Thursday, July 19, 2012
Sunday, May 13, 2012
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Coming Home
Jack and Giulia – it’s been a long time since I last wrote here. So much has happened – pretty unbelievable stuff -- if someone had actually told me your dad and I would have gone through all the things that we did this past year, I would have never, ever believed them. Things like Jack’s accident, almost exactly a year ago, and all that came with it just doesn’t happen to careful and loving parents like us. We didn’t know how to deal with it all, but one thing that we were always certain of was that we just wouldn’t let anything touch our family. Those 44 days in the hospital were the hardest of our lives, but they didn’t break us. Our families and especially God was with us every step of the way, giving us strength, support and much needed love.
I have now begun to find my joie de vivre again. I have finally been able to hire someone to take care of you guys - entrusting your well being in the hands of someone other than your dad and me has been a challenge. But you guys really like Nico and the relationship is working out great overall.
Giulia, you are in pre-school and loving it. You just turned 4 a couple of days ago and you had many birthday parties to celebrate, but still, you kept asking your dad and me for more. You love your birthday, the attention, the love. We had a party for you in Brazil, another one at home in the USA and even a mini-bash in school. You are such a smart little girl. You know all the letters in the alphabet and your numbers, both in Portuguese and English, You have so much energy and a constant need to be stimulated. There’s so much life and happiness in you. And Giulia, you are kind. You are loving and amazingly sensitive and sweet. I know I keep saying this, but it is so true…. You, my love, are the perfect materialization of everything I had always dreamed of for a daughter. I love you so, so much.
Jack, what you went through really broke my heart into a million pieces and forever changed me, but your strength, your resilience, inspires me every day. You are happy, full of energy and you are so, so smart. You are walking and running without many issues. Your scars are healing so well. You are now beginning to talk and can repeat pretty much anything we say to you. You are a snuggle bug, loves stuffed animals and you absolutely LOVE hair. It’s the funniest thing, you are drawn to it! You have such a strong personality, you know exactly what you want and you go for it. You are an amazing little boy – your dad and I thank God every day for you’re the gift of your life in ours.
Your father and I couldn’t feel more complete, now that you are in our lives. We love you so, so much and can’t wait to experience all that life with both of you has to offer. We never take the gift of having you two for granted. We are the luckiest people in the world. We love you forever.
I have now begun to find my joie de vivre again. I have finally been able to hire someone to take care of you guys - entrusting your well being in the hands of someone other than your dad and me has been a challenge. But you guys really like Nico and the relationship is working out great overall.
Giulia, you are in pre-school and loving it. You just turned 4 a couple of days ago and you had many birthday parties to celebrate, but still, you kept asking your dad and me for more. You love your birthday, the attention, the love. We had a party for you in Brazil, another one at home in the USA and even a mini-bash in school. You are such a smart little girl. You know all the letters in the alphabet and your numbers, both in Portuguese and English, You have so much energy and a constant need to be stimulated. There’s so much life and happiness in you. And Giulia, you are kind. You are loving and amazingly sensitive and sweet. I know I keep saying this, but it is so true…. You, my love, are the perfect materialization of everything I had always dreamed of for a daughter. I love you so, so much.
Jack, what you went through really broke my heart into a million pieces and forever changed me, but your strength, your resilience, inspires me every day. You are happy, full of energy and you are so, so smart. You are walking and running without many issues. Your scars are healing so well. You are now beginning to talk and can repeat pretty much anything we say to you. You are a snuggle bug, loves stuffed animals and you absolutely LOVE hair. It’s the funniest thing, you are drawn to it! You have such a strong personality, you know exactly what you want and you go for it. You are an amazing little boy – your dad and I thank God every day for you’re the gift of your life in ours.
Your father and I couldn’t feel more complete, now that you are in our lives. We love you so, so much and can’t wait to experience all that life with both of you has to offer. We never take the gift of having you two for granted. We are the luckiest people in the world. We love you forever.
Monday, November 7, 2011
Saturday, March 26, 2011
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Jack - 6 months
Jack, my love, you are officially 6 months old – that's six whole months - 1/2 of a year. We're not sure how time has gone by so quickly, and you continue to amaze us each and every day!
You have grown in leaps and bounds this month both physically (you are our big boy), but especially socially. It seems like every few days you were mastering a new skill. From finding your feet to playing Winnie the Pooh horsey with Santana and talking... You love to play with daddy’s watch, just like Giulia used to. Oh, you love to talk. Your dad, Santana and I have so much fun having conversations with you. Things that I found out this past month are that you have a ticklish belly and we knew that you loved bath (you love to kick your legs and splash around) but we didn’t know how much you would love to take baths with me in the big tub. You sit on my belly and tap the water and laugh… You love to smile and you just light up when you see your dad or me. You also adore Giulia. I’m sure you just can’t wait until you can play with her…
You love to play. We started you on the Exersaucer, at 1st, you couldn’t stand it for more than a minute and now you are a lot more comfortable and playing with its various activities.
