Gabby's FIRST pedicure! Friday - November 28, 2008

This year I decided to start a new and fun tradition with my baby girl... pedicures the day after Thanksgiving!

And, since my mom was in town, I thought we'd enjoy a triple generation pedicure on black Friday. Why shop when you can get pampered, right? And who better than to get pampered with than your daughter and your mom!

I wasn't sure how Gabby would do... I mean, pedicures do require you to sit still for a while. And, Gabby rarely sits still. But, she did fantastic and loved it!

She spent the morning telling me how she was going to get her nails painted blue. So, when we got to the spa and she only saw the display of pinks and reds... there was a slight moment of panic. Surely they must have BLUE!! So, I asked... and sure enough, they pulled out a blue bottle of nail polish and Gabby's face lit up with BIG smiles!

Gabby loved watching the ladies work on our feet. And, she only got antsy at the very end when they were adding a top coat. I was so proud of my big girl!

We topped off the morning with a yummy breakfast at one of my favorite cafe's. Lots of fun… and wonderful memories!

Thanksgiving 2008

Thanksgiving is such a great holiday.

I can’t help but think I must be one of the luckiest people in the world. I have a family blessed with good health; amazingly funny and personality-filled children; a husband who is thoughtful, helpful, generous and always giving of his time; a wonderful and inspiring extended family; and incredible friendships that we truly cherish like family. SO MUCH to be thankful for. Truly.

Our Thanksgiving celebration this year was outstanding! We were able to spend it with so many people that we love and are so thankful for having in our lives. The food was DELISH... as was evident by my two huge platefuls (yikes… didn’t plan on that!). And, the kids did very well even with the celebration cutting into naps and bedtime.

While Matt has moved to 2 naps a day, Rocco is still napping 2-3 times daily. So, Rocco was the one I was worried about. But, in the end, Matteo ended up getting fussy at the party and falling asleep on Gammy’s shoulder.

Gabby truly had a blast. She had the undivided attention of cousins Courtney and Tori, and her godparents. So, she was on cloud 9. Or wait… could it have been a sugar high? Let’s see… handfuls of caramel corn pre-dinner, a bite of turkey, a bite of mashed potatoes and stuffing, a bean and then whipped cream sprayed directly into her mouth (x3!) and a full piece of pumpkin pie. Hmmm… you be the judge. Regardless… she was a happy girl!

Needless to say… it was beyond fun! And, the perk was that we all went home with full tummies. Some more full of sugar than others… but hey… that’s what holidays are for, right?!

The boys were a bit of a challenge when we got home… it was way past their bedtime and they made sure to let us know. But, it was all well worth it!!

Turkey Trot!

We started a new tradition this year. Dan, Gabby and I decided to participate in the Turkey Trot. Dan and I signed up to run a 10K race beginning at 9am, followed by Gabby running a 75 yard fun run with a bunch of other 2 and 3 year olds. My parents signed up to stay home with the twins… otherwise, I’m sure I would have dragged them out to do the 5K walk and watch Gabby.

It was great… there were a ton of people all running or walking for charity! It was chaotic but great.

And, my dear friend Kathleen decided to also participate… and her daughter Livi just happens to be one of Gabby’s best friends, so the girls were excited to do their run together.

The kids run was a picture of chaos. And too bad I FORGOT my memory card in my camera… otherwise I’d have funny photos to share of Gabby and Livi hugging at the starting line… then starting the run excited, laughing and happy… and then 5 steps into the run, Gabby melting down at the chaos… and then mommy running to pick Gabby up and run her to the finish line… where Gabby and Livi were both awarded with special medals and super cute t-shirt.

Oh, and I should add that this was the longest distance Dan has ever run… just over 6 miles! YAY DAN!

Anyway, here are some photos from after the race:

Hi 'lil buddy!

I think this video is funny... Rocco is trying to help entertain his little buddy, Matt, who is still sitting in his chair eating.

The new toy drawer!

So… last night the boys discovered the drawer with pots and pans in the kitchen. This kept them busy… past their bedtime… for almost an entire hour and a half.

A room full of toys and all they want are the pots and pans. HILARIOUS!

Rocco and the refrigerator

I’ve never heard of a child tipping a play refrigerator over.

Until now.

Gammy was playing with Gabby and the boys and by the kids' play kitchen. All were having a great time and the boys were very serious about fixing Gammy some food and washing the dishes. Then, Matt got hungry so Gammy and Gabby got up to get Matt some real food. Rocco was left in the play kitchen.

All of a sudden… we heard a big crash and a scream. The refrigerator was flipped over on it’s side and Rocco was under it.

