August Rush

September 1?  Really?  It seems August came and went without time for me to blink.  But I am not complaining.  I know we are supposed to enjoy every moment and soak in each day, but September brings my husband home, and I can't help but long and wait anxiously for that.  However, don't get me wrong...August was a great month.  Sienna and I spent a few days at the beach, a lot of time in the pool, and going on fun play dates because she is more popular (and busy) than me.  I am almost 30 weeks along and I feel much better than I thought I would at this point.  I still go out in public (which is a small victory), have enough energy to feed and care for my daughter (most of the time), and decided that because Matt was coming home soon, I should probably consider cleaning my house.  All kidding aside, I feel so grateful that I am doing so well at this point in my pregnancy.  Overall I have had a very easy and blessed multiple pregnancy, and I have my mom, dad, brother, and mother-in-law, Cindy to thank for that.  They have babysat Sienna for me, so I could rest, fed us both, and spent a lot of quality time with this pregnant girl and her two year old.  I KNOW I would not feel this great if it wasn't for their help and care over the past 8 weeks.  

So Matt comes home in two days!  This will be the first time in five years he has not been up in the big leagues at this point in the season.  It stings a little.  But I believe that this year, Sienna and I needed him home.  He will have FIVE months here in Tampa with us and without baseball. I pray that during these few weeks before the babies come, the three of us will share some special moments.  
Matt will not believe how much Sienna has changed.  She's gone from a baby to a little girl in just over 7 weeks.  She talks so much now and interacts differently than when he last saw her.  She's just so grown up.  
She sleeps in a big girl bed now and she transitioned seamlessly.  
She still LOVES shoes.  A good friend of ours, Patty, gave her a pair of light up shoes, and she threw a fit when she had to take them off for bed, and first thing when she woke up, she wanted to put them on.  
She loves to go swimming!  She started wearing her floaties and utterly enjoys floating around and kicking her legs.  She even jumps in by herself while her head goes under and everything!  She is unfazed.
She is a delight and pleasure to be around, except when she's whining and crying because she didn't get her way.  She's not perfect, she's two years old (in three days).  But I will take the tantrums because the laughter and joy she brings far outweigh the moments I have to take a deep breath and count to 10. 
I am filled with hope and anticipation and excitement at what September brings the LaPorta family!

There is nothing sweeter than a sleeping baby

Catching fish with Papa

Sienna and her best friend, Max, cheering on the Gators

Highs and Lows

I wasn't sure what I wanted to say about the last month, so we will go by highs and lows. 
HIGH: Towards the end of June and through this month I have been reading the "Circle Maker" and "Draw the Circle" by Mark Batterson.  My prayer life has been transformed as a result.  I have always considered prayer to be my weakest spiritual discipline.  I lose focus, I get bored, I lack variety, etc.  It has never come easy to me.  But I am also not a big risk taker in my everyday life, so that has translated in to my prayer life.  In the past, I have felt foolish, selfish, and even wrong praying for big, miraculous things.  Or when I have, and things didn't go the way I prayed, I became very frustrated and disappointed (super mature I know)!  Mark Batterson reminded me of how powerful God is and how He wants to bless us, but He also wants us to trust in Him enough to ask.  The time I have spent talking to God this month has been invaluable.  
HIGH: Matt and I spent the 4th of July (my favorite holiday) together for the first time in years!
LOW: I don't know why I am ever surprised by a change of plans in baseball.  Nevertheless, I was extremely disappointed when Matt was told he needed to finish rehabbing in Arizona and therefore would not be coming back home for the all-star break, adding on an extra week (making it eight weeks) that Sienna and I would not be seeing him.  Eight weeks feels like a very long time for a little girl to go without seeing her daddy and a very pregnant wife to go without seeing her husband.  In a moment of pure emotion the night before he left, I cried, "We aren't going to see each other for eight weeks and then when we do FINALLY see each other, I'll look DISGUSTING!!" That moment makes me laugh now, although I can't help but think it's true!
HIGH: Coming home.  Sienna and I have been back in Tampa for over two weeks and I am so grateful to be home.  It has been so much fun "nesting" and getting the boys' room ready, settling in to a normal routine and of course spending time with friends and family.  My wanderlust brother is even home!  It amazes me how much better I feel physically since being here in Tampa.  My pregnancy and chasing Sienna around alone was taking its toll on me up in Columbus.  To be here and have friends and family to share the load has been such a blessing and literally has made my body ache less.  
HIGH: Matt is feeling really great playing out in Arizona and we are hoping he will be released to rejoin his AAA team in Columbus by August!  I have been praying and believing that this is the last we will hear of his hip injury and the beginning of his baseball comeback!
Looking over this list, I think it's obvious how blessed I am.  Several highs and only one low (although it's a big low).  God is good.

