I'm Special, Too

The baby will be here soon. I'm approaching 34 weeks and I'll be full term before we know it. I'm getting nervous about giving birth. I don't do well in hospitals and would prefer to come home the same day I deliver. If it's up to me, I'll be home right away. My tail bone is bothering me a little bit (I broke it while giving birth to Giana) and my doctor thinks it may break again. Ouch! I was open to having a c-section until last night. Let me just tell you about last night. Dominic and I took a one hour tour of the hospital just to make sure we know what to do and where to go, etc. It was a great tour packed full of information. More then I wanted to know. Have you ever heard the saying "ignorance is bliss?" The tour guide was a 20+ year labor and delivery nurse and she was wonderful. She was wonderful up to the part where she told us that a vaginal delivery on average was a two night stay in the hospital. A c-section hospital stay was an average of FOUR nights. You've got to be kidding me! I will be discussing this with my doctor next week! We have one final ultra sound scheduled in a couple of weeks to check the baby's size. I guess we'll be making some final decisions at that point. With all of this being said, this really isn't about me. Once you have children, it's never about you any longer. I will do what I have to do to make sure I have a healthy son. I can't wait to meet him!

On another note, I signed Giana up for a big sister class at the hospital called "I'm Special, Too." My Mom and I took her to this one hour class and it was so cute. She took a teddy bear and learned all about what to expect, how to be a good helper and what she should and shouldn't do with the baby. She was able to see where I'll be staying, (hopefully only for a day or so...did I mention that I don't like hospitals?), where she can help Dominic get snacks and she was able to see a few babies in the nursery. It was a fun class. She is adjusting really well to having a brother and we're hopeful that we can keep her happy and adjusted once he arrives.

Father's Day

Father's Day this year happened to fall over the weekend that we moved into our new house. Dominic's parents were in town so we were able to celebrate with them...by putting them to work! We took some time out to enjoy some ice cream cake from Dairy Queen (Dominic's favorite) and Giana decorated it. Daddy and Papa both loved the Curious George decorations. Dominic, thank you for being the best Daddy ever! Papa, we are so happy that you are going to be OK! We had a health scare over the past couple of weeks but everything has turned out just fine.

A "sleepover" update...I thought it was appropriate to include this picture in my Father's Day post. I previously wrote about Dominic and Giana's sleepovers. Just before we moved, the sleepovers were still a part of their evening routine. Apparently, only for Dominic though because Giana abandoned Dominic and decided to start sleeping in her own bed again. I just had to snap this picture. Even Giana decided that the floor wasn't the most comfortable place to sleep. I'm happy to report that she is doing just fine on her own in our new place. The "s" word pops up every now and then but Dominic has wised up and hasn't given in.

Moving Day!

We returned from the beach and five days later, the movers arrived. I didn't plan that too well. I should have done the move then the beach but it's just how it all worked out. We love our new place and I'm so excited that we have more space. The baby is due in about 5-6 weeks and with two kids, a small apartment just wasn't going to work for us. We only moved about two miles away. Being pregnant, I wasn't able to do a lot of the heavy moving so we recruited our friends and family. My friend Erin came over and I put her and her mini van to work doing several runs to and from the new place. Dominic's family and my Mom came over and pretty much unpacked our entire house. Thank God for all of them! Who would have thought I needed so much help at this point in my pregnancy...not me! I thought for sure we could handle it. I started to swell and my blood pressure went up. My doctor told me to take it easy so I obeyed and put everyone else to work. I'm good at delegating. Now the decorating can begin and we can get the baby's room together. I'm looking forward to it and will post pictures once complete. I didn't take too many photos of the move (if you can believe that!) but here's what I've got so far.


Giana was totally into this move and she "helped" me pack her entire room. She then "helped" us unpack her new room. We have a finished room in the basement and we made it into her playroom. Dominic turned the unfinished part of the basement into a basketball/baseball field and that's actually where they spend most of their time. Picture is above. What could be better? We've had time to do some bug catching, hopscotch, picnics on the patio, watering our new flowers and bunny rescues. We have a cute little bunny that keeps falling into our basement window area. Giana thinks it's pretty cool that Daddy saved the bunny, twice. Dominic said he ranks right up there with the Wonder Pets now...saving the bunny. I need to go purchase a cover so we don't find any dead animals in there. My Mom has been babysitting Dorothy, our fish, for the past few weeks. Just last night, we picked Dorothy up and brought her home. In a few more weeks, the baby will be here and our family will be complete. We are looking forward to settling in and enjoying the rest of the summer. That sounds good anyway...something tells me we have some long and tiring nights ahead.

Myrtle Beach Vacation 2010

We had the best time in Myrtle Beach this year! We went with Dominic's family and stayed for a week at Dunes Village Resort in North Myrtle Beach. This was the first beach vacation that Giana remembers and she had a great time. We really enjoyed watching her have so much fun. The resort is right on the beach and has an indoor water park. Being almost 8 months pregnant at the time, it was nice to be able to get out of the sun but still allow Giana to play and have fun. Even though I was huge and swollen, it was a fantastic week and I can't wait to do it again...next time with two kids! Below are just a few pictures from our trip.

Nine Holes of Golf

Dominic took Giana out on the golf course for the first time and they played nine holes. He said she did a great job and really enjoyed herself. He let her "drive" the golf cart and she thought that was pretty cool. As I mentioned in a previous post, Giana loves NASCAR. While driving, she told Dominic that "they were going to pretend that she was Danica Patrick and he was Fred Couples." Dominic called her by name to come over to the tee and she corrected him and said "Daddy, I'm not Giana, I'm Danica." I'm not sure if we should be worried about this NASCAR interest or not. I love seeing her little pink clubs barely sticking out on the back of the cart and the juice box in cup holder. Priceless.