You are teething still, but no tooth yet. It’s really hard to see, but this is one of the big milestones in your baby life and boy, you will get through it with your dad and me right there with you. You are alos having poopies issues, although for the past couple of days I have given you prune juice, which has prompted you to poo 3 or 4 times. Daily.
You have been incredibly hungry and although I’ve been pumping like crazy, I haven’t been able to produce as much milk as you need, so we started to supplement your meals with some formula. We also tried some baby food – carrots and sweet potatoes (2/16) – but you really didn’t like it as much. That was surprising because you are ALWAYS hungry.
You are now wearing 9 to 12 month clothing. You still wear size 2 diapers, but those are starting to get to be too small. And look how big you’ve gotten!
I now understand when people say that a mother’s heart can hold an infinite amount of love. I can’t believe how much love this heart of mine can hold, it is simply enormous. Between my love for your dad, you and Giulia one would think it would explode! But no, it stays steady, and ready to experience what’s ahead. I just can’t wait. Love you so much, Mamae.
You have grown in leaps and bounds this month both physically (you are our big boy), but especially socially. It seems like every few days you were mastering a new skill. From finding your feet to playing Winnie the Pooh horsey with Santana and talking... You love to play with daddy’s watch, just like Giulia used to. Oh, you love to talk. Your dad, Santana and I have so much fun having conversations with you. Things that I found out this past month are that you have a ticklish belly and we knew that you loved bath (you love to kick your legs and splash around) but we didn’t know how much you would love to take baths with me in the big tub. You sit on my belly and tap the water and laugh… You love to smile and you just light up when you see your dad or me. You also adore Giulia. I’m sure you just can’t wait until you can play with her…
You love to play. We started you on the Exersaucer, at 1st, you couldn’t stand it for more than a minute and now you are a lot more comfortable and playing with its various activities.
You are teething still, but no tooth yet. It’s really hard to see, but this is one of the big milestones in your baby life and boy, you will get through it with your dad and me right there with you. You are alos having poopies issues, although for the past couple of days I have given you prune juice, which has prompted you to poo 3 or 4 times. Daily.
You have been incredibly hungry and although I’ve been pumping like crazy, I haven’t been able to produce as much milk as you need, so we started to supplement your meals with some formula. We also tried some baby food – carrots and sweet potatoes (2/16) – but you really didn’t like it as much. That was surprising because you are ALWAYS hungry.
You are now wearing 9 to 12 month clothing. You still wear size 2 diapers, but those are starting to get to be too small. And look how big you’ve gotten!
I now understand when people say that a mother’s heart can hold an infinite amount of love. I can’t believe how much love this heart of mine can hold, it is simply enormous. Between my love for your dad, you and Giulia one would think it would explode! But no, it stays steady, and ready to experience what’s ahead. I just can’t wait. Love you so much, Mamae.
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Jack - 4 months
Jack. - You are four months old F-O-U-R , yes, four. 1/3-year old at that. This month has been crazy and our adventures even involved your 1st airplane ride to our home state, CT. You were an excellent traveler and never made a peep on the plane. At 4 months old, you’ve already earned your wings.
We needed to get our house ready to be rented out and we had Christmas at your Grammy Donna and Grampy Nicky’s. That was your 1st Christmas celebration and boy, did we have fun. You met your Aunt Julie – your Godmother – and Uncle Chris, your Uncle Rob and your Aunt Lisa and your beautiful cousin Lindsay. You were so cool being held by all of those new people, including many of your grandparent’s friends. Your big smile won everyone;s hearts. It was quite cold and snowy in the East Coast. It was also the 1st time you got a bit sick.
Jack, you were baptized on 12/26. You did absolutely wonderful, didn’t cry once. You bonded with your Godmother Julie from the get-go and we are sure that you will be really close with your Godfather, Leopoldo. We can’t wait for you to meet him and for your baptism celebration in Brazil.
When we got back from NY / CT, we had the best visit ever. Auntie Mara and Uncle Helio and your beautiful cousins Bia, Gabi and Pedro came to visit us. They spent the week with us and although that wasn’t enough, we cherished every second that we spent with them. Being here, the only one from our Brazilian family in the US, I really treasure every family visitor, especially someone who is like a sister to me (your Aunt Mara). Your father and I really hope that they had a great time and that they’ll want to come back to spend more time with us.
