Sleep Deprived

Well our adorable baby girl used to sleep through the night! Key word is used. I guess all that bragging Trey and I did that Riley slept through the night since she was 2 months old is now biting us in our ass! I know it's due to Riley's teething, but she has been getting up every night since she had her cold. I guess it's been about 3 weeks now. Mommy and Daddy are used to a good night sleep and we are not having fun with our middle of the night wake up call! Trey doesn't like to hear Riley cry and gives in and gets her out of her crib and then she passes out in our bed. Of course that means that Trey and I are sleeping on the edge of the bed because Riley sleeps with her head against me and her feet pressed against Trey. I'm starting to think we should have bought a king sized bed! Last night when Riley woke up I rocked her back to sleep and as soon as I put her back in her crib she started crying. I shut her door, went into our room and turned the monitor down and got back into bed. After about 20 minutes I didn't hear Riley crying anymore. She got the hint that she wasn't coming into our bed and passed out. We finally had a good night sleep and our little love bug slept until 7:30! Yeah! Hopefully our good night sleep will continue through the new year!!

Baby Toss

One thing that Riley is definitely missing out on living so far from my moms side of the family is the baby toss. It's so unfortunate that she didn't get to experience the baby toss. Riley is definitely one tough cookie and just absolutely loves to be thrown around. Of course Riley is on the heavier side so Trey and I have to take turns throwing her around and flying her in the air. Trust me, yours arms start to ache after a short while!
Riley has a blast being tossed and thrown all around. We normally get to hear those great belly laughs. Trey and I are both worn out after a session of tossing Riley around!

Riley's First Christmas

Mele Kalikimaka!! As you all know this was Riley's first Christmas. I think it's safe to say that Trey and I were more excited than Riley since she didn't really know that the day was any different than any other day! It was rather amusing to watch Riley react to the gifts. She definitely wasn't sure what to do with the presents. I would tear the wrapping paper some so that Riley would then join in the fun of ripping the paper, but she didn't seem to want to join in. After a few gifts she sort of got the hang of tearing the wrapping paper. Riley would only tear the paper a little and then I was left to unwrap the rest of the gift.

Riley was spoiled by all of her grandparents and her Uncle Justin and Aunt Sara. She got tons of great gifts. I'd say her favorite toys were from her Uncle Justin and Aunt Sara. Riley absolutely is in love with her Fisher Price activity table and her squeaky giraffe and chicken! She also likes her Elmo/Cookie Monster vibrating ball from her Great Aunt Leslie and Great Uncle Tim. Riley giggles every time it vibrates and bounces around. Riley is also fond of all the books she received! She loved everything! A huge thank you to Kiki, Po, Poppy, Grandma Kathy, Uncle Justin, Aunt Sara, Grandpa Prewitt, Great Grandpa Prewitt, Nana, Mimi, Aunt Leslie and Uncle Tim. Even though we weren't able to celebrate Christmas with you in person, you were all apart of making Riley's Christmas a special one and you were in our thoughts throughout the day!

After opening all of our gifts I started baking a couple of dishes to take over to our friends house. Since we weren't able to be with family we enjoyed a nice dinner with our friends Brian and Heather. They cooked the majority of the meal and I made stuffing, home made macaroni and cheese, and rolls. I had it easy compared to my Thanksgiving meal I made! It was a nice dinner but was definitely not the same as being at Aunt Leslie's house with my family.

After dinner we enjoyed the beautiful evening sitting outside on their swing lounge chair. It was a nice breezy evening about 75 degrees. As I was sitting on the swing with Riley we got to look at a beautiful rainbow. I tried to take a picture for you all so that you could enjoy a little taste of Christmas in Hawaii. All in all it was a great day. I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas! We love and miss you all!!

Riley(8 months) and Ethan(6 months)...1st Christmas for both babies!!

Riley is looking a little possessed in this shot, but you don't get to see many of me and my baby girl!!

Pretty Christmas rainbow!

