It's almost the end of March already

Yikes. We've almost been in Colorado a month now. Holy cow! I'm rather proud of the fact that I've almost made it through my first month. I know some people were betting I'd be back in Cali by now. Ha ha.

Well, lots has gone on this past week. We had a really nice Easter. Kristi, Barb and I made dinner, which was interesting with that many people cooking in one kitchen. Yes, it's a big kitchen, but it still only has two ovens and 4 stove burners. We got it all worked out though. I called home that day to talk with mom, Michael, and Lisa. After I got off the phone, I was super sad and missed being with my family. I hate being away from them on holidays. That's going to be the toughest part of moving away. So I was sad most of Sunday and Monday because I just wanted to be with my family more than anything. I also got sad on Monday because I miss my friends. I haven't made any new friends, which really hit me on Monday.

To help me venture out and meet some new people, Tuesday I decided to check out this exercise class called Fit Moms. You see, Highlands Ranch has 4 recreation centers that residents can use. They offer the usual things you'd find at a gym, plus lots of extra classes (meaning they cost you a little extra). The class sounded perfect because moms can bring their infants up to 18 months and leave them in their strollers while they work out. Tuesday I went to my first class and totally had a great time. Two of the moms came right up and introduced themselves. This surprised me because I've taken exercise classes in the past and hardly anybody ever talked to me in them. I usually had to start a conversation. Needless to say, I felt very welcome at this class. At the end, the one mom, Laura, told me about a mom's club that she started and gave me the website to check out. That afternoon I signed up because this group sounded like the perfect fit for me and it's a great way for me to meet some new people. I thought it would be hard to join such a group, but this one sounds like a ton of fun. Laura is cute and quirky, so I know I'm going to hit it off with her. Some of the fun events she's organizing for this group are Oatmeal Cookie exchange, Scrapbooking Night, and Playdate with Bubbles. How fun! I ended up posting a message on the message board asking for referrals for pediatricians, dentists, etc. Thank goodness I did.

Wednesday I noticed Inara was acting a little different than usual. She wasn't super cranky or anything, but mom instant told me something was going on. By Thursday night, I could tell she was getting a cold. I slept in her room that night just to help her out a bit more. She pretty much woke up every 30-40 minutes having a difficult time breathing. I felt so horrible!!! I hate seeing my baby girl sick. I've decided it's gotta be one of the worst feelings as a mom to see your child sick. So Friday morning I called one of the doctors that was recommended to me. His name is Dr. Katz and I already love him. He's super nice and took the time to talk to me for quite a bit. I'm so glad I took her in. She was diagnosed with an upper respiratory infection, which he said was doctor speak for a cold. Dr. Katz said her ears looked fine and her breathing wasn't that congested. He gave me a few suggestions on what to do since I can't give her medicine because she's too young. We've already been using the humidifier for a few weeks now. I picked up Little Noses, which is a salt-water type solution to help clear out her nose. It's already worked wonders. She's definitely on the mend. The bad news is Shawn and I have been feeling lousy now. Shawn's actually worse off than I am. I've got a killer sore throat. He's got the full on head cold with a non-stop runny nose, cough, the works. Looks like this weekend is going to be all about resting at home, which is actually fine by me. It gives me time to catch up on TV shows. Ha ha.

Some good news to share with everyone: our good friends Greg and Tracy Saiki found out they are having a baby girl! I know they both were really hoping for a girl, especially Greg who comes from a family with 4 boys and 2 nephews (1 is on the way). So congrats to them! I can't wait for Inara and Kate to be best friends!

Happy Spring Everyone!!! I love you all!!!

For BSG Fans

Here is the Top 10 List from David Letterman with the cast of Battlestar Galactica in case you didn't see it.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YatjlSJNRHM&fmt=8

What's up?

