The "Perfect" Storm

We didn't have a white Christmas but we did get some snow this week. About 2:30pm on Tuesday, my mom and I were playing with my new Wii game when all of a sudden my mom declares: "It's snowing!" We'd gone to my school and done some work that morning and were just relaxing while Levi took his nap. The flakes were big and wet, and neither of us thought it would stick. Along with everyone else in the Metro region, we thought it would stop soon and be gone in a matter of minutes. Well, that didn't happen.

It snowed the rest of the afternoon and into the evening. We got about 3 inches of snow. I know...it doesn't seem like much but the city isn't really equipped for dealing with this wet slippery snow and neither are most drivers. Gabe left work a little early because he knew the traffic home would be crazy. Little did he know how crazy it truly was. It took him 5 1/2 hours to get home. He walked in the door at 9:30. His commute is usually 30 minutes. 45 on a high traffic day. Plus his stereo was stolen out of his car a few weeks ago, so he had no way to listen to traffic reports or take his mind of the fact that he was stopped on I-5 south for hours at a time. I felt really bad for him.

So, while Gabe was in traffic hell. Levi, my mom and I did enjoy the snow. This picture is at the beginning of the snow fall. We didn't take Levi out again because it got dark and it's not like he really can play in it yet! It does seem he was interested in what that wet white stuff was. The snow is gone now, but we might have to take Levi up to the mountain to play in some more before winter is over.

Over the river and through the woods...

to grandmother's house we went.
We got to Oakridge in the early afternoon on Christmas. Levi got to visit with his "great" relatives (great uncle, great aunts, great cousin) and his grandma. We had dinner up at Gabe's aunt and uncle's house. Of course, Levi was ready for his last meal of the evening, and bed time, right when we sat down to our meal. I just realized I didn't take any pictures the whole time we were in Oakridge. I took some video but Gabe needs to show me how to get it off my new video camera.

On Saturday we visited a little longer and then drove to Gabe's dad and Joanne's house. Levi got quite the gift from his grandparents. Here's grandpa Tom helping Gabe put it together.And here's Levi playing once it was all put together. He's still a little short since he has to touch the base with his tippy toes, but he really likes "playing" with all the different things. Really I should say he likes putting them in his mouth.Once again, Tom made us quite an amazing feast for dinner. The most delicious rack of lamb I've ever tasted! And once again, guess who was ready for his dinner and bed time at the same time? I had a really hard time tearing myself away from Tom's good cooking. Gabe's aunt Jaki and her husband, as well as Gabe's cousin Nikki, came over to say hello too. So Levi got to meet even more "great" relatives.
We said good-bye around noon on Sunday and headed home. The drive was fine until we hit Albany where traffic hit a stand still. Apparently a dog decided he had enough of the drive and decided to run down I-5 North. There were several cars stopped to catch him and traffic was all sorts of messed up. We still got home pretty early and were able to get unpacked and relax a little before Gabe had to head back to work this morning. I really wish he could have taken this week off since it's my last week at home too. Oh well. I'm already planning us a little family getaway on President's day weekend.


We enjoyed seeing so many members of our family this holiday. And even though the pictures may not show it, I know Levi enjoyed it too. I just wish he'd smile his adorable smile for the camera!

First Christmas

Our 4 day Christmas celebration started on Thursday (Christmas Eve). We drove over to my mom and dad's to spend the day. Becky was there, she flew in late Wednesday night from Las Vegas. Tricia and her fiance, Travis, were there. We ate a lot of snacks, opened a ton of presents, had a big turkey dinner and then came home to put Levi in bed. Gabe and I were going to stay up and watch our traditional Christmas movie, but we decided not to wait up for Santa.
Here's Levi opening his very first Christmas present.And this is what he did once it was opened. In fact, this is what he did with all the presents he opened. He was much more interested in the wrapping paper. But not to play with...it went directly into his mouth. He does that with EVERYTHING these days.
Christmas morning my family came over to our house. We opened more presents, including those from family far away. Levi got a really cool book made by his cousins (ABC's for Levi). It was both written and illustrated by Savannah and Sawyer. I was totally surprised to open up this for Christmas. Now I don't know what to do...should I take pictures or video? You should have seen me debate it for the rest of the weekend. I think we've decided that Gabe will have to take one and I'll take the other! Here are us girls showing off the new matching PJ's my mom got us. Poor Levi got stuck being in this shot too!Gabe made our traditional Christmas breakfast of biscuits and gravy. And after Levi had a nap, and some lunch, we took off to see Gabe's family. I wasn't sure how Levi would be. It's about 2 and 1/2 hours to Gabe's mom's house. The longest car ride Levi's taken yet. But he did great! He talked a little, sang us some songs and slept. It was pretty uneventful.

