Trick or Treat

It was such an awesome weekend, what, with it being Baby V's first Halloween and all.  I thought I'd share some of the pictures with all of you.  We went to a party at one of our friends' houses on post, so we took all the kids around the huge neighborhood over there and made out like bandits with the candy.  Even Baby V!  And why not?  She was the cutest little butterfly ever!

Baby V and daddy.  He had his "mime" mask on backwards and threw his "costume" together on our way out the door this afternoon. 

Family picture!

Of course, mommy had to be a butterfly too!  The perfect pair!

She was such a good girl the entire time and was so enthralled by noises from all the kids whizzing past her (we carried her the entire time), scary music at people's doors, and all the blinking, orange, and black lights.  After half an hour, she zonked out in my arms and I presented her as a sleeping butterfly for about a half hour of trick-or-treating after that.  Now I'm suffering from muscle failure in my arms and am going to feel it big time tomorrow :)

I think I had more fun this Halloween night than any other in my life.  I can't wait for many more to come. 

Happy Saturday!

Last night, we celebrated Traci's birthday.  Traci is a good friend of mine--I worked with her at my last unit and she used to be a Family Readiness Support Assistant for one of our battalions.  She's married to Mr. Frank, who is shown here.  They're such a fun couple!



We met up at Carlos & Mickey's, one of the best Mexican restaurants in town.  Look at how big their margaritas are!  And we had a really yummy cupcake pumpkin cake too :)

Anyway, just thought I'd share some other pics from that night because our other friend, Melissa, took some really good ones of us!

Thanks to Leah for getting Baby V her cute Halloween bib!

Now, I'm off to bake an apple cake I was supposed to make for my cooking club yesterday and then who knows what we'll do today!

Happy Saturday all!

99 Things

I got this idea from Jes' blog, Bleu Dress and Dress Blues.  I thought it would be fun to do this and update it from time to time.  I'd like to add more pictures to it too...I can't seem to find pics of my trip to Europe a few years back.  And there's a lot of stuff on this list about Europe!  All the stuff in bold are the things I've done.

1. Started your own blog -- um....this blog.  I also have a cooking blog in case you guys haven't seen it yet.

2. Slept under the stars

3. Played in a band

4. Visited Hawaii -- I have a lot of family (on my mom's side) that still live there.  We were stationed there years ago too and visit from time to time.  LOVE Hawaii!

5. Watched a meteor shower

6. Given more than you can afford to charity -- back when I was in college, it was tough for me to give to charity.  But I still did it!

7. Been to Disney World -- I've been there twice, but the last time I went was in the mid-1990s.  We'll be going again when Baby V is old enough!  I've also been to Disneyland!  My husband hasn't been to either.

8. Climbed a mountain 

 9. Held a praying mantis

10. Sang a solo -- I used to sing in a choir at church in Colorado. I did a few solos there.

12. Visited Paris -- My best friend, Chrissy, and I did a tour through Europe for R&R in 2005.  It was awesome!  And now that we're moving to Germany, I'll be able to go again!

13. Watched a lightning storm

14. Taught yourself an art from scratch -- I used to draw pretty well and was in a few art shows in elementary/middle/high school.  I also learned how to cross stitch. 

15. Adopted a child

16. Had food poisoning

17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty -- we were stationed at Fort Hamilton in Brooklyn, New York in the late 1980s...so we got to see everything in New York City!

18. Grown your own vegetables

19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France

20. Slept on an overnight train -- while on R&R in Europe, Chrissy and I used the Eurail to go through Germany to France and Italy.  We slept overnight a few times.  It was really cool!  When I was younger, my family and I rode the Amtrak train from New York to Florida to go to Disney World.

21. Had a pillow fight

22. Hitch hiked

23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill -- no comment :)

24. Built a snow fort -- we were stationed at Fort Drum, NY in the 1990s, where it snows until June.  We built snow forts all the time!

25. Held a lamb

26. Gone skinny dipping

27. Run a Marathon

28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice -- see #12.  It's cool, but man, it's expensive to ride a gondola in Venice. 

29. Seen a total eclipse -- my mom, brother, sister and I lived in Hawaii one of the times that my dad was stationed in Korea.  I can't remember what year it was, but an eclipse happened on my birthday.  I think it was my 11th birthday...so that would have been in 1989.

