So it is finally 2010. It's been quite a while since I've posted an entry. Life has been busy around the Garcia house.
Javier talked about the boys birthday party in the last entry. The party was actually a few days before their birthday. On the actual day, we took the boys out to eat for a treat. Javier, myself, my mom and the two boys all went out to Chili's (there is not a great selection of restaurants here). The boys chowed down on some grilled chicken and french fries. They enjoy eating out. I think it's because they are so distracted and amused by the surroundings and people.
A couple of weeks later, we went to Javier's work Christmas party. It was a good time for the boys. They were really cute in their sweaters and their favorite thing to do was walk around and greet everyone. They really wore themselves out just running around. Santa made a visit and we attempted to get the traditional sitting on Santa's lap photo, but the boys were not very
receptive to that idea. Jacob kept trying to slide down off his lap. So we gave up and decided a picture with Papi next to the Christmas tree would have to suffice.
Christmas day came and went without much ado. In the morning, we did breakfast and bottles as usual. Then we opened presents. The boys are not really into unwrapping gifts. They seemed more interested in the boxes and just running around. They received animated singing moose from Popo and Welita, and they love them. Joaquin dances whenever the moose sings "I feel good". It's quite a sight. The also received some Aggie gear from their Tia Vangie. They loved the t-shirts and the sippy cups. Actually, I think Javier loves them the most! Their halmoni (my mom) gave them a big piggy bank full of money to contribute to their college funds. It's never to early to get a headstart. We gave them a wooden xylophone and a new ball to bounce around the house. All in all, it was a quiet day, but still wonderful as we all have each other and our health.
New Year's eve was also a quiet time for our family. For lunch, we took the boys out to Golden Corral. They enjoyed the rice and pot roast and mashed potatoes. They LOVE mashed potatoes! It had been quite a long time since we went there, so it was a nice change in our routine. That evening, the boys went to bed on time and we did our usual routine things. Somehow, Javier and I managed to barely stay awake until midnight. I think I passed out at 12:02am. On new years day, a good friend of mine and her two children visited us for lunch. My mom made a traditional Korean soup and Korean style sushi. I made a cheesy broccoli and potato soup for the boys. It's one of their favorite things to eat. It was a great meal and great time spent with friends. We also decided to mark the new year by taking photos of the boys in their Korean outfits. I don't know if they have grown much since their birthdays, but the outfits seemed to fit so much better just a month later. They looked dashing in their clothes.
Today, we decided to take the boys on another outing. We drove to Raleigh which is about 2 hours away, and visited the Children's Museum. They loved playing with all the toys and other children. It's too bad we don't have a facility like that here in Jacksonville. They burned up a lot of energy, and slept almost the entire drive home.
The boys are doing great. Some friends and family have mentioned how good Joaquin looks in his photos lately. Yes, he is doing great. He continues to struggle with eczema, but we are able to keep it in check most of the time. Winter is the worst time for flare-ups, but he seems to be doing well for the most part. In some of the photos, you can see a faint bruise on his right cheek. He acquired that when we fell and hit his cheek on the coffee table. He has been eating a slightly larger variety of table foods. He loves to drink water. He is not speaking many words but he definitely knows how to say "ball". He tries to say "book" but it sounds more like "back". His favorite thing to do is play with balls and read books. He is walking well and even trying to run. He is very strong and likes to push things all around the house, including his big brother Jacob. Many friends and family and even strangers mention his long locks and ask when we plan to cut it. Well, we don't have plans to cut it. I'm not saying that we will never cut it, but for now, it's manageable and we like it. At home, we usually keep it out of his face with a clip or a hairband. When we go out, I put a little styling lotion in his hair and comb it to the side. He's so handsome. We are grooming him for his rock star image.
