A Christmas Tribute...

Did you ever hesitate to ask for a little help just because you were afraid of what people may think? Well, I admit to have done that just a couple weeks ago. Without disclosing too specific of information I was in search of a particular item for someone in need. I reached out to a group of women that knew nothing or very little about me and asked for help. I hesitated because of that reason. Those of you that are reading and know me personally know that my intentions are always honest and true. But I wondered if these ladies would question my intentions. That maybe they would think my requests were to benefit my own self. Then I thought what a sad world it is that when we try to do good and ask for help we wonder if others are going to think twice about helping due to all the "scams" of the world today. I decided to go against my negative thoughts and put it out there. In less than 30 minutes I had help. An overabundance of help. Like tears and goosebumps overabdunace-it was nothing short of amazing, inspirational, generous, kind, thoughtful... should I keep going?!

These ladies not only helped me spread Christmas joy but also gave me faith that there are still A LOT of kind people out there with even more kindness in their hearts. and believe in a world where mainly negative things make the headlines and where working a job where I continuously hear one tragic thing after another that can dampen your spirit on the overall good of the world. I could have asked my close circle of friends and family to help and with no doubt would have had an ample amount of assistance. But to have pretty close to strangers able to restore my faith in others is exactly what has happened when I reached blindly in the name of help. And that is exactly what my heart needed and why I'm grateful I took that hesitant step in asking. Through others I was able to provide much more than what was originally anticipated and for that I'm even more grateful. 

So thank you ladies for bringing good to light. For being my chauffeur to pick up the donations. For going out of your way to help. For being present wrappers. And most of all for your incredible generosity. Thank you for helping me make a couple families that are truly deserving not have to worry about the stress of what sometimes this season can bring. You all are nothing short of angels on Earth. What's even better is that these wonderful women (and hopefully including myself too) are teaching our little people how to spread love and joy as well. And that is what is even more beautiful for me is giving hope to the future. 

My message and what these ladies have taught me time and time again-LOVE and LIFT as often and as much as you can. Not only are you LOVING and LIFTING others but I promise you will be LOVING and LIFTING yourself. 

Merry Christmas Everyone. ❤️

XO. 

JLOVE AKA "Mommy"

Mr. Independent

It's been awhile! After my big tribute posts I kind of have lost the desire to blog as I felt the reasoning behind my purpose had been served. Not to mention it's really hard to find the time of late to do so. I began to question if I should continue on with blogging so I went back to a few of my first posts and read them over and realized- YES I may not want to take the time to write the blogs anymore but I NEED to. As it was so amazing to see where we started and reminisce about what Nico was up to at different parts of his life. Once again, I was reminded that it just happens all too quickly and since I'm sucking at filling in the baby book and I'm sucking at getting picture developed I need to keep something going! So here I am, writing bits and pieces at a time whenever I have a spare second. Thank goodness I'm an efficient typist and that my thoughts come rather quickly. I'm not quite sure how often I'll be able to blog-or if there is certain milestones after 12 months that are logical to set as checkpoints so I guess from here on out it is what it is.

After Nico turned one things seemed to get a tad bit crazy around our house! A week after his birthday we took him in for his check up after a good report I had pointed out a little white spot I had noticed in the corner or his mouth. His doctor said not to worry about it since it was just a canker sore. I was still nursing and I thought he may have bitten me because I was a little sore. By the end of the weekend my sister had him laughing so hard that he had his mouth wide open and his head back and noticed more white spots in his mouth. At that point I knew both my uncomfortableness and the spots were thrush. Damn, damn, damn. Now let me tell you-I love nursing. Like love love loveeee it. Unfortunately, due to the thrush even the thought of nursing made me full of dread. Because of the pain, I was only nursing here and there and I thought once this clears up we will be on our way to my magical age of 18 months before I weaned. But little did I know that I was weaning without even realizing. It got to the point one night that I knew I couldn't nurse him before bed. He cuddled on me and was a little irritated but he ended up getting comfy and falling asleep-I was crying as it was the first time in 13 months that we hadn't nursed as part of our bed time routine. Basically, it was harder on me than it was on him. I was beating myself up that I didn't make it to my goal of when I wanted to wean. And I was angry at the doctor that my mother instincts were right and I let the doctor talk me out of something that I knew wasn't normal. After considering the larger picture I realized we made it through a 13 month journey of nursing and that is an accomplishment within itself! I realized that my body provided for not only my pregnancy for him but also served him for an additional 13 months where he depended solely and largely on me to receive his nutrients and grow into the healthy and incredibly strong little boy that he is. In that, I decided to stop being so hard on myself and give myself a little credit for a job well done.

