Measurement Monday Blues

Yesterday on True Strength of a Fit Mom it was Measurement Monday where Jacqueline, Rachel and I post our post baby progress photos and updates. This was the very first time that I have posted a picture of my bare stomach since well before I got pregnant. Even when I had my maternity photos taken I was never comfortable with the idea of a naked belly picture. Something about it made me feel far to vulnerable and naked. So when I put my picture out there I wasn’t sure what type of reaction/response I was going to get. Now I see my body every day and depending on the lighting it can either look fan-freaking-tastic or I can look like I’ve been rolled in a vat of cottage cheese.

Yup, there it is, I admit it, I have cellulite – and a lot of it. Before getting pregnant I had a very small amount on my thighs and derrière that would appear every once in a while if I wasn’t watching what I was eating or exercising enough. During my pregnancy I began to notice it appearing more prominently in those two places but luckily nowhere else. It didn’t matter how often I walked, elevated my legs, drank water or watched my salt intake, it just kept multiplying and by the time I gave birth there was no denying its presence. Since then I’ve really focused on my nutrition and taking care of my body from the inside out. I was hoping that by doing so I would see a decrease in the obviousness of my cellulite but no such luck. It’s there and it’s not going away. From a scientific standpoint once you have it there is nothing you can do to get rid of it, you can only mask it by building the muscle underneath which then compresses the fat around it. So while I don’t love that it’s there, I have learned (slowly) to accept it.

That being said, I’ve never intentionally put myself out there for the world to see in a bad light (figuratively and literally). I don’t want to be embarrassed or ashamed. I have seen the horrible things people can say on social media even to the most beautiful of women. And who am I? Certainly  I'm not Gisele or Kim Kardashian so bullying me would be even easier no? The lighting where I took my pictures was terrible, harsh and bright, thus accentuating the negative parts of my figure. I could have altered the lights or the filter on my camera but that would have completely defeated the purpose. The goal was to show our followers that it’s okay to not be perfect. For some reason our society loves a pregnant belly but the second that baby is born you must get rid of all signs of pregnancy immediately. It can be a really emotionally difficult place to be.

So when I posted my picture I was scared, would people insult me, say “look at how gross she is?”, “why doesn’t she look better” etc etc. But just the opposite happened. I had plenty of women reach out to me privately saying they only wished they looked that good 4 months postpartum and that I was an inspiration to them. It was a wonderful feeling knowing that other women were struggling too, but found strength in my honesty. I went back and looked at my photos, I reminded myself of why my body looks the way it does. The miracle that it created (and hopefully will again) and how powerful and strong that is. I also reminded myself that I know what I’m physically capable of when it comes to returning to my former self. While my shape will never be exactly what it was before it’s a new one that I am beginning to love.

I know the 130 pounds I am carrying on my frame now is an entirely different 130 pounds than before I got pregnant but it’s also a body I can shape and mold into what I want it to be! I am proud that I was able to post my photos and not run away and hide from it. I am proud of my progress thus far and I can’t wait to see what happens in the weeks to come.

Please follow us on Facebook to see our progress towards our different goals. We will give you a real, honest, raw look into the life of today’s moms and how we juggle and balance our lives!

Thanks for your support in our journey!

A Day in My Life

I had a friend tell me the other day, "you make motherhood look easy!" This was a huge compliment for me because I typical feel like a hot mess just trying to get through the day in one piece! She then went on to ask me how I do it and what my days typically look like so I got to thinking....

Long before Lucas was born, I knew I would be a working mother. While I could have chosen to stay-at-home, our lifestyle would have taken a hit and we very much enjoy the things we have and are able to do. That being said, I also knew it wasn’t going to be easy working a full-time job and caring for a baby. Ask any mother and she’ll tell you that having a child is like having a full-time job in and of itself, so add in 40 hours outside the home and man, it’s an exhausting proposition.

I have been back to work now for exactly two months, and as hard as it is to be away from my beautiful boy every day, I do it happily, knowing that I am contributing financially to our household and providing him with the best life we can. I also know that for me, I need to have the adult interaction and the time apart. That little boy fills my heart with so much love and joy, but I need to be something other than his mother. I need to feel like I am a part of something else. Now, please do not misunderstand, I have plenty of stay-at-home mom friends and I give them so much credit for what they do. It’s not at all what people think, unless you are filthy rich and have a nanny that helps every day, a stay-at-home mom works just as hard, if not harder, than a working mother.

