Roman Alexander

Ladies and gentlemen....the newest addition to our Blanco family has arrived. Roman Alexander arrived 4 weeks early on Saturday, March 13 at 3:22am measuring in at 6lb 2 oz and 18 1/2 inches. Little Peanut. Both mom and Roman are doing great and are looking forward to coming home soon (likely to be Wednesday). Roman's arrival was certainly not "as planned" and is somewhat of a long story so I figured I'd try to make it brief and post it here for those interested... I went to bed on Fri with some mild cramping/possible contractions and woke up around midnight with some pretty heavy bleeding that sent us to the hospital. Our neighbors stayed and sat for Vanessa until my mom could get there, which since Vanessa was sound asleep could not have gone any better. She woke up as normal around 7:30am and was delighted to find grandma there! Apparently I had what they call a placenta abruption where my placenta started to tear away from the uterus. A situation that can be very dangerous and in my case resulted in an emergency c-section. Why this happened...good question. No clear reason why since my pregnancy was normal and perfect and there was no known trauma. According to my doctor it's something that unfortunately can't be predicted nor can it always be explained. It was by far the scariest moment of my life for many reasons (including the oh so lovely anaesthesiologist who's not so great English sent both my and Juan's nerves in a tizzy when she tried to explain that due to my blood loss I was likely going to need a blood transfusion and sorry but she didn't have a matching blood so there would be side effects endured). A c-section was never part of my plan, in fact I skipped those sections of my book, nor was it ever the plan that I would be fully under and Juan not able to be there. I was sent into surgery at 3:10 and little Roman was born at 3:22. Daddy was there to greet and hold him and he was fine. Oh...and I never needed the blood transfusion (thankfully). The drama with Roman came a bit later when they decided he needed to be put on oxygen and an IV. Never was he considered to be in any sort of danger, but the concern was that given his age (36wks) his little lungs weren't able to fully expel the fluid in his chest so he needed a little help. Roman had what they call TTN (Transient Tachypnea of the Newborn) a pretty common concern with premature babies that is really nothing more than extra fluid in the lungs that remains and is cleared too slowly making the breathing a bit more challenging. It's something that usually clears itself within 48 hours and in his case was exactly what happened. The IV was needed because with extra fluid in his lungs he wasn't able to drink to get his nutrients. His condition dramatically improved after 12hrs and by Monday morning he was completely free of the oxygen and IV. He is nursing great and we should be able to be sent home tomorrow, the doctor wanted him to be off everything for a full 24hrs before being sent home. Chest x-rays and all vitals show nothing short of a strong healthy little boy and there are no concerns for any future complications! Phew! Long story made a little short and a very emotional weekend coming to a close with a very, very happy ending.

Spring has sprung???

The weather lately has been so great it's hard not to think (hope) that Spring is really right around the corner! We got out this week and headed to the park for our first swing of the year. Vanessa has no idea what "spring" means...but she managed to say it all day long (our great repeater). On the baby update side of things, we progressing...I mean growing! 36 weeks tomorrow. Any day now I suppose ;-) Official due date is still April 10th, but something keeps making me think that March isn't such a bad month to have a birthday (it's pretty popular on both sides of our family). We'll keep ya posted.

I love pie

Couldn't not share yet another little video of our dancing queen. Apparently a children's song called "I love pie" is now her favorite. Hope it puts a smile on your face!

Come cuddle mommy

Yesterday afternoon I put Vanessa down for a nap, as you can hear from the video below....she wasn't quite ready yet. She made me laugh so I thought I'd share. In case it's a little hard to hear, she's asking me to "come cuddle". Needless to say after a little less than 10min she was out cold, but the pre-show kept me smiling all day.

29 weeks and growing

The belly, I mean baby, is certainly growing! 29 weeks this week and I feel like it's 39. This pregnancy has been good and fine, no complications, but much different than the first. So they say that's the norm with #2. Thought I'd post a recent pic of the watermelon I hide under my shirt ;-)

Stomach bugs

Not a fun week in the Blanco house this week as both Vanessa and mommy got a nasty taste of the stomach bug. Thankfully it seems mommy had it the worst --- from 3am - 10am every half hour landed this pregnant lady in the ER for fluids (as recommended by my OB). Four hours and three IV bags later I was ready to come home, however, when I called Juan to come get me I was told it might be a little while because miss Vanessa had her first "sick" all over her crib upon waking up from her nap. I know, I know....TMI for everyone, huh? Fortunately we only had to deal with three "sicks" from our girl all of which weren't nearly as horrible as I imagined (even the one that landed all over me). By Wednesday she seemed nearly back to normal. We're keeping an eye on her still since she hasn't had much of an appetite and especially since her diapers haven't been that wet. So it's lots of Pedialyte and fluids for the next few days. Somehow Juan managed to escape the dreaded bug which was either lucky for him or actually maybe lucky for me since he got "clean up" duty ;-) Stay healthy all!!

