Amanda, Vin, & Charlie

Mail Call!

2012-02-07T09:12:00.001-05:00

So this is the note I’ve come up with for Charlie’s first birthday. I’m planning on mailing it out to family members, but if you’re not a member of my family and want to participate just let me know! Otherwise I’ll feel like I’m assigning you homework, ha. I’m hoping to get them in the mail by the end of this week, and then I’d love to have them back by his birthday (sorry that doesn’t leave you a ton of time, but I figured if I did it too far in advance people might keep putting it off and then eventually forget about it… because that’s probably what I would do).

Less than a month left!

Charlie’s so hungry he could eat a whale

2012-02-06T14:42:00.001-05:00

l don’t know where Vin’s been the last few months**, but last weekend (or the one before, I forget. they all run together in the end) he made the comment that all he’d seen me do that day was feed Charlie. And I just looked at him and explained that that’s how it is EVERY DAY. He’s not even an adolescent yet; where did this appetite come from??

And really it’s not so much the quantity (which can be impressive) but the sheer number of times a day he wants to eat. He wakes up and has a bottle, then a solid breakfast, then morning nap. Then he’s up and has lunch, later some snacks, and finally a second bottle before his second nap. He wakes up from his second nap and has a snack, then dinner around 6, then his last bottle right before bedtime. I’m constantly making, or feeding, or cleaning up, or storing extra food for him. To be honest I’m sort of running out of ideas, too. He eats a lot of the standards (Cheerios, fruits, veggies, beans, toast), but we both get tired of those after a while.

He has also been steadfastly refusing purees of any sort. He went through another phase like this a while ago, and I just kept trying and trying, and after a while he started eating them again. But this time I’m running out of motivation… Because each time I make him a puree that he won’t eat, that’s an extra dish I have to wash. For no reason.

Any ideas or inspiration or encouragement appreciated! Who’d have thought it would be so hard to feed an 11-month old??

**Vin is totally an active and involved dad. And he had actually been traveling a lot. I think it’s just one of those things where it happens gradually and then all of a sudden you’re like “My God, did he just eat an entire bucket of wings plus sides by himself?!?” Or, you know, the 11-month old equivalent of that.

New Year’s DIY Resolution: January

2012-02-01T11:51:00.001-05:00

So this is January’s DIY gift. I clearly went SUPER easy. No point starting out too strong, right?? Not to mention that I just finished them yesterday, i.e. the last day of January. I did do a few other crafts during January, though, just because I for some reason felt pretty motivated and had some extra time what with school being out.

My main craft was a set of bowling pins for Charlie. This pic isn’t really the “finished” pic because they’re taking FOREVER to dry, but it’s good enough right? I also still need to find a ball for it. Hopefully I’ll find a black one, but really any ball will do.

*the one on the far right is my fav! I didn’t have orange paint so I just squeezed in some red and yellow and it ended up with a sort of marbled look. I tried it with other colors, but they didn’t all turn out so pretty. The blue/purple stayed a tad marbled, but the light green/dark green and the black/white all faded together into a middle green and a gray (respectively).

Sideline crafts were this canvas photo transfer, a new scarf for me (disregard tired mom eyes), a playhouse built out of diapers.com boxes, and a “C” sign for Charlie’s room using nails and embroidery thread.

I had actually made the same scarf for Annie a while back, and at first I wanted to keep instead of send it to her. BUT I’m a good friend, so I simply made a second one to keep for myself (you know, 12 months later). And then I sewed the ends together to make an infinity scarf. I thought of knitting it in the round, but I really wanted the sort-of-ribbing lines to go long-wise on the scarf, and knitting it in the round would have made them go across short-wise (if that makes sense?). The pattern was super simple – k, k, p, all the way across, plus a selvage stitch at either end (so make sure you cast on a multiple of 3 plus 2).

I’ve bought the stuff for 2 more DIY’s already, and supplies for a 3rd are being shipped now. PLUS I have some store-bought ideas to follow through on, so hopefully I’m set for the next few months. Yay 2012!

First Birthday Plans?

2012-01-23T13:52:00.001-05:00

I’m so torn on Charlie’s first birthday plans. Well, not really “torn” because I know what we’re going to do for it. More “a bit bummed” about it.

The big party is going to be with my moms’ group. We’re all getting together (10 babies and their parents) to celebrate with food, drinks, and a singer for the kids. It’s going to be a blast! Gifts are going to be Secret Santa-style, and we’re mostly keeping it low key (i.e. food will be potluck, venue is another mom’s apartment).

But then there’s the “family party,” except it doesn’t seem like much of a family party when there’s not much family there. Boo hoo! Such a pity party over here right now. I’ll stop. (For now.)

I am, however, trying to think of ways to still involve my family in Texas even though they can’t be here for it. So far my only idea is to have each member write Charlie a letter for his first birthday that I’ll include in some sort of first b-day book. What do you think? I figure I can even create a template for those who really want to half-ass it (you know, stuff like “what do you think Charlie will be when he grows up? what’s your favorite story about Charlie so far?” etc.).

I have 6 weeks to figure it out, whatever I decide to do. RIDICULOUS. How will he even be a whole year old in 6 short weeks???

Now I’m back to enjoying my last week off before school starts. And by “enjoying,” I mean going to put away laundry, pick up the kitchen, and drop off our wedding book to be mailed BACK to the photographer because they spelled our last name wrong the first go-around (no lie. the book came and it said “Vin and Amanda DiRobertis.” despite the fact that they twice confirmed that it was “DeRobertis.” oh well).

So much to do, so little time!

2012-01-16T14:43:00.001-05:00

There is SO MUCH I need to do today. Baby-proof the apartment, cook meals for Charlie, buy food for dinner, write thank you notes, touch up the paint on some walls, etc. etc. ETC. The work never ends. Good thing I love it.

On the bright side, my mom came for a visit before tax season last week, and we had lots and lots of fun while she was here! Went to the opera (saw Tosca), to Charlie’s gym class, a couple playdates, trip to The Container Store, and she very kindly watched Charlie Saturday night so we could go out for Vin’s birthday (happy birthday Winnie!).

Enjoy the pics, and don’t even try to tell me that’s not the sweetest baby belly you’ve ever seen.

Cooking for Charlie

2012-01-06T09:20:00.001-05:00

Easy peezy steamed apples – I am a BIG fan of the microwave. Shockingly I managed to find friends (more than 1) who don’t even own a microwave. I don’t know how they live. It was as though they announced they’d never heard of this thing called “the internet.” But I digress. When I need more finger foods for Charlie but am loathe to give him yet another handful of Cheerios, sometimes I’ll peel and dice an apple, put it in a mug filled halfway with water, and then microwave for 3 minutes. I put a paper towel under the mug because the water does boil over. And voila. Perfectly steamed apple.

Baked butternut squash – Peel and dice butternut squash (if it’s too hard to cut you can microwave it a bit first). Put into a pan and stir in some olive oil and rosemary, then bake at 375 until done. You can also just cut it in half, scoop out the seeds, and bake face down in a pan filled with a half inch of water. It’s done with the skin starts to pucker and it pierces easily with a knife. Note to self: do not cover with foil as that traps in the steam and makes it SUPER soft. Great for purees, bad for finger foods.

Banana pancakes – This one is perfection for weekend mornings because Vin and I usually make ourselves pancakes one day anyway! All you do is dip banana slices in pancake batter and then throw them on the griddle. Of course you could also just stir the banana into the pancake batter and make regular sized pancakes, but where’s the fun in that??

Spinach soufflé – Spinach, egg yolk, and ricotta cheese. I like this for an easy breakfast, and what a great way to start the day with veggies!

Baby’s Thanksgiving Dinner – I put in 1 lb of chicken for this (not the 1 breast), plus a handful of dried cranberries and some brown rice. It makes a TON, which is nice for freezing. Plus it was great mashed up, and C likes it equally well just diced.

Meatloaf – Ground beef (or turkey), egg yolks, applesauce, carrot puree (or other fruit/veggie puree), wheat germ, baby cereal, bread crumbs. Mix all together, bake in loaf pan covered in foil. DELISH. I ate half of it myself. I can’t figure out why adults don’t put fruit/veggie purees into their meatloaves on a regular basis – I thought it really added some flavor and kept it very moist.

Butternut squash macaroni and cheese – Butternut squash puree (I bought the canned stuff for this), steamed cauliflower, cooked pasta, ricotta cheese, shredded cheese (I used mild cheddar, but you can use whatever), and white beans. You basically cook everything, then throw it into a pot and let it all melt/cook together. Then I mashed instead of pureed so it’s still a bit chunky. No recipe for this – I just sort of winged it.

Some of Charlie’s other favorite finger foods include:

Watermelon (OMG. His favorite. He dies. He loves it so much that I made the mistake of overdoing it when I first started giving it to him. He had watermelon as a side for 3 meals in a row and WOW was I cleaning out some diapers.)
Toast (Our go-to snack item)
Peas (Hilarious to watch him try to eat, and probably his lowest table-to-mouth success rate)
Pasta (I usually give it to him plain, but you could also stir in some butter/olive oil and cheese. I’ll also occasionally mix it into his purees and use that as the “sauce.” Peas/pear/pasta combo was a bit hit.)

Honestly I was surprised at how easy it is to cook for a baby. You basically just make food that you would want to eat yourself, and then make it bite-size for them. In fact the rule of thumb seems to be that if I wouldn’t be excited to eat it, Charlie is most certainly not going to be excited to eat it (lesson learned, Parsnips). Although on the other hand he generally won’t eat much of something the first time around. He has to try it a few times, and then he’ll eat as much as you give him.

We tend to buy most things organic for Charlie, but that’s a personal choice, and he certainly eats his fair share of non-organic food (when we’re at a restaurant, or I’m feeling particularly lazy at the grocery store, or it’s one of the Clean 15).

I also try to mix up his diet. So he eats and likes the standard things like carrots, sweet potato, and apple, but then I also give him things like asparagus, and persimmon, and edamame. I assume it’s more fun for him, and it’s definitely more fun for me.

And then the last tip we took to heart was to make mealtimes as fun and non-stressful as possible, so there’s lots of mess and food everywhere, and if he really wants the bowl of puree I give it to him. Never in my life have I been so thankful to have a dog than when it’s time to clean up after his 3 meals a day. Thank you, Ruby “Vacuum” DeRobertis.

Here are the websites I reference most:

http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/index.htm

http://www.ewg.org/foodnews/summary/

There are lots of others out there, though, like foodlets.com, gastrokid.com, and weelicious.com.

(you’ve already seen this video on facebook, but let’s just watch it again because it’s SO adorable)

Christmastime in the City

2012-01-05T08:32:00.001-05:00

So I have no pictures for this post, and really it’s more of a rundown, but just wanted to get it out of the way:

Christmas Eve we hung out, played, I think Vin may have done some last minute shopping (it’s all running together now).
Christmas morning we woke up and fed Charlie, then opened up the gifts aplenty! C had lots of toys, toys, toys, plus a few books, puzzles, and clothes. I got lots of clothes from Vin, and Vin got a random assortment of gifts from me (including some nice headphones, corduroys, and the donation of a goat to a family in need in his name).
After lunch we headed out to his parents’ house for Christmas dinner and more toys, toys, toys. We all had a wonderful time, and C very much enjoyed eating real food at the big table with everyone else (the kid LOVES fresh mozzarella).
Then headed home and went to bed, thankful for such a wonderful Christmas.

For New Year’s Eve we actually planned on not doing anything, but then a mommy friend across the street decided to throw a party at her place, babies invited, so we went on over to that. C was a real trooper and stayed up until 11pm, happy as a clam. We finally left because Vin and I were tired and ready for bed, and then the next morning C slept in until 7:45am – his latest ever.

Staying up so late actually worked out really well for him because it sort of reset his internal clock, so now he goes to bed at 8pm and gets up at 7pm. PERFECTION. Now we can eat dinner as a family instead of me throwing him into the bath as soon as Vin gets home (his old bedtime was like 6:45), and now it’s not quite so hard to wake up with him in the mornings.

And now we’re sort of getting back into the swing of everyday life. School doesn’t start back for me until the end of January, so I’m trying to take this time to reorganize the apartment and possibly make a few small decorating changes. But first to reorganize and baby-proof. I may or may not have spent upwards of $100 on Amazon buying baby-proofing items. For a 1-bedroom apartment. Soon to be the safest 1-bedroom apartment anywhere.

New Year’s Resolution 2012

2011-12-30T20:39:00.001-05:00

I usually don’t do New Year’s resolutions. Making a New Year’s resolution feels alarmingly like setting myself up to fail. When I do do them (ha, do do) I pick really easy ones like “returning the carts to the proper cart collection places at the grocery store.” Lately it’s been to “get better at birthday cards.” It might sound nice, but notice it just says “get better.” I started out sending 0 birthday cards, so really as long as I manage to send 1 or more I’m ahead of the game.

This year, though, I’m going to aim higher. This year I want to make/purchase 1 Christmas gift per month until Christmas. (Honestly I really just want to make 1 gift a month, but I also don’t want to end up hating Christmas or, you know, failing, so we’ll throw in that “/purchase” caveat just in case.) Don’t get me wrong, this year’s Christmas was fantastic, but it was a bit more stressed than I’d have liked as far as purchasing and sending gifts, and since Charlie is only going to get older and more active it’s only going to get harder. Plus we’re spending Christmas in Texas next year, so I can’t exactly wait until the last minute and then expect to pack a ton of gifts in my suitcase. I need that room for clothes.

