The Adventures of the Costanzos

Ok so I am really bad at blogging on a regular basis

2009-04-08T21:42:00.004-05:00

We went to Atlantic City to see one of my best friends, Sheri from NC. Emily loved staying in a hotel and thought it was so cool. But as you can see, she was just exhausted. She fell asleep mid-morning.

Abby Loved Caesar's indoor beach/sand. She had sand in every crease of her body!

Emily and me at the beach.

Abby in a rare "girly girl dress" but you can see all the babies. She's holding 2 "babies".

Emily did Soccer recently at the YMCA. Lets just say... its a GOOD thing she is pretty~!!

Ok, so it should be apparent that I am really bad at blogging. I get in a groove and then just as quickly fall away. So I started working at a new insurance office - State Farm. Its so different. It's not that I dont like it- but instead of service it is hard-core sales and I am just not into that. I am holding my own and landing some big accounts, but its a stress I don't like. The one thing I like least about the job is the hours. I work all day on Monday -literally -9am to 7pm but seldom leave before 7:30. I hardly see the girls on this day. It makes the day seem so long and tough. But then I am off on Tue-Wed. I work 9-5 on Thur, 9-1 on Friday, and 10-1 (but more like 2) on Saturdays. When I stared ti was supposed to be "just a few Saturdays" a month but has turned into every Saturday. And my co-worker takes every holiday off... errrr (but Im not bitter, no no no ). Canio's job is going really well. He seems to have gotten into a groove himself. His one year mark is coming up in August and while there are no guarantees, it looks like the company will keep him. Living on a one year contract has been stressful, but we are so much better off now. His team is doing the best in the region, which helps his cause... but poor Canio is driving my old Honda Civic, ie the clown car. Emily is loving school. She loves her teacher, Ms. Linda. Abby spends time at the YMCA as well in the member's nursery, and loves Ms. Karen. They will both be returning next year. Its a great place - we spend a ton of money there, its sad... but they do seem to be a family oriented group. I am very happy with it. So Emily has turned into such a sweet little girl. She loves to color people (im going to scan in some of her artwork). Now we are working on drawing houses, etc. She is starting to read, which should really cramp our current "spell it so they dont know what we are talking about" technique. Recently, she told her Nana - "Wow you have an old neck". She has taken to saying "Whoever smelled it, dealt it" when someone passes gas...then a hardy giggle ensues. She's really into her stuffed animals now..and is starting to watch real shows - like High School Musical and Matilada. Abby is ... well... crazy. She still has her red hair... she talks like a firestorm. She loves being naked! And she will stick her butt out and say... "see my bum". We are slowly potty training - uh, ok, she's peeing on the floor. Or she will sit on her NEW Pooh potty (hahaha no pun intended) and say... after 2 seconds... Ehhhh, I can't do it. She loves babies. Baby dolls, polly pockets, barbie... you name it... she's willing to try it. With Easter coming - she recently discovered candy. OH boy. She went to the dentist and neither she nor Emily have any problems. Emily did dance/gym class. I will post pictures. She loved it. She really got better as it went on. THen we switched gears to soccer. How cute is it that she would duck everytime someone came near her with the pack running after the ball~! The coach was great and like always - everyone liked her. She is such a sweetheart - everyone loves her. I love my girls. They are faithful and love church. Abby says her prayers, and Emily prayed on her own the other day when I lost something - so I would find it. How great is that! I was so pleased. Im grateful for the Savior. I love the week before Easter. What a wonderful thing to recall his last week of his life and to read the symbolism and to know it was done for me. Ok, Enjoy some photos!

Fall in NEPA

2008-11-12T21:16:00.004-05:00

We went to Robas Family farm on a very nice day - the temp ended up being 70 that Saturday (2nd in Oct 08). The next day we painted our downstairs and Nana and Poppy took the girls BACK to Robas.

Enjoy the pics!

Emily's 1st Day of preschool 9/2/08

2008-09-20T10:00:00.003-05:00

Emily started preschool - 2 days a week at the YMCA. She was so excited and to my utter surprise, she didnt even cry for us. She was super excited and went about going to school like a pro. She loves to go and now tells me how boring our house is.

They have started swimming lessons too. I can tell she dresses herself because her pants have been inside out and backwards. But hey, shes DOING IT!

The best part was that because Canio had recently gotten back from Chicago, he had the day off so he was able to go with us.

Emily has her first field trip in 2 weeks. They are going to an apple orchard. She is so sweet.

Thursday after class, out of the blue, told me what she wants to be when she grows up: (in her words)... a mail person, or maybe a babysitter - yeah, I really want to watch babies, or a painter, teacher or a belly checker (upon further questioning - belly checker is a doctor).

Emilyisms

2008-08-28T22:04:00.002-05:00

Ok here are a few Emily-isms and/or cute stories that Emily came off with yesterday and today... First, our neighbor had a guest who was standing outside smoking. So when Emily went over to say hi to our neighbor, she walked up to the smoker and said. Ewe, that stinks.... then.... uh, you're not really gonna stick that ting in your mouff (mouth) are you? She was obviously embarrassed as was I. I quickly got Emily away before she could say anything else (although as soon as we were out of earshot I explained to Emily smoking is very yucky and will hurt you but next time be a little more gentle when talking to grown ups) She tilted her head and said, well, I was right...right? I promptly offered her a piece of gum! Today Emily was getting ready for her practice day of school (I got to stay as she investigated the toys and kids). She was wearing a little hoody because it was chilly. Emily has tried to zip zippers for at least 6 mo. So she said, Mommy can you zip this? I said yeah, hang on... a min later I hear... I did it! I zipped it..... I ROCK. It was so out of character it made me laugh and then she laughed, but she had been totally serious. Emily came up to me tonight and said... Um, Mommy if I told you the truth.... would you still be mad? I asked her "about what?" She replied... Oh nuffin, Im uh... just nervous... I mean curious. =) And Abbys new words are: Brush, play dough, rice, "dont cry, I pooped, Emme (for Emily), Sissy, catmeow (one word), miss, need, I fall, stick, betsy (Emily has named her trike Betsy and Abby now thinks they are ALL called betsy), draw, pray, and Mommy play.

A picture is worth a million words-lets catch up

2008-08-26T20:35:00.006-05:00

MORE PHOTOS WILL FOLLOW--- AND WHEN I LOADED THESE... THEY LOADED FROM THE BOTTOM UP. SO YOU ARE WARNED (THEY MAY SEEM OUT OF ORDER). Abby discovers her belly. (she found that binky behind the couch....I've taken the binky away during the day...) A rare moment caught on tape where Abby is NOT torturing the cats! Just our beauty listening to Daddy one day at lunch.... And our devilish Abby....driving a boat at Knoebels. Emily, Abby, and their cousin Grace really enjoyed Knoebels. It was great to watch them play together and enjoy it.

Emily feeds the gorilla a leaf.... look at abby's face....

Hmmm... Abby tries to match the Gorilla's serious looks. Emily stops by a pond to cast a few wishes... Emily poses for a picture - she is learning to skate... and yes, can you tell she is SUPER happy I asked her to stop for a minute for a picture. (Didnt help she was looking into the sun)... I couldnt get an action shot because that would have just been a picture of Emily laid out on the ground (shes not very good yet at staying vertical without my help)... It didnt take her long to give up and just play hopscotch instead. Look at that BEAUTIFUL hopscotch board. woo hooo. I wonder who drew that?!?!

Abby practices posing as a model.... (oh and by the way...she loves to have "babies"...dolls, stuffed animals, etc).... On the 4th we had some friends from church over... Emily loves Andrew (their oldest son. They also have Ethan, and a new baby Alex)...Can you see how excited she is? Abby decided to play golf...any hey... to improve her odds--- why not use a wiffle sized ball! =) Another trip to the zoo in Philly... Canio and Emily explore a peacock. CHeck out the archives.... there was a peacock about 2 yr ago that ate a cracker right from Emily's hand. Emily holding a gorilla's butt??? Hmmm

Crazy morning

2008-08-25T21:02:00.002-05:00

Those of you who know me, know that I am not really a morning person. So, I try to prepare for morning the night before (well, wait-- since canio's been ou of town I do this)... So I am prepared with a movie in the dvd player, choc. milk made up, frozen homemade pancakes--- Im good... right? WRONG! Emily and Abby objected to my choice of movies.... And then a few days better, while getting ready to go to church, I popped in a Veggie Tales movie --- Abby was, hmmm, shall we say engrossed? Yesderday afternoon, after we went to church and I attended a visiting teaching conference (or 3/4 of one because one of the YW came and got me to tell me that Emily had decided to go home and had tried to get out of the nursery... I quickly went to nursery to see two pre-YW girls shoving Emily back into class.... Obvisously this wasnt going to work..... so when I walked in... I was greated by not one but TWO screaming kids. Abby screamed because I had left her and Emily because she had just been pushed. But Sunday was tough anyways....Emily hadnt slept well. The first part of sacrament my girls sat quietly looking at books. I wante dto take a picture because this just does NOT normally happen. I was SO thankful. Then ... Abby pooped! I knew once I took them out to chg Abby I would have lost the battle....and I did. The only saving grace is that Emily knew Andrew would get to play with her at the end of church and in Emily's own words..."she "loves Andrew with all my heart" Emily was also a little upset that Andrew no longer thinks the world of Emily...as he is now 5 and loves boy things. But what a sweet spirit (hey at least she has good taste)... He is always kind to her and tries to include her.

Later, after a nap...Abby wanted to go outside. She LOVES it outside and will cry to go out. I caught her at the door a split second before EMILY decided to help her escape. When I went out to corale them back inside- Abby (with her sisters help) got her bike inside. She was so darn proud of herself, I had to snap a picture first! THEN I yelled!

Finally, one of Emily's new favorite things to do is to grab the camera and start snapping pictures. This one she took of herself not long before bed on Sunday. Pretty funny! She looks AWFUL - You'd swear she just lost a fight or something.

Anyways... look forward to updates on my zucchini bread recipe, how Canio's Chicago trip ends (round 1), how watching the twins Gracie and Katelyn go, and Emily's first day of school.... oh... and lots more pictures since I just got them all loaded to the computer!

We made it through a week!

2008-08-22T09:46:00.002-05:00

We have made it through a week without daddy! On Tuesday we went to the movies and Abby was GREAT! She sat through almost the entire movie on my lap. Since going she keeps saying "moo-ee" Her language has EXPLODED and she repeats a lot. She likes to color (on walls) and paint! She loves her babies, her baby stroller, and shoes! She is a shoe Hog! Emily has been talking about school. She is so excited. We had an adventure on Wednesday by going to K-Mart to pick out a backpack. She went with princesses of COURSE! We had hotdogs (ewe) from their little snack bar. We also stopped off at the Butler Street Playground (my personal favorite right now because it is fenced in and because Abby runs like a lighting bolt - it is very helpful). You don't realize just how much you rely on your spouse for just support, if nothing else, until they are away. Canio will be away again in Sept, Oct, and Jan. Canio will be doing the Dunmore High School football games again. You can listen to it at www.audiosportsonline.com I believe its under Football, then District II Football. Well, I will add pictures (right now we have over 300 photos on our camera so it will take FOREVER to load them all!).

Canio got a job!

