Our Little Family

Playing with Our New Toy

2010-03-17T22:24:00.001-04:00

We bought a new lens for the camera that we can't get enough of. Expect lots of new pics from us!! These are mostly family time :)

Jack the T-Rex!

2010-03-13T20:37:00.003-05:00

This was just too hilarious for words. I thought I was going to capture Jack saying the word dinosaur...not being a dinosaur. Watch and see...

Building Blocks

2010-02-26T14:31:00.001-05:00

An adorable video of Jack :)

Siena's Birthday Party

2010-02-20T20:59:00.000-05:00

Birthday party pics ;-) Lots of crafts, lots of people, and tons of fun. Take a peek!

Happy Birthday Baby Girl

2010-02-16T19:19:00.000-05:00

Here are the pictures from Siena's actual birthday. We all had a great time!!

S-I-E-N-A!!

2010-02-07T18:37:00.001-05:00

Come along and sing the song that is our family...

Outside Already?

2010-01-18T14:45:00.005-05:00

Yup...and it's still January. I love NC!! Here are some artsy pics that I took with the new camera I loaned from Ranger Up ;-) Also, some pics of the yummy quesadillas that we eat on a weekly (sometimes more) basis. The kids are adorable as always! Of course you can decide that for yourselves...

North Carolina Christmas

2009-12-21T14:02:00.002-05:00

We had a lot of fun having our family Christmas before our "FAMILY CHRISTMAS". It was exciting to watch the kids open gift after gift, their amazement and excitement increasing with each ripped package. It was a special morning ;-) Here are the pictures to show the fun we had!

No. We didn't burn the house down...

2009-11-27T14:55:00.000-05:00

Thanksgiving. Yes, we fried a turkey. No, we didn't burn the house down. And when I say "we" fried a turkey I meant Nick and Rob brined and fried the turkey while Andrea and I made the sides, tended to the children, and looked pretty ;-) We all had a pretty good time watching a 26lb bird get zapped in about 45min...it was delicious! Pics, pics and more pics of the filling holiday.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

2009-10-31T09:33:00.000-04:00

To say that Halloween was busy would be the understatement of the year...but we all had so much fun. Carving pumpkins, getting dressed up and scouring the neighborhood for candy are just a few things we did. Siena was her usual 'ham' self and would say 'trick or treat' in her most adorable voice. She'd wait patiently for the neighbors to fawn over her fairy costume and slowly lower their candy basket to within her reach. They never saw her coming...the flash of her hand grabbing as much candy as her tiny fist could muster, stuffing it into her overflowing candy basket, and saying thank you before the surprise had registered on their faces.

She was a pro.

We are so proud.

Poor Jack was just along for the ride. He rode around in his stroller, drinking his milk, and completely oblivious to the fact that we were riding around the neighborhood at an unusual hour. He stayed his normal, happy self for most of the way (until we ran out of milk...and I smashed his little hand in the stroller by accident...that could've had a *little* something to do with it... oops). We let him run around the streets and chased after him...his favorite game...so he was a happy little hotdog in no time ;-)

It was a great day and night. Check out the pics of our little fairy and hotdog ;-)

Halloween Cookies

2009-10-24T09:00:00.000-04:00

While Daddy and Jack were in MA, Siena and I decided to be festive and make Halloween cookies. Here are some pictures from that day ;-)

Jack's One Year Appt

2009-10-22T08:38:00.002-04:00

Jack turned ONE on the 17th and we had his one year app't a little while ago. He had a great time in the office before the doctor came in ;-) Here are some pictures of his playtime...remember to read the captions! They're pretty cute. And stay tuned for the ONE YEAR STATS below!!

So here goes....drumroll, please.................

Jack is:
30" long (75th percentile)
19lbs 9ozs (20th percentile)

SOOO we still have a tall, skinny kid. HAHAHAHA!!

Early Birthday Party for Jack

2009-10-12T09:17:00.000-04:00

Before Jack left for MA with Daddy we had a very *small* (as in only us 4) birthday party for him. It was cute, fun and we all had a great time. Check out the pics ;-)

(Remember you can double click to view the slideshow in Picasa)

Pumpkin Pickin'

2009-10-09T09:05:00.003-04:00

We had a great time at the pumkpin farm this year! They had tons of things to do and the rain held off all morning until we left. It was perfect ;-) Check out the slide show to see all the fun that was had. Remember you can double click to see it larger in picasa photo's.

More Play Time!!

2009-10-08T09:15:00.000-04:00

More pictures of Siena and Jack playtime. They are playing so well together and it just keeps getting better ;-)

Beautiful Mornings

2009-09-22T09:19:00.001-04:00

When Nick and I went to the beach for a little R 'n R we woke up on our last morning there to this. It was absolutely gorgeous. As much as I tried to 'capture' the feelings I had that morning, I couldn't. It was completely beyond me and my little camera.

Patriot's First Game!

