October Fun - 2.5 and 6 months!

It's so hard to believe, but our sweet girl is 6 months as of Saturday! She is such an amazing baby - she's calm and rarely fussy except when she's hungry and we're not moving fast enough to get the bottle, and if she's tired or has a messy diaper. Other than that, she's very low-key.

6 months old!

He keeps poking at her cheeks to "help her smile"

C often asks to hold G. It's so sweet. And he never wants to let her go!

Sometimes she grabs his ear, which makes him laugh.

We had fun this past weekend at the pumpkin patch - C loves pumpkins lately and points them out anytime he sees one. :) Here are some shots of our afternoon:

picture of all of us looking at the camera? nope.

he cracks me up :)

He wanted nothing to do with riding in the wagon until we pulled it all the way back down to the car.
At the car he wanted to get in. DH let him ride in it back to the drop-off. Toddlers. :)

Thank goodness for continuous shooting mode so I have a chance of getting at least a few good shots! :) I also purchased a few mini pumpkins and gourds for decorations. C decided that one of the pumpkins needed to take a nap with him. Into the bed it went! Again, toddlers. :)

Stats for G at 6 months:
Still a little peanut but I'm loving her chubby cheeks and chubby thighs! :) Weight - around 14 pounds I think? We'll see in 2 weeks. Still loving her homemade formula but going to try sweet potatoes this week to see how she does! She eats between 6 and 7 oz, 4 times a day. Twice in the morning, once after her afternoon nap, and right before bed. Sleeps - FANTASTIC. I cannot imagine a better baby. She takes a quick 20-30 minute nap mid-morning, another nap in the afternoon for 2 1/2-3 hours and goes down for the night between 7-7:30. And she sleeps ALL night. 12-13 hours usually. She's been doing since almost 3 months old. I wish I was a little more disciplined to go to bed earlier to take advantage of it, haha. :) She's gotten much better at tolerating tummy time, and has been rolling over to her back for a while now, and is so close to rolling from back to tummy. I thought she might have once, but then I wasn't sure if C "helped"! She loves to lay on her back on her play mat. She's been sitting in the high chair next to us at dinner which she seems to like more than the bouncer. Maybe she wanted to be at our level? Like her brother, she's been super healthy, but also like her brother, she is going to need a helmet. She started developing a flat spot around 2 months, and despite repositioning, she has a pretty substantial flat spot. We had it evaluated last week and hopefully will get her star band later this week or early next. Of all the things to be upset about, this is definitely not one of them. I'm going to miss the close snuggles, but cannot complain after seeing what so many parents go through with their children. Also of note, we also had our home study meeting this morning - we had to update our home study since we moved, and we are praying that our attorney will be able to file for finalization in early November. In PA we have to appear in court for finalization (we didn't have to appear in VA), and we are then praying for a court date before the end of the year! This morning's meeting went really well! We have been so fortunate with our agency.

Stats for C at 2 1/2 years:
Height - 3 feet. Weight - pretty steady around 33/34 pounds. Potty training- we tried a few weeks ago, but he was definitely not ready for underwear. He was happy to sit on the potty, get up and wash his hands, then sit back down, but nothing in the potty yet. Since we were using a kids seat on the big potty, I bought kids potty to see if he likes it better. When we brought it home he wanted his underwear, but it was right before nap time so that was out. Our weekend schedule is pretty light in a few weeks so we may try again then when DH & I can both be home all day. Things he likes - hockey (playing with Daddy), soccer (he and Daddy often play after work while I'm getting dinner ready), and taking walks outside. He loves picking up rocks and sticks, and the sticks are still often his "cello bow". He still is content to sit and listen to music - or me play the piano - and "play cello." He found my claves and drumsticks last week and those have entered into the "cello bow" rotation. :) He eats and eats and eats - he has so much energy and loves to dance around. His vocabulary and comprehension is soaring - it's amazing the things he remembers- just the other day he asked me if I remembered something about the old house (in VA). More than anything he loves seeing his aunties and Grandma and Granddad, and Nana and playing with some of my youngest cousins (one is 5 years older than him!). He has his toddler moments - the lightning changes in mood can drive me crazy :) - but overall is just a very happy kid and it is so fun to see him grow and change. He also loves going to Mass - tells me he's taking my keys and car to "go to church". He can say the Our Father without prompting, and most of the Hail Mary and Glory Be. He can never go down for a nap or bed without saying his prayers, and he loves the Guardian Angel prayer too. He finds Crosses everywhere. He saw one as part of the stairwell in a church we visited recently and went over to kiss it. Oh, he melts my heart!!