2008-08-18T21:25:00.003-05:00

Just to let you all know, Canio got a job! A really good job with Abbott Labs, a pharmaceutical company (they make Lexapro, Tricore, Vicatin, and now Crestor). Dont worry if youve never heard of them... neither did I before he got the job. He will be a pharma. sales rep in the Hazelton Area (we will not be relocating). He makes about 20K more than he used to -and thats before bonuses which are significant if he gets them. He also gets a car allowance, gas card, and other incidentals. We are SOOOO proud of him and SOOO happy. I am now just working 2 days a week, and because of new ownership of the insurance agent that I work for - I am now making 5.oo more an hour. The past few months were rough, because as anyone who knows us, knows, we have been through a lot in this past year or so. I spent 2 wks feeling down and wondering when things would get better. Then I got down on my knees, talked to my bishop who wisely said we arent as close to the Lord when things are good...... and I realized this was an opportunity to go my faith and my testimony. And what wonderful and marvelous things happened. I prayed about my faith, my religion, my family and my trials. I am Mormon for those of you who do not know... and I found some great lessons to help me. I felt fortified and I was grateful for the test. Then, I also realized this happened for me to be more sympathetic to others and my path crossed a couple going through similiar problems. I instantly gained their trust by accurately describing the fears and problems they were facing. I was able to share my testimony with 2 people from work....and I am happy that my Heavenly Father trusted me enough to be an instrument to go through these things so I could show people tha twith faith, all is possible. Especially Canio who sometimes doubts the Lord's loving attention. And on a MUCH LIGHTER NOTE---- Emily is starting preschool at the YMCA. She toured it today and LOVED IT> Abby started nursery at church sunday and HATED IT! She cried the ENTIRE time. Thank God (and I mean it literally) for Sister Dahill who is a miracle worker with nerves of STEEL! My girls are growing up! How sad. I gave them both extra cuddles today. (Canio is away in Chicago for training for 2 wks, will come home for 2 wks, be gone for 2 1/2 wks and go away for a week in Oct and Nov). Not only did I miss Canio but I was able to watch them from a distance and I realized my cuddle time is quickly disappearing. sigh. I try to burn the images into my memory so I will never forget them. Those two little girls are my entire world. My heart just bounces when I think of them, or when I picture a smile. You all are really missing out!

Our Memorial Day Trip to the Philly Zoo

2008-08-18T21:04:00.003-05:00

We went to the Philly Zoo for Memorial Day 2008. It was Emilys 4 or 5th trip but Abby's first trip. We went with Canio's mom (nana> As many of you know Canio lost his job on April 24th. I began working full time to make up the money difference. Memorial Day was very special because it was the only day that we had as a family the entire month of May that I didnt work somewhere (other than Mothers Day).
Emily got her face painted. She chose hearts for "love" (even though I tried to talk her into the butterfly design)

Just Emily being beautiful, even near an ugly vulture! hehehe

Abby spent a lot of time in the stroller, only because she likes to run away if she gets out. If you take a real close look at her legs you will see a TON of bruises. She is a boy trapped in a beautiful little body....and yes, her hair is still red (strawberry blonde).

I love this look - she was in the childrens zoo petting a goat. She gave a funny look. She has soo many expressions. She is getting tall and talking up a storm. Yet she still cuddles with me and nuzzles her head on my shoulders. These are the best things in life. I love my two girls with all my might. I am blessed with two very different but very good girls. Abby loves to fold her arms to pray, but refuses to sit still for anything --- and she loves "babies"....she carries them around. (Naked of course).

After a long day, Abby zonked and slept the entire trip home. Thank goodness she sleeps better than Emily or else she would have been up all night!
And finally... in other big news..... EMILY IS POTTY TRAINED! YEAHHHHHHHH

Chars Car Accident 3/5/08

2008-03-07T21:44:00.006-05:00

As you may/may not know, I was in a car accident on Wed night coming home from church. I was on a back sort of curvy mountain road (for those in the area -8th street near Carverton Rd). Recent rain had run off water coming out of the mountain and it froze like black ice. There was an accident where mine was but the man moved the car. I saw this accident and slowed down only to go around a curve and hit the ice myself and slammed into a rock retaining wall. There was absolutely nothing I could do. The police and EMS responding also slid. Although I was headed for a flood-stage creek, I somehow managed to curve back the other way and only hit the side of my car...as you will see instead of head on. I hit at about 30mph. I am ok but real sore. The kids were NOT in the car with me. Thank goodness. And Thank GOD for Toyotas! IF I had been in our small Honda, the outcome could have been much worse.

There was another accident in that area and before i was taken in the ambulance, the police closed the road. Penn Dot really dropped the ball...with that much run off and knowing temps were going to dip into the 20s they should have salted. I was going slow but there was no traction whatsoever. About 10 -15 min after my accident, PennDot salted giving those coming down before the road closed a little traction. Other church members made it home ok.

Our family just cant catch a break....in several areas. If you pray, pray for us and pray for me to be accepting of God's Will. There was about 4000 damage so far. Well off- dont feel like writing much.

Pictures of Abby

2008-03-07T21:36:00.003-05:00

Hello everyone! Im having a bad hair day... Yeah Im cutre and I know it... look at those dimples! Who stole the comics section? hahah... It was me... Here Abby, this is how it works.... Abby is turning one everyone! She started walking the week after Valentines day and is now a pro. Today she added a new word.... out (she wanted out of her high chair). Caution...these pictures are just TOOO CUTE

Family Update

2008-01-25T21:44:00.000-05:00

Why HI there everyone! Here's our updates! We rang in the New Years with me working and then coming home and we watched some rented movies and cheered on the ball drop. New Years Eve is kinda important to Canio and my history - you see, the first day we spent together (literally all day except 2 hrs when he went into his new job) was on New Years Eve 1999. We putz around his apartment, went to lunch at Wendy's (not my fave place but turned out to be one of his), then we went and rented a movie (the Godfather) and I distinctly remember thinking ewe yuck a really old movie... (esp. cuz I wanted to go do something for the dawning of the millinieum)...then we went to dinner at an italian place called Raggazzi's in hickory nc. We went back to his apt and we watched the Godfather (at opposite ends of his couch) and then watched the ball drop. And here we are 8 years later! The first tues of Jan it was 65 here and we hit the outdoors hard! We were at the park for 2 1/5 hrs, then we came home and drew on the sidewalk, took a walk with a neighbor and her son, and then came home and Emily tried to ride her trike with a different neighbor boy. Next came my birthday. I turned 31. I worked from 9-2:30 at Childrens Place and then from 5-7 at the ins. agency. My MIL came down with a cute purse and a card (and a some money which went to buy gas)... and Canio gave me a gift cert. to get my hair done, even though I told him I didnt really need anything. Emily sent me an email card with the help of daddy. I baked my first - from scratch- dark chocolate cake...and it was YUMMILIOUS. Emily started swim lessons again at the Y. WOW what a difference 6 mo. has made. We took a break (for financial reasons) and she did GREAT. She can go it alone now. Nana took her and had as much fun as Emily (because I had to work). I really miss doing that with her and I hate that I had to work. Then I got called and told to come in later so I ended up seeing her swim. That night some friends of ours watched the girls and we went to Longhorn for dinner (the first time we had been alone on a "date" since Canio's bday in July). We had a nice expensive dinner that will be reimbursed because I was a "secret shopper" for them. Sunday found me sick and asleep - and 4 gals from church came by with a cake and sang me happy belated birthday. A very nice gesture. Abby had a busy month so far. At the beginning of the month she started saying 'ssssss" for sissy (or Emily). On Sunday 1/20 she stood up for the first time for about 5 -10 sec alone. She repeated this a few times. Earlier in the week we got sick again after watching a friends kids. Its been a long week for little Abby. The first week of Jan she got another tooth and is working on 2 more. She has 5 total now. She eats ANYTHING...including cat food if you dont watch her. And she loves the water in the toilet. errrr. She is beautiful inside and out. I couldnt imagine life without her. Yes, it might be less stressful but I would miss her smile and her giggle that radiates through you and makes you smile too. Emily is STILL working on going #2 on the potty. She goes #1 great! She can now read the words: STOP, GO (and spell those two) and DORA (go figure) and MAP (again.. big surprise). We are working on writing letters now. We cant get past A... she makes "H"s and she likes to make "M"s too. Canio is still working alot and watches the kids alot because of my working. He is predicting the Giants will win the Superbowl in a close game. His dad is a big fan. Guess we will see... I HOPE they win... Not a big fan personally of NE. And we did a chili cookoff tonight at church. What FUN! After we ate we all played board games while the kids were watched. And the winner of the cookoff.... ME~! YIPPY. Ok gotta hand over the computer to Canio--- Pictures will follow as the girls are getting SOOOO BIG. xoxox.

Emilys and Abbys pics from Sept

2007-12-18T16:43:00.000-05:00

EMILY ABBY SEPT PICS

MERRY CHRISTMAS~!

2007-12-18T16:26:00.000-05:00

HO HO HO

Ok... so I havent updated this in awhile... When you get 3 emails in a space of about 1 hr then you know you better get your butt busy, right? Here's a cheat ... I emailed this to a friend of mine... and Im busy so Im gonna just copy n paste.

I havent updated the blog in awhile because I am working 3 jobs. No, you didnt read that wrong. I work about 10-15 hr at Childrens place.... about 4-8 hrs at Lane Bryant and about 2-4 hrs at the insurance agency. We needed money for the holidays and bills so I did what had to be done. I despise that I have to work this much because, while I do like to get some "adult" time.... I dont like leaving the care of my children for 20-25 hr a wk to someone else. Plus, because they are scattered hours its hard to get anything done. I will do that this week though... I have to take both girls to the Dr today--both caught a chest cold (this was today by the way and Emily has the start of bronchitis but Abby is just good ole sick).

Abby is talking! She says Hi, Bye Bye, Momma, Daddy, and That- (she points to things and says That...that...) and all three of us (Canio, me, and my M-I-L) thought she said, "whats that" a few times. She pulls herself up and creeps along things, she bounces in her johnny jumper like she is going to fly away. She eats EVERYTHING.. grilled cheese, cheese steak, bannanas, eggs, veggies, fruits, bagels-- I have yet to find anything she really doesnt like. SHe also blows raspberries and plays peek a boo. No words can tell you just how cute she is. She is so loving and so sweet. She loves to be snuggled, but also wants to be free to explore. She is really trying to do whatever Emily does and Emily has turned into her protector. She hushes her gently when she cries, likes to help put her to bed (but this is NOT helpful), and she plays with her.

Emily is getting SO big. She had her 3rd birthday and is going on 16 now. She started potty training and has the peeing down pat, we rarely have an accident. The "other" thing is another story. She just wont do it... I have coaxed her with hershey kisses, but that doesnt work every time. She is such a story teller. Currently we are stuck on stories about Santa and the "green guy".... we have NO idea who this green guy is...but she plays with him and makes up stories with him in it. Our dear friend Kim... or Aunt Kim as we call her has been so good to her in sending her good, wholesome videos and movies and music. Aunt Kim is her favorite because almost every VeggieTales thing she has (her current big kick) has come from Aunt Kim. (so aunt kim we love you and think of you every day but seldom get the chance to tell you...but I have choc.s to come your way hehehe)_

Emily likes singing now....shes doing great in church... has made a new friend... but may have to get some help w/ gross motor skills (jumping etc) as she is a little behind in that...but her vocab has got to equal a kindergardener if not 1st grader! And abby is following the same way.

We are NOT ready for Christmas. I have read some great articles... about Christmas and how it is the season of Angels... great thing.... i fyou want a copy let me know.

Ok a few quick pics and then off I go to work from 5:30-11:30 I loveyou all

Aug Pics

2007-09-03T20:54:00.000-05:00

Budda Baby -

Like my shiner? Emily has a black eye!

You talkin to me?

And shes OUT! This is how Emily often looks when she naps in the car

"heheheheee Yea, I got my thumb... its all good!"

