Happy Birthday

This past week was my 24th birthday. It feels weird saying that I'm 24. I still feel like I'm like 19 or 20. My students knew my birthday was coming up and so they asked me how old I was turning. When I told them I would be 24, they were in shock. One little boy said, "What? I thought you were like 18!" Another girl said, "Ya, you dress like you're in highschool or something." LOL. I took it as a compliment.
Marlin and Cante came up to my class to bring cupcakes for my birthday. My students loved meeting them. All the girls loved seeing Cante and all the boys were excited to meet Marlin..and get the cupcakes.
We celebrated by going out to Red Robin. Crystal, Spencer, Hina, Tristan, Lakia, Eric, Erica, Leatha, Jaya, Raja, Tama, Abe, Amber, Sariah, Warrior, Marlin, and Cante were all there. We had a good time. It was nice to catch up with everyone..I feel like we have been so busy lately. I hadn't even seen Crystal since Tristan was born..which was like 2 months ago!

November 13, 2011

We have had a busy week this week! I had parent teacher conferences on Wednesday and Thursday night. Marlin's birthday was on Wednesday, but we didn't get to celebrate because of my conferences. On Tuesday night we had mutual, and on Friday we went to the Living Legends show to see Eric perform. He did such a good job. I was so proud of him. Cante looooved watching the show. We thought she would stay awake for the first part and then eventually fall asleep, but she was wide awake the whole time. Marlin says that Aztec was her favorite number....she was jumping up and down during that one.

Cante's first teeth are coming in. We can see her two bottom teeth. She has been a little fussy but not too bad. She just puts everything in her mouth and likes sucking on her pacifier because it puts pressure on her gums. She loses her appetite and has trouble staying asleep during the day...but luckily we havent had too many problems at night.
I can't believe she is almost 5 months old! Marlin and I keep saying that we wish we could freeze her so she could stay this age forever. She gets cuter and cuter everyday though. She smiles at everyone..sings..talks..and giggles when we tickle her. She is trying to sit up on her own now..but still can't do it. I have read that you can't feed babies solids until they can sit up on their own.  We are both anxious/excited to introduce her to some of our favorite fruits and veggies...only 1 more month hopefully.

Last night, I got onto new.familysearch.org and found out that Marlin has some ancestors whose work is ready to be done in the temple! We were so excited! We reserved the names and will hopefully get them done within the next month. It is actually his great grandparents on his mom's side. We have been trying to do names for the past 6 months or so but realized that we were using the wrong website the whole time. We were using familysearch.org not newfamilysearch. I knew it wasn't matching up right, I just didn't know why. So now I am pumped again and so excited!

Well we have a lot to look forward to in the next couple months with Thanksgiving and Christmas around the corner.. I will do my best to keep everything updated :)

October 29, 2011

Cante is now 4 1/2 months old. When we took her to the doctor for her 4 month check-up, she was 18 pounds and 26 inches long. Last weekend, she rolled over for the first time! She is doing it all the time now. She brings her feet up so that her body is in a 90 degree angle and leans to her side so she can roll over. The only problem is that once she rolls over on to her stomach, she doesn't know how to roll back. She doesn't really like being on her stomach. Her back is getting stronger and she is getting anxious to sit up. When we lay her down, she is always trying to pull her head up so she can sit. She smiles all the time..and now I can make her laugh. She is soooo cute when she laughs! Everytime I try and record her though, she gets distracted by the camera and won't laugh anymore.
We went through her newborn clothes last weekend and packed them away in storage. I can't belive how litte she was! She is actually wearing like 6 to 9 month clothes right now. LOL. For Halloween, we dressed her up as a little chicklet. The costume was kinda puffy, so we didn't keep her in it for long.
Last weekend was our fall break. It was so nice to sleep in, clean, spend time with Cante, run errands, etc. One thing we got to do was go up the canyon to take some fall pictures.We hada fun time. The leaves looked so pretty.

