Easter

Easter can be a very tricky holiday for food allergic families.  Between the eggs, chocolates and other goodies, parents need to be extra vigilant to prevent the day from turning into a total disaster.  Luckily, with a little extra planning and creativity, we were able to have a relaxing, special holiday.
I love the fact that there so many activities planned in the weeks before Easter.  Petting zoos, breakfast with the Easter bunny, egg hunts - there truly is something for everybody!  This year, the weather was kind of strange.  We had long stretches of beautiful days, followed by the wet, chilly weather that is typical to spring.  I took the kids to an Easter egg hunt at Parker Gardens in Scotch Plains, NJ on a cold Saturday before Easter.  I called ahead to inquire about what was in the eggs.  The team at Parkers were extremely helpful, even offering to put some "safe" eggs aside, so Layla could participate in the egg hunt.  When we got there, it was packed, and although I was able to find the woman I spoke with, I felt comfortable with Layla gathering the eggs with the rest of the children, but letting me inspect them first.  I let her keep the bubble eggs and the ones filled with toys and stickers, and we tossed the candy filled eggs back into the field.  She had so much fun!

Making Layla's Easter basket is another aspect of the holiday that requires some creativity.  I try my best to fill it with fun, inexpensive toys and avoid the candy route altogether.  This year, her basket was filled with coloring books, markers, fingerpaint, stamps, sunglasses, color-me stickers and puppets, pez candy and a plastic safari hat!  I think the basket was a hit.  Dylan got a cute onesie, a bathing suit, a rubber duckie and a "My First Easter" sticker. 

I also made the kids an ABC book from Shutterfly. Each letter had the name and picture of a different family member. You can see the book here. I wish I was able to get everybody into the book, but if you don't see yourself, don't get mad at me! :)

My mom, dad and sister came over for a pot-luck brunch.  My mom made a delicious cheddar, egg and sausage casserole and we also had ham, monkey bread and mimosas.  Yum!

After we ate, we had another egg hunt for Layla.  This time, her eggs were filled with money, stickers and Smarties candies.  She really enjoyed searching for all of the eggs in our yard.  It was a beautiful day to be outside!

In the afternoon, we went to my mother-in-law's house for Easter dinner.  Layla and Dylan were spoiled by their grandmother, aunts and uncles.  Unfortunately, we forgot to bring the camera to capture all of the fun that the kids had with their cousins, but Monte did manage to snap this picture on his phone right before we went home.

Saint Patrick's Day 2012

Like many Irish-American families, we really look forward to celebrating Saint Patrick's Day every year.  As a kid, my parents usually had a big party, so it was exciting to continue that tradition.  This year, the day was extra special because it was Dylan's first St. Patty's Day, and it was the first time that we got to meet my cousin Jill's daughter, Riley Grace! What a cutie! I cannot believe that Dylan already has two younger cousins (my sister-in-law Teresa had a baby girl, Alexiya Victoria, in April).  To add to the baby-mania, Jill's best friend Beth came, along with her son, Drew.  Drew was born the day before Dylan and they made friends in the hospital's nursery!

Dylan and Layla - That dress was worn by my cousin Devon and also my sister MaryGrace!

Lassies :)

Proud daddies, Rich and Monte

Layla and her cousin Ryan

Look at these cute kiddos!

Dylan, Riley and Drew

 It was a wonderful day spent with family! Thanks Mom and Dad for hosting us!

Layla - 2 years, 9 months

Not one to be upstaged by her little brother, Layla turned 2 years, 9 months today (I know, a monumental milestone), so this post is dedicated to our little hurricane. 

Layla is, as my mother describes her, a pip.  She has more personality packed into her tiny 25 pound body than most people have as adults.  There are multiple times a day when I think to myself, "Where did this kid COME from?"  She's funny, athletic, sensitive, stubborn, energetic, and SMART! She has a massive vocabulary, which she uses appropriately (some of her new words are nervous, frustrated, delectable, safari, adventure and de nada).  She is quick with a joke (Her two favorites:  'Why did the hippopotamus cross the river? To get to the other side!' and 'What's a pirate's favorite letter?  Arrrr!') and understands humor that I would assume is waay over her head, which sometimes gets me in trouble when I don't think she's listening. 

