A little early

My sister and her husband have been expecting a bouncing baby boy to arrive somewhere around May 19th for quite some time now. I've been the crazy Auntie-to-be who has been maticulously planning his adorable baby shower for a couple of months now. His shower was planned for March 31st at a beautiful little park on Nikki's side of town. Nikki was also scheduled for a maternity photo shoot the day before on Friday. Well, Blake decided that he didn't want EITHER of those things to happen, because when Nikki went into her Dr. appointment that Thursday afternoon, she was immediatly sent to the hospital to be admited with Pre-Eclampsia.

I know. You're thinking, 'Seriously????'. Yes, seriously. We were all absolutely terrified for Nikki and baby Blake. I was so worried. I was thisclose to tears as Will was updating me over the phone as to what was going on. Her blood pressure was sky high, and so erratic, they were talking about taking the baby that night. Nikki was only 33 weeks pregnant. Not even to full term yet. Everyone was concerned about the baby's lungs if he came out, and also about the health of both of them if he stayed in. Pre Eclampsia is no joke. It can cause death in both baby and mama if not taken care of quickly. They gave her a steriod shot to help develop baby Blake's little lungs, because they didn't know how long they could push leaving him in her. Thankfully, he got to stay in all night.

Friday morning, my mom and I rushed down to the hospital first thing. Poor Nikki. When I was on the phone with her, she asked me to bring nail polish, because she didn't have her toes painted. lol! She was such a trooper through all of this. She was so calm, so sure that everything was going to be fine. That's the thing about Nikki, you don't realize how strong she is until push comes to shove and she NEEDS to be strong for something. She was amazing throughout this whole process. Most people would be absolutly devastated at this news. While she wasn't jumping for joy, she wasn't wallowing in self pitty either. She said 'ok' and then figured out what needed to be done to get through it. Her blood pressure was going crazy again after we were there for a while, so her Dr. kicked everyone out of the room, ordered that her lights be left out, and that she rest. They wanted Blake to stay in and let the steroid shots (she had been given a second one when she woke up that morning) do their magic before having to take the baby out via C-Section. There was no option of a vaginal birth at this point.

Nikki went in for a C-section the following morning, Saturday, and out came baby Blake. 3Lbs 7oz. 19 inches long.

So tiny. He ended up getting a PIC line, and a feeding tube put in him. He also had a breathing tube for a while, but it was only helping keep his lungs from colapsing. He was breathing room air, so that was already a good sign. He is a little fighter. He continues to improve, and Nikki just can't wait to take him home. The Dr.'s and nurses have all prepared them for his stay to probably be through his due date at least, but it would be wonderful if he could come home sooner. Now, he is off of almost everything. He is having problems with sucking (common in preemies) so eating all of his food is a bit of a challenge. He eats some, then gets tired (lazy! lol jk jk) and then they will finish his feeding through the feeding tube. Nikki is diligently pumping breast milk and I'm SO proud of her for keeping it up. Most mom's would have given up by now. She knows how important breast milk is, and especially since Blake is a preemie he is definitely going to benefit from it! He is up to 5lbs now, and growing!

Nikki and Will were able to close on their brand spanking new home last week, so they have been busy moving, and unpacking, and painting the baby room and getting everything all set up for him to come home. I know my little sister just cannot wait for him to be snuggling with her in their own bed at home. We love baby Blake! I am excited for my sister and brother in law to be parents for the first time. Such a blessing in their lives.

I tested for my 3rd degree...

I tested at Spring Nationals recently for my 3rd degree black belt. It was the absolute most nerve wracking testing I've EVER had. I thought my 2nd degree was rough. My 2nd degree I tested at a regional testing, and was terrified about my boards. Also, the same day, my good friend Junior walked in and said he had just been in a motorcycle accident. My brain was everywhere that day. But I did it, after having to try 3 times to break my jump reverse side kick. I thankfully got it on my 3rd try.

