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Bah Humbug!

No...no....no..no.. I still love Christmas....just referencing Scrooge! My classes have been working soooooo hard on learning the play A Christmas Carol and tomorrow is our big performance! It will feel so great when it over with and we can all relish in the satisfaction that will follow...... Only about 7 days of school left and then some much needed time off to spend with the fam!

We have presents under the tree and we are trying to carefully select the remaining presents for Gabriella. With Christmas and her birthday and the day of the three kings (Jan. 5) it seems there are tons'o'presents to buy! We are starting to plan Gabby's first birthday party (finally....I know most people would have been planning months ago). We looked at some party places and it would cost about 800 dollars! Toooooo expensive for us....so we thinking of doing her party at a park, renting one of those inflatable bouncy things,and bringing food. Hopefully we will have concrete plans this weekend! We will be in Puebla with Enrique's family from Dec. 20-26 so we will do a party there and then another party here on her actual birthday!

Well, hope all is well with one and all. We recently watched the cartoon "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" in class. We were watching to figure out the theme and it was a nice reminder to not lose sight of the true meaning of Christmas.....

Thanksgiving 2008

So, Gabby's first Thanksgiving was great! We celebrated with some friends and we had a great time! We got some great pics, too!

This past weekend we ventured down the the Zocalo (the downtown) to wander around. They make a huge ice skating rink at the palace and tons of people go skating! We only looked at the rink--it was opening the evening that we were there--but hopefully we will make it back to skate before the season ends!

We also put up our Christmas tree this past weekend! The tree looks great! We had fun decorating it and listening to carols. We were worried about Gabby trying to get at the tree, but she was actually scared of it at first. Now she isn't scared of it, but she simply admires it from a far.

Shelves. We visited The Home Depot this past weekend and got some wood cut so we can hang shelves! We also bought some stain and brackets....wish us luck!!!!!

The countdown is on for the visit from my mom and my friend George. They will be here at the end of the month and we cannot wait!

Hope all is well with one and all!

What's Been Goin On...

So, I have been busy these past two weeks! It is exam time at school--takes tons o time to write those babies! Also, we have started practicing for our Christmas play. My classes are performing A Christmas Carol and it is going to be great!

Gabriella is growing like a weed! She has been a bit sick, but she is also getting one of her top teeth, so we are not sure if she is sick, or just teething! She is hilarious, though! She is up on everything, bouncing around, letting go and standing for a few moments. It is awesome to watch her figure things out!

Tomorrow we are celebrting Thanksgiving with our North American and Mexican friends here. We are bringing cranberries, mashed potatoes, and cerveza....it should be a lot of fun!

Hope all is well! Things are going great here! Miss you all! We aren't going to be able to travel to the states for the holiday, but my mom and friend George are coming on Dec. 27...so we will do a late Christmas and then we celebrate Gabby's first birthday on the 28th! It will be great to have them here!

I posted two new short videos so check out our video bar under the pics on the right to view 'em!

Halloween day and this past week...

Here are some pics of Hallowen Day from 2007 in Utah when I was regnant and 2008 in Mexico. This year I dressed up as a vampire for school. My day was awesome. The room mothers at our school built a catwalk and that is where we had our parade and such. After, we played games in our classroom and then the room mothers made a haunted house, had Animal Planet come with some creepy crawlies, a pie fight, and a table of freaky foods. It was a whole lot of fun! On Saturday we went shopping at some outlet malls and then took Gabby trick-or-treating around the neighborhood. Around here, kids trick-or-treat at the local shops since most of the houses are built above the shops, or are surrounded by walls. You can also see the ofrenda we created for our fathers for Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead).

Gabby had her 10 month check-up this week and got 1/2 a dose of a flu shot. She is 18 lbs. and 28 cm. She is LOVING trying new solids and she will jabber your ear off! She is into everything and pulling up on everything, too! When she feels brave she lets go and stands for a few seconds...realizes what she's doing...then falls!

My mom and my friend George boked tix to be here for Gabby's birthday and a post Christmas celebration. We are so excited for them to be here!!!!!!!!! Hope all is well and yeah Barack!

Happy Halloween!

Here are some pics of Gabriella in her costume and of her pumpkin carving session! Not much to report from here. Gabby goes to the dc next week for a check-up and flu shot. She is now 10 months old believe it or not! Hope all is well!

9-Month Check-up!

