July 25, 2007

she's officially a toddler

She is officially ONE year old!

Ruby turned one yesterday and we let her eat cake...She devoured ever last bite - it was hilarious! Surprisingly enough she went right to bed afterwards and had a perfect night sleep. Aaaahhhh, chocolate ecstasy!

Ruby's new birthday shoes...we found an awesome pair of baby/toddler shoes that have the best of leather soft soles & rubber insets. These Rile Roos are her first (of I'm sure to be many) pair of Ruby Slippers. They go perfectly with the beautiful hand loomed dress from Guatemala that Ruby's Tia Holly brought back from her recent visit. I decided that Ruby needs other colors in her life besides pink. After all, she's not a baby anymore (she told me to say that - wink wink).

July 24, 2007

happy birthday ruby!!

Happy Birthday Ruby!!

Our little girl turns one year old today. I feel like I have known her forever. I look back and realize how incomplete my life was before she graced us with her presence. This last year I have learned so much about myself. I have learned patience and compassion for a child who doesn't speak my language and for a husband who sometimes feels like an outsider to the bond Ruby and I have and for myself because I have overcome so much physically and emotionally and still have the ability to make my daughter laugh. She is the greatest gift I have ever gotten. She is the greatest teacher I will ever have.


This time last year I was getting ready for surgery to have her extracted from my womb. I had a scheduled c-section exactly 40 weeks from the day we conceived her. A good friend of mine reminded me that if we had been in a third world country that Ruby and I both may have died during childbirth because she was not only breach but very large. Without modern medicine it is quite possible that I may not have been able to pass her. So how insanely grateful I am that we have those luxuries here in America. I am no less a mother because my vagina wasn't engaged during childbirth. I have known many women who have had c-sections and I always felt sorry for them - somehow they had missed out on a rite of passage. I realize now how silly that is. Being a mother at all, be it by vagina, surgery, or adoption is truly the greatest rite of passage. I hope for Ruby that she will one day know this feeling of being a mother and having this incommunicable love for another being.

Okay so now for her stats...

  • Unassisted steps taken - 0
  • Seconds standing unassisted - 1
  • Drawers/Cabinets opened & emptied on a daily basis - 7
  • Daily naps - 2
  • Average daily hours of sleep - 12-14
  • Words - ba ba (bye bye), ki ka (kitty cat), maow (meow), ma ma ma ma ma (mommy), pa (daddy), ga (all gone)
  • Sign language - milk, bath, eat, change diaper, nap, all gone, hello/good-bye
  • Body parts she knows & can point to - toes, belly button, ears, tongue
  • Teeth - 7
  • Favorite book to read alone - The Cat in the Hat
  • Favorite book to read to her - My Pretty Kitten (at least that was her favorite yesterday)
  • Favorite Lovey - Rattone the Rat
  • Favorite Pastimes - Chasing the cat & playing in the bathroom
  • Favorite Food - Bananas
I think that pretty much solidifies what a totally normal and exceptional child she is. I am honored that she chose me to be her mom. I love you Ruby. You are my shining star!

July 23, 2007

teenager in training

Wow, I see the future. She really is a mini version of me. Already into my jewelry and on the phone all the time. She poses for the camera with crazy awareness - like she's posing for the paparazzi. She knows the power of her smile - all full of new teeth.


Her nursing strike, diarrhea, crappy mood phase from last week is over - thank god! She has been so much fun these past few days.



We went to our 4th first birthday party on Saturday night and she partied hardy with all her friends. We took a plate of food home for daddy and on the way back Ruby got hungry. The only thing on the plate that was edible for her was a corn dog (albeit a turkey corn dog). I handed it to her thinking she would play with it but before my eyes the kid starting noshing away. She ate that whole corn dog! This girl is no longer a baby, that's all I have to say.



What a year this has been...tomorrow is her birthday.

July 13, 2007

5 year anniversary

Yeah! I see the light at the end of the tunnel with this nursing strike! She actually took my breast twice this morning! I knew if I just had patience she would find her way back. The poor thing has just felt awful the past few days with these teeth coming in. She took a four hour nap yesterday and when she got up she had a pretty high fever. She ate a banana like it was THE most amazing thing EVER! The doctor ordered Tylenol & Pedialyte and by this morning she was back to normal. I'm assuming whatever tooth it was that was causing so much grief finally popped through - I wouldn't know since she won't let me in her mouth to check it out.

