Someone has discovered her smile

Such a happy baby!

Happy Holidays with Nonna Paola

Stella and Maia are having a very happy holiday season with their Nonna Paola who is here visiting from Italy for a couple of weeks. Even though it's cold outside Stella has been enjoying going on long walks every day with her Nonna.....and we have been enjoying her being so tired that she naps for 3 hours and wakes up at practically 9am every day! Maia continues to be an easy and happy baby which we are very grateful for. Happy Holidays to everyone!

Stella, what's that on your back?

It's Bailey, Stella's new favorite sock monkey.

Tummy time revisited

Stella has been a really great big sister lately showing Maia how tummy time is done correctly.

Downward Dog

Last week Stella's favorite position was Downward Dog :)

Now for a little bit of Maia

Somehow Maia went from being a brand new itty-bitty newborn to being 7 weeks old. Time has flown by. We go for a pediatrician check-up on Monday so we will see what she weighs, but last time Maia was weighed (about 2 weeks ago) she was just about 8 1/2 pounds! We all have loved having Maia with us....even Stella says Maia and has gotten more and more interested in her. When I pick Stella up from school I often have Maia with me in her carseat. Stella has the proudest big sister smile on her face when all the kids run over to look at Maia in her carseat.

Truly her father's daughter

Somebody eats fruit just like her father does. Stella's Zio David handed her an apple when they were leaving the farm. Up until now Stella has only eaten slices of apples. Lo and behold she figured out how to eat the apple like an adult. By the time they arrived home, all that was left was the apple core!

Farm outing with Grandco and Zio David

Stella had an amazing time at a local farm/equestrian center with her Grandco and Zio David. She didn't seem super interested in Santa, but was very interested in the cats. She also got to see chickens, dogs and horses.

Mmmmm....cranberries

Somebody LOVED cranberry sauce!

Thanksgiving!

I am super behind on posting photos on the blog. Blame it on having guests in town, blame it on the weather, or blame it on having to juggle two kids these days :) Stella and Maia had a wonderful visit with their Grandco, Grandma Jonny and Zio David. This year Stella sat at the Thanksgiving table with us and even enjoyed turkey and cranberry sauce! It's hard to believe how much she has grown in the past year. The top photo was taken at Thanksgiving 2008 and bottom photo was taken this year.

A Girl, Her Uncle and The Aquarium

While Maia stayed home with Mom Stella had a great time at the Aquarium with her Uncle David. She's been having a great time playing with her Uncle all week while he is in town for Thanksgiving.

The Italian Tornado

Busted! Stella broke into the pantry, opened up a bag of Pirate's Booty, threw it all over the floor and then proceeded to eat it off the floor.

The Little Sister

Here's a couple of shots of Maia from this past weekend. She continues to be a really good baby. We are headed to the pediatrician tomorrow morning to see if we have broken the 6 pound barrier!

Bath time!

So far it's been nearly impossible to get a photo of Stella and Maia together...Stella just doesn't want to sit still. So you'll have to enjoy this shot of Stella playing in the bathtub. She loves her "splash splash" time every night.

Introducing Maia Beth Stefani

Here's the newest addition to the Stefani family! We are so excited to have her home with us and happy to report she is doing wonderful.

Who's excited to be a big sister?

Stella is!

Pictures of Maia to come soon....

What are you looking at?

Sometimes Stella gets a little crazy driving in the car :)

Gardening with Grandco

Grandco taught Stella how to garden this weekend. She was a good assistant and even learned to dig a hole. Hopefully she will be the one with the green thumb in our family!

A Day at the Pumpkin Patch

Stella loved her first trip to the pumpkin patch this weekend! Her and her buddy Hudson loved riding around in the wheelbarrow. Thankfully Grandco was in town to push them around. Good thing Stella is learning the color orange at school this month--she is very into her pumpkins!

Sunday morning breakfast

After many attempts our picky little eater has finally tried AND liked a blueberry pancake! Woo hoo!

Say Cheese

The moon and the star together

Here are some cute recent shots of our little star playing with her friend Luna. Aren't they adorable?

16 months!

Boy does time fly. It seems like yesterday that Stella decided to come into this world 2 months early. And now she is already 16 months old! She was laughing so hard when I took this picture so I had to post it. Stella loves to giggle these days and run all over the place. She has transitioned like a champ to school and yesterday her teacher said she smiled the entire day.

Who's the best Auntie?

Mimi is!!! We all had a great visit with Auntie Mimi this past weekend. Stella really seemed to enjoy playing bucket head with her Auntie. Thanks for coming to visit us Mimi!

Ready for school!

Stella was all smiles and ready for her first day of school this past Tuesday. I'm trying to remind myself the transition will take time, for both of us :) Stella refused to nap both days at school and thinks that it is playtime. Hopefully she will catch on sooner rather than later. Either way, we are very proud of her!

Amazon company picnic

We had a great time at the Amazon company picnic this weekend with our friends Josh, Andrea and baby Isabella. Stella couldn't get enough watermelon and even started to eat Andrea's piece! I wonder from whom Stella gets her love for watermelon? :)

Saved the best photo for last

A couple weeks ago Stella's Grandco saw a photo of Stella in her tunnel on this blog. He then bet me $20 that he could make it through the tunnel. I thought, no way, what an easy way to make $20, so I took the bet. Well, Grandco proved me wrong! He made it through the tunnel and even had time to stop and chat with Stella along the way. Dad--the check is in the mail :)

Weekend with the Grandcos'

Despite getting a bit of a fever, Stella had a great visit with her Grandco and Grandma Jonny this weekend!

Who's #1?


Stella went to the grocery store with her grandparents and apparently would not leave the store without this little soccer ball. Since then she hasn't let the thing go....it has gone in the car with us, on a walk in the stroller, on the swings and even to dinner at Tutta Bella. Thanks to Grandco and Grandma Jonny for apparently the BEST toy ever!

Someone got to go to Starbucks with her grandparents this weekend. And boy did an empty cup keep her occupied!

The Children's Museum

Stella had a great time last wekeend exploring at the Children's Museum. She loved the bus and grocery shopping. We loved watching her enjoy everything.