Pray for us!

On our way to the post office this afternoon, we passed a grand and spired church. Max said, "Look mommy, a castle!" I explained that it was not a castle, but rather a pretty church...which led to a talk about what happens in churches (praying) and why people pray (to make wishes that the people we love are happy).

Afterwards, I asked him, "Do you understand what praying means?" He said, "Yes, mommy, it is like going to the potty."

Max is May's favorite person, thing or activity. Hands down. Nothing at all comes even close. When he gets close and puts his face by hers, she reaches out with her little hands and grabs his hair and face while belting out these heavenly screeches, screams and sighs. She only makes those noises for him. When he's around, he is all she wants to look at. It is the sweetest, most innocent and true love I have ever seen.

What a blessing they both are to me. My little living prayers to the world (potty included).

May 4 mos.

12 lbs 13 oz.
45% length
30% weight
55% head circumference

I hope her genetics don't weigh her down (literally) with time. Poor thing. I'll remind her when she's 30 that she was skinnier than most when she was a baby.

Terrible Twos

Up until the past month or so, we have been spared the Terrible Twos. Now, well, there is a marked uptick in the general household volume level, what with the constant screaming, crying, protesting, throwing oneself on the floor and rolling around, etc. All the dog wants these days are not treats and ear scratches, rather just some peace and freaking quiet. He's planning to run away to the pound.

Whatever I want him to do is exactly what he doesn't have any intention of doing. Today (and everyday), asking him to sit on the potty was met with "NO MOMMA, I won't do that NEVER, EVER, EVER!" To my, "Max, let's go to the park and play," is his "NO! I no want to go!" To my, "You can have some ICE CREAM if you put on your shoes," is his "NO, NO, NO! I not do that."

His life is so defined by "no" and "I not like" that tonight, while reading "The Snuggliest Snuggle in the World", he had to tell me how much he didn't like each animal on every page, while otherwise thoroughly enjoying the story. It went like this...Crocodile's snuggles were too snappy.... "Momma, I no like Croc-o-dyels. They too sharp!" and "I no like High-ee-na. They go to zoo!" It was kind of funny, as well as great insight into his mind right now.

Meanwhile, May is sweet as can be. She has started vocalizing. I want to get it on tape because it is such a sweet sound. She coos, laughs, sighs and just is as cute and lovely as can be. She is growing so fast she is busting out of most of her little clothes. I bought her a few new outfits today. She is officially 4 mos. old today. While Max is doing his routine, she just sits quietly and watches, entralled. Probably making mental notes on how to perfect driving the parents crazy.

I have a job interview Monday. Ugggg.

Yes We Can

Hail to the Chief. God bless #44.

Cowboy hats

Yesterday, as is our routine, Max, May and I went to Story Time at the library. The librarian did a cowboy theme because the National Western Stock Show is happening right now in Denver. She read western-theme books to the kids, gave them little stickers with horses on them and had a huge selection of cowboy hats for the kids to wear. Each child picked out his/her own hat to wear during the stories.

Max picked out a brown "felt" cowboy hat that was heavy and adult size, so it hung on his head like a bowl. He thought the hat was really cool and sat on the floor by me eagerly listening to the stories and doing everything the librarian asked (like say "yeehaw!" at certain points). This is different because usually he loses interest and wants to run around the room.

Then it was time to do the Hokie-Pokie...every time they "turned themselves around", Max's body and head would do the 360 turn, but the cowboy hat never moved! It stayed looking forward regardless of what direction the head under it was doing. Hilarious.

For some people, the sky is pink

Despite our recent business failure, the entrepreneurial spirit is still strong with my husband. God bless him for it too. If ever there was an eternal optimist, it's him. It is one of his strongest and most alluring traits. I can always rely on him to boost my spirits when I despair and point out the silver lining in any cloud.

He continues to troll the "business for sale" websites just out of curiosity. The other day, he saw a business for sale somewhat near the area he grew up in Cleveland. It was a pizza delivery business run out of the lobby of a 500+ unit apartment complex. The sale price was super cheap (the guy had a heart attack and needed to unload the biz fast) and showed a respectable profit....

