home. Both Cintia and Rachel have made a great team together for Gabriel. I am so grateful for each of them. They have been such an important part of our lives. We will miss them greatly...good thing they are just down the hallway!

As the time approached for Gabriel to have his last week with them, I felt so conflicted inside. Sad for Gabriel because I know that transitions in life are hard. If they are hard for adults, imagine how confusing they must be for a child. Cintia and Rachel have done a phenomenal job in supporting him in this new and exciting transition. We also prepared him a lot at home. His new teacher Jelena has been so awesome, supportive, and collaborative. Together- Gabriel's toddler teachers, his new preschool teacher, and us have really prepared him for this new exciting chapter in his life. He has been very excited to enter preschool. He has had a great week of making new friends and getting to know his new classroom. I will blog about his preschool experience later. This post is more importantly dedicated to celebrating a part of his life that has been so special to him and us.

The collection of pictures below showcase a beautiful story. He celebrates that he is getting older, and the photos embody the special relationships he has with both Cintia and Rachel. Both his teachers took these goodbye pictures of him, and I am continually impressed by them. I am so grateful I have these photographs to show Gabriel when he is older. He already loves looking at these pictures and talking about his toddler teachers and his friends in the toddler program.

Graduating on Up

Gabriel and all of his toddler class friends. Missing are his friends Arden and Patrick.

Thank you so much Cintia and Rachel for being such beautiful and authentic people. Gabriel has been so fortunate to have had you in this chapter of his life. He loves you both dearly.

'Twas The Season...

2012-01-09T20:49:00.000-08:00

This time of year is so festive and fun. I love the emphasis that is placed on giving, and really strive to stay away from the commercialization that exist around this holiday season. Thus, I focus on the big message of joy and giving.I try to shop locally, and get gifts that will not only give to the people that receive them, but also have a domino effect on others. This isn't possible for everyone I shop (or make gifts) for, but regardless I try to make each gift meaningful, simply because I am giving. The excitement and deep sense of gratification that I experience when finding gifts for my most loved ones is awesome.

This season always reminds me to serve those around me. Especially, since we are in a much more fortunate place than others. When David and I first got married, we talked about the goals we each had for our family. David mentioned he wanted us to be really close with one another, and I said, I wanted us to not only be close but also focus on expending our bonds outwards with other people in need. I've always dreamed of giving to the community alongside my kids. I want to instill in them the importance of giving, without expectations. When Gabriel was born I was so excited to begin this tradition. This was going to be the first year where we were going to directly involve him in an environment where hardcore service was taking place. I signed up for two different events to do together as a family. One would be the toys for tots 5k. I love running, and finding gifts, so it was a perfect combination. My plan was to take Gabriel to the store, have him help me select a gift for another boy and girl. We would donate them at the 5k event, and then run as a family. However, that was a big fail! The last part of my semester was so intense and busy, I barely had a chance to eat or shower. Unfortunately the event fell in the middle of this madness, and it did not work out. I was really disappointed. But since I've been working on not being so hard on myself, I tried to just roll with the punches on that one.

The next event I volunteered for was a brunch that was organized by a local playwright who wanted to put together the very first Christmas brunch for homeless female veterans and their children. I was beyond thrilled to be a part of such a respectable cause. I figured Gabriel could come, and somehow be a part of all the service. The day before the event, we got an email to not bring our families, if at all possible. It seemed like the brunch and other christmas festivities we were throwing were going to be such a big hit with the homeless women veterans, that they were concerned we would not have enough space. This was completely understandable. So I volunteered on my own. It was such an enriching experience. I'm not a person that is big into military, etc (specifically-the ideology behind war and defense). So I especially made the effort to serve a population that often goes unnoticed by me. This was an attempt to build a strong bond and connection with a group of people (the military) that I've never specifically served. Each of these women have a story, and are presently in tough situations. These are also women that have bravely served this country, and have children to support. I was happy to volunteer and help make this brunch a success for them. I loved my experience.

That also leads me to my next thought. This holiday season really is about uniting all of us. Regardless of the different holiday traditions that we adhere to, we are all celebrating something special. I find the two thoughts below so fitting:

"During the holiday season we become aware of our religious identifications. Amid this, let's also be aware of our Oneness identification. As much as you teach your children how to identify more with their religion, at the same time, also teach them to identify as a person-of-this-world - one with all cultures, all traditions, all religions, all peoples." -Dr. Shefali Tsabary

And I want Gabriel to be able to see things this way:

"As we put our christmas tree next to our menorah, my daughter made a video and said, "and today we celebrate Christmas, but tomorrow Hannukah, and then Purim and then Easter and Diwali. Different festivals, but same cast of characters." We are of One identity. -Dr. Shefali Tsabary

This season was filled with both thoughtfulness, service, and fun. Below are some pictures of what we got into:

Celebrating my brother and sisters birthdays!

And then we travelled to San Diego for Christmas and had fun at the beach, sea world, and riding around San Diego. Such a beautiful place, and a great time with Dave's parents:

Home

2012-01-04T14:45:00.001-08:00

It's January 4th and I'm finally feeling like I am on my semesters break. I only have 10 days left and I'm planning on taking in every moment. Everything was so busy right after I finished my semester a few weeks ago, that I finally feel like I'm in a rested state.

Since I've been on break I've been keeping Gabriel mostly at home. I love it so much. I really miss being a stay at home mom and have still not gotten used to the idea that I'm not at home with Gabriel all the time. I have loved my journey in grad school but it's so intense and this past semester has left me nostalgic of my stay at home mom days. Today was one of those days that I've been especially grateful to be on break. I've loved on my Gabriel all day long. At this moment he is napping on me while I blog via my phone.

I just needed to dedicate a blog post to my gratitude over the very special spirit David and I have. He brightens my day every day. He melts me with his sweetness and big brown eyes. He has taught me so much about unconditional love. Words can't express the deep love and connection Gabriel and I have. Best way to describe it is that he is my baby soulmate. I see so much of myself in him, yet he is an individual...apart from me. Because of this, I understand Gabriel in ways no other person ever will, and vice versa. I don't take any of his smiles, tears, or hugs for granted.

Every minute of the day I am grateful and fortunate to be his mama. I love the two quotes below:

"A mother's love for her child is like nothing else in the world. It knows no law, no pity, it dares all things and crushes down remorselessly all that stands in its path." -Agatha Christie

"Of all the rights of women, the greatest is to be a mother." -Lin Yutang

Happy new years everyone! I start 2012 with my renewed appreciation for motherhood and love. I will blog about the holidays later this week.

Sleeping on me while I blog

Thanksgiving Thanks

2011-12-02T14:08:00.000-08:00

We had such a fun thanksgiving that i've been trying to think how to blog about it. Normally, I like to focus on all the gratefulness my favorite holiday evokes. But this thanksgiving was not only a nice one because of all the gratitude I focused on but also because we did so many fun things.

I'm in the most stressful part of my semester. The part where I question whether I can make it til graduation. The part of the semester that has me having nightmares at night on paper's I forgot to write, or weird stuff like that. The part of the semester where I procrastinate til the last minute because I am so stressed out. It's not my favorite time. The last couple of weeks prior to thanksgiving were so busy and I felt like I was losing my mind. So, when we drove up to spend a few days at my parents house for thanksgiving, I was looking forward to disconnect as much as possible from school, and all my worries. That was going to be my thanksgiving.

My mom is an amazing cook. Neither one of us works off recipes. We just cook what comes to mind and our hands work intuitively to create yummy things. So I was looking forward to her delicious turkey. I'm not a big meat eater. I mostly unintentionally eat vegetarian type dishes for myself. But for some reason, that turkey she makes is so good. Dave also loves my mom's cooking, and looks forward to her turkey. So thanksgiving consisted of what we all do around the country. We sat down as a family and ate a scrumptious meal. Gabriel was actually quite the terror during this sit down dinner, so parts of it are a blur. After dinner, we kept up with some some traditions and played thanksgiving bingo! It was such a blast. I won twice! Everyone in my family was able to win at least a game, except for my brother, it was kind of funny.

My mom shared that she was grateful for all her children, and their better halves that love them and take good care of them. She was sure to include a little threat in her toasts, and said "You better love them, or else!" It was so cute. I love how much my mom loves all 3 of us (and treats our respective halves as her children too), and that she makes sure that all our significant others know we are her babies and they need to take care of us. I'm really grateful for both my parents this thanksgiving. Our family's journey has not always been easy at times, but that does not take anything away from how great of parents and grandparents they are. My appreciation for them has exponentially grown as I've had a child of my own. Sometimes, I'm in awe of how hard working my parents were and still are. How they always tried their hardest to provide the best for us. It's not easy to immigrate to another country, away from all your support system and essentially start over, with three little children. My parents are a true success story.

I'm so glad that we were able to drive up to their house, just an hour and a half away, and feel at home. Gabriel loves spending time there and it brings me so much comfort to see. This thanksgiving I'm especially grateful for my family. Honestly, they are a breath of fresh air for me, during this busy time in David and I's life. They are providing that support to us that we really need as we try to finish our respective careers. I think the best way to sum up my gratitude over this particular thanksgiving is this poem:

At Grandma's House

I like the taste of turkey
Any time throughout the year
But it never
seems to taste as good
As when Thanksgiving's here.

Could be it's all the trimmings
That are cooked with it to eat-
But I think it's
eating at Grandma's house
That makes it such a treat!

~Author Unknown

And here are some pictures depicting our fun times:

After the festivities were over, our only family pic!

The boys

The girls

Giving my mama some love.

This is my multi-cultural family. I love it!

Playing Thanksgiving bingo. Josselyn is the best bingo caller ever! It's hilarious.

David and I love making pies together on Thankgiving. It's our tradition.

We hope your thanksgiving was happy and full of gratitude.

Genius Gabriel

2011-12-01T20:56:00.000-08:00

I've often talked about Gabriel being so smart. We are told by his teachers at preschool that he is so smart a lot. Every day that Gabriel goes to school we get a little note that is specific to what he did that day, and today this is what we got:

"I am convinced that Gabe is a baby-genius! He was playing with different shapes and sizes of blocks and figured out (on his own) that 3 little blue blocks (diamond shaped) can be put together to match the same size and shape of the big octogon! It's super impressive for his age". :)

Can I just say that I was not surprised to get a note like this...but I was so proud. To me, Gabriel is so special, from his intellect, to his kindness, to our mother and son bond, to the way he treats other people. I don't want him to grow up. I want him to be my baby forever. At the same time, I am so excited to see who this child will grow into. I have a suspicion that he is going to continue to be a bigger, more amazing version of what he is now.

Oh and today, he told David, "Mama is the best person in the world". How can your heart not melt over and over for him? I get teary eye'd just thinking about it.

Update time!

2011-11-22T20:18:00.001-08:00

It's been a really long time since I've posted, I needed a break from blogging, but I don't want to miss sharing what life has been like since May. So I decided to share a photo to depict each month since May. This doesn't show e.v.e.r.y.t.h.i.n.g. we've done, but it's some of our funnest memories!

May-A month for celebrations. We celebrated me turning 27. We celebrated the end of my first year of graduate school. We celebrated my mom's birthday. It was a fun month.

At my celebratory birthday/end of semester dinner with friends.

June-More celebrations! David turns 32! My old man really is getting old, hehe!

My family came down and we celebrated the birthdays by having habachi, and then engaging in capture the flag with water balloons! It was a blast, and it will become a family tradition! My dad took the picture, while my brother watched Gabriel inside our house.

July-The month of fun in the sun. We went on beach trips, and parks, and did fun barbecues.

We went to an awesome July 4th party and Gabriel enjoyed the slip and slide!

August-squeezing in as much fun before my last year of grad school begins, and Dave's first year of graduate school begins!

Family fishing, what a joy, another family tradition.

September-The start of our school semester's, while still enjoying beautiful weather.

My amazing cousin Kimie came to visit, and we took a trip to Charlottesville, the beach, and also did some urban white water rafting!

October-Such a fun month to look forward to, halloween! We love dressing up.

David is Fred, I'm his Daphne, and Gabriel is Scooby-doo! Gabriel inspired us, because he loves Scooby-doo.

We have had fun through all the seasons of the year. Life is great, and we are thankful. This doesn't mean we don't have struggles like everyone else. The last few months have been quite the roller coaster ride, and we are making the best of our life's adventure!

