The Barlahan Family

crabbing...

2009-08-28T10:38:00.000-07:00

Nathan and Noah enjoy crabbing. They are always asking when we can go. Here are some pics of the starfish that got caught in her net and a sea lion messing around with the nets.

Father's Day

2009-06-21T22:30:00.002-07:00

Erdy was pampered to no end on Father's Day. Besides all of his presents, he got homemade cards from the kids. We were suppose to go out for breakfast but he got to sleep in and the kids got hungry so I ended up cooking breakfast. For lunch we went to his favorite place...Red Lobster. We only go there on two occasions...Erdy's bday and Father's Day. He played tennis by himself which is rare because he usually takes one of the kids. Then for dinner he chose to eat at Thaibodia which is a restaurant near our house. We indulged the entire day!

2009-06-21T22:30:00.001-07:00

The latest pics of the kids...

2009-06-21T22:17:00.000-07:00

Sesame Street Live: Elmo's Green Thumb

2009-06-21T22:10:00.000-07:00

My co-worker was so nice to treat the entire family out to sesame street live. The boys love Elmo so they had a great ol' time.

I have learned a cool trick from my sis-in-law and friend...whenever we're going to a crowded place, I dress the kids alike so they're easier to spot!

Nathan goes to pump it up

2009-06-21T22:04:00.000-07:00

Both Erdy and I took time off from work to celebrate Nate's graduation. So we told him he got to choose what we would do. He chose to go to Pump it Up then lunch at Taco Bell. He also got to hang out at mommy's work. While she was in meetings, he watched a movie on her computer. What a lucky boy!

Nathan graduates from preschool!

2009-06-21T21:54:00.000-07:00

Nathan graduated from preschool! They had a cute little ceremony. The kids sang a couple of songs, they got their certificate and enjoyed some refreshments!

Here's Nate with all of his teachers! He loved them all!

The class pic.

This dinosaur was very popular. There was a huge line to play with it.

He's so proud! So are his parents!!!

Nathan with his best friend Brayden! They were such good buddies throughout the year.

Nico gets his first haircut!

2009-06-21T21:44:00.001-07:00

Before his haircut...

During his haircut...

After his haircut...

What a cute little boy! He's all grown up!

Tahoe trip..part 3

2009-06-21T21:33:00.000-07:00

Erdy was playing dance revolution and Nathan decided to join him. Erdy ended up picking him up so he wouldn't mess up his score! There were also some intense air hockey games and ping pong. They also took a small hike. The boys learned about fire safety and answered the ranger's questions. They got a nice little gift from him.

It was a nice fun weekend.

Tahoe trip..part 2

2009-06-21T21:20:00.000-07:00

Part of our tahoe itinerary included a trip to miniature golf. The plan was for the kids to play and the adults to play their own game. Well my boys didn't really understand the game. It made it worst that we were on a dinosaur course. So Nate was super excited to see all the dinosaurs as you can see in the pics below. Except for Brandon, all the other boys just ran around and climbed the structures!

Tahoe Trip

2009-06-21T20:56:00.000-07:00

Since we didn't get to take a trip in the winter we went to Tahoe in the spring instead! We had perfect weather and hung out with great friends. It was nice to relax and get away from the busy side of life. Here are pictures of the kids hanging out at the beach.

Nico is 10 months old!

2009-06-11T22:11:00.000-07:00

Can you believe our baby is now 10 months old? Well it gave me a reason to visit Sprinkles. He had a rough week last week. It started out as a fever, then an ear infection then a rash. Poor guy. His fever lasted for five days then he broke out in a rash. It might have been roseola or a reaction to the antibiotic given to him for the ear infection. He's all better now and back to his happy self.

Sonoma Train town

2009-06-11T22:02:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to take the kids to train town for sometime now. So we finally did it. The kids enjoyed riding the train and petting the goats. They were also just happy to play in the caboose. We ended the day in downtown Sonoma. I had to stop for the bumblebee cake. Totally worth it!

Nathan celebrates his bday early...

2009-06-11T21:53:00.000-07:00

Because Nate's birthday is in August, it was celebrated early in school. I brought snack and Costco cupcakes for the class. Erdy said I overdid it with the cupcakes. The costco cupcakes were almost the same size as the preschoolers head. Oh well--the kids were sugar high. The celebrants got to wear a crown and they had a special ceremony. Nathan enjoyed himself. He talked about it for days.

Nate's music recital

2009-06-11T21:48:00.001-07:00

The school had a musical recital and the preschoolers sang "Freedom". It was too cute. They were singing, marching and waving their flags. Nathan sang a little too loud. You can really hear him. They did an awesome job!

My parents leave for PI and life changes...

2009-06-11T21:23:00.000-07:00

My parents left for the Philippines mid-May and it took some adjusting for everyone. Life got a little bit more complicated. We have been so spoiled for so long. Noah and Nico started day care. It was heart wrenching the first day. Noah was hysterically crying and shouting my name. I sat in the van and cried for a little while listening to the kids cry inside.

Erdy and I had to be super organized. All the kids clothes had to be lined up the night before. I packed Nate's lunch minus the food that needed to be refrigerated. Diaper bag was packed and shoes and socks were lined up by the door.

Mornings were rough. We had to wake up extra early to shower and dress before the kids woke up. I had to cook breakfast. Nate and Noah doesn't really care for cereal (gosh darnet!). Nico had to be changed and fed. Bottles and baby food needed to be packed. All of us are out the door by 7:30am. Erdy drops off Nate and I drop off Noah and Nico.

After work, I round up all the kids. Erdy doesn't get off until 6pm and his day ends at different places everyday. It's difficult to load and unload the kids. I pick up Nate first then we head to pick up Noah and Nico. Dinner has to be cooked, the kids have to shower, eat dinner, take their vitamins, play for a little bit, and read books. Then the day starts over again. The goal is to have all three kids in bed between 8pm and 8:30pm. Typically Erdy and I have to work at night. This is the time we can sit, relax and talk without any interruption. I am not a night owl but I have learned to be with the help of caffeine.

Mother's Day

2009-06-11T21:13:00.000-07:00

I enjoyed Mother's Day. We went to a Sunday Brunch at Scott's Seafood. It was absolutely delicious, especially with a mimosa. The desserts were to die for. Then we headed home to meet my aunts and uncles. All in all it was a good pampering day. I think Mother's Day should be at least once a month!

My parent's anniversary

2009-06-07T22:22:00.000-07:00

My parents celebrated their 38th anniversary on Cinco de Mayo. We had a fun dinner at Benihana's.

Nico is 9 months old!

2009-05-04T00:07:00.001-07:00

I can't believe my baby is 9 months old. Nico loves to eat. He hates baby food but loves "real" table food. The ironic part is that he is underweight! He is such a happy baby. He wakes up smiling and he laughs at almost anything. He continues to find his brothers funny. He laughs hysterically when his brothers play with him. He is eager to join his brothers when they are playing. They are definitely the three musketeers.

Here's a pic of Nico and his cupcake. His brothers enjoyed licking off the frosting! The orange is as big as Nico's head.

Nico is ready to dig in. Nate and Noah are lucky to enjoy the cupcake before the celebrant.

Nico loves to ride the Thomas rider. It's a good thing his brothers are willing to share.

Noah enjoys his popsicle in the backyard.

Look at all my roses in bloom! I don't have a green thumb but I didn't do too bad.

Nate catches a trout

2009-05-03T23:58:00.000-07:00

Every year City of Santa Clara sponsors a fishing derby. They place hundreds of trout in the City fountain. Kids line up to go fishing. This year both Nate and Noah waited in line. Parents aren't allowed in the area therefore Noah at the last minute backed out. So Nathan went fishing by himself. He was so excited that he caught a trout. After the event, he wanted to go crabbing in SF!

Discovery Kingdom

2009-05-03T23:50:00.000-07:00

To end our Spring Break vacation, we went to Discovery Kingdom. It was a very hot day...thank goodness for the shows. Nate and Noah loved Shuka the whale. Here are some pics of them feeding the birds.