Mommy...I awake

Our little 19mos old has really started to make our days interesting with all her chatter. She's doing super well with her words and using pretty near full sentences. For awhile now I've been waking up to her calling "Mommmmyyyyyy" or "Daddyyyyyy", but for the last few days we've been blessed to hear a bit more. This morning and yesterday: "Mommmmmmmmmmyyyyyy, I aaaa-wake. Come hear. Done, done" So funny and so cute! Usually wake time is around 7am, but this morning she was up before the sun at 6am and since our 'house rule' is not to get her until at least 6:30 I got to hear a little extra chit-chat. It went something like this: "Awake. Nessa done, done. Cuddle. Mommy, daddy, up. Girl mommy little. Doggie, blankie. Mommy get. Mommy door open, come". I think I could have sat there for another half hour just listening to her but couldn't resist going to get my morning hug. Of course all this chatter also means we need to be careful with our words since our little girl is quite the repeat parrot -- EVERYTHING gets repeated, not just words, but sentences. Another latest is that she has started to use her manners all on her own now saying "pease" and "sank-you" without being prompted. As proud as I am it's been a bit of a dangerous ground for this mom. Since I think it's so cute I've found myself giving in to "Dessert please" for the last 3 (or 4) nights! Oh well....considering how much this girl packs in the veggies and proteins, what's a little sugar????? We had our 18mos check up this week too (a few weeks late) and Vanessa has now gotten to the 25% for weight and is 22 1/2lbs and a wopping 32 1/2 inches tall (75%). Grow girl, grow!

Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

Lot's of snow fell over the last week and nothing could be better when you have two little Blanco's visiting from Orlando! This year was really Vanessa's first year with the snow too and she couldn't have loved it more! "More, more", "go fast", "sled daddy fast" was about all she could say this afternoon after we took advantage of the latest snowfall. Two snowmen, lot's of snowball fights, sledding and skiing filled our 10 day visit that somehow seemed to come and go a bit too fast. I can't even imagine how bored Vanessa will feel come Monday morning when she wakes up and there's nobody around to play with (or dance with!) other than mommy and daddy. Hopefully we'll be able to play again soon!!

Christmas fun!

Such a great Christmas this year, it really felt like a "first" with Vanessa. Even though she didn't seem as excited as we thought she would to see all the presents in the morning, you could tell she knew something was up. She loved her art easel that Santa brought for her and so far cannot get enough of her new potty chair (thanks to Tia Susy) and her tea set (thanks to Tia Marjorie). Most of all the fun has been having a house full of Blancos this year! Vanessa has been sleeping well past 8:30AM (which this mom LOVES) clearly exhausted from having so many people around. We're so glad we've still got much more time to play with everyone...but so far Christmas has been all that we hoped it would be.

Ho, Ho, Ho...it's cookie making time

I can hardly believe it's December already. I love the feeling of Christmas time and it's been even better this year in our very own house, in our very own neighborhood. Every night it's like a magic transition as the houses on our streets light up with lights - such a pretty sight! Vanessa is in a bit of awe when it comes to all the lights and our tree, she pretty much just stands there staring then walks around saying "star", "lights", "balls", "pretty". Her way of describing the "kiss-miss tree" as she calls it. In my continuing quest to do "mom" things, we've been busy making up Christmas cookies this year. Who knew they were such a work out! I think I need a good nap (since I never seem to start making them until 8:30pm) and a massage by the time this holiday baking fest is over. With a few size issues, this cookie-rookie seems to be doing quite alright. I've learned a thing or two also like...what shortening is and what the heck a jigger of whiskey is ;-) Looking forward to some family time next week and a wonderful holiday!! Ready for winter Us at 22 1/2 weeks

Dancing with old friends and meeting new faces

It's no secret Vanessa loves to dance. She especially loves dancing with "friends", as many as her little hands can carry as you can see from the video below ;-) We all went to the doctor today and got to "meet" little baby Blanco! Wow...technology. Can't wait until April!

Doorbell...doorbell...doorbell

Here's Vanessa waiting for the doorbell Happy Halloween everyone! We spent this year's Halloween in our new house in our new neighborhood anxiously waiting to hand candy to all the costumed kids. Waiting...and waiting...and waiting. The rain poured down most of the night that the few kids we did get had moms & dads waiting in their car in the driveway. Poor things. The rain let up for a little while and Vanessa was all too excited to answer the door. "Doorbell....doorbell...doorbell" was ALL we heard ALL night long. Seriously, ALL NIGHT LONG. She got to see her share of costumes, including a visit from Barack Obama, and no thanks to Mother Nature and the rain mom and dad got much much more of their share of left over candy. Barack Obama visits

Pumpkins, cider donuts and Reggae music

We headed back to the apple orchard this weekend to pick up some pumpkins...of course while there we had to get a few more apples and grab some yummy cider donuts too. The place was packed with people, the line for donuts unreal but so worth the wait. You can't go apple picking without getting cider donuts...just like you can't have an apple orchard in Upstate NY without a great live Reggae band. Right??? Take a peek at the video of Vanessa gettin' her groove on to the steel drums. She was a real show stealer ;-) It's truly Fall everywhere here! We took some pictures of Juan getting his taste of the joy's of home ownership in the fall (or maybe it's the woes of owning a mulching mower and not a bagged one?)