Tune in soon, for a post on my favorite holiday of the year, Thanksgiving!!!!

Our baby is TWO!

2011-05-06T08:47:00.000-07:00

I have finally gotten around to blogging about Gabriel's birthday. He turned two on February 16! Yes, I know...we are in May now, but there is no way that I can not blog about his special day.

Gabriel had such a blast on his birthday. For a few weeks before his birthday I kept telling him that he was going to be TWO soon, so that when people asked him how old he was on his birthday he would be able to say his real age. It was so cute, because he totally did! So the day started with us singing happy birthday to him when he first woke up. HE LOVED IT. He was not sure where all this attention was coming from, but he loved soaking it all up. Gabriel has always had a special love of songs and he just thought the birthday song was the coolest. We sang the happy birthday song all day long as a special treat to him. His formal celebrations included a trip to Chuck E Cheese with my family. He was in heaven. I was surprised at how perfect of a place it was for a two year old. He played and he played, and when it was time to go, he was really sad. He was sad to leave Aunt Josselyn and he was sad to leave Chuck E Cheese. He got some pretty nice gifts, and they were all related to his love for Thomas & Friends. He is a true fan of trains. But, more important than the gifts he got, we got to shower him with lots of love from lots of people. We are so grateful that we can celebrate Gabriel's second year of life. He is the light and love of our life. Our world revolves around him.

Gabriel as a two year old is talkative, happy, and mischievous. He definitely practices some "selective" hearing sometimes. I'm so happy he has a sneaky side, because it makes things fun. He is very loving and kind. He adores all things train, in every part of life. He has a really long attention span, and devotes a lot of concentration and time in his projects. It's amazing to see, and it definitely surpasses the attention span of an average two year old. He looks forward to playing with friends and going to their houses. He is usually upset to leave play dates, we have to negotiate pretty hard to leave! He also has a great memory. He remembers things from ages ago, and randomly brings them up sometimes....it always catches us off-guard. How can that be? He is just so in tune with every day life. He is also very sensitive, it melts my heart. He is in tune with every emotion in the room. If I'm having a rough day, he knows it, and trys to make me laugh. Whenever he thinks he is in trouble because he did something wrong (even though he is not in trouble, we are just letting him know not to do something) he takes it very personally, and like it is the saddest thing that ever happened to him....that is what I mean by sensitive. He also "pretends" to be sad sometimes, but then cracks a smile, when he notices that we are not being fooled. He is just such a joy at 2.

His transition to his toddler class was rough at first. I think he missed the special relationships he had formed with his previous teachers Erica and Dana. They were amazing with him. It was a really hard time for me, to see Gabriel sad at drop off. It killed me. I communicated and advocated for him a ton, and felt like things were going no where. AND THEN, he got an amazing new teacher, Cintia. I love her and Gabriel went back to being himself at drop off. He would run and give her hugs and goodbye kisses. She instantly expressed her love for him, and how he loved how smart, sweet and kind he was. Once she said that to me, I knew that she understood and loved my child, because that is totally his character. Cintia is from Brazil, and she brings all the authentic warmth that exists in the latin culture. She is such a comfort to my life! When I drop him off at school, I know he is in caring hands, and I can tell because Gabriel is himself around her, when I am in the room.

We are so happy for our two year old, and how he keeps us on our toes! Life would not be the same without him.

The cake Grandma bought.

His birthday outfit from uncle D.

At Chuck e Cheese watching the birthday show

Curious about Aunt Josselyn's gift.

Our gift to him was to go see Thomas & Friends live.

He enjoyed it.

Celebrating with some of his friends at school.

Holidays

2011-01-03T18:40:00.001-08:00

We had a great time over the holidays. We spent Christmas in San Diego. The weather was beautiful. David's parents just moved there and so we ventured out there to spend time together and see their new home. It was a really awesome time. We went to the San Diego Zoo, the beach, and went sight seeing a lot. I never realized how amazing San Diego was until this trip. It is such a beautiful place and David and I joked about us moving there one day. Gabriel really loved the palm trees, every time he saw one he would say "Tree!, More more Tree!" It was cute. He liked his new surroundings. He ran free at the beach, he is such a free spirit. Christmas eve was spent on the beach. Of course, all I brought were boots and jeans and sweaters. Somehow we didn't pack shorts or flip flops! So we didn't look very "beachy" at the beach. But it was still an incredible time in my boots, ha.

Our trip didn't end as good as it started because Gabriel got really sick the last two days there. He developed an allergic reaction to antibiotics that he was on for an ear infection. So everything kind of spiraled out of control from there. But Gabriel is a tough cookie, he is better now. David and I really enjoyed this trip, especially as husband and wife. We went on a date while we were out there and it was so much fun to spend quality time with only him. I have such a great husband, i'm lucky. 2011 is off to a fabulous start and I will blog about 2010 as a whole later. Here are some pictures from our trip:

Gabriel made a gf at the beach. Of course, she is older. It takes a mature girl to handle Gabriel's old soul! haha.

We hope you had just an awesome of a time these holidays, as we did. Happy new year!

Grateful

2010-11-26T19:13:00.000-08:00

We had a really good thanksgiving this year, with the three of us. We decided to forgo traveling up north, and to spend thanksgiving with our little family. Graduate school has been so busy for me, and we have rarely been able to spend quality time as a family the last few weeks. So, when we had an entire day to spend together as a family, we enjoyed it to the max. We cooked a full out thanksgiving dinner, you know...turkey, ham, green beans, mashed potatoes, rice, and homemade apple pie. Our food was yummy, and we got full so fast. But thanksgiving is so much more than a great homemade meal and physical time with family. Thanksgiving is a time for giving thanks, as the word, backwards, implies.

While we had dinner, David and I shared some things that we are grateful for. Among having each other and Gabriel, we also had other common gratitudes. David said he was thankful for our house, his job, his christmas bonus (that will be used to pay bills). I said I was thankful for our house, being able to afford food for us, good food actually (we sacrifice spending $ in other things to instead invest in organic meats/food, and lots of veggies and fruits), two working cars, graduate school and the new friends I've made there, and being able to be happy and healthy.

To expand, we are so grateful for our house and the home we are building for Gabriel. Our first house, what is meant to be a starter house, is big enough to be an end house for lots of people. We are so fortunate that we are able to live in a big enough home that more than comfortably meets our needs. Many people in the world never get to have the luxury that I already have in my 20's. But really, that is a monetary blessing, one that i'm grateful for, but what I'm even more grateful for is the home I am able to make out of our house. Our home is a place for love, respect and peace. We hope that as Gabriel grows older, he will be able to carry those values into the lives of others. We are not perfect people, but we are striving to be providers of the best home a child could have.

I am grateful that David has a job that helps us pay for our living expenses, (as well as my grad school loans) and for the good food we are able to consume. Again, many people in the U.S. and around the World, are not that lucky. Nearly 17 million families in the United States, about 15 percent of all households, had trouble putting enough food on the table last year. The stats in other countries are more stark.

I'm grateful for having cars that work, not just one, but two. I'm grateful for all of my family and friends, for the love I know they have for us. I'm grateful that I have the opportunity to obtain a higher education. The kind of higher education, that is needed in todays society. I'm grateful that one of my talents is to have the ability to help other people in need and be a voice for them.

I am so grateful for all that I have. This life is full of trials and tribulations that make our life hard at times, but in the end, it always makes it richer. I'm so grateful for how great my life is, and the journey that the three of us are on.

"Of all the things that exist, we breathe and wake and turn it into song."

-Buddhist precept

Fall Adventures

2010-11-05T22:33:00.001-07:00

I have really enjoyed this fall so far. We have done lots of fun and memorable things. We've been in a bit of a drought in Richmond and so it has affected the beautiful fall colors we normally have. Last fall was the most beautiful I have ever seen. This year is still nice, but not nearly as colorful and it's made me nostalgic of last year. One of our favorite things to do in the fall is drive through monument avenue countless times. The beautiful vibrant colors in combination with the historical homes is so fitting. I love being able to appreciate all the beautiful things around me. We are so blessed to be able to be a witness to how beautiful this world is, in every changing season. Living here in the fall always reaffirms why I love the east coast so much. I'm so proud to live in such a beautiful place that is rich in history. Below are pictures of what we have been up to:

We took our fall trip to the mountains and did a small hike with Gabriel and my sister.

During the hike

I love these pictures. So amazing.

During our hike

On Gabriel's first field trip at school! They went to the pumpkin patch. It was SO FUN!

Wagon rides on his field trip. We also went on hay rides and through a spooky forest.

This is at another pumpkin patch we went to, Farm 2 Family

We had a blast this halloween, it was the funnest ever. We dressed up as Rockstars. We went to the fan and trick or treated on Hanover Ave. Every house in a few block span decorates their houses really spooky. It was amazing. They put lots of $$ into their decorations and candy!

Witch, the only thing that scared Gabriel. My sister was the paprazzi to the Durrant Rockstars.

Some people had a band playing at their house!

We spray painted Gabriels hair tips red too, but it's hard to see in pictures.

We were pumped on our way to trick or treating.

Durrant Rockstars 2010. We hope you had a blast this halloween!

Gabriel 18 Months

2010-09-17T17:47:00.000-07:00

(after getting baby powder all over his face)

Gabriel is 18 months, soon to be 19 months. He is growing up so fast. There is definitely days where I can see the difference from one day to the next. He is still my little angel, with little devil horns sometimes. He has the best temperament and personality. I am in love with him more and more everyday. Gabriel is still super smart and advanced for his age. His pediatrician is always amazed at his little self.

Most recently, our lives changed drastically with Gabriel. Now that i'm in graduate school we had to find child care for him. He's at a really great day school that follows the Reggio Emilia school of thought, founded by Loris Malaguzzi. There isn't very many private institutions that follow the Reggio approach here in the U.S., so I just consider us really lucky to have one in Richmond! I cannot begin to explain how much I love this educational approach (so just follow the above link if you want to learn more), particularly because I was already raising Gabriel in the same manner as the Reggio approach. Thus, I feel like his day school is his home away from home and it makes me feel so much more better about his transition. He has transitioned very well. The first couple of weeks were hard for us. Gabriel would whine or cry(for a minute or less) every time we dropped him off and it just broke my heart to pieces. He was always happy and fine once we left though, and that always reassured me. We did a few surprise drop by's on different days where we could observe him and he couldn't see us, and that's how we knew that he was happy there (aside from the reports from the teachers). Now, in his fourth week, he can't wait to get there in the mornings. The closer we get to school, the more excited he becomes and he excitedly repeats "School's Cool" in his super happy voice. I love it. His teachers, Erica and Dana have grown to love him so fast. They rave about how smart he is to us and everyone else. Erica calls him her sweetie pie. In fact, I always have a whole bunch of the other teachers talk to me about Gabriel. They have so many positive and sweet things to say about him. He seems to be the big man on campus, everyone knows his name and his special character. I love that he is in a very loving and caring environment. We get a daily report of everything he learned, experienced, and did while there. Even though I am not physically there with him like I used to, I feel just as connected to him, because of how great his teachers are about involving me in his development. Everything is so far so good with Gabriel (and us) transitioning into child care.

Alright, so now more about what Gabriel is like these days...Gabriel is really obsessed with Thomas the Train. If he ever watches t.v., he is only concerned with watching Thomas the Train. My sister bought him one of the basic train sets a couple of months ago, and he was been obsessed with all things Thomas ever since. He even hears the trains by our house and says train, and loves to see them going on the tracks. It get's him so excited. He loves all of his cars and trucks and scoots them around the house all the time. He is a total boy. Likes to climb on everything and jump down and create chaos. He loves to crumble his food and it creates a nice little mess for us on our wood floors. He is really active. He is also really into lining things up, usually in size order. He will take all of his books and lay them flat on our floors and create this long line of books, from smallest to biggest, when he runs out of room he just redirects the line in other directions or creates multiple lines of books. It's fascinating to observe. I'll have to post one of the videos. You can literally see his brain ticking, because he is thinking so hard about making his line of stuff work. At school, the teachers tell us almost every day how he lines up all of the toy cars there after his morning snack. He lines them up in size order too and he concentrates on his task for really long periods of time. They are always amazed at his approach to things. They keep saying, "he just thinks different, his brain works a different way". I think it's so interesting that they also notice. Another cute story was something that happened this week, Erica was telling me that he would carry around this baby all day long. He held it close to him and would take it everywhere he was playing (he also slept with it during nap) and at the end of the day he would find books to read to the baby. They took pictures of him just going about his day with his baby. How cute, huh?

