Snaps & Buttons

September Catch-up!

2011-12-14T00:46:00.000-08:00

September was a busy month for us! Before our hiatus, I posted about our beach trip and whirlwind trip to Michigan, this post catches up the rest of September :)

G is quite the stacker now! He can stack up to 8 blocks before toppling them over. I think he enjoys the stacking just so he can knock them over.

The many faces of G

We enjoyed our backyard a lot this summer and were sad to have to pack up the furniture when the weather turned. G still isn't sure about the grass, but enjoyed playing with Daddy!

Brushing teeth is not G's favorite part of the day. He does like to try to do it himself though.

G loves playing with Daddy. Here's a small sample of the fun! G is quite the giggle box.

G is adding more words to his vocabulary and loves to say uh-oh! He has taken steps before and loves to walk along with his push toy, but actually walked across the room for the first time by himself on September 18! Here is a video of his new walking ability:

We helped celebrate with Jonathan's family at Vikkie's wedding:

G loved the chickens and the chance to walk around!

Jonathan also enjoyed some time paintballing with the Evosus team

Playing Catch-up

2011-12-12T17:56:00.000-08:00

To say our blog has been neglected and we need to spend some time catching up is an understatement! This last term of school, juggling a few too many things, and being sick has seriously diminished productivity in this household. But we are making our way back... even though, as I write this, Jonathan is sick in bed, G is recovering from a 6 hour throw-up fest this weekend, and I am not feeling particularly well! I'm still determined to get back on track :)

We wrapped up the Fall 2011 term about a week ago. Jonathan and I took Marketing Management and Accounting... it was a tough course load. We had a lot of group work, accounting assignments, and papers. The final accounting paper required an appendix with about 11 pages of financial calculations! The accounting final definitely kicked our butts - it took us about 12 hours over three different sessions! Phew, feels good to have wrapped that up!

I'm excited to share that Sarah Laura jewelry is available at a local gift store called Swift. I'm working on the Etsy page and Sarah Laura webpage, but have the Facebook page up and running with new photos of items for sale. Here are a few pics of the Swift display and a couple of the items:

That's a quick current recap... stay tuned for end of September, October, and November catch-up! :)

Focus 52 Creative Project - Week 9

2011-10-10T19:44:00.000-07:00

Week 9 - Theme: Shadow
This has been a busy week with group projects in both classes -- which means I left my shot for the weekend (not the best idea). I thought Paul Bunyan would make a great shadow subject. Ha! The weather decided to serve up super cloudy and gray this weekend... so here's what I got instead :)

Wedding Trip!

2011-10-10T12:50:00.000-07:00

We took a whirlwind trip to Michigan between terms. We left on Friday, September 16, arrived in Michigan Saturday, September 17, then headed home again Sunday, September 18!

The trip to Michigan went well. We spent longer than planned at our layover due to mechanical problems and were disappointed to find that the DVD, Puppy Party, could not compete with the noise and sounds of the airport to keep G entertained. G wasn't interested in sleeping on the plane... until we landed. On both flights he fell asleep just after landing, but before deboarding. Once we arrived in Michigan, we picked up our rental car, finally got the car seat installed (after exchanging it for the correct one) and checked into our hotel room. I believe we got settled and into bed around 4 am!

We woke up a few hours later to spend some time with Morgan & Ada and Elliott & Rebecca! Then we were off to Schiller's wedding party! We had a great time hanging out with everyone, meeting Schiller's wife, Sarah, for the first time and lots of Schiller's family! Later that night we met up in our hotel room for some fun memories and convo. Of course there was some teasing, some grammar policing, and lots of funny stories! It was great to see everyone again! On Sunday we hung out at Schiller's and went to the park. Then we headed home.

The trip home was a direct flight - but boy was it long! G actually slept for a while, but woke up every 15-20 minutes squirming and crying. Usually he rocks and rolls all over his crib, so I'm sure the tight space on the plane (and in the Boba) wasn't his optimal sleeping environment. We got home Sunday night around midnight. A whirlwind trip!

G's First Time on Max!

We had to buy tickets, of course

G gets to ride for free!

We had the car all to ourselves at first

G's First Flight
On the way to Michigan we were lucky to have the whole row to ourselves. G enjoyed having his own seat for a bit. He also spent lots of time in our laps and sometime scrambling back and forth between us. Really, whatever occupied him was fine with us :)

G's ready to go!

Getting settled

G with all of his important stuff (except Podi & Meko, of course)

Take off!

Ready for snacks again!

The evolution of snackface!

After being up all day, G finally fell asleep...
just as we pulled up to the gate!

The Party!

Together again!
Jonathan & G, Schiller, Sarah, Elliott, Morgan, Ada, & Rebecca (in front)

Will you take my picture?

As we were leaving, we noticed the yarn bombing.
Of course, we had to stop for a photo!

Last Day

G loved the fountain at the hotel

Rebecca and G hanging out

Fun time at the park!

Zoo with Sophia

2011-10-10T12:15:00.000-07:00

September 14 - Gabriel got to go to the zoo again! This time we went with Sophia, since we were both on break from school. We got to see some of the animals we missed on our first visit and G decided this time, he liked different animals than on the first trip. This time the goats made him cry, particularly the one both Sophia and I thought looked like Meko. He really liked watching the seal lions and was a little scared and really fascinated with the lauralkeets. He roared at the tigers and laughed at the bats!

G loved watching the sea lions get fed and do tricks

The Lauralkeets really liked Sophia!
This one swooped down to greet her right when we got in!

