Saturday, July 24, 2010

Rebirth of Slick

Tonight, Randy and I got to witness our son, The Mack, in action. It all started with a raven haired beauty sitting diagonally from us at Sweet Tomatoes. It began with a smile, a slight flirtation, and ended with Dante and this little girl playing Ninjas in the aisle.

What moved me almost to tears (of proud parent, not of sadness...ok a little bit of sadness, since I am the only girl Dante should love), was how slick my little 4 year old was with "putting the moves" on this girl. He flashed this "hi, how ya doin'" smile at her and (no kidding) winked.

Now mind you, we've been trying to teach Dante to wink for months now. Little did we know that all it would take would be a gorgeous little girl.

It was so interesting to see how (and here is where I get all scientific) our primitive nature or instinct kicks in, no matter how old we are when we something that we find "attractive". Dante has no clue what flirting, or the opposite sex is. I mean, he knows girls are girls and boys are boys, but at 4 does he really understand the trouble and heartache involved.

Of course not. Which makes it so wonderful to see him act like this so innocently. Later on, when he's a pimply faced teenager moping about the house listening to The Smiths' "Girl Afraid" (he is my child), it won't be that cute.

Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Birth: One Week Later




So it has been (already) one week since Dorian was born and I'm doing ok, I think. The C-section was an interesting experience to say the least, but were it not for the "cocktail" they gave me that I was allergic to (and consequently threw up from about 5:30pm to 3am the next morning), not a bad experience at all. The nurses and my doctor made the experience so easy despite my fears and the woman who gave me the spinal was AWESOME. I didn't even feel it.

The doctor who assisted my OB during the operation was a kind man who, during the administering of the spinal, stroked my head and told me (in a very strange Indian/Spanish accent) that I was going to be fine and that in a few minutes I'd be seeing my baby. Dr. Selman, my OB, was so wonderful, checking with how I was feeling and the nurses with their encouraging words and smiles made for an unforgettable experience.

As long as I don't get the "cocktail". I'd have no problem doing it again (not saying I would, but you know what I mean.)

A week later, at home, I'm doing ok. My incision KILLS only on one side though. It feels like a hot, burning, on fire, pulling sensation. I asked my doctor what that was and she said it was where they used a "hook" to hold me open and move my bladder and intestines out of the way. I proceeded to tell her TMI!!!!! I don't need to know that! BARF!!!

My feet and ankles are swollen and the lower part of my stomach is still puffy and sore, but honestly, I am doing great. I am slowly remembering what it is like to take care of a baby, remembering the "baby smell" and little baby mannerisms that Dante used to do. And I'm noticing that my oldest, Dante, really is a big boy and not the little baby I always assumed he was. From one day to the next, he went from "my baby" to "my big boy". He's learned how to assist me in changing diapers, making bottles (I am BF'ing as well). He's become quite the helper.

Hubby is doing well too. He's made dinner almost every night after coming home from work and has been a huge help in keeping the house clean and orderly. And, of course, my mom has been a great help as have been the wonderful network of friends I have.

So, a week into this "new mommy for the second time" phase, I can say that I am feeling pretty good. Exhausted, but good.

Friday, July 16, 2010

Hello there ladies and gentlemen!

In his true narcissistic namesake's fashion, Dorian Shane, arrived one week before schedule on July 13th, 2010 at 4:58pm. He weighed 6lbs. 12 oz. and measured in at 17 inches.

Mommy and Baby are doing fine, as are big brother Dante and proud daddy Randy.






Sunday, July 11, 2010

The Fantastic Four

Dante turned 4 today and instead of celebrating with a big party (too much for big pregnant mommy right now to handle) we took him to his Sibling Class at the hospital in order to prepare him in becoming a big brother in about 9 days.

He enjoyed the class immensely and did a pretty good job with the tasks at hand like answering questions about hygiene, what babies like to do (he answered oh-so-eloquently that "they like to go pee pee and poopy in their diapers"), and showed great promise in feeding and holding the baby.



He may need some work on changing and dressing the baby.


