In case you were wondering...

So, I realize I get caught up with Lydia's development most of the time on here and then totally neglect mentioning how we are progressing, living, and enjoying our life as a family. So here it goes.

Since moving to Rexburg in January, we live at a spacey 2 bedroom apartment at a really good price. The only downside is, that now that it's getting warmer outside we're experiencing more bugs in the house. Not sure why it's working like that, but just yesterday I killed, not one, but two! centipedes on my kitchen floor! Long big, squirmy ones, too! Disgusting. Not to mention, the ants are somehow back again. Well, they come and go. Sometimes I'll see a few and then for days, nada. Besides our bug infestation (that no matter how hard I try I can never get rid of!), we really like our place, a lot. We even decided to not be so antisocial, and hung out with our upstairs neighbs! ;)

When we moved back, we got our boxes we had left last spring from our friends, our bed, and began collecting furniture. While we're borrowing a table from a friend's at the moment, we now own a couch and a recliner, a coffee table, and an entertainment center, the last of which was recently donated by a member of our Elder's Quorum Presidency. We live in such a good ward. We weren't expecting that at all, and the man who dropped it off explained to us that "[They] believe in taking care of our members." We really are blessed to be here! We have wonderful home teachers, and today I finally got assigned to a visiting teaching companion. I can't wait to start visiting some sisters in the ward and making more friends, giving me something to do each month and someone to look after.

In addition, our tax refund was really nice to us this year. We were able to splurge a little bit and got a new printer, which I've wanted for a long time so I could print pictures of our wedding and of Lydia to put in frames around the house. We also got a few other luxuries. The only problem with having more money than usual is thinking you always need more than what you have which makes it hard to stay satisfied. But we're doing really well on our budgeting. We've also made a promise to donate plasma each month to pay for bills. They say an individual can make up to $220 a month if you go twice a week for the whole month; $20 the first time, $30 the second that week. If you go. Haha. For the whole month of March, the second time you donate in that week, instead of getting $30, you get $35. This last week we both went twice and made $110 together. I think that's a pretty good deal.. and you get to help people. :) It's a win-win situation.


As for Lydia, everyone falls in love with her, no matter where we go. She makes me popular at Church, what can I say? Haha. She always has someone wanting to hold her there, and babysitters will always watch her for free! Can it get any better? Seriously! (I know I always make it sound like she is the perfect baby; while she is happy a lot of the time, she does have her really whiney moments..which drives me bonkers!)
I enjoy being here with my little family. It's nice having a little person around who loves you as much as you love them, and I am quite convinced she definitely knows who Mommy and Daddy are, by now. She gets excited every time we go pick her up from the babysitter's; she has a grin a mile long, and kicks her legs as if to keep afloat in water. She is too cute.

Jonathan is enjoying all his classes. He is taking Special topics in sociology, General psychology, teachings of the Living Prophets, Family Foundations, Family interactions, and aforementioned in one of my other posts, an Infants and Toddlers class. He learns something new every day and is always eager to come home and share with me the new insights he has learned, which is pretty cool seeing how the President of the BYUI is one of his teachers! He has brought us to a movie day for his class where we watched Star Wars (for a grade!) and he even gets to take me and Lydia to his Infants and Toddlers class this coming Tuesday to show her off.. cough, I mean so he/they can observe her behavior. I'm glad he is learning a lot from all his classes and shares his knowledge with me. Sometimes I feel left out, and almost.. almost want to return to school just so I can feel like I'm exercising my brain. But then I remember the amount of homework that must be done, and quite enjoy where I am in life, at home with my baby girl. I can assure you though, we do enough to keep busy. :)
Oh yeah, and Jonathan has a job now working as a Sub at the testing center. Whenever one of the employees can't work a day they send out an email and he has the chance to take their hours. They aren't long shifts so it's not overwhelming, but just enough hours to get a nice little paycheck. It works out pretty nicely. And next semester he will be the so called employee who can call out if he needs a sub.