My husband immediately thought of his brother, who has crappy job he hates and needs to make more money. He loves to cook and has experience in the restaurant business. This gig sounded like a perfect opportunity and the price was minimal compared to the pay off. So, he gives him a call and pitches the idea. At first, he is excited and agrees to give the prospect some thought. After a day, he calls back to tell Hubby he's not interested because the customers would be black people. My husband said he expected his unambitious brother to pass for any number of reasons, such as fear, lack of funds, too much energy/work commitment, etc., but never something so small-minded and silly as the customers' skin color. Dumbass.

Still in shock, he moves on to his friend who lives in the same area...he pitches the idea...his friend is receptive, but changes the subject because he has an even better business idea. "Let's invest in an Internet porn site together!" This is the second time in five years this friend has tried to get my husband to help him start his own porn site. What?!

He said as he hung up the phone, he had this weird epiphany about who he is now versus 10 years ago, when the responses from these two people might have made perfect sense.

Resolutions

I like the idea of New Year's resolutions, but I've never been good at making good ones. They're usually too general, such as "I want to be a better person," or "lose weight." This year, I'm going to try to be more realistic as well as specific and see if that helps my rate of success and satisfaction.

1. Live in the moment. I want to enjoy every free moment to its fullest with my kids. Instead of just keeping them busy so I can get something else done, I'm going to forget that "something else" (which is usually something like laundry or dishes) and really BE with them. They're growing up so fast.

2. Document. Yes, they are growing up fast, so I want to make sure I'm getting it all down so that I can remember all the cute questions, discoveries, lessons and hugs when they are gone from me. Photos, blog entries, baby books.

3. Take care of myself too. I've definitely "let myself go" since Max was born. A few reasons for that are learning to be a mom at the same time as opening a business, learning to run it/market it, had another baby, etc. Now it is time to return to taking better care of myself on every level.

That means excercising, eating better, possibly going back to school or finding an interesting part-time job. Maybe Adrian and I can even take dance lessons or something. It is time to think about what, besides loving and caring for my kids, I want to do with the rest of my life. At 35 years old, it's certainly important to start checking more items off my "things I want to do before I die" list.

4. Re-connect. I can be a hermit. I resolve to be more social this year. I will reach out to friends I haven't seen in a while and try to spend more time with friends and family.

I think that's more than enough to keep me busy until next year.

Happy 2009

Wow, 2009 has got to be better for us (and pretty much everyone I know) than '08. The world will not miss the Bush years, and that's an understatement. Thank God for the one bright spot of '08...the birth of little May.

Max has a new black eye...from riding a tricycle down the stairs at Solanki's on Tuesday.

We went to Woodhouse's last night for New Year's festivities. Max didn't go to sleep until 11:30 p.m.! May slept until 10 a.m. this morning.

We are going to Koga's today for the New Year's feasting...as soon as Max gets up from his napper. He is currently jacking around in his room...so I have to go in and yell at him.

Long time, no write

So, it has been a year since Casa Herrera's last post. I had to stop because our lives (mine, in particular) became too frantic for me to find the time, heart or desire to blog about what was going on. With the centerpoint of that anxiety and stress gone (CBW) as of Dec. 12, I can now return to Casa Herrera and write about what is really important to me...my husband, children, friends.

As I sit here, I now find that there is SO MUCH to talk about that I don't know where to start.

Max is 2 1/2 and a very sweet, caring, rambunctious, contrary, energetic, hilarious boy. BOY all over. He can't just walk, he has to run, skip, jump and roll where ever he's going and during whatever he's doing. There is no sitting still. Even now, he is in my room watching "Mine Spirit" (that is, "Spirit, Stallion of the Cimmaron" Disney movie) and I can hear him jumping on the bed.

May Anita is our new little daughter (3 mos. old Dec. 23) and she is an absolute joy. She is such an easy baby...good natured, only cries when tired or hungry and started sleeping through the night on Dec. 16. Wahooo! She is so beautiful. I can't wait to get to know her like I do my Max and hear her voice, ideas and thoughts.