Sorry for the lapse in writing. Gonna try to catch up as much as possible before the little one starts crying. Had a fairly busy week trying to finish unpacking everything. Bedrooms are pretty good at this point. I even have family pics up, so our bedroom and Inara's room are feeling a lot more homey now. Even got some of the office set up and our living room set-up is almost complete. We've got to figure out how to make our DVD stands more stable so Avery doesn't pull one over again. I wasn't here when it happened, but I was told it was a pretty loud crash when she toppled one of the stands over. Jacked because I had just alphabetized the rack too. We finally got cable hooked up and our DVRs so now we can start recording our shows. I'm bummed that I've missed the first couple eps of Top Chef already. Even worse, I missed the finale of Project Runway. I'm hoping they will re-air it soon so I can catch it. We bought the third season of Battlestar Galactica on DVD, so Shawn and I are watching those as fast as possible before the new season starts on April 6th. I swear this is one of the best TV shows ever. 4 eps in and I'm already hooked again and can't wait to get through the remaining 16 before the final season. The good part about having another tv set up in the house is I won't have to watch Dancing with the Stars. Lately, most nights Shawn and I play on the computer, watch a movie, or work on projects since we tend to watch different shows than others in the house and we don't have cable hooked up in our bedroom. That's a crime, I know.

Thursday night I went out with Kristi to play Bunko. She was invited to join a group through a friend of hers here in Golden and they needed a sub, so I played. It's a super easy game. Heck, anything is easy compared to Mah Jongg, which I love. It was fun to get out and meet a few women around my age. One lady I met had a super sad story about her 7 week old daughter Claire. To condense a long story, this poor little thing was born with eye problems and has already undergone one eye surgery. The doctors aren't sure if she'll be blind in her left eye but are optimistic about her right eye having some vision. I felt so bad for this mom. I can't imagine going through something so difficult with a child at such a young age. It made my few problems seem miniscule to what she's going through. It was a reminder why I have soooo much to be grateful for.

So far things in the house have been rather peaceful. I've had some great conversations with Barb and Ed and have learned more about their families. We even had an interesting talk about how easy-going Shawn was as a child. No real surprise considering how mellow he is now. They agreed that Shawn was the easiest child but there were times that they weren't even sure he was around because he was so quiet. Too funny. The biggest challenge in the house has been learning what it means to raise a 2+ year old. Avery is a smart cookie, but she definitely has had some challenges lately, particularly aggression and pushing others. I'm grateful it hasn't been me or Inara more importantly, but I know it's been tough for Kristi lately because she's been on the opposite end of the push a few times. This is all good training for me, but it reminds me why I always said I wanted to skip the early years of parenting because they definitely seem to be some of the hardest. Of course, that is until the girls get to be teenagers. Now that's the age I'm least looking forward to. Well, off to eat lunch before baby wakes. I love meals with peace and quiet. Ha ha.

Happy 6 Month Birthday Inara

Baby girl is 6 months old! Holy Cow! So much has happened lately, so let me get right to it. First off, on Feb. 29th I took Inara to her last pediatrician appointment before the move. Our doctor said it wouldn't be a problem if we scheduled her 6 month visit 2 weeks early. At this visit, Inara weighed in at 15 pounds 7 ounces and measured 24 1/2 inches. She also got a few more shots. This was the worst crying fit Inara has had with shots. I'm guessing it's because she's getting older and pain is starting to register more with her. I felt so bad. Good thing my mom went with me to calm me down.

We've had some monumental events happen this week. On Wednesday, Inara visited her first library. Kristi and Avery invited us to a storytime, which I thought would be lots of fun. It was Inara's first storytime and first trip to a library. I must say Highlands Ranch library is beautiful. The children's department is rather large. The librarian who did storytime was cute and a great reader. Since this was my first storytime at a library, I was unfamiliar with the songs the group sang. Kristi said a lot of them they had learned at the Rossmoor library, so she's going to teach them to me. While there, I picked up a schedule of events. I got to thinking I should find a good book group I could join at a library or a B&N as this might be a good way to meet some people. Plus, it will be a good excuse for me to set time aside to read, which isn't a bad thing since we don't have cable in our bedroom and regular stations don't come in very well. Besides, I really miss reading for myself. I read to Inara quite frequently, but it's just not the same.

