FINALLY

We finally have functioning internet.. Comcast came and installed it for us this morning. Woo! So we returned from Florida on Monday, me with a super yucky cold and B suffering teething symptoms. Needless to say, the flight home wasn't easy. But we made it! B is just growing up so fast! He is so so close to crawling completely! He can wiggle his way forward now, and just the other day he grabbed onto the laundry basket, pulled himself up, and attempted to cruise! He reached for the couch and anything nearby to help him walk! He was awfully wobbly, but he got the idea. Man this kid is just growing like a weed. He developed so much just over the weekend, it's like B is a brand new little boy. He's babbling all sorts of cute words, has such good control with his hands, and he LOVES jumping up and down! He's going to be everywhere once he can crawl or walk! We'd better prepare ourselves.

I may have mentioned this before, but for the past month, we have had a long and difficult battle with sleeping habits with B. For a while he was waking up every hour at night; it was horrible. Brandon and I have been so sleep deprived and tried so many different methods of trying to get B to fall asleep on his own and stay asleep, we've decided to do what's best for B. We're going to continue to rock him to sleep as needed.. he will eventually be able to put himself to sleep and sleep through the night, but for now he needs that contact and comfort from us.

So here are some pictures from our trip!

Florida!

Here we are in Florida! We arrived Wednesday night, late late late. Yesterday we spent the day resting and sleeping and had a big gathering with Great Grandma Pina's family. Everyone loved B! He was the life of the party! All the ladies fought over who was going to hold him next, and Gena and Mario loved making him laugh. Today was a beautiful day- we went to Blue Springs to see the Manatees! I think B has a new favorite animal. We walked along the boardwalk and the scenery was just beautiful! It was like a tropical paradise! The water was a perfectly clear turquoise blue. We came back to the house and spent a lovely evening with Great Grandpa and Grandma. Grandma Pina is such a wonderful and lovely woman, we love her so much! I wish we could see Pina and her family more often. She just loves and adores everyone, and only has good things to say about people. Moving here is awfully tempting! It's so beautiful! It's so strange seeing people walk around in shorts and t-shirts in the middle of winter. It's January! We're supposed to be wearing gloves, coats, and scarves!! It just seems wrong to be slathering on sunscreen.
Goodness I can't believe how fast B is growing. He's so close to crawling- he pushes himself backwards, turns in circles.. he just hasn't figured out how to move his arms so he can move forward. He has the funniest personality! He's so cute when he concentrates on things he's trying to learn, and it seems like he's learning something new every day. He's becoming a little individual. B's feelings get hurt if you take away what he was playing with- he knows what he wants! He's so sweet and so cute.. we relish every moment!

Ice Cold Fun!

A couple weeks ago, we had a super freeze here in Washington. 32 degrees seemed like a heat wave! So one Saturday, my sister-in-law Patty took B and I to the park to take some pictures. They turned out beautiful! Although it was cold, it was a gorgeous day; perfect for pictures. I'll share some at the end of this post. Since then, we've had a couple of adventures- B projectile vomited for the first time (it sure wasn't fun.. it got EVERYWHERE!), and a week ago I found out I was pregnant but then miscarried on Saturday. It is disappointing, but I'm also relieved because I was worried about my milk drying up sooner than I wanted to ween B. I was also nervous about having children so close together- they would have been only 16 months apart! Ahhh! So we'll see what happens from here. B is just as cute and sweet as ever! He still loves walking around when I hold his hands and he's still not even close to crawling. He hates being on his tummy.. but I don't mind if it takes him a while. It will happen eventually! B has also become very vocal- not as much as other babies I've heard, but he likes to squeal and squeak and make all sorts of funny sounds when he's excited. He's so darling, we just love him so much! He has the sweetest personality.

Growing up!

