Life Reflections

The babies are here! – How our other kids welcomed our new additions and the “Twins” phenomenon.

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Besides the crazy rush we went through to deliver Emilio and Alejandro, (ok never mind it wasn’t THAT crazy) having twins seems to be a “novelty” and one you need to navigate carefully so everyone involved feels loved, cared for and important. Especially when you have 3 more kids to worry about!! 🙂

Going into this we knew we had our work cut out for us to make sure Nati, Nico and Santi were going to be ok with the arrival of two more babies into their lives. And not just 2 more babies… twins! Identical twins! Whoa! A phenomenon of its own! Since this is our 4^th rodeo, we kind of think we know what we are doing. We’ve dealt with “sibling displacement syndrome” (I totally just made that up) twice already and feel like we succeeded at it. But this is a different ball game ladies and gentlemen, this is twins. This is the “I want to dress them up the same and make them look so cute” game. This is the “Oh my God you have twins! How cute! Tell me all about it!” type of game. And because of this, I/we need to step up our game and say “Hey! Thank you, yes! They are twins (yet they are individuals… oh boy.. that’s another thing we’ll deal with) but check this out! We have 3 other kids who are amazing!! Yes, we are Catholic (very non-practicing) but that is not why we have so many… And these are their names AND they are awesome because they do this and this and this…

And don’t get me started with the looks we’ll get… and my struggle to hold back my desire to punch or say something to those I can tell who are judging us… This is definitely another post/rant. 🙂

So, because of all of the above and a ton more, we tried our hardest to make sure Nati, Nico and Santi felt not only special, but also so they could feel that everything was normal and their world was not turned upside down because Emi and Ale had arrived…

In an effort to do this and due to the timing of their arrival (one day before Nati’s 6^th birthday), my schedule was out of whack the first couple of days… trying to juggle being at the hospital to support Becca and tending to the newborns while still maintaining “normality” in everyone else’s lives!

This is sort of what Monday night and Tuesday looked like.

Monday 7:49PM: Welcome babies to the world.

Monday around 9pm: Nati, Nico and Santi come meet their new baby brothers. 🙂

Monday 9:30pm: I leave with the kiddos to put them to bed at home (about 25 mins away)

Monday 11pm: I head back to Hospital

Monday 11:30PM – Tuesday 6am: tend to newborns as needed. “Slept” in a very uncomfy chair.

Tuesday 6am: Get up and head home.

Tuesday 6:30 – 7:30am: Get showered, pack Santi’s lunch, wake up kiddos, get them ready for school.

Tuesday 7:40 – 9am: Drive Nati and Nico to school. Then drop off Santi at daycare and head back to Hospital.

Tuesday 9-11am: Tend to newborns and Becca as needed.

Tuesday 11am: Head out to Target to get cupcakes for Nati’s birthday and get lunch for Nati and Nico.

Tuesday 11:45 – 12:30pm: Brought cupcakes to Nati’s class, they sang to her, went to get Nico from his class and had lunch all together! I loved all of it. 🙂

Tuesday 1pm – 2:45pm: Back at the hospital.

Tuesday 2:45 – 3:45pm: Head out to pick up Nati and Nico from school and back to the hospital.

Tuesday 3:45 – 5pm: at the hospital.

Tuesday 5 – 5:45pm: Head out to pick up Santi from daycare and back to the hospital. We had dinner at the hospital.

Tuesday 8:30pm: Took all 3 kids home to put them in bed and once asleep, I went back to the hospital.

Rinse and repeat.

Phew…. That was ONE CRAZY DAY! But those are the sacrifices we needed to make for our kids to make sure their lives were “normal”. I would do it again if I had to (oh wow.. just jinxed myself… just kidding, we took care of that AND I probably will go double whammy and go in for my vasectomy too).

Besides all the crazy things we had to go through, the kiddos LOVED their new baby brothers. They wanted to see them at all times, they wanted to hold them, feed them and kiss them. Santi (our 2 year old) was the only one that was uneasy around them… as if they were too little and he was afraid of breaking them. Emilio and Alejandro couldn’t be loved any more by their sister and brothers. And now that it has been 2 weeks, I can honestly say no one has felt “displaced” or not loved. Heck, we do try hard and make a conscious effort so that everyone feels “special”- as parents each of the kids holds a special place in our hearts.

I am so proud of my Nati, Nico and Santi and so appreciative of how welcoming and loving they’ve been to Emi and Ale. It makes me smile to think about all the love they share and all the amazing memories they will build together. We are so excited about our adventure. It has only been 2 weeks and I would not change a single second.

