BBQs and Buddies - The Essence of Memorial Day Weekend

Lucia had a very full dance card during her first Memorial Day weekend. On Saturday she went to Connecticut to meet her friend Annie (seen here in matching outfits) who is the daughter of our dear friend Jessica (aka Schindler). Annie is only 10 days older than Lucia, yet as you can see by the photos - if these two were boxers, Lucia would be fighting in the heavyweight division... not that there's anything wrong with that honey. Schindler's parents hosted an amazing BBQ complete with lobster, steak and key lime pie. It was the perfect way to kick off a 3-day weekend. Then on Sunday Lucia was kind enough to let her moms socialize at another BBQ with some local pals - a rare and wonderful occurrence. And on Monday, Lucia played host to her own BBQ with her friend Miles coming to pay a visit.

All in all it was a fantastic weekend. Lucia was in a GREAT mood and loved being out and about. She is turning into quite the social butterfly. If I do nothing else right as a parent, and let's face it - it's entirely possible... I hope to teach Lucia that the company of good friends and grilled meat are two of the greatest gifts on earth.

What, Me Worry?

Of course not. The only thing Lucia has to worry about is which adoring grandparent will spoil her more. In the grand scheme of things, not a bad problem to have. Today's video clips feature Lucia's grandmothers (Nonne and Mimi respectively) teaching her about the finer things in life - music and food. Who is luckier than this kid??

They Laugh Alike, They Walk Alike...

Is there anything better than cousins? Something closer than a friend, but not as close (and therefore not as pesky) as a sibling. Lucia is very fortunate to have two wonderful cousins - Anthony (2 yrs.) and Brianna (5 months) - with whom she will no doubt conspire to torture her parents. For now though, they are all sweet and innocent and helpful. Watch how Anthony graciously offers to teach Lucia and Brianna the ABCs (more or less).

Finally, the Cheerio Video!

Ok, it's Friday morning, I have the day off on a holiday weekend, it's already 75 degrees outside and I'm inside updating this blog. See how much I love you people?

Finally figured out how to show you this dang video. Of course, now that I've built up your expectations you'll probably be dissapointed. On second thought, no you won't.

We have a lot more content to add before taking off for the weekend, so check back later today for updates!

Little Cereal, Big Entertainment

Apologies for the delay in the updates (to all 2 of you out there reading this)... as you know last week was a big week in our household. Moms back at work, Lucia spending her days without them, moms being too lazy to update blogs, etc.

Anyway, we're back on the case and have been trying to upload the latest video staring Lucia and her sidekick Cheerio. Unfortunately, we're having technical difficulties and until we can figure it all out, you'll have to make due with this picture.

Thank God She's Back...

Well, the girls all survived Mama Mer's first day back at work. Lucia and I did some singing, shopping, napping and hobo sitting while Sadie slept all day - so basically we stuck with what we know. Needless to say, we were all thrilled when Mama Mer came home. I've said it before and I'll say it again... being a stay at home mom is HARD work. God bless all you out there giving it a go. Seriously, I'm spent.

You've Come a Long Way Baby...

 

What a difference 5 years can make, eh? So today was Mer's first day back at work after 6+ months at home. As you can see, she was none to happy to go. Contrast that with the other pic from her very first day at Mintz (2002)... she was so bright eyed and bushy haired. Don't kill me honey - the people will love this.

I promised Mer I'd update the blog as often as possible so she wouldn't miss Lucy too much. So here's a little video we took yesterday to help get you through the ups and downs of your day. Hope you took your dramamine.

Wait, Isn't Every Day Mother's Day?

Well, it should be. Today we spent a beautiful afternoon with Mimi smelling lilacs at the Arboretum and grilling on the porch. Lucia had a tough time napping through all the excitement and was little on edge all day - probably because she forgot to send us flowers... oh well, maybe next year.

We concluded our first Mother's Day by reading selected works of Ovid to Lucia (in Latin of course). Evidently our sophisticated daughter loves the classics.

It's True. We do.

Just a quick note to say Happy Mother's Day to all the moms in our lives. You know who you are.

I'll post some more pics later from our visit to the Arboretum with Mimi!

Lucia Settles Into Solid Foods...

I suppose it's not that far of a leap from rice cereal to sweet potatoes to giraffe... it all winds up in the same place, right? Today's photo was taken during a lunch outing with our friend Cathy and her son Owen (refer to previous posts for pics). Apparently Lucia decided that giraffe was on the menu today. Yum. As if that weren't enough, dinner time consisted of oatmeal and corn with a side of duck for dessert. Is our kid the next Padma Lakshmi or what?!?

More Lucy Cuteness...

So this whole sleep thing is going very well. Now that she's sleeping through the night (more or less) Lucia's mood has improved ten-fold and she is quite possibly the happiest baby on Earth - as evidenced by this picture. Meredith snapped this while Lucy was just doing some alone play time on the floor of her nursery. If only adults could get such joy out of simple plastic cups.

