Thanksgiving

This year, like every year, I am thankful for my family. I am also thankful for giving birth to a healthy baby, my job, having a roof over my head and food to eat. This year has been quite a ride. I look forward to the next couple weeks and to celebrate some of Oscar's firsts. 

I am thankful for Felix's loving nature. I am thankful for how caring and compassionate he is. We lost a lot of our animal family this year (his best friends). Like many households, our pets are a part of our family. We still talk about them weekly and how he wished they were here, especially Camo. Felix, thank you for being my loving sweetness, I adore you! 

I am thankful for my morning snuggles with Oscar, with no interruptions. I will usually hold him in my arms and rock side to side, his head rests on my shoulder, we are both very content. Oscar, thank you for being my baby and giving me your big smile when you first wake up in the morning! It is a great way to start my day! 

I am thankful for Walter's willingness to do anything to help out my tired body! He never complains and just picks up where he needs. Walter, thank you for loving our family as much as you do and for always supporting me. You work so hard for our family, I appreciate it so very much! 

And my biggest thanks goes to my mom!  I am thankful for everything my mom does to help my family out. So many things wouldn't be able to happen without her! She is such an amazing, hardworking person! Mom, thank you for EVERYTHING you do for us! I know our boys are loved everyday they are with you! 

October Fun

We visited many pumpkin patches this season. They all had something different, which made for a good time. I love this time of year and to share these fall days with my main guys. Oscar is too young to understand it all, but he is definitely taking in all the new sights and he has a big brother that gets it all! 

Felix went on his first field trip and I was able to go with him. It was so much fun and he had a blast at the farm with the other kids. It was the first time in a while that Felix and I just had time together. We were both in heaven. It had been a long time coming and although he loves being with Oscar, he is still a baby himself and needs me. 

Oscar had his 4 month check up. Come to find out he is long and lean just like Felix was. He was 14lbs 4oz and 26.5 inches long. Compared to Felix he is a big boy at this age, it is fun for me to compare their numbers. He is healthy, still doesn't like to sleep too long at night and is starting to like his car seat a little better.  He received a couple shots, but really did well with them. Dr. Birk said we could start food if we wanted. He said it might help with the sleeping, I jumped right on that, but it didn't! 😉

Halloween was fun! I took the day off of work to spend it with the boys. Felix was allowed to wear his costume to school and they had a little party. I showed up a little early to catch the kids trick or treating around the community center. We all went to Mor Mor's house for dinner and trick or treating. Felix was tired after about 45 minutes, his legs hurt, but he kept trucking along. 

We had a great month. Lots of new experiences for Ox! These next couple months should be fun, watching Felix and Oscar together. I love my boys! They truly do complete me...including Walter! 

Maternity Leave

The last 14 weeks have flown by! It quite possibly could have been the best Summer of my life! I loved sharing the sunny days with the boys and spending every waking moment with them. My heart aches thinking of being without them. Luckily enough I work in a department that I do not hate and I have some very amazing coworkers that I am excited to catch up with! I am hoping that  will make my transition a little easier. 

Oscar is more attached to me than Felix was at this age (I didn't know it was possible). It is true that each child is different! Oscar likes to be held most of his days, being in the front pack works. If he could eat all day, he would. He isn't on a schedule yet and sleeps sporadically throughout the day for short periods of time.  He is just a little more high maintenance than Felix was, which makes leaving him a little harder to grasp...and then add Felix to the mix and leaving seems impossible!

There are so many worries I have, but I know they will be loved by Walter and my mom. Today Walter gets both boys by himself! I'm excited for him to bond even more with Oscar and both boys together, but wish I was home to watch! 

Felix and Oscar, I love you to pieces and will miss you tremendously! I will carry you both in my heart everyday! Smile a lot, have fun and be ready for huge hugs and kisses when I get home! You both are my world! ❤😢

First Day!

Today I woke up excited, thinking about what our day had in store for us! First day of preschool! First day with someone other than myself, daddy or Mor Mor! I teared up just thinking about it. 

I woke Felix up and got him dressed. He was happy and seemed just as excited. Daddy had stopped by the store on his way home to get Felix's favorite...BACON! Felix couldn't keep still. We took pictures out back and brushed teeth. We told him this is the "school routine", but maybe not with pictures every time! Just the thought of me being without him for that short period brought on the tears. 

We walked him into class and he put his name on a board to show he had arrived.  We then introduced him to the assistant, he buried his head into me. He never does that anymore! We let him bring Snowbaby for security, but had to keep him in a cubby. He sat right down at a table and began playing with play doh. I took more pictures of course. We both told him good bye and left the class. I again teared up, this time with the tears streaming down my face. 

I know that he will do just fine and I know that he will love it! I just can't get passed the fact that this person has grown up so fast! I am so proud of him, I'm so amazed by him, I love him with my entire being! I wish I was a bug in the class to see how it all goes! 10:30 cannot come fast enough! 

G Fam

This weekend Walter received a surprise visit from the G Fam. We had been planing it since July and as it grew closer we were all getting more and more excited. The surprise went well and the smile on Walter's face meant the world to us all! 

Each member of the Garcia family has a story and each story is equally heart wrenching. Of course Walter's story is closer to my heart and the story that we talk about often. We learned a lot this weekend about the different family dynamics and a lot of healing went on. 

Papa Rene is an amazing dad to his children! I truly believe Walter's love, compassion and who he is as a person started back in Guatemala with his birth family! Not to mention he is a spitting image of Papa Rene. His hands, his walk and his posture are all Papa Rene! The genes in this family are strong! 

I am proud to be a part of this family and that they are in our lives. The Garcia's prove blood relations are not the only recipe for family, but instead people that love each other unconditionally and are there for each other are. 

G Fam, we cannot wait to build more memories and to continue down this path of healing. This weekend was one of the best and it meant so much to have you here! We love you all so very much and are happy you left stuff (it means you have to come back)! 

Beachin' It

We just got back from a nine day trip to Manzanita with my family. It was beautiful on the coast the entire time we were there. Felix had a blast in the sand and playing with his cousins. All of the kids were so exhausted by days end. We roasted marshmallows, cooked delicious dinners and made great memories. 

We stayed in a house a half block from the main street. We walked everywhere, it was so nice. The candy store was directly across the street (heaven), ice cream was right around the corner and coffee was in any direction you wanted to walk. There are some very fun shops to browse, but this small town is in need of a very fun toy store! We walked the beach during the early morning hours in search of whole sand dollars and most afternoons we would stake out a good spot on the beach for us to set up camp. The afternoons were very windy, we would come back from the beach with sand filled beach bags. On Fridays there is a farmers market. It was very small, but fun to walk around. Manzanita closes down early, very few places stay open past seven.

The whole stay was fun. I hope we are able to keep this tradition going! 

3 Week Vacay!

Tonight reality hit and Walter went back to work after three weeks off with all of us. Our favorite thing is to be together and Felix LOVES it more than any of us. We had the best three weeks and it was such great bonding time with Oscar and indulging in Felix during this huge adjustment. We went to farmer's markets, many splash pads/fountains, celebrated 4th of July, Walter was able to go to Felix's classes, visited Stayton, met a special baby boy, spent time with extended family, had BBQ's, had a movie date and best of all...relaxed together.  

We have built a beautiful family together. Walter is an exceptional father and I feel very lucky to have found each other. We all love being together. When we all are home, it is rare that we separate. 

This felt like the best 3 weeks of my life! I wish it didn't have to end, but back to the real world we go. I hope I will be able to do it on my own while Walter works and sleeps. Crossing my fingers! 😁