Weekend (not so much) fun

Boy oh boy what a weekend we had here. Gianni and I had big plans to go away, (overnight!), for the first time since having Elliot.  Gianni did all the planning and gave it to me as a Christmas gift. He booked a small home in Vermont; we had plans to go hiking, site seeing, and just relax. Maybe even sleep past 6. Diane was all ready to take on the kids for two nights and we were so excited.

And then Wednesday night happened.

I think every parent knows the sound of their kid puking. It wakes you up and you just know. I heard that God-awful sound and then heard the pitter patter of Gabriella's feet come into our room. And then heard her say, "Mommy there's throw up in my hair".

Ugh. I knew we were screwed but tried to be optimistic and thought to myself, well she's in a great mood so maybe she just coughed or something. Nope, not so lucky. The rest of Wednesday night was spent changing her bed a countless number of times and slowly realizing that our dream weekend was slipping away. And then just to add insult to injury, I got it as well.

The stomach virus she ended up with was just horrible. She was terribly sick, high fever, and just run down. Our pediatrician told us that the strain going around hits out of nowhere and is rough on the little ones. By Saturday she was up and playing again but still exhausted and not eating very well. It wasn't until Monday that she really was acting more like herself and even then was still cranky and tired.

Knock on wood, the boys seem to have avoided it so far! I knew if Gianni got it he'd be okay but I was really worried about Elliot so I'm grateful that he's remained healthy so far. I really hope that the virus has left our house and he can stay healthy!

Speaking of Elliot, it turns out all he needed to figure out crawling and moving was for his big sister to get violently ill.  Out of necessity he had to just hang out in his crib while we cleaned up messes and he figured out over the course of the weekend how to crawl, pull up to stand, and start cruising. This is great and exciting except for of course he's into everything! And when I say everything, I mean everything that isn't Elliot-friendly :) Small toys, outlets, cabinets, etc. It's funny to watch because he'll be slowly moving around and then he'll spy something that he just knows is off limits and he makes a beeline for it, crawling as fast as his chubby self will get there.

As January wraps up, we are one month closer to having a 1 year old, waiting for Sandy's baby to make her arrival (hooray for new cousins!), and anxiously awaiting the spring!

Happenings

Happy Monday!

It's a drizzly, dreary one here but it's above 30 degrees so I'm not going to complain. This weekend was gorgeous and it was so nice to get outside and get the kids outside. We've been able to get Gabriella out for short amounts of time despite the frigid temps but 0 was just way too cold for Elliot. So having him outside and enjoying the warm weather was refreshing!

We also finally have a crawler! It took until just before his 10 month birthday but Elliot is finally on the move. Today he has been all over the place and getting into everything. He's pretty proud of himself but now it's time to baby-proof the house again. Gabriella wasn't into opening everything up so we got away with putting hair ties around cabinets and not using real baby safety locks but with this one, I can already tell it's a must. He loves to get into anything that's not his!

And finally, the kids got their hair cut today. Both just needed trims to clean things up and it went well. Elliot no longer has a mullet and Gabby said they gave her a braid like Elsa so all was right in her world :) That plus a lollipop and her morning was made!

Have a great day! Meal planning has been going really well and we've had several successes that everyone has liked so I'll share those recipes soon!

2018!

Happy 2018! Another new year, another fresh start. As sad as it is to pack away the Christmas decorations and get rid of the tree, I love using it as an opportunity to clean the house, toss out junk, rearrange, and just declutter.  A couple of years ago we changed our dining room into a playroom because it worked for us at the time. And it was great, until it wasn't. As Gabriella has gotten bigger, so have the toys. Add Elliot in and now all the baby toys are out again and it was just cramped. Gianni also needed a small office space which  was added into the toy room and it was out of control. So we took advantage of the Christmas clean-up, and rearranged the whole house. The dining room went back to being a dining room and we  divided the living room in half and made one half a living room and the other a workspace. The den has become the toy room and while that area is still in need of some organization, the flow of the house is so much better.

2017 was a year of new things... new baby, new car, new job, new life with 2 kids. Because of  that, I decided that 2018 is going to be our year to make life simple. Don't get me wrong, 2017 was very good to us, but much of the year felt a little hectic.  Adjusting to two kids wasn't easy; hats off to all the moms and dads (including my own!) who made it look seamless and easy. I felt pulled in a lot of directions, had a hard time figuring out how to give Elliot all he needed while still being there for Gabriella and  therefore felt like the normal day to day things fell to the wayside. For 2018 I want to get back to the basics and just simplify everything. I truly love cooking for my family and I haven't done a whole lot of it over the past 9 months. There are so many delicious, healthy, but easy and simple recipes out there that I am striving to make this year. I want to rely less on prepackaged meals and cook more from scratch; not just for our health but because it is something I enjoy.

I also want to keep our home as clutter-free as possible. This is a tough one because I am a pack-rat and Gianni is what I call a "scatterer"... he leaves a trail of his stuff around the house :)  I swear he can be followed from the moment he wakes up until he goes to bed by the trail of things he leaves in his wake. I save way too much and then go on a massive purge and throw away all the things in my sight. So instead of getting to that point, I have been trying to do a mini-declutter/clean sweep every evening and so far, 10 days into  2018, it has made a big difference!

And finally, the mandatory health and fitness resolution. Here's the thing: I have no motivation to work out. Except for I need to pull it together and do it. Both my parents have had health scares/ issues arise in the past couple of years and at the end of the day I am closer to 40 than I'd like to believe. My job gives me access to a beautiful gym and I really have no excuses and need to get out of my own way. I am keeping it easy and simple this year: my goal is to pick 3 classes a week to take. Will 3 classes give me rock hard abs? No. But it's a start and an easy way to get into a fitness routine. And being active and healthy are the goals!

I wish you all the best as we start this New Year. 2017 was a wild ride; I can't wait to see what this year brings!!

9 months old

This butterball is officially 9 months old! And he is definitely a butterball compared to Gabriella at the same age (her 9 month update is here!) Elliot is in the 95th percentile for both height and weight(and head circumference) and in fact jumped from the 75th up to the 95th. He is weighing almost 22 pounds and is almost 30 inches long.  He is eating a good variety of foods and I try to put little pieces of things I make for us on his tray so he can try them. A lot ends up on the floor but I really haven't found anything he turns away from.

He isn't crawling yet so he's a little late with that but our pediatrician isn't worried. In fact I was dying at his appointment because our doctor said, "Well he's obviously very content with staying in one spot. You can try coaxing him with things he loves, like snacks".... What a chubby little baby! But seriously, he's a strong baby, just a little lazy :) He's trying to pull himself up on things as well so we're pretty sure once he actually starts crawling, he'll be cruising very shortly after that.

9 months has also brought a massive sleep regression. A never ending cold combined with teething and learning new things has thrown Elliot off in a major way. He was our great sleeper up until a couple of weeks ago. Now he's up multiple times a night; looking for his pacifier, wanting to play, wanting to be held, etc. Once he finally kicks this cold I think it will be time for a second round of sleep training. Thankfully naps are still pretty good but boy oh boy are we tired!

I imagine that month 9 is going to bring several more teeth (he currently has his 2 bottom ones), crawling and cruising, babbling more, and trying more food. He adores Gabby and my favorite time of day is when they take a bath together and the two of them are in hysterics splashing water everywhere. What a pair they make!!