Today is my 5 year wedding anniversary with Rene. What a crazy, up-and-down 5 years it has been. Things are really good right here, right now. We are learning to take each other & this marriage one day at a time. The good days inspire us for more good days and the bad days give us something to learn from. In fact we got in a big fight yesterday morning and by 10:00am we had actually worked through it with a lot of learning on both our parts.

Last night Rene organized a babysitter and an evening out with a bunch of our friends at one of my favorite San Diego joints (The Turf Club). I got all dolled up and did my makeup & hair. I felt really sexy for the first time in LONG time. Rene was so cute on the way down there in the car. He was obviously really happy and chatty. I said something about it and he said, "Hell yeah I'm happy, I'm goin' out with my girl!!" It felt like we were on a real date. We even ended up at a karaoke bar and I got up and sung (well, I really doubt you can call it singing). We had a lot of fun!! It felt really good to be out and about. Although I was checking my phone for babysitter calls all night and I found myself constantly trying to talk about something other than Ruby.

Today the three of us going to the beach to celebrate our anniversary as a family. On our honeymoon in Tahiti we said that every five years we would go back. Well, here we are five years later and no Tahiti. But we do have a beautiful, perfect San Diego beach five minutes from our house. Not bad at all.

July 12, 2007

breastfeeding manifesto - i love it!

So I finally found someone out there who unapologetically feels the same way I do about public breastfeeding. Most of my other mom friends seem to be fine with breastfeeding in public...with other mothers but are soon to cover up and/or remove themselves & baby when men or other non-familiar people are around. I, on the other hand, could care less who is around, watching, or judging. Call me a free-spirit, call me an exhibitionist. Both might be true; however, rest assured that my goal in public breastfeeding is not to "show 'em my tits!!" as in some Girls Gone Wild video but rather to feed my child. What an amazing gift it is that my body has not only created and grown her from sperm & egg but that I can now nourish and sustain her health and vitality from my own body. My body, which by the way, has suffered from cancer and cancer treatments in the past. My body had all but given up on me a few years ago and now it can grow & feed a new life. Are you kidding me? I'm not hiding/covering/being discreet about shit!!!! I am so amazingly thankful for this body. This is my superhero power - I can breastfeed!

Now, if I can only get little Ruby to stop this nursing strike - I can go back to practicing what I preach!

July 11, 2007

nursing strike redux

So Ruby is on a nursing strike. Hold off the boobie!! It actually seems offensive to her to even think about mommy's milk - be it from my breast or a bottle. She's basically not into anything to "drink" other than water. She's hungry as all get out though. She'll gobble up just about anything I put in front of her.

I've done tons of research on this subject, as this is our second nursing strike. The first time around I felt horrible. I felt like an "empty-nester" - she doesn't need/want me anymore. I soon discovered it had nothing to do with how she feels about me but just about everything to do with her new teeth. Imagine how frustrated she must be. This time around I'm trying to stay much more calm; knowing that this strike won't last forever. I thought I was done pumping but I had to drag that thing out again. I did not miss feeling like a electronically expressed cow - sexy!

It does illicit the fear of this soon being over though. I truly cherish my bonding with her and am sad to imagine a time when I'm the one person who can and will embarrass the hell out of her.

For now, I just pray that she'll find her way back to the comfort of my breast. Boobs rule!

July 10, 2007

happy birthday g-ma!

Ruby's namkesake grandma turns 42 (wink wink) today. Have an awesome day mamma mackin!



As for Ruby...

The teeth are coming in like crazy!! Check out this chart of how & when they are supposed to come in...




She originally got her two bottom teeth first several months ago. Then a few weeks ago all four front top ones started popping through - are you kidding me?? The poor kid was not happy! Just when she/I have gotten used to her new pearly whites it looks like she's got four more coming in. Oh boy, now she's really grouchy! I pray for them to pop through soon!! This kid could be eating steak soon -sheesh! She's taking a late nap right now which I'm actually encouraging. She has been so irritable with these new developments.

July 7, 2007

our little girl

So, I know you have all been waiting for this blog for sometime now. Things have been beyond crazy so I hope that you forgive the delay...

I would like to introduce you all to my daughter, Ruby Jocelyn Silva. She was born almost a year ago on 7/24/06 at 1:13pm. She was 10 lbs-4 oz and 21.5 in long.


She is truly the brightest, most extrordinary, shining star in my sky. She laughs and smiles and babbles most of the day. She honestly rarely cries and if she does - it dosn't last long. She is such a happy baby - so full of life!

Be patient with me if I don't update this as regularly as I did with Bob - I didn't have my hands full with a newborn back then. My intention is to update this blog with her many developmental milestones and for my own proud mamma bragging :)