the green family grows

maddy's first bath

2012-02-13T06:22:00.000-08:00

maddy had her first real bath on february 5th. the pictures are super grainy - we used our sport video camera and it has some weird settings. like a grainy photo/video setting. my hands were full with mads and jack (he really wanted to help a LOT), so i didn't get the chance to switch modes. i'm sure there'll be many more bath pics, but since it's her first, i wanted to document here.

whaaaaa.

self-soothing

maddy didn't exactly love her bath, but i think she'll be a water fan as she ages. i mean, with jack as an older brother (kind-of fish-like) and pete as a father (will swim in anything, anywhere, at any temp), she doesn't have much of a choice (unless, like her mother, she prefers to bask in the sun reading a book and drinking a frosty beverage.....)!

kids gone wild! {party#4, the last}

2012-02-12T05:14:00.000-08:00

we're all sorts of birthday'd out this week! it's been so fun, but i am exhausted! i'm super happy we planned jack's party at the bounce house, 'cause there is absolutely no way i'd let people see the disaster we call home right now!! we had such a good time!!

slide! so fun, it's been for-ev-er since i could do this stuff with my lil dude!

i think i should eat this cupcake. it has my name on it.

me and maddy

daddy with maddy

'cause when you're a little girl, it ain't a party without a tutu.

refuel on sugar, go ahead, do it!

ready for pizza lunch!

cheese! pepperoni!

let's sing!

what a face.

getting pumped for the cupcake...

knock, knock. who's there? pancake!!!!
get it?! we didn't either, but they were so proud!

jack + austin {2/3rd of the boy population}

the willis twins like their cupcakes, too :)

ava and marley were so excited for jack to open presents!

it's the best we could do!

at home party {party#3}

2012-02-11T16:57:00.000-08:00

we celebrated with hot dogs, hamburgers, and cake on monday night!

hanging with the boys

being a ham.

colorful party decor!

maddy's gift to her big bro.

hanging with cousin dino.

a kite!

this toy is for ages 4+
jack is so excited!

and now that he's 4, he can chew gum!
he's been telling people this for months. they always look so confused.
them: how old are you?
him: when i'm four i can have GUM!
{we've only had one piece go missing all week. gum success}

more presents!

it's cake time!

maddy enjoying some gran + aunt laura time while i celebrate my little man!

chuck-e-cheese's {party#2}

2012-02-09T17:07:00.000-08:00

lunch at chuck-e-cheese's!!!!

we learned a few things:

you have to check yourself (and kids) at the door, in and out. nice security!
this location is newly remodeled and NOT dark/creepy/scary like it used to be!
their pizza still stinks. chuck-e-up-chucks.
$10 gets you 50 tokens. each game is ONE token. big bang for little buck.
it's loud. and jack doesn't like chuck-e-cheese singing to him.
we are ticket-winning-machines. 483! winning!!!
best of all - happy 4yo, sleeping baby sis!

we will be back! next time, we'll eat first, though!

yeah, this little man is FOUR. {party#1}

2012-02-07T11:54:00.000-08:00

happy 4th birthday to my little jack-jack! i can't believe you're already FOUR. seriously. FOUR?!?! you are the best little man, an amazing big brother. you're funny and smart and cute and you listen {most of the time}. i'm super excited you get a week of celebrating, because you deserve it! i think i'll have to break up the posts, for lack of free time's sake, but i'll try to get them up this week!

party#1, at preschool:

although we were tempted to keep jack home for daddy's last day on paternity leave, we sent him to preschool anyway. we knew he'd have a blast getting all the birthday attention/love from his friends and amazing teacher, miss sally. he wore his birthday crown and happily passed out birthday treats. after school, we picked him up and took him to a surprise lunch {party#2}, post to come later!

the labor labrador

2012-02-07T11:25:00.000-08:00

i didn't mention this little dog's help in my labor + delivery post. this precious labrador retriever was by my side every.single.second. she was diligent in providing comfort and protection. she snuggled when needed, and kept out of my way when needed! she's uber protective of maddy and i - more than before. she took special care of us and i really appreciated it! and isn't she just the cutest?!?! thanks pepper :).

rockville park hike!

2012-02-02T14:47:00.000-08:00

we just got back from our first family hike at rockville hills park! it was beautiful, great exercise, and awesome to enjoy the fresh air in {practically} our backyard!

sidenotes about l + d

2012-02-02T14:36:00.000-08:00

i really want pete to insert his 2 cents into this post!
i totally channeled lauren often to give me the strength to make it through (of course, my mom was a SUPER support and admiration all around for her, and obviously couldn't have made it an hour without pete!!!!) - i SO admire her as a woman and mother! congrats to them on their beautiful baby girl!!
it's really, really cool to walk around your house and know that you labored there, and now your little girl is there too! it makes me LOVE my house even more :)!!

i'm still on a high over the whole thing!!

and i know you want pics, so here's one of our little maddy-kins:

10 days

labor + delivery

2012-01-27T14:55:00.000-08:00

wowzers. i just reread jack's labor + delivery post to make sure i included the same info in maddy's and i can't even believe it. i'm a total hormonal wreck, but i also haven't quite realized what we just did! it's absolutely amazing how different the stories of my kiddos' births are - and i wouldn't have it any other way. a healthy boy and healthy girl. we are so, so happy.

maddy's birth:

pete and i spent the day installing our new dryer - complete with re-running ducts inside the laundry room wall and hooking up water for our 'steam' feature. awesome dryer work! we made trips back and forth to home depot, squatted, bent, leaned, and at one point climbed, to get the work done. i vaguely remember contractions throughout the day, but did my best to ignore them so i didn't feel like i was in labor for days. i may have paused a time or two to catch my breath, but all-in-all, they were manageable and ignorable.

8:44pm - i noticed a particularly strong contraction that i had to 'breathe' through and decided to take note of the time. jack was sleeping next to me on the couch and we had an animal show on, so i didn't say anything to pete.
8:51pm - next contraction
8:58pm - another
9:05m - another
we took jack to bed, and went to lie down ourselves. i mentioned that tonight might be the night to pete, and we settled for some rest. i didn't have any other 'signs' {dropping or a 'show'}
i called my mom and let her know to keep her phone by her side, just in case. the plan was to have her come over if we went into labor in the middle of the night, then take jack to her house in the am.
10:51pm - while pete slept, i kept experiencing painful contractions. i was breathing through them and managing the pain, but they got closer and more painful, so i called my mom to come over.
i gave her the ipad to time them, but she ended up coaching me and monitoring my pain instead of keeping consistent time. our best guess was that they were 3-4 minutes apart. i told her i kept feeling like i had to use the restroom, so she suggested i wake pete and take a trip to the hospital. we were all concerned this labor would go by fast, being my second, so pete and i packed up and went to the hospital around midnight.
12:05am - dr exam, no dilation. like i was maybe a 'one' {very frustrated jen} they sent me on a 2hour walk thinking that would for sure send me past 2 so i could be admitted. we walked and walked. and it was hard - contractions hurt. i was dehydrated and had to pee every restroom {that's a lot in a hospital!}, and we went back for another look.
2:30am - dr exam. still.no.freaking.dilation. same as previous exam. they sent me packing home after i cried to the dr about my baby most likely being sunny-side-up (like jack) and expressing that i didn't think i would ever dilate. i get super dramatic about things, and this even was no exception! they said to rest and come back if a. my water broke, b. there was bleeding, or c. i started swearing and stuff at pete {i was all, i could do that now -- these contractions hurt!!!}
3:00am - home. trying to sleep.
and rest and sleep and rest. in between contractions, that HURT. i had to manage my pain closely, every time i didn't, things would seem out of control. it was exhausting on one hand, but i got the hang of it and was able to sleep between the contractions. {it's actually super refreshing to sleep for a minute, surprisingly!} my contractions were still about 3-4 minutes apart.
11:30am - {jack was still here hanging with pete} jack came in the room to cuddle me for a second and then left with my mom to watch the 49ers game. she came in to talk to me and noticed the focus i needed and what happened when i didn't. i expressed my 'plan' of 20 hours of labor, then back to the drs. that got me at home, laboring, self-managing the pain, {read: out of the medical world's plans for interventions and away from the temptation of the epidural}. pete and i agreed we'd head back to the drs at 4:00pm.
2:00pm - i drag myself out of the bedroom to walk and tell pete that i'm done. maybe we'll go at 3:00pm. i tell him that i feel like i'm not dilating and we discuss what to do at the hospital. if i'm at a one still, what? a four, what then? i won't discuss anything past a 4 because i'm SURE i'm not there. i know {mentally} that my contractions hurt a TON more, but emotionally, i'm sure i'm destined for drugs and possible a c-section, so i'm defeated. ***
3:00pm - after wandering around the house, using a birthing ball, kneeling, standing, and rocking, i feel like i'm really at the end of my rope {and i'm still sure there isn't any dilation}. like a good coach, pete holds off and distracts me from the hospital with more positions. my back is killing me and i KNOW that baby is sunny-side-up.
pete suggested a shower or bath {i'd used water off and on to help, which it did}, so that sounded great. i got in, on all fours, hugged the ball, and had pete run hot water over my back.
4:15pm - something happened. i felt a kick, almost pop, but knew my water didn't break. it made me gasp and my breathing suddenly became very instinctive - puffpuffpuffpuffpuff. i said we had to go to the hospital. pete kind of took his time, thinking that he needed to kill a little more before we went rushing back, which i totally appreciate now and was really nice outwardly about at the time, but inside i was screaming, GET ME THERE NOW!! i had so many contractions, it took us forever to get to the car. we got in the car and i was puffpuffpuffing and yelling that the baby was coming out! {it wasn't}. we called labor and delivery to let them know we were on our way.
4:45pm - water breaks in car. omg! all of a sudden i can't not push. i'm telling pete we'll have to pull over and have the ambulance come. we call l+d, they say to go straight to the er {they can hear me and it was very movie-like}.
4:55pm - pull into er. i can barely walk. wheelchair. me screaming to get me in a bed. take my pants off! is the baby coming out? and maybe some bad words. sorry er people.
5:00pm - mad dash through hospital, fully dilated and needing to push, er drs want to get me up to l+d for the safest delivery for me and baby.
5:09pm - after a few pushes, baby crowns. pete sees baby turn around from it's sunny-side-up position, then.... out pops maddy!!!!! i looked down and yelled, it's a girl?!?!, with the most surprised, overjoyed voice.