We then had our traditional birthday lunch at Sweet Tomatoes with the family followed by presents and a super cool Transformers cake at Nonna and Nonno's house.

Many gifts involving swords, shields, dragons and knights were experienced along with a visit from Sir Dante of Dania, dragon slayer.




A good day was had by all. I can't believe my baby is 4.

Friday, July 9, 2010

Just Like Daddy!

Dante has become Randy's little Mini Me. Whatever Randy does, Dante wants to do too......which is not always the best thing in the world. Everything from wearing "no shirt just like Daddy" to "I want a glass of tea just like Daddy", whatever Dante says is always followed by "just like Daddy".

It is really heartwarming to watch him follow his daddy around mimicking his actions and mannerisms. When he looks at Randy you can see such love and admiration in his eyes that you just want to cry.

The other day Randy was putting up a poster in Dante's room of a Medieval Knight. He was standing on D's bed, pounding the poster in the places where he had put the tape. Up goes Dante onto the bed, stands in front of Randy and starts pounding the bottom of the poster "just like Daddy".

Last night, instead of wearing pajamas, Dante demanded that he be allowed to wear shorts and no shirt "just like Daddy" to sleep in. At dinner, he had to have a big fork and a big spoon, "just like Daddy!" and this morning he had to shave (with a spoon) "just like Daddy"!

But of course, there are some things that Daddy does that Dante should NOT imitate or emulate. For example, a couple of days ago, Dante said to his father, "Daddy I would like some FUCKING iced tea".

While trying to hide our laughter behind our shock and anger, Randy asked Dante where he had heard that word and why would he think it was ok to say it. Which of course prompted Dante to say, "You Daddy, you say it all the time!"

Which, of course, reminded me of this:



Of course, it's not EXACTLY like that since we aren't drug users, but you get the idea.

Randy has his own little assistant when he's working on cars too. Dante will walk around with tools in his hands and (amazingly) if Randy asks for a specific wrench or hammer or thingamabob, Dante knows which one to hand him!

It is definitely the greatest thing to watch them interact. Sadly, I know that as soon as "teen" follows Dante's age, these moments will be just a fleeting memory.

Monday, July 5, 2010

1 + 1 = WHAT?!?!?!?

I keep forgetting there is an end result to this pregnancy. Not that I don't understand that there is a baby inside me, but I tend to forget the part where it is actually going to be coming out of me at some point. For example, my mother and I were talking about what I wanted to do for hubby's birthday (August 27th, mark your calendars), and I said, "maybe you can watch Dante and we can go out to dinner". She replied, "Sure I can watch the baby and Dante for a couple of hours."

And that's when I realized that there is GOING TO BE A BABY at some point. Actually, within the next two weeks there is going to be a baby.

Totally slipped my mind. I completely forgot that Casa Lane will be inhabited by four people instead of three.

The same thing happened to me the other day when I was considering getting Yo Gabba Gabba Live! tickets since it is one of the best kid shows out there. Here I am, nonchalantly picking out tickets at Ticketmaster and thinking to myself how fun the three of us will have dancing to such awesome tunes as "There's A Party in My Tummy" and "Don't Bite Your Friends" and "I Like Bugs".


Then, it dawned on me. I'd have a baby. A three month old, to be exact, which a loud screaming theater of dancing life-sized puppets is no place for. Plus, there's no way I could leave Mr. Bean (who will have a name by then) for many hours at a time if I am going to be exclusively nursing!

So...no Yo Gabba Gabba for me. And secretly, I'm the one who really wants to go the most.

How can I be so forgetful when I am reminded every day when I try to put shoes on, or put pants on, or get kicked in the ribs, or break a sweat rolling over in bed that there is an end result to this pregnancy.

Let's go over the simple math here:



PLUS



WILL EVENTUALLY EQUAL




.....which will, in turn, become some scary teenager with hair in places I don't want to think about, an attitude to match, and some bimbo hanging off his arm. And trust me, they will ALL be bimbos.













So I need to keep reminding myself that come July 21st (assuming Mr. Bean does not want to come early), I will have A BABY.

Someone please shoot me.