Cuddle-time with Landon

Landon, Cailyn and their mommy & daddy came over for lunch today.  After mass, Vince and I are able to get a decent meal on the table in just under one hour of preparation!  Here's Landon cuddling with mommy, just before she gobbled down her lunch.  Then it was Landon's lunch-time!

Now this is the look of contentment, and full bellies for both!

This is one tired Daddy, and 5-week old Landon! 

Landon enjoyed "tummy-time" on the blanket during Cailyn's naptime...and then Aunt Alissa had a turn cuddling Landon too!  Mimi was privileged to change a diaper and feed Landon a few ounces of formula today...what a hungry little guy he is!

And when Landon isn't sleeping in the basket, "baby kitty" has decided it's a great place for nap too!

Playtime with Cailyn

We are lucky to be able to see our grandchildren usually once a week! Two year olds are very busy, so playtime with Cailyn is lots of fun! Cailyn loves playing dress-up...Aunt Alissa helped her dress up a teddy bear too!

She likes playing at her little table from Great Grandma & Great Grandpa. Here, Cailyn and her Grandpa are playing a "match game"!

Swinging in our backyard is always fun, after we collect leaves and throw them up in the air. The whirly-gigs are examined each visit too!

Tea parties are always a favorite. Mimi and Cailyn enjoy "o's" with every tea party!

Soon after Landon was born, Mimi took a day off from work to have a play-day with Cailyn. We walked over to a neighborhood park, played in the sand, went down the slides....

and had a "teddy bear picnic" at the park! I know the teddy bears really enjoyed it, as did Mimi!

The sky never seems as blue, nor the clouds as pretty, as when I look at them through the eyes of a child!

Last, but not least, Cailyn borrowed Landon's new football for a fun game that Grandpa created....throwing a ball in the house! ;-) Watch the videos....in the first one, you'll see how quickly Cailyn's attention turns from picking up the ball to something else....

Another Birthday to celebrate...

I know it is a cliche, but "where did all those years go?" It's very hard for me to realize that our oldest child will be 33 years old tomorrow. Jennifer was always our easy-going, wanting-to-please kind of child...didn't like messy hands, but loved animals. Jennifer made friends easily, and enjoyed the outdoors. She wanted any and all pets, from hamsters to iguanas...and Jennifer

still has a kindred spirit for God's furry creatures!

Birthdays are always a BIG DEAL for children, and I guess, as a mother, it's hard for me to let go of that "big deal" kind of feeling when it comes to celebrations for our children, and now our grandchildren.

The trouble is that we now had to celebrate Jen's birthday via webcam this afternoon.

She was a good sport listening to us sing our rendition of "Happy Birthday to you..." and we watched her open little presents from us. Then her niece Cailyn did the honors and blew out the candle on the tray of cupcakes I had made for our "virtual birthday party" in Jen's honor.

It just isn't the same as giving her a big hug in person though!

Jennifer, we hope celebrating your first birthday in Florida instead of Arizona is a special one...You are a beautiful woman, inside and out. Here's Jen on her 30th birthday, and I'm sure she hasn't changed a bit! (except maybe her hair style or color!) HAPPY BIRTHDAY, JENNIFER!! WE LOVE YOU LOTS!!!!

Landon's First Visit

Landon was 10 days old for his first visit to Mimi and Grandpa's house! We were thrilled to have their little family come over for lunch on February 13. Little Landon was greeted by his grandparents, his Aunt Alissa and Aunt Jennifer in Florida (via webcam). Cailyn seemed to enjoy "rocking" Landon in his car carrier.

Landon has his days and nights mixed up yet, so he slept quite a bit during their visit. One nap was in the "family bassinett" while we ate our lunch...

and one nap was on Grandpa's chest. Grandpa had a nap too!

Thanks for coming to see us! You are a special gift from God to our family.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!

First, we are celebrating the "birth"-day of our grandson~he was born on Thursday, February 3, 2011 at 5:59 a.m. Named Landon John Michael Ruggiero, he weighed 7 lb. 14 oz and is a very special addition to our family. His parents will be sharing the "rest of the story" of his birth soon!

Secondly, TODAY is February 8, 2011, and it's time to wish our "sweetie pie" Cailyn a BIG "Happy Birthday"!! Today, she turns "two"...Oh my...what joy she has brought us in those two years! You are going to be one very special "big sister" to Landon, I'm sure! Happy Birthday from Mimi and Grandpa to Cailyn Grace!

