Two years old

Our girl is officially 2 years old. I simply can not believe how much has changed in these 2 years. As I watch her dance around the house, my mind is blown away at how far she has come.

These two years have taught me more than I could have ever imagined and more than I can put into words. As I reflect on this time, these are some of the biggest lessons I've learned.

Faith is a must. It doesn't matter which faith, it doesn't matter if you are praying towards God or a higher power you can't define, but having faith in something bigger than you is a must. Our experience changed me. During our worst days, praying became more important than it ever had. I prayed for her life, for her to grow, and some days just prayed to not breakdown. In the NICU we were surrounded by 2 families that could not have been more different than us. One family was Kenyan and Jehovah's witnesses. The other family was Muslim. I will never forget one morning walking in, knowing she was having a tough time and Adnan, the father of Gabriella's "neighbor ", said to me, " I'm praying for her". At that moment it didn't matter how he was praying or which faith he was; he was praying for my daughter and throughout our stays, we all prayed for each other's babies. It didn't matter that we were different. All we knew was that all we could do was pray and believe in the power of our thoughts.

Parenting is hard. Being a parent is tough. Your heart is outside of your body in the form of a little person. All of a sudden everything you do, every decision you make, is made with this little person in mind. Some of the hard parts are funny; when you have to put your daughter in time out for biting your butt. Literally biting your butt cheek. And yes, that is a true story. And sometimes the hard parts are really tough; from the early days of watching her struggle to live to the more mundane things like leaving her with a babysitter or watching her get immunizations. So many moments you have to put your own feelings aside and do what's best.

Support systems are another must. Our families have helped us in countless ways over these past 2 years. For every unexpected thing that happened, someone was there to help us along. We also have a great group of friends, some we've known for years and some we've met recently who are always available for advice, a laugh, or a cry.

To our Gabriella: you changed our lives 2 years ago and have made us better people. We have learned so much from you and are so proud of how far you have come. Every day you do things that surprise us and make us laugh. We can not wait to see you as a big sister! Happy birthday sweet girl! We love you!!!

Pumpkin season

'Tis the season for pumpkins and we joined the crowds on Saturday at the pumpkin patch. We went to the Pickin' Patch, a popular farm in Avon. They offer free hay rides out to the fields but because it was drizzling, we opted to skip that part. Gabriella just wanted to hold all the pumpkins she could fit in her arms so was thrilled when she discovered the mini ones.

On Sunday we took a road trip to Massachusetts to one of my cousin's houses for a football party. It was fun to see lots of relatives and enjoy good food. I didn't take any pictures there but my cousin took a cute one of me, Dad, and Gabriella.

I can not believe that in less than a week we will have a 2 year old!!! Where does the time go??? Have a great Monday!

xo,
Mary

This time around

I am in the first weeks of my second trimester and this pregnancy has been very different than when I was pregnant with Gabriella. With Gabriella, I was sick through the entire first trimester; I also had a sub-chorionic hemorrhage which led to countless emergency exams, time spent off my feet, and a lot of worry. Compared to all of that, this first trimester has been a breeze. I had very little nausea and the small amount that I did seemed to peak around week 8 and then fade away. My biggest complaint has been that I feel exhausted! Obviously I have a toddler this time around but I also am waking up a lot more frequently through the night and waking up really early in the mornings. You can find me dozing on the couch by 9 most nights! 

I have no idea if these differences mean that this baby is a boy or if it's simply a different, and perhaps healthier, pregnancy. Entering the second trimester was definitely emotional; I never made it past the end of the second trimester with Gabriella so I have had moments of feeling scared. We had our first appointment with the high risk specialists at Maternal-Fetal Medicine and as they talked to us about their thoughts and plans to give me the best chance for a full term pregnancy, the realization that this isn't a "normal" pregnancy hit. They are certainly optimistic and the baby is growing perfectly, however they are cautious and taking extra precautions with me. In 3 weeks I will be seen weekly until the baby is born. We feel very comfortable with our team and agree with the plan. It's comforting to know that we have a lot of different eyes on me, but nerve wracking nonetheless. 

For now, I am enjoying feeling good and focusing on how much better I feel this time around. We continue to be optimistic that this little one will stay put!! 

xo,

Mary

Coming soon....

We are happy to announce that Gabriella will be a big sister in March!! I will do a longer post on the pregnancy but so far I feel great and the baby is growing perfectly! 

22 months update

Gabriella is two short months away from being a 2 year old! Where does the time go??? It truly feels like in the blink of an eye, she has changed from a tiny baby to a little girl. 

Her vocabulary has really developed this summer and she has begun stringing words together in small sentences. She makes her dolls do things like dance, jump, and eat and comforts them by saying "there, there" which is the cutest thing ever. She calls herself "Dabby" or "Bella" and can name almost all of her family members and friends. When we say her prayers at night, she always makes sure we include the pets of all of our family members  (2 dogs, 5 cats, and 2 Guinea pigs) which always makes me laugh! 