We have TEETH

2007-09-03T19:52:00.000-05:00

Well, August has come and gone already. Who knew that having kids made time fly?? I started working back at the Children's Place this month. It has meant a lot of babysitting sharing with another friend of mine. It has been an adjustment but at just 2 days a week, we seem to be doing well with it so far. Abby is growing like a weed. She solidly fits in 6-9 mo now. She can grab at things and switch hands. On her belly she can roll to get what she wants and on her back she does this "arch the back and push with the heels" move that seems to get her around pretty good. She seems to constantly laugh at Emily and ALREADY tries to do what she does. And if you didnt guess by the title--we have teeth. Abby cut 2 teeth at the same time and I found them on Friday 8/17 (the first night of the Tomato festival). She is a hoot to watch. She giggles at just about anything and already does this "shy" smile. Her hair is still red. And I find it real funny how both sides of our family claim responsibility for it hehehe. Speaking of the Tomato Festival (a bazaare in Pittston PA where they actually have an even where people throw tomatoes at each other).... as I said, we went... and Emily just HAD to play the goldfish game (you know the ping-pong ball into a small tank game...where you win a little fish you know what live through the night?)....But luckily for us, shes not a good aim... so she lost.... not lucky for us that she is cute.... The owner of the game gave her a fish anyways because shes "just so cute". So we now have a fish that Emily insists we keep. I convince her that its going to go live with Angela's fish (a friend just got a small tank for her 2 girls). Neither Canio or I could really flush it. So it ended up in a disposible sippy cup and survived the night. Canio and Emily drove the fish to Angela's. Angela adopted "Bruno" (the shark from Nemo). However, sadly, Bruno passed on shortly after going to live there. And he took the rest of Angela's fish with him. Ooops! Emily is doing good. She is loving to play store. She sorts out things you can buy from her toys. She has a cup of "coinies" that she or you pay with. She knows all her diff. coins. She will tell you if it is used, or haggle you down in price. Its funny... and then she will say...thanks, come again. Canio started broadcasting HS football for Dunmore HIgh this past Friday. You can listen to the games at http://www.audiosportsonline.com/ then go to Football...then Dunmore High School Bucks. If you do tune in...he starts at 6:45pm on Fridays.... please let us know you are going to listen and he will send a hello. And....drum roll.... I GOT A VERY NICE DOUBLE STROLLER! And I love it! I even braved taking both the girls to the mall ..by myself... and we stayed PAST bedtime on Friday night because they were both so good in the stroller. A lady who works with me told me its like a "Freagin Hummer". It is big but so easy to access. Congrads to my friend AMY in NC who gave birth to a very CUTE little boy. I hope she believes me that the first 2 months are really hard but it just keeps getting easier. But as you can see from the video... Abby is just hanging out laughing....Emily comes by...Abby starts to cry. I guess Abby figures its just a matter of time. =) By the way...its grainy because its from our digital camera which is only 3 yrs old but is a dinosaur now.

Photos

2007-07-25T13:49:00.000-05:00

Summer Update

2007-07-25T13:13:00.000-05:00

Summer ....

WOW time is FLYING!

I can hardly believe that July is ending already. I dread winter so much that the mere thought of it makes my stomach do twists. When we first moved to PA it was a fear of driving in the snow. That has since been pushed aside by the fear of having Emily basically couped up inside for 4-5 months straight.

I am a little disappointed to say that we have yet to go swimming. Our neighbors got a pool this year but on the only day they offered us to swim--it downpoured 15 min later (before I could get everyone dressed). We had to cut out the Y swim lessons in an effort to save money on our budget and because they had switched pools for a few weeks and Emily didnt like the big, cold pool. I had hoped to take her swimming a lot more. The weeks it was nice, we were busy and the weeks we were free it was cold.

Our weather has been strange to say the least. Unbearably hot and humid and then two days later freezing like autumn. Today happens to be a hot day. Emily, Abby and I were out for about 40 minutes (sufficent for me to sweat - even under the boobs).

We really havent done anything extremely fun. We went cherry picking and that was great. We are so tight with money now that even a trip to the zoo is out. Friends gave us Hershey Park tickets that we used 2 Saturdays ago. The weather was great! Emily loved riding the rides...she had a BLAST! Abby enjoyed looking around but mostly enjoyed sleep. We also saw 3 innings of a baseball game (Emily got to run the bases after the game and LOVED IT). We spent a week at my sisters house in Warren PA. First half was great...dont ask about the second half. But I know for a fact now that I would win or at least be a finalist if a contest "Most Disfunctional Family" existed. Canio and I got to go to NY for 1/2 a day to see the Hill Cumorah Outdoor Pagent. It was a rushed trip to get there/get home...but we did enjoy it. It did however get frigid that night...

We are currently reading the Harry Potter book outloud at night once the kids are asleep. Its a great bonding time and we enjoy sharing our ideas about what is going to happen. (I told my brother in law how upset I got when he blurted out ----- lives!) ERR. I love the suspense.

Emily is starting to go pee and poop on the potty. Its going slow but she has now done is quite a lot. She has pooped twice and claims to have pee'd at least 7 times...but she isnt ready to give into it completely yet. She has started sleeping with a night light. This helped at first but now I dont know-- we are back to not sleeping. We will have to see. We got a tinkerbell one that spins, only to have the bulb burn out the 1st night (and sent me into a panic attack) and then moan the next night (sending Emily into a panic attack). I gave Emily a hair cut that is to DIE for. Its awesome. It is layered and it falls and frames her face beautifully. Yes, I will be cutting hair now for a charge! HEHE. Emily's last check up said she was 35.5" tall (almost 3 ft) and 30.3 lbs. She now eats ravoli (her fave), pizza, chicken nuggets, roast beef, turkey, french fries, bruschetta, onion rings (yes I said ONION rings) and after 2 yrs of trying--mashed potatoes and also hot dogs (as long as we call it ham...this is the same for HAM, and Bacon too). Her sayings are getting funnier than ever. She now likes Abby. She likes to pretend with dolls...or anything that maybe laying around (example-- the shampoo bottle is the "doctor" when she is taking a bath). She is trying to learn to color inside the lines. When she thinks I am hurt/sad/etc she will say... Its ok Honey. If you discipline her- she will say afterward... Are ya happy mommy? If you say no..she cries and says Please dont be mad at me mommy. The funniest thing of this week is when she wanted to clean the toilet (yes she is strange but she gets kicks from scrubbing the toilet) and as she first started cleaning the one she pooped in she sniffed and then said.... EEEWWEE Peee You. Cucky. Mom, dat smells like old poop.

Abby had her 4 mo checkup this week. (Time is flying there-- it seemed to take us forever to get to 4 mo w/ Emily and when I see Abby I am constantly shocked at what she can do). A friend said its because w/ the first you are waiting for them to hit milestones so it takes longer... with the second, you are just happy they are eating/pooping and sleeping, and with the 3rd you are just happy you can account for all 3. Abby is growing like a weed. She now wears 3-6 mo and easily fits 6 mo. She is 26" long (thats the 97%) and 14.5lbs (75%) and her head is 20" (95%). She is laughing, giggly and full of smiles. She only cries when hungy or tired or attacked by Emily. She goes to sleep without being fed, rocked, or held...but does need the binky but only for sleep! She loves her stuffed pig that she got in the hospital. And has now begun to notice EVERYTHING. She can grab things and play with them and she is teething. She likes to stand or be sitting up. Her hair is still red/auburn/or some call it strawberry blonde. My mom recently saw her and said she looked JUST like me and it made her feel like she was holding me. Oh and she talks....aaahhhh akkk and blows raspberries.

Here are some recent photos. if you want more photos email me.

We survived the hospital!

2007-06-12T20:27:00.000-05:00

We are alive. We survived a combined 9 days in the hospital. I spent 5 days... Ive said to my family---they just dont stick an adult in the hospital for 5 days if you arent deathly ill. And those 5 days I would have rather been dead a few times...esp. the night my fever was 104.7. I have never coughed so hard, had my lungs hurt so badly, have such an intense sore throat, or have my body ache like I did during this virus. This was such a nasty virus that it made my liver stop functioning correctly and it enlarged my spleen. Talk about sick! I have true pity now for anyone with cancer as I can only imagine how one could be any sicker than I was. It all started when I FINALLY convinced my family doctor to send me for an outpatient chest x-ray. When I almost past-out and was shaking from high fever- they put me on a bed. Although that same quacky doctor told the nurses just to send me over to the office, Canio insisted I go to the ER. And I was first told it was just a cold, until they discovered my liver was inflamed (also known as hepatitus...but not the "bad" kinds).

With me in the hospital, we had to figure out what to do with our kids. My friend and live saver, Annie watched Abby 24/7 and I can honestly say the Lord comforted me so that I would not worry about Abby's care. Once Canio's parents returned from Europe on Saturday evening, Canios mom generously stayed all week to watch Emily. Emily on day 3 of my hospital stay ended up in the ER from throwing up. Personally I wouldnt have taken her to the ER, I would probably have just not given her anything to eat/drink for awhile because that poor kid really throws up once she starts. But she was checked out and sent home.

On day 5 of my stay (Tuesday), Annie brought Abby to spend a few hrs with me. The day before Abby had seen the dr about her red eyes (diagnosed w/ eye infection) When I saw how sick she looked I told the nurse I was leaving. The dr had thought I would be released on Tue (day 5) but had changed his mind saying he wanted me in at least one more day. However, I did get out on day 5 with a list of 5-6 medicines. We took Abby back to the Dr. that day, who said she should be fine and gave her an antibiotic. That afternoon she became so congested she could hardly breathe - so as I was packing her up to go to the ER, she started choking. I called 911. When they got to the house they whipped her into the ambulance and started oxygen and then transported her. The same amb. driver that we had when Emily had her seizures 2 yr ago was one of the responders....he remembered us. How sad is that? Anyways, despite me trying to explain to the ER doc that all her test would come back negative because she had the same mystery virus I had but that she should still be admitted....he refused to keep her stating that her tests came back negative. We went back to the Dr office and saw her reg. dr Wed morning. He admited her. He thought she would be in a day or so...get some fluids and get the congestion broken up. She ended up staying 4 days. She had a humidity tent and breathing treatments that helped. Her dr...Dr. Kile... figured out what we had... asked the hospital dr to test her....and indeed...mystery solved. Adenovirus. Nothing earth shattering but if you get allthe symptoms it can really kick your butt - esp. if you are an adult.

I am still weak. I dont realize it until I slow down at the end of the day and find my body aches so bad, it hurts to hold my head up. I still have a cough that hurts and I am still expelling phlem from my lungs. Abby is MUCH better. She is so cute.

Emily missed us, as we missed her. The first few days back she was an angel. She is not quite so great now but she is a LOT better than pre-hospitalization. She has even decided to start to try to use the potty.

The garden is in and watered...but that is about it. Canio is busy as ever as the fiscal year nears an end at his work. I am sure he is still tired too from work, playing with Emily and stopping in every day for an hour or so at the hospital.

My spelling stinks

2007-05-09T20:14:00.000-05:00

Hope my English/grammar teacher never read this.......my spelling is awful..Especially like "brived" instead of bribed.

Family update

2007-05-09T08:20:00.000-05:00

Hi all..

Well time is flying past us here. Seems like we just cant seem to keep up!

Here are some updates on us:

Canio---

He is busy busy busy. Not only has he been helpful to me around the house, but he now gives Emily a bath every night and puts her to bed 90% of the time. He also dug out the new garden spot (I did the last one) as we are moving our garden further back in our yard to give Emily more play area close to the house. The end of June marks the end of his work fiscal year - so he has been working hard to hit goals. Not to mention the WVIA auction will be coming up at the end of May. On Sat. they have their Knoebels Day. We (Emily, Abby, and I) may or may not go to Knoebels. I dont know if I can do 3 hr in the car by myself with them, because Canio has to go very early.

Me---

I am trying to adjust to 2 kids. I have good days and bad days. I scraped off the old paint off the one porch we have and then repainted it...because of the 2 kids, it only took me 1 1/2 wks to do this! UGH. We also have flowers to plant, but I have to get the weeds out first. I also repainted Emily's used (and dying of old age) swing set. I had one day off last week. My mother in law took Emily for the day (from 10:30am-6pm). It was a very needed day. Emily is still a challenge. I "fight" her to do just about everything all day long, 7 days a week. So it is tough to do anything. I needed a mental break and it made all the difference the rest of that week-- I had more patience, I had more energy, and I just felt refreshed. She came down this Monday too...but I was running from the dentist (had a filling) to therapy with Abby. I had enough time to stop to buy a laundry basket and then rush home. So this Monday was not the same (although if I had to take Emily with me I am sure it would have been even worse). Yesterday was a bad day. Emily woke up in a devilish mood...then found candy and after 20 min screaming, I gave her some. Meanwhile, Abby had a terrible screaming fit. My house was trashed after spending 2 days cleaning and Emily screamed every 5 min about whatever happened to catch her attention. Oh, and I had a killer migrane. Emily threw a fit and threw her goldfish to the floor and stomped on them because I was trying to chg Abby's diaper explosion while Abby screamed as if i had ripped her legs off. I put Emily on the couch for time out...and I set about cleaningu p the messes around the house. But not before calling Canio to tell him how awful everything was going and nag him about some things I wanted him to do. (He took it very well). When I was putting a glass cup back on our hutch, I dropped it... and of course, the GLASS on the HUTCH (not the cup) shattered! It was a RED letter day. But at least I did get to take a bath (a rare commodity). Other than that...really havent been doing anything or going anywhere which isnt great for my mood.

