Sometimes I'm Hoity Toity Because I Just Am...

One of the perks of living in Los Angeles is the proximity of the Fashion District downtown. Once a month on the last Friday, the ninth floor of the California Mart (my junior prom was here, it was weird to say the least) becomes the hoity toity haven for cheap baby stuff.

I've been a couple of times and at first, was appalled by what any toddler or infant would need Diesel jeans and moreover by the "discounted" price of tiny t-shirts and onesies with seemingly trendy phrases being sold for $10. That's not a deal. It's a steal (in the bad way)! I might have better luck at the local Goodwill where the spit and milk stains might pass as "cool" if faded on purpose (or so I'd claim).

But as we came across one store in particular, I saw diaper bags for $10-$40. Given diaper bags from Target cost $20, these originally retailed bags of $100 - $300 (think Storksak, Reese Li, Babymel) were indeed a reason to spend some hard earned cash! As I browsed some more, I saw very cute Sunday Best outfits similar to what I might find at Janie and Jack for $10-$15 and other deals at stores that sold to little boutiques in Los Angeles that I had never heard of but were - even I must admit - pretty darn cute. Besides going to Ross, Nordstrom Rack and TJMaxx and going through the mess of clothes that are all well priced or even making a trip to Macy's when they are discounting last season's stuff, this was pretty much the next best thing. I got so excited that I eventually made my way back once with my mum and once with my mother-in-law and plan on going back for more!

And so I wanted to share this bit of insider information (the good kind Martha) because sometimes it's fun to feel hoity toity and know you didn't spend that much for it. Nobody can see the markings of "sample" inside my bag and it's a pretty sweet bag - better than any free Carter's bag you could get from Babies 'R' Us for buying a certain amount of baby stuff (yes, you know the deal, almost everyone got a free bag for spending more than $50).

So if you're in Los Angeles or know someone around, send 'em to the ninth floor of the California Mart on the last Friday of the month for some cheap hoity toity baby stuff. It's well worth a trip.

Leftovers from Pregnancy

There's this restaurant on Green Street in Old Town Pasadena called "La Luna Negra" which serves tapas and sangria (think alcoholic grape juice soda with bits of fruit in it) and has entertainment like flamenco and bands playing all the time. It's quite a sight to see when you drive by, very festive looking and really grabs at your attention and the food is quite good but it is a bit pricey and if you're tall like my 6'4 lil brother, the height of the chairs and table are quite uncomfortable.

When I learned I was pregnant and the dark line on my belly button that runs from the top of the belly down to the bottom of the belly, is in fact called the linea negra, I could never get the two straight. I often called it the luna negra on my stomach. Yes, a restaurant was on my belly. Apparently, the mark is caused by the hormones in your body (as everything is whilst pregnant) and fades after you give birth some months later.

Understandably so, I did not freak out when the line did not disappear on my stomach immediately after giving birth. In fact, I was so calm about the natural line on my belly, that I failed to realize the rim of dirt that was forming around my belly button.

Recently, on our road trip back from Arizona, I sat in the backseat with Jordan and for some strange reason, got bored and began to look at my belly button, wondering when the luna negra would disappear. This was my first encounter with the rim around my belly button that I immediately thought was just part of the luna negra. But remember I said it's a line? My line was still there but significantly lighter than the circly part of the luna negra that in contrast to the fading line, looked quite distinct and huge. Ugh, I thought. Pregnancy in all its glory and beauty can also be quite disgusting sometimes. Ugh. Ugh again. And then.... I wondered. No... It couldn't be, but..... but what if?

So I started to rub at the rim around my belly button. Shocked and a bit disgusted by myself, I realized it was starting to rub off. I grabbed for a wipe (pretty convenient to have Jordan around at times like these), and began scrubbing the circumference of my belly button with the wipe. Remember picking the Elmer's dried glue off your fingers when you were a kid? This was ten times as fun and yet, part of me cringed at how long I had let my belly button deteriorate to its current state of grimy leftovers.

