Merry ThanksChristmaNewYear!

Ahh December 31st.  The last day of 2011 means we have survived the year and survived the holidays.  Starting back in November, with Thanksgiving of course.  Since Lukas was all of three weeks old we hosted the big meal this year (and I use the term "hosted" loosely).  K&K and S&E brought delish dishes, Matt manned the bird, and I supervised and made sure Lukas had his own share of the feast.  It was an awesome meal and a fun night.  And while my mom had just left after two weeks of helping us get acclimated to having two kiddos, my dad and brother were able to swing into town for a short visit the day after Thanksgiving to meet the new addition.  

meeting auntie erin

well, this is one way to spend thanksgiving...

...and this is another

i'm HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNGRY!

the fam

a visit from Pop Pop

Once December hit it was time to get the house ready for Christmas.  We went out and found the biggest tree we could fit on top of the Pilot and dragged it in for a decorating adventure (see below).  I look forward to the annual tradition of Matt getting mad as a hornet and swearing like a sailor as he tries to drag the tree inside and set it squarely in the tree stand.  Tis the season!  After decorating it seems that we are sorely short on lights for a tree that size but now we know for next year.  My little elf Genevieve really got into wrapping gifts this year and after we visited Santa she and dad went out to buy a gift just for Lukie which she was very proud of (incidentally, it was a Brewers t shirt and a Packers teddy bear.  Hmm, wonder who chose the store?).  Genevieve also had her first ballet recital in December (again, using the term loosely).  It was more like a regular class which parents were allowed to attend.  She was a VERY proud little ballerina and was excited to show little bro her moves.  Although we're pretty sure her favorite part of ballet was that we let her get McDonald's pancakes after her 9 a.m. Saturday morning class each week, she insists that she wants to keep going.  Weekly hot cakes it is, kiddo.

slightly less intimidated than last year

quick!  take the picture!

underwhelmed

hey mom, i saw santa.  he he.

still scheming on what to add to his christmas list...

ready for some dancin'

tippie toes!

"leaping"

 

 

 

 

Then of course came Christmas!  My parents and bro came into town on Christmas Eve and we immediately headed north to K&K's neck of the woods for a Martin/Maio church service & Chinese food.  Both kids were gems during the service.  We thought we'd be super clever this year and pre-order the food so it would be ready right after church.  HA!  What a complete bust.  It was meant to be ready at 6:30 so when it was 7:30 and Matt and Karl hadn't returned I started to wonder if they had actually gone to China.  They finally came back victorious and many declarations were made about never getting Chinese on Christmas Eve again.  Happy birthday, baby Jesus!

Since our house was choc full-o-guests we had both kids sleeping in our room on Christmas Eve.  Lukie did NOT give mommy the gift of Christmas sleep that night but we finally managed to pull ourselves together sometime around 8 Christmas morning.  We all tromped downstairs together and I mock-gasped when I saw the presents under the tree.  This sent Genevieve high tailing back up the stairs because she didn't want to "see Santa!!!!".  After we reassured her that the big guy was back safe at the North Pole, all was right with the world and we spent the next half-day opening gift after gift.  Matt had a big fire going and K&K came over for brunch.  The whole scene was very cozy and fun.  G got enough loot to keep an army busy and Lukas slept the entire morning (stinker).  Matt and I handed over the kids for the afternoon while we prepped dinner which turned out to be totally scrumptious: smoked turkey breast (I'm no great fan of smoked meat but my husband outdid himself!), cauliflower gratin, roasted sweet potatoes and brussel sprouts, fresh stuffing, yukon gold mashed potatoes, gravy, and for dessert a sticky toffee pudding with brandy sauce so dense and delicious it could give you a heart attack from across the room (only 4 sticks of butter!).

sous chef putting more in her mouth than in the oven

the martins

the #1 fave present

lukas, totally captivated by his gifts

awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww

how many adults does it take to build one child's train tracks?

uncle grant, who is terrified of babies, and the baby.  well done.

schooling dad at candy land

Now it's New Year's Eve.  Our sixth wedding anniversary.  So far today we have taken a family trip to the hardware store, Matt has done some anniversary mudding, and I've burped a baby while wearing my wedding dress (oh hells to the yes, it still fits!  sure i can't breathe or sit down, but that is NOT the point).

breathing is overrated

 

We're treating ourselves to dinner out tonight - I'm going incognito as a woman who wears makeup - but overall we are truly looking forward to letting the dust settle and getting back into a routine.    

In summary, 2010 was a complete bust and 2011 left us overwhelmed by the wealth of good fortune.  Here's hoping for a nice, normal 2012 to balance it all out.  Happy New Year!

Miss Manners

Q:  Dear Miss Manners,
This is our first Christmas in our new house.  Our formal living room is currently being used as a playroom with the world's fanciest moulding.  What's the appropriate way to decorate for the holiday?
Sincerely
Ho Ho Hoping for Help

A:  Dear Ho,
There is only one way to solve your decorating dilemma.  Go find the biggest muther lovin' Christmas tree you can find and stick it in the corner of said room.  If you need to purchase a heavy-duty tree stand to accommodate this beast of a plant, then do so.  Decorate, and pray to the deity of decor that the twinkly lights and shiny gold garland will distract from the toys and lack of adult furniture.  Best of luck; sounds like you're going to need it.