Balancing G and nectar for the lauralkeets while taking a self portrait meant!
G wasn't looking, but it's a pretty good one of Sophia and me :)

Take 2

We had to pose in front of the giraffes!

Beach Trip

2011-10-09T20:12:00.000-07:00

Blog Catchup! We headed to the beach on September 7-- a few more posts and then I'll be caught up!

We wrapped up classes and finals (so long ethics and statistics!) and headed out to the beach the following weekend for a much needed break. The weather was amazing, the beach was warm, the water was sparkling. It really was perfect. We spent some time napping, picking blackberries, visiting the local yarn store, and, of course, lots of time playing on the beach!

View from the driveway of the house we rent
the clouds were very close to the water

Blackberries were ripe and plentiful. G enjoyed helping us pick them (okay, he really enjoyed sampling them).

He also enjoyed eating the blackberry pancakes
Daddy made the next morning - Yum!

Loving the warm beach afternoon

G tried the sand... and he didn't like it.

Building castles with Mama

Building castles with Daddy

Daddy buried G in the sand and G loved it!

G doesn't get a lot of sugar, but couldn't deprive him of Tillamook ice cream.
G had his first ice cream cone and he liked it
Tillamook Strawberry!

Love this pic of Daddy & G!

G's first visit to the Tillamook Cheese Factory
& his second ice cream cone - Tillamook Peaches N Cream

Beach Trip Artsy Pics :)

2011-10-09T20:06:00.001-07:00

We spent some time playing with fun camera filters, night photography and landscapes.

Focus 52 Creative Project - Week 8

2011-10-03T21:01:00.000-07:00

Week 8 - Theme: Autumn
The weather must have taken notice of this week's prompt. The sun and warmth we've been enjoying have been replaced by familiar rain and cooler weather. The bottoms of our jeans are damp, the patio furniture is ready to be packed up, and it's getting darker earlier. Pumpkin spice lattes and the cozy feeling of fall is here!

August Happenings

2011-10-03T13:39:00.000-07:00

Here are the last two posts that will have us caught up through the end of August. Yikes! So behind.

Summer fun!
Gabriel enjoyed a very warm August afternoon with his little friend, Beckett. Lindsey and I had a good time too :) Beckett is such a great walker and enjoyed meeting people at the park and running through the water. Gabriel was a little more shy and enjoyed watching everyone from the blanket. He did venture into the water a bit. Gabriel is waving to the picture of Becks as I type this - so cute!

Gabriel outgrew his old carseat and upgraded!

Weekend Fun & Park Walk

Gabriel has Daddy fever and enjoyed the 'walk' in the park :)

Black Beans!
Gabriel loves black beans! I can't tell which he loves more, eating them or decorating this face with them? :) Jonathan was particularly amused by the black bean moustache and beard he developed in the last photo.

Favorite Activities

Just Being G

Studying
All right, this one is more about us than G, but August wouldn't be complete without a study pic! Jonathan with his study buddies, Podi & Meko!

More August Photos

2011-10-03T13:37:00.001-07:00

this is one of my favorite photos :)

Lost August Blog Post

2011-09-30T16:52:00.000-07:00

I am in the middle of catching up on blog posts and found this one from the end of August... okay, so I'm posting it a month late; better late than never, right?!

August 26, 2011
We have been enjoying spending Gabriel's evening bottle outside under our umbrella in the backyard too much to acknowledge the end of August. As usual, we are not sure where it went but know we lived it because we are exhausted!

We've been busy visiting with Gaye, helping my mom clean out her house in preparation for her upcoming move, spending time with G and, of course, school. The past couple of weeks have been particularly stressful as we have been in finals.

I shared the Zoo visit in the last post, and unfortunately we've been a bit bad about keeping up with photos, but I do have some updates and a few pics to share about where G is now:

At last count, he has four front teeth on the top and four on the bottom, two molars on top (one on each side) and bottom. For a total of 12 teeth!

He loves doggies! Podi and Meko... and really any dog, even ones in print. He finds images of dogs on the table and carries them around with him. I hope he doesn't end up in therapy from being forced to seek love from paper doggies since his real doggies are incapable. He also loves his stuffed doggie from Kristin. Whenever we ask, "where is your doggie?" he first points to Podi and Meko, then to his stuffed doggie (he always seems to know where it is).

We call these Gabriel's Important Papers :)

He surprises us daily with the words he knows (but doesn't say yet).

                    Tree
                    Foot
                    Nose
                    Belly
                    Elbow
                    Doggie (he actually says this one)
                    Milk
                    More
                    All Done
                    No (though he pretends not to know this one)
                    Lie down

His patience is worse than mine. If he can't pull his toy box out, can't get his arm immediately into his shirt, or doesn't get the food he wants he breaks down into giant sobs.

He loves to sit and "read" his books. Perhaps all of our studying is rubbing off on him :)

He has started roaring/growling at things. His books, images of doggies, his food. I'm not sure if he's a little dinosaur or taking after bad little Podi and Meko!

He walks holding on to just one of our fingers, or his little toy on wheels. We've found him just standing (not holding on to anything) a few times for several seconds, but still isn't very interested in full-on walking on his own. **Update: since writing this, Gabriel has officially turned into a walker :)

He turns over baskets and containers and drums on them. all of our conservatory friends can rejoice... perhaps he will have a musical interest/skill where his mommy and daddy do not!

