Cousin Christopher

Camp 1

Dominic and Grandma Becky 20 weeks





















Grandpa Chris 20 weeks











The family gathered today at camp. Dominic got to see grandpa Chris and grandma Becky for the first time since he was 5 days old. He met his uncle Jon and Kim for the first time ever. It was a busy morning!!!

Busy Days

No new pictures for today as we were too busy. This morning Dominic got acquainted with his aunt Angie. Once he realized she was friendly, I think he was taken with her. Then, late morning Pupo let Dominic drive the tractor. He really enjoyed that!

In the afternoon we went with grandma Mo and aunt Angie to Kohl's and the mall. Grandma Mo got Dominic some really cute outfits for summer. Dominic enjoyed the mall in the comfort of his sling. When the time came he just dozed off like he was in a hammock. When we got home he was well overdue for his nap. Then it was up to grandma Cindy's house.

Tomorrow aunt Mandy, uncle Chris, cousin Christopher, Dominic and I will all travel up to camp to visit grandpa Chris, grandma Becky and meet uncle Jon for the first time. Uncle Jon had a surprise visit and so we will be meeting up with him at camp tomorrow because aunt Mandy has decided not to have her baby yet! This is the plan unless Imagin decides to grace us with her presence.

Then the day Dominic and I have been waiting for a few weeks now.... Daddy will be coming home. Pupo is going up to Maine to help daddy pack and clean the apartment. BIG THANKS TO PUPO FOR THIS HELP!! Then they will return to NY, hopefully on Tuesday night or Wednesday at the latest. MATT-WE CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU!!!!!!

The Crib

Pupo and I put the crib together tonight. It is a beautiful crib. After we had it nearly together we measured and realized it would not fit through the door. So, we did a little spacial imaging and with one side off it fit through without taking the entire thing apart. Phew..... Once downstairs we had another challenge of putting together the side that slides up and down. Then Pupo realized we were working with the thing backwards. This coupled along with some directions set us up right. Meanwhile Dominic had long since given up on us and fell asleep in the swing after grandma Mo gave him his bath and read his story to him.

He had a very busy day today and can now sleep wonderfully in his new crib, where he can sprawl out with lots of room. One last touch was a trip to Target for Mo and Tony to get a bumper pad for the little mover who was sleeping in the crib. The blue bumper pad contrasts nicely with the dark wood!


Thank you grandma Mo and Pupo!

The sling is getting small

This sling is the best item!! I love to carry Dominic everywhere in it, to the store, walks, errands..... It is so small and portable, plus it is comfortable for me and Dominic too. It is sad to think that he is getting to big to put in facing forward, kangaroo style. As you can see he is growing out of it. Soon it will be a hip only sling. :-( If there was one item for me to recommend to anyone having a new baby, this would be the item.

Chevy

Pupo took Dominic to the old Chevy so Dominic could drive. Ok, so it is a bit early for driving lessons, but he can pretend! I don't know who enjoyed the experience more, Dominic or Pupo. Looks like they both have something in common, cars.




Matt, your dad says "he can drive better then you can".

Mobile

Well I discovered at Grandma Mo's house that Dominic enjoys the mobile, so, I decided to put his mobile up in the crib at Grandma Cindy's house. This is the first time Dominic has really been able to enjoy the mobile. Shortly after he fell asleep, but did so with Jeffy in his mouth and his thumb behind Jeffy. I think he has it backwards, but he does not seem to mind.

Feet!

I do believe this is the only time in his life that he will be able to put his feet in his mouth so easliy. This is a new found thing to Dominic and now he enjoys eating both his feet and his socks.


Because they taste good!

Bath Time

Dominic spent the evening with Grandma Mo while Mom got some time away and went to go to the gym with Becky. When we got back Becky and I had some dinner while Grandma fed Dominic his cereal. Then I blew up his rubber duck bath tub while Grandma and Becky undressed Dominic. He really enjoyed having the familiar rubber ducky tub. He splashed and giggled, then splashed and giggled some more.

Grandma got Dominic ready for bed and read him his night time book Bear Snores On. Then it was off to bed!

Photos

A few photos of the last few days!

Today

Dominic and I enjoyed the morning with Grandma Cindy. We traveled to Rome and hit a few stores and then headed home. It sounds like a simple quick trip, but in all actuality it took a total of four hours. When we got home, Dominic was hungry for lunch and ready for a nap. He does not like to nap when we are out as he enjoys looking around at everyone and everything. Plus he is such a flirt, smiling at everyone and gaining all the attention. Being cute and happy helps with that as well.

After a wonderful afternoon nap we headed to Whitesboro to visit with Pupo. What a wonderful visit we had. First, Dominic got to play in the office and enjoyed feeling Pupo's face. Then we went to Venice for subs and Dominic had a ball eating the table and reaching for both our drinks and our food. He was well behaved while we ate, and only got fussy for his own food on the drive home.

At home Pupo spent time with Dominic while I got his cereal ready to eat. He was one hungry boy. He ate all his dinner and desired more. Sorry Dominic, you'll have to wait till tomorrow for more! Then it was time to get ready for bed. After he was clean, dry and full he got to sit in the chair with Pupo.

Here are a few pictures of today with Pupo.

Spring Walks

This photo was taken shortly before Grandma Mo took Dominic for a walk.









Enjoying the swing!

It nearly put him to sleep, before I scooped him up and put him down for a nap.

Today Dominic had morning cereal as well as his evening cereal. I gave it to him around 8:30am, but I think tomorrow I am going to wait till around 11am, as he is not very hungry in the morning. He only ate half of what he would eat in the evening. We will see how that works out.