2009-09-15T10:10:00.001-04:00

It's Game DAY!!! And we are ready to watch some football. The family is decked out in their jerseys and Siena is starting to think she's a line backer! Check out the video below the pic's to see what I mean ;-)

And Here's Siena the linebacker...

Playing Together

2009-09-13T09:53:00.001-04:00

I'm getting so excited that Jack and Siena seem to like playing together now. Don't get me wrong...we still have our scuffles and bruises (mostly to Jack..hee hee) but now that Jack is mobile he is a bit more interesting to Siena. Watch this funny video to see what I mean ;-)

Siena's First Day of School

2009-09-09T09:47:00.000-04:00

Never in a million years did I think this day would come so fast. Take a peek at the fun pictures of Siena's first day at school.

Oh Boy...

2009-09-01T17:39:00.003-04:00

Jack seriously has not touched the stairs until today. Not even a little. He has not attempted to crawl up them. I'm not sure he even knew they existed...until now. Take a look at Jacks latest development:

Things just got a little more interesting...

Waving Hi

2009-08-29T17:29:00.001-04:00

Jack is really getting better at his baby signs lately and does really well with "hi", "bye", "more", and "all done". He even tries to pronounce the words too. Here's a video of him waving "hi":

Siena the Artist

2009-08-28T17:20:00.001-04:00

Siena has been doing some awesome pictures lately. It's amazing how what she draws is starting to look like actual things! For instance...

This is a person...I'm still amazed over this one

This is a...ok, I just really liked this painting ;-)

These are a bunch of fish that she drew faces on. I love it!!

It Won't be Long...

2009-08-24T17:06:00.000-04:00

...until Jack is walking!! He is standing on his own now. I can't believe how fast time is flying!

August Pool Days

2009-08-18T16:50:00.002-04:00

Splishing and splashing makes for a fun August and tired babies ;-)

Coloring Sensation!!

2009-08-17T16:40:00.000-04:00

Ok...maybe not sensation but pretty freaking GOOD, I think ;-)

Silly Days

2009-08-08T16:32:00.000-04:00

I walked around the corner to see Jack wearing a once-Halloween-headband around his waist. Siena said, "No" when asked who put it there...I guess the dogs did it ;-)

DJ Jazzy Jack

2009-08-06T16:28:00.000-04:00

Siena decided that Jack needed some style and added this classy hat to his outfit ;-) Hee hee

We've Got a TOOTH!!

2009-08-01T10:37:00.002-04:00

Did you hear??

I now have a tooth!!

Can you see it?

It's there. I swear! Isn't that exciting??

Crawling Jack

2009-07-29T11:21:00.002-04:00

Here it is!! A video of Jack as the professional crawler...he's getting good!

So cute!!

More Pool Time!!

2009-07-28T11:40:00.000-04:00

I had to post ONE MORE pool time slideshow!! These were too cute to pass up!

Enjoy ;-)

Two Tickets to the WHAT??

2009-07-27T11:00:00.003-04:00

Ohhhh....Two tickets to the GUN show! I got it now.

WHAT?!

Hahaha!

Splish Splashing in July

2009-07-25T10:47:00.000-04:00

We always have fun in the summer time but things are really starting to get interesting now that Jack is:
1. Mobile
2. Playing with Siena...or trying to ;-) I think Siena needs a little more encouragement to play with Jack

We do this almost everyday now!

(remember if you want to view larger just double click and view thru picasa's slideshow)

Rain, Rain, Go Away...

2009-07-20T22:13:00.002-04:00

...well, maybe not ;-)

This was when she was hanging with Mommy...

And then here is hanging with Daddy...

She had tons on fun singing in the rain!!

9 mts old

2009-07-19T10:25:00.000-04:00

It's too disturbing. 9mts old? Really?? Where'd my non-crawling baby go? Ugh. Well, here are the stats:

28 and 3/4 inches long (75th percentile)

18 lbs 1 oz in weight (25th percentile)

I think its hysterical that we STILL have a tall, skinny non-baby boy

July Portraits

2009-07-15T18:01:00.001-04:00

I usually don't get portraits of the kids done because...well, because they usually come out so-so and I spend a million dollars for sheets of pictures where half of them end up sitting in its package- all alone and frameless. I went into this shoot with the same attitude (yet for some reason still wanted to try) and came out of it surprised. Siena was awesome - hamming it up at every request of the photographer (who was fantastic with her!). Jack...er...well Jack wasn't so hot on the idea of this stranger taking his picture, especially since he is in FULL SWING stranger anxiety stage. Even with this huge hurdle, the photographer still managed to take some cute pics of him too. Unfortunately, there are none with them together. Siena just wasn't up for it after her full photo shoot. Thoughts to consider for next time (if there is one...I may not press my luck!)

