2008 in Review

2008 was a crazy year - and even though I thought I would be pregnant forever (Matthew needed some medical intervention to make his debut!), this year flew by. Here is 2008, in review:

1. What did you do in 2008 that you've never done before?
Had a baby - if I did anything else that I've never done before I can't think of it at the moment - how can you top having a baby!

2. Did you keep your New Year's resolutions, and will you make any this year?
I don't think I made any resolutions last year - if I did they went out the window when I found out I was pregnant! I will make some this year - and I will write them down so that I will remember them.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
My friend Anna (on the same day I did!) and my friend Sharlene's sister Nicole (the day after I did!). Also my cousin Diane - to beautiful little Kara - and Matthew's cousin Stacy to Julia, both in December.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
Not this year.

5. What countries did you visit?
None this year - I did get to Rhode Island in November for a long weekend and I was happy for that!

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
Less stress, more money!

7. What dates from 2008 will remain etched in your memory, and why?
September 19th - the day Ish was born.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Giving birth to my son and completing my MBA.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Failure is a strong word - I'll have to think about that one.

10. Did you suffer an illness or injury?
Yes, but I'm getting better every day.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
Swaddle blankets...ahhh, sweet sleep!

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?
I'd have to say Ish - sleeping through the night is his latest accomplishment!

13. Whose behavior was appalling?
No need to name names - they know who they are.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Home improvements and Babies R Us.

15. What did you get really really really excited about?
Meeting Ish.

16. What song will always remind you of 2008?
The ABC song - Matthew loves it!

17. Compared to last year, are you:
A). Happier or sadder? Happier
B). Thinner or fatter? Sigh, much fatter
C). Richer or poorer? Sigh again, much poorer!

18. What do you wish you had done more of?
I wish I had exercised more and I wish I had organized my home better before the baby was born.

19. What do you wish you had done less of?
Worry.

20. How did you spend Christmas?
At home. With my extended family on Christmas Eve and my immediate family on Christmas day.

21. Did you fall in love in 2008?
Yes - one day he will call me mommy.

22. What was your favorite TV program in 2008?
How I Met Your Mother and The Big Bang Theory.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate last year?
Yep, sure do. I don't like to use the word "hate" - but it's okay to hate evil.

24. What was the best book you read?
I started The Professor's Wives Club - I really liked it, but then I had a baby and haven't been able to finish it.

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?
That the Baby Einstein CDs really aren't bad.

26. What did you want and get?
A healthy happy baby boy.

27. What did you want and not get?
My body to whip right back into shape!

28. What was your favorite film of the year?
There were so many I wanted to see but never did. I'll have to wait for the DVDs to come out.

29. What did you do on your birthday - and how old were you?
I turned 31. I think we went to dinner - I really can't remember!!

30. What one thing would have made your year measurably more satisfying?
Winning the lotto - hands down.

31. How would you describe your fashion sense in 2008?
Two words - stretchy pants.

32. What kept you sane?
No one has ever accused me of being sane.

33. Which celebrity did you follow most?
All of them - I love that trash.

34. What political issue stirred you the most?
I hate to talk politics.

35. Who did you miss?
My grandpa.

36. Who was the best new person you met this year?
Ish.

37. What valuable lesson did you learn in 2008?
Good things come to those who wait.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

I Have Feet!!

Matthew is just starting to notice his feet - this morning he spent a good 10 minutes just staring down at them while he was in his swing. It was like discovering a new toy for him! He also started rolling from his belly to his back this weekend - I'm trying to capture it on video, but typical Ish, he freezes when the camera is on!

Baby's 1st Christmas

A few pics from Ish's 1st Christmas:

Loving his crib!

Last night we moved Ish from the bassinet in our room to his crib in the nursery. HE LOVED IT! We swaddled him and put him in (drowsy but awake) a little after 8PM and he slept until 6:30AM. He woke up happy and smiling! I think he liked the change of scenery and probably liked the quiet - his father snores like a bear! I think I might try a night in the crib too! ;-)

All swaddled up!