30. Watched a sunrise or sunset

31. Hit a home run

32. Been on a cruise

33. Seen Niagara Falls in person -- when we were stationed at Fort Drum, NY, we used to take family visitors there.  I think we went there about 5 or 6 times.  We got so sick of going.  Now I want to go back!

34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors -- my first time visiting American Samoa and (Western) Samoa in 1996 with Malu.  That's where my dad is from.

This was my first time visiting Samoa and the first time I met my grandma.  I'd met my grandpa years before in Hawaii.

35. Seen an Amish community

36. Taught yourself a new language

37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied

38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person -- again, see #12. 

39. Gone rock climbing -- does indoor rock climbing count?

40. Visited the Alps

41. Sung karaoke -- name one Filipino you know that doesn't own a karaoke? Ha ha.

42. Seen Old Faithful geyser erupt

43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant

44. Visited Africa

45. Walked on a beach by moonlight

46. Been transported in an ambulance -- I rode with a friend who had to be taken to a hospital.  This was when I was in college.

47. Had your portrait painted

48. Gone deep sea fishing

49. I have no idea where 49 went

50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris -- okay, yeah...see #12.  We only spent a day in Paris and got to go up the tower.

51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling

52. Kissed in the rain

53. Played in the mud

54. Gone to a drive-in theater -- the first movie I watched in a drive-in was Ghost, in Hawaii.

55. Been in a movie

56. Visited the Great Wall of China

57. Started a business -- my husband and I got into multi-level marketing (just to give it a shot) a long while back.  We started a travel business.  Yeah...that didn't last long at all.

58. Taken a martial arts class

59. Visited Russia

60. Served at a soup kitchen

61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies

62. Gone whale watching

63. Got flowers for no reason

64. Donated blood, platelets or plasma

65. Gone sky diving

66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp

67. Bounced a check -- oh, college days!

68. Flown in a helicopter

I was assigned to an aviation unit for most of the time I was stationed at Fort Bragg.  I deployed with the unit too, so I was on helicopters a lot.  This was taken on the flight line in Balad, Iraq in 2005.

69. Saved a favorite childhood toy

70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial

72. Pieced a quilt

73. Stood in Times Square

74. Toured the Everglades

75. Been fired from a job

76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London

77. Broken a bone

78. Been a passenger on a motorcycle

79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person

80. Published a book

81. Visited the Vatican

82. Bought a brand new car

I bought the Jeep Commander a week before Malu came home for R&R last year and surprised him with it when I picked him up at the airport.  One of the most spontaneous things I've ever done.  Don't get me wrong, this truck is great.  But let's just say that I won't be making this big a purchase again without letting Malu know about it first!

83. Walked in Jerusalem

84. Had your picture in the newspaper -- this happened a few times when I was in high school...for sports.  But my senior year in high school, I was featured in the local paper and unfortunately made a really ignorant comment about working at fast food restaurants.  Not a moment I was proud of.

85. Kissed a stranger at midnight on New Year’s Eve

86. Visited the White House

87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating

88. Had chickenpox

89. Saved someone’s life

90. Sat on a jury

91. Met someone famous -- I've met a lot of famous people, actually.  When I was deployed, I was in charge of protocol for my unit, so I had to "escort" a few VIPs around.  Some congressmen, Wolf Blitzer, a few Army generals, Dean Cain, Vince Vaughn...off the top of my head.  I've met a few others too.

92. Joined a book club

93. Got a tattoo -- got one in Germany while on R&R.

94. Had a baby -- yup, had one of those!

Sure did...I still can't believe that I did it.  And she's growing so fast!

95. Seen the Alamo in person -- yup, been there, done that!

96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake

97. Been involved in a lawsuit

98. Owned a cell phone -- who hasn't?

99. Been stung by a bee

I know I've done over half the stuff on this list!  Pretty cool!

I Really Hate to Leave You...

...really, I do!  Some mornings I like to come back home from PT

 to get ready for work.  And most of the time, this is the last thing I see before I head out the door.  There's something about daddy's arms that Baby V absolutely loves.  She can be crying like crazy, but once you put her in that cozy little nook, she's as calm as ever.  And sometimes they pass out for hours.  She won't even lay still like that with me. 