Enjoy the cute pics and let me know if there are any you'd like ;-)

Making Necklaces

2009-07-11T22:16:00.005-04:00

I decided today would be a fun craft day. So Siena and I made some necklaces. We had a great time and made a big mess ;-)

New Developments

2009-07-08T21:16:00.004-04:00

Ok...seriously, this is hysterical. Look to see what Jack's new development is. This is awesome.

Crawling and Tomato Picking

2009-07-07T21:06:00.001-04:00

Jack has been working harder and harder to master his crawling skills. He gets better each day ;-) Outside of that our tomatoes are looking great! Siena and I had a tomato-picking session (I had to keep her from the plants long enough for several to get red at one time ~this was...difficult.) We had a great time and as usual I took way too many pictures.

Remember if you want to see the pics larger just double click on the box below. Enjoy ;-)

Milestones

2009-07-07T12:08:00.005-04:00

Jack is trying pretty hard to reach some major milestones lately. Check out these hysterical videos to find out which ones!!

Yummy YUM!!~July 3rd

Locomotion~July 6th

ABC's

2009-07-05T14:07:00.002-04:00

Siena has been practicing her ABC's and finally let me capture one video of her singing them. She can also count to 20 but I think we'll have to have a hidden camera to catch that. She won't budge ;-) Enjoy!!

Busy Month!

2009-06-21T14:15:00.000-04:00

June has been super hectic between Nick travelling to Germany and then to Seattle, WA and my coming back from MA and going to TN! Yikes ;-) In the middle of all this I managed to snap a *couple* of pictures...hee hee.

Here are some pictures from our trip to Brentwood, TN. We had such a blast with Mandie, her parents, and her beautiful kids. In fact, we were having such a good time that I extended our trip from 7 to 10 days ;-) Check out the fun pictures!!

And here is a video of Jack having a blast in the jumperoo. It was SO freaking FUNNY!

Out for a Walk...

2009-06-08T16:10:00.002-04:00

...with our new ride! We finally got a new double stroller because Jackson is getting a *bit* too heavy to carry in the baby bjorn ;-) Check out the pics from our beautiful day:

Dancing Siena

2009-05-05T13:11:00.001-04:00

Beyond cute...

So Much Fun...

2009-05-01T12:32:00.002-04:00

Jack loves to laugh. Here is a video of Nick and him playing. I love it ;-)

Bye Bye Miss Katie

2009-04-25T10:52:00.001-04:00

We are really going to miss you around here but we wish you the best of luck EVER! We love you ;-)

6 MONTHS!? What?!

2009-04-18T10:16:00.003-04:00

Some one said I was 6 months old...

I really can't believe it. Half of one year has flown by.

I am still a happy camper. Check out my new 'stats'!

I weigh 16 lbs 3.5 oz which puts me at a slim 30th percentile BUT I am 27 inches long putting me in the 70th percentile for height! Hmmm...I am tall and skinny. Are we sure about who my parents are?? Well, I suppose there is still time for me to stunt my growth ;-)

I can roll over in both directions and can play for a long time on my belly while lifting my whole chest off the floor! Babbling is a fun past time, although, screaming in short, LOUD bursts seem to amuse the most lately. I can blow raspberries as you can watch in the video below...

All in all, I am still a very happy little man!!

If you give a girl a marker...

2009-04-17T10:08:00.001-04:00

...she will use it to draw all over herself.

Good thing it was a washable marker ;-)

Playtime

2009-04-15T08:15:00.001-04:00

Siena has been playing with Jack more and more. The jury is still out as to whether this is a good thing ;-)

Easter Wkd

2009-04-12T09:44:00.001-04:00

We had a really nice Easter wkd playing outside and celebrating sunshine. Check out our beautiful wkd pictures!!

(Remember you can double click on the slideshow to see it larger~)

Enjoy!!

April Showers...

2009-04-05T23:58:00.002-04:00

...will hopefully bring May flowers, but Nick is skeptical, at best ;-)

The family decided to spend this past wkd in the beatutiful 70+ degree weather playing, mowing and fertilizing our weeds (lawn), and planting some fun stuff like flowers, herbs, and cherry tomatoes. You can wish me luck now because in a few weeks I'll be lucky to still have the weeded lawn...hummm. Having a brown thumb isn't as easy as it would seem to be ;-) Check out the pics from our fun wkd.

Yum yum

2009-03-26T13:07:00.004-04:00

Jack's been getting better and better at chowing down (did we ever doubt he would?!). Check out this video of him eating like a champ!

Just Being Cute

2009-03-20T13:09:00.004-04:00

Siena and Jack are pretty adorable together-well, except when Siena decides its time to whack Jack on the head and when Jack thinks that a chunk of Siena's hair would feel good in his fist ;-) Anyway, here they are being happy!

Siena and Jack posing...

Siena decided she had enough...

Here she is running away while I try to take her picture...

Back to Jack because he'll stay still...for now ;-)

OK FINE...I'm all done taking pictures!!

