FIRST HAIRCUT

On Mother's Day Roman had his first hair cut. Only a few curls were harmed in the process. That was my main concern. Curls get the girls as Sal loves to say, especially since Papa gets all the credit for our pup's cute locks. He got his first cut from his grandpa (Sal's side). He was a barber back in Italy so it only seems fit to have him do it. Plus, he loves curly hair and I knew he wouldn't take to much off. It was just a couple of snips and he was all done. He looks like such a little boy now. And yes I saved his hair in a ziplock bag, but looking up some cute ways to display the curls.

TODAY

Today was a good day. Productive. We finally decided to do some little here and there work around the front yard. Let's just say our grass goes "crunch" and some lumberjack (Sal) cut down a rotted tree and has left the remains on the floor for a very long time. To say the least, the front of our house is a little scary and majorly neglected. Did I mention the bugs? countless pincher bugs, 2 lady bugs, a certain plant that was attracting to many bees (Sal's allergic), and so many black widows. I become paranoid and began to feel invisible bugs crawling all over me.
Roman loves being outside. He will throw an ultimate fit when it's time to go inside. He spent hours with us. He helped me pull out some weeds. Went for a couple walks when he thought it was time to. Then got sprayed with the hose. Lastly, the most adorable thing happened. He fell asleep in my arms while we were watching Papa do the rest of the yard work. It was adorable and automatically made me nostalgic. He use to always fall asleep on me and now he is a big boy. It was endearing to have that experience again and sad to notice how rare it is for it to happen. It lasted for about two hours and I consciously told myself to soak this all up. I was starring at those cute little toes and saw that Roman had his first tan line. It was from his sandals and it totally made me smile.
Sal made some awesome grilled steak burritos and they were too good. It just never seems like a good time to start my diet that I oh so desperately need. I was mad at myself for caving in. I notice I have been telling myself that I am going to start a diet or "life change" and then I catch myself devouring everything in sight in hopes of getting it all out of my system and starting fresh the next day. So I weighed myself (freaked out) and decided I wasn't going to wait the next day to start I was going to do it now! My birthday is coming up and Italy is just around the corner. I want to be proud of my body and just feel good all around. I will be tracking my  progress on the blog(on another post) this week. What more motivation do I need then the blog world knowing my weight, right?

DEAR ROMAN

Dear Roman,

I can't believe you are now 14 months. I think you are more ready than I am about being shoved into toddlerhood to quickly. Time is such a tricky little thing. I feel like we celebrated you turning one such a long time ago, but that was only two months ago. Yet, I can remember you scooting instead of crawling, making your first cooing sounds, even your first days in the hospital like it was yesterday. Now you are trying your hardest to sprint everywhere. You are the best 14 month old dancer I have ever seen! Even if you hear a song playing in the background of a commercial you are putting your finger together, bobbing your head, and thrusting those hips. I love it. You have mastered the art of screaming, especially in public places, but always with a smile. You love waving bye-bye to everyone. The amount of eating you accomplish in a single day astounds me every time!  Daddy officially melted when you went up to him and said DaDa for the first time this week. Every hour that your papa and I are together, we have that moment where we look at you and are just amazed at how beautiful you are and how much you have grown and changed our lives for the better. Thank you for making us feel so lucky.

                                                                                      Love Always,

                                                                                                 Mommy

*footnote: this post was written yesterday, just forgot to post it. Oops.

SWING

Last week Roman and I were all about going to the park (since weather allowed it). So much that we even ventured off in his little red wagon and found one with a swing! A lot of new parks have stopped building swings. Yes, I can see how super dangerous it could be, but it is also so much fun! I remember being a child and when it was recess time, all the children would run into the playground and try to claim a swing. Unfortunately our neighboring park is one of those parks without a swing. Grr.  I realized that the last time Roman was on a swing was the first time I ever try to put him on one. This was when he was six months old. Nonetheless he loved it, as did I. That day I was the prime example of why they rarely put them on the playgrounds anymore.  My sister and I tried to see who can go the highest. Then she dared me to jump off. I did and bailed so hard! I can't even remember the last time I fell before that. It must have been the shining sun that drove me to it. But, I felt like a kid again. That is one thing I love so much about being a Mommy; in many ways you get to become a kid all over again and your "bestie" is your child.

PUPPY LOVE? EH...

Yesterday my mother and sister decided to throw a yard sale. Yup, a yard sale on a Monday and it was a huge success. They can pretty much throw a yard sale whenever they want since my mother lives on a busy street. She doesn't even need to bother with signs. Roman and I stuck around for a while and since I had my camera I thought it would be adorable if Roman had a little photo shoot with him playing with the dogs. But to my dismay he didn't like the dogs. Ah! I come from a family of dog-lovers including myself. He can appreciate the pups from afar but when they approached him he would go into grump mode. It's funny how I just assumed he would get a kick out of them. Instead he wants to kick them (not literally). Luckily I captured some evidential footage of what I am talking about. It's written all over his face. Hopefully he'll grow to love them.

Here are the pups:

 Somer Baby

 Buddy Love

 Rocco

OUR FIRST WALK TO THE PARK

Yesterday Roman went for his first walk outside. Destination was the park right across the street from our house. I thought I would gently ease him into it and walk with him hand and hand, but he had other plans. This little guy was ready to go on a solo adventure. As a mother it was amazing to watch. He stared at the cars as they drove around the corner. He would take a couple of steps and then fall. He had determination in his face. He stopped to feel the cracks in the pavement and the grass on our lawn. At the corner of the sidewalk was mama to grab him and congratulate him on his first walk. Once he got closer to me, his face lit up and he was giggling away while attempting a little sprint to the finish line. My little man is an official walker and can explore this crazy world, with me by his side of course.

ROMAN'S 1ST BIRTHDAY

So... my baby has officially celebrated his first birthday! We celebrated this amazing day at his Nona's house. It was a little hectic because I was worried about so many people coming over to such a small space. Luckily, the weather was awesome and there was plenty of room for the kiddos to roam and the two LARGE families to enjoy themselves.
Roman was ultimate trooper. He was awake for pretty much the entire time. Coming from two large families means sooo many presents for my little man. It is impossible not to spoil him at this point, but he been in this world a whole year. He deserves it right? Our puppy theme was a hit and the cake was delicious. Most importantly I was glad to have all the families together to celebrate the most amazing day in mine and Sal's life. He truly is the best little surprise we could ever ask for. I continuously find myself falling more and more in love with him when I think it's not possible.

Here are some pictures from the party: