June 2011

 Hello Samantha!

1st Day of life. 

Guess what?! you are going to be TWO YEARS OLD in almost exactly 2 weeks from today!!! can you even believe it?! i absolutely cannot believe how quickly time has gone by. it seems like it was only a few months (and a lifetime) ago that we were bringing you home from the hospital. it was so hard at first, but it got easier. after a while...

You were the tiniest, littlest, little baby i had ever seen!  you had long fingers, and long toes. and there was a HUGE space between your big toes and all the other toes.

we took you home when you were three days old, and tried our best to take care of you just as the nurses had instructed us to. they give you instructions! at first.

then it's all DOWN HILL!  j/k. you have been a complete and absolute pleasure in our lives. you are still the sweetest little girl i've ever met. you give lots of hugs and kisses, and always tell me and your dad "i love you!, i love you too!". there are so many thing s you can say it's amazing. you are beautiful, intelligent and a very real blessing. i am so. proud. of. you. words cannot express how very proud of you i am.

Brand New Baby

i cuddled so much with you, just like i do now. i can't believe how small you were!

it's hard to capture that feeling and describe it, of when i stayed home with you after you were born. maybe another post, for another time. it was wonderful, and i look back on it fondly.

your daddy didn't know what to do with you! i think he was in blissful shock. :) he knew that he loved you with all of his heart, and wanted you to be happy, and healthy. i know he was extremely proud of you too.

1 month old.

And you have grown and grown and grown! you've mad our lives richer, and better. you have injected love and excitement into our lives that i would never have imagined.

11 mos old

Almost 1 year old. 

14 mos old.

16 mos. 

i definitely have more to tell you. but i'm going to  break it into pieces, and leave it here, for now.

i love you,

Mama.

April 2011

So -
it's been a while since i've put fingers to keyboard, for that i apologize. I actually think about this blog almost everyday, always contemplating what i'll post for you, i just never get around to actually writing anything. that doesn't mean mommy doesn't love you- it's just that i'm a little lazy.

in about two weeks you will be two months shy from your second birthday! i can't believe it!!! you are getting so big, so pretty so quickly. your personality is definitely coming through now. you are pretty stubborn, and can communicate so wonderfully! you can tell us when it's time for you to eat, "i hungee!", and "i thurstee", you can tell us that you want "milk" "awaa" or "soda" (which you say pretty dang clearly, actually) (also- you're not really supposed to drink soda, but dad gives it to you anyway) and you've recently started tell us that you "don't want that!" or "i like that!". it's pretty cute. I've taught you to pray, with your hands together, head bowed with an "AMEN" at the end, and of course your dad taught you how to do the "sign of the cross". :)  I'm protestant, he's catholic, go figure.

each night around 8-ish, we give you a bath (every other night) then dry your hair, and go to moms bed for a story. we're reading Aesop's Fables and Angelina Ballerina, which you call "Rina!". we've taught you how to say i love you ("i luv oo") and when we sing the skina-ma-rink song, you'll sing along with the i love yous. :)

you always fall asleep after three stories

Rina! 

you are so sweet, and so much fun to play with. you are also very determined, and when you want something, you definitely don't have patience for waiting for it, or understanding that it sometimes simply, can't be had. when i call you, you never come the first, second, third or fourth time. Like when i say "no" to something or "stop" you only heed when the threat of spanking or time out are introduced. This is a little unfortunately, and a tad disappointing because i feel like i'm supporting a negative environment. we're getting through, though- and patience will come in time from you. my patience is getting longer, and every week it becomes easier to see things in perspective. 

The other day, we were in the car, driving to pick up your grandpa from work, and the whole way there i was singing Ray Charles' ""i've gotta women". as soon as i started you would yell "Stop That!!" and would make eye contact with me in the rear-view mirror and we would both laugh. Hard. we were having an awesome time playing, and i couldn't help but think of my own mom. we would do something similar, where she would torture us with something (usually zydeco, or NPR) and we would scream for her to "Stop It" or "Change it!". this memory came back to me fondly, and when we picked up grandpa, i told him the game we were playing- he mentioned riding in the car with my mom when we were younger, too. wasn't just me. 

So far this year has been a good one- you had a well baby check on Feb 2nd. you weighed 28.9 lbs, and were 34.8 inches long. that's 2 feet 9inches. :) Erin told me that you are supposed to take the height of children at age two, and double it. This is the height that you'll be when your an adult. if that's true- and you don't grow much between then and your second birthday, you be 5 feet 8 inches tall. i think that sounds about right. Kyrsten turned two (i can't believe it) and your new baby cousin Trenton was born on daddy's birthday!! 

6 lbs 14 oz. 

He is so amazing! he looks a lot like Kyrsten when she was born. you went with Grandpa and i to the hospital to visit Aunt Erin and Uncle Chris. you were...okay. It was a little late, and you were getting cranky.