For the past week, Inara has been super restless at night. I think one night Shawn and I got up 10 times to turn her crib aquarium on and give her the pacifier. It's been a rather rough week for the two of us. One night she wanted to be held, so Shawn slept with her in his arms for half an hour and I got her to sleep on me for 2 and 1/2 hours. Yes, it's been a rough one. It's hard to say what was wrong. She's teething really bad, so that's always the first thing I blame. It could also be her adjusting to a new environment and the higher elevation. Also, we all wake up with stuffy noses lately, and I've noticed Inara's had bad boogies, so I thought maybe she's having a hard time breathing at night and that's bothering her. Well, I remembered we got a humidifier for a shower gift, so I found it and broke that puppy out. Let me tell you it's a godsend. Two nights in a row Inara has now slept straight through. I don't know if it's the humidifier that she likes best or the soft noise of the fan going. I know she was waking up when the aquarium would turn off, so the white noise of the fan in the humidifier might be what helps her sleep. Either way, I love the darn thing!

Since today was Inara's 6 month birthday, I decided it was time to try rice cereal at her first feeding. Shawn held her on his lap since she's still a bit wobbly sitting up by herself . I was curious if she'd be ready for mastering a spoon and was pleasantly surprised to see her take to it after the first couple bites. It was so cute watching her figure out what to do when she saw the spoon. Before you knew it, she was opening her mouth super wide and kept most of the rice cereal in her mouth. She got a bit on her hands when she grabbed for the spoon and I, of course, made some of the mess trying to get the spoon in her mouth. But overall, her first experience with solid food was a success!

Then this afternoon we went to JCPenney's for our appointment to get Inara's 6 month picture taken. I figured it would be a good excuse to get some Easter/Spring pics taken. Besides, I bought her a super cute dress to wear for Easter, so this would mean she would have to wear it at least two times. Hey, I'm all about getting as many uses out of an outfit as I can. If we're invited to any special dinners or outings in the next couple weeks, she's going to wear this outfit then too. I hate the idea of buying a holiday outfit that she will only wear once. It seems like such a waste of money. Anyhow, Inara did so great at the photo session today. I was worried that she might cry with the photographer because of her stranger anxiety, but Inara seems to be getting over that. She did so well with the photographer today and we got some adorable pics of her smiling. Funny thing is the best ones were of her laying on her tummy. This is surprising because she generally doesn't like to be on her tummy for very long, but today must have been an exception. Originally, I was only planning on buying 3 or 4 8x10s, but once we saw how cute the pics came out, Shawn was all about buying a package so we could get a good assortment of pics to share with family and friends. I'll get them in two weeks and will mail them out to people after that. I'm also hoping I can use Thane's scanner so I can post them to the website too. I'll let you all know when I do get them up on phanfare. I also took pics of Inara at the library and her eating rice cereal this morning. As soon as Shawn transfers them to my computer, I'll post them for you all to see. Happy 6 month birthday, Inara Grace!

The Tomasellis have had enough bad news to last us the whole year

I forgot to mention the other bad things that have happened with the fam lately. Last Tuesday my cousin Kim ended up having to go to the hospital because her morning sickness was so bad that she became dehydrated and needed and IV to get better. Then my 94 year old uncle Jess fell and broke his hip, so he had surgery on that at the end of last week. And yesterday my mom called to tell me she is pretty sure she broke her little toe tripping on her suitcase when she got home from the airport. Oi vey! I swear our family is due for some good news.

As for the new CO home, things are alright here. We get the third and final moving trailer today, which has most of my and Shawn's stuff on it. We will be so happy to get the rest of our stuff so we can start making things a bit more homey for us. Once we get all settled in, I'll take pics of the new house and post them for all to see. I think baby is up from her nap, so I gotta cut it short.

More on my Uncle Vance

Here is an article from the San Bernardino Sun on my uncle's memorial.

http://www.sbsun.com/sanbernardino/ci_8469689?source=email



Also, Shawn posted the pictures I took at the service on http://www.shawnandmarisa.com/. Click on Photo Gallery near the top of the screen.