Note for Santa

Holiday Festivities

We had our 7th annual Holiday Cocktail Party on Saturday night. It hardly seems possible that Gabe and I have been hosting this holiday celebration for seven years. We've now held it in three different residences, celebrated during a snow storm and we always manage to make too much food. I even cut back this year because I no longer have the time and energy.
We had a great time. It was wonderful to see friends we don't see nearly enough, share a lot of laughs and enjoy great food and drink. Love it!
I think I managed to get a photo of everyone who came...just not in one shot. I don't have the time to post them all, so this gives you a little sample of the festivities.

On Sunday morning, Gabe and I slept in a little and then finished our Christmas shopping before we picked up Levi from Grandma and Grandpa G's house. It was nice to be able to do some running around without hauling that nearly 20lb guy every where! So, I'm glad I won't have to brave the crowds any more. But I think we will head over to my school tomorrow and see what shape my classroom is in. It will probably need some straightening up. My sub didn't have the obsession with organization that I do. I think I'll do a little more baking this week before the holiday arrives. I really want to make Mindy's molasses cookies!
I'm hoping to be back on here before Christmas is completely over. It will be necessary to make sure Levi's first Christmas is well documented! Although, we do have to celebrate Christmas with 3 different families...which always makes things crazy!

1/3 of one year old

That's how Gabe likes to describe Levi's age now. What a nerd! :)

Well, our big guy is 4 months old. At his 4 month check up today he weighed in at 17lbs 10 oz! No wonder my arms are dying when I bounce him to sleep at nap time. He's 26.5 inches long! The nurse actually measured him twice because she was so surprised he was that big and she was afraid she'd measured wrong. And his head circumference is 17 inches. So he's in the upper 90% percentile on the growth charts in all categories except his head.
He's growing fast!
In the last few weeks he's also started to laugh and chuckle when I put his shirt on. He's totally ticklish...just like his dad. You can get him on the toes too. The laughs make me forget the fact that he's still up once or twice a night. I guess a big guys gotta eat right?

Trimming the Tree

We finally have a finished Christmas tree. And it was only a 4 day process to get it complete!
Here's Gabe and Levi putting the star on Sunday morning. Levi doesn't seem too interested or impressed does he?He's definitely most interested in chewing on his fingers at this point.

And here's the finished tree last night. Gabe and I put on the last of the ornaments while Levi sat and supervised. He seemed pretty interested in what we were doing and next year he'll be able to help us out!I'm excited to be starting my holiday baking with the girls tonight. I'm trying to focus on the holidays instead of my fear of returning to work. I went in last Monday, and yesterday, and it's really hard to believe I'll be back there for good in a few weeks. Everyone was asking me what they could do to help me out and transition back to work, but I couldn't think of anything. I'm pretty sure I'm still in denial about what returning will really be like.