I drop L off at a wonderful daycare center every morning on my way to work putting complete and total trust in them that he will be clean, dry, happy and fed throughout the day. I can then go to work and do my job with 100% focus. After work I am able to pick him up and truly enjoy our time together.

But like I said, it’s not easy. I have plenty of days where I struggle just to get out of bed, depending on how well (or badly) Lucas slept. I have mornings where I can’t get out of my own way and forget something vital (like a nipple for his bottles) at home and have to go all the way back to get it. I started thinking “what does my day truly look like?” And in thinking about it I got kind of a chuckle, I am really living my life in three hour increments. I’m squeezing things in where I can, and trying to balance the rest to the best of my ability. I’m learning to prepare even more ahead of time (sometimes a few days) so my mornings aren’t so crazy and I’m letting go of the small stuff.

What does a Day-in-the-Life look like for me? Well it goes something like this:

3:00am – Nurse & Change Lucas

5:00am – Wake Up; Home Gym Work Out

6:00am – Nurse & Change Lucas

6:30am – Shower & Get Dressed

7:00am – Pack all items for the day (my bag, Lucas’ bag, diaper bag etc)

7:30am – Drop Lucas at Daycare

8:00am – Get to Work

8:30am – Go to Dunks for my already much needed coffee

9:00am – Pump

9:30am – Back to Work

12:00pm – Pump

12:30pm – Back to Work

1:30pm – Quick Lunch at my Desk while Working

3:00pm – Pump

3:30pm – Back to Work

4:00pm – Leave to go get Lucas

4:30pm – Pick Lucas up at Daycare

5:00pm – Unpack my bag, Lucas’ bag & diaper bag, wash and prep Lucas’ bottles for the next day, change out of my work clothes

5:30pm – Make dinner

6:00pm – Feed Lucas (usually while eating my own dinner one handed)

6:30pm – Play time with the boy

7:30pm – Put Lucas to bed

8:00pm – TV / Movie time with Brian

9:00pm – Pump (if I’m not too tired and remember to), Update my personal blog and write my contribution to True Strength of a Fit Mom, lay out clothes, bags, diapers etc for the next day

10:00pm – Bed

11:00pm – Feed & Change Lucas

12:00am – Sleep

3:00am – Start the Cycle Again

As mundane and tiring as it looks when I write it all down, I can honestly say I wouldn’t change one thing. I love my job and the people I work with. I love the time I spend with my child and husband. I love that I’m able to feed Lucas only breast milk. I realized that I am just at a really good place in my life and for the most part, I think I handle it with ease. I know as L gets older things will get a bit trickier with his food, activities, school ect. but I’m trying to take each day at a time. I want to enjoy every phase of his growth and not rush through anything. I am looking forward to him learning new things every day and seeing the world through his eyes and experiences. Being a mom truly is the world’s greatest gift!

Facing the Truth

Anyone that knows me knows how hard I hate to admit when I’m wrong or when I’ve made a bad decision. But, I told you all in the beginning I was going to be open and honest with my blog so here it is.

If you remember I posted back in December that I was starting contest prep for the 2014 season, however after weeks of waffling and beating myself up I’ve decided I don’t think competing is in the cards for me in 2014.

Having been off stage for almost two years now I’ve been able to see the industry from a different perspective and while I still have a yearning and desire to get back up there myself I’ve also seen where the physiques have gone and I’m just not at that point. Even if I started dieting down today, I may hit my stage weight by June 4^th but my musculature just wouldn’t be up to par with the women I’d be competing against. I know I could push out my show date until November as well but I’m not sure I’m ready to diet for 11 months just to get back on stage this year. I truly feel like I need to take the time to rebuild my strength – it’s so frustrating to barely be able to leg press 180 pounds when I used to easily do 540+. My muscles haven’t atrophied completely because I stayed active during my pregnancy but they have certainly weakened substantially. You hear the phrase “muscle has memory” and while yes this is true, it remembers what it’s supposed to do and how to do it, that does not mean that I can go into the gym and curl a 60 pound barbell right off the bat. I have to work my way back up, and in doing so recreate the muscularity I used to have. I am anxious to see my shoulders again (my favorite muscles) and get my six pack back but at the same time, I just know it can’t be done in 20 weeks.

