Happy Anniversary Lucy!

Three years ago today we changed our lives forever - in the BEST way possible!!!  It's been 3 years since we brought our adorable little Lucy home and we have loved every minute of it.  Well, almost every minute - those first months were tough! :)  But we made it through and we love her more for it.




Lucy has taught us so much over these 3 years.  Heck - she trained us on what life would be like with a newborn and for that, we will forever be in her debt.  We've watched her grow into the sweet girl that she is today...but don't be fooled by that cute mug.  She has sass coming out of her...well you know.  :)

She has been a trooper through all of life's changes including meeting her 2 kitty cat brothers, enduring the 5+ hour car rides with Daddy from NY to VA when we were in the process of moving, living at Grandma and Grandpa Q's house for a few months, moving into a new house and getting a little brother!  Through it all, she has stayed as sweet as the day we met her.

Lucy's life has been quite eventful from the day she joined our family.  She has been in a cone twice and handled it like a champ...

... she put up with Mommy's antics of dressing her up...

... she played in the snow, and in the pool...

... and slept in many a locale.

And of course our crazy dog is a couch potato.  She watches TV and when I say watches TV she literally stares at the TV and reacts to what is going on.  As I type this, we are watching the Drew Barrymore movie about the whales and she just made a wimper when she thought the 2 whales were going to die.  No joke.

One of the best things about Lucy is that she loves life and loves to enjoy it.  Playing is her most favorite thing - especially with Daddy.

We love her to death and thank God everyday that she is a party of our family.  We love you Lucy - Happy 3rd Anniversary!!!

So Cool

Since yesterday was a yucky, rainy day and I was laid up nursing my pneumonia (yuk btw!), we thought it might be a good day for James to explore his inner cool guy.  We already know he is a cutie pie and he sometimes displays some attitude, but now we have locked up the cool factor.  How, you ask?  Well, put a Batman onesie and some sunglasses on an adorable face and the cool just BURSTS out! :)

Quality Time

It's not completely unusual for us to spend time with Grandma and Grandpa Quartuccio on at least one day of the weekend.  They live so close and LOVE seeing James so we take advantage of their hospitality whenever we can.  On a recent weekend, we brought over lots of things to keep James entertained and ended up keeping Grandpa entertained as well. :)

While hanging out in the family room, James discovered his reflection in the fireplace door and was completely enamored.  I mean, why wouldn't he be?  He's a LOOKER!!! :)

Since this little man has decided to be adorably hilarious these days, I decided to demonstrate ways to make him giggle.  I have to say, I cringe a little seeing myself in this video, but it is worth it to hear those giggles. :)

We decided to take advantage of the nice weather with a walk around the neighborhood.  Since we had to bag the stroller to fit the ExerSaucer in the car, James got up close and person to Daddy in the Ergo. He's not a huge fan of this thing since he is just a sweatbox, but he managed to catch a few zzz's while we walked.

The day ended with a bottle and some peas and what better way to eat them than in your Bumbo.  Disclaimer:  this Bumbo was used prior to the recently issued recall and the baby was monitored the entire time. No tumbling off the table here!  :)

So that was our day in a nutshell.  We had a blast and I'm sure we'll be back again this weekend!

Out with the Old...

...in with the front loaders!!

Yes ~ we pulled the plug and updated our washer/dryer situation with these beauties.  Our old models were on their way out. The washer was leaving spots on our clothes (kind of the opposite of what it is supposed to do!) and our dryer took at least 4-5 runs to dry a single load of clothes. Talk about anti-energy efficient!  We knew it was time to upgrade so we hit the stores over the weekend to find out what our options were.

We hit the usual suspects - Home Depot and Best Buy - along with newcomer h.h. gregg.  We learned that front loaders are way more efficient then their top loader buddies.  From using less water to less energy, it was a no brainer to go in this direction.  Plus they are pretty. :)  We also decided to go for the steam option on both the washer and dryer.  Apparently, the steam option in the washer combined with the Allergine option kills up to 96% of germs and allergens.  A nice option when you have a baby in the house. :)

After some online research and review-reading, we decided to go down the LG route.  They received 5 stars across the board and the Home Depot guy concurred.  After some negotiating, we decided to make our purchase at h.h. gregg.  Not only did they give us the best price, they also threw in a $200 rebate that is being mailed to us in the form of a Visa gift card.  Now who doesn't love a Visa gift card!

So this morning it was out with the old...

... and in with the new. :)

The inaugural wash just so happened to be a James item.  He chose today to be the day to puke up his entire bottle while strapped into his car seat.  So what better to test out the new washer on than the car seat liner! :)  We then tried out the Allergen setting on James' laundry.  I'm praying all those little cold germs he's been harboring are dead and gone!

It's amazing how as we age, our priorities change.  If you told my 24-year old self that I would be super duper excited about buying a front load washer and dryer, I would slap you silly.  But now, I couldn't be more thrilled!  Dork. I know. But I will be a dork with really sharp looking clothes!

Sittin' Pretty

So our little guy is about to conquer a very important milestone - sitting!  He is sooooooo close to being able to sit up right on his own without the help of Mommy, Daddy, the Bumbo or the Boppy pillow.  We are not quite there yet, but I'm telling ya ~ any day now!!

Warning - there is a LOT of Lucy love in this video.  Get ready to say "awwwwwwww!!!"

A Pampered Pooch

This past weekend, we spent some time up in New York visiting with family and friends and attending cousin Jeannine's baby shower.

We had a blast, but because we were up and back in 2 days, we decided that it was too much stress to inflict on Lucy girl.  So she spent the weekend at Affectionate Pet Care with her buddies.  We love this place because they offer cage-free boarding and recently, they moved from a tiny house to an upgraded facility.  All good stuff.

What was not good was the state she was in when she came home.  Her hair was a wreck, her eye goobers were in full force and the smell. The SMELL.  Not cute.

It was time for a full on groom so we brought in the professionals.  The place we had been going to, Red Dog Spa, recently closed their doors for good.  So we decided to see if Affectionate Pet Care was up for the challenge.  My sister used to bring her dog Sophie here to be groomed before moving to Chicago, so we figured we'd give them a shot.

The results were A. MAZE. ING.  She received THE BEST haircut she has ever had.

If you ask me, she is ready to be featured in a PetSmart commercial!!  And you know what...she knows she looks good. There is a little bit more sway in her hips when she walks and I think I saw her give James the paw when he tried to play with her.  Work it girl!!

Project Time

Yup...we are up to something. :)

Hints:

1. It's a big job that will most likely displace James for a day or two...or three.
2. We are tackling some of it on our own and some of it with a professional.
3. The change and WOW factor will be enormous!!

Any guesses?  Details soon! :)