Most of my ideas are of course for Charlie (kids stuff is so EASY to make), but I do have a few ideas for the grown-ups too! Unfortunately I can’t exactly blog about those gifts because then people will know what they’re getting (assuming they read this blog. I’m not convinced they do. Better safe than sorry, though, I guess). I do plan on blogging about the gifts I’m making for Charlie, although since most of the gift ideas came from other blogs it’ll mostly be a lot of links.

To help me in my quest, I finally gave in and joined Pinterest. I’m still not 100% sure how to use it, but I do like looking at the pictures.

Thanksgiving in Connecticut

2011-12-29T13:25:00.001-05:00

Before I do a Christmas post, let’s flash back a month and do the Thanksgiving post. Oops.

Anyway, the Tuesday before Thanksgiving I went out to Long Island for a night with the aunts before driving up to Connecticut Wednesday afternoon. Hands down best part of that layover was how excited big-boy David was to help feed Baby Charlie:

Then, like I said, we drove up on Wednesday and spent the rest of the day at the grandparents’ house. C was in the BEST mood crawling around and playing everywhere. Plus the g-parents have a scottie dog, and Charlie was IN LOVE with Archie. At one point Charlie starts crawling after Archie, then cousin Marin takes up the challenge and starts crawling after Charlie, followed by David crawling after Marin, and lastly Sean crawling after David (every one of these kiddos is a walker except Charlie). Hilarious. I wish I’d gotten more of it on video, but here’s a snippet:

Thursday, unfortunately, Charlie came down with his worst cold yet. All he wanted to do was sleep, and only in the carrier. So I carried him. All. Day. It actually wasn’t too bad, and I really enjoyed all the snuggle time. Vin drove in on Thursday, my mom and brother (and their significant others flew in), we all hung out with the family, and everyone enjoyed a very delicious Thanksgiving dinner. Perfection!

Friday everyone decided to hang in the pool, but of course I hadn’t brought suits for myself or Charlie. C was able to borrow a swim diaper from cousin David, and Vin was sent on a mission to get me a cheap swimsuit at Old Navy. Of course Old Navy isn’t carrying swimsuits in November (why would they?), so he came back with a sports bra and workout top. Good enough!

Later on Thursday we drove back to the city, along with my brother and sister-in-law and baby C. Kevin and Aimee stayed with us for the next two nights, although they mostly did their own thing during the day (except on Sunday when I went to the Jets game with them and it was awesome. Vin elected not to come because he’s sort of wimpy about cold weather, and we fully expected it to be in the 30’s and raining. Instead it was in the 50’s and the sun was shining! Maybe next time, babe.).

The rest of it was a bit of a blur – I caught Charlie’s cold, then Aimee caught it (plus my mom back in Texas), and then Vin caught it and got the worst of it. He basically had to lay in bed for 2 days. It sucked, but it was sort of good I guess because I really need to work on my patience, especially if I want to be a nurse.

And that was Thanksgiving!

Hot Mama

2011-12-27T08:27:00.001-05:00

I’ve done it. The seemingly impossible. I have FINISHED C25K. All 9 weeks baby! The most I’ve done now is a 4 mile run, and my best mile is only like 11:24, but I’ll take it. It’s still a long way from when it was a struggle to walk 90 seconds/run 60 seconds for 30 minutes.

I’m still like 3 pounds over my pre-preggo weight. At least that’s what it was before the holidays. (Damn you, Christmas cookies.) This probably doesn’t seem all too impressive, but my pre-pregnancy weight was even lower than my high school weight, so (post-pregnancy-wise) I’ve been lower than my college weight for a while. So there! (I know, still not all that interesting.) I’m happy, though. A little peeved because now most of my pants don’t fit, but hey – I’ll take too-big pants over too-small ones any day. And luckily Vin saw my need, so he (or Santa??) bought me a few new pairs in smaller sizes for Christmas.

I do definitely enjoy running more now that I’m a little better at it. I read once that to really love something you have to be good at it, and to be good at something you have to practice – a lot. So I guess it’s true. The only thing now is that since I’m still a relative newbie at this “jogging” (yogging?) thing, I can’t completely figure out how to dress appropriately. I asked for a lot of cold weather workout gear for Christmas since I prefer to run outside, but as I run I’m learning about other things like running gloves, and neck warmer things, and those puffy vests I never really understood until now. The whole routine is really a work-in-progress.

So anyway, yay C25K! If you want to learn to run, I would definitely recommend it, especially now that they’ve re-vamped it a bit. The new name is Ease into 5K, I think. Now to decide, do I take it one step further with “Transition to 10K??”

Christmas Crafts

2011-12-23T09:46:00.001-05:00

Charlie and I have been hard at work decorating for Christmas! One of my favorite parts of decorating for Christmas while growing up was that my parents kept all our old Christmas-themed paintings/drawings/crafts, and we would hang them up each year. It was so neat getting to see stuff that we’d made when we were younger, plus I remember feeling the warm-fuzzies that they thought these things were special enough to keep year after year. So Charlie and I have started our own Christmas tradition of crafting. This year we kept things relatively simple. I wanted to go all out and do every great idea I found online, but he’s too young for most of them, and we’ll have plenty of other Christmases down the road. So here’s what 2011 brought us!

This was our first creation – a Christmas wreath made out of green footprints (the berries are C’s fingerprints, but you can see how that turned out – not well). A friend had the idea and we totally stole it. Love it. I just cut them out and glued it onto light brown paper, but I think it’d actually look really nice if you did the footprints on a wooden plaque as well. This hangs on our door, so I did the writing using scrapbooking letters – no sense running the risk of ruining it with mine. Of course our door is at the end of a hallway around a corner, so the only people who see it on a regular basis are us and our 1 neighbor, but still.

This was creation number 2, which we did at a friend’s house. I probably shouldn’t have tried to make a red ornament, since of course it came out more pink than red, but oh well. You can find recipes for the dough online, but it’s basically just flour, salt, and water, and then you bake it. It took a couple tries to get the handprint since Charlie kept digging his finger tips into the dough every time I pressed his hand into it.

And our last creation! I think this is the one I’ll laminate as his placemat. Reindeer made out of footprints and Christmas lights made out of (very smeared) fingerprints. The reindeer would also have been very cute cut out and glued onto homemade Christmas cards.

Speaking of Christmas cards, we’ve gotten so many and I LOVE it! Every year we send out more than we receive, and this year was no different, BUT we definitely got more than usual this year, and we’re (read: I’m) super stoked about it. I’m also loving that picture cards are sweeping the nation. I still remember when my old roommate Anna and I sent out picture cards one year and everyone assumed we were a lesbian couple. Good times. Anyway, hope everyone is super excited for Christmas like we (obviously) are.

Also, I would still love for people to comment about their favorite wedding memory!

Christmas Quiz

2011-12-22T08:52:00.001-05:00

Who doesn’t love quizzes, right?? Do I think people really care what all the answers are for me? Probably not. But I’m not gonna let that stop me! Thanks Kristen for the idea.

1. eggnog or hot chocolate? Eggnog if I had to choose, but I don’t do a ton of either. I actually bought some Trader Joe’s light eggnog like 2 weeks ago, and I’ve had maybe a 1/2 cup so far.

2. does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? Santa definitely wraps presents! Unless they’re big and bulky, or weirdly shaped, but we don’t have a lot of those this year.

3. colored lights on tree/house or white? Colored – it’s what we grew up with. When we eventually have a house I want it to be the tackiest house on the street. Literally. No shame.

4. do you hang mistletoe? We don’t. Used to at home, but you don’t generally just find mistletoe growing around here, and I’m not going to pay someone for it.

5. when do you put your decorations up? I usually start the weekend after Thanksgiving, but then it can be a gradual process.

6. what is your favorite holiday dish? My mom always made a breakfast casserole with eggs, sausage, and bread for Christmas morning, and now Christmas morning doesn’t really feel complete without it!

7. favorite holiday memory as a child? There was this one Christmas when my brother and I woke up SUPER early – like before 4am early. But the rule in our house was that we could open stockings before the parents got up, but NO GIFTS. So Kevin comes a-knocking at my door (I forget ages, but he was likely somewhere between 4-7, which would make me somewhere between 6-9) around about 3:45 am. We opened the stockings, and then Kevin was “really really thirsty,” so he absolutely had to go to the kitchen for a drink of water, which involved walking past the Christmas tree, where he espied no less than my EASY BAKE OVEN. Then there was a funny part where around 6am we heard a scratching at my bedroom door. Assuming it was my cat Snowball, I opened it up only to find – my mom! Kevin and I found that hilarious and cracked up for a while. That Christmas was just really giddy all around.

8. when and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I don’t remember really when or how, but I remember I took my mom out for a walk and a very serious conversation to let her know that I knew Santa wasn’t real. Because it felt dishonest to let her think I still believed??? Who understands the mind of a child. She was very supportive, and I never stopped getting gifts “from Santa.”

9. do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? We get to open one gift. Technically it can be any gift, but we usually stick with a small one.

10. how do you decorate your Christmas tree? Colored lights, sometimes tinsel (although Vin not a huge fan of the mess), plus lots of ornaments. I LOVE our ornaments. My parents got me an ornament as a gift each year at Christmas to “get me started,” plus Vin and I (and my mom) have made it a tradition to buy an ornament as a keepsake when we go on vacations to different places. So now Vin and I have ornaments from Arizona, St. Maarten, Montreal, etc. Plus Vin picks them up when he travels new places for work. It’s so nice, because then we look at the tree and it’s like every ornament has its own special memories.

11. snow! love it or dread it? Both.

12. can you ice skate? Technically yes. Do I ice skate? Very rarely.

13. do you remember your favorite gift? I feel like Christmas has its own amnesia – you get SO MANY gifts that it’s hard to remember each one specifically. I loved the pearls Vin got me last year, and then as a kid I did love that Easy Bake Oven.

14. what’s the most important thing about the holidays for you? Spending time with family and friends.

15. what is your favorite holiday dessert? Christmas cookies (does that count?)

16. what is your favorite holiday tradition? I haven’t carried over all of my family’s holiday traditions, but especially now that we have Charlie I’m hoping to reinstate them! As far as the traditions we already have, my favorite is going to pick out the tree with Vin (and now Charlie).

17. what tops your tree? Gold star. Looks pretty cheap, I think I may have gotten it at K-Mart. But it’s bright and shiny!

18. which do you prefer: giving or receiving? I prefer giving! Even though Vin is impossible to shop for.

19. candy canes: yuck or yummy? Yummy.

20. favorite Christmas show? Elf and Home Alone

21. saddest Christmas song? “Winter Song”

22. what is your favorite Christmas song? I love them all so much! I wanted to start listening to Christmas music in September, but managed to hold out until November (except for a few isolated slips).

The Wedding, Part 5: The Details

2011-12-20T11:34:00.001-05:00

In any wedding the details are what set you apart. Nearly all of them will involve a white dress, a dinner, and a first dance. What all of them will not involve is a macaroni and cheese bar and Pinkberry as the groom’s cake. These little details were my favorite part because I think that’s what guests will remember the most. Here were the special details from our big day:

The dress, shoes, and jewelry. Dress courtesy of my mom, bought at Kleinfelds. For shoes I went cheap and comfortable, since I figured no one would be paying much attention to them. And the jewelry was a Christmas gift from Vin last year.

The DIY projects done by Mom and Aimee. For the table numbers they filled mason jars with various items (the ones shown are marbles and buttons), and then they stenciled the numbers to go in them. They they also did the escort cards, much more beautifully than I’d originally planned.

The food. Build-your-own mac and cheese bar, complete with the toppings buffet. I’ve seen a lot of build-your-own mashed potato bar, but I think we raised the bar a notch with this.

And the cakes. (Notice that our bride’s cake is resting on mason jars filled with flowers – my stepmom’s idea, and so super cute!!)

The photobooth. I really thought I had a CD of images from the photobooth, but I can’t find it, so most likely it’s disappeared into a black hole of loose pages, receipts, and other random discs somewhere, only to be found upon our moving out of this apartment. So here are some pictures of pictures from the photobooth.

And that, my friends, was our wedding in a ~~nutshell~~ 5 separate blog posts! It’s sort of sad not to have something that big and fun to look forward to, but it’s also a HUGE stress relief to have that off our plate. Feel free to leave a comment telling me how much fun you had, or even better – your favorite memory from that night. I rarely get comments (thanks Annie, for making me feel like at least one person reads this!), so I think that would be a really nice 3-months-after-the-wedding-gift. Just saying.

Baby Series: 8 and 9 Months

2011-12-19T09:47:00.001-05:00

Totally cruising. Pulling himself up on everything/anything, and using it to walk along. There have been some bruises.
11/2/11: I put him in the stroller facing out for my first time ever. (mini-heartbreak) It was only a 10 minute walk, but I didn’t get to look at him at all and it just felt weird! But he laughed the whole time, so I know at least one of us enjoyed it.
12/2/11: I missed him too much and turned the stroller seat around. Screw it – I want to look at my baby, and he got a WHOLE MONTH of getting to look out at the rest of the world.
He’s stringing together consonants and vowels! Mostly “mamama” or “bababa.” He said “dadada” for about 2 weeks straight, and then totally gave up on it and very very rarely says it now.
He’s eating finger foods. All the time. He’s tried quite a few things by now, and he definitely has his preferences. He loves most things, but is only so-so on broccoli. He LOVED pasta with red sauce, and the poop the next day was the smelliest to date. Fair warning if you haven’t tried it with your baby yet.
He’s giving HUGS. Mostly this just means that when you pick him up he’s actually wrapping his arms around you and holding on.
He’s the terror of his gym class. Making another child cry at least once is pretty standard for the day. He just has this obsession with hair, and what can I say - those gym class babies have some nice long locks.
He’s clapping! Not on command, but sometimes if you sing the clapping song from his gym class he’ll do it, and sometimes he’ll just do it for fun.

