A Sunless Sunday

We've been quite damp here this past week (weather-wise) and are only expecting the same for the next week or so. We need the rain! However, we need to get out of the house and stretch our legs some too!

We started the day by going to 12:00 Mass (well, that was halfway through the day by then!) and then went to Dominic's Open House at school afterward. Luckily the rain let up enough for us to get to his classroom somewhat dry. Dominic proudly showed us his displayed work, where he sat, and the artwork of Grandma and Grandpa in the window (hilarious!). Donovan was honored to sit in Dominic's chair (so attentive!)

Dominic and his clone.

What do you think? Ready for Kindergarten?

Afterward, the boys and I went over to meet their newest cousin Addison (6 days old). They enjoyed hanging out with their cousins. Dominic and Alex quickly turned Superheros, while Amanda and Donovan, um, watched "Annie". Hey, "It's a Hard Knock Life!" And you know what?... "The Sun'll Come Out Tomorrow" ....It did!

Amanda and Donovan, pretty in pink?

"Uncle Rudy, rescue me!"

Doin' their best stand-up routine!

EXTRA! EXTRA!

Dominic's school is hosting their annual Open House this coming Sunday. The local community newspaper had an advertisement in it to invite others to come see what the school is all about. It's also a kick-off to Catholic School's Week and the parents' get to come to the classrooms to see their child's work so proudly displayed, and the work of others, of course. (If you're squirmy, stay away from the Science Lab displays!)

I've usually attended Open Houses in the past, just because it's after the mass we attend on Sunday and well, it's my Alma Mater, but this year I get to go because Dominic has started his first year of Kindergarten there and will hopefully continue his education at the school until 8th grade (provided there are no more dancing on toilets in the bathroom)!

What a surprise to see Dominic's picture (along with a classmate) in the local newspaper! (original photo above provided by Grandma Gertie)...


So tonight, Donovan attempts to earn his rights into the Class of 2018 by becoming a SJV Tiger...


I believe the conversation went like this:

Mommy look!

(I excitedly rush over to see his work of art, however there must have been an awful/disapproving look on my face...)

Mommy Go! (..as in "Get back to doing what you were doing!")

Yikes, stripes!

Oh, I get it...It's a test...a test of whether I can handle 3 boys under this roof! Uh, huh. Well, at least he was quietly content while I was trying to make dinner. (Rudy and Dominic were away at their kickboxing class). Help me!

She's here....FINALLY!

Whelp, because we lack in the GIRL Department in our household, I am overjoyed with having a bunch of beautiful nieces: Bianca, Peyton, Sydney, Amanda, Ana, Kalyn and introducing....

Addison Marie*
8 lbs., 2 oz.
19.5 inches
January 22, 2008
7:40 AM

Congrats to my brother Phil, Patty and big siblings Amanda and Alex!

*tentative

He's no Tim, Bob or Manny...

He's Dom the Drillman!

This is what I came home to today. About a month ago, I was cleaning out Dominic's room and had put away this workbench that took up a lot of space, was collecting dust, and just wasn't being used as it should (makes a great dumping ground for STUFF). So I gathered up all the bolts, screws, peg hooks, etc. and took apart the work bench and put it aside (thinking some day Donovan might be interested in it). Apparently Dominic needed a break from his Power Rangers and needed something else to do. And here it sits...in the middle of the family room! He's lovin' it!

Special note: The pajamas. It is GUARANTEED that when I have to work or be away from the house for awhile, that the boys will have a "Pajama Day" (Rudy included). Now, really, I'd LOVE for a Pajama Day myself, but you'd think being cooped up in a house all day is really fun on your day off? I was not at all surprised to come home seeing Dominic in the same PJ's as he was in when I left for work in the morning. They came off after dinner however because the boys needed to take a shower before bed. Besides, Dominic smelled like walking french toast, having spilled maple syrup somewhere on him at some point.

Hard at work.

Move over Rosie, there's a new Robot in town!