***looking back, i totally hit what is called 'transition, 8-10cms' at 2:00, which made me super irrational and emotional.

most.amazing.experience! and just what we planned {except i could've tried to get to the hospital a little earlier}

the wait is over!

2012-01-24T21:08:00.000-08:00

on january 22nd, at 5:09 pm {about 11 hours before my actual birthday/time}, madelynn elizabeth green made her dramatic debut into the world and our family! we are head-over-heels in love with our little girl and couldn't be more proud of our family of four!

madelynn elizabeth green
6lbs 12 ounces, 20 1/4 inches
1.22.12 at 5:09pm

40weeks+4days

2012-01-20T13:31:00.000-08:00

hey, y'all! there's still a baby inside me!!! went to the dr today and there's nothing brewing.... we have a non-sress-test and another 'check' on monday {which happens to be MY birthday!!}. guess baby greenbean 2.0 is totally into fashion, since he/she is planning on being really late :).

in the meantime, i've:

yelled at my neighbors. {fence junk, it's all ok now}
cried about a million times.
grew out of some of my maternity clothes!
walked around looking for something to organize.
lounged with jack.
cried some more.

i'm a bit of a basket-case, probably because i'm hurting and am beyond anxious/excited, and just really, really looking forward to meeting this little one! i feel really 'with-it' today, which is really nice. except i cried at lunch, so maybe i'm not all that together...

now i'm making jack a 'big bro' shirt! he wanted to sign his christmas present to 'lion' as 'big bro' instead of big brother, or big brother jack. SO, i'm making him a shirt - guess a late baby makes for more craft projects, right? {bright.side}

all done, jack LOVES it!!!

40weeks+2days

2012-01-18T16:51:00.000-08:00

baby is still cooking! i just deleted a very long, complainy post. there's no reason to complain, this precious little life just needs a bit longer! i'm just so ready to meet him/her, i'm about to burst!

in the meantime....

i mailed jack's bday invites and got to work on the decor

i rearranged baby decor stuff and hung our welcome home sign

bits of the welcome home sign we made!

and if baby doesn't come by tomorrow, v-day decor is going to up!

also, on sunday, i purchased every.last.thing i thought we needed before baby came.

we're really ready 'round here!!!

rice bag.

2012-01-17T10:00:00.000-08:00

with the hopes of helping during labor, and to help with current rib pain, i made a rice bag! when we were taking our class, our instructor kept mentioning a rice sock (a sock filled with rice - gross) that could be microwaved for those that liked warmth as a relaxation or pain management technique. i didn't want to carry around (or have lying around) a rice 'sock', so i searched around the www a little and found this tutorial. not that i really needed a tutorial, but i wanted one!

i made one version, but didn't add any 'smelly' stuff to it and it smelled like rice that had been microwaved. i used it though, and it helped a lot! i decided to make another that smelled good! so that i wasn't disgusted while in labor - i added a lavender dryer pouch from trader joes with the rice. it's practical and cute :). it even has an inner bag with the rice and stuff that can be thrown away when it starts to not smell or smell like old rice!

inside bag

cover

it's our due date!

2012-01-16T09:52:00.001-08:00

no baby, which is a-ok here, just finishing up the last few errands and projects! here is the nursery pre-boy/girl accents:

recognize everything from the shower? the wall to the left holds random letters of the alphabet, to be completed by those not able to make the shower and a few my mom/sister/self/grammy may need to whip up. i'll post that when it's complete!

the wall color is kind-of weird in the pictures, but i promise it's cute!

dr update: we went on friday and had no more progress :(. we have an appointment on friday, then will visit every three days for non-stress tests on the baby and to monitor fluid level and my blood pressure (which has been really low, so i'm not worried about that). dr le will let the pregnancy go 42 weeks and just added a few more days as that's the absolute latest. so 42 weeks + 3 days, then induction.... though i'd prefer a birth any day now, i don't need the baby in there gaining all sorts of weight!! and i'd kind-of like to have the baby before my birthday (the 23rd), just to be a tad normal on that day {read sushi and maybe some wine}.

the waiting game really begins now!! send positive labor/birthing thoughts our way!!!

showering baby greenbean

2012-01-15T10:30:00.000-08:00

laura and sheila threw baby greenbean #2 or 2.0 and i a lovely shower! i had so much fun and everything was so.dang.cute! mom went a bit wilder with the colors, which are now in the baby's room as decor :), i love it!

snacking and sharing birth stories
tara said she's is going to adopt after all that talk!

beginning of the alphabet wall
contributions by guests and family/friends from afar
can't wait to share the finished product!

a look back at baby greenbean #1's shower!

baby (or no-baby-yet) update.

2012-01-06T06:43:00.000-08:00

even though we are 10 days away from our due date, i have the time to provide an update - so i'll do just that!

-visited dr. le on wednesday and everything's looking good, heartbeat was beautiful!
-baby's head is down, down, like dr le wasn't able to move it {puuuuh-lease be sunny-side down!!!}
-slight cervix softening and dilation two weeks ago, we didn't check this time. if baby isn't here on the 13th {why would it be? that's a few days before our due date} dr le offered some natural ways to get things moving. i'm not a fan of that {it's a friday on mlk jr weekend}, so i think i'll wait until the next appointment which will be after our due date. he also mentioned that he's willing to let me go past 42 weeks {not kaiser policy, they like to schedule an induction at 41-41.5} as long as baby is doing well - he knows how bad i want to avoid medical interventions {i've been talking about it for 20 weeks now} and i am super appreciative of his support, not all drs at hmos are as supportive.
-my ribs are killing me. front side because the babe is long and chilling on my right side, dr le was all 'wow, it's way up here!' {thanks for the unnecessary 'wow' and explanation, i can feel that, fyi!}. my back ribs, also right side, hurt because i cracked them during an eventful cinco de mayo in 2003. if i could go back in time, that's the one event i would take back!
-i'm having braxton-hicks contractions that are starting to HURT. they are lasting over a minute, but currently i have them about every 45mins to an hour. i feel like they are helping with progress, though, and any progress made now will {hopefully} help later!
-pete and i are packing our bags this week - i have a lot of 'natural' labor stuff to find and pack: oils, rice sock, big birthing ball, tennis balls, eye soother, towel, robe, good walking shoes, swimsuit, shower cap.... really, really hoping these + massage + breathing + walking + water make for an easier time this time!
-we've completed our 'birthing' classes, which weren't too great, but we got some things out of it, so i feel pretty confident. it was so cute to hear all the moms talking about their birth experience plans as all of them will be going through their first birth. it helped my confidence and helped me reminisce about all of those feelings with jack. pete and i relived jack's birth a few times while watching videos and i cried a lot. did i tell you about my appointment with the midwife? i cried the whole time. it's emotional to retell your birth story {pluses and minuses} again, knowing you have this amazing little man, and knowing that even though i want our birth story to be different this time, i wouldn't change anything in the world about that time because it brought us jack! {tears again.}
-i've lost my mind. les has blown my mind with text messages about naming our baby 'emeril' and i didn't even get that she was saying 'emeril green' like emerald green. for like, days. pete had to explain it to me - in front of his parents, no less - because i seriously didn't get it! AH. i also called her crying on the corner of a street on wednesday, didn't understand a crack about a gardener, and i can't remember what day it is. i'm attributing the last to the fact that it was christmas vacation around here with pete and jack home, but there's no excuse. we've been back to the normal schedule since tuesday. i really need to get it together!
-i reorganized jack's room and did a few other things on my to-do list. i'm leaving the rest, just can't do it. i want to relax these last few weeks - maybe i'll go into some nesting surge as labor approaches, but if i don't i'm ok bringing our baby home to the mess we call home.
-nursery will wait until we know gender. it's a pretty green, so it'll be bedding and wall hangings, all easy to do with a newborn!
-i bought a pink/gray outfit and blue/gray outfit yesterday so the baby will be dressed cutely for the short ride home! {so freaking adorable, i haven't shopped for baby clothes since jack was born - maybe for a shower, but i don't think so!}
-i have nipple cream, nursing nightgowns, nursing tanks, and will get a pedi soon.

that sums it up! YAY for baby coming soon!! {who, by the way, says hi via slow rolls and head jabs!}

happy 2012!!!