That being said, I’m not entirely ruling it out. I need to have a long conversation with my coach about my wants and needs before I make my final decision. If he thinks I can work toward the goal of competing in November without too much stress then it’s possible I’ll commit to that, but for now I have to say June is more than likely off the table. I have a LONG way to go both physically and mentally before I can put myself through the stress of prep along with everything else and I wouldn’t want to disappoint myself by saying I was going to do it and then back out last minute.

So for now, let’s say my competition prep is “on pause”…I’m going to continue to eat clean and get my workouts in, but I’m not going to put too much pressure on myself to diet down now. I got on the scale yesterday and am ofifically back to pre-baby weight … 10 days past my goal of January 1 but still I’m there. Now comes the fun part – rebuilding and strengthening – enjoying life and being happy!

The stage will ALWAYS be there, but I just might not be on it this year. It’s all about balance and sometimes the pendulum swings more heavily in one direction than the other … and for me right now, it’s swinging toward my son and my own happiness!

I am going to continue to track my weight, strength and diet so you’ll still see progress pictures along the way but don’t be surprised if June comes and goes without mention of the stage!

Stay strong and keep pushing toward your own goals!

Will He Ever Sleep?

Since he was born Lucas has never been the best sleeper. In fact, to put it bluntly, most nights he just sucks! I’ve tried just about everything to get him to sleep but nothing seems to work. At first I thought it was just because he was a newborn, that he hadn’t figured out his own internal clock yet so I just dealt with it during maternity leave. Since I’m nursing I’m the one that got up in the night with him because more often than not he needed to eat. But as he’s gotten older, I thought he’d need to eat less often, but nope – my kid eats the same number of times per day that he always had, he’s just eating more ounces.

Every time I think we may have broken out of the cycle, it’s just a tease. He’ll give us three or four solid hours, a few times he’s even given us six or eight, but then the very next night it’s back to being up every two to three. The part I really don’t understand is that he’s not sleeping at daycare either. They send home his “report card” every day and his naps range from 10-25 minutes at the very most. I’m beginning to think he’s a zombie or something! He just doesn’t sleep.

After three months of this I started hitting my wall. Because when he doesn’t sleep, neither do I; I’m averaging maybe 4 hours total sleep a night. I began to cry every time he’d wake up. I’d nurse him, swaddle him and try to put him back down but he’d just scream and scream. I started waking up Brian and making him do the rocking/bouncing after I’d fed him just so I could try to get even 20 minutes. I would beg Lucas to close his eyes, ask him why he hates me so much and just pray to God he’d calm down. Eventually  after being walked around, shown the “guy” in the mirror (he loves looking at himself), and shushed he passes out … only to wake up again two hours later to do it all again.

We were able to determine right around Thanksgiving that part of why he wasn’t sleeping was because the poor baby had an ear infection. Because he was already on an antibiotic for his kidney the doctor decided to just up the dose. He was on Septra for 10 days and at the end of those ten days he still wasn’t any better. We went back to the doctor and they determined that his single ear infection had turned into a double and then put him on Amoxicillin. Ten days after we started that prescription he still wasn’t any better and the doctor put him on Augmentin. During all this time it was very difficult to get him to sleep or nap lying on his back because of the pressure it would put on his ears. He slept the best being held, rocked or propped up in a swing. So needless to say the last 30 days have been probably the most difficult when it comes to sleep. We just had his 4 month check-up yesterday (post  coming) and luckily for us the ear infection is gone! No more medicine for that! Woohoo! But regardless, it still hasn’t helped in the sleeping department.

As usual when I’m at a loss of what to do I ask my go-to’s. And per their advice, I’ve swaddled him, let him sleep in just his diaper, we’ve co-slept, we’ve tried to let him cry it out for a few minutes, I’ve fed him a TON before putting him down … nothing works! My sister-in-law recommended the Baby Merlin’s Magic Sleepsuit. She says Ethan sleeps 8-10 hours a night in the suit! He’s 6 weeks older than L, weighs a pound more than him and eats roughly the same number of bottles and ounces of milk per day. She told me about the suit months ago when she first bought it, more because she was anxious to try it, but now that we’re having such difficulty she recommended it again. So I ordered it, and it should be delivered today! I am so excited to try it, I hope that it’s a good solution to our problems because if not I have no idea what else to try/do!

