Alert Aggie

I've been having serious trouble taking newborn pictures of my own baby because at almost 2 weeks old, he is alert like THIS:

RIDICULOUS!

I was able to get a couple of cute sleeping baby shots, thankfully, for the birth announcement.  But for the most part, he never ever really fell into that DEEP sleep you need to kind of move them around for those cute newborn poses.

Instead, I have this super alert baby!  I am totally surprised, but I love this expression he makes.  He still makes it with his eyes super large and his mouth all small and super cute.  I just love this expression of his because it shows his curiosity in real life.  It's just adorable!

I know I'm pretty smitten with my 2nd.  With Michael, I was so overwhelmed and terrified.  I wouldn't exactly say I am more confident with this one.  However, I will say that I am more "present" with this one.  I'm enjoying all the moments, even through a tired stupor, knowing that this too shall pass. 

I know that during my miscarriages, I remember praying about how I wish I had enjoyed Michael more instead of feeling so overwhelmed.  For Simon, I definitely am enjoying these moments, and I'm so very thankful for them!

ONE MONTH! Pinterest-style...

One month!  One month!  Where has the time gone!

Well thanks to Pinterest, I have the great joy of creating projects like this for posterity:

Simon is probably the only 2nd child that will get to say that he has more pictures than the oldest.  

Somehow, we've made it to a month, and it's been great fun!  I've still got to blog a visit from Grammy and Grandpa, photosession with my mama, and his first outing at Walnut Springs Farm for strawberry picking.

Somethings to jot down right away:

• I don't know if it's too early, but Simon is smiling, especially when he sees his dad.  Today, he just coo-ed and laughed at Brian!  
• His hand wanders into his vision from time to time, and Simon thinks it's as good as Cheesecake Factory's tiramisu cheesecake.
• He is fascinated with his father.  He will stare and stare at Brian.  Simon also is very calm with Brian.
• Alternatively, he kind of gets wound up with me and/or my mother from time to time.  Imagine that.
• He is gaining weight well and nursing well.

Some things I want to jot down about my C-section recovery so I can remember:

• I drove today for the first time.  A full MONTH after my C-section.
• I really do need to rest and heal for two full weeks.
• I was told by the midwife at my Ob practice that I shouldn't even think about going grocery shopping and pushing a cart until THREE weeks after my C-section.  Considering I tried to do that in my first week, and then my body told me I was doing too much - I am going to believe her.
• I went shopping today for myself and went to Costco last Friday.  I felt up for this nearly a full MONTH after my C-section.
• Today, I went shopping with both kids.  NEVER again.  Simon is not nearly as easy-going a shopper as Michael.  Michael would just wake up to nurse and go back to sleep in the stroller.  Simon not so much.

Somehow I had forgotten how long the recovery took.  The only things I remember about Michael's birth recovery was that Michael was born October 17th and about 3-4 weeks later, we went to Bill/Ak's wedding.  Which meant, I had gone shopping and purchased a fancy dress for a wedding in that time!

Today, I dug out some of my old postpartum clothes.  Let's see how my 35 year old postpartum body fares with my 28 year old postpartum body!  EEK!

My mom leaves tomorrow - about a month after my C-section.  My house will never run the same again!  I could not have rested and healed without her.  She put up with my temper, my tired mood swings, and all the baggage that can come with being a daughter.  She nursed me back to health, drove me and my son around to all our things despite being out of comfort zone, and took care of my family.  There's no way our family could have made it without her!

T Minus One Week

 On May 6th or 7th, my Mommy flew in to prepare for the impending arrival of our newest little one.

She spent time hanging out with Michael:

We had lunch out:

We went to the salon for hair cuts and colors for my mom:

And we celebrated her birthday at the British Bell Tea Room, which was awesome:

If you like mini sandwiches, you'll love this place!

We went fabric shopping, and I introduced her to the fabric warehouse.  And I introduced her to this fabric I have been lusting after for my piano room:

Yes, I lust after fabric.

