Escape to Mexico!!

Thanks to my parents and our au pair, Julia… Dan, Gabby and I were able to enjoy a little vacation! We spent 5 days in Cabo San Lucas and it was great!

I was SO beyond excited to get a few nights of uninterrupted sleep, that I psyched myself out the first night and woke up constantly. Then, on the last night I didn’t fall asleep until almost 5am and then had to get out of bed at 8am to get packed, grab breakfast, etc. It was a bittersweet trip. The alone time with Gabby and Dan, rest and relaxation were much needed. But, we were also leaving behind two VIP family members! And, worse yet… the little guys were SO sick (see below posts).

MEXICO HIGHLIGHTS:

* Whenever we told Gabby what we were going to do next (like eating lunch, going to sleep, swimming, etc.), she would ask “Are we going to eat lunch in Mexico?” “Are we going to sleep in Mexico?” “Are we going to swim in Mexico?” * LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Mexican food.

* One night when we were getting ready for bed, Gabby said "Mommy... my ears hurt." I said "Where do they hurt?" She pointed to the inside of her ears and I thought uh-oh... not another ear infection. So I said "Why do your ears hurt, Gabby?" She said "Because I've been pooping so much!" Ummmm.... ok… LOL! And no, she did not get any tummy troubles while we were there. None of us did, thank goodness.

* LOVED the resort we stayed at. There were fabulous pools everywhere, the beach was beautiful and worth exploring. The service was excellent. And, the food was DELISH!

* I read “The Reader” while there. That is the first book I’ve read cover-to-cover since the twins were born. I started another book… 900 pages long. I’m sure I’ll have to restart that 5 years from now when I can maybe reacquaint myself with something called “PERSONAL TIME”.

* Dan’s highlight: Checking NCAA tournament scores constantly, uninterrupted, while beer and/or margarita in-hand. Let’s just say he definitely took advantage of pools-side beverage services. And good for him, right?!

* Every day we were able to see huge Blue Whales blowing water and jumping into the air. They were at least a mile or two off the shore. The staff at our resort would bring us binoculars so Gabby could see them better. They were fun to watch. Big and wowtastic!

* One day while swimming with Gabby, I was holding her and she started screaming so loud like she was in pain. Everyone around the pool was looking at us. I asked her what was wrong and she held up C.inderella (a little figurine doll) and screamed “C.INDERELL’S HAIR IS MISSING!!!!” OMG! She FREAKED OUT! I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. I had to assure her I would find C.inderella’s hair. Thank God I found it quite quickly on the pool floor. I almost felt like holding it up so I would get a round of applause from the onlookers we’d attracted. Gabby smiled, laughed… we wiped the tears. And, everything was happy again. In case you didn’t know… princesses are like crack to my child… they’re beyond addicting! She eats, sleeps and breathes princesses. C.inderella was in Gabby’s hand throughout the entire trip… even while sleeping and swimming, I kid you not.

* We watched as a couple got married on the beach one night. Gabby thought the bride was a princess... so we explained that she was a bride, kind of like a princess but only for a day (until reality sets in. ha!). After the bride and groom walked off... Gabby said "I want to be a princess and have a REAL BIG white dress like that! Daddy... I want to get married!"

* Gabby swam like a fish and would spend entire days in the pool! She did SO great and didn’t need any assistance while swimming with her water wings. She’s not yet able to swim without the water wings… but it’s just around the corner, I can feel it!

* Several times I gave Gabby the camera so she could take photos. She thought this was GREAT. She LOVES taking pictures and I have to admit, I love seeing the shots she ends up getting. Sometimes Dan & I have to try and move quickly to get in the photos that are supposed to include us. It’s fun. Can you guess which photos she took?

* Gabby was great at spotting Iguana’s on the resort grounds. They were fast and big (about 2 feet long). She also spotted a sand crab and got VERY CLOSE to a pelican that decided to jump into the pool and swim amongst all the humans before making a grand exit. It had an amazingly large wingspan… probably close to 6 feet wide. (see photos)

* We walked on the beach and in the ocean and got to see lots of striped and colorful fish swimming and eating off the shore rocks.