Leave it to Rocco…

We’re still trying to figure out if he was trying to climb it or if he just pulled too hard on the doors. Rocco DOES love to climb... he'll climb up onto every chair or toy that stands off the ground. So... that isn't a bad guess as to how it happened.

It’s crazy though… it isn’t like the refrigerator isn’t sturdy!

Recent Updates! Wednesday - November 26, 2008

• Rocco officially started walking today! No more than 3 steps at a time…but he’s walking.
• Matteo is pulling up to a stand in his crib (started doing this almost 3 weeks ago).
• Rocco will stand-up, clap and wave on command.
• Matteo is scooting around the furniture and working on standing up by himself without any support.
• Matteo feeds himself with a fork really well (fork-able foods, that is… pasta, mac-n-cheese, etc.). He actually prefers to feed himself with the fork over you putting foods in his mouth.
• Matteo can say “ma ma”, “da da”, “mom”, “toe”, “go”, “no”, “rocco” (he’s said Rocco 3 times!).
• Rocco can say “ma ma ma ma”, “da da da da”, “ba ba ba ba”, “pa pa pa pa”.
• Rocco will shake his head “no” when he doesn’t want anything more to eat or when he doesn't want to do something you've asked him to do.
• The boys both are eating more solids lately. They seem to really like mac-n-cheese, pasta with tomato sauce, bananas, graham crackers, apple slices, avocado.
• Gabby seems to change into at least 10 outfits a day lately. That includes at least 3 princess outfit changes, as well as shoe and accessory changes.
• We are fresh off another week of sicknesses that seemed to spread to all members of the house. Gabby’s cold and upper respiratory infection started it… leading to Rocco’s double ear infection, Matteo’s bronchitis, and a horrible cough and upper respiratory infection that hit Julia, myself and Dan. Fun stuff!
• Gammy and Papa arrived and they are here to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with us! It’s been so much fun to have them see what we get to see everyday… the kids playing together, developing, growing, testing things and us, etc.

Another example of pure CHAOS!

People must think I’m being dramatic when I tell them our lives are filled with a lot of “unexpected chaos”. But… I’m not. I mean… I admit I can be a dramatic person. But, honestly… there are moments we encounter that I just couldn't possibly dream up.

Here is a recent example of *pure chaos* from a few Sunday’s ago:
5:45pm: Dan leaves to play basketball @ ~5:45pm, as he does every Sunday. I am subsequently left in charge of team “3 under 3”during the most chaotic time of day… the twins shut-down hours.

6pm: Both boys are a little off… not feeling 100% and abnormally fussy. I begin the stuffing process (filling their little tummies with food). I also fix Gabby a plate with some fruit and veggies to hold her over until I can get her set-up with a taco for dinner.

6:40pm: I bring Matt upstairs, I rock him and feed him his bottle and then put him in bed. He remains fussy and crying.

6:50pm: I bring Rocco upstairs, rock him, feed him his bottle and then put him in bed. He’s also still crying.

6:55pm: Knock on the door. A fabulous neighbor friend stops by to borrow some oatmeal. I then pull out a plate for Gabby… still need to fix her some dinner. Not to mention… I could use some food finally too!

6:58pm: Hmmm… both boys are still crying. Matt’s crying harder. Ugh. That’s unusual… they usually don’t cry this hard for this long. I definitely don’t need him to puke. Not when I’m no duty alone. Matt’s my puker. He’ll puke if he cries too much/hard.

7pm: Gabby screams from the bathroom and is crying “I had an accident! I had an accident!” I say “Hold on, I’ll be right there! Don’t move…” Every once in a long while… Gabby will wait so long to potty that as she pulls her pants down she ends up peeing RIGHT in front of the toilet. Poor thing! I think she’s already the typical woman… trying to do 20 more things or continue with what she’s doing until she just can’t wait any longer to relieve herself. It’s hard work playing with toys, you know!

7:02pm: Just as I get a cleaning towel and solution and am ready to go and tackle the potty puddle on the floor in the bathroom, I hear Matt coughing… and in my head I already visualize him puking.

7:02:30pm: I see the huge potty puddle on the floor in the bathroom… drop the towel and cleaning solution in front of Gabby, tell her to stay put and fly up the stairs to the twins room.

7:03pm: I pick Matt up… and of course he proceeds to puke into his crib. I hold him close to me, run out of the room into the bathroom. He continues puking… all over me… all over the bathroom floor and finally into and all over the seat of the toilet. It was as if the kid was trying to be a volcano of orange, stinky baby food. It just kept coming and coming, and coming.

7:05pm: I think Matt’s done puking. I bring him downstairs and he proceeds to also then puke on the kitchen floor.