He tries to dress himself. He puts shoes on his feet... literally on top of his feet. He tucks fabric, socks, blankets, whatever is around under his chin, I presume as his bib. Sometimes I catch him playing with one of his 'baby leg socks' under his chin. He determinedly holds his chin against his chest or shoulder to keep it there. So cute!

Pulling out his socks and shoes and empty baskets are still some of his favorite games.

He is drinking more and more from his cup (instead of the bottle) and really enjoys water.

He knows the sign for more and uses it appropriately and insists on it whenever there is potato salad in sight. We have to work on the sign for 'all done' though - he uses it, but I'm not sure he knows what it means exactly. When he's all done, he seems to use the sign of throwing his food on the floor. we have to work on that one :) Mama has been a little behind on the signing... so he very well could know more, if I were actually teaching other signs to him!

Focus 52 Creative Project - Week 7

2011-09-26T15:02:00.000-07:00

Week 7 - Theme: Flight
I have definitely fallen behind on the blog updates for the past couple of weeks. In the meantime, here is my quick Focus 52 update. When I saw the prompt I was excited to use pics from our recent trip to Michigan (there are some really cute ones of G in flight :) ). Unfortunately, they fall one day outside of the current week. Instead, here is a shot I got of a group of doves at Vikki's wedding this weekend.

Focus 52 Creative Project - Week 6

2011-09-19T20:13:00.000-07:00

Week 6 - Theme: Bokeh
BOKEH is the blur, or the aesthetic quality of the blur, in out-of-focus areas of an image.
It has been another whirlwind week with preparation and then our weekend trip to Michigan... lots of blog posts to catch up on! In the meantime, it is 'down to the wire' time for me to post last week's creative project. The first two images fit the prompt and are from our trip to the zoo with Sophia. G is loving the trips to the zoo! I captured a Portland Pony and added it even though it doesn't fit the prompt.

Focus 52 Creative Project - Week 5

2011-09-11T21:35:00.000-07:00

Week 5 - Theme: September
Okay, the summer has sped by and we are now officially in September! Though you wouldn't be able to tell by the weather we've been having. It has been in the 90's! It was even in the high 70's/low 80's for our beach trip last week (details and pics to come).

For this week's creative project, I actually put the breaks on and made us take some time out to capture a phenomenon that only occurs in September (perfect for the prompt, right?!). Apparently, every year thousands of swifts migrate South and settle into chimneys nearby. We knew of one near downtown, but there is also one only a few blocks from our home. On Thursday, Jonathan saw the birds gathering from our upstairs window and I decided to grab the camera, Jonathan, and G and head up the street to snap some photos. Once we got up to "swift alley" (so says the little hand painted sign), we had a clear view of the chimney. As luck would have it, we ended up receiving an impromptu invitation up to a roof top garden/patio to get an even better view! The first photo below is from that night. Needless to say, photographing small flying birds against the sky is really tough. Add sunset and no tripod and it is near impossible to get a good image. So we went back tonight, armed with a tripod, and snapped some more! They turned out much better, but no moon in these shots.

First Night

Second Night

Focus 52 Creative Project - Week 4

2011-09-03T08:37:00.000-07:00

Week 4 - Theme: Free-For-All
After wrapping up finals at midnight on Sunday (more about that in a later post), we have been busy this week tending to the life that we put on hold during the term. I got to spend some amazing time with my wonderful Sophia and we had fabulous evening in the backyard with both Sophia and Gaye. Debbie and I have been elbow-deep in the memories and items of our past, helping mom purge and sort for her move. Now Jonathan, G, Podi & Meko, and I are preparing for a break at the beach!

On to the project: I was excited to see a free-for-all week and immediately thought of something I have been meaning to photograph for some time. As Sophia and I ran an errand out by the airport (to exchange some shoes - the new ones are sooo cute!), I realized we were going to drive right past it. I told Sophia I wanted to photograph the giant dragon head on the side of the road. Yeah, she was confused too. But there really is no better way to describe it, right?! I managed to pull off the busy road, just barely squeezing into the blocked-off parking lot... and I didn't have a camera... or even my cell phone. Ugh! I *always* have my cell phone. So I snapped a couple of shots with Sophia's phone (thank you, lady) and tweaked the images in photoshop. Will have to revisit to get some better shots for another week. At least I finally have some images of 'the giant dragon head on the side of the road' :)

Gabriel's First Trip to the Zoolots of pics

2011-09-02T22:14:00.000-07:00

On August 14, we took Gabriel to the zoo for the first time. It was fun and exciting for him and we loved watching him experience all of the animals and sights and sounds for the first time. He enjoyed roaring/growling at the bears, watching the ducks and fish, and petting the goats. The goats were definitely his favorite. He might have thought they were doggies though :) Debbie, Toby, and Ethan were quite patient as we stopped to take photos of all of G's firsts! I think G even outlasted Ethan, he was quite the trucker.

Daddy, G & Bear!

Mama, G & Bear!

G really liked this little goat statue
Debbie & Ethan might have been pretending to like it :)

Family pic time

G likes the fishies. They are much larger than his at home.

Deep in thought

G & Debbie love to play tug-o-war with the sippy cup

G says duck at home, but not at the zoo

The goats were G's favorite. This goat ate the zoo map right out of Jonathan's pocket-- yikes!

Toby, Debbie & Ethan family pic time!

G loved to touch and explore all of the statues/sculptures.
It feels a little wrong to let your baby get into the mouth of a dinosaur though!

