Today is Nico's first airplane trip. We are traveling with our visitors from earlier this week, Angela and Andrew. Hopefully, everything will go well. We are ready for fun in the sun.
Yesterday, we had a great hike on Bull Creek. Angela will post pictures later. And then we got a tour of the LIVESTRONG foundation. The office is all super "green" and sustainable. It is definitely an environment that makes you excited about the "green" Austin movement. I will post pictures of this later as well.
Saturday, March 27, 2010
The Great Urban Races- TEAM Nico's a Muel
Yesterday morning we dropped Nico off at our friend, Monica's, house at around 11am with his diaper bag, milk bottles, and pacifiers. I almost didn't want to leave him but I knew he was in good hands and would have a great time with his friend Dylan (Monica's son, who is a couple weeks older than Nico).
For clue #1 we had to take a picture with the statue of MLK on the UT campus
#2 (we passed) We would have had to lasso eachother. We weren't able to figure out the name of the restaurant that we were supposed to find.
#3 We solved a word search puzzle. With the remaining words in the puzzle, we found our next location, Music Makers. There we had to take a pic out of a guitar.
#4 We did a Zumba class at Gold's Gym
#5 we found turtles on the UT campus
#6We found the coordinates of a place, then fed each other doughnuts
#7 We had to look for lizard-man and take a picture with our tongues out
#8 we had to buy the 4 most expensive cans of corn, green beans, chicken noodle, and something else and then go somewhere else to donate it.
#9 Peter played "Mary had a little lamb" on the recorder at Mellow Mushroom
#10 Took a picture at memorial stadium because we were looking for those letters "rial sta"
#11 (can't remember right now)
#12 We payed tic tac toe....for one square we got 6 people to do the longhorn sign in front of a fountain, another we asked 3 ppl to take a picture with us...all with our shoes OFF, and to complete the line, we took a picture with a guy in a cowboy hat.
It took us 2hrs and 55 minutes to complete the race. We had a great time and beat a lot of teams to the finish but were no where near the winners who came it at 1:45...i don't know how they did it!
We picked up a quick sandwich and headed back to pick Nico up after the race...
Exhausted we all got home for NAP TIME!!!
The results are in.....and we got 31st out of 291 teams. Not bad for the first race back....
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Spring is here. The trees around us were naked a couple weeks ago. One morning we woke up and little cotton ball looking flowers were all over those once bare trees.
Today I was driving around and noticed all the different color greens that were taking over the landscape along the road. The changes in the seasons has been beautiful to see now that i'm living in a place that actually has seasons.
With the warmer sunnier days becoming more of an everyday thing, I feel re-energized and emotionally motivated to get out there and start exercising a little more. I had started running like I shared with you all but I had to stop due to some pains in my lower back. I went to sports doctor yesterday only to find that the pain in my lower back is actually a shifted iliosacral joint....lucky me right. I'm going to go to therapy a couple times and do the strength exercises that they are giving me so that I can strengthen my HIP area and core...and therefore get back to RUNNING and racing!!!
Speaking of racing ..Peter and I are racing this weekend in the
Our teams's name is Nico's a Muel ( Nico s a muel ... get it?) Check out the link above to learn more about the race. Like I wrote in my article, "The Great Urban Race is a mix of "The Amazing Race", Cranium and "Who Wants to Be a Millionare" all in one day. Teams of two get to embark is a crazy adventure all around the city while trying to correctly solve 12 clues, which can be physical, mental brain teasers, public interaction challenges, scavenger hunt style, or puzzles." Don't be surprised if we call you with a random question on Saturday afternoon, we are allowed to phone-a- friend!
Two articles are up for your reading enjoyment! I have officially started working for EXAMINER.com
I am the Austin Running Fitness Examiner! YAYY!! haha
I need your help though, I get paid by the amount of subscriptions there are, traffic on the article, and some other criteria. Subscribe by clicking on this icon below, then insert you email address in the blank box that appears.
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It's been a while since I've posted, SO SORRY. Things have been kind of crazy around here. Tia Jeanette (Peter's cousin) an Tio Tony (Peter's bother) came into town to visit NICO! It was really nice to have them here.