September 23, 2011

Yesterday was the most exhausting day..I went to work at 7, got home at 5, went grocery shopping, unpacked groceries, cooked dinner, ate, gave Cante a bath, put her to sleep, cleaned the kitchen, helped Marlin with his Lesson that he had to teach today, made lunches for the next day, fed Cante again..and then it was time to go to sleep and do it all over again.... No wonder, this past month has gone by so fast..Cante is alread three months old and before I know it, she will be 4 months! I looove spending time with her when I get home from work. She is seriously getting cuter and cuter every day. She coos and smiles all the time and even laughs on occasion. She has the cutest little laugh! She is starting to get on a more regular schedule now which is good for her and me! She sleeps really well in her velcro swaddles that we have for her. When she starts waking up, or when she's trying to fall asleep, she turns her head back and forth from side to side. Because she does that, she has a big bald spot in the back of her head. lol. But right next to her neck, her hair is long..so it looks like she has a little mullet. She has also lost some hair on the top of her head, so its not as long as it used to be when she was born. Her cheeks are getting chubbier as well as her legs. She is doing better at holding her head up although its still a little wobbly. We got her a bumbo chair last week, and she can sit up pretty well in that. She looks so grown-up when she is in it! She has been drooling a lot lately, which makes me think that she is in the beginning phases of teething. Also, she is always sticking her fist in her mouth to try and suck on. That is usually our que that she is tired. She still sleeps with her hands spread out and in the air..but not as much as she used to. She loooves taking baths and just stares at me when I give her one. She is still eating about 3 or 4 ounces each time we feed her. When I am home, I try and nurse her as much as I can. She loves to nurse, especially when she is sleepy; it puts her right to sleep! She can fit into her 9 month clothes now believe it or not. Oh yeah, she got her little ears pierced! Her dad took her to get them. He said that she didn't cry very much which was good to hear. I didn't want to be there to see it, so I told Marlin to take her. Well thats the update on Cante...got to go..she's waking up!

August 26th, 2011

This was my first week of school and first time being away from Cante. It wasn't as hard as I thought it would be. Mostly because Cante was with Marlin and so I knew she was in good hands. I think it would have been a lot harder for me to leave her if I was dropping her off at a day care. Having said that, I was still really anxious and excited to go home each day to see her.

She and Marlin have already done lots of fun things together. They have gone to the park, gone to Marei and Leathas to hang out, gone out to eat several times, gone on walks. Marlin is such a wonderful and proactive father. I love that about him. He has been so helpful when it comes to taking care of Cante.

Our last little outing before school started was up the canyon to have a picnic. We went on Sunday afternoon around 6 pm and the weather was perfect! We just made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and took snacks. There were so many people up there who had the same idea we did. We enjoyed just being in the outdoors and spending time together. It was a great way to end my summer vacation.

 


 

2 Month Check-up

We took Cante to the doctor today for her 2 month check-up. She weighs 13.45 lbs which is in the 96th percentile for her age group. She is 25 inches long which is in the 99th percentile! The circumference of her head is 15 inches and that is in the 80th percentile. Apparently, she is a big baby!! LOL.

Our Trip to California

Cante and I went to California this past week because Marlin went on a week long camping trip. Cante did so well on the plane flight over and back. She slept the whole time. She loooves to be held. She will sleep for hours as long as someone is holding her. My mom and dad were so excited to see her. On Wednesday, Jean and Jaclyn came over and we all went out to eat at Salsitas. Afterwards, Jean, Mom, and I went on a walk along the trail. On Thursday, Jean came shopping with Cante and me at Ontario Mills. I bought a few shirts and we ate lunch there. Cante was soo good! She pretty much just slept the whole time. Later on that night, my dad was talking to and playing with Cante and taught her how to coo. It was soooo cute! He would coo at her and then he blew in her mouth a little and she began to mimic him. When I told Marlin, he said, "Tell your to quit stealing my thunder!" lol. On Friday night, Mom, Dad, Cante, and I went to  eat at Chevys. I love their fajitas! On Saturday, we all went to the fair. Once again, Cante did a really good job. She loved walking around with grandpa. Whenever I needed her to go to sleep, I would just giver her to my dad and he would put her to sleep. On Sunday, we went to church. Melanie was there visiting from Seattle. It was so nice to talk with her and also to see everyone else from the ward. After church, Mollie came over and took pictures of Cante. Right after that, we went over to Jean's house and ate dinner. Sean was there too.We ate dinner outside in the backyard. On Monday, I went to visit my mom at her school. She wanted all of her co-workers to see the baby. We also got to meet her class. Monday night, Cante and I flew home. Marlin was sooo excited and happy to see Cante again. Here are some pictures from the fair. :)