Jack's Baptism

2009-03-19T12:21:00.002-04:00

We had loads of fun when we went to MA for Jack's baptism! We also took A LOT of pictures...are you surprised?? I *tried* to cut it back to show you a reasonable amount. I really hope you enjoy it. There are some super cute pics in there ;-)

Weather's Nice sooo.....

2009-03-07T12:46:00.003-05:00

...we go to the park!! Yippeee!! I have been getting a bit of cabin fever with all the rain and cold weather we were having. It's not like we live in MA, people! So, in typical NC fashion, we've been enjoying 70 degree weather for the past few days.

Ahhhhhhhh....

Jack Rolled OVER!

2009-02-22T11:17:00.000-05:00

He only did it once, but still...YIPPPEEEEEEEEEEEE!! He rolled from his back to his front and then quickly back as if thinking, "What the heck was that all about?!" It was really funny. I didn't get it on film but I got a couple of other shots.

And the verdict is in....

2009-02-18T09:34:00.004-05:00

Siena had her 2 yr doctors app't at the same time Jack had his 4mt. Here are the stat's:

Siena was 34" tall (60th percentile) and weighed 28.8lbs (75th percentile). She can communicate very well using 3+ word sentences and knows certain grammar rules (like adding 's' to pleural words and possessive, 'ing' to verbs etc...). She jumps with both feet and loves to run around in the park. Slides have become a favorite ;-) Siena can count to ten and can recognize most letters of the alphabet. She LOVES to sing songs she knows and ones she made up! She can 'help' out with Jack by replacing his binky if he's upset and throwing away a dirty diaper...now if she could just start changing them... ;-) She is such a big girl. We are excited that she is two but can't believe she is growing so fast. I feel like she was JUST one!!

Here is a new video of her playing with Diesel.

Jack had his 4 mt app't and, besides getting 4 vaccinations, it was great! He was 14lbs on the nose (65th percentile) and 25"long (60th percentile). He is having so much fun. He has tried rice cereal, oatmeal cereal, pears, and butternut squash. He loves the squash but we're going to have to revisit it when he's a bit older. It gave him the worst gas EVER. He was miserable. He still stinks at sleeping thru the night but we'll get there. Otherwise Jack is super happy. He loves to kick and hold toys in his iron grip (and Mommy's hair). He smiles constantly and has recently started laughing more (see video below). He is close to rolling over and doesn't mind his 'tummy time'. He can lift his whole head and shoulders up when on his belly! He is such a sweet baby. The time is flying faster and faster!! Here is a video of Jack laughing - it's adorable!

Siena is TWO!

2009-02-17T09:02:00.000-05:00

Siena had a wonderful birthday celebration on Tybee but we also wanted to celebrate on her actual day too. Dina and Dino (Jenn and Adam)decided to come down for the special day. We went to the Museum of Life and Science in the morning, bought some birthday presents there and picked up pizza for the little cheese freak (that would be Siena...oh, and me too ;-). Siena took a great nap, woke up and snuggled with Mommy on the couch for a Dora Show. I made pasta and meatballs for dinner- Siena's favorite and then she opened gifts. We finished the night off with a movie of Siena's choosing - 'Cars' (thanks Amy and Steve for the gift!!)- and vanilla cupcakes with chocolate frosting. YUM!!

It was a great day. See the pictures from Siena's special day and from Dina and Dino's visit. (remember you can double click to see larger)

Tybee Island 2009

2009-02-15T16:25:00.003-05:00

We had so much fun this year at Tybee Island. Thanks so much to Jan and Bill!!! And also thanks Mandie for setting it all up. The color-coded itinerary could not have been cuter ;-) We (the adults) had a blast and the kids had a ton of fun too. I am nervous to see who multiplies by next year!!

Here are *just a few* pics from the long wkd ;-)

Twinkle, Twinkle...

2009-02-03T11:17:00.006-05:00

Here is a really cute video of Siena singing...

Jack Speaks!

2009-02-01T14:10:00.002-05:00

Hahaha...well, sort of...

Couldn't Resist...

2009-01-27T14:24:00.000-05:00

After we had dinner with friends, Siena decided to have her dessert...the left over spaghetti. This is were we found her:

Sleeping Beauty

2009-01-25T14:39:00.001-05:00

He doesn't do this as often as I would like ;-) but he is so cute when he does.

Happy Days

2009-01-22T12:17:00.003-05:00

Jackson loves watching his big sister play...

Jackson is a pretty happy guy in general...

See! He is also LOVING his bumbo seat...

Siena loves stacking things tall...such focus ;-)

She also loves to be silly...

Jack is learning some concentration too!!

Hopefully Siena learns how to use these soon ;-)

Snow day...play day!

2009-01-21T11:04:00.002-05:00

Since it was so cold and I had no one to watch little Jack so we all stayed inside on the rare NC snow day. Usually this spells disaster but we had a shockingly good time!

