Augie's first sick visit...

...and he isn't sick at all! He's had a cold and been super fussy the past 3-4 days. Tonight he was screaming in a way they'd never heard before so Zach and Lauren decided to take him to Immediate Care to get his ears checked. But he napped on the way there and woke up smiling at the nurses. Grrrr! He weighed in at 13lbs 9oz which is more than Oz and Lolli weighed at this age so he's growing well!

Christmas 2014

It was the first Christmas for the completed Pucillo family of 6! Lolli's 7, Poppy's 5, Ozzie's 2 and Augie's 3 months. So it was full of magic and fun! There was the Gardner Christmas, the Bowen Christmas, the Swain Christmas, Christmas with Papaw Lucky, Christmas with our little family, Christmas at the Pucillos, Christmas with Santa and Christmas with the Kirbys. Ozzie went shopping at his school for his immediate family members and the girls did their shopping at Dollar Tree. There were far too many gifts given and recieved to list but highlights include Disney Infinity, Just Dance, Buzz Lightyear, dress up clothes, train tracks, a tablet, a chandelier, a mother's necklace, a smart fitness watch, handpainted signs, board games, a tricycle, a scooter, a car seat, a trumpet, a shield, a high chair, new bedding, Turtle toys, Frozen toys, guitars, snow boots, a baby pod, a jumperoo... Our elf Jolly provided lots of joy and all 3 big kids scramble to find him first thing every morning. He never once forgot to move this year! Santa brought gifts wrapped and stuffed into sacks this year which was a change that the kids enjoyed. We're so thankful for our extended families and looking forward to next year when Augie will get more out of it!

Great Wolf Lodge

Jolly the elf brought with him a note saying that Santa was giving the kids an early Christmas gift - a trip to Great Wolf Lodge! Lolli and Poppy had been dying to go there forever so they were super excited. And Ozzie got very excited once he saw pictures and the web site. Ozzie had croup and Augie a bad cold a few days before the trip but everyone ended up being in ok health to make the journey. The kids were great in the car - even Augie! They didn't have to make any stops on the way there or home (It's in Cincinnati - a 2 hour drive). Lolli, Poppy and Ozzie bought wands and capes to play MagiQuest - a hotel-wide magical scavenger hunt. So fun! Santa came to the lobby with Mrs. Clause and there was even a horse-drawn carriage out front. There was story time in the lobby with real snow! Augie did ok. He had to be driven around once and had one mid-night crying spell but otherwise he was content to just be carried around constantly. Which is exhausting, of course, but Zach and Lauren made it work for the sake of the other kids. Because Ozzie had been sick and missed many naps, he insisted on being carried a lot, too. Broken backs and sore biceps for Z and L because that hotel is HUGE! Lolli and Poppy were so patient and well behaved. The best part of the lodge, of course, was the water park! Lolli was big enough to ride all the slides solo but she opted to go with Z or L on the bigger ones. Poppy went on one big one, then stuck to the kid-sized ones. Even Oz went down a big kid one. Their favorite part, though, was the wave pool. King's Island was right next door and Oz loved being able to see it from their balcony. At bed time, Lolli and Poppy slept in bunk beds in the wolf den, Zach and Oz slept in the bed and Lauren and Augie slept in the couch bed. All in all it was a great trip!

Ozzie's Christmas Program

Ozzie had his stage debut tonight! The show didn't start until 7pm which is bedtime for him - but he did great! He actually was the best performer of his class and he stole the show with his non-stop bouncing and excessive cuteness. Zach was sick and stayed home with Augie so Lauren and the girls could enjoy the show. The church was so crowded but Oz spotted his cheering section and sporadically waved and hollered hello during the show. So cute!

Poppy's parade!

Poppy got to be in Greenfield's Christmas parade today. She bundled up and rode on the back of a red convertible that was decked out in Christmas lights. She did a great job waving to everyone! Earlier this morning they all went to breakfast with Santa in Greenfield. Poppy wore her sash and crown and was like royalty there :) Oz was excited to meet the other queens and princesses and he even visited with Santa again, as did Lolli and Poppy. How fun!

No More Pucillos!

Our family is officially complete - Zach had a vasectomy the afternoon before Thanksgiving. He missed one turkey day gathering but was able to attend the ones on Friday and Saturday. His recovery has been pretty easy and it only cost us $50 - woohoo!

Augie's 2 month check ip

all is well! He's 23.5 inches (75th percentile) and 12lbs 9oz (50-75th percentile). He got an oral vaccine and 3 shots.

Weight check!

the midwives came over today. Augie weighed in at 9lbs 2oz! 6oz above birth weight :)

Poppy's 2nd pageant

Poppy participated in the Little Miss Riley Festival today. It was for girls ages 3-5 and the theme was The Frost On The Punkin. Lauren spent part of the first few days of Augie's life making Poppy's dress out of lots and lots of sparkly tulle. It was cold and windy but Poppy did great - she even did a spin move as she walked the stage. Her cheering section was huge and we were all optimistic that she might win for best attire or most photogenic for the 5x7 she submitted. They were bummed when she wasn't announced as the winner of either of those categories but it was all worth it because - she won the whole thing! That's right, our own Poppy is the 2014 Little Miss Riley :) She got flowers, a Toys R Us gift card, a sash, a trophy and a tiara! And she gets to be in 3 parades! So fun :)

Augie meets Dr. Roscoe

Augie's first pediatrician appointment was today. He checked out perfectly and weighed in at 8lbs 10oz, just 2oz shy of his birth weight! Dr. Roscoe told Augie that being number 4 he'd better learn to fend for himself ha ha

The Birth of Augustus Swain Pucillo

Augustus Swain Pucillo was born at home at 40 weeks and 3 days gestation on Thursday September 25, 2014 at 8:30pm weighing 8lbs 12oz and measuring 22 inches. The story of Lauren’s labor really goes back to Tuesday, September 16. Lauren had been to the chiropractor on Monday morning and by Tuesday evening her contractions started to become crampy enough that she spent some time in the bath tub to ease the discomfort. She knew it was unlikely that she’d give birth any time soon, but she started to get the idea that maybe this wouldn’t be a never-ending pregnancy. For the next week she’d get somewhat regular contractions that never increased in intensity or frequency. She enjoyed the sensations as well as the anticipation of the upcoming birth, but the timing was still off so she hoped things would hold out. You see, Augie’s due date was September 22, which happens to be one day after Zach’s birthday and one day before Lolli’s birthday. Lauren was really hopeful she’d give birth on September 29th, the birthday of her Grandma Swain who passed away during the pregnancy. But if she couldn’t make it that long, she at least hoped to make it to the 25th so there would be one day between Lolli’s and Augie’s birthdays. Plus the 25th was Zach’s last day of mandatory client work for the quarter, so if he could get that done he’d have no scheduling issues. But since Lauren usually gestates long, she figured this thing could go well into October so she was optimistic about the spacing. Zach’s busy birthday weekend came and went and Lauren was still pregnant – hooray! Her contractions were picking up in frequency but not intensity yet. Then on the morning of Lolli’s birthday, Lauren woke up to find she was having her bloody show. Such an exciting time in a pregnancy! Poppy had been born about 20 hours after that happened during her birth, but Lauren was hoping Augie would hold off a bit longer and make it to the 25th. She had a 6-hour long span of contractions 10-minutes apart that evening but thankfully they fizzled out overnight. Lauren was starting to get tired, though, because the intermittent contractions were now strong enough to wake her up at the peak of each, which is not really a fun thing to do multiple times a night. Lauren continued to have gunk come out all day on Wednesday but not much in the way of patterned contractions. She was going to make it until at least Thursday! Thursday morning Lauren woke up and felt kind of different. There was a heaviness in her uterus that didn’t feel like contractions or cramps but wasn’t super comfortable. She was unsure about Zach going to work but since this was the last client he needed to see this quarter, he went. So Lauren and Oz headed to their midwife appointment. On the way there, Lauren had a couple contractions in the car and decided that once she got home, she was hanging up her keys until after the birth. Things were getting too intense to safely drive through, which was a depressing thought considering she could still have a couple weeks of pregnancy left – being homebound for so long would be awful! At the appointment, everything checked out normal as usual except that Lauren’s blood pressure was 130/78, which is really high for her (it had been 98/60 at the home visit). Since there was no swelling, protein in her urine, headaches or anything, it was determined to be a pre-labor fluid shift. Which made sense because the day before Lauren had had two crazy sweating episodes where out of nowhere, not being active or overheated, she poured sweat from every pore for about 10 minutes straight. Things were changing! She and Zach had discussed having the midwives sweep her membranes out of curiosity to see if she’d dilated at all from the random contractions and to see if perhaps it would get her labor going since the important dates had passed and the weekend was coming, which meant a lot of sitting around just waiting for a baby. She’d been swept twice past 40 weeks with Poppy – nothing. But she’d been swept once about 40 hours after her water broke with Ozzie and he was born about 15 hours later, so she figured maybe there was a chance it could urge along what was already slooowly going on. So she asked the midwives who obliged her. She was 2.5cm dilated but still not effaced. The baby’s head was pushing on the front of her cervix more than the back so she went home with instructions to do some downward facing dogs to see if his head would pop out of her pelvis and then back down into it but in a more centered position. Lauren had no contractions on the way home and her discharge didn’t seem to increase much. She’d expected at least some cramping – nope. It looked like her cervix of steel was going to be stubborn as usual. So she put Oz down for a nap and laid down herself, since she was exhausted from the night time contractions. No sooner had she laid down than the contractions