I never thought I'd have a testing where I was more nervous than that. I've been a second degree for a while... the standard wait is 2 years before you are elegible to test for your 3rd degree. Well, I've been a 2nd degree since this time in 2005. Yeah... it's been long over due. However, 2 of those years I was pregnant, cut a girl some slack ;-)

So, I decided to test at Nationals this year. I have lost a significant amount of weight since having Ethan (although I'm not done!) and I've been going to class and working out. I felt ready. Well, the morning was a whirlwind of crazy, I had missed the meeting where they basically tell you what to do. I ended up going to the wrong spot when I was called, I hadn't had time to put my hair in a pony tail because I was tending to children and my gear and getting my shoes off... I thought I had plenty of time to put my hair up, but I had gotten called in the first group! Ugh! So I get up and realize that I didn't put my hair up. It was all in my face, I looked like one of those stupid emo 16 year olds with the hair all in their face... so embarassing. In front of a table of 15+ masters! So I was distracted by that, My belt was coming undone the second I started my form, the whole thing was just off. I was so distracted by everythng else that I wasn't even paying attention to my form. I just hit auto pilot and my muscle memory took over. It was probably the worst form I've EVER done. EVER. I was so embarassed. I walked off the mats and just burst into tears. I was weaning Ethan off of breastfeeding at the time, and my hormones were all over the place. I had already burst into tears 15 minutes earlier when apologizing to our friend Marjorie for missing her wedding the previous fall. I had developed mastitis and Bobby had just had his surgery, we were both in no shape to go and I have felt awful ever since. Anyway, she must have thought I was a total nut job. Stupid hormones.

We sparred next, which I felt I did pretty well with. Bobby then told me the things that I should have done, and there I go, crying AGAIN because I had felt so good about it, then he tells me I should have done X Y and Z. So frustrating. I'm so used to being good at everything I do. I've always just been a natural talent. I'm not saying I'm the best, because I'm far from it, but I've always done really well with anything I've ever done. So when things don't go my way, it really bothers me. I'm used to being pretty darn close to perfect. So again, more tears. I hate hormones. Especially these post pregnancy, post weaning breastfeeding hormones. UGH.

Next up was board breaks. This was the only part of testing that I was really worried about. In all honesty, boards have always been this terrible mental game with me. I know I can break them. I just don't want it to hurt. I also know it's not going to hurt if I just break through it the first time, and that it WILL hurt if I don't. Yup, I know... save the lecture... However, I smashed the crap out of these boards first try. Thankfully, since the

Results can take up to 30 days to come back to your instructor...

I had so many people there to support me, and I honestly feel so terrible like I let them down. One of my great Tiny Tigers and his dad made the long drive all the way down just to see me. Karla and P.Rez got up super early just to get down there (and we know that was a big deal for them. Hey it's VEGAS. I know they don't like getting up early lol). Taryn and Alex got there that early just to watch me. Not to mention Lisa and Noah came ALL the way down there THAT early in the morning (and we KNOW that NEITHER of them get up at the butt crack of dawn for much of ANYTHING) just to see me test. I feel like I failed them all. I know I can be so much better. I know I AM so much better than what I did that morning. Of all days to have those kinds of mess ups, it had to be that one. I just don't understand it. Oh well.

The rest of the day was pretty laid back. Bobby competed and did alright. His sparring match was... well... the video speaks for itself. He started doing his form backwards at one point... and he started laughing once he realized it. Oh Bobby... Weapons I think he got... 2nd or 3rd? I can't even remember. How terrible am I? I was chasing after Lilly half the time, Ethan crying the other half... That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it. We had a lot of kids go compete and we are so pleased with how well our students are doing in competition this year. We got to see people that we haven't seen in a long time, convinced a few people start coming back and kick with us again, and got to share some laughs with some really good people. All in all, it was a good weekend.

My big brother and sis in law came!

My dad and brother live in Texas, so we don't get to see eachother as often as we would like. My brother recently took a trip up to Vegas with his wife and I was so happy! We got to spend an evening all together and have dinner. My brother, is an amazing guy. We didn't get to grow up together; we have different mom's. He grew up in Cali/Texas, and my sister and I grew up in Salt Lake/Vegas.