Hey everybody!
A little over a week ago, Gabriella went to an amazing doctor here for her 9-month check-up. She is doing well. The doctor could not believe how happy she was during the entire visit and how much she talked to him! He said she is quite healthy and that she was ready to start dairy products like yogurt and some cheeses. She weighed in at 17.4 lbs. (almost 8 kilos) and 27.5 inches (70 cm.). She is growing like a weed! She started eating yogurt. They have little yogurts for kids here called Danoninos. She has tried mango, and peach and this week she will try blueberry and apple and pear. The doc also said to keep her on her stage 2 and 3 baby foods until next month's check-up. We didn't tell him that she basically eat with us--she must try what we are eating at all times or she freaks! She is really liking the sweet breads here, cauliflower and broccoli, and she ate chicken recently, too. She really adores noodles as well.
We have been having play dates with Gabby's friend Will. He is 8 months old and they really have great fun together. I teach with Will's mom and she is rad! It is nice to get out and socialize with other moms and dads!
Other than that...oh, my mom is most likely coming to stay with us for about 4 months. She will be substitute teaching at my school for a woman who is going out on maternity leave. She is really looking forward to being here and we are really looking forward to seeing her! I can't wait!!!! We found someone to rent our house for a year, my mom found someone to care for the dogs, and my good friend agreed to take care of my cats for me until we can get them down here, or until we can figure something else out!
Hope all is well!

The Good Life

Life is good. We are very content and happy. My job is going well. Enrique is starting computer school in about 2 weeks. He will be studying graphic design and should be done in about 2 years. We are selling our minivan and looking to get a newer, smaller, car. Today is Friday which makes this day even better!

Gabby has been learning to enjoy Oreo cookies! :) She loves them! She started pulling herself up on the furniture and has been taking small steps to move along the furniture. Her second bottom tooth is working its way up..... Today she started doing a new thing with her eyes--she smiles and then closes her eyes real tight then opens and closes them (to play with you). It is sooooo cute!

Hope life is good for one and all. I was watching a repeat of Montel Williams today and heard some good advice: Speak without offending and learn to listen without defending. I like that!

:)

Happy Mexican Independence Day!

Today is Mexico's Dia de Independencia. It has been a nice, relaxing weekend leading up to the holiday today. We have been out of school since Friday and we went to Chigahuapan to visit Enrique's family this weekend. It was lot of fun--although we did get a flat tire on the way there....luckily, the police stopped to help and a friendly taxi driver, too so we got everything all figured out!

The weekend was nice. It was great seeing Enrique's family again (it has been about a month since we were there last) and we have a new nephew who we saw for the first time over the weekend! His name is Jose Manuel and is super cute! He is a big baby and mostly slept (since he is about a month old). Gabby absolutely adored him. She also really enjoyed the attention she got from, well, basically everybody! She turned on the charm and melted everybody's hearts!

Work is still going well. It has been busy and a bit of an adjustment, but really everything is on the up and up. Think good thoughts for my ma finding a job.....

Hope all is well. Can't wait to see everybody in December!
Viva Mexico!

New Play Mat

We finally found Costco! We have been frequenting Sam's, but we finally found Costco and we found the cutest play mat for Gabby to crawl around on. She absolutely adores it! Our Columbian friend, Gabriel, is visiting from Canada and it has been nice having him here. He just loves Gabriella and we went shopping all day yesterday! School is going well...busy, but I am loving it.
Gabby is crawling like crazy and her bottom, front tooth is nearly here. We are getting our house more organized and we are loving it here!
You can see a little picture of Don Gabriel with Gabby and our little family sitting on Gabriella's new mat!
Hugs and Kisses!

Going Well....

So, I have managed to make it through my first week at Winpenny School. It was been a whirlwind, but it has been a great week. I really love the other teachers. As far as the new English teachers, there are 4 of us from the states, 1 from England, 1 from Canada, and 1 from Scotland. We are all coming with varied teaching backgrounds and it has been really great getting to know them and working with them.
The kids are really neat. They are well traveled and speak very good English. They are very polite and we have a lot of parental support. The director of the school is amazing. She started the school with 5 kids and now has about 400 kids attending. She is very smart and has a clear vision for the students. I really feel blessed to have ended up somewhere so great!
Enrique and Gabriella are having a great time! Gabby started CRAWLING today! She only goes a few moves before she goes back on her tummy, but she is definitely moving her arms and legs and getting around! Give her another week........and she will be outta here! She is getting so big. Next week she will be 8 months already!
We are settling in nicely. Our little apt. is quite cute and we have gotten all the necessities. We are learning our way around and usually spend the weekends exploring. My Spanish is really beginning to improve and we are speaking it alot around the house. I am still sad that we cannot be a family in the United States, but I am glad we are here right now. It is a great place for our little family to be.
Hope all is well. Hugs and kisses....
La Familia Gonzalez