2012-01-05T06:07:00.000-08:00

we celebrated at home this year. i was pretty tired, so i didn't break out the nice camera. jack took some pics, and we did some sparklers after drinking sparkling apple cider! we are looking forward to meeting our new little one in 2012 and wishing everyone a fantastic year!

we celebrated with the east coast at 9 :)

green family cheers!

not so sure.....

trying again

it's bubbly!

we decided we liked it!

jack reminiscing over our 2011 calendar

christmas evening!

2012-01-04T06:07:00.000-08:00

christmas evening at my parents' house with gran and grandpa, unc jd, unc david, aunt laura, unc eric, baby dino, and our family friend ellen:

grandpa and his grandsons:

cousins antics:

present time:

drum set from unc david (no, these are not coming home with us!):

and for your listening pleasure:

christmas morning!

2012-01-03T06:07:00.000-08:00

when jack woke up, he came straight to our bedroom, like every other morning. after about 15 minutes of cuddling, he asked if we thought santa came yet. we said we should go see - he bolted up and i raced in front of him down the hall. when he saw the presents he got this super cute nervous-giggle-laugh thing - i'm hoping to upload it soon to share (it was hilarious and adorable!). we enjoyed the morning with our toys and later when to my parents' house for christmas with the fam (post later!).

santa's handiwork

'trains and people and trees?!?! a CITY?!?'

'a big boy bike!'

'ah, haha, CARS TWO!!!!'

the reindeer never forget the doggies

first star wars toys!!!!

trying out his new bike (in the house, of course!)

i surprised pete with a 50" plasma TV this christmas... here he is opening a super light picture of the gift:

so confused.
it was a great surprise. i cried.

jack wrote out his cards, with gran's help

the little man shopped for us again this year:

a scarf, nail polish, and gloves for mommy

a frisbee, golf putting thing, and football for daddy

mommy and daddy got him a cars 2 set of shake-n-gos, some books, and a light saber.

this present's tag said, 'to: lion, love, big bro'

this was a present for the baby, 'lion' as jack calls it. the cutest little lion head blanket toy ever! next year will be twice as fun!!!

christmas eve!

2012-01-02T14:40:00.000-08:00

a forewarning - my posts will probably be really heavy on the photos as my ribs have been killing me for a month or so now and with only two weeks to go, i'm thinking i'd rather get the info out there (this has become our only source of scrapbooking!!) with just photos and captions than skip blogging altogether. i may head back later to add more text, but for now, it is what it is ;).

a chilly walk at st. mary's college prior to our crab/bread/salad lunch!

jack opening up his present from grammy, pe-paw, and aunt sara:

horsies and

a stable!

tracking santa on NORAD

giggling with grammy

we headed home to make cookies for santa and open our traditional one present:

'stirving'

tasting (unsanctioned)

these are the types of smiles i get now when i ask for jack to smile:

our present opening:

PJs!!!!!!!!

modeling his new PJs:

setting out cookies and carrots for santa and his reindeer:

why does he make this face with me?!?!

hanging our stockings!

we read 'twas the night before christmas' and watched shrek (it was on, that's why) before heading off to bed. jack was SO good knowing that santa was on his way!!!!

walks with grammy, pe-paw, aunt sara, and gingy

2011-12-29T06:10:00.000-08:00

we love meeting pete's parents+sis+pooch for walks! i'm snap-happy with jack as my subject:

costanzo family christmas!

2011-12-24T05:16:00.000-08:00

picture heavy - sorry!

cuddling baby dino :)

present time!

with the 2nd cousins:

paper fight!!!

christmas eve, eve!

2011-12-23T22:00:00.000-08:00

sunset

we spent a lovely day hanging out today! jack and gran made cookies, pete and i spent some time organizing christmas stuffs, we made some hand-dipped apricots and a christmas craft for grammy and pi-paw, and watched some christmas shows. it was so nice and relaxing! i am SUPER excited for tomorrow and christmas morning! tomorrow we'll spend the day with grammy, pi-paw, aunt sara, and ginger, taking a nice winter walk, eating crab, and sharing the spirit. when we get home we need to make santa's cookies and we'll enjoy a fire (to warm up the chimney!) and read 'twas the night before christmas. we'll open our 'christmas eve' presents (standard pjs!) and snuggle for the night. the excitement is building 'round here, with the elf on the shelf, christmas carols, christmas books and decor, jack is getting PUMPED for santa to come! looking forward to the weekend and wishing everyone a very merry christmas!!

pj day at preschool!

2011-12-23T06:43:00.000-08:00

the last day before vacation was pj day at jack's preschool - the kids looked so cute in their pjs and were even more adorable singing christmas carols at the end of their day!

i SO need a zoom lens.
if i stepped any closer, jack would've stopped singing!

candy cane lane.

2011-12-22T06:43:00.000-08:00

we love driving through this neighborhood in vacaville each year!

excited jack in his pjs

most of the houses have at least this many lights

jack liked the stables

pregnancy update!

2011-12-21T09:23:00.000-08:00

we're 36 weeks and three days along!!! it's unbelievable how fast this pregnancy has flown by!

we got to see our precious bundle yesterday and it was so exciting :). with jack, the only ultrasounds i had were up to the 20 week one because we didn't want to know the sex. until now, it's been the same with this little one. other mommies get to see their babies a lot more than we do, usually, but i still think the suprise is well worth it the suspense! let me tell you, this babe is CUTE! i know everyone says that, but really, he/she's so adorable. looking just like little jack, with maybe more my lips. dr. le offered up the sex, and even though we wanted to know SO.BAD, we didn't find out, pete kept his eyes closed (he has a knack for reading ultrasounds) and i stared intently at the screen to no avail (i'm horrible at reading ultrasounds!). i need the inspo to try and get through labor in a month or less.

so excited over here!!

totally awkward belly pic:

christmas, check!

2011-12-15T13:37:00.000-08:00

i think this is the first year EVER that i've been done for christmas before christmas eve!! i actually finished everything, including wrapping, on the 7th. that's because dr. le informed me on the 6th that if i go into labor (not likely, but still), they woudn't stop it and we'd have our new baby! so exciting, but it really kicked me into gear on the christmas thing! i immediately ran to purchase the remaining items on my list, picked up the final crafting things, and grabbed some baking stuffs. home i went where i finished diy gifts and wrapped EVERYTHING. and i am SO proud of my thoughtful gift-giving this year! i can't WAIT until christmas morning 'round here!!

now on to 'the list'. i want to cook some food, clean the house, create a chore chart, and organize for visitors/helpers/guests for when the baby arrives.... and i still need to tackle a few things on that ever-growing, not-necessarily-baby-related, home to-do list!

but first, i think i'll bake some brownies ;).

happy 1st of december!

2011-12-01T02:15:00.000-08:00

we have a LOT of advent-y stuff going on this year (three traditional candy-window ones, the tree on our mantel, a jar filled with activities, and an elf on the shelf!). more about our daily happenings as the month goes on, for now, a little holiday decor (inside):

jack and i made these glittery branches in the vase.
it was so fun! via.

he also helped with the waterless sno-globe! via.

he glittered the sign (behind all the chaos), 'merry & bright'

our dinning room is glittery red + gold
(with a few specks of green)

i picked up these carolers for $10 last year

and our mantel!
i absolutely love having a mantel!

our watch dog.

2011-11-30T14:14:00.000-08:00

most people think of this when they think of a watch dog:

i will EAT you.

buuuuuuut, we've got this:

"back it up, girlfriend, we don't do cats, squirrels, humans, or other dogs here.
mmmm, kay? thaaaaank yoooooooou." -bailey

bailey (aka Ooooodle the Pooooodle) takes her job very seriously. so seriously, i'm thinking of a way to block out the lower windows in the front of our house so she can't see the intruders (mainly cats, but she'll also bark at ANY person or dog walking by). and then we have this one:

"what is that DOG doing?!?! give it up, bailey!" - pepper
she thinks she's human.

pepper and bailey (despite the barking) are the very best dogs! they are the sweetest dogs, cuddling with us and protecting us. they deal with jack chasing them or trying to ride them. as annoying as the security alerts are at times, we absolutely love these four-legged kids!

spending some time with baby dino.

