7 Weeks Old

Welcome Baby Girl!

Simone Phaneuf Rizzolo

August 30, 2009

10:56am

8lbs. 14oz.

Hello Due Date!!!

Open Letter to "Yet to be Named" little girl:

WHERE ARE YOU??? I know. Your still in there, but you are so supposed to not be! Today is your due date August 29th. Your not late. But I feel as if you are. There is much anticipated, anxious waiting for you from our house to NYC to Point Lay, Alaska. People are being updated with phone calls, Facebook and satellite phone texts messages (that's your Unkie Dan, he's above the Arctic Circle right now doing research...you'll meet him soon, he's very cool!) But still you decide to stay where you are. We were going to try and force you out today, but a hurricane is sweeping off the coast right now and causing all sorts of OTHER women to go into labor, creating a back-up at the hospital. And so we have been bumped to Monday, when we will then try and entice you out with fun drugs and stuff! However, we are all hoping that you decide to make your own unaccompanied appearance, say... today... or tomorrow.... how does that sound?

Let me know. I'm right here. Just waiting!

Love, 

Mom

39 Weeks

Waiting. We didn't have to do this with Tate. He was one week early and we were n0t ready for him. I still had an unfinished client project, Dave was still building his custom furniture, and his clothes and cute little baby things were unwashed with the tags still on. And suddenly I was in labor, yelling "Oh shit!!" We needed more time.

Well, this time here we sit, one week before her due date and all client work has been finished for 3 days, her bassinet and dresser with clean, untagged clothes in it has been set up for 2 weeks, the house is clean (thanks to yesterday's crazed cleaning jag), dinners are waiting in the freezer, and bags are packed. And we wait.

But I am relaxed and unstressed and even made cookies today! I think I like waiting rather than running through the house yelling "Oh shit!!"

Idle Threats

"I'm ever not coming up here again!! hmupf" 

…and storms down the stairs.

What a threat from such a small child. 

UPDATE: 1 minute later

T: Hi mommy, can you open my yogurt for me?

M: I thought you were ever not coming up here again?

T: {smiles}

T: Well, I was unhappy. But, now I'm happy!

What wonders one minute will do for such a small child.

8 Months

Her due date is August 29th. Today is July 29th. We are exactly one month away from the impending birth. I've been frantically trying to complete client projects, and as some get finished, new ones come in the door! I think my clients are panicking over her impending arrival too. All seems under control on the work front, even though I'm working most days and nights trying to get it all done - I see the end is near, with a small buffer of time that was unexpected. Now I just need everyone to cooperate with me. Including this baby. So far so good!

We've also been tackling the baby "to-do" list. Which is really a baby "t0-get" list. I think we were lulled into a false sense of security by having had a kid already and thinking "Oh, we've had a kid already. We've got EVERYTHING we need!" NO. NO...we don't! I forgot that baby needs diapers, wipes, new pacifiers, new little fuzzy rattles, diaper rash cream, lotion, shampoo, her own clutchie, plus clothes that are made for girls... among other things that were not in the best shape from Tate's usage... like socks, hats, bibs, burp cloths, changing table covers... need I go on? But I think that we are covered as Tate and I went out last week and conquered the "to-get" list rather efficiently and he even picked out for her a clutchie of her very own!

Things still need to be done like, set up the bassinet, install the car seats, pack the bags. Oh... and the most important... decide her name!

32 Weeks

And there is no more room at the inn!! She's packed in tightly so that there is usually a foot in my ribs, a shoulder in my hip and a head banging into my bladder. But it is fun to watch my whole stomach twitch and shift as she relocates her baby body parts. Tate still insists that she be named "Brother Lauren" even though that is his cousin's name and he's fully aware that he's getting a sister! 

A boy hanging upside down on the monkey bars...

...is what he drew on his chest with a green marker, while I was upstairs invoicing my clients. 

Fairbanks II - Day One

Oh, Day One. Travel Day! Well, it was not nearly as bad as I expected it to be. Tate was fantastic! He was well-behaved, calm, watched DVDs and ate snacks. He dozed from DC to Seattle for about 1.5 hours and then was raring to go in the Seattle airport. He rememebered as soon as we entered the terminal that this was the airport with the train! He slept pretty well from Seattle to Fairbanks so was refreshed when Unkie Dan met us at baggage claim... here they are playing in the sand pits in the Fairbanks International Airport.