August 16, 2011

Cante laughed for the first time today! It was soooo cute! I was so happy and surprised! I was just talking to her and playing with her at Young Womens and all of a sudden a little giggle came out :) Sister Willeto was there to witness it. It caught me off guard and so I had to ask her, "Did she just laugh?" Sister Willeto responded, "Yes!! Now you have to throw a party!" Apparently in the Navajo culture, you throw a big party and give  away gifts after the baby's first laugh. Anyways, it was just a precious little moment that made my heart smile:)

Cante has also begun to make eye contact with people, smile, and coo. I love it when she is awake and alert because she just loves to interact with me. She kicks and punches which means she is excited and happy. Motherhood is priceless.

Our little photo shoot :)

We still haven't gotten pictures taken of Cante, so I decided to have my own little photo shoot at our house :) She is 6 weeks old in these pictures. It is crazy how time flies by! She is bigger and cuter everyday. Everyone always comments on how dark she is. She obviously didn't get that from me! Her eyes are still getting lighter and her hair is growing. Erin made the purple blanket..isn't it so pretty? I love Cante more and more everyday :)

August 8, 2011

Auntie and Uncle saying good-bye to Cante

Heather and Antioni left to go to Georgia today:(  We loved having them live so close to us. We will miss hanging out with them on the weekends and having Sunday dinners together. It just won't be the same here without them. They loved spending time with Cante and were really sad to leave her. Probablly more sad to leave her than they were to leave Marlin and me. We all got a little emotional when we said our goodbyes. The good thing is that we know we will see them again..and hopefully soon. Saying goodbye made me realize how grateful I am for the gospel in our lives and the fact that we have eternal families. My family is spread all across the nation and we don't get to see each other as much as we would like. However, we will have the rest of eternity to spend together in the next life. How comforting.

After Antioni and Heather left, Marlin had to finish packing for his scouts camping trip and I had to get ready for a yw meeting. We went to the church around 1 for my meeting and then Marlin left around 2 for his trip. Afterwards, Leatha took Cante and I to a doctor's appointment because I was worried that she had torticollis. Marlin had noticed that Cante would always turn her head to the left. He noticed it because he was trying to feed her a bottle one night and she wouldn't turn her head towards him so that he could feed her. I noticed it more after he told me about it, but didn't really think anything about it. Then, we went over to Amanda Groves' house last night and she told me that her son had toricollis and that he would only turn his head to one side. She suggested that we take Cante to the doctor to get it checked out. Sure enough, the pediatrician told me that she had a mild case of toricollis and gave me some exercises to do that would help correct it. I basically have to turn her head to her right when she is sleeping and whenever she is lying down. I also have to touch her chin to her shoulder a few times a day. The exercises are supposed to loosen the muscles in her neck. We will have another appointment with the pediatrician in about a week and a half so she will be able to tell us if it has gotten any better. After the pediatrician, Leatha and I took the babies to Target because she had to return something and then we met up with Amanda Groves and Maren at Mimi's Cafe. It was nice to just chat with the ladies. They were super helpful with Cante too.

