Preston singing and doing nothing :)

La La La Elmo's World...and balloon blowing

P giving himself a pat on the back....

P loves playing games on our Kindle and apparently, he thinks he's pretty good.

His new favorite thing to do with our drinks. I guess backwashing has lost its fun.

Making cookies...

I have started to morph into this weird, non-Michelle baking lady. I am not sure if its the apron (which I have always worn) or the pregnancy, but I want to bake and EAT everyday. Or if I am just bored...It is sooo weird..The downfall is having to do the clean-up without a dishwasher and eating all the food. It was a crazy rainy day and by the time I was ready to hit the road in search for a craft store, it was almost his nap time, so I decided to make sugar cookies WITH P. Have I ever made sugar cookies in my life??? ummmm NO! Who needs sugar cookies when the Girl Scouts sell the best damn cookies each year? I must have been really bored or feeling really guilty about P's Dumbo watching during the rain storm that gave me this great or not-so-great idea.....It was a mess and I am now praying that neither of us consumed salmonella, which I actually don't worry about too much because the Japanese people eat their eggs raw in a lot of meals, but at the end the whole thing, mess included, it was totally worth it. He had so much fun dumping everything in and stirring and trying to measure. He had sugar, butter, and batter everywhere!!! Now I have to decide if I should turn it into a 3 step project (make, roll/cut, and frost) or just roll/cut them myself and let him frost....This could even go into tomorrow, which with all this rain we would already have our day planned...Frosting, eating, and watching daddy's game....Maybe that's a plan!



Also, I was so proud of myself...I heard the rain start, I started cussing about the laundry, I got outside just as the rain was getting my nice and dry laundry a little damp, not soaked like usual, and was able to bring it back in a let it dry quickly...I love when I am on top of things..Usually, I forget and it takes another 2 days to dry...Ahhhh, the perks of living the green life. Laundry worry consumes me and my days!

Cry Baby...

My little man is the epitome of a cry baby and it breaks my heart, yet makes me laugh all at the same time. Within a matter of seconds, like literally two,  he can go from laughing to red face, alligator tears running down his face. My mom and sister have witnessed this when I turn the TV off, so he will say hi or bye to them (remember: he is a zombie when the TV is on). He immediately cries "NNNNOOO" and with that tears are streaming down....Two seconds later....I have no idea how he is able to squeeze tears out that fast. Today at nap time he was not going down and got bored so he decided to see if I would get him out of his crib....It starts with "mama" "mama", escalates to "mmmooommmyyyy" moooommmmmyyy", then just ends with "MMMOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMM" MMMMMOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM," just like a teenager. I went in there with a knot in my stomach because he is having more difficulty taking naps recently and as I have said before, I still have PTSD from when he didn't sleep as a newborn. I know I am crazy but dealing with a non-sleeping one month old who cries all the hours he should sleep or must nurse all those hours can drive someone crazy. Anyhow, I brought in his water cup and offered him water which I have never done. He was clearly confused and almost a little suspicious, like "what's moms new tactic?" He said "No, up please" and I responded with "Preston you need to go to sleep" and with that he fell on to his mattress (what a good boy) and within the time it took him to fall, tears were already running down his face. He looked pitiful, which I am assuming is his point, but I was like, "really how did those tears get out so fast." It makes me just want to pick him up, which I have done and again with in literally 2 seconds, he is saying "hi mama, book" so I know it is fake. He is a cry baby faker magee.

Try to whine and cry a marshmallow out of me at 930am....

My hospital...

