2008 Christmas Tree

Just a few days after Thanksgiving, we went with our friends, the Moodys, and cut down our Christmas Tree in the Santa Cruz mountains. The farm was about a few miles past Castle Rock State Park, which is a great area for hiking, mountain biking, and rock climbing. It was a fun having Aubrina's help picking out her very first Christmas tree. In keeping with tradition, Mark insisted on a nine-foot tree for our home with eight-foot ceilings. The tree is up now - it looks and smells great!

From 2008 Christmas Tree

From 2008 Christmas Tree

Pictures of Aubrina at One Month Old

We've finally added a new album to Picasa. This album is from the first two weeks in November and includes pics from our visits with the great grandparents and Auntie Chrissy. Here are a few of my favorites. I've added pics to the two previous posts as well. Enjoy! :)

From 2008-11-15

From 2008-11-15

Great Grandparents meet Aubrina

When I was growing up I don't think any of my great grandparents were still alive. That's why I think Aubrina is lucky to have several great grandparents who are still around, in addition to all the grandparents she has.

It's been really cool to see how special it is for our parents to have a new grandchild - even if it's not their first, it's still a really special event for them. They relive all the emotions they felt when they had us, and know that we are now feeling the same emotions about our own little baby. I can only imagine that it would be similar when one of your grandchildren has kids too, and that it would be special to see a new generation in the family.

Last weekend we went to see Mark's grandma, and yesterday we went to see my grandma and grandpa. My grandma in particular was really taken with Aubrina. As soon as I got her out of the car seat, she scooped Aubrina up in her arms and wouldn't let her go. Even when it was time to feed her, grandma was eager to hold her again. When she held her she had such a glow and couldn't stop admiring her. She'd say "I think she's a keeper!" with a big smile that I hadn't seen in a long time.

I think it's also really cool that when Aubrina grows up, even if she doesn't remember meeting her great grandparents, we have lots of pictures of her with them.

From 2008-11-15

From 2008-11-15

From 2008-11-15

Auntie Chrissy comes for a visit

Today Aubrina met another family member - her Aunt Chrissy. My sister Chrissy came from Fresno for the day with my nephew Josh to see Aubrina. They were able to have a good visit with her!

From 2008-11-15

From 2008-11-15

Surprising Gabrielle at Rosicrucian Museum

Today my neice, Gabrielle (who is from Sacramento), had a field trip in San Jose at the Rosicrucian Museum. My mom and dad were meeting her there to join the field trip and bring her lunch, so I decided to surprise her and show up with Aubrina, who she hasn't seen yet.

It was so cute. She saw my mom and dad walking up and got really excited. Then she saw me and the stroller and started screaming 'Oh my gosh!' She was almost in tears - she wasn't expecting to see her new cousin!

We ate lunch, and then Gabrielle got to hold Aubrina for a few minutes. Then we all walked around the museum gardens to help Gabrielle finish the assignment her teachers gave her. After that Aubrina and I said goodbye while Gabrielle, mom and dad went for a tour inside the museum. It was a really nice afternoon, and of course I took a few pictures :)

Mark is Back at Work

On Monday Mark headed back to work. It was so nice to have him here for the past two weeks, I don't know what I would have done without him. He helped with the baby and also did a lot of stuff around the house. He hooked up a new water filter, built a shed outside, built a shelf in the garage for my laundry supplies, and changed dirty diapers! He also took a lot of the night shifts so that I could catch up on sleep a little bit.

I'm really thankful that Mark had the opportunity to be here after Aubrina was born. Not only did it help me out, but it gave him a lot of time to bond with her. She still sleeps so much, and now that he's back at work he has a limited amount of time to spend with her. Yesterday he didn't get to play with her at all because she was asleep when he left for work and again when he got home. I can see how hard it's going to be when I finally have to go back to work too.

These pictures were from our first week at home.  Aubrina had many visitors stop by the hospital and home to meet her!  We really appreciate everyone who dropped by.

Pumpkin Patch!

On Saturday we went for our first annual family trip to the pumpkin patch! We went with Mark Sr to a pumpkin patch in San Martin. This place was awesome! They had train rides, hay rides, corn mazes, a carousel... tons of action for kids, and LOTS of pumpkins!

Even though Aubrina is only 2 weeks old, it was still fun taking her to pick out pumpkins. We got three pumpkins - a big one for daddy, medium for mommy, and a tiny little pumpkin for Aubrina. Then we came home and had fun carving. We even carved the tiny little pumpkin! Next year is going to be even more fun since she'll be older and hopefully walking!!

Check out our new Pumpkin Patch 2008 Picture Album.

She's Finally Here!

Aubrina is finally here! The pregnancy seemed to last forever and we couldn't wait til she was born, but now that she's here we couldn't be happier.

The labor went pretty fast - we arrived at the hospital on Friday at 5 pm and I started pushing at 9:30 pm. I pushed until 2:30 am. After all of that pushing she wasn't moving at all, so the doctor decided that at that point we had to do a c-section. That was fine with me - I was exhausted and was in a LOT of pain. Aubrina was born at 3:07 on Saturday morning. 

