Happy New Year!

2010...I can remember thinking about the year 2000 and how far in the future it seemed. I remember thinking how cool it would be if I were to graduate high school in the year 2000. I was a little too old for that. Now, we're ten years past Y2K!

"Time flies" is so cliche, yet I find myself thinking that a lot in the last 8 months. Since I became a mom, I can't keep up with the time! I feel so old saying how fast time is going, but wow, it really does fly by! My baby is barely a baby anymore. He's crawling (backwards) and holds himself in a plank pose for a few seconds at a time. I know that once he figures it out, I'm in a lot of trouble! Better get this house baby-proofed!

2009 was good to us. Here's to a fabulous 2010! Who knows what could be in store?!

Emerald Bowl trip

We just got home from our bowl trip to San Francisco late last night. It was a challenge for sure. A six hour flight, a three hour time change, a week in a hotel - all with a seven month old. And to top it off, JP caught a terrible cold from the plane ride out, so he was pretty miserable most of the trip. Poor little man :(

Even though he was a little more fussy than normal, he still kept his happy little personality most of the time, and enjoyed meeting his cousins, Paige and Peyton and his Uncle Vince and Aunt Monica. He also got to see his grandparents and meet his second cousin Gina and her boyfriend, Johnny and some of Jason's friends from college.

Our hotel was very nice and we had a great set up with a suite with a joined room with the grandparents. At least we had some space to walk JP around all night, since he barely slept!!!!
Unfortunately, we lost the game. (two incredibly terrible calls from the refs really changed the momentum or else we might have stood more of a chance, IMO). And it might take us a couple weeks to re-coop. But, we're glad we made the trip so we could all be together for our first Christmas as a family :)

The view from our balcony:
Peyton in her beautiful Christmas dress:
Paige snuggling with JP:
JP on the airplane, testing out daddy's headphones:
The hotel lobby:
JP loving his card more than his presents:

JP's class

JP and I just finished up a class at Isis Maternity for babies 5-7 months old. His favorite parts of the class were Storytime and Bubbles!!

Professional Pictures

We had JP's photos taken for the first time a couple weeks ago and I am very happy with the proofs! Now, I'm gonna HAVE TO order some prints and actually frame a photo of our little man. Why am I so bad at that?

Here's a sneak peak :)

Mister Social

Here's a shot of JP at his playgroup/class. While all the other babies grew tired of the balls, JP sat there picking them up, tasting them, tossing them and babbling to everyone the whole time. It was so funny!


And here's one of JP playing with Daddy at the Apple store while Mommy was waiting for her Christmas present :)

Wordless Wednesday

Tis the Season

If you are in the Boston area and looking for a great way to give back this Christmas, check this out! The Big Wishes for Little Wanderers gives you the opportunity to buy specific items for a needy child in the area OR you can "adopt" the entire family and fulfill their needs. Their wish lists are on the web site. Check it out and Merry Christmas :)

Jumperoo Fun

My Famous Niece

Check her out! On the front page of her local newspaper in Ohio!!!!

Love ya, Brooke!!!

We have a tooth!!!!

Can you see it?!

Learning to Coupon

I've had lots of emails asking me how I've been able to get the "deals" I mentioned below. I learned everything from this blog.

Read her link titled "Couponing 101" and then read under "Store Guides" about specific stores. She posts "deals" several times a day in the body of her blog, too.

Basically, start getting your Sunday paper and cutting coupons. Organize them in a way that works for you (I'm using a binder now with baseball card storage sheets). Learn the money saving programs at Rite Aid, CVS and Walgreens - they are pretty great! Check out the printable, online coupons (coupons.com) - there are more links on the blog mentioned above for online coupons.

The savings are not limited to the drug stores either. I've gotten some $50 magazine subscriptions for free or as little as $5 for a year. I got a Leapfrog Tag Junior system for $8.99 at Target. I've gotten some nice board games at Toys R Us for very little. So, get saving!

Email me with your questions - this has been a fun little "hobby" for me - when I'm not feeding, playing with or changing JP. It's a way to use my brain since quitting work! I'm excited for my friends to learn, too!
nicci_loscalzo AT hotmail DOT com

PS - I can't "comment" back to anyone's comments below for some reason...maybe it's my MAC or maybe it's Firefox. So, Kari, shoot me an email if you wanna know anymore about this! ;)

PSS - Someone asked me "Nicci, what are you going to do with all those deodorants?!" hahaha. I thought once I get my stash built up, I'll make a nice donation to a local women's shelter or some charity that could use some toiletries :) If they are free, I might as well, right?!

PSSS - I'm watching TV while I'm typing this and there's Victoria's Secret Fashion Show on...uhhh, is it me or is this ridiculous?

Fun with Blitz

Blitz was scratching at JP's play pen earlier, and JP thought it was hilarious.

UPDATED: I realized I had forgotten about a $1 coupon in my pocket, so I stopped by Rite Aid today and submitted it with my receipt from yesterday and got $1 back. So, make the total below $2.35 :)
And an extra tid-bit - My deal today at Rite Aid. All of this cost me $3.35. The only reason it cost me anything was because I made a mistake and bought 2 Herbal Essences - I should have just gotten one. Oh well!

Rite Aid is great because they have a rebate program that will reimburse you in cash - not cash toward your next purchase, but an actual check.

My CVS Deal Today

I can't resist sharing my deal today. I tried to venture to Toys R Us to pick up some $3 diapers, but when I got there, you couldn't get to any of the aisles because the check-out line was zig-zagged throughout the whole store. So, I left asap. Instead, I stopped by CVS to pick up some freebies. Note: these deals are good through tomorrow, too, so if you wanna run out and pick them up, you can!