I need to be better at updating this.. So much has happened within just a few months! B's almost 7 months old now; he started eating baby food (He LOVES it! A born eater!), he loves to bounce up and down in his jumperoo, he's not quite rolling over yet- but he's getting close, he wiggles when we put him on the floor- although he's a long way from crawling. He DOES however, love to walk while I hold his hands. B's still really wobbly, but he'll put one foot in front of the other. I wouldn't be surprised if he went straight to walking. He just doesn't get this 'crawling' business. So since our last post,we've moved from Edgewood to Olympia, in with Brandon's parents and then finally into an apartment of our own! We couldn't be happier! B experienced his first move(s), his 6 month birthday, first halloween, ahd his Great Grandpa Lee passed away Oct 30th in Grandma Dietz's home. The funeral wast he following week, and quite the family reunion! We heard a lot of great stories about Great Grandpa, and I think we all had a good time, even though we all miss him so much.

So here's some highlights from the past two months!

Time for some Fall photos! B was a great model.

B's first pumpkin patching! Mine and Brandon's too. We had a blast!
B had a great time looking at all the pumpkins. It was difficult trying
to get him to look at the camera.

Carving pumpkins at Grandpa and Grandma's! B loves Grandpa Dattilo!

I made a Charlie Brown pumpkin.. but it ended up kind of looking like B!


Happy Halloween! Can you tell? We're all dressed as each other. I'm Brandon, Brandon is B, and B is me! By the way, Brandon is actually wearing one of B's beanies.. and using his nuk.
What a cute pair! B and MiniMart are going to be best friends!

4 Months

B's 4 months now! Time for some updating...

Here's B after his Blessing:

Thank you Shannon for the gorgeous pictures!

B's first captured smile! What a cutie!

We did a lot of fun things on our vacation with Grandma and Grandpa Dattilo! Here we are at hurricane ridge. It was quite a chore pushing that stroller up the mountain, but we made it!

Daddy making B laugh!

Relaxing, enjoying the sunset with Grandma

B's holding a pinecone here.. doesn't seem to be too sure about it.

Family photo taken by John! We were at a park in Port Townsend. It was really hot out!

B, unintentionally waving hello! Such a cute hat!

Haha, B's good at making funny faces :D

Helping mom with laundry...

Spending an afternoon in the backyard..


Time for a funny face photoshoot!


Silly boy..

I love this.. my little 4 month old cutie pie!

Our family Photos

We'll miss Great Grandpa

B's Great-Grandpa Erskine died this morning around 8:00. My mom is taking it pretty hard. It's a little hard for me to comprehend, since we'd just seen him on Sunday; and up until Sunday, I had no idea that he'd been put in a nursing home and then a hospital due to health complications. I guess there were some chemical imbalances in his blood, kidney problems, and he had pneumonia. But what a blessing it was to see him on Sunday- our whole family was able to drive up to Seattle and see him. He wasn't in the right state for engaging in a conversation at all- he pretty much laid in bed and slept. Although, we did witness a little miracle. I guess that since B was born, his great grandpa would always talk about his newest great-grandbaby and how he wanted to see him; but up until this point, B was still to frail to take on such a long trip. So on Sunday, my mom's sister Bonnie had been with him the entire day, and said he had not been awake enough to talk all day. But as soon as we walked in with the little baby, he opened his eyes, said a word or two, and stared at B for quite some time. For the rest of the time we were there, he just slept- like he had all morning and afternoon. What a blessing it was for him to see the newest of his posterity before he passed on. I'm sad he's gone, and will always remember the sweet spirit he had, but I'm happy to know that he's with my grandma now- after so many years of being apart. He will definitely be missed.
On a more uplifting note, B is just growing like a weed. He was blessed July 5th in the Tumwater Ward by his dad, and we're so happy a lot of our beloved family and friends were able to come and participate. And conincidentally, B had his first smile the following Monday! He's still working on smiling all the time, but he sure is smiling every day- a happy little bug. If I keep him steady, he can also stand up on his feet on my lap- and he sure is getting bigger! I'm sure he's at least 9 pounds by now. Yesterday I was watching videos of when he was in the hopsital, and couldn't believe how tiny he was! I'm so glad I've been able to enjoy him as a newborn for a longer stage. He's so cuddly and loving, it's been great just holding him while he sleeps and looking at his beautiful face. I'm loving every moment of motherhood. Soon he'll be 3 months old- I can't believe it! It's almost difficult watching him get older, since I've gotten so used to him being just a tiny little thing. But I'm sure everything will just get more exciting with each stage he reaches.