Ama has a bit of a stomach flu so we spent the day at home so he doesn't infect anyone else. I spent the day cleaning up after him, the joys of being a mommy.



Here is a picture of the babies taking a nap today. I actually got to take a nap right after I took this picture. Amazing, I rarely get to take a nap. Usually they decide that sleeping at different times is more fun.

Aren't they cute? Yes, that is a bare mattress. I told you that I have been cleaning up messes all day.

The kids seemed to be extra funny today. I'll try to remember everything funny that happened. Ama came to me visibly upset. He pulled me into the living room where Alauna was sitting on the floor eating Ama's cookie. Funny thing (besides Alauna eating her first cookie) is that Alauna isn't exactly mobile. At some point Ama must have given her the cookie. A couple of hours ago Ama came walking into the bedroom not wearing any pants. He laughed and showed me where he had put his pants. He thought he was so funny. Another cookie story, the same cookie, Me: Do you have a cookie? Ama: Yeah Me: What kind? Ama: MINE! I thought that was cute.

More funny stuff happened but I can't remember it. I bet it was funnier if you were here so people reading this are probably thinking I am a weirdo

Today was a busy day. We had several things to do. The most important was Ama's occupational therapy session. She said that he is doing much better. We all played outside so that really helps. He LOVES to play outside. I had some wet concrete on in the front yard and now it has a little Ama heel print in it. The guys offered to fix it but I like it. It's a little memory of a tiny boy running around the front yard.

Alauna crawled for the first time today!! It might not have been her first time but it was the first time I had ever seen her. Prior to this I just wondered how she got to new places when I wasn't looking. She also sat up by herself today. She was in the crawl position and rocked herself up to sitting. It was a big day for Alauna!! Go baby girl!

Sorry everyone. There will be no pictures today. We had some guys over to do some work on the house and Little Mister Ama thought that my camera went in their toolbox. Now I have to go to New Mexico tomorrow and get it back. Thanks Ama. I had a couple of cute pictures on there too. One was of Ama taking a nap and then several pictures of Alauna playing.


*****Edited to add that I got my camera back!! Here are the pictures that I had planned on posting.

I'm back. Drill weekend is over and it was a success. The commander was willing to let me in the unit enlisted or commissioned. I feel flattered. I have been told that he is not usually so generous. I had drill Friday, Saturday, and Sunday and then I had a recovery day on Monday (meaning that we had a lazy day) so now I am back to posting daily.

Ama just learned how to jump off of the couch. He thinks he is so cool and Alauna thinks he is hilarious. She laughs at everything he does. I'm not sure he is the best role model since he usually doing things that can get him in trouble but it is funny for now. Ama had speech therapy today. The therapist said he is doing well and is improving. Ama loves it when people come to see him. Barbie said that he doesn't realize that they are here to work with him. He thinks they are playdates. That is good. I like how he has fun.

Alauna kinda has a cold. It is the first time she has EVER been sick. Her lungs usually sound congested but she has never been sick sick. She has a runny nose for the first time in her life. I think that is pretty good since she is 7 months old. It's not even bad but I can sense that she isn't a hundred percent. She needs extra cuddling.

Jeremy is good in case anyone reading this doesn't know. He is hanging out, going on missions and things like that. He is going to start working out soon. He needs it after he gets my next care package!! I put 4 bags of Snickers in there among other things. If anyone wants to send something to him let me know. I can give you his address.

Here is Ama carrying bricks inside while I am getting the groceries out of the car. Then he is is happy with his brick and rock inside. The third picture is what happened when I told him he couldn't play with rocks in the house. Poor boy.

Another day...still tons left to do. I am seriously taking a break NEXT Friday. If anyone knows of something I have to do that day please don't tell me. I want to look forward to it as long as possible.

The kids were good today. Alauna was very pleasant as usual and Ama was also pretty good. He got to play outside for a long time and enjoyed himself. Lots of other things happened and Ama's speech therapist came to help him. I am going to take pictures of things that he usually asks for and put them on the refrigerator so he can learn to associate the pictures with things that he sees in real life. I am going to take pictures of his milk, yogurt, cheese, and a peanut butter sandwich for now. That is what he asks for most of the time. He also likes popsicles but I don't want to give him one everytime he asks. I want to be able to be happy and cheer when he shows me a picture and I need healthier stuff for that.