I don't remember what Andy was doing at this point. He might have been on the phone (I think this is the only time he calls most of his friends... while on a road trip!) or singing to the music playing from Pandora on our bluetooth system (yes, it's quite sweet), but afraid to admit what I was doing that exact moment, I might have started up conversation to distract him. In fact, I 'm quite sure I did exactly that. I did however recall the events for him later but did not have any evidence to show for it (this I did purposely, nobody should ever know exactly how much dirt was on my belly button).

So for all my pregnant friends or soon to be pregnant friends, please beware - the luna negra/linea negra - whatever you want to call it... it is a hormonal stamp of pregnancy in the shape of a line and a line only. There should not be a circle involved. Don't be like me and wait for the line to fade away before you realize the circle of leftovers.

Token Asian Baby

Despite having grown up in Arcasia, my Asian roots haven't done much for me in terms of mom friends and baby play dates. I think this is due to the fact that most of my Asian friends from back home are still sans baby. According to their timeline of wanting certain accomplishments checked off first, a strong desire to travel more, a suitable income, a required number of years married before starting a family or simply no time, babies have been postponed and as such, I am the first baby momma in my group of Asian friends.

Lucky for me, everyone in my building is having babies and the same goes for everyone in my Church! As a result, I have made random friends with baby's mommas in our apartment complex and from other babies' mommas at Church.

At Church, there is a maternity lounge complete with rocking chairs, a diaper changing station, boppys, a sink, speakers so you can hear what is going on during Sacrament and a mirror to fix your clothes for afterwards. Since Jordan began going to Church after being a month old, we have frequented this maternity lounge often and met so many other mothers and babies while there. It feels good to be part of a special VIP club known as Motherhood, and even more fun to know I'm not the only member in the My Baby Won't Take the Bottle Club.

A few weeks ago, one of my preggers walking buddies, Nicole, who lives up the street from us, decided to have a 2011 Babies Party which we co-hosted! We overestimated the amount of games a mom of babies all less than seven months could accomplish but still had a great time meeting other babies and mommies, munching on an assortment of potluck-ed lunch and conversing about our babies. It was reassuring to talk about each baby's milestones, realizing that all babies cry, all babies have some serious blowouts, and a lot of babies hate the bottle. It was also entertaining to watch the other babies, the little ones who cried like Jordan used to, the big ones who could roll over, and all the babies spit up and drool just like Jordan does from time to time.

It made me think about all the for profit baby play date groups and how lucky I am to have a group of women to turn to for questions and company from both Church and where we live at no cost. I feel grateful for both tender mercies from the Lord and I am looking forward to more moments of Jordan being the token Asian baby.

Already Thinking About Leaving California

I keep a pretty close track of our net worth through Mint.com and I'm dreading the day the medical school loans hit and our net worth plummets into the negatives. On the bright side, I'm also looking forward to a potential residency somewhere where gas and groceries (our two largest monthly expenses) are not so expensive! Then again, the fruit in California by far surpasses the lack of variety elsewhere. Of course, the heat in the summertime here is also quite difficult and a trip to the beach is just too time consuming. Although, there is the option of the beach here.

As you can see, I vacillate periodically about our soon to be (guess it depends where we match right?) departure from California. I have started to slowly accumulate a list of the pros and cons of living in Southern California, and I'm hoping to maximize on the pros before we leave. Those would include, but are not limited to, seeing my parents and nearby family often (it's funny how my cousins all live nearby but we probably only get together for big holidays or events), eating lots of authentic and cheap Chinese, Korean and Thai food with a dabble of Japanese when my mom takes me (Andy isn't a huge fan of Japanese), loading up on Thrifty ice cream every week it's 2 for $5, getting boba and shaved ice from time to time, going to Hollywood Bowl before we leave, visiting the downtown LA fabric district some more for fabric and trim (for those craft projects I will one day get to), and maybe a trip to Disneyland.

