With a sad farewell, Nanna and G-Daddy left yesterday. Even at six months old (almost seven) Isaac seemed to notice his missing entourage when I got home from the airport. As she said she would Nanna held Isaac almost every waking moment. G-Daddy, who is usually a tornado of projects and work, helped Dad build an Isaac-resistant TV at a more...um...leisurely pace. It was not as important as hanging out with Isaac and so the project was taken up at a less than frenzied rate (even then we did get a lot done).

But the week they were here was awesome. It started on Christmas Day, when the arrived around 6:30-7:00. Isaac was in a great mood and showed off a bunch of new tricks. He went right to his Nanna as if he remembered the month or so they spent together in the summer. He would lean back and expose his neck and Nanna would oblige with a kiss attack. Here is a picture of the mutual admiration society at work:



On the 26th Isaac woke up and we opened more presents (hence the Christmas week). Isaac received a few clothing items, all of which were super cute, but his big item was a new baby backpack. He was really thrilled to take a ride in it:



Dad and Isaac trudged around the house in the backpack a.k.a. the Adventure Suit and he loved the ride (I know I look sad, but was probably just in between roars).



Isaac also got some books from his grandparents and here they are reading one:



Dad got a green sweater from Nanna, a bunch of tools including a really nice joiner and a sweet HVLP finish sprayer. Mom got some clothes and a remote start for the Mom-mobile a.k.a. Subbie. Finally we gave the grandparents their gift--pictures of Isaac done by a photographer in the area named Nancy Gould. She did a great job with every shot and the experience was amazing. I would highly recommend her to anyone and I am all but certain we are going back to her in the coming years. The pictures turned out so well.

Isaac's took a bath (actually two) while his grandparents were here and both Isaac and the grandparents loved them. Here he is looking around as four adults watch him "scrub, scrub, scrub, scrub in my tub".



G-Daddy and Isaac built about three dozen different Duplo towers. Here they are after a particularly tall one.



It was destroyed by Baby Kong.

We even went for a walk, despite the sub-30 degree weather. Isaac, the hardy New Englander he is, shrugged off the cold and fell asleep in the Adventure Suit. Here he is taking a cat nap:



After Christmas we settled into a nice routine--Dad and G-Daddy would work on the Isaac-resistant TV stand while Isaac was napping and then when he was awake we would all play with him. During the time between his morning and afternoon nap we also went on a walk with Isaac and then Mom would whip up an amazing dinner. We had all sorts of delicious things to eat--Tuscan Chicken, Bianca's sauce, a Tex Mex feast.

Over the week, Dad and G-Daddy went on a Rhode trip, picking up a couple of different things. I hadn't been on a road trip with my Dad in a long time, despite the fact that all through high school and college they were traditions as we made our way from Xenia to Pittsburgh. We saw Myles, Domenic and Erica when we grabbed the table saw Domenic very generously gave to me (THANKS! It is super nice.). We also saw Domenic Sr. as we made an emergency stop at 72 Carleton St. for some Venda Raviolis. Dinner that day was especially nice as Nancy, Janet, and Patsy all visited. The house was bustling, as was Mom, and everyone had a very, very nice time. Dad even got a fire roaring. It was like a Christmas post card.

Overall, it was the best Christmas I have ever had and I can say with certainty that Isaac would agree. We will miss everyone, but I hear that Nanna and G-Daddy may visit sometime around President's Day.

I posted about 200 pictures. Video is coming. Also, I will do a post on the Isaac-resistant TV stand some time in the future. It was a fun project to design and has been fun to work on (although I am sure a lot of that had to do with the fact that I was working with my Dad).

So we started off on Christmas Eve in Rhode Island. Then we had Christmas here in Fitchburg. Isaac didn't exactly seem to care, but he was infected by his parents' excitement. He even got into the present unwrapping. See here:



After that we just hung out. The morning flew past, last no longer than a breath, it seemed. We built a Lego tower and played with some of Isaac's other presents. Then emerged Christmas Baby Kong:



Isaac got a really nice sled from his Nanni and Grandpa Dom. Here he is looking a bit mischievous:



After waiting all day, Isaac's Nanna and G-Daddy arrived. More on that later.

Well, it was Christmas Eve. We all bundled up, hopped into the AWD sleigh (our beloved Subaru Forester), and went down to Rhode Island. It was a great Christmas Eve at Domenic and Erica's house. Uncle John was there, Nanni and Poppa Dom were there. And everyone was in the Christmas spirit. We had really delicious pancakes for brunch and Colby showed us all that pancakes were, in fact, finger foods. Colby and Isaac really hit it off the whole day. Colby would get quiet and move really slowly as he approached Isaac and would hug him or pet his head. It was super cute. Then, during the chaos that was opening Christmas presents, Colby and Isaac had a touching Christmas moment. Isaac saw Colby playing with a truck. Colby then saw Isaac watching him and instead of shielding his truck, he got up, slowly walked towards Isaac and handed him the truck. Here is the proof of this big cuz--little cuz moment:



For the curious, the first annual Nerf War was great. Myles, Domenic, John and I were outside for about 90 minutes. Or more accurately, Domenic, John, and I were outside for 90 minutes. Myles went in after 45 minutes contending that we were a bunch of dorks. He was right. Uncle John came prepared packing two guns and a foam ball bazooka. He also had "screamer" bullets. Also, Myles tagged me square in the forehead during a particularly brutal volley of foam. If it had been a real gun instead of a foam launcher I would have been shot dead, New Jersey execution-style.

Isaac wore his Auntie Monica and Uncle Rob outfit for Christmas Eve, it was a formal affair, after all. Here he is showing off his snazzy duds:



At Uncle John's (the other Uncle John, Bianca's Uncle John) we had delicious seafood dinner--Stuffies, calamari, and other menu items from a traditional Italian Christmas Eve dinner, aka the Feast of the Seven Fishes. It was my first Christmas away from Ohio and I realized just how much I love the traditional Puckett Christmas. But, as in life, all things change, and as I told Uncle John as we chatted about Obama's brilliant last two months of the year, "If I can't be with my family in Ohio, then I want to be with my family in Rhode Island." All in all, it was great, if not different. Ironic then that the year I am not there, Monica hosts what was, by all accounts, a fantastic Feast of the Seven Fishes herself on Christmas Eve.

On the way home we were all pretty tired. Isaac slept like a champ though, 2 hours in the morning, 1:30 in the afternoon. He ate very well and even gave us a little Christmas poop. But by around 8:00 we were all dragging. Mom was in the back of Subbie with Isaac reading books so he wouldn't fall asleep, and Dad was powering home as quick as safety would allow. Around Ayer on Route 2 Isaac began to babble. He has been screeching a lot recently, but the babble was pretty new. Then, just as we were about to let out a sigh of exhaustion, Isaac put the two sounds all fathers wait to here together: "Da Da." I am sure he had no idea what he was saying, or that it was a reference to me, but he said it. Even the skeptical scientist agrees. I have since tried to get it on video, but it has been tough. Here he is reeling off only a few "Da Das" (around 0:29):



We uploaded all of the video from Christmas Eve and Christmas Morning as well as some pictures.

And for the curious, the first annual Nerf War was great. Myles, Domenic, John and I were outside for about 90 minutes. Or more accurately, Domenic, John, and I were outside for 90 minutes. Myles went in after 45 minutes contending that we were a bunch of dorks. He was right. Also, Myles tagged me square in the forehead during a particularly brutal volley of foam. If it had been a real gun instead of a foam launcher I would have been shot dead, New Jersey execution-style.

Christmas entry coming tomorrow.