Our Little Turkey

Our hospital enlists a professional photographer whom we hired - if you are ever giving birth at an INOVA hospital I definitely recommend taking them up on this! It was only $100 and we got a disc of about 120 pictures plus several more printed out. These three are my favorite:

Prescott's original due date was Thanksgiving Day - our little turkey! When we found out our due date I immediately bought this hat on etsy.

Look at this handsome baby - love those lips!

Cutest brothers you ever did see

We have so much to be thankful for this holiday season. For now we are settling in and adjusting to being a family of four - feeling full of love and gratitude.

Prescott's Birth Story

Unlike Conrad's, Prescott's birth story is (thankfully) very uneventful. Since it was a scheduled c-section, Sean and I arrived at the hospital on the morning of November 20th at 630 am ready to rock and roll! I must say it was very odd to know exactly when your baby would be born. It was also very strange to walk yourself into the operating room and seat yourself on the table!

This time around I was much more sore afterwards but not as tired and less stressed - probably because I knew what to expect. And this time they let me hold him right after which they didn't do with Conrad.

A few hours later my in-laws came so that Conrad could meet his new baby brother. We had bought him a transformer "from Prescott" and Conrad and I had gone to the store the week before to buy some things for his baby brother so they were able to "exchange presents". Conrad was then very enthralled with his new Transformer and didn't much care for the baby after that. Which was probably a good idea since all of the family was focused on Prescott.

We had a photographer from the hospital take some pictures right there in the hospital room which was awesome! I'll definitely share those later.

He's Here!

Announcing...

Prescott Edward McCumiskey

born November 20, 2015 at 9:01am

8 lbs, 21 inches

We are all doing well and are so in love!

Our Little Transformer

Conrad's obsession over the last several months has been Transformers! He loves, loves, loves playing with the figures (and some of them were Sean's) for hours on end. So when it came time to plan his birthday party, he of course asked for Transformers!

We hired a face painter (best idea ever! The kids loved it) and borrowed a bounce house from a friend. 

Even though we had a blast and hosting was relatively easy thanks to Costco and help from the family, I think this is one of the last years I'll host a big birthday party at the house - too much work, prep, and cleanup. And for the same cost we can host a party at a local gym or park or something similar. Except for maybe baby boy #2s first birthday...we all know I love a themed party :)

Happy Birthday Conrad!

It's so hard to believe that in the span of 3 years we can have such a sweet, handsome boy on our hands. 3 years ago, Conrad,  when you were in my belly we were so anxious to see what you looked like, what your personality would be, and just how much we would love you. Well, Conrad, you turned out to be an adorably cute, smart, clever, sensitive, brave, goofy little guy and we love you so much more than you could ever imagine.

You are so advanced for your age in speech, reasoning, and understanding. And you're so tall - albeit kind of awkward but you're getting faster and more athletic. You love to eat, play with Transformers, watch UmiZoomi, play outside on your "motorcycle", play with stickers and play dough.  We can't wait to see what the next years will bring with you as a big brother. We love you!!!!

Let's Find a Cure

Being in the senior housing industry, I see and meet those with dementia or Alzheimer's every day. Or if I'm not meeting them I'm meeting their families and care givers. From a professional standpoint Alzheimer's is tough. From a personal standpoint it's excruciating. 

My Gramps, my mother's dad, has been experiencing a mental health decline for the past several years. We now have the diagnosis of Alzheimer's - and even though we knew that to be a possibility all along it's still a great blow. There is no cure. There is no getting better.

What was once a vibrant, social, hardworking, independent man, is now a quiet, reserved, and totally-dependent-on-my-mom person. Not only is this rough on him but it's devastating for my mom. However, she carries it like a champ! She's a true advocate for him and is totally devoted, especially since her mother, my Gampi, passed away almost two years ago. I can't imagine those that don't have a daughter like her to look after them or those that don't have the monetary resources for homes such as where I work.

This is why finding a cure for Alzheimer's is so crucial. With the baby-boomer generation getting older and our life spans getting longer, more and more will receive this diagnosis every year. The research and support that is provided by the Alzheimer's Association is amazing and my family whole-heartedly supports them. This year we did the annual Alzheimer's Walk with my whole family. My mom won an award for individual contributor and fund-raiser. She also (in my book) wins an award for being an amazing daughter and advocate for my Gramps. 

For more information on how you can help, visit www.alz.org. 

My Big Boy

Big news in our household!!! Conrad started pre-school! Our little guy (who will be 3 in October) started at a new "big boy school" on Aug. 31st. And boy were there tears. Lots from both him and me. The first day he was very excited:

Ahh....love that curly mop!

However, once it set in that this was an all-day, every-day affair the novelty wore off and he freaked out. I don't blame the kid - for the past almost 3 years he was with his daycare provider, Farzaneh, almost one on one the whole time. She had him since he was 4 months old and she was like a grandmother to him. He was totally spoiled! So he went from that to a class of 22 kids (and this kid doesn't like a lot of loud noises or ruckus) with lots of structure and schedules. It was a lot for him to get used to, poor guy. Things have gotten better but only after I had to have a conversation with the principal about receiving help from the teachers at drop-off. I kid you not, I absolutely need someone to peel him off me each morning. It's now an unspoken agreement between me and Sean that he does drop offs whenever possible because I can't handle the sadness - I end up running to my car and bawling :(

I know he'll adjust and get better and that this will be good for him in the end - hey it spurred his potty training and now he's fully potty trained before age 3! For baby boy #2 we will definitely put him in sooner in hopes that it will be an easier adjustment. It's these times that make me desperately want to be a SAHM but it's just not in the cards (or bank) for us. Major mom guilt here - what's a mom to do?!