7 Months

So, Gabby is 7 months old now (and a week or so) and she is growing like crazy! She is still as skinny as can be (don't know where she got that gene from!) but is getting tall! She can say ma ma, pa pa, da da, ba ba and can wave goodbye! She is still working on crawling---just needs to move her arms---right now she is scooting around. She is still cutting her first tooth and has been a bit under the weather this week---lots of drool, biting hard, etc...She is drinking from a sippy cup (she never took to a bottle or pacifier) and always wants to feed herself!

I still cannot believe how amazing each day with Gabriella is! She does new and wonderful things each day and is so exciting to figure things out each day. She is adjusting quite well to being in Mexico (I think she misses her grammy like crazy though!)

We Made It!

Okay.....I know it has been a while since we posted...but we made it to our new apartment! It is a cute little apt located about 3 blocks from the school I will be working at. The apt. has 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom, kitchen, living room. The landlords remodeled the bathroom and hung new doors so it is quite cute! We bought a new T.V., dining table, washer, stove, king size bed, matress, shelves, etc. so we are set for a while!

We got into Mexico on July 13 and went to stay with Enrique's family for about 2 weeks while the apt. was getting renovated. We have been in the apt. for about a week now. The trip from Chignahuapan (where Ricky's family is) to Cuajimalpa (where we live) is about 3-4 hour drive. We bought our furniture in Chignahuapan and had it moved here. The plan was to leave at 5 a.m. and follow the furniture truck. All was well and left a little before 5, but at about 5:20 a.m. our car broke down while en route! Enrique looked at everything and tried to do what he could in the dark...but we had to wait until a shop opened at 9 a.m. to have it looked at. Gabby and I slept in the car and a mechanic soon came and we discovered it was.......a fuse!!!! Go figure! We got back on the rode, but the furniture truck was long gone. At any rate we made it in record time and found the furniture and got all settled!

A few days ago we took the bus and metro and took Gabby to the zoo for the first time! She loved it...not sure if she loved the animals or the stroller more, but she had a great time!

My29th birthday was this past Sunday. It was nice. Enrique got me a dozen roses and Gabby got me the cutest mug! George bought a cake and ice-cream (Ben and Jerry's) and it was great! We walked around the city and just hung out. It was really nice. Thanks to everyone who sent birthday emails! That was neat!

I go back to work on Friday at 7:45 a.m. Enrique will be taking care of Gabby while I work. He is having a blast with her so I think they will have fun while I work. We just got our internet, cable, and phone hooked up today so blog updates will be more regular now!

I have posted some pics we have taken since we have been here. Please keep in touch--email when you can!!!!!!

Hope all is well! Much love,
La Familia Gonzalez

Happy 4th!

Happy 4th of July! Hope it is a fun and relaxing day for everyone! Gabby will be going to see her first fireworks tonight. Hopefully she'll like them!
A few days ago Gabby began saying ma ma ma and ba ba ba. I think she uses them mostly indiscriminantly, but then there are times she says ma ma ma abd holds her arms out for me! She is still getting up on her hands and knees to crawl and has began rocking...she will then take a giant leap forward and coolapses on the ground. I think she'll start crawling before we know it!
We have about 8 more days here before we leave......we are excited and nervous and excited and scared and excited.....

Seis Meses (Six Months)

Today is Gabby's six month birthday! Yeah! She is growing up so fast! She is about 15 pounds and is 27 1/2 inches long! She can roll over, lift her chest off the ground, get up on her knees, put her feet in her mouth, make a raspberry sound, make plenty of consonant sounds, and laugh and smile at everything and everybody! She is seriously the happiest child ever! It is so amazing to see her smiling face every morning when I wake up. I have never been much of a morning person, but I cannot wait to see her each morning and explore the world with her each day. She is truly a blessing and has brought so much joy to our lives!

My family and I went to get Gabby's six month pics and some family pics done earlier in the week. It went fabulously--I was a bit nervous since te appt. was for 1:00 and that is normally her nap time--but she was thrilled to be somewhere new and the photographer was making her laugh, so it all worked out!

