Colella Family Dinner

we had the whole family (and then some minus two) over for dinner today. jaden brought a few friends home from college and unfortunately mac and macee were in columbia. toby really wanted to get everybody together since we rarely do that. he made ziti and meatballs and i made stromboli and a cake (to celebrate a few birthdays) and apple pie (new for me). everybody brought something and we had more than enough food to go around. thank goodness everybody took something home. we had a good time just hanging out together. i really love seeing the kids play together too. for the most part, they play really well together and i know that soon enough gage is going to be keeping up with chase and roman!

the girls sitting on the couch with the babies

colella men getting some grub
the table was maxxed out!

chase loves to play basketball, just like roman

we sang happy birthday to rylee.

checking out the new 3D tv

like father, like son

the colella kids band...roman on vocals, reese on trumpet and chase on cymbals

i hope you had a great weekend and hopefully got to spend some time with your family too!

Say What?

i can't remember when exactly roman was able to sit in his bumbo, but i do remember trying to sit him in it when he was around the same age gianna is now, so you know i did it with her too. she liked sitting up since that's what she is always trying to do all the time anyway, but she wasn't really able to keep herself upright. kinda like a bobblehead.

i love the look on her face...kinda like "say wha? you want me to do what?"

Camo, Weapons, Spar!

roman tested a few weeks ago for his camo belt. i was able to go with him to the testing, but not when he actually got his camo belt. so, i don't have any pictures of him actually getting his belt. :(
but, now that he is a camo belt, he is allowed to attend the weapons class as well as spar. so, we are trying our best to make it to those classes even though it is difficult sometimes. he really enjoys taekwondo and learns a lot of really great life skills, so we are trying to take him as much as possible.

testing day, standing at attention

funny story...some of the older kids test with weapons, but roman shouldn't be doing that yet. when the instructor asked who was testing with weapons, roman raised his hand. we were trying to let the instructor know that he had never taken a weapons class, but they liked that he was showing initiative and let him test with this weapon. it was pretty hilarious to watch. he really loved it though. here he is with all his sparring gear on. very protected with a chest protector, shoes, a cup, helmet, shin guards, arm pads, face mask and mouthpiece. it kinda makes me feel a little bit better as a mom that he is all padded up!
practicing sparring with beckett.
protecting his best weapon...his brain
here he is with one of the other smaller boys in the weapons class

If I Don't Laugh, I'll Cry

let me start by saying that i had a wonderful birthday yesterday. i felt the love from family and friends and i am grateful that i have officially arrived at my mid-thirties. yes, i am 35! that being said, yesterday was a challenging day for me. like my post title, if i can't laugh at myself, i might just cry. let me give you the rundown...

1. i awoke to several texts. one from josh, one from mom. so, i proceeded to text them back. toby asked who i was texting so early, to which i responded..."mom and josh".
he asked why i was texting them so early in the morning.
i said i was replying to their texts.
he asked why they were texting me so early in the morning.
i said "because it's my birthday".
enter surprised look on husband's face.
oops. i guess his brain was a little slow to catch up to his body yesterday.
**disclaimer** i know that he knew it was my birthday and he had already given me my present this weekend...he was just a little slow.

2. while waiting at the register at the grocery store to buy gift cards for work, the cashier asked me if i was expecting. ummm, excuse me? i know my shirt is empire waist and all, but really? when are you allowed to ever ask a woman if she is pregnant? let me help you out. never. ever. ever. ever. ever. ever. ever. ever. ever. ever. ever. (brian regan, anyone?) worst part? it was a woman. who started to try and dig herself out of that hole immediately upon my response of "no". so, i headed back to my car, convincing myself it wasn't worth tears. not on my birthday.