Well, mommy's gotta head out to get her Starbuck's coffee!  I hope my two darlings have a great Wednesday!

Oh...and I hope the rest of you have a great hump day too :) 

Sina & Her Buddy

Sina has a blankie/bear that she can actually hold and loves to stick in her mouth and sleep with.  It's the cutest thing, seeing her with it.  My hubby was able to sit her up in her crib so that we could take these pictures of her.

Hope you guys enjoyed them!

(Baby V at 11 weeks)

Babies Galore!

Well, at long last, our friends, the Rawlings' Family, have finally brought their new baby boy into the world!

His name is Jack and came in at 7 lbs, 6 oz and 22 whole inches on Friday night!  He's the sweetest little bug ever. Congratulations to Laura, Matt and big brother Joey!  We're so happy for you guys!

When I went to visit, I was reminded of how it wasn't too long ago that I was actually on the labor and delivery floor at that same hospital and holding Baby V at just about that size.  It honestly gave me the feeling of being ready to have me a little boy.  But no worries...the feeling didn't last too long.  Besides, we're still having tons of fun with our baby girl, who hit her 11th week a few days ago.  Here are a few fun pics that I've taken of her.  Forgive me for the blurriness.  It's hard to take pictures of her that aren't blurry these days because she moves soooo much!

My mom sent her a package full of cool clothes including this dress, which she will be using when we go to visit for Christmas.  We just wanted to make sure it's the right fit...and isn't it so cute?  She had fun playing with the tulle.

And then here are a few from us just playing in bed yesterday morning.  After she eats at about seven o'clock, she likes to play and talk with Malu and I in our bed.

And of course, she's never without those bubble lips!  Love 'em!

Well, it's been a nice weekend.  Besides the excitement of welcoming Jack to El Paso, we haven't done much but stay home and enjoy time as a happy little family--entertaining Baby V and Malu and I cuddling and watching movies while she napped/slept.  Today, we went to the commissary and came home and cleaned.  Malu cleaned out the entire pantry and reorganized all my cook/bakeware, which I've been meaning to do since I moved in here.  The rest of the house has been cleaned too and now all I smell is the pumpkin candle that I have burning and the chicken pot pie casserole that is waiting to be eaten!

Anyway, I hope you all had a great weekend.   Hope you have a great week too! 

Weekend...

I hate making posts without pictures.  And I'm doing that today.  And it's not because we didn't do anything exciting this weekend, but because we did do some fun stuff and I just forgot. the. camera. at. HOME! Bad Michelle!

Yesterday, we went to the Amigo Airsho in town and it was just fabulous to be out there and see those performances and aircraft static displays.  Hardly a cloud in the sky and no winds!  And it wasn't too hot either.  Our friend, Melissa, got us some VIP tickets where we had a free Rudy's BBQ lunch and a shady place to view the air performances.  I really hate that I didn't bring the camera to this event.  There were planes doing loop-di-loops (that's what I call them), all kinds of cool planes to see, and Baby V in her strawberry shortcake-looking hat.  It was was so adorable. Another cool thing was that I was able to snag Baby V one of those lady bug umbrellas I saw on Kidorable.  Now I just have to get her everything else in the collection :) 

Last night, we went to Sunset Pizza on the west side to surprise our friend, Matt, for his 30th birthday.  We had a great time and the food---if you live in the El Paso area you have to try this place.  It's the best pizza I've ever had!

And today...we've done absolutely nothing.  As a matter of fact, I just woke up from a nap.  And my two loves--the hubby and Baby V--are napping in her nursery rocker.  I love it.

And that's all for now.  I'll try to have pics for you guys next time.  Have a great week!

For me this week...I'll be doing some of my clearing appointments for our move to Germany.  I'll tell you guys all about it soon!

Winner!

I'm sorry I'm doing this a little late, but it's been a busy week.  And not so much with work, but just with getting my work-baby routine down.  Thank God that my hubby is here to watch Baby V because I don't know what I'd do.  I've been having a hard time getting my body used to waking up early in the morning and then doing PT.  Ugh.  By the time I get to work at 0900, I'm exhausted!

Anyway...I did the picking-of-the-name thing the old fashioned way instead of using random.org.  And Malu got to do the honors.

So...into the basket went all the names (and remember, I put in two entries for everyone that made a comment!)

And then he drew out the name of the lucky winner...