Discovery Kingdom continued

2009-05-03T23:41:00.001-07:00

I just love this picture of the boys. They are great friends but also worst enemies!

I'm such a bad mom. Noah was begging me to ride a real elephant and I really didn't want to. After all the whining, I gave in but it was too late. They closed the ride. So he had to settle for the dumbo carousel ride. Poor guy!

Celebrating Noah's bday at Disneyland!

2009-05-03T23:27:00.001-07:00

On Noah's actual birthday, we went to disneyland. He got in free and they gave him a "happy birthday" button. He had a blast. Everyone wished him a great birthday. During the parade, the characters stopped to greet him. He was so proud to say that he's three! Noah's favorite ride was the jungle cruise. We must have rode it 4 or 5 times. Nate's favorite ride was "It's a Small World." Nico did really well too. He was fascinated by all the lights. Their mom had a great time too! Mickey Mouse is still her hero.

More pics of disneyland

2009-05-03T23:19:00.000-07:00

2009-05-03T23:07:00.000-07:00

For the longest time now, we've been trying to go to the Rain Forest Cafe. So we decided to have Easter dinner there in downtown disney. We thought the boys would love it since they both like animals. We were dead wrong. They were so scared! We sat next to a gorilla that kept making noises every 5 minutes. The boys were freaked out. So I didn't enjoy dinner with the kids begging to go and both of them sitting on my lap!

The Grove

2009-05-03T22:54:00.000-07:00

One of our favorite stops when we're in LA is the Grove. It has a double decker bus that shuttles people from the mall to the Farmer's Market. It's a great entertainment for the boys while Mom goes shopping!

Easter celebration at Central Park

2009-05-03T22:38:00.000-07:00

Every year City of Santa Clara does an egg hunt and hundreds of families attend this fun event. They rope of areas of the field by age level and the kids have a ball picking up eggs and chocolates. Nathan scored. He was pretty quick. Erdy could barely keep up with him. Noah strolled along the field although he got a lot of eggs from playing games. It all happened so quick that I didn't get any pictures of them egg hunting. Plus, with hundreds of kids there Erdy and I had to keep an eye on them. So many kids were lost after the egg hunt! The event also included carnival games, a petting zoo and of course, a picture with the Easter Bunny!

Noah's 3rd Birthday

2009-05-03T22:23:00.000-07:00

Noah celebrated his birthday several times. Here are some pics of his 1st celebration.

Noah wanted a chocolate cupcake Diego cake. I ran out of time and didn't get a chance to look for a Diego cake. So here is what I came up with. I'm glad Noah didn't mind and he was happy with it!

Noah had a great celebration. He is currently into jungle animals, especially elephants. So the majority of his gifts were something to do with elephants. He wanted to go to Africa for his birthday but I was hoping he'd settle for disneyland!

Nathan's Easter Party

2009-05-02T22:43:00.000-07:00

I volunteered to help with the preschools' Easter party. We had to resort to Plan B when rain was in the forecast. Nevertheless, the kids had a great time.

Nate looks for eggs in the library.

This is Nate's 8th grade buddy Matthew. He totally adores Matthew. Each preschooler has been paired up with an 8th grader since the beginning of the school year. It was neat to see how caring the 8th graders were to the preschoolers.

Look at all the eggs Nate found!

The kids also got a goodie bag. Boy, were they sugar high!

Here is Nate playing with bubbles.

What a neat and cleaner way to color eggs!

Nico is 8 months old...

2009-05-02T22:33:00.001-07:00

Nico is 8 months old in this pic. He is pulling up and he is cruising along with the help of furniture. Oh and did I tell you, his first word..."mama!" I was very excited to hear him say mama. Nathan's first word was dada and Noah's first word was Erdy (I know...weird huh?) so hearing mama as Nico's first word was such a nice surprise!

My goodness...more cupcakes.

We had to lower the crib mattress because Nico was pulling up and we were afraid he'll fall over.

Current pics of the boys

2009-05-02T22:28:00.000-07:00

How did they grow up so fast?

Mommy and me class with Noah

2009-05-02T22:14:00.000-07:00

I enrolled Noah in a class because he is always asking to go to school. He gets all upset when he can't stay with Nathan at preschool. So far Noah loves snack time!

Noah is creating a nest out of pretzels. It was difficult to convince him to glue the pretzels down on the paper instead of eating them!

Noah is making a bird feeder. He's putting peanut butter on a pine cone before the bird seeds. All he wanted to do is lick the peanut butter.

Here he is coloring the table instead of his bird. Go figure.

At the end he gets to play with playdoh. It's a total treat for him because he rarely gets to play with it at home!

Nico crawls at 7 months...

2009-05-02T22:05:00.000-07:00

Nico crawled at 7 months old. It was a big surprise since we didn't even try to coach him to crawl. We were hoping he wouldn't be so mobile so soon. We weren't quite ready for it. He is all over the place now.

Nico had bronchitis...

2009-05-02T21:56:00.001-07:00

It's been a bad winter. My poor Nico has had bronchitis twice. Unfortunatley, he got his mama's bad genes. He probably has asthma but the doctor said it's too early to tell. He was on two different inhalers...one preventive and one for the attack. We have weaned him to just one now. Here is a pic of him taking his nebulizer. As you can see, he's pretty use to it. Sometimes he even holds his own mask. Giving Nico his nebulizer has become a daily routine. Nate even helps out!

Mom turns 70!

2009-05-02T21:19:00.000-07:00

Mom was suppose to have a big celebration in the Philippines for her 70th birthday. Instead she had a small celebration here. Her birthday is on Valentine's Day. We had an eating fest that day. First we ate at a Filipino restaurant with her bestfriend then for dinner we ate at a seafood buffet called hokaida. It was absolutely yummy. I must have gained 5 lbs from all the eating. We also took family pics that day. I'll have to scan and post it here.

Nico is 6 months old!

2009-05-02T21:13:00.000-07:00

Nico celebrates his 6 months birthday with Sprinkles cupcakes.

Nico's baptism

2009-05-02T20:53:00.000-07:00

Nico was baptized on January 11th at St. Cyprian Church by Fr. Arthur.

Here's the family pic. Noah took a nap on one of the pews so he is MIA.

Family update

2009-02-05T16:08:00.001-08:00

It's been awhile since my last update. I just can't seem to find the time to keep up the blog. Nico is now six months old. Can you believe it? Those six months just flew by. He is more mobile now. He turns over, he gets up on all fours, and he somehow moves around by pushing off with his feet. He just went for his well baby check up and he is underweight. He only weighs 13 lbs, 10 oz. Here we go again. Why is it that all my kids are underweight and I'm the only overweight one?!

Nathan is doing well. We've been busy trying to enroll him in kindergarten. What a nightmare! It's as hard as trying to get into college. I'm crossing my finger that he gets in under open enrollment into a magnet school. We'll have to wait until March to find out.

Noah started a class. It's a lot like preschool only that it's once a week. We were trying to potty train him but decided to just wait to avoid stress. We were having 50% sucess rate but haven't had the time to follow through with it.

Other than that..it's life like usual.

Nico is 5 months old

2009-01-06T21:30:00.000-08:00

Nico had a great Christmas too. Not only did he get gifts but he also got a first taste of solids! We started him on rice cereal. He absolutely loved it. And when he turned 5 months old, he got a snowman cupcake that his two brothers so willingly ate after the pics were taken.

Baby Santa Claus

2009-01-06T21:26:00.000-08:00

I couldn't resist...I bought a Santa outfit for Nico. He looked so cute in it. It fit him perfectly. Here's some pics taken with the grandparents.

The three boys..

2009-01-06T21:19:00.000-08:00

Before I even knew what our third child was going to be, I already bought two sets of matching sweaters. (Maybe deep down I knew I was having another boy). So here they are in their matching sweaters. My sister feels bad for them...that I doll them up and make them look alike. I don't think they need help in that category. Often times, I'm asked if Nate and Noah are twins. Clearly, one looks older than the other but maybe not.