Emily--- Growing like a weed. She now is a wiz at the computer. She is really into Max and Ruby now and Curious George. She likes playing their games online. Our dvd player broke, so she has been watching movies on the computer. She recently got a new Veggie Tales movie from Aunt Kim (and she LOVES IT). I dont think she is old enough to "get" the msgs yet,but she does love the stories. She loves going for walks. She picks up rocks that she thinks are neat (ie gravel rocks of any variety), goes "ewe" if she finds a bug, likes to chase birds and bubbles, and especially likes our "bumpy road" (ie gravel alley). She is a real story teller. She recounts the day to Daddy when he gets home - complete with sound effects. For example... I got onthe computer and clicked and Mommy said thats enough and I said No and mommy said Im not happy with you and I said no and mommy said get down. And I cried. I said WAHHHHHHH. The end. (Periods placed where she actually takes a breath). But she is now playing Dollies. I have a new appreciation for why my sister Jen hated me growing up. She was forced to play "Dolls" all the time with me... We play dolls with the mini doll house she got for Easter, her pez dispensers, her McD toys, sticks, crackers, Mr. Potato Head arms, and of course.... our fingers. She is still into books but now she wants to "read" them to us to tell us the story. She keeps asking...whats that word? She is not so mean to Abby now... but has become protective of her when other kids are around. She is playing a lot with Abbys toys and I have decided, I dont care-if they break, they break.

Abby--- WOW she is SO big. She is growing expedientally (and no, I refuse to spell check to see if I spelled that word right!). She coos now. She says oooewww and gooewww. Smiles and even sort of giggled once. She is very alert and can follow an object back and forth (for about 4 wks now -which the doc says is early--great, another smart one that will challenge me mentally). Unlike Emily the first time in the swing she LOVED it. We have a little musical/light seat too that she has taken a liking to. She can already make it light up by hitting the toys. Something Emily didnt do til she was 3 mo. old. She has a love/hate relationship with the binky. During the day she needs it to go to sleep, but she hates sucking on it and would rather try for her thumb. She gets frustrated with it and will spit it out, then cry because she wants to suck...but press her lips if you try to give it back. She sleeps WONDERFUL. Goes to sleep at 8:30pm...wakes up at 4am. If I get her up to eat at say 11pm...she will STILL wake up at 4. But she doesnt really "wake" up...she mooches and whines a bit. I feed her, chg her diaper, and by then she is normally completely asleep again. She was diagnosed with Torticollis (tight neck muscles on one side that makes their head tilt and pull to one side) She also has one eye bigger (so they say), one ear, and one leg longer. She will have physical therapy twice a week for several weeks, then once a week/month, etc until probably she is 1 yr old. Left untreated, it can cause many problems. Already Abby's head is getting a flat spot on the side. The bad thing is the co-pay, 20.00 each visit. This modivates me to do her exercises at home!

So thats about it! Thats enough! I brived Emily with Marshmellows to be "allowed" to sit at the computer!

SHES HERE!

2007-03-29T17:38:00.000-05:00

Abby is here! I went into WB General to be induced on 3/14/07 after having a great breakfast with Canio (per the docs orders) at Bob Evans. We arrived at 11:20am where we filled out paperwork, I got an IV and antibiotics, and had blood work done. At 2pm the doctor came and broke my water and slowly started pitocin. I got my first contraction at 2:30pm. At 2:40 the doc attached the internal heart monitor to Abby. At 4ish I got my epidural - though it took about 10-15 picks of the needle to get it in. The doc checked me at 5pm and I was 8cm. They checked me again at 6pm, and I was 9cm but stretchy so they had me try to push through a contraction. The doc said he would be back in 30 min. Again, wasnt quite ready. At 6:40 I called for the nurse (Allison) who said I was still only 9cm but stretched to 10. They called the doc back to the room and after pushing through 3 contractions, Abby was born at 6:51. Canio cut the cord! Abby immediately started crying (and didnt stop for at least an hour). They called out that she was 7lbs 11oz. Interesting because those numbers are reoccuring in our family.... Canios bd, my bd, Emily's bd...

She is beautiful. She's had a bad bout of jaundice....we went to the hospital every day for 7 days... then had one day off and went for another 4 days in a row. The day we didnt have to go for Abby - I fell down the stairs and hurt my tailbone and back so we went to the ER. It is very painful!

Abby sleeps like a dream! She gets up at 3:30am to feed. She is a WONDERFUL baby and we know that our family is truly blessed. Emily had some really rough times but we are already seeing that she is getting better....we still have a huge hill to climb but it is not fighting her 24/7 ( just 22/7 hehehe).

Here are some pictures!

Oh - our neighbors/friends/church/family have been great - gifts/food/phone calls for support. Which was needed because our little Abby was much smaller than they had told us to expect her to be (Canio had to run to Wal-Mart for a premie outfit for her hospital photo). We received such generous gifts... and for those of you with extra tight budgets...your generous gifts to Abby & Emily are very appreciated (you know who you are).

Ultrasound of Dec 22 2006

2007-01-16T22:27:00.000-05:00

Here is a 3-D ultrasound of the new baby, Abbey! (And we have not decided yet if it should be Abby or Abbey nor have we chosen a middle name either).. She clearly has Canio's nose!

Brax & Hicks are starting...exhaustion has set in...heartburn is constant...swelling is minimal...sugar testing and other test are all A-OK. I have 9 wks left...and we havent even started on the room yet...or picked any furniture. I plan to work both jobs up until the very last minute. Leaving little free time after playing tea party, ring around the rosie, "chase me", computer games, and Handy Manny (ie tools) with Emily... Not to mention cleaning, cooking, laundry, knitting a blanket for the baby, etc. Get the picture?

Emily is now in a big girl bed. She is doing pretty good with it. She stays in bed most of the time, there is a gate at her door to catch her just incase.... she naps for about an hour ... most of the time.... and we set with her for 10 minutes before leaving. We used to say we were going potty and that seemed to please her so she wouldnt cry. But I didnt want her thinking we were coming right back because she STILL does not sleep through the night except on a very rare occasion where I have spent 10 min. on my knees pleading to God to please make it a sleep through-the-night night due to my own exhaustion. If she sleeps until 4am (which is rare) I consider that a sleep through the night if she goes back to sleep within 20 minutes. So we decided to tell her we were going to sleep instead of to the potty. This has upset her quite a bit, even though we have been explaining to her and reinforcing to her since she got her bed, that Mommy and Daddy have their own bed. Last night she was up LITTERALLY every 1hr. Needless to say, I was completely tired today... So if she thinks we are not going to be there, maybe if she wakes up she will just go back to bed?? We also got her a pair of Minnie Mouse (shes obessed with Mickey/Minnie/Daisy/Donald/Goofy/Pluto---ie the Mickey Mouse Clubhouse gang) PJS, a minnie mouse in PJS and a princess blanket tonight in hopes of encouraging her that her room is great. Im desperate. But other than sleeping...shes been a GREAT kid. She is eating good (well as good as a Toddler gets), she is pooping regularly (unlike the previous 1.75 yrs--and by the way I am sure as a teen she will LOVE me for sharing that), she helps clean up with some prodding sometimes, and she says please and thank you on a regular basis. She has started to tell us when she has pee'd or is peeing so I think potty training is around the corner-- she has pooped once on the potty when her Mickey Mouse convinced her to do so. And she kisses my belly and tickles the baby.

Canios job is going about the same. He likes it there, but with a cut in pay and another baby on the way-- things here just keep getting tighter and tigher. He is going to be hosting the travel auction tomorrow on WVIA - but it is pre-recorded. He likes being in front of the camera, so he seems pretty excited. For Christmas he got a self -scooping litter box. He cleans the cat litter. Now all he does is dump this tray...it automatically scoops the stuff away every 10 minutes. I think he likes it. =)

I am trying to get as much work in as possible, and as many commissions in as possible. I am starting to really wear tired. I find myself daydreaming about sleep. If I take a bath, I fall asleep. I feel healthier (probably because I run after Emily) than I did with the last pregnancy, but just very tired and stressed over bills. I am not really "big" for being pregnant. With just 9 wks to go (and remember I had Emily 2 wks early) I would say I am smaller than I was last time. I go to the Dr. tomorrow, but I as of my last visit, I had only gained 13 lbs. I am sure that is probably around 15-17 now. I still fit in some non-pregnancy clothes.

Tomorrow is my birthday. I will be 30. I dont mind turning 30 anymore than I minded turning 26...well maybe a tad bit more...but both seem like I am not young anymore. I am turning into the "older" person at work. My body is going to start to wear out soon hehehe. Its just sad sorta to realize that the carefree days of my 20s really are over. But in truth, they have been for awhile. But it is really scary when I see a 19 yr old and I think they are a kid. Kindly, many people have asked how old I will be and when I told them 30 they said, WOW I thought you were 25. (I dont believe them...but it was nice all the same). I asked Canio not to get me anything for my b-day because we need money to do the baby's room. My birthday has never been one of a lot of gifts (probably because it follows Christmas). If I get any money from people I want to save it and if we can save enough in the next month or so, I want to buy one of those small chest freezers. These are good so you can buy meat/etc in bulk and save...but also, because I wont have anyone coming to help with the new baby, I would like to make/freeze meals ahead of time. However, with our tiny freezer, its not possible. But we will see. Right now I have enough to be concerned with.

Well, its late and I have an OB appt at 730 am. ugh. Just saying that sounds awful.

I am hoping this finds you all well and healthy. We have had a sick, but mild winter thus far. Tonight is one of the first nights it will be bitter (lows in the teens). It has always snowed when I lived in PA on my bday...and they are calling for AM snow showers. Yeah! Its one day I dont mind snow.

Wish us luck as the baby's birth nears and preparations get underway. And if you are a praying kind... please pray that we will be prepared and that we will be wise with our finances!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY EMILY

2006-11-17T13:46:00.000-05:00

To the bestest little Emily in all the world... Mommy and Daddy want to wish you a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Its hard to believe our little Emily is 2 years old. She is getting so big. The above pictures show her in the dryer "folding clothes" and the second one is with her teddy bear that Pappy D gave her (he got it when he had heart surgery in May).

Today is all about Emily-- we had her pictures taken, she got to play in the car (honking the horn), and when she wakes up she will play for a bit then go to Chuck E Cheese with some friends. Tomorrow we will have a cake for her!

Time really does fly. I cant believe how fast it goes. Shes great and we love her very much!

Recent Pics of Emily

2006-10-29T21:00:00.000-05:00

Ok... another cute thing Emily has been doing... if you say something to her like... are you excited? or for halloween--are you a mummy? She says... no I a girl. Just thought it was cute. And Emily was great at the dentist...she let the hygentist look in her mouth...polish them and put floride on them. The dentist was another story... he didnt give a chance to adjust to him so she wouldnt open her mouth. But overall they were amazed at her for being 1 yr old.

EMILY IN HER HALLOWEEN COSTUME---SHE IS A MUMMY!

Something funny

2006-10-24T22:22:00.000-05:00

We have our first item up the nose! We were eating some breaded chicken for dinner. Emily likes to eat the leg meat. So we gave her the leg and Canio and I started eating/talking. She was just eating away....until she laughed and said... I stuck it up nose. I asked her "What?... You stuck something up your nose?" She looked at me very seriously and said, yes. (She looked at me as if to say... Yeah...so?) I told her to look up and sure enough she had stuck some of the breading up her nose. Then she wanted to pick it out so Canio had to keep her hands occupied while I went for the tweezers. We performed a chickeneptomy from Emily's nose with no complications! It was SO hard not to laugh. Just wait....wait until prom night or until she gets engaged and I can share this with that special someone. Wahhhehheheheehhaa (evil laugh). Really...photos to come!

