Have a holly jolly!

We are so very blessed this holiday season. There are so many things that we are so very thankful for. We have two beautiful children who make every day an adventure. It's amazing how things can change so much in just one year. I hope everyone can take some time to appreciate everything they are given this holiday season.

Thank you Mr.Ferber...I think

We have begun to "Ferberize" Donato because we simply cannot deal with our 6 month old waking up every 1-3 hours just because he misses Mommy. He slept better when he was a newborn then he does now. We started 2 days ago because a friend told me she did it with her son who also didn't sleep at 6 months. I was terrified to do what the pediatrician was telling me. But having another mom who went through the same thing made it a tiny bit easier. I know her son and he's an energetic, fun loving little boy who doesn't seem the tiniest bit traumatized by what they had done to him. So little JT and his Mommy gave me the courage to do it. Low and behold Donato slept through the night last time for the first time. From 10pm to 6:45 am...I'll take it! I'm hoping it's not a fluke but certainly a step in the right direction!

'tis the season

Well I haven't written in awhile because things have been crazy. We have been finishing all the remodeling we wanted to do on the house. That all had to be done before we had 22 people at our house for Thanksgiving. That was quite the feat. Take the stress of all that and add a ton of Donato's doctors appointments into it and it gets a little crazy.

Donato is finally all healed from his lip repair. The last stitch finally fell out last week. He went to the feeding center to address his issue of not wanting to eat baby food. They said it's all due to his reflux and once we get that under control he will want to eat it. His Doc band is coming off in a week and a half, just in time for Christmas. Although, I must say it's saved his little dome in some falls, so in that aspect I will miss it. But it will be nice to snuggle and kiss his little peach fuzz filled head.

The ever so popular blow outs are getting bigger then ever. He's now big enough to be put into this bouncy seat that is suspended by, I guess you would call them bungee cables, it is quite funny to watch, it looks like he is doing curtsee (spelling?) he goes bananas, I love it. He literally jumps to poo right out of him. Blow outs of mass proportions, up the back, down the legs, it's BAD!

This is the first Christmas that Isabella really really gets what it's all about. We have our Elf on the Shelf, Elfie for the first time this year. One day he was in the pocket of her stocking that hangs from the mantle and she went to put candy in it before she left for school, when I asked her what she was doing she said she was leaving it in there for Elfie to take back to Santa, how freaking sweet is she! She really wants things this year. I mean she wants stuff every year, but this is the first one where she wrote out her own list and keeps asking for the same things. The hot things on the list are a Leap Pad, Orbeez, American Girl stuff , I-Pod Touch & a Power Wheel. We're still up in the air about the power wheel. Probably will be a better birthday gift so she can actually ride it as soon as she gets it without freezing her little tushie off.

We finished 98% of our Christmas shopping tonight...Thank you sweet baby Jesus that's over with!! So 'Tis the Season for spending time with family and taking time to enjoy the little things life has to offer. Kids are only young once. Enjoy their innocence, it's a true gift.

holy stinky cheese head!

Everyone told me that Donato's head was going to smell with his new doc band on, but boy oh boy! I couldn't of imagined the smell! It smells like rotten cheese, so bad that you can smell him if you just walk by. People who don't know are going to think I'm a horrible, mother who doesn't bathe her kid. He is super sweaty to begin with and now with the band on, it's even worse. I didn't know little babies could sweat so badly. He even got heat rash so we are taking a break, but tomorrow if the rash is gone, the band goes back on and so continues the stinky cheese head!

I am so thankful that we are doing this in the winter months, because if this was summer time we would have a real problem. Oh and the stares are back. But this time I don't mind them. A nice mother and son came to our table last night to say hello. Her son had a helmet 6 years ago when they were less popular. It's nice to have someone who can relate to what you're going through. I should of asked her about the stinky cheese head.

Cutest crash hat ever....

We got our Doc Band today! Donato doesn't seem to mind it all that much...yet. After we left Cranial Technologies we went right over to Signs By Tomorrow and had his band wrapped for free! They did an amazing job and never could of done this by myself! So thank you Victor from Signs By Tomorrow in Hawthrone, NJ!

We have to wear it three hours at a time, then remove it. I have to check if there is any redness and keep the band off until the redness goes away. Then starting on Saturday we will begin to wear the band 23/7 only taking it off for one hour a day to clean the band and give Doanto a bath.

We close the door on the cleft lip, for now and begin our Doc Band adventure. Never ever a dull moment!

no more stares

Tonight was the first time we went out as a family since Donato's surgery. It sounds strange, but it was weird that people weren't starring at us. We are so used to getting mad because people are looking at Donato's lip. But no more, it's over, we were just a regular family at Costco, no stares. It was nice.

This is a picture of Donato and his surgeon, Dr.Podda at his post-op visit today. Now that he took the tape of his nose we are a just a regular old family that no one cares to look at. I can get used to that!

Snowtober

Donato's first time in the snow!

Snow and trick-or-treat...so strange

Snow angels and snow scare crows!

So this is the beginning of Snowtober in New Jersey. Never in my 29 years of life has it snowed in October. It was crazy. I just kinda blew off the weather men when they said it was going to snow. They are always wrong, so why would I think they are going to be right about 5-8 inches in October? Well they were right and boy did it snow!

Isabella had a great time in the snow until branches started snapping off trees because they were so heavy from the snow and leaves on them. Then it was time to come in and watch the snow pile up.

We probably got 6 or 7 inches and a gazillion broken tree limbs. Thankfully it was warmer today so we didn't have to shovel anything. Tomorrow is Halloween and I'm hoping all the snow melts by then. It was weird enough seeing leaves and snow on the trees, never mind trick-or-treating in the snow!

This was Donato's first time in the snow. He didn't seem to mind it when I took him out. While it was snowing he looked out the window in amazement. There is nothing like seeing something through a baby's eyes. They look at things with such curiosity.

We never got trick-or-treaters where we used to live so I think Isabella is more excited to give the candy out. So here's to a snow free Halloween! Enjoy your kiddies tomorrow!