Hitomi's Life

Welcome To The World, Emma!!

2014-06-09T10:13:00.001-07:00

She waited for over 40 weeks to come out of me.

She must have been very comfortable there....hahaha

My tummy had been stretched to the max and gotten a lot of stretch marks.

I had rather not have any stretch marks if I could choose to, but I'm fine with having some stretch marks in the end.

Even though it looks ugly to someone, it doesn't look that ugly to me.

Those marks will always remind of me being a mom and being a mom is the best thing I could ask for.

Anyway back to my pretty precious daughter, Emma.

She was born in June 4th, 2014, almost a week after the due date.

8lb 5oz, 20 inch, a big girl :)

Look at her arm and cheeks!!

Chubby and cute :)

Next day, my husband brought Ken who is now a big brother.

Yesterday was the first day for him to meet his little sister, and as soon as he saw her, he put his big smile on his face, pointing at her and said "ah~~~"

He seems to have fell in love with her just like everybody else did in our family.

He kept rubbing her head :)

Such a precious moment...

As we were kinda expected (since our first boy was the same) she had a high level of jaundice.

She is currently in a hospital.

We have been here for two nights.

Her level is getting lower and lower so hopefully we get to go home today.

I miss my boys (husband and Ken).

My husband said Ken asks for me every morning.

Awww... my forever baby boy Ken... ;(

Emma is eating well and pooping well so she should get better soon!!!

Again welcome to the world, and thank you, Emma, for choosing me as your mom and choosing us to be your family :)

My Second Pregnancy: Part 2 and last hopefully...

2014-06-01T10:38:00.000-07:00

First off....

I thought my due date was July 1, but last Friday, my doctor told me that my due is "today" meaning May 30....

So, officially, I'm past due date.

I guess she (Emma) is not yet ready to come out...lol

Here is my hopefully last pregnant tummy photo.

40 weeks of pregnancy

Photo from last blog post (36 weeks of pregnancy)

I had always thought she would have come out earlier than my due date, I don't know why I thought that way, but she is still waiting for the best time, I guess :)

Contractions are frequent now but nothing major....

Doctor told me the progress was the same from the last doctor visit.

I've been having hard time sleeping through the night, well, if you are pregnant, you cannot expect to sleep thought the night since you need to go to restrooms frequently.

But since my tummy is so big and heavy, I cannot find a good position to sleep comfortably.

I hope she will come out soon, otherwise I have to be induced or go through c-section...

We will see :-)

New Creation: Anne Beaded Bracelet

2014-05-29T08:54:00.000-07:00

Is color block fashion still in??

Or I would say.. Who cares???

This is a gorgeous bracelet that has quartz and natural stones.

Cherry Color Beads Bracelet

I love this cherry quartz stones.
And the combination of this stones and turquoise color natural stones is one of my favorite combination.

One string would still be cute, but it has TWO strings (or layers).

Even better!!!

**Glass cherry quartz and turquoise stones.

Gold plated clasps and findings.

Isn't it so elegant?

Green Color Beads Bracelet

This one is a combination of green natural stones and beige natural stones.

This is the one for those who want more natural, earthy, and neutral-colored jewelry.

***Hematite stones and neutral colored natural stones.

Silver plated clasps and findings.

Length: 7 inch plus 2 inch extension.

You can get these at my Etsy store LuvlyMint
https://www.etsy.com/listing/188848976/anne-beaded-bracelet?ref=shop_home_active_12

I have more pretty jewelry in my Etsy store so come and look around!

How I store Swarovski Products

2014-05-11T08:11:00.000-07:00

I'm not a neat type of person, but it is so easy to get inspired if everything is organized and easy to see.

So I was determined to organize my jewelry making tools and materials.

Here is the first of many to come organization projects.

The organization for Swarovski elements which are my favorite materials to use.

Here is the before....

I can hardly see what I have....

And,

here is the after....

Neatly organized.

I used this small plastic boxes from this seller, Watchmaterial on Amazon.com

And I love them!!!

They are perfect for small beads, crystals, parts and any small stuff.

They are clear so you can easily see what's inside and stay organize all your beads.

The seller is in California so they shipped them to me so quick; I only waited for a couple of days.

The boxes are probably great for other small stuff too, like earrings, rings....

Here is what I used to organize my beads and parts.

My second pregnancy:

2014-05-04T10:35:00.000-07:00

I haven't post any of my second pregnant diary at all.

Maybe because I had been through this once before and I didn't feel like I had to write about it or just simply being lazy...

But I realized how nice to keep track of what is going on my body and how is my little baby inside of me doing.

Because no matter how precious this event is, and no matter how hard I try to remember all of it, I will eventually forget some of it if not all.

Baby about 19 weeks

It's a girl!!!