* Gabby LOVED having Dan toss her into the air SUPER HIGH (see photo).

* I brought the camera to breakfast our last morning in Mexico. You see... Gabby had become good friends with Arturo, our server. He helped us every day with our breakfast. Gabby spotted him about 5 tables away and pointed at him saying "Mommy, I LOVE that boy!" It was a great trip! So much fun. But, it was also great to get back to my little guys… I sure missed them a LOT!

Pink Eye Today... Surgeries Tomorrow.

Gabby complained about her ear hurting yesterday. Then, around 5am this morning she woke up with a fever. She was HOT! But, I didn't want to really "wake her" by taking her temperature so instead I gave her Tylenol. Then when she woke up, she had some gunk in the corner of both eyes.

She visited Dr. O this morning... and instead of hearing that she has an ear infection, we found out she has PINK EYE! Huh. Interesting. Never once did she complain about itchy eyes. Dr. O said that sometimes kids will complain about something else instead of where the source of the problem actually is. Go figure. See... kids mess with us and try to confuse us from the time they're born!

Anyway, I guess the diagnosis shouldn't be a surprise, as we were recently notified that Pink Eye was going around her classroom.

Hopefully... the babies won't catch it. They seem to catch EVERYTHING!

They'll get tubes tomorrow. Please keep my little guys in your thoughts & prayers!

POO on the loose!! Sunday - March 29, 2009

Saturday morning we made a big family style breakfast. The kids finished before Dan & I got to eat (of course, right?)… so they were playing, running around and riding their trucks.

Dan and I fixed our separate plates and I was diving into a magazine and Dan took his plate over to the computer.

Suddenly I heard Dan yell “WOOOOOW! WAIT FELLAS… WHAT is THAT?!” And, I look over… and Dan is horrified and claiming that poop is on the floor?

WHAT?! GROSS!

So… I run over… we’re both laughing… and there’s little Matt… sitting on his dump truck (how appropriate) and pushing it along like nothing happened. Since the poop trail was in his path… we made the correct assumption that it was his. Three lovely poop chunks somehow escaped the kids diaper… wiggled down his leg and plopped onto the floor. Gross… gross… gross.

We can only assume it was a result of the thong diaper he was wearing (thanks to his daddy’s doing). Gotta put those diapers on proper, daddies!

THANKFULLY… his brother did not find it before Dan. I can only IMAGINE what would have resulted from that.

Again. Gross.

Trying is the name of the game!

When it comes to getting photos of all 3 of my kids simultaneously, trying is the name of the game.

We tried to get a photo of Gammy, Papa with all three kids. OMG. Nearly impossible. First we couldn't get Gabby to participate. So... we got a few photos of Gammy & Papa with the boys. Then, Gabby decided to turn on her charm and participate. Then, Matt was only content if he could hold a key chain. And then Rocco wanted down. My mom asked if any turned out... and my response to that was "Yes. All 5 of you were in the photos... that's considered a success." :)

"Go Matteo Go!"

Matteo can now say several words, including:
* Momma
* Dadda
* Rocco (not a lot... but will repeat 'Rocco' when he hears us or Gabby saying it)
* Go Diego Go! (he MIGHT just be the world's biggest fan of the show)
* Cookie
* Yucky (I will say "Yucky" when he licks dirt off his hands or has a stinky diaper)

I have to say my personal favorite is probably "Go Diego Go!" because it is usually accompanied by fabulous cheerleader-like hand movements showing his enthusiasm for the show.

My poor little guys! Tuesday - March 24, 2009

Two weeks ago both boys were healthy for almost a whole week. And, Gabby was healthy too!

I was thrilled for two reasons. First of all, we were getting SLEEP! It is not easy constantly having sick twins. Trust me. Secondly, Dan, Gabby and I were heading to Mexico for a 4-night vacation… and the last thing I wanted to do was leave my baby boys at home sick, even if they were under the fabulous care of my parents and Julia, our au pair.