Lovely Art

2009-01-16T16:49:00.001-05:00

Siena has been getting very serious about her artwork...

She really loves it...

Beautiful!!

Big Girl Bed (part 2)

2009-01-12T09:50:00.004-05:00

Despite my biggest fears of putting Siena in a bed that she could get out of, all was well in the morning...

Note: my camera is broken...the small black dot in the pictures is not actually there ;-)

Big Girl Bed

2009-01-11T22:15:00.003-05:00

{sigh.....} Siena went to bed in her "big girl bed" tonight. Hummmm...my little girl isn't so little anymore.

Husband of the year

2009-01-06T16:01:00.003-05:00

DISCLAIMER: I did not write this story and will not confirm nor deny the events that occured below. I swear I am a nice person...most of the time ;-) ~Kelly

By Nick

This holiday season, Kelly flew to wonderful Massachusetts and back while I did the Cannonball Run with the SUV so I could transport the dogs and the copious amounts of gifts that the grandparents imparted on the kids. Both sets of grandparents and the aunts and uncles respected our wishes for smaller presents this year by providing Siena and Jack with a giant six foot wagon that actually has CUP HOLDERS (you know for when that milk bottle or sippy cup is just too darn heavy), a large stroller for DOLLS, and a shopping cart along with 137 different mock food items so that Siena and Jack can have a well-balanced mock diet. That certainly wasn’t all that the two received – there were also 2,427 Dora the Explorer items and a metric ton of clothing. I digress. My whole point is that I arrived in NC three days before Kelly did.

It was a crisp Tuesday afternoon, only 34 minutes past the 12:00, when Kelly called me. She had just landed. I had put the kids’ car seats in the night before so that there would be no delays in getting her. She had been traveling alone with two kids and tons of bags since about 6AM, and I knew she would be exhausted.

I called her from the car – I was five minutes out. She was still waiting for her bags, so I sped into a sandwich shop, knowing she’d be hungry, and grabbed her a sub. Man, I was doing everything right today! This was a nice reminder to her of how lucky she was to have me – I was going to win some mad points.

I pulled up just as she was coming outside – exactly on time. She wouldn’t have to wait a single second. I am good, good, good!

I smugly hopped out of the car, gave Kel a kiss, hugged Siena and put her in the car, and loaded all the bags. Kelly came around the other side to strap Jack in. I’d have her home in minutes.

“You’ve got to be kidding me!” Kel suddenly said.

“What?” I responded.

As she looked at me with those I can’t believe I married you – how do you manage to generate enough brain function to breathe and eat without hurting yourself you giant worthless moron eyes, Kelly said, “Where’s his car seat?”

I suck.

I had strapped in the base of Jack’s seat, but didn’t bring the actual seat. I have no good reason for this. All points were instantly lost.

As I stood at the brink of divorce or murder at my wife’s hands, I offered a solution – “It’s not far, can we drive with you holding him in the back seat?” After all, I thought, that’s the way we all grew up before this whole baby seat thing – how bad can it be?
If I thought Kelly was going to hand me my lungs before, it was now definite.

“You want me to put my son in this car in this rain without a car seat? Never mind that if you get caught, you could go to jail, and we could lose our kids. Is that what you want?”

Awesome. I was now Michael Jackson – precariously holding my kid over the railing. After the car ride, I was going to grab Siena and we were going to play Russian Roulette, or maybe wrestle some snakes, or put her head in an alligator’s mouth. I was hemorrhaging points that I didn’t even have now – this was getting ugly. My fear of leaving Kelly and my son at the airport was now trumped by the graphic imagery and prison sentence she had just promised me. I was heading back home with Siena. Kel and Jack were waiting.

Apologizing profusely as I prepared to drive away, I heard the not-so-subtle threat from Kel: “Do not let Siena fall asleep in this car. If she doesn’t get a nap in today…”

She never finished the sentence, but I had a feeling it didn’t end with “I’ll make you a great dinner and let you go out with the boys tonight!” No problem – I’d keep her up.
As I drove off and merged onto the highway – I looked into my rearview right into shut eyes. Oh. God.

“Siena!”

She drowsily looked up.

“What is your dog’s name?”

“Diesel,” she whispered.

“And your other dog?” I yell.

“Woxy” she fades.

For the next 20 minutes I sang, yelled, danced, left the steering wheel and surfed on the car, lit off firecrackers, and banged pots and pans that I stole from a beggar on the side of the road to keep that kid awake. Simultaneously, I called my buddy Tom. There was no way she’d make it another five minutes, never mind to the airport and back without passing out. I needed help.

Tom arrived just as I had put Siena to bed. I sprinted out the door, grabbed Jack’s car seat, and was back on the road, driving -speed redacted to avoid prosecution- mph to the airport. I was just pulling around the bend to the terminal when my phone rang – it was Kelly.

“How far out are you?” she asked firmly.