His 9 month appointment was…traumatic. He had to get his final Hep B booster, plus a TB test (due to taking public transportation), and blood drawn for a lead test. The blood drawing was definitely the worst. I pictured just a little finger prick, but it’s straight-up adult-style blood-drawing, with those elastic bands on the arms to find a vein (they had to do both arms since they couldn’t find a vein on the first one), and then the needle going in at the elbow joint. I LOVE my doctor for finding the vein the very first time. Here were his stats (she didn’t give percentages, but he’s definitely above average):

Height: 28 inches
Weight: 21.5 pounds

I give up on pictures. I took his 7 month photo when he was 8 months and 1 day, and now he’s 9 and a half months and I have yet to take either his 8 month or 9 month photos. Dang it! I guess I could sort of take his “8” month now, then take his 9 month in 2 weeks, then his 10 month 2 weeks after that and then be caught up again, but does it even count if the pics aren’t taken during the actual month??

Here are some other pictures while I ponder that last idea:

The Wedding, Part 4: The Reception

2011-12-16T21:19:00.001-05:00

Here it is. Finally. I’m losing some of the details from that night, but here’s a general overview:

Went to cocktail hour. You’re welcome for the chicken and waffle bites, guests. Don’t even pretend like you weren’t hiding tears of happiness when you saw those babies being passed around.

Went to reception. No fancy intro, as Vin thinks that’s lame (and at this point I’ve been to so many weddings, all those little traditions have lost some of their splendor). Vin and I danced our “first” married dance to “You’re My Best Friend” by Queen, followed by the father/daughter and mother/son dance to “What a Wonderful World.”

I gave a quick speech thanking everyone for coming (which in retrospect I probably should have rehearsed. or even just thought about at all beforehand), then my dad did the prayer.

Everyone ate the yummy food.
Band played awesome songs.

Some inappropriate pictures were taken in the photobooth.
Cut the cake (OMG. WOW. SO GOOD.), then the Pinkberry, then back for more of the dancing and photobooth-ing.

Also lots of drinking, apparently mostly white wine since that’s the only thing the bars ran out of.

People celebrated with friends old and new.

One last song by the band, which included a cameo by our very own Kristen Uppal, rocking out to “Proud Mary.” Unfortunately, I don’t have a video of said performance, so in its place please enjoy a video of her husband Mr. Baba Uppal jamming with the band:

Hilarious bus ride back to the hotel where Brandon tried for 10 minutes to make a speech into the bus’s speaker system while the rest of us tried to yell at him that it wasn’t turned on. Then the bus driver took 20 minutes to get to a hotel no more than 6 minutes away. Plans were hastily made to go out drinking afterwards, then quickly discarded as soon as I spotted the glorious bed in our hotel room.

Enjoy these fantastic photos of everyone having the time of their lives (I mean that literally, and don’t you dare disillusion me).

p.s. I realize Charlie doesn’t so much star in the reception, but that’s because he fell asleep soon after it started, and then the sitter took him back to my mom’s hotel room.

p.p.s. Yaz, I got your request, so I’ll do one more wedding post just on the special details – yay!

He loves me, he definitely loves me!

2011-11-29T15:01:00.001-05:00

Today Charlie cried for the first time upon seeing me leave the room. On the one hand, it was like “Awww, he’s so sad! I should never leave him ever!!” And on the other hand it was like “WOO HOO, HE LOVES ME! HE NEEDS ME! HE KNOWS ME!”

Frankly I’m shocked it took this long for him to realize how unbelievably awesome I am and decide he’d definitely rather be with me than without me. I mean who else reads “Peek-a-Baby” 12 times in a row like I do? Who else cooks him spinach soufflés for breakfast?? Who else let him practically suck their nipples off those first 5 months of life?!

So anyway, it was really cute/sad, and I wanted to share.

Upcoming posts:

The wedding reception (I know, ok. I know that it’s been 2 months already and you’re starting to not even care. But it’s in the works. I promise.)
An update on cooking for Charlie, since I’m sure I reeled you in with that spinach soufflé comment (and it’s not even a lie; I really did make him that).
Thanksgiving in Connecticut, for which I have some pretty cute videos (including one of me swimming with Charlie while wearing a t-shirt and workout pants. In a nice indoor hotel pool. Trés white trash.)

Stationery card

2011-11-26T12:14:00.001-05:00

Such Good Cheer Holiday Card

Create photo holiday cards this Christmas season.

View the entire collection of cards.

Thankful…ish?

2011-11-21T13:06:00.001-05:00

There’s a silver lining to pretty much everything, even if you really have to search for it. In honor of Thanksgiving week, I decided to take some things that maybe I’m not always sooo great at appreciating, and find the positives about them. The silver linings. The “it-could-be-a-whole-lot-worse”-es.

So, I am thankful:

That I don’t have to wake up at 4 am, and Charlie lets us sleep all the way to 5 am. (What I’m really thankful for here is that Vin is a MUCH MUCH MUCH better morning person than I am, and usually gets up with the baby so that I can really sleep all the way to 6am.) And really, I’m still just thankful that he sleeps through the night. Plus getting up early with C means that we have more play time together (and he is generally very easy to entertain first thing in the morning).
That we didn’t end up having a girl. Because a) Charlie is perfect and wonderful and so much fun, and now that I know him the thought of not having had this specific baby is inconceivable. And b) girls’ Halloween costumes just get sluttier and sluttier every year. Best of luck, all you other moms!
That since I don’t get to see my family too often, we’re determined to squeeze every drop of quality time out of the times when we’re all together.
That school, while it can be stressful, gives me an opportunity to flex my mind muscles.
That Charlie getting bigger (over 20 lbs now) gives me an opportunity to flex my literal muscles (even though he should pretty much stop growing. like now.).
That living in a small apartment encourages us to get outside, make new friends, and try new activities nearly every single day. Also it’s easier to clean. And easier to baby-proof. And you don’t end up with a lot of junk that you really don’t want but you feel bad throwing away, like that gift you got 3 years ago that you never used but you keep thinking you should keep it just in case the person who gave it to you comes over and notices you don’t have it anymore and then feels bad about their gift-giving skills; with 700 square feet to your name, you can’t afford to be sentimental about items you aren’t actively using. Honestly there’s a lot of good to be said about the smaller space. You’re also never expected to host dinner parties or holidays.

I hope everyone else is taking time to think about what they’re thankful for at the beginning of this holiday season!

p.s. Yes, yes I am already ~~forcing~~ letting Charlie to participate in holiday-themed arts & crafts. My idea is to do one for every major holiday, then laminate them and have him use them as placemats. He’ll love it! Or he’ll tolerate it. I’m equally fine with either.

Happy Birthday, Keviwebs!

2011-11-16T07:55:00.001-05:00

The Wedding, Part 3: The Ceremony

2011-11-15T10:30:00.001-05:00

Ceremony time! Pictures over, I had a few minutes to relax (and wonder where the heck all of my bridesmaids had gone, as I sat with Krista in the bridal suite) before the ceremony. We finally discovered everyone in the courtroom, got all lined up, and ring bearers had bestowed upon them an impressive amount of trust by giving them actual rings to carry down the aisle (people tried to talk me out of it, but I just don’t see the point of ring bearers if they don’t actually bear rings).

The music selection was unusual because originally we were going to have the pianist from the band perform for the ceremony as well, and he could only play the band’s songs. After I picked out all the songs, though, we discovered that actually he wasn’t a great ceremony performer, and we’d be better off getting someone else. Luckily by the time my wedding planner told me this, she’d already found someone else who could perform those exact songs for the same price, so no freaking out was necessary. So the parents/grandparents walked down to At Last; the officiant, Vin, groomsmen, and bridesmaids walked down to You Are the Sunshine of my Life; and my dad and I walked down to Unforgettable.

Vin and I were so very lucky to have a friend as our wedding officiant – Jordan Byrd! He and Stevie had even come to NY and visited us for a long weekend a while back (see awesome pic below), and at least for me it meant so much more that it wasn’t a stranger up there marrying us.

Jordan gave a great mini-sermon about love as action rather than feeling. I can’t remember verbatim, but the gist was that you can’t promise to always feel love for someone – you may as well promise to be “always happy” or “never sad.” What you can promise, however, is always to perform loving actions towards someone, to take an interest in their interests, to make them feel special. I chose our wedding vows from a list Jordan sent over:

I, (name), take you, (name), to be my friend, my lover, the (mother/father) of my children and my (husband/wife). I will be yours in times of plenty and in times of want, in times of sickness and in times of health, in times of joy and in times of sorrow, in times of failure and in times of triumph. I promise to cherish and respect you, to care and protect you, to comfort and encourage you, and stay with you, for all eternity.

I sort of surprised myself by picking those vows, since in my head I’d always wanted the traditional vows. But then I read them, and what can I say – they spoke to me.

Everyone walked out to How Sweet It Is, the extended family stayed for some pictures, and then it was on to the cocktail hour (after a quick bustle job – thanks Aimee!).

Why Don’t Friends with Kids Have Time?

2011-11-14T11:42:00.001-05:00

A friend posted this article on Facebook, and I had to share. Luckily my friends without kids have been pretty great, but I’m sure you’ve got these questions lurking in the back of your minds, and this writer answers them perfectly.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/05/22/AR2007052201554.html (link to the article in case the picture is too hard to read)

Betty Crocker-lite

2011-11-13T08:53:00.001-05:00

So yesterday I wasn’t Betty Crocker, per se, but I was Betty Crocker-ish.

a) I made my own iced coffee concentrate (it won’t be winning an award any time soon, but it’ll get the job done. This isn’t the exact website I used, but it’s the same basic idea - http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2011/06/perfect-iced-coffee/). A friend also suggested freezing coffee in ice cube trays, that way when you want to ice down hot coffee you won’t totally dilute it to nothing. Another easy coffee suggestion? Sweeten it with maple syrup for a fall-time treat!

b) Saturday morning I made breakfast. For us and for Charlie. His first big boy breakfast! He had an apple/pear/nectarine puree (which I had to feed him while he was playing with toys, so that he wouldn’t really realize he wasn’t feeding himself), scrambled egg yolk, and banana medallion pancakes (http://wholesomebabyfood.momtastic.com/babyfingerfood.htm). And he LOVED it. I can’t believe he’s even old enough to eat finger food, but he’s been a bit of a tyrant about it. “Moooom, I can do it MYSELF.” So now at least half of each meal is made up of something he can feed himself. Vin and I also enjoyed some banana pancakes (regular sized), but let’s face it – you don’t come here to read about us.

(This video isn’t C eating the breakfast described above, but it is him eating finger foods. Probably not very interesting unless you’re directly related to us.)

c) Saturday night I made dinner (What?! Two home-cooked meals in one day!?). We had spaghetti squash with marinara sauce, plus spinach salad with cucumbers and olives (of which I neglected to get the pitted variety. whoops!). There was leftover spaghetti squash, so I’m thinking that’s Charlie’s lunch today.

Today we’re relaxing (both boys currently napping), and I’m at some point studying for my Psych test tomorrow. And maybe we’ll be able to hit up a Barnes & Noble reading hour.

p.s. Wedding pictures are in, and they are AH-MAZING. I’m still sorting through to find the best ones, but hopefully the remainder of the wedding posts will be coming soon!

p.p.s. Happy birthday Papa John!

Baby Series: 7 Months

2011-11-11T08:59:00.001-05:00

Oh man, so behind on this. Charlie’s now 8 months. Oh well, you’ll get the gist.

No Ped appointment this month, so no idea on stats.
Charlie’s pulling himself up on EVERYTHING.
Baby-proofed in baby steps, so first we covered outlets. And started to keep the bathroom door closed. That’s actually all we’ve done… Whoops!
He’s a speed crawler.
He has 4 whole teeth!
He’s vocalizing a lot more, although still all vowel sounds (he actually did just start doing consonants, but that was in the 8th month).

And that’s really all I can think of… Guess I better get to work on the 8th month post now!

Flashback Friday

2011-11-04T16:44:00.001-04:00

I’m feeling lazy. So I’m stealing this idea from everyone else. One year ago Charlie was just that little belly… And today I learned he can climb stairs. Tempus fugit!

It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

2011-11-02T09:54:00.001-04:00

This year for Halloween Charlie dressed up as – you got it – Charlie Brown. Unfortunately his Snoopy doll never came in, and our little friend named Lucy who was supposed to dress up as Peanuts’ Lucy didn’t order her costume in time, so they decided to screw it and dress her as a ladybug. Charlie, however, was still extremely cute, plus his costume was comfortable and easy. So that’s what matters.

Two weekends ago Charlie’s friend Ryan threw a Halloween party for the babies, and we got things kicked off right – good food, fall-themed beers, and lots of adorable kiddos.

As a party favor, Ryan (i.e. Ryan’s mum) gave out pumpkin hats to all the babies, which we wore at every opportunity. They were so stinking cute!

Then on Halloween day we went to a local block party. The residents go all out decorating the outside of their homes, and it was PACKED with kids. Charlie loved looking around, although he eventually fell asleep in the carrier, lol. Still, we had a great time walking around with our friends and checking out all the awesome costumes. Made me feel a teensy bit inspired to make our costumes next year… (I mean how hard can mummies be? I could make that.)