Then it hit.

Gabby was diagnosed with bronchitis on Tuesday, March 10th. And on Friday the 13th (go figure) the boys’ little noses were snotty beyond belief. Again. Since Rocco had 3 horrible nights in a row (Wednesday – Friday), we brought him in to the doctor Saturday morning. And sure enough… he had another lovely ear infection (his 6th since birth). He was also wheezing again so we were back to using the asthma meds too. Then, a few hours after his doctor appointment, his left ear ruptured. Poor baby!

I have only one other experience with an ear rupturing and that was when Gabby’s ear ruptured last spring, just days before the Easter holiday. Her medications weren’t working, even though they had switched us 2 times that week. The fluid that came out of her ear was greenish in color. She had a bad infection. Rocco’s was clear. So I guess that was good.

On Saturday night (March 14), both boys were waking up in the middle of the night uncomfortable and in pain. Ugh. Once again this scene was becoming all too familiar. On Sunday, all three kids had fevers. And all were fussy. Gammy and Papa had arrived to take care of the boys while we were in Mexico and I think they were suddenly wondering what they got themselves into. Both babies were clinging to mommy. Dang. This was not supposed to happen before our trip! They were supposed to be healthy! My poor babies!

So, last Monday (March 16), we brought both babies to the doctor. Rocco’s left ear was not getting any better. And, his other ear was also now infected. So – the little guy had a double ear infection, and the left ear looked like it was about to rupture AGAIN. Ouch! Matteo was also diagnosed with an ear infection in both ears. The doctor recommended giving both boys antibiotic shots because the meds were no longer helping them and they needed help FAST. One in each leg. (Sniff, sniff) And, they ended up having to go back for shots Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday while we were in Mexico.

I felt so bad having to leave my little guys while they were sick. And, I felt horrible that my parents and Julia had to care for them while they were so sick and whiny and fussy and not sleeping well. Unfortunately, my parents were quickly welcomed into the sleepless world of sick twins. They also brought them to the doctor, held them each through 6 more shots of antibiotics. And most importantly – the little guys were spoiled with sympathetic love, lots of attention and patience. THANK YOU SO MUCH, MOM, DAD & JULIA!!

Yesterday, we met with an ENT doctor and decided that both boys will get tubes in their ears.

Then, last night... Matteo woke up 4 times and Rocco twice. Add Matt's not eating well this morning to the picture and I scheduled an afternoon MD appointment for the little man. And, once again my suspicions were right - Matt has ANOTHER EAR INFECTION. OMG! POOR BABY. This is number 8 (I think... I'm beginning to lose count!).

We’ve found it to be incredibly difficult ever getting any sleep in our house with how often the boys are sick. Whenever they’re sick – they don’t sleep. When they get healthy, we have to re-sleep train them. That usually only takes 2-3 nights since we've sleep trained them so often. And, when they are healthy they'll put themselves to sleep just find and sleep through the night. But, when they're sick, it's another story. They get so much mucus buildup that they'll puke if left crying for longer than 5 minutes. And then not only are you cleaning puke off a crib, floor, rug and changing crib sheets, doing laundry, etc..... you're waking up constantly throughout the night to tend to the sick babies. Anyway, our main sleep problem is that the glory of two 1-year olds sleeping through the night never lasts long enough before the next round of sickness starts.

Hopefully… with Spring here, and tubes in their ears… full-time healthy boys and normal nights of sleep are just around the corner!

WISH US LUCK… PLEASE! PRETTY PLEASE!!

Hard to keep up with life!

Life has been so busy lately... it's been really hard to keep up.

The boys have been really sick... yet again. Yes, one week after I was SO thrilled to have a healthy house again... Rocco came down with a double ear infection (one ear rupturing), and Matt came down with bronchitis and an ear infection. Always full of unexpected twists and turns.

Now, we're meeting with an ENT physician on Monday morning... for BOTH boys. Poor little guys. I'm very confident that tubes are in our very near future.