Here's what I got (and a 12 pack of Diet Coke I left off the picture):
The Breakdown (these are the sale prices):
12 pack diet coke: $3.00
Bottle deposit (thanks, Taxachusetts): $.60
Renuzit Air Freshner: $.99
Renuzit Air Freshner: A$.99
St. Ives Body Wash: $3.99
Vaseline Sheer Infusion lotion: $7.99
Bic Soleil Razors: $6.99
Degree Ultra Pure Deodorant: $4.00
Teething Tablets (JP's got his second tooth coming through!) $5.49
Mountain Dew 20 oz. (it's my vice): $1.59
Bottle Deposit: $.05
Total: $35.64

The coupons I used:

1. bogo renuzit air freshner (equals $.99)
   
2. $1.00 off St. Ives body wash
3. $1.25 off Degree deodorant
4. $1.50 off Vaseline lotion
5. $2.00 off Bic Soleil razors
6. $5.00 off $30 purchase - cvs coupon printed online
7. $5.00 off $15.00 purchase - cvs coupon printed in the store at the little coupon kiosks
8. $10.00 extra care buck from my last cvs shopping trip (the make-up and tissues in post below)

Total Paid: $9.40

BUT THEN....I got back more Extra Care Bucks 'ECB' (cash toward next purchase)
$5.00 ECB for Bic Soleil
$7.99 ECB for Vaseline lotion
$4.00 ECB for Degree
$3.00 ECB for St. Ives
= $19.99 ECB (essentially, cash back)

So, in all, I made a $10.60 PROFIT!!!!!! YAHOO!!!!
Email me if you wanna know how to do it :)

Play Yard

We dropped the mattress in the play yard converting it from a bassinet to an actual play pen. JP is really enjoying it. He loves looking out at the dogs and laughing at them. He falls over quite a bit still and gets mad, but we just prop him back up and his gumless smile returns! Thanks to all my Nobles friends who bought JP this great contraption!

This Thanksgiving, we are thankful for this amazing little man. He was certainly worth the wait!

JP ONE SOCK

JP ONE SOCK....that's his Native American name. Regardless of the type of socks we put on him, he winds up with one (and only one) off. It took me a while to catch this on camera, but it's been happening consistently since he was born. He just prefers one sock!


And here's a little bonus picture of him snuggling with Daddy and Blitz. Check out how Blitz has his head nuzzled in JP's leg :)

Couponing

So, since deciding to become a stay-at-home-mom, I've started learning the art of couponing. That's right, couponing is a verb. It takes some time to figure it out and get yourself organized, but it's pretty amazing the kinds of deals you can score! I used to buy mostly generics to save money, but now I'm buying name brand products for wayy less than generics.

For example, I went to CVS yesterday for these three things: Tissues, Foundation and Blush.

The original prices...

Tissues: $2.39

Foundation: $15.99

Blush: $12.99

Total: $31.37

What I paid...

$7.32 (& .43 of that was tax)

BUT WAIT!!!! There's MORE!!!!

I got back a $10 ExtraCare Buck, which is basically cash off my next CVS purchase. So, all in all, I made a $2.68 PROFIT!!!!!

Pretty cool, right?

And here's what I picked up at Target today for just $16.46 (original price $50.55):

Techy

JP checking his email:

JP tasting his email:

6 Month Stats

JP had his 6 month doctor's appointment yesterday. He's now 16.5 pounds and 26.5 inches long. And this afternoon, his first tooth began cutting through! I can see a little hole in his bottom gum and feel something sharp. He's had a rough couple days. So, mama has had a rough couple days, too. But, it's all worth it :)

On Friday, I was able to get my hair highlighted and cut!!!! First time since a month before JP was born. It was nice to get out of the house on my own and get pampered a little. Here's a "before" shot...(those roots are a little embarrassing!):
I'm waiting for Jason to take an "after" shot. Stay tuned :)

6 Months & Solids

Today is JP's 6 month birthday! It's amazing how much personality he has developed and how much fun he has become. We had to be careful that his grandparents didn't sneak him in their carry-on bag when they flew back to California Sunday! His 6 month appointment is on Monday, so stay tuned for his new "stats."

We started solids last week and JP's been doing great. He's had rice cereal, carrots and peas. He LOVED the peas, and only likes the rice cereal if it's made with breastmilk NOT water. Mr. High Maintenance. haha. This coming week, we'll do some more peas and try oatmeal.

Cereal with Daddy...
Cereal with Mimi...
Less than enthusiastic about carrots...

Frankenstein

Meet Frankenstein:
Frankenstein's Stitches:
Frankenstein at 5 months hangin' with his buddy, Blitz:
Frankenstein with his Mimi and Grandpa:
He's a scary fella!

Leafing

Jason and I went leaf peeping a couple weeks ago in New Hampshire. We decided to take a day trip and drive North to the Kancamagus Highway in the White Mountains to see what the fuss was about. It was beautiful. You really didn't need to leave your car, which was good for us since JP was with us. He was a trooper and only fussed a little in the car on the way home (traffic on 128, go figure).

We'd like to go back next year and do some hiking when our little man is a bit more mobile :)


JP did need to make a pit stop for a snack...
Posing with Daddy near the covered bridge...
Peep Peep!

Bath Time with Grandma & Pap Pap

JP loves bath time. Grandma and Pap Pap had fun giving JP a bath when they were visiting a few weeks ago :)

Visitors

A couple weeks ago, my best friend from high school came to visit us with her husband. Robin and Aaron stayed for 5 days and saw all 6 New England states. They were maniacs! We loved having them here and hope they come back soon!

Aaron posing on BC's football field
JP on his first trip into the city - outside Mike's Pastries
Jason, JP and I at La Galleria 33 in the North End (whoah, I'm looking pretty rough)
Robin and Aaron