We spent the week buying enough food to last us through a mini-apocalpyse.  :)  

May 15, 2014

Brian already blogged many of the details of Simon's birthday, so I will try to be brief and just add comments here or there along with our horribly fuzzy cell phone pictures.  I guess I should have insisted we bring my DSLR into the operating room!

Here's my non-Asian baby:

Crazy.  Red haired and pasty skinned.  What are the odds.

Here I am post surgery:

As Brian said, they placed Simon skin to skin on me, and he found his way to "meal time."  Really awesome to see nature work on its own in that regard.

Brian proudly put the baby to sleep while I was in recovery.  He really is The Baby Whisperer:

Later that day, Brian went to fetch my mom, and Michael met his little bro:

Michael was both proud and curious:

Dad did a great job of notifying the masses - as seen here in the background:

Ba Ngoai met her 2nd grandchild:

We spent the next three days marveling at one of God's greatest gifts:

We actually had one visitor, Tony and Joen from Brian's work.  A surprise!  I told many of my friends to stay away from the hospital as it's kind of a messy affair post surgery.

We received lovely flowers both at home and in the hospital that really brightened our day:

But in the end, it was this little guy's arrival that made our year:

Simon started out quite calm.  Unusually so.  On the 2nd day, he was circumcised, which made for a rough day/night.

All in all, we had forgotten what it is like to have a "baby."

There was one night where Simon was crying pretty wildly, and we eventually found out he had a dirty diaper from one of the nurses.  Oops.  Brian and I still maintain that he did not dirty that diaper until right before that nurse saw him because we checked.  

Then, there was the night the nurse said to us:  "Well, you both will have to take turns sleeping and the other will take care of the baby."

Really.

We had forgotten that part.

Two of our nurses happened to go to our church in the "middle of nowhere."  We had to meet at Christiana Hospital in Newark to find out about each other.  Then, I immediately felt pretty embarrassed at all the mess they saw of me.  I better clean up well for church next time.

Some of you may be wondering why we named him Simon Matthew.

Simon Besancon was the first Besancon to come over from Besancon, France to settle in Ohio.  I guess we felt a little compelled to honor that thought as we did something similar, but in reverse.  We went to France, and we had a pretty cush gig to explore a foreign country.

But we get it.  We get what it means to uproot your whole family and live in a foreign land where you don't know the language, and you don't have any any family.  It takes bravery and maybe a little stupidity to do it.

And it was the only name Brian and I could agree on.

Matthew, as suggested by my SIL Kelli, because that's Brian's middle name.  This kid came out with red hair, looking like his dad with his dad's complexion.  I felt compelled to honor that bit of randomness.

And also because I had no better option as well for middle names.

You could call us super prepared to have a baby.  :)

Now, IF we have a third child and IF it's a girl - I'm totally ready.  Got a name for her and everything.

So yes, it's nearly two weeks later and I need to write down what happened that day.  Before it's lost in the folds of newborn amnesia.  

We've been enjoying our two sleepless weeks.  I stare into that wide awake newborn face at 3am, and I'm just filled with thanksgiving.  We waited for 4 years for Simon, and we are ever grateful he is a part of our family.  

More to come later.  Everyone's been taking pictures!  I have taken some too, but it's not my best stuff. Plus somehow, I have the most alert newborn there ever was.  Already a tough client!  :)

Simon Besancon. Welcome!

On May 15, 2014, we headed in early to Christiana Hospital in Newark, Delaware for the birth of our second son!  The staff were great, made Phuong feel as relaxed as possible and performed the c-section quickly and efficiently.  I wised up from the c-section of Michael and didn't watch the extraction from Phuong's belly. I didn't watch Aliens to remind myself of how the process went.  I didn't have to, it was embedded in my memories. So I focused all my energies on comforting Phuong, who was a little scared of course!

At 9:23am, you can imagine our surprise when we heard the medical staff, all 19 of them it seemed like, laughing and saying "red hair! He has red hair!"  We were like what, that's a half Asian baby!  But there he was with strawberry blond reddish hair like the color of Brian's beard.

