Bar None

Big smiles!!

The Latest

All's quiet on the Gasperini-Ville front!  

We are assuming GG is wrapping things up (OH MY GOODNESS, it's really over!) and should be hearing from him any minute.

The baby appears to be chilling out to make sure his daddy makes it home in time.  No contractions to speak of...  :)  I'll let you know if anything changes!  God bless you!!

**Evening update 7pm:  GG is DONE and still alive.  Hallelujah!  We are all thrilled!!

B Day

That's right folks, it's Bar Day today and tomorrow!

GG and many law friends of ours are "in the thick of it" right now and could use your prayers!

Please remember them...  Thank you so much!  Blessings!

**Day One Update 9pm: GG called tonight to report "success".  While the test was humbling, his outlook was good.  He is gearing up to face the 200 question multiple choice multi-state section tomorrow.  Thankfully, he and two buddies (go Rich and Matt!) are staying at a beautiful bed and breakfast (rather than the local roach motel) and have been put at ease by its tranquility.  What an unexpected blessing!  Please continue to keep all the Bar boys and girls in your prayers tomorrow ~9am-5pm!!  Then its over!! :)  Praise God!

Also, Baby J appears to be descending lower with accompanying BH contractions and pelvic floor soreness.  Nothing to get too excited about yet, but we will hopefully be meeting the sweet one by my due date!  My doc appt. today shows that everyone has continued health (no dilation checks were performed so as not to bring on labor! :)  I'll keep you posted!

The Cus-a-Bus

From this adorable young pup...

to this strapping 6-year-old.  

Happy Birthday today to our faithful boy, Custer!!

You came into our newlywed world 6 years ago... 

(Look at those young kids!)

And our parents thought we were crazy taking on such a charge so early on in marriage!  But little did they know that 6 months later, we'd be saying goodbye to GG for a whole year!!

And yet you would remain behind and be my buddy; my faithful, furry friend through the long months.  You licked my tears (he really did this the night GG left!), you trained with me for two marathons, you slept beside me when my beloved was absent...  

You have now endured the birth and growth of two young boys with another on the way.  And you do it every day with a tail that wags and a devotion so true.  Thank you for being such a wonderful part of our Gasperini-Ville.

Happiest of birthdays to our Cus-a-Bus.  We love you so!

Holding Steady

One week and counting...

We are in a steady holding pattern and hoping nothing changes!! :)

Above all, I feel so blessed to feel good and have my mom around to help.  We are all doing famously!

And look at what the cat dragged in last night!!!
Here is my bearded beloved with a two-week forested face! :)  Nothing better to pass the days than studying for the bar and watching one's facial hair emerge...  lol. :)  GG returned last night to "regroup" (and shave) before heading out late this morning for Roanoke and the Virginia Bar!!  God bless him!  We love you, GG, and wish you peace and perseverance as you ROCK the test!

Can you imagine two happier little boys when they awoke this morning to find their daddy home?  Could Wednesday, 4pm come any sooner for all of us?

Hope you have a brilliant Monday.  God bless you too!!

On Joy

Joy.

It comes from an outpouring of spirit... of goodness... of light.

It comes from knowing Christ.  

I am convinced our world needs more of it.  Quite simply, if we all spent 1 additional minute being a little more joyful, a little less impatient, a little more benevolent, our communities would be a more joyful, pleasing places to dwell.  

Mimi reflected on this sentiment today after hearing a wonderful homily on being more joy-filled.  How often, the priest reflected, do we allow joy to infiltrate only certain areas of our lives, while suppressing it in others?  Take, for example, his joy in celebrating the Mass, but his undeniable New York road rage.  Did he really have to be that stubborn in preventing the other car from merging into his lane? 

I can totally relate.  While certain parts of my day-to-day are quite joyful--i.e. breakfast with the kids, outings in the car, storytime at night--others pale in comparison.  And while I would argue that I don't have to appear outwardly joyful at all times (who can really accomplish that anyway?), I can allow more joy into my tougher moments, which might help to soften them and make them more Christ-like.  

Battling for the shortest line at the grocery store = an opportunity for joy.  

Offering up a closer parking spot to the lady in the SUV = an even greater opportunity.

Loving one's children through the ups and downs = joyjoy.

Have a blessed, joyful Sunday!!

Booky

Among the various outings my mom and I have made this week with the boys was a trip to our library down the street.  Since we are new to the area, I've frequented the spot a few times, but only with the sole purpose of filling the kids' daily reading needs and attending storytime (which happens to be really well done!  Thank goodness!)  It is an amazing library and I am so grateful to have it so close (~2 minute drive!)  It just celebrated its 1st anniversary, so everything is new and inviting...

