Making Room

With another bundle of joy on the way, we have been trying to figure out ways to make a little more room in our house for the baby stuff that we need to dig out again (i.e. pack-n-play, swing, bouncy seat, etc.).

First off - Luci's new room.

We are keeping the nursery as is. The bedding we got when we were pregnant with Luci is gender-neutral in a yellow room, so we have no desire to change it at all. Our other 2 spare rooms have been an office and a guest bedroom since we have been living here.

The guest bedroom was a fluke because all the furniture was given to us: queen-size mattress, box spring, bed frame, head board, dresser with mirror, and night stand. One of John's buddy's parents was getting all new bedroom furniture right after we got married and we inherited their old stuff - which was actually really nice. This is now going to be Luci's new room - however, I didn't think that a queen-sized bed was necessary for a toddler. Fortunately, a friend who I work with just bought a house and is in desperate need of spare beds - so we gave her the bed from that room. The rest of the furniture remains, and Luci's twin bed is being delivered on Tuesday!

Next step - find space for all.the.toys!

Our family room is narrow, but we were able to comfortably fit all the baby things in the room without feeling too cramped when we had Luci. However, we have accumulated so many toys since storing all of that stuff that we now know we need to make additional room.

We also have a living room, which is right off of the family room. The furniture in that room was also all given to us by a friend's parents. In there now are: a love seat, 2 wing-backed chairs, an end table, and a coffee table. We have offered some of the furniture to one of John's cousins who recently got a new place. So we are giving him the chairs and the coffee table. Now we will be able to fill the long wall of that room with all of the Luci's toys - thus clearing out our family room to make space for the baby stuff.

Phew!

It's funny how things change - when we first got married, we were in such a hurry to fill the rooms to make the house feel like our home. And now that we are growing - I can't wait to get rid of the furniture that was so generously given to us to make room for TOYS? What's wrong with the picture?

Pittsburgh's Going to the Superbowl!

and so is my husband!

Game tickets at face-value, staying with family in Dallas - this is going to be one of the cheapest Superbowl trips!

Oh yeah - he's not taking me! He's going to bond with his Dad!

Dancing Queen

The music is in her head!

Silly Mama!

I did as instructed by my 20-month-old!

La Befana comes again

A few years ago, I posted about the significance of the Epiphany in the Italian tradition and in my family.

My sisters and I have continued this custom with our little ones. It's fun to see our kids excited about a tradition that we celebrated when we were young.

Here is what Luci woke up to the other morning:

She LOVES it - a Handy Manny plush toy. She even sleeps with him.

November-December 2010

I slacked off last month with updates and photos - but I am catching up now.

Thanksgiving and Christmas were the obvious highlights of the last 2 months, but here are some others:

Luci's new obsession is coloring. She absolutely loves it. I bought her all sorts of coloring books, which can keep her occupied while I pay bills, cook, eat, they are even a lifesaver in church! She definitely doesn't color inside the lines, but I am happy that she is interested in it at all.

I know that I have mentioned in other posts about my family's Thursday night dinners at my parents' house. Well, lately the girls have started a new trend where they raid my old bedroom, find the old gloves scarves, hats, etc. that we used when we were at home, dress up in them, and then parade around the house. They even make Nonno a part of the fun.

We celebrated Pappy's birthday before Thanksgiving, and then again on Thanksgiving, which Luci loved, because she so enjoys blowing out the candles on birthday cakes, whether its hers or someone else's.

My old high school hosts an annual Breakfast with Santa, which we always attend. Although Luci wasn't too keen on sitting on Santa's lap this year, we did get pretty close. She put on a show for everyone there while she danced and jumped to the carolers' singing. She even got comfy on the back of the camel and cow on the big Nativity display.

My sisters and I have always made out-out cookies for Christmas, and we have carried on the tradition with our girls too now. Although they are not the prettiest cookies, we sure do have a lot of fun making them!

We all know that Luci is a thumb-sucker, and she hated the pacifier as a baby. Well now she has developed a new liking to the chee-chee (which is how we always referred to the pacifier). But the funny thing is that the only 2 places where she ever asks for it is at my Mom's house or my Aunt Anna's house - no where else. What can I say? She has a mind of her own.

The holidays were great - filled with family, food and presents - too many presents almost! I think that I am going to have to clear out a room just for toys. We'll see how that turns out.

Finally, we celebrated the last supper at my parents' restaurant New Years' Eve, which was very bittersweet. We all ate together as a big family for an early dinner. Then the husbands left with the all the girls, and my sisters and I stayed to help out with a busy evening. My parents' went out with a bang!

Here are more pictures.