3. went to lunch (which was allison's treat, thankyouverymuch!) and spilled something on my new shirt. i used my tide stain stick to try and get out the stain, which proceeded to not only NOT get the stain out, but bring out the lovely smell of whatver it was that was spilled on my shirt. yuck. oh well, i could live with it. that is, until i went to the bathroom, and as i was flushing, realized that the tie on the shirt (it tied in the back) was literally IN the toilet as i was flush. it was untied and i was flushing it down the toilet. so, i proceeded to pull it out of the toilet, wring it out, wash my hands and go directly to the gift shop and purchase another shirt to wear for the remainder of the day. i prefer to look at this incident as just another birthday present for me...yay...a new shirt!

at this point, i was just thinking...okay, get through the rest of the day so you can go home and put on your pajamas and just chill out.

luckily for me, the rest of the day was pretty uneventful and i was treated to dinner and cake and lots of love from my boys and G.

roman even prayed for me last night..."and thank you God for Momma to be this old.".

yes God. thank you for letting me be this "old". i am grateful for each birthday because that means that i am here and able to spend this most wonderful life with the ones i love the most.

Timeline

i was just looking back at pictures of gianna at 1, 2 and 3 months and thought it might be fun to put them side by side. so, i'm sharing. in my opinion, she looks older in the 2 month picture than in the 3 month one.

Duke

so, our time together has come to an end. our beloved duke dog has gone to be with God in heaven. we loved him so for over 10 years and he provided us with the most beautiful unconditional love that only a dog can give. i can't describe the void that his passing will leave in our family, but i do know that i don't regret any minute of our time together and i'm happy he is no longer in pain. rest in peace baby boy, rest in peace.

my favorite things about duke:

-he used to sit on my feet while i was getting ready in the morning, because he never wanted me to leave.

-he had one black whisker. even after it fell out, it would always grow back.

-if he was mad, he would lay with his paws straight out in front of him, right beside his face.

-he innately knew if i was upset and would always come cuddle with me.

-he was such a good listener. i could take him for a walk without a leash and if 25 dogs went past us, he wouldn't even look their way.

-he was ALWAYS good with little kids. even before we had roman, he was so gentle with our nieces and other kids. he would lay down to play with them. same with smaller dogs, he never played too rough.

-he was a good traveler. he always went on trips with us and knew when the suitcases came out that he was going somewhere.

-he loved to give hugs.

can you believe he was ever this small?

back in his awkward teenage years, when his nose hadn't turned completely black yet and my aunt joyce once thought he had a marshmallow stuck in his nostril (hee hee) yes, his face always looked this pitiful, but we knew he was happy. he couldn't help it that his skin was so saggy. underneath all that saggy skin was a beautiful smile. i just know it. and we always looked for that one black whisker that would always grow back. our little guy was special. how handsome is this guy? sometimes, you just gotta lay down and take a nap. this was one of his favorite spots, right in the corner of the couch. as big as he was, he thought he was a lap dog and would curl right up on your lap if you let him.

Best Dog Ever....

3 Months

dear time, please slow down. you are going WAY too fast.
************************************************************************************
dear gianna,

momma can't believe you are 3 months old already. it seems like just yesterday that we were headed to the hospital to meet you. you've already grown into such a beautiful little lady and we love you so! here's a few things about you that i want to remember...

-you sleep through the night (one time you slept 12 hours, but mostly 8-9), you've done this for quite some time and momma appreciates this immensely. just one of many reasons that you are perfect.

-you smile ALL the time. even when i have to do things that aren't so pleasant for you. you just smile right through it.

-you weigh 11lbs 12oz. just about 4lbs heavier than when you were born. you have no trouble eating...that's for sure.

-you are trying to talk. lots of babbling. it's really cute.

-your brother ADORES you. he loves to give you kisses and hugs from morning time until bedtime. he talks to you and plays with you and can always make you smile.