Vin is traveling this week, so when we got home Charlie helped him do a little packing in his special Halloween monster sleeper outfit.

And that was Halloween! Very fun, very eventful. I really loved the ease and comfort of Charlie’s costume, despite still being a little frustrated that Snoopy got lost in the mail. Maybe we’ll make it a Halloween tradition that he dresses up like famous people named Charlie, though – whaddaya think?? Toddler Charlie Chaplin?? (More importantly, am I the world’s creepiest mom for even photoshopping this??)

Reading List: October Edition

2011-10-24T16:12:00.001-04:00

Custom of the Country – by Edith Wharton. An older book, so it can be a bit difficult to understand the language and idioms, but it’s a good story. Not as good as The Woman in White or Jane Eyre, but still better than expected.
Game of Thrones - by George R. R. Martin. OBSESSED. I read the first book, then promptly went out and bought the next 4. Now debating re-reading them since the 6th isn’t out yet. For me it sort of felt like “Lord of the Rings” meets “Sword of Shannara.” I’m a total dork.
Daddy’s Girl – by Lisa Scottoline. Good mystery, easy read. I was hooked from the beginning, so I read it in just a few days.
A Reliable Wife – by Robert Goolrick. Weird, but pretty interesting. Also depressing, though, so probably not one I’d ever re-read.
Memoirs of Cleopatra – by Margaret George. Making steady progress. Only about 1/4 left! Once Caesar was killed it got a lot less interesting, so I’m having trouble powering through the rest of it. But I’m determined to finish it!
What the Night Knows – by Dean Koontz. I like Dean Koontz books in general, and this was one of the better ones I’ve read lately. Good mystery, with weird sci-fi aspects.
Room – by Emma Donoghue. So disturbing, but also so good. A friend had said she thought the book peaked too soon, and she wasn’t a huge fan of the second half, but I actually really enjoyed the second half. It made the book more “real” to me.

There were more, but none that were super good or that stand out in my mind, so we’ll skip those. I haven’t been to my knitting book club in a few months (boo), but Room is the next book for that, so at least I’m prepared for November! And then a friend asked me to join another book club, which I think will be nice since it’ll be a younger crowd (not that I don’t enjoy my little old ladies). Their book is Bossypants, which I’ve already read, so I’m good to go there.

Currently searching for my next good read, so if you have any suggestions let me know!

Circle of Friends

2011-10-23T07:51:00.001-04:00

The other day, I was sitting at a story time with Charlie, next to some friends we happened to spot on the way in, and afterwards we stayed extra to talk to another friend. And it just sort of hit me. I have FRIENDS. In New York City. For the most part they’re still fairly new friends, so it’s not like we’re planning family vacations, but we are planning playdates and it feels good.

Due to a combination of spending all my time with Vin, working in an office with only 2-4 other girls, and not doing any “extracurricular” activities, I really struggled making friends in the city when I first moved here. But with a baby, all has changed. I have an instant topic of conversation with any other mom anywhere, plus a plethora of activities to attend to keep meeting new ones. What a nice perk of being a mom!

Friday we had a few friends with babies over for playtime and wine, yesterday we had a Halloween party with the New Mom’s Support Group, Tuesday is a weekly playdate that I myself set up, Wednesday is our monthly Girls’ Night Out, and next weekend there are like 6 Halloween-related activities to choose from, and I know someone going to all 6. It just astounds me that I’ve come so far! I feel so lucky to be in a place where Charlie and I are surrounded by such a high concentration of moms with babies his age, and where there’s so much to do to keep busy with him.

And now, a picture montage of Charlie having fun with all his baby buddies.

The Wedding, Part 2: The Build-Up

2011-10-20T20:05:00.001-04:00

And now here we are (“Finally,” I can hear you thinking). The day of the wedding. Which wasn’t quite as big a deal as it would have been if weren’t, in fact, already legally wed. But still. It was a “17 month engagement,” which basically meant we put a lot of time into planning this shindig and were anxious to enjoy it!

First things first, we ladies somehow manage to overcome hangover-of-the-century and drag ourselves to the hair salon. I really can’t decide how I feel about the hair. It definitely wasn’t what I had in mind, but then I think it looks great, but then I wonder if it would have looked even better if he’d done it how I pictured in my head. But all this back-and-forth in my own mind leads me to believe I’m seriously overthinking the issue.

Vin, meanwhile, is hanging out with his friends, which apparently involves 2 breakfasts and I think 3 lunches. One of which is barbeque. Something Vin’s friend Brian likes A LOT.

Hair appointments over, it’s a quick stop at the hotel and then off to the venue for makeup and getting dressed!

Linds was kind enough to do my makeup, and Annie and Ellen were amazing for coming to help us get ready and just generally hang out for girl time pre-wedding. Naturally we briefed them on the previous night in the hotel room and showed them evidence in the form of pictures of us drinking straight from wine bottles. Also we chatted, snacked, and just enjoyed some chill time. What with my mom and Aimee in the room plus all those lovely ladies, it was like my girly dream team.

And then were the pictures! Since Vin and I were already married, we saw no reason not to see each other before the ceremony, which was great since it meant we could get all the bridal party pictures taken care of before everything even started. These are just a few pics that were snapped, but I just love how everyone is obviously already having a good time!!

After this it was inside to take family pics, and I may have had a minor meltdown caused by wayyyyy too many pictures, whereby I had to leave the room for a minute, drink a bottle of water, and sit down for 5 minutes. Then I was back in the game and we were good to go.

Next wedding-related post? The ceremony! (Apologies, but I’m sort of dragging it out a bit in the hopes that I’ll get the profesh pics from the photographer in time to use them for the posts for both the ceremony and reception. We’ll see what happens)

*Special shout-out and thank you to both Ellen and Baba, who took AMAZING pictures for me to use in this post. We should’ve saved ourselves some money and just hired them. iPhone-shmiPhone, those pictures are quality.

**Second shout-out to my NY trainer Rob, who seriously whipped me into shape in time to look (if I do say so myself) pretty amazing for the big day!

We interrupt your regularly scheduled wedding posts

2011-10-17T19:41:00.001-04:00

To let you know that Charlie is now the proud owner of a set of upper lateral incisors! I kept waiting for the top 2 front teeth to come in, but Charlie apparently never got that memo and skipped straight to the incisors (next to the top teeth). They’re very hard to see since a) they’re only barely there and b) they’re on his top gums, which is a tough angle. So no pic. I sort of hope they grow out a bit before the top two middle ones come in, and then he’ll look like “all I want for Christmas is my two front teeth” baby.

In other news, we went pumpkin picking this weekend! We haven’t done anything with the pumpkins yet, but we got some small ones and are planning on painting them as a family this next weekend. We went to Fink’s Farm in Long Island, and it was somuchfun! Our friend Linda had invited us, and even though it was a bit of a long day (drive out there is around 1.5 hours) it was totally worth it.

They had a little of everything – a pumpkin patch, a corn maze (we went halfway and then cheated by making our own path out), hay rides (not quite old enough to appreciate those yet), pig races (the pink pig won), a petting zoo (where C promptly fell asleep, much like our zoo trip), potato sack races (Vin won, despite my valiant effort at the end to dive towards the finish line, which only resulted in scraped up hands and bruised pride), a tricycle racing track, a live band, etc. etc. etc. Seriously, they had a little bit of everything.

*I realize the first picture is orange tinted, and there’s a completely reasonable explanation for that. We took pics at the farm, but only purchased the keychain viewfinder. So that picture was actually taken with my iPhone by holding the lens up to the eye of the orange viewfinder.

The Wedding, Part 1: The Rehearsal

2011-10-12T08:34:00.001-04:00

Obviously my wedding is too big a deal to be contained in one post. I need to drag it out over AT LEAST 2 posts, so I can give adequate coverage to each and every super-special detail. Don’t act like you’re upset. Sitting in your office/cubicle/living room couch, you live for my blog updates (let’s pretend, ok?).

Vin and I landed in Texas Thursday morning and spent the day mostly getting stuff for Charlie (since we refused to waste space in our checked bag on diapers) and then called it an extremely early night, as we’d been up since 3:30am EST. Did I mention that Charlie got not one, not two, but THREE compliments on how well-behaved he was on the flight over? I’m just saying. Best baby ever.

Then Friday dawned, and it was time to get ready! It was also our technical one year anniversary. First things first, we took Charlie out for breakfast, where he VERY much enjoyed some banana slices, and where I VERY much enjoyed some Texas Maple Pecan coffee. Three cups later I had a slight case of the shakes and was ready to face the day.

Then Charlie went with my mom and her family for the day, Vin hung out with friends, and I went with Lindsay to primp for the next day (nails done, eyebrows threaded, wine purchased – what? that’s totally part of primping). Afterwards it was back to the hotel to get ready for the rehearsal!

It’s my opinion that rehearsals are, for the most part, a complete waste of time. Everyone knows how a wedding works – bridal party walks up, bride walks up, officiant leads them through the vows, and then they all walk out. BUT it is a great excuse to have a big family/friend dinner the night before the wedding, and I’m all about that. So we all went through the motions of the rehearsal with our eyes on the prize – queso, fajitas, and margaritas afterwards.

I bet y’all are wondering why I’m towering over everyone. “Wow, I knew she was tall, but seriously?! Her dad is 6’2” and she nearly matches his height!” Or else you didn’t even register that I looked a tad tall in those pictures. But now that I’ve drawn your attention to it I’m sure you’re curious. The reason, readers, is that I let dear Anna pick my shoes for the rehearsal. And even though by the end of the night my feet were numb and there was a bone-deep ache in them for the entirety of the next day, I have no regrets. They were AWESOME. How often do you get to wear 5 inch heels anyway?? Not often in NYC, anyway. Here’s a close-up for your viewing pleasure.

So anyway, rehearsal over we hiked over to Mattito’s for the dinner. Tex-Mex = delicious. I’m low on pics for that part of the evening… Since I was mostly a spectator at the actual rehearsal (even used a friend as my stand-in bride), I was able to snap away. At the dinner, however, I was busy shoving Bob Armstrong dip in my mouth and using my bride-to-be status to cut to the front of the fajita line, so the camera didn’t get so much attention. But I’m pretty sure everyone had a good time.

Naturally we hit up a bar after dinner. Not one of my better decisions. Still a great time, though. We went to Stoneleigh P since it was right across from the hotel. Highlight of the night? Stevie had her FIRST BEER EVER OUT OF A CAN. No joke. I have no idea how she made it this long without experiencing that, but I should mention that when it comes to drinking, Stevie has standards. And sure, maybe I have standards now, but there was a time not all that long ago when I thought buying vodka in a plastic bottle was the height of cool. Stevie has more class than that.

After a while I noticed that a) Vin had left with all of his groomsmen/friends and b) I was much more drunk than I meant to be. The next obvious step was to continue drinking, but in a safe place, i.e. our hotel room. Right? And since we were low on glasses, the only logical thing to do was to drink the wine straight from the bottle. Right?? Needless to say, Saturday was ROUGH. Until about 3pm. Just in time to get married. But hey, I had a great time; Vin had a great time; I assume everyone who came had a great time. And that’s what counts.

And that, readers, was the rehearsal! Next post will be the actual wedding. You can go ahead and wait with bated breath.

Quote of the Day

2011-10-12T06:58:00.001-04:00

"Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I'll try again tomorrow."

- Mary Anne Radmacher.

Dislcaimer: This quote is sort of emo, and I’m totally in a good place right now. It was genuinely just one of those “aww, what a pretty quote!” moments, and I wanted to share. Don’t read too much into it.

DeRobertis Family Photos

2011-10-07T14:59:00.001-04:00

That’s right, friends and family – our DeRobertis family unit finally got its act together enough to take family photos. Or rather, to hire a professional to do so. Only 6 months after the birth of our child, but that’s neither here nor there. What matters is that they came out SO AMAZING. Seriously, just take a look. And then don’t get mad when your kid inevitably isn’t as fabulously photogenic as my kid – he can’t help being so awesomely good looking. It’s in his genes.

Not that my readers actually live in NYC, but just in case there are any out there, we used Caryn Leigh Photography, and she was just fabulous. I mean clearly any pictures of Charlie would have come out amazing because of the aforementioned photogenic quality he has, but she really did a fantastic job and we had a blast taking the pics. Well, at least until the end. Which is when she snapped the gem that is picture number 3 in this post.

Guess everyone knows what they’re getting for Christmas now, right!?

I want to blog, but...

2011-10-05T08:39:00.002-04:00

Our computer is in the shop! Or, more, accurately, we've purchased a new laptop, and Best Buy currently has both of them in order to do the data transfer. So I'm just here, waiting to get them back so that I can a) do my homework and b) catch up on blogging! I've managed to do this short post on the iPad, but it's not great for long posts. So as a quick update:

Charlie and I are still working it to make new mommy friends. We've made one who can play guitar and is treating us to free music time in the park, and another whose building has a playroom (which will be a lifesaver on those snow days!).

School going ok. Psych is easy, Chem is tricky. Basically exactly what you'd expect.

This weekend we're headed to LI to see the Ryan-Carlyon family, next weekend we're off to pick pumpkins, weekend after that we have a baby Halloween party, and weekend after that we have another Halloween party. Somewhere between all that Vin and I are attempting to fit in a night out sans bebe.

And now I'm off to wash dishes! This is total Harry-Potter-geek of me, but I'd swear someone put some sort of constantly refilling/replenishing charm on that pile of dishes. No sooner have I gotten them washed than there's another sink full to take its place. Le sigh.

