July is the month our baby girl is expected to arrive and we have some exciting news to share!! We’re going to Chicago to have our baby girl!! Yes, it’s a bit extreme but after so much brainstorming we feel it is best to give birth to our girl in Chicago for many many reasons. I plan to arrive in Chicago at 37 weeks…eeek I know I am cutting it very very close but I just had so much to do in Tucson to prepare. I wanted to somewhat finish the nursery and have everything washed and ready for when we come back with our new bundle of joy.

One of the main reasons we decided to attempt this “birth plan” was to give baby girl bragging rights; to be able to say she was born in Chicago! I mean her older brothers were born in San Diego, we just couldn’t do her like that and had to give her something to brag about too. HA! Kidding!! Just kidding….well sort of, we’re definitely glad that she’ll have a cool birth story but the main reason we’re doing this is, of course, to be surrounded by family and friends.

I feel very excited and a bit crazy in doing this but it will be absolutely amazing to be surrounded by loved ones. When the boys were born we were blessed enough that our family came out to San Diego to help us adjust to our new bundles. This time around there’s two active toddlers and a very tired mama and daddy, so a little extra help means the world to us. It’s been about 9 years since we’ve moved out of Chicago. The struggle got real once we started having kids and date nights became so rare for us because of the lack of babysitters. We are extremely happy with our growing little family and we absolutely DO NOT regret leaving Chitown but lets face it…we really do need a break once in a while. So we just can’t express how grateful we are when our family and friends give us the opportunity to be us again.

One of the things I am extremely nervous about our birth plan is hubs not making it in time for the birth. He unfortunately can’t take that much time off work so we plan to play it by ear and hope to nail it with the dates. One way that I am coping with this is that even if, worst case scenario, he misses the birth I know I will have plenty of support out there to kind of fill in the gap.

In the past, I have struggled with the newborn phase so I know being in Chicago is the right thing to do. I didn’t realize it then but I’m pretty sure I went through post partum depression with my first born. It wasn’t until we had our second baby that I realized things were different in my mood and recovery. I will blog about that one day but it saddens me how the signs were all there but I wasn’t able to recognize them at the time. One day, years later, I was reading my personal journal and was so shocked to read my entries during that time. So to, hopefully, prevent any similar stresses, Chicago is definitely the best option.

So hopefully I don’t end up on the news as “Pregnant Women Gives Birth in the Air” and I make it to Chicago still nice and fluffy and so very pregnant. HA! That would make a heck of a birth story but no thanks, I’m not that crazy! Baby girl…we’re excited to meet you but please wait until we land to make an appearance. Thanks!

Love,

-Mama Bear Mimi

Whoa!! I am so in love with our maternity photo session! All the pictures came out way better than I expected. For starters, it was such a windy day, especially for Arizona! My hair was flying everywhere. Hubs even had to tell me to sit still as he watched me get photographed with the boys. HA! Then, the boys were so distracted with the tiny rocks and just wanted to play with them. Especially Alex, he would pick up a handful of them then laugh as he scattered them everywhere. Boys I tell ya!

What makes me most happy about our photo session is being able to capture such a beautiful moment for our family. We’re preggo, most likely for the last time, AND it’s a girl! My prayers have been answered and our little family feels complete!! Hubs and I have always talked about having a big family. I would absolutely love that, but I is tired! Raising little ones is not an easy task, I love them to death but man they are a handful. We are just ready to be done with this phase and bravely dive into the rest of it. So we cherish these moments, knowing that everyday they change and develop into something different. Tear Tear.

I love how the boy’s characters just shine through our photos. I mean look at Alex’s smile! That smile says it all! We call him Johnny Johnny…you know from the nursery ryhme…

Johnny Johnny
Yes papa 
Eating sugar? 
No papa
Telling lies?
No papa
Open your mouth
HA HA HA!

Yup, that’s all Alex! Don’t let that cute smile fool you. He’s a little Johnny Johhny, always being sneaky and purposely doing what he shouldn’t so that we have to address him. Most times he looks around for us to make sure that we see that he’s up to no good. Told you…I is tired. HA!

Sebastian is a combination of roses and red bull. He is the sweetest energetic little boy, who wants to be just like daddy in every sense. They do the same exact things, sometimes without even knowing it! One day, in particular, we were just coming home from the playground when Sebastian immediately starts getting comfortable and takes off his shirt to lounge around the house. He normally takes off his pants but this day he took off his shirt. Meanwhile, daddy was unloading the van, not aware that Sebastian had just taken off his shirt. Next thing I know I  see hubs coming in doing the same exact thing Sebastian just did! I immediately start laughing and say “wow! you guys are twins!” When they see each other without shirts on they immediately started laughing!! It was the cutest thing ever!