We are seriously Happy Number 7. 🙂

To Party or Not to Party?… That is/was the question.

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I wish this post was about Becca and I partying… that has not and will not be happening for a while.. but our day will come..

Nati’s birthday is at the end of this month.. she is turning 6! Holy cow… where has the time gone? I know it is the biggest cliché, but man, time does fly, they grow fast… too fast for my taste. I absolutely LOVE everything we’ve experienced with Nati and everything she has taught us. Being the oldest kid, she has been the one that has opened our eyes to so many things and has helped us grow as parents. She has been the “manual” for our other kids, and truth be told, a huge role model for Nico and Santi.

Anywho I digress as always…

Being that Becca is as pregnant as pregnant can get, and that the 38 weeks mark is on 2/6, we did not know whether we should even consider throwing a party for Nati. The uncertainty of what could happen does not really leave much room for “reliable plans” but, after sitting down and evaluating how Becca was feeling and how the pregnancy was going and talking with Nati, we decided it was best if we did organize a party for her. We had to plan..and quickly! I seriously bought the invitations that night, reserved the place the next day, and distributed the invitations 2 days later. Yes, we have all guests on standby in case I need to send a mass text from the hospital with party cancellations 🙂 but we are moving forward with it. We are also going to keep it simple, not a whole lot of prepping and stressing the night before: simple games, pizza (delivery) and cake.

It has been a big year for Nati so we wanted to celebrate it. She started Kindergarten and is doing great, she showed great improvement in her gymnastics and ballet skills (as seen here), she learned how to ride a bike without training wheels (read here), she learned how to read (this should’ve topped the list :)) and she has continued to be an amazing little girl full of love, compassion and joy. How can you not celebrate!?! Hehe. And of course, we do not want the anticipated delivery of the twins to lessen the importance of her special day!

The theme she chose for her party is “doggies”. Definitely not a whole lot of activities planned that are “dog related” but at least her cake, plates, cups, etc will include dogs. We invited her classmates and a couple other friends and are hoping for another gorgeous Florida day so we can play games outside and simply let the kids be kids. My aim: keep a permanent smile on my baby girl and try for both kids and adults to have a great time. (adult beverages provided of course. #thatisagiven)

So… we are partying!!! At least we are planning on it.

Cheers to the unpredictable future, flash party planning and happiness all around!

Nati loving on our almost 10 year old black lab Sammy.

What they are not telling you: Pregnancy is hard on men too!

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Yes, I admit it, it is much tougher on women as they have to endure the body changes, fatigue, lack of sleep, deliver the baby (or in our case babies!), etc, etc, etc. However, it takes a village! It is a long ass process… 9 months (or 10 months as my wife will correct me) of constant support, stepping up our game to cover some of the tasks previously performed mostly by our wives, helping to parent the other 3 kids AND tending to the needs and mood swings of our lovely pregnant wife 🙂 Love you babe.

I am going to go ahead and say it: It is f**ing hard and gets tiring too! Yes, my body is not going through insane changes like my wife’s, but my mind and time management is out of whack! Because a pregnant women’s energy is being consumed by the baby, they often (and deservingly) need more “down time”. This is where our role becomes more important and more tasks are added to our list. It seriously feels like I don’t have time for anything else other than coming home to cook, have dinner with my family, spend an hour or so together, clean up the house (toys everywhere), get kids ready for bed, read, practice phonics, and then back downstairs to finish up cleaning or go to bed. Rinse and repeat the next day. And No Free passes – it’s all got to get done. Thankfully, at home we have a very good team (see previous post here) and Becca, as pregnant as she is, carries a good amount of weight (pun intended) on our daily home chores.

I am thankful that Becca is an amazing pregnant woman; she is a trooper– she is active and rarely complains. Also, during all 4 pregnancies she has not had any middle of the night cravings where I need to leave the house to find a Hot Fudge Brownie with Ice Cream or some crazy stuff like that…. Her cravings are much more manageable, very few and they usually happen at lunch or dinner times (pizza, chipotle, five guys, etc.). Her Coca Cola craving is the only one that is a bit out of hand 😉 especially since it HAS to be fountain soda so there’s no way for me to be proactive and have a 2 liter handy in the house…

Needless to say, at the end of the day it is all worth it. The return on investment is astronomical, but I am not kidding… it is hard on everyone– I am sure other fathers can relate. AND consider this a warning for those men that don’t have kids yet — Yes, she is the one carrying the baby, but the weight you need to carry around the house will also get heavier.