“I am just pulling in now!”

“Oh,” she responded. My speed had won me back a half a point.

I pulled up and Kelly came out. She was about to put Jack into his seat when she noticed Siena was gone.

“Where is she?” she shouted.

A smart man would have realized that he had already exhausted his wife’s patience. I am not a smart man. Instead of telling her that Siena was with Tom, I opted to make a face like I had forgotten to bring her back with me.

As I dodged punches and kicks to the police officer at the airport’s amusement, I explained that I was kidding and that she was asleep and that Tom was there with her.

There goes my half a point…

Christmas time in MA

2008-12-27T17:52:00.000-05:00

I seriously tried to limit the pics here...it was hard. Especially because Siena got Christmas a bit more this year and LOVED opening gifts AND it was Jack's first Christmas. We had a great time with everyone over the holidays and can't wait to see what this new year brings!

Enjoy the pics!!

Welcome to Massachusetts...seriously?!

2008-12-21T13:27:00.000-05:00

Oh boy...leaving 60 degree weather to have the holidays in MA...what have we gotten ourselves into??? Honestly though, it was sort of refreshing (for a couple of days, at least) and we all had some fun in the snow.

2 Month App't

2008-12-19T15:34:00.003-05:00

Jackson's 2 mt appt was today and the stats are {insert drum roll here}:

11lbs 12oz and 23 inches long (55% percentile in both)

p.s. The "faux-hawk" Jackson is sporting in this picture was NOT contrived ;-)

Gotcha!!

2008-12-19T15:13:00.004-05:00

Sneaky Siena seems to always take fabulously LONG naps. I just found out what she has REALLY been doing:

Don't worry...there is no chance I will be discouraging longer naps due to reading in bed ;-)

Wow....

2008-12-19T14:47:00.006-05:00

Originally, Nick and I thought that Jackson and Siena looked SO different...I mean they have their differences but are still very similar.

Can you tell who is who?

DEEE-licious!!!

2008-12-15T16:45:00.003-05:00

What a commercial for the yogurt companies...

"Hmmm...this looks interesting. I think I'll try some!"

"This yogurt is DEEEEEEEE-licious!!!"

One, two, three...all done!

2008-12-14T10:21:00.001-05:00

This video is a perfect example of Siena's ability to do pretty much whatever she wants ;-) She can count to 5 pretty easily and to 10 with help but when asked to perform for the camera....

Play time!! (for me too!)

2008-12-13T10:08:00.001-05:00

Jackson and Siena were having a fun morning together and I was having fun taking pictures and messing with my camera. Here are some of the pics of the cuties! (double click to see larger in my on-line web album!)

Chubby. Little. Fingers.

2008-12-13T09:02:00.005-05:00

They are so adorable...

...chubby cheeks are a favorite as well...

...Although, those chubby toes are pretty cute too ;-)

Craft day disaster

2008-12-12T09:41:00.004-05:00

Unknowingly, I completely ambushed my good friend Amy. I told her I had a *great* Christmas craft for the girls to do and I had all the necessary equiptment to complete it. I was SO prepared! Everything was accounted for...we were going to make adorable snowflakes out of Q-tips, glue and glitter...I was going to be quite the hero. The only thing I didn't have was a table in an uncarpeted room where the girls could complete their craft so we decided Amy's house would be best because she has a table in her breakfast nook.

I am so dumb. Seriously.

I basically picked out a craft meant for 8year olds, minimum, for a 4 yr old (with exceptional art skills, but still...) and two almost 2 year olds. I started trying to put the q-tips out in a snowflake design and the girls quickly grabbed them and started to play with them...disaster. Luckily, poor, ambushed Amy has an arsenol of art supplies and rapidly came to my rescue. Painted paper plates for the girls to make Christmas wreaths...and a cup of coffee for me to clear my obviously muddled mind.

Thanks Amy. I owe you...BIG time ;-)

***note all the unused materials at the end of the table from my "great craft"

Gobble, gobble

2008-11-30T14:19:00.002-05:00

Nick and I went home for the Thanksgiving holidays. While it was a mad dash to get from one place to the next we had a great time visiting everyone and wished we could have seen more people. We'll be back for Christmas and hope we can visit everyone else then! Here are *just a few* pictures from the trip.

Remember you can double click on the slideshow to view larger!

One Month Appt

2008-11-19T14:43:00.001-05:00

"What? Did you say I had my one month doctor appt today? Wow! How'd it go?"

" I weighed 9lb 13.5 oz?? Really?! That's 3 lbs more than when I left the hospital!"
" And I am 22 inches long...that means I have grown over 2 inches since birth."

" So much can happen in a month! I can't wait to see what happens this month!"

Just Jack

2008-11-17T06:00:00.002-05:00

Jackson is now ONE MONTH OLD!! I cannot believe it. Time has truely flown. We've had our good times and interesting times but overall Jackson has been a pretty chilled out little boy (as I am typing this he is starting to scream from his little swing....arrrrggggh...)