Born March 11th 2011 @ 3:15pm 

Trenton Christopher Masterson

So Cute. you were sick a couple of day's in February with an ear infection, and again in March (another ear infection). we couldn't really hang out and see the new baby, because we didn't want to get anyone else sick. 

pretty girl

you and daddy, back yard

kisses!

sammy with a puppy that grandma ended up taking home

you and friends at daycare 

right before school

Playing with Grandpa's Vietnam Vet hat

hello!

you are just so pretty when you smile!

this picture makes me happy

front porch with daddy

Daycare

silver processed picture

you and daddy, at home

I stayed home with you on my birthday this year, and we had a lot of fun playing. i took the next friday off, as well- after my trip from las vegas. guess what? this friday is battle of the flowers, so daddy's staying home with you! and NEXT friday, your school is closed, so we're going to have to figure out what to do with you then too! 

Saturday, we're supposed to go downtown with your dad's godparents to watch the night parade. it's fiesta! the following weekend is easter weekend, and there are a lot of things planned! saturday i invited the grandmas to come by and dye/decorate easter eggs, sunday we're supposed to go up to have an easter egg hunt at aunt erin's and uncle chris' church. i can't wait for this one, because we get to see chris, erin, kyrsten and trenton! yippee! 

anway- i love you very much, and will try to post more often, i promise. 

love you! 

Mama

Beginning of October 2010

Samantha:
Hello little one! it's been a while since I've been able to post anything, and for that i'm sorry! the last few months have been a little hectic. We didn't end up going back to the beach before summer was over, which was unfortunate, however here we are and we have lots of stuff to go over!

In October, Nanny and i took you back to Medina, TX and got your picture again with the pumpkins and animals, at Love Creek Orchards. We went to the Apple store, and this time i got you a little green "Apple Store" t shirt and some books about farms. One of them has little flaps that you can pick up, and the other one you LOVE to have me read to you every night before bed. :) it's a good snuggle time.

Apple Tree Farm

They make the biggest apple pies at the apple store you can get and i want to bring one home to your dad, but they're a little expensive. It's beautiful out there, though. The drive is pretty nice too. This year i got my dad some honey sticks, i got myself a new tea towel, and i bought a little jar of apple butter to give your grandparents. Unfortunately, you picked it up and threw it in the tub and it shattered everywhere! Ugh. Well, maybe next year!

Speaking of bed, you are still sleeping in our room, but in your crib. You have come to terms that this is where you sleep and anything outside of this arrangement doesn't suffice. When you are put in it, you (sometimes) grudgingly lay down and assume the (sleeping) position: faced down, on your pillow, hand outstretched so i can hold it with my hand through the bars of your "sleeping safety cage". if i leave before you're completely asleep you get pretty upset, but sometimes i just have to get out of there and let you rest. You only cry for about a minute, then resign to the sleeping. if i stay in there and wait for you to fall asleep, it takes forever because you play with my hands instead of going to sleep. Sometimes i'll wind the little mobile that's above your crib and let it play until it runs out. that always seems to work on your little sleepy mind. :)

Your Great-Grandparents in the valley brought a bed for you that was your Grandpa Bob's bunk bed with his sister Kathy when they were little. Apparently your great grandfather just cut it in half and gave one to your grandpa and one to your great aunt. Your grandparents gave it to us, along with a new mattress and box spring. we're going to paint the wooden head and foot board while to match your dresser, and i already went out and got your bedding at target. It follows the same tree-birdie-owl graphic i painted on your bedroom wall:

Tree/Bird mural

nature/tree/owl bedding

Owl Pillow

SO: your bedroom is starting to transform itself from a nursery to a little girls room, for that is what you are quickly becoming. as each stage of your development moves swiftly through our lives, i find myself wanting to shout to the skies at the top of my lungs "wait! i'm not ready!". such is a selfish way of being, but what's a mother to do? i heard it described so perfectly by someone the other day, that as adults we don't really change very dramatically from day to day, but as children we definitely grow and change rapidly as each day progresses, and it can be a hard reality to grasp when truly faced with it. Your dad seemed kind of sad when slowly all of the small changes in your room started to come together and surface as a different room. A child's room.

When your dad and i went in for your 15 month checkup the doctor asked us a few routine questions: "is she off of formula and drinking milk?" Check. "Is she crawling, walking?" Check!" Has she started solid foods and does she say a few words?" absolutely. "alright then, looks like we have a child now and not a baby anymore!". heartbreak. even your dad said something about it later that day...out of the blue. He must have been thinking about it too, "that was kind of dick of the doctor to say she was a kid now, and not a baby anymore". my sentiments exactly. it's almost an offense! at least we were on the same page. :) 

This post is getting a little long, so i'll leave you with this: at 27 pounds, 32 inches long with an 18 inch head circumference on October 4th, you are my absolute angel and i love you with all my heart.

~Mom

July 26th 2010

Dear Samantha:
Hello! I love you! I hope this letter is finding you well! My dear, our trip down to the valley was AWESOME!  When I got home from work that day, Dad had pretty much packed everything he needed, everything he thought you and I needed, but alas! He was woefully unprepared (as men are wont to do with Women's Needs). That's okay though, that's why were so good with each other. What he forgets, I remember and vice versa. so we drove down to Edinburg and you slept the whole way. Boy were you surprised at where you woke up!