She loves helping around the house and has some "chores" that she loves doing. She sweeps the kitchen floor with a little broom, helps feed the cat, and helps dust. 

I think the biggest challenge we've had with this age has been starting to enforce rules and discipline. Like every 2 year old, she has started testing boundaries but so far short time outs work. As parents it's really hard to not laugh things off (even when they are funny!) or shrug it off because she's our sweet little baby but we know that having rules will make her a happier girl!

She has a bunch of appointments coming up as she turns 2:  follow up for her eyes, her 2 year well child appointment, her first dental visit, and her final NICU follow up appointment. We think she's doing great in all areas so we expect good visits :) 

Have a good Wednesday!

xo,

Mary

Oh summer

It has been quite awhile since I last posted. July was a tough month for our family; just a few days after my grandfather passed away, my dad had a stroke. I don't want to go into details here but God was certainly on his side that day and he is doing well now. Losing a grandparent is hard but when something happens to your parents, it really shakes you. Needless to say, we were all happy to put July behind us. 

At the beginning of August, we went on our annual family vacation. This year we went up to New Hampshire and spent a week relaxing by the lake. It was just what we all needed after a rough month. Gabriella loved being in the same house as everyone and we all had a wonderful time. 

We also did a few things around the house this summer; Gianni built a fence (with the huge help of Diane, Alex, and some friends!), and we made our mostly unused dining room into a play room. 

The dining room is in the center of the house and had become a dumping ground for anything and everything. It was a waste of space so we decided to go with our guts and make it work for us. It was honestly one of the best decisions. Having that "aha" moment and realizing that one day it can be a dining room again but we need to make it work now was a great moment. Our home feels like a better fit for us now which is s great feeling. 

I'm glad to be back blogging and will do a full Gabriella update soon! She's become quite the toddler! 

xo,

Mary

My Grampy

Today my Grampy passed away. It's never easy to say goodbye but I am comforted knowing that he is in Heaven, as healthy as can be, probably teasing Grammy and joking around with anyone and everyone. Growing up, he was so much fun to be around; he was goofy and made us laugh constantly. Watching my dad be so silly with Gabriella reminds me of how Grampy used to be with us as kids. 

We saw him in June; he knew the cancer had spread but he was still as positive as possible. He teased and played with Gabriella and I will forever treasure the photos we took that day. He was a great grandfather and person and we will miss him! 

xo,

Mary

Happy Birthday Ben!

Sweet, lovable Ben is one!! It seems like just yesterday that we were all anxiously waiting by the phone for the call that our newest nephew had arrived. He will always have a special place in my heart- Sandy found out she was pregnant right when Gabriella was born and watching her have a healthy pregnancy and delivery was so uplifting. Ben is cuddly and loves to give kisses. He loves FaceTime and will try and kiss the phone. He "shows his teeth" , says hi and is pulling up on everything. He is such a lovable boy and we are so lucky to be his aunt and uncle! 

Happy birthday Ben!! We love you!! 

xo,

Mary

Summer days

It's mid-July and we have had a great summer so far. Gabriella loves being outside and so many of our mornings and late afternoons have been spent running around the yard. She loves running through the grass(which is looking really pathetic with the lack of rain), and searching for chipmunks and bugs. 

We had a play date with cousins and Gabriella had a blast! The boys are older than her but were so good playing with her. She wasn't a fan of the sprinkler until they came over and she happily had Jack carry her through over and over. He then shared his chips with her and from that moment on, she was officially his little shadow :) 

Gabriella is also fearless and is into climbing. On everything. I stepped out of our sunroom for less than a minute to grab a spoon, and came back to find her standing on the table, eating bean salad like it was no big deal. I nearly had a heart attack but of course snapped a photo to document the little monkey :) 

She is as sweet as can be but my goodness, she keeps me on my toes! 

Finally, a little find from Target that I have to share. They have back to school stuff out already and the dollar area in the front has some small items for teachers. We grabbed a pack of animal flash cards for $1 and removable adhesive shapes and colors for $3. The adhesives are paint-friendly and adorable! 

Have a good Monday!!

xo,

Mary

Toddler Life

I'm not exactly sure when our lives with a baby ended and life with a toddler started but we most certainly are in the midst of toddlerhood. Some things are more challenging (the timeouts, the tantrums, the constant "no no no") but in my opinion, this season of parenting is so great. We laugh every day and watching Gabriella learn new things and figure things out is simply fun. 

She climbs everywhere and we are crossing our fingers that she stays in her crib for as long as possible. She is a little daredevil with many things and gives me a small heart attack at least once a day. She can be cautious as well though and will study some situations and places before diving in. 

Today she decided to put on a fairy princess costume and kept it on all morning. The neighbors got a kick out of seeing her run around the yard :) 

She's a silly one for sure!! 

Happy Wednesday :)

xo,

Mary