kicked in. So frustrating! They started out about 12 minutes apart, then moved to 10, and then 8. She was snoozing in between them but they kept waking up her. She regretted her decision to have the midwives sweep her because this didn’t feel like labor at all, but it sure was annoying. Around 3 she decided she wanted Zach to be home for when Oz woke up. So she texted him. And called him. And texted and called again. NOTHING. Finally he came in the garage door – he’d been out in the driveway on a conference call. Ugh. So he got Oz up and left to pick up the girls from Daisies. Lauren was actually getting pretty miserable by this point, but it still didn’t feel like labor. But just in case, she had Zach take the kids over to her grandparents and leave the van there so they could be brought back for bed. While Zach was gone, Lauren got up and started putting laundry away and cleaning up. Her contractions quickly moved to 5 minutes apart, and sometimes 3 or 4 minutes apart. Some of them didn’t feel like contractions; they didn’t come on in a wave. Instead they presented as a pain in the lower front part of her abdomen – it was super sore! She was getting so frustrated because it didn’t feel like the baby was moving down or that her cervix was opening; it just hurt. And then came the absolute worst moment of the whole pregnancy/birth. Lauren was standing in the boys’ room, putting away their laundry, when an especially strong pain hit. At that exact moment, Pandora decided to play Don’t Take The Girl. Lauren leaned over the dresser, started sobbing like a fool, and peed all over herself. It was at this point that she began to consider that this may in fact be LABOR. She called Zach back and urged him to get home because she was clearly losing her mind and becoming a hysterical lunatic like they show in the movies. He got home pretty quickly and they worked together to finish up some cleaning. But then the contractions were coming too quickly and hurting in too strange of a way, so Lauren decided to go back to side-lying on the couch because she’d been much more comfortable that way than upright (which seemed so backwards but hey – ya can’t argue logic with a birthing body). When she laid down, the contractions spaced back out to 5-6 minutes and she was able to manage them much better. But she’d have to get up to pee often and then she’d be slammed with back-to-back pains. She hoped this was doing something to dilate her cervix, because the contractions felt different than her other labors. Although the peeing everywhere was similar to Poppy’s birth and the sleeping, side-lying thing was similar to Ozzie’s. It got to be around 6:30 so Lauren had Zach call to get the kids brought home. He suggested they just go to bed over at Gma’s but thankfully Lauren was still with it enough to remember the main point of her birth plan – have the kids be home for it! So the kids were brought back and Lauren got to hug them all before they went upstairs to bed. But before Lolli and Poppy even got tucked in, Zach decided Lauren’s noises were worthy of calling in the troops, so to speak. According to Lauren’s phone, it was 7:28 when she acknowledged to her doula, Tonya, that it might be time to head that way, but it also might not even be real labor so she apologized in advance in case it was a wasted trip. Zach had contacted the midwives around 7, saying he wasn’t sure, but that maybe soon it would be time for them to come. Shortly thereafter Lauren decided maybe it was time to fill the tub. Zach brought it down, hooked up the hose, and started the water. It came out brown! Apparently the brand new hose had rusted inside or something. Gross. So Lauren decided she’d just head upstairs to get in the garden tub in the master bathroom. She wanted to wait until another contraction passed before tackling the stairs, so Zach went up first to start the water. While he was gone, Lauren noticed he’d started the dishwasher which was pretty much infuriating considering they only have a 40-gallon hot water tank. Hell hath no fury like a woman in labor who fears she may run out of hot water ha ha. So she hustled upstairs, threw on a bathing suit top and was about to hop in the tub… when she noticed dust and hair floating in the water. Anyone who has a garden tub knows those things get dusty pretty much immediately after each use, and Zach had failed to rinse it out before filling it. At this point Lauren was ready to explode because not only was the dishwasher wasting her hot water, but now a whole giant tub of it had been ruined by dust. She decided to forget the idea of a water birth and just lay down on the bed instead. On her way there, she had one giant contraction that left her bracing against the wall and begging for Zach to push on her back. That helps so much! But even with that counterpressure, she realized her body was starting to push. She was so glad they’d already called everyone to come and that her kids were home. This was really it! And so she flopped down on the bed, lying on her right side, determined not to move again until this baby was out of her. And that’s exactly how it happened. It was around 8:00 when she heard one of the midwives, Lynda, arrive. Zach had to go downstairs to collect all the birth supplies from the planned birth site (the living room). At some point the other midwife, Shannon, and another guest midwife, Sarah, arrived as well. By this point Lauren was fully in pushing mode and not paying much attention to what was going on in the room but she remembers Lynda peeking to see if her perineum was already bulging – nope! Everyone had enough time to get situated before this baby would be born. They checked the baby’s heart rate with the Doppler and checked Lauren’s blood pressure and pulse. Everything was great! They even managed to get a plastic sheet and some chux pads under Lauren without ever disturbing her side-lying position. At some point (8:05ish maybe?) Lauren felt her water break in a trickle during one of her pushes. It was so interesting to feel that and be aware of it. Lauren was content