We leave on July 13 for Mexico and her daddy couldn't be more excited! We aren't sure exactly where we will be leaving so check back here for updates and email us to keep in touch for now! It is still a bit surreal to think we are leaving so soon--I sold my car, some furniture, and am trying to figure exactly what we can squeeze into 4 suitcases (and try to figure how much that will cost!!!). Some days it seems a bit overwhelming, but it will be worth it to finally be together as a family.

Hope all is well. Please keep in touch!!!!!!
Besos (kisses)
La Familia Gonzalez

Pool Fun

Today was Gabby's first trip to a swimming pool. Her cousin got a small wading pool with lots of fun stuff inside! Gabby had a blast! She loves splashing in the water and going down the slide. Marco (her cousin) had fun showing her how to play in the water. We also went to the Gateway and played in the fountain. Grandma, her cousin Jenica and Gabby got all wet! They had a blast. We didn't have the camera for the fountain trip so we will go back tomorrow and snap some shots---hopefully!
Gabby has moved on to stage 2 baby food. She loves eating and drinking whatever I have. Today she had an ice cream cone. Of course she loved every minute of it--she had ice cream everywhere! I will have to get it on video next time!
Gabby hasn't quite started crawling yet--but she does get on her knees and up on her arms...just not both at the same time. She has been scooting herself around to grab things. I bet she will be crawling before we know it! She is also doing quite well at sitting up all by herself.
Next week marks her 6 month birthday! Yeah! Time is going by so quickly. We will be leaving in a few weeks for Mexico.....our next big venture!
Hope all is well!
LFG

5 Months is Quickly Approaching

Gabby is nearly 5 months! On Wednesday will be her 5 month birthday! I cannot believe how much she has grown and how active she is. She has been eating stage 1 baby foods. So far, she has tried carrots, squash, sweet potatoes and bananas. She loves them all! She is still eating rice cereal as well. Grandma can't wait til she can feed the baby popsicles...
Gabby is talking a ton! She is constantly experimenting with new sounds and volumes! Gabby is an old pro at rolling over and is now preparing to crawl. She is kind of scooting herself around a bit. With a bit more upper body strength she will be taking off...
It is teething time. She is cutting her two bottom teeth right now. The other night I was looking at her gums and could see one white spot on the front, bottom-left side of her gums. Then about two days ago I noticed the same thing on the other side. She hasn't been terribly bothered, but is constantly chomping on things and is slobbering like crazy! She has been taking these teething tablets which are homeopathic. Hopefully, she can have as little Tylenol as possible! She got her ears pierced about two weeks ago and has been doing great with that!
So, it looks like I will most likely be taking that job in Mexico City. We will be moving in July sometime. Our plans are to return around Christmas for about a week or so and then again in the spring for about a week. It will be great to finally be together as a family!
Hope all is well with everybody. We are off to take a walk now! Happy Memorial Weekend!
LFG (La Familia Gonzalez)

Got A Job Offer...

So, the phone interview I had last week went quite well. They offered me a position teaching 5th and 6th graders language arts and science. I would teach in English and team teach with a native Spanish speaker who teaches the other core subjects. It is a private, bilingual school and the kids that attend come from affluent families. The school is in Mexico City in a suburb called Santa Fe. My contract would start in August....
All I have to do now is choose whether or not to accept......
Looks like a new chapter is about to begin.....

Eating Rice Cereal!

Well, Gabby had her four month check-up last Tuesday (4/29 I think it was) and the doctor said Gabby was ready to begin solids! The next day she tried rice cereal for the first time. She got it all over, but really enjoyed it! She has been having it one time per day and maybe in the next two weeks or so she will begin stage 1 baby foods (fruits and veggies). You can see a video of her eating rice cereal on our youtube (see the Gabbyvision link on this page).
Gabby weighs 13.2 lbs and is 25 1/2 inches long. She is getting big (finally!). She is rolling over, grabbing things, and of course putting everything in her mouth! Oh the noises she makes! She just "gabs and gabs". Maybe this is why we named her Gabby....boy do we love her. I can't even remember what life was like before her. Everyone tells you how much you are going to love your kids, but it really is inexplicable. It is the best feeling in the world to be a mommy! Oh the love!
On Saturday she went to her first chess tournament and had pics taken while she was playing her first game!
Enrique and I are still trying to figure out where we will be living next year. I have a phone interview with a private bilingual school in Mexico City so we will see how that goes and what (if any) doors that opens......
Hope all is well!