I remember as a little girl my dad brought Sal with him a few times on visits. Those were some of my favorite visits. I remember one visit that he came like right after Christmas time in Salt Lake. There was still a ton of snow on the ground, and it was slushy outside. He and I went outside to play, and we brought out these headset walkie talkies with us. They had a cool wrap around speaker so they were totally hands free. I remember they were bright yellow. We went out to the tennis court and slid around in the slush for what seemed like forever. Laughing and talking through the walkie talkie headsets. I remember my mom getting so mad that my shoes and sock were soaked through. I didn't care, I had so much fun with my big brother. Another time he came, our dad took us roller skating. I think that was the last time we saw him.  I was probably 7 or 8. I didn't see him again until I was 19. Since then, we have been able to establish a pretty good bond with each other. I love my big brother. I love his children, my niece and nephew, and I absolutely love his wife, Ashley. She has such a big heart and is one of the kindest people I've ever met. She is a great sister to add to our family, and I'm so glad he has found her.

Lilly loves her Aunt Ash

Me, Sal and Nikki

She was laughing so hard

She was showing him what a monkey says, and scratching his head. I think his big ol' head remindedher of a monkey. ;-) hahhaha!

Again, I suck at pctures. Ethan I had to put to bed shortly after they came over. He was just in a bad mood, and I didn't get any pictures of them with him :-( .  We didn't have Ryan while they were in town, so he didn't get to see them. THEN I realize that I have no pics of me and Ash! I need to really get my brain on straight...

We were so happy to see them. Family is everything.

Bring on the rain

It doesn't rain often here in Vegas, but when it does, the weather usually makes sure that it counts. We always have big bilboards all over the roads with witty little captions about not going through big puddles and what not because of the flash floods that happen around the valley. Anyway, it rained recently, and it was POURING after we got home from a mall trip. Ryan wanted to play in the rain, so we let the kids have at it. They were literally SOAKED! They had such a fun time though. They were running and splashing in the gutter. The smiles on their faces I'll never forget. They both had a blast. Don't worry, they stripped of their clothes and shoes the second they walked in the door and promptly got in a nice warm bath.

Karli's Birthay Party

My bestie Jen had Karli 3 months before I had Lilly. To say they were destined to be best friends would be an understatemnt, especially considering that when Jen told me she was pregnant, I had absolutely NO intensions of getting pregnant any time soon. Well... 3 months later... lol. Karli was born on my birthday! March 2nd. Pretty neat, isn't it? So Jen threw an adorable party for her 2nd birthday, and we got to celebrate with her.

Aren't they so cute???

Happy 2nd birthay, Karli!

Baseball

It's that time of year again! The crazy season of being a Little League mom... Ryan has games basically twice a week. He has a game most Thursday nights, and every Saturday. Thursday's I teach karate for an hour, then rush to the baseball field. Keep the kids as entertained as I can for 2 hours, pack them all up in the car, get home, dinner, baths, bed for the babies, homework for Ryan, then off to bed so he can get to school the next morning. But they are all troopers for the most part. I've had my "I want to pull my hair out" moments, but we've survived thus far ;-)

Saturday morning games are pretty crazy as well. We all get up early, get everyone fed, dressed, teeth brushed, diapers, bottles, sippy cups, watter bottles, snacks, all that fun stuff, pack up the Jeep and are off to the field! Ryan loves it, and that's why we do it. Isn't that one of the most rewarding things as a parent? Doing things that aren't necessarily the easiest, but you do them because of the satisfaction you child gets out of it. It would be SO much easier to just stay home, or just send Bobby with Ryan to the gaemes, but he likes that everyone is there for him. He enjoys seeing all the people that come to watch him. That makes it worth it. So here is to an incredibly busy schedule until the end of May!

Ryan is #6 this year... following his tradition that he gets the number of how old he is. Silly kid.