More fun with sculptures. G roared at the lions... well, and at most of the animals.

If we were a farming family, we'd look like this... well, sort of anyway :)

So Big!

G's a natural with the horses

It's difficult to get a 15 month old to look at the camera
when there are so many more interesting things to be looking at!

G is for Gabriel... and giraffe!

End of a long and fun day

Focus 52 Creative Project - Week 3

2011-08-27T18:48:00.000-07:00

Week 3 - Theme: Red
This week has been all about survival and finals. Aside from work on our finals, only the absolute necessities are happening (okay, and a few moments of "break" especially to spend time with G). I'm happy to say the dishes are not molding in the sink (who says that happened the last time we were in grad school?!) and the laundry is mostly caught up, the dogs aren't starving or missing, and G is fed and relatively clean - though he is smashing back beans between his palms as I type this! So why tell you all that, well, because it means that this week's creative project almost didn't happen. To be honest, it has been a bit of a stressor all week. But it all came together when we finished our stats final exam and took G for a quick walk in the park. We walked past a red door, the water structures were on in the park and there just happened to be a very red fire engine parked for all the kids to tour. So there you have it! I included the creative project pics and a few extras from our little break in the park... now on to my ethics final paper!

Focus 52 Creative Project - Week 2

2011-08-21T20:14:00.000-07:00

Week 2 - Theme: Water
I had high aspirations for the project this week. I have been wanting to make a line of jewelry (or at least a few pieces) inspired by the ocean. That was going to be a great fit for this week's Focus 52 theme... unfortunately, we are heading into finals so this week and next are super busy and there just wasn't enough time to pull it off. Instead, I decided to do an abbreviated version (take 1 perhaps) of a photographic 'day in the life' project. To make it doable, I decided to shoot everything on my phone since I have it with me all the time. In keeping with this week's theme, I took notice of all the water in my life this week.

I know this one isn't very pleasant, but I was excited to
finally figure out how to remove the hard water stain: pumice
stone. Voila, so sparkly!

A Funny Look at Parenting Stress

2011-08-16T11:08:00.000-07:00

We recently picked up some funny apology cards... well, to be honest, Jonathan finds them extremely funny, while for me their funniness ranges on a scale from amusing to more than slightly irritating depending on my current mood and how closely I can relate. Here are two that I currently find amusing... and unfortunately relevant.

Cards are by Lane Walker Foard

Focus 52 Creative Project - Week 1

2011-08-14T22:51:00.000-07:00

Last week I decided to join the Focus 52 Creative Project! Thank you Chris for the invitation :) Focus 52 is a commitment to complete a creative project each week, for 52 weeks. (I know, I know, I'm crazy to take on another project, right?!) The group coordinator adds weekly themes to base our work around, we choose to use the theme or not, whatever we want to do. The creative projects can be writing, photography, cooking, knitting, scrapbooking, the possibilities are endless. Since I've been mourning my lack of creativity lately, I thought this would be perfect motivation to get me moving! Since there is a new project every week (and I'm a tad bit busy with G, the MBA, and freelance), I am also removing the pressure that each project needs to be monumental-- I'm going to post whatever I have for that week and feel grateful for that little bit of creativity :)

Week 1 - Theme: Smile

Capturing the act of smiling... not the product (a smile).

After a rough week, I needed a break and a smile!
So I spent a few minutes in our amazing backyard practicing appreciation and manual controls on our camera
(learning to use our camera has been on my to-do list for a LONG time :)

And lastly, I wanted to give a smile to someone else. So when Jonathan and I drove through the drive-thru to get our morning dose of Starbucks, I paid for the coffee order of the person in the car behind us. All I know is that she was driving a really big white truck... and hopefully left with her coffee and a smile. I know I did.

Little Friends & July Wrap-Up

2011-08-07T17:46:00.000-07:00

July was all about funny faces, as you can see in his funny face video two posts ago, and time with little friends. Gabriel attended a birthday party for his best friend, Brady, had lunch with baby Cole, and spent time with his Aunt Megan and Cousin Riley.

Fun Faces & Latest Games

What a funny lil guy!

He just hangs out with the little shape in his mouth.

Love this little face, a variation of the one from the video. Shows off all those little chompers!

Daddy time!

G is a potato salad fiend!

Quite the performer

G loves his new sippy cups

So thoughtful, he offers us a sip

We now regularly find G actually in his toy basket!

Little Friends

Aunt Megan & Cousin Riley playing with G

Introductions: Cole & Gabriel

Cole & G warming up to each other

Fast Friends!

Brady's Birthday Party

The birthday boy and his beautiful family!

Attempts to get the group photo

And finally, The InsideTrack Boys

Besties

Lindsey & Becket
Mama & G

The whole gang... or most of us anyway :)

Nursing Wrap-up

2011-07-17T18:32:00.000-07:00

Gabriel and I wrapped up nursing on Monday (July 11), after nearly 14 months. Looking back, it has been long, challenging, rewarding, and emotional. For a more thorough look back, visit the Nursing Update blog post from December. I have enjoyed the time to bond and spend quiet moments with my cute little guy. I loved the soft touch of his hand on my arm and neck while he nursed. It was amazing to know that I was giving him the nutrients necessary to thrive... and we did it!!!

