It's Been a While!

Whoa! I've been taking some heat about not keeping up with the other bloggers out there. It's true, I really have slacked this past month. The truth is, I've been having way too much fun playing with the little boy rather than writing about it. And I know I will kick myself later for not getting everything down on paper, err... keyboard. So, I hope I can make up for it with this post.

Let's see, today is Vincent's half birthday, as my students say. How many times have I said or heard how quickly time is passing. It's so true, and so hard to accept. So to celebrate Vincent's 6 months in this world, I put a little cereal in his bottle last night. Woo Hoo! He loved it. I think. Who really knows? But he did gulp it down. Later today, we'll try making a small batch of slop and see how that goes. Should be interesting. Since nursing didn't work out, I am all geared up to make home made baby food. Really? How hard could it be? Hey-pipe down out there busy mommies who have been there done that-I can hear you laughing at me.

So Vince...oh, how I wish we didn't live so far away from so much of our family. He is precious. He is hilarious. He is happy, curious, active, thoughtful, tactile, affectionate, cuddly, mellow, even-tempered, alert, and just dog-gone sweet! We hit the jack pot with this kid, we really did. These last 6 months have been some of the best times of our lives, and really, not much has happened. We are fully aware that each stage of Vincent's life will be better, he will do more, and we will enjoy him even more. But so far, he's exceeded all of our expectations of parenthood. Vincent is flat out awesome.

This past month we've noticed him making some huge strides towards mobility. Vince is steam rolling his way across the living room. He prefers to roll over to his left side, and once he gets going, he doesn't stop. It's no longer a struggle to roll from tummy to back. Forget the blanket...he rolls right off. He's also begun to enjoy playing on his tummy more, and pushes himself up on his hands. Earlier this week he began pushing himself forward just a bit, and I caught him up on his tippy toes. Of course he quickly face planted, but it made us realize life is about to change, again. We are quickly approaching the time when we may no longer be in charge. I have a feeling we are about to go where Vincent wants to go and when Vincent wants to go.

Murphy is Vincent's best bud, as Uncle John says. Murph loves to lick his face, and he doesn't mind it one bit. Now, he watches Murphy and follows her as she walks by. He smiles at her, too. When she snuggles up to him, he reaches out to touch her soft ears and wet nose. Murph had another rough go of it this month, and I worry that Vince will never know just how special she is. Hang in there ol' girl, soon enough Vincent will be chasing you around the back yard! Ant will be annoyed if I don't mention how much Lucy loves Vincent, too. OK, she does, and unfortunately Murphy doesn't like to share. It's pretty funny watch Lucy try to check him out. Murphy runs right over and pushes her back, out of the way.

We've also realized that Vincent is ready for real toys that do things other than rattle. He's grabbing everything in sight and likes to push, pull, and chew it all. So, it's off to the toy store to buy toys that stack, pop, ding, and roll. He's sitting up pretty well with support, but not yet getting up by himself. Although, he can pull himself into a seated position in the bathtub. He loves to bounce up and down in his jumperoo, which is hysterical and adorable.

Well, given all the new eating experiences we are about to introduce Vincent to this month, I'll be sure to keep you all updated more often. Lots of pictures are sure to come!

5 Months and Back to School

All ready to go!

Well, this has been a busy month.  The biggest change was going back to work.  It was hard the first couple mornings to say good bye to Vince, but once I was at school, there was no time to be sad.  That the great thing about teaching - the day flies by!  I only work every other week, too, so that has already felt like a weight lifted off my heart.  Vince is doing so well with the babysitter across the street, and of course he loves going to Mommo and Boppo's every other Thursday.  Anthony is finding it harder than he expected to work from home on Fridays.  Coffee breaks have turned into feeding, changing, playing breaks.  But it is all worth it.  I am so grateful for the opportunity to stay home with Vince without giving up my career.  Oh, who am I kidding?  What's nice is getting a paycheck again!   It may not be much, especially now, but hey!  Every penny counts!  I had to laugh when I made a trip to Target soon after I received my first paycheck to spend money on something other than diapers and formula for the first time all summer.  WooHoo!  It felt like a shopping spree!

Having fun with Mommo and Boppo!

Mommy finally caught a smile in the pool!

So of course, just as I started back to school, Vincent started to become REALLY fun!  That makes it especially hard to leave him in the mornings.  He has become so animated.  He smiles and giggles and laughs all the time.  I've even been witness to his squealing a couple times.  He founds his feet and toes, so if there isn't a toy or pair of glasses to grab, his toes are never far away!

Vincent is rolling over like crazy, too.  No sooner do we lay him on his back that he rolls right over to his tummy.  You'd think he'd like being on his tummy, but he still gets frustrated and needs help.  But he does lift himself up onto his elbows quite easily now.  He's also trying so hard to sit up on his own!  Anthony and I wish we had that kind of core strength!

