I could have used Bob the Builder or Handy Manny today! I would have settled for Tim the Toolman Taylor! Sam bought a climber/triangle/something or other for the kids and it arrived today. I figured it would be an easy thing to put together, especially since the reviews said so. Then, I opened the box to discover that the only tool I needed was – the allen wrench!
If you are unfamiliar with my thoughts on this God awful tool, you can read the blog I posted about it back in 2018 here:
Here’s the thing – Andrew is climbing everything. The other day, he had figured out how to climb up the living room windows. Don’t ask! Sam figured this would be a good way for him to climb things. It really is a very cool thing. It has a rock wall/slide that they can climb up and slide down. The triangle is perfect for climbing and then there is a half circle thing that reminds me of something you’d see on a playground.
It didn’t take long for my fingers and thumb to start hurting because of how hard it was to get the screws in. After screwing in about 30 of the 50 screws, my thumb started to blister. Eventually, I ripped the skin off my thumb and needed to throw a bandage on it. My wife ran and got me one – a Cocomelon bandage.
My wife got a kick out of me having to out that silly thing on!
Once the project was finished, the kids really had a blast!
At some point, the rock wall/slide became a table and they had a tea party!
My favorite thing, however, is the fact that they took the half circle piece (seen above on the left) and turned it over. They put a blanket over the slats and rocked in it.
God, do I love these two!!
Yesterday we took a walk around the neighborhood and even played a bit outside. Ella is always excited to see her puppy friends. Melody is one of her favorites. Melody has cancer and her owners are always so nice to us when we see them.
It seems like we’ve been cooped up forever and they were loving being outside. Andrew was excited to see the sun!
This picture was taken just before he got in the red and yellow car. It had rained the day before and of course, it collected some water on the seat. That didn’t stop Andrew from going for a drive. Naturally, I had to get a picture of the results of that drive ….
I’m so glad it is warming up. I’m looking forward to many days outside with them!
If you are a parent, you know that your children are always a good source of stories to share. Here are a few of mine from the past few days:
Tea Party Gone Bad
While Andrew took a nap recently, Ella and I were in the living room playing with her Disney Princess Barbie dolls. She brought me the Mulan Barbie and she had her Moana Barbie. She sat them both across from each other and then grabbed a tea pot and tea cups. She set them in front of each doll. She then brought over this mushroom/muffin looking toy (she obviously thought they looked more like muffins). This is when things went awry!
I started to make Mulan (who she had given to me) drink her tea. I made slurping sounds and then did a loud fake burp. This made her laugh. Then I did it again. More laughter. Then I made really loud slurping sounds and the cup ended up on Mulan’s head. She started to do the same thing to her Moana. I was laughing just as hard as she was, especially when she was making her fake burp sounds.
Pausing Pap
Andrew has been using CPAP for over a week. Here’s the thing, it is supposed to help him sleep better. However, because of his age and the limited masks that he can use, the one he has works – when it stays on. Basically, mom and dad are the ones who aren’t sleeping now. Sam and I find ourselves pulling it back on his head or fighting him to get it back on. It is a struggle.
We e-mailed his doctor about it and we’re gonna take a break for a day or two to see if that helps. The good thing is that his apnea is mild, and we were only anticipating him wearing it for less than a year. The doc told us, if he lets us put it on – use it. If not – don’t.
All in all, whether he is rested or not, he is still giving us plenty of smiles!
Toddler Vocabulary Lesson
Ella did the cutest thing the other day. We had misplaced the TV remote and I asked her to help me find it. She reached he hand up to her eyes like she was looking through binoculars and said:
“Daddy, I can’t find the remote. I will have to use my ‘oculars’ and look for it!”
Hardest Part of Parenting
As a father of four children, I have taken each of them in for shots more times than I can count. There is always that look of, “How could you let them hurt me like that, Daddy?” after they get poked. It kills me every time.
Last week, Ella had her three year old well visit. We noticed that she is bruising very easily. She jumps around a lot and (as most toddlers do) bumps into just about everything. The bruising concerns us a bit, so her primary doc wanted to run some bloodwork to make sure she is ok. Sam was with her at that appointment and she was told she could just go next door to the lab to get the blood draw.
Ella was extremely scared and voiced that numerous times. I guess they poked her a couple times and could not get the draw. They were going to try to do the other arm and Sam said, “No, we’ll do it another day.” Ella had been through enough. So, today, it was my turn to take her to get it done.