OK...take two (this is now 25 minutes later which a much happier Jack!). Where was I? That's right...easy going Jack...well, except when he is hungry ;-) I recently realized that there weren't too many pics of just Jack on the blog so I decided to post some from each week he has been here.

Enjoy!

Week One:

Week Two:

Week Three:

Week Four +:

Park time for the WHOLE family

2008-11-16T16:13:00.004-05:00

We decided to go to the park on this frigid 54 degree day (I know all you guys from those northern states are laughing at me right now...) It was gorgeous and fun. Take a peek at the slideshow to see what we did!

Remember you can double click to see the slideshow larger ;-)

Fall Days

2008-11-09T17:15:00.000-05:00

Fun times in the leaves...makes you want to be a kid again.

Family Walk

2008-11-08T22:21:00.003-05:00

We decided to take advantage of the beautiful NC weather and go for a family walk. Nick got Jackson all strapped in while Siena took care of the dogs ;-) It was a gorgeous day!

Dancing Jackson

2008-11-06T21:15:00.003-05:00

There are no words for how funny I think this is..hope you do to ;-)

First Real Bath

2008-11-03T20:59:00.001-05:00

Here are some cute pictures from Jackson's first bath after his umbilical cord finally fell off. Siena had a blast with her new tub buddy...until Jackson decided to pee in the tub! Siena was properly horrified and wanted her new buddy OUT of the tub ;-) It was too funny.

Jackson's 2nd week and HALLOWEEN!!

2008-10-31T22:42:00.004-04:00

We have had lots going on in the last couple of weeks! Jackson is starting to fatten up ;-), we took Siena to the park for some alone 'big sister' time, we've had lots of visitors, AND it was Halloween today. As you all know, I have taken far too many pictures of this occasion (and every other) so proceed to the slide show with lots of time and patience!

So this was Siena's first Halloween where she got to go door to door and beg for candy. At first she was skeptical...not really wanting to say anything. As soon as she recieved her first piece of candy she was hooked. "House?" she would ask so we would take her to the next stop. "Treat!!" she would say to get her treats. As soon as the candy bowl was offered Siena would, at first, take only a piece, but by the last houses she would shove her hand in the bowl and grab as many pieces as her tiny fist would hold. She then would say a polite "thank you" and then "BYE!" We would be off and sprinting to the next house in the next second. It was really fun to watch and I do believe this was my favorite Halloween of all time. My new little man, who we dressed as a monkey, is here and my adorable little girl is growing up.

Time is flying! Enjoy the pictures and remember you can double click to view pictures larger.

Jackson's First Week Home

2008-10-23T21:38:00.003-04:00

Its been a great week home. Jackson is a great sleeper so far, not necessarily at night, but for 3-4 hr stretches sometimes! He seems to be similar to Siena when she was his size in a lot of ways but we have a lot more time for him to prove me wrong ;-) Its nice to be home and Nick and I want to say a big THANK YOU for all of your wonderful well wishes.

Here are some pictures leaving the hospital and at home with our new little man and cute little Siena:

Jackson Nicola is here!

2008-10-18T21:59:00.005-04:00

Hey All- after all my whining and groaning about being pregnant, little Jackson is finally here...exactly on his due date.

Go figure!

Simple explanation: Jack was born by c-section on October 17th at 8:39pm weighing in at a whopping 7lbs 6oz (almost 2lbs heavier than Siena was!) and measuring 19 and 3/4 inches (2 inches longer than Siena).

Extended explanation: Jack came by c-section after I labored since 2:30am, went into the hospital at 9am, got my epidural (I love you anesthesia man!!!!) at 11am and had progressed to 5cm, pitocin started at 2pm to make contractions better, water broken...no progression. Being that Siena was a c-section as well the docs didn't want to take any chances by waiting even longer for me to dilate...so off to surgery we went at 8-ish pm.

Here is a slideshow of pics so far. Remember you can double click if you want to see the pics larger (in a non-slideshow format).

Happy 1 day birthday baby boy. We love you!!!

Siena's First Haircut

2008-10-15T20:17:00.003-04:00

As many of you know, I have not wanted to get Siena's hair cut for quite some time now. At first I just denied the fact that my daughter had a mullet, then I defended the mullet ("it looks cute!!"), last I hid the mullet by putting her hair up in pig tails or some sort of 'Pebbles-like' pony tail. Nick has now been begging me to get her hair cut for MONTHS. I finally decided I would bite the bullet and get it done. Ho hum....I was not so sure about it but am glad I did it.

Here is a before picture:

Here are pics of Siena's first haircut:

My Little Artist

2008-10-13T21:05:00.003-04:00

I just thought these pictures were really fun. Siena really likes to draw with chalk (and pretty much anything else that will make a mark!). I thought these would be some pretty fun pictures to take.