I will not miss my pump or the long hours of pumping. I am so proud to have stuck with it and continued to provide for Gabriel even though we faced many bumps along the way. It is bittersweet as we wrap this up. I am happy to have some of my time back, and a little nostalgic as this too is a transition and a sign that my lil guy is growing up more and more everyday. I think I cried all my tears just before he turned one - what an emotional week! But I did find myself getting a little sad as I packed up all the nursing supplies and my ItzBeen. Something about the little timer/clock just opened up all the memories and feelings of hours of nursing, pumping, pumping in the windowless little room at InsideTrack, and staying up late to squeeze in an extra pumping session to boost my supply when it was low. Wow, what an intense experience to have shared with my sweet guy.

4th of July!

2011-07-08T12:16:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful 4th of July this year. We spent the 3rd with Debbie, Toby & Ethan. Had a yummy BBQ, chatted, and enjoyed a few fireworks. Ethan really enjoyed that part!

We spent the 4th at home. We went for a nice walk in the park, had yummy BBQ, enjoyed some time in the backyard, and (of course) some fireworks. Gabriel was a little tired after the long weekend, but seemed to enjoy the sparkles. Podi and Meko are not big fans and were quite stressed out.

Gabriel and I also enjoyed some self-portrait time on the grass while Daddy refilled the lighter. Some turned out better than others :)

Gabriel's Funny Face Video

2011-07-08T12:03:00.000-07:00

Gabriel is very busy boy these days. He is curious about his world, pointing to everything and saying "da" over and over until we tell him what it is. Then he points to the next thing and it starts all over again. He is crawling super fast and pulling up on everything he can get his hands on. He calls Jonathan Da-Da and is starting to make the sound of doggie when he points to Podi and Meko (he is so in love with them even though the feeling is far from mutual). He claps whenever he thinks he's done a good job at something and whenever we say yaaaay or get excited about something. He has circled back around to waving (he did it for a while and then seemed to forget it), plays peek-a-boo by hiding behind objects and his own hands (if nothing else is around), and has started to put his palm to his mouth to blow kisses - so cute! He is full of so many fun and silly expressions. His smile is infectious and he is quite the performer (melodrama included when he doesn't get his way!). We captured a video of one of his silly faces and him performing for the camera--enjoy!

Fun Pics from June

2011-07-08T11:46:00.000-07:00

In an attempt to catch-up with our pics and updates. Here are some fun pics from June that didn't make it into other blog posts :)

Gabriel pull up on everything & is all over the house now!

Gabriel loves his doggies & looking out at the backyard

Enjoying his new rocker from Great Grandpa Perry

One of our fav pics - notice how the teeth just barely made it into the photo!

Gabriel loves his toy box so much!

Lost in thought with Daddy

We just love all of his expressions!

Love

Action shot

Saying Goodbye to Grandpa Bud

2011-07-08T11:30:00.000-07:00

June has been bittersweet. We recently said our goodbyes to Grandpa Bud (Jonathan's Grandpa). We are so grateful to have been able to introduce him to his Great Grandson and for Gabriel to have met his Great Grandpa Bud. Even though Gabriel is much too young to remember meeting him, we look forward to sharing stories and photos as he grows up. Family came together and the military service was loving and impactful. Gaye, Larry, Megan, and Jonathan shared stories that made everyone laugh and cry. We will miss you Grandpa Bud.

June Catchup!

2011-06-18T22:59:00.000-07:00

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of activity with lots of blog worthy events! Trying to keep up with the documenting as well as the doing has been a bit of a challenge, so there are a few posts here to get all caught up. Right after Gabriel's birthday weekend, we started preparing for our beach trip. We had a wonderful memorial day weekend in Manzanita. We got back from the beach and spent some time with friends, celebrated Ethan's 14th birthday, Gabriel moved up in daycare, we tackled our backyard project, visited with Gaye, Larry, Megan, and Riley, and registered for classes to begin our MBA programs again! Phew, that's a lot! Right?!

Moving Up to the Wobbler Room!
We knew the daycare ladies were planning to move G up to the wobbler room, but we were still surprised to come back from our trip and find that it had already happened! All of his stuff was moved to his new cubbie, so he waved goodbye to the infant room and crawled right into the wobbler room with all of it's big kid fun. It's another sign that he is growing up fast! But he seems to like the new room and has been reunited with some of his friends who had moved up before him. The most exciting part is that he gets to spend time in the big play room during the day. They have big plastic toys to play in and crawl on. Lots of fun!

Breakfast with the Fabulous Tonyalynne
We all enjoyed a breakfast with TL, especially lil G! It was a full-circle moment as the three of us celebrated this last year. TL was our doula and helped welcome G into the world with us. Thank you TL - you are amazing!

Gabriel is turning into quite the performer :)

Happy Birthday Ethan!
We celebrated cousin Ethan's 14th birthday at the family fun center.

First Day of School
Jonathan and I are registered and ready to start our MBAs again... on Monday! Yikes! We're set to take ethics and business statistics. We have our books, our financial aid paperwork is in, and we've logged in to our classes. Here we go!

Backyard Project & Linch Family Visit

2011-06-18T22:24:00.000-07:00

We have been focused on our projects (see the list and progress here), trying to get things crossed off our to-do list before school starts. The backyard has been a project in progress for a couple of years now. It has been quite the process with many steps! The pics below document parts of it, but I noticed that it had gotten pretty embarrassing because there aren't many current "before" pics.