I had picked out a short sleeve short for her, but she wanted to wear a dress. There were no sleeves on it and so the tourniquet the wrapped on her arm bothered her a lot. She sat in my lap and said she was scared. I did what I could to keep her calm, but after the first poke, she moved and wound up blowing the vein. The tech decided to try the other arm. In my head, I decided I would let them try one time and if they didn’t get it, we’d leave.
They found a good vein, got the poke and Ella and I took deep breaths and counted to 5 (over and over). That helped a lot! Once they were done and pulled the needle out, she was still crying, but she looked at the techs who did the draw and said, “Thank you.” They offered her a pack of graham crackers, and she was all better.
Hopefully, the test results will be normal.
Heavenly Visitor?
I’ve never been one to believe in supernatural stuff, but today something happened that made the hair on my neck stand up. I’m still scratching my head over it.
When I woke up for work today, Sam asked me what my oldest son called my mom (he is the only one of my kids who knew my mom before she passed away). I told her that he always called her “grandma.” She asked further, “Did he ever call her Grammy?” He didn’t. My ex’s mom was “Grammy,” but my mom was always “Grandma.”
I asked her why she wanted to know. She proceeded to tell me that Ella had said something to her today and when Sam asked her where she heard it (or maybe it was who told her that), she replied, “My Grammie in heaven.” So this peaked my curiosity and I asked her what else she had told her. She said something about princesses, but Sam and I think she was just talking about the princesses that we got for that Tonie.
The longer I sat in the living room drinking my first cup of coffee, the more I wondered about what she said. I have no pictures of my mom hanging in the house. I don’t have photo albums that we can look through. All the physical photos I do have are in a box and the rest are digital. For some reason, this really bugged me. So I took it a step farther.
I grabbed my phone and opened up my Facebook page. I went to the photo albums and found one that contains pictures of my mom. I pulled up one from before she got sick and opened it on my phone. I showed Ella this picture:
It had been a few minutes and I was sure she had already forgotten our mention of my mom. I asked her, “Ella, who is this?” Without missing a beat, she said, “My Grammie in heaven.” I was dumbfounded. I truly don’t know that Ella has seen but one or two pictures of my mom, yet she recognized her immediately.
When we found out that we were going to have a baby, my wife bought a special onesie that brought me to tears.
Who am I to question whether or not mom and Ella still talk?
Another Christmas has come and gone. I hope that you had a Christmas full of wonderful memories! This Christmas was full of a lot of joy for us, but there were some things that left me sad. I will attempt to recap and keep it as happy as possible. Many of my Facebook friends have already seen these pictures, but that’s ok.
Thursday, December 23
After working the night before, I slept for a couple hours and went and picked up my son. His brother was working that night and was coming up after work so we could celebrate Christmas Eve Morning together.
My dad and Rose came over that afternoon. Neither had met AJ yet, so it was extra special to have them here. When then walked in, Ella ran to them SO excited. She was so happy to see them. She loves them both so much!!
There is something that is so amazing to me to see my dad hold his grandchildren. There is a special light in his eyes. There are almost tears. It is so special. He always kisses them gently on the head and talks to them.
Dad and AJ
Ella was all about Grandma Rose that night! Grandma made her a Mickey and Minnie blanket, which she just loves. One of my favorite pictures from that day is the two of them snuggled up on the chair with her blanket.
Ella and Grandma Rose
My Dad, being the silly guy that he is, heard Ella saying some of the alphabet. He immediately thought of “Violent is the Word for Curly,” the Three Stooges short which features the “Swingin’ the Alphabet” song.
B A Bay, B E Bee, B I Bicky By …
So Dad had to sing it to her …
Dad’s chart was a bit off….
I was glad to get the chance to visit with them, and I am glad that three of his four grandchildren were there for him to see. Papa and Rose were very good to all my kids!
Dad and me – wish the lighting had been a bit better
Dad and Rose left around 7, and Dante’ called about 8 to say he’d gotten off work and was on his way. I was exhausted and was actually on my way to bed when he called. He asked me to stay awake, so I did. He came in and gave he the biggest hug. We had some leftover pizza, so I told him to dig in and not stay up too late!
As I crawled in bed, my heart was full.