I'm Allowed To Take Credit For This Right? 

Since Nico's 12 month update he has been taking a few steps here and there. My sister had gotten him the cutest shopping cart ever for his birthday and he utilized that and his primary mode of transportation. All while my husband is saying that the cart was "delaying" him in walking. I just laughed and told him that he would be eating those words one day.

One evening we were going a little stir crazy in the house because of a cold snap so I decided to get the bubble machine out that his TT also got for his birthday. As this was a new experience and who doesn't like a little bubble action? Of course I spent about 4 hours trying to get it out of the package (seriously whoever creates packaging for products I believe purposely makes them impossible to drive already crazy parents that much more crazy, right?!?) Then I spent another 1.5 hours trying to round about 16 random batteries to get the motor running (again...seriously, right?!) Finally, got everything unwrapped and screwed back in and I called Nico over to the kitchen (he was in living room) I then see his little head moving from the other side of the counter but I don't hear the wheels of his cart. All of a sudden he comes around the corner of the cabinetry and he's walking on his own with the assistance of one battery in each hand! Little did we know that in order to get this kid to walk more than a step or two we had to put batteries in him! The next morning over breakfast I told my husband the story and he of course was "yeah righting" me and thinking I was making it up. Since I always have to be right and prove a point- I took Nico out of the chair and gave him a battery for each hand and just like that he started walking. Mr. Independent once again showing up. Not only is amazing seeing him becoming physically independent but it's just and maybe even more amazing to see him actually comprehending words, tasks, and directions. We were at music class a few weeks ago and the teacher instructed the children that it was time to put the toys away (of course in song). So Nico started putting the toys in the container and one of the other children came and grabbed a toy back out. Nico said, "No, no, no, no" took the toy out of the child's hand and put it back in the container. It was mind blowing in my little brain-not only was Nico following directions but he knew that the toys were to go in the container and not to be taken back out by anyone. Amazing. My Mr. Independent. 

Mr. Independent is also ball obsessed. I've had to upgrade the size of his ball basket 3 times to accommodate all his balls. He had all sorts of balls-footballs, baseballs, waffle balls, ping pong balls, golf balls, basketballs, bouncy balls, and well just balls. :) Every day the ball is the first basket to be emptied. He sees football on TV and is pointing and making grunting noises and sounds of  expiration and holding his hands together and then up in the air (Mini Stefano). When we yell "Touchdown" he's nothing but smiles. He loves when I take his football and pound my hands against it yelling "hut-hut-hike!" Nico's future as some kind of athlete is looking promising.  

Oh and can I also tell you that if Nico doesn't become that professional athlete that is being predicted by others he's going to be the best (and friendliest) damn custodian you have ever met! This kid is OBSESSED with cleaning! He's showed some obsessive cleaning tendencies already a few months back but now it's going to some extreme levels. His "TT" hasn't helped the situation either-she bought him a vacuum as well as his own swifter, mop, and broom. After playing with all his balls he then cleans everything. Can't say that's a bad habit eh? :)

What favorites does Nico now have? Well, his next favorite thing after balls (and cleaning) are books. His current favorite? "The Very Hungry Caterpillar" Of course this fact for love of any book brings me unlimited joy. Not only that-my ESL husband has joined the bandwagon and now seems to be a book lover too. I believe Stefano can now say he's read an entire book. In their repertoire of interests, they both have a fascination with lions. Nico never woofs, meows, or moos like other children he ROARS. For real. It's the best. His favorite foods currently are pasta (of course), bananas, he's tried a persimmon, grapes, and pancakes! I've now become quite the pancake connoisseur! Banana pancakes, pineapple pancakes, pumpkin pancakes, and other pancakes in queue. But in true Gallina style he loves to eat. He gets so excited for his meals it's comical and borderline may be a problem. 