My list isn't that extensive because in thinking it over, there's not much about So Cal that I'm really attached to besides my roots in Arcasia and the food here. Although I like shopping at the Grove and the Americana, I can live without both and in the limited time I've been away from home (think college, living on the westside and my short stint in San Jose), the local grocery stores and shopping malls are usually the first things I become acquainted with. Not because I am that crazy of a shopper, but because I like knowing where things are ahead of time. In case you didn't get the memo, I'm sort of a planner.

I also find comfort in the fact that my parents will probably never leave LA, so we will always be coming back. I know we're not leaving yet, but in many ways, I'm already thinking about leaving California and what it entails because we're going to be going out of town for a few weeks to Orlando for vacation and then Salt Lake City for a rotation Andy has with the University of Utah. That's a long time away from our lil LA apartment that has become home and it's going to be a sort of test drive for me while I'm there. When Andy's cousins were here, they kept exclaiming, "We don't have that in Utah!" and the more they commented on little things like the Chinese sausages and Yan Yans on sale at our local Costco to the nearby Chipotle and all the fro yo places, I started to fear the unknown and already began missing So Cal.

Much is the case with life. We often take for granted what we have, always thinking about what we don't have. Today, I'm going to stop thinking about leaving California and what I have to gain, and enjoy the things of California that are at my disposal now. I'm thinking, a work out at the outdoor mall with an amazing ginormous fountain that mimics the Bellagio's (but not that big), some fro-yo or boba and a visit to my community pool. It's the simple things in life that we tend to overlook and hate on... well, today, I'm not going to hate, I'm going to appreciate.

Have You Ever?

Farted at the gym thinking nobody would hear since you couldn't hear it, only to realize you were the only one in the vicinity to be wearing headphones?

Wondered if your head is misshaped because every time you use your new iPhone, you hang up or merge calls without trying to just by the leaning of your head onto the touchscreen?

Really hated the trending fashions and thought about how you might be "that girl with the 80's hairdo" only substitute 80's with 2000's?!

Gone a few days without washing your hair, only to realize the oil helps you style it better?

Subsequently discovered that baby powder when rubbed into your oily hair can cover the shine and smell?

Looked through photos but only looked at yourself, and ashamed of your own narcissism, but unwilling to stop, felt bad about it?

Thought about having another kid right away after the first so your kids could have birthdays near each other?

Gone through every single outfit in your wardrobe only to realize nothing looks good and you've created a pile of junk so you throw it into the laundry basket instead of refolding it?

Yeah, me neither. Just saying.

Part of Your World

Who didn't want to be a mermaid when they saw the Disney version of The Little Mermaid? (cuz Hans Christensen's version is a bit sad...) I know I did - and I even looked up what "reprimanded" meant in the dictionary, thank you Disney, for enhancing my vernacular prowess at only seven years old!

So, when I came across this blog post from Shawnie on 71 Toes, I couldn't help but post (even though this is my second post in one day!). Check out photos at her blogpost - I'm sure it's something you could make, but I am not that crafty nor do I have that much time ... maybe my sister-in-law will make it if we don't win it... what do you think Tammy?

I get an extra entry if I post about it. Hey, did you ever enter a contest for your "niece" and really want to keep it for yourself if you won? Yeah, me neither.. duh, it's for my niece if I win. Here's hoping I win!!!

Inflatable Fun House

Remember those bouncy houses at birthday parties, in parks, at fairs, company picnics, grad night at the high school, elaborate house parties in the Dena or college reunions?

I always thought they would be too expensive for my kid but I found one that is currently free and Jordan is loving it.

It's my stomach and everything surrounding it, leftover from birth and still hanging out until I start taking my work outs more seriously. And it is an inflatable fun house. He steps on it and just loves the squishiness of the stomach, the undulating waves it creates of air that boost him up and down. The table is not as fun. Daddy's stomach is not as fun. Even the diaper changing pad is not as fun.

Nothing beats your own inflatable fun house. Just ask Jordan.