Five on Friday!

Happy Friday!
Writing about 5 little things that have happened during the week is one of the easiest ways for me to document what our life is like these days. So let's get right to it...

1. Smiles
Last week Elliot starting making little smiles that have turned into huge smiles this week. Gabby loves seeing him smile and thinks that he thinks that she is so funny! After a few weeks of intense evening time colic, these sweet smiles are a welcome treat. Elliot is 7 weeks old today (seriously where does time go???) and gets easier as the days go by. Part of me still can't believe we have 2 kids and another part feels like we've had 2 forever. And the never ending pile of laundry makes me feel like we have a small army living here! Seriously though, how does one small baby create 10x as much laundry???? 

 2. Hair
Our children's hair makes me laugh so hard. First we have Gabriella who was bald forever and now has a crazy head of blond curls. She wakes up looking like a tornado went through her room.

She's had a few haircuts that I just wasn't thrilled with because they still left me not knowing what to do with her hair. Finally last week she got a cut that is adorable and easier to maintain! The curls are still there but the layering in the back makes it  look a lot cleaner and in control.

 And then we have Elliot. Born with a full head of hair that could have been put in a barrette if he was a girl. As he has gotten bigger, the hair has gotten even funnier. I swear we don't style it or make it do this; his locks have a mind of their own that make me smile every day. Eventually this baby mohawk will be gone and we will miss it!

3. Colic
One of, if not the hardest things that came with a new baby was an unexpected bout of colic. Gabriella had bouts of extreme crying after we brought her home but it was due to severe reflux from being intubated for so long. It was heartbreaking because she was actually in pain but once medication was figured out and working, she was great. With Elliot it was classic colic. It started when he was 3 weeks old and seemed to "turn off" almost a week ago (just around his 6 week birthday). The first two weeks of it were brutal; it would start around 6pm and he would cry and be basically inconsolable for hours. On the worst nights we would walk up and down our road which would distract him a little. Driving didn't help and he would frantically nurse every hour. The most frustrating thing was that he was the most laid back baby during the day and then the switch would flip in the evenings and he would be so different. It would stop anytime between 10-1am and he'd be back to "normal". Our pediatrician told us to hang in there until 6 weeks when it usually gets better which, knock on wood, it has. The book, The Happiest Baby on the Block, was also a great help. Elliot loves being swaddled and that combined with a white noise machine has really helped out.  I'm happy to share any tips that worked for us if you are interested!

And the last two are shout outs to two great people...

4. Sandy's birthday
Wishing my sister Sandy a very, very happy birthday today! She has been my partner in crime since
 '82 and I hope she has the very best day! I love watching our kids grow together and we have a blast every time we visit.

5. Mother's Day
 And finally, a very happy Mother's day to all of you but especially to my mom. You truly don't appreciate everything your mom has done for you until you have kids of your own. So thank you for everything you have done and continue to do for us!

From last year.... why don't I have any updated photos???

Have a wonderful weekend!
xo,
Mary

Life since October...

Hello friends!

It has been a very long time since I last updated my blog. There are a million different reasons why but the biggest was time combined with feeling like I was in a rut with writing about our lives. But I love documenting what life is like; time truly does fly with kids and it is so nice to be able to look back!

The biggest thing that has happened since October is this little guy....

We welcomed Elliot on March 24 at 5:03am. He weighed in at a hefty (compared to his sister!!) 7lbs 5oz and was 19" long. He is now 6 1/2 weeks old and is pushing 10lbs. His personality is growing just as fast as he is and Gabriella is really enjoying being a big sister now. It definitely took a few weeks of adjustment and we certainly still have our meltdown moments, but every day gets easier and I love watching her with him.

Meeting Elliot at the hospital

True love

I plan on doing posts about Elliot's birth, Gabriella updates, and other life tidbits soon! I hope that this finds you well and as always, thanks for following along!

xo,
Mary

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