I was more comfortable than I thought I'd ever be traveling that far and that long at 6 months pregnant. The worst for me was bending over to retrieve items from the seats in front of us and then the last leg of the trip where Tate was lying with his head in my lap, ultimately pinning me in place. I couldn't get comfortable and my tailbone was killing me! That was the worst of it.

We landed at 1am AK time (5am RI time) and damn it, it was still kinda light out! That sorta dusky light that feels like night but is not really dark. Amazing! Our heads were on the pillows in the hotel by 2:30am for much needed additional sleep.

25 Weeks

Things I Can Still Do:

- rough house with Tate

- wash a 52lb Boxer in the tub

- vacuum

- see my toes

- stay awake all day long

- run up the stairs and not be winded

- play baseball

- cook dinner

Things I Probably Shouldn't Be Doing Anymore

- rough house with Tate

- wash a 52lb Boxer in the tub

- run up the stairs

Things I'm Looking Forward To Not Being Able To Do Anymore

- vacuum

- stay awake all day long

- cook dinner

We are at 25.5 weeks... only a scary 14.5 to go! She's quite active when I am at rest and if she kicks hard enough I can not only feel it, but see my stomach move too! It's cool and kinda freaky all layered into one "Oh my God. I'm having another baby!" parfait of pregnancy fun!

Peace...

...and quiet!

He is so beautiful when he sleeps.

After a weekend of being sick (high fevers) he is well again, but still tuckered. This is him asleep on the couch in my office upstairs. He's never fallen asleep here before!

Suit

Tate is very excited to wear his new dress clothes for unkie Dan's wedding. He tried to wear them to bed last night, wanted them on first thing in the morning and then while at the park informed me that we would all wear our "fantastic new clothes" to the airport, on the plane and then to Alaska.

He thinks he looks like a dancer in his "suit" and last night led a conga line through the house. He plans on one for the wedding reception too. But we all have to dance crazy like him... so be ready! Oh and he wants the instruments too!!

Ice Packs

After dinner I went upstairs to do some more work. 20 minutes later I was called downstairs to apply ice packs to both father and son. Apparently, a game of "tickle spider" went awry and resulted in a serious head butt and a split open lip. Luckily no one needed stitches - it was iffy for a while. Poor guys!

Of bugs and m&m's

We walked to the beach after dinner tonight to plunk rocks in the water. Shortly after arriving there a ladybug landed on my shirt.

M: Look Tate! A ladybug!
T: Where?
M: Right here.
T: Oh. Can I touch it?
M: Sure!
{Tate gently touches the ladybug}
T: Hey!!!!! It feels just like an m&m!!!!!

Artists at Large

Lauren is spending the night again (no school tomorrow...yeah!) They spent the evening before dinner creating their own masterpieces with cray-pas, paint and water. Just a bit of paint on the floor. It was worth the quiet and contentment.

They are now currently giggling in bed and keep getting up to ask us things, like...

"Is it going to be cold or warm tomorrow?"

"Can I have my salamander?"

"Cousin Lauren is giggling, I can't sleep."

"Tate is talking, I can't sleep."

Would you like to guess what time they will finally fall asleep? The winner gets both kids for the night! Enter now!!!!!

Backwards Day

Tate has been resisting naptime lately. And on days he takes a nap, he doesn't fall asleep that night until after 10pm. I know it's probably time to stop the naps for him, but it's the time I get the most work done, so it's been a hard sell for me.

The past few days I've let him go no naps and he's been sleeping better at night. Today was a no nap day. I told Tate that I had to go upstairs and work for a while and if he needed me to call or come upstairs. He played, relaxed, watched TV, used the bathroom... all independently and happily. I came down about an hour and half later, sat on the couch and took one look at him and thought, "Hmmmm... that wasn't like that when I went upstairs!"

What is wrong with this picture?