As for me, I am loving being a mom - a mom of my own household where I make all most the rules. ;) When I am not playing with Lydia I tidy up the house and think of a meal to make. In my spare time, I sit down with my current book, The Count of Monte Cristo. And when I can remember, I tend to my journal writing. I must admit though, I have been a really crummy journal writer/scripture reader. I would have never liked to admit that to anyone, especially because I was so good at it in the past, but ever since being a mom, my scripture reading/journal writing habit has dwindled, unfortunately. And it takes all I can to get back into the groove of it. I have no idea why it's so hard for me to do that. I have renewed my promise though, and I will be 10X better than I was last week at it! There. Now, the cyber world knows, and I must follow through. :)

In closing, we both really feel we made the right choice by coming down. Some might have thought it wasn't a good idea, always telling us that Jonathan should go to school up in AK and stay put for a while. It was very good advice, I will admit. But while we might have made more money staying in Alaska, being near friends and family, and enjoying the scenery (or freezing our butts off), we have grown so much more here together as our own little family unit than we could have up there. We have been blessed so much since we have been here, temporally and spiritually. We're learning new things and expanding our horizons. Jonathan has taken his place as the head of the family, providing and protecting us, and I have decided to get my "mothering on" and be a master cleaner while also being a bit adventurous by cooking new dishes. As for Lydia, she is too busy discovering the world around her to be disappointed by anything. 

That's what's keeping the Hernandez family busy these days! Happy Spring!

M*I*L*E*S*T*O*N*E*S

So, the last time I did a "Milestones" post Lydia was about 5 months. At 8 1/2 months, I figure it's time to update.

This lil gal LOVES to talk! ...Talk, yell in her laughter, fake cough (serious about this one), blow (more like sputter her baby food back into my face! 8-| ) make noises, and even gag herself with her own fingers.. which, somehow she thoroughly enjoys because she does it until she's forced [by Mommy] to stop.

She is getting good at clapping, and just the other day waved back to Daddy right after he waved to her. And, might I add, as I was trying to persuade her to say "Mama," every time she would "speak" she'd end up saying what I thought was "hiiiii" (while waving) after we would say "hiiii" to her while waving our arm. Yep, I'm sure Hi is going to be her first word. Darn it. After all that I do... after all I have done (bonus points to those who get that movie reference! lol!).

Anyway! Now the lass has army crawling down! Sometimes she sits on her bottom, puts her hands out and kind of rocks forward..secretly wanting, wishing she could move forward, but doesn't have the courage to do so (or maybe she remembers all the nose-dives and doesn't want to repeat yet another). She doesn't quite know that to move frequently and faster you have to be on your hands and knees. She always ends up on her belly, but at least she's getting places, which is good for her.. not so good for me. I have to vacuum multiple times a week! Okay.. I guess that's a good thing. ;)



At her last weigh in she was 15lbs 8oz and 27inches (back in Feb). Oyy, she is getting so big (even though she's quite lean). She is often so wiggly, you could almost say she hates laying in my arms. If you're going to hold her, she's got to be sitting or standing, at least. Sigh.. I just wanna cuddle!!! :{ I have to wrap her like Houdini in a blanket and bounce her just for her to lay sideways in my arms. That, or tilt her head downward. She loves being upside down. :)

She has 5 chompers now! She acquired her first 2 bottom teeth in December, her third (on the bottom) mid February, and now her first 2 upper teeth just a few days ago within a day of each other. She is such a good baby, I never know when she is teething (until the night when she wakes up multiple times). But it never dawns on me the reason for her wakefulness until I find the tooth the next day. Somehow I always forget this sign? Other than that she is always good throughout the day. It's so hard for me to know!



Well, that's about it. Other than her constant love for learning, and imagining things with her hands that seem to float in the air and give some meaning to her imagination, she is just the happiest baby around. She loves laughing and having fun. She has learned to dance (bounce her body up and down) to music and it is just the cutest thing to watch! I love my little girl and I'm so happy I can be her mom and watch her grow each day, experiencing all the things life has to give.



{Here I was the other night, at 2am, telling her that it was time for her to go to sleep! Apparently, she thought I was joking!}

Parents, please be careful!

Jonathan takes an Infants and Toddlers class up here on campus. When he first told me he was going to take it, I was ever so excited and thrilled for him to do it. Not because I felt he didn't know much about babies or anything, but I felt that as Lydia's mom, I always had to know the bulk of the information about babies. Having him take a class about babies and children would give him more of an idea on the little things he'd need to know, just in case anything ever went wrong at home. To me, this relieves a bit of the pressure of having to know it all and always worrying if he might do something that shouldn't be done.. like.. give honey to a baby. Stuff like that..
This class isn't required; he just took it because he needed one more credit. As such, he is always coming home to share with me the interesting things he learned, whether it be the Family Home Evening lessons the class made, or different articles about the safety of babies.

Yesterday, I was pleasantly enjoying my morning when Jonathan came home and started telling me a story about what he had learned from class. A true story about the effects of Shaken Baby Syndrome. Ugh!

This will be what I remember from Jonathan's story, as he recalled it from class. Hopefully I can get the story straight.

