Snow Much Fun!

When I went to bed last night (no, make that when I went to bed this morning), I saw a blanket of white outside. Sure enough, we had enough snow for the town to call a delayed opening for school which means James's AM Pre-school class was cancelled. Snow Day!

After carbo-loading with a three-course breakfast (oatmeal, SmartStart cereal, cinnamon swirl toast), James was eager to head outside.

I gathered up all our gear-- one pile for John, one for James, one for me. Then we suited up and headed out.

We started in the front yard where James thoroughly enjoyed sledding down the hill into the street, and John crawled about periodically purposefully plunging his face into the snow for a bite. He was absolutely delighted to join his brother for a few sled rides.

Then we headed to the backyard where James did some stunt sledding down the steps (and into a bush). John loved going down the slide into the snow. Then James and I took turns pulling John around the yard in the sled while he giggled with glee.

We built a snowman. I wanted to build it out front, but James insisted on the backyard. It's rather cute. (Next time I'll bring a carrot outside with us; I wasn't going to go back in for one.) We also made snow angels.

Then it was back to the front for a few more rides down the hill-- some solo James, some solo John (James loved waiting at the bottom for his little brother!), some with both boys, and a couple with all three of us on board!

Then we put away the sled (in our newly cleaned and organized garage-- thanks, Daddy!), and headed in for a lunch of grilled cheese sandwiches and tomato soup.

Here's to some good napping this afternoon!

Morning Dialogue

This morning at the breakfast table, James and I had the following exchange:

James: Mommy!  You and John have on the same outfit!

Me: Yep.  We are both wearing dark blue.

James: But his has little white guitars on it, and yours doesn't.

Me: True.

James: And John has a bib necklace, and you have a gold and Tinkerbell necklace.


**Tinkerbell is a Jamesism for diamonds.  Because they cause "Tinkerbell" to fly around a room with their reflected light.
And I looove that he called the ever-present bib a "bib necklace."
Love. that. kid.

Mulch fest 2012

So today we celebrated Mulch Day. This is the day on which we tackle the gigantic mountain of mulch we had delivered and fill in our landscaping in the front yard. We got most of it completed today. We plan to knock out the rest of it tomorrow then get some topsoil delivered in order to reclaim some of the flower bed area as well as improve the grass situation overall.

Family Fun

Before the visit of the aunties, Nana was here for a week.  Such fun!  James was off of school that week, so it was a HUGE help having Nana here.  Not only did Nana make some delicious meals for the family and let Mommy go running every day, but she and James had lots of fun both indoors and out-- building with blocks, playing legos, making tracks with trains, playing board games, reading books, riding bikes and scooters, . . .

On Thursday, Daddy took off from work, and we had a big day out-- we went out for pizza (much to James's disappointment) then bowling!  James LOVED it!

 He insisted on using Daddy's (10 pound) ball and doing things independently.  It appears he's (thankfully) inherited his Daddy's bowling skills.  Luckily Mommy and Nana had lots of fun despite their scores.

Of course Nana also got lots of cuddle time with John, and Mommy and Daddy really enjoyed her company too.

We love you, Nana!  Come back soon!

Cousins

Last weekend we were delighted to have Ali and Maggie visit.  This gave Mommy lots of great "sister time," and also meant that there were delicious home-cooked meals every night as well as extra attention for James.

hopping into the super-cool castle Auntie Maggie built

Part of that extra attention was in the form of James's first baby-love, his cousin Ezra.

We attempted a little cousin photo shoot, complete with coordinated outfits...

While Ezra easily has the best posture, it's hard to say which of the brothers has the worst...

We also took some shots with the sisters and the boys:

Ezra really loves his cousins.  He'd follow James around admiringly (even when James was complaining about Ezra and/or rudely not sharing his toys), but also often gazed in wonder at John.

Come back soon!  We miss you!

PS- Just weighed John a little while ago-- nakey, before eating-- 9 lbs, 2oz!

One Month!

It's kind of hard to believe, but as of 4:51 this evening, John will officially be one month old!  (Good thing it's Leap Year, so he can have a proper one-month-day.)