And this is only the pre-game show…. The real deal will begin once the babies are born. Bring it! 🙂

NOTE TO SELF: LET THEM BE KIDS.

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This weekend I had to remind myself to let my kids be kids….

Sometimes as parents we try to control situations, most of the time for our kids’ safety, but too often we try to control them to make things more convenient for us… avoiding situations that could disrupt our day, cause a little chaos, etc…

On Sunday, we went outside to ride bikes and scooters; however my kids changed their mind and decided they wanted to play in our backyard instead… We have what I think is a pretty cool backyard with a pool, a nice treehouse with a slide, and some swings in the back…a pretty fun area for a kid. My first thoughts were…. “Hmm… if we go back, I am going to have to clean up the swings… also, I may have to go back inside to get mosquito repellent (they get bad at times), this may be a pain….”

After a couple of failed attempts trying to convince the kids to stay out front and ride their bikes, I gave up. We swung for a bit and then went to the treehouse to slide… This meant I had to wipe the slide clean (had to go get Lysol and a towel)…

While the kids played in the treehouse, I took advantage of the time, cracked open a beer and proceeded to clean our pool. Since it needed some water I opened up the hose and dropped it in the pool. This was their queue to play with water!! My first reaction was “Guys, please don’t play with the water– you are going to get wet, we are going to have to get new clothes, you are going to get cold, yadda yadda yadda”… After they were initially careful due to my annoying directions, they later began to be more careless with the water… I caught myself wanting to tell them to stop but then I thought “what the heck!, what’s the worst that can happen?? They get wet. So what?!! Let them be kids. Let them have fun!”

They had a blast! They got soaked! They got a ton of things wet and even ended up without their bottoms on the shallow end of the pool (which is freezing based on my “I am a baby with cold water” standards). I had a great time watching them be kids- they couldn’t stop laughing and played wonderfully together. It was a great wake up call for me to relax and to let the kids be kids. It was a win-win for all of us and an awesome way to spend our Sunday as a family.

Thank you kiddos for continuing to teach me how to be your dad; I love you.

A great reminder to myself to let my kids be kids!

A proud and emotional Dad – Part 1

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I am always proud of the amazing individuals my kids are growing up to be. But within a spam of 3 days this past week my kids put me in an emotional rollercoaster that almost brought me to tears – the great kind of tears (I can get very emotional with my kids)…

As seen on previous posts, Nico has had a Strider for about year and a half. Every time we take it for a spin he gets better and more confident. Via email I was notified our local BMX track was hosting a Strider Clinic for kids Nico’s age to ride on the big track! So we planned on attending. After delivering some baby equipment for our business, we headed out to the track with no expectations. We knew he was good at gliding down our driveway but had no idea if he would freak out about the big ramps…. (yikes).

After a quick stretch with the coaches, they taught the kids how to come off the big ramp and take the turns… Probably 10 minutes of clinic… Then up to the ramp where they had set a starting gate!

Nico at the starting gate.

They informed Nico to put his bike against the gate. “Riders ready?, Set, Go!” And off he went!! No fear! Running and pushing with his cute tiny legs he rolled down the first huge ramp and up the hill, then down another big ramp and on to the turn, to the next, etc…

When he came around with me running around the track cheering him on, he said “I want to go again!!” and off he went back to the starting gate. Amazing. Joy filled my heart. Nico was so happy and felt so accomplished. I could not get the smile off my face… We continued to cheer him on and even after a taking a couple of spills he continued and wanted to ride over and over…. We did that for 1 hour. 🙂

Needless to say, he is getting a Strider BMX jersey for Christmas and we’ll be coming back for clinics and even races!! Can’t wait to see him on the track again. We are so proud and so happy for him. Way to go Nico!

Parenting: A team sport.

Life Reflections Parenting multiples Pregnant with Twins

This is true regardless of the number of kids you have– whether it is 1 or 5! Of course, the more kids you have the more “complex” the job could get but luckily, the more “seasoned” you are. The team chemistry has developed and the team (mom and dad) have a good idea what to do to get the job done.

This certainly applies at our house, in parenting and in life. It works differently for everyone so I am not trying to say that what we do is “the best method” (not even close)… it is just what “works” for us. Just like when it comes down to finances, for some couples a joint account is the best option, for others it’s not.