Santa comes to visit

2009-01-06T21:10:00.000-08:00

The kids were so excited about Santa coming to the house. They made brownies for Santa because mommy suggested it was Santa's favorite. It was suppose to rain so Nathan was a little worried about Santa having the reindeers on the roof. So at 7am on Christmas morning, I woke up all the kids and told them Santa had came. They were beyond excited. Half awake, they ran into the living room to open their presents. It was priceless to see their faces as they got exactly what they asked for!

Pics with Santa

2009-01-05T21:20:00.001-08:00

Annual Xmas Party

2009-01-02T23:59:00.000-08:00

Every year we get together with our college friends and their kids for a Christmas party. We eat a lot. The kids decorate a cake...it ends up with a ton of sprinkles on it and we actually let them eat a part of it. The adults do a white elephant exchange. This year Erdy and I scored on 4 tickets to the movies! Santa visits and gives out early xmas gifts. Then we went to someone's house in Emerald Hills to ride a train the goes around his house. It was pretty cool. And can you believe it...santa had time to go to that house too?!

Bethlehem

2009-01-02T23:27:00.000-08:00

Every year we take the kids to see the reenactment of Bethlehem. Besides seeing the play, the kids' favorite part is being able to come close to the animals. Here are some pics of the two kids. We didn't bring Nico because it was too cold = (.

Nate's Christmas Program

2009-01-02T23:19:00.000-08:00

Nathan's preschool class sang Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer and Jingle Bells at their school's Christmas program. They were too cute. The entire class had a "red" nose. I was a proud Mama as I heard Nate sing his heart out. There were 8 family members there to watch Nate's two minutes of fame. We were all proud!

Random pics...

2009-01-02T22:51:00.000-08:00

2009-01-02T22:44:00.000-08:00

We spent the day in San Francisco at Union Square. Here are some pics in front of the huge Christmas tree.

My dad...post surgery

2009-01-02T22:39:00.000-08:00

Here are pics of my dad two weeks after his surgery. He was able to walk all over Union Square without a problem. What a miracle!

Nico is four months old!

2009-01-02T22:34:00.001-08:00

Here are his cupcakes from Whole Foods. They were super yummy!

Finally here are some pics!

2009-01-02T22:16:00.000-08:00

Nico all decked out in his first Christmas outfit.

Noah hates to take pictures. I can't capture his real smile.

Nathan is such a natural in front of the camera.

Benign!

2008-12-08T22:44:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to share the great news with all of you. After two long torturous weeks, the doctor just gave my dad the good news that the mass in his kidney is benign! Before his surgery, the doctor said it was 90% cancer. My dad was blessed to be that 10%. The other miracle is that he is completely recovered. His doctor said it would take at least a month to recuperate after surgery. It probably only took my dad four days before he was doing his "usual routine". Most days (when it's not too cold) he walks a mile. It's as if he never even had surgery.

Thank you for all the prayers and support. It was definitely answered! We got the best early Christmas present ever.

P.S.

I finally got a new camera so I'm hoping to upload some current pictures of the boys real soon.

Black Friday

2008-11-29T16:20:00.000-08:00

Yes I am one of those crazy people that get up at 4am to go shopping. My sister and I have been doing it for 11 years now. We have a ball. I try to get all my shopping done at this time because I don't have any other time since I'm working long hours. My sister and I have a route that we take every Black Friday. We stay out until my car is overloaded then we go home to unload and hit the mall. It took us 30 minutes to park in Valley Fair. How insane!

So you're probably wondering how I can do this with three kids? Since it's 4am, the kids are all asleep still. Erdy is home with them until I come home around 8ish. I took Nate with me to the mall and luckily he cooperated with us. All in all, it was a fun day.

There's a lot to be thankful for...

2008-11-26T21:51:00.000-08:00

Besides the great meal and the many desserts we'll have, there's a lot to be thankful for this Thanksgiving. First and foremost, my family will all be together to celebrate and share a feast. The kids are all doing well. They are all healthy, happy and full of life. Nicolas joined our family and now we are complete. He just melts our hearts every time he smiles or giggles. He is such a happy baby. Nathan has learned so much in the three months of school. Noah looks up to Nathan and copies everything Nathan does. Erdy has been wonderful. I can honestly say that Erdy puts in his fair share in our marriage and fatherhood. Most dads aren't as involved with their kids. Erdy does it all. I am lucky to have a husband who is a loving father and an understanding partner.

My dad had his surgery a week ago and what a miracle his recovery has been. For that, I am thankful. It's as if he never had surgery. He has been able to manage his pain and he has not found a need to take pain medication. He is determined to get better. He's already back to walking at least a mile a day.

My two moms are here. Mama Tina has been a tremendous help with Nicolas while Erdy and I are away at work. My mom has taken over the kitchen. They both have taken over many of the housework chores. So I am relaxed and confident that Noah and Nico are well taken care of. For that I am grateful.

Yes we have our moments and problems but at the end of the day, we have a home to go to and a family to come home to. There's a lot to be thankful for.

The latest in the Barlahan household...

2008-11-14T23:23:00.000-08:00

So it has been a two week whirl wind. I started back at work two weeks ago and it's been nonstop since. I haven't been able to really stop working. In the morning, I go to work. I go home and I go to work. It's so busy at work that I can barely keep my head above water.

My parents arrived a week ago. So now I have my mother-in-law and my parents at our tiny house. I must admit so far so good. I'm so glad they're all here. With my crazy work schedule, I have a little lee way at home. I can do some work while they keep the kids entertained. Plus, we're all enjoying my mom's cooking...another task lifted off my shoulders.

We got the ikea bunk beds for the kids. They are enjoying it. Nate sleeps at the top and Noah at the bottom. We will transition Nico into the crib once the Christmas Center is over. Right now I need every bit of sleep I can get. Nico continues to tease me. He has been sleeping more through the night.

My dad's surgery is next week. We met with the pre-operative clinic today as well as the surgeon who will be doing his surgery. He is in good spirits which we're all thankful for. I can't wait until this nightmare is over. At least we can get back to semi-normal again.

I wish I can get more hours in the day. There's just too much to do. Until then...ta, ta for now.

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-01T21:16:00.000-07:00

The boys had a great halloween. Nathan had a parade at his school so he got to wear his costume to school instead of his uniform. Of course, Noah wanted to join the parade so he wore his costume too and walked with Nathan. Noah is a regular fixture at Nate's school. He joins the class at circle time, does art work with them, and has snack there too. The teachers get a kick out of him.

After the parade, I took the boys to the youth center here in Santa Clara. They had a mini carnival. The kids got to go trick or treating, play games, jump on the bounce house and do arts and crafts.

They quickly ate dinner and went trick or treating with Erdy. They only went a few blocks (due to the cold and windy weather) and they got a huge load of candy. As a sugar police mommy, they were only able to choose two of their favorites and I hid the rest. They'll get them little by little as a reward for good behavior (ok bribery too).

Nico is three months old!

2008-11-01T21:12:00.000-07:00

My little baby is now three months old. So hard to believe. He is holding his head up and when he is placed in his car seat, he tries to get up and sit up. You can find Nico in his best mood when he first wakes up. He giggles and babbles a lot. He has slept through the night three times now (what a teaser). But for the most part, he wakes up at 4am, drinks milk and goes back to sleep right after. For his three months old celebration, we went to Kara's cupcakes. I was a bit disappointed. Sprinkles is way better! He's growing up all too fast.

Chuck E Cheese

2008-10-26T23:44:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned in a previous blog, Nathan had to do a blood test. I felt so bad for him since he had such a difficult week with the surgery and everything else, I decided to take them to Chuck E. Cheese. As usual, they loved it. They never seem to get sick of the place.

