thankful

I wish I were brave enough to post pictures of how messy our apartment is right now, but I don't want to embarrass myself. Things have really slipped through the cracks lately. Dishes are spilling over the sink, laundry is stacked in piles, and trash bags are crowding the kitchen. Then there are the thank you cards that I still haven't written from Lilyan's Baptism and her 6, 7, now 8 month pages that remain blank in her baby book. Time is passing by so fast and Lilyan is growing so quickly. I feel as if I will wake up tomorrow and she will already be 1 year old. Plus, it doesn't help that for the rest of the year, the project I am on will keep me at work from 8am-8pm and during "shut-down" where every other employee gets the week off over the holidays, my team will be working hard to meet our go-live date. What's the point of making a living if you can't fully live?

...and just like that, as quickly as that thought enters my mind, it leaves. Because while I'm complaining that my apartment is messy, I know that my relatives in the Philippines are all crammed into one living space where the dirt ground is their floor. My laundry is piled by the washing machine, theirs hung out on clotheslines. Our trash bags crowding the kitchen, their neighborhood crowded with trash. Baby books, thank you cards, the many things that I have on my to-do list, they will never own or see. And my job, a stable job that could support all of them. Meanwhile, here I am complaining of long hours! My sister Tracy was fortunate enough to make the trip out there with my Mom, Llew, my grandparents, and my Aunt a few weeks ago. Although I couldn't experience it firsthand, the pictures and stories made me appreciate my life so much more. Our cousins both male & female used to wear our clothes we had passed off to them and still use our baby blanket that we had when we were little...and I used to complain about getting hand me downs from my older sister!

[tracy found our baby blanket!]

[my sister, mom, and relatives]

[my mom and relatives]

[laundry, hanging out to dry!]

[my grandma passing out gifts]

I am so thankful for everything I had as a child growing up. I only wish I could appreciate it while I was younger. I remember my mom would always say, "You don't know how good you have it!"...and all I could think was how I wanted that thing...whatever insignificant thing it was...because all of my friends had it.

So, while its hard not to get wrapped up in the everyday stresses of life, I've learned that it helps to take a step back and appreciate every little thing I have. Not just the great material things (like my new Nikon D5000!) but also the job that drives me crazy, the small apartment we live in, and the old car that I drive.

busy bee

My lack of blog posts have not only been a result of pure laziness, but also because I've been way too busy with vacation, work, work, and work. So I am taking advantage of a canceled meeting and quickly typing away.

June 28th - July 4th:

We drove to Seneca, SC to visit my relatives at their house on Lake Keowee. This is how we spent the majority of the week:

Aunt & Uncle's House

Baby Pool

Swimming

Playing in WaterfallsBoatingRelaxing on Islands

We returned home on July 4th where we watched the fireworks in Ashburn. Surprisingly, Lily enjoyed the fireworks and barely even flinched while they were going off.

And now I am back at work. The vacation flew by and it's only a matter of weeks before I'm back in Dallas. These next few days, weeks & months will be extremely busy at work with our upcoming realignment, but I'm up for the challenge. I'd much rather be busy at work than the other way around. One thing I have noticed is how hard it is to keep up with things at home when I'm busy at work. There are not enough hours in the day to get everything accomplished.

On my to-do list:

1. Send out invitations to Lily's upcoming Baptism in August
2. Plan reception afterward, order cupcakes
3. Get car inspected
   
4. Change my last name to my legal name on all things (so I'm a year behind...)
   
5. Update Lily's baby books and send out recent pictures to family
   
6. Organize nursery and clothes
   
7. Help Tracy with wedding planning
8. Help plan Sarah's bachelorette party, get bridesmaid dress
9. Look for bigger place to live
10. Plan a getaway for our 1 year anniversary (8.31.09)

I'm sure there's a bunch more I have to do, but 10 is enough for now! I'll try to blog more later, but for now it's back to work. Also, I'm frustrated with how Blogger sucks at formatting posts and pictures and don't have the patience in me today.

back from dallas y'all

I survived my first trip to Dallas! I'm not a fan of the small planes we took to get there, but that's all United offers on a one way trip. Oh well, I'll save the worrying for my next trip in about a month. 

Surprisingly, Dallas is really nice! Not that I expected it to be some crap-hole, but I didn't realize how up and coming the area is. I stayed in Irving and was impressed with all of the restaurant options, shopping centers, and new buildings. Everything really is bigger in Texas! My favorite place there was the Southlake Town Square. Another place that we were supposed to go to was the Dallas Arboretum. Every Thursday they have outdoor concerts where you can bring your own picnic and listen to live music. It was sold out this time, but next time we're there some of my co-workers and I plan on going. 