I L.O.V.E. my hospital. Last time, I researched every little thing about the hospital that I delivered at. This time not so much! This time I read a couple of websites and just went, no questions asked, which was very different than last time. Last time, I emailed about 75 questions to a man, who worked there, who spoke English. He took my questions and asked the head OB nurse for answers. Then he emailed me back. This time I asked no questions until last week, which is totally not my style. I think I had such an amazing time last time that my expectations are set that all Japanese hospitals will be the same, which I know, is not the case. I finally got around to asking some questions at my last visit and my doctor answered all of them perfectly. The hospital is soooo liberal; it really is perfect for me. He said my mom AND David could be in the delivery room AND my mom could hold Preston, if we wanted him there. Then he went on to talk about the bonding between the siblings that happens, but I had already stopped listening and was already thinking how happy I am that I am delivering here again. The baby can co-sleep and David can even stay the night with me. I am pretty sure Preston can too, if we have a private room. Their C-section rate is incredibly low and they do horizontal incisions, not vertical. Lastly, my doctor started talking about current research showing that tearing is better than having an episiotomy and I almost jumped off the table and yelled AAAMMMEEENNNN!! ha ha ha! I know I seem psycho (just ask all my friends who are having kids right now) but this whole matter is near and dear to my heart, so good intentions are not enough for me...Good practice is. I think that I found the best fit for me in Okinawa, aside from having a midwife deliver this baby at home in a birthing tub :)...AND, how could I not love my doctor? He has only made one comment about my weight and it did not have a negative tone to it at all..AND, he came to one of David's basketball games and is in love with him....AND, he is from Northern California...He is totally American! He reminds me of Preston's pediatrician (Willy), but is an OB/GYN.

30 weeks...

30 Weeks with P

Top 10 at 30 weeks...(thanks for the idea, Sarah)

1. Large and in charge....Belly is growing by the minute, literally.
2. Chronic tail bone pain has reared its ugly head after falling off the end of a slide...Note to self: No more slides...How can I say no? I can't. All I know is that once I have normal insurance I am getting my booty x-rayed. I can't live like this any longer!
2. Mostly wearing maternity jeans. I still rock the belly band but find it uncomfortable and inconvenient and I hate worrying if people can see my zipper now that I am chasing after a very active, non-listening toddler.
3. Am still sleeping on my back very comfortably. I do sleep on my sides but my hips get sore.
4. Have been trying to run & run/walk about 2.5 miles 3 times a week. Am so proud of myself.
5. Weight gain is currently at 15 pounds.
6. The little peanut is finally starting to wake-up a bit. She is not a mover and shaker like P was and we have not had one bout of hiccups yet, which he had constantly in utero and out of utero.
7. Baby is measuring large, which means nothing because the ultrasounds are really inaccurate. Her length puts her 3 weeks ahead,while her weight only puts her one week ahead..And, of course, her head is her smallest part in proportion to the other measurements, just like Preston's was. Better for me. Her weight puts her a week ahead.
8. Preston has yet to realize or make any notice of my belly or the baby. We do talk about it with him but he has no idea. If he has even noticed my belly, he has not acted like it at ALL. We have put diapers on his stuffed animals (I even did this before I was preggo just for laughs) and he doesn't like it. He wants them off.
9. The stairs to this apartment are going to kill me. It is easier for me to run 2.5 miles without walking right now then walk up the 3 flights of stairs carrying Preston...Sometimes I have to just stop at the top and wait a second..I feel like an ogre. I need a chair lift or even better, an elevator.
10. We are starting the 10 week count down!!! I am getting excited...And, like I said....I am calling it A GIRL! 3 reasons: 1) Timing that I don't need to discuss on here, 2) Feel like I am carrying a bit different this time, 3) I think I saw a vajayjay on the ultrasound machine.

Mr. Makeup Man

So Preston has an OBSESSION with all things related to make-up. This started many moons ago when he would sit with Ti-Ti in bed while she was doing her makeup on the mornings that I had to leave early for school..He loved watching her, he loved playing with the makeup, and he LOVED the brushes on his face. I finally got it caught on camera the other day before the game. He was having so much fun decorating his face :)....I didn't tell David. I can already see how the conversation would go:

D: What did you think of the first quarter?
M: We were late to the game; we missed it.
D: Oh, why were you late? Did you get lost again?
M: Ummm, I actually got here really fast...Preston was playing...
D: Oh with his books?
M: Ummm, no with a brush :).....
D. Painting? Why are you being weird?
M: Okay, he was putting eyeliner on and I couldn't stop him...He was having a ball.
D: Oh god...