2011-11-30T12:42:00.000-08:00

our nephew/jack's cousin baby dino (real name anthony!), is so stinkin' cute!! we spent a few hours yesterday holding, rocking, and staring at him - you know how you do that to a little one? just in awe of laura and eric's little man!

jack is the BEST big cousin. i'm pretty sure he's going to be the VERY BEST big bro. he was so gentle and cuddly and interested -- he kissed, held, talked to, and pet baby dino. i can't wait for our baby to get here - only 6 1/2 weeks!!!!

here are some pics from our morning - though you know there would've been more if i wasn't hogging all the holding :)!

jack was very proud of himself. except the next picture i tried to take, he asked me to please leave them alone. i guess the boys are already plotting some crazy boy antics :). i think we're heading to see santa tomorrow - so, so fun!!

mallory and reese turn one!

2011-11-26T20:51:00.000-08:00

what polka-dot, bounce-house, cake-bite fun! mallory and reese turned one and had a big bash to celebrate!

jack + marley bee-lining for the bounce house

decorations and desserts:

i made the banner.

shannon spent FOREVER making 300 cake-bites!
they were delish and gorgeous!

shannon also spent some serious time on these dum-dum topiaries
i made the garland and poms.

cake time!

birthday princesses!
mallory (aka baby jimmy) and reese

proud parents shannon and jimmy giving the girls a hand

oblivious to the cakes, a flinestones foot race was going on:

marley

shoeless jackson

the kids partied hard! it was impossible to get a picture of all of them...

riley, jack, marley
ava is back there somewhere

mommy shannon partied a little harder (she really didn't, but she did gulp a bit after the long day!):

love this!

office/craft room/guest room to-do list!

2011-11-25T20:32:00.000-08:00

and the much anticipated (tara, les) to-do list!!!!

1. clean/organize
2. rearrange furniture/remove 'roll-top' desk
3. paint cabinets - add elements
4. move craft stuff into room from baby's room
5. organize craft for easy access
6. move bed into space

woo-weee. this was quite the project!

the cleaning and organizing was chaos. luckily, i had the energy and wherewithal to get all the stuff out of there and off the shelves before my mom had time to volunteer her painting services (i wish i had before pics with our stuff in the office, but i only have before we bought the place - end of post). if i hadn't, i would've been out of luck as my energy disappeared and laura's baby was born (YAY!) so mom had a very short window to ~~help~~ paint it all!

desk's new home
it's by the entry + dining room so it now holds all our table linens!

i took some mid-paint pictures, but i have no idea what camera i used or where they ended up. regardless, it wasn't pretty. these dingy old things took one coat of primer and four (yes, FOUR) coats of paint. it was even the paint with the primer and is designed for cabinets. (load of bull, if you ask me... or my mom!)

craft stuff in all sorts of containers
organized and out of baby's room - check!
the bottom shelves hold 'in-progress' projects.

mom painted all the cabinet parts. my plan was to keep the shelving brown, then add a variety of scrapbook paper to the edges. i really wanted this space to be different than the common living area of our house - i can't seem to break out of my tan walls with brick red/brown/whatever the season is accents. this room is more girly and more fun!

up-close of paper, i used mod-podge to adhere and seal

i also added a variety of pulls for the lower cabinets.
i picked them up at cost plus and each one is different.
this shows a bit of the variety.

guest bed moved into room
the colors are wild and pull in most others in the room
the tie-in piece :)

before.

after.

there's another wall next to the door - far left of above picture. on that wall is the desk. it's ugly right now, when i have it decorated, i'll post an update. and i have to post a pic of the light, it's SO fun. i just couldn't wait any longer for this portion. for some reason, if i don't blog the completion, it's like i can't quite take it off the list!!

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas!

2011-11-25T17:39:00.000-08:00

it may be nesting. or just the excitement a 3yo brings to the holidays. it may even be an attempt (though weak) at burning some turkey cals, but whatever the reason, it's beginning to look a lot like christmas 'round here!

we pete hung our outside lights today and we set up our reindeer. the lights are merry & bright right now, but the reindeer need a little help with a timer. no pics now, and i'm sure you'll tire of our christmas decor, but there will be many updates!

this is what my dining room table looks like right now:

green, red, + glitter MESS.

i packed up all the pumpkins, gourds, turkeys, and brown/gold/orange. it's a little sad, but we enjoyed the heck out of the fall season. it's time to fully enjoy our last christmas as a family of three! i want time to stand still for a bit, as excited as i am to meet little greenbean#2, because time is just flying by.

updates on the decor later, this lady needs to put her feet up!

and stay tuned, big office reveal tomorrow!

thanksgiving. updated with dinner snapshots.

2011-11-25T08:06:00.000-08:00

today we're giving thanks. we are so very thankful for our health, family, friends, pets, home, jobs, everything. a very blessed family! our sincerest wishes to all for a wonderful thanksgiving!

a special thanks for this little turkey.
and the one in my oven.
<3.

and now onto the turkey in the other oven:

not to toot our own horns, but our turkey gets better every year!
pete probably did 75% of the cooking, it's tough to be this preggo and cook all day!
he did an amazing job!!

our very simple table
i left the decor for the other parts of the house
and again, was too tired.
this is an area pete doesn't shine in, ya know?

this is my fav.
jack grabbed a leg (before we'd even really started dinner)
and CHOWED down!

he ate his leg and a see's candies turkey.
{give me a break, it's thanksgiving!}

new hair cut!

2011-11-15T10:57:00.000-08:00

here's a pic of my new hair cut!

neglecting the blog.

2011-11-14T15:18:00.000-08:00

i'm kind-of neglecting the blog. but i've been really busy:

i've been washing and folding about a million (it seems, until the baby gets here and i do wash every day!) of these:

onesies seriously attacking here!

so happy these homemade must-haves are gender neutral!

i've also been washing and folding ANYTHING that's yellow, cream, or mint green. essentials like this are getting the hand-me-down once-over:

moses basket! from shower with jack-in-the-belly

i got my hair cut! see this post for details on the last big cut. it's not as short, but pretty close! i've been sick, so no pictures yet, but i hope to not keep y'all waiting too much longer! i think my hair may have been longer to begin with, too! wowzers.

we've been working on this project (pic from prior to purchase of home) with the MAJOR help of my mom! sheila gail primed and painted these dingy old things a nice, bright white. i did some paper magic and reorganized ALL of my craft stuff. i can't WAIT to share - it's turning into our guestroom/craft/office, so i want to show you the FINAL product (it really helps tie everything together, too).

could you imagine PACKING all of this?!?!

and in honor of the opposite of procrastination, i've been planning this little man's birthday party! although we have until february, his birthday is exactly 3 weeks after our due date - and i'm thinking our babe will be late this time around. with a new baby and a growing little man (we wouldn't want to think we'd neglected), we've decided on taking the party to a 'place' instead of having it at home. i'm a little sad (i love hosting), but i can still bring all my paper products/banners/etc., so i'm thinking i'll get on that stuff and not have to clean my house (nor have a ton of kid-germs swarming a newborn). a major bonus? i can be AHEAD of the curve!!

i can't believe he's going to be FOUR!

i'm an AUNT!!!!!!!!!

2011-11-07T15:53:00.000-08:00

laura and eric welcomed their baby boy, anthony john, to the world on sunday, 11.6.11 at 4 o'clock on the dot! i'm not totally sure of his stats, but i think he was 8lbs 8oz, 20in long. he is happy and healthy - and such a good baby! laura and eric are doing well - we are so proud of them all!

the giacobazzi family <3.

don't they look great?!?!

loving his cousin

jack can't wait to share his toys ;).
that's scooby-doo, folks.

aw, look at the little man!!

today jack, gran, and i visited with some lunch (hospital food only goes so far when you aren't sleeping much and just went through daaaaaysss of labor). we had an awesome time meeting the little man. jack's been planning on 'petting dino's head softly' since he got the concept of a baby coming -- he got his wish, it was adorable!

halloween: trick-or-treating

2011-11-05T02:25:00.000-07:00

we had my family over for dinner and trick-or-treating this year. poor laura was (and still is as of friday am!) suffering through being past-due, but we all got together for some eating, walking, and CANDY.

halloween: preschool party

2011-11-04T11:10:00.000-07:00

jack was absolutely adorable as spider man this year! i was so surprised when he actually wore his costume to school - he is so very particular about things and i really didn't think he'd do it!

c'mon mom!!!

bolting to class

mandatory look at me pic

muscles!

his spidy twin, matthew

set to go home

with his buddies.
donovan (buzz), riley (tron?), anj (pirate), matthew (batman)

the sugar low kicking in

happy halloween!!

2011-10-30T21:01:00.000-07:00

have a very happy and safe halloween everyone!

we carved pumpkins on sunday:

so FUN. obviously.

he wants his pumpkin to look like this.

step one.

retracing mommy's cuts

'make the nose like mine!'

posing with his pumpkin

'baby, daddy, jack, mommy'
'our family!'

trial run with candles.

carving was so fun today - perfect weather and great behavior! YAY!

halloween 2008

2011-10-30T03:44:00.000-07:00

pumpkin patch!