You can imagine my delight the other day to pick up a few mama books for some light summer reading.  When do I really ever get to focus long enough to choose my own books? ;)  Thanks to my mom's kiddo supervision, I had a moment to indulge!  I am ecstatic to have a little literary escape as a wonderful distraction while waiting for Baby J to make his appearance.  

One of the titles I picked up was Anne Rice's The Road to Cana, which is the second book in her Christ The Lord series.  I really enjoyed Out of Egypt, the first in the series, which fictitiously (but based on a lot of Biblical facts and research) relays Christ's childhood.  I found the retelling on His story to be so spiritually invigorating and enlightening.  While I knew I was reading fiction, just seeing Rice's interpretation of his childhood was really uplifting.  Can't wait to share more with you about The Road to Cana...  My journey starts tonight.  If any of you have read it, please share your thoughts!  Also, here's a link to a review done in the NY Times--an interesting take and one that I'm eager to review upon reading the book!

Blessings to you and TGIF!  

Dinner Al Fresca

What a beautiful day it was today in Gasperini-Ville... the sun shone, the humidity was down, the breeze was cool.  It was the perfect day to enjoy dinner outside!  The boys were thrilled to have a dinner "picnic" and Gramz, the chef, made a wonderful dinner for all of us to savor. Meanwhile, our beloved GG continues to slave away in preparation for his bar next week.  We love you, honey!!

Can't believe tomorrow is Friday!  God bless you as you finish up your week...

The gang at dinner

Mom and the boys--my belly is hiding behind the table!

A shot by M, our budding photographer!

When Mom Comes to Town

As seen today over at Building Cathedrals...

My mother arrived last night to help with the pre-baby preparations...

What is it that is so amazing about mothers, really? Just having her here, knowing she's present is such solace to me. She knows what I like and dislike. We laugh at the same things. She helps me see the humor in my sons' crazy antics. She still knows what's best for me and orders me to take a nap and slow down. She just gets me in a way that others do not. And why? Because she birthed me, raised me, scolded me, loved me... through the many years, days, minutes, and seconds. She's my mother. And thank goodness for her!

Oh mothers. Thank the Good Lord for mothers.
Here's to hoping that someday I might offer my children the same warmth, support, encouragement, and love that my mother offers me.
Thank you, Mom. So glad you're here.

God bless your Wednesday!  Hope this finds you well and loved.

As Healthy as a Horse

When the sun set this evening, it was hard to believe it was the same sun that rose this morning.  What a full day!  From a sleepy beginning to an elliptical workout to a Costco trip (which the boys loved, by the way) to a Mimi lunch to a mama doc appt. to a trip to the airport and Gramz (my mom) arrival!! to a Red Robin dinner (yum) to boys' bedtime to ahhh...  

Yes, it's been full.

Yes, I am trying to take it easy.

I really am. :)

Yes, I do promise tomorrow will be a lot more relaxed.

I promise (wink, wink!). 

Thankfully, the doc reports, "You are as healthy as a horse."  

Thanks doc. :)  Just what I love to hear in my 38th week--I am equivalent to a horse.  lol.

There are many reasons that's a great thing to hear, though--the baby is well, my blood pressure is normal, and my body shows no signs of labor.  Excellent.

It feels so funny at a time in the pregnancy when women hope to be done, I am praying for it to continue!  The doc laughed today saying, "Most women are begging me to get the baby out.  You're one of the few who's hoping he stays in!"  Too funny.

That is until next Wednesday afternoon when my beloved finishes his bar quest!  Then we will reunite as a family and the party will really start.  Baby J can come anytime after that...  ;)

Have a blessed Tuesday evening!  I will leave you with a couple shots of the boys' artistic Baby J shirts...  T-baby's wins the contest and will be worn home from the hospital!  God bless!

3-8

There you have it, 38 whopping weeks and still going strong!

It occurred to me the other day that with the sad miscarriage of our Sweet Jude last year at 11 weeks, I have reached the "year" milestone of being pregnant since last July!  Part of me wonders: will I remember how not to be pregnant?  lol.  I think I shouldn't have too much trouble transitioning back into regular life.  ;)  And while pregnancy has its fair share of hang-ups, there are also many joys, prego blessings that I do not take for granted.  We have known so many couples who have struggled with infertility and I am reminded so often of how blessed we are with our boys...  I am also acutely aware of how *fervent* my prayers need to be for all these hopeful mothers-to-be.  My heart aches for them.