He said in the video there was a mom and dad and a 14 month old baby boy. The parents were separated, and just before Christmas, the mom decided to drop the boy off at his dad's house a few days earlier than expected, around the 18th. Later that night, 911 was called because the baby was blue and not breathing. After the boy died, the doctors did an autopsy and wondered why there were bruises around his ribs and chest. He looked as though he had fallen from a 13 story building! So they told the police to do an investigation. At first, the father told the authorities they were both laying on the water bed, when the boy fell off and stopped breathing. Later, the dad confessed and told the story. While doing so, the cops had him return to the home and re-enact what he did to his son, to a doll.

After the boy had been brought to his dad's house, he had begun crying and the dad couldn't get him to stop. After a while, the dad ended up picking him up and SHOOK him for 2 whole minutes straight (while probably yelling at him to stop). He then punched him twice in the chest and shook him some more. Then, he THREW him on the ground! (Oh my goodness, by this point I was crying when Jonathan was telling the story) It was then that he realized that the boy had turned blue and had very shallow breathing, and that's when he decided to call 911.

The mom was called by the hospital, telling her her son was in a very bad condition. When she got there he looked terrible. They did a CT scan of the baby and the left side of the brain was completely dead. A few days later, they did another, and the right side was gone. (Jonathan mentioned how the video showed pictures of the baby's body from the autopsy reports. I'm so glad I wasn't there for this. I'da been bawling!) They knew the baby wasn't going to make it, so the mom's last requests were for the doctors to bring in a rocking chair, so that she and all her relatives (minus the dad) could rock her baby to sleep..

 ...one.. last...time. 

(I'm fighting back tears as I write this.. I can't even imagine the pain!)

After the mom rocked him to sleep, they decided to take him off life support. He died Christmas Eve! They ended up having a funeral, and the dad went to prison.

What baffled everyone - the lawyers and judges- was that this father had no criminal history, whatsoever. He was a normal guy, a very nice husband, who never hurt anyone. And one day, he just snapped. Jonathan said in his testimony, you could see him sincerely crying, saying that because that one moment, that time he snapped, it had changed his life forever. He killed his son. And now he has to spend the rest of his life in jail knowing, remembering, that he did. He said that if he could change it so that his son could live, and he would die, he would do it in an instant.

I'm pretty sure I looked like a HOT MESS after Jonathan told me this story.

Sooooooo.... why am I telling you this???

I have a lot of friends who are new parents. Parents, I just want you to be careful. I had no idea that the effects of Shaken Baby Syndrome could go past a certain age. Obviously, other things played into part - punching and throwing the baby down - but I didn't know that SBS could still happen up past a year old. I find I am learning new things all the time. I guess, I want to raise an awareness. Please, pleeeaaase, please be careful! I think why I was so upset at this story, was because I hate it when adults exercise their "authority" or whatever you'd like to call it, to hurt little, helpless, innocent, children. They are using their agency to control another. It's one thing if you hurt yourself intentionally, but I hate it when a big person hurts a little person. It shatters my heart.

Here are some things to do to prevent SBS/child abuse:

• Never shake an infant or child.


• Avoid holding your infant during arguments.


• Avoid disciplining your child when you are angry.
• Hubbies or Wives, if you are running on your last thread, call your spouse.. or somebody!
  
  
• If you find yourself becoming increasingly short-tempered around your infant or child, take a break and ask a friend or family member for help. Step outside and get some fresh air.


• Report abuse to the local police or to your state's child protective services if you suspect that a child in your home or someone you know is a victim of child abuse.


• Support the passage of the shaken baby syndrome Prevention Act (S 1204, HR 2052) introduced last year by writing your state senator and congressman.
  (http://www.medicinenet.com/shaken_baby_syndrome/page3.htm#prevention)

 Here is another good website with more helpful information. http://dontshake.org 

Like that man, any one of us could snap. I rarely believe the statement by many who say, "I trust this person, he/she would never do that type of thing!" You never know when someone can change in an instant, especially under pressure. Just please, be careful.

Let us stay informed, so that all of us, and our loved ones, can enjoy all life has to offer.

The "Mine" Mentality

{.. I'll try to keep this G rated as to not gross too many of you out :)...}

So, I'm sure if Lydia could speak at this age, she'd be saying one word. 

"MINE!"

All women know that when we are pregnant, our bodies are obviously shared with another individual (or two, depending on if you have multiples) for 9 (really 10!) months. And we think that when we finally birth this little creature, we will finally "get our body back!" I've heard that statement by a lot of people. Ha. Right.