At the end of the day, we know what tasks need to be taken care of (dinner, lunch for the kids, laundry, cleaning up after the kids, getting ready for school, getting ready for night time, etc). At home, we don’t have assigned responsibilities so it really becomes a “you do this while I do that” approach. And it works. I am glad because it could be an overwhelming ordeal! We have a good team. 🙂 We work together to complete tasks, maintain a sense of balance, maintain our sanity (for the most part) and the kids are always being watched and taken care of. Also, as they grow up, they are given more responsibility and become an integral part of the team.

Oh yeah, there are days when we feel we could recruit an army to watch our kids AND still not get the job done. Sometimes when all the planets are out of whack and all 3 kids are in the “I am going to make my parents life impossible today” mood, it feels as if nothing works! It feels like a “I am going to pour me some scotch and hide for hours while I remind myself that this too shall pass” kind of day! 😉

So, hats off to single mothers and single fathers. I honestly have NO idea how you do it and how you manage to raise good kids and maintain your sanity while holding a job. Parenting has got to be one of the most challenging tasks (and of course THE most rewarding as well) and I cannot imagine doing it without my partner. I am grateful for my team.

Cheers to parenting teams! Cheers to family. Cheers to making it “work”. Whatever it takes. 🙂

20 conventional and unconventional things I am thankful for.

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At first, the idea of writing 20 things I am thankful for sounded like a lot… but when I began to write them I realized the list could’ve been much much longer… Regardless, here is my list of 10 conventional and 10 unconventional things I am thankful for:

God: for guiding, protecting and keeping my family safe.
Becca: for being the best teammate ever in the game of raising kids, for being my rock, the supporter of my dreams but yet the one that brings me down to earth when I dream too much 😉
Nati, Nico, Santi and our 2 baby boys that will join us soon. For bringing so much joy into our lives, for being one of the main reasons I do a lot of what I do, for being an inspiration, for reminding me to be foolish and not take life so seriously, for being kids, and for seeing everyone for who they are, not what they look like. Among many other things.
Our family: For being the support system around us. For loving our kids unconditionally. For being there when we need you.
Our health: because we’ve been fortunate enough to have healthy children and have managed to stay healthy ourselves. I value that a lot!
Our friends: For helping us build memories. For sharing laughs. For listening. For not judging. For genuinely wanting us to be happy. The feeling is mutual.
My work family: For allowing me to do what I love while being myself 100% of the time.
Woolly Mammoth/Ultimate Community: For keeping my competitive spirit and the love for team sports alive. Woolly: for pushing me. For being one of the main reasons I exercise – for giving me a goal to work towards. For showing me, ourselves and others how working in unity towards one goal and under one mission can turn into huge accomplishments. For being the only place I can party barefoot without people making comments about my bruised or non-existent toe nails 🙂 (inside joke)
Our small business (packlessplaymore.com – shameless plug), for allowing me to live my entrepreneurial dream. For challenging me on how to grow the business, how to reach more people, how to better our service, etc.. For supporting our family financially.
YMCA Trainers: For teaching me how much fun it is to workout as a team.
Al Gore: For inventing the internet ;)… I have no idea what I’d do without it!
Facebook (although I am more of an Instagramer): For allowing me to connect with family and friends around the world. If it was not for FB I would have no idea how everyone is doing and wouldn’t be able to enjoy watching their families grow and cheer them on their accomplishments.
Taylor Swift: For reminding us that sometimes you just got to “Shake it off”
College Basketball/March Madness: For being the most exciting sport to watch and the best tournament in the World! Ok…the World Cup is better but March Madness is every year!! Go KU!
Pacifiers: You have no idea how many “oh sh*t he/she is going crazy!” have turned into peaceful and manageable situations… Yes, getting rid of them could be a pain in the a** but definitely worth it when looking back!
Disney World: For providing my kids with magical moments and ever lasting smiles. For allowing us to enjoy in awe their joy and happiness. That’s what it’s all about.
Single Malts and/or Beer: For being the best “decompressing” partner at the end of the day. No matter how rough of a day it was at work or with the kids.
Netflix: For calming my kids down any place, any time. For turning a crappy situation into a not-so-crappy. Sh*t going crazy? Whip out the phone/tablet and put on Netflix. Want them to take a nap while driving? Whip out the good’ol Netflix. Oh yeah, and for allowing me to watch shows & movies I never had the time to watch (and still don’t but at least it gives me peace of mind there is an option).
Miley Cyrus: For reminding me that raising girls is a complex thing… And for giving me perspective on what NOT to do.
Music/ukulele/Youtube: Ran out of room so last one is bundled up. Music for the good vibes. Ukulele.. because it allows me to think there is hope in the world and I may be able to play an instrument. Youtube: for posting tutorials on “how to play the ukulele”.

