RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY...

Today was a rainy, depressing day. It rained from the time I woke up until now (9:40 P.M.). Yuck! It already sucks bad enough knowing this is my last week home with Dominick, the rain sure didn't help. I officially start back at work on Jan. 16, but I'm gonna send Dominick to daycare for about 4 hours a day starting next week, just to get him used to it. While he's at daycare, I'll go to my school and help out in my class, to get reacquainted with everything going on there. YUCK!

When Dominick starts daycare, they take naps on those little mats on the floor, the kind they use in kindergarten. I am freaking out thinking, there is no way this child is going to sleep on that mat, much less in the same room with 7 other one-year-olds. The daycare teacher told me that all the parents freak out about that but that he WILL learn to do it. So today Jon and I laid the little mat on the floor in his room and pretended to sleep for about an hour in hopes of getting him used to it. Well guess what, IT DIDN'T WORK!!! He happily played in his dark room the whole time. Oh well, I will probably have a very unrested, cranky baby on my hands for several weeks until he learns the whole nap routine at daycare. Poor baby!

I am just freaking out about everything, like how am I going to get myself and Dominick ready and out the door by 6:30 every morning. Jon leaves before I even wake up so forget about thinking I have help around here. And what am I going to eat for breakfast??? I used to stop at Sonic every single day for my diet coke and breakfast, but I'm not gonna have time for that. I seriously thought all day, how am I gonna do this breakfast thing. If ya'll only knew me, I am soooo not a morning person. I NEVER feel good when I wake up.

Okay, sorry about all the complaining. Here are a few pictures of Dominick playing with one of his birthday toys from his special Guatemalan buddy, Noah.

TRIP TO THE PARK

OK everyone I was tagged, by Holly, and I have to tag three more people. They will be Ana's Mama, Andrea, Faith's Journey, Ginger, and Stephanie.I know that is 5 people and not 3, just in case I picked someone that has already been tagged.

1. FIRST NAME? Lynn
2. WERE YOU NAMED AFTER ANYONE? Nope
3. WHEN DID YOU LAST CRY? This morning, I was tired and my hubby decided to go get Dominick our of his bed before I normally get up and then brought him to me and left for work. I was mad.
5. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE LUNCH MEAT? Cajun turkey
6. KIDS? Dominick (1 yr. old boy) and Mickey & Gizmo (fur-babies)
7. IF YOU WERE ANOTHER PERSON WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH YOU? Probably not, our personalities would clash.
8. DO YOU HAVE A JOURNAL? No, other than my blog
9. DO YOU USE SARCASM A LOT? Sometimes, not too often
10. DO YOU STILL HAVE YOUR TONSILS? Yep
11. WOULD YOU BUNGEE JUMP? No, I'd love to but I'm too chicken.
12. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE CEREAL? Don't eat it
13. DO YOU UNTIE YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OFF? No, I don't think I do
14. DO YOU THINK YOU ARE STRONG? Emotionally-yes, physically-NO
15. WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE ICE CREAM FLAVOR? Chocolate-Peanut Butter from Baskin Robins
16. SHOE SIZE? 6
17. RED OR PINK? RED, but I'm starting to like pink for some reason
18. WHAT IS YOUR LEAST FAVORITE THING ABOUT YOURSELF? Probably my hair, it is SUPER thick, frizzy, wiry, and curly. Hate it!
19. WHO DO YOU MISS THE MOST? Probably my mom, we live 3 hours apart
20. DO YOU WANT EVERYONE TO SEND THIS BACK TO YOU? Yes
21. WHAT COLOR PANTS AND SHOES ARE YOU WEARING? Blue jeans and black Crocs
22. LAST THING YOU ATE? Meatball & cheese hot pocket
23. WHAT ARE YOU LISTENING TO RIGHT NOW? The T.V. in the other room
24. IF YOU WERE A CRAYON, WHAT COLOR WOULD YOU BE? Blue or Red
25. FAVORITE SMELL? lime light Tyler candles or Green Apple Lampe Berger Oil
26. WHO WAS THE LAST PERSON YOU TALKED TO ON THE PHONE? Jon
27. THE FIRST THING YOU NOTICE ABOUT PEOPLE YOU ARE ATTRACTED TO? I'm really not sure, kinda notice the overall picture, not details
28. DO YOU LIKE THE PERSON WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? YES
29. FAVORITE DRINK? Diet coke, preferably fountain drink style in a Styrofoams cup
30. FAVORITE SPORT? I hate sports, other than shopping :)
31. EYE COLOR? Blue
32. HAT SIZE? I have no idea
33. DO YOU WEAR CONTACTS? Yes, have been since the 7th grade
34. FAVORITE FOOD? Mexican chicken chimichangas
35. SCARY MOVIES OR HAPPY ENDINGS? Happy Endings
36. LAST MOVIE YOU WATCHED AT THE MOVIES? Can't remember, going to the movies is one of the things I miss the most since becoming a Mommy
37. WHAT COLOR SHIRT ARE YOU WEARING? Yellowish-organish
38. SUMMER OR WINTER? Summer, love to swim, wear sandals, etc. PLUS I don't work in the Summer!!!!
39. HUGS OR KISSES? Hugs
40. FAVORITE DESSERT? this banana split cake thingy I make & cheese cake
41. WHO IS LEAST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Not sure
42. MOST LIKELY TO RESPOND? Not sure
43. WHAT BOOKS ARE YOU READING? Separate Lives (don't remember author's name)
44. WHAT'S ON YOUR MOUSE PAD? Don't use one, I have the laser thing and don't' need a mouse pad
45. WHAT DID YOU WATCH ON TV LAST NIGHT? Dog the Bounty Hunter (nothing else was on)
46. FAVORITE SOUNDS? Complete quiet, which is treasured when you teach 1st grade
47. ROLLING STONES OR THE BEATLES? Neither
48. THE FURTHEST YOU'VE BEEN FROM HOME? Either Jamaica, Cayman Islands, Guatemala, or Maine (don't know which one is furthest)
49. WHAT'S YOUR SPECIAL TALENT? Not sure, maybe living with my hubby for almost 10 years (Just kidding)
50. WHEN AND WHERE WERE YOU BORN? Dec. 17, 1976 in Louisiana
51. WHO SENT THIS TO YOU? Some weirdo chick named Holly ;)

