5 Things I am so over ...

My friend Quiana inspired me to list 5 things I am just so over...

5.) Jeans worn way too low (Sagging): And then they actually have the nerve to put a belt on! You can't even walk and trust me when I say this -you look ridiculous! I'm tired of seeing your dirty boxer shorts.

4.) Silly Bandz: Well, I should really call this one "adults wearing silly bandz". Okay here is the rule-- if you are 15 or older, you should NOT be wearing silly bandz. It isn't trendy, it's a kid's toy! What's next, exchanging ring pops instead of platinum bands at weddings?!

3.) Smoking while walking: Here in the city, people smoke like it never went out of style. I say, if you wanna kill yourself slowly, that's up to you but would you stand outside and just smoke in one place? Walking down the crowded streets of New York is annoying enough without someone exhaling their gross cigarette and all the smoke hitting me in the face as I walk behind you. When I was pregnant, I would hold my breath because surely cutting off the oxygen for a few seconds must be better than inhaling that crap.

2.) $10 Salads : I just want to eat lunch! It's some lettuce in a bowl with maybe a cucumber, shredded carrot, and a little chicken tossed in. I'll even skip the chicken and take a hard boiled egg... It's a salad, geesh! Does something that simple need to be "Manhattan-ized" too?

1.) My Blackberry: Okay well I am not completely over it... I will definitely miss BBM. But my husband got me the super cool My Touch 4G slide in the khaki color and I have to say, I really like it! I'm not great at touch screens so I love that this phone has a keyboard since I am a compulsive texter/blogger/social networker and I need to be able to post my updates! It has a really good camera and I can use it for work and play! As my husband would say "Welcome to the 21st Century"

Old / New

That's all folks! I do enjoy putting these things in writing =)

Baby Dedication

You must know by now, that faith is a huge part, if not the centerpiece of my life. What gets me through time and time again is knowing that my life is in God's hands and not just that I believe in God, but I believe God. I believe that he will take care of me, I believe that he is always here with me... I just believe. Since having my little boy, I am even more in awe of God's presence in my life and I am even more determined to share this faith with my son.

We go to a Christian Non-Denominational church called "New Season Christian Center". If you are ever in the Bronx and you want to check it out, you should! It's pretty awesome. Their Facebook page is here.

Anyway, we do something called a "Baby Dedication" ceremony which is a lot like a christening except baby doesn't get any water splashed on him. It is just a way of saying "Hey God, thanks for this child, he belongs to me but in reality he belongs to you and I promise to teach him all about you and leave him in your hands." It is a beautiful occasion but more importantly, it is a commitment that parents make along with any Godparents, family, and the church community. Last Sunday, we had Aiden's dedication ceremony and it was such a memorable experience.

I wanted him to wear all white because it is traditional and I think it looks really beautiful and is symbolic so I searched all over for the perfect outfit. I didn't want to get him one of those christening outfits with the satin pants and bow-tie because our church is pretty casual and we are more of a "preppy" style family. So I found some really nice white trousers, a button down that we rolled the sleeves up to the elbows and a white v-neck pullover sweater vest. He was adorable!There was a slide show with pictures of Aiden and our family shown during the ceremony... and then we repeated some promises ... "vows" to our baby about how we will always love and protect him. His Godparents; our dear friends Esteban and Caroline were also a part of the ceremony and it was really beautiful. At the end, our Pastor prayed a blessing over Aiden while I cried and cried tears of joy.

After the service, we had some of our family over to our place for a small celebration. Aiden's Godmother baked a cake and we shared food and fun. Aiden must have known the party was for him because he simply refused to take his nap while everyone was there. I'll never forget this day! Here are some pictures:

Godmother, Godfather, Prince Aiden, Daddy and Mama :)

Pastor Phil about to pray for Aiden

His first certificate! I'm going to hang it next to his Honor Roll awards and College Degree :)

A beautiful gift from his Grandma Mimo (my mom) - a baby dedication photo frame.

Awesome gift from his Godparents :)

The end of his special day; Aiden Kyle and Mama

"I prayed for this child and the Lord has granted me what I asked of him." 1 Samuel 1:27

April Island

I enjoy a nice getaway as much as the next person... okay, maybe a little more than the next person... I love, love, love to get away especially if there will be a beach. Now, just to get in the mood, I'd like you to navigate away from this page and take a small musical break with Lenny Kravitz -- click here

Welcome back! Isn't that a great song? Anyway, lately I have been craving a tropical getaway and with work and a 3 month old baby to take care of, that really hasn't been possible. I am in such a need of cool, salty breezes... sand between my toes and a frozen drink with a little umbrella. I need to lay out with a good book and soak up the sun... (don't worry I won't send you on another musical break but that is a GREAT song by Sheryl Crow)

I have resorted to taking little imaginary getaways and have found a cool place I like to call "April Island". Yes, that's right - it's named after me cause it's my friggin island okay? There is a small, beachfront villa where I am staying and I sleep right on the beach in a hammock under the stars. There are no people on April Island except for the occasional massage therapist, hairstylist and gourmet chef. I spend mornings sipping my coffee indoors and afternoons sunbathing and swimming... I spend evenings reading, writing and eating great food. I don't need to get there by plane or by boat - I can just teleport there because let's face it - if I can have my own island I can also have super-powers. My 3 month old is always welcome on my island because he makes the vacay that much better. We spend countless moments just staring into each other's eyes and life is pretty darn great.

