Zoe slept in crib overnight!

I decided to see if Zoe would sleep in her crib instead of the bassinet of our bed tonight. Let me just say that I was such a mess! Zoe didn't seem to mind at all that she was in her own room and in her own bed. I set up the monitor so that I could watch her every move (or lack thereof) and I was literally staring at the monitor all night!!! I really really missed having her in our room. I LOVE co-sleeping with her and really missed the security we all felt by being in the same room and better yet, in the same bed. But alas, all good things must come to an end. As much as I wanted her to be by my side FOREVER, I know that she has to learn to be independent as well. We've been working up to this night by taking naps in the crib so that she gets used to the atmosphere. Like I said, she did great. It was mommy that didn't do so great. I hardly slept and was constantly looking at the monitor to make sure she was ok. Finally, at around 3:30 or 4 am, she woke up a little bit because she couldn't find her pacifier. I took this opportunity to take her out of her crib and put her back next to me and Mike =). I figured she already "experienced" sleeping on her own and that I could bring her back to our bed ... hey -- don't judge! Baby steps, right?! Anyway, I don't know if I'll be putting her to sleep there every night with my surgery coming up. I think it might be a little difficult for me to get up from bed from time to time (whenever -- if ever -- she cries) so I may just delay the process ... having her stay in our room for a few more weeks won't hurt, right? I'm proud of you baby girl! Now mommy just needs to get it together already ... =)

Separation Anxiety

Usually, whenever we leave Zoe with Tita Bot and co., she's totally fine with it.  Lately, however, she seems to be developing a bit of separation anxiety from me.  I guess I can't really blame her -- we do spend ALL day together ... now, she's at the age when her emotions are developing and she's realizing that she MISSES me =( ... it's heartbreaking to hear about how sad she was while I was gone but I know it's just a phase and it's healthy for me to leave her with other people from time to time.  

My mom said once she realizes that I'm gone, she asks to be carried and hides her face in the crook of the neck of whomever is holding her.  She refuses to laugh or play with anyone and only looks up when she thinks she hears my voice.  Awwww my poor baby!!!  They call it "protesting" ... like she's purposely withholding her cuteness and interaction until mommy comes back.  Once I'm back in the room, however, she's back to normal and plays and laughs and giggles again.  She is too funny!  I hope this phase doesn't last too long because it's going to get harder to leave her behind with all the willing babysitters!

Zoe's "depressed" look =(

C-YA dodger game

Mike and I supported the Cathedral Young Adults today by buying tickets to a Dodger Game. It was HOT HOT and HOT and the Dodgers sucked it up, but it was fun nonetheless!  We sat in the all-you-can-eat section so we had our fill of dodger dogs, nachos, soda, peanuts, etc. etc.!  We were still "recovering" from the hard partying we did at Fr. Francis' white party, so all the junk food hit the spot =).  I really miss living in LA ... although we don't go to Dodger games often, whenever we do, it always feel so "LA" to me.  We also had great seats (we've never sat from that vantage point before and it was awesome).  It was also nice to be Zoe-free again ... it was like a continuation of our date from last night =).

Fr. Francis' All White Party

Tonight, we attended Fr. Francis' All White Party at the Cathedral Residence.  It was a bittersweet occasion ... we LOVE Fr. Francis and want him to do well at his new parishes but at the same time we don't want to see him go.  I know God has GREAT things planned for him and we just have to trust in that plan.  Besides, it's not like he's going too far away.  We can always visit him and the fact that he's Zoe's ninong means he's family for life =).

The evening started with a beautiful mass.  It was so cool to see everyone dressed in white around the altar.  During the Eucharistic Prayer, Fr. Francis invited everyone to gather around the altar.  The vision brought tears to his eyes (and mine) because he said that's how he pictured heaven to be -- all your loved ones in white standing side by side with God.  He was so happy to be able to share that moment when he transforms the bread into God's body with all of us.  It was a dream come true for him (and for all of us).  The fact that no one else was at the Cathedral and it was just us in this intimate setting was unforgettable.

After the mass, we all walked over to the Cathedral Residence -- aka Club OLA.  Lawrence, Tasha, Michi and co. did such a great job decorating the place and transforming it into a very swanky party place.  When Fr. Francis saw it he said that was the sexiest he's ever seen the cathedral residence.  Aside from great food, there were also some nice sentimental touches that they did in honor of Fr. Francis -- a nice slideshow, a candle lighting ceremony and blessing  ... as a bonus, Fr. Francis played his guitar for everyone and sang a song he wrote called "Thank You and I love you".  Afterwards, we all danced the night away under the Cathedral lights ... it was such a fun night cutting it up on the dance floor with such awesome friends!  It's been A WHILE since Mike and I went out dancing, so we definitely took advantage of this great moment!  We closed the night by grabbing some tacos from Kike's in downtown and didn't get home until almost 2 am!