Our "New To Us"  3 Carseat-Friendly Vehicle!

24 Weeks

Boys, Boys, Boys!

It's hard to believe the end of June has come.  Where May felt slow and sluggish, June flew by in a flash. June of 2013 will always be remembered as a really wonderful time for us.  Three things happened that made me so happy.

1. Matt did not travel on any road trips this month.  Unfortunately, this is because he was injured, and I would never wish that upon him.  But was there a silver-lining?  Absolutely!  While his team was on the road, Matt was home with us, except for two hours when he had to go to the field everyday.  That is more quality time than we could ever hope for during a season.  And the timing of it coming right before we will be separated for six weeks when I am obligated to stay in Florida for the remainder of my pregnancy come mid-July, couldn't have been more perfect.  I HATE that he wasn't able to play due to his ongoing hip injury, but I view the time we had together as an amazing gift from God.  It is just what I needed.  And Sienna needed.  We went on dates and took Sienna to the zoo and park and I got to go shopping ALONE!  There were times when I was worried Matt would get bored (and we definitely were sometimes), but he really took advantage of this time, recognizing that it was rare, and was such a huge help to me.  

2. With nothing else better to do, we buckled down, and decided to potty train Sienna.  It was something I had been contemplating for a month or two now, but was too nervous, lazy, and indecisive to just go for it.  But with Matt here, it felt much more doable.  We went with the "Naked House Arrest" approach.  Basically for the entire first day and a half we didn't leave the house and Sienna ran around completely naked. (We still put diapers on for naps and nighttime)  And it worked!  On the first day, by her fourth "pee", she ran to her little potty (which we kept in the living room), sat down, and peed!  Only a parent could see how that is a huge miracle! I couldn't believe it.  We had no more accidents that day.  Day 2 did not go so smooth.  I think she had an accident her first time in the morning.  Then she used the potty, but then she held it for a really long time.  Well by hour 36, Matt and I were going CRAZY.  So we decided to go to Chickfila.  Big Mistake.  She peed in the kids play area resulting in the entire place being shut down.  Oops.  Needless to say, I have not gone back to that Chickfila.  Later that evening, she also peed in her pants at the park, and had an accident at home.  I was extremely flustered and ready to give up, but Matt said we should give it one more day.  I'm so glad we did!  The next day, we went back on "Naked House Arrest" and she did beautifully.  Ever since then (two weeks ago), she has had maybe two accidents at home.  Being out in public, has definitely been a tougher and slower transition, but she's done great!  We had one accident at the ballpark and playground, but other than that, she has learned to go in public restrooms or she holds it until we get home!  I am so relieved and grateful that I took the time and energy and effort to do this.  I wasn't sure if she was even physically capable or mature enough to handle this, but she was!  And having Matt there, was the only reason it happened.  I would have given up after the second day, but having his support was invaluable.  I'm so proud of Sienna Rose.  Not even 22 months and potty trained.  I view this as one of Matt and I's greatest parenting accomplishments (at least so far)! : ) 

3. We are having twin boys!  I am grinning ear to ear even as I write this.  Maybe it sounds awful, that we are THIS excited to be having two boys.  But it really is what we both wanted.  I know God would have changed and prepared our hearts to perfectly love whatever He chose to give us, but this time He chose to give us our heart's desire, and we couldn't feel more blessed. Someone remind me of this post when I have two mischievous four year olds running around creating havoc on me and my house, okay?