2006-10-23T15:20:00.000-05:00

Here is the baby in 3d. That's the head in the upper middle...its a sid profile. Below the white on the left side is a dark area--thats the eye..that ehe little triangle is the nose and the lip right below. The hand is up to the face on the far left. The other shoulder is just pas the ear and the arm wraps aroudn the right and down across the bottom. Photos of Emily to follow.

Canio Has Surgery & Pregnancy & Emily Update

2006-10-23T14:42:00.000-05:00

Hi everyone! October has been an exciting month so far. On October 10th Canio had an emergency appendictomy at 8pm. He had stomach pains that Monday night that never went away. After 7 hrs in the ER, we were told he needed surgery. His surgery lasted just over an hour with him in recovery for about 40 minutes. He has an cut about 5inches long. The doc said it was a tricky case because it was curled up like knots. He spent an extra day in the hospital because he had trouble urinating afterwards. He came home on Thursday, Oct 12. He returned to work on Wed Oct 18 for 1/2 a day and then resumed full time. We are happy he is feeling better now. It was the first time Canio had ever had surgery, other than having his tonsils taken out when he was 4. On Oct. 18th I had another prenatal appointment. We had another ultrasound and a 3D image too. The baby is growing right on schedule, I was according to my due date 17w, 6 days and the body measured 17w 5days--head was 18w 2 days-- and the baby weighed 7 oz! Also, the placenta previa has corrected itself. And we found out the sex. While the tech did say it was still early, she did get a good look between the legs... and she has pronounced.... it will be.... are you ready?.... a girl! Yep, another girl. This makes us happy but makes me a little sad too, as I dont plan on having any other children at this time, I would have liked to have experienced a boy too. But the Lord knows what I can do well, and so I feel blessed that he has honored us with another little girl. Her name will be Abigail. We havent come up with a middle name yet, but I like Anne/Ann. We will call her Abbey...but might spell it Abby. Emily has approved the name Abbey. She likes it she said. She did see the ultrasound but was not interested that much and decided to go for a walk instead. The doc said everything is moving along great. I am not really showing like one might think... but I am now almost out of all my pants...they still button but they are uncomfortable. I guess when you start out fat...it takes longer to show hehehe. I am feeling good with the normal exceptions of heartburn, fatigue, stuffy nose, and Im starting to get backpains. Emily is amazing us more every day. Last week she started singing the ABCs. She can now get to S (with a weird sound for LMN). She can tell you the name of EVERY letter if you point to it. She has also started singing the "clean up" song... And now mimics everything anyone says. Her nursery (church class for 18 mo-3yr) teacher says she is getting really comical in how she plays and acts. She can also read/spell the word GO and can count to 11. Her wisdom is unreal. She has also now begun to play with stuffed animals (BUT PLEASE NOTE-- DO NOT BUY ANY MORE STUFFED ANIMALS FOR HER AS SHE HAS ABOUT 20+). She puts them to bed, gives them binkies, rocks them to sleep, kisses their booboos (which by the way she was very cute about Daddy's "booboo" and gave him kisses to make it better as well), and today she read some books to a crowd she had gathered. Her imaginative play is very creative. She also yells at them...like "Get down NOW" (Hmm wonder where she gets that?). We visited Roba's Tree Farm (she went once with Nana and Poppy by herself). She loves the hay. There is a tent where they can throw hay. She gets a big kick out of that. She also liked feeding the animals. And she did a pony ride on Coco, the minature pony. As she went in circles, she said hi to Coco and then said, Weee this is fun. Also, she has fallen in love with pumpkins. Yep, she is REALLY into Halloween. We have gone out at night to look for lit up pumpkins. I am super excited for Christmas now! Finally, I accepted a job working Wed nights, Saturdays and Sundays after church at the Childrens PLace in the local mall. Am I nuts? You betcha. But we need money for the new baby's things (as no one has even sent a congratulations card this time around, not even family... so I think we are solidly on our own). And while it doesnt pay a lot...it pays something. Plus I get a discount on their clothes...which I love for Emily because they fit so nicely. After the holidays, I will stay on as a per diem employee and only be required to work 1 day every 90 days. This will allow me to stay on the payroll for future work and still keep the awesome discount. The doc says no standing type job after 24 weeks, but I will be 24 wks in just 5 wks (right around black Friday)...so I guess I will just have to relax when I am at home---Tues, Wed, Thur, and Friday mornings. Hopefully Canio can handle Emily AND housework =). The weather is cold here. YUCK. The cats are good. Cars are running well (thank goodness)...so not much else to report. Check the next post--there will be pictures of Emily. Emily has just awoke from a nap...or I would do it now. She is also very addicted to the computer--already!

SURPRISE

2006-09-14T19:29:00.000-05:00

Well, if you can believe it we are already half way through September already! Canio and I's anniversary is one week from today. It was a year ago that Emily started having seizures. She is still seizure free! Emily is now speaking in sentences. She loves blueberries. Today she was eating some and said, Mommy... I need more. This is unreal considering she is not even 2 yet! And we can now count to 10 (nine good..10 with help). She mimicks EVERYTHING we do. She loves the computer, especially a website www.starfalls.com. Dont forget to listen to the football games at www.audiosportsonline.com!!! Ok so are you wondering what this "surprise is?" Ok scroll down.... I'm pregnant! I'm 4 months pregnant. Everything is going well. I am feeling great! I have been referred to high risk doctors for consultation just like the last time...the cool thing about that is that I get a 3D ultrasound in Nov. The baby is due the 3rd wk of March (3/22). I had an ultrasound yesterday because 5 nurses could not find a heartbeat (I am 13 wks). While they sent me home on Tuesday with assurances everything would be fine... waiting for that ultrasound was so trying. I prayed and read my scriptures...and felt peaceful that it was going to be ok. Despite a feeling I have been having that "something" just wasnt "right". Well, as you can see...the baby is FINE. It is a little mexican jumping bean! It DOES NOT set still and that is why they couldnt get the heartbeat. It took the ultrasound tech 5 minutes to catch 3 heartbeats without it moving around like a mad cow. The heart was at 153 bpm. It is face down in the picture, with its spine on top. It waved, did back flips, and patted it's tummy while I got to watch for 10 minutes. They did find that I have placenta previa. It means my placenta is partially covering the hole the baby will come out. I have been told that this will probably fix itself by 20 wks. In the meanwhile I am on some restrictions. If it doesnt fix itself it just means that I have to be careful and I will have to have a C-section...WHICH I DO NOT WANT. SO keep us in your prayers. And little Emily is excited (so far) about getting a new baby to play with!. Talk to yo uall soon!

CANIO TO DO HS FOOTBALL ONLINE

2006-08-31T22:05:00.000-05:00

CANIO WILL BE BROADCASTING NEPA HS FOOTBALL STARTING TOMORROW NIGHT AT 6:45PM. TO LISTEN GO TO WWW.AUDIOSPORTSONLINE.COM THEN SELECT FOOTBALL AND THEN CLICK ON DISTRICT II SPORTS. PLEASE GET ALL YOUR FRIENDS TO LOG IN FOR A FEW MINUTES AT LEAST!!!!

Also, check out www.nepasports.bravehost.com

Here's a pretty picture of Emily

More Beach Pictures

2006-08-31T21:42:00.000-05:00

Here are two more beach pictures... I realized I didnt add them when I did the pictures a few days ago. (The first one Emily is telling us to kiss her butt!) The second picture is Emily Loving some waves! While at the beach we hunted for sea shells, built castles (which Emily promptly crashed), did some shopping and relaxed. We stayed at a great house that even had a hammock. We were able to relax and play games while the kids slept. Emily took on average a 2.5-3.5 hr nap each day and was in bed by 9pm ... and didnt wake up til 8:30 everyday. She is definately a beach bum and I believe that because she sleeps better there--we should live there...hehehe. Emily did have to go to the ER while we were there-- constipation... they were GREAT at that hospital. In other news... Emily can now count to 8 (she knows nine and is getting 10 but you have to prompt her to go that high). She is learning her colors and knows the 4 basic shapes. Her "new" things are going "rrrrrr. I cookie monster", "Yeah, Ok...", "How bout_____"--when she doesnt like what you have offered her, and "Thnk You Vry Much" (yeah, she says it funny). Today she burped and I said..."What do you say?" (She has a manners book teaching her these things) and she looked at me and said..."B U R P". I said, Yes- I know you burped, what do you say.... She giggled and said BURP. I gave her a stern look and she said Excuse me (but unless you knew what she was saying...you wouldnt recognize it because it sounds more like uxe me). And she now goes to bed by herself. We give her a bath, brush her teeth, dress her, and then go to her room to read 1-2 books. We say a prayer (and at the end she says AAAA-men), and then we give hugs and kisses. I lay her in the crib, we tell her goodnight, sweet dreams, we will see her in the morning and that we will be back and then we shut off the light, turn on the music and leave. This use to send her to hysteria and I would end up staying with her for 3-4 songs until she calmed down. Now she just nodds, tells us goodnight, and quietly goes to sleep. I feel so blessed to have Emily in my life. She is wonderful and I would hate my life without her in it. What a stong, sweet, wonderful spirit she has. In my church, we are taught that we lived with our Heavenly Father before we came to earth (as spirits). And we are told that the strongest, sweetest spirits have remained until now. I know my Heavenly Father has to be proud of my little girl because she is so loving and sweet. She has an obiedent nature to her when it comes to prayers, etc. While I know we all believe in different things...there is one thing that can not be denied....God lives and you can see this in my little girl's eyes. I hope as she gets older, she knows how much she is loved. I only hope that I am a good enough mother for her and that I do enough stuff with her/for her.

Beach Pictures

2006-08-23T18:58:00.000-05:00

Emily is getting ready for the beach... shes a "super-star"

YEAH.... this is so fun!

Daddy brought endless buckets of water to Emily after her feet got blisters

(blisters and salt water is not a good combination!)

Emily and Mommy at the Ripley's Aquarium. EMILY LOVED being there.... probably didnt hurt that on the way to SC, Emily saw "Finding Nemo" for the first time.

YUMMY! SAND! Tastes gritty mommy!

The beach was a BIG HIT! Emily, Canio and I had a great time. We went to Pawley's Island/Litchfield Beach SC and it was a great place for families. Emily slept great at the beach. She ate awful though...until we went to Bubba Gumps in Charleston, SC. We did some shopping, we did some touring but most of all, we really loved spending time at the beach. There really are too many stories to tell!

New Edition to our Family

2006-06-27T20:17:00.000-05:00

We have a new edition to our family. She will join us on Thursday. We haven't named her yet...but are taking suggestions. (Do to the rain we have had and the terrible downpour that happened when we went to test drive it...I suggest...Noah) Unfortunately, we will also be holding last rites for El Kia piece of Krappa. The green Kia which survived much longer than anyone expected, 5.5 yrs, will finally be sent to that big auction block in the sky (well really...we don't know where it is going). We would say Kia piece of Krappa led a good life.... considering she was born in the south...saw some beautiful snow storms...and toured many a state; however, she was so sickly we are certain she didn't like the work out. So with a very fond goodbye...we bid her good riddance. Memorial checks can be mailed to us (as we need them to pay for her COSTLY funeral). Also...there IS major flooding (like it will probably make your evening news) in this area, but so far we are unharmed...a damp, but not leaking basement and a very soggy yard. The garden is another story...I cant say for sure that it will make it (not kidding). Several cities are flooding so we would ask that you would keep your prayers open to the locals in this area. This happened just 2 short years ago and here we go again.

And now...PRAY to stop the rain in SC...we are 1.5 wks away from vacation and worried the weather may SUCK. Our vacation last year was plagued with cold (highs in the 60s) and rain (not like the Noah rain we have now,but still enough not to do stuff outside). And no whammy no whammy no whammies (um...otherwise known as the "H" word...hurricane)

Well off for now :-) PEOPLE STAY IN CONTACT WITH US!