Rolling in the Grass

2008-10-13T20:52:00.003-04:00

Siena has proven herself over and over to be a girly-girl. She doesn't like to get dirty, play in the sand, feel grass on her bare feet...etc. Nick and I really don't know where this comes from because she has no biological relation to her Godmother Jenn (hee hee...just kidding Jenn!!). Every once in a while, though, Siena will surprise me and roll around in the grass. Today I just happened to have my camera with me when she did.

"WASSLE!!"

2008-10-13T20:21:00.004-04:00

Lately, Siena has been great about repeating words she hears. When we are out she will point to something and I will tell her what it is. 90% of the time after I tell her what is is she nods her head and repeats the word...what a smart kid I have, right?? Sure! The only issue is....well...me. I am originally from MA. Not only are we known for our incredible driving skills and fantastic drive thru Dunkies coffee (which is now making its way into our southern town...WOO HOO!!), we are also known for our colorful language. Anyone that can use the "F" word as an adjective, noun, pronoun, and verb - all in the same sentence- is likely to be a native of good 'ol New England. I am not saying this is ok. In fact, it bugs me that sometimes I don't realize I have said something inappropriate. It just sort of...happens. Anyway, my name is Kelly and I swear...I am rambling...

Today, Siena and I were driving along to the store and this car in front of me is merging onto the highway at 35mph...no exaggeration. It was a disgrace and we were going to get into an accident if we didn't get around this person quickly. So in classic Massachusetts fashion, I tap on my horn and said "Come ON a$$-h*#&!"...and then stopped and cringed and waited. I looked at Siena in my rear view mirror and she seemed to be thinking. WHEW, I thought, totally got away with that one as I finally pull around the crappy driver. Then I heard a little voice come from the back say, "Wassle?" OH NO! I tried to ignore it and not encourage anymore renditions of what she heard. Then a car passed us on our right and Siena screamed with glee, "WASSLE!! Wassle, wassle!"

So much for keeping Siena swear free....

So Fun

2008-10-10T20:17:00.003-04:00

I just wanted to post this because I love the picture ;-) Here is Siena with her good friends, JB Ella and JB Addie at the park:

38 wks...Will he ever come out??

2008-10-09T19:29:00.005-04:00

Now, I know I have no right to complain at 38wks about being tired of pregnancy. I know there are plenty of people that have had to go over their 40wks and be induced. I also know that things could be worse... (I won't mention what those "worse" things are for fear of women who have never had babies are reading this and would be completely horrified). I do feel lucky that my pregnancy has been hassle and issue free, besides a few aches and pains that are to be expected.

Part of what aggravates me is the fact that my midwives are still argueing about my actual due date. Originally, it was Oct 16th. I had an ultrasound at 18wks and they changed that due date to Oct 25th...ok.... I can handle that. When I went back to the midwives they said that wasn't right, that we needed to go by the 16th....ARRRGGGG. SO this whole time I have been going by the later date to keep my brain accepting of the later time frame -just in case it was, in fact, correct - but in the back of my now pea-sized brain I keep putting myself one week ahead. This all increases the frustration.

Oh yeah, the other part is that I am 3cm dilated, 90% effaced and at -2 station. For those of you that don't know what that means...it means I am about to drop a baby at anytime!! So wish me luck, pray for my sanity and that this baby decides he is not that comfortable where he is ;-)

37 weeks and getting ANTSY

2008-10-03T19:25:00.001-04:00

The title truely says it all...;-) Nick and I are just waiting at this point to find out what our little guy is going to be like.

Feeling Blue?

2008-09-28T21:19:00.004-04:00

Hardly!! This day Siena was playing in her cute blue jumpsuit...I couldn't resist! Here are some fun pictures from the day:

Siena playing in her new carseat

"FREEEEEEDOMMMMMMMM!!!"

Siena playing with her chalk

Going for a walk!

36 wks and Still Smiling....Barely

2008-09-27T21:01:00.003-04:00

Huge, huge, HUGE...that's the one word to describe the past week- and the following weeks, I am sure. Little man is ready to come soon. To say that we are ready for him would be, well, it would be false ;-) We're getting there though!!

Here is the most current picture:

Topsail Beach Fun

2008-09-25T13:25:00.003-04:00

For my birthday this year I wanted to have a nice chill time at the beach with close friends. We went to Topsail Beach and booked this fabulous house ON the beach...right at the water. It was gorgeous and fun - Everything a 30th birthday should be ;-) We played games, hung out on the beach, watched movies and football, and had great conversation...when the girls were ASLEEP! They put together a really fun evening for my birthday with cake, candles and balloons...it was wonderful...more than I could have asked for.

Well enough blabbering from me ;-) Here are pictures from our fun five days at the beach!

Dancing Siena

2008-09-23T14:00:00.005-04:00

Siena is pretty funny when it comes to dancing around...watch as she attempts to dance for the camera ;-)