My Newest Baby Obsession

2011-09-30T15:04:00.001-04:00

Is making Charlie’s food using my Beaba baby food maker.

(My guess is that about 95% of my 10-12 readers will skip the rest of this post. I mean how interesting can baby food be, right? I don’t blame you. Only moms care about this stuff. Plus I bet you were expecting a wedding post. I know I would be. Unfortunately I need to wait until I have actual wedding pictures to do that, so you’ll have to settle for some less interesting posts in the meantime.)

So far we’ve kept it pretty basic – apples, sweet potatoes, pears, green beans, peas, carrots (which I’ve only just now learned that you’re not supposed to make on your own because of apparently high levels of nitrates. whoops), and zucchini. This weekend we’ll be adding nectarines to the list!

I mean how amazing is it that I can make him ANYTHING I want?? Have you ever seen zucchini in baby food jars!? I thought not. Plus this way we can buy all organic fruits and veggies, and we know that nothing else is going into it besides that.

Before my friend Laura suggested that I register for this baby food maker, I didn’t even know that was an option. Seems dumb of course, but it never occurred to me that babies could eat anything that didn’t come in a small glass jar. Silliness! Now I make big batches, freeze the foods in ice cube trays in the freezer, then (once they’re frozen) pop them into ziploc baggies labeled with the type of food and date made, and we’re good to go for a few weeks. So simple.

I’m sort of treating this obsession like I did the whole sleep obsession, which means that I’m skimming through about 14 different books on the topic and along the way (hopefully) picking up all the important points. The only book I’ve spent money on is Super Baby Food, mostly because it seemed to give me the most bang for my buck (literally tells you how to make and store like every kind of fruit and veggie ever), and I reference the Momtastic Wholesome Baby Food website a lot, too.

I feel like such a new-age hippie mom, overlong hair swinging in the breeze, wearing a dress made out of wheat I grew in my own backyard. And you know what? I don’t dislike the feeling.

Wedding Countdown: Meet the Groomsmen

2011-09-21T09:58:00.001-04:00

I’m writing this on behalf of Vin, so apologies that I don’t actually know too much about most of the groomsmen (and more apologies on some of the less-than-flattering pictures; I had to work with what we had on hand, which wasn’t much). I did my best, and I have at least met all of them, so hopefully I can give you an idea of what they’re all about.

David Albenda: Groomsman

David and Vin have been BFF since elementary school. They grew practically down the street from each other, and Vin has always been not-so-secretly envious of David’s mad baseball skills. David is now an accountant, married to wife Mindy (who unfortunately can’t make it), and father to 2 extremely adorable little boys. He’s such a nice guy, and very down to earth.

Brandon Fay: Groomsman

Brandon was Vin’s roommate before me, and they lived together for something ridiculous like 7 years, so Brandon was a huge part of Vin’s life when we first started dating. He’s outgoing, boisterous, irreverent, and HILARIOUS. If you talk to Brandon at the wedding, you will not stop laughing the entire conversation (but no pressure, Brandon). I’m sure Vin would like me to point out that Brandon is also a fantastic dresser. He’ll be in tamer attire in order to blend in with the other groomsman, and I think he’s still secretly sulking a bit that I nixed his ideas to wear a bright pink shirt and purple tie.

Baba Uppal: Groomsman

Baba grew up with Vin and David in the elementary school years, and is just the nicest guy ever. We recently went to his wedding to the lovely Kristen (I’m sure you saw the post), and honestly I’m not sure how our wedding can live up to theirs. Baba is basically the epitome of the LA guy – trendy, relaxed, perpetually happy. I don’t know him that well, but my guess is that he takes everything in stride and rarely gets worked up. Judging from the amount of dancing at his wedding, he’ll be centered near our dance floor.

Zach Halpern: Groomsman

Another friend of Vin’s from back home. Currently residing in Florida with his fiancé, and very interested in health foods. Once dog/house-sat for us and got extremely poor scores on the Wii fit game, which we found hilarious. I’m running out of steam talking about people I don’t know very well, so I can’t actually think of much else about Zach, but he’s a really nice guy.

Kevin Lewis: Groomsman

My brother, obviously. Also Charlie’s doppelganger (or vice versa). When we were growing up Kevin was super quiet, and then it seems like all of a sudden he got this restaurant job (you know, 7 years ago) and now he’s Mr. Sociable, talking to everyone and cracking jokes right and left. All the sarcastic wit from both sides of the family is concentrated in him. The kids at the wedding will likely be flocked around Kevin, because he seems to have some sort of siren call for them that’s inaudible to adult ears.

Logan Ray: Groomsman

Stepbrother and extremely strong person. Logan has always been unapologizingly his own person, which is in my mind quite the feat at only 19 years old. He loves music and color guard, and I take full credit for his friendship with my cousin Danya. One of the first times we met he insisted on staying up late to watch horror movies with myself and Kevin, and I’m pretty sure I passed out at 10:45pm. He didn’t hold it against me, though, and even said he thought it would be nice to have an older sibling for a change. Honestly, I couldn’t have asked for a more welcoming step-family.

Sean Ryan: Ring bearer

I’ve watched Sean grow up – literally. When he was only 3 months old I flew up to NY to be his nanny for a month while my aunt re-adjusted to working, and it’s been such a joy watching him grow and learn. He’s outgoing, smart, unfailingly polite, and loves to play. I don’t see them as much as I’d like, but when I do Sean always runs to give me a huge hug, which fills my heart.

Sam Ray: Ring bearer

And the final member of the wedding party – stepbrother Sam. Sam is the ultimate boys’ boy. He loves sports, video games, and has had no fewer than 10 “girlfriends” at the ripe old age of 8. I’m sure this little ball of energy will be cutting it up on the dance floor, maxing out his sessions in the photo booth, and eating 3 servings of PinkBerry – all at the same time. If you see a blur go past you, it’s probably Sam.

Wedding Countdown: Meet the Bridesmaids

2011-09-19T17:49:00.001-04:00

Anna over at "I Love Pezzulli" had an extremely cute idea to do a “bridesmaid fashion show,” where she does different posts for each bridesmaid and the dress she’s wearing. This is my knock-off, half-assed version of that (but give me a break, I only have days left until the wedding, and all the girls are in the same dress anyway). Soooooo meet my bridesmaids!

Lindsay Gilley: Maid of Honor

I’ve known Lindsay since pre-school. Seriously. I can tell you all about the time we had that Christmas pageant with the red tutus over green sweatsuits, or the failed attempt to cut our hair and blame it on someone else. Our friendship really blossomed, however, in high school (which is weird because we didn’t even go to the same high school. but I digress). All of a sudden I realized, “What have I been doing with my life that we haven’t been besties since that fateful day at St. Gregory daycare?!?” It took off from there.

We survived a long-distance college relationship by making frequent trips to see each other, and even the move to NY couldn’t put a damper on what we have. Sometimes when we’re hanging out I get the feeling that words aren’t really necessary, because we already know what each other are thinking. Like one time we were at a wine and cheese party, trying to open a bottle of wine, and the cork fell into the bottle. I looked at her, she looked at me, and the unspoken challenge was extended – We Must Drink This Entire Bottle. All without saying a word.

She’s beautiful, hilarious, and lights up a room. She’s sitting at the head table, so you won’t get a chance to make small talk over dinner (your loss), but look her up at the wedding. She’ll probably be making regular rounds between the bar and the dance floor.

Stephanie Germany: Matron of Honor

I haven’t known Stephanie quite as long as Lindsay, but we’ve been good friends for longer (if that makes sense). We met in elementary school and became besties in middle school. I love friends from middle school because you can literally NEVER get more awkward than you were in middle school, so no matter what else happens in your life, they’ve seen you at your worst.

Anyway, Stephanie has always been my constant. She stayed in our hometown for college and to build a family, so every trip home for me also includes a trip to see Stephanie. Even when weeks have gone by without talking on the phone (which doesn’t happen often), she’s the kind of friend where when we do finally talk, we can just jump right back into it.

Stephanie is kind, and generous, and has never met a stranger. I’ll be shocked if she doesn’t talk to you at some point during the wedding, but if somehow she misses welcoming you and making you her new best friend, she’ll also probably be centered on the dance floor. Or she’ll be holding my dress while I pee, because she’s that kind of friend.

Aimee Lewis: Bridesmaid

Aimee is my sister-in-law, so she’s married to my brother Kevin. But they’ve actually been together for (what is it now? 8 years?) ~8 years, so it feels like so much more than that. They didn’t start really dating until I was nearly out of the house, but since then they’ve been a constant in each other’s lives. It’s been a given that when I come home for Thanksgiving or Christmas, Aimee will also be there (even before the whole marriage thing).

What all this adds up to is that she feels like much more than just a “sister-in-law.” She feels more like a sister. She’s the sweetest, kindest, cutest-southern-accent girl ever, and Kevin and the rest of my family are SO lucky to count her as one of us.

All you New Yorkers, if you’re looking for a real taste of southern hospitality (or just want to hear the epitome of a Texas accent), look no further than Aimee. She’ll probably be busy keeping my brother in line, but she’s sure to make time to throw out a few “y’all’s” and “fixin’ to’s.”

Chesleigh Ray: Bridesmaid

Chesleigh is my 15-going-on-28 year old stepsister. This girl has more fashion sense now than I will ever hope to have, combined, over my entire life. What I love about Chesleigh is that I met her when she was 10, and I still remember her running up to me, so pleased to have a stepsister, and saying “Your dad’s told us all about you!” in the most excited way ever. My heart melted, and all potential awkwardness at having all these new stepsiblings flew out the window.

Chesleigh is everything I wanted to be in high school – naturally super thin, breaking boys hearts, and a cheerleader. And yet somehow she manages not to be a total snob. She is, in fact, a great girl. Also surprisingly calm, cool, and collected for a 15 year old.

Ava Grace Ray: Flower Girl

And the last of the girls in my bridal party – Ava Grace. Ava is a class unto herself. Loud, outgoing, boisterous, loves to dance and act. She once taught Vin a 5 minute dance routine to perform for me. And it was amazing. She’s so full of LIFE! It’s like she’s genuinely just so excited to be here on this earth that she can’t help but he cheerful and exuberant about everything.

She’s also a self-proclaimed expert on most everything, so if you happen to talk with her at the wedding and mention, say, that you’re feeling a bit sore from a yoga class earlier, she’ll no doubt tell you all about the origins of yoga, how you should practice it multiple times a week, and ask if you’re fully engaging your core muscles during downward dog. Did I mention she’s only 10?

Wedding Countdown: Sneak Peek at the Deets

2011-09-17T09:59:00.001-04:00

Before I start, let me just tell you that I had my first wedding-gone-wrong nightmare. This just got real.

But in non-dream land, things are actually coming together very nicely. I think we have one more payment to make, and then literally everything is booked and paid for! Plus mom and Aimee have a list of DIY’s to keep them busier than they’d like in the next week, so we’ll even have some wonderful personal touches.

If you’re coming to the wedding, here are some things to get excited about:

The location. Old Red Courthouse is GORGEOUS. And right by where Kennedy was assassinated. So it’s like you’re getting a little taste of history in addition to having an awesome time. I also love that we’re having the ceremony and reception in the same place – so much easier for guests! http://www.oldred.org/

The band. We’re having a live band called Top. What’s even better? I have actually seen them perform! I went out with Lindsay, Ellen, and Katy one night to hear them play while I still lived in Dallas. I even had a long, drawn-out conversation with Katy about Vin (whom I’d just started dating), and she told me she thought he could be the one. It’s totally bashert. http://www.absolutedfw.com/music/variety/top/w_top.htm
The photo booth. I feel like the trend now is to “make your own” photo booth and be all thrifty about it. But we happen to know the owner of Photo Booths Texas and got a great deal, so guests – get ready to take awesome (and, I’m sure, some slightly inappropriate) pics!! Best part? The photo booths are pretty big, so you can even get good group shots. http://www.photoboothstexas.com/
The macaroni-and-cheese bar. Because at heart I’m still 6 years old. There will be an entire station where you get to build your own macaroni-and-cheese side dish. Get ready to make your inner-child’s day.
The groom’s cake. Which is, in fact, not a cake at all. It’s Pinkberry frozen yogurt! Vin’s not a big fan of cake, but he is a HUGE fan of frozen yogurt, so that’s what will be served in addition to the bride’s cake, along with some of our favorite toppings. http://www.pinkberry.com/

We can’t wait to see everyone in just one week!!!

Baby Series: 6 Months

2011-09-16T11:07:00.001-04:00

Stats:

Height: 27 inches (75%)
Weight: 18 lbs 13 oz (75%)
Head Circumference: I don’t remember the actual measurement, but he’s made his way up to the 50th percentile – yay!

Nicknames:

Sad-Eyes DeRobertis (Vin claims he has bedroom eyes)
Two-tooth Charlie (self-explanatory)

Milestones for Charlie:

8/11/11: Slept through the night
8/23/11: Survived first earthquake
8/27/11: Survived first hurricane
9/3/11: Took first crawling steps
9/4/11: Broke first tooth

Milestones for Mama:

9/1/11: Started school!
9/5/11: Started with the nanny. Praying it all works out! It’s ridiculously hard to leave your baby in the hands of someone you don’t really know. I keep telling myself at least it must be better than daycare, since it’s a one-on-one ratio, but this whole nanny thing is just very foreign to me.
9/11/11: Spent the 10th anniversary of 9-11 with some of my new mom friends and their babies.