Everyday Occurrence….Multiple Times…Ughhhh…All In The Name Of Learning.

Nico continues using his fork (which I'm super proud of his abilities) and he was trying to stab a little pea onto it. I watched him struggle a bit and I wanted to help him so bad but I knew that moments of struggle are really such learning moments to individuals (yes even a one year old!) that I would just observe and reign in my desire to make his attempts successful. Lo and behold within a minute he had the slippery little pea on the prong and then into his mouth. My little big boy once again proving his independence to me. 

Just when I thought Nico may not need me anymore we had a scary bout of sickness. 2 weeks before Thanksgiving he spiked a high fever at night but was acting fine and eating like usual. My motto is to treat the child rather than the fever. A fever is a healthy and normal immune response to whatever may be invading and since Nico didn't seem uncomfortable or bothered by it I let the fever climb to close to 103 degrees until it finally broke around midnight and next morning woke up with no signs of illness. That following weekend he spiked a fever again 2 nights in a row.

Being Sick Is The Worst!

By the 2nd night I was getting worried as the fever was getting high and as a nurse you start thinking worse case scenarios and have a husband that is also now borderline freaking me out asking if we should take him to the hospital. I so wanted to because the pressure of taking care of a sick child and watching your child be down and out is the worst. But knowing fine and well what they would do/say I knew I was doing all the right things in the comfort of our home. Fortunately, the week of Thanksgiving he was on the mend with only cold/cough symptoms and we were able to celebrate Thanksgiving with our extended family. We then left for Chicago that evening.

Hotel Life

As my followers know we enjoyed a week in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico! We wanted to take some time as our own little family unit for some well needed quality time together and to get some real vitamin D to cure us from the rest of our germs.  Once again, my baby proved to be a dream on our travels.

Relaxed Much?

We arrived at our resort safely and little to our knowledge we were arriving on the tail end of a hurricane. Hurrican Sandy to be exact. Huh? We had no idea! I thought that some of the homes we saw from the airport were abdonded thus the boards in the windows. Maybe I should have checked the forecast before we left? Does that tell you anything about my state of mind prior to leaving if I didn't even look at a forecast? Nonetheless- we had a drizzle day and half after our arrival but when you go from 20 some degrees to over 70 it still feels amazing. 

It quickly cleared up and become even more beautiful! We stayed at the perfect resort with such friendly staff and other guests. They all thought Nico was the best thing ever. Which I couldn't argue with. :) Usually we would be the ones to be acknowledged but nope it was only Nico that got all the attention. He would smile with his whole face till his eyes were squinty and wave to everyone he encountered. Friendly little spirit we have. And that obsessive cleaning I told you about prior? Well, I thought he would take a chill pill since he was on vacation but nope his obsession continued. If there was anything on the ground he'd point and grunt and not stop until it was picked up. Luckily, the resort was pristine otherwise we may have spent our whole vacation as part of the grounds crew. Oh and when he saw the workers with any cleaning supplies? He went ape. This kid is strange. My dad has some of these obsessive tendencies so I'm blaming him for Nico inheriting this. Since I still can't sit on public toilets, touch bathroom fixtures/handles, or walk barefoot in most bathrooms because of my dad we all may need some therapy down the line. I digress…back to beautiful Mexico….

His Curls-Come Out More With A Little Mexico Air

As you may have assumed we enjoyed ourselves immensely. Traveling with a baby is always an adventure and I can't say it's uber relaxing since back in the duo era when we vacationed our biggest concerns were what WE wanted to do. Now vacationing revolves around nap times and what NICO wants to do and what NICO is in the mood for. There wasn't much relaxing but it was still so nice to be parenting together, giving Nico a bath together, eating meals together as those things happen rarely back home due to work schedules. We have special memories of our trip and of course a little chaos (like almost missing our flight home-would that have been so bad?!). All in all we are grateful to have time together as a family in a beautiful part of the world and thankful to be able to clear our heads for a bit and focus 100% on each other.