Also... thanks to my parents and our au pair, we were able to escape to Mexico last week for some much-needed R&R! It was a great get-a-way... and we were able to get more sleep than we normally get at home.

Anyway... two blog posts coming soon with recent photos. My goal is Tuesday night!

Meet "baby"!

Meet "baby"... Rocco's baby.

For the past week, Rocco has been very interested in one of Gabby's baby dolls. We call it "baby". Rocco will walk around holding "baby" while patting it's head. He'll kiss the baby. He'll burp the baby. He'll roll around on the ground with baby. Quite honestly... it might just be one of the cutest things I've seen this child do!

If you ask him to go find "baby"... he'll start looking around. Then he'll go running around at a pretty good clip from room to room until he can find "baby". Once he finds baby, he'll come running back to you hugging baby in his arms.

For such a little tough guy... my little Rox definitely has a soft spot! I love it!

Rox is REALLY hard to photograph because he's always moving and he's FAST! But, here are a few photos I was able to catch of him and baby:

The funny things kids say. Saturday - March 7, 2009

Kids say the funniest things. Put on your parenting hat... because you're about to read what you will undoubtedly hear/experience conversationally with your own child, if you haven't already!

We were driving in the car the other day and Gabby was watching "The L.ittle M.ermaid". She said "Mommy? I would like to have a green tail too!" This is of course added to the list of princess wishes that she makes daily. Princesses are a very big deal around our house. ;-)

Then, tonight I was giving Gabby a bath. Looking at me quite seriously, she said "Mommy, someday I want to have really big b.oobies just like you." I didn't know what to say... but then said "Oh really? Ok. That's cool!" Little does she know that her mommy was much more... ummm... should we say blessed (?) pre-kids in the chest department. Not much there to wish upon now!

Then, of course during this same bath, she proceeded to tell me that she has a hole on her bottom that goes poo poo and pee pee. I of course nodded and said... "Really? Wow!" I didn't bother to start explaining that one... but of course in my head I was thinking... hmmm... perhaps we wait until she's 30 to revisit this comment.

Age three seems to be the age where these little people start voicing more of their awareness of body/self. Recently, when I was changing one of the boy's diapers... Gabby pushed a chair up so she could watch. She said "Mommy, what is that thing between his legs?" So... of course I had to tell her that little boys have different parts, etc. She giggled and thought this was pretty funny. And, she said "I don't have a p.enis. I just have a bottom."

After the bath, I was thinking about all her little comments and one of my own childhood memories popped into my head. Both my mom and I remember it. I was in my mom's dressing room... and I looked at her while she was getting dressed and said "Mommy, some day I want small b.oobies just like you!" I'm not sure how old I was... but I would venture to guess I was in the 3-4 age range.

What is the lesson to be learned from this blog post?

Be careful what you wish for!

HA!

PARK DAY!! Saturday - February 21, 2009

Well... we did our first official trip to the park as a family of 5!

We've been battling germs for what seems like FOREVER! Combine that with more rain predictions and you've got two parents wanting nothing more than to get outside with the kids and let them run loose and breathe the fresh air.

And, I'm of course the crazy mom that brings the camera almost everywhere... so I took lots of photos while juggling 3 busy kids. That's not easy to do... just in case you were wondering.

Rocco is doing SO much better. He responded very fast to the meds he was on for the RSV and bronchiolitis. This is the first time in almost 1.5 months that he hasn't had a snotty nose. And... Matteo and Gabby are also doing great. So far, no signs of Rocco passing along either germ bug. I am however a bit worried that Rocco will develop asthma. I have to read up on it more, but apparently kids who contract bronchiolitis are more susceptible to developing asthma. Bummer. We'll keep our fingers crossed to hopefully avoid that.