Capillary Hemangioma

Hi all,
So tomorrow Gabby will be 4 months! Wowser! Time sure flies! She goes to her pediatrician again Tuesday for another round of immunizations and her 4 month-old check-up!
This past week we went to visit a doctor at Primary Childrens...You may have noticed in some pics that Gabriella has a swollen left eyelid. The pediatrician has been stumped (since we noticed it about 3 months ago) so we went to PCMC to the eye center for a diagnosis. She has been diagnosed with capillary hemangioma. Basically, she was born with enlarged capillaries in her left eyelid. She has the correct number of capillaries, they are just enlarged. Nobody is sure of the cause, but about 10% of babies are born with it and females outnumber males by 5-3 of having it.
She should grow out of it. By about age 5, it should be gone. She also has two spots on her back (usually they are called "stork bites" or "strawberry patches") that are also capillary hemangioma. The doc said those will be totally gone by the time she is in about 1st grade.
As far as her eye goes, we go back in June for a check-up. As long as her vision isn't impaired they will just leave it alone. Should her vision become impaired they will use baby glasses and possible a patch to prevent the left eye from becoming a lzay eye. Keep your fingers crossed that hers doesn't grow so none of that has to be done!
Hope all is well!
La Familia Gonzalez

Back from Mexico

Hello all!
We are back from our month long trip to Mexico! It was an absolute blast! Enrique couldn't believe that he was holding his first child. He never wanted to put her down! Of course his family is totally in love with her and everyone wanted us to stay longer. Only two more months and we will be there again!
Enrique has the pics on his camera so I will post them as soon as we get them on my computer.
We basically hung out in Chignahuapan (Enrique's hometown) and went around visiting family. Easter happened while we were there and I took baskets,plastic eggs, and egg dye kits down to Mexico so we invited all the neices and nephews over for an Easter party to dye eggs and the following day we hid candy-filled and money-filled plastic eggs so they could find them! It was once again a big hit (we started the tradition last year). Last week we spent the week in Mexico City. Huge city. We toured the city on the Turibus and it was amazing. One week in that city is definitely not enough!
Gabby had a fabulous time.She has grown so much this past month! She has found her feet,can roll over to one side, and holds her head up like a champ! She loved being carried in her Snugli on her daddy's chest as we walked around Puebla and Mexico City. She loves to be facing forward so she can see EVERYTHING as we walk around.
She also LOVES to talk back to people when they talk to her.
Nobody in Mexico could believe that she was only 2 months old when we got there. The first thing they all said was "Wow! Ella esta muy largo!" (She is so long!) and the second thing "Ella esta muy lista" (She is so ready/alive). Also,Enrique's nickname is Chirrisco (he got this when he was small because he smiled so much) and Gabby follows in her daddy's footsteps. Her nickname is Chirrisca. She has a great smile and is so good tempered.
We had a long flight back to the USA yesterday and she was a gem on the plane. One lady walked by as we were deboarding and she said "Your baby was so quiet. She is so cute". I have to get used to that. Everywhere we go people just shout out "Look at the baby. She is so cute!" Okay...bragging done.
Our next venture is ear piercing. It was unusual to people in Mexico that she didn't already have her ears pierced. Apprently they do it at the hospital.....
Okay...pics and videos coming soon. Love you all. Hope things are well!

7 Weeks

Our precious baby is about 7 weeks already! Man, how time flies! We leave to see Daddy next week! Enjoy the pics---short post---typing one-handed (mothers you know what I mean!)

3 Weeks Already!

So, it has been three weeks since our little girl was born. Time has seemed to fly by! I am learning from her and vice-versa. She is eating well, sleeping a ton, and starting to try to make sense of the world around her when she is awake. She was 8.5 lbs. at birth and at her first check-up she had dropped to 7.5 lbs. This past week her weight was 7 lbs. 14 oz. so she is gaining weight, which is great! We have an appt. this week to get her passport so we can finalize plans to head to Mexico to see Daddy and his family. My mother-in-law is super excited!
Hope things are well with everyone!

One Week Old

Our beautiful baby girl is one week old! I cannot believe she has already been for an entire week. This week has been exciting, fun, scary, tiring, and nerve-racking. I am learning the ropes and learning to function on little sleep! It is so worth it, though!