Hunting for a Christmas Tree

Why is it that the weekend we put aside to get our Christmas tree is always rainy and miserable? I don't think in all the years Gabe and I have been together, we've had one tree hunting experience where we didn't end up caked in mud and soaked to the bone.
I was afraid when we went to bed Friday night that we'd wake up in the morning with snow on the ground, no snow tires on our car yet, and no way to get our tree. But there was no need to fear. Since the forecasted "Arctic Storm" didn't hit overnight we figured we'd be OK. But we were still a little nervous since every TV weather person swore it was still going to hit. Good thing we didn't wait around. I would have been really annoyed if we'd stayed home just to wait for a storm that never arrived.
We struck out on the weather front with the cold temperatures and spitting rainy. We also struck out picking a tree farm. We have yet to find a farm we'll return to year after year. We didn't want to venture too far from home, just in case arctic weather did make an appearance. So, we went south to Tualatin to Lee Farms. It's a full service operation. All you have to do is pick out the tree. They come on a tractor, cut down the tree for you, throw it on the back of the tractor and drop it off. They then shake it, bale it and even load it on your car. So, Gabe didn't have to do a thing. I think he was a little disappointed. The trees weren't great, but we found one that will do the job. Levi enjoyed helping pick out his first Christmas tree, except for the loud chain saw. When the guy started up the chain saw to cut down our tree, Levi belted out the loudest scream I've hear yet. Guess he's not use to those sorts of loud noises...yet. I'm sure his dad will have him use to the sound of roaring engines soon enough.
Well, here's a picture of me and Levi all bundled up searching for our "perfect" tree. No pictures of the finished tree yet. Hopefully Gabe and I will get around to the decorating once the little guy is in bed tonight.

Gift for baby Levi

I just have to share this because I giggled when I saw it. Ryan, Heather and the kids left some Christmas gifts here when they were visiting last month so that they wouldn't have to send them. Well, here's Levi's gift from his cousins. Gotta love that little swaddled baby with the spiky hair. Looks just like the little guy. I might have to keep this precious little picture to put in his baby book. So cute! I love it!

Bead For Life

My mom and I were inspired by my sister, and decided to have a Bead for Life party this weekend. We actually invited people over both yesterday, and today, in hopes of having lots of people to support this wonderful cause. We were thinking people would find it a great opportunity to do some holiday shopping, while at the same time supporting women in Uganda break free of poverty. It really is a wonderful program (check out their website to learn more). Plus, the beads are amazingly beautiful. I love that almost 80% of the money you give for purchasing the beads goes back to the community. And as a host of the party...we gain nothing. Except enjoying the beads. Which I could literally look through for hours because each one is special and unique.

Well, turn out wasn't as good as we'd hoped. It's getting close to the holidays, and it seems everyone was using the nice dry weather to get their Christmas tree this weekend. But we are sending back over $800, so I feel really good about that.

Again....a very special thank you to everyone who came by, looked at and bought beads. It was nice to see everyone and chat. Enjoy the beads and spread the word!

Update: My mom's had the beads at her house for the last week and a few more people stopped by to look at them and make purchases. So the grand total we'll be sending back to Bead for Life is over $1100! Wow! Totally cool!

December already?

How is it possible that December is here already?
As much as I love the holiday season, and having a new little one to celebrate it with, I'm really not looking forward to it. The holidays signal my return to work. I head back right after the new year and there's a big part of me that doesn't want it to come. It's been really hard staying home with Levi for the last 3 months. And there were times when I wished I was at work because I feel confident in my abilities there...everything about being a mother, and caring for this little guy, is new and I continually feel like I'm lacking. But this week I've started to think about how I won't get to watch him explore and discover new things each day. He's changing and growing so fast. And it makes me sad to know I'll be missing some of it.
Being a mom is tough, and my paying job is hard and exhausting too. And I'm afraid that I won't be able to do both of my jobs, being a great mom and teacher, very well. They both take so much out of you! Unfortunately, I can't just walk out the school door and leave my work behind me. And I don't want to spend my evenings and weekends working on school stuff because that's my time with Levi, but in reality there's no other way to do my job well.
So, after thinking about this all week, here are my final thoughts. It may seem simple and clear to you, but being the planner I am, it will be a challenge for me. I figure what I have to do now is enjoy every moment I have with my little guy. Forget the piles of laundry, the sink full of dirty dishes and the list of other projects I want to get done around here. I have to enjoy this time while I have it. The rest will fall into place...right?