Deer Hollow Farm

2008-10-26T23:31:00.000-07:00

While Monica was in town, we decided to take a hike to Deer Hollow Farm with the kids. The kids did really well during the hike. We got to see farm animals, ate a picnic lunch, took a leisurely walk back and of course ended the day with ice cream.

Noah is shouting back to the rooster..."cock-a-doodle-doo"

Amara and Noah chasing the chicken!

Very appropriate...Noah is wearing his chick magnet shirt.

A group picture in front of the cow.

The pumpkin patch went to the preschool

2008-10-26T18:12:00.000-07:00

Since Nate's class just had a fieldtrip to watch a play, they decided to forego a trip to the pumpkin patch. Instead the pumpkin patch went to them. I had the chance to volunteer so I got to see it firsthand. They played the pumpkin walk (similar to musical chairs) and once they got their pumpkin, they were able to paint it. There were also other art activities. The kids all had a ball. Here are some pics of the event.

Uesugi Farm

2008-10-26T18:09:00.001-07:00

Over the weekend we went to Uesugi Farm in Morgan Hill since we heard so many good things about it. The kids had a great time. They rode on the cow train and the pony ride. There's a lot more to do there but it was too hot. I didn't think it would be as hot as it was. Nate and Noah picked out more pumpkins. Now all we have to do is carve all of them!

Halloween Party

2008-10-26T18:04:00.001-07:00

We went to Kim's house for our halloween party. The kids has so much fun. The entire menu consisted of orange food. We had orange turkey pasta, pumpkin soup, cheese & ham sandwiches, pumpkin bread, orange jello, mandarin orange, cantaloupe, cheetos, pumpkin pie and pumpkin ice cream. The kids decorated cinnamon sugar cookies. Everything was absolutely yummy. It was nice to break away from the old routine on a school night!

Nathan had his surgery

2008-10-26T17:53:00.000-07:00

Nathan had his ear surgery this past Tuesday. I think I was more nervous than he was. We sat him down and explained to him as simple as possible what to expect. He did well the morning of surgery. I thought all the doctors and nurses in his room would freak him out but he was totally fine. The surgery to put the tubes in was less than 15 minutes. We went to the recovery room soon after and Nathan woke up and was quiet for about 5 minutes then he was back to normal. The nurse told me to expect him to be drowsy for the rest of the day but not my Nathan! He was running and playing around as soon as we got home. Everything went well with the surgery but...two days after, we found blood in Nate's urine. We are still unsure if it's related to the surgery. Many blood tests were run (they took four tubes of blood) and so far they have all turned out negative...thank goodness. It's possible that it's a reaction to the anesthesia but that's very rare. We have a follow up appointment tomorrow. Poor Nate has been through a lot this week.

Nicolas is growing up too fast..

2008-10-20T22:58:00.000-07:00

He's only 10 weeks old but he's growing up too fast. Most people that see him thinks he's a big baby. He's just pudgy. He has only slept through the night once (what a teaser). But I shouldn't complain. He only wakes up once to feed and goes back to sleep within 15 minutes. He loves to coo and talk to you and Nico enjoys all the attention he gets (unfortunately his brothers doesn't). He's a very happy baby, always smiling at you. As cheesy as it may sound, he just melts my heart. Here are some pics of him.

Recent pics of the Barlahan boys...

2008-10-20T22:11:00.001-07:00

A pic of the three boys with Lolo.

Nicolas is all smiles.

Noah doing some gymnastic moves at the beach. What a silly boy.

Nathan smiles for the camera. What a cutie!

Erdy hits the big 3-0

2008-10-20T22:00:00.000-07:00

Erdy is now three decades old. It was a big deal to him. He wanted to make sure he checked off everything on his list of goals before he hit 30. And now he has three kids to show for it! He took the day off so we spent the day in Santa Cruz (naturally) and ate at our favorite calamari place. We went to Red Lobster for dinner. That's always Erdy's pick. We go there twice a year...for Erdy's birthday and Father's Day. The next day my sister took the entire family to Texas Roadhouse (yes, we did a lot of eating) and after the kids went to bed, we met some friends at D & B. We haven't been there in years. We had a blast. I must admit my arms still hurt from hyper bowl.

Some bad news..

2008-10-15T23:19:00.000-07:00

On Monday, the doctor informed my dad that he has a tumor in his left kidney and he was 90% sure it was cancer. My dad found out hours before his flight back to the Philippines. Of course, he was completely shocked and probably still is. He has been here for a month doing his routine physical exams. One of his blood tests came out abnormal. His creatinine levels were extremely high. His primary doctor assumed it was due to the medications his dr in the Philippines precribed him. So she changed his medications around and asked him to do more blood work after two weeks, thinking those levels will go down. That didn't happen. It went further up. So she ordered an ultrasound which detected the cyst. The doctor ordered a CT scan to further explore the cyst. A day later she called stating that it was definitely a cyst, not cancerous, and nothing to worry about. We were relieved. But then on Monday, the urology department called and asked him to come in. This is where dad learned about the tumor.

It is 1.7cm big. They caught it early enough that they will perform a laproscopic surgery which is less invasive than open surgery and recovery is a lot shorter. My dad thinks he has been given a death sentence. My sister and I tried to assure him that he would be ok and tried to convince him to cancel his flight. He was adamant about flying back so we made a deal that he would have to return in November.

His surgery has been scheduled for November 21st. My mom will be flying back with him. Please pray that his surgery will be successful and without complications. Pray for my dad that he will have the courage and strength during these trying times. Pray for our family that we can pull through this and be strong for him.

I am overwhelmed and stressed having to coordinate all the details of his upcoming surgery and trying to live life as normal as possible. I have Nathan's surgery to worry about too. I'm going back to work and I'm wondering how I'm going to do this all. It will be one stressful holiday season.

A crazy day in SF

2008-10-15T22:35:00.000-07:00

Since it was my dad's last weekend here, we decided to spend the day in San Francisco. We weren't sure what we would do so Erdy drove around for a bit. Whenever we go to SF, Erdy drives around the steep hills and gives the kids a thrill ride. So this day was no different. The kids were pretending to be on a roller coaster as Erdy drove down the hills. But this time, it was a bit more exciting...There was a car going uphill but he had to stop since there were two cars ahead of him. So his car was rolling and all of a sudden, his car kept going down this long steep hill. We assumed he was driving a stick shift. He kept going downhill and it appeared that he couldn't stop. Erdy and I were yelling "pull up your hand break!" He kept going down the hill and we were sure he would get runned over by other cars at the intersection, not expecting him to be there. By the grace of God, there were no cars at the intersection. We quickly drove up to him and asked him if he needed help. We pulled over to help him and luckily his car started again. Needless to say, we didn't go down anymore hills.

After wondering around, we ended up watching the Blue Angels. They were awesome! The kids enjoyed themselves but Noah got scared when they came too close. San Franscisco was packed with people. There were cars everywhere. I saw one man take his toddler out of his car seat and had him stand up and stick his head out from his moon roof to watch the blue angels while driving around. One wrong mistake, that toddler would have flown out! I saw another driver looking back, trying to watch the Blue Angels and take pictures as he was driving! I thought for sure, he'd rear end another car.

We ended the day in downtown Sf. I did a little shopping while Erdy played with the kids in Union Square. We had dinner at our favorite Japanese spot in Sunnyvale and the kids were pooped by the time we came home!

A day at Half Moon Bay

2008-10-05T22:39:00.000-07:00

We had a great Sunday at Half Moon Bay. Besides the horrific traffic, we had a blast at Lemos and Pastorino Farms. Nathan and Noah spent a lot of time picking out the perfect pumpkin. Nico was oblivious to the whole thing. He slept most of the time. We woke him up once but he wasn't a happy camper. The day would not be complete without riding the choo-choo train. Here are some pics from the day.

Here are more pics of the kids...

2008-10-01T23:00:00.000-07:00

The three musketeers!

Nate and Noah are writing so intently.

Nicolas smiles for the camera!

