Trot Trot to Boston...

Ahh don't you just love coming home from vacation. The huge pile of laundry, the dirty car and that random smell you can't quite pinpoint in your kitchen. Then there's the realization the your vacation is over and that looming vacation blog you have to write that no one really wants to read. But lets get real, everyone gets bragging rights so here I go...

Labor Day weekend 2009: Boston

That's right, Dave, Oakley and I headed over for a visit with my brother, Aleks and his family. We had an amazing time. Boston is probably the coolest city in the US (that I've been to). Its big with lots of fun things to do but not overwhelmingly big like NYC. Both of my parents grew up in the Boston area and its a place that I've been to visit more times than I can remember. Its always been my favorite city and after this trip, it still remains at #1. One of its best attributes is the rich history of the area that is kept alive by the beautifully well-maintained buildings. We walked part of the "Freedom Trail" which takes you around the city's historic sites. This is the Old State house in front of which the Boston Massacre occurred.



Anyway, enough of the history lesson. If you have the time, just go check it out for yourself.

Here we are right outside the Boston aquarium, my favorite thing to see there. I love aquariums! For those of you who don't know, Dave actually proposed to me in an aquarium. I know, he's quite the romantic:)




Oakley and her cousin Issac. Issac's 15 months older than Oakley.


The whole crew: Thanks Aleks and Laura for an amazing vacation!



Oakley had a pretty fun time.


So here Dave, Oakley and I are all set to go on our whale watch. Sad news was that all whale watches were canceled that day due to some rough seas. Oh well, that just means we have to go back another time.


So instead of whale watching, we headed over to the North End to get some amazing Italian food. Also one of the best things about Boston... the food! The North End is basically the Italian part of Boston (this is actually where my Nana was born). And this picture doesn't really do it justice. The entire area really looks like you wandered over into Italy. The food is amazing but the best part are the cannoli. If you ever go to Mike's pastries order a "Lobster Tail". Its a puff pastry that's full of probably a pound of cream filing. Dave and I polished one of those off along with 3 cannoli. Sick huh? Also we enjoyed some good chowda (as the Bostonians would say), steamers (steamed clams) and frappes (milkshakes).


On our way back we stopped off at Dave's parents house who were kind enough to watch our dogs while we were out gallivanting. Dave's mom treated us to some portraits of Oakley. Despite the fact that she cried for most of it, we were able to get some pretty cute shots.



This little girl is now 4 months old and weighs 15.3 lbs. She's in the 95% for weight and height, yeah she's a big one!

Whew, that was a long post! Kudo's to you if you've made it this far.

Secret Weapon

Oakley has been up to her cute little antics as usual. Her adorable smile and dimples are charming old ladies at grocery stores across Pittsburgh. She still loves to watch T.V. This morning I caught her on her play mat at a half roll (from back to tummy!) with her head cocked just so she could see the TV. Can you blame her though, Ellen was on. She's also dead set against any type of napping schedule that I've tried to put her on. So I've thrown in the towel (and a few books) and I let her do what she wants. That's right, I'm denouncing BabyWise! But ever since we've come to terms she's decided to sleep in until 8 or 9am which makes us both a lot happier. (Take that BabyWise!) Her latest and greatest trick is her giggle, its her secret weapon to make daddy and mommy play with her instead of putting her to bed. This may be Gods way of trying to convince me to have more children. Sorry, after my labor experience you're going to have to try a lot harder than that! (like helping me drop those last 10 lbs!) And here is that adorable little giggle for you to enjoy: (I know, she's only in a diaper but she managed to puke on 5 outfits in a row and then all of a sudden be adorable.)






ROAR!

Cutie Patootie

This little girl is just too adorable!

Oakleyisms and Trip Home

I swear Oakley is getting cuter by the hour. But she's also developing her little personality and with a mix between Dave and me, it's bound to be interesting. Here's a couple of things we've figured out about her so far...

1. She LOVES her "binky". In most major breakdowns it is the only thing that will calm her down.



2. She's not a big fan of all the giant flowers I keep trying to put on her head. Most likely because they end up here... but I'm not giving up!



3. She likes to sleep with something over her face.



4. She's already a T.V. addict! Yes, this is her glued to the tube despite all my antics to try and get her attention. Its almost impossible for her to nurse if she suspects the T.V.'s on.



5. She also loves to try and fit both hands in her month. Her Daddy can put his whole fist is his mouth so I guess the apple doesn't fall too far from the tree! (Not Pictured)

6. Oakley already knows mommy and daddy. And unfortunately for me and for the grandparents she stiffens up like a board when anyone else tries to hold her.

(Oakley with Grandpa- my dad)



Anyway, here are some pictures from our trip back home. Dave and I spent the weekend with his parents and then I went up to spend the rest of the week with my family. We had a great time and even managed to get all the grandkids there in one picture: (we missed you Aaron and Harmony!)


Left to Right: Avery (twin #1), Kasia, Oakley, Issac, Haven (twin #2)

Fun times at the Carousel!



My attempt at taking some cute pictures of Haven in the sprinklers:



We had a pretty fun time but by the end were both ready to come home to our own beds, a little less noise, and Dave.

Searching for Home

A couple of weeks ago Dave and I took our big trip out west. We are looking for a place to "settle down" after Dave finishes school. We really have no ties and no idea where we're headed. (Any suggestions?) Somehow the idea of living in Portland or Seattle has been really appealing to us. It has the greenery that we love, the ocean and that great city planning thing unlike most places out east. So since we go home to New York all time, we decided to use our summer trip to do some future home scouting. Dave's parents also came along for the adventure and despite some serious traffic, crying and being squished in a car together for days, we managed to have a pretty awesome time. And for bragging purposes I just have to say how amazing Oakley was. On the Airplane, in the hotels, at friends houses, and in the car, she is just a sweet little angel! Now for the pictures...

Mount St. Helen's



Seattle (And No, I didn't wear the same shirt two days in a row, we really did it all in one day!)



The Pringles- not us, Dave's parents



Seattle Temple- again same really long day!



The Japanese Gardens in Portland- my favorite part of the trip!



Japanese Gardens again, which by the way are not stroller friendly, we found that out the hard way!



Dave's dad taking a picture at Cannon beach. I guess this rock is in the movie "Goonies" which I admit I've never seen. I know, I was a deprived child!


Fort Stevens- and the kid in the red coat would not get out of the picture so I got impatient and just took it!



This was at a restaurant. Oakley fell asleep in my arms pulling her little hat down like this, so stinking cute!!




And the verdict was.... 1- Portland 1- East Coast. I really loved it, every bit of it and I could totally picture myself living there. Dave was almost sold until we got to the beach. He was soooo disappointed that the ocean was freezing cold and pretty much unswimable. I admit east coast beaches are a lot more fun but west coast beaches are so beautiful. Anyway I had told him many times that the ocean was cold out west but he thought I was just being a wimp. And he made the comment "I don't understand what all those people from California are bragging about, west coast beaches stink!". I thought that was pretty funny since most of the people I know from California are always talking up the beaches. No hard feelings west coasters but our beaches here win by a landslide!

Big Moves, Baby-haters and Birthday Wishes

Oakley is getting so big! At her 2 month Dr.'s appointment she was 11 lbs 10 oz and 24 1/4 in long. She's super tall (who would've thought that would happen?!), she's in the 95% for height and already in 6 months PJ's. And here's the big news in her life..... she's rolling over! (Tummy to back only) Crazy but she did it for the first time a few days after her 2 month appointment. She performs her little trick about once a day but gets frustrated when I put her back on her tummy after all her hard work. I'm still trying to capture it in video so you can all see her little trick. As you can see she's holding her head up really well now.



As for me and Dave things are going really well. Dave just started clinic and is working on real patients. So far its been quite an experience! I'm just loving being a mom which if you know me is a little surprising. Recently some friends have keyed me into just how awkward I was around babies. For example, there was the time I visited my friend and her newborn baby in the hospital and hardly paid any attention to the baby much less asked to hold him! Or the time I went to visit another friend who just had a baby and held the poor little boy like a rotten potato about a foot away from my body for like a 1/2 hour! What can I say, I only wanted to have a baby to stay home and hang out with my friends. I assure you I'm a much different person now. I absolutely think babies are the cutest and love their little smiles. Well I just ran into another baby-phobic friend and had good a look in the baby-hater mirror. We stayed with some old college friends in Portland (Portland blog soon to be posted) and our friend Andrea shared the same dislike for kids I used to have. At first I was totally confused as to why she didn't ask to hold my baby and didn't tell me how absolutely adorable Oakley is. Then it clicked... baby-phobia! I saw exactly how I must've been around other peoples babies. So I want to send out a big apology for my pre-baby behavior. Its not that I didn't think your babies were cute and adorable, I just wasn't interested in babies at all. And if you share that same baby-phobia I used to have, don't worry it goes away about 2 seconds after you have your own. I sure love this little girl and can't picture my life without her. If you remember any of my awkward pre-baby moments please share, its funny to me now!






I want to send out birthday wishes to my mom. Her birthday was like two weeks ago but we all know what a procrastinator I am. I just have to tell what an awesome mom I have, she's the best! We're complete opposites in many ways but still best friends. We talk about 1 to 3 times a day on the phone and she's always willing to listen to me whine about whatever. Thanks for staying with me for 2 weeks after Oakley was born and waiting on my every whim! Anyway, happy 60th mom! You don't look a day over 40!



Mom- can we consider this your Birthday Card? I'll be on the ball next year, I promise!

Untitled

Untitled because I'm leaving it up to you to come up with a good title for this picture. All I have to say is... we all knew this would happen. At least Oakley seems perfectly content to lay with her daddy while he plays X-box...for now.