Author: Michael Pellegrini

Today the four of us attended our first annual Amazon summer picnic. I’d heard that this was a really fun family event with games, shows, live music, and food, so we thought it would be fun to check out. This year the event was held at Century Link stadium, which is the home of the Seahawks and Sounders. There was a big stage with a band playing right on the field and everyone was welcome to go out there. They had games and obstacle courses setup everywhere so Ava and I ran around for a while. As a football fan it was cool to be out on an NFL field looking up at the stands.

There were games and rides, a toddler zone that Ava enjoyed running around in, and lots of different types of food to choose from. This definitely puts all other company events I’ve attended to shame. I think it will become a fun family tradition that we’ll look forward to every summer. I ended up buying a Sounders jersey at the team store so that I can wear it to the game Sean and I are going to on the 25th. I’ve never been to a professional soccer game and we’re playing Portland, which is a big rivalry, so it should be a lot of fun.

Both of the girls did really great all day. Ava didn’t get her normal nap but she was a champ the whole time. I don’t think we’d made it 5 blocks in the car before both of them passed out. Probably going to lay low for the rest of the weekend. Here’s a few pics from today.

Elise already loves reading

Ava and I playing on the Seahawks field

I don’t think I’ve ever seen Ava have this much fun

Today we had a visit from Uncle Jim, Aunt Brenda, my cousin Kristy and her daughter Madi. They came up to see us, meet Elise, and deliver lots of toys to the girls. I’m not kidding when I say lots of toys either. We’ve now got a Harley Davidson scooter, a bike, a drum, etch–a–sketch, toy phones, and so much more. Now that Madi is getting so big she’s decided it was time to move on from a lot of stuff and was so kind to give it all to us for Ava and Elise to enjoy.

Ava was a little out of sorts when they first arrived, mostly because she’s not used to having many visitors, but she quickly warmed up and we soon all found ourselves downstairs playing in the kids room. Of all the new toys in there Ava seemed most interested in the drum. I remember her playing drums on her high chair with plastic spoons, but now she’s got an actual little drum and two sticks to play with. The musician in me is hoping that she will take a genuine interest in any instrument, even if that means banging your head against the wall every now and then while they learn how to play it.

It was really nice having everyone over and I want to make a point to get together more often. Kristy and I live about an hour apart but Jim and Brenda are right in the middle so that helps. Jim and I were talking more today about going to the shooting range so I’m hoping to do that within the next few weeks. Madi was very excited to get to hold a baby and she did a great job. She held Elise 3 or 4 separate times and looked like a natural. Elise even fell asleep in her arms a couple times.

We’ve been getting spoiled by having so many family members and friends coming over to visit. Everyone has been so kind and thoughtful. We definitely appreciate all the love and support we’ve been receiving from everyone. Their visit was definitely the highlight of our weekend. We’re planning on just relaxing at home tomorrow and getting ready for another busy week starting Monday. It seems that we’re getting more regular traffic here on the site so I’m going to try to write more frequent posts. It’s always nice to hear that people are enjoying the updates. Here’s a few pics from today’s visit, as well as the ‘Happy Birthday’ message I was greeted with after work on Tuesday.

Ava playing with Kristy

Aunt Brenda holding Elise

Madi did a great job holding Elise

Happy Birthday message from my girls

My Mom flew out to spend the weekend with us. It’s my birthday weekend, but more importantly it was her first visit with Elise. Bella and I picked her up Friday afternoon at SeaTac after spending the day at the office. I brought Bella to work for Amazon Doggie Days and she seemed to have fun. There were tons of dogs there doing photos and obstacle courses. Jessica was mostly happy because Bella got her nails clipped during the festivities. Laurel was over at the house when we returned and was nice enough to bring us dinner. We spent the evening making San Diego style fish tacos and playing with the kids.

We had a nice relaxing weekend at home and didn’t do much besides go on walks and take the kids to the park. The weather has been beautiful lately so we tend to find ourselves hanging out outside as much as possible. My Mom and Denny both finished their letters for Elise’s nursery and they both turned out great. My Mom’s letter has so many family photos that she shrunk down and pasted on. If I had to pick a favorite it would have to be hers. It’s like a visual history of our family.