Mommy plays dress up with Nicolas. Isn't he too cute?!

Nathan needs tubes in his ears

2008-09-29T11:23:00.000-07:00

Today Nathan had his follow up appointment with the ENT doctor. Unfortunately, the antibiotics didn't work and it didn't drain the fluids in his middle ear. The only solution is surgery to put tubes in his ears. Because of a ruptured ear drum and the fluids, he has some minor hearing lost in his left ear. This also contributed to his articulation delay. He is taking speech class to help him with that. So in three weeks he will get the tubes placed in his ears. The doctor suggested to put it in both ears even though the right one is fine since he will be under anesthesia anyways. Then he'll have a follow up appointment after three weeks of surgery then every six months after that. I think the most difficult part is that he can't get his ears wet which means swimming is limited for the next couple of years. He loves the water (just like his dad) so that'll be hard for him. I know this surgery is pretty common but just the thought of surgery and putting him to sleep is a scary thought for me. I'll try to calm my nerves so he doesn't get scared. More details to follow...

Nicolas is two months old!

2008-09-28T22:46:00.000-07:00

Nicolas is now eight weeks old. He is 10 lbs and 1 oz and 21 inches long. He loves to smile and giggle. He is also a squirmer. We are not able to leave him alone (I know you're not suppose to anyways) because he squirms around and moves too much. Here's pics of Nico with his cupcakes. As you see he wasn't too happy! His mother went a bit overboard with the cupcakes. She couldn't resist. She was crazy enough to wait in line for half an hour for Sprinkles cupcake. It was worth the wait!

Fall festival

2008-09-28T22:41:00.000-07:00

St. Cyprian had their fall festival on Sunday. Every parent who has a student at the school must work 5 hours during the festival. I ran the baseball booth and it was a popular game. I was tired of picking up the ball and the bottles that kept being knocked over. It worked out well...Erdy and I were able to switch off so we had time for a much needed break. The boys had fun playing games and hanging out. Here's a pic of Nate going down the huge slide. I was pretty nervous when he went down the slide. It was so high but of course fearless Nathan had no problem with it!

Lola celebrates her 97th birthday!

2008-09-28T22:38:00.000-07:00

Yup, it's not a typo. My grandmother turned 97 years old on Saturday. Can you believe it? She's as strong as ever. She carries Nicolas without a problem (I, of course is a nervous wreck). Here's some pictures from the celebration.

Dad is back!

2008-09-17T14:59:00.000-07:00

My dad flew in on Monday from the Philippines with a whole lot of goodies. My mom must have packed a whole luggage full of sweets and snacks. All the good stuff that I love. I'll never be able to lose weight at this rate. I have no self control! It's nice to have a third set of hands again. Of course, it's not the same as having Mom around. Mom can anticipate what I need and gets it done. Dad is willing to do anything but I need to ask him. I'm back to doing the cooking which is a huge task when there are three boys who needs my attention. It's also been a grueling week. I have this bad cold and it's miserable when you still have to function and do your everyday chores. Erdy has been on call at work so he's up at all hours working. We're both just tired and would love to collapse and just sleep. Okay enough complaining. Time to get back to work!

Sunday dinners are back!

2008-09-14T21:24:00.000-07:00

Sunday dinners are back at my sister's. Thank heaven for that! My sister started this tradition when I had Nathan. To give me a break, she invited us every Sunday to have dinner at her place. We always looked forward to Sunday dinners. She always made these elaborate and lavish meals. Then Mom came and she always cooked so my sister ended up coming over. Now that mom left, it's time again for Sunday dinners. It's so nice not to have to cook. It gives me something to look forward to!

Noah went to the ER

2008-09-13T20:19:00.000-07:00

We just got back from a nice walk and Noah walked inside the house. He tripped over our welcome mat and he fell right into the corner of our futon. He started crying pretty hard so I rushed over to pick him up and all I saw was blood gushing from his mouth. He has a high tolerance for pain (thanks to Nathan) so when he cried like that I knew he was badly hurt. Meanwhile, Erdy was on the phone with work stuff since he is on call this week. I yell for his help to get me ice pack and napkins.

When I took the napkin off, I saw a huge gape. I felt sick to my stomach. It looked so scary. His bottom lip was completely cut open. I had Erdy call Kaiser to talk to the advice nurse. Noah was crying so hard that Nico woke up and they were both crying. Erdy's phone was ringing off the hook. I couldn't even hear the nurse on the phone! Erdy and I were in panic mode. Talk about chaos.

We took him to the emergency room with the advice of the nurse. The first doctor that looked at it said he definitely needed stitches and that they would need to sedate him. We were brought to a room and a resident doctor took another look at it and said the same thing. Finally, the "real" doctor came in and examined him well.

We were really lucky. He had a very very tiny space that wasn't cut so it didn't run pass his lip. Had it been cut all the way, it would have been more serious. The doctor would have liked to give him a couple of stitches but given the situation and his age, we all decided against it. He said it would heal on its own in a couple of days even though it looked horrible. Sedating him was too complicated.

Through all this Noah was well behaved and fully cooperated with the doctors and nurses. You wouldn't think anything was wrong with him until you looked at his face. He is such a trooper. I thought this would be the end of thumb sucking since it would hurt...apparently not. He continues to suck his thumb and it hasn't affected his eating habits! All is well.

What a fun weekend!

2008-09-08T02:20:00.000-07:00

What started out as a day excursion turned out to be a weekend trip! We went to Monterey/Carmel on Saturday. We were at Carmel hanging out at the beach (surprise surprise) and this nice couple came up to Erdy and gave him two tickets to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. They had a two day pass and only went once.

At that point, it was already 3pm and the kids were enjoying the beach too much to leave. Erdy didn't want to waste another 3 hours roundtrip to come back the next day so he suggested to spend the night there. Luckily, we all had extra clothes in the car. In fact, I packed so much stuff for the kids that we could have stayed there for four days!

The weather was so nice. We went to lover's point to watch the sunset and have a little picnic. Then the next day we went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. The kids had a great time. We haven't been there in awhile so it was a nice treat for them. It was a fun spontaneous family trip! Unfortunately, our camera broke so I can't post any pics! = (

Chaos has officially arrived!

2008-09-05T20:41:00.000-07:00

So now that my mom has gone back to the Philippines, chaos has arrived in the Barlahan household. Having an extra person sure has helped and we miss her soarly. Lucky for us, she made us a whole bunch of food and froze it so dinner is a little easier. Mornings are a challenge because Nate's school starts at 7:55am. If Erdy's schedule doesn't work, I have to take Nate to school which means I have to drag Noah and Nico with me. We all need to be out the door by 7:30am. It's a mad rush. It's even worst once we arrive at Nate's school because I have to take them all out of the van to walk Nathan to class and sign him in.

I try to get a lot of things set up the night before. I lay out all their clothes and if Nate is bringing lunch to school, I set up his lunchbox. I can't do much more. I just cross my fingers that all the kids cooperate. My sister said it's organized chaos. I'll take that as a compliment!

More pics of Nicolas

2008-09-01T10:33:00.000-07:00

Nico is a month old!

2008-08-29T22:38:00.000-07:00

Nicolas is already 4 weeks old! We continue our tradition of celebrating each month with dessert until he turns one. Nathan had cakes and Noah had pies. Nico will get cupcakes. Of course, his mother enjoys it before him. Here's a pic of Nico with his first cupcake.

Okay so his mother couldn't just decide on one cupcake!

Noah starts potty training himself...

2008-08-29T09:06:00.000-07:00

Noah decided this week that he will start potty training. He's doing pretty well too. He tells me when he needs to pee. It's so exciting to see him pee in the toilet. I still think of him as a baby. I never thought I'd be so excited about pee! It is my goal to have him potty trained while I'm on maternity leave. However, I'm not quite ready. I haven't pursued it much since I have my hands full with nursing Nico and Nathan's new school. Plus, it's just been too hot to stay home and potty training him in public is too much work. I'm such a bad mother. I really should push him because he seems ready. I'm content if he's trained by age 3.