1, 2, 3

2006-06-22T14:59:00.000-05:00

Emily can COUNT! Yes, she can! She can count to 4. Her new words are now sentences.... my favorite is... Bye bye..see you morrow. (Which I think she means, see you later). And Be quiet, sleeping. (when she sees someone with their eyes closed). Recently I have checked out myspace.com and have found one old school friend... one old church friend... one old boyfriend (and sooo happy he's "old" if you catch the drift)... and one old missionary. Its so neat to find my old friends. My school friend lives in NC (isnt that ironic because I moved from NC). She has a baby now too. My church friend doesnt go to church anymore (I doubt it...she looks like life has been rough...but she has 2 kids) and my old missionary friend seems as crazy as ever! In other news.... The garden is in....with about 18 tomatoe plants (3 kinds), 18 onions, 6 romaine lettuce, 5 leaf lettuce, 20 or so carrots, 5 green pepper plants, about 12 green beans and about 6-8 peas, 2 squash, 2 watermelon, and 4 cucumbers. So far so good, though we did loose some plants to a hail storm we had about 3 wks ago. We go to the beach (YEAH) in 2 1/2 weeks. I am SOOOOOOOOOOOO excited. Please pray for no hurricanes. We could REALLY use the vacation. Im so excited to be going back to SC. Canio has been very busy with work...and so have I. I have the need to "spring" clean the basement. This should be fun. And finally, I am trying to loose weight... I have 25 I want to loose... Ive lost 3. Keep in touch!

Picture updates

2006-06-22T11:46:00.000-05:00

Emily on Memorial Day (red outfit) We hosed her down. Not long after this, we striped her down to her diaper. She got a big kick out of it! It was very hot that day. Memorial Day-- Poppy and Emily worked on watering the tree we planted last year. The tree has also been named Emily. (Trees are named in the Costanzo Family). MMMMMM yummy... spaghetti~! She's wearing more than she is eating! Isnt she just so darn cute? Another very hot day...and Emily is trying to fit into Mommy's shoes!

Family Update

2006-05-25T10:17:00.000-05:00

Three weeks ago Emily learned a new word-- Help (says it like Holp). So we were grocery shopping and Emily likes to snack while we shop. So I normally get dried fruit to let her munch on. She had eaten about 1/2 the bag so I took it from her. She got upset and started saying HOLP HOLP HOLP to this old lady passing. The old lady stopped and asked Emily what was wrong. I told the lady she wanted more fruit and she had eaten enough already and turned back to reading labels. The lady gave me a look as if to say "you child abuser" and stomped off. Two days earlier we had been in to get some odds and ends and Emily had thrown a true toddler temper tantrum (shoes went flying off... her hair bow gone....everyone sweating...) On Thursday May 18 Emily got a piece of the cat food (dental diet balls) and ate it before I could pry her mouth open. TOTALLY grossed me out! On Friday May 19 she went to do it again. I told her no and moved her. 2 min later, she was back at the cat food. So I slapped her hand, said no no and moved her. She instantly went back so I pulled her diaper down and gave her a little pat on the butt. Her face wrinkled up and she let out a squawk and ran to the living room. We are going on one week and she hasn't gone NEAR the cat food. I took Emily to the doc on Tuesday of this week (22nd) for a diaper rash that was getting worse. Poor kid... I told them about the butt and that she had sniffles. Who would have guessed she had a staph infection on her butt, a sinus infection, and her very first ear infection! She's been miserable but considering all that...She's still been a great kid! We have gotten Emily to eat baby carrots (the extra thin kind)... wanna know how? We told her it was candy. Hehehe. She had her first lollipop last Sunday. One of those safety pops. What a mess. And she has started to watch movies. Well, I should say... ONE movie. We watch Monsters Inc (the Disney flick) but only from the part where the little girl, Boo, is in the movie and only until the bad monster (Randall) steals her. Canio and I both agree that Emily acts and reminds us of Boo. We think that maybe her nickname. Although, I do call her ChiChi a lot. In bad news.... my dad was hospitalized late Friday night with chest pains. On Monday we found out that all his arteries except for one is 100% blocked. They couldn't do the stints so open heart by pass is the only option. His surgery will be done on Tuesday, barring any complications before then. They had to wait 5 days before doing the surgery because he was given a blood thinner and so they wait. I will be driving out for the surgery. Canio then got a ticket on Monday. (Can you say insurance hike). And we think our water heater is going bad. Geeze, that's it... I think... but then again... Isn't that enough? Oh wait... on Friday night Brennon (my sisters little boy) was taken to the ER because he was having a SEVERE allergic reaction to some medicine he was taking. Oh Yeah... and my brother was told they are retiring him early from the Nat'l Guard (but he cant collect his pension until he is 60... so that means a financial hardship on him). Ok, NOW that's all. Ending on a positive note.... I started planting the garden this week. I had started plants indoors about 2 wks ago... but now I am working on the outside. Its rained a lot here lately and its gonna rain for the next 3 days again... Speaking of garden... pictures will post soon of Emily playing in the garden dirt. It was in her hair, ears, clothes, shoes, etc. But she had a great time playing with it. To our friends and family... we miss you all and hope to be in personal contact with all of you soon. (HINT HINT).

Photos! From Easter

2006-05-16T11:07:00.001-05:00

Just another Manic Monday

2006-04-30T22:11:00.000-05:00

Where does the time go. Tomorrow is May 1st. Sometimes I feel like life is so fleeting. Yet, in the next moment, time seems to stand still. Emily and I have both been sick since Wednesday. I think she is getting better, but somehow I am still pretty sick. We had our first fever scare with her and her seizures last weekend, but thank GOD (literally) she made it through without a seizure. The image of her having a seizure will forever be burned into my memory and I am in no hurry to repeat it. We started doing some projects around the house. I worked on the garden a little bit. I also painted the upstairs bathroom a pale green color last Sunday. Turned out pretty good for my first time painting a room. Our neighbors gave us their kids old swing set for Emily. So we sanded the rust today and I began to primer it. We will repaint it and try to keep it nice for a few more years. This head cold is really kicking my butt. Ever see the show Grays Anatomy? I love it! But they do a narrative over some opening and closing scenes of the show. I have this running narrative about my own life. It goes on inside and sometimes I just have to chuckle about life. For example... Why do I like blowing bubbles so much and why didn't I figure this out until I had Emily. However sometimes this narrative takes up too much hard-drive space (hehe..computer joke, get it?) and I am left with this weird, wondering look. The new job is just that... a new job. Lots of adjustments. Not bad, but not good either. I guess I remember just how blah insurance is. I mean it is kinda cool cuz there is always something different, but I have never "loved" working for a direct writer so learning to love this company will take some time. I also don't like that the boss changed my hrs after I accepted the job. Lately, with money tight, I regret past decisions with regard to my education. I think I would make a good OB nurse. It would pay better... Or sometimes I fantasize about writing. I do enjoy that and I wish I would make more time for myself to do it on a more formal basis. But alas, there is always laundry to do, toys to pick up or ewe...bills to pay. Canio is doing pretty good at his new job. He and his dad watched a few hrs of the NFL draft this weekend. I think he enjoyed some one on one time. Emily is copying everything now. Canio told her to say "hi jerry" and she did! She has also been pretending to sneeze saying aaaa chew. Its cute. And she is trying to sing some of the words to Hey Victor (a Laurie Berkner song). She asked for pizza for dinner tonight--- the first time she has ever done that. She plays ring a round the roses.....loves air planes all of a sudden... and has grown attached to a teddy bear she got at my baby shower from someone that worked at Kemper (my previous job). She hugs it and carries it around. And when we pray she will fold her arms now (but wont keep them folded). She had sacrament at church for the first time today 4/30/06. She is still pottying but not liking it as much. If she wants to go, I take her... otherwise, I let her go in the diaper. On a walk with Daddy in the back yard today, she tried to eat a dandelion. MMM yummy. Bugs and all I am sure. Don't worry -- he got it off of her. We have tons of pictures to post, but honestly, its late and I am tired. Happy May 1st! May your May be filled with Flowers! PS----- I will make one political statement..... RIGHT, EMAIL, CALL your congress person and tell them you are SICK of high gas prices and try to use a little less gas over the next few weeks. Otherwise, I may just have to sell my car to pay for gasoline for Canio's car! Right now his gas bill equals about 1/2 of his car payment a month. IKES. And I complained about gas being 1.85/gallon when Emily was born.

HAPPY EASTER

2006-04-17T20:39:00.000-05:00

We had a very good Easter. For the first time in 25 years my entire family was together. My mom and dad, my brother, Dickie, my sister Kass, my sister Jen and her family (hubby and two kids), Canio and I and Emily! We met at my dad's house and had a luncheon -- the kids got some gifts, we took a photo, and then the kids played outside. We parted ways at around 4pm. We went back to Punxsy to my sisters and had some pizza. We went to church on Sunday at my old church. It was fun to see everyone and catch up. Its funny how some people didn't age a day (especially all the people who were over 50 to start with) and how the younger ones are now the middle aged ones and the teenagers (like I was) were just Emily's age when I left. That's a little confusing to read ... sorry. Emily got a TON of things. Photos to follow. Easter started the week before when we had dinner with Canios family for Palm Sunday. My mom was here as she was watching Emily M-F from April 3rd-15. I had to work full time to attend a binding authority class for Allstate. I start work in the Allstate office on Tuesday. Anyone who needs a quote on home/auto please give me a call. My mom was great with Emily and Emily misses her. My mom got Emily to say Yeah when she wants to say yes (instead of just shaking her head). Phonetically Emily says Yee-aaah. Its ADORABLE! And the biggest news about my mom coming to stay is that she quit smoking while she was here!! We are all so very proud of her. Emily said A B C today. We got her magnetic ABC's for the fridge. Canio showed her a few times and wal-laa she has it already. Emily is also saying so many new words we have lost count but we know it is upwards of 60+ and growing by 2-5 words every day. She is also using the potty very good for a 17 month old. (She turned 17 mo today---so really she has been a 16 mo old). She will pee on the potty --especially if you set down and pee first. She will poop if you catch her squatting down to poop. While we were out of town this weekend, she went into my dad's bathroom and said... Potty. Its UNREAL how smart she is. In very sad news, a cousin of Canio's father (at least I think that is the relation) lost their 2 yr old on Sunday. She had been battling cancer and lost that fight Sunday. My heart has been ripped out just thinking about this family. I think because I have little Emily and they are similar in age... I know the love they had for their baby. And I cant imagine the actual pain they must be feeling. So, I would ask you all to please pray for this young family. Pray for the lovely little spirit of their daughter, and pray for the grandparents. I have been affected by this death in moreso than my own grandmothers. But I do find peace in my faith that this is not the end for that little girl. And I know her spirit had to have been pure for our Father to call for her to come home at such a tender age. Not the best way to end....but please know from our family to yours... Happy Easter! Photos to follow in the coming days. Don't forget you can make "comments" on these postings and then it emails me directly. Here is a cool link we found (my favorite comedian) http://frankcaliendo.com/index.php Everything cool about church clipart http://lds.about.com/od/clipartart/

WE HAVE POTTY USAGE!

2006-03-27T22:40:00.000-05:00

YES SHE DID IT!!!!! TODAY, 3/27/06, EMILY POOPED ON THE POTTY!!! She did this about 4pm. This came after setting her on the potty about 2 times earlier in the day. When Canio and I went out of town to Atlantic City (which by the way was a lot of fun despite a cold drizzly kinda weekend). Mary Claire (aka Nana---Canios mom) set her on the potty. Anyways, I asked Emily if she had to potty. I dont think she knows exactly when she needs to go yet. AND I DONT WANT TO FORCE HER! But she sat down to poop (as she always does), I said... Do you need to go to the potty?" She shook yes, so I ran to the bathroom with her. When she was done, we wiped and she got to flush the toilet. She was so proud. And ofcourse I ewed and awed for 5 minutes and gave her some gummy treats. About an hour or so later, when Daddy was home she sat down to poop again. I grabbed her and ran to the potty, sat her on it. She pooped and then she peed!!!! We praised her over and over again. Then she flushed! Could she be potty training for real? Its so cute because she sets and looks at magazines when she is on the potty...just like daddy hehehe. Shes a little girl now. I cant believe that happened! I must have blinked and it just happened behind my back I guess. When we got home from AC, Emily was sleeping (must to my saddness). But when she woke up she was SO happy to see us. But she looked SO much bigger to me! Everything else is going well. I accepted a position at a local insurance agency. I start training April 3rd. My mom will be coming out that wkend and will watch Emily for us for the 2 wks that I have to work 9-5, M-F. Then we will spend Easter in Punxsy www.punxsutawney.com. Then I will come home and on Easter Monday start my new job. It is 1.5 miles from my house. I will work Monday and Tuesday and maybe Thur 5-7pm. Until the Library can find a replacement for me though, I have offered to work 2 evenings and all day Saturday (or 15hr/wk however you figure it) . YES I WILL BE DRAGGING...not to mention really missing Emily. However, we are going to SC this summer with Canio's family to Pawleys Island and would otherwise have no spending money. At least with this month or so of lots of work, we should be able to save it to take with us. Well, Im tired....got lots of work this week, to prepare for the coming weeks. Wish me luck and pray for me.

