Yes, yes, we are back! With a new house!!!

So much going on lately! I promise I will be back for good now and will write more often.

We closed on the house yesterday!!!! We are so proud and so excited!
We took the boys to the house after we picked them up from daycare, so that they could see the house and get the chance to feel as proud as we were.
Noah is excited about his new house. Oliver just kept looking at all that white on the walls! Yes, boys, we are going to start a new life in this house, and we will be very happy. I hope you guys are as proud of our home as I am, and that you always want to come back to it. Marcio and I want the house full of friends, always, just like my parents home when Fabi and I were growing up.
I did not feel well all day yesterday and got a chance to puke in our new bathroom…I probably got the mild version of what Noah had last week. Oliver was also sick on Monday. We both threw up only once though, and we are doing just fine! I went to bed at 8:30 last night, exhausted.

Noah seems to be doing fine, recovering really well. He is eating well and with lots of energy as usual. Talking like it’s going out of style. He turned 25 months last week, and with that came the famous “WHY?”, so now everything is why?, oh, Lord! There is a why for everything! The latest one this morning:
Noah: Mommy, watcha doing?
Mommy: Drying my hair, Noah
Noah: Why?
Mommy: Because it is wet.
Noah: Why?
Mommy: Because I washed it.
Noah: Why?
Mommy: Because it was dirty.
Noah: Ok…(as he leaves the bathroom to go ask dad some more questions…)

The other famous one when he wants to bargain is: “Noah does xyz pouquinho (a little bit) and come back, ok?” He cracks me up, as he talks really fast so that I don’t have time to argue and make him not do whatever he wants to do!
He is so funny, though. He loves singing. The latest ones are Bah, bah, black sheep, ABC. He also loves Pink by Aerosmith and Big Girls don’t Cry by Fergie (yes, thanks to aunt Fabi and uncle Tim)
He loves talking to his little brother and reading to him. This morning I caught him showing Oliver the Bed Bath and Beyond add, too funny! He loves holding and hugging Oliver, who is always smiling at him. He loves playing with his tchoo tchoo train. No one can get close to the table or put anything on it, otherwise they hear a nice: "Take it out!"

Noah is a sweetheart. Lots of energy, though. Hard to keep up with him! Our friend Lori keeps telling me she does not envy me for having to discipline a super bright and spirited kid like Noah. She is right, it is tough, the kid is smart. He challenges us in so many ways, he does not cease to amuse me. But you know, with all the frustration that comes with raising a super bright kid, comes the rewarding feeling of accomplishment too. He teaches us so much every day. Noah, filho, I want you to know you teach me more than I will ever be able to teach you! I love you with all my heart! And I am really sorry if mom is not able to keep up with you. That is why I am so thankful for my job, so that I can continue to pay for you to be in such good hands. Thanks Miss Melissa, Miss Brooke and Miss Amber for all that you do.

Oliver is enjoying daycare, and he loves Claire and Keri. His friend for life Kelly started at daycare this week, so he is really happy about that! He has been grabbing things and bringing them to his mouth. He is almost sitting up! Oliver is a happy baby, always smiling and bringing joy to our lives.
Oh, forgot to mention we started on squash this week, and Oliver seems to like it!
So now he is having rice cereal with Miss Claire in the morning and squash with mommy at dinner time. Such a big boy! Time is going by so fast!

Back to the house…the painters start tomorrow. Marcio is meeting them there today to give them the colors for each room. We already measured all the windows and will be ordering the blinds soon (urgh, they are expensive!). My superintendent probably hates me, really hates me. I just called him. I keep finding all these little things with the house…but hey, it is OUR HOUSE, right? Poor guy, he deserves heaven after putting up with me for 6 months. When Marcio wants him to do something for him, Marcio goes: “You better do it while I am asking, before you have to deal with Ana Paula!” Nice, Marcio, nice!

On a positive note...

It has been a tough week for us, with Noah being so sick with a stomach bug since Saturday, ended up at St Vincent for 16 hours on Monday. He was very dehidrated by the time we got there, and had to be hooked to an IV for all that time. Poor guy was a champ. We watched movies together, we sang, we ate popcicles, we took naps together. If it weren't for such a sad reason, I would be the happiest mom just to have a whole day by his side...I still cry to think about what I could have done different to spare him from going through that...I hope he knows how much I love him and that I will always be there by his side, and if they ever invent a switch that I can buy so that I can turn it and be sick for him I will buy it in a heartbeat.

On a positive note, though, here are pics of Oliver at daycare. Growing like a weed, learning new things every day. He started eating rice cereal for breakfast at daycare yesterday! Such a big boy!