Here is a list of things April Island is certainly not lacking:
*Chocolate covered strawberries
* A library full of books
* White wine
* Good music
*A huge water slide
*Beautiful tropical fish
* Anything else I can imagine up from thin air

Just writing about it makes me want to take a break and go there right now... So that's it for this blog post. But seriously, do any of my readers know good baby-friendly getaway locations? Until then I'll be on April Island :)

Trust: It's like a chair

My aunt Shirley gave me some pretty awesome advice that I just had to share.... TRUST is something so precious to me, and I am sure to many in our relationships with others. Once someone has my trust, they are on a whole other level with me and just as it is precious, it is not easy to gain. And just as it is not easy to gain, it is not easy to regain once that trust has been betrayed. Lately, I've been praying and asking God to help me with trust issues. To help me trust and see the good in others. To give GRACE as it was given to me. I know that my prayers will be answered. In the mean time, I'd like to share the words my aunt shared with me about trust---

It's like a chair. If it fails to hold your weight, you can't trust it anymore until it is made right. It needs to be repaired. It takes work. If the chair never gets aligned with rightness or in our case righteousness, trust cannot happen again

Hoping we can do the "work" to fix our broken chairs,

~A

"If I was all that was left, would I be enough?"

• Contemplating so many things right now...

• praying and quietly reflecting...

• grasping on to PEACE because it can sometimes feel like I am drowning in loneliness, Despite the fullness of my life.

• Remembering a Spanish worship song - "Jesus mi Fiel Amigo, Mi Dulce Caminar, Quedate conmigo" ...

• Understanding and believing that he is my ONLY faithful friend.

• Hoping that one day I will open my heart enough to trust a friend again.

• Knowing that even if I cannot, even if there was no-one and HE was all that was left... HE would be enough :)

~A

The Breast-milk Baby?

Okay, so since becoming a new mom this spring my blog posts have started to take on a more "baby" theme. I do not want to constantly talk babies but it just happens to be a huge part of my life right now and though I do have lots of other things going on, this is the most important part so there ya go! Anyway, I decided to breastfeed my baby when I was pregnant and have been able to chronicle my experience on a blog called "The Breastfeeding Diaries" for Bravado Designs. You can follow me here: http://www.bravadodesigns.com/connect/bravado-mama-blogs/april-picon-blog

I am really excited about breastfeeding and everything I am learning about nursing my child. Especially since I do not have memories as a child of anyone in my family breastfeeding their baby, it is all very new to me. It also seems like very few women make the decision to breastfeed in general and it has been nice to get connected to a network of women and bond with new friends who are also nursing their babies. I do hope that my future daughter (woah did I just mention having MORE kids?!) will make the decision to breastfeed as well - it is a wonderful experience!

But should she (my future daughter - there we go again) have a baby doll that teaches her about breastfeeding? There is a doll coming to the U.S. called "The Breast-milk Baby" and it has brought about mixed reactions from parents. Some think it is making young girls too aware of their breasts, too sexual, or what have you. What do you think?

For me, I think baby dolls in general are not ideal toys for little girls. I played with dolls as a kid and would pretend to be a mommy and I feel like I could have spent more time building things or solving puzzles. My friend summed it up pretty simply - "Why grow up so fast?"

On the flip side of that, why is it OK for little girls to bottle feed their baby dolls and not breastfeed them? Any child of a nursing mother would automatically imitate her mom and nurse her dolls... maybe it is a good idea so that girls can learn to be proud of their bodies for the ACTUAL purpose they are meant for (nourishing a future baby) instead of being sucked into that sexual, fashion-magazine body image that so many young girls struggle with.

I'm not sure how I feel about this... but one thing is for sure, the doll is 89 bucks so my future daughter (ughh I said it again) will NOT be getting one of these. =) ha!

Father's Day 2011

Yesterday was Father's Day! I had lots of thoughts because for so many years, Father's day was not really a day I looked forward to or got excited about. Since it's always on a Sunday, there is always something special going on at church to recognize Dads. At my old church, I remember that all the fathers were asked to come up for a special prayer with their children... I was about 13 or 14 at that time and I remember just going into the bathroom and staying there until I could be sure this part of the program was over.

As a kid in school, it was hard when we made Father's Day cards and I had no one to bring it home to. I would usually just give it to an uncle or someone I loved like a father but it never felt fun or exciting. As I've gotten older, it has gotten easier to deal with.. but still, I never get excited for Father's Day. This year though, that all changed!

My husband and I were blessed with a beautiful baby boy this year and yesterday, we got to celebrate my husband's first father's day! For weeks I was planning and brainstorming to find the perfect gift and I think it was a success.

I had a personalized guitar strap made for him with our son's footprints, name and DOB printed. He loved it! Check out the pics:

He also got a homemade breakfast before we headed out to church! It was so nice to do special things to make him happy and I'm so grateful he is the father of my child. The 3 of us enjoyed a special morning alone as a family and Daddy had a great day! yay!

I love my little family!

Hope all the Dad's had a great day too =) Can't wait for next year!