Thanksgiving Pictures

We've been laying pretty low today. Had a late night playing games with Heather and Ryan, and a baby that was especially hungry in the wee hours of the morning, to recover from. Oh, and that day filled with cooking and eating! We did brave the crowds and hit up the Fred Meyer sock sale extravaganza. Won't make that mistake again for awhile. Or at least until my drawer is full of threadbare socks again.
I wanted to share some of my favorite pictures from yesterday.
Here's one of us all sitting down at the table ready to feast. It makes me so happy to see everyone together...oh, minus me and Levi. Somehow, by luck, Levi's evening nap happened to fall right at dinner time. It was nice to enjoy the meal but I still noticed Gabe and I were the first ones done eating. Guess we've become masters at speed eating in three months.
So, here's one of me and Levi. (The only one with him sort of looking at the camera)And one of the after dinner games.

Giving Thanks

Figure I should get this on here before things get too crazy today. We're having a late thanksgiving dinner this year but I still have a ton to do today.

I have so much to be thankful for this year.

• A healthy and (mostly) happy baby boy. Who just happens to be the cutest baby in existence!
• An amazing husband who is a wonderful cook, does dishes, works hard, and does all the home projects I ask him without complaining. Who makes up silly songs to sing to Levi and is skilled in putting our stubborn baby back to sleep.
  
• A pregnancy that was free of complications and was so "good" I'd do it again if the end result wasn't another little one.
• Our new house! (Enough said...go back to July if you don't know why I'm so thankful.)
• Employment. Even though the thought of going back to work on January 4th brings tears to my eyes. I am thankful I have a job to go back to. And I'm thankful Gabe has employment. I'm thankful the economy hasn't hit his company hard and that he'll actually be getting a big bonus this year.
• My mom. She gets a special mention here because I don't think I would have made it through the first month post-partum without her help. She provided me with many hours of much needed sleep. Those hours then translated to sanity.
• Last of all, I'm thankful for Thanksgiving! I love Thanksgiving and I can't wait to have the Morrison's here with us. It's been a long time!
  

Home for the Holiday

My sister (Heather) and nephew (Sawyer) have been in town this week visiting from St. Louis. The rest of the family, Ryan and Savannah, come in today.
It's been a really long time since we've seen them. Over 2 years! Gabe and I had to miss the big family reunion in South Dakota this summer since it happened the week before Levi was born. So, it's been great to have them here. I was excited for Levi to meet his Aunt Heather and one of his only two cousins. Unfortunately, I don't think the boys felt the same way. We had quite a struggle trying to get Sawyer to pose for a picture. And of course Levi wouldn't look at the camera, so this is the best shot I have of the two boy cousins. Hopefully I can get some better ones of all three of the kids.I really liked this one of Levi and his Aunt Heather. I'm so glad he finally got to meet her and it sure looks like he loves her! I was really sad she couldn't be here when he was born and it makes me happy to see them together now.I'm getting ready for the huge feast tomorrow. Unfortunately, I pulled the turkey out to defrost a little late and just got the herb rub on it this morning. (It's suppose to be on for 3 days!) Oh, well. I think it will still taste delicious. And instead of working out during Levi's nap times today, I think I'll choose to make pies. A little ironic...but 'tis the season right?

Sleeping like a baby

Don't let this adorable kid fool you!
If only he would spend his nights this way.

In Loving Memory

We had a rough weekend around here.

Gabe's former boss, dear friend, and mentor lost his fight with colon cancer this weekend. Tom was someone Gabe dearly loved and admired. Tom's wife called Gabe Friday night to tell him he really should come up to the hospital on Saturday to see Tom. I don't know if she told him this might be the last time he'd see Tom, or if Gabe just got that feeling from the tone of the conversation. But he knew he needed to be there. So Saturday Gabe, and the other guys who have worked with and cared about Tom, went up to visit. I don't think any of them were really ready to get news the next morning (Sunday) that Tom was gone.
For Gabe, loosing Tom is like loosing a father. I know this is really hard on Gabe. And it hurts to see someone you love hurting and my heart aches for him. It just not fair. I just don't understand. Why do bad things have to happen to the best people? Is there no justice in the cosmos?

Please keep Tom's wife, Jan, and his two boys, Cooper and Rory, in your thoughts. Cooper and Rory are still young men (15 and 13-I think) and even though it's never easy to loose someone you care about, loosing your dad (at this already challenging time) will be hard for them.