Every day I tell myself, I need to nap when I get home from work. Even if it’s just an hour while he plays with Gigi I need to do it, and every day I don’t. By the time I get home I have to unpack our bags from the day, wash his bottles, prep them for the next day, change out of my work clothes, plan what we are going to wear the next day and get supper ready. By the time that’s all said and I done I feel guilty asking my mother to watch him for even another minute so the nap goes out the window. I think eventually one of two things is going to happen; either I’ll just get so used to not sleeping I won’t need it anymore or I’ll hit the end and become narcoleptic. Unfortunately for me, it’ll more likely be the former and per Murphy’s Law that’ll be right around the time Lucas starts sleeping through the night! Just my luck!

Please keep your fingers crossed for me that this sleepsuit really is magic! I’ll review it for you all in a few days!

Sleep tight!

Mommy Separation Anxiety

Today has been an interesting day for me. It’s the first day since Lucas was born that I’ve experienced what could really only be described as separation anxiety – and not on his part.

We had a very rough night last night with his sleeping – he woke up at 11pm, 2am, 3am and 4am. By the time I had to get out of bed at 5:30am to get ready for the day I could barely keep my eyes open. When he woke up screaming at 3am there was literally nothing I could do to calm him down. I tried everything – feeding him, rocking him, bouncing him, patting his back…nothing worked. I finally had to put him down and walk away. I had to just let him cry. I paced the living room until my heart stopped racing and I was able to catch my breath. His crying had never affected me that way before, and while I would never do anything to hurt him (intentionally or otherwise) my OB told me from the beginning “there will be times when you just have to walk away”. So that’s what I did. Had Brian been home I would have woken him and made him take L, but he’s traveling this week so we were on our own. I was probably only gone for a minute but when I went back to pick him up he looked at me with his big hazel eyes as if to say “don’t ever leave me again” … in that moment I realized he was just as upset as I was. The poor baby can’t vocalize what’s wrong – all he knows how to do is cry. We spent the next two hours snuggled up together under the blanket – me whispering to him that everything was okay, and him cooing away telling me he agreed.

When I dropped him off at daycare this morning I immediately got a knot in the pit of my stomach. I cried when I got in the car and the whole way to work I just felt “off”. I tried to distract myself with the TON of work I had to do but could barely concentrate. I watched my Fligagram video on repeat while I pumped just so I could see his little face. I tried to ignore the feeling but I just couldn’t shake it. I texted our daycare provider just to check in on him and she said he was fine. While in my heart I knew he was I needed to see for myself. So I did something I swore I’d never do – I went to see him at school. I took my lunch break and just went to his classroom and held him. I looked into his eyes and listened to him laugh and felt his breathing against my neck. For a moment I felt peace. He was happy and okay, just like I knew he would be. But as I stood there and explained to his teacher what I was feeling I couldn’t help but tear up again. I couldn’t for the life of me figure out why I was feeling that way. Eventually I had to leave him to go back to work. But as soon as I got in the car all I wanted to do was run back in and whisk him away with me.

As I drove back to my office I raked my brain trying like hell to figure out what was going on. I just finished my cycle, there’s no way I’m pregnant and I’m certainly not having late onset PPD but something was up. The more I thought about it, the more sense it made that I just don’t want to be away from him today. We’ve been together every day for the last five and a half days because of the weather and the holiday so that must be it. As soon as I recognized that feeling I started to be able to breath a little better. As I write this, I do still have an unsettled feeling but I think it has more to do with Brian traveling than anything. Because if something were to happen he wouldn’t be here, couple that with me obsessively thinking about something being wrong and it makes total sense I still feel off. I’m extremely anxious to get out of work this afternoon and go pick him back up. I just want to hold him in my arms all night – I don’t care how many doctors / parents will tell me that’s the wrong thing to do – I just need to have him with me.

It still amazes me how much I love my son. My heart literally aches when I think something might be wrong and I don’t for even one second want him to be sad or in pain. I know how much he needs me and it’s my job to be there for him in every way I can. But in this case, I’m the one that needs him.