I recently read a quote that stopped me in my tracks and made my world stop moving and everything became quiet…something that has only happened two other times in my life-the quote stated, "Little children, from the moment they are weaned, are making their way toward independence." and I knew those words were exactly what my tears stood for going back to that first night I didn't nurse Nico. My baby was/is making his way to becoming independent. Each and every day right in front of my own eyes I'm seeing him become more and more autonomous. It's amazing but at the same time there's this new pull on my heart strings letting him go little by little. I keep hoping and praying we are doing right by him and we are helping him become confident in his own abilities and skills and raising him into not only being a wonderful son but also into a wonderful man.

Mr. Independent But Still My Baby

Till next time....

XO. 

JLOVE AKA "Mommy"

Baby Must Haves

I have quite a few friends that are currently with child and I've had a couple mom-to-be's contact me for advice on what to add to their own registries. As some of you know-I'm very opinionated, love to do research, and consider myself a little bit of a baby expert so this sought after advice I was happy to give! So to save any future moms a shit ton of time- here are my baby must haves when they are super new. I'll save the older baby must haves for perhaps another blog.

My sister-in-law very generously let me pick out any stroller I wanted as our shower gift. After honestly a month of reading reviews, watching YouTube reviews, and then reading a few more reviews just to be sure- I decided to go with the Britax B Ready Stroller. I compared it against every top of the line strollers and this one won out hands down. Plus it was half the cost of the other one I had my eye on. Still a little more on the pricey side but if you plan on having more than one child I think it's a wise investment because it's going last and you can customize it to your needs! I have a sensitive sleeper but Nico sleeps like a rock in this thing. The main seat reclines like a full bed. It also turns on a damn dime and rides like a dream. I have bought almost every accessory for it and have been happy with every piece. Plus they have AWESOME customer service! Downside-it is rather on the large side…I did have to buy a new vehicle to accommodate it. :) Or you can easily take off the wheels for more compact storage.

FYI: I did buy a Britax car seat and plan on buying Nico's big boy car seat from Britax as well. Their safety is top notch and you can just tell/feel the difference in quality. In other words...I heart Britax. 

When Nico was first born I was using a big named brand (that I'll leave unmentioned-they probably have really good attorneys) but after about a week I noticed his bottom started to get red. I used one on my face and after one swipe my face was burning. If it was burning my face, what the heck was it doing to my son's little bottom?! I did a lot of research and started using Clearly Herbal Baby Wipes and totally love them!

They smell great and keep his bottom healthy! Down side was they are expensive! Now they are no longer available!! I'm in a bit of crisis as I have used many other wipes that are more on the chemical free side-but none compare. I did find some great wipes in Italy-but yeah they are in Italy. UPDATE: Restocked through Amazon-I bought 3 cases. UPDATE #2. I just checked the link and they are 10 dollars off per case currently along with FREE shipping! I may order 3 more. I never ever want to run out of these bad boys AGAIN!

I super love Baby Butz Cream for a little extra protection in the diaper area.This is diaper cream I use overnight or if he's been pooping a lot to help his bottom from getting sore-it is free of chemicals, alcohol, perfumes, parabens, gluten, and hypoallergenic! What more could you want? I bought this 4 ounce jar at the start of November and I still haven't gone through it yet! And he's yet to have a diaper rash….

For bathing supplies-I've used a variety of natural washes. None that really stick out for me that I super loved but my advice is to get out of the your local superstore and find something that isn't harsh on your baby's skin. After every bath I use an essential oil with a carrier oil to give Nico a baby massage. He loves it! For carrier oils I use a variety of oils through NOW. Here is probably my favorite for him. Even Nico's Doctor always comments on his beautiful, soft, perfect skin. (Her words not mine-I just take the credit for keeping it that way) Oh and speaking of using things that aren't harsh on your baby's skin...put some fragrance free detergent on your registry. I made the mistake of using another big named detergent and it wrecked havoc on Nico's skin! I felt so terrible that his perfect skin was irritated! All it took was the change in detergent and the rash disappeared!

Let's talk about snot now. I believe within the first year of life a newborn gets up to 6-10 colds or something crazy like that. Let me tell you those bulbs from the hospital suck. Like for real. When Nico got his first cold it was so sad since he could hardly nurse because he was so stuffed up. It was like three in the morning and I next day shipped this bad boy out of pure desperation. It's called- NoseFrida The Snotsucker Nasal Aspirator. 