Christmas Eve
I’m sure the day is coming when the kids will be up at like 4am to open presents! We were blessed that they didn’t wake up until after 8am! I had to laugh, though, because ever since we put the tree up, there has been a gate around it. It served two purposes. First, it kept that cat out of the tree and second, it kept Ella from pulling on the ornaments and the lights.
When she woke up and came out the the living room, she walked over the the tree and saw all the presents under the tree – and no gate. She literally just stood there – not really sure what to make of things.
Ella – perplexed
After a few minutes, Sam said it was time to go in and wake up the boys. They were already going to be leaving earlier than I thought (so Dante’ didn’t have to drive in the dark), so we wanted to get things going. We told Ella to go in and wake them up.
She ran into their room yelling, “Wake up, Bruh! Wake up, Bruh!” It was quite funny to watch my older boys stir in bed … all they wanted to do was stay asleep. Dante’ asked to sleep for another 30 minutes. I told him, “You’re sister isn’t going to wait 30 minutes and wants to open presents!” Against their wishes, they crawled out of bed and joined us in the living room.
Last year, we had to help Ella open her gifts. She wasn’t quite where she understood how to do it yet. This year, however, she was able to jump right in and rip open her gifts!
Ella – wearing the very cute PJ’s that Sam’s dad got for her
It’s neat to see how the various kids react to Christmas now. Dante is 19, so he’s very laid back. Dimitri is 14 and it depends on what he’s opening as to how excited or how much emotion he shows. Ella, she’s excited for everything. Andrew has no clue as to what is happening.
The boys
The boys are SO hard to buy for. They never seem to have any real ideas for me. Dante’ is kind of at the “gift card/money” stage. He’s happy with those. Dimitri really liked this golf game I had for the Xbox, so I made sure to get it for him to play at home.
Par for the course …
Ella, being the helpful big sister, helped open up AJ’s presents.
AJ watching sissy open gifts for him
Of course, I had to put together Ella’s basketball hoop, so she could slam dunk a few before dinner.
Two points!
After a hearty breakfast, the boys went into their room and played games for a while. Knowing that they were going to be leaving early, I made sure that dinner was done early. Keeping with my family tradition, I made ravioli with my homemade sauce. I made sure to send a jar home with the boys, as Dante’ loves it.
Personal note: I used a bit too much wine this time. I felt that it was sweeter than normal.
About 3, the boys had to leave to go home to their mom. Ella was napping when they left. When she woke up, I picked her up out of her crib and as we passed the boy’s room, she said “Bruh”? “Bruh”? It ripped my heart out. All she wanted to do was see her brothers! Sadly, I don’t think they really know how much she loves them and how important they are to her. This was the saddest moment of the entire weekend for me.
A Christmas Eve tradition for Sam and I has always been to do the Drive Through Holiday Lights display at Crossroads Village. For $10 a car, you get to drive through and see the many Christmas lights that they have on display. When the kids are older, we plan on going and doing the Christmas train ride, which is truly amazing, but for now, we just drove through.
When we arrived, we got Ella out of her car seat and let her sit on Sam’s lap as we drove through. She was so excited. As we got close to the lights, she’s yell, “Here we go, Mommy! Here we go, Daddy!” It was so cute. Sam made the comment that she loves seeing things through Ella’s eyes. This is so true! We’ve been through there every year, but this year was so much more exciting because of Ella!
Sleigh ride!
We thought about driving downtown Flint, which has some great lights, too. We decided against it, as it was getting late and the kids were tired. We went through out bedtime routine and got the kids to bed just in time for me to play Santa. I had a few things to put together so that they were ready for they kids when they woke up Christmas morning.
Christmas Day 2021
Sam wanted to be in the living room so she could record Ella seeing her presents, so I got her out of bed and asked Sam if she was ready. She said she was, so I sent Ella running into the living room. The video is priceless. The smile on her face is something I will never forget. We got her one of those Little People Jungle Rainforest things. It came with animals and makes noises and everything. It is HUGE and takes up a good part of the living room.
Here’s the monkey!
AJ’s Santa gift was a very cool floor chair. It allows him to sit up while on the floor and it’s a lot better than those Bumpo seats.
Sitting pretty
I love that both kids had “Santa” jammies for Christmas morning. Sam and I actually got matching PJ bottoms to wear that morning, too. AJ was wide awake and just taking in all the sights. I love this picture of him and Sam. What I love about it is that just above Sam’s right shoulder is a picture of Ella on her lap and in this picture AJ is on her lap.
