Superstar!

Dominic had been living with a pyogenic granuloma (basically a blood vessel gone haywire) on his face for about two months.  It appeared one day as the tiniest little red bump and although slow at first, once it started growing, it grew fast! We had a few scary episodes with it, but overall, Dominic adjusted to life with it and was such a trooper patiently waiting to see the specialist at Duke and then for his surgery yesterday.  His two only complaints were having to take his bandages off each day and not being able to play with his friends on the playground the last few days of school before surgery. 

 

At the hospital, Dominic handled everything like such a pro.  From patiently waiting to get called, to doing all the prep tests, not being a single bit scared as he got rolled into the operating room and even waking up calmly and relaxed.  After about 5 minutes of being awake, he just wanted to get dressed and go home.  He's being great about following all of the doctor's post-op instructions, including taking it easy and watching a bit more TV than usual. 

 

Last night as we were getting him ready for bed, he was so happy to be able to put his pajama shirt on normally without having to take extra care to get it over his blood vessel, as we came to call it.  He said "Now, I'm just plain, old Dominic.  All back to normal!" and he had one of those smiles on his face that makes all of the extra wrinkles earned through life as a parent so worth it. 

 

Dominic,

I don't know if I could ever think of you as "plain, old Dominic" but I do know that you are such a brave little boy! Mommy couldn't be any prouder.

 

Pre-surgery bath

Patiently playing while in the waiting room


Pre-Op




Waiting for him to wake up


He's up and it's gone! (We took a picture to show him that it wasn't there anymore)


Taking a few minutes to get dressed again


Snuggling with Daddy while waiting to get discharged


A little rest on the way home

Home with Mommy the next morning, happily having a pajama/movie day!

Day in Downtown

We had what felt like the first real fall day last Saturday, so we took advantage and headed out to a local festival.  I ended up leaving with the scariest shark and the cutest puppy in town!

Special Day, Times Two

Dante's birthday is the day right after Grandpa's, so we had the chance to be together and celebrate them both all at once!  

Dante Turns 2!

We had a great time celebrating Dante's 2nd birthday in our very own "barnyard" with Wally the goat, Petunia the Pig and a few more friends. This is one very loved little boy! Thank you so much to all who joined us, to those who were there in spirit and to those who helped Mommy pull it off!

 

Is two really so terrible?

"At this age, children often say "NO" or refuse to do what you want them to do.  This is a normal phase of development involving testing the rules parents make.  Parents need to be consistent in following through with reasonable rules.  Your rules should not be too strict or too lenient. Enforce the rules fairly every time.  Be gentle but firm with your child even when the child wants to break the rule.  Many parents find this age difficult, so ask your doctor for advice on managing behavior.  Remember: You are the parent and your child is not in charge!"

Dante -
Mommy wasn't sure whether to cry or do a happy dance when I read this.  It came from the top of your progress report after we visited the doctor last week for your two year birthday check up.  It made me happy because obviously you are a very "normal" two year old, apparently doing exactly what you are supposed to be doing at this age and for that I am more thankful than I can express with the words on this page.  It also made me want to cry, because we are so knee-deep in this phase right now, that  you and I both end up in tears or a wrestling match out of frustration with each other on a somewhat regular basis these days.  As your mother, I'll officially say that you are one of the most determined little boys I've ever come across and I sincerely hope you continue to use that determination throughout life to help you follow your dreams wherever they may take you.  If I weren't  your mother, I might say things like capa tosta or STUBBORN! Thankfully, I am and we don't need to worry about that. 

When you are not pushing my buttons or trying to terrorize your older brother, you are one of the most adorable people to walk this earth.  You LOVE to laugh, especially if you think you were the cause of it.  A true jokester with a belly laugh like no other.  It's contagious and I hope it continues to fill the walls of our home for decades to come.  If I had to guess, you'll become the athlete in our family.  While your brother has cornered the market on negotiation, you simply come back with brut force and I can see it being put to good use out on the field one day. 

Over the last couple of months you've become quiet the parrot, repeating back everything we say to you.  This is another thing Mommy is very thankful for.  When you were born, we were worried about your "tight" frenulum, which could end up causing you speech problems.  Anyone who spends five minutes with you would tell me that I have other things to worry about like, "what are you going to do when at 10 years old this kid is bigger than you?"