Christmas Eve

A normal Christmas Eve would entail us going over to my dad's house for family celebration with them and Miss Kathy's side of the family. Then off to midnight mass with my mom and then straight to bed! However, we began our own tradition tonight. Trey, Riley and I went out to dinner with our friends Brian and Heather and their son, Ethan. We went to the Kona Brewing Co. Pub in Hawaii Kai. Thanks to Kiki and Po(aka Mom and Mr. Kevin) we enjoyed a delicious dinner and yummy dessert.
Riley was having a good time in her high chair eating her yummy gerber banana/apple/pear meal. She's a fruit addict! Just like her mama, she prefers fruits over veggies!!

Riley has totally outgrown this baby car seat. We bought her a big girl seat that she will be upgraded to starting tomorrow! We enjoyed our evening out with friends. It didn't feel like a normal Christmas Eve, but it sure was nice to sit out by the water and enjoy a spectacular steak dinner! Everyone is welcome to come to Hawaii next year and join us on our new Christmas Eve dinner out tradition!!

HO HO HO!

Riley experienced her first sit on Santa's lap! I was so excited to take her to see Santa even though I'm sure she didn't understand. As we were standing in line Trey and I watched baby after baby cry when they were put on Santa's lap. Usually when Riley hears another baby cry it's a domino effect and she begins to cry. We just tried to keep her occupied so she wouldn't get upset before she got to sit on his lap. It was finally Riley's turn and I was certain she was going to flip out. Much to my surprise she was a giddy little girl. It was awesome! We got professional pictures done, but Trey snapped a few with our camera. I was so proud of Riley for being such a good girl. I'm positive Santa will definitely be filling her stocking full of goodies!!

Chugga Chugga Choo Choo

As many of you already know, Trey got his braces put on this past Friday. At age 24 he is finally getting the straight teeth he's always wanted thanks to the Navy! I don't think he fully understood what having braces entailed. Trey is still adjusting to the mouth soreness, the food stuck in the braces, the cutting of his gums. The poor thing hasn't even experienced the worst of it yet! Now I get to call him fun names like train tracks, metal mouth or brace face, so it makes it fun for me! The downside to Trey's braces is the fact that in about 6 months they are taking his braces off and breaking is jaw to realign his teeth. Don't ask me because I'm not 100% sure about the situation. From what I understand is that using rubber bands won't work because his mouth is fully matured. So as a result he has to get his jaw broken! Trey will be out of work for 60 days which he is looking forward to. I'm dreading hearing about all of the pain he'll be in! But don't worry I'll keep you all posted when the time comes! No pain, no gain!

My Apologies

My deepest apologies to everyone for slacking on my blog. I was having issues with our computer and then when I went to post a blog and take pictures of Riley my memory card was missing. I found that today so I am finally able to get some new pictures up for you all. I honestly feel guilty for not posting the past couple of weeks because I've heard crap from all of my family. Justin was nice enough to rub in my face that Sara does a good job keeping their page updated. I'm not perfect, I know that's hard for you all to believe!!

Anyway...onto stories and updates. A few weeks ago we took a trip to the SPCA and Trey fell in love with a black lab mixed puppy. And he just had to have him. I wasn't in agreement, but I try to please everyone and gave in. We got the puppy home and when he was around Trey he would just lay there. So to Trey he seemed like a good little puppy. Then Trey would leave and the puppy would go wild. He chewed on our dining room table, sofa, coffee table. Of course that's what puppies do, chew on everything. Riley didn't make things easy for me to look after the pup. She was scared to death of him and wouldn't let go of me whenever he was around. It was way too much for me to handle a 7 month old and a 3 month old puppy. So after 24 hours of having the puppy I packed him and Riley in the trailblazer and headed back to the SPCA. I felt horrible returning him, but he needed a home where he could get the attention he needed.

A couple of Saturdays ago, Trey, Riley and I went on a Toys for Tots cruise. All of the car clubs in Oahu joined together and drove to Kaneohe MCB to deliver toys. It was a beautiful day and really fun to watch the hundreds of cars participate and donate to such a wonderful cause. I know I felt like a better person after donating a toy. Riley is fortunate to have everything she needs, it's a great feeling to know we helped a child who isn't as fortunate.
The past week Riley has been battling a cold. Unfortunately there is no medicine we can give her to make her feel better. All I could do to help is load her up with Baby Vicks. ( I'm sure Mr. Kevin would appreciate that!) I have had many sleepless nights with her being sick. And it has been horrible! It's such a punishment for me because I'm use to my full 8 hours of sleep with no interruption. I am happy to report that the past 2 nights Riley has been sleeping through the night, knock on wood!