I will never live a day without this thing again. It's seriously a sick and disgusting concept but when your baby can hardly breathe, you'll consider sucking out boogers with your own mouth. I did. This is the next best alternative. Trust me-put this at the top of your registry. 

Have I totally disgusted you yet? If so, wait till you have that baby. Nothing will disgust you from birth on. :) 

Does the thought of clipping your baby's nails terrify you? So you decide to let your friend cut your new babies nails and he accidentally misses and takes out a chunk of your baby's thumb? Bad Unky Eric! Don't worry-babies heal fast and Nico doesn't even have any proof of the incident. May I highly suggest these Piyo Piyo Baby Nail Scissors? Pretty fool proof so I highly suggest that Eric invests in some of these as well for baby #2. 

Live in Wisconsin and need something to keep your little one's feet warm? Zutano Booties is exactly what you've been looking for! 

They come in all sorts of colors and prints and are so fun! These babies are way better than those annoying baby socks not to mention you don't lose them as you do socks! 

I really like all things Aden and Anais! Especially these Aden and Anais Burpy/Bib clothes. They served a dual purpose and washed up really nice. I also have Aden and Anais swaddles, sheets and a crib blanket from them too that are going strong. Worth the extra few bucks! 

Of course have to have a boppy pillow! I had a C-Section so I felt this was even more essential in being comfortable while nursing/holding the baby.

I also have the Leachco Podster Sling and really loved it! It was super handy when Nico was itty bitty!

One of my girlfriends generously let us borrow her 4moms mamaRoo. I would for sure invest in one in the future or if your a mom that is just starting a family and know there will be more to come! Nico loved it and was super content to spend time in it! It has 5 different movement paths that they say moves like you do!
 If you've have decided to breastfeed you will for sure need some nursing tanks. 

I received 2 nursing covers and I preferred the Udder Covers. It had the boning around the top so I could see what I needed to till I got the hang of it all! Even though I don't feel there is anything to hide when it comes to feeding YOUR baby-out of respect of others and till I got the hang of being able to discretely nurse I used the cover. In addition, I did feel that it brought the outside stimulation down a bit for Nico to be able to relax and not be distracted while feeding. 

I tend to shop pretty close to exclusively online. My husband tells me that our house is a UPS redistribution center since they are always there. But come on who wants to drag a baby (especially when they are really new) out in Wisconsin weather? Can we get an online grocery delivery service as well round these parts? UPDATE: You can now through Google Plus! Holla! Hope all my advice was helpful and steers you in the right direction of baby "stuff"! I just went to a baby shower and the mama-to-be received so many items that were totally unnecessary (cute but unnecessary)! And hardly anything she would really need. 😐  I'd love to hear what you couldn't live without with your baby! I'm always looking to try new things and I'd like to add to this list for future reference! 

Try to remember to not get too hung up on the "stuff". There isn't much babies truly need besides lots of love, mama milk, and a crap ton of diapers. 

SCREW EVERYTHING I SAID. JUST PUT DIAPERS ON YOUR REGISTRY…OF ALL SIZES. TRUST ME ON THIS. 

XO. 

JLOVE AKA "Mommy"

We Like To Party.

I know that having a big one year old party is kind of pointless. Your child is not going to recall any of it. That's why a one year old party is and should be nothing but a celebration for the parents making it through a year of complete unknown territory and having a happy thriving child at the end of it right? Right! We don't get the opportunity to host parties as often as I'd like (#restaurantlife) so when we do-we love to throw a good one and have the perfect space to do so! A lot of hard work went into this party and I feel sorry for those that had to deal with my all my ideas (Seneca Hope this is for you kid) but the ending result was perfect and incredibly memorable so documentation of this great event is a must. 






Most stressful part of a party? The theme. I'm not one for the total babyish ideas…not that there is anything wrong with babyish things I mean because after all the party is for a baby but I just prefer to go a little different route. That route I ended up being drawn to was a vintage travel theme- Nico being a world traveler and all I thought it was an appropriate direction to go. ;-)

The main attraction (besides this kid->) was the cake table with cloud lanterns and an airplane suspending above it. Along with giant "Nico" balloons. Of course there was an overload of balloons (which I never got a picture of-dang it) because who doesn't love balloons and is it really even a party without them? Thank you to my sister and sister in law Christina for helping with the set up and decorating!