Already a Month Old

It's happened again: the first four weeks of life for our little baby have flown by.  I sat Mr. Lukas down last Friday to do his first of many picture sessions for which he was a total angel.  He had just come out of the bath (this kid loves to be a nakie) and was happy to be a squeaky clean little guy.  Here are a few of my faves, showing off the many faces of our little old man.

Surprising even himself with those big baby muscles

Suspicious

Apprehensive

Casual

Almost captured the smile!

Matter-of-fact

Doubtful

Dismissive

So sweet

Young Mr. Maio enjoys eating (shock), snuggling, filling his pants 20 seconds after getting a fresh diaper, and being adored by all who know him.  We're still on an on-demand feeding schedule but generally speaking he goes to bed around 9 and gets up at 1 and 5.  Last night he held out until 2 to eat so we *might* be making some headway there.  Not holding my breath.  He and his sister l.o.v.e. to conspire against me during the days G is at home and one will wake approximately 8 minutes after the other goes down.  Just long enough to trick me into thinking I might grab a nap.  Ha!  Sucker.  As you can see from the pics he is packing on the pounds and I can tell that his melon has grown too.  He's got little sausage rolls on the back of his head which are so soft and fuzzy with his sprout of hair, I just love it.  His eyes are still blue...I can't remember when G's turned but it seemed sooner than a month.  Of course it's most likely that he'll have brown eyes but there is a recessive blue-eyed gene on my side so perhaps he's the lucky recipient.  Lukas is truly full of funny faces and noises and will sometimes actually snort like a pig right before eating.  Hilarious!  We've gotten a couple of smiles out of him but he makes us work for them.  Having done this before it's nice to know that the grins that are saved just for Mommy and Daddy (and Sister!) are just around the corner.  

Genevieve is continuing to adjust well to having a new baby in the house.  Last week was the first time that she melted down with us about going to school or ballet because she wanted to "stay home with mommy", but she's all sugar toward Lukas so we'll deal with her pre-schooler moments.  She likes to assign us all roles, and the faves lately have Matt and me as "baby wah-wah" and her as mommy.  We try to use this to our advantage during the meltdowns...good times!!  Poor Ralphie knows he's been knocked down yet another peg and the other day I caught him writing a "wanted: better home" ad.  Can't really blame a poodle.   

As far as infants go,so far Lukas is a pretty chillaxed guy.  He's got his one month appointment on Wednesday so I'll update on height and weight then.  We are feeling incredibly fortunate to have this dude in our family and can't wait to watch our kiddos enjoy Christmas together (note to self: stock up on camcorder tape)!

12.7: at today's appointment Lukas was 22 inches and 11 lbs.  Although he weighed less than G at birth, he has already out-gained her (she was 10 lbs 7 oz at 1 month.  Thank you, blog).  I knew that would happen quickly but one month?  I shall start saving for "Groceries: The Teenage Years" pronto...

Party of Four

After two weeks with help to spare, yesterday was my first day home alone with both kiddos.  Happily I survived, and managed to get a shower and get us all to L's appointment at the pediatrician on time.  Sure my eyes were bloodshot and my hair looked insane but my teeth were brushed so I call that a win (I also learned two important things yesterday: yes, it is possible to wipe a 3 year-old while nursing a 3 week-old, and no, this job is not made any easier if said 3 year-old is wearing tights).  Then this morning I got Genevieve to daycare, once again on time.  That's 2/2 folks!  Yes, under my jacket was a milk stained pajama shirt but as long as my jeans gave the impression that I was dressed then I call that a win too.  Two and a half weeks in, we've been adjusting pretty easily to life as a family of four.  Lukas has fit very easily into our home.  He's a good sleeper (for which we are eternally grateful after our first parenting adventure of 20 minute naps) and a terrific little eater.  He really only fusses when he's getting his diaper changed, at which point he turns into a wild karate ninja.  And even though this isn't our first rodeo, we still cannot believe how much he's changed in a few short weeks.  Genevieve is doing really well as a big sister.  She for sure has her fair share of attitude and a new clinginess to yours truly, but she is nothing but sugar with baby bro and I don't think we could ask for more.

Bro's first sponge bath, followed by a demonstration from the expert on how to splash

I'm COOOLLLLLLLLLLLLLD!

ahh, warm and happy again

unlike at the hospital, she now loves to hold the little man...

...unless it interrupts her reading.  yes, that is a toy catalog she's studying

We've enjoyed a lot of visitors to meet the big guy and enjoyed a few moments of levity too.

uncle stevie meets his nephew AND brings over chinese for dinner.  what a guy!

great grandma makes for 4 generations

ready...aim...

FIRE!  this is about as deadly as it gets here in elm grove

So for those of you who haven't spent time referencing "What to Expect The First Year", pediatricians like to see newborns gain about an ounce a day in their first few weeks.  At yesterday's appointment we discovered that Lukas is hell bent on ditching his title of "peanut", as he's gained about 2 ounces a day and is now weighing in at 9 lbs.  Perhaps this is a clue as to his rapid weight gain:

milk drunk