One of Ella’s favorite gifts was a Leap Frog Tea Party set. The pot talks and it came with cups and cake.
Must be good tea!
I joked many times about having tea parties with my daughter. I am excited to say that we’ve had our first already and I am looking forward to the next one!
Yummy!!
It was daddy’s turn to help AJ open gifts. So I grabbed his stuff and we opened them up. I was as surprised as he was! LOL. Sam got him a very cool “Floor time” pillow with lights, sounds, and more.
Wow!! What’s this, daddy?
It made him like floor time a lot more….
Mesmerized
Before we all showered and got dressed to visit Sam’s folks, we attempted to take a family selfie. We have a camera that I could have set up with a timer and all, but with my cell phone, I could snap 5-6 pictures in the time it would take to get one on the camera. Good thing we went with the cell phone – because it only took us about 57 tries before we finally got this one.
Merry Christmas!
Since it was AJ’s first Christmas, we had to be sure to get a picture with him in his “First Christmas” outfit. Sam came up with the silly saying on the board and it made me chuckle!
Got him smiling and everything!
After the kids napped, we went to Sam’s folks for Christmas dinner. Sam’s mom put out an amazing spread with turkey, mac and cheese, mashed potatoes, and so much more. I’m not sure why we didn’t get any pictures while we were there, and I am sad that we didn’t. We are so grateful for them and enjoyed family time together.
After we got home and got the kids in bed, Sam and I crawled into bed. Before I drifted off to sleep, I thought back over the many memories that were made and thanked God for the many blessings that He has given me. I am truly a lucky man.
December 26
Having the Christmas tree up was driving Sam crazy. Not because it was up, but because we literally had to move Ella’s toys out of that corner of the room. All of her toys were moved in front of the fireplace and it just seemed like we were always tripping over them. Long before Christmas, it was clear that on the 26th, the tree was coming down!
I spent the morning taking down ornaments, unstringing Christmas lights, folding up stockings, and putting them all downstairs until next year. Before I finished, there was one picture we had meant to get of Ella that we hadn’t gotten. So I hurried out to the garage and got the props ready before Ella and I walked the neighborhood. Here is the picture we had hoped to get earlier in the season ….
Hauling her Christmas tree
It’s back to work tonight for me, at least for a couple days. Looking back over this holiday weekend makes me smile. There are so many wonderful memories forever saved in snapshots that I will look back on often. Life is good. I am blessed.
The past 16 weeks have been very exciting for Sam and me. It has been especially nice to have this blog as a place that I can write things down and look back on later. My last blog told of the ultrasound, finding out the baby’s gender, and how we shared the news. I am writing today’s blog because something was missing from my last one – I’ll explain in just a minute.
First, let me say that we are overwhelmed with the outpouring of love and congratulations we have received from our friends and family. It was fun to tease that a gender reveal was coming and watch friends post their guesses on Facebook. I was reminded how blessed I am to have such wonderful friends as they sent private messages, texts, and called with congratulations. Thank you all!
So what was missing from the last blog? It was a lengthy blog, so what could I have possibly left out? Sam pointed out that I had certainly written about a lot of things that happened over the weekend, however, I really never said much about how I felt. I shared about watching the ultrasound, how I told my dad and the boys, but how do I feel about it? What am I feeling? I don’t know that I can put it all into words, but I will try.
Elation. Joy. Excitement. Delight. Jubilation.
I mean, how can I NOT feel these things!? I was told that there was only a 4% chance of me being able to have a baby, and then, the amazing news that we are having a baby – well, that makes you pretty damn happy! I’ve been given the opportunity to be a dad again – and this time, I’m having a little girl!
Over the years, I have been an uncle to many nieces, and have loved every minute of it. I have danced around in a princess crown for them, gone to Peppa Pig World, read girly bedtime stories, and made puppet monkeys talk. Having a daughter takes things to a whole new level!
First girl
I had always hoped that when I had children that I would have one of each. I wanted a boy to play sports with and a girl to walk down the aisle. I was blessed with two amazing sons, who I loved playing catch with. I love those boys with all that I am. I was NEVER unhappy that I had boys. They each have very distinct personalities. They are both very smart. As I look at all they have accomplished, I beam with great pride. I am honored to have been chosen to be their dad!!
12 years later, after many changes in my life, I am once again about to become a father. This time, I will be “daddy” to a little girl. What a great responsibility this is! I will not lie about this – as happy as I am, I am also scared as hell!!!
Scary things
Boys could get away with 2 or 3 pairs of pants. All you really needed were a bunch of shirts and you could be set. Girls are different! They need pants, shirts, leggings, shoes, and many, many dresses!
I hope Sam knows that she will probably be picking out most of the clothes! I have a feeling what I think is “cute” really isn’t!
Have you seen the Xfinity commercial where the girl is dressing up her dad??
I would TOTALLY let my daughter do this! Now, if I have to do nails or makeup, I have this awful feeling that it will look something like this guy! I have never had to paint nails before. I don’t know how to put on eyeliner, blush, or any type of makeup. I will definitely need a crash course!!!
Let’s not even talk about her hair! I used to do my own hair, and now I am bald! How on earth am I going to be able to do her hair? With the boys, I brushed it, combed it, or parted it. This isn’t how it works with girls!! Have you seen the gazillion ways to braid hair?!
There is this:
And this:
And this:
And this:
The braid is hard enough!! I gotta make a heart, too?!? The pressure is unreal!!!!
Then there is play time. Very different from boys. I have never EVER hosted a tea party …
Whew! I’m glad there is a book!!!
Another scary thing is diaper changes.
It’s a whole new ball game for me! It’s been some time since I changed diapers, and I know it will all come back to me … this time, however, the parts are different!!
Then there is GLITTER! Man, I really hate glitter! It stays with you for years! LOL
Sports
Sam asked what sports I thought our daughter should do. Me, being a guy, thought about what I had already done with the boys. Hey, girls, do these things!!!
T-Ball – How cool are pink bats and gloves??!!
Bowling – Some of the high school’s have girl bowling teams! I gotta tell you, these gals bowled better than some of the guys I bowled with over the years!
Golf – I knew a gal who golfed for the high school team. She was pretty amazing! How good was she? I never golfed with her, because I knew she’d beat the hell out of me! Golf, like bowling, had scholarships, too, so why not?!
Sam must have thought I was crazy! She said that she was thinking about gymnastics – which after she said it, made total sense! Of course, our girl could do gymnastics! I can see her at the Olympics! Our little gold medal winner! Of course, I won’t let this guy teach her …. this doesn’t look right ….
One of the things I can see her doing is dance. My nieces do dance now. Whether it is ballet or just dance in general, I can totally see our daughter doing it.
Sam has already warned me that girls in dance class have to have many outfit changes. Tutus, ballet slippers, tap shoes, bows, leotards, and more! Yeah, I’ll be out in the audience doing all the moves with her (minus the leotards).
In all seriousness
I won’t lie, raising a child in the world today is very scary. Hell, it was scary before my oldest was born (9/11 happened just 7 months before he was born)! As a father, I know that my daughter will be looking to me for many things. I hope that she sees me as her hero!
I hope she will see me as her protector and as someone she can always trust. I hope she will feel comfortable to share what ever is on her mind, and come to me for advice. I cannot wait to share that special bond and special love that a daughter and dad have.
Things I am looking forward to
Her first cry
Her first photo shoot
Her first words
Her first tooth
Her first steps
Holding her in my arms
Singing her to sleep
Hugging her
Piggy back rides on my shoulders
Reading bedtime stories
Holding hands
Buying her whatever she wants (Sam says she’s hiding the checkbook)
The list goes on and on.
So am I feeling?
I am overjoyed! I am ecstatic! I could not be happier that I am going to be a dad again!!
I am also scared. I worry. I am told this is natural.
I am nervous. I don’t want to fail or disappoint.
I am anxious. I look forward to all the firsts, all the accomplishments, and milestones.
Final Thought
Over the past 30 years, I have DJ’s thousands of weddings and hundreds of Daddy/Daughter dances! At weddings, I have watched countless times as two special people shared their moment in the spotlight. At Daddy/Daughter dances, I have watched dads wonder just what their little girl is screaming about when Justin Beiber or Taylor Swift start playing. I have then watched as they finally get a slow song to dance with their little girl.
As a father of boys, I never understood the bond or the feelings involved with those dances. I know I have a few years yet, but time will fly and soon enough I will be able to relate to those dads I have watched over the years. To say I am excited as I look forward to that first dance … is quite an understatement.
Various Ramblings of a Nostalgic Italian 