Layla has a seemingly limitless imagination, and the energy to fuel it.  Oftentimes I will be looking for my daughter, but instead find a pirate, superhero, waitress, explorer, or polar bear in her place.  She loves pretend, as long as she has the appropriate accoutrements.  She has been known to leave the house with socks on her hands (her superhero gloves) or to demand that I find her non-existant trench coat when she is playing the role of a "great detective".  Her work is never done, which makes for a difficult bedtime and an exhausted mommy!

She is looking forward to going to school in the fall, and I have no doubt that she will do well academically.  Layla can spell her name and her brother's name, can recognize many uppercase letters and a few letter sounds, and is beginning to write her name.  She just started drawing recognizable pictures of people (the classic "face with arms and legs coming directly out of the head"). She can count to twenty, count backwards from ten, demonstrates one-to-one correspondance, knows her shapes and colors and frequently says, "Teach me, mommy" when she is curious about something.  We are still working on some social behaviors, including listening and following directions and being too aggressive with other kids (much to my horror, she has bit another child and has hit a few more).  I know that these behaviors will improve with age and maturity, so I am trying my best to always be patient.  This is a learning experience for us both!

"Our Family"

The days at home with this amazing little girl and her brother are long and tiring, but I wouldn't trade a single second.  I am so fortunate to be able to be a stay-at-home mom for the time being and I owe so much to my husband for making it possible for us. 

Here are some recent hilarious quotes by Layla that I want to record, so when she is all grown up, I can tell her what a silly, grateful, intelligent, affectionate child she was:

"Don't try anything funny, Mommy"

(while playing beauty parlor) "Do my hair pretty.  I'm going on a jungle adventure."

(talking to Dylan) "That's RIGHT, Dylan.  We ARE going to the library. (pause)  That's RIGHT, Dylan, we DO need to take the subway."

(wearing my heels) "Bye, Mommy.  I'm going to my wedding at the Little Gym.  I'll miss you."

"Let's have another baby."

"I don't like that commercial.  800-588-2300 Empire!  It scares me."

Layla: "Uh oh!" (runs to get a towel to wipe up a spill)
Me: "Thank you for cleaning up, Layla!"
Layla: "De nada!"

"You're a good teacher, mommy."

(At the park) "AAAHHHH! Mommy that geese is trying to get my butt!"

***

Layla, my little heart wasn't prepared to hold all of the love that it now contains for you.  You're my BEST girl :)

Happy 6 Months, Dylan!

I'm going to take a break from all of the back-blogging because Dylan just reached a big milestone this past weekend - his half birthday!

I cannot believe this wonderful little guy has been in the world for six whole months already, and at the same time, I cannot remember life without him.  Last night, I wrote him his six month letter (which will go in his memory box that my friend Sara bought for each of my kids) and I cried the whole time as I was writing it.  This kid brings me so much joy, and we are all so lucky to have him in our lives.

Here are some facts about Dylan Thomas at six months:

- He weighs 17 lbs, 12 oz and is 25 1/2 inches long

- He can roll both ways, turn 180 degrees in the prone position and can push up on straight arms

- He can sit unassisted for short periods of time, but prefers to be in his exersaucer

- Dylan is still exclusively breastfed, but has recently added a bunch of solids to his diet.  He currently eats rice cereal, bananas, apples, pears, peas, carrots, sweet potatoes, zucchini squash, and avocado.  His favorite food is sweet potatoes and he's not a big fan of the squash.  His favorite thing to put in his mouth, however, is his feet.

- He eats with gusto, squeals when placed in his high chair and twirls his feet in circles while he's eating, much to everyone's delight!

- Dylan has added consonants to his repertoire of sounds, including ba-ba-ba and ma-ma-ma.

- Dylan sleeps 8 hours, wakes up for one feeding around 4 AM, and then sleeps until around 7 (or earlier, if his sister wakes him up!)

- His two bottom teeth finally cut through last week!

Dylan is such a happy baby and he greets everyone with a big, open grin.  He adores his big sister, Layla, and loves cooing to her.  Layla and Dylan are finally beginning to "play" together, which usually consists of a game of peekaboo, or Layla taking his order ("More coffee, Dylan?")

We love you, Dylan! Happy half birthday to you!

