A Stomach Bug is No Excuse

But that's the reason why the blog has been on a week long hiatus. I didn't even have the energy to take any pictures, which is completely scandalous, I know. I hadn't felt that bad since my first trimester with Grace.

Thankfully Mike no longer has a grueling work schedule since the ship passed its inspection with flying colors. He took great care of me when he got home in the evening and Grace nursed me with such tender concern during the day. Whenever she'd hear me getting sick in the bathroom, she'd come running saying, "Oh my gosh, oh my gosh, oh my gosh! Mama are you okay?" Then she'd pat my back and reassure me that she would get me some medicine to make me feel all better.

The good news is all my holiday weight that I had put on is now gone. Nothing like a stomach bug to lose a few unwanted pounds. The bad news is I'm feeling so much better and taking advantage of the fact I can eat again that it's only a matter of time before they creep back on.

Seriously though, I'm back to blogging, much to Lola's relief. I promise a post with pictures next time.

You're My Best Friend

I don't know what possessed me to think Grace would behave just fine if I tried to go out to lunch with my book club girls during her normal nap time. Maybe it was the residual over-the-counter drugs in my system that I can blame for my temporary insanity. But to say that my child misbehaved during our meal at a cute little cafe is a gross understatement.

Thankfully Liezel and Lorelie are so sweet they pretended Grace was adorable and that her behavior was no big deal when, even as her mother, I know for a fact she was far from adorable at that moment and I feared getting kicked out at any minute.

We skipped dessert and decided to discuss our book while taking a walk in order to accommodate my high maintenance girl.

At least the rest of our day went smoothly. We played with her new toys, I giggled as she twirled in her brand new tutu, made by Nellie, one of Grace's all time favorite people, and we cuddled on the couch and watched a little TV.

And then the girl who was sorely testing my patience just a few short hours before completely melted my heart when she hugged my neck and whispered in my ear, "You're my best friend, Mama."

Can my life get any better?

Grace's Birthday Extravaganza

We made it back from Virginia Beach a couple of days ago and I am slowly recovering from our whirlwind trip. In the middle of it all, I managed to get horribly sick- sicker than I've been in a long time- and the only way I managed to make it through Grace's birthday party was lots and lots of medication.

I am just now making my way back to the land of the living after spending the past few days in the fog of cough syrup and NyQuil.

Still, it was all worth it to celebrate my sweet girl's birthday with family and friends.

Grace had an absolute ball and couldn't stop talking about her party. In the days leading up to her big bash, she kept asking if it was 'her turn' yet. And every single candle the girl saw was an opportunity to practice making a wish and blowing out her birthday candles.

Here are just a few pictures from Grace's princess party...

Grace and her buddies, Eli and Turner.

It was a Japan reunion with Maritza, Melanie, and Lyn at the party! I've missed these girls!

Couldn't have a princess party without a roast pig AKA lechon.

Grace got to pull the first string for the pinata. It also happened to be the string that let all the candy down, much to everyone's surprise!

Musical chairs! Princess Grace was carried around by sweet Jessie, who happened to be our flower girl when she wasn't much older than Grace.

Lolo doling out the prizes.

Family Reunion

Grandma and Grandpa Augustine with all their grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

We traveled to Ohio this weekend for Grandpa Augustine's 90th surprise birthday party. It was an Augustine family reunion to celebrate an amazing man. I don't think there was a dry eye in the room when he walked in to the party and finally realized that every single one of his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren were there.

It was one of the most touching moments I've ever witnessed. I am honored to be part of such a wonderful family. The Augustine family tree has Italian roots, but Grace and I are the Asian branch. I'm always so tickled to see Grace, who doesn't look like anything but an Asian girl, run around with her Italian cousins and know that they share the same blood.

We got back to Jacksonville this afternoon, but there is no rest in our immediate future. Bright and early tomorrow morning we head out to Virginia Beach for a few days in order to celebrate Grace's birthday with family. But I will gladly endure a week of whirlwind traveling in order to spend time with our families. It has been long overdue!



Mike was the first grandchild on the Augustine side.

The Asian branch of the Augustines.

Mama's boy!

Sweet cousin Sarah and Grace.

Grace had a fabulous time playing in all that Cleveland snow. She even convinced her Daddy to make snow angels with her.

I can't forget to document this little story- Grace stuck her toy horse down her shirt and told me she was giving her horsie de de. De de in Filipino means to nurse, so basically, she was trying to breastfeed her horsie.