Tonight I’ll be taking Mom back to the airport, which means we are officially on our own starting tomorrow morning. We’ve had help from Grandma’s for the last few weeks but this is a whole new ballgame. Elise still seems to have her days and nights mixed up so the last few nights have been a little rough. I’m a bit worried about Jessica watching both of them alone while she is still recovering but I know everything will be fine. Whatever phase we’re currently in won’t last long enough for us to get used to it before the next phase starts. It’s most important to not take anything for granted and enjoy it while it lasts. Before we know it we’ll be talking about what it was like when the girls were babies.

The month of August should allow us to get into a groove. School is cruising along and I’m within 11 months of graduation. Work is going great as well so I have no complaints. We’re all feeling very fortunate and loved lately. It’s been great seeing and talking with friends and family and we’re looking forward to seeing many more very soon. Next weekend we’re visiting with Jim, Brenda, Kristy and Madi so that should be a lot of fun. Then we have Rick and Chris coming out for Labor Day weekend. Finally, there will be a visit from Larry, Sherry, Amy and Tom in September. Lots of good stuff to look forward to. Here’s a few photos and videos from Nana’s weekend with the girls.

Ava and Nana playing a game on the iPad

My Mom holding Elise for the first time

Our little sumo wrestler

Smiling in her sleep

Elise and Dad hanging out after dinner

Click here to watch a video of Ava and Dad playing in the front yard.

Click here to watch a video of Ava and Nana reading ‘I Saw The Baby.’

Tomorrow morning I’ll head back to work after a week at home with everyone. It’s been a busy week full of adjustments, projects, and waking at strange hours in the night. All in all things are going well, and we’ve received a ton of help from Amy. We knew having two this young would be challenging so its been nice having her here to help ease that transition. The week has definitely gone by a little quicker than I would have liked, but its actually been pretty relaxing, all things considered. I’m sure I’ll be back into a groove at work in no time and I’m looking forward to catching up with everyone.

Ava has been doing pretty well with the transition. She seems to understand that the baby is here for good and that they have the same Mom. Ava still cries sometimes when Elise cries but hopefully that won’t go on for too much longer. There has definitely been some acting out throughout the week but I’m proud of her. Her whole world has been flipped upside down and she’s dealing with it awfully well.

Elise turns one week old today. I can say that I’ve now been pooped and pee’d on more in one week with Elise than in 20 months with Ava. I’m not sure what’s going on exactly, but every time I hold her she seems to have to go… a lot. One day we went through 4 diapers in 5 minutes. She’s still got her days and nights mixed up a bit but hopefully we’ll get her onto a normal schedule pretty soon. She’s spending more and more time awake everyday and even graces us with the occasional smile.

Jessica is doing really well and gaining her strength back. She’s not been getting the best sleep lately, due to the fact that Elise likes to eat about every 2 hours and Jess is the only one that can feed her, but she’s hanging in there. We’re starting to go on walks again and will gradually start increasing our activity in the next couple weeks. We’re hoping to be jogging at the local track by August 1st. We know that someday we’ll look back and laugh about times like these, but as usual, Jess is doing amazing. The girls are so luck to have her as a Mom.

Here’s a photo of Elise at 1 week old.

Today is a day that we will never forget as long as we live. Our sweet little girl, Elise LaFleur Pellegrini, has arrived! She was originally due on July 13 and ended up being born at 5:21am on July 14, so I think it’s fair to say that she was right on time. Elise weighed in at 7 pounds 8 ounces, and measured 21 inches long.

Jessica started going into labor yesterday around 4:00pm. She was having regular contractions about 8 minutes apart, so we decided to go for a walk to help expedite the process. Initially we didn’t want to get our hopes up because you never know if the contractions are suddenly going to stop, but by about 7:30pm we knew that this was the real deal. We tried to treat it like a normal night; I made dinner and the three of us watched a movie.

Jessica continued having contractions through the night, so at about 1:30am we decided to call my sister Dana to have her come over to watch over Ava. Jessica, Amy and I arrived at the birth center at about 2:30am and they were just getting all setup for her. I had already spoken on the phone with the midwife and she was just a moment behind us getting there. The whole concept of giving birth at a birth center is very different from your typical hospital birth. You’re in a ‘birthing suite’ containing a bed, jacuzzi, shower, and furniture. You have complete control over the atmosphere, so we had candles, dim lights, and music to make things more comfortable for Jessica.