Gabriel also loves blocks and legos. He loves building the legos up. He also loves the outdoors. When we take him outside he likes to get into mischief and wander around in our neighborhood and get into other people's driveways. All of the neighbors know and love him so they don't mind that he wanders into their driveways to find rocks. Rocks are another fascination of his. There was a time where rocks were his security objects. He would refuse to get into the car unless he was holding one of his rocks. He would hold the rock during the entire car drive and as soon as we had to get out, he would just let go of the rock and leave it in his car seat. So we have quite the collection of rocks in our car! Another cute thing he does is sing. He sings the ABC's (in his own way of course) and it's really neat to hear him go through the different letters. At night we usually hear him sing and talk himself to bed. He is generally a really content child. He is still very kind to us and others. He says I love you mama (sounds like "I Ove u Mama") and it just melts my heart. I love hearing him talk and love looking into his eyes. He has such a special sparkle in his eyes. I see so much life in those big brown eyes. We are loving being his parents. Below are some pictures of what he has been up to:

So happy and proud of his lego tower!

Love my handsome and preppy son.

after his first haircut

At National Night Out with his neighbor buddy

The day his love for Thomas the Train began. At Barnes & Noble.

He LOVES all kinds of slides

Gabriel and his Aunt Josselyn

Words/Phrases that Gabriel Said by 18 months:
car
truck
train
bus
who's that
what's that
where's mama/dada
there's mama/dada
i love you mama/dada
ok
oh oh
oh boy
fishy
butterfly
fly
airplane
cracker
no
more
slide
sky
boat
horsey
goat
cow
sheep
elephant
one, two, three
school's cool
ball ball
good night
good bye
beans
hi, hello, hey, bye
it's stuck, i dont know
all gone, all done

Huge Update

2010-09-10T10:57:00.000-07:00

I have a few updates for you all! I have not written on our blog in forever and so my updates stem from way back. Some aspects of life have been so stressful and so I completely left the blogging world for a while. But i'm back! And life is great and the struggles I was going through are better!

Mother's Day and Father's Day

I got this awesome card on Mothers day that "Gabriel" wrote/drew for me. David interpreted it and it was just the best interpretation. My favorite was "...I tell my friends all the time that my mom is better than theirs, sometimes I think they get jealous and don't talk to me. That's ok I still talk to them anyway..." Gabriel is such a social child, and so, more often than not, he cheerfully approaches kids and starts talking out a storm and the kids just stare at him and walk away. It happens all the time, it makes me sad sometimes, but Gabriel totally doesn't care and keeps talking to them or finds someone new to befriend. He is just so sweet. So what "Gabriel" said to me in the mothers day card was just so appropriate for what really happens. I always wondered what the heck Gabriel says to all those kids! And, now I know why they just stare back at him and walk away! They are jealous that he has such an awesome mom, hahahaha! So funny. I love my little boy. I'm so grateful he is my son and that I have the chance to be his mother and teach him and give him all the love in the world. David and Gabriel are the most important people in my life.

For father's day I made a delicious quiche and then the rest of the day slowly but surely became a bit disastrous. I was attacked by terrible allergies and could not function at all except for sneezing. So we don't have much memories for that day except that I'm so grateful to have a husband that is such a great father to Gabriel. Gabriel is lucky to have David as his father. Instead of taking the day off of on Father's day, David had to step it up and do everything since I was immobilized by terrible allergies.

Our Birthdays

I turned 26 on May 16. I'm getting old! We ate at an awesome restaurant in Del Ray, a neighborhood of Alexandria. I told David that we are always going to go eat there when we are in D.C. The service was exceptional and so was the food, and I just love Del Ray. That whole little town is totally my cup o tea. We took Gabriel to a neighborhood park there and he just loved it too. Of course he did, he is my son, and we both love all the same things! David turned 30 something (I can't ever remember his age) on June 2. It's fun to share birthdays close together. For his birthday I took him out to Dora's Brazilian Grill in the Shockoe Bottom area of Richmond. Our food was great. He enjoyed tasting all the meats. I made him a cake that was pretty yummy too. I love birthdays, they are always so fun to celebrate. Here's to getting wiser!

Other News:
*David is done with his spring grad school class! We enjoyed the summer by doing a lot of things and he is now back in another class that I think we be really good for him. He is such a smart cookie, and that's one of the reason's I love him.

*I got accepted into graduate school!!! I just started my Masters of Social Work this Fall 2010 at VCU. I am beyond excited. The program is a great and prestigious program, it's ranked 14th in the nation, and not easy to get into. They only accepted 16% of the people that applied into the program. So I feel very proud of myself for getting in. I worked really hard to be a strong candidate for them, and i'm just so happy that I got in. All of my professors keep mentioning that those that got in are the best of the best and that we are a part of a very difficult, rigorous and prestigious program. This is a really important stepping stone in my life. With my degree, I will be able to be a private clinician/therapist. I'll be able to own my own mental health practice eventually. I'm so excited that this next stepping stone will allow me to fulfill one of my lifelong dreams. I'm also going to do a lot of child advocacy and (pro) immigration advocacy/education with this degree. It's such an important stepping stone for me. Words cannot express the exhilaration and passion I have for my future career, in a way, the nature of my career is who I am as a person. The ethics and values that encompass my professional career are totally in line with my life goals and my own personal values. So far I have thoroughly enjoyed all my classes and i'm very excited to begin my field internship as well. I will be writing a post on just grad school in the next week or so.

*We planted an organic garden with all sorts of vegetables. We are having a tough time growing some of our food because a sneaky animal of some kind is eating away at our crops! BUT, our strawberries have survived and are coming in. I had one the other day and it was the MOST DELICIOUS strawberry I have ever tasted in my life. We are getting great peppers to cook some fresh and spicy food with. Our tomatoes are also a really nice treat for me. Our squash and zucchini got taken over by some bugs and so we will have to retry next year. David is a great gardener. He did such a nice job of continually checking on the garden.

Our summer was occupied by many trips to farmhouses, the mountains, beach trips, fishing, the pool, and of course taking advantage of the weather to wash our car!! haha. Below are some summer pictures:

At a lake in Charlottesville

I was able to see most of my aunts that were visiting from El Salvador. What a nice treat.

Thanks for the free tickets to Bush Gardens Brandi!

Cleaning up his hair on the floor from his first hair cut!

Cousin Kimie came to visit!

During a hike in the mountains!

Gabriel's friends Solomon and Elle spotting the black bear at Maymont

Shirley Plantation

It was nice to see Dave's parents this summer. We went to the Outerbanks with them.

Natural Fisherman

He is not as skinny as the picture depicts!

I will be doing an entry on Gabriel soon (he is growing up like crazy, he is 18 months now) and also on Grad school.

Anew

2010-05-10T22:18:00.000-07:00

One of my friends had a blog post about commiting herself to making her blog more meaningful. When I initially started this blog it was to keep our families up to date on how everything was going our way. But, I also wanted to use the blog as an outlet for any introspection I had on the simple and complex things of life. Her post has inspired me to finally share more of my piece of mind, in between catching everyone up our family adventures.

Life is busy for all us. Sometimes it seems like all there is to each others life is the daily responsibilities we all have, and when we come together as strangers, acquaintances, or friends we just catch each other up on the big things. However, often at times, it's the little things in our lives that really speak about who we are, and where we are going. Furthermore, not talking about the little things sometimes prevents someone else from truly seeing who we are as people. And so i'm officially committing myself to also blog about my thoughts, feelings, and run-ins with what we call life. I always have thoughts about things and my thoughts comprise who I am, my character. However, I keep a lot of thoughts to myself and only share them with my most intimate friends (which trust me, is very very few these days). I know that I need to start speaking my mind more, because it will challenge me to think deeper and act upon things, and become a better wife, mother, friend, and citizen in society. Here's to starting anew with my blog, which will now be more like my confidant.

The issue of quality over quantity
I have always been about quality. I have never needed a lot of one thing or people. I was always the girl that preferred to have few great friends over a lot of 'ok' friends. I want the best, because I give the best, and so my standard starts high for almost everything in life. However, because life keeps us busy, sometimes we can lose sight of what we are presently getting out of life. We get caught up on living day to day, that we forget to think about how we are living day to day. Sometimes, when we start to merely live day to day it's easy to focus on what is "fun" in life rather than what is "enriching" in life. It's always easier to think about fun rather than what will strengthen us. Yet, sometimes, life is both fun and enriching, that's a great combination. Anyway...trust me, all this mumbo jumbo really is connected. What i'm getting to here is that in my recent past I got caught up with quantity and I started losing some quality (not speaking about material things here). However, since it's not in my character to prefer quantity over quality, of course it caused some sort of imbalance in my life. And, boy do I love balance in all things. And so, the issue of quality has been on my mind recently. I understand that everyone is different (some of us are quantity people, while others prefer quality) and we all need different things out of people and life, but I hope this leads you to wonder about your life. Are you merely living day to day, or are you thinking about how you live day to day? Is your life in line with the character you posses inside? I know one thing, I need to realign my life back to surrounding myself around quality in all things. I know i'll be happier that way. I'll leave you with these two quotes I love, and that touch specifically on how I will be working to improve the issue of quality in my life.

"All things will be produced in superior quantity and quality, and with greater ease, when each man works at a single occupation, in accordance with his natural gifts, and at the right moment, without meddling with anything else."
-Plato (thank you for your wisdom, you were/are so dang smart!)

"It is not the quantity of the meat, but the cheerfulness of the guests, which makes the feast."
-Edward Hyde

And so i'll use my natural gifts to cultivate quality in my life and in the life of those I love, and I will surround myself around cheerful and honest people who will allow me to utilize and strengthen my natural gifts, and who are also happy when I'm happy, and are eager to be there for me when i'm sad. That's the kind of friend I am, and so those are the kind of friends I need. I love how you can build your life up on the wisdom of others. If you are still reading this, I hope I made some sort of sense for you! :-)

Two Year Anniversary

2010-04-27T08:54:00.000-07:00

David and I just celebrated our 2nd wedding anniversary on April 25th! After thinking for forever on where we should go (we just love the mountains so much), we decided on a nice trip to Virginia beach for the weekend. It was so nice to celebrate our anniversary with the three of us. We stayed ocean front, and hearing the waves all day and night was just so relaxing. I didn't want to sleep, it just felt so nice to look and hear the ocean. It feels like we have been married much more than 2 years, that's probably because we had Gabriel before we even got to celebrate our 1st anniversary!! Having a baby certainly ages and deepens the bond that you share as husband and wife. I'm so grateful for my sweet David.

We were lucky to have better weather than we initially thought. We got to enjoy nice walks on the boardwalk, a family bike ride, letting Gabriel play in the park, sand, and in the pool. Traveling with a baby is very different than a romantic getaway for two, haha...but I would not have it any other way. It was so much fun to be with my little family. Gabriel brought so much fun and happiness to the trip. He was fascinated by the sea gulls, and could care less about anything else. He also made it clear that he wanted to walk on the boardwalk on his own. Which was hilarious. He would just take off like the little man he is. Everyone would comment on how cute he was and laugh at how resolute he was on walking the boardwalk. They were having the March of Dimes on the boardwalk and Gabriel really wanted to participate as well! It was too funny.

Here are some pictures from our weekend:

Happy 2nd Anniversary babe! Thank you for all the great things you do for me.

A Testament of Gabriel

2010-04-20T13:25:00.000-07:00

Our poor Gabriel just got over being terribly sick. Like I have mentioned before, Gabriel has been all sorts of sick this past year. He's had all kinds of colds, viruses, the Swine flu, ear infections, and strep throat in the last year. Being sick always interferes with his sleep and play. Despite the fact that it wipes him out, he tries his hardest to be happy and also puts a smile on our faces.