We will MISS MISS MISS seeing Fr. Francis so often but will always be praying for his journey.  He was meant to touch the lives of so many people and this chapter in his life will only help him with that task.

Here's the video of his beautiful song:

Sweet potato puree

Today I decided to make my Zoe some sweet potato puree with the awesome Vitamix blender that we got from the in-laws.  I've been looking up all kinds of recipes for DIY baby food and sweet potatoes are what's age appropriate for her right now.  Plus, they're loaded with vitamins and deliciousness!  I baked the sweet potato for about 40 minutes and then popped it into the vitamix and voila -- breakfast, lunch and dinner for at least 2 weeks! Lol.  Zoe, of course, LOVED her sweet potato meal.  I hope I can continue to "cook" for her -- it was kind of fun actually.  I hope that once she's older I will be able to cook much better meals for her and Mike.  I'm currently still building up my repertoire and practicing at least 3-4 times a week =).

Zoe sits up!!!

At just 5 months and 7 days old, Zoe can now sit up!!!! I'm beyond proud of her!!! Most babies don't sit up until around 6 months or later!  I've been noticing her lately getting better and better at balancing and holding up her upper body ... so this morning when she woke up, I thought I'd sit her up in the middle of the bed and see what she could do and VOILA!!!  It was so cute to see her tip from side to side by still maintain her balance.  I have a feeling that she'll be crawling pretty soon and I can't wait! Not too long ago, she was just a little person who could barely lift her head ... now she can manage her entire torso and gravity!!!  I'm conflicted between the emotions of pure pride and sorrow ... lol!!! Thank God for my handy flip camera!  I was able to record this great milestone and share it with the world (or the FB/youtube world, that is).

Happy father's day Mike!!!

Today is Mike's very FIRST father's day!  We celebrated with mass at the Cathedral followed by a nice lunch at Souplantation with my family and then a great afternoon in Woodland Hills with Mike's family! I think he had a great time and I know he LOVES being a father to Zoe.  He's been great at it so far -- he even spoils her more than I do =).  Although Zoe is closer to me right now (hello - we spend almost every second together!) I know that once she gets a little older, she's totally gonna be a daddy's girl.  Mike is in T-R-O-U-B-L-E!!!

The Three Dads!

Feet eating

Zoe has discovered she has feet!  And with this new discovery comes "tasting" ... she now loves to literally put her foot in her mouth =).  It's the cutest thing!  Babies are so darn flexible! Lol!

Zoe's 5 months today?!?!

Zoe is exactly five months today and I still can't believe where the time has gone.  It truly doesn't feel like five whole months have passed since Zoe came into our lives.  It maybe only feels like 2 months ... I was taking a look at her today and realized that she looks so incredibly grown up!  She was wearing these adorable striped pj's that made her look like a toddler.  I thank the Lord for her every single day and I feel so blessed to be able to spend each and every day with her ... growing with her ... bonding with her ... the fact that I don't have to be in an office from 9-5 and only get to spend a couple of hours with her at night before she goes to bed is AMAZING.  I am soooo soooo blessed!  Yes I miss "adult" time and "me" time and all that stuff, but I wouldn't trade all of that for what I get to do every day in my new life.

Happy 5 months Zoe bear!  Keep growing and learning -- mommy can't wait to see what you have in store for all of us!!!

Zoe, five months old, with her bff, Sophie the Giraffe

Zoe's first solid meal!

Since Zoe is now 5 months and we got clearance from her doctor, we decided to start experimenting with solid food.  I was really excited for this since I know how much my little munchkin is going to love food (like her daddy!). I went to Babies R Us and bought the necessary tools -- i.e. plastic microwave friendly bowls, soft spoons and I even got a make-your-own-baby food set for when I eventually start "cooking" for her.

We decided to start her off with the basic bland rice cereal.  Zoe's reaction to her first bite?  It was more like, "What the? I KNOW there's supposed to be more flavor than this!!!"  Let's just say she wasn't really digging the taste (or lack thereof) ... however, she did great with the whole "eating" thing.  She knew to open her mouth when the spoon got close to her mouth and she even did a chewing thing (not that she needed to chew).  It seems she has the whole "eating" concept down ... I plan to introduce her to better tasting food very soon so she'll actually enjoy her meals =).

Here's a video of her solid-meal-eating milestone:

Excersaucer

Today I put together the Excersaucer that Zoe's ninong Kevin gave to her. Let me just say there were A LOT of parts in that thing!!! Plus, since it's supposed to bounce with her, there were HELLA springs to put together! I felt like giving up several times and just wait for Mike to do it. However, I pushed through by thinking how much fun Zoe would have playing with it. It took me probably 2 or 3 hours, but I finally did it. Zoe has been enjoying it for the past couple of hours and it still hasn't fallen apart ... goooooo me!!! =) Here's a pic of her in her new digs. I mean seriously -- with a face like that, what wouldn't I do for her?!

