I think I've spoiled him.

Doesn't he look spoiled?

I realized last night when he spit up all over the blue sling while the gray sling was in the wash that it was a moment of panic ... the boy is addicted.

I can't get him to sleep or calm down from his evening fussiness the old fashioned ways – by rocking, nursing or giving the pacifier. Nope, the boy wants to be in the sling while I walk around and do chores, like unload the dishwasher or vacuum or do laundry. That really puts him to sleep! Too bad I don't feel like doing that in the middle of the night when he wants to be wide awake at 3 a.m.!



The only upside is that maybe carrying him around a lot might help me take off some weight. I am anxiously waiting for the puffiness to go away!

The sling gets a lot of attention in Battle Creek. It's like no one has ever seen one before, so they come up to me and ask me a ton of questions about it. Does it hurt my back? Do I worry that he'll fall out? How old is he? Yadda yadda! It's nice to get some attention though. There'll come a time when no perfect stranger will have cause to come up to me and ask me anything!

Albert has also been smiling a lot more lately. I tried to capture a smile on camera but all I got was a "pleasant look."



He's quite a guy! Last night when I was typing on the computer, he spit-up all over the keyboard. John had to go buy a new one today.

We found out last week that Stella's new preschool classroom will be in Battle Creek this summer and next year . . . so she won't have that super long bus ride to school everyday. I'm so happy about that.

Gotta run . . . spoiled boy is not in the sling and is unhappy!

The return of spaghetti

I think I became very lazy preparing Stella's meals when I was pregnant. In fact, that's when Stella mostly became a nugget-addict. She just started liking them more and more, and so everyday when she got off the schoolbus, I made sure she had a plateful of nuggets there for her, ready to eat. After all, I didn't want to fight with her. She could move a lot faster than I could.

Her diet has just gone from bad to worse.

But today she ate two platefuls of spaghetti, which was once her favorite.



And it's gluten free pasta, too!

I have the energy now to play the battle of wills. I find that if she gets hungry enough, she'll eat. It's good to know, because she's probably going to go on a special diet this summer to see if it helps her focus/hyperactivity problems. Yay, Stella! My spaghetti girl!

Albert goes to Washington

Washington, Michigan!

We finally got the courage to take an overnight trip with both kids to the Big City! It was A.J.'s first trip, and Stella was desperate to go -- she'd been saying "Papa and Grandma" for a week.

The worst part is driving through the traffic, but we made it there and back without much incident. Everyone enjoyed getting to meet Albert John, and it was nice to see everyone again.

We had a big dinner Saturday night (grilled steak by Joe, even!) and most of the family came over. Great Grandma Puzzuoli got to meet the newest Albert Puzzuoli:



And I had been hearing from everyone that Veda Jane had grown into a huge 6-month-old baby. In my mind, I couldn't picture it. I was picturing chubby cheeks and legs, but when Corinn arrived, I couldn't believe it! She looked like a one-year-old! Here's a picture of us switching babies. I had to keep reminding myself not to set Veda down like she could walk! She's just so adorable though. She has beautiful eyes and such a sweet smile! She's just good at growing!



While we were there, John took Stella to one of his favorite places in Macomb County: Stony Creek Metropark Nature Center. Stella's favorite part was the turtles.



And she's always drawn to the water.


Albert John is growing big himself. He's been smiling a little more, which makes up for that 6-9 p.m. colicky time!


He still looks like his dad.


Other than that, not much going on here. The big fundraiser auction for the CAN Council (my job) is tomorrow, and luckily the volunteers have filled in a lot since I've been busy with my brood. I've been considering putting Stella on a gluten free/casein free diet and following other elements of the DAN protocol. It's a hard call ... so much work. But I feel I need to try it. John won a drunk-driving trial today. GUILTY as charged. That's good news 'round here! Maybe not for the drunk driver, though. Gotta go! AJ is starting colicky hour early today!

The pictures tell the story

My mom Susan returned to Kansas yesterday, and I was sorry to see her go! It's so hard when you only see your mom once or twice a year. :( But we had a good week. She had a bit of a rough time getting here because her connecting flight was delayed in Milwaukee. She got here at 11 p.m. when she should've gotten here at 7 p.m.! But her return trip was much better and one of her flights even left ahead of schedule.

Rough weather, though. The week started out well with great weather, but eventually it was extremely cold and we had a lot of lake effect snow. So instead of running around in the backyard, Mom and Stella spent a lot of time indoors, reading books and playing.



Stella had a great week with talking, by the way. We heard a few complete sentences, like "I told you no!" and "I try to move it!" At one point I was asking her what her papa says, and she said, "Brr!" Then I asked her what her Grandma (Kathy) says, and she said, "I wuv you." (The whole phrase). Pretty good. I think a week away from school was a much needed break for her. I know she's been working pretty hard in school. Her parent teacher conference was a couple of weeks ago, and her teacher reported that she is progressing wonderfully with her ABLLS.

My mom also enjoyed the newest member of the family, too, of course! She decided she likes little boys, even if it took a little bit of getting-used-to.



He's growing like crazy. Today he gave me his first happy smile at 5 weeks. Of course, it'll be awhile before we capture it on camera.



A couple Fridays ago, Joe, Kathy, Jill and Lauren came out here to Battle Creek to see Albert John. It was a really great visit. Lauren is so experienced with little ones, since she has a little sister and brother on her dad's side. It was nice to have her help because A.J. wants to be held a lot! It'll be so great for Jill when she has her baby to have Lauren around -- she'll be a wonderful big sister!



Kathy made curtains for Stella's room (to help darken the room), and Joe came to help hang them. They're beautiful, by the way. It was so nice to see everyone! Stella enjoyed all the extra attention.



Fruit snacks are messy!