Jacob is doing great as well. He is walking and running around like his little brother, but he is much quicker. I think he has learned to be fast because he has to run away from his brother. Jacob is really sweet and loves to snuggle after naps and give kisses throughout the day. He loves to throw balls around the house, but his favorite thing to do is play with his many trucks. He's eating very well, almost anything from the table that we will give him. I'm in the process of weaning the boys off of breastmilk and formula and onto cow's milk. The transition is going well. I expect them to be on total cow's milk by the end of the month. Jacob can say ball, but he doesn't say much else. That isn't to say that he doesn't communicate. Both boys know how to communicate their needs and requests through a variety of grunts, yells, pointing fingers and sad eyes. Both boys are teething. Jacob has four teeth which are easy to see in one of the photos. He has his front and bottom two teeth. He loves the camera, and when he grins really wide, you can see all of his cute little white teeth. Joaquin also has four teeth right now. He has three on the bottom front row and one on top to the side. It's an interesting configuration, but I guess it doesn't matter how they come in as long as they come in. Another thing Jacob has been doing lately....... picking his nose. It's disgusting and I don't know how to make him stop. Oiy. ....but it's kinda cute too in a weird gross way. I hope he grows out of it.
The weather has been cold lately, so getting the boys out of the house is more of a challenge these days, but worth the effort. It's amazing to see how the boys are developing every day. Their personalities are so different and so wonderful. My heart swells with love and pride when I watch my boys doing mundane things and when they discover something new. Jacob is learning to climb onto things and his face is filled with pride when he succeeds. I have never felt so much happiness as I do when I look into the eyes of my child or when I kiss his chubby neck, or when they giggle with delight.
I look forward to seeing what the boys will do this year. 2010, we're ready!
~Latrice
I thought I would add some photos of Javier to celebrate his birthday.
He turns 37 today, but it seems like just yesterday that we first met and went on dates and had very few cares or worries in the world.
Today is Javier's birthday. It's his 37th year of life and the 14th birthday we have celebrated together. I can hardly believe I've known him for 14 birthdays. My, how the time flies.
Over a few days, I tried to capture some good close up photos of the boys. It is exceptionally hard to do because they are constantly running around. I must have taken over a thousand photos and only ended up with 20 or so good ones. The pictures that I have posted today are my favorites.
They are truly amazing to me. Looking into their innocent eyes makes me feel so full of love. I can't help but wonder about their bright futures. Joaquin still loves music. He dances and bops his head around anytime he hears a tune and a good beat. I wonder if music will be in his future. Jacob loves all things mechanical and electronic. He has figured out how to work the televisions, cable boxes and even the dvd player. He loves to figure out how to open things and climb up on things. The boys are so very different and beautiful in every way to me. Joaquin's skin condition has improved greatly since we started some new skin care regiments. He is also a much happier baby now that his alligator skin is gone. He is by far, the hardest subject for me to photograph. He is really on the move a lot and I end up with a lot of blurry photos of him. But once in a while, I can catch him with a little smile or a cute little pout, and I feel like I've just photographed a magical moment.
The boys are not talking much still. They do most of their communicating through pointing, grunts, and screams. Their favorite games at the moment are peek a boo and chase the baby. Oh they are learning the fundamentals of hide and seek as well. It's been a really fun time to play with them these past few months. Every day, they are doing something different or crazy.
And yes, I realized the boys' hair is getting pretty long. Still no immediate plans to cut their hair. We really like the way Joaquin's hair is growing, and Jake's do is growing on us too. Sorry, Welita, it will be a while still before the boys get their first haircut.
So it is finally 2010. It's been quite a while since I've posted an entry. Life has been busy around the Garcia house.
receptive to that idea. Jacob kept trying to slide down off his lap. So we gave up and decided a picture with Papi next to the Christmas tree would have to suffice.
Christmas day came and went without much ado. In the morning, we did breakfast and bottles as usual. Then we opened presents. The boys are not really into unwrapping gifts. They seemed more interested in the boxes and just running around. They received animated singing moose from Popo and Welita, and they love them. Joaquin dances whenever the moose sings "I feel good". It's quite a sight. The also received some Aggie gear from their Tia Vangie. They loved the t-shirts and the sippy cups. Actually, I think Javier loves them the most! Their halmoni (my mom) gave them a big piggy bank full of money to contribute to their college funds. It's never to early to get a headstart. We gave them a wooden xylophone and a new ball to bounce around the house. All in all, it was a quiet day, but still wonderful as we all have each other and our health.