Tom, you will be greatly missed and always remembered.

Laughing Levi

I thought you all might like to check out some of the first laughs from Levi. He's had some giggles, but is just starting to get a real laugh going. Grandma Girard was playing with him last night by trying to get him to eat his feet. He though it was pretty funny.

-Gabe

In Reverse

I feel like we're moving backwards around here. If you would have asked me a month ago how things were going with Levi, I would have told you things were great. A month ago, Levi was sleeping an 8 hour stretch at night and getting up to eat about 4 or 5 in the morning. Then going back to sleep until 9 (there were even a few days he slept till 10). Then he would take a short nap in the morning, and a long nap in the afternoon. He had this great routine that seemed to be really working for him!
Well, that's all been thrown out the window and I don't know what to do with him anymore. Nearly every night this week he's been up 2 or 3 times. He won't go back to sleep. And he won't take naps even though I know he's sleepy. He fights sleep something crazy. All this week he's been really fussy when he's awake because he uses his nap time to wiggle out of his swaddle and suck on his fingers. Yesterday we wouldn't even let me put him down. I'm nearing the end of my rope.
I know this is probably just a phase, and he's probably doing some growing and changing now. (He's 3 months today). But I'm at a loss of what to do with him. How do I get this kid to sleep?! I'm not prepared to let him "cry it out" in his crib yet. He's still too little and I think all that would do is get him even more wound up and less likely to sleep. I think what's frustrating me is that I thought we had grown out of the newborn stage and he was going to start having some consistency and routine. Not to mention that we (Gabe and I) would be getting more sleep. The little glimpse we had of restful nights sleep has been ripped cruelly from our hands. I love this guy but he's got my head spinning.
On a different note, we have had some little laughs and giggles from this little guy. We don't have a video camera but I've been trying to capture him doing it from the video mode on my camera. This kid is camera shy. (I think he was damaged by the paparazzi (that would be his aunts) when he was little.) He'll be smiling and giggling and cooing away, and as soon as I put up the camera he clams up like he's got stage fright. I'll try again this weekend. That is if Levi ever emerges from this funk he's in. I've also had a request to get more pictures up so hopefully I'll be back this weekend with those as well.

Bathroom Face Lift

Since we moved into our house less than a month before Levi was born, and I couldn't do a whole lot in my extremely pregnant state, we still have plenty of projects to complete. For the last few weeks (yes...it's taken me that long) during Levi's nap time, I've been peeling the wall paper border off the walls in our upstairs bathroom. The wall paper wasn't terrible. It just wasn't our style. Here's a picture of what the bathroom looked like before we bought the house. (Notice the Chinese dragons...I like dragons...just not in the bathroom).
I also hate the wall of mirror above the vanity. It seems pretty typical in houses of this generation (since it's in all three of our bathrooms) but I really hate it. Eventually I'd like to replace the flooring and vanity but this was just a face lift. Not a complete overhaul. We have to save the overhaul for the downstairs bathroom with the floor-to-ceiling wall paper and red laminate tile.
So here's my pictures of the process.

And the finished product...It was really a project that I could have done in one weekend BL (before Levi). Trying to find the time between naps was a challenge. Once the wallpaper was down, Gabe helped and we got it mostly done over the weekend. Gabe could work while I fed and entertained Levi. Plus, Gabe's the master painter in this relationship. I don't dare paint anywhere near the floor or ceiling. But his years of experience painting in college have earned him a professional status around here.
Now, does anyone want a really huge mirror? It's perfectly intact looking for a new home. It's a beauty!

Plumper Pumpkin Patch 2009

Turns out we picked the perfect day to visit the pumpkin patch. Actually, somehow we get lucky every year! We've been visiting the Plumper Pumpkin Patch for years and years. (So many years now I've lost track.) We started going there because Gabe's boss was involved in the trebuchet launching. So, all the engineers (who were all really good friends) went up to check it out. And they've been going every year since. Over the years the guys have slowly split up and moved to other jobs but the tradition hasn't died. In fact, Joe even made his own pumpkin launching contraption. Here he is this year shooting pumpkins in his cannon.This is a tradition I hope continues for years to come! Especially since all 4 guys had new additions to their families this year. Here are all the new dads with their little ones. Hopefully we'll have a picture like this next year. We may have a lot more trouble keeping all the little ones in the picture!From left to right (starting at the bottom): Joe with Finn, Enzo is in the stroller, Aaron with Taya. You know the boys at the top left (at least I hope you do!), and Josh with Weston

Can you find my little jack-o-lantern? I lost him in the pumpkin patch!