You went to daycare for the 1st time ever and everybody in Kindercare absolutely fell in love with you. You are still having poopie issues and on day 2 you had a major explosion. All my fears that I or Santana weren’t going to be there when you needed to be fed or changed went away because you did absolutely wonderful. It was actually the 1st time that you and your sister were in daycare at the same time. You guys did great, but your mom was worries sick. One of the thng that both you and Giulia have taught me is that you can be OK even though I’m not with you 100% of the time. On an intellectual level, I understand that. On an emotional level, I will always, and I mean always think that you need me and I will always be here for you. I really mean in – always. But I will also try my best to let you spread your wings. No pun intended!
What else have you been doing? Well, you oves toys, bright colors, catching your sister (pique-pega), making bubbles, dancing with me and the second I start dancing with you, your face lights up and you give me the biggest smile in the world. You only like your paci (not Giulia’s - quite opinionated!) and you love it when I sing to you, you look at me with so much love…
You love watching Dora and Ni Hao Hai-lan. These are colorful cartoons for little kids and you seem to be hypnotized by them.
.You made celebrating the holidays such a joy this year and your dad and I can't wait to continue celebrating our lives with you. It is so much fun to view the world through the eyes of a child and you and Giulia make us do just that.
Love you forever - Mamae
We needed to get our house ready to be rented out and we had Christmas at your Grammy Donna and Grampy Nicky’s. That was your 1st Christmas celebration and boy, did we have fun. You met your Aunt Julie – your Godmother – and Uncle Chris, your Uncle Rob and your Aunt Lisa and your beautiful cousin Lindsay. You were so cool being held by all of those new people, including many of your grandparent’s friends. Your big smile won everyone;s hearts. It was quite cold and snowy in the East Coast. It was also the 1st time you got a bit sick.
Jack, you were baptized on 12/26. You did absolutely wonderful, didn’t cry once. You bonded with your Godmother Julie from the get-go and we are sure that you will be really close with your Godfather, Leopoldo. We can’t wait for you to meet him and for your baptism celebration in Brazil.
When we got back from NY / CT, we had the best visit ever. Auntie Mara and Uncle Helio and your beautiful cousins Bia, Gabi and Pedro came to visit us. They spent the week with us and although that wasn’t enough, we cherished every second that we spent with them. Being here, the only one from our Brazilian family in the US, I really treasure every family visitor, especially someone who is like a sister to me (your Aunt Mara). Your father and I really hope that they had a great time and that they’ll want to come back to spend more time with us.
You went to daycare for the 1st time ever and everybody in Kindercare absolutely fell in love with you. You are still having poopie issues and on day 2 you had a major explosion. All my fears that I or Santana weren’t going to be there when you needed to be fed or changed went away because you did absolutely wonderful. It was actually the 1st time that you and your sister were in daycare at the same time. You guys did great, but your mom was worries sick. One of the thng that both you and Giulia have taught me is that you can be OK even though I’m not with you 100% of the time. On an intellectual level, I understand that. On an emotional level, I will always, and I mean always think that you need me and I will always be here for you. I really mean in – always. But I will also try my best to let you spread your wings. No pun intended!
What else have you been doing? Well, you oves toys, bright colors, catching your sister (pique-pega), making bubbles, dancing with me and the second I start dancing with you, your face lights up and you give me the biggest smile in the world. You only like your paci (not Giulia’s - quite opinionated!) and you love it when I sing to you, you look at me with so much love…
You love watching Dora and Ni Hao Hai-lan. These are colorful cartoons for little kids and you seem to be hypnotized by them.
.You made celebrating the holidays such a joy this year and your dad and I can't wait to continue celebrating our lives with you. It is so much fun to view the world through the eyes of a child and you and Giulia make us do just that.
Love you forever - Mamae
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Passport
So we are still having poop issues with Jack. He'll go 2 or 3 days without going and then all of a sudden, he'll go for those 3 days and more. This past Friday, Santana, John and I finally made our way to City Hall to get a passport for Jack. We had all the required paperwork minus the photos, because the lady at Walgreens messed up his pictures. But the Passport place had a photo option, 3 times the price, but at that point we were willing to pay the fee.
While John and I were solemnly swearing that Jack is really our child and born in the USA, Jack had an EXPLOSION. It was so bad that his clothes were covered in poop, I even had to wash him in the sink.
We, of course, didn't have a change of clothes for him. And he needed that picture. As we were scrambling to find something to cover him up with, he had the most content expression in the world. Happy and relieved. Couldn't care less if he ever left our arms, let alone the country...
While John and I were solemnly swearing that Jack is really our child and born in the USA, Jack had an EXPLOSION. It was so bad that his clothes were covered in poop, I even had to wash him in the sink.
We, of course, didn't have a change of clothes for him. And he needed that picture. As we were scrambling to find something to cover him up with, he had the most content expression in the world. Happy and relieved. Couldn't care less if he ever left our arms, let alone the country...
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