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!