...only you can't read it here because of my camera's crazy flash.  So here's a close up!

So...congratulations to Maria of Personalized Sketches and Sentiments! 

First of all, you guys need to head on over to Maria's blog.  She's got great stories and she's just one of the sweetest ladies I've come across on the blogosphere. 

Second of all, you need to check out her artwork.  It is spectacular!  And you can get personalized drawings through her etsy shop. 

Maria....you should be hearing from me soon!

And thanks to everyone else that participated! I'll be looking for more giveaways to do here soon!

Reminder: $40 CSN Stores Giveaway!

Just a reminder that the last day to enter my giveaway is tomorrow, Wednesday October 13th!  I'll be giving away a $40 credit to a CSN Store of your choice!

Since I don't have too large a response right now...I'm going to give current and future (hopefully there will be some more entering) two entries just for making one comment!

So enter now!

Mesilla Pumpkin Patch & Corn Maze

Today, we joined a bunch of our friends for a full day of fun in the sun at the Mesilla Valley Corn Maze and Pumpkin Patch in Mesilla, New Mexico, which is about a 45-minute drive west from our house.  Man, you wouldn't know that it's autumn here in this part of Texas or New Mexico because it was so hot out there today.  Must have been in the 90s.  Despite this, it sure felt like fall the way we were out there amidst the cornfields, pumpkins and bales of hay. 

There were 18 of us altogether and we started out with breakfast at the Cracker Barrel here in El Paso.  Big mistake...when there's only one Cracker Barrel in all of El Paso you should probably steer clear on a Saturday morning.  It was packed.  But the food was delicious as usual.  I love that place.

Baby V had no idea what was going on, so I think this trip was a little bit more for me than for her.  Excuse me for being selfish :)  Would you believe that our parents never took us (as in my siblings and I) to a pumpkin patch growing up?  Perhaps it's because we lived in Hawaii when we were really young.  And by the time we'd gotten to a place that had pumpkin patches...well, we were too grown up by then.  Malu and I can't wait for Baby V to get to the age where she understands what these pumpkins and mazes are all about.  It's going to be tons of fun.  But she did try to lug this big pumpkin back home with us!  Isn't she cute?

What I really ended up snagging was one small itty bitty pumpkin for Baby V and two medium-sized pumpkins that I can do some baking with.  I plan on making my own pumpkin puree.  Yummy!

Anyway...just wanted to show you guys some of the pictures I took.  This place was amazing!  They had hayrides and other rides for the kiddies, the corn mazes (one for kids and one for adults), a country store (where I scored on some fresh honey and sweet potato pecan butter), arts and crafts vendors, and food (which I managed to steer clear of--I know, surprised me too). 

Afterwards, we joined our friends Leah and Jay for an early dinner at Landry's where we had a three-course meal.  I had a dish that had bacon-wrapped stuffed shrimp and bananas foster for dessert.  We were stuffed!

Now, my two loves are crashed out on the couch...and I'm going to join them. 

Thanks to all of our friends who were out there with us today!  It was tons of fun!

Oh, and don't forget to enter my giveaway for a $40 gift certificate to a CSN Store of your choice.  Giveaway ends October 13th.  I will announce a winner on October 15th!

CSN Stores Giveaway!

I've been meaning to host a giveaway on my blog for the longest time and now I finally have the chance to do it! 

As most of you already know, CSN Stores is a network of over 200 online stores, selling everything from office supplies to dining room chairs!  One of my lucky readers is going to receive a $40 gift certificate to use at a CSN Store of their choice!

Because this is my first giveaway, I'm going to make this simple for both you and me:

All you have to do is leave me a comment telling me what you'd use the card for if you won.  Be sure to leave me your email address so that I can contact you if you win!

I'll accept entries until Wednesday, October 13th and since I'm not familiar with picking winners via random.org just yet, I'm going to let my sweet hubby do the honors!  I will announce the winner next Friday, October 15th.

Good luck...and email me at michelle.aetonu@yahoo.com if you have any questions!

This giveaway is open to residents of both the U.S. & Canada.  Please note that international shipping fees may apply on orders to Canada.