Overall, this week was physically and mentally draining. Work was intense and I missed home like crazy. I found myself scrolling through my phone during meetings to look at pictures of Lily over and over again. I'm so glad to be home. I used to love traveling for work, but now I'd do anything to have all of the project work based out of VA. At least while Lily is still a baby. I swear I came back yesterday and she seemed so much bigger! When she first saw me, she stared at me for about 10 mins. like she was trying to figure out who I was. Although, I'm sure some of it had to do with the fact that I woke her up from her nap. Anyways, enough wasting time on the computer, I have to make the most out of this weekend! 

Happy 5 months Lilyan Grace!

tuesday bluesday

This week at work is going by so slowwww ....it's only Tuesday! On a brighter note, next Thurs, Brian and I are going to Atlantic City! We're staying the night with a couple of our friends at the Tropicana. It should be interesting considering the fact that I've never stepped foot in a casino. Let the gambling begin! Let's hope we come away with some winnings so I can start crossing items off of my wishlist.

I hope I'm not a nervous wreck since it will technically be my first night away-away from Lily. My sister Tracy is watching her. I'm betting that next Thurs will be the first night Lily decides to wake up crying at all hours. I hope she's a good baby for her! I'm not looking forward to the extra pumping I'm going to have to do to make bottles for her while I'm away. Sometimes I want to give up altogether on breastfeeding. Even though Lily sleeps thru the night, I still have to wake up every 3 hours to pump, just to make bottles for her while I'm at work. It's exhausting and a lot of work! Not to mention I have to lug a "discrete" pump to and from work each day and I have to watch my caffeine intake. There are pros to breastfeeding of course: the extra 30 mins. a day I get to sit in the Mother's lounge at work and catch up on my reading, the money I save (formula is expensive as hell!), and the nutritional benefits. So, I suppose I will stick with it for the time being...

One more thing...is it bad that I love pictures of Lily frowning?
I think it's the cutest thing!

me lucky charm

Saturday was the perfect day for a parade! We went to Old Town Alexandria for the Irish Day Parade. Lily loved the cobblestone paths because they put her right to sleep in her stroller. Isn't her outfit so cute? She thought so too...which is why she pooped all over it and we had to strip the poor girl of her clothes in front of everyone on a bench. Trust me, it was better than changing her in the bathroom of Pat Troy's.

On another note..this is my first full week at work and it is dragging on and on and on..At least I get to work from home tomorrow, which means I get to spend all day with Lil G!

Ok, I'm tired...............plus i can't think of anything to write worth reading....and my husband is making fun of me for blogging and not watching American Idol with him...dork.

ta ta for now!

back to reality.

Work sucks. Today is officially my first day back at work. Luckily not too many people know I'm back yet, so I haven't been bombarded with phone calls or emails. I like this..I can just sit here inconspicuously and get paid. Although we are going through a re-org, so I may want to get some work done or else they might phase me out like Milton from Office Space.

Now for a little weekend update:

• Lily smiles now! and I'm not talkin about the gassy smiles..
• Friday night - I drank too much. We had a few friends...wait just one friend over..and played Scene It Seinfeld - love that game! I actually don't miss drinking that much and definitely don't miss the hangovers.
  
• Saturday - got some news that one of my bff's is gettin married! Congrats Sarah & Sam!! I'm thinking they might have a Harry Potter themed wedding around Christmas time. haha jk Sarah!
• Sunday - finished "New Moon". Only 2 away from getting VIP access at the Twilight Party later this month...haha don't ask. This is the one guilty pleasure that I'm letting myself get away with.
  
• Monday - Snow day!
  

So come to think of it, my weekends have been pretty lame lately. Hopefully this weekend will be more promising. I need to start planning a ladies night...any ideas ladies? I think Brian owes me one or two considering the circumstances over the past 10 months :)

less than two weeks to go.

I can't believe that I only have less than two weeks before I have to go back to work. Where did the time go? Usually I'd be upset with myself for not accomplishing anything the past 4 weeks, but I'm lucky I got to spend everyday with Lily - even if that meant being spit up on daily and nonstop diaper changing, breastfeeding, and laundry. It's funny how much of your day is consumed by a newborn. Plus Lily is the only baby in the world that dislikes the bouncy vibrating seat, which means if she's not asleep, you better be holding her (a habit we'll soon need to break her of). This makes every normal thing involving yourself impossible...like eating, going to the bathroom, cleaning, showering...thankfully Brian gets home early most days giving me a few minutes to myself. Yet, all in all, I'm not looking forward to going back to work. I feel like she's going to grow up when I'm not around and I'm going to miss some big milestone :( We are very fortunate though that Brian's mom will be watching her while we're at work..so I won't feel bad checking up on her all the time. So, with the little time I have left at home with her by myself, I will spend it taking photos like these...and by updating her baby books before work consumes my life again. blahhh....why can't i just be rich and not have to work?