Shopping Day and Clean Up Time

We are getting ready to go on a trip where the weather is much cooler than it is here, so today was shopping day to get some last minute things that Grace will need to be prepared for any potential snow. Thank goodness all winter clothing is on clearance right now!

The Elmo slippers weren't a planned purchase, but I couldn't pass them up after Grace squealed with delight when she saw them. I gave them to her to see if they would fit and she kept kissing them and yelling, "I love you so MUCH, Elmo!" And when she wasn't kissing or professing her love for the the little red monster, she was giggling. Every single person who passed us, young or old, girl or guy, smiled at her silly antics.

Thankfully, they were on clearance for three bucks, but I'm pretty sure I would've bought them at full price to see her so happy with them.



I've implemented a new step in Grace's bedtime routine- clean up time. We sing the clean up song and she picks up her toys that are scattered around the house. Tonight I told her to put all her toy food in the basket and put them in the fridge so they won't spoil. When I glanced up to check on her progress, I was quite proud to see that the floor was free of clutter. I thought, she's finally starting to understand the concept of cleaning up after herself.

But then I noticed that one of her pajama legs had gotten bigger and lumpy looking.


Here's the reason why...

She was stuffing the toy food into her pajamas because she wanted to sleep with them. I was able to convince her food needs to be kept in the fridge, not in pajamas.

She did, however, go to sleep with those Elmo slippers on her feet.

I Look So Beautiful

After such a fun play date this morning, I thought for sure Grace would be knocked out and ready for her nap in no time. I put her in bed, tiptoed out of her room, and started thinking about what to cross off my to-do list now that I had about an hour or so of uninterrupted time.

Turns out I only had five minutes. I could hear through the monitor that Grace was getting restless, but it wasn't until I heard her saying 'sunblock' when I got concerned.

I took a quick peek to see what she was up to and was greeted with a girl covered with sunblock and proclaiming, "I look so beautiful, Mama!"


After the clean up session that followed, she was so worked up that there was no way I could get her to nap. And believe me, I tried. For two and a half hours.

On the bright side, Mike finally came home today with some good news- the INSURV inspection is nearly done and they seem to be doing really well. Thank goodness for that. Let's continue to pray that the last remaining day continues smoothly.

A morning of fun with Ty and Baby Trenton!

Uno, Dos, Tres

Everyday I am amazed at how children, especially toddlers, think and learn. I love being able to look at the world through such innocent eyes, thanks to Grace. She marvels at things that I've come to take for granted. Like how a waffle fry can transform into a baby giraffe if only you have the imagination to see it.

In the middle of dinner, she held up what was left of her waffle fry, giggled, and said, "Look, Mama, a baby giraffe!"

It is such a gift to have her in my life.

Then there are times when I'm worried about something, like the results of the INSURV inspection, when she'll do something that catches me off guard and instantly erases my stress. At least for the moment.

We were on our way out to run some errands, walking down the stairs when I heard Grace counting. In Spanish. It took me until quatro to realize that's what she was doing. She made it all the way to cinqo before she went back to uno and started all over again.

I guess someone's been paying attention to Dora and Diego.

Good Luck Kiss

Farrah has made our family time almost nonexistent for the past year, but I set aside all ill will and wish her and her crew good luck. Tomorrow is their big day, the culmination of all their hard work and long hours away from family- their INSURV inspection. Please don't ask me what that means because I have no idea. All I know is that if they don't do well, life will get exponentially harder for everyone.

As Mike left this afternoon to head to the ship, Grace ran after him and gave him a big good luck kiss. With well wishes like that, they are sure to be successful!

Where's my Daddy?

It just about broke my heart when the first thing Grace asked me this morning was, "Where's my Daddy?" Although he has come home the past couple of nights, to her, it didn't seem like it because she had long been asleep for the night by the time he walked in the door. She's only seen him once the entire week.

You can imagine her absolute delight when he finally came home this afternoon. I'm sure Mike was just ready to hang out at home since he hasn't had the chance to properly do so in a while, but I was dying to get out into civilization after being homebound for so long- first with Grace's illness and then mine.

I made the man take his girls out to dinner at our favorite Italian place and then he patiently minded our wild child as I leisurely wandered in and out of the stores at the mall. To end our wonderful evening, we stopped by a gourmet chocolate shop where he bought us a treat of our choice- a chocolate lollipop for Grace and a S'more for me.

He is a sweet, sweet man, that guy of ours.

One of his Daddy duties is to cut Grace's nails since I'm horrible at it. I always feel like I'm going to cut it too short and hurt her.

