He arrived Thursday night at 8:03 pm, weighed in at 7.5 lbs and was 19.3 inches long. We just got home from the hospital on Tuesday afternoon, so we’re taking it easy these days.
Thanks to those of you who have sent me congratulations!
I have to say, he’s the cutest baby I’ve ever seen. But, I may be prejudiced.
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9 Comments » Mom and Dad, that is, not my baby. Their plane should be touching down in Rome in a little while, then they’ll be taking the train from Rome to Pescara and on to Vasto where we’ll pick them up later today.
Of course, now the little guy has to wait, at least until we pick them up. But, no worries, he seems to like it right where he is. Then again, maybe he’s waiting for his grandparents to arrive before he makes his big debut.
Big may be the operative word too considering that a month ago the ultrasound estimate already showed him as weighing 3 kilos. He may be 4 kilos by now. Gulp!
Just a couple more days to go…….unless he decides to hang around a bit more.
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The other day, O came home and presented me with this rose.
Now, to some it may mean absolutely nothing. After all, what’s the big deal? In front of the school that’s right by my house there’s a rose garden and he obviously picked it there.
But, does that change anything? Did he have to pay something for the rose in order for it to be something special?
Obviously, as he was walking by the rose garden, he was thinking of me. That’s the first important thing.
But, there’s more. It was after a rainstorm and all of the roses were downtrodden and wet. Have you ever seen roses after a rainstorm? They’ve lost all of their beauty at that point, the petals are falling off, they have spots on them, and sometimes the flowers themselves are nodding down.
So, obviously O not only thought about me, but took the time to pick the perfect rose from all of the roses that were there. I can picture him checking out all of the plants, looking for just the right bloom that hadn’t been too damaged and still looked beautiful.
Anyone can stop by a store and pick up a bouquet of flowers, a piece of jewelry, a box of chocolates. Most often it’s done when someone feels “obligated” to do so - birthdays, anniversaries, Valentine’s Day, etc. But to me, it’s more the little gestures like this one that mean the most. Something small to say, I was thinking about you today.
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It seems strange just sitting here waiting for a sign - which is basically what we’re doing. Of course, every time I make some kind of noise O comes running. I tell him not to worry, that in the beginning there’s plenty of time, but he’s not buying it.
Yesterday we finished the final rounds of tests and filled out papers for the cord blood donation, so everything is all set. We’re just waiting for the little guy to decide when he wants to greet the world.
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Some of you may have noticed the white lace under the bombonieri that I had on my blog yesterday.
Those are called merletti or, in dialect, puzzuell’, not to be mistaken with pizzelle which are yummy waffle cookies. Of course, spelling anything in dialect is just about impossible, but you get the idea. At first I was never sure what O’s mom was making, cookies or lace. But, now I hear the difference.
Anyway, it’s a common sight around here to see the older women sitting in the sun (in the summer) or next to the fire (in the winter), crocheting away with tiny hooks to make various pieces of merletti. And, in most houses, any piece of furniture you see probably has a covering made of this on top of it. Many times, they’ll also purchase a nice piece of embroidered material and add their own lace edge around it.
I, of course, don’t have the patience or time to make these things, but O’s mom keeps me in good supply. First of all, she made him a whole set of things for the house a long time ago. She even made an entire coverlet for a king sized bed out of the stuff. Now that’s patience!
Of course, with baby on the way, you can be sure that she’s made a “copertina” for him too.
There are numerous patterns, many times they’ve made them up themselves, and often what one lady knows, another doesn’t.
The other day, I decided to wash all of them and hung them out to dry on the line in the sun. A few hours later the doorbell rings and it’s O’s mom. It seems one of the other ladies saw a pattern she liked and asked her how to make it. So, she had to come and see which pattern it was so that she could make a sample for the other lady. Of course, none of these patterns are written down either - it’s all in their head. O’s mom is amazing, she can see a pattern that someone else has made and copy it with no problem. I would need to have it written down or else I’d never be able to decipher it.
Here are some of the patterns. To be honest, I don’t know which one I like best…. Which one is your favorite?
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