time with my parents!

Tita and Jaja came up last weekend and we had such a great time with them! We always do! Makenzie was in heaven! They started a tradition that every time they come up they take her to the toy store and then out to dinner. Makenzie calls it her "date with Jaja and Tita!". She loves the extra special attention. And I have to say a VERY BIG thank you for all the dishes that were washed, laundry done and kitchen cleaned! But mostly we just enjoyed spending time with you guys...We love just sitting around with my parents and talking about old stories and memories...Love you guys! :)
Here are a few pics from the weekend...
Happy Zach!

Jaja talking with Zach!

Leaving for their date!

special moments

Special moments happen all the time and tonight the thought came to mind during yet another special moment...why don't I write them down?! So today is a new day...I am starting a special moments journal. A journal my great friend Jenny gave me for my B-day...thanks Jenny! And you thought I wouldn't have time to journal with 2 kids! LOL! :) I encourage everyone to keep a special moments journal...I know so many special things happen and at the moment we think we will never forget it but days go by, even years and the memories drift away...maybe it is just me with a terrible memory?...

Our special moment tonight:
I bought Gary the DVD "Celtic woman" (we love Celtic music!...don't judge unless you have listened to it! It really is AMAZING!) and we were watching it tonight after dinner with the kids. They sang a song called "The Prayer" a very famous song that we played at our wedding made famous by Andrea Bocelli...it was so special to be sitting listening to a song from our wedding with our babies...full circle I guess you could say.

more good news!

More good news about Zach! We went and met with his Dr. this afternoon...wow a detailed woman! As you all know I can be such the question asker (Gary says some times I ask questions like a machine gun!) and she answered every question no hesitation! She was with us for almost an hour...our insurance must pay her well! :) Basically we have nothing to worry about with his breathing at this point...he most likely has a condition called esophageal malaysia...the flaps on his esophagus are still soft and over time (a few months or so) they will harden and be normal and cause no further issue. THANK GOD! The other options were not at all good ones...so needless to say we are so THANKFUL! The Dr. examined him again today and she actually thought she saw an improvement from last week too! And he gained another 10oz! Okay enough computer for 1 day for me...off to clean my kitchen and hang out with my hubby! :)

both kids napping!

What to do when both kids are napping?...laundry, bills, clean...nah...blog! :)

I know my last blog was a bit heavy...sorry! I have to tell you just how AMAZING my hubby is! So this week as you know was a long hard week for me...Especially Tuesday when Zach had to have that test done...and then the waiting for the results! So Tuesday afternoon Gary surprised me told me he was going to take all of Wednesday off to lighten my load a bit...so sweet! We were going to go to the City but decided it was probably best to stay home so I could rest a bit. I was able to take 2 cat-naps yesterday! Yes, 2! Gary played with Mak all day, cooked all 3 meals for us and did laundry! My hot little house hubby!:) I was so grateful for the rest! I think you should take off every Wednesday Gary! ;) Yes, now I am dreaming...

no words to express...

Wow this was a long week...I know my posts are usually pretty upbeat and happy because that is usually how my life is...but this week is HARD!

Let me start with I HATE CANCER! They call it the kind killer because you have time to say goodbye to your loved ones but I disagree...It is just a torturous time of not knowing how long you have with that loved one while they are going through it.
A very dear friend of ours passed away this week from pancreatic cancer...it was a hard battle on both him and his wife...please pray for his wife Carole. I CAN'T imagine how hard this is on her...Her husband Don was a wonderful, kind, caring and wise man. Don and Carole were actually one of our 1st friends here in Los Altos...they were our neighbors at our last house. We haven't told Makenzie yet...she really took to both Don and Carole and she talks about them all the time. She knows Don was sick because we would always pray for him, she says "soon Don will feel much much better!".

And I just got a phone call from one of my best friends, Larra...her husband's mother passed away this AM of pancreatic cancer! Please keep Joel and Larra in your prayers as well...tough times. I can't imagine how hard it is to lose your mother...Joel and his mom had such a wonderful and close relationship...really very inspiring as a mother. I never had the privilege to get to know his mom but know she was a remarkable woman by the son she raised!

Please also remember Mikael and his family as they are battling as we speak for his life...