I don't think David appreciates the creative stamina that make-up application actually requires.

With a fan after the game for pictures

A day at the zoo..

Today was beautiful and David was off so we packed up, stopped at the grocery store, and hit up the zoo. I can't believe that I haven't taken Preston there yet this time, especially since he is obsessed with every type of animal known to man. It was so fun. We also went to the little museum, which we didn't go to last time because he was too young. Can't wait for the other nice days that are supposedly headed our way. Rainy season will be here before I know it!

My new favorite family photo..David looks small for the first time in his life.

Big man in a little chair

 Preston's little face and hand...I am sure we committed child abuse trying to get his face in there.

 Mommy's belly with the belly button and all...ha ha ha

Pretty sure we broke this little thing after the giant climbed on.

Giving mommy a ride

 Telling the kid "toot toot."

 Telling the elephant "bye."

Where to next??

At the petting zoo..We may have a Lenny in the family

 Our whole fambam somewhere in there

With the guinea pigs

Lately...

We haven't been up to anything new lately. We went to David's basketball games in Nago last weekend. They were a little far, so I am happy that the rest are closer for the remainder of the season. This weekend he will be playing Osaka Evessa, his old team, so it should be fun to see his old teammate, Ryan. We are planning on doing dinner with him on Sunday and David saw him today as well. After playing in this league for so long, you end up with friends all over. I am still doing my little running group and actually doing better than I ever have in my life which is so surprising since I am so far along. I am signing up for a 5k (3.1 miles) on April 14th. I have found that running alone is so blahhh and I do so much better when I am with someone. Finding someone as slow as me is the challenge though. :). I move at a turtle's pace. Preston got his first black eye this week from being a little monkey jumping on my bed. He hit his head and walah...He got his first black eye. It was really sad. The first 5 seconds after it happened he couldn't even get a sound out. He was just writhing on my bed. It was horrible. It is almost gone now though. David and I had an at home date night...These are great because we order in, get to eat in peace, watch TV while we eat, and we don't have to pay a babysitter. The food was AMAZING homemade Thai food that we will for sure be ordering again.

Helping daddy over water the plants...You can faintly see his eye here.

 Me large and in charge....It's a sad day when you look larger in a picture than you think you look in real life..I thought I looked cute this day, until I saw this pic...I look huge....Whenever i hold Preston,  stick my stomach out to help hold him up. I seriously don't think I look this big!!! DENIAL!!!!

 Slave labor..Classic P...Little helper and as soon as he hears a loud sound, no not the vacuum, my voice he runs over scared...He has been afraid of loud noises for sometime now. Even if I am talking loudly to David because he is in another room, Preston runs over and wants to be held. Either we yell at him too much or we yell at each other too much...

 Date night...Holy belly...Large and in charge again.

 The drive to Nago...Turquoise water...Emily--Can you even stand it???

Nothing special....just P jumping on the bed again and us encouraging it...Me adjusting my boobs for the pic....Don't bother watching unless you want to hear P's annoying whine that drives me crazy or you are family. Family appreciates every video, no matter how lame or insignificant :).

Wet T-shirt Contest...

So P and I were at the beach yesterday, when the sky decided to open up and almost drown us. I had our little tiny umbrella stroller, which P thinks is his play stroller (that's how small it is). We, of course, headed home immediately but not before the heavens did some damage..Of course, it was the one day that I am wearing a very thin white t-shirt and I am hugely pregnant..I am sure some of my neighbors are scarred after seeing this...P looked like a drowned rat, while I looked like I had entered an inappropriate pregnant lady's wet t-shirt contest; we were soaked...P didn't seem to mind one bit though. He ate all of his snack and just kept telling me that it was raining..Ha ha, what a good boy!