-you love to cuddle. i love it too. let's keep this thing going.

there's so much more that i love about you, but there isn't enough room to list everything. just please know that momma, poppa and roman absolutely adore you and are so glad that God sent you to us. you make our family complete.

love, momma

Ain't She Purty?

sometimes i think she looks so serious, but absolutely beautiful.

this picture cracks me up. i had just given her a bath and her hair was a little bit wet still. her room (where she sleeps in her bassinet until we go to bed) is colder than our room, so i bundled her up in her mittens and hat. it reminds me of a little old lady with her cap on before bed. love it.

A Whole Lotta Country

we've been listening to a lot of country music, apparently. currently, roman's favorite songs are:

big green tractor

dirt road anthem

shake it for me (country girl)

my kinda party

he's also into justin bieber, but that's a whole 'nother post!

here's some entertaining videos for you...

this one's a little longer and i forgot the words to 'my kinda party', but he still keeps trying. he's got a lot of the words, just in the wrong order. you think i can use these videos as blackmail someday when he has a girlfriend?

She's Got Something to Say

Gianna's Nursery Tour

it's finally done! g's nursery is complete! can you tell i'm excited?!?

okay, enough with the exclamation points, i know i've used my quota already. so, i'll just give you the tour.

here's the arrangement that's on the wall above her glider. i had planned on just hanging everything directly on the wall, but i found this shelf set at tj maxx and it allowed me to accessorize it a little more. 'cuz every girl needs more accessories, right? the 3 little bears clock is from nana. she got it for roman when he was a baby. the rest is all new.

i printed gianna's birth details and framed it in this pretty pink frame. and, i think the flower is a peony, which is my favorite. the little G block is from my friend amanda. it has all her birth details on it too. i just really liked this LOVE print, so i framed it. and now, all i can hear in my head is "if you like it, then you better put a frame on it" to the tune of beyonce... (oh goodness, i'm tired). i found the mercury glass bird at tj maxx too. isn't that place great? my little girl is a maxxinista...moving on to the other side of the room...

the shelf is from my mom. she painted it when she came down in september. it's got a few fun things on it, including gianna's going home outfit.

above the crib is a bunch of embroidery hoops with different fabrics in them. the crib is a mish-mash of different fabrics. i didn't buy a bedding set because i never ended up using most of what comes with it for roman. so, i made her bedskirt (attached with velcro) and valance too. it kind of reminds me of a picnic blanket pattern, but i still like it. oh, and there's a really cushy rug down there too for when i am standing over her watching her breathe as she sleeps. whenever she ends up sleeping in there. for now i just hover over her right next to our bed in her bassinet. :)i saw this idea on pinterest...yes, i steal creativity. above her changing table, i put these poof balls made of tissue paper. the white one with the rain drops was made by miss allie as decoration for my "baby sprinkle" that she had for me in september. after i looked at this picture, i realized that the little pink poof in the back needed to be up higher. so, i moved it up. you're welcome. but, i didn't re-take the pic. sorry. ...and back around to my favorite spot. sitting on the furry, cushy glider cushion (total score from pier one), i can see all the pretty stuff in her room. it makes me happy. just like she does. it is pure heaven sitting in that chair rocking my baby girl. God is good. oh, and i made this little butterfly for the collage wall, but i didn't like it there, so i put it above her closet door. it's kinda cute, like it just landed there. and i feel like bob ross (that guy with the big afro that used to teach you how to paint on pbs)..."let's let a butterfly live here..." hee hee, i just crack myself up. and i know the walls look baby blue, but it really is a very light aqua. very subtle. i wanted to have her accessories steal the show, not the wall color. so far, gianna doesn't seem to really care too much about her room, so i might move in there until she's old enough to appreciate it.

3D & ...me!

so, the hubs decided that we "needed" a 3D tv. so, we now have a 3D tv. hubs is upset that i don't really care about the 3D tv. so, hubs tries to make someone care about the 3D tv.

so, there's this.

...and in breaking news...there is finally a picture of me and my kids...first one since we've left the hospital. 12 weeks ago. score. look forward to another one in may. that's another 12 weeks away.