18 Weeks and 31 Posts

We are at 18 weeks now and expanding. Lots of great little, soft kicks throughout the day. Although they can't be felt from the outside yet. She spends most of her time pressing on my bladder and making me have to pee constantly. There are many joys in pregnancy... having to pee all the time is not one of those joys.

I am at 31 posts for the month of March!!! I have to say I rather surprised that I did it. Yeah for me!! Hope you enjoyed. Let's see what happens now.....

Cooker Lesson #4

Today we made cookies. We've been talking about making these cookies for weeks. We've had the ingredients to make these cookies for at least 8 days now. Finally, I was so burnt out from working everyday for the last 3.5 weeks that I said, "No more work today! It's cookie-making time!"

We made Oatmeal, Dried Cherry, Chocolate Chip Cookies! And today was the first time Tate dared to use the electric mixer. Usually he runs and hides when I turn it on, but today...oh today, he was BRAVE. He did great. Kept it in the bowl, splattered nothing and did a great job mixing. Here's the proof...

After all that work and bravery, he decided that he does not like cherries in his cookies. I now have to eat all the cherries out of his cookies. Not a bad gig if you can get it!!

Shut Down

So I had a great post planned with a video of Tate squirting paint into a bowl and making farting noises with the tube of paint and then laughing hysterically at the noise. But the video won't load. It was really funny. So just take a moment and imagine it for me..... imagine the squirts.... the farting noises.... the hysterical laughter.... your imagining it, right??

Funny, isn't it??

FAVORITE PART OF THE DAY
D: eating cake from Sin
M: completing and then emailing coloring book concepts to my client
T: cuddling with you right now

Tired

In an economy like now, I'm very surprised to find myself overwhelmed with client work. Projects keep coming, I keep saying yes and happily add jobs to my forecast. Then I have to do the work. Well, I'm exhausted. I've been working just about every hour I can put aside the responsibility of motherhood... "Let's put in a DVD. Mommy's going to run upstairs and work for a few miniutes, OK?" This includes after Tate's in bed and on weekends too. The house is a mess, dinner's been pretty uninspired lately and the dirty laundry is piling up.

I need a housewife. I'm taking applications until 5pm next Friday. Interested?

That's what little _______ are made of.

Among my friends there are 9 children. All 9 are boys. That's a lot of boys. It seems inevitable that all the kids will be boys. There are all boys now... there will be all boys in the future.


Well, I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later...


It's a GIRL!!!

Hey Tate!

A few days ago Tate came with me for a client lunch meeting. He was good, told jokes and showed off his new blue-teeth-staining mouthwash. I rewarded him with ice cream.

Tate's at a sleepover tonight with Nana. I left them this afternoon while they were exploring an old shoebox packed tightly and filled to the top with Dave's old matchbox cars.

I miss him! Good night Tate. I love you!!

Brushy-Brushy Time

M: Do you want to tell daddy it's brushy-brushy time. Do you want mommy to tell daddy or do you want daddy to tell daddy?

T: I want to tell daddy.

{gets off couch and walks over to table where daddy sits and says in a 4-year-old's fake British accent}

T: Daddy? It's brushy-brushy time... Your Majesty!!!!

{while bowing with dramatic flair}

Habits

Is March over yet?? This is a lot of blogging. About 10 days in it was a chore. 24 days in it is now habit. As routine as checking my email, brushing my teeth, or telling Tate to go back to bed at least 5 times each night. Maybe I can make some more new habits... like cleaning the house, getting Tate to school on time, or figuring out what to make for dinner?

Nope... too lofty those goals. I'll just stick to writing about my messy house, Tate being late for school and never knowing what to have for dinner.

Easier.

Guest Blogger - Tate

Oval eye! I've got a joke for you.... Why did the chicken cross the kitchen? To see what snacks there were!! Hahhahahahahahahahaaaaa. I'm a blogger and a Tater.

Quote of the Day

"I've got magic balls!!"

Dive Bomb!!!!

From the bed onto the blow-up mattress! What a morning they had after deciding that 7:30am would be a GREAT time to get up... "It's morning day!"

Bickerers

This just about sums up the day!