Today Dominick pointed at the door and said "Bye-Bye". I figured he wanted to go outside because I know he isn't especially fond of the car seat. Even though it was pretty cold, I decided to take him to the park to swing because he's starting daycare next week and this is my last full week at home with him before Easter break. So I took him to the park and he got to swing but wasn't too happy because he didn't fit in the swing too comfortably. I called Jon at work and told him about it. So when Jon got home from work, guess what he FINALLY decided to do??? He FINALLY put the hooks up so we could hang a swing for Dominick at home. I have been begging him to do that for at least 4 months now.

Here's Dominick swinging at the park in my friend's subdivision.

He's wearing his Guatemalan coat my parents gave him for Christmas.

As you can see he was not too comfortable in this swing. He couldn't move his arms.

This is the lake at the park.

This is Dominick's very own swing at home that Jon FINALLY installed.

Dominick loved this swing so much he did not want to get out, but it was cold so we couldn't let him stay in it very long. When I took him out he screamed as if he was in pain and continued to cry on and off for at least 30 minutes. We tried to distract him but he kept crawling back to the door, saying "Bye-Bye" and screaming. I guess this is just the beginning of a whole lot of temper tantrums.

This picture is for you Mrs. Betsy. Thanks so much for this warm, fuzzy outfit. I love it!

And here is my handsome little man in his new shirt from his one and only aunt from Arkansas (Jon's sister). By the way, Dominick is still trying to walk. He takes 2-5 steps here and there through out the day. Other than that, he is still his same speed crawler self. He is growing so much all of the sudden. Either my dryer is suddenly shrinking all of his clothes, or this little guy is having a growth spurt.

FIRST BIRTHDAY PARTY!!!

Okay this is off the topic but I'm going to say it anyway. I've been having a lot of problems with this certain person in my "family". From this point on I will refer to this person as D.A. ( you can figure out what that stands for yourself). It is impossible to reach an understanding with D.A. because D.A. does not think or reason like you and me and D.A. likes to TWIST your words and come up with his/her own story, which is amazingly off from what actually happened. It just amazes me. I have never dealt with someone more moronic in my entire life. Why am I telling you guys about this amazingly dim-witted person, because I just want to remind you all that when someone tells you a story of an argument, please ALWAYS remember that there are 2 sides to that story. D.A. has run off and told everyone who will listen to him/her a COMPLETELY different story (leaving out many bits and pieces and adding in false bits and pieces) than has actually been happening over the past 11 years I've known D.A. It baffles me that anyone could TWIST the facts so much and come out with such a different story than what actually happened. But I'm over it, I give up on trying to reason with D.A. and feel the relationship is too far gone to ever be reconciled. In conclusion to this very boring story, I just have to say Thank God Jon and I didn't have a biological child together because it seriously wouldn't be worth the risk of that child inheriting the brain and emotional problems of D.A. I would hate to have a child that was this unreasonable and ludicrous.