Samantha with cousins Bella and Ariella at Great-Grandma Salazar's

We were finally able to introduce you to everyone, and we got to eat sushi and tacos,and we stayed up late and played, and you met all of your cousins.

Samantha at the beach

THEN we drove to South Padre Island and swam in a swimming pool for the first time and stayed in a condo and went to the beach! You didn't know what to do with all that sand and when I took you in to the ocean you clung onto me and then fell asleep! Right in the middle of the sea. It was so sweet. All three of us got bad sunburns and spent way too much money, but it was definitely worth it. I absolutely want to go back before the summer is over.

 

1 years old

We had such a great time! At this time you are a year and almost a month old!! We had a party at our house on Lee Hall for you, and everyone came and most brought presents. You got a whole slew of brand new toys to play with. we made a ton of food, and dad and his friends partied all night long afterwards. Everyone had a really good time. :)

You are growing into such a beautiful little girl!  You can walk and run all over the house, you can pick up your toys and you know them by name, and you can feed yourself. I'm certainly mourning your infant-hood, and sometimes pine for the incredibly tiny little baby you once were. But each day is exciting and fun, and each night i give you a bath I marvel at how big your getting.

I love you so much! Here's to the year we've spent together, it seems like it went by in a blink of an eye, and here's to another year growing and laughing.

Squeeze!!

Perfect Little Girl

May 28, 2010

Dear Samantha:
It's been a while since I've been able to write to you. I always have this blog in the back of my mind, chock full of stuff that i want to say, but it quickly becomes harder and harder to put into words how i feel about you! i want to desperately encompass every bit of our lives together and it becomes so overwhelming! Today is the 28th, and in TWO days you will be ELEVEN months old!!! you've been able to sit and crawl for a while now, i think it happened around 8 months old. You also got your first two teeth around the same time. Now you're a pro crawler and a couple of weeks ago you started walking! SOO cute! you can Frankenstein it all over the house, and you do. I've noticed that you generally like to be around us, in the same room as us and usually don't venture too far from where we are, which is pretty cute. You have two more teeth, totaling four; Two on top and two on the bottom. The two on top have a little gap in between both of them. You are starting to string together syllables and it sounds like sentences in another language when you talk. you are STILL sleeping with us at night, and i guess it will be like that for a while. Listen, i don't want you to think that i don't absolutely love snuggling with you each night because i absolutely do. i just feel like you would be better off in your own little room, having your own space. i have a feeling of guilt when i tell people that you're still in bed with us, which is hard to overcome, however it's becoming more clear that our bed is your nighttime place, and it's quickly becoming where you belong. you're still going to day care during the week, wed-fri. and your dad's parents take you mon.-tue. we're starting to really groove into a routine!
We still need to get you a Toddler car seat. as of yet your about 24-25 lbs, and your still using your baby one. They're kind of expensive, so we've had to wait a little while before we can get you an "upgrade". hopefully this weekend we'll get you one.

So we got a few seasons of "How i met your mother" and "The Big Bang Theory" and whenever the theme songs come on for those shows you always dance/bop up and down. I love it. i think you do it to "two and a half men", too. basically whenever you hear music that has a good beat, you'll bop up and down in time to it.  we went to our first fiesta with you last month! we put you in a pink fiesta dress, and put a fiesta crown on you. you were the hit of the whole parade! Your dad's god parents Sonya and Andy work for the mayors office (Julian Castro) and we got VIP seating behind the regular lines, and it was catered by Mi Tierras! we shared the bench seats with a former SA Mayor! he was there with his grandkids. i snapped a picture of him when he wasn't looking.

So you're dad just texted me a little while ago, to see if i wanted to go down to the Valley to see his grandparents, and your aunt's and uncles', cousins, et.al. i said sure. It's memorial day weekend, so why not? he's at home now packing up everything he thinks we might need, so looks like we're heading down to Edinburgh! i'll let you know how it went, i know everyone is REALLY excited to see you!

a couple of weekends mom and i took you to the Zoo for the first time! it was beautiful. we had a good time, you behaved, and we got to see a lot of the animals. My favorite part was watching you watch the monkey's jump around, and the birds flying. it was so cute to see your little head follow those little animals around their cage. :) Then i think, last weekend, Dad and me and your dad took you to Kiddie Park, and the Witte Museum. your dad rode with you on the Carousel since it was one of the only things you could go on (you're still a little small) and by the second or third go around you were hanging onto your dad like crazy, slowly falling off the horse! it got hot, so we went over to the witte, and you did pretty good- you got to walk around, and look at the different little things in the kids tree house. :) I'm not sure what we'll do next weekend, maybe we'll blow up your swimming pool and get you a bathing suit so you can swim around the back yard!

i think that'll be fun.

Samantha, i love you so much!! you are my precious little baby girl, and i can't wait to see what's  ahead for us. Your dad is simply over the moon for you, and we always miss you every day we're at work away from you. :)

I'll let you know how the Valley visit goes, and if there are any new memories for me to share with you!

Love,
Mom