Riley got her first tooth 2 weeks ago. She's not quite sure what the new feeling in her mouth is though. She tends to bite on her finger and then cry because her tooth is sharp! She has been dancing lately whenever she hears music. It's the cutest thing in the world! Her little butt bounces up and down. Riley is super mobile crawling all over the place. She loves to crawl under our dining room table and then pull herself up on the chairs. Riley is quick too! It's hard to believe in a few days she'll be 8 months old.

We are in the middle of our rainy season so it's been really wet here. We don't have snow days, we have rain days. Trey actually had off work last week due to flooding. The North Shore got hit really hard with roads caving in and hundreds of homes flooding. I was relieved that we don't live super close to the water. That's pretty much all you've been missing out on. I promise I won't leave you all hanging for weeks at a time anymore!

Never Ending

I feel like vaccines for babies are never ending. Riley had to go today for another round of shots. Today it was a total of four shots, 2 in each thigh. And I also had to administer the oral medicine. Honestly, she gets so many darn shots I can't even keep up with what she's getting. I always have to look at her shot card to see what she received.
Here is a nice shot of my baby girl and her sore little(not really little) legs.

Luckily, Riley manages to stay in good spirits throughout the day after her shots. I just try to keep her occupied with her toys and make sure not to touch her boo boos! I keep her band aids on her for the whole day as a reminder to myself not to touch the area that she got her shots. The last thing I want to do is hurt her!

Riley's new thing is to take her toys and sit under her jumperoo to play. It's really kind of funny. I guess she's going to be one of those kids who likes to build forts.

The Silence Is Broken

Riley hasn't necessarily been silent for the last 7 months. She's babbled her little head off until she couldn't babble anymore. But I'm so excited to announce that Riley has said her first word. I'm sure you're all thinking it was dada. Well it wasn't! Riley's first word was mama. My heart completely melted. I heard her say mama on Thanksgiving, but I thought she was just rambling. Then on Friday she was crawling after me saying mama, mama, mama. Later in the day she was crying and putting her arms out for me saying mama, mama, mama. Trey and I both agreed she knew what she was saying. It's so sweet! I'm sure dada will follow shortly.

The Baby Hui

About 4 months ago, Riley's pediatrician asked me if I was involved with any parenting groups. My answer was of course no. We had only been here for a few weeks and joining a group wasn't even in my thoughts. She recommended a group called The Baby Hui. So I went online and read about their program and decided it would be fun for Riley and I to join a group so we could interact with other moms and babies. Like everything else I seem to want to do we were put on a waiting list. I figured it was worth the wait. After almost 4 months we finally were put into a group! Yeah, it's our turn! Last Monday was our first meeting. It was mostly an introduction session so that we could all get to know each other a little bit. There were about 10 moms which means there were 10 babies. The babies age ranged from 5 months to 10 months. It's hysterical to watch all the babies interact. My girl tended to give attention to the boys and ignore the girls. She's starting way too young chasing after boys!
We meet every Monday morning for 2 hours. This was our second week and we received our notebook that contains a ton of different topics for discussion. After each session we have to read the next topic. It's sort of like a book club based around raising children. The Baby Hui's curriculum is built on the following assumptions: 1. Parenting is the most important and challenging job there is. 2. Parents are their children's first and most important teachers. 3. There are many right ways to be a parent or a child. 4. Parents are the foundation of the family. 5. Getting and giving support is essential for all parents. It's nice to be able to talk to other moms that are facing the same issues, concerns, fears, and joys as me. Due to the fact I'm still not working it's really nice to socialize with adults. It's not that I don't have some friends, but it's great to meet other moms that understand what I'm going through. The group lasts for about 10 weeks, but hopefully we'll keep in touch with the other moms and babies and have play dates! I'm hoping to get some pictures next week. My batteries were dead today!