Found him!

Our Little Cowboy

Isn't he cute?!
His grandparents (being typical grandparents) couldn't come up empty handed. Tom and Joanne gave Levi his first (and probably only) pony when they came up this weekend. I think it's adorable. Gabe isn't to thrilled about it because when you push the years he neighs and moves his head and tail. Levi doesn't need to know about that for awhile. I think we'll just let him discover that one on his own.
This was his first ride last night and as you can see...he loved it. What I think he loved most was trying to get the mane into his mouth!
So...I'm thinking a cowboy hat maybe under the Christmas tree this year.

We're off to our last sign language class today so I better get in the shower quick while the little guy is still napping.

A Visit With Grandparents

Gabe's dad and Joanne came up Saturday afternoon to visit. It was really nice to see them and watch them enjoy their time with Levi. I just love watching other people love on our baby. He's such a lucky guy!
Shortly after arriving, Tom got to work making dinner for all of us. Levi got to help make dinner too! It was nice to talk and laugh while someone else did all the work. Plus, the meal was delicious.Sunday morning Levi (and Grandpa) were up bright and early. I'm use to waking up to Levi's crying...the smell of bacon was a pleasant surprise. After enjoying our waffle bacon breakfast we headed over to the Portland Nursery for their yearly apple tasting. They have a ridiculous amount of apples to taste. I wanted to get some apples to make Levi's first baby food, but since it was the last day they were pretty sold out. We did pick up about 4 lbs and I'll test out a few recipes and get them in the freezer this week. Unfortunately, we won't know for several more months how he likes them!
I hope he likes the apples more than he did his experience at the tasting. This is how he spent his time at the festival.

Our 5th Anniversary

Gabe and I got to take a little time away (by ourselves) to celebrate our 5th anniversary this weekend. Before we went to Las Vegas, Gabe was putting in really long hours at work trying to get a project done. So he decided to take Friday off. We dropped Levi off at Grandpa & Grandma G's house and then took off on our own little wine tour. We wanted to stop and taste at several wineries here in the northern part of the Willamette Valley. We ended up only making it to 4 wineries (Copper Mountain, Oak Knoll, Elk Cove, and Patton Valley) but that really ended up being enough. One can only taste so much Pinot Noir (the specialty of the valley) in one day.

We ended our special day in Forest Grove and stayed the night at the Grand Lodge. We drank some more wine and went down to the basement bar where they had live music. It was fun to spend time together, but I have to admit that we did spend a lot of our time thinking about Levi and wondering how he was doing. We knew his grandparents were taking good care of him...we just missed getting to snuggle him and give him kisses. We enjoyed our time together but were happy to see him Saturday afternoon.

2 Months!

How is it possible that our little guy is 2 months already?
And he's not even little anymore. He had his 2 month check up at the doctor yesterday and he's weighing in at 14 lbs already! He's 24 3/4 inches long (that's over 2 feet!) and his head is 16 1/4. He's our big baby now.
We decided to take a picture like this one every month for the first year. I found these cute little stickers that can just go on any shirt. It will be a nice way to follow his growth and see how much he changes. Plus, it also forces us to get out the camera at least once a month. Overall, I think we're not taking as many pictures as we should be. And I haven't yet captured his talking and smiling on video.

On a different note, the fall (or should I say winter) weather we've been having the last few days has really made me want to curl up and hibernate. It's also made me want to make soup. I love soup in the fall! During Levi's nap this afternoon I started some beef stew. I can't wait to enjoy it, and the beer bread we got from Trader Joe's a few weeks ago, for dinner tonight. Although now that I look out the window I see the sun is shining. Oh, well. I'll still enjoy our nice fall meal this evening.

