Kerstin's Blog

Baby Time

The time has come, Carole Sullivan is leaving us today to go have a baby boy!  She will be back in December and in the mean time we will have a couple awesome fill in anchors to help you through your morning.  I promise to post some pictures of her baby boy as soon as we get them.

Vacation Time

It is vacation time for us. The whole family was in the pacific north west.  We spent time with family in the eastern Washington mountains for a family reunion.

We also spent time with the other side of the family in Seattle.

It was so beautiful to introduce the girls to their NW family, we all felt so loved on.

I do have to apologize to the family though because I believe the marine layer followed me to Seattle.  It was sunny the 1st day, then cloudy and dreary the rest of the time.

Of course I left and it got sunny again!  Thats okay, we had a blast anyway. We were there for the family, not the weather after all.

The week after next we are off to Cape Cod to see one of my best friends in the world and her three small children.  Talk about a brood!  The girls did well on the plane to Seattle, but Boston is that much farther so I am a bit nervous.  We are pros at packing for a family of four, and we take the girls in these awesome backpacks,

but it is still an exhausting event when we travel. I did just purchase a new Ergo Baby carrier that easily holds bigger babies (like Grace our little tank) so I can walk back and forth through the aisle to get them to nap.

Sleep Time

Speaking of naps, two weeks ago we got some professional help and did some “sleep training” with the girls.  After 3 (not as bad as expected) days our girls were sleeping 6 to 6 every night. The woman who came to our house that night is a professional and much of what she taught us we had already read in the books, but having her there (and still on speed dial) made all the difference.  I compare it to going to the gym.  You now how to do it and what to do but if you have a personal trainer forcing you to do it and supporting you, you will see the results quicker. Having well rested babies has made our world such a happier place! However, our decision to let them cry it out for a time has ruffled some feathers on parenting web sites.  It hasn’t been easy to get them into good sleeping habits, but I will say it has been much easier than it was the last few months.  There was actually less crying during training than there was when we would try and get them down by rocking and bottles. If you are interested, we used Blissful Babies.  It was worth every penny, I only wish I would have done it sooner.  I feel like I was a bad mom for not getting my girls the sleep they needed, earlier, not for letting them cry it out during training (though that was super hard I have to say.)

Summer Time

Just in time for the kids to get back to school, summer seems to have arrived. Yeah!!!

That stubborn coastal eddy out there will still give us morning low clouds and cool us down at the coast a bit, but at least you will have sun at the coast at some point.  Things will really heat up inland.

School Time

And speaking of school, I am headed back.  I will be going to PennState online. I love school and I have been wanting to go back for years.  I will be taking some advanced meteorology courses that I hope will help me better explain to the viewers, what is going on with our crazy climate.

No Time

Which makes many people wonder how on earth I will fit school in to being a mom and working full time.  It is truly by the Grace of God.  Somehow it all works. I don’t get much sleep but I do get to see my girls for 5 – 6 hours a day and that is what is most inportant.  One think that I have been meaning to blog about for a while now is my favorite time saving technique: online grocery shopping.  I was a bit sceptical at first because there is usually a delivery fee of $6.95 to $12.95 depending on delivery time (though its free if you spend over $150,) but it has saved me money in the end.  I have tried to enforce the rule that we just get groceries once a week.  Every other week I will go online to Vons.com and then the opposite weeks I will do Fresh and Easy or Trader Joes for those fun specialty things. We keep a list and when I shop online I only buy what is on the list or is on sale.  I can actually search for my groceries by what is on sale.  I save money because I am not impulse buying and I am only getting what I really need or what is on sale.  I usually don’t even spend $100 each time, and for a family of four that is pretty good.  It takes some getting used to so expect it to take a little longer the 1st time, but once you get it, its fast, easy and cheap. Now if only I could figure out how to get my Cost-co bill down.  That place kills my budget every time!!!