Noah seems to be ready for a lot of things. He really wants to go to preschool but he's too young for most of them and because he's not potty trained, they charge an arm and a leg. He knows his alphabets and he can count to 20 all by himself. He can recognize letters and even write some of them. Nathan brings home some of his work from school and Noah listens in and picks it up quickly. I have enrolled him in a class at the rec center just to keep his interest up.

On a side note, Nate no longer wears pull ups at night. When he was potty trained at 3, he was wearing underwear even at night. Then winter came and he started wetting his bed so we started to use pull ups. We never bothered switching back. Finally, Erdy and I got on top of things and started training him to get up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night if he needed to. After a few accidents, he is finally trained! Yippee...one down, two more to go. My little boys are growing up so fast...

We went to the circus!

2008-08-22T00:02:00.001-07:00

We had a blast at the circus. Nate and Noah were excited to see the animals, especially the elephants, horses and tigers. All I kept hearing Noah say was "Wow!" over and over. Nate could barely keep himself in his chair. He was jumping up and down and cheering as he saw the horses come out. Erdy and I enjoyed watching the boys' reaction to everything. It was so neat to see them so excited about every little thing. It was worth it to see the boys enjoy themselves!

Nathan's first day of school

2008-08-21T23:51:00.000-07:00

Nathan started school today. I was a bit concerned because he was going to start in a new school where he didn't know anyone. All this week I was trying to get him excited about school but he kept whining that he didn't want to go. And he would talk about his old school and his previous teachers and all the friends he had there.

I thought today would be difficult for him. Thank goodness it wasn't. I drove him to school and he was eager to go to his classroom. I hung out for awhile just in case but he kept waving bye to me like he wanted me to leave already.

It was sad yet also happy to see him so independent. He looked all grown up in his uniform. So many mothers drove away with a tear in their eye (including me) as their child started school. Many children were crying too. I'm just so glad it wasn't mine!

Happy Birthday Nathan!

2008-08-19T21:22:00.001-07:00

Today Nathan turned 4. Oh gosh, I have a four year old son. Birthdays are such a big deal to me...I figure it's the only day out of the entire year when it's your special day. I guess I got that from my mom who threw me surprise parties year after year (I always acted surprise everytime so I don't ruin her fun!)

Nate woke up and saw a whole bunch of gifts in the living room. He got some really cool stuff. Of course, we gave him tons of horses to add to his collection. He got books about horses from Noah and Nicolas. Lola gave him a vtech digital camera. After opening all his presents, we headed off to IHOP where I actually let him eat a Banana Foster pancake with a scoop of ice cream for breakfast! We don't let the kids have too much sugar so that's a real treat!

When I asked Nathan what he wanted to do for his birthday, he said he wanted to ride a horse. Well I knew that would be difficult so I thought of the next best thing...we rode the merry-go-round at the arena green in San Jose. Nate and Noah had such a blast that we rode it twice. They also played in the park for awhile. Next was lunch at Benihana. Nathan loves to watch the chef cook. That is probably the only time that he actually stays in his seat during the entire meal. Then we were off to Chuck E. Cheese. After playing their games, they had ice cream again. What lucky kids!

Then we were off to buy Nate's cake. He wanted cupcakes that looks like one big cake so that is what he got. I was actually really surprised...it tasted pretty good. Auntie Abby came over with more gifts and a bouquet of balloons. He spent the night playing with all the new toys he got. He ended the night sugar high and pooped. What a great way to spend your birthday.

New diet restrictions

2008-08-19T21:13:00.000-07:00

Because I had gestational diabetes throughout most of my pregnancy, I had to stay away from sweets. This was very difficult because I have such a sweet tooth. As soon as I gave birth to Nicolas, I asked my nurse for apple juice. I missed drinking soda and apple juice and eating ice cream (although, I must admit, I did sneak some here and there). Now that I don't have the diabetes, I have gone wild with food. I have stuffed myself silly of watermelon.

Now Nicolas has set some diet restrictions on me since I am nursing him. One of the other things I missed drinking is orangina. So when I went to Trader Joe's I bought myself a bottle. Poor Nico had such bad gas. Here's what I found out so far: I can't have carbonated drinks. Gosh darnet...there's goes my coke. No spicy food either and I have to limit my watermelon. Oh well...what you do for your children!

Nicolas is two weeks old!

2008-08-14T06:55:00.001-07:00

I took Nico to his first doctor's appointment. The greatest news is that he passed his newborn screening. As most of you know, Nathan has a minor blood disorder which he got from Erdy and me. Luckily, Nico does not have Hemoglobin H. He has also gained a whole pound. He currently weighs 7lbs, 5oz. which puts him in the 14th percentile! Yippee!!! Let's hope he stays on the percentile chart. Nate and Noah fell off the percentile chart when they became mobile.

Nico is a great sleeper. I have to set my alarm at night to make sure he doesn't go the entire night without a feeding. He is pretty easy-going and I'm crossing my finger that he stays that way.

Boys will be boys...

2008-08-14T06:38:00.000-07:00

On Monday, we went to a park in Palo Alto. I ended up having to stay in the van to nurse while Erdy took the boys to the park. They were playing pretty well together according to Erdy until they started chasing some birds. Nathan got upset that Noah was teasing the birds. So he took a twig and started running after Noah. He accidentally poked Noah in the eye. You would think Noah would start crying...nope, he just kept on playing. Luckily, Erdy saw it happen and looked at Noah's eye. Erdy wanted Noah seen at Kaiser. I didn't think it was a big deal. His eye was a little pink from where it was irritated. Erdy didn't want to take any chances so I did ended up taking him to Kaiser.

It turns out that his eye was scratched but luckily nothing else was injured. Whew! The doctor gave me some drops for him to prevent an infection. Thank goodness Noah is not at all bothered by his eye. The scratch should heal on its own and go away within a week.

Meanwhile, we really laid it hard on Nathan. We told him he needed to be more gentle and to use his words instead of lashing out.. Noah and Nathan has been playing rough lately. They claim they're super heroes. And where the heck do they get this from??? We have no idea. Boys will be boys...we try to take into consideration the adjustment they're going through. Erdy has returned to work but as soon as he comes home from work, Erdy takes the boys to the park to let out all their energy. It pays off around 8:30pm when they are in deep sleep!

It's our anniversary!

2008-08-10T21:57:00.001-07:00

Today we celebrated our 6th year anniversary! How crazy is that? Erdy and I have been together for eleven years. Most of you has heard me say this...if someone predicted back then that I would end up marrying my college roommate's brother...I would tell them they're crazy....and if they said I would marry him and end up with three boys...I would tell them they're insane! It's funny how life works out.

It has been a tradition to watch our wedding video. There is a photo montage of us growing up. We were in hysterics to see Erdy's baby pictures. Noah is his exact replica. Nathan actually thought they were pictures of him. I, on the other hand, see my baby pictures resembling Nicolas. That's wishful thinking...everyone always comments on how the boys look exactly like Erdy!

We didn't get to do much, having a newborn and all. We did take the family out to Benihana for lunch. We figured it would entertain the boys and we can actually eat in peace. It worked! The boys sat in their chair the entire time and they were very amused. Every time we take them there, we have to order for each of them their own chicken fried rice. They just love it. Then of course we had to go out for ice cream. We ended the day renting a movie and relaxing while all three boys slept. Happy Anniversary to us!

Nico is 9 days old!

2008-08-07T21:26:00.000-07:00

Nicolas is already 9 days old. Where does time go? So far everyone has gotten into the new routine. It's like Nico has been with us all along. He just fits right in. Nate and Noah just adores him. They wake up in the morning and run to his bassinet to give him a kiss. They're constantly wanting to hold him. It's so cute. We are always nearby watching nervously to make sure they don't get rough with him.