23 weeks of pregnancy (baby weighs as much as a large mango)

26 weeks of pregnancy (Baby is the length of a green onion)

27 weeks of pregnancy (Baby is the size of a head of cauliflower)

30 weeks of pregnancy
(The baby weighs as much as a cabbage)

Ken wanted to be in the picture...lol

Again, Ken needs to be in the picture..lol

31 weeks of pregnancy
(Baby weighs as much as a coconut)

34 weeks of pregnancy
(Baby is the size of a cantaloupe melon)

Little Emma!!! (35 weeks)

Well, actually she is pretty big right now.

According to an ultrasound, she is over 5 lb already.

And during last month, baby tend to gain 0.5 lb a week.

That means she is going to be over 7 lb baby!!!!

**Ken (our first kid) was born with 6 lb 8oz.

She is so pretty!!!

I cannot wait to meet her :)

36 weeks of pregnancy
(Baby is about as long as a romaine lettuce)

So far, I've gained 26 pounds.

One more month to go!!

Compare to first pregnancy, I feel like I've gotten big quicker and bigger.

I guess that is normal for most women, our tummies get big quicker and bigger.

Here is the comparison with this pregnancy and my first pregnancy picture.

Both are 36 weeks of pregnancy

My First Pregnancy 2012

This pregnancy 2014

It does look bigger than first pregnancy tummy :)

The last pregnancy, I walked for about 40 mins twice everyday trying to keep in shape,

whereas, this pregnancy I've been kind of lazy...

however I've been doing some maternity cardio and weight workout using youtube.

Denis Austin: Prenatal cardio workout

Popsugar, Andrea Orbeck fitness

10 minutes arm workout

Those are the main workouts I usually do but not everyday though...

I'm getting some Braxton Hicks contractions (practice contractions) which I didn't feel on my first pregnancy at all.

My cervix hasn't opened yet. so I don't think I will go to labor anytime soon.

But after 36 weeks, you can go into labor anytime and babies are considered full term.

Well, I am sure she won't come out anytime soon but at least I want her to wait till we have Ken's birthday party on next weekend.

We got a key!!!

2014-04-21T21:50:00.000-07:00

We finally got an own house!!!!

It has been over 2 years maybe 3 years?? since we had started house hunting.

I'm so happy and excited.

No more living in a small apartment.

We have a big backyard for our son, Ken and dog, Kuro to run around.

Ken gets to have his own room and soon-to-be-born Emma will get to have her own room too.

After going through frustrating stuff for a couple of years, everything has finally come together.

I'm just excited to move all our stuff to the new house and settle in :)

Healthy, but not so healthy oat bran muffin

2014-03-03T19:43:00.000-08:00

I was craving some kind of muffin that Ken and I can eat for breakfast, and I found a box of oat bran in my kitchen cabinet.
So I baked this muffin the other day and I love it! Of course Ken loved it too.

Oat bran, banana and carrot make this muffin healthy ( I was gonna put apple sauce too, if I could have found it in my pantry....), but I just couldn't help making it without chocolate chips.....

This is probably not an ideal breakfast choice because of chocolate chips in it, but why not putting some sweet so you start the morning with happy tummy... :P

Plus, these are MINI muffins so kids can eat easily and cleanly and perfect size as a sweet snack; sometime regular size muffins are too big, well at least for me....

Here is the ingredients and recipe:

This will make 12 MINI muffins.

*1/4 cup butter, softened

*1/4 cup or less sugar, brown sugar might be a better choice

*1 large ripe banana, mashed

*1 carrot, grated

*1 eggs

*1/2 cup all purpose or wheat flour

*1/4 cup oat bran

*1/2 teaspoon baking soda

*1/2 teaspoon grounded cinnamon

*1/4 teaspoon salt

*A handful of chocolate chips (optional)

1. Preheat an oven to 375 degrees F. Grease 12 mini muffin cups.

2. In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and sugar until smooth. Mix in the mashed banana, grated carrots, and eggs. Stir in flour, oat bran, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt until just combined. Stir in chocolate chips. Spoon the batter into the prepared muffin cups.

I had to make sure all muffin has some chocolate...so I put a piece of chocolate chip on the top of all muffins...

3. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean, I used a chopstick since I didn't have a toothpick.

Even with oat bran, this muffin is so moist, and after few days in a fridge it is still moist.

Ripe banana makes this sweet so you don't need ton of sugar which is healthy.

You can definitely enjoy them without chocolate chips and might be healthier for you.

I hope you enjoy this sweet and healthy muffin!!

Happy Monday!

What I got for my face : Michael Todd true organics!!

2014-02-28T10:28:00.001-08:00

I've been hearing about this Michael Todd true organics products on Youtube.
And I wanted to try some of them.