to just lay still on her side and bury her face in her hand during each push, but she did need Zach’s hands on her back with each one. It wasn’t necessarily for the counterpressure or any pain relief, but just the security of knowing he was near. At 8:12, Lauren messaged some friends that she her water had broken and she was pushing, but after that she was too busy to Facebook again until after the birth, ha ha. Tonya got there and started taking pictures and pretty soon it was baby time! Lauren knew the birth was imminent because she started feeling that familiar fish lips feeling as the baby's head moved down. Lauren was totally in the pushing zone and it felt so good – no longer the strange unrecognizable pain she’d experienced during what she now knew had been active labor and transition. Even though her body was in control, not her mind, it gave Lauren great peace of mind to finally be sure this was really IT and that she hadn’t just been acting a fool earlier for nothing. She kept her eyes closed and focused on the sensations of the baby’s head moving further and further down with each contraction. The cool thing about home birth is no one checks you or tells you when to push or for how long or anything. Lauren just got to go with the flow of her body, which meant some long pushes, some short pushes, some noisy pushes and some she just breathed through. It’s so interesting to experience! Her water broke again (a forebag maybe?) with a pop shortly before the head crowned. Tonya went out and asked Lolli and Poppy if they wanted to come in, but they declined, which was fine with Lauren but she was so thankful they’d been given the choice. A few pushes later and there he was - the head was born, sunny side up. Zach held up Lauren’s leg and she just sort of hung out for 22 seconds or so before she felt like pushing out the body. It’s so crazy when it slides out, how it feels soooo long and like there are 27 appendages instead of just 4. As typical, he pooped as he was coming out and for some reason he ended up being cleaned up with a vintage Michael Bolton t-shirt from 1993. That had definitely NOT been in the birth supply kit LOL Lauren immediately asked Zach, “He’s a boy, right? He’s really a boy?” ha ha. He is indeed all boy and he has a LOUD cry! The family who had gathered in the play room was able to hear him as soon as he was born, but somehow Ozzie slept through this whole thing. (In fact, despite being about 20 feet away from the action and with 14 or 15 people coming in and out of the house that night, Oz didn’t even know his brother had been born until he was already 11 hours old). Lolli and Poppy came into the bedroom to meet their new little brother. They were so sweet with him but soon it was placenta time and they don’t do blood, so they went outside to announce to the neighbors that he had been born. Lauren is always so awkward with movement after birth and really hates that short time span where she’s still attached to the newborn. It’s so hard to get situated to breastfeed when one is holding a slippery newborn whose cord is still tethered to the placenta inside her while her uterus is contracting to push it out. But with everyone’s help she managed to get pretty comfy and the placenta came out really easily with one tiny push. Freedom! Shortly after that the cord was clamped. Lolli and Poppy were offered cutting duties but they declined so Zach did it. Lauren was so amused by the baby – he reminded her so much of newborn Lolli, especially his cry. Lauren’s mom, dad, grandma, grandpa, brother, SIL and MIL all came in to see the baby. Thanks to previous home births, pretty much everyone has already seen Lauren naked and in awkward positions before so no one really bats an eye anymore ha ha. Lauren had a minimal tear in a bow tie shape so the midwives stuck some dermabond on it. When the baby was having his exam, they saw that he had a tongue tie. This was Lauren and Zach’s first experience with that and they weren’t quite sure what to do. They decided to follow the midwife’s recommendation that it be clipped now to avoid potential latch issues. Zach held him while it was being done. Thankfully it didn’t seem to traumatize the baby as much as one would imagine. Seems like it would HURT. He was able to nurse again right afterwards and thus far (5 days later) it hasn’t seemed to have caused any issues so that’s good. At some point goofy Zach went outside and played The Circle Of Life for the neighbors who had gathered outside across the street when they saw all the cars. That’s a throwback to Poppy’s birth when he held her up over the loft, Rafiki-style, to present her to the family downstairs. By 11:00, everything was cleaned up and the party was over. Even though it was a much less active labor than Lauren had anticipated, she has no major complaints about the birth. She’d been concerned about potentially feeling gypped by a short, wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am birth but her labor built up over the course of a week and then still took about 7.5 hours from start to finish, which seems like a pretty good deal for a 4th birth. Augie’s timing was really perfect – couldn’t have scheduled it any better if they’d tried. He was also Lauren’s earliest birth by about 5 hours (Lolli was born at 1:25am at 40 w 4d). Looking back, she spent most of her labor cleaning, putting away laundry, and lying around chatting on Facebook, trying to decide whether or not she was in labor. (Note to self: when your contractions are 3-4 minutes apart and you’re peeing yourself and crying hysterically, you’re in labor. Duh.) She would have liked to have gotten to use the tub she’d bought and the video camera they’d ordered with Zach’s points. But one of the greatest things about having experienced birth a few times before is a keen awareness and complete acceptance that plans don’t really matter because, in the end, BIRTH takes over and things just happen as they will. Augie was born just as he was supposed to be and Lauren couldn’t feel more fortunate to have completed their family of six.