3 Months Old

Ish turned 3 months old on Friday - and to celebrate, mother nature dropped a foot of snow on us! Matt and I had to go to work so we couldn't really enjoy the snowfall with Ish but we made sure to take a picture for the scrapbook.

Ish's 1st Snowfall

A Close-Up of the Big Boy!

Even More Random Cuteness

Hanging out with daddy on a random Monday night in December - right before his bedtime routine of bath, bottle and swaddle!

How We Roll On Sunday

Sunday mornings are pretty lazy at our house - we hang out in bed and watch tv, sing, talk and play. Not much else to it!

He makes me a liar everytime

This kid will giggle, coo and "talk" up a storm all day every day - but the minute he sees the light on the camera he clams up! I don't think anyone believes me when I tell them how vocal he is. Here he is, making me a liar again. He's lucky he's so cute!

More Random Cuteness

Ish used to HATE being naked - diaper changes, baths, etc. all brought out the worst in him. Now, he doesn't mind so much. He was more than happy to let me take this picture.

London Calling...

Baby Matthew has a very good friend that he hasn't met yet. Her name is Colleen ("Aunt Cool") and she lives all the way across the pond in England. This post is for her - baby Matthew is sending her a virtual hug!

Trying out the bouncer

Matthew gets bored easily so we had to pull out a new arsenal of toys this weekend - one being his Rainforest bouncer. It's so cute, his legs just dangle! He loves all the sights and sounds - let's hope this doesn't get old fast!

Under The Tree

Matthew loves lights - it doesn't matter if it's ceiling lights, lamp lights, light from the TV, light from his toys or good old-fashioned sunlight. I thought he might like an up-close look at our tree this year - and I was right! Between the lights and the dangling ornaments, he was hooked!

Random Cuteness

It's only day 3 of our new routine but I think he recognizes the pattern we are in. He just lays there and lets me bundle him up every morning!

Off to Grandma's - Day 2

Yesterday was my first day back at work. Our new routine is getting up with daddy at 5AM (or earlier as the case seems to be lately - baby Matthew gets hungry about 4-4:30 and refuses to wait any longer to be fed!), morning bottle, quick nap (giving me a chance to shower and get dressed), diaper change as needed and off to grandma's house by 7AM. Matthew doesn't seem to mind the new routine - look how happy he looks in his carseat, ready for the day's adventure! It's more sad for me than for him to leave for the day - I leave him at my mom's house happy as a clam, watching Noggin, getting a bottle, laughing with grandma and Auntie Dana. I wonder if he misses me at all!

A Day At The Mall

We went to the mall today with my parents, brothers, sister, sisters-in-law and nieces. We went to Build A Bear where we made a stuffed turtle for Matthew. Then we saw Santa again - and got some cute pictures of Matthew and his cousins.

Matthew, Santa, Alex and Ashley

Hanging out with daddy

Matthew's stuffed turtle, Buddy

I'm Not Tired!

Matthew has started to fight his sleep lately and gets himself to the point of exhaustion - that's how this happens! He gets so tired that he falls asleep in any position he's in when his eyes happen to close. This particular night he fell asleep watching The Santa Clause with daddy (who, as you can see in this picture, is quite tired himself from putting up the Christmas lights!).

1st Thanksgiving

Even though he's too little to partake in the feasting, he's not too little to look cute! The stuffed turkey in the first picture unfolds to become a big soft blanket (coincidence that it happens to be a turkey and perfect for today's pictures!). His little shirt says "I'm Stuffed" and he had on the cutest little pair of corduroy pants. Matthew was a good baby today - slept through dinner, which allowed me and Matt to feast uninterrupted! He also didn't mind posing for pictures with his cousins - although we had to change his outfit due to a spit-up incident, the picture is still too cute!