So, with my husband's approval...lol, I got this

Years Younger™ Regimen

Organically Treat for Anti Aging, Sun Damage + Spots

I got this set from their website,

Michael Todd true organics

And it was $85.00, regular price is $178.00.

Plus I got 15% off as a sign up bonus.

I think that is pretty reasonable considering you get 6 full products.

Free sample

The regimen comes with:
*SKIN DEFENDER AHA creme facial cleanser
*CRANBERRY Antiox hydrating anti-aging toner
*PEARL&SILK facial mask
*INTENSIVE organic cream eye treatment
*LIPOSOME antioxidant moisturizer with DMAE and hyaluronic acid
*HYALURONIC ACID + C antioxidant 2-in-1 anti-wrinkle serum

I used most of them last night, and so far they are good.
One thing that bugged me about is that the moisturizer was stinky to me, I let my husband sniff it, and I guess he didn't mind the smell, he said it smells like a kind of flower....

Of course I don't see any significant improvement on my skin with just one night use, so we will see how good they are..

I'm thinking to do some reviews on these products later.
Stay tuned!!

I'm back on blogging!!

2014-02-26T17:13:00.000-08:00

I'd been MIA for a while.... I don't know why.
I would say I haven been busy....????? or lazy...??

Last time I blogged about the Japan trip which was 10 months ago... almost a year.
So little update on my life:

*We moved out of my husband's parents' house in July last year and now we live in an 1 bed room apartment temporarily until we are ready to get our own house which will be close!!!
How exciting!!

*We went to Hawaii for a week with our Hawaiian couple.
That was all of us's first Hawaii trip. We had so much fun.
Watching our son, Ken, having so much fun was the best thing ever :)

*We found out that we were pregnant for a second baby!!!!
And in a nut shell, it's a GIRL!!!!
We are so excited!!!!
(I'm now 26 weeks pregnant.)

*Our precious son, Ken is growing so fast.
He can now say some words. And he understands pretty well in Japanese, English, and probably Vietnamese.

*I've taken a break on making jewelry for a while since we started living in a small apartment; I don't have room to make jewelry. My store on Etsy is still open though...
I hope I can start making jewelry again soon.
https://www.etsy.com/shop/Hee103Jewelry

*I'm still go to online school. Hopefully I can graduate this year.

That pretty much sums up my life since I stopped blogging.

Japan Trip in Kyoto

2013-05-08T23:19:00.000-07:00

Kyoto... they say to visit at least once if you are in Japan.

Kyoto is the old traditional city where there are a lot of old temples,　shrines, and buildings.

Japan Trip in Tokyo

2013-05-08T19:10:00.000-07:00

It's been over a week since we arrived in Japan.

Yes, Ken's first trip and first visit to Japan.

He is almost 1 year-old, at the LAX airport.

Ken did great in an airplane.

He found two cute little girls to play in the airplane..lol

I just missed the opportunity to sleep so I couldn't sleep at all in the plane.

Oh well... I should've slept while Ken was sleeping...

In Tokyo, we went to Odaiba Palette Town, Tsukiji (fish market), and had dinner with my husband's cousin who is stationed in Yokosuka base.

A ferris wheel in Palette Town

Arcade in Palette Town

We went to Kichijoji city to have dinner with famil;)

Shrimp Rice and Healthy Soup : Dec 11, 2012

2012-12-11T22:37:00.001-08:00

Here is what we ate for dinner today...
Not that no one cares...lol

Shrimp rice AKA Nanna Luna's Rice (courtesy Giada de Laurentis)
And healthy soup that I just whipped up with whatever I had...

This shrimp rice is different!!
And I loved it. Of course my husband liked it too.
Shrimp cream sauce over brown rice...not only sounds good but tastes good!!
The buttery yummy rice absorbs lemony cream sauce makes

For 2 servings:
1 cup rice
1/2 stick of butter
About 2 cup of chicken broth
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 clove of garlic minced
1 lb of shrimp peeled and deveined
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/2 tablespoon of hot sauce
1/2 cup whipping cream
Black pepper

First I sauteed brown basmati rice with 1/2 of the butter until it's golden brown into saucepan...well it's brown rice so it is brown.....but you know what I mean...right??
And add chicken broth and salt. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer covered for 20 to 25 minutes until all the liquid is absorbed and rice is tender. And rest covered for 5 minutes.