Las Vegas Adventure

Our trip to Las Vegas was a vacation for Levi and me, but work for Gabe. So, unfortunately Gabe missed out on lots of the fun we had. Becky got to take off the first 3 days we were there and join us for some fun adventures. We spent the first afternoon (Saturday) showing Levi around Hoover Dam. He has now been to 3 states. Arizona counts since that's the side of the river we parked on right?Gabe had Sunday free so we had a big breakfast at Becky's house and spent the rest of the day exploring Red Rock Canyon. There's a nice scenic loop you can drive and lots of trails to hike. Gabe and I didn't think to wear our hiking shoes so we only did one short "hike" in our flip flops. Next time we'll make sure we're prepared. It was really windy and Levi wasn't really sure what to make of the whole thing.The rest of the trip Gabe was busy at the conference/trade show. Monday us girls (and Levi) went down to Bellagio. The garden was all decorated for fall. And we enjoyed some gelato while we waited for the fountain show to start.

Monday evening my mom stayed with Levi so that Becky, Gabe and I could go out for dinner. Gabe really wanted to try the Burger Bar. It's the only Hubert Keller restaurant really in our price range. His french restaurant in Mandalay Bay is really spendy. I still didn't feel great about spending $20 on a hamburger. It was a good burger but not that good! They do have a $60 hamburger on the menu. Insane! That's food on the strip for you.
On Tuesday Levi, mom and I went out for lunch and then toured the Shark Reef Aquarium. Levi was awake to see the golden crocodile, komodo dragon, and the reef sharks. I think he fell asleep half way through. He woke up at the end and was ready to eat so we had to make a pretty quick exit. We did pick him up a stuffed shark in the gift shop to help him remember his trip.
Wednesday, our last day, we went to the pool. Mandalay Bay has a really cool pool. I'd go back there again, when Levi's a little older, just for the pool. The wave pool looked really fun but Levi wasn't quite big enough yet to enjoy it. Plus the real sand is a pretty neat touch. Levi did enjoy putting his toes in one of the other 3 pools. And here he is smiling while we relaxed and danced to the music.

It was a fun trip. We all came back pretty tired. Levi has been sleeping in really late and taking long afternoon naps. I know the trip wore me out and I think it wore him out too. We loved seeing aunt Becky but I think everyone is happy to be home. It was great to have my mom with us. She watched Levi several evenings so that Gabe and I could have some time to go to dinner without him. Although the one dinner we did take him to he totally slept through.
My goal for this week is to see if we can get Levi on a schedule of some kind. He pretty much eats and sleeps whenever he wants, but it would be nice to have some routine and a consistent bed time. Seems like he might be getting ready for that now.

First Flight

As it turns out, Levi is a great traveler. All my worrying was for nothing. He did great!
We got to PDX super early and had to wait around for quite a while. I figured it was best to be early the first time I tried this whole flying with baby thing.

The first picture is Levi's first time on an airplane (the trip there). The second picture shows what Levi did the whole flight to Vegas and the whole flight home. (The picture is on the return trip...I think that's why I look so tired too. It's exhausting vacationing with this little guy. I now need a vacation from my vacation. Good thing Gabe and I are going to get away for our anniversary next weekend.)

I'll share more about our adventure in Las Vegas later. I'm still working on the 6 loads of laundry we brought back with us.

Ready or not...

Here we come!
We're heading off to Las Vegas tomorrow afternoon.
Gabe has to go for work (some sort of trade show) and his boss said he could bring the family. When Gabe first told me about it my reaction was...no way. I wasn't sure traveling with a 7 week old was a great idea. But the more I thought about it (being off work now and never being able to go with him like this again, seeing my sister, and not wanting to spend the week without him) the more it sounded like a great idea. As we tossed the idea around my mom said she wanted to come with us too, and that just sealed the deal.
So, tomorrow Levi is taking his first airplane ride and I have to admit that I'm super nervous. It could go really well and he could sleep the whole 2 hours. Or it could go really bad and...enough said. I think we've all been on those flights with the screaming child. I really hope it's not my child.
We'll share all about it when we get back next week. Wish us luck!