2011-10-29T14:52:00.000-07:00

we visited the suisun valley pumpkin patch this year - so fun! and there was a maze!

jack is totally into mazes - if you're a mom, or a kid-like adult that may watch curious george, you'll know where this maze obsession came from....

we made it to the end and then climbed the huge hay-bale hill!

the variety of pumpkins/squash/gourds reminded me of pennsylvania last year. i absolutely love this time of year!!

this post has a couple pics of pa's patch (2010).

half moon bay pumpkin patch (2010).

pumpkin crafting (2010).

halloween (2009).
halloween (2008).

pumpkin patches (2007).

busy bees!

2011-10-24T14:06:00.000-07:00

after way too much complaining, we decided to tackle a few to-do items this weekend (in addition to the pumpkin patch, having lunch and a walk with pete's parents, and visiting the new giacobazzi pad - posts to come!). our plan was simple: pumpkin patch and garage cleaning. we did so.much.more!

friday pm: pumpkin patch in suisun valley - so fun, post later. check!

cleaned out garage! we were originally going to save this task for saturday - you know how long it can take to clean out a garage - but our neighbors were going to have a garage sale satruday am and offered to sell a few items for us (yes, please! i hate garage sales, but love not throwing away or donating everything). we sold a few items and got the garage manageable (as best as we'll ever have it!) that evening. check!

saturday am: garage sale - we were up bright and early to price and deliver our five items to the garage sale across the street. we ended up organizing our porch area (toys, especially) and playing outside before heading to the east bay for a walk and lunch at pete's parents. we spent a leisurely afternoon chatting and listened to cal (WIN!) on the way home. check!

saturday pm: relax! and i made homemade mac-n-cheese. delish!

sunday am:

storage closets - we woke up feeling so refreshed and with a great sense of accomplishment (even though we just cleaned out the garage- ha!). we kept the beat rolling and attacked our mess of a mess storage closest. i store all our holiday decor, stuff jack's grown out of, and pete stores tools in there. we had a bit of a mishap involving bird seed and rodents (you don't want to know) and i'm super happy we did it this weekend. we found out that the car seat and a few other items we were banking on using for baby #2 had become the home to a little family with big teeth. all ruined - better now than later to find that out - i cried a ton, but we're just going to have to go out and buy it all again! (i'm in better spirits now) check!

fire alarm and carbon monoxide detectors - installed with the help of our resident handy man! check!

sunday pm:

plants - after viisting laura and eric's new pad, we came home to a ho-hum front yard. pete suggested we buy pots to make our cone topiaries more grand, and i was digging it! i wish i had before pics, but i think they're pretty cute now! check!

boo!

2011-10-20T11:30:00.000-07:00

our halloween decor (inside):

how creepy is that picture of the scary guy? we have a girl one too.
she's behind the sweet pumpkins:
hey, pumpkin, meet you at the patch! :)
the creepy ones talk and flash with red lights in their eyes --- they give me the creeps.
hence the sweet pumpkin placement...

i'm loving my new silhouette pictures!
excuse the 'pumpkin snowman's' missing face.

i've kept some of our decor in the halloween box - hitting that 3rd trimester - i don't feel so well and there are more important things to do than go all-out for halloween (like tackle that HUGE to-do list -- not even a dent in it since the last posts: here, here, here, and here! ah!). we did, however, enjoy creating these displays and i have a few other craft projects/games for jack to do. i hope to decorate outside this weekend (i just have up purple lights with no power-source, ran out of energy - ha! get it?) as we are planning on having my family over for some trick-or-treating, snacks + dinner, and desserts. that's all if laura isn't in LABOR. she's due in less than a week (the 26th of october)!!! i have to go do some work on the baby's room (like get out all the JUNK i've thrown in it - eek!) before it's a week before my due date and there's no place to put the diapers but the kitchen!

do you decorate for halloween? whatcha do?

jamie kanter's birthday

2011-10-19T12:29:00.000-07:00

les was amazing for jk's birthday this year! i think she created the first.EVER facebook flash mob. i'm hoping this link works for you, because her debut flash mob album entitled 'A Day in the TuckLife of Jamie Kanter' is amazing. not only did this creative genius spend her weekend taking pics of 'jamie' all around newfreakinghampshire, she also sent an email to friends/family/previous bosses(?) to do the same all over the country.

our snapshots:

mommy, is this JAMIIEEEEE?

'hi, i'm jamie'

jack, we have to take pictures for his birthday.
cheeeeeese.

ah, a snack!
jack says, no jamie is NOT a snack.

how about this one?

with my pumpkin!

happy birthday squeeeeze!

and my grasshopper!

jack also yelled, let me seeeee! after every single picture. it was adorable. happy birthday, jamie! and thank you to les for entertaining us for a while :).

homemade laundry detergent

2011-10-17T14:15:00.000-07:00

i try to attempt at least one pinterest project a week, this week (in addition to other 'more fun' stuff), i decided to try my hand at homemade laundry detergent. i purchased the ingredients a while back but wasn't out of our regular 'all free and clear' until today! pete's home, so i decided it was time! btw, i got my recipe/process here.

ingredients:

time: 10minutes

process: grate fels-naptha - i just used a small box grater, didn't want to lug out the food processor and i think the bits of soap are as small (if not smaller) than if i used the machine. it took a few more minutes, but watch some tv and you're done before you know it!
mix with borax and super washing soda.

recipe: my bar of fels-naptha yielded 3 cups, so i used 11/2 cups EACH of the other two, mix together. i am storing it in a tupperware with a measuring spoon.

use: add 1 tbps to washing machine

cost: approximately $22 (but i am in NO WAY finished - or even made a dent - in the powdered ingredients)

previous cost: about $30/container

i'm not sure how long this powder will last, but i know there is going to be a substantial savings. it smells way better and i have a feeling will clean our clothes better. i'll update when we've been using it for a while, but for now and the load i've done, i LOVE it!

fall decor

2011-10-14T05:46:00.000-07:00

though i prefer 'autumn' i usually say fall, it's faster. and it was so much faster for this project! i love burlap, glitter, and banners. so i incorporated the three for a little fall decor:

i've also been obsessed with freezer paper painting, so i used that technique to get the letters on the burlap. here are the steps i used -- if you haven't tried to freezer paper paint, you must! it's super easy with fantastic results!

first, create your stencil. i used my silhouette to cut out the font i wanted onto the shiny side of the freezer paper (if you use the silhouette, the shiny side cuts better, but you need to flip the image horizontally). you could also print the letters on the flat side of the freezer paper, then cut out all the letter keeping the border intact. you want to create a stencil.
next, iron the freezer paper shiny side down onto your fabric, with the letter or image void and paintable.
paint! the paper makes a great seal, even on the bumpy burlap :). i used a metallic gold, then matte brown. after the paint dried a little, i added glitter to match the pumpkins.
i peel off the freezer paper when the paint is almost dry. i've waited until the paint is completely dry before and it's worked sometimes, but other times the paint lines aren't as crisp.
wait for paint to dry completely, then iron to set (though i'm not sure how necessary this step is, i do it just to be on the safe side).

i was going to hang the letters on twine with clothespins, but decided to use them to set the letters on our mantel instead. it's a nice addition to our fall mantel!

some other freezer paper projects:
baby shower activity here and here
more onesies here
pillows here

i just completed another project (this post was 'scheduled' but i wanted to add these pics)! holiday onesies for one of pete's friend's baby:

can you see the freezer paper? it's there, ready for painting
also, have you seen martha's new paint?!?!
you can paint on anything - fabric, metal, wood - and it works super well!

DO IT NOW!

fright fest!!

2011-10-13T02:25:00.000-07:00

despite my extreme fear for frightening halloween jazz, the willis and green families braved the unknown and went to six flags discovery kingdom last weekend. our fears were for not, as it was a blast of a time and wasn't scary at all. we rode rides, visited animals, and took in some shows. such a fun sunday afternoon!!

i was impressed with the transformation to an autumn/scary decor:

the boys waiting for the scrambler

we celebrated shouka:

jack was thrilled to play with his mini-shouka during the show

an elephant took a bath a few feet away from us!!

then we ventured to the 'africa' part of the park:

kristin took autumn and austin on the frog hopper ride while pete took jack. jason and i were laughing so hard at them and their reactions, luckily i caught a few pics:

jack rode again by himself

as it got dark, we kept it safe by heading to a kid-friendly section of the park with rides and character visits.

time to go to another show!

they changed up some of the shows after dark - the dolphins hosted a disco:

we were exhausted after running nonstop through the park from 1-8:30. i am sure the kids conked out as soon as they hit their carseats! i know i wanted to!!

apple hill 2011

2011-10-12T09:30:00.000-07:00

it's that time of year again - YAY! we decided to head up to apple hill early this year - a little anniversary celebration with the hopes of skipping the pumpkin madness that we've ran into in the past! success! we made it up to high hill ranch in no time, with no traffic at.all. it's amazing how much better the air smells when you aren't inhaling all the smog from the thousands of cars putting on the two lane road. it was an absolutely beautiful day!

oh man - i'm totally drinking KEGS of apple beer next year!

grandpa and jack bee-lining for snacks!

the pond looked beautiful!

we were up early enough to eat a bbq lunch.

jack being a goof.
he's not so into pictures right now - stinker!

and of course we had caramel + peanut covered apples! we all shared since we had lunch minutes ago:

jack pointing at the apples:

pure happiness.

we purchased three gallons of apple juice at boa. we are obsessed with apple juice right now and i really only like FRESH apple juice. no from-concentrate for me. in two weeks, we're down to 1/2.... it may be time for a another trip!!

he had to have some right.then.

see how good it is.............

obviously we grabbed pie a la mode to share, too.

boa has a pumpkin patch, too. jack's totally into posing with both hands on his hip. it's so cute and too funny. this is when he's down for a pic, that is.

he wanted to take allllllllll these pumpkins home!!

and, apple hill, blasts from the past!