2006-03-13T13:02:00.000-05:00

Emily had a friend, Riley, over for the afternoon on Sunday March 5th. She was just having a little cheese. Like the dress? Emily had just waved bye bye to daddy and was watching him leave for work. We were getting ready to go out to the library. She loves the front door. Snow DAY! Emily played in the snow that we got last Thursday, March 3rd Girly Girl Emily was playing with mommy...it was a day at Spa de Mommy.

St. Patrick Day PHOTOS

2006-03-13T12:36:00.000-05:00

The first picture is of me and Emily riding on the float. Nana Costanzo is walking beside the float with her mask on too! The next picture is of one of the lawyers (in Canio's father's lawfirm) little girl. She was feeding Emily chereos that she "stole" off of another kid. The next is a picture of Emily smiling after being out all day on the float. The next one is of Emily getting excited that Katie was feeding her the chereos. The next one is of Poppy Costanzo trying to hold Emily on the float. Emily is a little shy when it comes to him. She likes to play with him from a distance. It is my personal feeling that she is afraid of his glasses, but who knows. Emily was in the very large Scranton St. Patricks Day parade. They said 100,000 people watched on the street! Emily had her Mardi Gras beads and her green. She fell asleep waiting for the parade to start...we got to the lawfirm office around 10:20 and the float finally started moving about 1:15 and finished around 2pm. Needless to say we were ALL exhausted when it was over. Emily woke up Sunday morning vomiting. After a trip to the doctor, it was confirmed that she had a stomach virus and we should just feed her clear liquids and could try apples and soup later on. She perked up later in the day, but then overnight last night, she threw up again. She is alittle (just a LITTLE) whiny and clinging to us, but for the most part she is good considering she is sick. We can also see her bottom right eye tooth (also called canine....the pointy one) is starting to poke threw! After 4 months of drooling over that tooth! Emily has also been going to the infant story time of the Osterhout Free Library in Wilkes Barre. A great time for sure. They sing songs, have puppets, and read books. Emily enjoys playing with her group friends too! We are getting SPRING FEVER! Snow snow go away, come back another year!

SHE WALKED

2006-03-01T12:17:00.000-05:00

SHE WALKED! FIRST SHE TOOK 4 STEPS TO ME AND THEN SHE DID IT AGAIN. A FEW MINUTES LATER SHE TOOK ABOUT 7 STEPS!!! Emily had her 15 mo check up on Monday 2/28. She weighed 22.4 lbs and was 31.5 in long (if they got her "right" because Emily was screaming and I think her leg was bent a little.) Her head stayed at 18.5" which basically means her head is still too big for any hats that are "supposed" to fit her---even though 18.5 is just about the 60th percentile. He said she looked good and was growing beautifully. Ironically he told us that she would probably start walking within this month, if not this week. She got two shots and was a GREAT little girl. In other big news, (I've held off on this because I didnt want to jinx it) But Emily broke herself of the bottle. She used to need it to go to sleep, but not anymore. For the last week she has gone to sleep within 10 minutes and it only takes us giving her a binkie to suck on and one to play with, some soft music and a few minutes in the rocking chair. One night she wouldnt go right to sleep, so I just walked out and 20 minutes later she was asleep (with her feet dangling between the crib rails, but asleep nonetheless). She now drinks milk solely from her sippy cups. And for the last two weeks she has slept through the night 95% of the time. Although, a cute thing happened last night. She started to cry and Canio got up to do "binkie patrol". When he got in there she held up her hand that she had weaved her fingers through the holes of the blanket and proclaimed...."Stuck". Canio unstuck her and some 30 minutes later she went back to sleep. Some new words are Block (said perfectly), Boos (for Bubbles), and I think we forgot to mention: Cuck..for yuck. There are so many its hard to mention or remember them all. She also spent her first Sunday in the nursery class (for kids 18mo - 3 yrs---and yes since the class is so small our 15 mo olds--Emily and Riley can go in early). She played. She sat on a real chair and had a snack of goldfish crackers and water. She took the napkin that was supposed to serve as a plate, and wiped her hands with it. She also stole poor Michael's (the oldest kid 2 yr old) crackers. Wherever Michael is...or any older kid for that matter...little Emily smiles and nudges right next to them. She LOVES to play and be with other kids. She also got a headband with her favorite thing on it...a star! Canio takes her to this because I am busy teaching the 9-10 yr old boys/girls Sunday school class. Canio made a BIG sale yesterday and was asked to be on a board of directors for non-profit organization. We have started to work out....but are still trying to figure out the best times to go. We'll keep you posted. Unfortunately because of Emily we can not go together...but it is ok. Alright, here are some pictures. First I was "doing" Emily's hair with the curlers she likes to play with and the second I was making dinner and she was watching Noggin's videos. I highly recommend http://www.noggin.com and http://www.nickjr.com and http://www.playhousedisney.com and finally http://www.seasameworkshop.org/seasamestreet. They are Emily's favorites. You can play games there, play music, watch shows, and read stories.

We have our first SENTENCE!

2006-02-21T17:51:00.000-05:00

Emily said her first sentence. NO SIT. We brought up a bench that I had gotten 10 yrs ago. Its the perfect size for her.. She wanted to stand on it and I told her No Standing. Sit down. After a few times of saying this, she said NO SIT. NO SIT! She is copying a lot of the words we use. The list is getting too long to count. No is her favorite. But literally if you repeat a word to her several times, she will try (although not all that great) to repeat. And she offically became mommys little helper yesterday too (2/20/06). She took the clean clothes out of the dryer and put them in a basket. Then she took the wet clothes out of another basic and put it in the dryer and finally put the dirty clothes in the washer (with help from me--I held her up). It was GREAT. It took a ton longer but was just fun to have her near me. She's also been letting us hold her to read or to watch tv...which I am sure this will change as she gets older. Oh and she's figured out how to finally push her walker around and manuever it around objects. Still not walking on her own but getting closer.

Happy Valentines Day

2006-02-15T12:21:00.000-05:00

We had a nice Valentines Day. I started my new job (and like it so far). I got Canio the same type of gift that I got him 5 yrs ago.... movie in a bag... I got him a movie, popcorn, and candy. I also got him a pen that lights up. Emily and I made Daddy a picture album and a valentine. Canio went all out this year. He hid these little heart people figurines around the house and I had to find them. Once I found them all, he gave me my gift... tickets to an atlantic city comedy show and an hotel for that night so we can sight see. By far the best Valentines Day gift I have ever received. We then took Emily to Picture people to get her photo taken. They turned out GREAT! Here is the one we got the 10x13 of. She is a cutie!

Today we woke up to skunk smell...although it was tough to decide thats what it was... so after calling a few family members we decided to call the fire company and we were told to leave the house... .just as we were doing that....our neighbor came out and said he had the same smell... so it had to be a skunk. The firefighter said they have had a ton of calls about this.

Then Emily tumbled down the stairs. She has a brush burn on her nose and a bump on her head but she is OK!!! Shes too darn quick at the stairs and I didnt get to her in time. But she is resting and doing ok. Then I made lunch for myself and scalded my left hand. BOY O BOY.

Hope you had a nice Valentines Day too.

Pictures of Emily

2006-02-15T09:46:00.000-05:00

My thoughts on Sleepless Nights....

2006-02-07T16:52:00.000-05:00

There is something magical when your child falls asleep in your arms in the middle of the night. When the darkness falls round the room like a thick, soft blanket and the world stands still from its hectic pace; when nothing seems to matter more than being right there, right now. In the dark quiet, the only sounds you hear are the creaking of the rocking chair, the faint melody of a lullaby, and the sweet little gasps from your baby. Such comfort I have found when I feel my child’s warm breath on my cheek. William Wordsworth wrote, “My heart leaps up when I behold a rainbow in the sky.” Well, my heart leaps up when I am alone with my baby in the still of the night. When I know that she just needs to know that I am there, that she needs to be held tight, that she needs to hear my heart beating and that she needs to know that I live for her. There are many things I may forget about in the course of my child growing up. I am sure there will be memories that seep away like water leaking from the faucet. Nevertheless, one thing I know is that I will never be able to forget the peace that I found, no matter how tired I was or what the day had brought, when it was just she and I in her room, rocking and snuggling. Time stands still. The night does not grow old. While I dreaded the cry that brought me to her, somehow, as she drifts off to sleep, I can’t bring myself to put her back in her bed right away. I know these times will pass. I know that one day, one day before I know it, she will no longer need me to comfort her back to sleep. I know that one day soon the serenity that comes from the tranquil melody of the rocking chair will no longer be heard. One day she will grow up. But for now, I treasure the times that I am blessed with to be able to grow closer to my baby. I cherish the peaceful bond that forms in the middle of a sleepless night. I relax with the warm of her little body and feeling her nestle her head on my chest. For in those wonderful times, I thank the Lord for the blessing of motherhood.

GO STEELERS!

2006-02-07T10:06:00.000-05:00

Emily was prepared for the Superbowl... she was dressed in yellow and black! She clapped with us except for one time she did get a little scared as we cheered! Take a look....

Feb 3 - Emily stuff

2006-02-04T09:19:00.000-05:00

Well yesterday (2/2) Emily was standing at one of the kitchen chairs and came out with "Chair." Totally blew me away because I did not know that she even KNEW that word. She proceeded to go straight to the cat food to dump it all over the floor, in my moment of awe that she could say that. Today we tried drawing with crayons again. Only I couldnt find those big fat ones that we have so I gave her the normal sized ones. She loved them. She just kept scribbling and wanting to change colors. Its cool to see her progress. I am trying to do one art project a week (at least) with her. I want her to be well-rounded. Next week we are going to try glue. I will have to take pictures. I have a feeling this could go worse than the finger paint. We went to Kauffmans to get her some clothes for summer/spring since we had a merchandise credit. She was SOOOOOOOO good at the mall. She ate McDonalds (even though we swore she never would eat fast food before age 2). She had two nuggets and a bag of apple slices. Shes not real big on the nuggets. We also got her Gymboree Bubbles - a MUST HAVE for any baby. The bubbles are made with a sugar base (so they are non-toxic and last a long time---we found 2 left over from last night on the table this morning). Emily loves them. To pop them to chase them to watch them.... its great. Oh, and we figured out how to get Emily to take her meds without crushing them.... we hide them in pieces of bannana and she really gobbles it down. Well dirty diaper alert. Gotta help daddy. (My work is never done!)

New Photos

2006-02-02T09:24:00.000-05:00

HAPPY GROUNDHOG'S DAY

2006-02-02T08:28:00.000-05:00

Happy Groundhog's Day everyone!!!

Punxsy Phil saw his shadow and predicted 6 more weeks of MILD winter. We all KNEW that was coming though, didnt we? The above picture is Bill Deeley. I went to school with his oldest daughter, Beth. When we were in elementary school we were very good friends and I can say that Mr. and Mrs. Deeley are two very nice people. He owned (or owns) one of the biggest funeral homes in Punxsy....anyways...

Here is Phil's prediction verbatim:

Phil Says Six More Weeks of Winter! Phil's official forecast as read 2/2/06 at sunrise at Gobbler's Knob: It is said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.Around the country there are many imitators of me. In Harrisburg there is Gus who appears on TVworking for the lottery. Then all around town,Cute groundhog statues abound.They all look like me, I found. Today on the Knob as I'm doing my job,I don't like this likeness of me. It's my shadow I see. Six more weeks of mild winter there will be. (taken from www.punxsutawney.org)

I love today! Thursdays are nice anyways. We may have to take Emily to this when she gets a few years older.

