A Break from our Annual Phobic Fourth

This is the first 4th of July since Rico's birth eight years ago, that he won't be hiding in the bathroom for the next two days. This is the first 4th of July in eight years that we won't have to think of creative ways to lure him outside for a tinkle. We're hoping so, at least. They've banned fireworks this year, and we hope for many reasons, that our neighbors respect that. We hope they show respect for our vulnerable, scorched earth most importantly, but also that they show a little respect for our aging dog's bladder.

There are two things Rico's afraid of - baths and loud noises. We find it ironic that when he hears any loud noise, he curls up in a ball next to the bathtub. Keep in mind, when I say 'loud noises' I'm referring to - fireworks, thunder, garbage trucks, smoke alarms, hail, screaming babies, baseball bats hitting fly balls, the Hulu jingle at the end of any episode we watch, slamming doors, airplanes flying overhead, and driving over cattle guards on mountain roads - but for the sake of Rico's dignity, we'll just throw all of that into one 'thing to be afraid of.'

It's funny what we choose to be afraid of. Growing up I, like Rico, was pretty much afraid of everything. Around the holidays, I would sit on the stairs for hours staring at our real Christmas tree, making sure that it wouldn't erupt into flames from a faulty bulb. One of the happiest days of my life was the day my parents bought a fake tree. That was one less hazard for me to worry about.
Anytime it was thundering, I would patrol the house and make sure that no one was near any windows or electrical devices. If they were, I would remind them of their increased odds of being struck by lightning and pester them until they gave into my persistent pleas.
Anytime I heard any unusual footsteps, I was sure to report to the 9-1-1 dispatcher that there was an intruder in our home, even if it was just my Mom. On the occasion where I didn't call 9-1-1, I was sure to lock myself in my parent's room armed with hairspray and a razor. Then, when Mom or Dad came looking for me, I'd make them inspect every corner of the house before exiting.
I was an odd one. It's kind of a miracle I found a husband. I could go on and on about my childhood fears, but for the sake of my own dignity, I'll move on.

I just asked Phaeton what his fears were as a child. "Spiders" he said. Then he told me a horrifying story of a time when his Mom sprayed a black widow with ammonia and the spider came screaming, flying with eight knives towards his face. With a fear like that, it's kind of a miracle that he found me. Because one of my criteria in choosing a husband was marrying someone that would willingly eliminate any spider at my beck-and-call. So now, anytime we find an eight-legged creature, other than just screaming at the top of our lungs, one of us needs to get our act together and just grab a shoe. For the sake of Phaeton's dignity, I'll inform you that 100% of the time, it's his shoe.

We just learned one of Adeleigh's fears the other night. Phaeton had to print something for work and while the printer fed the paper through, Adeleigh came strolling into the room with her doll. She immediately stopped, looked over hesitantly toward the printer's face, dropped her doll, then slowly started backing away while yelling out "Mommy! Mommy!" I knelt down beside her and she curled up in a ball on my lap and clutched onto me tightly. Then, when Phaeton grabbed his paper and turned the beast off, Adeleigh made sure everything was quiet, relaxed her grip, and went on her happy way.

She's not afraid of strangers. She's not afraid of bugs. She's not afraid of lightning, or thunder. She loves Christmas trees. She's not afraid of loud noises or baths. She's not afraid of climbing onto high surfaces. She's not afraid of falling. She's not afraid of the dark. She's not afraid of Barney. But, put her in front of a wheezing, one-eyed, paper-eating, paper-bruising printing machine -
Absolutely. Terrifying.

~~~~

Taken last Halloween -
This is Adeleigh not afraid to go say "Hi" to Bill on one of his not-so-good days -

The chores can wait

This evening after work, I pulled a bed sheet out of the closet, intending to use it on the bed. Then, Adeleigh grabbed the sheet out of my hands, reminding me that instead of doing chores, I needed to immediately partake in playtime. She grabbed one side of the sheet, threw it up in the air and in her baby talk lingo that only her Daddy and I seem to understand, told us both to do the same. We held either end of the sheet and started throwing the bed sheet up in the air. Then as it ballooned toward the ground, Phaeton and I would run underneath. We did it a few more times until she caught on and started doing the same. Then, we'd huddle under the sheet as a family, making sure that no light got in, and then we'd giggle. Even the dog found joy in this for a little while. The best part was while us girls hid from the boys underneath. As she and I ran to meet in the middle, Adeleigh looked up at me, with the biggest smile in her eyes and said in her sweet little voice, "It's fun!" Then, while we sat under the sheet which was blanketed on top of us, she crawled over onto my lap and gave me not one, but two kisses, right on the lips. Then, she bounded up and screamed in laughter as her Daddy tickled her from the outside.