I was in complete awe of the service Wednesday. My uncle would have probably been a bit embarrassed by how big everything was. They even shut down the freeway for the funeral procession which seemed to go for miles. The service itself was so beautiful with various fire chiefs, captains, etc. speaking. Everyone had wonderful things to say about the dedication and passion Vance had for his role as a firefighter. My cousins did so well, better than I think I could have. Caryn even got up and spoke at the service. I told her there was no way I could have done that. She's amazingly strong. She's definitely a Tomaselli woman. I was completely taken aback when the helicopters flew overhead with one veering off to the right as a symbol of a lost firefighter. That was really hard to watch. Of course, I cried through most of the day. I had to take Inara out of the church a couple times when she started getting a little cranky. I was able to get her to sleep, which was rough because I was holding her in an awkward position and couldn't reach my kleenex. Oh well. I just let the tears flow. The slide show they did really got me because there were pics of Nana and Paka which made me super sad. I miss them SOOO much!!! It's hard to imagine my uncle now being gone. Like I keep saying, I hate growing up because life gets harder and harder. Oh if I could only stay a kid. Ha ha. One last bit of sad news: my uncle's house was broken into some time on Wed. The police are guessing it was probably during the morning when the service was held. The burglars stole a big jar of change and two chainsaws. My cousins haven't figured out what else was missing yet. You know, it just goes to show how crappy people can be. My poor cousins have been through enough these past two weeks and now to deal with this. I just keep telling myself what does not kill me only makes me stronger. Ain't that the truth?

Quick update

Inara, Mom and I made it to Colorado this afternoon. Hooray we survived. Our flight was good. Inara did very well in my opinion given it was her first plane ride. I carried her in the Baby Bjorn at John Wayne, and she fell asleep before we boarded. Sweet! Then she woke up right before take off so I gave her a bottle, which was what the doctor recommended to help her ears adjust. Inara played with mom and I for a bit, then fell asleep and took a 40 minute nap. When she woke, she was cranky but we were able to distract her for a bit and ended up giving her another bottle as we were landing. Overall, she did really well. I was a bit worried about my mom, however, because she was scared during the turbulence. I hope she can make the flight home by herself. What a great mom to say she can help us out and fly home alone. Shawn and Barb picked the 3 of us up at the airport. The weather is cold but not miserably unbearable or anything. The house looks great. Inara's room is bigger than her old room, and our room is a great size and fits all our furniture. I was walking into our room and was a bit cold, walked to my side of the bed, and was shocked by the heat rush. I looked up and was so thrilled to see the vent above my side of the bed...AWESOME!!!! Overall, the house is a good size. It's a mess but that's to be expected with all the unloading we need to do. The first trailer was emptied, so we have our beds up. The next trailer comes tomorrow and I think the third comes on Monday. Wish us luck that nobody gets injured. Speaking of injury, Inara's crib was banged up a bit in the move, so I'm looking forward to Pop coming to visit so he can work his magic and fix it up. I have pics from yesterday's funeral, which I know a lot of people want to see, so Shawn will post them soon, but he has to get his desktop set up first. I'll write more about the house and moving and everything this weekend.

San Bernardino Sun article on Uncle Vance

Here is a link to the article from today's San Bernardino Sun with 51 photos.
http://www.sbsun.com/ci_8464801

I think I need to have my head checked

These past couple weeks have really proven how strong of a person I am. I seriously can't believe I haven't been carted off in a straight jacket or for me to be seen running crazy in the streets on the 6 o'clock news. I can say I don't remember when I was this emotionally and physically exhausted. This will be one long blog so sit back, relax and enjoy my misery.

The roller coaster started on the 16th with our going away party and my uncle having a stroke. Of course none of us would have ever predicted something so tragic happening to my family, which has made my move even harder. I hate the thought of leaving my parents and the possibility of something bad happening to them as I'm a thousand miles away. Like I said, this has been an emotional couple of weeks for me. As many of you already know, Uncle Vance passed away on the 23rd. That's the same day that Shawn came home from his soccer game with a super swollen ankle. We went to the doctor Friday morning when we were told he had broken his right ankle. This threw me into a major head spin as I had to then figure out how I was going to finish packing and getting ready for the move all on my own. I don't know if others fully understand what I was going through, especially given some comments I've heard the past week. But this has seriously been one of the most challenging experiences of my life for so many reasons and made me question (and yes, regret) the move in the first place. I really need to have my head checked for getting into this whole mess to begin with. And while I know there are probably a million people out there who would trade life problems with me in a sec, I still think I deserve the right to express my feelings about this past week. The good news is I have survived phase one, which has made me realize how strong of a woman I am. Also, I think this has proven how much I love Shawn. But he has definitely used all of his get out of jail free cards in my opinion. He owes me BIG TIME!!! Of course, I also did it with the help of my parents. I had already planned ahead and had asked my mom to watch Inara the week we were moving so that I would be able to help with loading the moving vans. With Shawn laid up, this made for a perfect reason for my mom to watch Inara for the full week instead, but now she also had to tend to my other child, Shawn. My parents are truly the two greatest people in my life!!!