Last week he was the sickest we had ever seen him (besides the swine flu maybe). He developed a fever Saturday the 10th, and by Sunday we could tell it was super high. When we took his temperature it was 104.3 f. He only wanted to be held. So I held him all day Sunday. The high fever was his only symptom. We assumed it was a fever virus. But he was so lethargic, sad, and was burning up, so we decided to take him to an after hours emergency pediatric practice. We were shocked to find out that he had a really bad double ear infection. The doctor also decided to do a strep test, just to make sure he did not have strep (apparently it's been going around). To our double surprise, he also had strep throat. Poor Gabriel never seems to catch a break in the sick department. We were so shocked at how sick he really was. We felt so bad. They forced all sorts of stuff down his throat that Sunday evening. It traumatized him of all nurses and doctors, and medications (which he normally loves to take, he thinks it's a treat). Of course, forcing medicines didn't work, and he threw all of it up a few minutes later. Consequently, they also had to vaccinate him with a strong antibiotic. Luckily he was not allergic to the medication. Despite all the medications he continued with a super high fever Sunday night, Monday and Tuesday. His fever was 105 f. We were so scared! I would just hold him all day long. The antibiotic that we had to give him made him really nautious and his stomach would hurt. Tylenol and Motrin would not drop his fever by much. After three days with fevers of up to 105, his fever disappeared. He continued to be extremely lethargic until Saturday the 17th. So my entire week consisted of holding him all day long, which I enjoyed. I just cuddled and loved on him as much as I could. My heart just broke to see him so sad; he would whimper and whine through out the day, and all I could do was just snuggle him.

The reason I'm sharing this story is to document how amazing Gabriel really is. On Monday, while his fever was 105 f. he suddenly jumped out of my arms, with a smile from ear to ear, and decided he wanted to be his happy self. He wanted to push away how sick he really felt. He cheered himself up and us also. He ran around, laughed at nothing, cheesed at David and I. He just wanted to show us that he was still happy and ok. We actually really needed that, because we were so worried! While he was playing around, I decided to snap some pictures of him. He played with me and the camera. He would take his golf clubs and point them at the camera, playfully. I felt like I was literally documenting a testament to his character. I am so grateful for the wonderful disposition that Gabriel always has, even when he is so dang sick. He's got such a funny, happy, kind, strong-willed character. Nothing in life is ever going to stop this child.

Below are the pictures I took while he was burning up in a fever. I think they are my favorite of any pictures I have ever taken of him, because they mean so much.

In an attempt to cool him, we kept him in a diaper most of the time.

The final picture below says so much. After all the playing and cheesing, he finally had a thought to himself, "Mom, why the heck are you taking pictures of me?? Don't you know I'm soo sick!" Haha. This is a true Gabriel expression, which is so hard to capture on camera.
I'm so glad I did. After this picture he played for a little longer and then went back onto my arms and I loved on him all over again for the next few days.

Aside from getting all the colds etc., that many little kids his age get, Gabriel is a super healthy, resilient, happy boy. Every experience brings forth new treasured memories. I am so grateful for the joy he brings into my life. We are so lucky.

Easter Weekend 2010

2010-04-04T17:44:00.000-07:00

Spring is here! Spring in Richmond is absolutely the best. Everything flowers and it's such a beautiful place. On Saturday, to set off our Easter weekend we went to Easter Day at Maymont, one of Richmond's prettiest and most historic parks.

My sister came and spent part of her spring break with us, and we had so much fun. I love being able to have my sister close. She is such a great friend, and auntie to Gabriel.

David at the Animal Farmhouse that Maymont has.

Gabriel's 1st Easter! (we didn't do anything last year)

We had some of our good friends over for Easter on Sunday, and had some good food, and an easter egg hunt. The kids all had fun, but would get annoyed at each other the whole evening, it was kind of funny. It was fun to share this easter with our friends The Williams and Souters. It was such a memorable easter, mainly because we had Gabriel to plan for. I loved buying him things for his easter basket which consisted of candy that we didn't let him eat (mean I know), silly putty, and a color it yourself easter puzzle (which I will let him color tomorrow).

Gabriel and his buddies. He did not want to sit down for the picture.

We did let him eat some jelly beans that he took out of his easter egg that he found.

He was so hooked! I guess that's what happens when we deprive him of sweets.

Running to find more eggs!

Happy Easter to all our friends and family!

Gabriel is ONE!

2010-03-30T10:57:00.000-07:00

Our little baby is a year old now. Time has flown by way too fast and at the same time I feel like I have known Gabriel my entire life. I love this child so much, he is such a special kid. He melts my heart every single day and my life would be so boring without him.

To celebrate Gabriel I thought I would share some things about him. Gabriel is so perfect in my eyes. He has a warm, and tender personality. He constantly wants to make others laugh and smile. He has this super cheesy smile and I have a feeling he got it from imitating me. He makes me smile so much and so I think he just started copying my smile back and has now just generalized it to the whole public. Initially he only made that cheesy smile back at me, and only when I was around. He wouldn't cheese around his dad if I wasn't around. But now, he just cheeses at everyone, and everyone cheese's right back. His friendliness is contagious. He talks away and it's hilarious. Most of the time, we have no idea what he is saying, but we still acknowledge whatever he says and talk right back to him. He loves those conversations. He also has a go-getter personality. He has been really early on all of his motor and cognitive development, and I think it's because he just wants to hurry and be this big kid already! He just wants to get things done and impress everyone. He is a major show off and knows that our world's revolve around him. Whenever we have visitors in our home, he does anything to show off, he will do tricks and then clap for himself and he will walk away and turn around really fast to make sure your eyes are still on him. If you have looked away he will shout and clap so that you look right back at him. It is the cutest thing in this world.

I get scared sometimes because I don't want him to get used to being the center of attention, because really, that is not what life is about. But at the same time, he is a baby, and it's up to us as parents to parent him and help him realize how big this world is and that he needs to care for all of those around him. Which, I know he will, he really cares about people and that they are happy, I can already see that. At the same time, he knows what he wants and he will in no way be distracted from his object of affection. This is why I think he is the perfect child, because he is tender, loving, interested in making others happy, but at the same time, he is not a push over, he will tell you know what he wants, and will fight for it. He is very strong willed. He's got some spice to him! It makes it hard on us sometimes, because he will figure out lots of different ways to get his way. Sometimes David and I are in awe at how smart and manipulative he can be, at such a young age, and it just makes us laugh. However, David is better at laying down the law, i'm a lot more easy going with Gabriel. But don't be fooled, I'm getting better at laying down the law.

Gabriel loves to explore everything. He tries to figure out how things work. He is generally patient, but if he has a hard time trying to figure something out, he will throw a pity party fit and throw himself on the floor and get angry for a second, and then he goes right back to figuring it out. It's funny. He has perseverance. He is also getting pretty tough when he hurts himself. Most of the time, he doesn't cry when he falls face first or bangs his head. Of course, if he is sick or tired, he is very symptomatic. He has been sick a lot this first year of life, which means we have all been sick a lot. He is getting better at handling being sick better, which is so nice for us. It really feels like we get sick every two or three weeks, it knocks all of us down! But at least he is building his immune system. The doctor told me it's better he get sicks a lot now because it will make his transition into Elementary school easier. Most of the reason he get's sick so often is because I have been a stay at home mom with him. So he is not exposed to germs like kids in daycare are. One thing is for sure, I can't wait til teething and getting sick a lot is over! He has gone in and out of being a good sleeper and it all depends on whether he is teething or sick. Poor kid, it breaks my heart and sleep, haha!

We enjoy our time with Gabriel every day. I am such a proud parent. I love talking about him, and sharing this part of my life with friends and family. I am so lucky to have such a unique, healthy, and happy child, and to also have David be his father. He is such a good father to Gabriel. Gabriel adores his dad. He is generally a momma's boy. He is always sweet to both of us, but he has what we call "mom" and "dad" days, where he will be especially sweet to one of us. It makes our day when he treats one of us in a special way. And he's pretty fair about it too! How can we not be in love with such an awesome child? He truly has been heaven sent. He loves us with such a pureness and we love him right back. Happy birthday sweet Gabriel!!

This is on the actual day of his birthday. Since we are not fans of giving Gabriel sweets, I made him a corn muffin with icing on top. He loved it so much!! I gave him the rest of the muffins I made without icing. He loved this special birthday treat.

Opening the card and present from his Grandparents Durrant.

We also threw him a little party with our closest friends and those that have especially been there for us this year. It was great to be surrounded by such good friends that love Gabriel. Since Gabriel is half white and half Salvadorean. We decided to make the food appropriate of his cultural background. So we did hot dogs and potato chips to represent his white culture, haha, and we did a couple different kinds of pupusas and meat pies called "pastelitos" with a few sides to represent his latin Salvadorean heritage. It all turned out great. We had the whitest food around and the most Salvadorean food around.

Yes, we did have a pinata to reinforce his latin roots!!!

This is our homemade birthday cake! With the help of my sister, david and my cousin, we put this great duck cake together! We decided to do a duck cake because Gabriel LOVES Ducks, and that was his first word! You can also see the little football cake on the side, which David made solely for Gabriel.

It was cute. He ate all of it except the fondant!

His birthday was a blast!

Gabriel's First Words (Before his 1st birthday):
Duck
Cracker
Dog
Horsey
Hi
Bye
Ok
All Done
What's That
a few more I cant remember right now

Recent Happenings

2010-02-02T19:50:00.000-08:00

Life is funnier than ever with Gabriel getting smarter and smarter, and with him walking everywhere. I've been having fun trying to take pictures of the everyday things he does to put a smile on our faces. He is the funniest and smartest child I have ever seen.

Our funniest story is this one above I think. A few days ago, while David and I were just hanging out at home, Gabriel was playing on the stairs. I noticed he was chewing on something. I asked David what he was chewing on and he said it was a cracker he got from my diaper bag. However, after a closer look, we discovered that he had gone into the very bottom of my diaper bag and got my pack of gum out. Not only that, but he chewed his way into the pack in order to get a piece out. Haha. He was chewing on a piece of gum with the wrapper still on. Now, i'm not sure what's funnier. Gabriel chewing on gum or David thinking it was a cracker! The cute part to this story was when I gave Gabriel the evidence to take a picture wit. He posed with the cheesiest and proudest face. He was totally showing off his newest shenanigan!

Gabriel loves this little Giant's bat. He takes it everywhere around our house and does everything with it. Lately, Dave has been teaching him how to golf with it. He actually putts the balls with his little bat! He might just be a golfer in the making.

Dave works out every morning and Gabriel usually plays around and watches him. One morning, after he finished doing his perfect push ups, Gabriel walked right up to the two little push up thingies and started doing perfect push ups too! Dave couldn't get him in the actual position, this picture shows him just getting up from one of the push ups. If you notice, Gabriel even pulled the two push up thingies closer together to fit him, Dave didn't do that. What a crazy kid!

In these next couple of pictures Gabriel digs the stuff out of our cabinet and makes himself a little home. It was so cute finding him in it! I was washing the dishes next to him and didn't even notice him doing it, until I realized that Gabriel was gone!

Now this is also a super funny story. I'm going to sound like such a terrible mom. I had just finished feeding him lunch in our family room because I was really into the orange county house wifes episode. After I finished, I got him out of his feeding chair and locked his tray into the chair. He started playing with other stuff and I kept watching the tv show. Next thing I know, I hear Gabriel banging on the tray, and so I turned to look at him. He had gotten himself inside the chair and locked the tray down!! How the heck does a baby know how to do that??? I was completely in shock. Of course, I figured he was still hungry so I gave him a cracker and then took this picture to document the fun story. Can you believe he snapped himself in on his own!?

I took him out to play outside with his toy. Gabriel was in awe of the rocks on our driveway. He thought they were his treats. He would point to them, grab them and then try to eat them.

He totally works the control and bought a movie from On Demand the other day. Luckily it was nothing inappropriate. He ordered 500 Days of Summer.

He insisted on feeding himself one night. So I let him. These next few pictures show him feeding himself. He was totally showing off for the camera again.

All done! Look at that smile.