He's been great so far.  He started rooting around when they laid him next to Phuong, and he quickly made a tight latch. A far cry from Michael who's instincts were far less evident.

In many ways, this baby was so much easier. Phuong didn't have the stress of what felt like 139 hours of labor before going into surgery. So we were much fresher afterwards to take care of him. The experience of having Michael was actually helpful as we knew what to expect, although I don't necessarily remember everything. And Simon is much better behaved little baby; he kind of looks around curiously and is probably the calmest baby in the nation. Plus he knows how to nurse of his own accord which makes life easier for everyone.

He slept a lot yesterday and today he nursed a lot, every hour, before he got gas and poop and cried for an hour.

One great difference in seven years, besides all the medical rules changing (and doctors wonder why they can't be trusted!), is smart phones. We communicated to family and friends through WhatsApp and Touch with pictures and videos.  That was great for keeping everyone concerned up to date.

I picked up Vannah and Michael from home and brought them up to the hospital. They had a great time looking at the baby and they both got to hold him. Michael mostly watched Sponge Bob on the TV but did hold the baby a bit too. He's going to be a great big brother!

I still can't believe that red hair.  How did those dominant Asian genes get overpowered?

Saturday, May 3 - Little League Game

Well, I rarely ever have my professional camera at our family events because it's big, heavy, and I am paranoid about keeping track of it!  I usually have my 7 year old DSLR, which I love, but it's not "fancy."  :)

Michael and Brian had to leave First Communion portraits early because Michael had a ball game at 2pm.  So I tore down my studio setup all by myself, loaded it in my car, and hightailed it to Michael's ball game so I wouldn't miss it!

I was motivated.  :)

AND I was so glad I had my fancy camera!  Here's Michael up to bat:

I need to get that boy some longer baseball socks and a belt.

Here he is, about to hit the ball!  See if you can see the ball:

 He got it!  Off to first base!

And he made it!!!

I normally take pictures at his first ball game of the season, but I didn't this time because it was nearly dusk.  I wish I had taken a picture of his first at bat because he did hit the ball well!

And he ran well.

Until he almost got to first.  

Then he stumbled, tripped over his own feet somehow and was on his stomach to the right of first base.  Which is hilarious in and of itself because it was definitely very clumsy looking!

He is face down, and then you see his little left hand pop out.  Pat all over the ground, searching for first base.  At last, he finds it, touches it, and is safe.

It was a riot.  Everyone in the stands was laughing.  Michael came back and said, "Mom, I was safe.  But I had dirt all in my mouth."

So it would seem.  

First Communion Portraits

Saturday, May 3, 2014, I took First Holy Communion portraits for our church.

I really love being a part of Confirmation and First Holy Communion and recording that day for the families of our parish.  I love it so much that I did it at 37.5 weeks pregnant!  I love seeing all the families celebrating with their kids and seeing all the children dressed up.  It truly is a joy, and it makes me so very excited for Michael's turn!

Brian, thankfully, helped me with setup and talking to the customers.  I don't think I could have done it without him!  He made sure I was fed all day, which was very welcome!

Anyways, to meter and set up for the day, I thought I'd grab some "studio" family portraits.  So here we are!!

Michael being handsome:

So proud to be his mama!  And to be able to smooth over skin imperfections in photoshop!  :)

 Practicing for his big day next year:

 My guys, humoring me:

And last but not least, my 37.5 week belly and "full" face:

My hair is all in my face, and I'm all round and rotund.  But I love Michael's face in this picture, and I love how it celebrates the joy we've had as I've been growing as "Big Momma."  I can't play baseball or basketball or wall ball or run at all, but Michael has been such a great sport as we wait for our next little one.

I know "Plank" or "Lothar" (as we've been calling him) will be his own little person with his own little personality, and we will love him as much as we love Michael.  But boy-oh-boy he's a lucky little guy to have a big brother as awesome as our Michael.