2- Month Birthday Dinner

I've mentioned this a couple times, but our friends, Katie and Jeremy McCrillis, son, Gage, was born on the same day and at the same hospital as Baby V.  So Katie and I agreed that every month we would commemorate our babies' birthdays by going out to dinner.  So tonight, we met up with them for our 2 month birthdays at the Olive Garden.

This is Baby V getting ready to meet her little man, Gage, who is one of the cutest little guys I've ever seen.

We had a fabulous dinner and had a terrific time just laughing and telling stories of our adventures in parenthood.  Our little ones slept through the entire dinner.  So when it came to picture time at the end of our dinner, they were like this:

Here's a better one of Baby Gage (hmmmm....future son in law?)

I mean, they were completely knocked out. 

Three hours later, our Baby V is still conked out.

All is well in the A'etonu household.

Happy 2 Month Birthday little ones!

And happy Thursday to you all tomorrow!

Wordful Wednesday

Here is a picture of my hubby enjoying our dinner from last night.  In an attempt to keep all of our meals healthy, I've been pulling a lot of recipes from Cooking Light.  This recipe was for Cold Sesame Noodles with Chicken & Cucumber.  It was delicious and reminded me of cold noodle dishes I'd had in Hawaii. 

I've been doing a lot of cooking lately, so head on over to my cooking blog!

Also, stay tuned for my CSN Stores giveaway!

And...happy two months to our Baby V.  We love you!

~2 Months~

Today, I made my debut as a working mom and started my new job today.  Let me just say that I was devastated to leave the house this morning.  I left practically in tears as Baby V and my hubby waved goodbye to me as I walked out the door. 

I thought about her all day and all I could think of was going home and having her in my arms again.  She's been sleeping for the last two or three hours now...and I still miss her. 

But it was nice to be back at work again.  I work at the post headquarters now and it's a nice change.  However, I miss my old unit and I miss my girlfriends over there.  At least they're not very far away and we still hang out on the weekends.

As usual, Malu handled being home with Sina very well.  I never worry about him being home with the baby by himself.  Even before he officially became a dad, he'd had tons of experience taking care of babies.  He'd help raise his two younger brothers in American Samoa as well as his two little cousins (who were born premature) in Utah.  So he's got the patience and stamina to entertain and keep Baby V very happy.  You guys should see them together.  It's just too cute.  She's definitely a daddy's girl.

Malu took Baby V to her two month appointment this afternoon.  She got four shots, but didn't cry all that much, according to him.  That's my girl!  The doctor reported that she's a very healthy baby.  Here are her stats:

Weight:  10 lbs. 8.6 oz. (25th percentile)
Height:  21 7/8 in (25th percentile)
Head Circumference:  15.55 in (65 percentile)

Baby V sleeps very well through the night.  We usually have her in bed by 8:30 p.m. and she'll sleep until about 3:30 a.m., waking up to be fed.  She'll sleep again from for another 3 hours after that, waking up usually around 9:00 a.m.  Then she has two more long naps throughout the day--one around midday and one in the late afternoon. 

About a week ago, she finally started fitting into her size 0-3 month clothing.  She also wears size 1 diapers.  She's also eating about 5 ounces every 2-3 hours and loves, loves, loves to be bathed.  Her bath times are one of our favorite and cherished moments.

She also has a lot to say.  I mean, A LOT.  She just coos and coos all the time and is very responsive to music and moving objects--like the lady bug mobile over her crib and the fish mobile on her swing.  She just goes crazy.  It's all very cute.

And the drool....it's out of control.  She continuously blows bubbles out of those crazy big lips of hers.  You can see them in just about every picture of her; so much, that our friend, Jennifer, calls her "bubble lips".

So happy 2 months to you, our darling lil' bug!  We will be celebrating by going on our monthly "baby birthday" dinner with the McCrillis Family--whose son, Gage, was born on the same day (and in the same hospital) as Baby V.  We're going to the Olive Garden!  Yum!

Well, happy hump day (tomorrow) to everyone.  And stay tuned...I'll be hosting a CSN Stores giveaway here shortly!

And in case you guys are interested, I posted a recipe for a Salmon and Strawberry Salsa dish that I made the other day.  Thanks to my good friend, Maddie, for providing us with the recipe.  She'd made the dish for us a few days after Baby V was born and I was craving it like a madwoman ever since.  So head on over to my cooking blog to check the recipe out.  You'll thank me profusely if you make this dish.  Trust me.