These moments right here are the exact moments we are looking forward to share with baby sister. Not only share but create even more memories as a family. And that’s exactly why I love taking these family photo sessions. I see our boys faces and see exactly this! My sweet red bull boy and my Johnny Johnny! The next blog post will feature my birth plan, pregnancy update and even more maternity pictures. Told you…I’m addicted to capturing moments.

Enjoy our maternity family memories below, taken at 31 weeks pregnant!

The Villa Family

#4yearsold #2yearsold #31weeks

Photos taken by Danielle Esparza at Millennial Mummy Photography

I wake up one March morning to messages on my phone from my sister in Chicago telling me that my dad is in the hospital and not doing too well. It’s probably not the greatest way to start the day when 20 weeks pregnant but I manage to immediately call her and get an update on his condition. I spent the morning just thinking about how these are the times when I feel the most stressed and useless to my family because I am so far away from them. It’s hard enough to hear a loved one is in critical care and even worst when unable to just go and see them.

By mid day his situation was not improving and I was overcome by emotions. Hubs was napping our boys and needed to get ready for work when he sees my meltdown and immediately turns into prince charming. He says “pack your bags, I’ll find you a flight!” Talk about best husband ever!! After about an hour, or maybe two, of brainstorming, calling airlines and packing suitcases we decided that it would be best if we all go to Chicago. We scramble to Phoenix airport with 3 of the messiest packed suitcases and two confused and excited toddlers.

We made it safely to Chicago at about 2 in the morning. With all the rush and commotion that went on in trying to get there we really didn’t tell anyone we were going. For me, it was better this way. Although I am sure we would have received plenty of positive vibes had we spread the word. I particularly preferred privacy to be able to attend to the reason I was there.

My dad spent 2 weeks in the hospital, going back and forth from intensive care to non-intensive care. It was definitely a very stressful 2 weeks for my sister and I; and can only imagine the amount of stress and frustration my dad must have been under, to say the least. My dad was then home for 2 weeks without improvement and was admitted again to the hospital for another week or so. He is now, about 2 months later, doing much better and recovering just like he should be. He has regained a lot of his strength and is still fighting to be back to his normal self, even though much recovery is still needed.

During this stressful time I had a lot of time to think about how quickly life can take a turn for the worst. My dad has been battling with his health for about two years now and it has done wonders to our relationship. We’ve been able to connect like never before! Sadly, it always takes situations like this for one to realize it’s not a time to be petty and hold grudges about the past. It’s a time to show those you love how much you really love and care for them.

My family has experienced tragic loss with my brother in 2009 and boy was that a huge awakening and life shaking experience for us. Maybe one day I will be brave enough to blog about it without meltdowns but let me tell you it has taught me how to value loved ones and has made me the person I am today.

I just don’t have time to waste with loved ones anymore. I don’t have time to be angry about situations or hold any type of grudge. Life really is short and I am human enough to never wish anything bad upon anyone, regardless of how close or distant the relationship may be. I accept that we are all different and what may be important to me may not be important to others. And to be completely honest, my dad and I haven’t always had a great relationship. It has been distant and foreign for too long. Long enough for both of us to realize enough is enough.

So I am grateful that we have been able to rekindle our relationship. We’ve had so many deep and genuine conversations, the way it should be. I am grateful that it’s not too late for us to be able to do this. I encourage you all to do the same. I feel no regrets and am at peace with my relationships with loved ones. I am not afraid to show emotion and express them respectfully because life is short…

Love,

Mama Bear Mimi

Moving makes you realize how much stuff you have and I need an intervention!! We  moved about a month ago and I thought I was ahead of the game by starting to pack 3 weeks before our move but nope! Hubs and I had to go back and forth for 2 days after we officially moved all the big stuff. Each time we packed our cars with “stuff” I would think  “mannn…where is all this stuff coming from!!”

As I was packing I found so many things I forgot I had. Can you belive I found 6 of the same exact shirt in 6 different colors!!! And 3 of them still had tags attached! I remember when I bought them too. I was so in love with how they fit that I had to have 6 of them (palm to the face) and that’s just the beginning.

Now I’m about to read the book called Minimalism: Live a Meaningful Life by Joshua Fields Millburn and Ryan Nicodemus. I found it while unpacking but I bought it maybe 2 months ago after watching the documentary on Netflix and of course (no surprise) wanting to read the book. It looks like it will be a quick one, its only 121 pages, but I want to pour my thoughts out before I read it.

For starters…lets be real, I am no where near a minimalist and I probably never will be. I like “things.” I have too many hobbies and interests that make me shop and hold on to “things.” For example…I hate being wasteful and throwing things out that are still useful, so yes I will find a way to reuse those return envelopes that come with bills in the mail. You know, the ones with the little window that show your address and the “place stamp here” message. Yup, I keep those!! I mostly do everything online but when one of those envelopes show up in my mailbox I keep it! I like to call it recycling, not hoarding.