Drowned Rat that just keeps eating...Still munching his saltines.

His new smile...So annoying with the eyes closed...This was NOT an accident.

Jogging...

So I totally jogged today. I joined a group here called Stroller Warriors, which is a mom's group/running group/play group all rolled in to one. I was very hesitant at first because I am not a runner, though I would love to be, and I am pregnant. I was exercising regularly with cardio kickboxing throughout the first trimester and loved it. I felt great and it helped control my weight gain. Then school reared its ugly head and I just did not have the time to keep going at the end...Once I moved here I researched a bunch of different groups that were available and joined a couple; this being one of them. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT. The women are all different levels and are so inspirational..Some jog with single strollers and many have double strollers. Anyhow...I have been attending the workouts for a while now and really look forward to them each week. This week I was so surprised with how long I was able to jog pushing a NON-JOGGING stroller (yes, I am the only one without the hard core stroller), while chatting the entire time with a fellow jogger, while 28 weeks pregnant. It was awesome; it felt great; and it was not as bad as I thought it would. I have been walking with mini increments of jogging for a while and today just decided to see what I could do and was pleasantly surprised...Especially with the chatting part. Usually, I am about to die when I am jogging. So....I am giving myself a huge pat on the back for my jog today!

Cape Zanpa

We used David's day off as a tourist day. Usually, each Tuesday we try to do something fun as a family to help cross some things off of our Okinawa bucket list. One place that is recommended is Cape Zanpa. The highlight of the day was seeing two whales splashing around in the water...Totally unexpected!!!!

We go through this sequence of events about 5 times a day...ha ha ha!

Preston throwing rocks

Preston getting reprimanded 

The start of a tantrum 

Preston in timeout :) 

Little Big Man

The whale

Our little picnic-er loved his PB&J

Mr. Bossy Pants couldn't even stop saying "go, go" to take a picture

Really....Only in Japan..I'm jealous though!

David's Favorite Meal

Seriously, this man loves him some salmon, veggies, and rice...EVEN FOR BREAKFAST!! He is so Japanese!

Gardening...

Helping daddy with our little mini garden..He waters it every other day and let me tell you, he really, really waters it!

Tsunami 2011

Today is the one year anniversary of the Japanese tsunami that completely destroyed a large part of the country. I will never forgot where I was and what I was doing (at Kaiser on med-surg) when I walked past a patient's room and saw the news broadcast. I just helped myself to his TV, as other nurses came in as well. One happened to be Japanese and had family in Tokyo. I remember thinking David was so far from it; however, at the time, I didn't know he was actually flying to it. Waiting for that text  that night and excusing myself while in the middle of talking with my clinical instructor the next day at the hospital to finally be able to hear from him were some long hours. The country has continued its fighting spirit by moving forward and rebuilding, but there is still so much to do and so much for the survivors to still deal with. Please keep the victims in your hearts today and everyday.

Dancing videos...

Please forgive my unsafe parenting...Standing on the highchair dancing is never encourgaged as seen by my half attempts to make him sit down...And, he sometimes listens better than this.

Beach videos

At the park...

Baby Boy...

Preston really thinks he is still a baby, so when I brought home the bath tub I bought, we were interested in what he would do....He hopped right in and got his "ba-ba". He had the same bath, when he was little and I can't believe he was ever that small..He's huge now!

Beach Day

Some fun in the sun...

**I know this blog is currently in picture/Palmer/Preston overload but I know Lala, TiTi, Papa, Grandma Norma, Great-grandma Blanche, and Leah love it...So sorry!!!

OOOHHHHH!!!

Chasing daddy

Getting my tan on!

Yama-kun

This is the head coach's son, Yama. Preston and him love to play/get into mischeif after the games. They are sooo cute together and sometimes they even include Yama's baby sister.

Sword Fight!

Tickling the baby

Jumping on the bed