TEA PARTIES

I get to enjoy my childhood and my children's childhoods again through "playtime" with my granddaughter, Cailyn! She was blessed with two tea party sets at Christmas, so one set lives at Mimi's house. Now whenever Cailyn comes to visit, it's always "time for tea"! ;-)
Cailyn always brings along her "boo-boo bear" (which is her bedtime buddy), but recently her new friend "baby Dumbo" came to Mimi's too for a tea party.
Cailyn enjoys pretending, but Mimi suggested having "o's" (cheerios) one time...and, oh boy, Mimi started something!! Now, we must have "o's" at every party.
It's quite evident in the video clip how important these "o's" are...each and every last one of them!

Christmas Memories....

What a busy December we enjoyed at our house, full of preparations for Advent, Christmas and the beginning of a new year. On December 11, we hosted the Ruggiero extended family for a traditional "seven-fishes" dinner, (minus a few fish!) Vince's mom would have been proud of everyone's efforts to continue the family traditions as best we could.
We had about 20 family members gathered together,
enjoying food, Christmas gifts, and a game of LRC too.

Here is Vince plus his brothers Martin and Art overseeing the shrimp cooking (and tasting) outdoors! Mild temperatures were with us that day.
On December 18, the Janne/Schuld families gathered for a festive Christmas party,
complete with a surprise visit from Santa Claus!
The 5 little ones were delighted, though our newest nephew Bode may not have realized what all the fuss was about! ;-)
He's looking rather "bored" (yawn) in this picture!

On Christmas Eve, Alissa and Alan included us in their birthday breakfast plans at Joe's Farm Grill, and they joined us for 6pm mass at St. Mary Magdalene parish. Afterwards, Vince and I went to their home for snacks and a movie ("Christmas Vacation"), so we enjoyed a few laughs together.
Here is Alissa and Alan in front of their beautifully decorated tree.

On Christmas morning, we prepared the turkey for grilling, plus some other food items. The "kids" planned to arrive by 11:00 a.m., so we would have gift-opening time together before Cailyn's nap. Here is precious Cailyn in her Christmas party dress...and of course, holding her "boo-bear"!
She was pretty much a "pro" at unwrapping gifts by Christmas Day...and wanted to help everyone else open too!

But one of Christmas Day's "most memorable moments" was when all our children surprised us with a computer webcam visit from Jen and Joe!! OMG...I had hoped for a timely phone call, but for us to be able to see each other on Christmas Day....what a GIFT that was!!
Jen and Joe watched us open gifts they had mailed to us, and we watched them open our gifts to them! Amazing technology, and it felt like they were really "with us" for the holiday! THANKS AGAIN for that beautiful surprise!
Cailyn played outdoors with her Aunt Alissa after lunch. Here she is in her "ugg boots" and stylish hat! ;-) What a cutie...she was collecting leaves in that container, and then decided it would make a great hat too!
While Cailyn and her grandpa napped, the rest of us played some board games, and then my parents joined us for Christmas Day dinner at 4:30. We had fun "opening our stockings" together.
Here's Cailyn showing Great Grandma Janne her finger-painting gift to us.

During the week after Christmas, we visited with friends, babysat Cailyn one day, and since we were both off work, it was a chance to slow our pace a bit. Here's a photo of our first "walk to the park around the corner" to play on the slides and in the sand!
On the 31st we had planned a family day outing to the zoo. However, since the high temperature in Phoenix was predicted to be in the low 40's, we changed our family outing to an indoor venue. Alissa, Alan, Mike, Corissa, Cailyn, Vince and I all went to the Phoenix Children's Museum and had a great time seeing Cailyn enjoy all the FUN hands-on activities there. Cailyn's aunt and uncle enjoyed the "noodle forest" with her! The place was packed with lots of creative activities for the younger set, and was very entertaining for grandparents who were mostly observing!
On January 2, it was time to pack away the Christmas tree. Cailyn LOVED the lights this year, and didn't want Christmas to end. As Vince and I were taking the lights off the tree, sweetie Cailyn was doing her best to put them back on!


This is one very long blog, but I wanted to share some of the joy of our holiday season with you. Happy New Year to everyone!