Yes, it's true, life gets crazier with a 2nd kid. But Vinnie is a good baby and has been a great addition to our family. It seems like time has sped up since his arrival. Everything seems to take me twice as long to accomplish and, before I know it, another day passes me by. Not that this past month has been uneventful.

My recovery is going well. My doctor spent a good hour working on scar tissue from my first c-section after removing Vinnie from my womb, enabling me to heal faster, it seems. The downside of it was not receiving enough anesthesia. :( Oh, well, at least it's over and we're both healthy. If anyone's looking for a hospital where you'll receive mediocre service with demeaning comments from obstinate nurses, I know the place for you! Don't get me wrong, my doctor was fantastic. Unfortunately, she works with a bunch of idiots.

Ryan's mom, Robyn (an O.B. nurse) came down for the delivery and to help with Gio. She was a great blessing to me and I was really sad to see her go. Gio spent the week before Christmas with his cousin's down at my sister, Becki's, house. I cannot thank them enough. :)

Christmas was good. I had the boy's pictures taken in their Santa suits on the 22nd. We had Christmas Eve dinner at my mom's with Jim & Amy. Christmas morning was a dream come true for Giovanni. For that past month or so, every day he has told us and anyone who'd listen, " I weally need my s'pol'r s'press toy." Well, Santa took notice and now Gio is the proud owner of his very own Polar Express wooden train set.

The day after Christmas, Ryan's sister, Hollie, arrived from her visit in San Diego and drove me and boys up to Jackson (Ryan's mom's). It was beautiful up there and enabled me to get some much needed rest. Gio spent his days going on walks through the mountains, collecting and throwing rocks, painting Horsey Grandma's picnic table, blowing bubbles and playing with his Polar Express set. Vinnie was thoroughly spoiled and has forgotten what it feels like to be set in a swing or bouncer, have a dirty diaper for longer than sixty seconds, or wait longer than a minute to be fed.

Sunday, Giovanni became a Sunbeam at Church. When I peeked in the Primary Chapel, he and Spencer were sitting next to eachother, excited to be in Primary. After Church, he sported a paper crown that read "I Am A Child Of God." He definitely had a great first day out of Nursery.

Monday, Gio returned to Tot Lot. Since he went to Becki's, he'd been gone for 3 weeks! He was very happy to return. So now we're trying to get back into the swing of things, with the addition of Baby Vinnie. 2009 promises to be an exciting one for the Mangini clan.

Vincenzo Alan Mangini has arrived!

Vinnie was born yesterday at 8:06 pm December 5th, 2008 weighting 7 pounds 14 ounces and is 20 inches long. He is a great baby, we have only heard him cry once! Susie is recovering nicely and loves her new baby! Thank you everyone for your phone calls and texts.

Put a Fork in Me...

'Cause I'm done! (Can you not tell??) That's right. I go into my doctor's office at 2 then head to the hospital for my c-section. HOORAY!!! Giovanni's wound up so tight, I sent him off to Tot Lot with Jeanette this morning and he'll probably end up spending the rest of the day with her family. Thank you SOOO much Jean!!!

Next time I post it'll be pictures of Baby Vinnie!

An Attitude of Gratitude

We had a pretty good Thanksgiving. The running joke for the day was that we were all ruining Ryan's Thanksgiving. We took it easy, for the most part. Ryan and I spent the morning putting up Christmas trees at our house. This year, we went over to my mom's for our Thanksgiving feast. She made the most delicious turkey! My own contribution was a pumpkin cheesecake made from scratch. It turned out pretty good - Ryan thinks it might be the best dessert I've ever made. It's interesting to me how much things change over time. Growing up, Thanksgiving was a pretty huge party with so many friends and family in attendance we'd bring in several extra tables. But so many people have moved. This year, it was us, Jim & Amy, Matt & Resa and my mom - much smaller. This was also our 2nd Thanksgiving without my dad. I miss him so much. Rather than dwell on what and who is lost, I'm trying to focus on what's here. I'm grateful for so many things at this time. I'm grateful for my loving husband who also came with a great sense of humor. I'm grateful for my crazy three-year-old whose antics I don't usually understand but who has the ability to drive me up the wall and make me laugh at the same time. I'm grateful for the little miracle I'm about to meet next week (and for the heartburn, backaches and leg cramps to end, too). Especially at this time of economic hardship in the world, I'm grateful for a roof over my head and Ryan's employment. I'm grateful for food in my cupboard and leftovers in the refrigerator. I'm grateful for a grandmother who listened to the missionaries and my dad who wanted to know what made the pretty red head in the office (my mom, duh) so different and special. Without knowing it, they both made the same decision that has had a vast impact on my life by enabling me to be raised in the gospel. I'm grateful for my mom and all her encouragement. I'm also very grateful for my sisters and girlfriends who are always there for me.

Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Uh-Oh

Tonight, I was explaining to Gio (who's 3) that if he didn't start being a good boy I would have to call Santa and tell him not to bring him his Polar Express Toy he's been telling us he needs (every minute of every day). I furthered explained, once again, that Santa only brings toys to good boys and girls and that it wasn't mommy's job to do so. Gio gave me this puzzled look and replied, "Wait, you're not Santa???"

Insanity

Seems the closer we get to delivery of our little guy, the more insane our lives get! We're just 3 weeks (and a few hours) away from meeting Baby Vinnie and the list of things to do just keeps piling up. I've nearly finished painting the changing table, an brilliant idea I had when my mom bought us the crib from Ikea I wanted/needed (Gio's was just too tall for me) that's white, not cherry stained. This project has turned out to be a literal pain in my rear! Ryan has successfully rearranged the boy's room but every time I turn around there's more baby stuff to launder. Today we ordered a new swing from Babies R Us (Gio's died & the one we got from eBay fell through) and, also today, I had to get all four new tires on my car. Aside from all this, my watermelon-sized womb has rendered me pretty immobile and there's Girl's Camp/Stake Young Women's Nights '09 to prepare for....wish us luck!

What do you think?

Last Saturday, I was officially 34 weeks pregnant. I get SO many comments from people that I was wondering, am I bigger with this pregnancy? So, in the picture on the left I am exactly 34 weeks pregnant with Gio and on the right I am exactly 34 weeks pregnant with Vinnie, wearing the same shirt. What do you think?