Erdy has taken time off so he's able to spend some time with the older boys. They have spent a day at Santa Cruz at their favorite place..the beach. They have also gone swimming several times and they have visited Chuck E. Cheese. They go to the park everyday. Erdy is getting use to this life style..he doesn't want to go back to work. I don't think the kids want him to go back either. And to be honest, it's been nice to be pampered a little more than usual. I don't know what I'll do next week when he goes back to work and I have all three kids.

At my baby shower, the best advice given to me was to enjoy the moments because they grow up too fast. So it's been a humorous phrase we use around here...we try to remember that when Nate runs through the house tracking dirt after we just finished mopping the floor or when Noah pours his milk into his dinner plate and the late night feedings with Nico. I am trying to enjoy the moments and stay sane. My doctor sent me a congratulations note and at the bottom it says, "the days are long but the years are short." How true that is.

We are overwhelmed with the well wishes we've received....from flowers, balloons, edible bouquets, cards, personal gifts and goodies. Thank you to all of our friends, family, Erdy's co-workers and SCS volunteers. We are so lucky to have your love and support.

Nicolas' birth story

2008-08-01T09:05:00.000-07:00

It was Tuesday, July 29, 2008 and I had a scheduled doctor's appointment. I woke up at 7:30am and I knew I was in labor. Throughout the night, I was having contractions but I was still able to sleep through them. My appointment was at 11am so I managed to squeeze a couple of errands beforehand. Yes, I went to my favorite place...Target..I knew I wouldn't be able to go there for awhile! I was driving through the strong contractions. As it got stronger, I decided to call Erdy to come take me to my appointment. Luckily, he was only working in Mountain View so he was able to come home right away.

I went to my appointment and my doctor determined that I was at 4cm. Labor and Delivery was full so they were thinking of sending me to Santa Teresa or Redwood City. Fortunately, because it was my third child, they weren't comfortable having me drive that far away. So after waiting for a room, I was examined again and I was still at 4 cm and the first doctor gave me the option of hanging out for awhile to see if I progress or I could go home. Erdy and I decided to stay. That was at 1pm. After an hour and a half, I was checked again and I was still at 4cm. This time the second doctor was leaning on sending me home. She asked me to walk around for an hour. So Erdy and I walked the entire third floor of Kaiser. Erdy thought we must have walked at least 2 miles. He was so proud of me, walking through all my contractions. I returned to my room at 3:30pm when I was supposed to be checked again. At this point, I was so hungry after watching my sister eat meatloaf from the cafeteria. It looked so good that I was willing to be sent home so I can eat. By 4:30pm, the third doctor came in and told me that the resident doctor was uncomfortable sending me home since I may dilate quickly. We were there to stay. They finally gave me the IV. I knew it would take awhile to get all the fluids in me before I can have my epidural. Meanwhile, the pain was intense.

My epidural was finally placed at 6:30pm. The anesthesiologist was getting ready to insert the needle when I informed him that I was having a contraction. He said, "Oh good then you won't feel this." I literally felt like I was stabbed in my back. He jammed that needle in me. My body was in shock. Erdy's hands were stinging from my nails digging into his hands. The new thing is that I had the control of the dosage of epidural. I was started out at the lowest dose and I had a button to press whenever I felt like I needed more of it. The epidural instantly took into effect and I was very comfortable.

At that point, I was at 5cm. I told Erdy to head home so he can get the other two kids settled into bed. I thought it would take awhile. He was hesistant but I convinced him to go. I was now comfortable with my new bestfriend, the epidural. I was even able to nap for a bit. But all of a sudden, the epidural didn't take on my right hand side. I started to feel the pain and pressure again and I was shaking so much from being in total pain. I panicked and kept pressing my epidural button. I even asked the nurse why the epidural wasn't getting stronger. I later learned that I can only press it once every 12 minutes so that I won't overdose.

Since I was in so much pain, the doctor decided to check me again. Within 30 minutes, I was at 7 1/2 cm. I had my sister call Erdy to let him know to start heading back to the hospital. Ten minutes later, I was at 9cm and within seconds I was at 10, ready to push. My sister called Erdy again to tell him to rush back. He happened to be at Popeye's ordering his popcorn shrimp that he had been wanting all day. They labored me down so that we can wait for him. He came running in and I began to push. I pushed three times with two nurses in the room. I noticed one of the nurses left but thought she was called away. My nurse told me to stop pushing and yelled for my sister to push the emergency button in the room. I felt something slippery going through me and the nurse caught the baby as the doctors came running in.

Nico decided to make a very early entrance. He came right out without any help. He wasn't even crowning yet. I didn't even push him out. He just came out on his own. So he will be forever remembered by my nurse Trena who ended up delivering him. After three pushes in ten minutes, Nicolas Jacob Ayende Barlahan was born at 8:58pm. He weighed 6.5 lbs and was 19 inches long.

We took caltrain!

2008-07-29T04:14:00.000-07:00

Riding caltrain is usually not a headline but when you have two toddler boys, it becomes a huge deal. I've been wanting to take Noah and Nathan on the train but never found time to do it. They get excited seeing the train pass by when we're driving around so riding it was a big treat. My first plan was taking it all the way to SF but being this far along, I didn't want to risk it. Erdy didn't even want me to go but being as stubborn as I am, I did it anyways.

So we started in Sunnyvale and took it to Hillsdale. Noah and Nathan were jumping up and down as they got on the train. They were so excited. All the way there, they were nonstop chattering about everything they saw. Noah was convinced the train was broken every time it made a stop. Nathan patiently kept explaining to him that people were getting in and others were getting off. They kept waiting and looking out the window hoping to catch a glimpse of a horse. The added bonus was that when we got off in Hillsdale, you can actually see Bay Meadows Race track so they did see horses!

They were pooped after our day trip. Nathan got an extra treat because Erdy took him back on caltrain that evening and they went to downtown Mountain View for gelato! What a lucky kid!

2nd week of maternity leave

2008-07-26T22:11:00.001-07:00

I didn't think I would make it this far but I did. This week was uneventful when it came to contractions. I was having contractions off and on but nothing consistent. I've been planning my schedule day by day since I don't know when I'll deliver. Maybe he'll wait closer to his due date. I have two weeks to go if that's the case.

The highlight of this week was going to a place called Happy Feet. They massage your feet for an hour. It only cost $20 and it was so worth it. Not only do they massage your feet but they also do your back, neck, arm and leg. It was so relaxing and I'm planning on going again! I wish I can take one of the masseuse with me when I go into labor.

I took the boys to more parks this week. They get all excited because I've been taking them to different ones that they haven't been to. So everything is so new to them. We also went to Chuck E Cheese and story time at the library. I've also been working with Nathan on his printing and some basic math stuff. I don't want him to forget the stuff he learned from preschool. Since Noah is around, he's learning it too. He's pretty quick at picking up stuff.

Erdy and I have been catching up on our Blockbuster movies. He typically puts the kids to bed and then we hang out and watch movies. I also got the chance to do some baking. It's been fun to bake and experiment with different recipes that has been given to me awhile back.

Anyways, on to week #3. We'll see what adventure is in store for us this week.

What an exciting day...

2008-07-21T17:09:00.000-07:00

I've been begging baby #3 to hold off making his grand entrance until after Nate's party. So the night of Nate's party, I start having contractions. My contractions were every 5 minutes apart lasting 60 seconds long. That went on for two hours before I decide to call Kaiser. So at 2 in the morning, Erdy and I head off to Kaiser. The doctor examines me and I am only 2.5 cm dilated and 50% effaced. The doctor asked me to stay for two hours, hoping I will dilate more. No luck though so we got to go home. In a way, I was glad. I'm still not quite ready to have the baby. I'm hoping to stretch it out for another two weeks.

But if I had a labor scenario to choose from that would have been it. Labor started in the middle of the night when the two kids were asleep. It happened on the weekend and Erdy wasn't working. It would have been the perfect scenario. Oh well. Let's just hope I'm not stranded somewhere and my water breaks and I have to drive myself to the hospital and I don't have time for an epidural. That would be my worst nightmare.