Matthew and his turkey blankie

Matthew and his cousins Ashley and Alex

Back from Rhode Island

Matt and I went to Newport, RI for the weekend. We had a great time shopping and touring the mansions and the wharfs (we even got to see the church where JFK was married). It was too cold to visit any of the beaches, but our hotel had a few sand walls where I was able to write what you see above. We left the baby with grandma and grandpa for the weekend and while we were gone he continued his streak of sleeping through the night - 8 hours on Friday and 9 hours on Saturday! This is great timing - I go back to work next week and if we can all get up together at about 5AM we'll be in good shape.

He loves his Bumbo!

Since he has such great head and neck control, I thought I would try him in his Bumbo seat today - he loved it! I took a ton of snapshots of a very happy smiley baby!

Winter in NY

We busted out Matthew's winter gear this week - temps have been as low as the 30s (20s at night!). It's a good thing Matthew doesn't mind the bundle-up process. Today also marks Matthew's two-month birthday - which means he gets his two-month shots at his doctor appointment tomorrow :-(

Baptism

Today was Matthew's baptism. He looked so cute in his little white outfit. It was a beautiful fall day in NY. Matthew was so good - at church he ate a little, slept a little and when he was awake (and not eating) he was mellow and calm. He didn't even care when the deacon poured the holy water over his head. He was good at the reception as well - he didn't mind being passed around at all. He only had a few meltdown moments, but those were quickly squashed with a bottle! We got to see a lot of friends and family that we don't see very often. For some of them it was the first time they were meeting baby Matthew - everyone commented on how cute he was and how lucky we are to have such a good baby.

Matthew's Furry Friends!

We had a family of deer visit us this week - 4 of them hung out in our back yard for a bit. We live next to a wooded area that seperates our property from the elementary school on our street, so we always have some furry creatures in our yard! They are so pretty - and in the calm of the morning, they were in no rush to leave. One of them even seemed to pose for the camera when she spotted me taking pictures from the living room window. We are planning on putting up a privacy fence next year - which means the deer won't be able to frolic in our yard next year, I'll miss them!

8 Weeks Old Today!

Time flies! I can't believe he is already 8 weeks old - seems like only yesterday he was beating me up from the inside! Here are two pictures - one when we were in the hospital the day after he was born and today (he smiles A LOT - this is the best picture I could get, sort of a smirk, but cute none the less!). It almost seems like they're two different babies. We weighed him yesterday before his shower - he's already up to 11 pounds. His hair is coming in nicely - looks blondish/brownish. Soon he'll lose that Terry Bradshaw look! He goes to the doctor next week for his two month check-up (where he'll get his first round of shots - I'm not looking forward to that and I'm sure if he knew what was going to happen, Matthew wouldn't be either!). It's a good thing he's in love with his doctor - maybe he'll be strong for her!

Getting the hang of it

After seven weeks Matthew is finally getting the hang of tummy time! Not only does he keep his head up for longer periods of time, he is also holding his head up higher each time. He stays on his tummy longer now - he used to get frustrated very quickly. He really is growing up!

We met with Santa today...

What better day to go see Santa than on a random Monday in mid-November! Santa arrived at the mall this past weekend and I thought the middle of the day on a weekday would be the best time to go - and it was, there was no waiting (thank goodness - Matthew is not a patient baby!). He seemed intrigued by Santa - wouldn't look at the camera despite the efforts of me and the photographer, but I think it's cute the way he's looking up at Santa! I had him dressed in a cute little onsie that said "Santa Loves Me" and his candy cane striped pants and socks - even Santa commented on how cute his little outfit was.

Here he is!

This is Ish (Matthew Jr). In this picture he is about 7 weeks old. He is getting so big - and is developing quite a personality. He is getting closer every night to sleeping through the night - last night he went over 6 hours!

The First Ish Post

Why "The Ish Blog"? Ish is what we called Matthew Jr. when I was pregnant, before we knew he was a boy. Ish seemed neutral - and even after we found out he was a boy and that his name would be Matthew, we still called him Ish. We still find ourselves calling him Ish now! This blog is for him - in all his cuteness!