~~~

As we get ready for sleep, the sheet still lays on the ground beside the undressed bed. And even though it's late, and I'm exhausted, I'm glad that I didn't make the bed when I intended to. Because that spontaneous playtime, and those kisses, and seeing the joy on Adeleigh's face, was the best part of my day. And I love that everyday, that little girl that's sleeping in the next room, reminds me of what's most important. She reminds me that the cleaning, the bed-making, the chores, the getting online - they can all wait. But my time with her, which is already passing by so fast, shouldn't have to wait for the bed to be made. Not when she's changing so quickly and adorably.

So, when life gives you an over-sized, neatly folded, slightly faded, clean bed sheet - and before you make your bed with it - look underneath with your little one. It could be really fun :)

Daddy

Just read a blog post about all the wonderful things we hope our partners will do with our children someday. So sweet. Gives me the warm and fuzzies. You can read it here.

It makes me want to share a few of the things (and there are many) that make Phaeton such a wonderful father.

I love that he picks her up from daycare, on time, everyday, even when his work isn't finished.
I love that he splits taking time-off from work with me when Adeleigh gets sick.
I love that when I can't figure out what she needs, he can.
I love that he encouraged her to walk up our 2 flights of stairs instead of being carried, even when I didn't think she was ready.
I love that he made me promise that when Adeleigh is in the car with me, I won't talk on my cell phone.
I love that he gets up to calm Adeleigh back to sleep in the middle of the night. I love that he's a light sleeper.
I love that he feels comfortable taking her grocery shopping, even when I don't.
I love that even after a long day of work, he somehow manages to cook dinner while entertaining the Little One, before I even get home.
I love that when we don't have a babysitter, and our friends are going out, he tells me that he'll stay home and watch Adeleigh and that I should go out "because you deserve it." I love that he went out with them last night. Because he deserved to.
I love that at the end of a long day, after Adeleigh is down to bed, he either pours me a glass of wine or gets me a bowl of icecream. Sometimes both.
I love that he's bookmarked her favorite Sesame Street episodes.
I love that he can get her to do things I can't.
I love that when he walks into a room, Adeleigh yells "Daddy! Daddy!" and gives him a big hug.
I love that he talks about having more babies someday.
I love that he lets Adeleigh play with and teaches her about bugs when I'm not around.
I love that he makes her giggle the loudest I've ever heard.
I love that he talks about helping her with her Math homework someday.
I love that he lets me get as many Adeleigh snuggles as I need before she lays down to sleep, even if it means I'm hogging the baby.
I love that he tells me I'm a good Mom. It's something I like to hear every once in awhile.

I love that every day, he tells her that he loves her.



He's a good Dad.

Happy Father's Day, Phaeton. You give me the warm and fuzzies.

Tonight, I am grateful

I'm sitting here, having just turned off the news, listening to both my husband and dog snoring - loudly. It sounds a little bit like a freight train in here. But I don't have the heart to nudge them to stop. Because at least they are sleeping soundly, and peacefully. I wish that was the case for more people in our community tonight. But so many people who live just a few miles to the west and north of our home are probably having a difficult time falling, or staying asleep. So many of them aren't even sleeping on their pillows, or in their own beds tonight. Many of them don't yet know if, or when, they'll even have a home to go back to sleep in.

It's hard not to be consumed in all of the media coverage of the High Park Fire, burning about 15 miles west of town. It's just so sad. Hearing the stories of people who have lost their homes, all of their belongings, their animals - the stories of people who don't know if they'll even have a home to go back to. Hearing that so far one life has been lost, and that many other residents are refusing to leave. It's hard hearing that with such an unpredictable path of destruction, it might take weeks until it's under control. Who knows the damage it will cause by then? It's hard breathing in the fumes, and even worse, seeing our beautiful skies flooded with ash and smoke. It's hard to think that when all of the brave people fighting the fire have put out the flames, when all of the news cameras are gone, what our beautiful landscape is going to look like....
These are places we've all been to - Trails we've hiked - Roads we've traveled while Adeleigh naps in the car - Neighborhoods we've visited and dreamed we would someday live. These are people who we all might know - People who we work with - Professors we've had - People that sit out on our favorite patios at our favorite restaurants in Old Town - People who play at the same Splash Park and get ice cream at Walrus when they're all done. These are our neighbors. And while we might not know each of them by name, this is our community. And it's hard to watch a part of your community go up in flames.