The Gestation of Augustus Swain Pucillo

A few days before her 31st birthday, and one day before she was to begin a weight loss and half marathon training program, Lauren got the excitement of a positive home pregnancy test for what would be the last time ever. She and Zach had brought home a souvenir from their New Year's trip to FL with the family. Hooray! And so Lauren still stuck with the healthier eating and Mini training but didn’t restrict too many calories or push too hard on runs. She had a pretty easy pregnancy and at the halfway point, was down 15 pounds and finished the Mini in 2:24, four minutes faster than she’d run the Monumental Half 6 months earlier. The most exciting part of this pregnancy was that they decided to find out the sex of the baby before the birth. They’d found out at 38 weeks with Lolli, at 19 weeks with Poppy, and at birth with Ozzie. Lauren wanted to do something fun for Zach and the kids, so she went to Sneak Peek and got a gender ultrasound at 15w 3d. Much to her shock and delight, it was a BOY!!! She hated to have a preference, but she’d been reeeeeally hoping for a boy this time around to even out the numbers and make room-sharing easier. She couldn’t believe it! She had a lot of fun sharing the good news with Zach, Lolli, Poppy & Ozzie by mostly white Sixlets into pink and blue balloons – except for one balloon, which got blue candy – and having them pop them open to see what was inside. Poppy found the colored candy and announced, “Blue – it’s a boy!” So fun! To reveal the sex of the baby to everyone else, they did a fun photo shoot that involved an idea Zach had come up with. The girls were having a fabulously girly tea party while Oz was running around in super hero gear wielding a weapon and being all boy. The caption? “The call for back-up has been answered!” Yay - Oz was no longer going to be the only boy surrounded by glitter and pink  The trickiest part of this pregnancy was coming up with a name. Zach and Lauren agreed early on that the baby could be given the middle name Swain. It meant a lot to Lauren since obviously all the kids have Zach’s last name. And even though it doesn’t quite fit the 4-letter, 1-syllable rule, it’s pretty close (Kate, Lynn, Zane, Swain). They settled on Theodore for the first name and Lauren hoped for a cute rolly polly baby. However as the pregnancy went on, Lauren kept feeling more and more disconnected from Theodore/Theo and they were back to square one on the naming. Around the 26 week mark, Zach and Lauren got to go to Jamaica with Zach’s coworkers. What a fun trip! Lauren went crazy on the food there and spent 36 hours sick in the hotel room but other than that it was a blast. They snorkeled, went on a catamaran, swam in the ocean and pools, and ate and ate. Zach played golf and went out with friends. After that they decided to redo the downstairs of their house and much effort went into laying the new flooring. It was a lot of work but the pregnancy didn’t interfere too much. The weather was really hot though and Lauren slacked off on her eating and running. However July and August were cooler so she got back on track, training for the Hendricks County Half Marathon on September 13th. It was hilly, lonely, windy and cold but she finished it in 3:16 at 38w, 5d pregnant. This beat her 3:33 Mini time at 38w 2d with Oz, so she was pleased. In the end she finished the pregnancy 3 pounds above where she started, a big change from the 45-55lbs she'd gained with her each of her other 3 pregnancies. The other kids had been looking forward to the new baby’s arrival. Poppy wouldn’t quit calling him Theodore even though she knew that likely wouldn’t be his name. Lolli was excited about the birth. Ozzie would ask, “Baby come out?” most mornings. Eventually Lauren and Zach settled on Augustus as the baby’s name. Lauren had loved that name when she was pregnant with Oz but Orion won out. Lauren's prenatal care was overseen by Lynda, the same midwife from Poppy and Ozzie's birth. But her main care provider was Shannon, an almost-midwife who had actually been the one present for Ozzie's birth. Augie’s birth was planned to be a home water birth in the living room because it's Lauren's favorite room in the house. She bought a cake mix and posterboard to keep the kids occupied during her labor. They ordered a GoPro camera with Zach's points to film the birth with. She bought a cute nursing sports bra and water skirt to wear during labor. They hired a doula/photographer for support. The home visit went well, everything looked healthy for Lauren and Augie, and they were given the green light for birth at 37 weeks. All that was left was the wait 

Lolli's 7th birthday

Lolli is 7 years old! She celebrated her birthday 10 days early with a pool party with friends and classmates at the YMCA. She had a blast and got lots of great gifts. She and Lauren went for mani/pedis together the weekend before her birthday. Then on her actual birthday, Lauren had lunch with her at school and the whole family went to Rustic Gardens to play 9 holes of Mini Golf. It was a great time and thankfully Lolli didn't end up having to share her birthday with her new brother!

Poppy can rhyme

Poppy's homework required her to write words that rhyme with 'at'. She started off well with 'mat' and 'cat'. Her third choice? 'Shat'. Um, no.

Oh, Poppy.

I just asked Poppy what she did on recess. She said, "Collin wanted to fight with me so I took him down!"

Shaking my head. We just can't figure out where she came from lol

Hey, I'm doing it!

This made me emotional when I looked up the numbers this morning, so I had to share. I started my pregnancy with Oz at 166lbs. At 32 weeks I was 204lbs and I got up to 215 before he was born. Started this one at 198.6 (in the obese range for my height) and am currently 195-197ish. I've definitely had some splurge days but overall I'm really proud of how I've held myself accountable for taking care of my body and the baby during this pregnancy so far. I've gained 45-55 pounds with all 3 of my other kids (no matter if I started at 175, 190 or 166) and honestly I was terrified of what getting up to 250 this time would do to my overall health and in terms of increasing prenatal risk of complications for both of us. I've never really lost weight during breastfeeding, either (gained, actually) so it'll be interesting to see if I can keep on track with nutrition and slowly but steadily get back down to a healthy weight (I'm 5'7", so 159 is where I get into the 'normal' range) while still maintaining a good supply.

First day of school!