Dominick's birthday turned out great. I cooked a gumbo and Jon and my immediate family and some special friends of ours came over.

Dominick's birthday theme was rubber duckies, only because I wanted it to have something he liked and knew about and he loves ducks and says "quack, quack" in the cutest voice when he sees a duck. I ordered all his stuff off the internet. They had other cute themes like cars and trucks, but he's not into any of that yet so I was limited in my choices.

I ordered his cake from Albertson's and because it was his 1st b-day, they threw in an additional FREE smash cake for him and a package containing a #1 candle, a balloon, and a disposable camera. So for those of you planning a 1st b-day, I'd highly recommend getting the cake from Alberston's. Only $14.99 and they let me choose the icing, filling, type of cake batter, etc.

This is the FREE smash cake they gave us.

Here's my little one year old smiling at his Tio (uncle/godfather).

Dominick opening all of his presents with help from his Momma and Tio.

Dominick laughing at his Tio again while Paw Paw held him.

This was not the cake Dominick was supposed to smash but while I was holding it next to him and we were singing Happy Birthday, he reached over and grabbed a handful of cake. Then he didn't know what to do with it so he tried to hand it to me and then plopped it on the floor. He hadn't realised at this point that this was something very good to eat.

I didn't give him the entire smash cake but we gave him a piece of cake and this is what it looked like after about 10 minutes of playing with it. Needless to say he went straight into the bath tub after this.

We have this all on video and you can here my brother (Tio) chanting

"You're gonna have purple poo-poo"

to Dominick. I guess that's what uncles are for.

HE'S WALKING!!!

No new pictures but I just had to let you guys know that my little man IS WALKING!!!!!!! Oh my gosh, I'm so excited. I was just telling Jon tonight that I'm probably gonna miss Dominick's first steps because I'm going back to work in a few weeks. Isn't God good...He made sure that I didn't miss my little man's first steps!!!

So this is what happened, Jon's cousin came over tonight with her baby who is 13 months and has been walking since she was 10 months. I'm not sure if Dominick seeing her walk had anything to do with him walking. So they left and a few minutes later Jon and I were sitting on the couch, I was blabbing away as usual, and watching Dominick in the corner by Gizmo's dog bed. He took a toy out of Gizmo's bed and stood up. Then I saw he walking towards the dog bed but for I split second I didn't realize he wasn't holding on to anything. He took about 4 steps and then I GASPED loudly and Dominick turned around to look at me and stopped walking. I couldn't believe my eyes and asked Jon "Did you see that" and he said "yeah" and was smiling ear to ear. Then we started cheering for our little man. I took him in the middle of the living room and Jon held him and we said "walk" and he took 4 more steps before falling. Wow, I can't believe it. It was the cutest thing and I thank God for letting me be there for those first steps. After missing the first 9 months of his life, that was really important to me.

Dominick's birthday is tomorrow so I'll try to post pictures of it on Monday.

Brush Those Teeth

Dominick was concentrating on brushing his 8 little teeth. We try to brush his teeth twice a day and he loves to brush them himself.

His shirt says "I'm with the band". I had to return the boots that went with this outfit because they were too small and they didn't have any others to exchange them for. Dominick is outgrowing his 12 month clothes and I know the 18 months would be way too big for him so I don't know what I'm gonna do. This child eats soooo much. He eats a whole package of oat meal for breakfast, a whole banana for his morning snack, a whole can of soup plus added veggies for lunch, a whole container of yogurt for his afternoon snack, and a full dinner, plus cheerios through out the day. He'd eat more than that if I let him.

This was one of my favorite gifts that was given to Dominick. My brother is a huge LSU fan and a sports fanatic and he bought Dominick this soft LSU bat and ball set. It was one of the only gifts I didn't know about so it was fun for me to have a surprise for my little man.

Jon put Dominick in the laundry basket as a joke but then Dominick didn't want to get out and would cry when we tired to take him out. It turned out to be a mistake on Jon's part because he had to hold the laundry basket so Dominick wouldn't tilt it over for about 15 minutes while Dominick played in it.

More playing in the laundry basket.

Gizmo decided to join the fun in the laundry basket.

Here are a few of the gifts Dominick got for Christmas.