So today I offer up this simple prayer to St. Gerard for all mothers, especially those hoping for a baby:

O glorious Saint Gerard, powerful intercessor before God, and wonder worker of our day, I call upon you and seek your help. You who always fulfilled God's will on earth, help me to do God's holy will. Intercede with the Giver of life, from whom all parenthood proceeds, that those who suffer infertility may conceive and raise children who will please God in this life, and be heirs to the kingdom of heaven. Amen.

Prayers for a great start to your week!  God bless.

Here's a little something else that's new for the blog... a signature!  This blogging stuff is too fun!

*HOW TO: I Googled "how to add a signature to Blogger" and found this site, where I chose different options and ended up with my own personal John Hancock.  Afterward, I got the html coding for the signature and copy/pasted it into the Settings/Formatting/Post Template section of the blog.  Now it appears at the end of every post!!  Pretty cool!

Aren't these little guys the cutest?

Here are two of the rescued pandas from China's most recent earthquake.  I just couldn't resist posting something so cute!!  Oh the hormones swirling within... :)

Super Saturday

The day started today with relative peace and quiet.  Mimi and Papa indulged again last night with a little boy sleepover...  We all had dinner together and then the boys stayed over while mom got to come home and have a peaceful night.  What bliss! :)

I walked in this morning to these adorable faces (and how much more adorable they are after being away for 12 hours! lol):

M and T-baby were eating pancakes and enjoying champagne grapes and strawberries.  They were, of course, surrounded by Papa's trains, which have become beloved toys for visiting whenever we're there!  Good, ol' Papa. :)  We had such a nice visit with Mim/Pop before getting on our way to a morning of errands.  Not to forget mentioning the somersaults both boys executed before we hit the road.  T-baby has never even tried to somersault (ignore the beginning tears! :), yet here's some great footage of one of his firsts!  Pretty cool!

On our errands, we first hit Costco for $3.85 gas.  I was shocked to find it $.10 cheaper here than in our suburb neck of the woods... yet still wound up with the most expensive bill I've yet to pay in total for gas!  I'm such a dork and took a picture to document it for the blog!

Next we rolled on over to Babies 'R Us to make a return and buy a few other sundry items for Baby J.  M conned me into letting him try the JayJay the Jet Plane ride, but unfortunately it was broken.  At least he didn't seem to mind too much...
Our next stop was for T-baby's first professional haircut.  We stopped at another locale first, but they were too full.  Unfortunately at this previous stop, I tripped over the curb and brought M down with me.  Ouch!  We both had a few skinned places (thankfully Baby J was unscathed!) and ended up being helped by a bunch of older women at a granny salon!  lol  They saw the whole thing happen and rushed to our aid with towels, a bathroom, band-aids, and lollipops.  Praise God for the Good Samaritans of this world--they were the sweetest! :)

T-baby survived his haircut with tears the whole time, but at least we "got it done".  He was in dire need of a neck and ear trim...

Finally, finally we stopped in at Michael's to buy some fabric markers for the decorating of some side-snap baby shirts I bought earlier.  At Texas Mommy's suggestion, I am going to have the boys decorate these for J and bring them to the hospital.  Baby J will wear one home for his proud brothers.  Too cute!  I'll definitely show you the finished product once we're done...
So that's a true morning look at life in Gasperini-Ville.  Not too many thrilling events, but enough to keep us busy and keep B-mama from watching the clock tick and her belly move in anticipation of our little one's arrival.  GG is, of course, slaving away like a good pre-bar guy.  How much we love him so!!  Hugs!

And as usual, God is watching over us all and blessing us in the little things.

Hope you are having a great Saturday.  God bless!!

Our New Look

Thanks to Shannon we are creatively exploring a new Gasperini-Ville template!  So glad the initial feedback has been positive...

I have to admit to feeling a little scared and unsure in my new territory.  Guess we'll just have to try it on for size and go from there...  Change is good, right?!  We would have had to stir things up anyway upon Baby J's arrival, so might as well get 'er done! :)

Blessings for a wonderful TGIF!

Gifts for the boys

I'm taking Hillary's advice and getting ready to welcome the baby with gifts all around...

As for Baby J, we are going to have the boys make pictures and a cake to bring to the hospital to celebrate "Baby J's Birthday" (as M has already started calling it).  Add cake to any occasion and the boys get so excited.  I figure this would be an excellent thing to have around when they're first meeting their new baby brother.  :)  We'll take any and all positive associations. :)

For the boys, I'm planning on J giving them wrapped gifts when they arrive.  M loves surprises and should flip over these stuffed kittens I recently found.  T-baby will be happy with whatever because as long as his brother likes it, he will too.  