Family Outing

We spent most of our Saturday running errands and cleaning up. (Gabe is working on getting the garage unpacked and organized...finally...we just haven't had the time.) I also started a new project in our upstairs bathroom, but I'll share more on that later.
We decided today we needed to get out and enjoy the first weekend of fall. It was a wonderfully beautiful weekend that should not be spent indoors working on projects anyway.
So, we went on a family outing to the Columbia River Gorge. The destination we had in mind was Multnomah Falls. Disappointment hit us when we entered the parking area only to discover not a single available space. I'm not kidding! We took one loop around the parking area hoping (along with the other 10 cars ahead of us and the 20 behind us) someone would soon be leaving and we could have their vacated spot. A second loop around the parking lot never happened because you-know-who woke up from his nap and was literally screaming in the back seat. We jumped on the freeway heading back toward town, and an exit for the old highway. There are so many waterfalls to see, and hike to, that we decided the big falls could be saved for another time. We made a quick stop at Vista House. The wind was blowing fiercely up there. I know the Gorge is windy, but I've never been so afraid I was going to be blown off into the river. Thankfully, Levi was protected from the wind by his daddy. Other than forcing him to be wide awake, and blowing what little hair he has around, I don't think the wind had much impact on the little guy. We ended up exploring Latourell Falls this time. Maybe we'll head out that way again this fall and can stop by Multnomah Falls. Maybe it won't be so busy! I can hope right?

Smiles & Six Weeks

This post is a little late. That's because I was working on it most of last week. I never realized how difficult it is to capture a smile on camera when you can't tell the subject to "smile". I've been working desperately for weeks to capture Levi's first smiles. At first it was so unpredictable I didn't even try (that was about 2 weeks ago now). Just this week he's started to sit, smile and coo with me every time he's done eating. (Which is about every 2 hours during the day...you'd think that would give me lots of chances to catch a smile.) The problem is that I never remember to have the camera handy since he's usually screaming when I start to feed him. At that point, grabbing the camera isn't really a top priority. I did manage to get this picture on Tuesday. It's the best of the bunch I took that day.I know it looks like more of smirk than a smile but I swear it gets bigger.
Here's proof. Gabe finally got this good one this morning.I just love this little face. It melts my heart.
Like I said, with the smiles also come "talking". I wish we had a video camera because his cooing is just so sweet. He's still working on ma-ma and da-da but he'll get there soon! Since he's only six weeks we'll give him some more time on those, a-goo will have to do for now.

Beach Weekend

We left town "early" on Friday. Gabe got home about 1pm and I had every thing almost packed up so we could leave. I had Levi fed and changed...we were good to go!
Levi slept through the entire drive to Pacific City, except for when we hit construction on hwy 6. I was afraid the rest of the trip was going to be miserable but once we got moving again he settled down quickly. He really likes riding in the car. As long as it's moving! Sometimes he'll even start screaming when we stop at traffic lights but will stop as soon as we're moving again. Silly guy.
Anyway, we rented a house in Pacific City that was a few blocks from the beach. The weather was amazing and Levi slept through most of his first time on the beach. We took him on lots of walks anyway. Grandma and Grandpa G even flew kites for him. Sadly, he slept through that too. It was a great weekend. Here's a few pictures of Levi's first time on the Oregon Coast!
Trips to the beach will definitely be more fun next year. He'll be walking around and putting sand in his mouth. He'll find gross dead things to pick up and show us. It will be great.

I am also proud to announce (and somewhat nervous) that Levi is almost sleeping through the night. It started at the beach Friday night. We put him down about 8pm and he didn't wake up until 4am! Then he did nearly the same on Saturday night and last night. That's three nights in a row! That does mean he's eating a lot more during the day to stock up for those long nights. I had to feed him twice in less than 2 hours this morning. But it's totally worth it. Unfortunatlely, each night he's soaked through his cloth diaper. I think it just gets so saturated it starts leaking because the diaper isn't sticking out of the cover at all. (That's what usually causes his leaky diapers.) Does anyone know what I should do? I could just put him in a disposable over night but I'd rather not. How do I prevent the leaking overnight cloth diaper?