Planning to spend my entire evening doing nothing but holding him. I swear baby snuggles are the cure for everything!

Three Month Photos

On Sunday December 21^st we had Lucas’ three month photos taken with Melanie of Simply MellaPhotography. We had done a mini-session with her back in October with Sarah and C so when the opportunity arose for us to shoot with her again I didn’t want to pass it up.

I met Melanie at Smolak Farms in Andover on what ended up being a very cold, wet and muddy afternoon. Because it was so close to Christmas the farm was hosting an “American Girl Brunch” with Mrs. Claus and also photos with Santa. Melanie, Lucas and I traipsed around the farm taking photos in the barn, with the Christmas trees, in the snow … everywhere she could think of.

Sarah had warned me that the three month photos are a little “disappointing”, not because they aren’t spectacular but because Lucas wouldn’t be able to do much sitting or posing on his own. Most of the pictures Melanie took were of him either laying down or propped up in a chair. However, my favorite shot (and the one we ultimately used for our New Year’s card) is one where Lucas is kneeling inside a wooden box in front of a Christmas tree.

She posted “sneak-peeks” for us just a few days after and I was immediately in love with every single photo. I truly couldn’t have picked which one I liked best. She is going to be sending the CD along in the mail soon so I’m sure I’ll be spending hours scouring those too!

Here are a few of our little man:

 

 

 

2013 Reflection

Today is New Year’s Eve, and like every other year I like to take a little while and reflect on everything that’s happened this past year. 2013 truly was the best year of our lives thus far, I can’t imagine anything could possibly top it but am very much looking forward to what 2014 has in store.

On January 1, 2013 I woke up excited to once again begin a New Year. Brian and I had just gone through a very painful end to 2012 and were anxious to move past it and begin anew. But when I woke up that morning I felt “off” and in thinking about it realized that my last period had been in November. I tried not dwell for too long because my cycle had been crazy since my surgery but I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was different. I looked in our medicine cabinet and there was one last pregnancy test remaining from the last box. I remember literally shaking as I took the test out of the wrapper. After taking the test I put it down and walked away. I went about my morning routine of making the bed and getting dressed. As I happened by the bathroom on my way to the linen closet I poked my head in and glanced at the test. I said out-loud “Rachael, you’re crazy it’s going to be negative” … so when I saw a very faint positive I practically fell over. I started laughing and then crying realizing that according to the test I was in fact pregnant. Brian was at work and there was no way I was going to share that news over the phone. I spent the day pacing up and down the hall, I went to CVS and bought a second test just to “make sure” and when that one was also positive I couldn’t contain my excitement. When Brian returned home from work, I told him I had a present for him. I made him close his eyes and handed him the test. He looked at it then at me and slowly a smile spread across his face. I could tell he was cautious about his excitement but at the same time I could see in his eyes how happy he was. It wasn’t until a few days later when I had my first ultrasound and we saw the tiniest little flutter on the screen that we could breathe! It had happened! We kept the secret to ourselves for two weeks and even then only told our immediate families. We met my parents for dinner and told them we’d found a Christmas present that we’d forgotten to give them. I pulled out an envelope and the moment my mother opened it she started to cry. She literally jumped out of her chair! It was the best reaction in the world. The next night we invited my in-laws for dinner and before they arrived we dressed Berklee in a “Big Sister” t-shirt. When Brian’s parents saw the shirt they were ecstatic! It truly was the very best start to a year we’d ever had!

Exactly thirty days later on January 31^st my life changed forever (again) when Sarah gave birth to a perfect 7 pound little boy! We had been anxiously awaiting his birth for weeks and when the announcement came my heart burst! I couldn’t WAIT to meet him and hold him. My sister was a MOTHER! Before C was born, I’d never really understood the love shared between and aunt and her nieces/nephews. But once he was born, I got it; because I knew that I would do anything and everything I could to help protect that little boy forever. I began to look imagine birthdays and events, watching him grow and learn…being an aunt became the most important job I’d ever had and I couldn’t wait to get started!