This morning, Max saw Brian Boitano ice skating on the Today show. He said, "Uncle Jonathan is ice skating Mamma?" I guess he thinks Jonathan looks like a gay gold medalist ice skater. Hmmm.... LOL!

Christmas was wonderful. We had Jonathan, Cody, A. Diane and Rupal/Deetya over for Xmas Eve dinner, then Christmas Day we opened gifts, played with toys and watched movies all day. The day after, we piled in the car and went to Pueblo for sledding and visiting.

May found her fingers Dec. 4.

Max says things like, "I go pee pee in my Maters mommy," which means he peed in his pull-ups that have the Cars character Mater on the front.

Or, with no apparent context to what we're doing or where we might be going, "Orca whales bite me on the fingers and penguins too," then "Mommy never ever ever let orcas bite me."

Or, when Dad comes home from work, "Daddy wearing his monkey suit? He went to work pay monies."

Or, when talking to my mom on the phone, "Grandma Bocka, I come to your house. We feed bocka-bockas, get eggs (eggthss), cats (cathsss), okay? Huh-huh, yep."

For Christmas, he sat on Santa's lap and asked him for rootbeer and applesauce for Christmas. Then he said, "So how is Rudolph? He play reindeer games."

Or, when May is crying, "Mommy! May cryin'! She need milk NOW! Feed her milk NOW!" then he tries to put her pacifier in her mouth and says, "It okay May May, Mommy comin'." He is the sweetest boy ever made. And he's mine.

Today's notes

To-dos and notes for today:

Take a shower (it is now 11:24 a.m.)
Drink more coffee
Unload/load dishwasher
Threaten to kill dog with a butcher knife if he doesn't stop barking at the UPS man
Wash, dress and feed Max once he wakes from nap
Go to Costco, stock up on food/supplies for X-mas Eve dinner and in-laws visit
Come home, do laundry and chase Max around the house
Make dinner
Order husband around
Laugh as Adrian and Max wrestle and play "Herrera Soleil" acrobatics
Read with Max
Put Max to bed
Lay on the couch and relax
Go to bed

Our little hurricane

So, it's been awhile. I know, I know. Disappointments all around and chastisements from friends/family. Cut us some slack. We are new business owners, are the daily victims of a 17-month-old, and, between emergencies and Maxie kisses, sometimes don't even have time to shower every day.

The business is doing better and getting busier every day. We were full for the Thanksgiving holiday week (65 doggies), and will be full again for the Christmas/New Year holidays (at least 70 dogs...meaning, more multi-dog families staying in a single cabin). There is a new crisis every day though...which I understand is a side-effect of owning your own business. The buck stops here. Today's crisis involves our heating system.

We are now calling Max "The Hurricane" as he literally spins at top speed throughout the house, causing mayhem and distruction where ever he goes. It is very much like in the cartoons, where the character's arms are moving so fast they are a blur, with shreds and bits of furniture, paper and debris flying all around. The three other members of the household (including the dog) are exhausted by the time Max goes to bed.

Yesterday he was so full of energy, and it was too cold to go outside for long, that he was chasing the poor dog (who is now 72 in dog years) around the house and pushing him out of his bed everytime he tried to lie down. Deion gets no peace, but neither do we, so we expect him to do his part in the effort as well.

Which brings me to the topic of school. Max's first day at school is tomorrow. He's going to go for five hours a week (one half day), mainly to give him some learning variety and to socialize with other kids his age. He LOVES other kids and, espcially during the winter, will benefit from having an indoor Hurricane haven where he can run wild and have fun.

It has taken me a few weeks to be "okay" with the idea of this. Everytime Adrian and I talk about it, I get all choked up. I know it is silly, but the idea of leaving him with "strangers" and driving out of the parking lot makes my throat tighten. I have no doubt, however, that Max will love this new experience and I really like the school.

September update

Gosh, I hope in the near future I will be able to post more than just monthly updates. Maybe I will be able to fit in another before October rolls around.