Last night was Back to School Night for Lolli and Poppy. Poppy is excited to have the same teacher Lolli had last year - Mrs. Copeland! She got a special lanyard with her name on it to wear to school today to help make sure she got to the right place. Lolli's teacher is Mrs. Purciful. She seems very nice and likes swimming and the color blue, so Lolli's happy! She also has 4-5 girlfriends in her class so she feels right at home. Poppy didn't know any of her classmates but it won't take her long to make friends. This morning the girls were up and ready to go an hour before the bus came. They waited out front with their neighbor friends and when it was time to get on the bus, Poppy insisted in being first - no fear! Hope they have a great day :)

32 weeks pregnant

Laurenn is 32 weeks pregnant today. Everything is going well! She's still 2-3 pounds down from where she was the day she found out she was pregnant but baby is growing well. He's a wiggle worm!! As of yet he's still nameless although we know his middle name will be Swain. Can't believe it's time to start buying birth supplies and getting ready to welcome the final member of the Pucillo 6!!!

Poppy's birthday party

Today was Poppy's 5th birthday party. She invited Lolli, Paige, Kendall, Stella, Vivica and Elise. All the family came, too. The special guest was Kimmy Cupcake! The girls had so much fun doing karaoke, glitter crafts (cupcakes, tiaras and magnets), getting their makeup done and getting glitter tattoos. It was a hit and the kids had so much fun - especially the birthday girl, who got tons of fabulous gifts!

Poppy's 5th birthday

Zach was out of towen today so Lolli and Ozzie went to Gma Bowen's while Lauren took Poppy out for a day of birthday fun. First they went to Sharkey's where Poppy got her hair curled and glittered, her nails painted and glittered, and her make up done. They also gave her a bracelet and a birthday tiara. She was so happy! Then they walked around downtown Carmel and had lunch at Bubs. So many people told Poppy happy birthday. She was eating it up! And then the Bubs staff surprised her with a sundae and singing Happy Birthday to her. She got a little shy because she did not see that coming! Too cute. Afterwards it was off to Children's Place where Poppy chose a new dress and shoes. Her makeover was complete! Lauren also got a great deal on backpacks for all 3 kids. Lolli's is hot pink sparkles and cheetah. Poppy's is shiny blue with stars. Ozzie's is gray and orange with sports balls on it. So fun! After Poppy opened gifts back at Gma Great.s, Lolli spent the night at Gma Cathy's while Lauren, Pop and Oz went to O'Charley's with Papaw Lucky. They gave Poppy some birthday pie so she brought it home and ate it in Lauren's bed while they watched Enchanted together. She had a great day!

Conner Prairie!

Zach woke up with the idea that they should go to Conner Prairie today. So they headed north on an adventure! Lauren hadn't been since she was a child and Zach and the kids had never been so no one knew quite what to expect. It was great! The kids were fascinated by the hot air balloon (that they didn't get to ride - $15 a person!) and loved the store and playground. They learned about the Lenape Indians and had such an experience in the petting barn. They petted a 4-day-old goat! They had fun trying stilts and playing dress up in 1836. Zach had a blast in the Civil War Part although the girls were worried he was really going to go to war. The water area was Lolli's favorite - Poppy got soaked! Ozzie liked petting the big black horse in the field. On the way out Zach upgraded their tickets to a membership so they can go back. So fun!

Oz peed in the potty!

Sort of. Mostly he peed all over the potty and the surrounding floor. Gotta teach him to point that thing down! Poppy took him so she was soooo proud of him and herself :)

Happy 2nd birthday Orion Zane!

Ozzie's 2nd birthday was a big success. He slept in until 8:30 so Zach, Lauren, Lolli & Poppy put away laundry and cleaned up the house. When he finally woke up, his first words were, "Bye bye car!" so they headed out to breakfast at Cracker Barrel. The waitress brought Oz his very own ice cream sundae at 10 in the morning! After that they headed to the mall for some fun at the play area followed by a train (choo choo!) ride around the mall. Oz was in heaven! They did a bit of shopping for the family at Old Navy before riding the train AGAIN. Then it was time to stop by a few hardware stores (Not Ozzie's favorite but it needed done). After that Oz and his sisters got Orange Leaf then went to a park with Gma Cathy and Gpa Rod while Z and L made their final decisions on flooring. Once they got back home, Oz played out back with his baby pool and shot basketball with Zach and ate a cupcake. He had a great birthday and is the cutest 2 year old on the planet :)

Lolli finally lost another tooth!

It had been over a year since Lolli lost her last tooth so they were starting to wonder if she'd ever lose anymore. One of her bottom ones had been wiggling pretty good for a week or so and yesterday she managed to push it right out with her tongue - no tears or anything! She was going to spend the night at Gma Cathy's tonight but she decided to leave the tooth under her pillow at home so the fairy didn't get confused. When she got home she found 3 dollar bills and 4 quarters. She was very excited :)

Ozzie's 2nd Birthday party

Ozzie decided on a Thomas the train theme for his birthday gathering with family. He wore his special birthday boy shirt and loved seeing all his favorite people in one spot. He was so cute as we sang happy birthday to him - "why is everyone staring at me??" and he did a great job blowing out his candle. He spent most of his party happily playing teeball with himself outside ha ha. He received bedtime books, an Elmo coloring book, a stuffed Elmo toy, a TMNT punching toy, some bubbles, a tricycle and helmet, a workbench with tools, a drum set, golf clubs, a Spiderman mask, a Thor hammer, and a remote control tractor. His guests included Zach, Lauren, Lolli, Poppy, Jodi, Mason, Gma Cathy, Gpa Rod, Papaw Lucky (Pucky), Gma and Gpa Great, Gma & Gpa Morgan, Aunt Kim, Paige, Troy, Aaron and Annie.