We didn't get any sleep until Saturday night because of a steady flow of visitors and nurses coming in to check on Aubrina or me about every hour.  The next day was pretty rough as well, and a week later I'm still recovering, but it was so worth it. I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. 

Aubrina is so beautiful. I could spend hours just looking at her and memorizing her face. I just love her so much. She's so tiny, and she still sleeps most of the day. She has Mark's nose and ears, and even his toes. She makes the cutest facial expressions when she's sleeping. She has a dimple on her right cheek, and a beautiful smile. She was born with a full head of long black hair. She lets you know when she's uncomfortable, cold, or hungry, but other than that she's a really good baby. I hope she stays like this forever!

I've also been amazed at Mark the past few days as well. I knew he was really excited about Aubrina, but I never imagined that being a dad would come so natural. I'll never forget the day she was born. I was so out of it from the c-section that I couldn't even hold her yet, but when the nurse wheeled my bed into the recovery room, Mark was waiting there with Aubrina in his arms. He looked so proud to be a dad, and I could see how much he loved her already. That day I couldn't get out of bed, so Mark changed all the poopy diapers - and there were a lot! Every chance he gets he holds her and comforts her. He knows how to soothe her when she's crying. I'm so impressed at how easy it seems for him.

Together we're still getting used to the responsibilities that come with parenting, but we're so happy to have her and excited to see what will come in the future!

We have more pictures of Aubrina's birth day on our Web Album.

We're on our way

We had a doctor's appointment this morning and got some good news! I'm 4 cm dilated already, and with 10 days to go before my due date! Mark and I are hoping that this means the baby will be coming very soon.

The doctor says that since I'm not having regular contractions, the rest of labor might go by fast, so I should go to the hospital when they are 10 minutes apart rather than the standard 5 minutes apart. I've been keeping track of my contractions all day, and they still haven't been very regular. Maybe I'll go for a long walk this evening to get things going :)

On a related note, maybe Mark and I are not too far off when we guessed when the baby would actually be born. I guessed that she'd be born on October 12th, while Mark guessed October 11th. I think it would be cool if she was born on the 11th, since Mark was born on May 11th. I guess we'll see....

It's Getting Closer...

Now we only have 12 days left until our due date. We feel well prepared, although we keep finding more things to do to get ready... more gadgets to buy, more clothes and blankets to wash, etc. But overall, we're ready! 

We're so excited for the baby to come that we're already trying ways to encourage her to come out sooner, since she is full term already. Who knows if they will work with 12 days to go til the due date, but it doesn't hurt to try :) I've been walking more, and eating more spicy foods. I love spicy foods anyway, so that one is fun! I'm sure we'll try more things as the due date gets closer. My next doctor's appointment is on Thursday, so we'll see if the doctor thinks I'll be in labor soon. 

Well, here is an updated picture of my huge belly. Hopefully we'll take a few more before the baby arrives.

Baby Shower

We only have three weeks left until Aubrina gets here. I've been on maternity leave for a week now getting things ready. We can't wait til she comes. She's going to be so spoiled - all of her grandparents are super excited too. 

We had a baby shower last weekend at our house. It was really cool to have so many friends and family together to celebrate Aubrina's upcoming arrival.  Here are a few pictures from the party, or you can view the whole album.

Contact Us

Mark is going to add a contact form very soon.  In the meantime, just post a comment :-)

About Mark & Talia

Mark and Talia met in early 2004 at Chevy's in Sunnyvale, while having dinner with some mutual friends. After about three months and a lot of hard work on Mark's part, they had their first date on July 2, 2004. They went to a nice dinner in Capitola and spent the rest of the night at the Watsonville Speedway, watching car races and fireworks.

Since then, they've been almost inseparable, and have had a great time together. They were married May 13, 2006 and became parents October 11, 2008 with the birth of their daughter, Aubrina.

They enjoy traveling and have been on many vacations together. A memorable trip was to New York for the 2006 New Year. Before watching the famous ball drop in Time's Square, Mark took Talia on a very romantic horse carriage ride through Central Park. It was the first time on the trip that it snowed, and the park looked absolutely beautiful. About five minutes into the carriage ride, Mark got down on one knee and proposed... it was truly picture perfect! Afterward, they headed back to Times Square to celebrate!

About Mark
Mark grew up in San Jose & Morgan Hill, attending Prospect high school. He likes dirt bike riding, playing poker, buying tools, duck hunting, and electronics. If you ever need to bribe Mark for anything, just remember that he loves BBQ!

Mark graduated from Biola University in 2001 where he studied Computer Science and Business Administration, and has earned several certifications such as CCNA & CCDA. Since graduating he worked as a Product Manager, Network Sales Engineer. He currently works for Palantir Technologies in Palo Alto, CA.

About Talia
Talia grew up in the small town of Felton, which is near Santa Cruz. She loves spending time with her family, including her husband, daughter, and 5 nieces and nephews. She also enjoys shopping! Talia's favorite food is Pepperoni Pizza, especially from Pizza My Heart and Stuft Pizza!

Talia graduated from Santa Clara University in 2003. While there, she studied Marketing, and spent a semester in Galway, Ireland. Talia loves to travel and go on vacations, and loves spending time in the sunshine. She works for Google in the AdWords advertising department.