Happy 6 months and 2 1/2 years to our sweet kiddos! Time is moving so quickly!!

Photos of C and G :)

Aren't you glad it's Friday? This year DH's company changed some of their vacation policies so this year he gets the national holidays off. It was nice to have a short week! :) This weekend we're going to try to get out (as long as it doesn't rain) to pick pumpkins. Other than that, we don't have plans. I'm looking forward to getting a few things hung around the house - a mirror in the dining room and some other art/photos.

And now for a few photos of C & G! I realized I haven't been as good at taking photos of G as I did of C (poor second child) so I've been making an effort to take more. Keeping my camera in an accessible place helped. :) They change so quickly and I don't want to miss anything!

a sweet little girl found her sweet little toes!

tummy time

G, let me help you smile

Stop it, C! (not happy about the help)

See, I can smile when I want to!

Happy Friday - hope you all have a great weekend! :)

HWFD: Chicken Tortellini soup & Apple Cake

It's been a while since I posted any recipes, as but as we head into fall around here I'm thinking more about yummy soups and stews and apple desserts!

Last night for dinner I made an old favorite - one I hadn't made since we went gluten free 4 years ago! It's from the Cooking Light Super Fast Suppers cookbook.

source and recipe here

I purchased these GF cheese tortellini which became available at a local store only recently. The company will ship all over, with their pasta packaged in dry ice. They're expensive, but for the occasional splurge, I felt they were worth it! I served the soup with toasted "pita" bread. I used an Udi's frozen pizza crust, rubbed a bit of olive oil on it, and sprinkled a little of Penzey's Brady Street Cheese Sprinkle on top. Yum!!

For dessert last weekend I made this apple cake recipe. And then, since it was gone 3 days later, I made another one. :) It's super easy and so moist and delicious! :) 

source and recipe here

I did not follow this recipe exactly - I was out of cinnamon the first time I made it, so I used 1.5 tsp of pumpkin pie spice mix to replace the cinnamon and cardamom. It was perfect. I also didn't glaze it or do the swirl exactly as directed; I ran out of time before naptime was over! After I smoothed out the batter in the pie pan, I lightly drizzled honey over the top and shook a little more of the pumpkin pie spice over it. It was sweet enough without the glaze, although it sure looks pretty in the photo! :)

Enjoy! 

Conversations (1)

Conversation #1:

C was holding a little pocket mirror of mine that lately is his "phone." He holds it up to his ear and talks away. Today I heard him saying as he looked at it "checking email." He was moving his little thumb over the surface as if he was typing. I asked him to tell me what he was doing and clear as day he said "checking email."

Conversation #2 (a few minutes later)

C while looking at the "phone" and holding it to his mouth "Call. Call mobile." Apparently I use the voice dial feature more often than I thought! After a while he said "Call. Call. Grandma." And then - and at this point I died laughing - "Call. Call. Parrot." Yup. He wanted to call the Pirate Parrot, who is apparently his BFF since we met him at the ALS walk a few weeks ago.

I will add that he also met Iceburg last Saturday at the Pens practice that was open to the public. He didn't call Iceburg, but he does remember that he blew him a kiss.

2 year olds! They are too funny!

G's birth story, Part 2

To read Part 1, go here.

After my mom told the family she would name baby girl, we laughed and told everyone we would have a name for them by the evening. We just wanted to see her one more time. Then we asked my mom what name she would give her. DH was in the kitchen area eating and feeding C his breakfast and I was down the hall fixing my hair. She started by telling us this story:

The week before Easter I was at one of the local parishes for confession. While I was waiting in line, I saw what appeared to be a tapestry of the image of the Divine Mercy. As I looked closer, I realized that in each square of fabric was an image of an unborn baby. Nearby was a sheet that asked people to name the unborn babies--babies who had been aborted. Since it wasn't my parish, I didn't write down a name, but as I stood there, I thought about what name I would give one of the babies. All of a sudden, the name G came to my mind. It wasn't a name I had thought about before, but I thought it was perfect. And then I thought, wouldn't it be something if (here she named DH & me) we named the baby G! I know you (DH & me) have never discussed names with me, but I thought it was such a pretty name. I thought wouldn't it be pretty to have her name be "G.G." Then I thought about it, and I didn't like "G.G" as a nickname, so I decided "C" would be a better middle name. "G. C." was better.