Poppy the Accident Prone

Poor Poppy. Oz busted her eye with a baseball bat on Saturday and then Monday she was spinning around dancing in the living room when she wiped out and went face first into a wood chair. Her lip and nose bled (which panicked her to the point of shaking) but eventually she calmed down and we were able to inspect the damage. She had a split lip that was HUGELY swollen and totally altered the look of her sweet face. Thankfully a few days later she's back to normal!

Wednesday night softball

Both girls hit off the pitch and scored both innings. Poppy was pitchers helper and took her role very seriously with lots of hustle and a few good stops. Lolli was in center and was great at backing up her sister. Oz spent a good 10 minutes captivated by an older kid in the batting cage. He'd tell "yay ball" when the kid hit it and "awww man" when he missed ha ha

Theodore Swain Pucillo

Lauren's diagnostic ultrasound was today, at 18 weeks exactly. The baby is still all boy and measured right on track except for having long legs :) He was being very stubborn and curled up in a ball until Lolli and Poppy asked him to move down for the tech and he did it! It was fun to see him moving all around and so good to hear report of a healthy baby!

The request for backup has been answered!

Boy or girl??

Lauren decided she wanted to be able to tell Zach and the kids what the sex of the new baby is, so they agreed she'd go get an elective ultrasound at 15w 3d to peek at the baby's goods. Annie went with her and Sarah joined in on Skype. It wasn't long after the ultrasound started that the tech proclaimed, "You're having a little boy" and Lauren was stunned. How perfect! 2 girls, 2 boys :) When Lauren got home she got out all the pink and blue balloons she'd filled with white Sixlets and blown up earlier that week. She carefully added in a blue balloon full of blue Sixlets. Zach, Lolli and Poppy had fun popping the balloons with safety pins while Oz watched. It was Poppy who poppped the "money balloon" and she was quick to exclaim, "Blue! It's a boy!!!" So fun! There will be a photo shoot on the 6th to create an announcement to share the happy news with others. Can't wait!

Lolli's parent-teacher conference

It lasted all of 7 minutes and was nothing but positive :) She's exceeding almost all her goals for the end of the year, which is still a few months away. And is mastering all the social skills. So proud!

Poppy the boy magnet :/

Poppy wore a sweater to the park. When we got to the picnic table she took it off and said, all the boys when they see me are gonna fall in loooooove 'cause I'm so skinny in my tank top and skirt.



I about died. Commence the talk about how yes, she's skinny and yes, she looks nice in her outfit but she better be dressing for herself, not boys, yada yada yada. Sigh.

Lolli's first yellow

My sweet Lolli came downstairs in tears about 30 minutes after bedtime to confess that she got her behavior clip moved down to yellow for the first time today. She feels better after a long talk with me, calling Zach to tell him (she was so scared he'd be furious), and writing an apology to her teacher. 

Parenting would be a breeze if only kids would stay this honest and self-punishing through the tween/teen years!

Ozzie's take on the new baby

I just asked Oz if he thinks the baby in my belly is a boy or a girl. He responded with, "Oh, boy!" in the cutest way possible. He has no idea what I'm talking about :)

Poppy the conflict mediator

Yesterday at the playground, Poppy overheard some boys (kindergarten or 1st grade maybe) saying Ozzie was a baby and laughing at him. She came to talk to me about it and emphatically declared that those boys should be ashamed of themselves. I told her not to worry about it because Oz didn't even know what was going on and what others think is their own problem, words can't hurt us, yada yada. A few minutes later I look over and she's over there giving those boys a stern talking to. They apologized for calling him a baby and explained they hadn't been laughing at him but at something else. So once that was cleared up, they all played together.



I don't know where this child came from but I sure learn a lot from her!

Girl Scout cookies!

This is Lolli's first year as a Daisy so she gets to sell Girl Scout cookies. She sold an impressive 59 boxes to friends, relatives and neighbors (including a video sales pitch on Lauren's Facebook) and then Gma Morgan sold another 80 boxes at her work. Way to go, Lolli!!

Poppy the good eater!

Poppy's kind of picky about foods (she'd drink her daily calories if I let her) so I knew it was sort of asking for trouble when I put avocado chunks on her plate with her dinner. But instead of throwing a fit, she told me that even though she doesn't like avocado, she knows it's healthy for her so she was going to eat those first before her other food and not even complain. And she did!