On February 28^th, my 29^th birthday  after six blood tests and four ultrasounds we had made it to the “safe zone” and felt ready to announce our pregnancy to the world. We took some time and called or saw close friends and some family first so feelings wouldn’t be hurt when we put it on social media. We tried to come up with a creative way to post it without having to “say” anything. Brian came up with the idea of using Berklee as our model. So we stacked two of my pregnancy books – “What to Expect When You’re Expecting” and “1,001 Baby Names” on top of each other and had her sit with them. We took her photo and then uploaded it as our new profile pictures on Facebook. We left it at that. Within minutes our phones were blowing up like crazy with people texting, calling, commenting on our “announcement” – some people were a bit confused (which I found funny) and thought we were announcing Berklee’s pregnancy! It was a really fun way to put it out there for the world. At the same time, Brian and I had a very long conversation about how much we were going to share throughout my pregnancy. Up to that point I had been very active on social media, so much so that people would often make comments about not needing to see us because they knew our every move. It was those comments that made me decide that this pregnancy was going to be ours and ours alone. I vowed I would never post a picture of my ultrasounds online (I feel like that’s taking the whole sharing thing a bit too far for my liking) and that I would keep my pregnancy related posts to a minimum. Having gone through what we did, we really wanted to have my pregnancy be a personal and private journey between us, our child and our families. And we stuck to it; yes we posted some minor events and talked about our due date and gender reveal party but I wasn’t posting every move he made, or about every appointment I went to – it just wasn’t something I was going to share with the world in that manner.

 

After a lot of talking back and forth, and a little convincing on my part, Brian and I decided we were going to jump on the Gender Reveal bandwagon. We started coming up with ideas and plans on how and where we were going to do it. We decided it was going to be an intimate gathering at our house with friends and family. We had to keep the gender a secret for almost two weeks after we found out because my parents were away on vacation and we wanted to include them in the party. On April 17^th, a chilly day, 25 of our nearest and dearest descended upon our house. We went with a “mini” food theme and made all small bite appetizers and desserts. We used white linens and scattered pink and blue touches throughout. We put up a chalkboard and had everyone put their guess on the board. At the end of the party we brought out a big white box for the reveal. When we cut open the box a bunch of balloons were released and our families finally knew we were expecting a little boy! We couldn’t have been happier with how the party turned out and were even more excited to welcome our little guy later in the year.



The weekend of May 17^th Brian and I embarked on a mini “baby-moon.” We’d spent some time discussing taking a tropical vacation or heading to the beach somewhere, but decided to be more practical and stay close to home. We had gotten a Groupon for a cabin resort in Vermont and decided it would be perfect. My cousin Ryan and his wife joined us and we spent the weekend hiking, eating, having s’mores and just hanging out. We took Berklee and their dog Camilla with us and just had an amazing time. It may not have been extravagant by any means but it was the perfect baby-moon for us.



Adding even more excitement to our 2013, Brian’s brother was also expecting a baby boy at the end of July! He and his wife Jacyntha live in California so we see them very rarely. She had been unable to join us the previous December for Christmas as she was too early on in her pregnancy to travel safely so it had been a year and a half since I had seen her. I received an invitation to her baby shower and knew immediately I wanted to go. I secretly contacted my brother in law and told him of my plans. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to fly out to see her when the baby was born as I would be too far along myself and she wasn’t going to be able to come out when our baby was born as she would have a newborn so this was the perfect and really only opportunity for us to see each other before we became mothers. Because of my work schedule I was only able to go for the long weekend so I jumped on a 5pm flight out of Boston on Friday May 24^th, I arrived in Los Angeles at 10pm and the surprise went off without a hitch! My sister in law had NO idea I was coming! The next morning was her shower, and I had the best time. It was wonderful to really spend time talking to her sisters and cousins and they made me feel like I was part of their family. Sunday morning we went to breakfast before they dropped me back off at the airport – it was a whirlwind weekend resulting in a total of 38 hours in California. I didn’t care how tired I was, I was just so happy to have seen her and to have been able to celebrate with them!