And... I bet you're thinking "Oh good! Finally mom & dad are able to get a good night's sleep!" right? Of course NOT. Both boys seem to be teething something fierce right now. M.otrin helps a lot. But, we had a CRAZY night last night. Gabby went to bed sometime after midnight, which meant mommy was also up until close to 1am (thanks to a big bowl of ice cream daddy shared with her around 9pm). Then, at 3:20am, both boys decided to pee through their diapers and PJ's... which meant both mommy & daddy woke up to change and feed them. And then Matteo decided he would like to start his Monday at 4:50am. Clearly he has not yet learned something about his mommy... she is not a happy early-morning person, especially on a Monday. You've sure got lots to learn little man. ;-)

But on a happy note... below are some fun park photos. Rocs and Matt LOVED the park. Matt's crazy side really came out... we couldn't keep him from climbing and crawling to every slide so he could dive down face first on his tummy. Rocs liked the slides too... but preferred sliding on his butt, feet first. He was much more timid than I would have expected. Both little guys love the swings.

Gabby had a great time too. She rode her Dora bike almost all the way to the park. Then she helped push the wagon while daddy pulled it. She LOVES trips to the park! Always has. And, I think she had a lot of fun being there with the whole family too.

Busy, busy boy!

Rocco has a few new hobbies. Wrestling, climbing and spinning in the desk chair, dancing and screaming. He loves wrestling his daddy and sister. He also loves trying to climb on top of daddy. He will dance when he hears the theme song to Dora or Diego, or when we're trying to watch AI on the weekends or early mornings. And the screaming... well that's quite strange really. We think it's definitely t.estosterone-related. Possibly a way to handle teething. Or, he's trying to compete with his sister for the loudest voice in the house.

This little guy is ALWAYS moving. He is SO hard to photograph. I was lucky to capture one of his big smiles recently without a yucky flash. His big smiles melt my heart.

Gabby keeps busy on rainy days!

The rain hasn't stopped Miss Gabby one bit.

She's been keeping busy with playdough... lots of playdough cookies and ice cream desserts. She's also been very busy practicing her princess dancing. This child can easily rotate 6 different princess outfits over the course of an hour. Here you'll see her modeling a new princess hat (complements of Gammy & Papa).

She also spends lots of time reading to her brothers and pulling them around in the wagon or pushing them around on their trucks. What a great big sis, she is!

We surely love our little dancing queen!

Every man has his castle.

Julia, our au pair, helped Matteo build a castle last week out of M.egaBlocks, which the babies just LOVE. Matt decided to defend his castle by getting inside the walls.


Never mess with a little man and his castle.















BTW, check out his curly hair. So cute!

Rocco has RSV... DANG! Tuesday - February 17, 2009

Rocco has RSV. Crappity-crap. I can't believe it. Well actually, I can. I predicted it on Friday. I knew it was coming... I did. Really.

UGH! UGH! UGH!

He was diagnosed with bronchitis exactly one week ago. Almost two weeks after having been diagnosed with an ear infection that was accompanied by an incredibly high fever.

He's been taking and we've been giving him the bronchitis medicine religiously... but he just didn't seem to be responding to the meds. I thought... wait... hold on.... he'll start clearing up as he continues to be on the Rx. But no. It just kept getting worse.

His little cough has gotten horrible. He had a fever again today. He's been snotty for what seems like FOREVER now. He's wheezing pretty bad. And, what seems to be the most heart-wrenching is that I can feel SO MUCH crackling in his little lungs when I pick him up. It's awful. Even with one hand on his little back... the crackle almost makes your hand hurt.

UGH!! Poor, poor kid.

Then, tonight when I got home from work. He was running a 102 fever... and the second I walked in the door, he puked all over Julia's shoulder, the kitchen floor and the white kitchen cabinets. Since then... not only does my heart totally feel for Rocco... but I've been cursing the fact that I chose WHITE cabinets. Dang. That SUCKED to clean up.

I told Julia that the next time a baby pukes... either try to get low to eliminate the splash zone, or move to an open space (tile floors are best). Ha! This was sort of a joke. But sort of serious. hee hee

In all seriousness... we're now in full GET-ROCCO-HEALTHY mode, and TRY-NOT-TO-CONTAMINATE-MATTEO mode.