Long cold winter

Indiana is having one of the worst winters in history. We had to cut our Florida trip a day short just to get home and literally be snowed in for an entire week (yup, FIVE snow days that week!) and it just won't quit. The bright side? Oz is so happy with all these snow days and 2 hour delays! That's less time he has to spend wandering around the house and looking out windows saying, "Lolli? Poppy? Lolllllllliiiiiiii?!? Popppppppyyyyy?!?"

A note from Lolli's teacher

"I wanted to tell you just how much I love having Lolli in class. She is such a sweet girl. We learned all about Martin Luther King Jr. yesterday. She shared with the class that "he had a plan that all brown people be just like the peach people". It melted my heart. Thank you for being such a wonderful role model for her. I truly enjoy her sweet, large heart." :)

RIP Boo

Today was a very sad day for Lauren and the kids. Over the weekend Boo had suddenly become very lethargic and thin. Lauren and the kids took her to the vet this evening and their worst fears were confirmed - the best option was to euthanize her. Lolli took the news pretty hard and of course Lauren was a wreck. Boo was such a good cat! But 15 years is pretty old for a cat so they said their goodbyes and see-ya-laters with a smile. We miss you, Boo!

Undies!

Ozzie got his first pairs of underwear today. He loves them because they have Jake & The Neverland Pirates on them, or what he calls, "And meeeeee!" He tried sitting on his potty, too, but got no results. All in due time :)

Pre-k make up day

Poppy told me she can't wait for her makeover at school tomorrow. I was so puzzled until I realized the poor girl had misunderstood the meaning of a make-up day!

Lolli's surgery :(

Lolli failed 2 hearing tests at school as well as one at the ENT her pediatrician referred her to. They tried FloNase to clear up the excess fluid that was causing the hearing loss but it didn't help. Her ENT recommended tubes and possibly removing her adenoids. Lauren and Zach were unsure at first if the surgery was necessary but after much research and thought, decided to consent. So Lolli had surgery today! Zach was out of town so Lauren dropped Pop & Oz off at Papaw Morgans's. Lolli was so brave at the surgery center. She and Lauren played Hangman and Dots while they waited to be called back. In their room, Lolli got to put on a hospital gown and slipper socks. She also got a bag of goodies to play with while she watched Disney Junior and waited to be taken back. The surgery only took about 15 minutes and Lolli did very well! She was uncomfortable at first and crying of a sore throat, which was heartbreaking! A popsicle helped. She napped in the car for a long time and eventually was able to eat an ice cream cone and take some ibuprofen to help with the pain. By bedtime tonight, she was feeling much better! She had amoxicillan, steroids, and ear drops for a week. They did remove her adenoids which the doc says may cause bad breath for a couple weeks but that's no big deal in the long run. What a trooper!

Ba-ball!

Zach rigged up an indoor basketball goal for Oz and the kid is in heaven! He'll happily shoot hoops for an hour straight. Such a boy :)

Grand Finale Baby!!!

The Pucillos got some exciting news today, in the form of 2 pink lines on a home pregnancy test. Yes, the 4th and final Pucillo offspring is due to arrive this fall! The official due date is September 22 - the day between Zach's and Lolli's birthdays! So funny. Best Florida souvenir ever. Lolli and Poppy are so excited and even Ozzie has been getting into watching birth videos on YouTube ha ha

Family vacation 2013-2014

Papaw Lucky rented a house in Fort Myers beach Florida for the he, the Pucillos and Aaron and Annie to stay in for a whole week after Christmas! The Pucillos hit the road Thursday around 5pm and made it to Chatanooga before stopping for the night at a hotel. The next morning they ate and swam (Lo & Pop both remember how to swim and Oz does great with the floatie suit Santa brought him) then then hit the road again. This time they made it all the way to Sarasota! Saturday morning brought more swimming, then a short 2 hour drive to Papaw's friend Dave's house in Naples where the kids went swimming AGAIN. Finally it was time to check into the house at 44 Flamingo Street. It was awesome! There were 4 bedrooms so the kids got to share one with each girl getting her own bed and Oz sleeping in the pack n play. Zach and Lauren were in the bedroom next to them and they all shared the upstairs bathroom. Aaron and Annie took the master and Papaw took the 4th bedroom (and the downstairs back). There was also a loft with a daybed, 2 balconies, a rooftop deck with an amazing view, a dining room, kitching, living room, laundry room, and an amazing lanai with a ping pong table, POOL and hot tub! A canal ran right behind the house the they got to see boats and fish travelling along. Most of the week was spent swimming but Lauren and the kids also checked out a local park that had a tiny train ride and the Naples zoo that had tons of fun animals! All the kids loved the beach (within walking distance, yay!) but Oz wasn't a fan of the waves. The kids did great going to bed and sleeping, although I think some of the house residents were not fond of their prompt 7am awakening ha ha! On the last day there the Pucillos took the Trollee down to the pier and to get an old time photo taken - a lifelong dream of Lauren's! The kids had so much fun with their Papaw and Aaron & Annie. it was a great trip and the car rides weren't too bad. Oz would get a little restless but the girls had iPads, books, and a DVD player to keep them entertained. The only bummer was having to leave on Friday instead of Saturday to get home in time to beat the impending snow storm. It's a good thing they did, though, because it ended up leaving them snowbound for a full 5 days!