7:06pm: I feel completely defeated. I am covered in puke. I have a baby who should be sleeping covered in puke. His bed is full of puke. The kids bathroom upstairs looks as if a puking volcano was let loose in it. There is puke on the kitchen floor. There is a potty puddle the size of Lake Tahoe in the downstairs bathroom. Gabby is crying and needs help w/the potty puddle/accident. Rocco’s screaming in his crib for either more bottle or rocking so he can go down for the night (never mind the fact that I still have to change his brother’s crib sheets now). And, Matt’s whining/crying and covered in puke. And to top it all off… I am covered in puke from chest to feet and suddenly feel completely exhausted, overwhelmed and as if I was just defeated. I couldn’t even think straight at the moment. Frozen with complete insanity and fear for what might happen next. All in a matter of 7 minutes my evening went from ok to CRAZY! 7 stupid, small minutes.

And yes, this story continues… as every good story does, right?!

A messy party fit for a princess! Sunday - November 16, 2008

Gabby’s birthday party was a *messy theme*:

Please come join us for birthday fun
Gabby would love to see everyone!

The little princess is turning three
And wouldn’t you know she’s ready as can be!

We’ll paint and color and mix some dough
Being creative is the way to go!

Please dress to get messy
It will be lots of fun

A day to remember for everyone! I had little tables set-up in the backyard for the kids to decorate their own white bucket or baseball caps and aprons with fabric paints. I also had a station to make home made playdough.

The BEST part of the party was watching all the kids with the cake. I put the cake down on a bench so they could all stand around it and sing the birthday song to Gabby. The kids could hardly control themselves from putting fingers, tongues, etc. on the cake pre-birthday song. So, we quickly sang “Happy Birthday” and then Gabby had lots of helpers to blow out her candles. The second the candles were out there must have been 20 fingers digging into the frosting on the cake.

Hmmmm… wonder why none of the adults wanted any cake?!

Birthday WEEK!

Birthday week is a very important week when you’re turning 3!

Gabby certainly knew her birthday was coming this year. Every day this past week, she’d put on her birthday girl crown, high heels and jewelry the moment she jumped out of bed. It looked as though she was going to a princess party every single morning. Her job, I guess!

So, to help fuel the importance of birthday week… and make our girl feel extra special, we did a couple fun things this week. On Thursday, she brought birthday cupcakes to school to share with her friends. She helped decorate them, of course! On Friday, we got an ice cream cake and sang her the birthday song, had her blow out candles and open presents from mommy, daddy, gammy, papa and Julia. And, then her birthday PARTY was planned for Saturday.

Bathtime fun!

When you listen to this video... please press mute on your computer. Or, do me the favor and don't listen to the crazy lady recording this. I repeat... CRAZY!

Nothing cuter than 2 little monkeys in the bathtub!

Boo!

This video is funny. It still makes me laugh. Gabby was playing in the playroom. She's pretending to work and didn't know I was walking up behind her.


Ahh... yes. You think I'm laughing because I scared her to bits. But actually... it's her reaction that makes me laugh. This girl is fiesty!

A Halloween message...

A Halloween message from the cutest little bats and butterfly in the world!

BTW: I will defend my saying "Rocco the bad bat" because he wouldn't sit still for the pictures and was being his usual daredevil self. I love him dearly... just as much as I love Matt & Gabby!

Nicknames

The boys LOVE whenever their big sister enters the room! They smile big and squeal with delight. Then you’ll see them crawl across the room as quickly as possible trying to get to Gabby.

I never could have imagined how much fun it is to watch your children interact. Not only is it fun seeing the boys discover and become more aware of each other. But, watching them be interested in their big sister… and watching Gabby be so loving with them is really, really cool.

Gabby has very affectionate nicknames for her little brothers, including:
Rocky
Rocs
Matt
Matato
Tomato

It will be fun to see which nicknames stick over the years!

Oops!

I’ve been a quiet blogger lately.

Life has been incredibly busy. We battled a week and a half of sicknesses with the boys. Thankfully, they didn’t turn into ear infections . But wow… they were snotty little boys! And, snotty babies = non-sleeping babies. And, that means mommy & daddy also don’t get any sleep. Fun for the whole family!

Work has also been insanely busy. Lately, on the days I go into the office I get home after the babies are already in bed. That’s an incredibly easy way to break a mommy’s heart.

One night, I walked in the door and found Gabby sitting on the sofa. I looked at her and said “Gabby, where’s daddy?”

Gabby: “Mommy, Rocco throwed up on daddy!”
Mommy: “Wow. Well… what did daddy do?”
Gabby: “Daddy said god dammit”.
Mommy: “Hmmm… really? DAN!!”
Dan: "Oops!"

Ummmm... yeah. Oops is right.