Funny Sienna Things:
1. Obviously when she would go potty, we would make a big deal of it cheering and praising her.  Well now when she sees me or Matt go potty, after we flush the toilet, she claps her hands and says, "Yay Mama!" or "Yay Dada!"  It's pretty great.
2. A few days ago, we heard Sienna start crying from the bathroom, so Matt and I both run in to find her half in the potty with her little arms barely holding her up.  The sweet girl had actually climbed on to the potty herself, but fell in!  It's a mental picture that will not quickly be forgotten and make me laugh for a long time.
3. She loves wrestling and playing on the bed (of course).  But lately, her favorite thing is for all of us to pretend to sleep on the bed (she fake snores), and then she gets to wake us up by yelling really loudly.  I don't know why she thinks this is so much fun, but she LOVES it.  
4. Whenever we even mention the word "brothers", even in passing, she says "TWO"!  
5. She loves to see my belly, but not to tenderly kiss it or "love it".  She makes fart noised on it and thinks it is the funniest thing in the world.  Greatly encouraged by her father of course : )

Sienna's "eyes"

Naked House Arrest!

20 Weeks!

Manic May

I have so much to be grateful for and I have been blessed beyond my wildest dreams, yet lately I'm having a hard time remembering that.  As one of my favorite books, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society quotes, "I much prefer whining to counting my blessings."  Now this is not true most of the time, but I certainly go through phases of this unfortunate attitude.  

Matt and I are still thrilled to be having twins, but some of the realities of that are definitely coming in to focus now.  The risks of a multiple pregnancy are much greater, so instead of this pregnancy flying by (as I assumed it would), it's dragging on and on, as I count my way up to God-willing 37-39 weeks.  The possibilities that I could go in to pre-term labor, put on bed rest, or my babies spending ANY time in the NICU terrifies me.  The most difficult thing for me to accept though is the fact that I have to come home in mid-July.  This means Sienna and I won't see Matt for a minimum of 6 weeks and depending on baseball, that could stretch to 10 weeks.  I hate that.  And speaking of baseball, the glamour and glitz of this life has faded considerably.  The 10 day road trips that take my husband away from me, leaving me in Columbus, OH, with a toddler and no family and friends are not my favorite thing right now.  The fact that we have no idea where we will be or how much money we will be making next year is also a bit overwhelming when I think about flying all over the country with 3 children under 3.  

Okay, I think I am done whining now.  Please have grace and forgiveness if you find me ungrateful and pathetic.  I will count my blessings now.

1. I am pregnant with twins!

2. Sienna knows around 30 words (including "boob").

3. Sienna's "crazy eyes" (she narrows her eyes, tilts her head down and peers at us from furrowed brows.  It's the best.

4. Matt and Sienna reuniting this month.

5. Watching "How I Met Your Mother" with Mattie every night after games.

6. I have still had a very easy pregnancy health-wise.

7. Summer has hit Ohio!

8. Beautiful and wonderful wives here in Columbus.

9. Mom and Dad came to visit for over a week!

10. Sienna is sleeping over 12 hours still at night.

11. Sienna's kisses and hugs

12. I have a great church here (still not as great as GFC of course, but good!)

13. Sienna's social butterfly personality

Do those make up a little for my beginning of this blog?  I hope so.

I walked in to our bedroom and found Sienna up here.
She will do anything for gum.

Home Depot with Dad

Talking on the phone

Huntington Park
Columbus, OH

16 weeks!

March and April

So I am NOT living up to my new year's resolution of blogging monthly.  I vow (again) to get better.  

March brought us to spring training which was a spring training like no other.  We knew Matt was still recovering from hip surgery.  We also knew that he would not be able to play for the first few weeks.  We did not know that he would not play any spring training games and would have to stay in Arizona through the whole month of April to play in "extended" spring training games.  Of course this was not good news, but as always there was plenty of good to come from it.  The best thing about Matt being injured during spring training is that his days were MUCH shorter than usual.  In the past, he would leave for the field at around 7am and return between 5 and 6pm.  This year, he left around 8am and returned between 1 and 2pm.  It was wonderful! 