Tomorrow I have drill so I might not be posting. If I do it will be during the day. I have lots to do during the day. I need to slow down but I don't know how. I have a problem with that. I feel like everything needs to get done all at once.

Below is what Alauna was doing while Ama was taking a nap. She was playing with a car. The last two pictures is how Ama finished up his nap. I'm not sure why or how he did it but he managed to sleep like that for a good half hour.














I know I am not the best writer. I'm just doing this because it is an easy way to remember the things the babies are doing.

Lately Ama been entertained by putting a bucket on Alauna's head. She doesn't seem to mind and it is a big production when we "find" Alauna's head again, lots of cheering and clapping.

Like always, today was a busy day. I think I get to take a break on Tuesday. I hope so.

Today began with the three of us waking up at the same time. I think it was because I left the curtains open and the sun was shining on us. Ama wanted some breakfast. I told him that I was still sleepy and wanted to stay in bed. He said nooooo and pulled my blanket off. Guess what happened after that? I made Ama some cereal. He won.

Other funny stuff happened. I can't remember all of it. Hmmm.....we were in the car and Alauna was crying. I asked Ama to help her. He turned to her and said "Stop it". It didn't work but it was cute. Ama is starting to say more and more.

As usual we had a very busy day. Why does it always end up being like that? I'm hoping to have a day of doing nothing sometime soon. I guess there aren't really any days like that. Even when we are at home the kids keep me busy. I think I am going to start taking Ama to Mothers Day Out once or twice a week. A part of me feels bad about it because he could easily stay with me, it's not like I am working (or maybe I will but probably not always) but a part of me thinks it will be good for him. They do structured things like craft time and I think it will be good for him to be around kids his own age. I think he will enjoy it.

It's 10pm and I have 2 sleeping babies!!! Those of you that know of our sleep issues can fully understand how amazing that is. I'm going to keep this short so I can get some sleep. I am VERY tired. It seems like I had something to write about but I can't remember it now. Everything kinda runs together. We are getting into a new routine. The babies seem to be happy. They play all day long. Ama plays outside every single day. He loves to play out there. I can't wait until we have a finished backyard. I know we will enjoy it everyday.

I noticed something today. I am trying to teach Alauna how to eat food but she has no idea that she needs to use her hands to feed herself! She thinks that all she has to do is open her mouth and she is fed. It works for her for now but I hope she catches on soon.

I can't post a picture today. I actually forgot to take one. I'll make up for it. Like I said, we are very busy people. I keep telling Ama that I am going to schedule in some time for us to take our time. I feel like we are always rushing to get somewhere.

Jeremy and I talked off and on all day on Skype. That is nice. Skype is so much easier than I thought it would be.

I am very sleepy so this will be short. Ama is finally asleep at a decent time. Now I just need this little girl to go to sleep. Things have been very busy around here. It seems like there is always a million things I need to do. The babies were good today. They seem to be friends. They help each other out and Ama calls her Sissy. It's cute. Speaking of Ama, he is starting to talk more. He says no on a regular basis now and Tee means Thank You. Wow, I have lots of stories but I talked to Jeremy on Skype so I don't feel as guilty as I could have about not typing them out.

Today the babies and I went to a Valentines party. Thanks for having us over, Shannon! We had fun. Ama passed out on the car ride home and is still asleep. I need to wake him up soon. Actually, both babies are asleep and I need to go to the store to get some stuff for my garage sale tomorrow. I have TONS of stuff to sell. It's overwhelming. I'm probably going to need to have another sale later after I sell the top layer of stuff in my garage. I know I am going to find lots of other things that we don't need anymore. The kids outgrow things so fast. I am also selling all of my maternity clothes. No more babies for a while! Jeremy never gets rid of clothes so before he left I had him go through his stuff. I seriously have a lot of stuff for sale.