I remember when I was considering getting my undergrad here. I made the solo drive to meet with an advisor and tour the CSU campus. I'll never forget the moment I pulled up to the Administration building. I stepped out of my car and it smelled like flowers! Really really sweet, good-smelling flowers. It was the moment I look back on, when I realized that this was where I belonged. And I can guarantee that it wasn't just because I'd been living in Greeley for the previous year and had grown used to the smells of that city. Even after over nine years of living here, I still think it smells like flowers. I've always said that Fort Collins is one of the most beautiful places on Earth. I love the people, the culture, the sense of community, the small-town feel. When Phaeton and I have talked about other places we'd like to live, our conversations always lead to how we know we'll both grow old here. Then our discussion ends because this wonderful, charming town is our home. And we love it here.
So, while our place here is small, and crowded, and gets messy really easily - and even though there's a giant dead bumblebee right outside our front door that my husband killed but refuses to dispose of - and even though my husband and dog are still snoring in "the other room" which is less than 5 feet away from me -  and even though the smoke from the fire is causing my asthma to flare and our throats to dry and our eyes to water - tonight I am grateful for the roof over our heads. I am grateful for the certainty in knowing that our home, and all of the memories we've shared here, will still stand tomorrow.

~~~~~

Our hearts and prayers go out to all whose homes are threatened, and to those who are courageously fighting to save so many homes and lives.

View of the High Park Fire from the east side of Horsetooth Reservoir 

Monday 6/11/12 

(We had to get out of the house with all of the maintenance going on at our building today, so we took a scenic drive up the Res. The smell of smoke was really bad, so we were only outside for 2 minutes to get a few shots. I felt selfish for being up there at all. Because so many evacuees were there just waiting, watching their homes on the other side of the Res, wondering if the fire would reach their properties. )

Keeping our sanity

What do you do when your child has a highly contagious virus and is forbidden to be around other children?
Here are some things that have kept the Gaglios sane and entertained the last seven days of confinement:

• Car rides around town with the windows down. 

• Drive-thru coffee shops.

• Arts and crafts. We didn't have food coloring to make an edible fingerpaint recipe I found on Pinterest, so I mixed in fruits and veggies instead. The texture was really weird and it didn't really work as paint, but it at least provided a few minutes of goopy entertainment while providing an afternoon snack :)

• A visit from Grandma and Grandpa.

• Playing dress-up in Mommy & Daddy's clean laundry that no one wants to fold.

• Katie Herzig music videos. I don't know what it is about her music, but Adeleigh stops everything to either sit and stare or dance to Katie Herzig music. She's got good taste :) Here's one of our favorites to dance to -

Hey Na Na

• Walking around the lake and birdwatching. 

Last night on our walk, we ran into some old neighbors of ours. As they approached, the woman said, "Uh oh. Is someone getting over the chickenpox?" My response was, "No, she actually has Hand, Foot & Mouth disease." We'd never seen two people walk so fast in the other direction. Phaeton and I, still standing in their dust, turned to look at each other. I said, "I should've just said she has chickenpox." Phaeton's response, "I guess since that's more familiar, they probably would've stuck around." He waved a "Bye, guys!" wave but they didn't see. They were already in Denver.

• Indoor picnics.

• Ring Around the Rosie. Anyone have any advice on how not to get dizzy playing this one?

• Lots of tickling and Eskimo kisses.

• Car washes. We thought it'd be a fun activity to get us out of the house and let Adeleigh experience her very first car wash. When she started crying in fear, Daddy turned and said, in an attempt to calm her down, "Hey, Adeleigh, look! It's a giant Elmo!" She cried louder. I think she thought her giant friend was eating all of us. Oops.

When the Little One gets sick

When Adeleigh gets sick, she gets sick. None of this 24-hour bug stuff. We're talking 120- to 168-hour bugs that like to float around our home. I know how much you want to come meet them all :)
