CHRISTMAS!!

Christmas Eve started at the bowling alley with the Giblin's (my mom's family) - as it does every year. I wore the worst shoes, the free bowling is not tempting, but I was not told that DDR would be up and running the whole time! Next year, I am showing up early to get some practice in before destroying all competitors.
Then me and my boys went to 4 o'clock mass. I estimated Brock would last exactly 1 hour and 15 minutes in slumber - plenty of time. Wrong. Because of a miscommunication between the processors and the cantor, the opening hymn lasted about 10 minutes (didn't know Oh Come All Ye Faithful could be sung in so many languages.) Then, there was some strange song listing how many days, years, months, weeks, etc. it had passed since our lord's birth, and Caesar's rule, and the founding of Rome, Jerusalem, Judiah, etc... another 5 minutes or so. So, it hits Brock's limit and, of course, mass is not quite ended. He did his part, the church just didn't do theirs.
Then off to celebrate with my dad's side of the family. Where we do the gift exchange where you get to steal presents. Always a treat. The most saught after gifts at this side's Christmas: alcohol. You know you're Irish/Catholic when... Then we closed the night at Matt's parent's house. Luckily, everyone was too tired to play "stack the cookies" by the time we arrived.

Christmas day gets split between just 2 place's: Matt's parents and my mom's. It is a nice long day of opening gifts, eating, playing with gifts, opening more gifts, eating again and never changing out of your pajamas. And this year, it was 2 days of me not having to change or really even hold my child - just feeding. Nice break for mom, and fun for baby.

More Pictures soon...

3rd Annual Ugly Sweater Party

Matt and I have hosted a Christmas sweater party every year in our current home, and this year was no different. So, on Brock's 1 month birthday, the long anticipated event took place. Many of our out-of-town friends finally had the opportunity to meet the newest member of the O'Laughlin family, as well as mingle with friends we see only once a year. Many could not believe I would host such a monumental event so soon after bearing a child, but when else can you have a mini high school reunion without the awkwardness? And when else will the chance arise to dazzle my peers with my wonderful appetizers and cookies? (Whitney, Catherine and Maureen may have contributed a bit this year...)And when else can I dress up my little boy in tacky plaid pants, a cigar sweater, loafers and an old man hat? So, forgoing this blessed event was not an option. Merry Christmas!

I'm a Lumberjack, and I'm OK.

On the day of Brock's two week birthday, the whole family got to go pick out a tree this year. Matt chopped it down, with no help from me, as I was carrying around, what some have called, a "dead teddy bear" on my chest. Brock was pretty insistent we choose this particular tree, despite a few flaws. How do you argue with something that cute!?

We did not get to include Tali this year, as we thought it might be a bit too hectic, at two weeks post-partum, I wasn't feeling like a pro yet. I hope we can continue this tradition for the rest of our Christmas seasons as a family. I just hope they make adult-sized bear suits.

A Season of Firsts...

November 23rd: First day out in the "real world".

November 26th: First bath.November 27th: First Thanksgiving.December 5th: First walk (in the stroller - he may be strong, but he is too lacking in coordination for walking at this point, I give him 2 months.)

Never Finished

I fear the nursery will never be totally complete. Do you know, we did not get the crib put together until the Friday before Brock's arrival? Again, with the intuition - we were waiting on replacement parts, and I said screw it, and forced Matt to put it together that night. And the dresser that goes with the set was discontinued before I got a chance to purchase it! Nowhere sells it now. I even called the manufacturer, no luck. Matt and I were shopping for a black dresser or shelf to fill the alotted space the day my water broke. It began as a simple, sage green room without much personality. Brock's room is the former "Dog room". The dogs have moved to the basement - which we are now realizing should have been their home all along, I think it was an upgrade for them.
We then primed it, and Matt began work on the picture/chair rail-type shelf that I insisted upon having, despite the considerable amount of effort it would take to produce. This seemingly simple decor element took lots of shopping and planning and desputing before we finally devised a way to create a professional looking shelf (all my genius as far as the look, Matt just did the work...)

We then moved onto the stripe element. Again, something that seemed so very simple on paper, but turns out to be an absolute bitch. That fact that both Matt and I are perfectionists on certain matters probably makes situations like this considerably more time consuming. First we (Matt) paint the yellow stripe (after 10+ hours of taping straight lines). Then we remove the tape, only to discover some has leaked thru! This is no good. We cannot have orange leaking back onto the yellow! So, I devised a plan to retape, then seal the tape with a layer of yellow, and paint over it. Adding an extra day of painting. Are we beginning to see why this nursery (and the whole house for that matter) may never be finished?
We finally got the orange paint up, and I was freaking out, it looked so dark with the first coat. But somehow it lightened up, and became the room I had always pictured...

And here it the nearly completed project. Just need to find that dresser, and maybe a glider, then I'll be satisfied.