Mr. Stern-face

This morning, after his bath (btw, I'm still doing the "sponge bath" routine because it's fairly easy now; I suppose we'll switch to a "real bath" sometime soon.), I weighed him (thanks to my friend Lauren for lending us the scale!).  No diaper, no clothes, and he hadn't just eaten, thus I feel like it was a totally legit weight check.  Are you ready for this?  8 pounds, 6.5 ounces!

He has longer periods of wakefulness now, and enjoys certain activities for short periods of time:

• looking at the Black & White picture book that was James's  (it folds out accordion-style, so you can stand it up next to the babe)
• gazing at the dangling cow heads on the Pack 'n' Play  (um, they're little stuffed animals)
• tummy time
• holding up his head and looking around
• lying under the mobile in his crib, listening to music  (this often results in slumber)
• getting his hair washed

John continues to be an efficient nurser, and while he is getting better at burping (or maybe I'm getting better at burping him), he continues to be a champion of spitting up.  Delightful.  

But truly, that is the only trouble he gives us, so I cannot really complain.

I'm growing weary of this photo shoot

James is a great big brother!  He's started to refer to his sibling as John now.  Although last weekend he suggested we change John's name to Baby.  He often says "the baby" or "my baby" (like yesterday when I picked him up from school, and he told a friend, "Look, I have a baby now.  Do you want to see my baby?").  We don't hear Dutch or Brush so much anymore.

James loves to help with his baby brother.  He quite enjoys assisting with diaper changes by operating the diaper pail.  He's also a huge fan of pushing John's stroller.  He's not too big on holding John, but he loves touching him gently, singing "Twinkle, Twinkle" to him, holding his hand, and kissing him.

Yesterday morning James did ask me if I had another baby in my belly.  He said we needed three babies.  "I'm the first, John is the second, and a baby girl is the third."  He then proceeded to show me three fingers-- "This is me, this is John, and this is the girl baby."  Ah, if only it were that easy!

Happy Birthday, Auntie Peg!

Yesterday was Auntie Maggie's birthday, and we thought of her all day long!  (I had often imagined having the baby on her birthday...)

For his part, John decided to open his eyes for a photo.

And then James sang a little song!

Welcome to the family, John Patrick!

We are so happy to announce that John Patrick Lepori was born at 4:51 PM on Sunday, January 29th.

He weighed 6 pounds 8 ounces and was 19.5 inches long.

James insists on calling him Dutch. Or Brush. Or Dutch-Brush.
In fact, on Monday at the hospital, the conversation went something like this:
"Your brother's name is John Patrick."
"No, it's not!  His name is Dutch."
"Well, his nickname can be Dutch, but his real name is John Patrick."
"No, his real name is Dutch.  His nickname is Brush."
A little later he consented, "His name is John Quincy Dutch Brush Lepori."


Yesterday, after school, James came in and kissed him and said, "Hello, cute little Dutchy."

We are so happy!

Labor!

So I guess Baby figured I had done everything on my to-do list, so it was safe to arrive after 38 weeks and 1 day.

I woke up throughout the night Saturday into Sunday having contractions.  I was trying to record them (thanks, iPhone app), but kept falling asleep, so that didn't go so well.  Finally, things got too uncomfortable in bed, and I wanted Dan to be able to sleep restfully, so I came downstairs to pay bills and record the contractions more accurately.

Once Dan and James were up, we decided that I may in fact be going into labor!  I finally called and spoke to the doctor at 12:30, and she told me to go to the hospital to get checked out.  We ate some quick lunch first, and I was first assessed in Labor & Delivery at 1:30.  They deemed me an "outpatient" temporarily (I was 3-4 cm) and sent me out to walk laps of the halls.  I was happy to do so!  No IV (hooray, Holistic Birth!), just my trusty water bottle and amazing husband.  It was also nice to have my friend Kate working at the time, so we'd chat with her at the nurses' station each lap.  When I was reassessed at 3:30, not only was I admitted (5-6 cm), but our nurse, Patty, was certain that the baby was soon to arrive!!

Dan and I thought she was crazy as they turned on the warmer and got all the instruments ready.  Meanwhile, my contractions did pick up.  Patty and Dan were so very helpful, and I proceeded along as hoped with no drugs, etc.  In what seemed like the blink of an eye (well, a few painful blinks, I'll admit), our baby was indeed here!

At 4:51, we welcomed another sweet baby boy to our family!