This has been such a big month for us! Not only did we have a ton of baby milestones, but it also marks half a year of having a baby. We survived! Thrived, even! Now if we can just make it through this wedding.

Wedding Countdown: Seating Arrangements

2011-09-15T13:51:00.001-04:00

Wow. I had no idea how hard it would be to do seating arrangements for a wedding. Here I thought I had this novel idea: “Why, I’ll just put people who know and like each other at the same table, and that way everyone will have the best time possible!” Sounds great, right?

The only problem is that our friends and family don’t happen to come in nicely contained groups of 8*. Most are in groups of 5 or 7, which would be fine except that I can only squeeze so many tables into this room, and not enough so that every table only has 5 or 7 people. Not to mention the fact that extra centerpieces and linens cost money.

I ended up having to take a few couples, shift them around, and remind myself that they’ll only really be confined to those tables for the 15 minutes it takes them to eat dinner (less if they eat anything like me). Then I followed a few basic rules (dad’s family near the bar, younger crowd near the dance floor, kids in a corner as far away from everyone else as possible, etc.), and voila – table plan done.

So the lesson here, my friends, is that if you don’t like the looks of the table you’re at for the reception, suck it up and grab an extra drink from the bar. I did my best.

*Vin does happen to have 8 guys coming sans wives who all know each other from college. Perfect. Meet table 13.

No time for blogging, I’m busy raising a baby/planning a wedding/studying for school/making dinner

2011-09-14T13:11:00.001-04:00

I’ve been totally lax on blog posts lately, and I do apologize, dear Readers. There’s just so much going on! Charlie’s crawling, he has 2 teeth, we survived our first earthquake and hurricane (can’t say we really felt either), we found a nanny, classes started, and wedding planning is all wrapping up. And when I’m not doing one of those things, I’m generally picking up, or making something to eat, or sleeping. Blogging has, alas, taken a backseat to the other excitement in our lives.

BUT I did take Charlie’s 6 month photos, so that post is coming up, and I want to do some wedding themed posts since there are only 10 DAYS LEFT! So hopefully in the coming weeks I’ll get my act together and be able to post a bit more. Until then enjoy this picture of my unbelievably cute child rocking his Ed Hardy tee. Thanks Uncle Alex!

Shh, we’re having a “moment”

2011-09-01T20:59:00.001-04:00

So I had a baby, and people kept making comments. You know the type. “OMG, I bet you can’t imagine life without him!!” And “Don’t you just love him more than you ever thought you could love someone?!?” And “Isn’t parenthood a magical experience?!?”

And the truth at first was that a) yes, yes I could imagine life without him. I had in fact lived life without him for nearly 26 years, and it’s not so far removed that I can’t remember what it was like. There seemed to be a lot more sleep and a lot less work. And b) yeah, I love him a lot. I also love my husband, and my mom, and my dad, etc. And c) I don’t know what part of waking up 4 times a night and diapers that smell like the wrong end of a cesspool is magical to you, guy-who-writes-clichés, but I’m pretty sure “magical” is a term best applied to visits to Disney World.

But then, the other day, Charlie and I had a moment. He looked in my eyes and smiled, and all of a sudden I realized that every parenting cliché EVER is true. He is a part of me. He was, in fact, made out of my own body. And I can’t imagine life without him; and I DO love him more than I ever thought I could love someone; and yes, despite diapers that do seriously smell like raw sewage mixed with rotten meat (thank you, solid foods), it is SUCH a magical experience.

Sometimes I even get this creepy feeling where I wish I could stick him back in my stomach so he could just be with me all the time, everywhere. And when I think about him growing up and getting married to some woman who will by no means be good enough for him (because how can she possibly love him as much as I do??), I’m already jealous that she’s going to get all his love and attention and I’ll just be lucky if he calls me once every few weeks.

And this, my friends, is motherhood. Moments that squeeze your heart so hard it hurts, but you love it all the same.

Baby Series: 5 Months

2011-08-30T11:38:00.001-04:00

Again, I’m late with the monthly baby post. I would promise to be better, but…we’ll see… I do have an almost 6 month old to keep up with, and he tends to occupy most of my time.

The stats: I have no idea. There was no doctor’s appointment this month, and I wasn’t on my game enough to estimate it. I’d guess around 17-18 pounds.

So let’s see what happened during month 5:

Charlie’s first plane ride (went well; no breakdowns for either of us)!
Charlie’s second plane ride (went even better; we had 2 seats to ourselves).
He met the whole Lewis gang.
He’s SO GOOD at reaching for and picking up toys now! He’ll even reach for things out of his grasp, and it’s extremely cute to watch him trying so hard to get to it.
He actually pays attention to singing, so it’s finally worth it to pay money for those infant classes (and just in time, since the free ones end when he’s 6 months old!).
And, as evidenced by the pictures below, he’s sitting unassisted! He’s sitting really well now that he’s almost 6 months, but he first started to sit in the 5th month (he just fell over a lot more).

No real parenting milestones for me during month 5. I fed him solid foods, helped him learn to sit, traveled on a plane with him to TX, and continued to go on playdates and to the little infant classes.

Side note: take a look at all that HAIR! It’s glorious. A friend described baby hair as “angel feathers,” and I’d have to agree. :)

Flarrida

2011-08-29T15:56:00.001-04:00

In honor of Hurricane Irene (which, btw, was blown way out of proportion. It was mostly just heavy rain, at least where we are.), let’s talk about my girls’ weekend in Florida, which Allie insisted on pronouncing “Flarrida.” I feel sort of weird calling it a “bachelorette party,” since I’m already married, but that’s technically what it was.

Introducing the main characters:

Amanda: Obviously. The bride-to-be of sorts.
Lindsay: Bestie from waybackwhen. Mother hen of the trip who cooked us breakfast, made the beer run at the beach, and offered to curtail her drinking so that she could drive the car on our night out.
Anna: Former roomie in Dallas and former co-worker. Now also a bride-to-be, but don’t fear, she didn’t steal any thunder. Determined to make me have the best time ever, and spoiled me rotten buying me food and drinks.
Ellen: One of Lindsay’s old roommates from college, then my first friend when I first moved to Dallas. Brought the penis straws. Enough said.
Allie: Another former co-worker, and former roomie of Allie (she was the replacement roomie when I moved to NY). Comic relief on the trip, starting when she showed up with a 50-pounder for her checked bag on a 48 hour trip.

Everyone flew in on Friday, met at the airport, and then headed to claim our rental car. Then on to the grocery store to stock up on the essentials (basically beer, wine, and liquor. also some granola bars). Finally to the hotel to check in to our sweet suite, and then out for dinner, walks on beach, etc. The weather wasn’t great on Friday, but we had a lot of chatting and catching up to do, so no one really cared!

Anna also very sweetly put together a newlywed game of sorts where she’d e-mailed Vin various questions and I had to guess his answers. I got a few, but I think the final score was like 3/15 (I missed his favorite color, but I did get his favorite beer). Oh well. The girls also put together an AMAZING bachelorette beach bag with lots of fun items inside (see above re: penis straws).

Saturday we woke up to a delish breakfast courtesy of Ms. Gilley (scrambled eggs and turkey sausages, anyone?), then it was time to prepare to head to the beach for fun in the sun, which included a power hour of beer followed by pink-panty-pulldowns* once we ran out of beer.

Some serious sunburns later we were ready to head out for our big night out on the town. First stop YOLO for dinner, then VIBE for dancing and bottle service. The food was amazing. The drinks were flowing. The dancing was was nonstop (and shameless).

And then it came to an end, as all good things must. We got to the airport 3 hours early, Lindsay unsuccessfully tried to take a nap underneath the seats, and then everyone caught their planes home. Thank you ladies, for the bachelorette party of the year! Now to figure out a way to make this an annual trip…

*I don’t know why they’re called pink-panty-pulldowns (Allie would know), but it’s a mixed drink of vodka, pink lemonade, and Fresca.

**And as an aside, Vin and Charlie had a fabulous weekend together. V even brought C to pick me up from the airport so I could see him as soon as possible. :)

Yummy Rice Cereal

2011-08-25T13:56:00.001-04:00

Let me just start by saying that I wrote this post a good month and a half ago. Then I kept trying to upload the video, and it kept not working, and now I’m just over it and you guys can live with pictures only. I think the only one concerned with posting that video was me.

Charlie has started solids! We debated a bit about starting so soon (i.e. a month and a half ago, when he was 4 months old), but a) we were hoping it would help his sleeping at night issues, and b) we were too excited. And I think it was a success!

He seems to really enjoy it, and he’s already gotten much better in just 1 week. Most of it used to just leak out of his mouth, and we had to halve the “recipe” (it called for 1 tbsp rice cereal, but Charlie would only eat 1/2). Now, though, he swallows most of it AND we’re back up to the full 1 tbsp of rice cereal a day.

The first week I only fed it to him once a day, and this week I’ll do twice a day, and then I think next week we’ll start trying some veggies/fruits (in reality we waited an entire month before starting veggies). Since we started much closer to 4 months than 6 months, we have plenty of time to take it slow.

Not that I’m jealous, but I will say Charlie seems to very much prefer it when Vin feeds him. He loves his daddy!!

And here’s your 1.5-month-later update: Charlie getting better at eating in that he knows to open his mouth and he doesn’t spit it all out immediately. However, we’ve started with the veggies (peas, carrots, and sweet potatoes), and a bib can no longer contain the mess. It’s pretty much a given that after meal time both Charlie and myself will have to change outfits. Mostly it’s because he tries to “help,” which consists of grabbing my hand with the spoon and shoving it towards his mouth. Unfortunately his hand/eye coordination leaves much to be desired, and it usually ends up on his chin, or up his nose, or running down his cheeks. Then he shoves his hand in his mouth, along with whatever small morsel of food is left on the spoon (and not on his chin, or up his nose, or running down his cheeks), and then the hand is immediately all over his stomach and legs, spreading the love (i.e. mess).

I have not yet branched out into making his food… I have the equipment, just haven’t opened it yet. So maybe sometime soon. For now it’s the Earth’s Best jars of organic baby food.

So Close!

2011-08-24T19:57:00.001-04:00

There are so many posts to catch up on. Fort Lauderdale girls’ trip, Charlie’s first solids, what I’m reading, Charlie’s 5 month post, the never-ending and ever-stressful search for a nanny, etc. But for now, let’s just watch Charlie try really really hard to crawl to the phone.

Florida, Here I Come!

2011-08-18T20:20:00.001-04:00

In less than 12 hours I will be on a plane to Fort Lauderdale for my “bachelorette” weekend – SO EXCITED! Seriously, can’t wait! Nothing but laying on the beach, eating, and drinking (in no particular order). I have, of course, tried to soak up as much “Charlie time” today as possible, since I know I’ll miss him, but I’m also going to love spending time with the ladies.

Anna made a comment on her blog about getting married that said “The longer you wait, the richer everyone is,” and I’m totally feeling it on this trip. Did we get to do awesome girls’ weekend trips for my already-wed friends’ bachelorette parties?? No, no we did not! Not to say we didn’t have a blast, but still – this feels like something special. :)

Strangest thing packed in my bag? A ziploc bag full of Splenda packets. I’m not buying an entire box just so I can use 2 of them in my morning coffees, I mean come on. Also an empty water bottle so I can fill it after I get through security. Vin is probably having a conniption fit right now; he hates the empty water bottle.

Anyway, hope everyone else enjoys their weekends as much as I’m about to enjoy mine!!

p.s. I’m TOTALLY bringing this as my beach bag:

The Sweetest Sound

2011-08-17T19:41:00.001-04:00

http://www.box.net/shared/ojf3s20k9uzbo7xlvyv3

A “Cups and Ice” Bridal Shower

2011-08-17T08:13:00.001-04:00

The title there is a Friends reference. If you don’t get it, then obviously you’re not awesomely obsessed with the TV show Friends like myself and my bridal shower hostesses (and let’s be honest, most of the people with whom I choose to associate).

The bridal shower was AMAZING. Absolutely what I wanted, which was no cheesy games, no awkwardly opening lingerie gifts in front of my mom’s friends, and plenty of champagne to go around (along with delicious food, a cup banner, a cup hat, and 2 kinds of ice). Thank you so much, Stephanie, Stevie, and Lindsay!!!

Hostesses with the mostest:

Yummy food (that Annie is VERY excited about):

Me in all my cup-hat glory:

Charlie being a button:

My mom’s version of “The Group”:

And then, readers, things got interesting…

8 bottles of champagne, 2 bottles of wine, and a few glasses of beer later, we called it a night. And what a night it was! Special thanks to Mom and Aimee, who so generously took Charlie home, fed him, and put him to bed so that I could have some baby-free time with friends. I love and miss you all already!

Go the F**k to Sleep

2011-08-15T19:53:00.001-04:00

To start with, if you haven’t read this faux children’s book, you should. HILARIOUS. I can even e-mail you a copy if you want.

Now on to the real story, Charlie finally WENT THE F**K TO SLEEP! When I got back from Texas, I’d hit a wall. He woke up about 3-4 times a night while we were there (and, you know, for the last 5+ months), and I just couldn’t do it anymore. I was exhausted, tired, worn out, beat, bushed, pooped. I needed SLEEP. So I made up my mind: come Tuesday night I would turn to crying-it-out.

Gasp!