Rocco has to continue his bronchitis meds until Friday. AND, we have a special Rx that we have to give him EVERY 6 hours until there is no wheezing for a full 24 hours. The bottle is quite large. Ugh.

And, not only have we been busy with a sick Rocco. Gabby has had a horrible cough and congestion (bronchitis) that has caused her to puke in bed on two separate nights (last Thursday and Saturday nights). And, we brought Matt back to the doctor on Friday because he seemed to be getting a horrible cough and crackily chest, only to find out that his ear infection did not get better (which explains him puking all over the kitchen floor on Thursday night). AND he was also diagnosed with bronchitis. Sooooo.... we were given a new Rx for Matteo which seems to have cleared up both the ear infection and bronchitis quite well.

OH MAN... I REALLY need these little kiddos to get healthy!! It has been a very long 4.5 months of constant sickness. It's exhausting. I'm exhausted. Dan's exhausted.

Deep breath. This is just a very small moment in time, right? This too shall pass...

Matteo's WALKING! Thursday - February 12, 2009

I now officially have two walking boys!

Matteo started walking on Thursday, 2/12. He took 3 steps for Julia in the morning while I was getting ready for work. Then, when I got home from the office... he showed off a bit and did a number of 3 step walks. And now he's even taken 5 steps on several occasions.

He is very new to walking and it shows... crawling is still very much the preference.

Matteo has been spending more and more time building his balance and leg strength by scooting around the house on his feet and using the walls, sofa and other objects for balance. Every once in a while he'll let go of the wall or sofa and start walking over to a toy (taking 3 - 5 steps)... almost as if he did it by accident.

He's never struck me as being very eager to walk. And I'm in no hurry to rush him along... he IS technically the baby of the house.

But on the other hand, it sure will be fun to see him & Rocco pal around when Matt becomes a comfortable walker. It will definitely be busy (Rocco is EVERYWHERE & FAST!)... but fun!

High-fives, “Night, night!” and “Uh-oh!” Wednesday - February 11, 2009

Last weekend, two new things started happening at our house. You can check back later this week for video footage of the cuteness!

Matteo LOVES to high-five you! If you say “high-five”, Matt’s hand goes up (straight arm and hand held high) and he waits for someone to slap it a high-five. As soon as you walk away, his hand pops up again waiting for his next high-five, even if you don’t say it. This usually continues on for approximately 5 minutes. It’s hard to get-away when you start the high-five process. How can you possibly walk away from one of the cutest little boys on the planet who is eagerly awaiting additional high-fives? Gabby gets GREAT entertainment out of this. She thinks this is so funny and Matt loves getting high-fives from her too. On the flip side, if you put your hand up and ask Rocco to high-five, he’ll usually butt his forehead against your hand. That child loves to bump his head against stuff!

Rocco now says “Night, night!” and knows when to say it. We’ve been telling him “Night, night” and waving bye-bye whenever we start walking him up the stairs for a nap or bedtime with a bottle in our hands. I guess the dots are finally connecting, because last weekend he started saying “Night, night!” back to us and waving when we take him up the stairs to bed. And, sometimes, you don’t even have to prompt him… he’ll just recognize the process and say “Night, night!” and wave, while walking him up the stairs with his bottle for nap/bedtime. Matteo can also say “Night, night” but his sounds more like “Nigh, nigh”. And, he doesn’t really do it on his own yet… rather, he’ll just repeat it after we say it. Gabby LOVES it when her little brothers say “Night, night”. She will laugh and want to give them a big kiss and hug before they go up to bed. I think it’s exciting for her that they’re able to communicate with her via a real word!

We also hear a lot of “Uh oh!” lately coming from both babies. Whenever something falls… or whenever they drop something on the floor, you’ll get an “Uh oh!” from one or both of them. And as I’m sure you can imagine… this prompts the dropping of food (or anything) a lot more than I would prefer. ;-)

The boys are sick... AGAIN! Wednesday - February 11, 2009

This is becoming an all too familiar cycle in our house. One baby gets sick... then 3-5 days later the other baby gets sick.