New Year's eve was also a quiet time for our family. For lunch, we took the boys out to Golden Corral. They enjoyed the rice and pot roast and mashed potatoes. They LOVE mashed potatoes! It had been quite a long time since we went there, so it was a nice change in our routine. That evening, the boys went to bed on time and we did our usual routine things. Somehow, Javier and I managed to barely stay awake until midnight. I think I passed out at 12:02am. On new years day, a good friend of mine and her two children visited us for lunch. My mom made a traditional Korean soup and Korean style sushi. I made a cheesy broccoli and potato soup for the boys. It's one of their favorite things to eat. It was a great meal and great time spent with friends. We also decided to mark the new year by taking photos of the boys in their Korean outfits. I don't know if they have grown much since their birthdays, but the outfits seemed to fit so much better just a month later. They looked dashing in their clothes.
Today, we decided to take the boys on another outing. We drove to Raleigh which is about 2 hours away, and visited the Children's Museum. They loved playing with all the toys and other children. It's too bad we don't have a facility like that here in Jacksonville. They burned up a lot of energy, and slept almost the entire drive home.
The boys are doing great. Some friends and family have mentioned how good Joaquin looks in his photos lately. Yes, he is doing great. He continues to struggle with eczema, but we are able to keep it in check most of the time. Winter is the worst time for flare-ups, but he seems to be doing well for the most part. In some of the photos, you can see a faint bruise on his right cheek. He acquired that when we fell and hit his cheek on the coffee table. He has been eating a slightly larger variety of table foods. He loves to drink water. He is not speaking many words but he definitely knows how to say "ball". He tries to say "book" but it sounds more like "back". His favorite thing to do is play with balls and read books. He is walking well and even trying to run. He is very strong and likes to push things all around the house, including his big brother Jacob. Many friends and family and even strangers mention his long locks and ask when we plan to cut it. Well, we don't have plans to cut it. I'm not saying that we will never cut it, but for now, it's manageable and we like it. At home, we usually keep it out of his face with a clip or a hairband. When we go out, I put a little styling lotion in his hair and comb it to the side. He's so handsome. We are grooming him for his rock star image.
Jacob is doing great as well. He is walking and running around like his little brother, but he is much quicker. I think he has learned to be fast because he has to run away from his brother. Jacob is really sweet and loves to snuggle after naps and give kisses throughout the day. He loves to throw balls around the house, but his favorite thing to do is play with his many trucks. He's eating very well, almost anything from the table that we will give him. I'm in the process of weaning the boys off of breastmilk and formula and onto cow's milk. The transition is going well. I expect them to be on total cow's milk by the end of the month. Jacob can say ball, but he doesn't say much else. That isn't to say that he doesn't communicate. Both boys know how to communicate their needs and requests through a variety of grunts, yells, pointing fingers and sad eyes. Both boys are teething. Jacob has four teeth which are easy to see in one of the photos. He has his front and bottom two teeth. He loves the camera, and when he grins really wide, you can see all of his cute little white teeth. Joaquin also has four teeth right now. He has three on the bottom front row and one on top to the side. It's an interesting configuration, but I guess it doesn't matter how they come in as long as they come in. Another thing Jacob has been doing lately....... picking his nose. It's disgusting and I don't know how to make him stop. Oiy. ....but it's kinda cute too in a weird gross way. I hope he grows out of it.
The weather has been cold lately, so getting the boys out of the house is more of a challenge these days, but worth the effort. It's amazing to see how the boys are developing every day. Their personalities are so different and so wonderful. My heart swells with love and pride when I watch my boys doing mundane things and when they discover something new. Jacob is learning to climb onto things and his face is filled with pride when he succeeds. I have never felt so much happiness as I do when I look into the eyes of my child or when I kiss his chubby neck, or when they giggle with delight.
I look forward to seeing what the boys will do this year. 2010, we're ready!