Before we get to the pics, here are a few of the steps we've accomplished over the last couple of years:

Removed a misshapen Maple tree under the Hazel tree.
Built the rock garden on the left side of the yard.
Planted all of our plants (only the Hazel tree, the Maple, and the bamboo were here when we moved in).
Removed bamboo taking over most of the right corner just before Gabriel arrived.
Purchased and filled wooden boxes to add depth and texture.
Pruned the Hazel tree to open up the yard and provide more light for the grass.
Tilled the yard and installed sod for the 2nd time (fingers crossed it lives this time!).

Removing the Bamboo & Cleaning up

Installing the Sod

We have a little more cleanup and shaping to do, but here's the mostly finished backyard!

The Linch family arrived right in the middle of the sod project, so Gaye and Larry pitched in to help get the sod installed. Big thank you to Gaye & Larry for their help!!! It was a long day by the time we were done as Jonathan and I had gotten up early to finish the cleanup, till the yard and amend the soil for the sod. Boy we were sore the next day!

Beach Trip

2011-06-18T22:23:00.000-07:00

The weekend after Gabriel's birthday, we packed up the dogs, G, and ourselves and headed out to Manzanita. We enjoyed good food, fun with the babe, some napping, great walks, and of course fun on the beach! It was amazing to finally get to introduce G to the sand and ocean. This is actually his 2nd trip, but the first was so cold we literally spent about 5 minutes on the beach (just long enough to snap a couple of pics)!

Daddy & G snuck out for a walk while Mama took a much needed nap

G enjoyed his new birthday toy!

Family Walk

Beach Fun

Monster Baby Demolishes Castle!

Gabriel meets the ocean

Breakfast at our fav spot, Big Wave Cafe, before heading home!

Happy Birthday Baby Gabriel!

2011-05-24T02:03:00.000-07:00

Baby G turned one on Saturday! I spent much of the previous week reflecting on how different life is now that Baby G is here, how intense our birth experience was, and how sad I was that he is growing up. You can revisit our birth story here. As I transitioned into working on Gabriel's birthday party, things got really busy which provided a pleasant distraction (yaaay for being less teary)! We were excited to celebrate our little guy and the first year of our little family.

Invitation to Gabriel's Birthday Party

Gabriel loved the balloons, the weather was great, the food yummy, and the slideshow fabulous!

Birthday Boy!

Wonderful friends!

(unfortunately we didn't capture everyone)

The babies!

(and a pic of the daddies :) )

Our little family

Birthday cake

he wasn't a big fan, preferring instead to poke at it

Gabriel had a blast opening gifts

Thank you!

My sweet boys gave me flowers to honor this last year

A Brief Look at the Last Year on the eve of Gabriel's birthday

2011-05-20T20:11:00.000-07:00

As we prepare for Gabriel's birthday party, I find myself feeling particularly sentimental and teary. I look back at this week last year and am overwhelmed by our birth story and am truly amazed at all the changes that have taken place. Last year, I worked so hard to wrap things up at work, with a focus on transferring my coaches and responsibilities to my replacement, and how I would come back to the team after my maternity leave. I was also focused on getting our house and life ready for our little guy. Fast-forward to today and our life looks so different: there isn't a question about making room for G, he has a presence in just about every room! I quit my job and he is a part of nearly every part of our life. Wow. My head is spinning with all that has happened and changed over the last year.... but even more than that, I simply can't believe my little baby is already turning into a toddler!

May 2010

May 2011

My days are now immensely different, both from not working a traditional job and because I am now on Gabriel's schedule, trying to fit in what I can in the "in-between" moments. I also feel different. Here's an attempt to capture some of these differences:

I am officially a waterworks. I don't understand it, but I can go from totally happy and smiling to a complete wreck in less than a second. The tears are summoned by everything from thinking about Gabriel, watching the news (good and bad stories), anything to do with babies, Sarah McLachlan commercials (you know, the ones with the sad puppies), whenever someone else cries, student loans, talking about breastfeeding... I do hope I recover from this post pregnancy syndrome!!!
I used to spend all day talking to students, clients, my coaches, and team members. Now I spend my day narrating everything I'm doing to someone who totally doesn't understand what I'm saying. He is immensely cuter than anyone I have ever worked with though :)
I am developing some serious guns from lifting my little guy!
I have forgotten what it is like to sleep in, having gotten about 5-6 hours of sleep a night for the past year! I am tired.
Podi and Meko have officially been replaced as the most photographed things in our life.
My patience has grown by an immeasurable amount... I am seriously amazed. Who knew it was hiding in here? Though, to be fair, even though it has grown, I must still only have a limited amount because I have less patience for other things in my life (like Podi and Meko!).
My craft/art room is completely transformed into a fabulous nursery for my little guy.
I shop for boy's clothes more than I shop for my own!
My transition muscle is slowly buidling. My flow is to hyper focus, dive in and get something done. Now I have half started projects/tasks waiting for me to circle back around to them in the next "in-between" moment. I am slowly getting better at just sliding into this new way of doing things.
My body... enough said.
I have spent over three hours everyday (8+ hours the first several months)over the last year either nursing Gabriel or pumping for him. Wow! It really is a full-time job.

This last year has been full of a lot of change and a ton of work, but Gabriel is the sweetest little guy I have ever met and we are so fortunate to share our life with him. As I type this, I was nearly two hours into Gabriel's labor at this time last year! Just over 24 hours before we'd meet him for the first time.