Winter Highlights

Here are some highlights from our holidays and winter season:

- Making a gingerbread house with Trudy, Ami and Mimi

- Viewing all of the gingerbread houses at the Miller-Cory House in Westfield, NJ

- Train display at the Barron's Arts Center in Woodbridge, NJ

- Christmas Eve morning mass and breakfast at Joanie's Cafe

- Christmas Eve party at Susan's house on Lake Shawnee

- Christmas morning spent at home opening presents

- Christmas Dinner at Grandma Victoria's house in Jersey City, NJ

- Layla's first time ice skating in Menlo Park, NJ

- Playing in the snow

- Little Gym class on Wednesday mornings and Making Music Praying Twice on Friday mornings

- Trips to Liberty Science Center and the Staten Island Children's Museum

- Basketball game (Nets v. Raptors)

- Playing in the new basement playroom that Monte built

Dylan's Birth Story

This post has been nearly six months in the making, but I wanted to fit it in before Dylan's half year birthday. 

Short Birth Story:

Dylan Thomas Nesheiwat was born on November 5th, 2011 at 9:50 AM at Overlook Hospital in Summit, NJ.  He was 7 lbs, 12 oz and 20 1/2 inches long.  Dylan was delivered by Dr. Gary Kaye, just like his big sister, Layla.

Long Birth Story:

About halfway through my pregnancy, it became evident that I was carrying a rather large baby.  I failed my gestational diabetes screening test (again) and had to endure the unpleasant three hour glucose tolerance test, which I thankfully passed.  My obgyn sent me for extra growth ultrasounds to see just how big this baby was going to be.  When I was 36 weeks pregnant, the baby was measuring at over six pounds and in the ninety-something percentile for length and weight.  There was talk about a scheduled c-section, despite the fact that my first child was on the large size, too.  (Layla was 8 lbs, 6 oz). 

Much to my relief, Dr. Alissa Kaye made the call to schedule an early induction after reviewing the results of my last growth ultrasound.  Although I had been going by a November 17th due date, there was miscommunication between my doctor and the doctor who performed my ultrasounds at the hospital, who estimated my due date as closer to November 10th.  I went in for a scheduled induction on Friday night, November 4th. Here's a picture of me and Layla, before I left for the hospital. 

Monte began a lengthy leave of absence (thank heavens for paternity leave) and planned to spend the night with me, while my mom stayed with Layla. We arrived at the hospital around eight, but due to the high volume of preggo ladies, I didn't get admitted and settled until close to ten at night. Much to the surprise of myself and my nurses, the monitors were showing that I was having contractions! These contractions were completely painless and unnoticable, and I wouldn't have known that I was having them if not for the peaks and valleys on the tocometer. The doctors decided to skip the Cervidil (the drug used to soften the cervix) and start me on some Pitocin.  I drifted off to sleep around midnight and had a surprisingly good night's sleep!

At five in the morning, Dr. Gary Kaye determined that I was about six centimeters dialated and broke my water.  The contractions immediately picked up and within an hour, I received an epidural.  Oh, what a wonderful drug!  The rest of labor went by in a blur.  There were something like four or five other women who were all in labor, including two scheduled c-sections that were set to occur before Dr. Kaye thought I'd deliver.

Here's where the post gets into the "TMI" territory.  After nine o'clock, my nurse (whose son's name is Dylan!) came to drain my urine and I suddenly felt the need to push.  It was as if the baby dropped immediately into position and wanted O-U-T.  Nurses began running to find my doctor, who was just about to deliver another mother's baby.  Everyone scrambled around to get the room ready, they checked that I was ten centimeters dialated, and within about five sets of pushes, Dylan was in my arms!

Hello, Beautiful Boy!

Proud Daddy

Our Newest Addition

This time around, labor was a breeze and I have told everyone that if I knew every labor and delivery would go this smoothly, I'd have a dozen more kids! My recovery time was very short, which was good because the next day, Layla came down with an awful virus and Monte needed to stay home and take care of her.  We were very lucky to have so many family and friends come visit us in the hospital, cook meals for us when we got home and volunteer their time and energy to let us get some rest (and even take a shower every once in a while - ahh, life's little pleasures).

I cannot believe Dylan is almost six months old.  I am finding it hard to remember life before this amazing, happy, adorable child! We love you Dylan!

Click here to view this photo book larger