Grandma's

Grandma Mo at bath time with Dominic. 19 weeks


Grandma Cindy after work with Dominic. 19 weeks


Dominic getting ready for his bath.



I miss you daddy!!

Rolling Over

The highlight of today was that Dominic rolled over. I was over at my grandparents house with Dominic and Christopher this morning around 11:15 am, when grandma Caswell said "he's going to go over" and sure enough he did. I was unprepared, but in that immediate moment it was Matt I was thinking of. I was sad that he was in Maine and we are here in NY.

It is funny how these events in life happen when you least expect it. He was just placed on his belly for a little belly time and was doing a superman pose and wanted to see something on the other side of the room. He looked up and was on his side, he continued to stretch and was all the way over with his belly up. I was in tears, but, most of all my wish is that Matt could have seen it.

We Miss You Daddy!!!

Day one without daddy and we really miss him. So, we decided to post a few photos taken today for him. Hope you can get a lot done without us there, but we can't wait to see you! Love, Lee and Dominic




A big kiss for Dominic from Daddy.

Day 1 Back In NY

Today is our first day back in NY. It has been really busy, but that was to be expected. Hopefully, things will settle down in a few days and we can again begin to establish a new routine. The trip here was long, but Dominic was wonderful for all except one hour and with a 7-hour trip, I was pleased that he did that well.

Today we went to visit Mandy, Chris and cousin Christopher. When we arrived I couldn't pass up the opportunity to take this photo of big and little Chris. They looked adorable in their boots working on the garden.



A very pregnant aunt Mandy loving little Dominic.

It is a family reunion!

Happy Mother's Day!!

Happy Mother's Day to Grandma Mo, Grandma Cindy, Grandma Becky, Great Grandma Nana Mittiga, Great Grandma Nana Westhall, and Great Grandma Caswell. You are all extremely important people in our lives and there is nothing we can say that will come even close to telling you all how special you are. Each of you has played a slightly different, but no less important roll. We are forever thankful for having all of you in our lives. We don't often take the time to tell you all how much you are appreciated, nor do we tell you how much you mean to us. We are all here today because of you all. It is my hope that when you look at us, you see yourself. You are all imprinted on us and we wouldn't be where we are today if it weren’t for you. You are our roll models, our first teachers, caregivers, full of unconditional love and warmth, you are all mothers and you are important to me, Matt and Dominic. We love you all!!!

I'm Gonna Miss Daddy

Dominic and I head to NY tomorrow for our move. Matt will follow June 1st when he completes his classes here in Maine. It is already a sad day and we have not even left yet. I know that it is only two weeks, but I know that I am going to miss Matt and Matt is really going to miss Dominic.

Here are a few photos of the two of them playing together tonight after bath time.
Dominic loves to touch Matt's face.

Friends

Beth and Joey stopped by today to say goodbye to Dominic and I. As you can see by the photo below, saying goodbye makes Dominic very sad.




















I was able to capture a few photos of Jezzie being slightly abused. She was a wonderful sport about it though and when she couldn't handle it anymore she just got up and walked away.

Things of Interest

There were a few interesting things that happened today. First, Dominic enjoyed petting Jezzie (and I think Jezzie enjoyed it as well because she didn't run away). Dominic really liked feeling her fur, touching her face and whiskers. I wish I could have caught it on camera, but Matt was on the phone and when I got a chance to run for the camera Jezzie decided to follow me. So I'm sorry that there will be no photos of that event.

The weather here has been cool and very rainy. I guess the best way to describe it would be, a perfect cuddle up on the couch and read a good book, or watch a good movie day. It was also a great day for a nap and that is exactly what Dominic did. Oh...wait, that is every day for him, isn't it? But, he looks so darn cute!

The last part that I will write about today was his dinner. I went to feed him a spoonful of cereal and he turned his head at the last minute. He ended up getting the cereal on his nose instead. The picture doesn't do the actual scene justice as he looked like Pinocchio with a point of cereal poking off his nose and the rest of his face so neat and clean.




Oh.... and I can't wait for him to be able to use his high chair. With Dominic and I moving on Monday and Matt following June 1st, we decided not to bring the high chair only to have to lug it back to NY. However, I am really looking forward to being able to use it. Right now, his exersaucer is working as a make shift high chair, but not to well. I try and cover it with a towel, but then he wants to eat the towel and play with the stuff on the exersaucer. It was fun for him, frustrating for me.

Daddy and Me!!!

One Tired Daddy

It was an exhausting, stressful week for Matt and that is most likely an understatement. Matt was so excited to be able to spend some time with Dominic after he got home today. He misses his little man when he is gone all day.

Pictured here are a few photos of the two of them together. Dominic likes to touch Matt's face and pull his fingers into his mouth.

Almost there

18 Weeks

The highlight of today is that Dominic is almost ready to start rolling over. He now pulls his legs up and rolls to the side. I know that he will be rolling over shortly.

His baby babble now includes multiple new sounds, along with the use of his tongue. Since he has started cereal, he has also started using his tongue to talk. This newfound ability also brings lots, and lots of drool and bubbles.

I have also noticed his depth perception is much improved. He can now reach for an object that he wants and grasp it without missing. Along with this, his ability to use his fingers is also improving.

Aside from eating, the biggest milestone this month is his ability to laugh. He is ticklish, and also laughs when he finds things funny or enjoyable. It is such a joy to hear him laugh! Plus, it is funny to watch what we the parents are reduced to in order to get him to laugh. (It is no wonder they laugh, we are making total fools of ourselves and enjoying every minute of it.)

A Few Photo's

Frog Legs

Dominic is working hard on his belly time. He is now doing much better and can stand being on his belly for about 10-15 minutes. This is a great improvement from the 2 minute maximum he was able to do just one month ago.