We surprised Lauren at school, picking her up and bringing her to our house for an impromptu sleepover. Wow, was Tate excited. They were really good... well sort of. They bicker like siblings! She tries to boss him around and he puts up with none of it! They yell at each other, then play happily, then yell again, then play, then yell... well you get the idea. It's rather amusing to the innocent bystander (that would be me) who is upstairs working and listening to the downstairs goings-on.

They are now asleep. All is quiet. Until the morning, when the bickerers awake and I begin to giggle and referee again.

FAVORITE PART OF THE DAY
T: eating graham crackers and cuddling with you right now
L: having you and Tate pick me up at school
M: lying on the driveway and being outlined in walk-chalk-chalk
D: playing ball with Tate and Lauren

Mod

The day began earlier than usual. Got Tate up, dresssed, breakfasted and out the door by 8:30am. Then to the bakery to pick up a tasty breakfast treat for a meeting, to the bank to make a deposit and then drop Tate at school. I zoomed back home for the client meeting I was hosting, made coffee and sliced the treat as she was pulling in the driveway. Successful meeting ended after an hour, then upstairs to work for an hour, and off to pick up Tate. We drove to my studio to meet a possible new co-op member and then it was lunchtime. Where should we go....hmmm?

The Modern Diner!!!

I think we were the only ones eating actual lunch food at lunchtime. We should have just had the pancakes.

Cooker Lesson #3

I was too tired to think about dinner tonight...what to make, is it in the house, go to the store to shop for it. So I emailed Dave begging for help with the culinary decisions this evening. He came home with potatoes, green beans and pork chops. With mac & cheese for Tate. I set to work cooking with my little helper.

He washed beans, snapped off their stems, poured bunny shaped pasta into the boiling water, mixed the cheesey sauce and incorporated all the rabbit macaronis in! I explained how to steam, boil and mix all while making sure no one burned themselves on the stove. Success!

Interesting enough, he happily ate LOTS of food tonight with no prompting whatsoever. Could having him help cook dinner make him more interested in eating said dinner?

I could have something here.

FAVORITE PART OF THE DAY
T: cuddling with you right now
M: cooking dinner with you tonight

All work and no play...

It's all about the playing today.

FAVORITE PART OF THE DAY
M: wathcing you play on the playground with your friends
T: playing with Eli, oh and cuddling with you right now

16 Weeks

Hmmm.... I still fit in my more stretchy regular clothes. And I do believe that I've started to feel some tiny, whimpy, soft little kicks. A few times a day I feel something and think...."WHAT WAS THAT??? Was that a kick? I think it WAS!!" 

A Tale of Two Climates

It was warm enough today to play soccer outside and have a picnic lunch on the lawn, yet afterwards have a snowball fight with that final big pile of die hard snow! 

Which I am pleased to say is now finally gone.

Ahoy There

Pirate party!!!

Today was finally cousin Joey's pirate birthday party. Tate has been looking forward to this for weeks. He woke up yesterday morning and barely awake told Dave, "Tomorrow's the pirate party!"

Wow, what a party! There was a large pirate ship to climb into and slide down on the super fast slide that launched kids into the crash mat. There was a bucking bull inside a giant bouncy house. Basketball games and fun large balls to throw and kick. And activities!!! A treasure hunt, bull riding, airplane decorating and launching, tug-o-war, pinata whacking and of course food and cake. The kids then left with a balloon and fresh-made cotton candy! Tate was digging into the cotton candy during the ride home after being told he could not eat it in the car. He sadly stopped eating in the car, then gladly finished it off at home with blue fingers, blue lips and a blue tongue.

FAVORITE PART OF THE DAY
T: Joey's party
M: Joey's party

Lights On!

Driving home we can see the bridges across the bay and I always ask Tate which bridges he can see. He always says, "I can see the Bristol Bridge. And I can see the Newport Bridge."

Several nights ago we drove by and I asked which bridges he could see. "I can see the Bristol Bridge. But I can't see the Newport," he said. Sure enough one bridge was lit up and one was not. Well, I had just discovered that my friend Stacie's father now works as a toll taker on the Newport Bridge. So I promptly blamed Mr. Perry..."Oh Tate, Papa Jim forgot to turn the lights on tonight!" "Oh," he says.

