Quick Takes

1) I just finished my first semester at UMSL.  I am studying accounting in hopes that I will eventually sit for the CPA exam.  Accounting is interesting, but other areas of business interest me as well.  I enjoyed my finance class at Missouri State, so I may pursue a finance minor.  Guess we'll see what happens.  Thankfully I was able to get one semester down while being a full-time stay-at-home daddy with the little miss.

2) Gianna is fascinated with a photo album that my wife's mom gave to us.  She flips the pages back and forth, back and forth.  I am not quite sure why she likes it, but I think the crinkly sound of the pages might grab her attention.  

3) Only 11 days till Christmas!  Gianna's first--outside the womb--and I am pretty sure it will be the first one we get to celebrate in our own home!  The first couple of years we were either out of town or at my wife's parents' house.  This year we will be waking up in our cozy little apartment.  Hope Santa has time for a visit :)  

4) Next week is Gianna's godmother's birthday.  Auntie Carol will be__ on Dec. 19th.  Happy Birthday to a great fairy godmother!  (It's an inside joke that would take too long to explain).  

5) Gianna is a huge fan of frozen squash.  I baked a squash last week and froze the 'meat' in an ice tray.  After eating two cubes of it yesterday, I tried feeding her a banana, but she pointed to the empty squash dish and grunted.  I got more out for her, and boy was she a happy camper.

6) It was a great week of feast days in the Church's calendar.  St. Damasus I, Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Lucy, and St. John of the Cross were honored this week.  According to a post on Facebook by my older brother, John, St. Damasus "commissioned St. Jerome to revise the Latin text of the Bible by producing a single 'Vulgate.'"  Cool deal.  May these great saints continue to pray for us!  

7) Speaking of the saints, last Saturday was the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception.  Besides being an awesome celebration, it was a day of remembering a miscarried child for Lauren and I.  Nicholas Marian went to God on this day in 2010.  Although it was a sad time for us, we have great hope that he--we both have a strong inkling that he was a boy--is praying for us in heaven.  Praise God for the gift of children!  

That's all for now.  Take care, everyone, and happy Advent!

What's Happenin'

It's been a long time since my last post.  Can't even remember what it was about.  Guess I need to go back to read it before I write this one.  Nah.

Anyway, so much seems to be happening these days in the Kelly home.  Gianna is learning new tricks and mommy and daddy are learning how to handle this growing child.  Recently, the baby girl got a runny nose.  It kind of happened all of a sudden.  We have been wiping it with basically whatever: napkin, towel, rag, our own hands.  It is messy, but it is worth every wipe.  I have used the NoseFrida--thanks Ted and Katie!--on her once, but she freaked out, so I've stuck with just wiping her down. 

On a much happier note, Gianna is walking on her own, shall I say it, two feet!  When we were down visiting my family in Springfield for Thanksgiving, she said heck with this holding on to people stuff and started taking steps.  She is moving all over the house now.  We are quickly figuring out how to baby-proof things before Gianna gets a hold of something.  Looks like the Christmas tree will be harder to figure out than I first thought.  We want to put it on a table or stand, but we think she will reach it.  Any suggestions on baby-proofing a Christmas tree are most welcome!

Gianna is eating a wider variety of solid foods.  To name a few: avocado, banana, sweet potato, apple sauce, squash, pickle.  She can pretty much eat an entire banana every morning when I feed it to her.  She has yet to start feeding herself, but she is getting there...baby steps :)

A couple of Saturdays ago, we attended a Mass of consecration of children to the Blessed Mother.  There were about 100 people in attendance.  Also in attendance was staff from the St. Louis Review, the archdiocesan newspaper.  The photographer took a few shots of Lauren and Gianna and of several other families.  This past week's edition came out on Thursday, and guess what?  Lauren and Gianna were on the front cover!  It's a pic of Lauren smiling at Gianna, and the caption reads "Keeping Watch over Families."  We have received many comments thru texts, phone calls, and Facebook.  I think the best one yet came from Lauren's doctor.  He said in his voice mail that the photographer did a good job of capturing motherhood in action.  I thought that was very kind of him to say.  It was also very thoughtful of him to even call knowing that he is a very busy man.  My girls are celebrities now...

One final note: Gianna visited Santa this past weekend.  She even sat on his lap.  Lauren wasn't able to go because she was proctoring the ACT, so I snapped a few shots of the baby for her.  See for yourself.  It's of Gianna looking up at Santa with the look that says "who is this guy?"

Happy Advent to all and God bless!

Thanksgiving

This year, my wife, Gianna, and I will be visiting my family for Thanksgiving.  We will be fortunate to see them for several days, and it looks like God will be blessing us with good weather.  In the spirit of this holiday of gratitude, I want to dedicate this post to five things I thank God for:

• For my family.  My wife and daughter are a tremendous blessing.  The great love they show me reminds me and makes me think more about the infinite love God has for us.  I am becoming the man God wants me to be because of them.  Our immediate families are a blessing as well.  They have been very generous in support of us as we strive to be the best parents we can be for Gianna. 