I know it’s controversial, and I knew it would be hard. I did not, however, know the real reason it would be hard. In another of those new-mom-naiveté moments I’d assumed that I would find it heart wrenching to listen to my dear sweet babe cry, and I would yearn to go comfort him. Not so much… Remember again that we live in a 750 square foot apartment, so even when Charlie is in his “room,” he’s still extremely close. So every time he’d cry, I would smash my pillow over my head and nearly cry because I wanted to go back to sleep so badly, but that couldn’t happen until he stopped crying. On his own. Because, by my own decree, I was forbidden from going to comfort him.

On to the happy ending, after only one night of listening to those cries, he SLEPT. THROUGH. THE. NIGHT. From 8:00pm to 7:00am. Not a peep out of him. This time I nearly cried out of sheer happiness!

He’s been great since then, as well; he’ll occasionally wake up once and cry for a few minutes, but usually soothes himself back to sleep (in fact he usually goes back to sleep quicker if you don’t go comfort him. Going to comfort him seems to wake him up even more, which puts him in an even fouler mood). The last 2 mornings he’s also woken up a bit early (6:30am), but I’ll take that over 4 nighttime wake-ups any day.

This was his face the morning after his first full night of sleep, and I think it captured both our moods perfectly:

Weirdly, since he’s started sleeping better I’ve felt more tired during the day… I assume it’s some sort of mental thing where my mind was used to getting no sleep at night and had built up defenses so as not to let me feel it so much and prevent me from succumbing to the exhaustion, but now that I’m actually sleeping at night my mind is allowing my body to realize how very tired I’ve been since Charlie came into the world.

Needless to say Vin and I are thrilled, and we’re so proud of our little button. Keep up the good work, buddy!

Trip to Texas

2011-08-13T15:37:00.001-04:00

Disclaimer: This is another of those really long, really detailed posts that Vin swears no one wants to read. But I know the truth, and that’s that you readers secretly live for these posts. So enjoy.

We had an amazing time with friends and family on our 2 week sojourn to Texas, despite it being absolutely jam-packed with activities and car rides, and also despite the record-breaking heat. Charlie was SUCH a trouper as far as car rides go; here in New York he’s taken maybe 5 car rides, but in Texas we were in the car for at least an hour 12 out of 14 days. Ridiculous. Anyway, here’s the breakdown:

Tuesday: Charlie’s first flight! Went ok other than airport employees making me check the stroller before going through security, which meant I had to carry my nearly 20 lb baby for 2.5 hours until it was time to board. Lovely. Lucked out sitting next to a grandmother on the flight, who was very sweet with C. Arrive, drive 1 hour to Dad’s and stay up waaayyy too late chatting and drinking wine.

Wednesday: Chill during the day, then that night meet up with Lindsay and Anna for the movie of the century – Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2. Nearly cried to think the series is over.
Thursday: Run wedding errands with Dad so lovingly accompanying me as my “manny” to watch Charlie. Finalize floor plan for the venue and pick out linens. Then up to the Plano office to see Vin; Dad took Charlie back to Terrell and I stayed with Vin for our baby-free night. Went to work happy hour, and then to bed seriously early (because that’s how we roll).
Friday: Back to Terrell to get Charlie, hang out for a while, then back up to Plano to get Vin, then down to Addison to eat dinner with Linds, Ellen, Annie, Greg, Gabe, Beth, Sanjay, and Taj. So wonderful to catch up with friends, despite Charlie having a meltdown any time someone wasn’t actively walking him around the restaurant.
Saturday: Down to Tyler for big lunch with Mom, John, and Kevin & Aimee. Everyone exclaims over how Charlie looks like Kevin. Take Charlie swimming in the big pool, which he enjoys for a little while.

Sunday: Drive to Prosper for big Lewis family get-together where Charlie gets to meet his other great-grandpa (amongst other assorted Lewises). Fun family time.

Monday: Drive to Terrell to hang out at Dad’s and stay the night (just me and C; Vin has to stay in Plano for work).

Tuesday: Drive to Lewisville for lunch with Annie, Ellen, and Gabe (SO MUCH FUN! And hilarious when Gabe kept pulling Charlie’s pacifier out and putting it in his own mouth. And when Charlie would grab Gabe’s hair with his death grip, and Gabe would just give this little whimper until we saved him.). Then to Plano to stay the night with Linds and Brent; Brent got some quality baby-time and Charlie was loving it.

Wednesday: Meet up with Ellen to go to catering appointment to pick out hors d’oeuvres (BBQ brisket sliders, twice-baked potato fingerlings, and chicken & waffle bites – can we say YUM?? And catering lady was worried that they all had meat in them; umm, this is a Texas wedding. Pile on the meat.). Then off to pick up bridesmaid dresses, which thankfully ALL FIT!! Later chat with Cheree and her big belly for a bit when she drove up to Plano to see us. Last night before Vin had to go back to NY.

Thursday: Drive to Tyler, hang out. Mom has friends over to see Charlie (and obviously gush over him).
Friday: First day with no driving! Chill with Charlie during the day, then Mom, Aimee, and I went out for a girls’ night with some Mexican food and drinks. Mom takes Charlie that night so I have another night of uninterrupted sleep!
Saturday: Bridal shower in Lindale. Those ladies did such an amazing job, and it was the exact chill, relaxed shower I wanted – no gift opening, no games, just friends and family all gathered round drinking mimosas, eating food, and chatting. Charlie was a hit. Mom and Aimee took Charlie home around 2 or 3, and then somehow I ended up staying at Stevie’s until 10:30… Whoops! And can we say engorgement?

Sunday: Second day with no driving! Visit Mom at work with Starbuck’s, then some friends come over w/ babies for a playdate (Steph came with daughter Elizabeth, 3 years; Laura came with daughter Bailey, 14 months; and Stevie came just to gush over all the cute kiddos).

Monday: Goodbye lunch with Mom, Kevin, and Aimee. Bit of a SNAFU at the beginning since we failed to specify which Schlotzsky’s we’d be going to for lunch, which meant we ended up at 2 separate places, but all worked out in the end. Then drive to Terrell to see Dad, Krista, and the kids for the night.
Tuesday: Leave at 7 for the airport and fly hooooooome! Charlie amazing on the flight. Probably the best thing he did was scare away the guy in the seat next to us. That guy saw he was supposed to sit next to a baby and promptly got back up to find another empty seat (luckily he found one). So then we had both seats – SCORE! Vin met us at the airport, and we all headed home. :)

Vin had to go to London Tuesday night, so we really only got a few hours with him before we had to say goodbye again. Sad. But Charlie and I jumped right back into NYC life, hitting up a baby Sign & Sing class on Wednesday and an infant gymnastics class on Thursday.

Overall Texas was absolutely amazing, although clearly quite busy. I’m thinking next year maybe we go for 3 weeks so that somewhere in there we can also squeeze in some “hang out and do nothing” days, the better to recuperate from the “drive 3 hours to see 6 different people” days.

We loved seeing everyone in Texas. Thank you for your time, your hospitality, and all your good cooking!

C25K Update

2011-07-25T11:14:00.001-04:00

So I’ve finished week 6 and lost 5 pounds – yeah! 3 more weeks to go. And of course these 3 weeks are where the runs get hard. :( I’d hoped to lose a bit more than 5 pounds by this point, but at least I know I’ve lost it the right way (and not by fad dieting or just plain not eating). Maybe I would’ve lost more than 5 pounds if I didn’t still have a sweet spot for sweet foods. I bought these 100 calorie chocolate bars, but as Vin so astutely pointed out it’s hardly a low-calorie alternative if you’re eating 4 a day. …whoops…

I’m also trying to make it to various fitness classes at the gym, but that’s been harder to work into the schedule. When I run I can go whenever it works for Charlie, but the classes insist on starting at a certain time. Oh well.

In other news tomorrow Charlie and I fly to Texas, so today will be a storm of last-minute errands, packing, and picking up. Luckily I have the babysitter here so I can focus. It’s our first plane trip, so I’ve been obsessing about exactly what and how much to bring (although we’re bound to forget something regardless; babies come with way too much gear). I’m super excited for Charlie to meet my side of the family, especially his Uncle Kevin and Aunt Aimee; it’s so weird to think they haven’t seen him in person yet. Texas here we come!!!

Random Musings

2011-07-22T11:11:00.001-04:00

Late last night I was sitting up, nursing Charlie, and my imagination started wandering to the creepier side of things. “What would I do,” I wondered, “if all of a sudden a stranger walked into my dark living room?? What if I hadn’t even heard the door open?? Would I stay calm and try to talk my way out of it? Would I instantly go mama-bear on him and make a mad dash for the butcher knife in the kitchen?” I like to think about these things, that way I have a plan of action in place just in case it ever really happened (God forbid).

But then my imagination took a turn for the…not worse, so much as weird. What if the stranger who walked into my dark living room in the dead of night were none other than Leonardo DiCaprio? How would that change my reaction? Would it be less scary because I still nurse a girlhood crush on Jack from Titanic? Or would it be even scarier because now not only has a stranger broken it, but there’s gotta be a ridiculously bizarre reason that it’s a celebrity? I might start seriously doubting my sanity. Or I might start to think maybe this whole thing I call life is one big dream inside the Matrix (although I guess that would make more sense if it were Keanu Reeves who dropped in).

That, of course, led me to a game of rating various celebrities as to how creepy their break-ins would be. Robin Williams and Bob Saget rated very high on the creep-ometer. Johnny Depp did not (I find his accent charming).

Anyway, just something to think about on this fine Friday!

A Special Gift

2011-07-21T07:31:00.001-04:00

So I went to my knitting book club last week, and boy did those ladies have a surprise for me! Here I was, lamenting the fact that I had to bring Charlie (Vin had to work late) and wondering if I should go at all, and then when I show up what do they do but present me with a gift for the little button – a knitted and crocheted color book!

The front has his name embroidered on it, and then each page is a different color, knit in a different pattern. It really made my day that they would do something so unbelievably sweet for Charlie. I have the BEST book club!

Baby Series: 4 Months

2011-07-20T07:58:00.001-04:00

Stats:

Height: 25.5 inches (75%)
Weight: 16 lbs, 8 oz (75%)
Head Circumference: 41 3/4 cm (25%*)

I’m doing this a bit late, so now I’m having some trouble thinking of all of his milestones… Here are the ones I can think of (or the ones I’ve blatantly stolen from the What to Expect book):

You actually love tummy time! It appears you’re not too fond of laying flat on your back, so sometimes you’ll start to fuss and doing tummy time is the answer rather than the problem.
You’re LAUGHING. Unfortunately it’s not super consistently. One day I’ll do something and you’ll laugh 5 times in a row, and by the next day you’re totally over it and I have to find the next thing.
You’re shoving everything into your mouth; we have reached the oral stage. Your hands, other babies’ hands, toys, my cheek, etc.

For my milestones:

I had a girls’ night out with my new mom’s group, and it was an absolute blast.
…the days all tend to run together… So we’ll leave it at the girls’ night out.

I can’t believe we’re 1/3 of the way to his first birthday! I would say I know so much more now than I did at first, and that would be true, but I’m also just more ok with not knowing everything. That’s what books and Pediatricians are for.

Happy 4 months, Charlie!

*I know what you’re thinking. “Whaaaa, this from the girl whose head was SO BIG her parents had to snip the necks of her pajama tops so they would fit?!?” But it’s true. Charlie has a smaller-than-average head. Doc says nothing to worry about, though – it’s growing, which is what’s important.

Update on Paint Job

2011-07-19T09:57:00.001-04:00

I did everything right. I painted 2 coats of white over the green as a base coat.

I taped up the border (and Charlie helped).

I painted 2 coats of what I thought would be light grey (my boys were very proud).

I oh-so-carefully peeled off the tape to reveal the borders underneath.

And

It’s disappointing.

It’s actually growing on me now, but at first I nearly cried from frustration (and hormones). It was meant to be a light gray, and when we got it up on the wall it definitely looked light blue, which meant it definitely clashed with our duvet cover. Plus when I peeled off the blue painter’s tape, in a few places every layer of paint on the wall also peeled off, so it has these weird splotches now.

To fix the color problem we just bought a new duvet cover (AGAIN), but not sure what to do about the splotches. My choices are painting over the border using the light BLUE paint, or to go in and paint white on them very carefully. Neither greatly appeals to me, so for now it’s just on hold.

Vin and I have decided that we sort of like the new color scheme – he said it reminds him of a bed and breakfast in Boston. Now to find some pictures to hang on the wall to really complete the look!

Charlie Says “Love those Good N Plenty!”

2011-07-15T18:39:00.001-04:00

My mom finished her guest blog! In her defense it was finished days ago, and I’m just now getting around to publishing. But here it goes:

Charlie called me to see if I would come babysit him in NYC over the July 4^th weekend while his Mom and Dad flew to California for a wedding. Of course I said “YES”!! (And, really it was Amanda that called, but I know Charlie put her up to it). As soon as I said yes I thought, “It’s been a long time since I took care of a baby…” so I enlisted my sister Reggie to come from Colorado and help me. I think she was more excited about seeing NYC for the first time than seeing Charlie, but hey, I’ll take what I can get.

Immediately upon arriving at their apartment, Vin’s parents presented us with the 4-page manifesto Amanda had so loving typed up for our use. After a crash course from them in defrosting breast milk and Charlie’s napping habits we were on our own! Thursday night was really a blur as we constantly ran across the apartment to find the manifesto to read up on what we were supposed to be doing. Bath time – hmmm, baby tub is on top of the kitchen cabinets way out of my reach. And Reggie’s. We finally found an old-fashioned umbrella to hook the tub with and pull it down so Charlie could have his bath. That tired us out so much we decided that wiping him down with a wet washcloth was good enough. Last feeding at night – according to the manifesto fennel tea is to be added to the breast milk. Really, fennel tea? I don’t even know what that is much less why it should be added to the baby bottle. Nor did I know where they kept it so it was texting time!