I like to find ways of reusing all kinds of items. You will find me shopping at the mall with my own reusable bags, the bags the stores give are always kind of awkward fitting in our little bathroom trash cans, so therefore I don’t want them. I am however a spender and it’s where I need an intervention. I see something pretty and I want it, and forget about it if it’s on sale!! That pretty thing stands no chance!

Moving definitely opened up my eyes though, half of the stuff I HAD to pack were stuff that I no longer use or need. As I’m unpacking and settling into our new home I can’t help but admit that hubs was right. He said “we don’t need a big home.” We ended up making a deal together to not fill our new home with junk just because we have the space for it.

We reminded each other of how happy we were when we lived in a 500 sq foot cottage in San Diego steps away from the beach. We were newlyweds (2 years in, that still counts as newlyweds right?) and decided to sacrifice space for location and boyyyy was is worth it. We sold most of our furniture and rented a storage unit for the items we couldn’t fit in our little beach rental. I remember having to make weekly trips to our storage unit to switch up our wardrobe or to switch up my crafting supplies. Our little beach house was very simple and by no means upgraded with fancy countertops or fancy anything. It had one bedroom with barely enough space for a queen bed and a tall dresser. Our living space consisted of a two person futon, a TV on a 4 cube organizer shelf, a 5 gallon water dispenser next to the TV and a tiny kitchen with 2 upper cabinets and a long bar “island” as our eating area with open shelving.

During the time we rented the beach house hubs and I went on so many dates and spent all of our free time at the beach. I hardly drove my car!! We did almost everything on our bicycles. We would walk a block to the laundromat with two baskets of laundry, we rode our bikes to the gym and grocery store daily, filling as many items as we could on our bike baskets. We had the party scene of PB a mile away, which yup we either walked to or rode our bikes to. We could see the beach from our front door making everyday beach day, giving us the best tans ever!

I remember having so much inner peace living in a tiny home. It honestly amazes me how we can become attached to stuff and always want bigger and better this and that. I didn’t have to worry about having to spend the whole day cleaning or maintaining the home. Life was simple. Hubs and I had no choice but to sit on top of each other to wacth tv (because we litereally had no space) hence baby #1 (HA just kidding, I got jokes). I remember we would have friends over and 10 people would be way too many. One Sunday funday in particular a few people had to sit outside and watch the game through the door. HA! Good times indeed but you know what…we never complained one bit and we made it work! We never complained about the tiny bathroom where your knees would touch the sink when you sat on the toilet and if you extended your legs you’d be in the shower, not joking this time, that’s exactly how small it was! I never complained about having a tiny closet or a small kitchen or not enough counter space. Life was simple and to be honest its one of the reasons I struggled so much with motherhood at the beginning…we were living the life.

Of course, we’re still living the life (to our standards)…we travel often, have many family and date nights at home, endulge in delicious eats and are always up for adventures but most importantly we live in the moment and cherish the memories we make. But back then life was S I M P L E ! ! Now we’ve got this bigger home to take care of and even though I’m so in love with it and all its charm I’m already falling in the mindset of  “Oh I need to buy this and that and I need to change this and upgrade this.” On top of that, I know I am going to struggle to keep it pretty and clean. Some days I’m sure the house will be clean and some days (maybe most) the house will be a hot mess but my goal will be not to stress and embrace our new home.

The beach casita was the absolute best thing for hubs and I. It is why we decided that when we retire we would (god willing) love to live in an RV anywhere we wanted! It was definitely bitter sweet when we moved out of the beach casita. I was about 7 months pregnant with Sebastian and we had purchased our first home together on the other side of town…further away from the beach…bitter sweetness I tell ya. I quickly and easily fell into the mindset of buying “stuff” for our then bigger home and new baby…and before you know it, its full of “stuff.”

So this post is my commitment to not filling our home with useless stuff. It was a pleasant walk down memory lane, to how S I M P L E everything was in our tiny beach house. Most importantly, the peace of mind it gave us by spending our money, time and energy on non-materialistic things.  As I’m unpacking, I’m also decluttering and packing boxes to donate or sell, a definite must for all the stuff I’m just holding on to for that “just in case” moment. What’s worst about all that “stuff” is that it all costs money and is now pretty useless. I’ll reblog in a few months to talk about how I’m doing. Hopefully there isn’t a good sale at Home Goods because then I’ll be in big big trouble! Doh! (palm to the face, again) HA…I’m only half kidding guys.

Below are a few pictures I found of our beach rental, I wish I had better ones but they are enough to keep the memories alive. Fun times…

Newlyweds

Sunday fun day prep

Our only counter space

Sunday fundays

When we hosted, our bed was where I would hide stuff to make room for food and people. HA!

The tiny kitchen

Grilling with views

Walking to the laundromat

Our backyard

Moving out and admiring the beach in the background…bittersweet.

Moving day at 6 months pregnant.