I'll Take Care of You

I'm still feeling a bit under the weather today, and a toddler who is feeling 100% better and a mama who isn't quite there yet is not an ideal combination. But it was sweet to hear Grace say, "I'll take care of you, Mama" while putting a blanket over me on the couch and giving me a sweet kiss on the forehead.

Of course, thirty seconds later, she'd pull the blanket off and announce, "Get UP, Mama! Let's go play!"

Still, I appreciated the sentiment and the 30 second doses of rest I was able to get throughout the day. Hopefully tomorrow I will be back to normal so I can keep up with my girl.

Happy Three Kings Day

When I was growing up, today marked the official end of Christmas- Three Kings Day. Our Christmas decorations are all put away, the holiday leftovers are nearly finished, and anticipation for Christmas begins again.

Just when I finally get Grace on the road to feeling better, here I am, sick as a dog and wishing Mike would come home at a decent hour to relieve me of my parental duties for the night so I can just curl up in bed and go to sleep. Ha! Wishful thinking.

Maybe Grace won't mind going to bed an hour earlier tonight. I'm off to go try....

***Operation Early Bedtime was a success! Now I'm going to ignore the messy house and kitchen for the night so I can drink a dose of NyQuil, go to sleep, and hopefully tackle all these chores bright and early tomorrow when I'm feeling better.

Time Out for Mama

Grace has been known to tell me to go away when she is trying to do something sneaky or forbidden. Like when she wanted to squeeze the leftover blackberries from dinner- a common thing she gets in trouble for- and told me to go check my computer.

So when I walked into her room this morning and was told, "No, Mama, get in (she meant out)," I was immediately suspicious. I reluctantly complied by stepping just outside of her door, all the while sneaking a peek to make sure she wasn't up to anything mischievous.

Turns out the girl just wanted a bit of privacy while she did her business, something that she has been doing more and more the last few weeks. But other than the random potty breakthrough a month ago, she has shown no interest in using the potty.

When she was done she marched out of her room, grabbed me by the hand, lead me to a corner in the hallway, and sternly told me, "Stand right there. You understand, Mama? Stand right there."

I was put in time out by my child.

I was amused, but it was eerie because the way she put me in time out is exactly how I put her in time out. She even had the tone down pat.

To be clear, Grace really doesn't go into time out all that much, but when she does, it's for more serious infractions. I guess I had committed a pretty serious infraction in her eyes. Lesson learned.

My little partner in crime eating all the junk food that I said I wasn't going to eat anymore. But I still am. I don't have a strong enough resolve when it comes to denying my sweet tooth.
Grace told me to take a picture of her blue tongue because she wanted to show her Daddy.

Playing Pretend and Fishy Faces

I was saying goodbye to Mike this morning as he left for work when he 'reminded' me (told me for the first time) that he was going underway for a couple of days so I wouldn't see him again until later this week. What a way to start off the week! But I refused to cry tears of anger and frustration so soon into the new year, so I held it all in and have consoled myself by eating lots of junk today- complete with an impromptu run through the Chick-fil-a drive through for a peppermint chocolate shake. So much for eating better and trying to shed those holiday pounds.

Despite the shaky start, Grace and I had a good day. We ran errands in the morning and I rushed to get back for naptime, but the girl refused to take one today. Every time I put her in bed, she would walk out of her room a minute later and tell me, "I had a nice nap, Mama." I was enjoying her company so much that after the third 'nice nap', I decided one day of skipping it wouldn't hurt.

We played and played and then played some more. I love hanging out with my sweet girl! Her new favorite thing to say to me is, "Let's go to my room, Mama, and play pretend." I know there will come a time when she will no longer want to hang out with me because there will be cooler people in her world, but for now, I will relish it while I still can.


She's been trying to learn how to do fishy faces for a couple of weeks now and she's finally starting to get it...

Purr-fect Day

Grace helped start our day by proclaiming it was time to get dressed. She perused my closet and picked out a purple shirt for herself and a black striped one for me. She completed her outfit with my old running shoes. A fashionista in the making!




Mike came home from work a little earlier than expected and Grace immediately put him to work. This is Grace and Dinosaur Daddy.


Liezel came over to hang out for the afternoon and after being housebound for the past few days because of colds, we loved her company!


Finally, I was able to meet with the Tri-Delts to discuss our latest book selection. I guess it's a good thing Borders closed at seven or else I might have stayed out all night. It's been a long while since I've had a bit of time to myself and it was so wonderful. It was even more wonderful to come home to a bathed baby all ready for bed!