2007 - jack was in my belly!

2008 - it was cold and jack wore an adorable hat!

2009 - we went with the willis family!

green valley farmers' market - last of the season

2011-10-11T02:06:00.000-07:00

i guess peaches are still in-season, these were the best i've had all summer! jack actually suggested we get a few... he LOVES farmers' markets and fruit stands!

i absolutely love fall, and was so ready for it this year... but i am going to miss the gv farmers' market. it was a good time for a saturdayu morning!

laura's baby shower!

2011-10-10T13:38:00.000-07:00

i've been m.i.a. this week because i was crafting/baking/planning for my little sister's baby shower! it was SO cute (if we do say so ourselves)...

i created the invitation:

a construction themed shower!

baby boy giacobazzi's bedding is all sorts of manly, so we used it to determine the theme and colors:

dessert table - winners all around!

pineapple upside down cake, orange cupcakes, + cake bites

it was mom's genius idea to have me make cake balls - that looked like dirt:

sprinkled with cocoa powder
being scooped by a scooperthingy and piled in a dump truck (not pictured)

the shower was in the afternoon, so we offered snacks for those midday lulls:

we decorated with toys to give to the g's when baby gets here. fun!

more decor:

i have a passion for banners. it's re-dic.

the whole color scheme and theme worked so well with mom's dining room:

our gift table (before the party started):

i freezer-papered onesies with my silhouette cutting the shapes.
a dinosaur for 'dino', a turkey with the word gobble, a plane
i didn't get a pic of my fav: two cows with 'milk lover'

it's not a shower without games! {not one of our showers, that is}

guess laura's girth - with construction caution tape
construct a nursery rhyme - complete missing words

check out the concentration here:

guess how many screws!

mom and allyn (laura's moh) laughing hysterically
allyn read whorer instead of horner.
i almost peed myself.

and my beautiful glowing sis:

with her mil, helen:

and some bump pics:

mom made us go belly-to-belly - high-five cousins!!!!!

at the time, we though it was ridiculous
but i kind of like it now :)

it was FUN! i am so happy laura and eric are all set to have their bouncing bundle of boy-joy!! she's due the 27th - keep her in your thoughts for a healthy baby and easy-peasy-drug-free delivery!

5 years ago...

2011-09-30T14:48:00.000-07:00

i walked down the aisle with my dad

who gave me away to my best friend

who took it very seriously

as did my sister

{glad i wasn't this much of a mess at her wedding!}

our closest friends stood up for us

we were toasted by pop pop

my dad

and pete's {and many others, pics aren't great}

cold shot rocked our world

we at the most amazing cake {some say, to this day, the best wedding cake they've EVER had}

and paaaaaarrrrrrrrrtieeeed with our family and friends {until my parents shut down the ipod at 3am}

happy anniversary, pete!

{i STILL haven't asked for our digital pics without a copyright - wth}

virginia city

2011-09-28T02:59:00.000-07:00

Virginia City is an experience going back 150 years. Let your adventure begin with a step back in time.

The 19th century mining boom turned Virginia City into the most important settlement between Denver and San Francisco; and grubby prospectors into instant millionaires. They built mansions, imported furniture and fashions from Europe and the Orient, and helped finance the Civil War... and then went on to build empires around the world. The finest example being San Francisco.

via.

because of the crash at the air races, we ventured to virginia city for the day. jack's favorites, always competing - planes and trains. {and automobiles, actually!}

looking out from the train station

we took a train ride to 'gold hill'.

jack in awe

we got a little plane action

stagecoach rides

that's jack's little hand waving at the steam-engineers

jack blowing his train whistle
he's letting the kids that got off for a leg stretch know...
allllll abooooard!!

mine wash

and spent some time in the old town:

yes they had 'em
we're working on not shooting (where do boys get it?!?!)
so we didn't watch...

this miner let you feed his mule for a dollar

i really enjoy the ornate decor of the time

candy makers

ice cream!!!

saw some attractions:

reno air races

2011-09-27T02:25:00.000-07:00

via

a tragedy occured on friday, the day before we were supposed to attend the reno air races. jack had been talking about this event for a year. we were up at the cabin (no cable, listening to our xm stations) when we received a call from the willis fam checking on us. we were shocked and received a few calls and texts from family and friends making sure we were okay. it's so sad that so many people passed (latest report is 11, including the pilot), with 74 people incurring injuries.

we are thankful we weren't there and our thoughts go out to those that were.

reno's rib cook-off

2011-09-26T02:25:00.000-07:00

since we've taken camping out of our weekend ritual, we've had to think of another habit. CABIN in the mountains!! my parents have a gorgeous cabin about 3hrs from here, between truckee and reno off on a tangent. we love staying there and decided the reno rib cook-off was the perfect activity for the weekend!

we had breakfast at...

you'd think with a name like terrible's they'd go out of their way to have the most amazing food. you'd be thinking incorrectly.

next we headed to the cook-off. before settling in to taste some ribs, jack and pete went on a few carnival-style rides:

patient jack

then the main event!

delish sauce-style ribs @unlce bub's

a dry rub from another stand

this place won tons of awards!
they had a line to prove it :(

it was super-duper hot, so after walking all the vendors (i don't know why i love them, but i do!), we let jack run in the fountains (don't worry, they were heavily chlorinated, so no risk of disease):

spirited jack splashed EVERYONE within his water's reach

and got drenched.

well needed, but not enough to cool down everyone. we headed to a nice restaurant in reno with their own brew (so jealous of the boys!) and played at circus circus for a while (winner, winner! we came home with too many stuffed animals!). cooling off in the casinos was fab! our night's sleep was even better.

sister bellies!

2011-09-25T14:17:00.000-07:00

taken almost a month ago!

mr. + mrs. martin

2011-09-25T10:04:00.000-07:00

jocelyn and devin tied the knot on 9.10.11! i've known jocelyn since our days back at alpha phi, we were in the same fall '98 pledge class. jocelyn and i don't see each other as often as i'd like (maybe different life-stages?), but when we do, it's never awkward and we have a great time! it was beautiful driving through the vineyards by the river:

their ceremony took place in a gorgeous little catholic church in guernville, with the reception at Thomas George Estates winery in healdsburg. the scenery was beautiful with very yummy snacks set in the winery's cave:

jocelyn is the queen of 'to-do' lists (i believe i am the princess), so while guests milled around during cocktail hour, becca and i set to the task of asking them to complete a 'to-do' list for the newlyweds. the envelopes listed dates (like 1st anniversary, 5th anniversary) and days (like a rainy day in sf, when devin is sick). it was a super cute idea to keep the spirit of their wedding night throughout their marriage.

directions

milling at mouth of cave

tasting room

dinner was seated and absolutely delicious! tomato + mozzarella, fresh local grilled veggies, pasta, chicken with prosciutto + cheese, greens with pears + goat cheese. i was loving it!

these envelopes were passed out during dinner. the couple shared a time early in their not-even-a-relationship-yet past when devin brought back wine and lottery tickets after a run to the store. jocelyn was hooked - she's such a gambler - and they shared their first kiss that evening. the envelopes held two lottery tickets and a lucky penny - such a cute and personal favor!

a delicious cake topped off the meal - with three different flavors, all spectacular.

the weather was perfect! a little cool for the east bay guests who had been experiencing very hot weather, and a little warm for the city folks who survived the coldest summer ever (you know, because it's san francisco).

cave entrance

after the mandatory wedding festivities, we watched the couple enjoy their first dance, watched the bridal party perform a dance routine to a variety of 'very-jocelyn' songs (hot in herrrre and should've been a cowboy), and the floor gave way to a fabulous dance party! even pete joined me for a few :), and baby liked it too!

mr.+mrs. martin

jack + mia

2011-09-22T09:33:00.000-07:00

michelle and i go back, back to the alpha phi house at ucd. we both have little munchkins that were born in 2008 just two days apart... AND we are both expecting new babes! michelle is due in december with another precious little girl :). i posted this on her fb wall as a way of telling her about our baby greenbean #2:

Jen Green
can we meet up in january with our new babes? :)

http://baby-greenbean.blogspot.com/2008/03/lunch-in-davis.html

the green family: lunch in davis

baby-greenbean.blogspot.com

we decided to get together in davis to let jack and mia run around -- mostly so we could catch up.

the kiddos got along so well (minus jack being a tad crazy at lunch, mia didn't like jack acting crazy, but it got figured out -- boys). they played dora and diego and rescued countless animals on the play structures at central park.

here they are during lunch (les, can you tell where our cravings led us?):

they really wanted a pic of the boat :)

and back in 2008, at 5ish weeks old:

jack can't stop talking about mia and asks to call her and michelle to see if they want to go to the park. almost daily. can't wait for our next meet-up with the alexander ladies!

it's fall y'all!