Father's Day: June 16, 2013

In 2013, Brian decided to treat himself to a man-toy for Father's Day:

He's loved it.  He's used it about 3 times on the house and about 30 times at a safe distance on Michael. :)

Billy happened to be in the area for work, so we took him to our fav Mexican place, Mi Cocina.  Here's two dads sharing a molcajete:

Best described as a Mexican vat of deliciousness.  There's cheese and cream and Mexican sausage and Mexican meat and Mexican spices and Mexican green onions and various other delicious Mexican things that I don't know.  Made my carnitas not seem nearly as exciting.

Michael got in on the picture too:

Michael gets chicken tenders and rice when he goes to Mi Cocina.  He's not a fan of Mexican food.  LOL.

Somehow, I stole Brian's cup of horchata, a delicious Mexican rice milk sweet drink.  Shout out goes to our friends the McNiehs, in Austin, for introducing us to a nectar of the gods.

First Track Meet: Sunday, March 23, 2014

On March 23, 2014, Michael had his first practice track meet at Bishop Shanahan High School.  Michael loves running as a "Pee Wee" in track, and we love socializing with the parents in the stands while he runs!  :)

Here's Michael, all business, for the 200m:

This is where the kid cut into his lane, which really threw Michael for a loop:

He couldn't ever get around the kid, and Michael ended up with a 20.74 second 200m run.

Last year, Michael's worst race was the 800m.  It was just too long!  He would skip, talk to his friends/etc.

Not this year:

There's Michael pulling in the lead.

Here he is in the lead after the first quarter lap:

This is where my neighbor, Kelly, said, "Hurry!  Take the picture while he's still in the lead and before he stops running because he's tired!"

Michael, still in the lead, finishing up the 2nd lap and 800m:

Michael with Daddy after finishing 1st in the 800m!!

CRAZY!

This track meet was smaller than most.  Only about half the schools were there, but we'll take it!  Can't wait to see how he does when there are twice as many runners.

He's doing very well with his sports, but his school assessment folders have been less than stellar.  I have a teacher/parent conference scheduled and will be asking lots of questions!  One of which I wonder if he is involved in too many extracurricular activities.  We have lots of practices, but we have it down pretty well this year since we had the same last year.

But last year, he did fine in school!  I'm going to say that all the snow days led to less practice, which led to a not so great performance on his assessment tests.  :(  But I will find out what's going on!  In the end, I need to do more at home for him.  I've kind of let the teachers do the teaching, but I can see now that I need to be much more involved with teaching him the material at home, including the material for the next lessons.  I used to be very on top of all that stuff through Kindergarten, and this has shown me that I have really slacked off in that regard!

June 10, 2013

Pity me, many years from now as I go back through my blog and find 2014 and 2013 all jumbled in together.  :)

On Sunday, Grammy drove Michael home from Giggleberry Farm (I think that's what that's called!).  It was a children's amusement park, which Michael loved!

On Monday, we got Grammy all ready to go back to TX!  However, not after popping into Valley Forge!!!

It was opening day of the red trolley tour, so we took it.  In the drizzling rain.  I "high-tailed" it there to make it in time for the first tour, and we made it!

The tour was informative and let us explore different areas of the encampment.  Here's Michael with Grammy at the log cabins:

And pretending to be a solider: 

Because I'm writing about this nearly an entire year later, I can't remember what we learned.  All I remember is that it was raining; we barely made it for the tour; and we saw log cabins and some command center house.  And this was a training camp.  And you could fit about 8 guys in one log cabin.  And that it was a good place for a training camp because you had the mountains to your back, protecting you on that side, and a river somewhere protecting you from another side.  Or at least I think.

Basketball in da house! On Valentine's 2014

This winter, Michael signed up for basketball with the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) sports!

HE LOVED IT.

Michael started out not knowing how to barely dribble, and now, he's pretty good!  His last game, he had a breakaway moment and scored a 2 pt lay-up.  The second to last game he played, he scored all 8 of his team's points.  Pictures for that next!  :)

I have NO idea if that's the "right" terminology or not.  I'm sure Brian will make good fun of me.  Like the day I accidentally called the basketball "court" the "field."

Well, I am also the school CYO sports photographer.  I scheduled a session with a team on Valentine's Day, and Michael stayed after school with me. 