After the last few bouts of baby illnesses, the day that The Husband and I don't call out for work due to a sick child, is usually the day that one or both of us has just caught the latest nasty virus. We try to justify her exposure to germs as helping to build her immune system. I promise we wash her hands regularly. And we keep a clean house. But when she gets sick, I can't help but replay the previous few days and consider all of the things we should have done differently to prevent this from happening. But, too much of that just drives me crazy. And Phaeton always says "should" is a dirty word. Either you "did" or you "didn't". But none of this "should have" business. So, hopefully she can get all these viruses out of her system early on and be one of those immune phenomenons that never gets sick anymore. That would give me one less thing to stress out about. So, with every new illness, Phaeton and I are better prepared and equipped to combat it and help our little girl find relief.
Here are some things we've learned:

• Many liquid meds, like Benadryl and antibiotics, taste absolutely awful and don't stand a chance of staying down unless drizzled over strawberry icecream. Our favorite is Breyer's. Be sure to get yourself a bowl too (sans medicine). Because you deserve it.

• Sometimes allergies won't show up until a child's second round of taking a drug. We learned this with Amoxicillin. Last month, Adeleigh broke out into an allergy rash on top of a viral rash she had, her second time of taking the drug. On top of that med, she had to start a new med to treat an ear infection, plus take a few doses of Benadryl to calm the allergic reaction. That's a lot of meds to have to feed a sick baby.

• You are not a bad parent if you have to force-feed your child fluids or medicine. I have to keep reminding myself of this one. As brutal as it may be for everyone in the house, sometimes it's necessary. Sometimes, for us, the force-feed method isn't effective unless both parents are present though. When I try it on my own, both Adeleigh and I tend to end up both in tears, covered head-to-toe in thick, gooey medicine. So, we time our medicine feedings for when we'll have help. 

• Don't exhaust yourself looking up your child's symptoms on the internet. It's absolutely terrifying what you will find. Online, almost every symptom "may lead to death." Last month, when looking up Adeleigh's Adenovirus diagnosis online, almost every article I Google-searched called it "The Killer Cold." You can imagine the panic that started to creep in. Save yourself the heart palpitations and call the doctor, even if it's 2 a.m. And don't hesitate to ASK A TON OF QUESTIONS. 

• If it's been hours and you're still anxiously awaiting a call back from the doc, call a pharmacist. Depending on your question, they may be able to help. (Michael, the pharmacist for our local Walgreens, and I have become great friends! Well, at least on my end. I probably annoy the hell out of him. But hey, at least I'm at ease.)

• It's possible (in our house, probable) that with each new illness, comes a new round of sleep-training. When Adeleigh gets sick, we either bring her in our bed to snuggle or stay in her room all night. So when everyone is back to healthy, we usually have a few more nights of getting her used to sleeping by herself again. 

• Utilize your friends and family for advice and support as much as possible. Sometimes hearing other's experiences and advice helps to ease whatever stresses and worries you may have. Also, after a few days of having a quarantined sick baby, finding a gluten-free ButterCream cupcake on your doorstep might be just what you need to power through a few more days. (Thanks, Shay!)

• If you asked me, I'd say it's okay to let your sick child do things you wouldn't normally let her do - such as, watch PBS cartoons all day long, pull the cat's tail, or play with your keys until the Panic button goes off. If anything, you would have allowed for a few extra giggles on an otherwise mopey day.

• The #1 remedy for making a sick baby a little more comfortable is to snuggle. A lot. As heartbreaking and difficult as it is for everyone when she's unwell, snuggling always makes us slow down our busy lives and really focus on what's most important, which is a little reminder that all of us need from time to time.

If anyone has any advice to pass along, please share. I know we'll be crossing this bridge at least a few more times :)