The most difficult part of this whole process from my perspective was seeing Jessica in so much pain. She didn’t take any pain killers this time and was an absolute trooper throughout the entire experience. The three hours that took place between us arriving at the birth center and Jessica delivering Elise were some of the most intense hours of my life. To see your wife in so much pain and not be able to do anything other than be there and hold her is really tough. There were times when each of us questioned whether going to the hospital and getting an epidural would have been the right thing to do, but ultimately she toughed it out and did it naturally.

Surprisingly Jessica ended up preferring the jacuzzi because it made her contractions more bearable, so she ended up going in there two separate times. It was during this second time in the jacuzzi that Elise was delivered. I’ve heard of water deliveries before but never expected that to be what we would do, but it worked out perfectly. The best part about doing the natural birth was that we were allowed to go home less than three hours after Elise was born. Since Jessica hadn’t taken any pain killers she was able to walk, and Elise was looking perfect, so we were home before Ava finished breakfast. That was definitely the best part of the whole experience. We hadn’t even made it out of the parking lot when leaving the birth center before Jessica stated that this was a much better experience than we had at the hospital in San Diego. Getting to come home with Elise so quickly was amazing.

Here are several pictures from Elise’s first day of life. Words can’t express how proud I am of Jessica, and how much I love my family.

This was taken right before we went to the birth center

This is the first picture taken of Elise, just moments after delivery

Getting all checked out

Ready to head home

Elise being held by Auntie Dana for the first time

Elise and Laurel, the two birthday girls

Ava out enjoying the sun on Elise’s birthday

Holding my 2 girls together for the first time

Grandma Amy came into town on Friday night to stay with us for a few weeks and help with the new baby. Yesterday she and Jessica got a bunch of work done on Elise’s bedroom, and today they’re out visiting with Laurel while Ava and I spend the day at home. This is probably the last day that just Ava and I will have together for a while so we’re having lots of fun. I’m actually writing this from our front yard while Ava runs around climbing on stuff and collecting rocks.

Thursday we celebrated the 4th of July by going to the festivities in downtown Issaquah. There was a small parade, playground, pony rides, slug races, slides, and lots of food. Ava seemed to enjoy watching the parade, then we ran around the playground for a bit and went down the slide together a few times. She wanted to keep walking when we were leaving and ended up walking at least a quarter of a mile back to the car. I was impressed that she could go that far without stopping.

We got a chance to say hi to Dana on the phone Thursday afternoon and wish her a happy birthday. She and Brad were doing their annual trip to Leavenworth and were having a great time as always. That night we were able to watch two separate fireworks shows going on over Lake Sammamish from our front yard. It was a surprisingly good view from where we stood, but maybe next year we’ll have to get up on the roof to be able to see the whole show.

School officially started back up today. Having the last two weeks off school has been really nice but I’m happy to be back in. It’s mostly all programming work now and that’s what I like doing best. We were hoping Elise would arrive during my break from school but no such luck. I always do my homework early so I’m not too worried about turning in late work when she does decide to make her appearance. We’re totally ready and waiting at this point so hopefully it will be this week. The sooner the better as far as Jessica is concerned.

I don’t have to worry about any work travel for now so that’s nice, especially considering its Summer. Its been pretty hot here lately, including a couple days in the 90’s, but then I talk to my Mom and hear its been 115 in Vegas. Kinda puts things in perspective. I’m just glad we still have our portable air conditioner. Moving it from room to room isn’t very fun but Jess would be dying without it. I’m pretty buried with work right now but I’m probably only taking 3 days off when Elise is born so I won’t get too far behind. With any luck this will be the last post before Elise arrives.

Earlier this week Jessica was doing one of her regular checks on the website to see if Bruno had been adopted and she couldn’t find him. She emailed her contact at the shelter and we found out that Bruno has been adopted by a new family! Apparently the shelter had already turned down at least one family because they wanted to make sure they found the perfect fit for him. As we know, Bruno requires lots of outdoor time and exercise; something that we were no longer able to provide him with. His new family has teenage kids and they are very active, outdoor people, which is perfect for Bruno. We were very excited to hear the news, even though we still miss him and think of him often. He was such a character, and will never be replaced, but I’m very happy that he is with a family that can give him what he deserves.