This is a lot of what I take for sports pictures:

Not exactly inspiring, but it's sports pictures!  It gets the point across!  We play hoops, and we love God.

After school, Michael played some hoops in his school uniform:

And he acted silly:

And he acted so very cute:

And he acted so very Michael:

And his "Big Momma" is so proud of him.  He gives his all and does his best, and you can see the determination in his face when he's playing.  He brings joy and dedication to whatever interests him, and we could not be more proud of who he is growing up to be!

Saturday, June 8, 2014: Weddin' Time

The plan for Grammy's visit was for Grammy to take Michael to Sesame Place, a Sesame Street themed amusement park, while Brian and I went to Doylestown for his grad school friend's (Jason Cheung), wedding.

Sesame Place is literally 30 minutes away from Doylestown.  We sure do know how to get away!  LOL.

As a result of logistics, I drove Grammy, Michael and I to Sesame Place and got them checked into their hotel across the street.  Brian met us at that hotel since it was on the way to Doylestown!

Friday night - check!  :)

Brian fetched me and off we went to be a young couple again!

We started Saturday exploring quaint downtown Doylestown.  We walked around, poked into some shops and met our friends for lunch at a bar downtown.  It was cute and quaint, like all small towns in PA.  But nothing to really write home about.  Like most small towns in PA.

In the afternoon, we prepped ourselves for the wedding!  Here's us waiting for the wedding to start:

Still love that man since 1999 in College Station, TX.  Isn't he still so handsome?  I think so!  And he's FUNNY!

I only took my smart phone with me for the weekend.  I was on vacation.  :)

They had their wedding at the James A. Michener Art Museum:

Funny story - when they booked the wedding, the museum had a great exhibit of landscapes going on.

On the actual wedding day, it was an exhibit of nude paintings/sculptures.

Couple's First Kiss:

The reception was tres chic:

They had a live band, and it was AWESOME!!!  I'm totally converted!  If Brian and I ever have a renewal of vows party, we are having a live band.  

I love going to weddings of couples in our 30's (or late 20's).  I always feel like the weddings are more stylish and thought out.  This wedding was BEAUTIFUL.  The food was delicious, the decor classy, and the entertainment spot on.  I know in my 20's, I was kind of all over the place in that regard.  Now, in my 30's, I have a better idea of what I like and what I don't!

The best man, JD, gave probably the second-most awesome best man speech I have heard (second to John's at our wedding where he opened with Brian chasing him around with a kitchen knife).

Some highlights from it:

"One of Cheung's best gifts to Sharla is his sense of optimism and humor, which is a good thing, because if you know Cheung, spending money is not his thing.  You see those two tables full of his friends there laughing?  They know what I'm talking about."

"Cheung is a great mix of my grandmothers.  My one looks at me and says, "JD, make sure you have FUN." and the other one says, "JD, make sure you wear your seatbelt when you're driving."

JD is currently living in LA trying to make it in stand-up comedy.  We were thoroughly entertained with his delivery, timing, and wit of his speech!

Brian and I had a fantastic time, dining on the delicious food and drinking from the open bar!!!!  I had something called a Bay Breeze.  And then I had more of them and never looked back.  

We danced, we sang, and we enjoyed ourselves.  It was a fantastic time.

The wedding finished with sparklers:

Oh - I forgot to add - one of the COOLEST details from their wedding.  Because they had an open bar, they provided transportation from the hotel to the wedding site - A BIG YELLOW SCHOOL BUS.

IT WAS AWESOME!!  We rode with this group of older guests, who were a RIOT.  When I finally got on the bus, they yelled, "FINALLY!  ONE OF THE YOUNG PEOPLE!"

On the way back, they regaled us with a hilarious version of spiritual music.  Watch the whole thing.  It's worth it:

*insert funny video here.  Blogger had trouble uploading for some reason.  Will try again later.*

We went back to the hotel and got into some comfortable clothes.  We stayed up drinking, talking and living old memories with our old Austin friends.  We laughed a lot.  

I think that makes for a pretty awesome date. :)