Merry Christmas

Zadie wishes everyone a very merry Christmas

Holidays in the city

 My dad at Saint Patrick's Cathedral.  The decorations were gorgeous.  Festive wreaths adorned every pillar and they had a beautiful Christmas tree and life size manger.  

 In Rockefeller Center

 Zadie and her mom at Rockefeller Center.  This year's tree is pretty spectacular.  

 Grand dad and Zadie

Holidays at Aunt Lauren's

On Saturday, December 11th, we celebrated Hanukkah, Christmas, and Uncle David's birthday at my Aunt Lauren's home in Titusville, NJ.  My cousins were there, my aunts and uncles and even my father was able to make it up from Texas.  It was a wonderful day. 

Zadie got dressed up for the occasion

 Lauren cooked a super delicious meal of lasagna and chicken parm. 

 Ingrid and Jeffrey

Uncle David, Jason, Jessica, Katie, and Uncle Bob

Zadie and Uncle Mike

Alex and Martha

Overdid it

Had a great weekend, but it looks like we overdid ourselves.  I'm sick.  Zadie is sick.  It's 4:20 AM, can't sleep.  Looks like I'll be taking a trip to the Pediatrician early tomorrow morning.  Poor little Z, nose is all stuffed up and she's got a cough and a fever.  Breaks my heart.

UPDATE:  Zadie's fever broke mid-afternoon yesterday (YAY!)  She still has a stuffy nose, but is feeling MUCH better.  Her mom is still a bit under the weather.  Hoping a lot of rest will make us both better for Christmas.

Mama Said

"Mama said there'd be days like this, there'd be days like this, my mama said."

My day thus far....

wake up, still have a fever from yesterday and still very nauseous, can't eat anything.

cat throws up.  it's gross.  i clean it up.

cat has an explosive poo on our credenza, right on top of the wires to our cable box. 
it's beyond disgusting and i hold my breath for the longest i've ever held it before as i clean it up.  cat gets locked in the bathroom because she has poo all over her hind legs and paws. 

zadie now needs to be fed.  nurse baby.  she falls asleep, i put her in her crib.

Iz gets a bath, my arms get clawed.

i sneak a shower in while Zadie is sleeping.  no hot water. 

i get out of shower and hear Zadie crying.  she's had an explosive poo too.  it was up to her shoulders and all over the crib sheet.  awesome. 

zadie is now clean, her clothes have been handwashed in cold water, her crib has fresh sheets.

it's 11:16 AM.  I'm ready to call it a day. 

Oh so pretty

She's looking sweet in her new warm sweater

Christmas Time

We got our tree on Sunday from a guy who sounded exactly like Tony Soprano.  He kept saying the tree was 'top of the line'.  Really?  It's a tree.  I'm pretty sure there is no 'top of the line'.  

 

lights on

 

Zadie's first sight of the tree

 

Texas

Our trip to Texas was wonderful.  It was so comforting to spend the time with my family and watch them all swoon over little Zadie.  Zadie handled the flight like a pro and barely made a peep the entire flight there and back.  

 On Wednesday, we visited the Rothko Chapel and the Menil Museum, where we saw a great exhibit on Kurt Schwitters. 

This is taken right outside of the Rothko Chapel.  It was about 80 degrees that day.  No heavy coats and scarves for us in Texas!  

 In the afternoon, we sat outside on the back porch of my parent's house.  Zadie was all smiles in her grandmother's arms.  

Love this one.  

Zadie had plenty of tummy time in Texas.  She loved having all the floor room to roll over on. 

 Zadie in her little dress on Thanksgiving with Daddy

 Andrew and Zadie

 Comet and Zadie

Zadie with her Christmas stocking she got from Aunt Chrys

 Zadie with her cousin Kytha

Zadie with her cousin Katelyn

We went for a stroll with my Mom and Zadie in Oyster Creek Park.  We thought it'd be cute if Nate and I hopped up on the tree for a picture.  This is as far as I made it. 

 Zadie with Grand dad

Playing at the table with her Grandmom

We had some authentic Texas BBQ at the Swinging Door.  

 Mom & Dad.  And yes, the deer head on the wall behind them is wearing a handkerchief. 

Nate and Joanne, before we had BBQ sauce all over our face. 