Last night we drove by again. Tate announced, "I can see the Bristol Bridge. And Papa Jim remembered to turn the lights on the Newport Bridge tonight!! Yeah!!!"

Mr. Perry, please remember turn on the lights every night. There is a 4-year-old boy in Barrington keeping tabs on your job performance!

Rotten to the Core

Yes, folks... she is spoiled rotten to the core! That is the dog, in our bed, having made a nest of pillows for herself upon which to snooze the afternoon away. And I allow this??? Well, yeah, I do. It all began when she arrived from the rescue program and promptly fell ill. She required lots of extra care, pampering, love and rest to be able to fight for her life and win. Most days I didn't really think she'd make it, so little things like her sleeping in our bed were not concern for longtime bad habits. But here we are, six and a half years later, with a very spoiled yet alive dog. 

It's OK, she can sleep on my pillows. She deserves her life of luxury after working so hard to keep it. 

Helpful Reader Suggestion

It was suggested to me by a self-appointed "loyal blog reader" that if I didn't really have anything to say that I should just stick to my blog title, report on our favorite parts of the day and be done with it! This is a great suggestion. (Turns out that telling people to "suck it" is a great motivator to getting blog entry ideas!) But, why did I not think of this myself? It might be the tiny 16 week old fetus that is quite sucking the life out of me, could be. Or it could also be laziness. We'll never know. But I do know that I need more blog entry ideas... so suck it blog readers!!!

FAVORITE PART OF THE DAY

T: umm... I have two tonight – getting me a new airplane – then, cuddling with you right now!

D: the aftermath of fudgisicle

M: telling my loyal blog readers to suck it!!

Hi!

I'm tired tonight. And Dave's chomping at the bit to get his computer back. So that's all you get!
Good night.

The Kitty Series

Tate was drawing on his magnadoodle and I glanced over and thought, "Wow, that looks just like a cat." A few minutes later Tate says, "Mom, look at my kitties!"

Well done, Tate!!

Boys are...

gross - Part 2!

M: Tate, get your hand out of your pants.
T: Nooo...hee...hee....
M: Tate, it's not polite to walk around with your hand on your butt-butt.
T: Yes it is!!
M: Tate, please get your hand out of your pants.
{puts other hand down the front of his pants}
T: Now one hand is on my butt-butt and the other is touching my peener!! Ha...ha...hee...hee...
M: Oh my god!!!

Boys are sooooooo gross!!!

Dancing Fun

I brought my camera to the party, but the batteries were dead! If they had not been dead you would have seen pictures of a crazy dancing Tate, Aidan and Coleman. They were nutty and had us all rolling with laughter! Also you would have seen Tate's first time pumping gas! Yes. Dave let him get out of the car and "help" in the vehicle refueling. He looked SO proud of himself! 

But since I don't have pictures of any of that I leave you with an old picture not yet witnessed by the masses....

This was from a very loud music making session last summer... oh the headache!

Guns & Roses

Conversation at lunch.

T: Mom, can we go to the grocery store and get those guns? {squirt guns}

M: Ummm... no...

T: But I really want the guns!!!!!

M: Tate, no. You do not need guns.

T: Yes I do!! I need them to water the flowers!

Lame

I've got nothing to say tonight. Sorry. I think I'm too tired. Nope nothing. But I posted. Lame? Yes. But I say it counts as a post for the day! And I make the rules on my own blog. So suck it!

The Power of Observation

I'm reading a great book by Barbara Kingsolver about her family's commitment to eating locally for a year. During this year, as much as possible, they eat only what they grow or can buy from other local growers and producers. Therefore, they are eating only what is in season as well as eating whole foods vs. processed. I'm not far into the book and have learned way more about asparagus than I ever wished to know, but it is also making me very happy about our decision for the past 3 years to join a local CSA and making me look forward to this June when the crops are in again - oh the husk cherries, salad greens, heirloom tomatoes, raspberries and local cheeses!! Oops, I've digressed from the real point of this post.