Brian and I celebrated our 5 year wedding anniversary on July 12^th this year. We once again had discussed varying options of trips we’d like to take, but at that point I was 32 weeks pregnant and in no condition to really travel anywhere far. We had our traditional anniversary dinner at Café Escadrille where we were married on July 11^th and the next night (our actual anniversary) we opted to see one of our favorite country singers, Jason Aldean, play at Fenway Park. It was by far the most fun concert we’d ever been too. AND to top it off, Brian in his infinite wisdom knew diamonds wouldn’t hurt. So he took my engagement ring and had it reset into the most spectacular halo setting I’ve ever seen. He loves to spoil me and every time I’m more surprised and grateful! He really is the best husband!

The next morning, July 13th was my baby shower. It was hosted by my sister at my mother’s house and it was exactly what I would have done if I planned it myself. It was a Beatrix Potter theme, based off Lucas’ nursery and it was beautiful. My in-laws are florists and there were white flower arrangements everywhere. The tables were set with white linens (an obvious favorite of our family) with baby blue, light green and yellow touches spread around. We were “showered” by 40 of our closest friends and family and we couldn’t have been more grateful at all the incredible gifts we received. Lucas was spoiled long before he was even born!



C’s christening was the weekend of July 20^th in Maine. And I was blessed and honored to be asked to be his godmother. Since the moment he was born that little boy had stolen my heart so when my sister asked me, I knew just how special that was. I promised to always be there for him, no matter what, to bring him up in the eyes of the church (whatever church that is for him) and to be his friend forever. I also promised to spoil him rotten and buy him “extra special” presents on his birthday and Christmas!

Just two short days later on July 22^nd the call came that my second nephew, Ethan, had been born in California! It was a bittersweet moment for me, because even though I was literally over the moon I was so sad that I couldn’t rush right to the hospital and see the newest addition to the Novello family. I immediately counted the days on the calendar until Christmas, when we would finally meet him! But mommy and baby did great and Ethan was born at a healthy 8 pounds 10 ounces!

For the next seven weeks Brian and I anxiously awaited the birth of our own son. We took a short trip to the Cape, did some organizing and decorating of the nursery, spent time with friends and family and began to realize how much our life was going to change.

And then it happened – on Thursday September 5^th at 8:51am we welcomed into the world the most incredibly perfect little boy we could have ever wished for. Our little Lucas Joseph was 20.5 inches and 6 pounds 13 ounces. He captured our hearts in a way that can never be described and from the moment I laid eyes on him, I knew I would literally die to keep him safe always. I had a fairly easy birth so was really able to bask in that “new family” glow. I don’t think I took my eyes off him for even a moment that first day. All I wanted to do was stare at him, amazed at what Brian and I had created and how truly blessed we were to finally hold him in our arms.

Over the course of my maternity leave it became clear to both Brian and I that I could not return to work in Boston. Within just a few days I was on the computer looking at my options. I was very lucky to stumble upon a job that was right up my alley and on the day my maternity leave was to end with my prior employer, November 4th, I started my new job with East Boston Savings Bank. The timing couldn’t have been better and I have never been happier in a job! That very same day, we listed our house for sale. I had also realized while pregnant that living in Bradford was no longer what I wanted. I wanted to raise Lucas close to my parents and ultimately in the town we grew up in. Brian and I had discussed a five-year plan, which meant we’d be back in Danvers before Lucas went to kindergarten but that plan was fast tracked and the decision was made to sell the house as soon as possible. In less than a week after putting it on the market we had an accepted signed offer and we officially closed on December 27^th. In the meantime, Brian too realized that going back to work at Enterprise at Logan was out of the question. The hours he was putting in left very little time for our family and he didn’t want to miss a thing when it came to Lucas. So, he started looking and like me the perfect opportunity arose and on December 9^th he too started a new job that he loves! He travels now every other week which is a new type of adjustment for our family but one that amazingly enough works very well for our current situation. We are living with my parents until our perfect house is either built or comes on the market. So when Brian travels I have the extra hands to help with the baby when/if I need it and I’m not alone when he’s gone – it’s the best of both worlds!

Looking back over this past year I am amazed at everything we’ve been blessed with. We are so lucky to have the life we do and I don’t for even one second take it for granted. I have an awesome husband, a son I can’t imagine life without, family that supports us and incredible friends that make every day worth having. I would live this year over in a heartbeat if I could, and as amazing as 2013 was, I am looking forward to what 2014 will bring us! We start our next chapter tomorrow – I hope you’ll keep reading!

Wishing you all a blessed and magical 2014!