Tulip Farm

2011-05-20T19:22:00.000-07:00

As promised, here are pics from our tulip farm adventures on Mother's Day. Gabriel quickly lost steam and was less interested in the camera and more interested in devouring the tulips! We entered the first photo into the cutest baby photo contest at the farm. Unfortunately he didn't win. We still think he's the cutest ever :)

A Few Things G Will Never Know

2011-05-13T16:49:00.000-07:00

I started a few posts over the last few weeks, so they are a bit out of order and slightly delayed, but currently finished and published for our friends and family, and little Gabriel (when he is one day able to read and interested in the goings on of his family), to enjoy!

Today I paid $50 for one tank of gas! I really shouldn't complain since it has been nearly two weeks since last filling up, and that tank of gas got us to the beach and back and then around town for a bit. But it was a surprise and it reminded me that I remember gas being $.80... too bad I wasn't driving then :) I doubt Gabriel will ever see a time when gas is under a dollar... and that got me to thinking of all the things that were a part of my life growing up that he will never know:

Walkmen and cassette tapes. Though I must admit even I didn't really want to know them. I always got frustrated when my cassette deck ate the tape, and when I wanted to fast-forward or rewind by just one song.
Pay phones, or home phones for that matter. It's probably good he won't know pay phones as they were always gross anyway.
Time before the internet. I remember having to go to the library to look things up in an encyclopedia, now you don't even have to get dressed. You can look up any random fact, at any time, and in your pajamas!
Real cameras (not the digital contraptions I have come to rely on)... okay, this one might be hasty, he is our son after all, the boy will know a real camera.
A broke-down car. Believe me, we have had our share (and they have provided countless hours of amusing stories. We can laugh now... about most of them). I am reminded of no heat in the middle of an Ohio winter with a car that would barely accelerate... and broke down in the middle of finals... causing us to wait until 3am for a tow truck.
Floppy disks. Enough said.
When you actually had to write a paper check to pay your bills.
Tube tv's & monitors. Not really missing anything here.
Cartoons that were really meant for kids.

Hmmm, maybe I wish I grew up in G's time! What things can you think of that our kids won't know?

Spring Updates

2011-05-13T16:47:00.000-07:00

I have completed four full weeks post job and wonder if this is a bit like detoxing. As any mama knows, time still moves very quickly as I try to plug-in my never ending list of to-do's in the "in-between" moments as I care for G. I know this is new and we haven't completely adjusted to the rhythm, so I remind myself to be patient and remember that just spending time with my little guy is an accomplishment :). Although there are ups and downs (much like there was when I was working full-time), I am greatly enjoying our time together and have noticed that G is much less irritable in the evenings and is benefiting from more sleep and a calmer pace to his day. I love many things about our time together, but really treasure the little moments: when he gives me a certain look and his personality really comes through, when he gives me a big hug and pats my back, when I get him from his crib and he gives me that sleepy smile, and when he bats his eyelashes and shows me those cute brown eyes. In the down moments, I remind myself that this is an amazing gift that I am giving to my family and to little G. I hope one day he looks back and really treasures our time together.

Before he turns one, I promised myself I would capture some of his current interests/activities:

Sits up in his crib when he should be sleeping - now stands in crib when should be sleeping!
Throws anything and everything off of whatever surface he's on.
Refuses to lie on his back even for diaper changes. Seriously, there have been some crazy moments where he grips the edge of his changing table and ends up nearly vertical, feet kicking as we attempt to re-diaper him!
Hulks out when he doesn't get his way.
Refuses to eat by throwing his arms up in front of his mouth as a physical barrier. If that doesn't work, then he purses his lips and shakes his head back and forth. Then spreads the food to his face, hair, high chair. Yesterday he actually threw food on the wall.
Is fixated on pulling up. First to his knees and now to his feet. And loves putting things in baskets and taking them out again.

Getting into his favorite basket.
Even though he is learning "no" for this one.

Stacking his blocks.

Practicing standing and pulling up.

Helping with the dishes... yeah, I wish :)

Mother's Day

2011-05-13T15:02:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day snuck up on us a bit, but I took some time to ponder my first Mother's Day with Baby G (more on that in just a moment). We celebrated our first Mother's day with cute cards from Jonathan and Baby G, and a hand-painted butterfly magnet from G. Very sweet!

We had a fun breakfast... with the mayor!

Seriously, that's Sam Adams in the University of Oregon t-shirt.

... and we visited the tulip farm in Woodland. G's first visit. It was a big day and a little cold and windy, but super fun. We got some great Tulip farm pics (keep an eye out for a post full of them). In the meantime, here are a couple to enjoy.

This year was a very special Mother's Day, as it was my first with Baby G. Last year just didn't quite feel the same, although my protruding belly definitely represented Gabriel well :) Of course, this gave me a lot to think about. I pondered Mother's Day traditions and which ones I might like to make our own, looked at examples of great motherhood/mothering, and thought about what type of mother I want to be. Unfortunately, I didn't come to any life-altering conclusions, but when I do I promise to share :) What I did discover is that (like most things worth doing) mothering/motherhood is immensely complicated. There are countless lists of things to make sure you teach your child, there are countless lists of things to make sure you don't teach your child... and there are even more lists that dispute the previous lists. I think it takes some common sense, learning to counteract much of which is not common sense, some serious perseverance, more patience than should be possible for one person, and more love than can ever be measured. My goal is to nurture my sweet boy, encouraging him to grow and mature into the adult he will one day be, and in the words of our favorite bedtime book, to love him all the time. "Even when you can't see me, I love you all the time." Love you Baby G - you are simply wonderful.

Happy Mother's Day to all the wonderfully amazing mama's out there!