Everything else on our end is also great. David is working and taking another graduate class. I'm just staying at home enjoying life without ANY HOMEWORK or TESTS!! I have been a little busy lately though because I've been finishing my grad school application. Just turned it in today! Now i'm just working on doing a little decorating in our house. Which, I need LOTS of help in! Other than that, we're living La Vie en Rose. :-)

Invincible

2010-01-23T18:29:00.000-08:00

My little angel is walking. For the longest time I kept wondering how I would feel when he started walking. I definitely thought I would break into tears when Gabriel took his first steps. Instead, I was completely elated and excited for him. Every time I thought about him walking, I kept looking at it like it was a sign of him getting older, and more independent. Which is an exciting thought. At the same time, it's a reality check. Gabriel is getting older. In fact, he will be a year old in a month or so. I have adored seeing my little baby grow up. I have also cherished every single second with him as my little baby. I have made the best of late night feedings or cuddling because I realize that when he is older, and no longer a baby, he will not need night time feedings or cuddling. I have preferred to rock him or cuddle him to sleep rather than just placing him in the crib to cry, because a good friend told me once, he will only be a baby for so long. Cuddling, and rocking him are sweet expressions of love, and let him know that I will take care of him, good care of him. I'm just lucky that he is a cuddler too.

Back on the subject of Gabriel walking. Well, it's such a symbolic thing. Little by little, Gabriel has learned how to walk. It started with rolling himself over, then by sitting up, then by crawling, then standing, then taking a couple wobbly steps, then taking a few more steps, and then fully walking. For him, it was a 10 month journey to get there. Babies are so persistent, aren't they? I'm just so amazed at how it all works. How someone so small can go around our house walking everywhere. We take care of our babies, and so they are dependent on us, but in reality, we are raising them to be independent from us. It all goes hand in hand. I love how it works. I think that's the reason i'm not as nostalgic as I thought I was going to be, about him walking. Instead, I feel so proud of him. Proud that he is becoming his own little person; walking around, babbling about who knows what, pointing to things, smiling, laughing, walking over to me to hold him and then walking away from me to explore this or that. It's amazing. There is so much that is going on in his little world and he is taking it all in. That's why he walks all over the same places, he really is just taking it all in. He is absolutely loving this new walking phase. He wanders around our house so focused sometimes, as if he does not realize that he is walking because he is so enthralled at something, and other times, he looks at me with a smile from ear to ear. He smiles from ear to ear because he is just so proud of himself for all the cool stuff he does, and he wants me to know it, and acknowledge it. I have fun acknowledging how amazing of a baby he is. How great these last 11 months with him have been!

This is a video of Gabriel taking his first steps. We were lucky to have our camera around to capture this moment. He was 10 months old here.

And this video was shot TODAY, at 11 months now. He feels so invincible.

Two Thousand and Nine

2010-01-16T18:32:00.000-08:00

2009 was a busy busy year. It has also been the happiest year of my life. The year started in pure bliss with the birth of our beautiful son Gabriel, born February 16th. Our entire year has revolved around raising our son and enjoying the new dynamic as a family of three. With 2010 here, I'm excited to work on building new memories, strengthening my relationship with David, upholding my duties as a mother, and enjoying life with friends and family. I thought it would be nice to chronicle parts of 2009 with pictures of our favorite memories.

One of my most treasured memories of 2009 were the first few weeks at home with our new baby. Our house felt complete, cozy, safe, and full of love. I long for another baby, and being able to relive the experience of adding another member to our family. The happiness felt those first few days is indescribable. Just like the above picture shows, I would just stare and smile at how perfect Gabriel was (and still is).

The first night home, Gabriel was so curious and instead of sleeping, he would make noises and look around at his new home. As typical first parents, we were afraid he would stop breathing, and wanted to be as close to him as possible (the bassinet next to our bed was not enough). We slept with him in the middle, propped up on a pillow that first night. I treasure that memory. That next morning, my sister came into our room, and we were dead asleep. She ran to get the camera, to capture the precious moment. I'm so glad she did!

Also, I have enjoyed making fun memories on holidays. It seemed like all the holidays this year were more special because we had Gabriel to share them with. Below you will see pictures of Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas.

Halloween

Thanksgiving

We made thanksgiving paintings by using our hand to make the body of a Turkey! Gabriel's was so fun to make, his is the one with the three turkeys, we took his hand print 3 times and there is three turkeys to represent the three of us!

Christmas

Gabriel putting the first ornament on the tree

Tacky lights tour!

On one of his Christmas gifts

Opening gifts!

He loved his new toy.

So much that he climbed on it to sit on! Haha.

Loved seeing my niece Danica

Gabriel loved to see his cousin Danica and Beck

I got to have a 5 year roomate reunion! I miss these girls so much. I could use such good friends like them in Richmond.

Graduation

After taking my last final

My other favorite memories this year consists of all the milestones Gabriel reached, all the ones I have already blogged about, like switching to solids, flipping over, learning to smile, laugh, and crawl. Currently he is trying to perfect the art of walking, which I will blog about later. In reality, my favorite memories are also the everyday things that he does. Gabriel is an adventurous child, and he gets into everything and wants to explore everything. Below you will see various pictures of his adventures that I was able to snap pictures of.

Yup, reading the paper.

Always getting into the T.V. stand!

I love his smiling face

Taking boxes apart

He gets under anything if he sees something he wants

He loves other kids, and here he is with his friend Ariel

While I was studying for finals and very focused on my studying he decided he was going to entertain himself by getting into the desitin and have a party with it. I had no idea until he came up to me with a smiling face. He got it all over our carpet and himself. It was such a funny and precious moment!

This is one of my favorite outfits

He always opens stuff on his own. I found him having a puff party, he was quite happy.

His first experience with snow:

The first night it snowed.

Looking out the door onto the snow the next morning.

He would keep saying "Oooo" at all the snow.

My favorite memory has also been taking him to the park. I can't wait for this Spring!

2009 was a great year! And 2010 will be even better.

Summer Adventures

2009-11-15T09:13:00.000-08:00

Life is busy and a bit crazy on our end. These are pictures of our adventures this summer. We had lots of fun going to Utah, taking David and Gabriel to their first trip to New York, watching Gabriel's excitement over his first beach trip and just tubing and having fun on the Potomac River at my parents house. This summer went by too fast, it is almost winter!

Enjoying a beautiful sunset at the beach with my handsome boys.

We took our bikes to the beach and went on a bike ride along the boardwalk.

My wonderful husband and I enjoying great times at the beach

Gabriel LOVED hanging out in his peapod as he watched the waves and played.

I love them so much.

So excited to be at the beach.

Boating at Utah Lake.

Can you see Gabriel drowned in suncreen on his head?

He LOVED all his baby friends, especially his best buddy Jack who is pictured crying while Gabriel has the best time ever, haha.

David with Craig and Darren. The men in the family grew mustaches.

This picture does not speak very well of my hubby. I promise you he is not a child molester.

I love Keith and Joanne so much. This is 4th of July in Yorktown.

The 911 Memorial site in New York

With my beautiful cousin and sister in NY.

David was sad we didn't wake up early on friday to make it on the Today show.

Outside Grand Central Station

This was Gabriel's face the ENTIRE time we were in NY. He's just like his mom, a city guy.

Hello Time Square!

LOVE my little family.

Inside Grand Central Station.

Tubing with my sis on the Potomac.

My hubby and I on my parents boat.

Next post is Gabriel's adventures and our fun times this fall.

Good Bye 6 months

2009-09-22T09:53:00.000-07:00

(Didn't like the bday hat)

Gabriel's six month birthday came and went and we are just getting around to blogging. We have completely fallen off the blog band wagon. Things are really busy on this end with school, work, and chasing after Gabriel. On top of it, our main computer died, you know the one with all the pics, so we have had to move everything over to my macbook. So here's to finally updating!

Since our last post Gabriel can now:
-Sit up on his own
-Crawl everywhere
-Stand up on anything
-Hold his own bottle
-Talk all day long (he's always been a talker though)
-Hold his breath!! (Oh no.)
-Eat Rice cereal and veggies ( he loves it, and will let you know if you are not on time to feed him)
-Walk everywhere using his walker
-Tip over our big plant all the time
-Get into any wires or anything that could potentially kill him! (Don't worry we keep a good eye on him)
-Communicate with other kids (he loves other babies and kids, he goes crazy when he sees them)
-Say Mama, and recently started saying Dada (Yes that's right, he said mama at 5 months!)
-Hold his balance while standing unassisted for a few seconds
-And there are so many more things, but those are the main ones

Here are some pictures of my little angel. He gets cuter everyday. He is such a charming baby. The pictures are just random pictures from age 4 months and on.

You know just watching some Tour de France in between my diaper change.

What a fatso!

Just modeling away in these

In his walker. With a seriously guilty face. Perhaps because he tried to eat part of our plant!! Remnants of the leaf are shown above.

Future football star

First airplane trip that he loved and was so great at!

First rice cereal! We could not feed him fast enough!

Hanging with my bud Keaton

Crawling away on my 6 month bday!

Just matching with my dad! How dang cute!

We had a wonderful summer. We have two updates coming up very soon, our summer adventures, and Gabriel's Adventures. Just have to work on getting all the pics on the macbook.

4 Month Gabriel and Father's Day!

2009-06-24T10:47:00.001-07:00

Wow...Gabriel is a little over 4 months now! He was born two weeks early at 7lbs 8 oz and 20 1/2 inches long...he is now 14 lbs and 24 inches. He has some thunder thighs on him...so dang cute. My little angel is growing yet he is a little thing compared to his counter parts. :-) I LOVE IT MORE THAN ANYTHING! He is in the 25th percentile for everything. He is perfectly proportionate and is small and cuddly. Good thing...because if he was any bigger I would think he is older than what I already feel like he is.

I feel so fortunate to be able to stay at home with him and witness his growth every day. He learns and does something new every day. Here are some video's and pictures that we have shot in the last few months:

He started flipping over at 10 weeks. By 11 weeks he was flipping both ways. This picture was taken after I left for 30 SECONDS. I couldn't believe he moved that much in just seconds, look at the starting and end location on the picture.

Finding his cute toes!

His first time playing at the playground. He was not sure about the swing. Look at that face!

Those that know Gabriel...know that he is a big time MOONER! Look at those rolls...ahh! :-)

Hanging out with Grandma while mom and dad fish!

He loved his first run with mom!

First family bike ride with David hauling Gabriel. HE LOVED IT.

1st Father's day!

SUPERDAD!

David got to celebrate his first father's day just a few days ago. For father's day Gabriel got him a sweet card and a SUPERMAN shirt...because Gabriel totally admires him and thinks he is just like Superman. :-) David is such an amazing dad. I always knew he was going to be a great dad, but I have to say he has totally exceeded my expectations. He is such a proud dad too. He brags about Gabriel all the time and has even challenged his buddies to wrestling matches with their babies when we go back to Utah. What makes him such a great dad in my opinion?
He is always willing to change a diaper, to watch him while mom is in school, to clean up after his messes, to make him laugh, to play with him, to be at his doctor's appointments, to teach him new things and more importantly because he will do ANYTHING for him. I know that he is committed to being a great example for him every step of the way. I know he will always help me to run a peaceful and loving home. Happy father's day to David and all our friends who are dad's!

Updates Galoreeeee!

2009-06-14T12:41:00.000-07:00

Wow, a month without updating our dear blog. So much has happened!!! Many things were celebrated and i'll just have to briefly blog about them. I promise...after this entry I will update our blog weekly.

First Mothers Day!!
My first mothers day was so wonderful. I kept forgetting that I was being celebrated this mother's day. I kept wanting to cater to my mom and everyone else kept reminding me...you're a mother too! David and Gabriel were quite the sweethearts on Mama's day. David cooked me a nice breakfast and Gabriel got me a super cute card ;-). In the card, David translated what Gabriel wanted me to know on my first mothers day. It was so sweet. I got some beautiful flowers, my favorite, as well as a calla lily plant. We planted it in our garden to commemorate my first year as a mom. I also got a super sweet card from my husband...inside he wrote some really nice things...among them he said "being called mom is a title that fits you so well and one I know you will always cherish". Such poignant words, and after I read it, I realized that his observations of me as a mother and the fact that it's a title I'll always cherish were SO TRUE. Being Gabriel's mother means everything to me. Which reminds me...dang I am soooo lucky to have the two sweetest men in my life (hopefully we'll have more sons too).

Yes yes...property of mom!

25th Birthday!!

I'm getting old. Twenty-five sounds so dang old to me. But at the very least...I am one year wiser now! My 25th birthday was perfect. We celebrated it Durrant style... sweet and low key. I got some pretty nice gifts. I got my running stroller ( I just had to throw some heavy hints around the house) and also a perfect hybrid-road bike. It's a cross between a road bike and mountain bike, but it has more road bike elements. I'm so excited to go cycling. I also got money to buy Gabriel a bike trailer, so I can haul him around. I also got a peapod...which is more a present for Gabriel (but also for me...because it gives me peace of mind) so he can hang out with us at the beach, park or when we go fishing.