Tomorrow I will fly to California with just me and Cante. I am a little worried about the plane flight...hopefully she will do okay. There was no way I was going to stay at home alone for a week with Cante while Marlin went away to camp! My parents are sooo excited to see me and Cante. I am excited to go back home and see them too. I love my family!

Maternity Pictures

Michele Reyes took maternity pictures of me when I was about 8 months pregnant! I just got them back from her today. She wanted to experiment with the orchards in the background.I was happy with the way they turned out :) She is such a great photographer. I had fun shooting with her.

 

Our Hospital Stay

While we were in the hospital, we had lots of visitors come see us. It was nice to have support from our friends and family. Heather was actually the first person to get to the hospital. She got there right in the middle of when I was pushing. I heard her outside the room asking for me and the nurse came in and said, "Your sister is here, can she come in?" My response was, "NO." lol. I don't think Heather knew I was in the middle of delivering the baby..lol. So she waited a couple hours before coming in. Later, Antioni came. They were so happy and excited to see Cante. Later that night, Crystal and Hina came. Crystal was holding her and said that her baby was kicking inside of her. Lol. We were saying that they were probablly friends in the premortal life. On Friday, Abe and Amber came to visit with their two kids. They brought us a huge box of diapers which have come in handy. Later that day, Marei, Leatha, Jaya, and Raja came to see us. The kids were so happy to see the baby! Then later that night, Spencer came with Crystal and Hina. They brought pizza for us.

The nurses were so nice and helpful. Its crazy what things they are willing to do for their patients. I really enjoyed the meals while at the hospital. Marlin usually fed them to me because they always seemed to come while I was feeding Cante. Marlin especially enjoyed the endless treats in the father's room.



Cante sleeps like her mom! Mouth wide open.

 The first night at the hospital, I decided to have Cante stay with us in our room. I didn't want her to leave my sight! However, I later realized that it wasn't the best idea for her to stay with us. I could NOT sleep! Every little movement she made woke me up. I seriously had to check on her like every 5 minutes to make sure she was still safe and breathing! lol. After that went on for a few hours, I decided to send her to the nursery. After that, I was able to get some sleep.


We got to take Cante home on Saturday morning. She was actually nameless until like 30 minutes before we left the hospital! Marlin and I were trying to decide between two names and were really indecisive about it. I was leaning more towards Cante and he was leaning more towards the other name..but we liked both names. We were just going back and forth. Then about 30 minutes before it was time for us to leave the hospital, our nurse came in and talking to the baby said, "Hi you nameless little sweet heart!" Marlin wasn't in the room to hear her, but right when she said that, I just laughed and thought...maybe thats a sign..lol. So I told Marlin about it and then made the executive decision to name her Cante Skuya Kingi. The name is Lakota; Cante means heart and Skuya means sweet so the translation is Sweet Heart. And thats exactly what she is, a little sweet heart :)

When we got home from the hospital, Heather had cleaned our whole apartment! It was so nice to come home to a spotless apartment! She also put a sign on our window that said "Its a girl," and tied balloons on our porch. With the baby, and all of our hospital bags, papers, etc it was hard to keep it as clean as she left it, but we appreciated what she had done for us! Shortly after we got home, Becky brought us some lunch from Costa Vida. Later that night, Heather and Antioni came over to visit and Brother Lloyd brought us some pizza to eat :)

Marlin and I were happy to finally be at home with our little family :)

Baby Shower #3

I have the best ward! The Young Women are so sweet! A few weeks after I had Cante, they decided to have a baby shower for me as our mutual activity. Thank you to Tagan and Jacinda for planning all of the fun games! For our first game, the girls wrote Cante's full name on the board. The object of the game was to see who could make the most words using the letters in her name.

The second game was the baby picture game. The girls brought in baby pictures and we had to guess who they were. This was like the hardest game ever! All the babies had dark hair, dark skin, and dark eyes. I did not do well on that game...lol.