~~~~~~~~

After nearly a week of resisting the temptation to go spread the love of Hand, Foot & Mouth disease around town, all of the Gaglios can't wait to get back to the outside world and go play with this guy -

Rosie

Just last week, we bought Adeleigh a stuffed kangaroo to honor her "Grandma Great" and her Aussie heritage. We named her Rosie. Adeleigh's been carrying Rosie everywhere, snuggling tight as she sleeps, getting splashed with milk as she drinks, holding Rosie while we walk Rico. She loves Rosie more than any other stuffed toy we've bought her. She must understand her special purpose.
Just this morning I'd been thinking of my Grandma and had decided that I would call her this evening to give her our love and let her hear Adeleigh's voice. And then an hour later, I found out she was gone.

We'd always wanted our Adeleigh Rose to meet the wonderful woman she was named after. And then I remembered this...

Our sweet baby girl is there, 3 months along in my belly. 

We love you, Grandma Rose. You are already missed.

Don't repeat Mommy

We knew it was coming. The day when one of us would slip an accidental swear word in Adeleigh's presence and she'd repeat it. Up until recently, when one of us 'black-box over the mouth'-ed, we'd just look at our sweet little girl and say, "Don't repeat me" and then smother her with kisses. Well, this morning, I was running late getting out the door. I hurried and walked Rico and I took a few things down to my car. We went back upstairs and I got Adeleigh's shoes and jacket on, grabbed my coffee and went to grab my keys by the door. But they weren't there. I combed through every step I'd taken since I last had them. Adeleigh was chillin' on my hip, telling me everything we passed while I looked. "Rrrock."
"Yes, there's your rock. Now where are Mommy's keys?"
"Shoe."
I grabbed the spare house key, locked the door behind me and just hoped that I wouldn't have to haul ourselves back up those 2 flights of stairs to rip the house apart. Maybe they'll be resting on the sidewalk, or sitting in the ignition, or on top of the car....Nope. I had retraced every step I'd taken that morning at least 3 times since losing my keys and they were nowhere to be seen. It just didn't make sense. And for me to not feel rushed and stay on schedule, we should have left the parking lot 10 minutes ago. I suddenly felt really overwhelmed and stressed. And under my breath, I cursed, "Well, Sh**." Then, my girl, with her perfect lips and with the cutest, sweetest voice ever, said it too. And I couldn't help but laugh. And, as strange as it seems, I suddenly felt really calm about the whole situation.
So, with Adeleigh in tow, we made our way back upstairs so I could contemplate our next exit strategy. I happened to reach down by my empty hip and there they were. My keys had been tucked inside the top of my work pants the entire time - of course! Where else would a set of keys go if you didn't have pockets in your pants and your hands are full? I breathed a sigh of relief and smothered Adeleigh in kisses as I tucked her into her carseat.

So, the moral of the story is, buy pants with pockets. And if you're running late because you can't find your keys, learn how to Tokyo Drift  [Fast & Furious reference] your way safely to daycare. Oh, and don't swear in front of your children. :)

Adeleigh Tokyo Drifting in her cool ride with the windows down and her head band on.

Happenings

Everyone in the Gaglio home is excited that summer is right around the corner. We've replenished our sunscreen supply. Our sweaters and boots are replaced with shorts and flip-flops. And we're committed to more hiking excursions and camping getaways in the coming months. It's been a busy and fun Springtime.

Here are some of our recent happenings:

I started a new job working for a bank. The most stressful thing I deal with is making sure the new plants get plenty of water. It's a breath of fresh air to have found this opportunity.

We decided to redecorate our condo and give it a more cozy feel, a.k.a got rid of the futon, since after weeks of crunching the numbers and weighing our options we decided that we're probably going to be here for longer than originally planned. It's undecided as to whether our neighbors are 1) excited to have a bubbly, little bounding toddler screaming down at them from our 3rd story window as they come home from work, or 2) completely bummed that their nights will continue to be interrupted by a pissed-off toddler's screams of "Hold me! Now!" while she jumps up and down in her crib and shoots tear rockets from her eyes.
We've always loved this place, no matter how much smaller it seems to be getting. So, we're making the most of it. We filled up our storage unit to make more play room in the condo. We rented and quickly filled up a second storage unit. We moved our bed into the living room so the Little One has her own space. The first night in separate rooms from Adeleigh was the first in a long time that all three of us actually slept all night. It was weird and beautiful - all at the same time. Now that it's getting warmer, we're making sure to burn some cabin-feverish energy chasing each other around outside daily.
We bought our first real couch (more of a loveseat) where the three of us fit perfectly squished side by side. We decided to test new curtains and loved them so much they stayed. If you think I'm going to take them back down to actually iron them, you're wrong. There's no time for ironing. Not to mention, no room for an ironing board. The wrinkles will work themselves out eventually.
We bought a dining room table where, during our first ever family dinner sitting at a table that's not appropriate to put your feet on, Adeleigh said "Adeleigh" for the first time ever. Since then, she hasn't stopped chatting. She counts to ten. Then she skips a few and resumes at thirteen. She sings "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star". "Up above the" is her favorite part. She tells you everything she's ever learned all at once. Don't even try to interrupt her. There's no guarantee you'll understand most of what she's saying. But it's pretty darn cute to hear her.
We discovered that she loves ice cream about as much as her Mommy does, but prefers to eat it with a fork like her Daddy.