Little did I know that after I had my baby, I would still be sharing my body with that little somebody, sometimes even more so than I imagined. In the beginning, nursing was somewhat of a nightmare (lots of practicing and patience involved) but I desperately knew I wanted to be successful at it, no matter how hard. Now, it's part of our daily routine and something we both look forward to. I'm so glad we both became pros at it.

{I in no way judge anyone who bottle-feeds vs. breastfeeds. Breastfed is how I did it though}

However, sometimes, I wish my extra appendages (not referring to my arms and legs) were mine whenever I wanted, not whenever she wanted. And boy, is she smart. She knows what hides under my clothes, no matter what I am wearing. I can't escape her "mine" mentality. And ultimately, because I love her, I must give in. Weaning is going to be so tough. She'll probably nurse til she's 5 (let's hope not, kindergarten might be embarrassing haha).

Anyway, haven't grasped what I'm saying yet? Let me give you some examples of the "Mine" Mentality:

The food you're eating? MINE

The book you're reading? MINE

Those shoelaces? MINE

Your hair? MINE

And even..your friends? MINE! 

Not sure if we're clear on this? Here are some more!

The laptop you're using? MINE

The phone you're talking on? MINE

Your sweatshirt hoodie strings? MINE

Your sleep? MINE

The cup you're drinking from? MINE

Your body, mom? MINE!

It's a good thing I love her so darn much. I sacrifice what I want for the good of my child. And that's all that really matters, even if everything I own, is somehow always hers. 

My 8th Month of Motherhood

I have many friends who just had their babies within the last 2 months, and it is awesome to see the pictures and posts they put up of their beloved creatures that have so recently made their entrance into this world. It makes me think back on the newborn life of my baby, and appreciate all that I have gone through. As I look back, I can actually say I can relate to these new moms who think that, at the moment, this is the best and hardest thing they have gone through. Reading back on past blogs I've written, about the first weeks and months of motherhood, I have come to miss my little baby and have grown an appreciation for all mothers who give up selfish acts, like showering and sometimes, eating, to take care of a helpless person. True love is when you put the well being of someone else before yourself. Motherhood, is true love.

Well, Lydia is 8 months old today. She has 4 months until her first birthday. Her first BIRTHDAY.
 
 Holy cow.

She is just growing up so much, changing every day, 

reminding me of the reason I wanted her in the first place.

She is just a darling little person, with so much personality, and a tender heart. Remember when I posted that "ow" video on facebook? Where she starts crying upon immediately hearing the word "ow." I thought it was just a phase she was going through, but lately, when she pinches my skin, or Heaven forbid, bites me (which thankfully she doesn't do very often..she really is a good baby) and I react by saying ow, her eyes get glossy, she frowns, and starts bawling. I immediately feel so bad for her. Her pain overpowers my pain, and I tell her I'm sorry for hurting her feelings. I never thought a child of so young an age could have feelings and emotions and feel bad for the things they do to other people. I hope she always has those feelings in her heart, and will not want to harm others when she's older.

On a lighter note, she is just the cutest thing! Lately when I feed her baby food, after each spoonful, she licks her lips. It is so funny because it looks like she is enjoying it. I love her little quirks. She is also getting very good at clapping. And the expression on her face is priceless when she sees other adults clap. It's like she's thinking, how does EVERYBODY know how to clap? Did they all learn it from Mommy?
And when someone waves to her, we have to help a little by raising her arm up, but then she waves back herself. She makes Mommy and Daddy so proud.

The other day we were at Wal-Mart, by the book section in the back, near the magazines. I was holding Lydia and she was being as wiggly and curious as ever, looking at the things around her. But I refused to let her look at the magazines.

 I told her, "You can't look at those, because those magazines will tell you you're not beautiful, when you really are." You will always be beautiful, no matter what happens, no matter what you look like.

I look at my little baby when she sleeps, as she takes up over half of her crib. When did she get so big? Where has all the time gone? When you are in the moment, and your baby is a newborn, it seems as though it'll take a long time for them to get bigger, when in reality, they grow so incredibly fast. I wish I could just freeze time and play with my little girl forever.
Remember this post? where I said that the time will come when she'd rather be out of my arms, than in them? That time is slowly approaching. With every new thing to discover and learn, she'd rather spend time sucking on things, playing with a toy, or eating, than just cuddling in my arms. I do have to say though, that lately, sometimes she'll nosedive right into my chest, and stay there for 5 calm seconds before she pops back up, and then repeats.

Oh, how my heart wishes she would stay there, 

so we could just enjoy the moment of being together, in perfect love.

A few hours old

1 month old

2 months old

3 months old

4 months old

5 months old

6 months old

7 months old

Today, 8 months old

 Happy 8 Month Birthday Lydia Danielle