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone

Okay, so I'm a little late with my Thanksgiving wishes.  Zadie and I have been catching up on cuddle time, which hasn't left me much free time to blog.  I swear, pictures and tales from Texas are coming soon. 

Zadie during Tummy Time

Zadie loves her new rug.  She was all smiles and giggles during tummy time yesterday. 

4 Months Old

Daddy's home!

love

Day 5

Yesterday we went to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and saw the new Art of Americas wing that literally just opened.  It was very impressive!  If you find yourself in Boston, it's a must see if you've got the time.  We ended up spending the entire day at the museum, despite being so tired from the evening before. 

Zadie slept a little better last night.  We'll see how she does tonight.  Wish us luck!

PS - We miss Daddy A LOT!!!!!!!

Day 4

This is the face I woke up to on Wednesday morning. 

Well, it was bound to happen.  We had a bit of a rough night on Tuesday night.  Okay, she only got up twice - not too bad, but she did not want to go back to sleep once she was up.  She cried and cried and then finally went back to sleep at 1:00 AM only to get up a few hours later at 3:00 AM.  She went back to bed after a long nursing session, but I was wide awake and couldn't fall back asleep. 

On Wednesday we drove up to Boston to visit Aly.  Poor Zadie had to sleep in her car seat again, but she was fine.  She slept almost the entire way and didn't have any diaper explosions or any crying fits.  

Here she is playing with her teething ring.  

Shortly after this photo, Zadie was ready for bed.  She went down at 7 PM, woke up at 9 PM and refused to go back to bed.  I was up with her every hour until 5 AM.  Somehow, I feel fine.  It's amazing how your body adjust to the schedule of a new baby.  

Day 3

We had another good night last night.  She woke up only twice and went back to bed each time without fussing (yay!).  We had a big day planned so we got up, got dressed, and organized the diaper bag. 

All dressed and ready for the day

So ready that she decided she wanted a nap before we left for Niabi's

Zadie spent a lot of time in her car seat today as I was helping my best friend move to a new apartment.  We made 4 trips back and forth from her old place to her new one.  Luckily, it wasn't too far away.  

 

We took a little break and changed Zadie's diaper

Zadie took a nap while Niabi and I had a prix fixe lunch at Aurora.  Salad, squash filled raviolis with pesto, warm bread, white wine, and sweet cream with caramel.  It was a perfect fall meal. 

Sleeping in her sling

After we dropped Niabi off, Zadie through a fit.  She had had enough of the car seat and wanted to get home.  Unfortunately, it was 5pm - rush hour.  It took us 40 minutes to get home and she screamed almost the entire way.  Poor girl.  The good news is that she was absolutely fine once I picked her up in my arms.  We got home and played a little bit on the activity mat before having a bath and changing into our pajamas.  

She almost fell asleep on her own, but wanted to be held a bit more before drifting off to dreamland.  

I welcomed the additional cuddle time and let her fall asleep on my chest.  What an amazing little girl.  I love her more and more every second.  My heart has never been so full. 

Day 2

Day 2 without Daddy went very well.  We woke up at 8:00 AM, had breakfast and watched some morning TV.  Zadie went down for her morning nap at 10:45 AM (she's been napping twice a day now - once in the morning, once in the afternoon).  After she woke up, she had some lunch and then we were off to the city. 

Zadie on the subway going to Manhattan

 

Rachel and Zadie outside Estancia - a cute little bistro in Tribeca.  I always feel like I'm in Europe when I go here.  

 

She was a little fussy so I held her for a while.  I'm slowly becoming a pro at eating meals with one hand.  

 

Rachel took over while I finished my salad.  Zadie was being a wiggle worm, as you can see.  

 

All bundled up and ready to take the subway home

 

home at last.  just in time for Zadie's afternoon snack 

Playtime on the bed.  She loves this toy.  

 

Zadie played in her crib while I set up her new rug and her activity mat. 

Looks pretty good on the new rug.

  

She used to turn to the side and avoid looking at the toys above her when she was younger.  Now, she is ALL about the toys.  

 

She played for almost 45 minutes.  I couldn't believe it.  I sat next to her and talked to my mom and watched her bat, grab and pull all the toys.  She was loving it.  She also wore herself out and passed out as soon as I put her in her crib.  

Day 2 was pretty great, but now that Zadie is in bed (it's 7:46 pm right now) I am missing Nate.  I think I'll watch a movie, have some dinner and go to bed early.