5 months old! Happy Thanksgiving!

Daniel J. is now five months old and what a happy baby he is.  He is still full of smiles and laughs too (he's pretty ticklish)!  He wants so badly to crawl like his cousin the Jackman, and is starting to lift his little tush when on his belly.  He also sits pretty well and tries to stand up if you hold his hands.  Like daddy, he loves watching college football and Bears games.  He is starting to really take an interest in others.  The other day, he and Jack were just gazing and smiling at each other; Daniel tried to get Jack's toes to his mouth!  He also reaches to pet Buddy now.  He LOVES to grab at Mommy's and other people's hair (especially the really small ones on the back of your neck) and pull you in to bite your chin or cheek.  We think this is his version of kissing you!  We had a great first Thanksgiving spending time with the Ryba/ Massucci clan and a late night at Yia Yia and Poppy's.  Tonite we put up the Christmas tree...we are looking forward to a fun holiday season.

Daniel 5 months old

Love that smile!

"Jack Daniels"

I love to play!

Mmmm, thanksgiving feast of rice cereal. Next year, turkey!



Daniel chillin with Daddy listening to Poppy's jukebox

Mommy's two favorite guys



Daddy having fun taking pictures

Schmoogie!  The result of refusing to nap? Snoozing at the dinner table!

Daniel's first Christmas tree

Happy Thanksgiving!

Jump Jump!

Here is a video of Daniel enjoying his new toy!

"Nummmm Nummm"

Well, it has been a few weeks since I last updated and we successfully introduced Daniel to cereal.  At first, he was not a big fan and kind of pushed it out of his mouth.  And if he saw us make the bottle, fuggedaboutit, that's what he wanted!  So for a while there, it'd be spoon of cereal washed down quickly with milk....now....Daniel loves his cereal!  So much so, he will reach for the spoon (yes, at times, he can hold his own bottle at 5 months) and will even say "Ummmmm" with each bite, it's super cute.

Hi Mommy, I feel like a big boy in my new chair!

What is this stuff?

Are you kiddin me?  This is yucky!

Okay, that's better.

Happy Halloween!

Daniel and Jack ready for their first Halloween

Already getting into trouble!

Mommy tried to dress up with her lion cub!

Daddy will be in FULL costume next year...

We had fun greeting the trick or treaters in Riverside

Thanks Sam and Mia for the yummy chili and dogs!
What a beautiful day!

4 mos. old! Fun at the Zoo!

Daniel turned 4 months old last Sunday.  He now weighs 16 lbs. 14-1/2 oz. and is 25-1/4 inches long. He is starting to roll from belly to back and is all smiles!  He still loves to coo and his new thing is "growling" at us.  Convenient because he is going to be a lion for his first Halloween!  He got to try out his costume last Saturday when we went to Boo Fest at Brookfield Zoo.  Even though Mom and Dad were enjoying the animals more, Daniel loved being out in the fresh air and hanging out with Bumblebee, Buzz, Army guy, Cinderella and the twins.

Daniel 4 mos. old

"Mom, are we done yet?"

GRRRRRRR!

Mommy's two favorite guys!

Family shot



After carving pumpkins



Daniel has found his toes! Yum Yum!

The Ahern gang at Brookfield Zoo

Can't believe another month has passed.  Stayed tuned for next week....we're trying cereal!

Rollin' like crazy!

On September 20th, Daniel learned to roll from his back to belly! He loves to show it off and practice. Unfortunately, he gets a little frustrated when he tires out and can't roll back. And even though he gets a little help to go back to his back he immediately rolls again!

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

I'd like to roll back, but can't quite figure it out yet!

3 months old! It was a big week!

We have had a busy couple of weeks!  Daniel turned 3 months old last Friday, was baptized on Sunday and rolled back to belly on Monday!

Daniel 3 months old



Watching the game






















Daniel was baptized at Our Lady of Mount Carmel (where Dan and I were married) on Sunday, September 19.  This was an extra special day since cousin Jack and cousin Logan were also christened.  Uncle DJ and Uncle Chris were the proud godfathers.  He wore the 72 year old christening gown that Daddy and Papa wore for their baptisms.  Daniel did pretty well sitting in church and got a little fussy, of course because he was hungry.  I timed it just right and handed the almost finished bottle to Uncle Mike when it was our turn.  Just as he realized the bottle was gone and started to cry, Father Mike poured the holy water over his head and he relaxed.  Luckily, only his mommy and daddy heard the burp when we were back in our seats.  We celebrated the special event with family and friends "big fat greek baptism style" with a pizza party at Nonnie's.


"Jack Daniel"



All dressed up!

The Ryba men

Papa, Daddy and Daniel

"My Big Fat Greek Baptism"

So the one picture I forgot to take with our camera was a family pic!
Luckily, Uncle Ray snapped this great shot of us:)

Wait, I'm supposed to go back to work?!

Today is officially the last day of maternity leave.  Eleven weeks went by super fast and it's hard to believe my little baby is going to be 12 weeks old on Thursday.  Little....hah, Daniel is close to 14 or 15 pounds and has changed so much already.  He is just pure joy to be with, how am I going to leave him for a whole day?  I have the best of both worlds, going back 3 days a week and don't get me wrong, I love my job and the people I work with, and Daniel is going to be in such great care with my mom (yia yia) and my mother in law (gramma)....but I just would rather be with him!  And, how am I going to get all of us out the door, and on time!  So much to worry about, and that is what I like to do, worry.  Over the past couple of weeks, I have gotten some great advice from family and friends on how to make this all work and the biggest piece of advice is PLAN AHEAD and get everything ready from the night before.  So that is what I have been doing, getting bottles made and the diaper bag ready, laying out clothes and packing the car at night.  I even made a nighttime checklist to keep myself organized!  Wow, I am a dork...I also had to practice leaving baby Daniel for longer than a trip to Target.  So, a couple weeks ago we went to the Bears game with Bryan and Maggie while Gramma and Papa watched Daniel.  He did very well and even got his bedtime bath.  We had a great time ourselves and luckily I got hourly updates with pictures from Flav! I also did a "dry run" last week practicing getting out the door and to Yia Yia's in the morning so I could see what traffic is like. So far so good.  So today on my last day of maternity leave, we just had the best time!  We made it around the block for a short walk with Daniel in the Bjorn and even with Buddy (those that know Buddy can say this is a big accomplishment),  we had some very good tummy time and lots of play time.  Daniel is starting to push his torso up just a little and is grabbing at toys a little more reliably (I am predicting he is a southpaw like his daddy and poppy).  He was "talking" and cooing all day today too, even razzed a couple times, but usually I miss it.  I have to admit, I have been a little teary eyed a few times today, today was probably not the best day to fold up the newborn clothes that do not fit him...seems like yesterday we were bringing him home and those clothes were actually big!  I know tomorrow will go okay and we will soon figure out our new routine and there are lots of new things for Daniel to do and learn that I am looking forward to...so we'll see how it goes.

Dan and I at the Bears game

Mia and Daniel at lunch

No joke, Dan seriously wears a mask when he changes a poopy diaper!

Schmoogie!

Da Bears!

Jack and Daniel having fun.

Poppy and his boys

Good morning sunshine!

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trying...so...hard....to...get...thumb!

GOT IT!