With the new business, our lives have pretty much revolved around Greeley and CBW since July. For shame, but I haven't even found time to be gracious and send thank-you notes to all the friends/family that honored us by giving Max a gift for his 1st birthday. Also, I believe we missed Baby Joey's 1st birthday as well. We suck.... We will try to do better. We do love and think of everyone though.

Max is doing great. He's either running, climbing the furniture, rifling through the kitchen cabinets (containing pots and plastic), ordering us around or sleeping. It is good to be Max.

Any desire for political sparring and controversial discussion-making has been more than beaten out of me by the daily grind of dealing with the antics of employees, customers and partners. The dogs are the easiest, and most pleasant, part of the business by a large margin. Woof, woof.

Having said that, my absolute belief that GWB has his head up his arse is unwaivering. At last count of hands, only 30 percent of Americans disagree with me. I usually can't bear to watch the news or read the paper anymore because the war is so depressing. Worse than Vietnam because this "enemy" isn't even defineable...it's not the organized communists with an army; it is a bunch of religious whackos running around with guns, swords and explosives. But, all that is analyzed ad-nausem by the media, politicians and pundits. No need to rehash the insanity here. There seems to be no answer to the problem. We will be like the Soviets in Afganistan during the 80s. (Oh yeah, we really ARE like them because we are bogged down in that country as well.) So much to look forward to in the world.

Otherwise, it is turning into a beautiful autumn in Colorado. The leaves are starting to turn, the zuchinis in my garden are enormous and the tomatoes are still going wild. My mom's garden produced so much basil (she planted 10 plants) that she has been able to make several quarts of homemade pesto that she freezes. Last year we enjoyed it throughout the winter and look forward to again this year.

I'm going to Stephanie's book club meeting Thursday evening. I haven't read the book, but will get the Cliff Notes. Mostly, it will be fun to go to the meeting. I haven't done much with friends/family lately. Also, I will be doing Steph's raku pottery class on Sunday. It was SOOO much fun last year.

Visit from China

My step-dad, who lives in China, is here visiting until Thursday. He has been living in China since September of 1996. He is the manufacturing/sourcing/quality control liaison for Lowe Alpine Systems, makers of rugged outdoor-wear, climbing equipment and backpacks. As such, he travels extensively in Asia, visiting factories, etc.

He always has hours of interesting stories to tell us about life in Asia and his travels. A lot of the stories are such that one would think you'd read about in a newspaper or see on the nightly news, but because of the communist government censorship, the information is prevented from being reported. And if it is reported, God help the poor journalist who dared to think it news fit to print/broadcast. I imagine their newspapers must be similar to National Enquirer and TV news broadcasts like watching E Extra or Entertainment Tonight...because what else is there to talk about if not what is actually going on?

For example, I recently heard another report on NPR about food safety in China. One of the subjects was a Beijing street-side food vendor that was making "bbq pork dumplings" mainly out of cardboard. He would find used cardboard in dumpsters or on the street, chop it up, put it in a vat with some solvents to soften it up and reduce it to a pulpy soup, then he added the bbq spices and a little bit of pork...and voila!..the cheap stuffing for his dumplings. This guy, when pursued by the Chinese journalist, not only admitted his recipe, but showed the journalist how it was done. He has pictures and audio recordings.

I asked my step-dad whether he had heard that story. Indeed, it was the talk of the nation...except not why you would expect. He said the government arrested the journalist for publishing lies. He is still in jail and they will not release him until he swears he made the whole thing up. Everybody believes the story, except the government.

Also, as you may have heard on the news (I did), China recently had some hefty flooding due to torrential rain. Local residents to the flooded area, which is quite massive, report hundreds of people missing and/or dead. The government has censored the information, and is not searching for the missing and/or dead. Sheds a new light on FEMA, don't it?

God bless America.

Grand Opening, ER

Since Camp Bow Wow opened, life has been in overdrive. While I have been able to establish somewhat of a "work" routine (I work two regular Camp shifts per week), I still spend nearly every waking moment marketing or thinking about marketing. Our Grand Opening party is August 25, for which I'm in charge of planning and orchestrating. Newspaper ads have been running in the Tribune since July 20 and radio spots on K99 (99.1 FM), TRI 102.4 FM and another station begin Monday.