I found a kite and got to fly it! It was very exciting...and it threw me back in time through a portal to when I was first learning how to fly a kite, that joy that overwlemed me just to feel my kite tugging at me from the sky and it flew magically. It's incredible the way moments are captured in time and their memories are released with the simplest things...a piece of plastic, some wooden sticks, and a long string.
We celebrated Nico's First St.Patrick's dayin Downtown Austin in the midst of a bunch of crazies from all over who came to Austin for SXSW, a huge city-wide music festival.
We played sand Volleyball at NI (Peter's work) and then walked home.
I got an email today that brought be to tears. I might be a little more sensitive since Nico had one of those very fussy evenings where nothing seemed to soothe him, however, I can't blame him, pobrecito he got 3 shots this morning at the Doctor's office (2 month visit).
Anyway...here's a great read that makes you think about the power we have to make a difference in someone else's life.
Two Choices What would you do?....you make the choice. Don't look for a punch line, there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the same choice?
At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves children with learning disabilities, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question:
'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does, is done with perfection.
Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the natural order of things in my son?' The audience was stilled by the query.
The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, who was mentally and physically disabled comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people treat that child.'
Then he told the following story: Shay and I had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' I knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their team, but as a father I also understood that if my son were allowed to play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.
I approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning.'
Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a team shirt. I watched with a small tear in my eye and warmth in my heart. The boys saw my joy at my son being accepted.
In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as I waved to him from the stands.
In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat.
At this juncture, do the others let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball. However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's life, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make contact.
The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher.
The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game. Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out of reach of all team mates.
Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled.
Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming and struggling to make it to the base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the ball. The smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to be the hero for his team.
He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intentions so he, too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the bases toward home.
All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay' Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third! Shay, run to third!' As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the game for his team
'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world'.
Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making me so happy, and coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day !
AND NOW A LITTLE FOOT NOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces. If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message Well, the person who sent you this believes that we all can make a difference. We all have thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little bit colder in the process? A wise man once said every society is judged by how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.
You now have two choices: 1. Delete 2. Forward May your day, be a Shay Day.
Today Nico is 2 months old. He's grown so much and keeps changing everyday. His fists arn't clenched like they used to be. I believe he is starting to smile on purpose when he sees us. He is looking at the world around him and starting to actually see a little more that shadows. His hair is starting to grow back too!The biggest changes have been his sleep patterns and "alert" time. He is starting to sleep a little more which has done wonders for us. During the day he has gradually stayed awake but quiet for longer periods of time. In that time he looks at his hands, puts them in his mouth, "talks", and smiles. I'm also very happy to report that breastfeeding has gotten easier! Every day we are more in love with him.
Other important news:
TIO TONY arrived today from YUMA! He is done with his service in the Marines and is making a pit stop here in Austin before heading to Miami.
Daddy played in a soccer tournament this weekend, Copa Esperanza, and WON!! Nico and I got to see him SCORE!!
We went to the Kite festival at Zilker Park on Sunday. It was incredible to see all the Kites that were out there.
I got a writing job. I will be writing for EXAMINER.com. I will keep you posted on when the first article will be published!!
Nico went to his first party yesterday! It was so much fun to hang out with all the mommys, daddys, and babies, hearing all the stories, trials, tribulations, sleeping challenges, diper changing "showers".
In this picture, the babies are in the order in which they were born: Dylan David, Cash Dylan, Nico Samuel, Samuel Hill, Everette Thomas
The daddys are out of order...but ook at their proud faces!Nico stayed awake the whole party. He didn't want to miss out on anything. Tom and Monica were great hosts. We had a delightful smorgasbord of food to indulge our taste buds with that included large bowl of freshly prepare ceviche, crispy patacones, green and purple oversized grapes, thinly sliced apple wedges, a huge block of Gouda cheese, a variety of crackers, a tub of humus with salty pita chips, and a full bar. I was in gastric-heaven.
It was great to see and meet all the other babies. Their personalities were all shining through. Cash was the biggest, weighing in at 14bs, he looked the toughest with his Harley Davidson shirt, jeans, and sneakers. Dylan had the most hair. Everette was a carbon copy of his dad, Kevin, Nico and Samuel performed a lovely duet for us all during the photo shoot.
The party started at 2pm and the three of us didn't leave till 7pm. We all had a great time and are really happy to have baby friends to hangout with!