Happy Thanksgiving!

“Me time” is just as important. Weekend Lessons and fun.

Lessons learned Life Reflections Parenting multiples Pregnant with Twins Weekend Fun

This weekend started off rather early for me. I had to do a delivery for a client in Indian Rocks in the morning so I started my day earlier than I wanted to, but it was worth the effort – on my way to pick up the equipment I found a Colombian Bakery and although I did not have time to stop on my way there, I made sure to stop on my way back. Around 10:30am I was back home with some yummy bakery treats for everyone!

The rest of our Saturday got busy doing stuff around the house. We finally got ready and left the house for lunch with the idea to go to Target and let the kids pick what they wanted for their Christmas list for Santa… That plan got interrupted by a lady that was interested in some of the clothes we had for sale from our failed yard sale so we went and met her instead…

At that point, the kids had started to get restless; we needed to find an activity for them or else our afternoon drama would be intense! We needed a playground and we needed it quick! Energy HAD to be burnt! 🙂 Thankfully we remembered there was a playground close to our meeting point so we headed there for a good 45 minutes.. the weather was kind of crappy so we left before we had planned…

Once home, the kids continued to play as Becca and I were trying to finish up stuff around the house… in one instance and after many times of asking the same thing from the kids and frustrated by no one following directions, I snapped… raised my voice and sent everyone to their room – not gonna lie, not my brightest moment… but I felt that my frustration was building for hours!!… Rightfully so, Becca was disappointed at me, we had a small discussion about it and she went up with the kids…. I headed to the kitchen, poured me a single malt and went to my room to practice learning the ukulele…. And while playing is where I learned my lesson…

First of all, I learned I need to work on my patience with the kiddos – sometimes I forget how young they are and I expect too much of them. I honestly need to make a conscious effort about it. I am admitting my issue and going on record so this blog can hold me accountable for my improvement.

The other lesson I learned is that sometimes we need to be “selfish” and spend some “Me time”. Before you judge me, listen up. Just like spending time with the kids is a main priority, spending time as a couple and spending time with yourself is just as important. To be able to be happy and joyful around the kids at all times, one must be happy with themselves and with each other. I really enjoyed taking 1 hour to myself to play and to just “disconnect” for a little. By the time I was done, I had time to reflect on my stupid reaction, I was able to spend time doing something I like to do for myself and was able to get back to my kids and family with a “fresh” new attitude and had a great night thereafter.

So although it is very easy to get consumed by “kid time”, as adults we need to make an effort to work on our relationship with our significant others and ourselves. We need to find a little time to fulfill our happiness as individuals and as a couple. Whether it is time throughout the day or late at night once everyone is asleep, the key is to find the time and make it count. Trust me, it transcends to the relationship with our kids and our home’s harmony.

Our Sunday was a lot of fun, we spent our morning at home being lazy followed by an awesome lunch at a local place that offers my 3 favorite things when wanting to hang out: outdoor eating, live music and beer. The kids had a blast jamming to the tunes played by the band and enjoying the nice Florida sunshine and breeze.

From there we went to a playground to get some exercise and then back home to cook dinner and get ready for the night. By then, we were ALL tired.

Stop what you are doing right now!

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“Stop whatever you’re doing for a moment and ask yourself: Am I afraid of death because I won’t be able to do this anymore?” — Marcus Aurelius

I found this quote the other day and it made me think how it applies to both family life and work. When looking from above and evaluating your life, are you doing everything you love? Are you working in the area you want and doing what you love? Are you spending time with your loved ones? Are you making your time count?

I am fortunate enough to get to work on projects I love with an amazing team that allows me to be myself. No judgments. No filters.

But more importantly, I can certainly say I am afraid of death because I wouldn’t be able to spend time with my family. I would miss out on seeing my kids grow up, watching them become little people, adults, parents. I would miss out cheering them on in their accomplishments and supporting them in their struggles. Yes, I am fearful of that.

Today, especially in light of the Florida State University incidents, I spent time reflecting on my life. Although I can smile and be fearful of death, I also know that there is a lot of room for improvement, to make every moment count as if it is the last one, and to make sure that my family and friends know how much I love them and appreciate them. I love you guys.

So, thanks Marcus Aurelius. Thanks for making me stop for a moment and reflect on my life. I should do it more often.