We will write more when we are better rested and have recovered from this past long weekend...

Eating in the Almeida Household

Oliver had his first rice cereal today!!! And yes, he was a champ! Opened his mouth, swallowed it right in! Daddy thought it was too runny, so mommy put some more cereal, and to our surprise he even tried a couple of bites of the thick one!!! Oliver, you will be a good eater!

You have also started blowing raspberries this week, but please filho, let's not do that while your mouth is full of rice cereal and breastmilk, ok?!?! ;-)

Now, meanwhile, since both sets of grandparents left town, all Noah knows how to eat is chocolate, cookies and pretzels...oh, and I was almost forgetting: COKE...yes, Diet Coke.

We are trying really hard to put Mr Smart Pants into the right schedule and eating habits, but man, it has been hard. They are not kidding when they say bad habits are hard to break!!!

The pictures are from this week, when aunt Fabi brought Halloween cookies for Noah to decorate and eat. He had a blast...Next morning, first thing when he wakes up: "Where are my cookies?!?!" (They were all in the garbage!)

Guess who just turned 4 months this week!?!?

Filho, anjo da minha vida...I just put you in bed. You are so peaceful and calm that as I get out of your room I feel like nothing really ever can go wrong to us. I love you so much, Oliver.

You are 4 months already...time is going by so fast, filho. I love smelling you, I love your laugh, I love when your big blue eyes meet mine, I love the way you look at Noah with so much pride...I love being your mother, and learning so much from you every day. Your smile is contagious, and you smile at anyone and everyone. People stop to see you because of your smile, that is how contagious it is. You are a star and you are meant to shine...you are my star.

You are almost rolling over! Miss Claire and Miss Carrie told mommy that you are already drooling when you watch other kids eat, and Dr Timmons agreed that you are probably ready for some rice cereal (you have been waking up in the middle of the night once in a while again)...as hard as it might be to admit it, you are probably getting tired of only getting mommy's milk.

You are 15lbs 7oz, 26 inches, and very healthy, according to Dr Timmons.
You got 4 shots this week, such a brave baby. Mommy cried with you at the doctor's office. It is ok, as long as we were together, remember mommy saying that?

I love you, filho, and I will always be here for you... Te amo muito!

Yes, Noah, you sure are 2...

Noah, meu filho, meu amor…you are 2!
As I lay in bed and think about all the things that have happened in these 2 years, I get overwhelmed by how much you taught me. How powerful is your presence in my life, that I can’t even find significance in the 31 years that I lived without you in it.
I can say, shamelessly, that you are the best thing that ever happened to me (together with your brother now).
We had your 2-year visit with the Pediatrician last week. Your 29lbs and 35 inches of toddlerhood could not stop amusing Dr. Timmons. After we talk for a while about all the things that you are doing, she asks me if I have any questions, and I throw: “In regards to his development, is there something I should be looking at?” She looks at me for second and just smiles as if she wanted to say: “Do you really think so?!?”
You are unbelievable; I don’t think I will ever be able to define you…As she walks away, you blurt out: “Good bye, Dr. Timmons!” with that sweet voice of yours…she comes back and can’t help but giving you a hug. That is what you are, if I had to define you with one single word: SWEET.
You have such a good soul, Noah. I pray every night that God keeps you this way, because only good things can happen to someone like you. You are my little piece of banana cheesecake…
And when I doubt to believe that you are already two, here are some of the things you do to make me remember that you sooo are 2:

You are 2 when you go potty and give me that huge smile and your eyes light up from seeing the pee come out.
You are 2 when I get the best hug of my day as I pick you up from Blue Helicopters
You are 2 when you smile at Oliver and he smiles back at you, and you fill my heart with warmth
You are 2 when you look at me and you say: “Oh, my gosh!” when I tell you we are going to the zoo on Sunday to see the walrus, and also when you tell me to “come on” with your little fingers in the air.
You are 2 when I open the door to your bedroom, and there you are…playing on your own with your carwash and your fire engine.
You are 2 when you sing ABCs and look at me for help when it gets to the letter W.
You share, you smile, you jump around, you hug, you say thank you and please…
And of course, you are also 2 when you test every single part of me, when you throw your tantrums, when you want it your way, when you tells me to go away, or when you tell me no…

I love you so much Noah, I am not sure you will ever understand how much.
It hurts how much I love you. I will always be there for you, always. For everything and anything you need. Thank you for making our lives so special. You are a special soul, and daddy and I are blessed you chose us to be your parents.

Happy 2nd Birthday, Meu Amor! Eu te amo mais que tudo nesse mundo (junto ao seu irmao!)