Well thats all from here. Playdate was at our house yesterday (oh my god what a mess my house was when everyone left...ikes) Then we had dinner guest.... what a busy day.

OOOOOO I am leaving the osterhout free library and going to work at the Hoyt library as an acquisitions clerk (I will order new books for the library and get them ready for circulation). It pays more and NO MORE nights/weekends. But I am REALLY going to miss the people at the Osterhout. They were so friendly to me and I have made some great friends and hope to continue my friendships. I will now work with a lady I go to church with.

Ok Emily wants to type something..... mm jv j nmcc cn fokj jjkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk mb nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn2122k k gklofvldov; miokjkjnjnfjn,mg,kbnbbnjhbb

I've discovered a new type of exercise...

2006-01-30T14:59:00.000-05:00

I just did an amazing workout.... you'll never guess.... it was a little of weight training and a little cardiovascular.... Emily and I went to the playground! Its sunny and warm here!! I lugged her all over that place, walking her here and there... pushing on this...etc. She went down the slide AT LEAST 30 times.... so that is lifting 25-28lbs over my head. Then she found a little friend named Jacob who was really friendly to her. He went through this tube thing so that he could go down the big slide. Well guess what? Emily followed him, which meant I followed them. Half way through Emily decides she doesnt really want to go the rest of the way, and somehow jams us inside for a few minutes. Luckily, we got out. :-) So then we stopped to wash daddy's muddy, salt-covered car. I discovered after I had all the soap on the car, that Emily was screaming bloody murder... apparently not a fan of the high-power water wash. After I finished some 4 minutes and a million quarters later, I got back in the car and soothed her. Her eyes were puffy the poor thing. She fell asleep on the way home (with no lunch) so she will skip lunch today I guess, seeing that it is 3pm now. She did have a cheese stick. She hasnt eaten much today so she should eat a lot tonight. Ever see Gerbers serving suggestions? Its a joke... my kid eats what they suggest for a days worth of food by 4pm. Oh, and incase you are wondering...still not walking. Talking lots and lots. But thats it. And while it would be convienant sometimes to have her walking, I personally am thinking this is a blessing. I need to veg out til she wakes up. So if you need a real great work-out, come borrow my kid and take her to the playground for an hour.

Website

2006-01-26T11:10:00.000-05:00

We have a VERY basic website. I am trying out new "free" things and here is a quicky that I had found. It is www.costanzos.bravehost.com Hope you enjoy. Emily went to play group yesterday and then to Gymboree (I had an interview there to teach some classes part time). She played really hard and really loved it! Too bad its too expensive to send her there. We started doing our taxes..what a nightmare. Why cant the Gov. just bill us how much we owe each year and they do all the computing! Well, I guess if they did it...we would be paying much much more. Off to work...its an ER night....my favorite show! Today should be a good night

Emily's New Do

2006-01-20T10:17:00.000-05:00

Emily's got a new hair-do that I love. You are really going to think she is adorable now! WOW she is really getting big. I just realized how fun it will be to play with her gorgeous hair!

LETS READ MOMMY

2006-01-19T10:22:00.000-05:00

<----Downward facing dog! hehehe Do we have a great kiddo or WHAT! Emily loves to read. I thought I would share some pictures of her setting around with her books. The outfit she has on came in a huge care package from my friends in NC - (they supplied Emily with her winter clothing). Emily doesn't realize that Elmo is on this shirt, otherwise I wouldn't be able to wear it on her. Every time she sees an Elmo she kisses and hugs it.

January 17th - My birthday

2006-01-19T10:16:00.000-05:00

Last year my birthday was uneventful, except that Emily (just 2 mo old) had threw up, booped, and peed on me all in the first 15 minutes of the day. This year... only slightly different. The cats threw up 4 times (on the carpet of course), Emily and I are both very sick and feel like crap, and I had to dig threw the garbage to find our W2s which we had already received and promptly (like idiots) threw away. Canio and I normally go to Coopers for dinner and although we had plans to do the same thing after I got off work--- I never made it to work and did not feel like going out. Instead, Canio stopped on his way home and got Smokey Bones (its a southern bbq place that I really like especially when I am missing the south). And for the first time since we have been together, he brought home a birthday cake for me!! I was really surprised. Our neighbor, Dorie came over for a slice of cake and that wrapped up my day. Oh, Emily and I did finger paint for the first time. SHE LOVED IT. I will post something in the next few weeks called Emily's Art Gallery. Check back there to see pictures of her artwork.

Phildelphia Zoo

2006-01-19T09:26:00.000-05:00

Our Trip to the Philadelphia Zoo - Friday the 13th

Our trip didn't start off great....the weather wasn't 60 as forecasted, but rather foggy and 50. And Emily was starting to get sick (as you can see by her booger breakdown)

Things got better when we got to the children's zoo area. She enjoyed meeting and petting this very friendly goat. I think Daddy was more afraid of it than Emily.

Emily was taking a break, eating a ritz cracker when a peacock came walking by... This was a split second before the peacock snatched Emily's cracker from her hand and swallowed it whole!!! We had never seen a peacock quite so close before.... Unlike most kids who would scream that a strange bird had just taken their cracker... Emily (and mommy) just said.."All done." For Emily flipping her hands and making that gester with the word done (doooh) means she is either done eating or she has eaten everything there is to eat. Overall, we had a great trip to the zoo. Emily ate chicken fingers from the zoo (first time I think) and for the first time she actually noticed the animals and had fun looking at them and seeing the things they do. She slept the entire way down and most of the way back. Despite the weather-forecasting flop, we had a LOT of fun. Emily decided to walk around most of the zoo holding both of our hands. Still not walking though, but she will get there soon enough.

Playground

2006-01-09T17:27:00.000-05:00

It was a nice warm day today (51 to be exact). So Emily and I packed up and headed to our favorite playground... Her favorite thing used to be the swings, but now she has changed her mind. she likes to go down the slide now. I set her at the top and then assume the catching position. She scoots her butt down when I tell her OK. This is great! She used to be afraid to even go down with Canio or I. However, she isnt getting any lighter, so after about 15 trips down the slide my arms felt like they were going to fall off. It was such a nice day that we later went to the store to pick up some odds and ends. No matter where we go, people stop me to tell me what a beautiful baby she is. Well of course! Look at her mommy and daddy! haha, just kidding. Current list of words that Emily says: Mom Dadda Cat Book Bahooh (aka Balloon) Sock shoo (aka shoe) Ohhh uck (aka duck) Star Fluff (dont ask...we have no idea why she says this) Ball Og (aka Dog) Baba and today she added Car as we got in the car. She also has down the shaking of yes and no. And she recognizes many more pictures (ie when we say...Emily wheres the____) Well off to make stir fry--- our favorite meal lately and clean up the pile of books she left in her wake. Great! While I was writing this Emily got quiet which means she was up to no good.... and yes... she was pulling out all the wipes from a newly filled wipe container. UGH

Pictures Pictures Pictures

2006-01-09T16:57:00.000-05:00

Emily is going to help me install the pet door

"Now mom, it looks like you need to use this tool here"

Emily closes her eyes to pick out which book she will read next.

Hmmm, Miffy sounds good...lets read it!

This is her vogue pose! Isn't she a beauty~

Emily on Christmas Eve playing with our Mark, our neighbor's oldest son - Can you tell Emily LOVES him?

SLURP SLURP--- STRAW NEWS

2006-01-07T22:45:00.000-05:00

BEEP DA BEEP BEEP DA BEEP BEEEP

Well folks...she FINALLY did it.

We had to go to Wal-Mart tonight... yes gone are the Saturday nights when we would go to a game, see a movie, or go to a friends house... now we are truly loosers whose entertainment for the weekend is walking around Wal-Mart. It never ceases to amaze me that somehow I aways run into the girl with dyed hair whose black roots are 3 inches down on her yellow/red blonde hair, wearing jeans 2 sizes too small from the 1980s with her ever so attractive "racin' Nascar" t-shirt that shows her buldges all too well. Or that I get in the line that seems to be paused.....as I stand there forever. We also saw Doris, who was one of 2 prenatal teachers we had from Geisinger. She was so nice and still is. She said Emily is beautiful. She then said it was time for another...and Canio and I sighed in unison... uhhhh. ANYWAYS... I was going to make stir-fry for dinner since it is the only thing Emily DEVOURS, but since it was getting late, we opted for Cracker Barrel (thought...is it Barrell or Barrel??). We have tried to explain to Emily how to suck on a straw for about 2 months, but she didnt get it. She would just bite it and play with it (thus the reason we have started to swipe any extra straws we can find so we have an "emergency" toy if needed). Anyways, I put some lemonade in the straw and put it in her mouth and released it. She LOVED this stuff. So I put the straw back in the cup and put it to her mouth when she said "cup" I put the straw in her mouth. And oh my goodness... she INSTANTLY knew what to do. How amazing is that. I was all excited. She also tried lemon today (since most of her play friends have already discovered that for some weird reason kids like lemons bitter, bitter lemons. Emily's cousin, Grace, who is exactly 6 mo younger seems to have some kinda lemon/pickle fetish going. And like all the other babies....she loved it. But the faces are priceless. I guess its just really cool for Canio and I to see Emily learning. She also said “Book” today! YEAHHHHHH FOR EMILY WHO FINALLY FIGURED OUT HOW TO USE A STRAW!! WHOO HOOO

In the Beginning

2006-01-06T12:38:00.000-05:00

Welcome Welcome everyone. First let me introduce ourselves for those who may not yet know our family well. I am Char, about to turn 29 ...and will stop celebrating birthdays after this one. I am married to Canio (said like Connie-O) who is 34. And we have one ADORABLE little girl who is almost 14 months old, Emily. We live in a small town, Swoyersville, PA. And other than the weather and some crabby people in the NE, we love our neighborhood. Canio is in advertising sales for a local PBS station. His new job is going very good and he likes it much better than his previous station. His co-workers are great and we really feel like we made a good decision when he switched jobs. I am working at the Osterhout free library part time and for the most part like it as well. Emily is busy learning to walk. She still will not let go of our hands, but now we are working on her just holding onto ONE hand in hopes of encouraging her to let go soon. Her vocabulary is growing very quickly. She can now mimic a lot of what we say as well. She says cat, mom, dadad, ball, cup, fluff (yeah...we have NO clue why she says this), and duck. She tries to say balloon. She loves reading and pointing out several of the pictures when we ask her things like... "Where's the apple?" We are still battling sleep problems, but for 3 nights she has slept through the night, even though she hasnt fallen asleep until 10:30. Her laugh is absolutely contagious.

We will be posting more pictures of her so keep checking back. We will try to update this by every Sunday.

NEW YEARS We had a nice New Years - we made a ham and our neighbor came over for dinner. Then we played some board games and finished off the night with a movie and watching the ball drop in NYC. It was both triumphant and sad to see Dick Clark back. What a story of recovery for this iconic personality to make it back regardless of any lingering affects, but also so sad to see a man who no one thought would ever get old, struggle to say simple words. But hats off to him. We had to fix our car, get new tires, fix a toilet, and buy a new computer because our old one crashed all within 2 days. But when you hear about the terrible miners in WVA you realize what a blessing it is to have these small insignificant problems.

CHRISTMAS We had a nice Christmas. Emily got a lot of great gifts. Her favorites are a Shout Elmo from Santa, a singing frog from our neighbor, stacking cups from Santa, and a little people/leggo farm that makes animal noises from Mommy and Daddy. Canio's big gift-- XM Radio is all he can talk about. Look out world. He has a new toy! I started researching the Costanzo family line and made a pretty interesting gift for Canio's dad. I have gotten back to Canio's Great-Grandfather in just about 2 weeks worth of work (thanks to my sister Jen who is a geneology guru). If you're interested in that sort of stuff, let me recommend http://www.rootsweb.com or a pay site http://www.ancestory.com. The picture below is a 4 generation photo taken on Christmas eve. It is my little girl, Canio, his dad (Phil) and his mother Verna (aka Baba).