2011-09-21T15:31:00.000-07:00

happy first day of faaaaalllllllll!!! i love fall! too bad it's like, 100 degrees here (or something equally outrageous!). i just got all of my fall jazz out of storage and am so.freaking.excited to get it all out and up! it's not too early for pumpkins, is it? am i being too 'commercial' and forcing a season too soon? i mean, i probably won't get out the halloween stuff just.yet. maybe on monday? it's supposed to cool off on monday....

anyway, don't ask me about how my to-do list is going {'cause it's not going. anywhere.}. you can ask me what diy stuff i've been up to.... what's that you say, you want to see what diy stuff i've been up to? well, okay, here goes:

ribbon wreath with coffee filter flowers

tulle wreath

chalkboard painted signs for porch

silhouette halloween with painted frames

now off to dream of pumpkins and falling leaves :).

pete's birthday!

2011-09-20T15:06:00.000-07:00

we celebrated pete's birthday low-key with just a family celelbration. we had a fantastic lunch at his folks' house and ate a delish cake at home. here are the decorations jack + i made:

prepping for paper mache-ing

we used a regular balloon
i don't have any finished pics as we didn't get to paint it
and we ended up accidentally smashing it without daddy
we ate the treats while camping, just as fun :)

sneaky jack getting soaked while i rinsed off the excess 'glue'

jack punched out a bunch of blue + yellow circles to scatter on the table
i asked him to put them all around
he placed them as placemats, too cute

surprise

he picked out the colors and circle sizes
i wrote 'happy birthday' with chalk

oakland's fairyland

2011-09-13T15:38:00.000-07:00

last week, to escape the heat and because i purchased tickets for half off on mamapedia, i took jack to oakland's fairyland. it was too cute. i can't wait to take both kiddos next year - it's such a perfect place for moms and kids:

entry.

just jack + mommy.
bad angle, but we have hardly any pics together :(.

'i want to go there.'
jack LOVES maps!

creepy bubble-blowing elf.

alpaca.
they had a pony, mules, chickens, ducks, guinea pigs, + goats.

and this tin giraffe.

a puppet show!
set in the heart of oakland (big buildings surround).

ferris wheel, all by his lonesome.
you can't be over 46" to ride!

there are all sorts of fairytale houses and stories throughout.

and why it's great for moms!!!!!!! espresso!!!!!!!!! also, noone without a child is allowed in, no child allowed out. it was such a safe place!

pumpkin cafe with the BEST latte and scones!

and cold milk for thirsty boys.
his 'coffee'.

a ginormous slide!
meant for 4yr olds only, jack is such a daredevil ;).

too much excitement, jack tried to nap on a bench.

this place is totally worth a visit, but i'd look for a coupon. i paid $8 for both of us, the regular fee is $8 per person, 1 to 100. $16 (or in a year and half, $24) would be a little much. and it's really for the younger child, jack would either be too big or bored in a couple years.

last camping trip of 2011

2011-09-08T15:06:00.000-07:00

ah, what a summer! we've been so very busy and have had so much fun! we went to our favorite campsite and beach the weekend after pete's birthday for one last hurrah.

we got a new car, so we brought our jet ski!

and i'm showing! 20 weeks.

the resevoir is ceding quickly, but there were plenty of diving rocks.

jack had a blast!

we spent most of the time tyring to figure out how to camp with a baby.... next summer will be interesting!

another waste of time, but fun!

2011-09-01T16:59:00.000-07:00

what's the color of babies, you ask? you can waste your time on the color of to find out the color of ANY word! fun :) i actually was looking for a color to represent something i was working on - kind of a fun way to do it...

oh, ooooh, we're half-way theeeerrree!!!

2011-08-31T10:16:00.000-07:00

it's unbelievable. i can not even wrap my head around it! we're 20w,2d.... that's half-way, folks!! here is a shot of our little greenbean at his/her 20w ultrasound yesterday:

baby green #2 at 20 weeks

i know with the holidays and my super-huge to-do list that this second half will fly by even faster. it makes me want to get my butt in gear, but we're sick :(. i've been battling a horrible cough - without medicine, so no sleeping! - since sunday. jack is suffering with more of a runny nose, poor guy. i'm hoping we're up and running by friday, we're going to Reno! jack is off school this week, so at least i didn't plan much around-the-house-to-do-before-babe-stuff. just playing and going on outings *which now include abandoned parks so i don't get the evil-eye from other parents*.

and 'cause i like to see the similarities, jack at 20 weeks:

baby green #1 at 20 weeks

i've come to the realization that all babies in-utero may look the same, however, jack looks exactly like this, so i'm thinking there has to be some individualization....right?

living room to-do list!

2011-08-22T15:02:00.000-07:00

last week i was a little short on time, so i chose the shortest list to work on. plus this list has a couple things i can't do (due to pregnancy and lack of know-how), so it seemed perfect!

living room to-do:
1. clean out dish cabinet
2. paper back of cabinet
3. clean out tv stand
4. wash couch covers
5. buy screens for doors
6. stain fingerprints on ceiling from construction
*these were off limits -- didn't get doors, nor can i install, don't want to be climbing ladders to stain. these have been added to pete's to-do list :)

i cleaned out the dish cabinet/hutch thing removing dust (eek!) and taking out a few pieces. here is the cabinet, picture also for 'before' of papering the inside:

plain-jane
i also noticed that there is a TON of space above.
need to think of something to go there!!

after many emails with les, we decided to paper the back with removable adhesive so i can change the colors -- i regularly change the towels in my kitchen with the season (or mood!) so we thought this was the wisest idea for the hutch as well. i'm pretty pleased with the after and even more pleased i didn't do anything permanent! it was an easy project with the impact i was looking for, though really the ability to change the paper will be awesome for me.

before and after vary in size, but
i wanted to show the paper detail!

i cleaned out the tv stand cabinet, but didn't put anything inside to replace the dvds. i'm planning on using it for blanket and toy storage when our little greenbean arrives. currently (bad mom), i don't have toy storage/baskets/etc. in our living areas (except the little kitchen). i'm kind-of a 'we'll play in your room or bring out bins of toys and put them away before nap or bed' kind of mom. is that bad? i have one or two baskets for 'nonbelonging' items in between cleaning or pick-ups. then i take that basket when i go to the bathroom or bed and put everything away.

washing the couches required no before or after :).

because i am going to show you the amazingness that was my living room before we took possession of the house, i've included another view here:

we spent the most money and time remodeling this area of the house. this side was 'sinking' into the groud as the fireplace was too heavy (and probably all the tile and junk, too) for the foundation. this made the house 'unloanable'. the buyer needed to pay cash and sign all sorts of papers and bids describing the damage and repair costs from companies all over the bay area. the estimates were around $100, 000. obvisously this scared a lot of buyers, but, with the help of my dad and his years upon years of construction experience, we were confident in our ability to make this home livable and pretty. we got a construction loan and (with the help of these super high bids) borrowed enough to raise the ~~roof~~ house by digging pillars, pouring cement, and building a very cute porch. we were also able to compelte the rest of the projects mentioned in previous and future posts.

gorgeous.

we hired a mason to resurface the lower part of the fireplace with salvaged bricks from buildings that were torn down. the brick hearth was cut to the width of the fireplace, and we tore out all the shelving. the dark wood ceiling was kept since we added so many doors to the room. we covered the top portion of the fireplace with sheet rock and paster to lighten the place up and cover the remainder of the fireplace. see, the house was so 'crooked' that the bricks slanted big time. in fact, the whole floor was ridiculously slanted - it made this vertigo-haver sick to stand in the place!

left of the fireplace
you can kind-of see the crookedness at the bottom
that little window turned into a door to our porch

view to the right of our current hutch
we took these cabinets out too - kitchen at a later date!
this is now a walkway

'cause i know you love to look at creepy dolls, you are very welcome. are you getting it? let me know if you want more 'after' pics to get the entire feel. i mean, i know you're dying to know all the ins and outs of my house, right?!?!?

joc's bach + downtown fairfield tomato festival

2011-08-21T16:10:00.000-07:00

jocelyn is tying the knot in three weeks, so she had a saturday night bach to celebrate!

cowboy hat + veil
future mrs. martin tank

she has amazing friends and the night was so fun! we met up for dinner/apps/drinks at her future hubby's sister's house, then they took a party bus to the saddle rack!

becca and i followed in my car (i can't drink - obviously - and becca doesn't do mass transportation, especially involving alcohol!). we had such a good time line dancing and normal dancing to an awesome country band. it was a late night, but totally worth the headache i have this morning! seriously, i feel really horrible considering i didn't have a sip of alcohol -- the other girls are feeling it pretty bad today :(.

there was a mechanical bull!
abby kicking it up for the party

i'm just holding a beer, not drinking it :)

a classic joc dance move
all brides + birthday girls were invited on stage

i got home late, but had to make it out to the downtown fairfield tomato festival. jack, gran, unc david, and i cruised the vendors. we had fun, but didn't get any delicious snacks like last year....i didn't take any pictures either :(. i had to include our little trip because i received an email this morning from baby center. guess how big our baby is now? about the size of an heirloom tomato!!