At this point in the story, I was glad I was in the other room and not trying to keep a straight face! I went in, looked at DH wondering if he wanted to reveal her name. We decided not to (although apparently my mom saw "the look" but then quickly dismissed it).

After breakfast, DH & I headed back to the hospital while my mom spent the rest of the morning with C. We decided that later in the day, DH would bring C & my mom to the hospital so they could both meet her.

We stayed in the family waiting room after we arrived at the hospital and gave baby girl her next feeding and watched while her hearing screening was done. It was a quiet day, holding and feeding her, watching her sleep and briefly open her eyes.

Mid-afternoon, DH returned to the hotel to pick up C and my mom. I waited while baby girl slept peacefully. When they arrived, DH brought C over to the bassinet and picked him up. He said "C - meet your new little sister! Can you say "G.M.?" At that point my mom got tears in her eyes and said "did you really pick that name?!!" When we told her we had, she said "I like that middle name the best."

Later that night (it was still Friday although it certainly felt like more than a day had passed!), DH took C and my mom back to the hotel and stopped to pick up dinner for us on the way back. We stayed as late as we could and decided again to get one more "good" night's sleep. On Saturday we watched all the baby safety DVD's mandated by the state and spent most of the day with her, and C and my mom again came for a visit. C was adored by all the nurses, who got a good laugh every time C would bolt out of the room and make a break for it down the hall. We're not sure where he was trying to go, except to perhaps explore! :) Again, that night, DH picked up dinner for us after my mom and C left, and that night the nurses were able to give me a room so I could spent the night with our sweet girl. She woke up every 2 hours or so--I didn't sleep much - I can never fall asleep easily, so she woke me up right after I fell asleep each time, but clearly I didn't care a bit! Early Sunday morning, DH picked me up at the hospital so we could get to Mass (Feast of the Divine Mercy) and so I could go back to the hotel to shower. We were back at the hospital before noon and we waited to make sure baby G passed her car seat test (she did!) and talked to the doctor and nurses and soon we were ready to be discharged!

Waiting for all the paperwork to be signed!

back at the hotel

proud big brother!

We did have to wait until after her follow up appointment and blood work the next morning before we could head to my parent's house. Fortunately the blood work the next morning was fine, and she weighed in fine at her appointment, so we ended up having C ride back with my mom and DH drove while I sat with baby G in the back seat.

We ended up getting clearance through interstate 3 days later (though I must confess my heart stopped when we got the call that we were cleared - we had just gotten to daily Mass that Thursday when my phone rang, and I saw our agency on the caller ID. I stepped out and called the agency back, and was so relieved when I was told that we had cleared interstate. I was so afraid G's birthmother had changed her mind! We still decided to stay a few days so that DH's family could meet her before we headed home.

Four (plus) months later... we are so in love with our sweet girl. We have been so blessed by the gift of her life!!

G's birth story, Part 1

I'm finally getting around to writing Baby G's birth story.. for some reason I thought I already did!

We received the call from our agency that G's birthmother was going to be induced on April 24th, the day after Easter (April 21st). Her original due date was May 11th, but we did anticipate an early delivery/induction since her birth mother's blood pressure was being monitored. We called my mom shortly after we heard from our agency - she was the one coming to help us with C. We decided in order to maximize DH's 2-week paternity leave that he would work all day Wednesday and we would head out that evening since G was to be born out of state. Tuesday was C's birthday, and we ended up just doing a family celebration (we were planning to invite some close friends over for dinner before we got the call for the induction), but he was quite pleased with his dessert and the opportunity to blow out candles. :)

I cancelled piano lessons the rest of the week, and focused on packing during C's afternoon naps. On Wednesday, as planned, we left Northern VA and headed out. Fortunately, though out of state, it was only about 3 hours of driving. C slept after an hour into the trip so it was a quiet drive; time for us to pray for a healthy delivery and for baby girl's birth mother. We arrived at the hotel, met my mom (she had arrived earlier and had checked in and gotten our keys), so we didn't have to do much but get C up to the room and put him to bed.