We’re getting very close to Elise’s arrival. Our friends Leon and Jodi just had their son Miles on Friday, as did our friends James and Amanda, whose daughter Winslow was born the same day right down the hall. This means we’re the only ones left so hopefully it will be soon. Jessica hasn’t been feeling very good today so she’s resting in bed. It’s great having her home all the time but I know she’s getting anxious. I’m just glad she held out while I was traveling for work earlier in the week. I won’t be leaving again for a while.

Ava is doing great and absolutely loves going outside to play. Rain or shine, she wants to be out there everyday and doesn’t take no for an answer. In a way its a little bit sad that these are the last days we’ll have with her as our only child, but that sentiment is largely overshadowed by the excitement of the impending arrival of her little sister. Ava got to spend some time this week with Uncle Butch and Aunt Carol while we attended Kallan’s high school graduation. As usual she spent the whole time chasing their dog Max and playing in the yard.

I finished my final project of the quarter today which means several things: First it means I’m on a two week break from school. It would be so perfect if Elise could arrive during my break so my fingers are crossed. Next, it means that I am done with all of my prerequisite classes; no more math, no more economics, no more project management, etc. From here on out its all programming classes, which is exactly what I joined for. Getting classically trained in computer programming is going to help my career as a web developer quite a bit, so I’m excited to finally be at that stage in the curriculum. Finally, being done with this quarter means that I’m officially in my final year of school. Exactly one year from now I’ll be graduating and it feels good to know that I’m getting so close to completion.

Here are a few recent pics

More whip cream please

This week we will be celebrating my nephew Kallan’s high school graduation. Kallan and I have always been very close so I’m very proud to see him growing up and doing so well for himself. Kallan was my Dad’s first grandchild, as well as the only grandchild he ever got to meet in person, so that makes it extra special. I remember holding Kallan as a baby, then living with him a few years later. I used to take him to preschool at the Pike Place Market, let him rewire my stereo, and take him for rides in my Prelude. Should Jessica and I not have any more children, Kallan is the closest thing I’ll ever have to a son.

Tomorrow night Dana, Brad, Kallan, Anna, Jessica, and I will be having dinner at El Gaucho to celebrate, then we’ll be attending his graduation ceremony on Monday evening. Should be a great weekend. I also have my 2nd Father’s Day to look forward to this Sunday. We don’t have anything special planned, and unfortunately I’ll be working from home all day, but at least I’m home with my girls. Jessica is officially done working now and is on the home stretch preparing for the arrival of our baby girl Elise. She had initially expected to work another week or so but we mutually decided that it’s best to stop now and just relax. We got to work together on a private party at El Gaucho last weekend, and I’ll actually be covering her shift on another party this Saturday night.

Life has been incredibly busy for me lately and I’ve been doing my best not to freak out. I took on a huge challenge to prepare a version of an application my team is working on for a test in our Southern California Fulfillment Center next week. I have literally no support on this project and am working around the clock to get it finished on time. I’m actually not sure that I will be able to complete 100% of it before the test but I’m doing my best and my manager has already assured that whatever I get done will be fine. I’m spending all of my free time working on it, but I also have a significant amount of homework to do so I’m spending about 16 hours every day working either on work stuff or school stuff. Kallan’s graduation activities will provide a much needed break from all this work, even if only for a few hours.

The trip to Southern California next week will be my last until August. Although unlikely, I’m praying that Elise doesn’t decide to arrive while I’m away on Tuesday and Wednesday. Anytime after that will be just fine with me. The last 3 weeks have seen trips to California and Phoenix, air conditioning breakdowns on the plane in Phoenix before takeoff, sinus infections, and even more coding than normal. I wish I could say I’ll be taking time off when Elise is born but no such luck. Due to my limited tenure as a full–time employee at Amazon, I only qualify for an unpaid leave of absence, which I will not be taking. This is a very similar situation to the one I was in when Ava was born. Most likely I will be taking 3 days off, then working from home a few more days. Luckily I have a great manager who puts family first, so I have the freedom to work from home as long as necessary.

Today is WebDevCon at Amazon, which I’ve been looking forward to for a while. WebDevCon is an annual conference put on internally at Amazon to showcase the latest and greatest web development technologies. There are a variety of talks being put on, plus meals are provided. There are well over 1,000 attendees so it’s a pretty big event. This is the type of conference that you would normally pay a lot of money to attend, but in this case they’re paying me to attend, so that’s pretty cool. I arrived early this morning to help setup and soon found myself making a run to pickup 5 gallons of coffee and 5 gallons of orange juice. I’ve never seen so many bagels, cream cheese containers, or pizzas. The 250 pizzas we ordered from Mad Pizza in Seattle was a store record! Happy Hour is being catered tonight by Foundation but unfortunately I have too much work to be able to attend. At least I’ll be home with my girls listening to game 4 of the NBA Finals while I work.