The real point is that last night while reading, there was a recipe listed and after that recipe the note that if I wanted more recipes I should go to www.AnimalVegetableMiracle.com. I thought, "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle? Oh that's interesting they did a different website for the recipes. Wait. Why would they do that? That doesn't make any sense!" So I turn the cover over, really look at the title of the book, and lo and behold, the book I have been reading for the past week and referring to in conversation as Animal, Vegetable, MINERAL... is not actually entitled that, but indeed entitled "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle"!!!

So you are now aware that as much as I love books and reading, I obviously don't really pay any attention to what a book is called. Although in my defense, I've talked about this book with several other people and I believe that they have all called it, unprompted by me, Animal, Vegetable, Mineral as well!! You know who you are!

FAVORITE PART OF THE DAY

M: long, much needed afternoon nap (maybe now I can pay attention to details)

T: playing broken daddy

Short

{conversation this afternoon in his room}
T: Mommy... I have a joke for you.
M: OK, what is it?
T: You can ask the waitress for another drink, but you can't ask her for soap!
T: {lots of giggling and silliness}
M: Ummmm.... OK.

I think the loss of his hair made him weird!

Happy birthday to Ama!!!

14 Weeks

The baby bump photos begin. We didn't do this with Tate and I really regret it. But I'm surprised at how quickly this baby has popped my stomach! I didn't look like this with Tate until I was close to 20 weeks.

14 down... 26 to go!

What?!?!

Imagine my surprise when I spent the day at school with Tate last Tuesday for his special birthday celebration and all of a sudden the lights switched off and on, off and on, and 19 preschoolers jumped into action and began to pick up all the toys! Children crawling under tables, scooping up blocks, placing scissors and crayons back into the right buckets...it was mind boggling for a mother who cannot get her boy to even pick up his clutchie that is two feet away from him. But to my greater surprise, my boy was also part of the action earnestly picking up and putting away toys that he didn't even play with!!!

Well, as if that wasn't enough for this over-worked mom...at snack-time, the children waited calmly for all their other friends to be served before digging into their special Tate-birthday ice cream treat and upon finishing asked if they could be excused and then picked up all their cups, napkins and spoons and ceremoniously deposited them into the garbage can.

Preschoolers clearing the table!! Manners?? Damn, this school is teaching them something!

Now, Tate did all this at school, but won't do it at home. Barrington, we have a problem!

Today I looked at the house and was overwhelemed with the amount of toys strewn all over the living room, dining room and into the kitchen. I thought about preschool. And then with happiness in my voice, a sparkle in my eye, and energy in my body told Tate we were going to clean up. We tossed balls in the right bucket, ran to get the broom, squirted windex and with laughter and fun cleaned the house with no complaining, no whining and with full, excited cooperation.

My house is clean! Damn, I think this school is teaching ME something!

:: I'm condering posting everyday in the month of March. Just considering. This is no promise. We'll see what happens.

Ouch!

1 deeply embedded splinter +

1 doctors visit +

3 pairs of tweezers +

1 very thin needle +

15 minutes of earnest digging +

2 feet of gauze +

1 prescription of anti-bacterial ointment +

2 lollipops +

1 teddy bear (courtesy of the pharmacist) +

0 tears =

1 VERY brave boy!!!

Baby Conversation #5

T: I don't want to sit next to you Mommy, I might get on your stomach and squish the baby.

M: Oh honey, you won't squish the baby. It's really well protected in there.

T: Oh?

M: Yup, the baby is swimming in a pool of water that cushions him/her... kinda like baby bubble wrap.

T: Oh, it's swimming in a pool?

M: Yup.

T: Mommy, we need to buy the baby a pair of goggles so it can swim in it's pool.

M: Ummmm...ok.....

FAVORITE PART OF THE DAY

T: sitting with Daddy and cuddling with you Mommy right now

M: going to the candy store to buy Pez

D: tickle-saurus 

Two Reasons I Know I'm Pregnant

1. The only thing that I wanted to eat today were Mallowmars -- so I bought some.

2. I need a spandex belly band to hold up my pants that I can't button anymore -- so I bought one.

I wonder if I hadn't bought the Mallowmars would I have needed to buy the belly band?