Cuban couple Jenny and Florentino have been together for 10 years, but that doesn't mean that life with their baby girl Valentina is any easier. They're gearing up to celebrate her first birthday party and Jenny's pushing for the best fiesta ever, while Flo thinks she may be going a little bit overboard.
The star of tonight's episode of MTV Tr3s' new show, Quiero Mi Baby (9 p.m. EST), talked with Mamás Latinas exclusively about recovering from her C-Section and the stress of having to change birthday party plans at the last minute while Flo chimes in about how he wants to teach their daughter to lead a healthier lifestyle!
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Let's start at the beginning. How was your pregnancy?
My pregnancy was good. I didn't have any issues, I didn't have any morning sickness. The only problem I encountered was that the baby was above average in size, so they suggested I have a C-Section—which I decided to do.
How did the C-Section and recovery go?
I was actually kind of scared at first because everyone has horrible stories about C-Sections. But to be honest with you, it wasn't as bad as everyone said it was. I was careful with my stitches but I felt fine. I wasn't in pain and I had people around me that helped.
How was it bringing the baby home?
The first few days were emotionally kind of crazy. I was going through the process of breastfeeding and it was a learning process for me and the baby. It was very hard for me because, as a first-time mom, I didn't know how to give enough milk, how to help her latch on properly so she didn't hurt me. It was pretty stressful and it made me very emotional because it was quite challenging.
In the first few months, how did you divide learning to take care of the baby?
During the hospital stay, Flo was really Super Dad. He changed the diapers, on the weekends he would stay up at night and let me sleep. For the first month he was constantly there and helped me take care of her. Then after that he was working and I was able to take off work and a lot of it fell back to me. He helped me but then I did a lot on my own, I did everything.
When did you decide that you wanted to throw a big First Birthday party for your child?
We've always spoken about it. My friends and I always talked about how the first birthday and the fifteen are the big thing. It was always spoken about. But we actually started planning it as of January.
What was the hardest part of planning the birthday?
Trying to find the actual venue. I really didn't think it was going to be as difficult as it was but we had a big party, so we couldn't have it in our backyard. I had to find somewhere to do it and I thought looking 3-4 months beforehand would be enough time, but a lot of places were booked.
But then you had to change the date of the party because of the weather, so how did that go?
That was quite the challenge to organize. The weekend before the actual party, the weather was pretty bad. It was the same that week and was projected for the weekend. So we had to make a decision to postpone it for the following week. We already had vendors that we had contracted that we had to reschedule the Friday before, just 48 hours before the party.
You've been together for 10 years. What has been the hardest transition into marriage and having a baby?
Flo: We did it old school when we got married, so we didn't live together until we got back from the honeymoon.
Yea, that was a transition of its own. We knew each other for many years and we were together all day long, but it was still totally different when you live with that person. Our upbringing was totally different so it was just hard to get adapted to that.
Flo: And remembering what the other person likes and doesn't like.
Yes, that was a challenge of its own. But I think that the biggest challenge was my pregnancy because Flo thought it was horrible.
Flo: She was a hot mess, the mood swings.
Honestly, I think my pregnancy was beautiful. But I think Flo was getting kind of nervous that we were going to have a child, so he didn't know how to handle himself.
So what was the easiest thing then, about being a newly married couple and then getting pregnant?
The baby.
Flo: Definitely our daughter.
How did your parents react to the pregnancy news?
Flo: Her parents were more excited than mine because our daughter was already their second grandchild so they already experienced the big exciting news of being new grandparents, but for her parents it was the first.
You both speak Spanish. How are you planning to teach your daughter Spanish?
Well, I try to speak to her only in Spanish.
Flo: And I speak to her in English, so she can be bilingual. I'd actually like her to speak three languages at least and learn French.
How are you going to teach your daughter about her culture?
Flo: She gets a big dose of Cuban culture with her grandmother (Jenny's mom) being able to take care of the baby almost every day. She gets a big dose of traditional values, then when we get home its more Americanized. Our food, because of me, is balanced. Jenny grew up in a house that was basically Cuban food. And I grew up in a house where it was a luxury. Today we ate Indian, tomorrow we eat Polish, the next day we would eat Russian or Greek. To me I like it more diverse. I bring the diversity, and she brings the Cubanism. Cubans, for the most part, aren't exactly big vegetable eaters. A lot of Latin food is fried and greasy and I think it's a poor way for her to learn how to eat.
Is healthy eating something that's really important to you?
Flo: It's become, yes. More out of a necessity than anything. Yea, I think it will be better for her in the long run.
Embedded content: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=86W-1YX9OBM
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Was it stressful planning your kid's first birthday party? Are you going to watch tonight's Quiero Mi Baby episode? Share with us in the comments below!
Image via MTV Tr3s