Thursday morning, we had to be at the hospital pretty early, and we met with one of the local agencies social workers, and DH & I were able to meet G's birth mother. She was already in triage when we met her, and while it was a short conversation, words cannot describe the emotions I felt when I heard G's beautiful heartbeat over the fetal monitor. It was truly a blessing.

We returned to the family waiting room (my mom and C were there with us), and the social worker suggested we head out for the day and to keep checking with her on how things were progressing, so we ended up leaving to get to noon Mass at a local church. After Mass, we stopped to get lunch, then headed back to the hotel to put C down for his nap. C slept for a good part of the afternoon and we periodically checked on how G's birthmother was doing. Right before dinner, the agency SW called and said G's birthmother had stopped responding to texts, so she thought we needed to get over to the hospital. She said we probably had time to get dinner, so we ended up just eating at a restaurant at the hotel next to us, and after getting C back to the hotel with my mom, headed back to the hospital. We camped out in the family waiting room again, and waited to hear news. The nurses at the hospital were absolutely wonderful - they had worked with our agency before, and were so supportive of the process, and us as adoptive parents. A little while later, the birthmother's nurse eventually came in and said she really thought it would be a while longer, and suggested we head back to the hotel to get some sleep. (Like that was possible!!! :)) We took her advice, and headed back to the hotel. (I think it was around 9:00.) My mom had put C to bed, so I took a quick shower thinking I wouldn't have time to do so when we got the call that the timing was close. We tried to get to bed quietly, but C woke up, so we ended up with him in our bed for about an hour until he settled down. No sooner had DH gotten him back in the pack-n-play than we got the call from the nurse. She said to hurry - they weren't sure if I would be allowed into the delivery room as G was born. C woke up again in all the rush of our getting out the door, and we had to wake up my mom who had just fallen asleep, but we were out the door as fast as possible. Fortunately C went back to sleep on his own, shortly after we left. I'm pretty sure we broke a few speed limits on the way!, but we got to the hospital shortly after 11. We had to go through the ER - DH parked the car, I ran in and explained why we were there. DH came in as the aide was filling out my ID badge and he walked us up to the floor. The nurses greeted as and asked if we had brought a camera. We hadn't, but fortunately had our phones! They took me back and put me in scrubs and had me wait in the hall - they still weren't sure I would be allowed in the delivery room. Here I am looking snazzy outside the delivery room in my scrubs!

It felt like forever, so I ended up texting back and forth with my family - and DH standing just outside the door to pass the time. It turned out that I wasn't in the delivery room for her birth, but the nurse came to get me just minutes after . While DH and I had narrowed down names, we wanted to wait until we saw her to decide. As soon as I saw her sweet face, I knew she looked like a baby G! :)

The nurse let me trim her cord, and I just stood staring at her until we took her to the nursery where we met DH. She was just so tiny! We watched while she was checked over, and when they weighed her - 5 pounds exactly!! The nurse gave us a souvenir birth certificate which was sweet. Here she was all bundled up. 

We fed her, took turns holding her, (continuing sending texts and photos with family!!) and then decided to head back to the hotel. We asked about having a room so that one of us could stay overnight with her, but they weren't able to give us one, at least not the first night. We decided to go back to get some more sleep and come back in the morning. We tried to time it so we'd only miss one feeding.

After catching a few more hours of sleep at the hotel, we woke up when C did and started getting ready for the day. During breakfast, one of my sisters texted and asked what her name was. Before DH or I could respond, my mom sent the family a message saying that if we didn't come up with a name, she was going to name baby girl! :)

To be continued... 

G's newborn & family photos

The lovely Mischa shared her talents with us a few weeks ago--she did C's 1-year photos last year--and we happily welcomed her into our home to take newborn photos of Baby G and some family photos as well! We are thrilled with the results - she managed to capture the joy and energy of C and our delight in sweet baby G. Thanks, M, for a wonderful morning!

Siblings!!

He made a better sound his first time than I did the first time I tried to play a trumpet in college!

First lesson.

so focused- I love this one!

His latest fascination is cars. He can play with one for hours!

Hello there!