Onto the moving days. The first trailer arrived Tuesday morning at Barb & Ed's. This is when the real headache began. (Some details have been edited to protect the guilty. Ha ha.) I did as much as I could do that day and then headed back to my place to get through as much of the packing I still had left. Wednesday morning I had to take Shawn back to the doctor for his follow-up and we thought to get his cast on. When the nurse took the splint off, we were shocked to see Shawn's ankle still so swollen. No way were they putting a cast on yet. He had to get another splint and was told to keep his foot elevated no exceptions so the swelling could go down and perhaps he would get a cast on Friday. This whole uncertainty kept my nerves on edge. By this time, Pop had already decided he'd drive our CRV to Colorado since Shawn was obviously not going to be able to drive. True, our friend Jason was already driving out with the Tomlinson caravan but he was the extra person to help relieve everyone else when they needed a break, so my dad graciously said it wouldn't be a problem for him to drive. Shawn and I just felt horrible though because this meant him having to get a hotel room and a one-way ticket back to CA. We would rather he spent this money on a plane ticket to come visit us, but he really wanted to help us all out, so he took off for Colorado yesterday.

So back to the loading of the trucks. Thane and Kristi's house was loaded on Wed. I've got to say Thane is one hell of a guy! He has been running on minimal sleep for the past few weeks already and then had to do a good majority of the loading of the trailers all three days. I don't know how he's still surviving at this point but he is. What a trooper! I don't know if Thane gets enough respect, so I'm giving him a huge shout out here because I can tell you none of this would have ever been finished if it weren't for him and his work-horse mentality. He definitely deserves some special award in my opinion. Our other two saviours in all this mess are Jason Turnbaugh and Chris Weilert, who both worked their butts off packing up our trailers and got minimal sleep for several days. I cannot thank them enough. Also, to my dearest friend Elizabeth, who might not be Might Mouse but definitely showed her strength by working up a sweat two days. Thank you so much!!!

Thursday was finally the loading of our stuff in HB. But what we had to do was load everything in a U-Haul and then unload it back at Thane's house and put it into the moving trailer. It was FINALLY agreed upon that we would need a third trailer because there was no way humanly possible we were going to get all three families' stuff into two 28 foot trailers. Hello!!! That's what I had been saying all along, but nobody listens to the woman. Trust me. I knew how much stuff I had and was 100% positive after seeing the other two families' trailers on Tue and Wed that we were absolutely going to need a 3rd. Again, who listens to the woman though? I'm just glad I made a bet with Thane and now I get a free dinner on him. Yay me!!! I'm soooo very happy that the 3 trailers are now loaded and on their way to Colorado. The sad part is we then have to unload all three of the damn monsters and with fewer helping hands. I'm so depressed thinking about that already. Onto some good news.

I took Shawn to the doctor at 9am yesterday to get another X-Ray and then off to an MRI at 10:30. The problem is that the doctors were confused by the broken bone they saw in the xray and the swelling and pain that Shawn was experiencing on the opposite side of his ankle. The final decision is that the broken bone must be from a previous injury and this last injury he suffered from torn ligaments. He was fitted with a soft cast at about 3pm. I took Inara to her last pediatrician appointment at 4. (More about this in another blog.) Anyhow, Shawn decided he was going to join the caravan as they headed out last night. I just hope he's following doctor's orders and keeping his foot elevated. Like I said, it's been one crazy week. I'm so looking forward to the next couple of days hanging out with my parents and Inara, who I wasn't able to spend much time with this past week. My new rule is I'm not going to think about Colorado until next Thursday. I seriously need a break from this whole moving fiasco.