For the record, the newspaper ad money has been wasted. We've gotten a measurable zero response from the ads. Apparently, no one reads the newspaper anymore, unless it's online where the paper advertisements aren't posted. We are hoping for a much better response from radio. Otherwise, ALL of our current customers have found us via the Internet and word-of-mouth. Consequently, I've spent hours trying to optimize our website and Internet presence without paying a service to do it for me. As they say, time is money, so this time investment on my part had better pay off.

For the Grand Opening party, K99 will be doing an onsite live-broadcast remote. We'll also have several vendors with booths, including Weld County Humane Society, Second Chance Rescue, Canidae dog food, Greeley Chamber of Commerce, Qdoba, IntaJuice and some others. We'll be doing facility tours as well as running a doggy photo booth (get your picture taken with your dog) and a doggy "bobbing for hotdogs" pool. Whew! Please send me your prayers and positive energy that we'll have hundreds of people and great response.

If you're reading this and within 4 hours of Greeley, I expect you to come. No whiny excuses like "I don't have a dog," or "I don't even live in the state." Unacceptable. You should be there to support me.

MAX
Where does little Max fit into all this? Well, he's been logging in a lot of grandma and daddy time. As a result, it seems to me that he has grown up overnight. He is doing all sorts of new and crazy things...like learning by observation how to flush the toilet, turn on/off the computer, open/close and turn on/off the dish washer, point the TV remote at the TV and change stations/volume, etc. Tomorrow he will be driving the car.

He also understands nearly everything you say to him, except with the selective hearing filter he inherited from his father. So, while he immediately responds to "let's go for a walk," "time to take a bath," and "do you want some ice cream," he completely ignores "no," "get out of the dog food bowl," and "time to pick up your toys." Hmmmm.

FINGER INJURY
Yes, LaDawn, you heard right. Max logged in his first trip to the ER a few weeks ago. We were at Camp and I was working in the back while Adrian was in the lobby checking email and surfing the 'Net. Max was crawling around in a gated area (under the close supervision of his dad) and found the only thing available in which to stick his finger...the 3"X3" metal fan mounted in the lobby desk to exhaust the heat from the computer. Imagine a CuisineArt chopping blade.

Luckily, it didn't chop his finger clean off, but it did slice a gory swath of skin and nail from the top of his left index finger. I won't bore you with the ER trip details, as I'm sure you can imagine the chaos, screaming and tears (both his and mine).

Boy parts, Camp funnies

Since Max turned 1, we can hardly keep up with his physical and intellectual development. Every morning we seem to wake up to a new little person.

Walking: While he has had the skills to walk since mid-June, he has chosen to continue crawling unless under duress (like being stranded in the yucky grass). Since Monday, he's gained the confidence to walk unassisted from one toy, parent or piece of furniture to another. Big silly grin, arms outstreched and waving around in the air...he looks like a goofy monkey. Sweetest thing ever.

Boy parts: Also Monday, we were in the backyard playing (naked) in the baby pool, when...schazzzamm!...he looked down and saw this thing hanging off his body. After several pulls, pinches, grabs and probes, he was delighted to learn that it was officially attached to himself and he could access it at will. He then started carefully draping things over it...such as tree leaves and cups. Later, I entered his room after a nap to find he had taken all his clothes off, including diaper, to investigate his new fun toy some more. Hmmmm....

Camp funnies: If you can't laugh at yourself, who can you laugh at?! Yesterday, I had my first official working shift at Camp. I'll be doing two shifts a week (as will Barb and Deniece) to stay "in the know" with our day-to-day operations, etc. The rest of my work time will be spent marketing, etc. It was a like a Benny Hill skit. During my shift, the security alarm went off and I didn't have the shut-off code, I locked myself and a dog in the dog-wash area until I was rescued by an employee 20 minutes later, a little poodle named Lucky tried to bite me twice (I deserved it), then I got tangled in the shop-vac extension cord while running toward the lobby to greet a customer. By the end of the six-hour shift, my hair was wild, black mascara smeared, my clothes were filthy from top to bottom, and I had bruises on both knees from the extension-cord attack. Our $7.50/hr employees, on the other hand, were calm, clean and smirking. They can't wait to be around to watch my next Camp shift. Har-de-har-har.