And, along with sick babies comes little to no sleep for the parents.

As of Tuesday, we have now been to the pediatrician's office 9 times so far in 2009. NINE TIMES. That's averaging 1.5 visits per week. It's as if we're trying to set some sort of record. Which, btw, I am NOT trying to do. Good lord... our pediatrician should start sending us gift baskets!

In their short life span of 13 months, Matteo has now had 6 ear infections and bronchitis twice. So... we're now going to explore the possibility of getting tubes in Matt's ears. Rocco has had 4 ear infections and bronchitis 4 times. And now I'm thinking Matt's lungs weren't sounding so good today and Gabby's got this incredibly yucky, horrible cough. Are two more coming down with bronchitis again? Ugh.

The past few months have been exhausting. Having two babies, constantly sick, is both physicially and mentally exhausting. Hats off to those of you who care for 3 or more sick babies at a time. You're saint-like in my book!

I may start doing a germ-dance of some sort... to rid my house of germs and yuck! ;-)

"Mommy that's the president!"

It's funny...

Whenever Gabby sees B.arack O.bama’s face on the cover of a magazine in the grocery store, or on the TV screen she'll yell "Mommy, that's the president... B.arack O.bama!" The first time she did this in the grocery store, we happened to be waiting in a long checkout line. And, let me tell you... heads turned when they heard this come out of her little mouth. It was pretty cute.

Gabby is always so proud whenever she sees and recognizes O.bama. And, if you ask her what number president he is she'll happily tell you "fourty-fourth".

She never really showed that sort of enthusiasm about B.ush. ;-)

What they're doing now... recent updates. February 2009

MATTEO
* He is the easiest baby ever! Until it comes to food. Then, his stubborn side comes out. It is WORK feeding this child. You have to tell him a story and point at pages in a book OR do animal sounds or he will not eat.

* Prefers to feed himself table foods with a fork. So, we have to load the mac-n-cheese or egg (or whatever) on the fork for him, and he’ll put it in his mouth himself. Rarely does he allow you to feed him table foods on a fork.

* Has an amazing attention span and concentration level and IS very tactile and good with his hand/eye coordination and development activities. Future surgeon perhaps?

* Loves to play catch!! If you throw him a ball… he’ll get it and throw it back to you. He gets so excited when you play catch with him that he’ll often go find a ball to get the game started. Definitely a future little leaguer!

* Climbs up onto and down from the sofa quickly and safely all by himself. And lately, he threatens to jump off the back for attention. I don’t think he’d ever do the sofa dive like his brother did… but he knows we come running when he does this. We’re his lab rats. He laughs hard while it frustrates and scares us.

* He’ll fake coughing or sneezing to get more attention. For example, if he or his brother has a real cough/sneeze and we say “Are you ok, Matt/Rocs?”, then Matteo will proceed to fake a cough/sneeze an additional 4 or 5 times so we keep saying “Are you ok, Matt?” He LOVES doing this. The funniest part is watching him fake the cough/sneeze… his face gets all red because he works so hard to fake it!

* Loves to chill on the sofa and watch TV. Loves any show his sister watches, but Diego and Wonder Pets seem to be the favorites.

* Loves jumping up and down on the sofa and then crashes on it, while laughing. Great fun!

* Claps and waves on command or whenever he hears “YAY!”

* Stands on his own without support. Not for too long… but he’s working at getting better.

* Scoots all around the house on his 2 feet, practicing his walking skills, while using the walls, sofas toy boxes or whatever is handy to steady himself.

* LOVES being outside and going for wagon rides.

* Loves dogs and animals… and often spots birds outside the window while he’s eating.

* His hair has curls! I love it! It’s gotten a lot thicker recently and has developed a lot of wave and curls. Very unlike his sister and brother who have straight, fine hair.

* Favorite table foods: apples, mac-n-cheese, hot dogs, waffles, pizza, crackers, cheese

* Will not eat: most fruits, green veggies, or any of the baby foods that are not in a specifically branded jar… because yes, he KNOWS the labels and will look before he lets you put food in his mouth.