What is the deal with CANCER?! We went through the battle last year with my Mom and we are so grateful she made it! It was such a long road...

My prayer is that in this decade we can find a cure for cancer...

It is also such a reminder to be so grateful for everyone in our life! I know life is tough, and things like this are just a reminder to cherish our time with the people we love...people first!

Zach! YEAH FOR NORMAL! :)

First of all thank you so much for your prayers for Zach! Today was a LONG, HARD day...waiting for the results...thankfully all is ok!
Zach's chest xray was at 8am and we had planned to have Gary go in with him and me stay out with Mak...but when we saw the situation we decided I should stay with him so I could nurse him immediately to comfort him. I won't go in to too many details about the chest xray and what they had to put our poor baby through. It is NOTHING like an adult chest xray...it was probably the longest 3 mins of my life...it felt like an eternity. And I found myself for a moment getting so angry with the technician that things were taking so long in between xrays because Zach had to stay confined. I realized at the end that it really wasn't her fault, she was trying to go as fast as she could but I just felt so helpless not being able to help Zach...and what did I do, of course get angry at the innocent person only trying to help us figure out what is going on...she didn't know I was upset with her for a brief moment, THANKFULLY! So much more growth to come for me...

The results: heart-NORMAL! lungs-NORMAL! bone structure-NORMAL! some word that I have no idea what it meant-NORMAL! YEAH FOR NORMAL!

So the Dr. is pretty sure that the issue is his esophagus flap is loose...which apparently is not a big deal. We are meeting with his Dr. on Thursday to find out more about the whole thing...
Thanks again for the calls and emails! REALLY encouraging! :)

prayer request for Zach...and us!

Please pray for Zach...long story made short...since he was born he has been a loud breather. I guess you would call it labored breathing. So last week we changed pediatricians (we just did not have peace with how the old one was dealing with the situation) and it was a "concern" to his new Dr. There are several explanations and some are not worrisome...some are very worrisome. So tomorrow we are getting him a chest xray.
Prayer request:
1-that there would be nothing major wrong
2-that the doctors have wisdom with how to deal with it.
3-that God would give us peace and wisdom with what to do.

He does not seem bothered by it and he is growing very well! 15lbs.1oz at his 2 month appointment. I keep reminding myself that our little boy is in God's hands and that God will take care of him...just praying for God's will. And continued faith to depend on God in this whole situation...

Thanks for praying!

Family time!

Last week my brother and his wonderful family came to visit! We had a blast! Even though his kids got sick...poor things, stomach flu...not fun! We had a fun week planned with them, we were going to take them to the city and Monterrey bay aquarium but since the kids got sick we just stayed home. Isaiah and Hope are so cute! Isaiah is ALL BOY and Hope is ALL GIRL! Makenzie really had fun playing with them and they were so great with Zach. Hope kept saying "baby, baby". Michelle's mom came along too...she is such a great lady! She is just a joy to be around...we really enjoyed having her here too! Not to mention she did about 100 loads of laundry for me! THANKS Mrs.Wahl! :) It was really great to get to spend time with D and Mich...wish you guys lived closer! ;) The ladies did get an afternoon of shopping in...fun! Zach of course came with us and he was a complete gentleman! He didn't complain once how long we were taking in stores! I'm trying to train him now for his future wife! :) Thanks guys for watching the toddlers! Ok, they really only had to watch Isaiah...Makenzie and Hope slept about 3 hours that afternoon! Thanks for coming out Buffalo Socha's! We love you guys! :)

silly cousins!

So cute!

I called Dave my manny...LOL!

Show time...

All 4 cousins! We are going to bribe Zach when he is older with this pic with him sitting in the princess chair!

Silly smiles run in the family! Actually Isaiah started it when he was a baby and Makenzie picked it up from him.

My favorite pic! Look how cute Zach is!

they were so cute sitting watching a show together! Makenzie eating her shaved ice!

such a cutie!

big sis with her Popsicle!

look how big he is!

yes, he is that cute!

My birthday!

I just wanted to thank some great friends who took us out to breakfast this AM for my birthday! Special thanks to Michelle for coordinating it! You are so thoughtful! And to Glen for taking such a great pics! And sorry to Stacks that we were campers! LOL! :)
Thanks for everything guys! I love you all so much! Gary and I are so fortunate to have you all in our life!