I absolutely cannot end this letter to you without telling you that at two years old, you were your brother's biggest fan.  I can't predict if you'll always feel that way but right now if Dominic has it, you want it.  If Dominic does it, you want to do it too.  If Dominic likes it, you like it.  Dominic is usually more successful at changing your mood, making you laugh or distracting you then I am.  You ask for him from the minute you wake up in the morning and happily give him a big kiss to say good night. 

So, yes, two is kind of terrible.  But, it's also fun, cute, wonderful, happy and temporary.  I've learned that you usually don't get the good without the bad, so if I have to choose none or both, I choose both very, very gladly. 

I love you, Dante!
Happy 2nd Birthday!
Mommy

My Beach Boys

Had so much fun visiting Atlantic Beach this weekend - can't wait to go back next Summer! 

My Fish!

We got to spend some more time at the pool this weekend and Dominic is doing awesome with his swimming - I am one proud Mamma! Great job, Dominic!

He knows it!

 

 

Summer fun on Long Island

The boys and I had so much fun visiting and playing on our trip to NY the week before last. From the beach to the pool, so many Cousins, Aunts, Uncles and Grandparents to see - but I think we managed to fit it all in, having a blast all the while. 

And we have a swimmer!

Dominic conquered a huge feat today by swimming all by himself for the first time! Mommy did a terrible job trying to video it, so we will have to try again tomorrow. Here's a picture of the proud swimmer, plus one of him and Cousin Vincent. I'm so proud of my big guy and was even happier when he told me how proud of himself he was. 

My little farmers

We had a blast this morning picking lots of sweet NC blueberries. 

The Great "Creation"

In Dominic's words this is the "creation" that he and Aunt Catherine worked on yesterday. Who would have thought you could turn a diaper box into that! I don't about you, but I was pretty impressed. However, the real question is - who had more fun? Dominic or Aunt Catherine? 

What does the piggy say?

Dante loves animals, whether he gets to see them live, on TV or in his books. We are still working on saying all of their names but he's starting to really perfect a lot of their sounds!

 

Aunt Catherine

Having so much fun having Aunt Catherine here to visit! 

Funny Guy

Dante's humorous personality shines through more and more each day! I simply cannot wait until I can understand what all his babble means. Here's a picture of him being silly in the tub the other night. 

Dante, 

Thank you for being you and making Mommy smile every day. 

My Sweet Boys

I can't express how happy it makes me when I find the boys doing sweet things together.

"Holy crap! It's show and tell day."

I felt like I could actually see these words fall out of Dominic's mouth and onto the floor of my closet that morning.  They seemed so heavy; I think might have even heard them land on the carpet.   How did this happen? How did it come to this? My once angelic, little boy being anxious about school and having this ugly vocabulary to express it.

It feels like chaos has been our normal for the last two months.  The holidays, Vinny's surgery, my busy time at work had all been one on top of the other.  Not only had Dominic's new word choices been a concern of mine, but overall his behavior was such a cry for a change.  Dante still refused to walk.  I knew physically he could but I didn't know why he didn't want to. The ear infections, runny noses and coughs just kept coming, one after the next for both boys.  You try and tell yourself and it will be over soon and you can go back and fix all those things you put band-aids on to make it through.  But can you really?

Things have since settled down for a little bit.  Thankfully, Vinny healed great from his surgery and is back on his feet at full speed.  My biggest event is successfully over and done for the year.  We can breathe a little sigh of relief for the moment.  As for the boys, Dominic seems to have done a 180 in a very short period of time and I couldn't be happier.  There are a few key ingredients that came into play there and I pray his new attitude is here to stay. I can also proudly categorize Dante as a "walker" now.  As for the band-aids, the old ones have been ripped off.  There are probably a few scars and I'm sure eventually new ones will be need to be taped on. But I know from my own scars that if we take a lesson learned and keep on moving on, head held high, one day, we can look back and appreciate how we got to where we are.

To my Sweet Pea and my Little Stinker -
I love you more than I can type on these pages and live each day proud to be your Mom.

Our Little Star

Dominic made his debut in the Christmas play at school earlier this week.  His class was the stars and they did a fantastic job!

Dominic,
Mommy and Daddy couldn't be more proud of you!