Apparently, Lucy's cute factor once again increased exponentionally yesterday when whilst at the JP Tot Lot (our neighborhood playground) Meredith put her in an infant swing where Lucy then decided to take a nap - IN MID SWING! Who is this child? I'm not sure, but I'm keepin' her.

My Sleeping Beauties...

Meredith has always said she needs two things to keep her happy: sleep and structure. Needless to say, she's had neither of those over the past few months. Luckily, she has me to keep her entertained (and take photos of her when she's not looking). This picture is amusing for several reasons: 1) Meredith was asleep and couldn't protest, 2) It proves that even at rest, her Research is In Motion and 3) It's the perfect set up for today's video clip.

Today, Meredith wasn't the only female in the house who decided sleep was a good idea. Take a look at this video and tell me it's not the cutest thing you've ever seen. AFV, here we come!

Sleep Begets Happiness Begets Glee...

Night #5 of Dr. Ferber's visit was an overall success. Lucia slept unswaddled until 3:00am, then cried a bit, but went back to sleep until 5:00am. At which point, she started to cry and escalate until Meredith nursed her from bed at around 5:40am. Luckily for me, she then put Lucy right back in her crib where she slept until 8:15. Hooray!

Lucia also had great naps today, which we have found improves her overall mood. This picture was taken during one of her favorite hobbies - sitting on the front porch/lawn watching all the folks go by. We call it hobo sitting. Hey, when you live in the city, that's what you do... and as you can imagine, Lucia is very popular and a great way to meet the people in your neighborhood.

Right now, Lucia is in her crib and quiet (after a brief crying spell). We keep trying to get a picture of "the face plant" but she thwarts us at every turn. That girl is crafty.

We Discovered a New Type of Flora...

Faceous Plantorum (a.k.a. the face plant).

So here we are on day #4 of Dr. Ferber's visit. Lucy did not have a repeat performance of Saturday night's magic, but really that was her mom's fault(s). We noticed she was face down (still swaddled), head buried in the mattress - we panicked. Naturally, we turned her over to her back which of course woke her up. Oops. The next few hours were spent rolling over our daughter who kept returning to the obviously comfortable, but potentially hazardous face plant position. Even though her moms are worry warts and want her to sleep on her back, Lucia is a bit strong willed and prefers to do things her way - wonder where she gets that? To quote Paula Abdul, "...two steps forward, two steps back."

Luckily, Meredith was able to do some retail therapy today to calm her weary nerves. We'll see how tonight goes. It's currently 8:45pm, Lucia is asleep in her crib (unswaddled Nonne) and of course face down *sigh*.

SLEEP AT LAST, SLEEP AT LAST, THANK GOD ALMIGHTY, SLEEP AT LAST!

See that pink thing flying over your head? Yep, that was a pig. Is that snowball down in Hades still frozen? You betcha. Did the Red Sox really win the World Series? Sure did. All this is a long way of saying - LUCIA FINALLY SLEPT THROUGH THE NIGHT! We really didn't think it was ever going to happen, but sure enough on night #3 of Dr. Ferber's visit Lucia slept from 7:15pm straight through until 5:00am. Ok, so she was up for the day at 5:00am, but STILL. We_will_take it.

Perhaps part of her success can be attributed to the excitement of her first suitor paying her a visit last night. Our good friends Kelby and Cathy dropped off lil Owen (6 weeks old) so they could go have a grown up dinner alone. Lucia was very interested in Owen (as you can see in the video), but Owen wasn't too sure about Lucia. Boys are so fickle.

Dr. Ferber Pays a Visit...

Well, today was the second morning after Dr. Ferber came to visit Lucia. For those of you unfamiliar with "Ferberizing" count yourself lucky.

Although truth be told, it is going MUCH better than we expected. The first night after going to bed at around 8:15pm, she woke up around 1:40am and cried until 3:40am. Meredith and I took turns going to comfort her every 15 minutes or so until she eventually fell back asleep. Of course, by that point my nerves were shot and I wound up watching some late night/early morning TV (thank goodness for Rosanne re-runs). Last night (night #2), Lucy went down at 8:00pm and didn't wake up until 2am but didn't cry long enough for us to go comfort her! She woke up a few more times, each lasting no more than 10 minutes or so. By George I think she's got it (well, we'll see).

So today is Cinco de Mayo and to celebrate Lucia's sleep progress (and yes, it IS progress!) her moms are going to find a nice Mexican restaurant, have a margarita or 2 and toast in her honor. I mean, sleep issues aside, she really is the cutest thing ever.

One Potato, Two Potato, Sweet Potato More

Lucia has ventured into the realm of solid foods, and as you can see, is very enthusiastic about the whole thing. On today's menu was rice cereal and sweet potatoes. Mama Fran could not move fast enough. Yum!

Lucia Dances With Nonne on Adoption Day

Although it is nothing more than a legal formality (and entirely besides the point at this juncture), Lucia went to court today to be adopted by her parents. Check out pics (and the video below) of the happy day!

Lucia Eats A Teething Biscuit, With Her Typical Response

As everyone knows, two of Lucia's favorite activities are eating and vomiting. Here is a creative take on the two.