Celebrating Christmas in a Blizzard

yum, Popa's famous meatballs!

checking out the surf in Hull

score!  good find, Andrea!

I'd like to welcome Thomas William Cahill into the world!  My old school friend Carah delivered her second son (the sex was a surprise) this morning at 9:30. He weighed 9 lbs., 15 oz.  Good job, Carah!

Thank you to the Musante clan for braving the scary forecasts and visiting Quincy on Sunday and Monday.  Roads and homes were flooded (not ours, thankfully) and our neighborhood literally become an island for a short period of time during high tide.  We lost power, but only for a couple hours late Sunday night.  Jill did not seem to mind.  She was wimpering, poor thing was probably chilly because there was no heat in the house.  So she nestled herself between us in bed, a big smile on her face like this was an awesome adventure.  She warmed right up and went fast to sleep.  The power kicked on about two hours later and as soon as the house heated up, Jill was back in her crib fast asleep.

So This is Christmas

Christmas Eve

Christmas morning

get that Santa hat off my head!

Unwrapping Holiday Magic

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays!

Don’t Run Through Slippery Parking Lots Wearing FUGGS While Carrying Three Rolls of Wrapping Paper and Gifts

You will fall. Southeastern New England was slammed with a snowstorm Monday. Highways were crawling. Accidents clogged the roadways. And I thought it would be a good time to stop at CVS. In my defense, I reallllly needed stamps, wrapping paper and tape. They were out of stamps and I left without tape. But anyways, the wind was whipping snow into my face and my legs were freezing under my tights. So I ran through the parking lot, leaped off the curb but missed my landing. One lady almost ran me over but stopped (probably to laugh) and another concerned citizen jumped out of her car to make sure I wasn’t hurt. Just my dignity, thanks.

A Jill update from last week: New obsessions include flushing the toilet and grabbing Qtips out of the bathroom cabinet drawer, walking them over to the tub and throwing them in. I laugh and leave them there for Tony to find in the morning. Jill has also shifted her bedtime from 7:30 to 8 p.m. If we try to put her to bed before she is ready all hell breaks loose. And so bedtime is now a half hour later. A welcomed result? Sleeping through the night for the last 4 nights. I hope I don’t jinx it!

Note to Jill

Dear Jill,
You amaze me.  I love watching you change and grow - and WALK! - everyday.  You're growing up so quickly.  At the end of the workday I pick you up and you're different.  You look older.  Your hair has grown.  How do you change in that short amount of time? 

THANK YOU for sleeping through the night last night.  It made today (a Monday) so much easier.  Your father and I both felt rested and refreshed, ready to tackle the thankfully short holiday week. 

ALSO, your Granna loved having you for your first overnight on Saturday.  Your father and I enjoyed going into the city with friends, blasting the music late at night when we got home and sleeping until 8:15.  Expect sleepovers at Granna's to happen more often, and soon!

Love you,
Mom

Up, Up, Up and See Ya!

We're walking, folks!  Not 4 or 5 steps but 15 or 16.  She's quite proud of herself about it too.  I'll try to get it on Flip this week.  I'm so proud :)

'Me' Time

What falls into the category of "me" time?  Last weekend I was putting away laundry and cleaning the bathroom, separated from Jill and Tony playing in the living room.  Tony made a comment about me having "me time."  UMMMMmmm no, SORRY, cleaning does not qualify as "me time," hunny.  Far from it.  So then when I was getting the canals of my mouth drilled out of my head that following Monday, I laughed to myself.  I was at the root canal specialist for nearly 2.5 hours.  Could this be classified as "me time"?  I'm away from Jill.  It's time to myself, right?  Wrong.  "Me time" is sitting in bed at night while Tony is downstairs watching The Wire on Netflix and I have time to blog.  It's running 3.5 miles yesterday afternoon while Tony and Jill napped on the couch.  It's running to the gym during lunch break. 

I want to soak up most time during the weekend with Jill.  Like right now.  She's sitting in front of me playing with new toys from her birthday and telling stories.  She's looking at the lights on the Christmas tree like she might pull them down.  She's pulling herself up, taking a few steps, falling to the ground and crawling.  Crawling is easier and quicker, apparently.  She's pooping her pants.  Oh no, end of blog post.

It's a ....

Hot off the presses (delayed a day because I couldn't bring myself to get back on the computer after work last night) ... Scott and Jess, my brother and sister-in-law, found out yesterday.  What do you think it is?  A boy, or a girl....

It's a BOY!  Congrats guys!!  :)

Pajama Day

Jill was thrilled to wear her fleece, footed dog pajamas to school today.  Nevermind jeans on casual Fridays.  We should switch to PJs!