Time Flies

Its amazing to me that my babies are almost no longer babies.  While I can say that the last year has gone by so quick, I can also say that every day seems like a year.  Having small children, so much happens in one week.  They change so much and learn new things and I feel like I can actually see them grow before my eyes.  Not seeing a friend for 8 months isn’t very long to an adult but to a child that means the difference between sleeping and drooling all day and crawling around a babbling.  I am loving every second and I wouldn’t wish any of this time away.

Hope your August is the perfect temperature at home and in your heart.

- Kerstin

With the death of the a one month old baby boy on Tuesday, I really want to make sure all you moms out there aren’t missing the headline with this story.

Get the adults in your family vaccinated.

Yes, it is very important to get  your babies vaccinated, however all of the babies who have died in California from Whooping Cough have been under three months of age.  Babies don’t get the 1st shot until they are two months. These babies are getting Pertussis from adults.  Most of you were probably vaccinated, but adults need booster shots.

If you are expecting, get your entire family to a doctor.  Mom, Dad, Grandma, Grandpa…everyone!   And while they are there make sure they get their  seasonal flu and H1N1 vaccine (when they come out this fall.)  Protect those babies!

Here is the latest comings and going within the ABC 10 Morning Team.

We welcome two lovely journalists to our team this week.

Melanie Mendez has jumped on board as our new Traffic Reporter.  She was most recently working in St. Louis, and joins me in my desire to have the AC turned down in the studio.  The two of us freeze all morning!  We strip our parkas right before getting on the air and put them back on after we finish our reports.  Bill and Carole are on the other spectrum. They complain its too warm.  Carole is 12 months pregnant so she has an excuse.  But Bill?  I guess he is just a boy!

Melissa Mecija will take on one of the hardest jobs in the biz – morning reporter.  She was most recently in The O.C covering the county for KCAL.  She has also done weather and will get a chance to fill in for me when I am at the beach with the babies…. that is if the sun ever comes out again.

These two pleasant additions means that we are saying farewell to Robert Santos.  He is moving back to Weekend weather and weekday environmental reporter.  And Jennifer Jensen gets to see what it is like to live a normal life, and wake up after the sun comes up. She will now be reporting for the evening shows.  This also means I wont get my excellent weather reports every morning.  Jennifer was the best at emailing me from the field at 4am  with current conditions (something all of you can do at any time!)

In case you have a really old T.V. and you couldn’t tell, Carole is pregnant.  Very pregnant.  She is due in just under 3 weeks. She is such a trooper.  I was a mess at this point in my pregnancy.  She is going to take off just before the baby so she can get some sleep and spend some time with her two other babies that are both under 3 years old!  She will be out for a few months and in her place we will welcome to the desk Iteca Milanes and Rachael Bianco.

Yes, quite a few new faces but we will all still be around, just in different locations.  Hope your summer vacations are going well and you aren’t too depressed by the grey weather at the coast.  The sun will shine again, its just a question of when.   Here are a few pictures that always brighten my day, no matter how grey.

Just an update:  Georgia is standing everywhere, including her crib, though she is not too excited about crawling. Grace has sooo many words, and is smart as a button.  They both arent big fans of sleep.  Oh how I miss sleep

I am starting to train for the Susan G Komen for the cure 3 Day Walk.  I was supposed to walk last year but I ended up having Georgia the same weekend as the walk.  This year I am going to be ready.  Im walking for my mom who has had cancer 3 times and isnt doing so well.  And for my girls that I pray will see a cure before they are old enough to worry about it.  I’ll post more info as the walk gets closer.

Thanks for all your kind words and posts. Keep them coming.

Summer is being a big tease.  We got a a whole 5 days of sun and heat at the coast and then the coastal eddy came back and it looks like we will stay cloudy at the beach for the rest of July!

We managed to take advantage of the sun and hit the beach last weekend.

Grace is much bigger this summer so she spends all her time playing in the sand or drinking from her big girl straw cup, as opposed to just sleeping like she did all summer long last year.

We pulled out the tent and umbrella so the girls have lots of shade to play in.

And of course the hats are a crack up!  I still feel like it is Christmas every day.

I NEVER get bored with the girls,they give so much back.