 Then we played a game where we passed baby food around, and we had to guess what the flavor was. I did okay on this game with the help of my mom. I only smelled the baby food, she actually tasted it. Then we played the game where you smash up candy bars and put them in diapers. We had to smell the diapers and try to guess what candy bar was in there.

 

Next, the girls had a pacifer spitting contest. We all went into the foyer and the girls competed to see who could spit the pacifer the farthest. The last game we played was baby jeopardy. Our team won:) After all the games, I opened presents and we ate treats. We had such a good time:) Thank you Franklin 2nd ward Young Women! You guys are the best! Thanks Cante, Mom, Heather, and Maioha for coming too.

 

Labor and Delivery

I started having contractions on Wednesday night around 6 pm. I wasn't sure if they were contractions or not so I called my sister-in-law, Leatha, and asked her if what I was feeling were contractions. I asked...do they kind of feel like gas pains?? lol. She said that they do and were probablly contractions. Marlin came home around 8 and we started timing my contractions but they were really inconsistent. On average they were about 8 minutes apart. So we decided to wait until they were 5 minutes apart. Around 11:45 pm my contractions were getting stronger and stronger. They were still really inconsistent though. One time they were like 2 minutes apart and the next they were 5 and the next they were 8. Marlin and I were debating whether or not we should go into the hospital. Marlin told me we should wait..so we got ready for bed..read our scriptures..said our prayers..Marlin was all tucked in bed and almost asleep...then I couldn't take it any more. I told Marlin we needed to go in. He got kinda mad at me..and said, "They're just going to turn you back,"but at that point..I didn't care if he was mad or not. We checked in to the hospital around 12 am. I was so nervous! I started shivering as soon as I got into the hospital. (thats what I do when I'm nervous). A nurse took us into our room and hooked me up to a monitor where they could see my contractions and the baby's heartbeat. They found out that my blood pressure was high and so they had to draw blood to do a few labs. The only problem was, my body was swollen and so it was hard for the nurse to find a vein to draw blood from. She probablly tried 7 or 8 different places to draw blood! Finally, she called another nurse to come and do it and the other nurse was able to draw my blood on her first try! After about 2 hours of waiting in the room, the nurse checked me and said that I was dialated to 2 cm. At that point, the nurse asked me if I was planning to get an epidural..my response was YES! She said that we would have to wait a little longer to see if I had dialated more in order to get the epidural. So we waited for about 45 minutes and I had dialated about 1/2 a cm so I got the O.K. to get the epidural. The nurse and Marlin helped me walk down the long hall to our room to get the epidural. At that point, I had been poked so many times by needles, that I wasn't afraid for the first epidural needle. I was just ready for the pain to leave. I got the epidural around 3 am and could not feel a single pain~! Marlin and I slept in the room while we waited for me to dialate. The nurse came in and checked me again and said that I wasn't dialating. Around 6 am, the nurse came in a gave me potosin to help me dialate. I tried to sleep from 3 am to 6 but I was so anxious, excited, and nervous. Around 8 am the nurse came in and said I had dialiated more ( can't remember what to). The doctor came in and broke my water. When he broke my water, the baby's heart beat started becoming really irregular. The nurses got really scared and were preparing for a c-section. They gave me an air mask, put water back inside of me and had me lay on my side. They also put a monitor on the baby's head to better track her heart rate. I had to take really deep breaths and stay as calm as I could. After a few minutes, the baby's heart beat went back to normal. What a relief! Finally around 8 45 ish, it was time to push. I pushed for about an hour before the baby actually came. We found out later, that her head was turned to the side, and because of that, she got stuck. The doctor had to use a vacuum to help get her out. Once she was out, she was perfectly fine and healthy. Marlin got to cut the umbilical cord and then the doctor laid her down to clean her up. I was so happy when I saw her! Marlin and I just looked at each other and smiled. We did it!!! Labor wasn't as bad as I thought...but I was so glad when it was over...and so excited to hold my baby girl! She was 8 lbs and 20 inches long. She was born at 9:42 a.m. on June 16, 2011.