• For the time with Gianna.  This blog began because I wanted to share with others the joys of being a stay-at-home dad.  It has been very joyful!  The time we get to be together eating bananas, playing in the bathtub, going on walks, making it to Mass when we can, talking to and kissing our Jesus and Mary statue ...I would never trade these moments for anything.  I have learned how to be more patient, humble, grateful, sincere...the list goes one.

• For my wife's job.  My wife doesn't view it as a  job, but as a calling.  She puts a lot of effort into teaching her students about physical education and health (I can tell by how tired she is when she returns home).  She wants them to know that their bodies are temples of God, and they must take care of them.  God bless my wife for her dedication to serving these young women.

• For our friends.  We have been able to spend some quality time with many friends since Gianna's birth (you know who you are!).  They have been there to give advice as well as to help keep our sanity.  God bless them all!

•  For our faith.  Our Catholic faith is what keeps us going every day.  It keeps us fed, keeps us accountable, keeps us striving to be better Christians...ultimately, it keeps us on the path to holiness.  Without our faith, we would be truly lost.  Not only do I thank God for our faith, but I thank our parents for passing it along to us.  Besides giving us the great gift of life, our parents gave us this great gift of faith, something they knew would be good for us.  Oh, were they right!  Praise God for our faith, praise God for our parents!

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving, and remember to count your blessings especially the gift of life your parents gave you.  Without it, you would not be able to celebrate this joyous holiday.  God's love and joy to everyone!

Quick Take Friday

 

1) Gianna experienced her first Halloween this year.  She was a ballerina.  We visited my in-laws and Gianna went through a bowl of candy...no, she didn't eat the candy.  She picked up the wrapped chocolates one at a time, sucked on each one briefly, and threw them on the floor.

2) Gianna is now 10 months old!  In no time she will be walking all over...need to start baby-proofing the apartment.

3) Gianna received her first book today through a book exchange chain letter.  It's called "The Clown of God."  Looks to be a winner...thanks to the person who sent it!

4) Last weekend Gianna and I went to watch my brother's team play soccer.  I am out for the rest of the season...I suffered a mild concussion from heading the ball (it was against my brother's team).  It was dumb of me.  I knew the concussion was coming on right after I hit it.  I feel better, but it was scary.  

5) Gianna voted for the first time this past Tuesday!  Okay, not really.  I held her as I voted.  She was calm as could be.  The boy with his parents in front of us kept her distracted.  Too bad the results ended up being what they were.  Gotta "keep on looking up," as my brother said.  Pray for our newly elected and re-elected officials.  They need 'em.  

6) Tonight we'll be going to my wife's school to see the play "Pirates of Penzance."  Looking forward to the play...not so much looking forward to trying to keep little miss quiet.  Let's hope it works out.

7) Below are a few pictures to enjoy of Gianna incognito.  

Have a blessed weekend, everyone!

Our Growing Girl

Gianna is growing.  She is definitely a petite girl, but she has made some progress since her birth.  Here are some quick facts on our little miss:

-          Weight: 16 lb 9 oz

-          Height: 27 in

-          Teeth count: 5 (almost 6); boy, are they hurting her right now

-          Hair: Getting darker in some places and longer

-          Words: lots of “ma ma ma” and “ba ba ba”

-          Mobility: Skipped crawling; walks with the aid of us or objects

Gianna will be 10 months old in November…how time flies!  I’ve enjoyed every minute of it, well, at least in the absence of Daddy Jekyll.  I am bracing myself for when Gianna begins to walk without aid.  I’m gonna have to start working out more in order to be well prepared.

Have a good rest of the weekend and remember to pray for our priests on Priesthood Sunday.  God bless!

Shhh...

Gianna is sleeping.  She's been sleeping for about an hour.  I've been able to get some work done for school.  This is amazing since last night she had another painful teething I-am-gonnna-scream-till-mom-gets-me-nights.  Please say a prayer that she gets through this teething phase soon...and Lauren gets enough sleep so she can focus at work.

On another note, we went to the park on Saturday and took fall pictures with Gianna.  She sat on the ground and threw leaves around.  A  few of them ended up in her mouth, but it wasn't too bad. I'll be sending out some of those photos to friends and family.  If you want to see them, please let me know through Facebook or email. 

Finally, we had babyfest at one of our friends' house on Friday night.  Five young ones playing (the tickle-me-Elmo dancing time was hilarious) and having a ball.  It was great.  Gianna didn't cry until she was ready to fall asleep.  Praise God for play dates.

God bless you all and happy feast of Blessed Pope John Paul II!

Our Beautiful Daughter

My wife and I love our daughter very much.  She keeps us on our toes and brings so much joy to our hearts.  She is cute, stubborn, playful, tickly, a mommy and daddy-girl, lovable, hugable, cuddly...the list goes on and on.  She is also very photogenic!  When Gianna sees the camera, she gets excited and puts on happy face.  To prove how great that smile is, Lauren and I, after careful consideration, have decided that ONE photo of Gianna on the web would be acceptable.  This shot was taken this evening during dinner.  The smile on her face came after she saw a picture of herself on my phone.  We hope you enjoy, and may it make you smile!