Now Open

Today was our first day open to the public. We had two doggy interviews and we have appointments for another two tomorrow. Multiply that by 10, and we'll be on our way to breaking even for the day. :-) But, as Hubs likes to tell me, "Slow and steady wins the race," so I will try not to be impatient.

To all the prank callers (Joe), I'm on to you.

I spent the afternoon doing marketing visits at vet offices all over town. One in particular drives me nuts. Nice vet with a great facility, but his receptionist is a total bee-atch, plus she looks like Jabba the Hut (hmmm, maybe I'd be cranky too if I looked like that).

I haven't seen much of Max this week, but apparently he's being appropriately fed and watered by Grandma. Also, I missed Steph's book club meeting. Sorry.

By the looks of this picture, I need to get a little sun.

Parties

Max had two birthday parties this year...one in Cleveland and one here at home. Fun, fun, fun, but we are all glad the parties are over until next year. Now mommy has a gazillian thank-you notes to write. The nice thing is they will all be sincere, as so many people were very generous with their gifts, time and sentiments.

Special thanks and love to Auntie Allison and the Cleveland Casa, as well as my mom and Godmudder Stephanie.

Certificate of occupancy!

Today the city of Greeley granted us our Certificate of Occupancy for Camp Bow Wow. We will start our employee training Monday and will be open for business Thursday.

We signed our franchise agreement September 2005, so this has been a long haul.

Yahoo! Now the real work begins...right?

Woof woof

One Year

Today, at 3:31 a.m., begins my baby boy's first birthday.

Words cannot describe the feelings I have remembering the moment he was born nor the past 12 months of adventure with him. All I can say is he is my pride, joy and daily reminder that there is a God and he is good.

May you all be as blessed as we are.
Then...

Now!!

Ewwwwww

Sorry for the blogging hiatus. Let me catch you all up on the past week at Casa Herrera....

Thursday, June 28 -- Grandma Mary babysat Max while I did some work at CBWG in the afternoon and then attended a Chamber of Commerce "business after hours" event at the Harley Davidson dealership across the street from Camp. I schmoozed with the business folks for a few hours and was home by 7:30 p.m. I walk in to find Grandma Mary and Daddy Junkfood feeding my baby son Kentucky Fried Chicken original recipe with all the fixins'. Also, Max went swimming in the backyard that afternoon and apparently consumed a fair amount of pool water.

Friday, June 29, 6 a.m. -- I enter Max's room to find poop ALL OVER his crib, blankets, face, hair, inside his ears, and any other surface the poo could cling to.

The faucet-butt (pardon the graphic visual) diarrhea continued unabated for the next days. Sunday, in a moment of very poor judgement, we decided to risk getting out of the house and went to Red Robin for dinner. Five minutes after we ordered, Max looked at me and uttered a little grunt, then I heard a splash on the floor. I don't think I need to describe here what the next 20 minutes in the restaurant looked or smelled like...let's just say it was worse than the Pachyderm House at the zoo.

We did our best cleaning everything and everybody up and got the heck out of there. We went straight to Urgent Care, where the doctor told us he was basically fine, not dehydrated, looked good, and we just had to wait out whatever was going on.

Miraculously, and I do mean that, the problem stopped in time for the plane ride to Cleveland to visit the Herrera grandparents. Literally, Monday night he was still sick and Tuesday he was not. I honestly believe Adrian's and my guardian angels were at work, because I don't know how we were going to make it through air travel with a sick baby.

Long story short, Daddy Junkfood has learned his lesson and Grandma Mary isn't going to let him chug pool water anymore.

We are here in Cleveland and having many adventures. We'll be back Sunday.