Georgia is now standing up in her crib, but still refuses to crawl, she rather be carried.   Grace is babbling so much.  She yells mama and dada and nana and duuudeee.  Any word she cant say she says “da.”    The two are interacting more.  Sharing, or fighting over toys. Grace sometimes hits Georgia, not maliciously but out of excitement, she does the same thing with the dogs.  She also wants to kiss and hug everyone and everything, even the floor.

Grace is walking everywhere, arms up head down, she is on a mission!

Im filling up my calendar for the rest of the year.  Ill be out at the Miramar air show representing channel 10.  I’ll be the M.C at the Boys and Girls Club Gala at La Costa in October.  Of course, I’ll be out at the Miracle Babies walk in November and I am walking in the Breast cancer 3-day this year.

I always love to come out and M.C or just support a good cause so please contact me if you have an event coming up.

Stay sane out there in this crazy summer weather!

Thanks to viewer Tess who emailed me last night when she picked up the story about Vanessa, the adopted 2 year old I posted about last week.  The court ruled she can stay with her adoptive mother until the courts work things out.  It is a victory for mom and baby.

Many of you have asked how our visit was with our birth mother and family.  It went very well.  In fact our facilitator said it was one of the best visits he has ever seen.  All of Grace’s birth sisters (3 of them) were there as was her birth mom and dad. The girls all had a blast playing.  Everyone even wanted to hold Georgia.

Grace was her usual stoic self around these strangers, but she warmed up a little towards the end.

B-MA was WONDERFUL.  It was great to see her doing so well and looking so happy.  She is getting her GED and working on getting a job.  She is still with the birth father and he seemed to be doing well.  Grace has 2 full sisters and 1, 1/2 sister.  The oldest is 9, the youngest is 2 1/2  and she looks EXACTLY like Grace.  It was amazing to see, but exactly what I feared. Well, Im not sure fear is the right word.  I don’t know why, but my only concern about seeing all of them was that Grace would look soo much like them.  Not that I don’t love where she came from, but it does hurt a little to see her resemble them when I truly feel like she is ours.  This is all just part of what I am learning to work though.  It will be a lifelong journey to understand the adopted child and family created though adoption.

I am reading a book called “20 things adopted kids wish their adoptive parents knew.” It’s a very good book but hard to read.  I just started it and the 1st night I was in tears.  The beginning talks about the loss that infants feel being taken from their birth mothers, and how that needs to be dealt with as a child or adult.  The author says, we all celebrate when the baby comes home and this little baby is grieving.  It makes my heart hurt to think that Grace was in pain the 1st week of her life.

It has given me new perspective on the relationship with the birth family, as well as what to look for in Grace as she gets older.  Most surprising was the recommendation that I be talking to her NOW about being adopted. For instance while we’re in the bath or getting changed tell her how happy we are we adopted her.  It’s all very interesting.  I just picked up three books recommended by adult adopted friends so we will see if all agree.

Now for the weather.  All I can say is Praise the Lord!  That grey streak almost sent my family to the looney bin!  We were all so frustrated with the lack of sunshine.  My mother in law almost moved, no joke! Now we are looking at extremly high temperatures.  This reminds me of last summer when we had just brought Grace home and it was sooo warm. We spent everyday down at the beach… that’s her in the tent.

We got one of those attic fans this spring and that has really helped cool us down in the house. Plus now that my in-laws are here on thier boat we are spending tons of time actually ON the water.

Temperatures will remain around 80 on the coast and 100 inland though the weekend.  This Saturday I am going to use my mothers day gift and go take a stand up paddle surfing lesson on the bay. I am very excited! It’s time to get in the water already before this summer is over.

Bring on the emails and comments.

Kerstin

oh, by the way, you asked about the dress from the Miracle Babies event.  It is short.  Here are a few more shots.

That 1st one is of me and my cutie husband, we clean up good don’t we?

These last two are me and Dr. Daneshmand, the founder or Miracle Babies.

What a grown up I am, I actually stayed out past 10pm Saturday night. I Emceed the Miracle Babies casino night event.  It was such a blast!  This is me with the founder Dr. Sean Danehmand.