Back in the Game, Half Asleep

I'm back in the writing game.  Newsletters upon portal posts and I got the opportunity late last week to write a press release.  I'm working with two excellent writers in or from Corporate Communications and participating in meetings with the team in China.  That requires early morning conference calls. 

Riding the red line early morning means you're commuting to work with the entire staff of MGH.  And who do I sit across from but a black tote carrying hospital employee (see previous post).  We had the pumping connection.  I felt like we were instant friends.  She didn't feel it though.  She was asleep.  A new Mom back at work, exhausted from juggling the double life.  She looked exhausted.  I wanted to tell her to hang in there, that her baby would sleep through the night soon.  Then I remembered that Jill - though a great sleeper for many months - hasn't been sleeping well for last two weeks.  She's been experiencing night terrors.  She's not awake but I am.  Any advice besides the obvious and traditional?

Birthday Fun

done with laundry? me too!

excited for a bath

couldn't choose between flash and no flash

We had a blast today!  I have pictures from Jill's bday lunch on my Mom's camera that I need to download too.  The new pictures at the bottom are from my phone (thank you for emailing them to me, Tone!).  She was a social butterfly: smiling at the host and our server, playing peek-a-boo with the older women at the table next to us.  She was a riot!  A few of the Cheesecake servers came to the table to sing (softly) Happy Birthday.  She loved the attention!  Stuck her hand right into the ice cream.  We've had three birthday celebrations now so she knows what to do with the dessert!  Make a mess and smile.

This weekend we also picked up a Christmas tree.  The lights are up and decorations are sitting out and ready to put up tomorrow after work.  Jill and I will turn up the Christmas music and work on the tree before Tony gets home.  He can't stand Christmas music but can't say to change the Pandora channel if he comes home to it!

Baby Fashion



Jill in Carter's



Saturday night at my cousin's wedding in Providence

birthday attire

I like to wear my Mom's scarves and steal her boats!

My Dad calls this my art teacher smock.

Aunt Marjorie gave Jill this sweater after cleaning out her house. What a find!

Happy Birthday Jilly Bean!

yes, she stuck her foot right in the cake!

More pics and details to come!

I took the day off from work to spend it with Jill.  Let's just say it's a very different day than a year ago. She had a rough night and didn't sleep well, which meant I didn't either.  But it translated into an early morning bottle and back to back with Mom for another two hours.  What a treat!  I love watching her sleep.  She looks like an angel.  Now she's awake with a load of energy and is making a mess of anything she can get her hands on and bragging about it nonstop.  We are meeting my Mom later on for some Christmas shopping.

Jill shares a birthday with my old buddy, Josh.  Happy Birthday, Josh!  (He's the last one to turn 30 so I don't feel bad for him!)

Working Out and How it Isn't Working Out

My Mom called.  I forgot my ponytail holder.  I'm tired.  It's Wednesday.  Have you seen that funny commercial of reasons a couple doesn't go to the gym.  I was totally part of that scene today at lunch.  I walked over to the gym (in my opinion the hardest part) and opened my bag to realize I had forgotten my shower flip flops, hair elastic and socks.  I could have proudly pulled up my brown and turquiose argyle socks, let the sweat stick to the hair on my neck and shower barefoot but instead I laughed, zipped up my bag and walked to Dunkin Donuts for a gingerbread coffee.

I Am Thankful For ...

I lost track of this initiative, so much so that I couldn't remember if I was posting things to be thankful for on Mondays or Tuesdays.  Then I remembered it was Thankful Mondays and Tackle It Tuesdays.  Sad to say I haven't tackled anything lately and the main thing I've been grateful for this week is that I'm not still sitting in a dentist chair.

Following Wednesday afternoon's check-up, I made an appointment for a filing (which she said may need a root canal) for Monday morning.  I showed up at my swanky new dental office for 9 a.m. and was shocked when handed a full page list of network TV shows to choose from.  I got a shot of novocain to the top left side of my mouth while I watched 30 Rock.  How wild is that?  Forty-five minutes later she said I needed a root canal and an 11:30 appointment was made with a specialist out in Brookline.  I forgot how much I don't miss taking the green line.  So out to Brookline Village I go.  Two hours and 15 minutes later I'm done.  The procedure wasn't painful at all.  But it was tiring.  I definitely got impatient toward the end.  The reasons people dread root canals are plentiful.  Here are a few:

• the name - could they think of something a little less threatening?
• the noises - drill, drill, deeper, deeper
• the smells - like a hot glue gun
• the aftermath - two days later and I still resemble a chipmunk

Tony asked me if I was going to share nuts with him this winter.  My Mom told me not to smile at Jill because I looked like a stroke patient and might frighten her.  Fellow T riders stared at me like I was a domestic violence victim.  I still have a visible bruise on the left side of my face.  Now if only I had sick time so I could hide out at home and ice my face!