There probably won’t be too many more posts on here before Elise arrives. It’s a bit hard to believe that we’re so close to her arrival but I can’t wait to hold her for the first time. Regardless of how much we have going on and how many responsibilities I have, I couldn’t be happier. If you would have told me a year ago that today I would be a web developer at Amazon, living in the Seattle area, and that Jessica would be on the verge of giving birth to our second child, I would have said you were crazy. It’s funny how life turns out when you set goals for yourself and work hard to achieve them.

My Mom got back from the Alaska cruise on Friday and stayed the weekend with us. She said the cruise went really well and everyone had a nice time. We’ve been looking forward to having her so that she can have some quality time with Ava and a much needed break from work. She’ll be going back home to Vegas tomorrow but unfortunately I have to fly out to Phoenix tonight for work. Jessica has the night off and I wish I could stay home with everyone but there’s nothing I can do. I just checked the weather down there and its going to be 106 degrees both days I’m there. Should be interesting.

We had brunch with Dana and Brad this morning. I hardly ever get to see them these days due to everyone’s work schedules so it was really nice to sit down and catch up. Ava did surprisingly well at the restaurant, but that was mostly due to her choices of: portable dvd player, Nana’s iPad, and pancakes with syrup. Yesterday the four of us found a great park near our house on Lake Sammamish that we hadn’t been too. It was really beautiful so I’m sure we’ll be back there again.

It was great having my Mom for the weekend, and I’m looking forward to her next visit at the end of July. By then she’ll have two granddaughters to play with. Here’s a few pics from the weekend.

Today our sweet baby girl turns a year and a half old! It was only a few days after her first birthday that we moved from San Diego back to Seattle, which means we’ve now been back for six months. Time has flown by and we’ve settled in nicely to our new home. More importantly, we’re only about 7 weeks away from Elise’s due date! Jessica has been busy painting and getting her room ready, and I keep telling Ava that she’s about to be a big sister. Very exciting times for us.

We’re still getting used to living without Bruno. The house feels so much quieter these days and we talk about him frequently. We both still feel really bad about letting him go and have been checking the website regularly to see if he has found a new home. So far he’s still at the shelter but hopefully it won’t be long before someone adopts him. I’d by lying if I said I didn’t miss him.

I got my motorcycle back this week. Had it shipped from my Mom’s house in Vegas and it got here in perfect condition. I just went and got Washington plates for it this morning. Summer is obviously the best time to ride in Washington so I’m glad to have it back. There won’t be much time available for joyriding this summer but I’m looking forward to riding it to work. Every time I get on that thing I end up with an ear to ear grin.

We got to visit with my Mom and Denny on Thursday evening. They were in town for the annual Card Player Cruises trip to Alaska. My Mom hadn’t seen our new house yet so we all had dinner at El Gaucho, then Mom, Ava and I came back to the house so they could hang out for a while. She’ll be back on Friday to spend the weekend with us, but unfortunately I have to fly to Phoenix that Sunday night for work. I’ll still get a couple days with her, but more importantly she has an entire weekend with Ava.

Tonight Jessica and I are meeting our good friends Jodi and Leon for dinner at Rover’s. We celebrated Jessica’s 30th birthday at Rover’s and had one of the best meals of our lives. Its the best French restaurant in Seattle but unfortunately it will be closing in about a month so the chef can move on to open a new place. The Maitre D’ is an old friend that I worked at El Gaucho with for years so I’m sure he’ll take good care of us tonight. I’ve always wanted to go to a French restaurant with my friend Leon because he has worked at some of the finest French restaurants in the country and knows so much about the cuisine. Dinners like these don’t come around often so we’re very excited.

Auntie Dana is going to watch Ava tonight when we go out. Ava loves going over there and Dana is so good with her so its a perfect fit. Our little girl is growing up fast and I think its going to be amplified once Elise arrives. It won’t be much longer before we’re referring to her age in years rather than months. Here’s a few recent pics. Happy 18 months baby girl – we love you so much!!!

Always climbing up on something

Getting ready to go see Nana