We dined at Kobe's Japanese Steakhouse for my bday. Love habachi and my birthday cheesecake!

Later we came home and had the cake that my sister made me! It was so funny...it said "You passed the little hill".

Love my new running stroller and hybrid bike. The red bag you see is another present (more for Gabriel, but it makes me happy) it's a PeaPod! I'm so excited to use it at the park and beach for Gabriel.

David turns 30!
Ok...if I thought 25 was old....30 is like elderly! Ha ha. My old man is becoming an OLD MAN. I cooked him a nice breakfast for his birthday...and let him go off any sort of diaper duty. I did everything that day...and he enjoyed it. :-) He loves getting spoiled. We had lunch at a super delicious Chinese buffet in the west end. His birthday dinner consisted of Salmon, scallops, garlic spinach and mushrooms on Rice. We had a great time as a family celebrating the old man's 30th birthday.

We celebrated my mom's and david's birthday together at Olive Garden.

On his actual birthday...we went on a picnic to the park! I went bike riding too. It was great to throw the football around with Dave and play an assortment of games.

I got him some nice shirts and a bike for his birthday. He loves his new mountain bike!

Well those are the updates that relate to David and I. Our next update is on our sweet Gabriel.

One Year later...One Year Happier

2009-05-14T08:30:00.000-07:00

I apologize it's been so long...but I'm seriously not an internet person since my little one arrived. I just love spending all my time with Gabriel, and I'm neglecting the blog and other sites.

Anyhow...there are a lot of fun updates.

1 Year Anniversary!!! April 25, 2009
A year came and went and David and I had the best anniversary ever. It's so funny that we had a baby before we even got to celebrate our first anniversary! I would not have it any other way.
So we decided to celebrate our one year anniversary with a trip to our favorite place, the mountains! We headed up to Shenandoah and toured Luray Caverns with our little one. Luray Caverns was a beautiful site to visit and we had such a great time there. We took so many pictures and shot so many videos...great memories. After Luray, we drove through skyline drive, and went hiking. We had an awesome time hiking with Gabriel. You can tell that he is going to be outdoorsy like both his parents. He loved looking around and enjoyed the entire hike.

Outside of the Caverns

The pond inside the caverns actually creates a mirror image of the isotope formations

Don't the formations look like eggs!

Starting our hike

During our amazing hike.

And here is the top of our cake that we saved for our one year anniversary. It was some good eating!! Too bad I forgot to get David in the face, like I did for our wedding.

Here are a few funny photos from our wedding...I suppose they showcase all the happiness. ;-)

Parting the bushes for me!

We sure are living life La Vie En Rose (Click to hear our wedding song and best song ever).

In love

2009-04-24T08:12:00.000-07:00

He loves to jam his hand into his mouth. He is now 2 mths!

Gabriel has been such an immense blessing in our lives. I cannot begin to express how in love I am with him. Him and his dad are my absolute angels. Everything he does is just so cute...from spitting up, to pooping, to smiling and giggling. It's funny how babies can do no wrong. I love taking care of him. I feel like he is growing up too fast. I love holding him, and talking to him. Watching his face light up to a smile, and then a bigger smile just melts my heart. He loves to giggle and talk and talk. We think he might be a chatterbox. So far the verdict in our home is that he has most of my personality. My parents say that I loved to talk when I was a baby. So far it's looking like Gabriel might be the same way. He also has my frown. It's so funny. He just seems to have a go- getter type personality. While he is such an angel, he is also full of mischief in his face! I always know when he's going to try to pee when I'm changing him. He gets this smirk... like "i'm getting back at you for this or that", and sure enough you see his huge stream in the air. It lands everywhere. It just cracks us up. He's got all sorts of sides to him, he is stubborn, mildly dramatic, happy, sweet, mischievous, but most of all he is just so sweet and loving. He loves to cuddle with you and to infect you with all the love he came to this earth with. It's so strange that as a mother, you have a feeling as to how they are going to turn out in life. I'm so interested to see if he really will turn out the way I think. After all, something I've learned is that a person's personality is constant all through life. Characteristics can change here and there, but their personality is set from the time they are a baby.

I just love Gabriel so much. When I look into his eyes I can see so much of life in him. It's like I can see all that he will go through. I see so much vulnerability in his stare, it makes me both happy and sad. It makes me happy because I know he is in a state of perfect innocence. However, his vulnerability makes me sad because I know that he can be so easily harmed, without any defense. Luckily though, he is surrounded by so much love! It comforts me and brings a big smile to both Gabriel and I. He knows he is immensely loved.

On another note...he already tries to walk! He has been doing it for the longest time. If you just hold some of his weight, he will take steps and it's incredible how he has the coordination to do that. He started doing that like 3-4 weeks ago. He constantly kicks his legs and tries to move like there is somewhere he needs to be! It so funny. I walked when I was 8 months, and maybe he will too! It's amazing how babies are a reflection of their parents. To know that David and I created this perfect little thing just blows my mind. We love him so much and he certainly makes our life fun. I feel so privileged that Gabriel picked us to be his parents, all the way from heaven. He must have known that I needed a little ball of love like him! He is definitely heaven sent.

Below are some pictures of what we've been up to:

I love this picture of David and Gabriel.

David blessed Gabriel at our church this past Sunday. He did a good job. :) Gabriel wore a white collared shirt with a black tie, a gray vest and black pants. He looked so handsome. For some reason, all he wanted to do the first half of that day was sleep! So we didn't get any pics of him awake. But check out his belly hanging out above! So funny.

I love cuddling with him. I could do it all day.

See his eyes! So vulnerable.

Mischievous!

My sweet angel!

Loving Laughing & Talking

2009-04-10T16:18:00.001-07:00

(Please excuse the drool on his bib! Haha)

Gabriel started smiling a lot at about 5 weeks. He loves it when we talk to him or sing. Getting his diaper changed is also an enjoyable time for him. Here are some pictures from a few weeks ago.

He is 7 weeks now, and is learning to talk to us a ton. He has the cutest voice. He is still a really good baby. He has been a great sleeper from the very beginning, he sleeps from about 9pm to 4 am, and then again when David gets up in the morning, around 6-7am. He is a great sleeper, and we are so happy about that! We will post more pictures and videos soon!

Gabriel Loves...

2009-03-24T11:45:00.001-07:00

To Sleep

To take a bath

To try to get out of his bath towel!

To spit up!

To be in his car seat!

His best buddy Keaton!

Gabriel is such a joy. He totally has his own personality and we love seeing it come out through the things he loves and routinely does.

This weekend was an awesome weekend. My great friend Joanne and her husband Keith came up to have a play date with us. They also had a baby a couple of weeks before us. Their little boy Keaton is quite the personality and is such an adorable baby. He has tons of hair, it's super long! I wish I would've gotten a picture of Gabriel and him when they were both awake. We spent some time in our house, then went out to lunch in Carytown, then a nice walk and some great ice cream at Bevs. We had a great time with them. I'm so happy that Joanne and Keith have a beautiful healthy boy. It's so much fun to be parents at the same time. We're excited for the years to come!

Fun Times With Gabriel

2009-03-17T13:26:00.000-07:00

Our sweet Gabriel is 4 weeks old now! We have had so many fun times with him already. He is such a good baby. He is really calm, doesn't cry and sleeps through the night. David and I got really lucky, although we have to admit that Gabriel resembles both of our temperaments ;-). He is content at life and just goes with the flow. We can't imagine our lives with out him. Life as a mother and wife is amazing. We are so happy that we didn't wait to have kids, life is so much better this way!

To see more pictures of Gabriel and our life now in days , click on this link.

Our funnest times come from watching him wake up and we love to hear him pass gas. It is the funniest thing! He puts so much work into it. Check out this video of him trying to wake up from a nap, pay careful attention to the end.

Sweet Valentines Day Labor

2009-02-25T11:03:00.000-08:00

Amid contractions 9pm 2-14-09

Yes I was that big! I have lost 24 lbs in 9 days!

The day I went into labor was the most beautiful day! It's definitely in the top 3 days of my life (in no specific order). It was Valentines day :-). The day started with me having an appointment for a manicure and pedicure at 9am at a super nice natural nail care clinic. The women there joked and told me that they would make sure to not hit the labor points in the feet when they were giving me my pedicure. We spoke about whether I was ready, and I told them that I felt a lot more ready than before, and he can come when he wants now! Boy...was he listening. The manicure and pedicure were just what the doctor ordered, I felt so happy and excited for the rest of my day.

I came home to find a beautiful arrangement of white(my favorite) exotic flowers on our table with a card and lollipop from my husband. I was so surprised because I was not expecting anything for v-day. The card had such sweet words from David and he had also written me a separate letter with a poem! YES a poem, and it rhymed! And yes, it was all written by David. I was so impressed, didn't know he had it in him! Anyhow, then David proceeds to cook me what he called "my labor breakfast". I laughed when he said that and just ate away, it was delicious.

We then spent the day in the good company of some of my great friends, Mandy and Cristina. We baked cookies, and played Clue and just had a good time as good friends, enjoying my last days of a prego me. After they left I went to the mall with a friend to buy a gift for Karys, I was looking forward to going to her birthday party the next day. I joked to my friend that it was good that her and I were going to the mall, as it would "prep me for labor". Funny how everything would turn out.

I came home in time to celebrate a v-day evening with my hubby and cook him a nice dinner. While cooking I started to have some contractions. When the food was ready, at 9pm (thank goodness it was a late dinner) I started to realize that my contractions were really consistent. I was having them last 1 min. long and they came every 4-5 min. David kept saying we should go to the hospital, but I was in denial. We went upstairs and just prepped things in case I was truly in labor. After 4 hours of consistent contractions we decided to call my doctor who told us to head to the hospital.

When we got to the hospital I was 4 cm dilated. It was now 2am, five hours after my contractions started. They admitted me right away. I was still in denial. I asked the nurses "are you sure you want to admit me? I can go back home if it's not real labor". They laughed and said "you're in labor". Time passed and I dilated to 6 cm after a few hours. I loved managing my contractions by walking around, using the bouncy ball and getting in the hot tub. For me, labor was really fun and a chance to spend some very special time with my husband (even though he slept through most of it, haha). Then after a couple more hours I dilated to 7cm. We all thought Gabriel would come any minute. Well he decided to enjoy his last days in my womb and took his sweet time. I stayed dilated at 7 cm for 12 hours. The doctor told me it was completely abnormal to not continue to dilate. Typically you dilate 1 cm an hour. Well that was not the case for me. The doctor wanted to do all sorts of interventions: break my water, give me pitocin, epidural, do a c-section. I was having none of that. It was funny, it made things awkward with the Dr., nevertheless she let me call the shots.

After staying at 7cm, I decided it would be best to see what happens if they broke my water. So they broke my water and it made my contractions stronger, and a little crazy. We for sure thought it would help me dilate to 1o cm in no time. My contractions were going crazy. Lasting 3-5 min long with little to no break in between them , maybe 20 seconds in between. So for about 3 hours straight all I was doing was breathing my lamaze breathing. My legs were shaking from all the tension, and I was still not dilating. Gabriel dropped further down the birth canal and was bumping against my cervix. Since I was not completely dilated the chance that my cervix would swell was really high. Swollen cervix= automatic c-section. I was not having a c-secton. Gabriel was in great health, never distressed, and so was I. There was no reason to have one.

The only possible solution to avoid a swollen cervix was an epidural to ease the tension in it. The nurse believed that my crazy contractions were causing me to not dilate because my cervix was not having any time to relax and dilate in between the contractions. To avoid the ultimate intervention of a c-section I decided to get an epidural to see if it would help my cervix relax and dilate. They administered half a dose of an epidural when I was 8 cm dilated. It still took 4 hours, but I finally dilated to 10 cm!! They believed the epidural helped my cervix finally relax and dilate. The rest after that is history. I only pushed for 15 minutes and out came our angel Gabriel. It was love at first sight.

All in all... I loved my labor, every single minute of it. I loved the contractions and managing the pain, it was such an awesome challenge, and I would do it again in a heart beat. The day I went into labor was such a beautiful day, and going through labor was also such a beautiful experience.