Your baby weighs about 8 1/2 ounces and measures 6 inches, head to bottom — about the size of a large heirloom tomato. Her arms and legs are in the right proportions to each other and the rest of her body now.

i should also report (for record keeping sake) that i've been feeling this little one move around since 161/2 weeks! i'm 19 weeks along today, almost half-way there!!!

marine world, just the two of us!

2011-08-19T05:03:00.000-07:00

this is the last week marine world (six flags discovery kingdom - was marine world when i was growing up!) is open during the week. i'm not really into braving the crowds on the weekends, so i decided jack and i should try a day at the park - just the two of us!

i was really worried because they have a lot of rides jack needs an adult to ride, but in my condition, i can't ride! luckily, we found a couple he was tall enough to ride alone and i scheduled our day to make it to three animal shows! we were also able to see some animals we've missed in the past. check out our last trip.

jack loved the alligators
{even though they never move!}

we spent some quality time with the butterflies - they were fluttering all about! jack was in awe. i kept feeling baby butterfly kicks from greenbean #2. precious moments here.

admiring the butterflies
such amazement

butterflies fly all around you

we walked to the 'sea' portion of the park to go to the sea lion stadium and had to stop by and say hello to our friend 'bruce'.

a favorite - shark experience
a walk-thru aquarium

the sea lions are a fav (maybe tied with dolphins). i love that they seem to love to perform and they make funny noises. the show always has a fun story line with adult and kid jokes. these sea lions passed out like charlie sheen, but also said 'aaargggg' like jake and the neverland pirates. perfect combo!

entertaining jack while waiting for the sea lions

it was pirate themed!

after a quick train ride, we watch a walrus regurgitate and re-eat a fish (lost my appetite), then purchased this little souvenir. it was only $1. SOLD! surprisingly, this theme park is really reasonable in the toy department!

jack likes his 'mustache'
and this was the best smile i could get - stinker

next we headed to the children's rides where jack was tall enough to fly a helicopter!

all by himself :(

jack was excited to see bugs and tweety. he just waved at bugs, but gave a full-on high five to the birdie! guess size mattered here...

i was totally ready to head home at this point, but we noticed that the dolphin show was starting in about 25 minutes. i figured we were both tired enough to sit and wait.... we were until the cotton candy vendor came through, then jack got a little sugar-high! fortunately the show started and the amazing dolphins captured his attention for 30 minutes.

loving the blue...proof all over face, hands, and my leggings...

magnificent dolphin jumps

jack clapped with his hands above his head when he really liked what he saw

all five in the air

these dolphins were on fire! they were playing with each other for a bit before the show started and seemed to really enjoy showing off! i tell myself they are happy here, it makes me less sad that they live by a roller coaster. i mean, they may not even be alive in the wild -- the one on the far right is 21 years old!

i was able to sneak out of the park with jack not really noticing where we were going - i felt bad about not telling him, but sometimes it's better this way. i knew we he was getting tired - the little man conked out not even 5 minutes into the ride home.

it went well, i think i'll brave it again! maybe even by myself with two little ones next summer :).

alameda antique fair finds!

2011-08-17T19:33:00.000-07:00

i know my new entry design is super summery {in my defense, indian summers are our 'thing' with temperatures really kicking it into high gear end of august until early october [with no wind!] -- and sometimes into halloween}, but i just had to incorporate my alameda find: a super old window! i picked up this goodie with no idea how to use it, but with so many ideas at the same time!

new entry set-up

from above with better view of find!

isn't the yellow fun!
it has a darker turquoise-y green on the edge and flip side

the placemats are from anna maria - i just LOVE them. i'm figuring out a way to make my kitchen yellow and bright pink come springtime :)

and, in a previously seen post, the letter G and number 19 were dug out from a ginormous pile of letters, numbers, and symbols of all sizes! my belly hurt from crouching so long looking for the perfect G, 1, and 9. kristin got a W and an A -- we both wish we had picked up more!

i can't get over the monogram thing

as in our address

on another note, i am completely digging my gladiolus stems from trader joe's. $1.99 and blooming perfectly! they were the inspo for the impromptu decor today.

btw, those are the tissue poms frombecca's shower
the baby's room has housed all my crafts
it's time to use 'em or move 'em!

camping trip #4!

2011-08-15T18:51:00.000-07:00

we are camping machines, seriously. we have one more trip scheduled this summer. it's nice to get all the kinks out and get a real system going so next summer will be easier (or we'll have to throw all of it out the window, who knows!?!) with our family of four.

we welcomed the giacobazzi's and willis family this trip. it was my sister's first time camping, ever. check out her post on her new blog HERE. we had a great time exploring yet another beach and determining the best spot to try and reserve next year. fashoda campgrounds, you are our fav!

we ate cantelope + cheesed for the camera

we took a family hike

we swam naked in the resevoir

some rolled in the sand

we took preggo pics

and family pics

cheese

pete + pepper jumped off rocks

we warmed up in the sun
(see laura's post, we got sunburned, jack lectured us on the use of sunscreen)

we threw pepper a ton of sticks

and gazed out over the water
(kristin + autumn)

we sang songs around the campfire
a favorite? itsy-bitsy spider!

the boys took turns building bigger + better fires

we slept with pepps + enjoyed it

we had fun in our tent

and enjoyed each other's company!

it was a great trip and hopefully the first of many with the giacobazzi's!!!!!!!!!!!

hallway to-do list!

2011-08-11T03:40:00.000-07:00

this week i focused on the hallway. fun-oh-fun! not really.

hallway to-do:
1. clean out all five closets: linen (for linens, both bed and kitchen), towel, broom/cleaning, coat, old hot water heater home (aka waste of space)
2. take down 'american' decor. normally i leave it up for labor day, but it's had a long showing, it's time.
3. re-do photo gallery. i had taken it down prior to becca's shower (for some odd reason), it's time to bring it back!

i'm not going to bore you with the details of cleaning out and organizing five closets. the shop vac and trash cans are full, that's all i'm going to say.

now on to the fun part, which i saved for last, because if i didn't i would never clean out those closets!

you can see my old photo wall and details here. i went through basically the same process, this time adding post-its and perfectly measuring and marking nail holes. i nailed through the paper, then took it down from left to right adding the corresponding pictures. i have grand plans of changing out the actual pictures, but that is the super fun part. i need to work on the not-so-fun parts of my to-do list first. and maybe get this baby here so he/she can participate (in being in the pictures, not replacing them)!

all laid out

post-its instead of saying what the picture is
it was much easier this time!

traced and labeled craft paper
this tech worked so well last time
i measured and cut this last night

leveled on wall - lower this time, which i like
so does jack :)

done!
it only took me an hour. that's not too shabby!

i added some notes, they are too small :(
the door keyhole plates are chicago finds from my trip in feb.
the 19 and G are from the alameda antiques fair.
i plan on painting the wood frame and replacing the pic.

before, as in wednesday morning:

blah, blah, boooooring.

aaaaaaand, before the green family moved in:

the walls were wood paneling wallpapered!
we replaced flooring throughout (except bedrooms $)
do you like the planter and basket thing-y?
we capped the planter with wood, that's what the flowers sit on.

this is the area you always see in my holiday decor pics.
we replaced windows and flooring.

cray-z weekend!

2011-08-10T15:40:00.000-07:00

actually, it was a crazy 24 hours. we went to a wedding (erin briggs and ryan smith) in lodi, getting home past midnight:

it was pretty and so erin!

i made myself a feather-faux-fascinator

our dumb tablemate's excellent photog skills
tim brown, albert lee, and pg

they moved too fast
this is all i got :(

go theta chi!
jeremy pine, pg, albert, ey

then i woke up at 6am to meet kristin for the alameda antiques fair by the bay. i forgot my camera in my car, but i got a couple great items! after the fair, we went back to her house for a lunchtime bbq:

the kids played in the water for 5 hours!

it took me a while to get up-and-running on monday, even with this 2nd tri energy boost!

back to nesting posts tomorrow :)