Busy First Week of Leave

Last week was my first week home from school.  I filled the week with lots of last minute tasks and some fun as well:

Monday
 James had a "nothing day" (no school), and his 4 year check up.  He's nice and healthy-- 39.25 inches tall (23%) and 32 pounds (15%) which gives him a healthy BMI of 14.6.  His blood pressure was 89/44-- he found the bp cuff to be quite interesting and "tickly."  He also got to pee in a cup-- Very exciting!

Tuesday
I ran some errands,  had a meeting at school, and there was also my doctor's appointment and ultrasound.  According the u/s, Trixie/Dutch was 6lbs 12 oz at which point I inquired as to the accuracy of those measurements (the measurement had been 6 lbs 3 oz the week before; James was only 6lbs 2oz when he was born after 39 weeks!).  The dude said give or take 6 oz-- wowzers-- this looks like a big (for me) baby!

Wednesday
 I took care of some returns/shopping.  I went to the spa to get my hair and nails done-- so fun!  I had some gift certificates, so I enjoyed a spa manicure, a Mommy-to-be pedicure, and then went to the salon where I got my hair cut and blown out.  Fun!  Then I was off to meet with the Holistic Birth coordinator at the hospital before picking up James and taking him to choir practice.

Thursday
Dan and I met for a lunch date at a new coal-fired pizza place we'd been wanting to visit.  I did some work around the house, then James and I headed out on an after-school play date (complete with pancake and egg supper!  Yum!) with his "Cora's house friends."

Friday
We had another lunch date just because we could.  I took James to his dentist appointment where we were sad to learn that his baby front teeth are permanently gray thanks to a fall he took after spinning himself dizzy in the kitchen a couple weeks ago.  At least his permanent teeth should be fine!

Saturday
James had a sibling class at the hospital.  We'd signed him up for it back in December.  He was so excited that he was skipping into the lobby.  He also thought we were going to have the baby that day, but we told him, "Not yet.  Today is just for you to find out about being a big brother."
"Oh, like what Angus taught me?"
"Yes."  Angus is a dog from the book What to Expect When the New Baby Comes Home.  He received the book for Christmas (thanks, Kim & Jeff!) and had been requesting it at night quite frequently.  Angus's lessons really sank in, for James was the star student answering questions in class.  I must admit that I got quite teary-eyed seeing him hold the baby doll so sweetly.  He also diapered the baby and swaddled him/her!  Then we watched a silly sibling video and took a tour upstairs where James admired two very cute baby girls in the nursery.

That night I had dinner plans with my mommy friends.  I was feeling a little weird before I went out, but decided to go anyway.  We had a great time.  The delicious food (yum-- Melting Pot!) and entertaining conversation kept my mind off the odd sensations that I confided to the ladies "may or may not be contractions..."

Happy Snowy Halloween!

Well, let me start by saying that we did NOT go trick-or-treating tonight.
Nor this afternoon.

Because our police chief has postponed the event until Friday.

Because of downed power lines and trees.  I mean, it makes sense.  But so does limiting trick-or-treating to daylight, like the town where I teach.

Oh well.

So why are there so many downed trees and power lines?  Because we got a reported 7.3 inches (!) of snow on Saturday!  And the leaves hadn't fallen off the trees yet (since it's only October!), so the trees filled up with heavy snow, so limbs and branches started falling off.  It was much worse than Hurricane Irene (which was just two months ago...).

As an added bonus, James didn't have school today (nor does he tomorrow).  Daddy stayed home, and James "supervised" whilst Daddy and Grandpa went to work with the chainsaw on all our fallen tree parts.  Luckily Daddy had run out and gotten James some snowboots when the storm started on Saturday (I tried to get some about a month ago, but struck out at three stores: out of his size at two, and hadn't gotten them in yet at the third.), so he was well-dressed for frolicking about outdoors all day.

Shortly after Mommy got home from school, we all headed inside and James donned his Tigger outfit.  James played photographer and took some pictures of us.

Daddy and James carved one of the pumpkins (after much discussion about a design-- James said he wanted angry eyes and a smile with no teeth, then changed his mind and went with a spider).  Then we ate the delicious stew which was in the crock pot (conveniently awaiting our return from trick-or-treating, sigh).

After supper, James served us dessert.  Yum!