So what started my labor? A lovely manicure and pedicure, a sweet valentines day breakfast, lots of love, and friends, a walk around the mall, and a home cooked valentines day dinner! And being in denial of it all!

Gabriel at 2 days old

2009-02-24T08:22:00.000-08:00

A photographer from Bella Baby Photography snapped some pictures of Gabriel on his 2nd day of life. We are just so in love with him. He is the most perfect baby.

A post about our labor day is still coming! Sorry we are being so slow! All our day goes to admiring his beautiful face!

Our Little Angel

2009-02-19T18:37:00.000-08:00

Gabriel David Durrant decided to join us a little early and we are so happy about that! He was born at 2AM on 2-16-09 after 29 hours of wondering if he should come out into the world! We are all doing really great and love this new edition to our family. He was 7 lbs 8 oz and 20 inches long.

A longer post will come soon about the labor, and our new little adventures with him!

Gabriel Update

2009-02-12T16:00:00.000-08:00

Gabriel on 2-9-09. So cute.
He really is posing in this pic. Keith, he did blue steel for you!

A lot has happened with Gabriel lately. He sure has made us nervous these last couple of weeks! Starting with the fact that we found out I was already dilated and the next week found out that he was breech. :-/ We only have 14 days in counting til our due date. However, our doctor thinks he can come anytime. Here are the reasons why:

Jan. 29th 2009- My cervix was already dilated to 2 cm (Doctor was very surprised and told us at that point he could come any time)

Feb. 5th 2009- Still dilated to 2cm, but found out he was breech! Offered two choices, an external version to flip him, or schedule a c-section. (click on the links to learn more about each procedure) We told the doctor that a c-section was absolute last resort, and we wanted to schedule an external version to flip him. She scheduled it asap.

Feb. 6th 2009-Checked into St. Mary's Labor and Delivery. Got a few shots, including an epidural to numb my midsection so that my abdominal muscles would not spasm when our doctor performed the external version. If there was a complication, an emergency c-section would have to be done right away. We had a few scares during the procedure, his heart rate dropped from 160ish to 80ish at one point. On average, the procedure is only 58% effective. The procedure was successful! FYI, St. Mary's only does about 6 external versions a year, and my doctor had only done a couple in her entire 20ish year career.

Feb. 12 2009-Gabriel is still head down! Yay! I am now 3 cm dilated and 80% effaced(cervix thinned out). My tummy is measuring at 41 weeks, in reality i'm 38 weeks. Anytime according to the doctor! Yikes... :-)

We are lucky that Gabriel is a "very happy" baby according to the nurses and doctor's at St. Marys. He is really strong and healthy and we are so grateful. Hopefully the rest of the pregnancy will go without much surprises and we can have a natural delivery. Please pray for us. The thought of a c-section really scared us. After much research on my part, I do not see a single benefit to c-sections, unless it's to make sure that a healthy baby is born. So if for some reason Gabriel's health is compromised during labor, we will not hesitate to have one. One thing that we have learned in the last couple weeks is that a birth plan sure can change! And it's ok if it changes, as long as Gabriel get's here happy and healthy.

In other news, we finished Lamaze. The classes were amazing! Both David and I found them extremely helpful, informative, and exciting! Labor wise, we are so ready, bring it on! According to David, it was the best spent money on Gabriel to date! I agree. We learned so much and it's not all about breathing exercises like people think. Even though the class was pricey, it was so worth it. We are also done with Gabriel's room! I love it. It's a soothing room, and i'll post pictures soon.

Our two year dating anniversary is tomorrow, 2-13-09. I have to say that I didn't think love could grow so fast and deeply. I love David so much and know that i'm so lucky to have such an angel of a husband.

Please keep us in your prayers! The more the merrier!

Sacred Parenthood

2009-01-30T11:52:00.000-08:00

David and I have the privilege of becoming parents to Gabriel in just about 3 weeks! I'm so excited to begin this new journey. One of my really good friends is also having a baby very soon, and her husband wrote about some of the thoughts that are going through his mind, now that they are getting so close to having their son Keaton. I have to give him Kudos for his post, because it is exactly how I feel about raising Gabriel. I have to share some of his thoughts, because I couldn't put it in better words, they are the same things I want for Gabriel:

"We only have a few more days of just us together. 24 to be exact. Then we welcome the son that won't go away until he's at least 18. Which gets me thinking... How do we raise him? Where do we click to make him download the latest upgrades? How do we program him to have discipline, love, patience and knowledge. What is the one thing that will make him understand those? Will love teach him discipline? Will discipline teach him knowledge? It's a little odd, but we raise children to learn how to live without us. I can look back and pinpoint different things in my life that made me who I am. It really is a miracle how I landed on those exact moments/lessons with a perfect frame of mind to learn that lesson in my life. Another person can have those exact moments placed in front of them and interpret differently. Just exactly how do I line up those same sequences that molded us for Keaton? Timing is going to have to be crucial. It will probably have to start somewhere in the 80's and since history repeats itself, the timing should be just about right.

Now after that is in place, then influence is next. Influence by people. It's the biggest influence I can think of unless they are people with a pocket full of drugs and peer pressure. Ok, seriously. We all have role models. People come and go in our lives and make many different impacts. It's good to know that the people who have made these impressions in our lives will be a part of our son's life. With these people it forms a pretty good platform. With these people combined we have respect, patience, culture, knowledge, love, kindness, self discipline and so much more. Of course a lot is due to parents also.

Respect. Learn when to give. Learn when to take. Learn your place in all of your friends lives. Learn your boundaries. You don't talk down to me, and I don't talk down to you. Especially family. The worst part with family is that we know what hurts the most.. so why go there? You don't cross the line and I won't either. It's simple. Just show some respect, I don't care if your the pope. You will remove your shoes when you come in the house of Asia.

Patience and compromise. It's not always about you. It's about those in your life too. Compromise with my habits as I will with yours. With patience comes serenity. Also with patience you usually get a better discount.

Culture. To me this is one of the most important. It taught me and my wife that we were different, and that it is ok to be different. Just because we don't understand someone's culture doesn't always make it wrong. We can't explain why we eat spoiled cabbage called kim-chi. Culture doesn't have to make sense to everyone. If you don't like the smell get out. Culture made us stronger and taught us Kung-fu and math, but most importantly it also taught us that dogs can be friends and not just food. See it goes both ways."

I read what Keith wrote above, and I cant help but contemplate parenthood, and all the things I want Gabriel to experience, learn, and grow with. The way I see it, I finally have a chance to help lift society, help lift the family unit, and directly aid in the happiness of another human being. Much more importantly, I have the chance to provide a good home filled with patience, love, and respect. It's been my life long dream to have children to create a strong family that will love and support one another in every stage of life. Why is that such an important thing to me? I haven't always had that in my own life, and in the field that I'm in, I see so many children/adults come from broken homes. I'm so happy that I'm in a wonderful marriage, and that Gabriel (and the rest of our children) will belong to a home that wants to especially excel and provide for a strong foundation in their life. Parenthood, truly is sacred. It's a privilege. Some of us don't understand that. We can set out to try to be good parents, or not understand the whole picture and the purpose of parenthood, and tarnish our children's life forever. It's not about being a selfish parent, but a selfless parent. What's most important now is not only my happiness, but the happiness of my entire family; our soon to be family of three.

What exactly do I want Gabriel to learn or be? I want him to be a gentlemen. The one in a billion type. We will try our hardest to grow our little boy into an honest man, full of happiness, respect, loyalty, and a heart for people, all sorts of people. I want him to be in touch with his spirituality, and carry it with him wherever he is. I want him to be independent, have his own individual personality, and not just spit out his opinions, but give his educated opinion on things. I want him to be like his Dad, slow to anger, quick to laugh. Haha...and of course I hope he is a liberal democrat like me. Haha. Sorry had to throw that in. I just want him to be extraordinary, because he has the ability to be. Right now he has more potential for greatness than failure. He will have so many people that love him. He will have two parents that love and respect each other , he will have good examples to learn from.

Sugar Bowl 2009

2009-01-14T14:53:00.001-08:00

David had the awesome opportunity to go to the sugar bowl this year. His team was in the bowl game. Initially when our friend Tyler texted him about driving down with him, he was really hesitant, and being the slow decision maker that he is, was inclined to decline. I'm not quite sure what was going through his mind. I think he didn't want to leave me alone for a day, worried that I would go into labor or something. Which cracks me up, because I had 8 weeks still left then.

Under the pretense that I would pay for the Utah tickets as an additional Christmas present to him, I told him that if he didn't say yes, that I would text Tyler myself and let him know David would be joining. So he promptly texted saying he was in! I'm so glad he went, because I know he really is a true fan, and a true fan drives out 15 hours just to go watch his team win!

Fabulous Holidays!

2009-01-14T14:03:00.001-08:00

Our first married Christmas and New Year's together was so nice this year! It was really low key and calm, which was nice, being 8 months pregnant and all. Both David and I have been so tired this last trimester. He definitely gets my pregnancy symptoms too. :-) Christmas Eve was spent in the good company of friends from the branch and on Christmas Day I cooked a nice dinner for my brother and his girlfriend who came to spend the evening with us. It was good to have them over and to catch a movie later that night.

David with one of the Christmas presents I got him.

For New Years we had my good friends Cristina and Tony over. I cooked a traditional dinner, a whole chicken, ham, rice, mashed potatoes, green beans, corn, and they brought over dessert. David said it was the best roasted chicken he's had! It was my first time cooking one and I was nervous about which spices to use in flavoring it (I'M HUGE ON FLAVORS).

I'm am so excited about 2009 and definitely have made goals for this coming year (i'll post later). The start of every year is always an exciting time because you have the opportunity to realize how you fulfilled the previous year's goals and what needs improvement in your life for the coming year. This year is especially exciting because we will be entering parenthood! Thus, we have quite the goals for our growing family.

Rollie Pollie Maternity Shoot

2008-12-16T19:57:00.000-08:00

By Golden Photography

Hi family & friends, we hope you are all doing great this holiday season. We did a maternity shoot a few days ago. I am super round, everywhere, hence the name "Rollie Pollie". We hope you like the pictures! I must warn you, in the end of the slideshow there is pictures of my bare belly, so for those that have a problem with that, TOO BAD! There is no better time to show off one's beautiful naked belly.

Exciting Updates!

2008-12-11T13:31:00.001-08:00

I'm done with school for this fall semester!! WoooHOO! 18 credits while working 30 hrs a week, doing an internship and being pregnant sure did a number on me!

I'm now in my third trimester!! 11 weeks and counting til Gabriel joins us! I keep having dreams of what he looks like, and I can't wait to have him and just hold him!

We bought a new car for me!! My lovely VW Beetle just didn't cut it with a baby on the way. I will surely miss my little muscle car (that's what I call it). BUT i'm so in love with my new car! These are pictures of me on thanksgiving ( a day after we bought it).

David's mom came to visit us!! She flew in from Utah and we got to spend a few days with her before her conference in D.C. It was so much fun to have her. We got to do some baby shopping, bought/decorated our first Christmas tree, and just had some good quality time with her. Thanks Judy for everything and for coming to visit (Make sure Kimo comes next time)! It was great and we can't wait to have everyone visit us out here!

My car is a beauty! Immaculate. I'm so excited and just love it. :-D

David and Judy in D.C. when we dropped her off.

Decorating our first Christmas tree!
Don't mind me and my belly hanging out!!! Haha.
The bigger my belly gets, the easier it is for my shirt and garments to ride up!

Thanksgiving 2008

2008-12-11T12:46:00.000-08:00

Our first thanksgiving as a married couple was fabulous! We went up to my parent's house and just had a great weekend of delicious food, dancing and relaxation.

Here I am eating sweet potatoe pie & carmelized squash! Delicious! David enjoyed his turkey, rice, mash potatoes, green beans, salad and roll!

After dinner we played some Thanksgiving Bingo (We both won a few times, hence the dollar prize), a musical chairs type game, and then danced until we were wiped out!