We finally made it through the feeding part and the bathing part and we still had to read the diapering part! Neither one of us could figure out the diaper genie (too new-fangled for us!) so we stuck with, yes, a regular trash can. Amanda’s notes said to use the Desitin liberally at night but I think I got carried away. My hands had a white film on them the rest of the night, and I tried to keep them away from my nose so I didn’t have to smell them! But we finally got the little guy to bed and then we collapsed. Charlie is not known for sleeping through the night but I used the pacifier liberally (hey, I’m a grandma, it’s allowed) and we didn’t have to do a feeding until 3:30 am. At which time we had to start searching for the manifesto. Again.

Morning came very early, but while I fed Charlie, I sang his favorite song* – “Charlie says, love my good n plenty. Charlie says, really rings my bell. Charlie says, love my good n plenty, Don’t know any other baby that I love so well!”

Fast forward to Saturday and it’s a Carlyon reunion! Reggie, of course, was there helping with Charlie, my sister Carla came in from Long Island with her family - Rita, Sean and David (aka the energizer bunny), and my father and stepmother came in from Connecticut. There we were - 6 adults, 2 children and a baby in Amanda’s NYC living room which is about the size of my Texas kitchen. We took turns taking the kids for walks to ease the crown in the living room! But there was lots of talking, lots of laughter and lots of love. And really, isn’t that the best thing to fill a home with?

Charlie with his second cousins; his great-grandpa and grandma

So many people, so little apartment; Charlie with Nene

Kissies from David; playing with Sean and Aunt Reggie

Thank you, Mom and Aunt Reggie, for watching little Charlito! He told me he had SOMUCHFUN, and can’t wait to see y’all again soon!

*My mom sang to us a LOT growing up. Some were girl scout songs, some (like this one) were taken from radio and TV ads, and some she would take a popular tune, sing parts of it right, and just make up the rest. I have now found myself doing the same thing with Charlie.

26 Years Old

2011-07-13T16:31:00.001-04:00

Yesterday was my birthday – yay! Charlie was much unimpressed with that fact and refused to sleep well the night before (and also the night after), which meant I was pretty much in an exhausted daze all day. I did manage to get out for a Gymboree class in the afternoon, and he seemed to enjoy that (I think he especially enjoyed when our baby friend Zoey managed to roll onto her tummy, grab Charlie’s hand, and start sucking on it, all in the space of ~10 seconds).

I’d already gotten my main gift, which was workout clothes. I know it seems boring, but we Lewis’ are fond of practical gifting, and the sports bras I was using are from high school and college. It was time. Also hoping it motivates me to keep getting to the gym to lose this baby weight.

The other gift was a trip to the MOVIES!!! Vin loathes going to the movies, so it was a big deal for him to buy tickets and surprise me with this. He’d booked a babysitter, and after only a minor meltdown on Charlie’s part we were off to see Horrible Bosses, which was HI-larious.

Then home where I fell into bed and prayed/wished/bargained-with-the-devil for a good night’s sleep, which (as previously mentioned) didn’t happen. I DID, however, get a call from our night nurse saying she’d love to give me a FREE NIGHT for my birthday – WOOT WOOOT!!! So that’s coming up. :)

All in all it was a lovely day with my 2 best boys!

(and Charlie has been in a much improved mood today; perhaps the excitement yesterday was just too much for him.)

The Wedding is Still On

2011-07-11T18:07:00.001-04:00

OMG. Wedding is less than 3 months away. I’m one contract negotiation away from a nervous breakdown. Not really, but I mean it has been the tiniest bit stressful trying to plan a wedding while watching after a 4 month old and trying to figure out how to go back to school in the fall (did I mention I’m going back to school in the fall?).

We’ve got all the big stuff booked – venue, photographer, band, caterer, florist, and now we’ve also finally gotten hotels figured out. We’ll have a block of rooms at The Indigo ($89/night) and The Stoneleigh ($169/night). I’m so excited to stay at The Stoneleigh, especially after attending their big re-grand opening event with Ellen back when I still lived in Dallas!

Now I just need to order final invitations (trying to figure out if they’ll address them for me; I don’t need that kind of work on my plate) and devote some time to the wedding website, which has *alas* been totally neglected. The website is http://amandaandvin.weddingwindow.com, but there’s seriously nothing on there so far. Wedding planner is supposed to at least add the hotel information this week, and then I need to send her stuff for the rest of it. But when is there time!?!

Despite the stress, I am still extremely excited for everything! I thought that maybe with a baby I’d think of the wedding as an unnecessary expense and lose interest, but instead I just really can’t wait. All my loved ones in one place – what’s not to, well, LOVE!?

As an aside to the previous post…

2011-07-06T09:01:00.001-04:00

I am somehow still breastfeeding! (Men folk, you can close the browser and stop reading now.) I debated a lot about it (mentally, at least) before going on this trip, since if I were going to wean Charlie, that would’ve been an ideal time to do it. But in the end, I just couldn’t give it up. I hated the thought that I’d miss him so much those 4 days, and then I’d get back and not be able to have that bonding time with him. Fear of engorgement played its part as well.

In order to continue breastfeeding through that absence, though, I had to pump. On vacation. In very weird places. I tried to pump 4-5 times a day (which is not as much as I feed Charlie when I’m here, but I did want to have some fun, and pumping 7 times a day doesn’t allow for much of that). Now that I’m back my milk supply is sort of re-adjusting to his needs, but I’m happy to see it didn’t get too far down.

And as for the weird places I pumped, by far the absolute worst was the bathroom on the plane. Made even less pleasant by the woman who wouldn’t stop knocking on the door. Honestly, if you knock on a bathroom door once and get ANY RESPONSE AT ALL, you no longer need to do anything. Clearly someone is in there and occupied. Find another bathroom. I also pumped in 2 airport bathrooms, and in our rented convertible (don’t worry, the top was up).

Now Charlie is 4 months old, and I’m 2/3 of the way to my original 6 month goal – yay me!

Happy 2nd Wedding Day to Baba and Kristen!

2011-07-05T10:23:00.001-04:00

So this weekend Vin and I flew out to California (sans bambino – gasp!) to celebrate Baba and Kristen’s 2nd wedding (the first was a month ago here in NY). We had 4 days of sleeping all night, drinking coffee and alcohol with no worries, and laying by the pool! And getting a horrid burn line while I was at it, but that’s neither here nor there.

We got there Thursday around noon, ate lunch at a taco shop, took a nap, then Vin went to the rehearsal while I went for a quick run and laid by the pool. Then the rehearsal dinner that night, which was delicious, but which we struggled to get through, still being on NY time. Friday Vin had a client meeting in the morning, so I spent the morning by the pool (getting previously mentioned bad burn line). Then lunch at a diner across the street, and on to get ready for the ceremony and reception!

The gazebo/pool area at the hotel.

Vin was actually a groomsman in the wedding, and looked very sharp in his suit. Plus wedding was just gorgeous. It was outdoors at a vineyard near Malibu, trees were hung with white lights, tables were set on the lawn, very vintage centerpieces, etc.

We stayed an extra day, so Saturday was spent going out to the pier and promenade at Santa Monica. We had hoped to lay by the beach, but it turned out to be pretty cloudy and only like 60 degrees, so we passed on that. Did enjoy the browsing, though! Vin had also rented a convertible, so we had fun driving around with the top down.

Zoltar was totally a bust. All he told us was “Dream as if you’ll live forever; live as if you’ll die today.” Umm, that’s not a fortune, Zoltar. What a wasted dollar.

Missing Charlie was hard, but my mom and Aunt Reggie flew up to watch him, so I knew he was in good hands. I also forced my mom to send me picture texts at least twice a day, plus phone calls and text updates a few times a day as well. And then the 3rd sister (my Aunt Carla) came to join them for 2 days. So between the 3 of them I felt confident he’d do fine. :) I’m trying to convince my mom she should do a guest post about her time watching Charlie, but if she declines I’ll post pics later.

Too sleepy in the car headed from airport to home!

Now we’re all reunited and enjoying an extremely low-key 4th of July – Vin is either napping or watching the hotdog contest, I can’t really tell. Charlie is chilling in his bounce-and-spin chair, and I’m catching up on True Blood episode 2. Hope everyone is having a fantastic Independence Day!

Dressing Charlie in these two 4th of July outfits was literally the most productive thing we did all day. Success.

A Day Off

2011-06-28T08:42:00.001-04:00

I don’t know about the rest of you moms staying at home, but the hardest part for me is that there’s no time off. You don’t work an 8-5 shift, you work a 24 hour shift. You also work weekends, major holidays, and while you’re sick. Some days the boss might go easy on you, but more often than not there’s going to be at least one part of the day where your nose is to the grindstone and you feel about to drop from exhaustion.

After nearly 4 months of this, I was ready for a day off, and so this past Saturday I claimed it.

Cue the train to Long Island, a relaxing day at my aunts’ house, playing with cousins, and a few hours at the beach, all while Daddy was on Charlie duty – bliss! (And I really should’ve videotaped Vin’s day with him, because that night Charlie slept AMAZINGLY.)

This pic is the only one I took, being too busy otherwise with either my book or my family.

Reading List: June 2011

2011-06-27T08:44:00.001-04:00

The Woman in White by Wilkie Collins – Read it for knitting book club, which unfortunately had to miss (I thought it was the next Thursday, so Vin and I had already made plans. Whoops!). WONDERFUL mystery book, though! I didn’t think it would be that great, mostly because it’s a classic and it’s so old, but I was SO wrong.
The Elegance of the Hedgehog by Muriel Barbery – Stillllll trying to read this one. It was the book for the mommy book club back in April, and I bought it on the iPad, so now I feel like I have to finish it or that money goes to waste. Hard to read, though, as it’s extremely philosophical.
Memoirs of Cleopatra by Margaret George – She also wrote The Autobiography of Henry VIII, which I loved, so now I’m reading her Cleopatra book. It’s really interesting (albeit very long). I’ve just gotten to the part where Caesar has been killed and you can tell she and Antony are about to get it on.
The Dive from Clausen’s Pier by Ann Packer – This was another book we found in the hallway leading to the trash room, and being the scavengers we are we took it home (plus I do hate to see books get thrown out). I can’t decide how I feel about this one… On the one hand, I couldn’t put it down because I had to see what happened at the end, but on the other I wouldn’t say I really enjoyed it that much. I think part of the problem is that her main character is very real, so she’s not necessarily a good or a bad person, but just someone who makes decisions you may or may not agree with.
The Invisible Bridge by Julie Orringer – Wonderful book. I did think it dragged a bit, but the story (about a Jewish family in Romania during WWII) is great. And obviously since it deals with Jews during the Holocaust it’s a sad one.

Next on the list is Custom of the Country for July’s knitting book club. And at some point I really want to read Bossypants by Tina Fey; all the excerpts I’ve read have made me laugh out loud. Maybe I’ll get that one for the plane ride to CA this weekend!

Elliott’s Gym

2011-06-26T09:34:00.001-04:00

Charlie and I have been participating in a lot of activities (pretty much all the free ones I can find). This week we hit up an Elliott’s Gymnastics class (I use the term “gymnastics” loosely, since obviously these babies can barely hold their heads up, let alone execute standing back-flips). Basically it was some songs, some tummy time, and then the teacher (Elliott, of course) does a sort of cheerleading move where he holds the babies in one hand and they stand up on their own – SO COOL! Charlie has been holding out on that trick; apparently he wants me to reeeeeally appreciate it, so we’re going the route of delayed gratification. Maybe next week.

Me & Charlie and Jordan & Hank (our neighbors. Hank is Charlie’s BFFL. Jordan is the adult. He’s also an actor, and going to be famous someday soon, at which point we will happily mooch off Charlie and Hank’s friendship in order to visit their Italian villa and/or Malibu beach house.)

All the babies!

Piper rocking at the “up-up” trick; Charlie giving me a look that says quite clearly “Psshh, I don’t think sooo.”

Me and the gals + babies from new mom’s group

Just two dudes chilling… Until a LADY comes along – woot woot!

Us and the neighbors (possible conversation: Charlie - “Dude, I love your windsuit.” Hank - “Get your own, weirdo.”)

p.s. On our way home a pigeon took a MASSIVE poop on Charlie’s stroller. Thank goodness for the rain cover, which caught most all of it (except the part that went all over my foot).

You Guys Want to See Endless Videos of Charlie, Right?

2011-06-23T20:20:00.000-04:00

Wish granted. (pardon my inability to edit videos to only show the good stuff. and my inability to hold the camera straight.)

Paint Job

2011-06-22T15:54:00.001-04:00

Time period: May 2009, just moved into this apartment. Buy duvet cover at Ikea, and decide to paint an accent wall to match. Lovely! Until white part of duvet cover starts to fade to an off-yellowish color.

Some months later: Buy a new duvet cover from Ikea, but decide accent wall still matches. Again, white part of duvet cover starts to look gross.

Late 2010/Early 2011: Finally upgrade to new duvet cover from West Elm, much more durable and no white parts. Unfortunately accent wall no longer matches. In fact it mostly clashes. Not so much a style statement as a statement about how poor our sense of style is. Spackled holes from previously hung pictures certainly don’t class it up much.

Next few weeks: Amanda will (hopefully) paint accent wall to new color, thus uniting room again. Charlie, it’s all on your back to take some really good naps!