I love this picture for many reasons.  Murphy and Lucy are becoming more and more protective of the little boy, and are never too far away.  This morning, Murphy got cozy while Vincent napped in his bouncey chair.  So sweet.  Another reason I love this picture is how much it reminds me of my grandmother.  Memere always loved being under covers, no matter how hot it was outside.  I remember her big comforter that she repaired time and time again because it was her favorite.  Well, this is proof that she is watching over us.  Vincent loves loves loves his fuzzy blankets, too.  Here we are in the middle of the desert-it's 110 degrees outside!  But inside, in the cool air conditioning, nothing feels better to Vincent than a cozy blanket to snuggle up with.  He fights sleep, tossing and turning, until he gets a hold of his blanket.  He pulls it right up to his cheek and he goes light out.  I am so glad we've got ourselves a snuggler! As long as he'll let me I'll rock him to sleep.  No problem with that!

Take Me Out To the Ballgame!

Thanks to our good friends, Tess and Jeff, we were able to take Vincent to his first MLB game.  We had awesome seats, just one section back from homeplate.  The Dodgers were in town, so it was great to see Manny get booed.  Even though he had a great game, the D-Backs had a better game and beat LA 4-1.  We had so much fun, and we are pretty sure Vinny had a good time, too.  He loves watching baseball on TV, so being in the ballpark was a great opportunity for him to take in all the sights and sounds of a ballpark.  He never stopped looking around.  

One of the best moments came when Baxter the Bobcat (Chase Field was formally Bank One Ballpark, but more affectionately referred to as the BOB, hence Baxter the Bobcat), anyway...the best moment came when Baxter came over for a picture with Vinny.  The usher gave Vinny a pin that said My 1st D-Backs, game, and Daddy bought Vinny a rattlesnake shaker to cheer on the "Snakes."

Baxter the Bobcat with Vinny

Vincent stayed awake for most of the game, finally falling asleep in the 8th inning.  The man seated behind us leaned in and asked, "Is he always this good?"  Of course he is!  He received so many compliments-it was one of those proud Mommy and Daddy nights.

Vince woke up to the loud cheering in the 9th inning so he got to see the D-Backs celebrate their win.  We stayed for the fireworks afterwords, too.  Vincent was startled at first, but never cried.  He's still pretty serious, and studies everything new, so while he didn't necessarily smile, I know he loved the fireworks because he couldn't take his eyes off the sky.  

It was a wonderful night to remember, and we hope to take Vince to many more baseball games in the future.  Maybe one of these days we'll get him to Fenway!

Vinny and the Boys!

Oh, and about the shirt...it's a Hawaiian shirt with little surfboards on it.  Since Vince is a Red Sox fan (he told me so), he doesn't have any Diamondbacks gear, so this shirt was the closest we could find to Sedona Red in his closet.   It's not nearly as ugly in person as it shos on camera.

Vincent playing with Elephant

Here is Vince playing with one of his first and favorite toys from Gramma.  He loves to grab all the tags on it.  This was a tricky video to shoot, I'm pretty impressed with my ability to hold the camera steady in one hand and Vince steady with the other.    

Vinny is grabbing anything within arm's reach these days, including Daddy's glasses.  He's also putting everything into his mouth.  He still loves his huge pacifier, he even chews it.  We had to buy a new one today.  It is so fun watching him explore his toys these days.  He doesn't just look at them anymore.  Now he reaches, grabs, and swats them.

Rolling Over!

Vincent has been rolling over onto his tummy for a while now, and I FINALLY got it on camera in a reasonable amount of time!  He still needs to master getting back to where he started.  That would really solve some night time issues when he gets stuck and wakes up.

What a Difference a Year Makes

Oh my.  When I think back to last summer, I really can't fathom how far away it feels.  I've been reflecting this month back to last July, a month that was filled with as much worry as it was peace.  Many of you already know, our journey to parenthood did not come easy.  As Boppo so graphically told the story in last year's Christmas letter, Vinny was our last chance.  After two failed in-vitro cycles, we only had one embryo left in the freezer.  Our doctor, upon explaining the new protocol he'd be taking with me, said, "this is a Hail Mary."  But we knew we had to go through with this last IVF attempt in order to move forward with any adoption process.  We were really at peace, but had to put closure on our fertility treatments.  Our chances were slim.  Even after all the hormone preparations, there still was a huge possibility that the embryo wouldn't survive the thaw.  But it did.  And so for two weeks, 14 long days, I prayed more than I had ever prayed in my life.  I was trying to will the little baby to "stick."  Please stick, please stick, please stick.  And it did.

So after the dreaded "two week wait," IT WAS EXACTLY ONE YEAR AGO TODAY that Anthony and I received the call that we had been praying, wishing, hoping for, but hardly expecting. You see, we had waited all day in silence, taking turns playing tetris and solitaire, mindlessly watching TV.  As the day passed, we both were silently preparing ourselves for sad news.  Naturally if it were good news we would have heard by now, right?  So 3 o'clock turned to 4, 4 turned to 5, and 5 turned to 6.  Then, at a few minutes past 6 o'clock, the phone rang and our hearts sank.  It was going to be bad.  We just had a feeling.  After apologizing for taking so long to get in touch with us, Dr. Johnson said something about having good news.  I don't remember exactly because I couldn't believe what he was saying.  He's soft spoken, so surely I misunderstood.  But he went on to tell me that I was 100% certainly pregnant and he scheduled me for more blood tests and ultrasounds.  (How great is that?  My doctor taking care of the scheduling because his receptionist has already gone home!)  