My Gratitude

2008-11-14T08:18:00.000-08:00

6 Months-Gabriel is 13.5 inches long!

I have now approached the 25th week of pregnancy! I'm just over 6 months now! Time has flown by and it is both a fun and sad occurrence. In just 14 more weeks we will hopefully have our little bundle of joy! Also in 14 weeks, our baby will not be in the safe haven that is my womb. Through out these last six months I have been consumed in thoughts about life, pregnancy, our new family, and everything in between. Those that know me well, know that I'm a thinker, quite philosophical about a lot of things in life. The analysis and objectivity I find in mostly everything comes second nature to me, from the time I was a little girl. As normal for a lot of expecting women, pregnancy brings new sentiments on life and the complexities therein.

Specifically, in my case, part of my thoughts have been focused on ceasing our first pregnancy to the best that I can cease it. Unfortunately, my lifestyle has been too busy and I can't say I have noticed every little thing about this pregnancy or even that I will remember every little thing I have thus experienced. However, I can say that carrying a little angel inside is the most miraculous thing I have experienced, besides love. I have been feeling him move since 17 weeks and my favorite thing is when he stretches. I just love feeling him stretch completely from my upper ribs down to my bladder. It's so fun. He consistently kicks and moves every 2 hours, and I love that I know when he will be moving. Every time he stretches to his maximum or kicks really hard, I always stop whatever I'm doing and just smile in complete amazement and appreciation for the little angel I have inside, that is eager to enter this world and have both of us as parents. Which takes me to my next compilation of thoughts, parenthood.

I feel so blessed and privileged that our son, Gabriel picked David and I as parents for him. More importantly, that he picked us to be his parents this year, during this time. David and I always said that we wanted to leave our first little one up to chance, and we wanted him to come whenever he wanted to join our little family. To our surprise, he was eager to be in our presence! They say that you are never fully prepared to be a parent. It's a funny thought, because I have always felt prepared, until it actually happened. Since then, I have tried to make sure that David and I take our life up to par with the realities that parenthood will bring and responsibilities we will have. In my mind, I have devised all sorts of ways to make sure I provide the best home for our child and future children; a home I always yearned for as a child myself, based out of love, respect, and peace. Even though in my mind I have devised such plans and methods for parenthood, I know that it will be difficult at times to learn and grow as a parent. The important thing is to not give into the fears that all these hormones and i'm sure the adversary are bringing about!

I received a blessing some years ago (before I met David) from our wonderful branch President, in which he said that my children would not only represent my husband and I, but also a spirit of love like within the walls of the temple. He went on to say that the home we build will be sturdy like the temple, with an appreciation for the scriptures, and love of the Lord, and like myself it will be emboldening to have the stature of the temple. It was an amazing blessing of comfort, and I can only say that those beautiful things promised in my blessing are true and that I will try my hardest to ensure their fruitfulness. The love that is felt within the walls of the temple is truly a unique and indescribable love, and if our home can have that same love, then I will accomplish part of the things that Gabriel and the rest of our children came to this world to experience. I feel so humbled to try to achieve such things for Gabriel, David, and I. In order to obtain that sturdiness and love, a lot is required, and it runs parallel with the kind of secular, religious, and cultural education I want to provide for our kids. I'm so excited to show them the world, as it really is.

The beginning of this chapter has also brought upon some uneasiness with the closure of past chapters. I have realized that what is most important in this time is that i'm surrounded by true friends, and family. I have felt so disheartened that some of my closest friends have not felt the same excitement and happiness for me that I would feel for them if they were in this new chapter. I have always thought that getting engaged, being newly married, and expecting your first child, are the most important moments in someone's life and I'm so excited for some of my friends to be there one day, so that I can be part of such a beautiful season. I felt a lot of overwhelming support and excitement from other friends and family that I would've never imagined. Yet, it has been sad for me to not experience that same support and exitement from other really special friends. It has been a difficult thing to deal with, but a close friend of mine helped me to realize that I just need to focus on the friends that have truly been happy for me, from the time we got engaged, to now that we are expecting our first baby. Her advise, has been a huge strength to me, and I have been much happier to be invested in those relationships that have proven stronger than others. I'm so fortunate to have so many wonderful people in my life and to share such a special part of my life with them. Moving on...

Next to being in the state of pregnancy, is the state of giving birth...ohh I won't get started on this one right now! This will be a separate blog entry probably. All I can say is that I have gone from being strictly decided on receiving an epidural to undecided about how this whole giving birth business will go. However, I do know that it will be amazing no matter what, and that women have been giving birth for thousands of years, and that in the end, this is not rocket science. I can do it! I can, not only do it, but I can do it with strength and with as much peace and tranquility that the pain will allow! ;-)

I apologize for how long this entry has been, and for the boredom you may have felt. However, writing and expressing these thoughts helps me to put things into perspective. All in all, I feel so much gratitude for the life that I have, for the amazing husband I have by my side, and the little angel kicking right now. ♥

Mountains & Halloween!

2008-11-02T10:58:00.001-08:00

We celebrated our six month anniversary on October 25th. Being the celebratory person that I am, I made David and I take a trip to the mountains in celebration of being married for 6 months, that's half a year folks! It was a really rainy and cloudy day, but it was still a lot of fun! The leaves weren't as colorful as we thought they would be, so we're going again in another week! We love the mountains, and the peace and tranquility they bring. It's always fun to drive up Skyline Drive and take in all the beauty around us. The Shenandoah Mountains are so beautiful and vast, and one day we may just retire there!
We're also planning a nice, hefty hike after the baby comes! We're so excited for it!

Halloween 2008
Hallowen 2008 proved to be a fun time. Our friend's from the branch threw a party at their house, and David and I dressed up as "Trailor Trash". David had a nice little outfit going on, and I was his knocked up wife. It was a last minute costume that we threw together. We have been so busy that we didn't even have a chance to carve pumpkins or shop for halloween costumes. However, we already have our costumes planned for next year! It's going to be so much fun to have the three of us dressed up!

I flat ironed the bottom half of David's hair, and teased the upper part like crazy! He had a nice little mullet going on. I overdid my make-up and teased the back like crazy.

Here is a group picture of those that attended the party. Thanks Rachel & Dave for having such a fun party at your place!

Other Halloween Events

We went up to my parents house a couple of weeks ago and while we were there, I made some witch cupcakes with my mom and sister! My sister is quite the bake and she baked them, and my mom sped the process along by adding the eyeballs on the cupcakes and I added the artistic touch of making the witch faces. I'm not the baking type, but it was so much fun to be creative with the cupcakes!

You can double click on each picture to view it bigger.

These two pictures were outside of my parents house, my sister decorated it!

We're Having A......

2008-10-20T13:41:00.000-07:00

On October 9th we found out what we were having, as it was my 20 wk appointment, and scheduled ultrasound. We decided to shoot a quick video of what we thought "it" would be. Some of us were wrong!! I apologize, It seems like I have a "lisp", I have no idea why!

And the final verdict is...

We are so excited. I personally get more happy and excited with each passing day.

Oh...David's a little jealous that i'm updating everyone on my 5 month belly, so below is a picture of David at 5 months pregos. Ha ha.

A Recap of the Pregnancy

2008-10-13T12:25:00.000-07:00

I'm sorry we haven't posted in forever. But here's a pregnancy update! I'm 5 months along now and everything is going great with the pregnancy. Below are some pictures of the progress:

This is the day I surprised David with the news we were expecting! We went on a nice picnic and short hike to Pochantas State Park, here in Richmond. It was a lovely day.

That's my sweet husband with the card I got him. As we were having our picnic I told him I had bought him a cool card. Inside it said "Together We're Unstoppable"and I went on to tell him about the great news. He was so surprised and happy!

It was such a special moment.

Me with my excited face! I was so relieved I didn't have to "hide"

all my pregnancy symptoms anymore!

The Progression of My Tummy

I was about 5-6 weeks here. As you can see I didn't have much of a tummy at the beginning.

I poked out at 8 weeks. At that time my tummy felt huge!

At nine weeks.

17 weeks. Maid of Honor at Alba's wedding.

At 19 weeks. Fishing on my parents boat in the James River.

It has been fun to have my belly grow! But I sure do admit, growing can be a painful process!

Beautiful & BUSY

2008-09-10T11:30:00.000-07:00

Life Post-Wedding
Life is beautiful, and BUSY. Since we've been married life has picked up so fast that we haven't had time to do so many important things. Soon after we got married I was working 2 jobs, an internship and taking summer classes, while David worked his usual job. Weekends and most evenings were dedicated to painting our house or putting things away. Every few weeks we'd go see my parents up North and there went our weekend of getting things done! One of those things we still need to get done is send thank you notes from our wedding! Can you believe we still have not sent them? We want to send a thank you photograph post card and for that we needed our pictures from the photographer. Part of the fault in taking so long was because our photographer gave us our pictures in Mid-July (We got married in April)! But it's now September! So the rest is our faults. I am so embarrassed and I hope everyone that bought us such beautiful gifts don't hate us! We really have been so grateful for all the wonderful gifts we received.

The fact that I got pregnant only a month or so after we were married did not make it easier for me to get things done. I suffered from intense tiredness. Tiredness I have never felt in my life! Every day for the first couple of months, my head felt like it weighed so much that I couldn't hold it up! All of this sounds like excuses, but I promise it was so hard to stay on top of things! Luckily the tiredness is not as bad these days. David is also such a great helper and support for me. In the next week our thank you post cards WILL be done!

Life Now In Days

I realized I was just too busy and decided to quit one of my jobs. So now, I only work one job and my internship. However, I've added a pretty big load to substitute the other job. I'm taking 18 credits! All of which are hard classes, except for one. However, can I just say that I love my schedule! I get to walk so much because of parking and getting to classes. I feel like that is when I get my exercise! It's great! Haha. I also enjoy my classes. Besides school, work, and my internship, I spend my time doing my calling in the relief society. I dedicate the rest of my time to David, my family, and our new found friendships with other couples. It's so fun to be able to do things with other couples! Also i'm really enjoying staying away from smoky areas and drinking places (where a lot of my other friends hang out) now that I'm pregnant. I can use the pregnancy as a definite excuse for not wanting to inhale smoke! :-D Now when I hang out with my other friends I feel like we are doing more wholesome things, which is what i've always wanted.

David is still working at the Massey Cancer Center but has undertaken a new calling at church! It's so good to see him go to his little meetings in the middle of the week. He got called to be a branch missionary and I'm so proud that he is doing his calling. He goes out on visits with the missionaries and also to his weekly meetings. It makes me so happy to see him so involved. Also, now he gets a tiny taste of how busier life can get with just one more responsibility! ;-) He's also been doing such a great job of doing everything I can't, like cooking, and the dishes. I get SO nautious (and pukey) around any part of the kitchen so I try to stay out of it as much I can. He picks up my slack, what a great husband!

More Updates
-I cut 10 inches off my hair a month after we got married. I love it! Also, a week ago, I went dark! My hair color is really dark with a subtle reddish tone. I LOVE IT!
-Since we've been married we have adopted fishing as a new hobby
-I out-fish David every time!! It's SOO fun!
-David built us a boat so we can go fishing further inside the James River
-My belly is growing and growing!

That's it for now.....i'm sorry this post was so long and boring. I promise I'm going to post some fun pictures very soon!

Welcome to The Durrant Family Blog!

2008-08-27T09:27:00.000-07:00

Hi friends and family! We've gone ahead and started our own blog so all of you can keep in better touch with us. Hopefully, we'll find the time to update this regularly.

Here are a few updates on us:

April 25, 2008

We were sealed in the the Washington D.C. Temple. The most beautiful LDS Temple in the world! It was a wonderful and special ceremony, where we were able to be sealed for all eternity. It's so exciting to know that David and I will always be together here on Earth and also in the life to come. I'm sure that marriage will be a fun, exhausting, and happy journey.
Below is a couple of pictures from our wedding day.

We went on a honeymoon to the beautiful island of Jamaica. It was very well needed and we had the best time. Our resort was absolutely the best. We hope to go back soon.

We also bought a super cute house in our beloved Richmond. We are in love with the neighborhood and our cute home. I can't wait until I can paint some paintings to hang on our walls. Owning a home has been quite the responsibility and we are learning the
tricks of the trade!

June 21, 2008-We're having a baby!
I found out I was 4 weeks pregnant! I totally surprised David with the news. He was so happy and excited. I started showing really early, at 8 weeks. There was no confusion I totally had a little pregnant belly. I'm 13 weeks along now. The 1st trimester has not been too fun but i'm excited to get over the the sickness and tiredness.