I was host and auctioneer.  The auction part was a new experience for me, but it was so much fun.  I even lost my voice by the end of the night. It felt great to dress up in pretty clothse and spend some time with my darling husband.

I will admit, I did miss the girls.  Dan said no, to my idea of wearing Georgia in her sling on my back.  We also scored a session with a baby sleep therapist at the silent auction.

Grace is still just fighting sleep so much, I think it is time to bring in a professional.

Thanks to everyone who came to say hi at the event Saturday!

Kerstin

Oh, and thanks to ALL of you who have given me such great feedback on my new hair cut.  I am still playing with it and getting used to it.  Im not completely sold just yet but I am loving how easy it is.   Thanks again for all your kind words.

I am Emceeing a fundraiser for my favorite local non-profit -Miracle Babies.

This Saturday July 10th they are holding a casino night at the Ronald McDonald house and proceeds benefit families of premature babies.

You can still buy tickets at the door tomorrow night 6 – 10pm.  It will be the 1st time I have put on a party dress and gone out without the girls in over a year!  Woo hooo!!!

Hope you can make it out, and please introduce yourself, I’d love to say hi.

Happy Weekend, hope we actually get some sun.

I had chills this morning when I watched this poor mother on GMA as she said she would do whatever she had to to protect her baby.   Long story short – she adopted the baby at birth, birth mom said she didn’t know who the father was. The child is now 2 and the biological father is fighting for custody, even though he has a history of domestic and child abuse.  Courts want to put the 2 year old in foster care until they can sort out the adoption.  The father will likely not get custody because of his record, but why force the child to move across the country and sit in foster care while the courts take their time to figure this out?  This is an adoptive mothers nightmare.  I remember when my little brother (who was also adopted) was born and my mom used to say if the birth family ever contested the adoption years later, she would move to a different country and just “disappear,” before she would allow her little boy to be given to a family he never knew.   I know there is soo much behind blood family members, but when a child has only known one mother, how can the courts rip her away to give her to someone who could hurt her?

Another day in news when I go home and squeeze Grace and thank God for her and her birth parents courage to let her go.

Gloomy, gloomy weather! We have now had 6 days of below average temperatures and below average clearing for July. I am actually starting to get grumpy about it. I need the sun!  I know I can head to the far east to get it, but I really want to be able to enjoy the sun at the beach this time of year!

We spent our weekend on my in laws boat at Harbor Island.  We did have sun on Saturday but Sunday it was cloudy all day.  There was only about an hour of sun on Monday.  My mother in law is a Floridian and this grey, cool weather is making her crazy.  She is ready to buy a ticket back to West Palm.  The girls didn’t seem to mind.  It was probably actually better for them, they could stay cool and not risk a sun burn.

Just to give you an idea.  On average we get .03″ of rain, 5 cloudy days and a temperature of about 76 degrees at Lindbergh in July.  We have already had 6 cloudy days, a trace of rain and we haven’t yet hit 70!  This is not normal.  Even inland, temperatures are 5-12 degrees below average.

My hubby and I had our 1st night away from the girl since Grace was born 55 weeks ago. I was a bit nervous leaving them, but they did great and so did we.

We were cracking up at dinner, because we haven’t sat in a restaurant and been able to cut our own meat in over a year.  We had a great time reconnecting and getting to talk to each other, plus I slept for 12 hours!!!

A big week this week.  I have a big doctors appointment with my mom to see how she is recovering from the chemo, and on Friday we have our 1st visitation with Gracies birth family. An emotional end of the week for sure.  I could really use some sun to make everything look a bit brighter.  I guess I can just keep looking at my two little suns, for a smile.

P.S. Thanks for ALL the wonderful encouraging words about the new hair cut.  Im loving it for a easy summer do!

Wow, it’s a good thing I have a family and life that brings me joy, because this weather is sure making me depressed. I am sooo OVER these overcast skies!  We didn’t get to play in the water this weekend so I had time to put together Graces’ 1 year old video.  You can see it here. She is just so amazing to me.  I cant believe she is 1, what a blessing. Hope your 4th was patriotic. – Kerstin