I fell into Anthony's arms and we both cried like never before.  I called my mom immediately to spread the news.   It was so joyful.  Meanwhile, Anthony had gone upstairs to get ready to go tell his parents in person.  We had agreed that since they were the only family we had in town at the time, they had to hear the news in person.  But in typical fashion, nothing goes as we ever plan.  In his excitement, Anthony called his sister in Virginia to tell her the good news.  Wouldn't you know it, but Greg was on the other phone with Bill at the same time, so when Missy screamed, Bill heard it through the other line.  Ugh!  Still, we were bound and determined to tell them in person, so off we drove to Bill and Joan's.  They too, thought the worst given how late in the day we heard from the doctor.  Unable to speak, I raise my arms up in the air as we walked through the kitchen door.  It was a special night, filled with tears, disbelief, and elation.  We cried, cried, cried.  It was so good to finally cry tears of joy instead of tears of sorrow.  So where else would we go to celebrate?  Why, Chile's, of course!  The first of many red meat meals I would crave for the next 35 weeks!

So here he is.  Little did we know at the time that it was a he, of course.  But this little blastocyst of cells, which was transfered into me on July 22nd of last year, became Vincent Joseph Mandrola.  Who can argue life, choice, whatever when you think about what these little cells became.  Because, just look at this little boy.  

He IS life.  He is OUR life.  Vincent has brought us out of a darkness that was at times unbearable.  For any of you that have ever read A Tale of Despereaux (a book I read to my students), you may be familiar with the theme light and dark.  Well, Vincent is the hero in our story.  He has brought us into the light.  Vincent has helped me see joy again, like no other.  I am me again.

4 Month Update

We just had a check-up at the pediatrician's office, and Vincent is growing and developing just fine!  He weighs 15 and a quarter pounds, and is 25 and a quarter inches long.  This puts him in the 60th percentile in both categories, so he's taking after his daddy and Godmother in the average category.  Of course, he's only average according to the charts.  To us, he is AMAZING! 

Some of Vincent's accomplishments this month include smiling and laughing, believe it or not, a lot!  You wouldn't know it by the pool pictures.  He's also rolling over onto his belly.  He doesn't like it once he gets there, though.  He's found himself face planted a couple times in the middle of the night and woken up none too happy.  I, of course, missed the first time he rolled over.  I went into the kitchen to take care of bottles and heard him begin to fuss in the living room.  When I went to check on him, there I found him on his tummy!  I was so excited, I cleared the decks, removed all obstacles, and broke out the video camera.  Murphy's Law, he didn't even wiggle.  He clearly wasn't as excited as I was to demonstrate the new skills.  Oh well, another time.  We later discovered that he is cheating a bit by puling himself all the way over by grabbing toys-but still!  He's getting there.  We love to watch him flop over to his side.  He cracks us up.

Who's that handsome boy?

Other accomplishments are reaching and grabbing toys, more focused attention, putting things in his mouth, and babbling a ton.  Taking after his mommy quite nicely!  We love to wake up to his babbles every morning.  He lies perfectly content talking to himself for upwards of 20 minutes before we scoop him up.  And he greets us with the biggest smile.  It's the best ever.  Vinny continues to be a happy baby.  He rarely fusses.  Chewing on his hands, fingers, thumb, binky, mousie, and blanket keep him soothed.  He's beginning to drool a ton.  We discovered that Vincent really loves to snuggle with his fuzzy blankets.  It seems that as soon as he has the soft fabric in his hands and next to his face, he goes lights out.  I haven't had the heart to take a picture yet and have the flash wake him, but it's a Kodak moment waiting to happen!  And yes, I take the blanket away in his crib...no SIDS here!  

Vince also enjoys his jumpy chair.  He is discovering that some of the gadgets move and make noise, and everyday is a new learning adventure.  He doesn't exactly jump, but it's nice to have another option for playtime.  While he's in it, he loves to look up and watch Baby Einstein videos, or baseball.  Or anything really.  Let's be real.  He's 4 months old.  He' doesn't know.  He just loves the colors and I am surprised at his level of concentration.  But then again, he is a serious little guy.  He observes and studies everything around him like no other.  Take for instance the pool.

Watching TV

With the incredible desert temperatures, we've been heading over to Mommo and Boppo's  a bunch to visit and swim.  Mommo and Boppo can get Vinny to smile in a heartbeat...until they try in the pool.  He's so serious, it's hard not to laugh.  Vince is still not sure what to make of that water, but like we always say, he doesn't hate it.  And he's just so darned adorable all decked out in his swim gear.  

So these four months have come and gone so fast.  I have enjoyed my time home with Vincent, but it's already time to go back to school!  I know Vince will handle the transition just fine...we'll see how well I do!

Murphy loves to check on Vincent!