Maki playing with Daddy!

my precious little girl...

my precious little boy...he slept the whole time, until the very end when it was time to eat! That was part of the reason we were campers!

I LOVE the joy in my loves smile!

Mommy and Zach!

prayers for my aunt sue...

My Aunt Sue is 80 years old and is a wonderful woman...she is in the Hospital and needs prayers! She is definitely the healthiest 80 year old you would ever see and she has fallen sick with double pneumonia.The illness came on as a result of a bad reaction to another medication. So unfortunate...
Please pray for healing and wisdom for the Doctors! THANKS! :)

continued prayers for Mikael...

Here is a website to keep updated on his progress...please continue to pray for healing for him and strength for his family to get through this trying time...

http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/mikaelperla

Mystery solved!

Thank you Florida Sochas for the candle! What a cool gift! LOVE YOU GUYS! :)

Question?

So I just finished writing the last of the thank you cards for Zach and realized we have a mystery present...We received this beautiful candle a couple of weeks ago but there was no note. It was packaged from the distributor (it looks like) but the label was damaged so I can't read what company it is from to follow up to find out who sent it.

Reveal yourself mystery candle giver! LOL! :)

prayers for a friend...

Gary and I have a very dear friend Delia...she is an amazing lady and we love her very much! Her nephew is sick...please read below a letter she sent out to her friends...Please pray for Mikael Perla!

Mikael is 14 years old and a new freshman at Ballard High School in Seattle Washington. He ran cross country this Fall, and was on his way to a great year. There was a bump on his head that had a little growth a couple months ago and through a quick series of recent tests he has been diagnosed today with Leukemia.

He was admitted today to Childrens' Hospital and will most likely stay in the hospital for the next several weeks as he faces chemotherapy and future treatment plans. The news began yesterday when the biopsy results were disclosed to my family. Today Mikael's parents, Juan & Sally were given the bigger picture of what is ahead.

Many of you represent different communities of faith that reach to many areas of the world. I believe you pray to a God that is knowable, present, active and involved in the intricate details of our lives. I invite you to pray with me this year for complete healing for Mikael. My brother Juan requests that I invite you to Pray for Mikael, and forward this on to any community of people, group, chain, etc that will pray.

Mikael is coping well and is looking forward to playing xbox, and computer games with his dad.

Peace,
Delia

pics! and a few cute things Maki is doing now...

Makenzie LOVES the show Little Bear! Her cousin Ana got her hooked! She now calls Herself- Little Bear, Me-Mother Bear, Gary-Father Bear and Zachary-Baby Bear...there is no baby bear on the show, she came up with that one all on her own.

She says "couple four more minutes" = couple more minutes.

Her imagination is in high gear! It is so fun! Last night she was in bed and was fishing with her sleepy (what we call her blanket) and caught a giant sea monster!

Here are a few pics from the last couple of weeks!
my precious little girl...

precious Shayna and Mak waiting patiently for Daddy to bring us our clam chowder and sour dough bread in San Fransisco...I LOVE living so close to such a beautiful city! I always feel like we are on vacation when we head up there for dinner! Cute hat Shay!

Ahh!

me and my boy!

Makenzie's 1st corn dog! She LOVED it! As you can see...

baby boy yawning...

Yes, a 6 foot piano Mak is making music on! Do you remember the movie "Big"? She loves the thing! I am a bit mortified that she is running around eating Pirates Booty! What was I thinking!?...so glad she didn't choke!

Squishy hug!

8 week update

Zach is 8 weeks today! Wow where does the time go?! Just last night Gary said "8 weeks, no way! it feels like 2!" maybe that is because we have only gotten 2 weeks of sleep in the last 8 weeks! LOL! :) Please pray for our precious baby boy...he has reflux and we are trying to figure out the meds and his doses. We weren't sure at 1st that it was reflux. Makenzie had reflux and she used to projectile vomit...thank God she is fine now! She out grew it at 9 months or so...Zach on the other hand is NOT projectile vomiting at all, but has a few other symptoms of reflux. We are hoping the meds will kick in soon! Today?! He is such a cutie and I hate seeing him in pain...please pray for him! I will update more later when I have a few more mins and can download some pics!

** He has started to smile when he sees one of us! Melts my heart!!! :)