I had a bunch of other grand ideas for decorating but last minute it did not work out. I'll save you all the boring details but I could have either chosen to have a panic attack over my ideas never transpiring or calmly realize no one (except my sister) knew the extent of my over the top of ideas and just let it go. I wisely chose the latter. Although my friend Karen totally saved me without even knowing at the time she saved me. She put together the cutest little slide show for me the day of the party. Now that is a friend! My sister hacked a way to have it on permanent repeat so I popped it up on the iPad and put it in a shadow box and it looked like I really had my crap together! Enjoy it below (or here if the preview doesn't work on some mobile devices). Thank you Karen!

In true Italian style our food was not the average one year old birthday party fare. Unfortunately, it was eleven pm before I realized I only had 3 mere bites of the fabulous food because I just do not know how to be the relaxed hostess with the mostess. I'm the slightly crazed making sure everyone is taken care of one. And you'd really assume we would know how to plan the appropriate amount of food for the number of guest we entertained. Wrong. According to some of them they took enough leftovers home to feed them the rest of the week. A special shout out and a big thank you to my husband and mother-in-law for spending their day off in the kitchen preparing this great meal! 

Dessert consisted of beautiful cloud-like cupcakes and a giant cupcake smash cake. We also had an array of homemade Italian desserts from Fannita's Bakery-and not one single of these Italian treats were left! 

A NiNi Cupcake? All of Grace's favorite things in one! 

I think most of you caught the big sing off but in case you didn't here is where it is posted-it's just too cute not to share! 

https://instagram.com/p/8wu1PnJN3q/?taken-by=jlove0623

He LOVED the attention and clapped along and after we blew out the candles he figured out if he clapped then everyone else would start clapping after him. He did this about 5 times while his monkeys (all of us) played along.

My amazing sister made an amazing milestone chart that we printed poster size to display as well.

Since I never did an "official" 12 month post I thought I'd quick throw in some additional milestones that our big boy is up to! Well, he is wearing mostly 18 month old clothing and wearing a size 5 shoe. He has 4 chompers. He knows how to use his fork like a pro. He says "duck" and pronounces the "D" so well that I'm sure it won't be mistaken for another 4 letter word. He makes kissing noises. He's obsessed with pears to the point if his father walks past the pear trees without picking one for him there may be tears. Speaking of tears-Nico threw his first fit at Target over a cheap plastic cart-so his TT bought him a real metal baby cart for his birthday which now he is crazy over. He is almost walking but we are smart enough not to rush it. He loves to say "no" and has multiple varying tones of the word. Nico loves to dance and loves his Kindermusik class. And he's the kid that is going around hugging and kissing everyone else in class. This is where I explain to the rest of the parents-"He's Italian. We hug and kiss a lot." He points to his nose and ears and eyes but only when he wants to. Nico also has learned how to bite-which I blame on his dad. But truth be told I'm known to bite when I get excited too. And most of all he is the answer to my prayers. 

Thank you to all of our family (including our Luigi Family) that were able to come and help celebrate our special boy. He is so blessed and so are we. 

Credits:
Invites, Milestone Poster, Menu, Banners, King Hat, Bow Tie, Clouds and basically the creative effort behind all my ideas- Seneca Avina (She Freelances Folks! Contact her for any of your needs!)
1 Year Old Photos - Karen Ann Photography - Make sure to "Like" her FB page too for more gorgeous photos!
Nico's Blue Vest & Pants Set Outfit- Caterina Bimbi Carini
Nico's "Drink The Wild Air" Outfit- Crowns and Coroknits
Smash Cake & Cupcakes- Bakery On State
Italian Desserts- Fannita Bakery
Personalized Cupcake Décor- Tailored Decor 
Airplane Bottle Openers Party Favors- Kate Aspen
Party Photographs- Nycz Photography and other friends that supplied pictures!
Venue- Luigi's Italian Restaurant

In my next life I want to be a party planner and photography prop coordinator (Is that such thing? Now it is).

Now on to those Thank You cards…...

XO. 

JLOVE AKA "Mommy"