They have been really into cats and kittens lately, most likely due to the movie Milo and Otis that has graced our TV set a few times since our arrival to Virginia.  It is their current favorite and they love watching the pug puppy and kitten interact with one another and other various animals.   Too cute!  They've actually started a pretend "kitten game" where they roll around and cuddle up while mewing like kittens.  Mom just adores this game because it means her boys are docile and complacent for a few minutes... :)  lol.  I was initially going to buy a stuffed mama cat with nursing kittens, but maybe we'll add that to our collection once J is here and the nursing questions begin! :)  What do you all think about boys having a nursing stuffed animal?  GG was a little unsure about it.  I would love your thoughts...

Baby kicks and kitten snuggles from Gasperini-Ville on this blessed Thursday!

God bless.

Docta Details

Here it is, your weekly pregnancy appointment update:

As of this afternoon, Baby J is head down with his heartrate in the 140's. I am 2cm(!) dialated (though the doc says this can happen more easily with subsequent pregnancies) with steady blood pressure and weight! Hallelujah, all is well!

The doc was willing to induce me early so as to ensure GG's presence at the birth, but we've decided to wait it out and let my body do the deciding. Thankfully, she seems to be such a gracious, kind physician and I'm really happy to have her! She also spoke really highly of the hospital nurses and staff, which was wonderful to hear. In other words, the path has been laid well, now J just has to determine when he will travel it. :)

God bless you today! Hope its been a great one... and if it hasn't, I hope things are looking up!

37...

and counting! God bless and Happy Monday!

Additional comments: As of this morning Baby J's prep is complete. I washed and folded all of his little clothes yesterday and put them in drawers last night! How great is it that we already have everything we need?! Love it! I guess that's where 3 of one gender really pays off! I also washed the carseat cover and attached the head stablizer to the straps... and washed the Boppy pillow and blue soft cover! This kid is set!

One last remaining item I plan to fetch tomorrow is a SwaddleMe blanket. Many moms have lauded this miracle blanket as it wraps the baby so tightly (better than the receiving blankets from the hospital) and mimics the closeness of the womb. They also say it encourages more hours of sleep for the infant (and the mom!). Sign me up!! I'll buy 10 of these if they work... :) We'll have to let you know.

That's the latest from our little corner of the world on Monday afternoon! Hugs!

Home Reno Update

Just wanted to quickly show you the outcome of my curtain project. I ended up putting it off for days, only to finish it earlier this week!  Overall, the sewing went quickly and was nicely distracting.  The best part about it: the boys' room is a dark as can be for bedtime--just what we were after!!  We are probably going to add some hooks/loops at the top to allow for easy opening and closing.  

And now a glimpse at my latest feat--the recovering of our kitchen table chairs.  It was SO easy and with an awesome outcome.  Our old chair covers were beyond gross from children, spills, etc.  So, I headed back to the fabric store the other day and bought a couple yards of fabric. With a screwdriver and staple gun, you can see we went from drab to fab in about 20 minutes time!  What's great is that this project was so easy that it will be easy to do again when these covers get yucky...  Love, love, love being able to do this stuff myself!  Happy Lord's Day and blessings...

The Before

The After--can you see the improvement?

Cowboys and Such

I'm happy to report an incredible date last night with my beloved. It was just what the doctor ordered--GG and I had such a nice time being together and enjoying one another's company! We went to P.F. Chang's and saw Hancock afterward. Props to Will Smith on yet another movie that is (relatively) family friendly (a few bad words thrown in) and entertaining. I think the two of us just really enjoyed getting out above all things! :) Many thanks to Mimi and Papa for taking such good care of our precious cherubs...

My little "cowboys" dragged their grandparents to Chik-Fil-A to get a free meal by dressing like cows.  Mimi picked up some cow material to whip up the cutest kerchiefs with bells.  Sadly, the get-ups only earned the bunch free entrees, but who's complaining!  I find these bovine boys to be absolutely scrumptious (albeit naughty!)  They are perched on their favorite plaything of late--the couch pillows.  Mom has nixed the previous fun game of diving off the main cushions and armrests onto the pillows on the floor.  Hello broken necks?  Now, the boys are relatively satisfied with running on the carpet and jumping into pillow swamps...  Oh Lord!  Are you now beginning to see why yesterday morning was so out-of-control???  What is a mother to do!!!

One last fun Saturday detail was the opportunity to see The Alley Family again this morning.  The kids played while the parents connected--this time both GG and Will were with us!!  Too fun...  Alas, more togetherness will have to wait until Will has finished his chaplains' course and conquers the 1st Cav and Iraq.  God speed, brother!  We send our love with the whole family as they head back to Texas!