In a large skillet, melt the rest of the butter and add garlic and cook until aromatic. Add the shrimp, lemon juice, and hot sauce. Cook for few minutes until the shrimp is pink and cooked through. Stir in the cream and heat through. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Pour the shrimp cram sauce over the rice:)

The healthy soup is easy.
I just mixed chicken stock, carrots, onion, spinach, kale, peas, black beans, tomato can and cooked. And some herbs, salt and pepper to flavor it.
It doesn't get healthier than that!!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2012-11-22T19:32:00.001-08:00

Blogvember Day 17: The future volleyball player

2012-11-18T09:41:00.001-08:00

My daddy is playing volleyball at a tournament today.
I am just hanging around with other people.
But I am going to play volleyball just like my daddy when I get older!
I am sure my daddy can teach me volleyball to be a great player!!

Blogvember Day 16: Kuro and sisters.

2012-11-16T15:57:00.001-08:00

I am bog sitting today.
They are my dog, Kuro sisters.

They arrived around 6:30 in the morning and have kept playing almost all day, now they are taking a break invading our couch... B-)

Blogvember Day 11: having a blast!!

2012-11-11T13:30:00.001-08:00

Since my ankle hasn't healed and I cannot take my dog for a walk, I took him to a dog park.

I was kind of worried that he might bark at other dogs.
Because he did last time we came.

But he did not bark at all, instead, he had blast playing other dogs well, like 2 dogs...
There are only 5 dogs there and other three were too old to play.

I thought he only plays with his sisters, but he knows how to play with other dogs!
I am so proud of him!!!

Blogvember Day 10: Nap with daddy

2012-11-10T15:11:00.001-08:00

Blogvember Day 8: 4 days after burning my chest

2012-11-08T14:30:00.003-08:00

I don't know if you read my blog before, I posted a blog few days ago about burning my chest with hot coffee.

Here is my chest being red and tender...and itchy!!

Again, it is more red in person.

Everytime I breastfeed Ken, he pushes and scratches the area so skins are pealing..painful...

I hope I don't get a permanent scar..

Blogvember Day 7: Funny but still cute picture

2012-11-07T19:05:00.001-08:00

Hahaha...
Because Ken's diaper is so bulky, it makes his front looks like butts....lol

Blogvember Day 6: Kuro got sick

2012-11-07T06:28:00.001-08:00

Kuro got sick.

He has been vomiting for more than a day.
And he tries to hide from something... by going to behind the couch under the desk.

It happened before but it seems to be worse this time.
So I took him to a veterinary.
The vet took a x-ray and blood to make sure nothing is stuck in his stomach and he didn't eat something toxic.

The result...
Well, she couldn't find anything obvious.
So she concluded that Kuro ate something that upset his stomach.

She gave him anti vomiting and a shot for dehydration.

Now he looks better and hungry... since he hasn't eaten for more than 2days..

We started with a little bit of baby food which the vet recommended and he loves so much.

I am so glad that it was nothing serious.

Blogvember Day 5: Explore!!

2012-11-05T12:06:00.003-08:00

Ken loves to chew on EVERYTHING!!
Oh, maybe all babies do.

That's how it goes...

And here is how he does on video...

So cute!!!
I can imagine once he starts crawling, he goes everywhere and put everything he finds into his mouth...

I'd better start cleaning up the room!!!

Blogvember Day 4: Burnt my chest!!

2012-11-04T20:47:00.000-08:00

Yes, as you can guess what happened to me today from the title, I burnt my chest.

I went to Krispy Kream and get a hot latte and a dozen of donuts.

As I opened the door to the outside, I flipped the coffee over and spilled it over my chest.

The coffee was steaming hot!!!

This is my chest after....

I put some aloe and Vaseline and covered with wrap.

Can you tell it's red??

It is more red in person, and painful.

It happened this morning and now it's night time.

The pain subsided but still tender.

Well, donuts were good so it's worth the pain...lol

Blogvember Day 3: A day at a mall

2012-11-03T20:45:00.000-07:00

It was a nice day and we had a gift card that we needed to use, so we went to a mall.

It had been a while since I went to the mall last time.

We just spent money on chocolate....at my favorite chocolate shop, Chuao.

The first time I came here was probably three years ago, my husband took me here.

They have creamy gelato here too.

It was hard to walk with a sprained ankle, but it was such a nice walk.

Blogvember Day 2: Look a like!!

2012-11-02T22:01:00.000-07:00

My husband and I were watching TV and this little puppy showed up..

Courtesy a place to love dogs .com

Does it look familiar??

My husband: "That dog reminds of Ken."
Me: "That what I was going to say!!"

Here he is.
Cute face reminds of the cute Pomeranian puppy...

Blogvember day 1: That's his skill.

2012-11-01T19:51:00.001-07:00

We are at a public gym now, my husband is playing volleyball; I am taking a break because I sprained my ankle last week.

If our baby, Ken is well fed, he can sleep anywhere, even at a gym where is so loud.

He doesn't care people yelling and balls bouncing on the floor, he can still sleep through those noises.

What a skill!!