She brings her artwork home from daycare now. What she doesn't proceed to shred to pieces or shove up her nose, gets displayed on her bedroom wall. She fist bumps. She says "No" - to everything. Especially everything Mommy and Daddy ask her. Black beans and stickers are pretty much the coolest things ever.

Her hair fits into pigtails now.

She has molars. Sometimes she lets us brush them. Sometimes she finds Rico's toothbrush and brushes them herself. She had her first dentist appointment where Dr. Joe said she's going to need braces someday. Seriously? She has a whopping mouthful of almost 12 still-budding baby teeth and we've already started saving for her eventual braces.
So, Neighbors! Hope you're comfortable having a toddler around. 'Cause it looks like we're here for awhile. At least until The Little One gets her braces off. :)

Happy Summer!

It's unnatural for a coffee table to eat things

While burning off some post-sick energy yesterday, Adeleigh started chasing Nubi around the house. When Adeleigh followed her under the coffee table to try and catch her, Nubi ran off, but Adeleigh got stuck behind. She started screaming and I told her that it was okay and that "Nubi might just need to be alone for a little bit. Let's play with something else." But Adeleigh didn't budge. She just screamed louder. I knelt down and saw that her chubby little legs were wedged in between the bottom rungs of the table. I worked for 10 minutes to try and wiggle them free. I started to panic. All I kept thinking was, Firemen will come out to free cats from trees and to free tongues from frozen flagpoles. Surely, they'd come out to free a toddler's legs from the wrath of the beastly coffee table. And then somehow, I managed to wiggle her free, leg by leg. It took 5 minutes to soothe my traumatized little girl.
I was so frustrated at the table for doing that to her, especially after she'd just had a brutal week of illness after illness, that I decided it was time we part ways with the table. It was taking up too much space in our condo anyway. I propped open the front door, and pulled the mega-ton table as hard as I could. Adeleigh could see the struggle in my face and came over to help push it all the way out. We high-fived as we walked back inside.
When Phaeton came home, he was sure to take it slow inside the front door, carefully evaluating what level of estrogen and girl power he was walking into. "Um, why is the coffee table on the porch?" I told him the traumatic event.
Phaeton - "Why don't we just take the rungs off the bottom of the table and call it good?"
Me - "Nope. Done."
Phaeton - "But that table and I have been through so much together."
Me - "Shhh." I put my finger up to his lips to shoosh him.
The evening carried on and I was loving the amount of floor space we now had in the living room. Adeleigh loved the extra football field of space to spread her toys around. Phaeton hated it. "I really miss being able to put my feet up on something while sitting on the couch." My response, "Hmm. That's too bad. You'll be fine, I'm sure."
When I went to tuck Adeleigh into bed and came back out of her room, I found that instead of him taking it down to the dumpster, Phaeton had carried the table back to its original resting place. I just shook my head slowly and he pretended not to see me. In fact, he distinctly turned his head the other direction in an effort that I might not see him. I think he learned that from Adeleigh. But I did see him! I slowly approached him, horns poking out of the top of head, put my face next to his and whispered, "You have until Monday."
Then today when I got home from work, Phaeton couldn't wait to show me what he'd done. He'd removed the bottom rungs off the table and wrapped a big pink bow around it, hoping that I couldn't resist and would let the coffee table stay. I wasn't convinced. Then he showed me something else, and I realized I was a little premature in my decision and could give the table another chance....

So, to the behemoth coffee table that almost ate my daughter: You have one more chance. If you screw it up, instead of throwing you in the dump, I will go Pinterest on you, wrestle you upside down and turn you pink.

Pinned by Six in the Suburbs