Quick story~ We were in the car coming back from the party. Ama started laughing like he was laughing at the funniest thing he had ever seen. I turned around and his face was dripping juice!!!! He had squeezed his juice box and it was EVERYWHERE! The mess was worth the happiness I heard in his laugh.

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I'm coming back to add more. People are still calling me about my garage sale! I put my phone number in my ad because our house is brand new so sometimes it is hard to find. I wanted people to be able to call for directions. A man just called me (and yes it is 10 at night) and he told me that he has been in the garage sale-ing every weekend business for 10 years and if I put my signs out tonight he said people would be knocking on my door at 5am. Garage sales are serious around here!! I'm hoping for a good blog report tomorrow! Cross your fingers for lots of decluttering and lots of money!

My camera came in the mail today. Yay! This will be my last post with old pictures. I'm charging the battery. Today I am going to post pictures from Ama's actual birthday. We had spaghetti for dinner and then an ice cream cake.

I had a root canal today and now after a week of pain I actually feel pretty good. The babies stayed at Maria's house while I was at the dentist. They seemed to do well. Ama and Michael get along really well. When it was time to go Michael hid Ama's shoes so he couldn't leave.

I gave Alauna a baby mum mum today and she ate it! We tried a few weeks ago and she couldn't do it. Ah, she is growing up....

I took Ama to get his 2 year pictures today. It went much better than our first attempt yesterday. He was running around everywhere and the lady was patiently snapping his picture as fast as she could. She said this is how most 2 year olds get their pictures taken. Here is the link. Once again, all you have to do is type in my name Carrie Gabriel https://www.smilesbywire.com/home.asp?AC=LTPP0382105824JCP I think they turned out pretty well. I wanted a couple of Ama and Alauna together but they weren't cooperating. Well, Alauna was ready but Ama didn't want to stay by her.

It seems like alot happened today but I am so sleepy that I am going to cut it short tonight.

Oh, and here are a few more pics from Incredible Pizza where we celebrated Ama's 2nd birthday

Ama was standing on his slide dangling my phone charger over the side. Alauna was on the floor grabbing at it. I asked Ama if he was fishing for sisters. His reply~Yes I am!!

I turned around at a red light to check on Ama. He was calmly sitting in his carseat looking around WEARING JEREMY'S BERET! He looked like a chef!

Happy 7 month birthday Alauna!!

Today I had planned on taking Alauna to get her sweat test done (testing for cystic fibrosis) and then head over to a playdate at Cat's and then take the babies to get their pictures taken. My plans never seem to work out. Alauna's appointment took WAY longer than I was quoted. I would have been an hour late for Cat's so I went to Target instead to buy Alauna some tights. Then I TRIED to get the babies pictures done but Ama was too tired and would not cooperate. He wouldn't even let me put him down. Alauna did great though. I dressed her up more formal than I ever have in her whole life. She looked so different and so cute. Here is a link to the pictures we took today. https://www.smilesbywire.com/home.asp?AC=LTPP0382105823JCPYou just have to put in my name Carrie Gabriel I think they turned out pretty good. There were 4 shots that I really liked and ordered. You can guess which ones if you want and I will tell you if you are right. I rescheduled Ama'a 2 year pictures for tomorrow. Hopefully he will be in a better mood. When I walked into the studio one of the first things I saw was Alauna's picture on the wall!! Here is a link to the picture. It is the first one in the setting. Once again, you just have to type in my name. The picture is E12 https://www.smilesbywire.com/home.asp?AC=LTPP0382105706JCP

I got some supplies to make Valentine cards. I need to make 2 tonight for Cameron and Corbin so I can mail them and they get them in time. Ama will make them and I will "help" him. Then we will be nice and sign Alauna's name too.

Ama is starting to talk more. Today Alauna was crying and he patted her head and said Sissy. He says Tee for thank you. My mom likes the story of how I closed the dishwasher door and Ama told me good job. His best words are still ME and MOM.

Here are a few pictures of our trip to Incredible Pizza. We went there to celebrate Ama's second birthday. I'm going to post some today and some tomorrow.

Today was a good day. The house is clean. That is always a good thing. I got a great deal on a swingset for the babies. Now I just need to figure out how to put it together. Ama is going to have so much fun playing outside.

Ama and Alauna were pretty good today. I tried to feel Alauna butternut squash but she didn't really like it. She needs her daddy back. He is so much better at feeding babies. I just make a mess. Ama kept taking Alauna's socks off. Hmmmm....not sure what else happened. I was grocery shopping and Ama got a container of yogurt and opened it at the store and was scooping it out with his fingers. Frustrating. I let him eat it. What else could I do? If I took it away I would have a messy yogurt thing and a hungry, screaming boy.

I finally got something accomplished today. We went to the outlet mall here in El Paso today. That place is really cool. There are tons of kids places there. I was only shopping for kids things. Here is my deal of the day~ At the Old Navy outlet I got Ama 5 pairs of flip flops and a Beatles T-shirt. I got myself 2 pairs of flip flops and a tank top. All of that was a grand total of $22!! Between a sale at the outlet and a coupon I saved TONS of money. I also got Alauna a really cute summer outfit at Carters. It was a good trip. I will definitely be going back. I need some running shoes and I want to check out the New Balance store. They give a 20% military discount. And, no, I'm not really cheap but right now I am staying home with my babies so part of my job is to save our family money. Nothing I bought was on clearance. I just got lucky with the sales.

Alauna can get up on all fours now. I know she will be crawling soon. Watch out Ama! Your sister is going to get you!! She still doesn't have teeth but I am fine with that. She doesn't need any yet.

Grandma Gabriel called me today. That was nice. We had a good talk. She calls Alauna a little china doll. I agree that she does look like a little doll with some crazy hair.

Above is Ama signing a Valentine card and Alauna hanging out while Ama signs for the both of them.

Today Ama was being nice to his baby sister. He put some of his cereal on a little frisbee for her. She was so happy. She grabbed the frisbee and started waving it around. Ama was so indignant about the way she treated his gift. He said, "MOM" in a way that meant he thought she should get in trouble. It was all really funny. I tried to feed her bananas today but she wasn't feeling it. I gave her some yogurt last night and she didn't really want that either. She acts like she wants to eat but then when she actually eats something she doesn't really like it.

We were going to go to the outlet mall today but then I realized that tomorrow is Super Bowl Sunday and that would be a good time to go shopping. Hopefully everyone else will be watching the game. I want to get some Carters sleepers for the babies next winter.

I still don't have a camera so I'm going to post some old pictures that I haven't posted before.

Today was our first day without Jeremy. The day seemed to go by fast. I got our garage door fixed. Ama was only one year old and managed to break it TWICE. My mom says he is just like Aaron, always breaking things as a baby. I got a new purse today. As my anniversary gift I get a new purse and wallet. I've been looking everywhere for the perfect set.

I can't post a picture today. I broke our camera last night and didn't get to buy one today. I'm looking for a good deal. I'm going to have to buy one tomorrow no matter what. I need to post pictures so daddy can see his babies.

Don't be jealous, Jeremy, but Della called and she bringing by some cornbread next week sometime. I wonder how well that would ship. Can you imagine opening a package and finding a block of cornbread? I guess I won't ship any.

The kids were pretty well behaved today. They are very loveable. Alauna is talkative and sits and rolls everywhere. She always has to have something to play with. Ama is my sweet daredevil. He is always doing something too. Today I found an envelope hanging behind the TV (the TV is on the wall). I bet he scooted his slide over to the TV so he could reach and thought it would make a good filing place.

Back to a post a day.....

...Because Jeremy just left. Now the babies and I are all alone. I miss him already. We didn't really think he was leaving today. He had been told he was leaving about every two weeks since November. The emotional roller coaster ride of that is over but new emotions have replaced them. It hasn't really sunk in that he is gone for good now. It seems like he is just at work, which he is, but Fort Bliss is much safer than Iraq and he can't come home everyday from Iraq. Here are a few pictures from today.

I'm not sure what else to write about. The babies are both asleep and I am sitting here all alone. Maybe when I am a bit more upbeat I will post about Ama's birthday and add some pictures of it.