Fed Ex Home Delivery came to my work last week to deliver not one, but two new electronic devices for our home. Yes, Rudy's been internet shopping again, and heck, what's another item in the house that needs to be charged and taking up space in our outlets?

Meet Roomba, the iRobot. She's no Rosie! The Roomba has since been highly trained in her boundaries at the house. For now, she's been hired to vacuum the game/computer room, the hallway, Dominic's room and the kids' bathroom. Her clone (Roomba #2) will go through training to vacuum the master bedroom and other to-be-determined areas. So far she's done well. A few hangups occurred under Dominic bed, where she discovered some stray Uno cards and used tissues...good girl! But no Legos or Power Ranger parts have been consumed....YET! Donovan has taken up some sort of bond with Roomba and will set her free from her docking station at odd times of the day. Buttons with blinking lights are what attracts him I think. After the extensive training she's been through, I'm hoping her task is completed before she runs out of power (and back to her station she'll go). She's been programmed to complete her job while we're gone during the day, so I'd hate to see what she may have gotten into when we get home. I can say, I'm not particularly fond of the new purchases, but so far, vacuuming is one less thing that has to be done, right? I'm waiting for the iMop, iCleanToilets, iDish and iLaundry to come out.

Meanwhile...

Grandma Gertie's been at it again. She came over on Saturday morning to take Donovan out for a photo shoot at the park. (Dominic and Rudy were at their kickboxing class). DJ sported his gray golfer's hat and hammed it up for the camera. I stayed at the house and got some Christmas boxes out (and on their way to the garage!) YEA!!! Later, the boys went off to Cousin Athena's birthday party, while I took a quick nap and even managed to mop the floors and make a trip to Costco...another YEA!!!

A BREECH in this contract?

Pregnancy is full of negative thoughts, isn't it? Of course, there's always the positive ones. As I gracefully expanded in these past few weeks, I've become more aware of the littlest of "sensations" going on in baby's habitat. I've reverted back to the frequent bathroom trips, as there's a bigger baby now resting upon my bladder with no room to go anywhere else. An occasional "kick" will often make me ponder, "what was that?", and is usually accompanied by a "Ugh!" on my part. So, it is these moments, as well as "is that a head up in my ribs?", that make me wonder if THIS little guy is ALSO in a breech position, as was Donovan. This would void all my hopes for a VBAC and would probably be a potential for a statistical math problem for Dad to dwell on while I'm getting prepped for a C-section....WHAT are the odds? Would you expect anything less?

Time will tell. As I soon approach the 30-week mark (and bi-weekly Dr. office visits) I am hoping that "baby" (poor guy) will give us an indication of "heads or tails", and that the Dr. knows the difference between the two! We're hoping for the "head down" position and that a lot of verbal persuation will keep him there. Chant with me!

I am a loadful of boring information, aren't I? Really, I have nothing else worth blogging about.

The Faux-Hawk

It's the last day of Winter break for Dominic and it went out with a huge storm for us. The backyard is like "poop soup" since Rudy hasn't been back there to scoop, and the front yard, well, it'd be poop soup too if we hadn't cleaned up the diapers that fell out of the blown over garbage can. Ewww.

We've been cooped up for a couple of days with this weather and today was the day to get out and get Dominic's hair cut before returning back to school. It was nice to see some blue sky and even sunshine. Dominic loves to get his hair cut and watch his favorite video at the same time. Today though, he did a lot of talking to the stylist and convinced her to make his hair "like his buddy's". I wasn't sure what that meant, but he explained it using hand motions and all! Of course, his hair was first cut and styled the way it should be (with a total of 4 cowlicks), then the stylist did her work to satisfy the kid. He got a faux-hawk!

Dad, as usual, freaked out when we got home with his new hairdo, but I'm sure I won't be able to get his hair to do this again (thank goodness) and if having a cool look is what makes this kid happy for a few hours, why not? It's fun and different for him. (We actually could have gone a step further and added the color spray -- oooooh, that'd really set Dad off!)

I think the hand under the chin
is the typical photo pose look.

Every mug shot needs a side view.