Presents from the Biorns

Zoe got a HUGE package in the mail today from our good friends, the Biorn Family from Elk Grove, CA. It was sooooo sweet of them to send soooo many presents to little Zoe. I had her help me open the box and pull out all of the beautifully wrapped presents (of course Soozee would wrap each one individually and soooo nicely). Zoe seemed really happy to be surrounded by so many colorful boxes and I had her watch me open up each box. She got everything from clothes, to books, to toys and even cute hair accessories!! We really are so blessed to have such wonderful people in our lives. As much as I would love to be able to see the Biorns more often, I find solace in knowing we will always be united through Christ. Soozee has been one of the major spiritual influences in my life and I take her with me everywhere I go! Now that I'm a mother, I cherish her love even more than ever!!! I hope they can meet little Zoe one day soon so she can personally thank them for their constant thoughtfulness.

Me Day at Burke Williams

Michael and I finally decided to use our Burke Williams gift certificates that his cousin Amelia gave to us as a one year anniversary gift. Yes, I know, we waited A LONG TIME to use the gift certificates but I must say we picked the PERFECT time to finally cash in on that one hour massage + leisure time at the spa! I haven't had any "me" time since Zoe was born so I was really looking forward to this little piece of heaven. We dropped Zoe off at the "Sunbeam Hotel" and we were off to BW in Pasadena. I told Mike I wanted to take advantage of ALL the spa amenities in addition to our massage. We agreed to go our separate ways and meet up again in about 2 hours. My massage was great ... it's been a long time since I've been able to just lay down and not have to worry about baby. After the massage, I decided to go into the jaccuzzi. I didn't even have a bathing suit (thank goodness it was a "European-style" jaccuzzi -- meaning you can go naked) and I don't really like jaccuzzis in general, but I figured, hey -- why not? I then went into the sauna for a little bit ... which was followed by a nice long hot shower. yes it was my second shower of the day (I even shaved again just so I could use ALL of their amenities), but it was my FIRST long, luxurious shower since Zoe was born. My showers lately have been 5-7 minutes (I even changed to a 2-in-1 shampoo/conditioner just to save more time) and are always hurried ... I usually sneak in my showers while Zoe is napping or drinking her bottle so being able to just lounge in the shower was really such a treat!!! After I got dressed (again, I took my sweet old time), I decided to hang out in the "quiet" lounge where I put cucumbers over my eyes while I sat in the most comfy recliner and listened to the waves of the ocean. I left BW feeling sooooo refreshed!! I felt like I took a time-out from my new normal life and got to freeze time for a couple of hours just to pamper me! What a great blessing!!! As soon as I stepped out of the spa, I immediately missed Zoe of course but I was so happy to be able to indulge in some me time!!! Hooray for a great gift from Amelia =). I immediately emailed her thanks for her gift and that although it took us forever to use it, it was actually the perfect time to utilize her most awesome gift!!! As a side note, Mike and I decided to finally put Prado on the market. We've battled for years now on whether to keep it or sell it and with the way the housing market is going, we thought we'd just bite the bullet and sell it now and cut our losses. We'd still be losing money, but not as much as we could potentially lose should we decide to wait longer. It's sad to say goodbye to our first place as well as to tell Jay he has to find a new home, but we've been praying about this decision for quite some time now and all signs are pointing to selling Prado rather than keeping it. Now that it's on the market, we'll see how quickly we can sell it and for how much. It's in God's hands now =) ...

4 month checkup (and shots)

Zoe had another check up today which meant another round of shots =( ... She pushed through it though like a big girl ... she cried only a little bit and got over it shortly after. Happy to report she has no fever from the shots (whooohooooo!) and the doctor said she was developing very well. I always get slightly nervous at the doctor's office for some reason. I know she's a healthy girl but there's always that slight chance that they will find something wrong with her. Fortunately, our doctor does a great job in making us feel like we're doing a great job as mom and dad. Dr. Rivera said he doesn't think teeth are coming for quite some time (although I have a suspicion one will come out soon) and he gave us the ok to start experimenting with solids =). He said we don't have to start with rice cereal, but it is what most people traditionally start with since it's safe and tasteless and is a good foundation builder for other yummier foods. He said we could feed her virtually whatever we want -- as long as we wait at least 3 days in between new foods so we could see if she's allergic to anything (hopefully she isn't allergic to anything -- just like mommy). I'm excited to make some homemade baby food as well =)!