Beach fun

Who says beaches are only for the summer...not us! We got to spend the weekend with friends up in Wells Beach, Maine and aside from a little rainy drizzle on Saturday the weekend was perfect. Vanessa got to hang with her friends Rich and Maddie and even got to have a little dance party - her favorite activity especially when she has partners to dance with. We also got to enjoy some time in the sand which Vanessa was all too happy to do. It was pretty clear to this mom and dad that next summer needs to include a lot more beach time (ok by me!). On second thought, maybe she was trying to tell us we need to buy a beach house???? Before we hit the road for Maine we had a great visit with Aunt Sue or as Vanessa calls her "Aunt Ssss-Ssss". Vanessa loves having visitors and was not shy with cuddles and kisses.

Thump thump...thump thump

Yesterday we all went to my OB appointment and got to hear the little heartbeat growing inside! Thump, thump...thump, thump. Music to our ears. Even Vanessa was curious about the funny sound coming from mommy's belly, either that or wondering why this strange woman was putting a machine over it. I'm 13 weeks at the end of this week, the countdown to April 2010 has begun. The new blanco isn't the only one growing, Vanessa had her 15 month check up this week and is getting taller by the day. She weighed in at just 21lbs (our little peanut still), but is now 31 1/2 inches tall. She may only be in the 10% percentile for weight but she's now in the 60th percentile for height....grow girl, grow. Nothing wrong with being tall and thin! The better to hit the golf ball according to daddy.

Apple Picking

We can hardly believe the summer is over - blink in Upstate NY and it seems like you miss it. We spent the summer visiting with friends and enjoying every bit of the outdoors. It really seems quite amazing how every day things you've done before suddenly seem new and exciting when you start seeing them through the eyes of a 15mos old! Vanessa had a great summer for sure and we're now moving on to Fall...and nothing says Fall like a little apple picking! Vanessa (and Juan) had their first taste of what this little tradition is all about. Now I've got to learn to make apple pie :-/

Our new t-shirt is much more than a pair of cute owls

Nothing says "sorry we've been slackers about blog posts" better than a new post showing off Vanessa's new t-shirt ;-) Baby Blanco #2 blessing our lives on, around or as close to April 10th, 2010

Cruisin' on the lake

Summer fun here in NY! What could be better than sitting out on deck watching an amazing lake view with friends? We spent time out at Lake Bonaparte this weekend with the Hardings and our gracious hosts Doug and (Sara) Zido. Vanessa boarded a boat for the first time and seemed to like it (well, except the first time but we'll blame that one on poor timing and planning on mom's part since it was dangerously close to dinner time). It was also her first real feel of wet sand. LOL! Very funny to watch, she didn't quite know what to make of the way it felt in her toes. Wet sand aside she had fun playing and splashing in the water, watching (or was it stalking?) two-year old Maddie and hanging out with everyone. She even fell asleep sitting up in mommy's hands on the way back to camp.

Visitors from the east

We were lucky this weekend and had two special visitors from MA come to play...Kelley and her little boy Colton. Vanessa had lots of fun chasing (or was it following) Colton around, playing with his cars and of course a little dance party action was had! You think Vanessa has some moves, you should see Colton salsa! Once the kiddies were in bed the mommies got to hang on the deck with a nice bottle of wine, some hungry mosquito's and lot's of girl talk! On another note, miss Vanessa's getting pretty good at holding a golf club. Daddy's very proud. Watch out folks...it's not just Sam Woods you'll be watching on the future LPGA.

Enjoying summer

We've been keeping busy and trying to enjoy every nice day we have...isn't summer great! Hoping everyone had a great 4th full of family, friends and fun. Can't believe it's July already...where does the time go?? They aren't kidding when they say once you have children the calendar seems shorter. Vanessa is doing great - walking, no wait...nearly running, everywhere and babbling away more than ever. So funny to have "conversations" with a 13month old. This past weekend marked my first Utica Boilermaker 15k RoadRace (9.3 miles)...one word = amazing! An insane amount of people everywhere it was so crazy and yet so fun. I finished 4,811th out of 10,852 runners. LOL!! Amy and I were happy with our time (1:23min) especially since the first three miles we could barely take four steps before we were getting kicked in the shins by the people in front of us. Seemed as though every time we passed someone there we were again behind a "wall" of sweaty rear-ends. I never ran in such a zig-zag before, but I'll do it all again next year. The fact that the finish line is at the Saranac Brewery might make up for some of the frustration. We left Vanessa with grandma since we figured an 8am start and 40,000 spectators might be a bit much for her...maybe next year.