ROCCO
* Has the best belly laugh ever! It’s so fun to hear him laughing hard.

* Getting very fast at walking.

* Loves chasing his sister and being chased by anyone. He will laugh soooooo hard and watching him run makes us laugh.

* He has started jumping. He will jump on the trampoline and just started jumping over things in the house. It’s cute to see… it’s a very little jump, but he’s got the right moves!

* Waves on command. He’ll even flash a big smile and wave at pretty ladies in public.

* Claps on command. And, he’ll clap when he sees other people clapping or hears someone saying “YAY!”

* Is often seen holding our B.lackBerries, the home phone or play phones to his ear while pacing the room and ‘talking’. JUST LIKE HIS FATHER! LORD HELP ME!

* Has no interest in watching TV. His interest lies in moving, exploring and moving some more!

* Loves to hold a fork or spoon while we’re feeding him. He an feed himself with a fork, but we usually have to load food on it for him. He tries to get food on the fork but hasn’t had too much luck to date.

* Demands a try of any food that he sees us eating. He points and wiggles and stretches to reach your food and won’t give up until he gets some.

* Favorite table foods to date include: mac-n-cheese, hot dogs, apples, sausage, cheddar cheese, deli meat, and eggs.

* Table foods he doesn’t like: Anything that’s too sweet (cake, ice creams and super-sweet fruits like strawberries)

* Hates getting his diaper changed. It has become a wrestling match, literally, 80% of the time. You must pin his left shoulder down (which REALLY gets him screaming) so he can’t flip over and stand up. And, you’ve gotta be FAST!

* He is often busted for stealing toys from his brother.

* He LOVES his brother and sister and is always so excited to see them.

* Loves being outside. And, he’s got a great eye for animals. He’ll point and start grunting whenever he spots a squirrel or bird in a tree or flying through the air.

GABBY
* Loves going to school! Has two wonderful teachers and approx 8 school friends that we hear about on a regular basis.

* Recognizes B.arack O.bama. She will point him out to us if she sees him on TV or on a magazine cover in the grocery store. If you ask her who he is she’ll tell you he is the president. And, if you ask her what # president his is she’ll say “forty fourth”.

* Loves to sing the ABC song to her brothers and can now recognize most of her ABC’s. We’ve also started working with her on the sounds each letter makes.

* Loves to color and play with playdough.

* LOVES to do art projects with glue and tape. Even though our house doesn’t like her playing with either (think glue and tape EVERYWHERE).

* Puts herself to bed at naptime. Is getting better at going to bed by herself at night.

* Still has a hard time waking up. Usually wakes up from naps crying. Clearly… she gets her love/hate relationship with sleep from her mommy.

* She is not a picky eater and will try anything. Our challenge with Gabby has always been getting her to actually eat more than a few nibbles.

* Favorite foods: Macaroni & Cheese, hot dogs, salmon, pizza, avocado, pears, cottage cheese, edamame, black beans, apples, waffles, strawberries, and carrots.
* LOVES being outside.

* If Gabby sees /hears that Dan or I going on a run, she’ll start running down the sidewalk saying “I want to go too! I run REAL FAST!” Dan and I have let her ‘go on a run’ a few times in the past year (while we walked the babies) so we could see how far she’d go. She made it a full half-mile once. Quite impressive!

* LOVES getting dressed up in princess dresses, playing with her baby dolls and B.arbie dolls.

* She will do imaginary playtime with her friends from school… she’ll talk to them as if they’re in the room, or call them on the phone. And, she’ll often throw them birthday parties too… we get to hear the birthday song a LOT in our house!

* Loves playing with my makeup, shoes and jewelry.

* She will sometimes go through 10-12 outfits in one day. It’s a constant wardrobe change for Miss Gabby. She could probably employ her very own stylist and/or launderer.

* LOVES her little brothers so much. She is often busted hugging them too hard. She plays nicely with them, helps keeps them in-line, loves to help feed them and is such a great big sister!