Nate's 4th bday party celebrated early!

2008-07-21T17:03:00.000-07:00

So Nathan celebrated his birthday a month early since baby #3 will arrive around his birthday. We didn't want to neglect his birthday so we decided to have his party at Lemo's Farm in Half Moon Bay. Nate's latest obsession are horses so it was appropriate to have a pony party. We had so much fun. It was so neat to see Nathan so excited about everything. The party package included our own private ponies with a cowboy, petting zoo, our own bounce house and unlimited train rides. What a treat for Nathan--his two favortie things...horses and trains!

Auntie Monica made a beautiful cake for Nathan--a complete barnyard with horses and cupcakes too! I'm still enjoying the barnyard made of a huge chocolate chip cookie...yum! I didn't think Nate will ever get off the pony. He eventually did and enjoyed the train ride and bounce house. Here's some pictures from his party...

1st week of maternity leave

2008-07-19T03:17:00.000-07:00

Wow I made it through the first week of maternity leave. When I saw my doctor last week, she told me I was 1 cm dilated and may go into labor early. On Sunday night, I started to have contractions (stronger than previous contractions) and I really thought I was in labor. The good part is that it forced me to pack my hospital bag.

I had to make a deal with the baby. We are celebrating Nathan's party today (it's 2 in the morning and I can't sleep) and I wanted to be there for it so he has to wait until the party is over to make his grand entrance. And thankfully he is waiting...

I remember my pregnancy with Nathan...I was so anxious to meet him. I wanted him out as soon as it was safe for him to come out. With Noah, I was so uncomfortable because he was sitting on my sciatic nerve and it was so painful that I wanted him out. With our third baby, I'm hoping he'll wait a couple more weeks so I can fully rest (what does that mean?) and spend some time with the boys.

So how did I spent my first week off from work? I took the kids to several parks where they can play with water. They had so much fun. We went to the library during story time. I also took them to watch a movie. Every Wednesday during the summer, AMC is running a $1 special for the kid's movie. This week it was Shrek. It was Noah's first time in the theatre. He had fun! I couldn't believe how many kids were there! We ran a lot of errands buying all the stuff for the baby. We also bought Nate's uniform for school. I tried get a lot of things out of the way that will be hard to do with the new baby. Oh and of course, I tried to take it easy. I don't really know what it means to just relax and rest so Erdy has been on my back about it. He won't let me clean, wash the dishes, pick up the kids toys, etc. How nice huh! Don't worry, I'm milking it!

It's been so nice to sleep late and just sit and watch tv. My sister and I were getting a pedicure and I was telling them that it's great to sleep in until 7:30am. They just started laughing at me...they said you call that late!? I definitely think so! So one week down and 14 weeks to go! How nice!

Noah!

2008-07-17T23:18:00.000-07:00

Noah is now two years old. He has reached many milestones. He is definitely a talker. First thing in the morning, you can hear him running down the hallway and when he sees you, he happily says good mornin'. Then a second later, he says he wants to eat. He even has special requests...usually he wants eggs, then a banana, then cereal...and he never really finishes. The boy loves to eat so feeding him is never an issue.

Noah loves music. He loves to sing and dance. Most mornings he walks around with his ukelele singing away. If it's not his ukelele, he is banging on his drums. He definitely can entertain you.

He took a parent tot class with my mom. He totally loved it. It was too cute to drop him off. As I pull out, I see him in my rear view mirror, waving at me, carrying his backpack. His teacher is amazed by how much he can say. I guess that's the advantage of having a big brother.

Noah totally looks up to Nathan. They are inseparable although they also love to fight. And now Nate can't bully Noah because Noah fights right back. Sometimes he even makes Nate cry.

Even though Noah is a toddler, I still think of him as a baby. He is so cuddly, always wants to hug or kiss me. And my heart melts when he says, I dub (love) you mommy!

Nathan!

2008-07-17T22:23:00.000-07:00

Nathan will be four in August. It seems like it was just yesterday that we were rocking him to bed. Now he's an active and energetic little person. He finished a year of preschool already. He just loved it. His favorite part of the day was art work. Sometimes he would come home with a blob of paint of his shirt. One day he even painted his shoes!

He is obsessed with horses. I don't even know how many he has...way too much. He never seems to get tired with playing with them. It's so cute because he puts them on time out too. What an imagination!

When he's outside he loves to collect roly poly's. He also likes snails and spiders. Sometimes it's embarrassing because he knows to look for spiders at corners so when we go to someone's house, he goes over to the corner and gets excited when he sees spider webs! Of course, whoever's house it is, they get all embarassed that Nate has pointed out spider webs!

He will go to St. Cyprian starting next month. We just bought his school uniforms. Wow he's all grown up. See for yourself.

A lot has gone on...

2008-07-17T15:56:00.000-07:00

I totally forgot that I even had this blogger. So much has gone on. Life has been a whirlwind. Here's where we are now....

Nathan will be 4 next month.
Noah is an energetic two year old.
And I'm pregnant with our 3rd son.

Yup you read that right. 3rd boy!!! Baby #3 has come to us by a total surprise. I must admit, I was devastated at first. We were at a point in our lives where we were deciding if our family was complete. Little did we know that was being answered for us. 2008 was suppose to be about me...i had it all planned...lose weight, work out more, have more me time...that's what i get for trying to plan. So baby #3 will arrive in 3 weeks or maybe less. He keeps wanting to make his grand entrance already and since I was never in control in the first place, I have given up trying. He'll come when he pleases...

I am very excited to meet him. I have been trying to enjoy every moment of my pregnancy, knowing this is my last. He has been pretty easy to carry although I have gestational diabetes. So I have had to control my cravings...watermelon and ice cream is all i think about. And my latest craving is krispy kreme donuts. Oh I can't wait to have one!

I will try to post more often now that I'm on maternity leave. It's been so nice to hang out with the two kids and not be in a rush all the time. So this is what it feels like to be a stay at home mom. I'm really liking it (I think because I know it's temporary).

Diabetic scare...

2007-09-23T22:00:00.000-07:00

I promised the boys that I'd take them to Chuck E Cheese. So on Tuesday night, we went there for an hour. On the way home, Nate threw up. I thought that maybe he just gagged...nothing big. An hour later, he threw up again and he was burning up. He ended up staying home from school the next day. The two boys stayed home with my mom (lucky her!). In the middle of the day, my mom called me at work and told me that Nate was crying for me. She said that everytime he used the bathroom, he would start crying and saying "I want my mommy." It even made my mom cry because he was so sad. I rushed home and took him to the dr. He had a 103 fever. The dr. said that it was probably a virus but she would check his urine just in case. It turns out that the dr found glucose in his urine. So we're rushed to get his blood drawn and we had to wait for results. Nate did an amazing job getting his blood drawn. He watched the entire thing and he didn't even twitch or cry. The staff was amazed...he came out of the lab with 4 thomas stickers, a bandaid, 3 disney stickers and 2 suckers. I had to stop them from giving him everything. The dr met me in the waiting room and said that she is pretty sure that he has diabetes. I go in panic mode...he's only 3. He can't be diabetic. She informed me that they'll probably have to send us to Stanford that night. We wait and wait and wait. Meanwhile, I'm paceing. My heart is beating a mile a minute. I don't know what to do with myself. That's the worst feeling...that feeling of helplessness. The feeling that you can't make your child feel better. All sorts of things are going through my head...i'm imagining the worst case scenario. Finally, I see both his drs walking toward me. I'm ready to hear the bad news...at this point, I can't feel my legs. Then she says the magic words, "he's ok." It took me awhile to comprehend it. I asked to hear it again. I was in shock. His blood test all came out negative! They tried to explain to me what happened. I didn't care...all I needed to hear was that he was ok.

That night Nate was back to normal...he was eating and playing and singing....whatever it was...was gone. thank goodness. hope it doesn't come back!