This train is one of his favorites.

This truck is one of my favorites. It's big and squishy and makes noises.

These Peek-a-blocks are pretty cool. They have lego pegs on them so you can build things with them.

This is a coat from Guatemala my parents got for him.

Dominick looooves animals and he looooves books. He knows the sounds that about 10 animals make.

Finally a new Baby Einstein movie. These are the only movies he will watch and he just loooves them. He gets so excited and claps and jumps up and down. Too cute! I put him in his pack-and-play every morning after breakfast and he watches a movie while I take a shower and get dressed.

Dominick's 1st birthday is this coming Sunday so he will have more toys and presents ot open. We are having a little party for him and I'll try to post pictures of it on Monday.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESUS!!!

Our Christmas was wonderful. We were lucky to have all our family together, including my precious niece Nicole (my brother's baby) who lives in North Carolina with her mother. Her mother was so kind to allow us to spend time with her over the Holidays. I hadn't seen Nicole since last May and I missed her so much. Here is Dominick crawling down the driveway. This was the first time Dominick actually got to play outside. We live on a busy street and our driveway is not new and clean like my parents' so we can't let Dominick get on the ground and play. We are trying to sell our house and buy a new one so hopefully we'll have a new clean driveway that he can play in one day soon.Dominick riding his car at Maw Maw and Paw Paw's house.Thank you Mrs. Diane and Mr. Paul for the puppy dog. Dominick loves it!!!
Dominick finally got to meet his cousin Nicole.
Nicole and Dominick on Christmas morning wearing their matching PJ's

Lynn (me) and Dee (my mom) cooking Christmas dinner

Dominick and Nicole all dressed up for church

We had a hard time taking pictures with the babies because they were very uncooperative and had much more important things to be doing.

My baby brother Jacob and his daughter Nicole

I love this picture of me and my 3 boys Gizmo, Mickey & Dominick. It's funny because everyone used to tease me and tell me that my dogs were going to be put off to the side when Dominick came home but they didn't. I love them just as much as I have for the past 10 years. They are like children to Jon and me and they are so precious to us because we know they are getting older and won't always be around. They have been so loyal to us all these years and I'd do anything for them. They sleep in our bed every night and we won't leave them with anyone other than my parents or brothers. It kinda stinks because we can't all go on a vacation together because I refuse to leave my dogs with anyone else. I'd pass up a vacation without even thinking twice before I'd EVER leave them in a kennel.

Our Christmas was fantastic. Dominick got a lot of toys but not too many. I was quite proud of myself for not going over board with the gifts. Now, when he's older and actually knows what's going on, it might be a whole other story as far as gifts go. I can't wait to be able to buy him a swing set, 4-wheeler, and all that cool stuff. But hopefully I'll wait until he can actually enjoy it since he has no clue about wanting more toys and things at this age. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas and I wish you all HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

My birthday weekend turned out great, one of the best ever. Now that we are all grown up, birthdays aren't a big deal in my family. I never get a cake because: 1) Jon never buys me one

2) I'd have to eat the whole thing b/c Jon doesn't eat cake at all.

So I'm lucky if I even get a card from him. My parents always send me a card and gifts. But this year was different. Jon got me a card from Dominick and planned our little outing. My parents got me a cake, card, presents and dinner. My borthers both called and sent gifts. So it turned out to be a special b-day. My parents are so awesome. Not only did they both drive 3 hours to my house, take off a day of work, and babysit Dominick for 2 days, my mom also cleaned 2 of my bathrooms, swept, mopped, and did the dishes. I'm so very grateful for my family. They are truly awesome and I don't know what I'd do without them.

By the way, Dominick now knows how to say Paw Paw after spending the weekend with my dad and hearing my dad say it 50 billion times. Too funny!

My yummy cake

Dominick took it upon himself to help me open my presents.

My "big brother" Steve got me this cool clock with pictures of me and Dominick on it.

My favorite gift was being a Mommy to my precious Dominick. I didn't even have to make a birthday wish this year because it already came true. Maybe next year I'll wish for a baby sister for Dominick.We ate dinner at a Japanese restaurant where they cook in front of you. Dominick started crying every time he looked at our cook. I think he might have thought the cook was Santa.

He got so upset I had to take him out of his chair and hold him.

These are my best friend's triplets, Geoffrey, Elise and Adam. Aren't they the cutest things ever!?!!

They have gotten so big. They were soooo teeny tiny when they were born but they have already caught up in weight and height.