When April came along, I decided to go home because my dear friend and polevault teammate, Natalie Moser, was getting married the first weekend in April.  We assumed Matt would be in Arizona at the most 2-3 weeks.  Turns out, he was there the whole month.  Selfishly, I was unwilling to fly back 5 hours with my charming and extremely active Sienna.  Therefore, we were apart for over four weeks.  I have to admit it went much faster than I would have expected, but I still didn't like being separated for so long.  

March brought us the wonderful news that I was pregnant.  April brought even better news...we are having TWINS!  After three weeks, it has finally settled in, but I think it took about that long for it to feel real!  I can honestly say it was HUGE surprise, but a spectacular surprise.  We are over the moon and can't believe we are so blessed.  We are hoping for two boys (but at least one out of the deal)!  If we ask Sienna where mommy's babies are, she lifts up my shirt.  She will be in baby heaven come November!

Speaking of Sienna...(I shake my head and smile as I think about what to say next).  She is talking more!  She says, "dog", "hat", "please", "boo-boo", "ba ba" (bottle), "eat", "no", "hi", "bye bye", and probably a few more I'm not thinking of in addition to the words I mentioned previously.  "Dada" is still far and away her favorite word.  Whenever baseball comes on TV, she points and says "Dada".  She loves him.  She climbs in to her high chair when she is ready to eat.  If she is tired enough, she takes my hand and leads me in to her room, so I will put her to bed.  Whenever wind blows in her face she shakes her head back and forth.  She still LOVES chapstick.  She puts it on her lips and cheeks.  The other day, she was playing with a toy vacuum and I noticed she was throwing animal crackers on the floor, so she could vacuum them up.  She loves baby dolls now.  She loves feeding them and holding them and trying to put diapers on them.  My mom taught her ring around the rosy, and she constantly want to play by taking your hands and saying "ro ro ro".  Thanks Mom.  Of all, I am most proud of her accomplishment in doing the "Gator Chomp" when I say "Go Gators!" : )  In short, our Sienna has more personality than we know what to do with!  She is the love of our lives. 

Go Gators!

Celebrating my birthday!

February Is Too Short

It's March 1st and I am writing February's blog.  28 days is obviously not enough time for me to fully collect and organize my blog thoughts.  : )

We made it to Arizona, not easily, but here we are anyway.  Our flight was completely full, so Sienna had to sit in my lap for the 4 hour and 45 minute flight.  Have I mentioned she's not too cuddly?  Needless to say, it was extremely challenging.  She was mostly good, but the physical, mental and emotional energy it took me to keep her good was exhausting!  I am already dreading the flight back east at the end of this month.  Yikes.  

Sienna doesn't look like a baby anymore.  Everyday she looks more and more like a little girl.  Her hair is getting longer and her body is getting more muscular.  She will be 18 months in a few days and looking back at her one year pictures, I am astonished at the difference!  Oh well. Like Matt says, "That's why we have to keep having more!".  We are working on it...

Sienna's hair is so straight and perfectly trim that people assume I have had her hair cut and/or straighten it!  Craziness.  I barely give my own hair the attention and time it needs, let alone my toddler's! 

We are up to five words!  "Dada", "Mama", "caca"...and the newest additions are "duck" and "hot".  Yay!  In addition to her verbal acumen, she is also finally picking up some sign language!  We've had "more" and "all done" covered.  But she can do "duck" and "pray" and "baby" too.  Despite her newfound communication skills, her facial expressions still remain the joy of my life.  She gives real kisses now.  She scrunches her little nose, kind of puckers her lips (she only sticks her bottom lip out), says "mmmmm", and leans in for a smooch.  Matt and I pretty much bribe her with anything to get these special kisses.

She is still the friendliest child.  The lady at L.A. Fitness child care told me she waves good-bye to every single child that gets picked up.  : )  Love that little girl.

She loves chapstick, which is coincidentally very appropriate for this dry Arizona weather.  She folds her little hand around it and we are hard-pressed to take it from her for the rest of the day.  Her favorite it carmax.  Great choice.

I think that's my Sienna wrap-up!  Stay tuned next month!

Definitely her baby doll's stroller

Did I mention I am kind of potty-training?  

First spring training game!

My little gymnast monkey