Baby G's 11 Month Slide Show

2011-04-24T23:28:00.000-07:00

Spring, a Playdate, an Anniversary, Milestones & a BIG Life TransitionOur March Update

2011-03-30T18:58:00.000-07:00

We are slowly emerging from winter, hoping spring will wash away the sickies. I recently recovered from strep throat only to end up with tonsillitis and a quickly disappearing voice. Jonathan and lil' G are congested and ready to feel well again! Even though we've been struggling to get healthy, we've had an exciting March full of many updates!

Wedding Anniversary
Jonathan and I celebrated our 3 year wedding anniversary on March 1.
We're finally working on a slideshow to share. In the meantime, here's one of our favorite pics from our big day!

Fun with iPhone Apps
We love photographing our little guy. Adding retro & toy camera effects with my iPhone just adds to the fun!

Playdate
Gabriel had his first group playdate with friends Brady, Beckett, and Aven at the beginning of March. It was so much fun to see all the babies together. We all noted the similarities and differences. Beckett was the wild man, Aven was the grown up one, Brady was thoughtful and happily played with all the toys, Gabriel was the little guy who wanted to put only the toys not belonging to him in his mouth :)

Spring in the Park
We often enjoy walking in the park on the weekends and were excited to see all the cherry blossoms in bloom. It was fun to introduce Gabriel to this sign of Spring!

Milestones
Gabriel is constantly changing and adding new and exciting things to his repertoire of abilities. He experiences new objects by touching them with his index finger. He is actively army crawling all over the place and practices getting onto his knees. (Videos coming soon!) He surprised us by beginning to pull up on furniture and he's waving! Ok, so not waving when we try to show people he knows how, but surprises us with waves as we put him to bed, as he nurses, and in the most random of moments. He is pretty proud of this new ability! We've also found him to be getting quite opinionated, particularly when it comes to eating. He waves his arms and purses his lips when he doesn't feel like eating (which is often). It doesn't matter how much he likes what we are feeding him, if he decides he's done, he's done! He's quite the mobile little guy and it's getting harder and harder to contain him.

Note: no babies were harmed during this photo shoot:)

Big Life Transition
After much consideration and vacillating back and forth, I have decided to say goodbye to my job and company. I will miss the wonderful view of the city, the amazing work we do with our students and clients, and the fabulous people who call InsideTrack home.

Like so many mothers, despite all my creative problem solving, I just couldn't figure out how to do more at work, spend more time with my little guy, return to school to finish my MBA, and take care of my life. Ideally there would be a way to do everything, and when someone figures out how, I would so looove to know the secret!

The decision was complicated for me as I still value my career and life in the adult world and am not planning on giving that up entirely. However, the desire to spend more time with Gabriel while he is young and still wants me around is so strong and prompted me to make this big transition. So I will be home with my little guy, finishing up my MBA and taking on some freelance work to help with the financial side of life (which just got considerably more challenging given this decision - our society really isn't set up to support a family on one income). If you know someone who needs a website, some fabulous handmade jewelry, or life coaching, let me know!

What I will miss most:

The variety of awesome ringback tones on my student's cell phones. There's nothing like rocking out to classic rock on one call just to get pop or country on the next one!
My coaches and how inspired I get when I listen to their incredible coaching calls.
Being challenged by the client to stay on my toes about the why and how behind student obstacles.
Our team potlucks. I'm not sure we even need a reason to celebrate with a potluck!
My morning greeting from Ryan - it is truly epic. I may just have to call him in the morning just to feel right about my day!
Using the words transparency, frame, earn the right, pipeline, and life-long learner in everyday conversation.
Of course, my students. It is truly incredible to coach an adult to take the next step in their life that will forever positively impact their future and future generations of their family!

After nearly four years, it is with both excitement about taking my own next step and sadness about leaving all of this behind, that I say goodbye!

Baby G's 10 Month Slide Show

2011-03-28T21:08:00.000-07:00

Baby G's 9 Month Slide Show

2011-02-21T22:48:00.001-08:00

Happy Valentine's Day!

2011-02-21T22:43:00.000-08:00

We didn't have a lot of time to plan Valentine's Day this year... and things have changed just a bit with a babe in the mix. Surprisingly though, it was the best Valentine's Day I can remember!

We started by making Valentines with baby G. He shared them with all the other babies at daycare and a few special friends and family. This also meant he got his first box of crayons and made some of his drawings (ok, scribbles with a little help from Mama).

Valentine's Day Morning

Jonathan surprised me at work with a visit from him and Baby G. They arrived with two gorgeous vases of flowers for me and some love time with my boys. It was the perfect gift!

flowers from Jonathan

flowers from Baby G

Winter Catchup!

2011-02-21T22:35:00.000-08:00

The last couple of months have been quite a blur... of tissues, sneezing, coughing, and general sickness all around. Now that I'm feeling better, I'm looking back over our pictures and trying to capture what occurred during that fog :)

Gabriel learned how to clap

We finally captured Gabriel's teeth! They seldom make an appearance... but he sure likes to bite us with them.

We celebrated Jonathan and my birthdays. We celebrated Jonathan's with a dinner and then a surprise online game party with some work friends, college friends, and P-town friends. It was fun to gather friends from different parts of our lives together to celebrate with him. We celebrated mine with a dinner and then a homemade cake. Cake #1 didn't turn out so well... we ended up enjoying cake #2. It was so sweet of Jonathan to make a new cake... we joked that the first one looked like it ate itself and still had crumbs on its mouth :)

Gabriel practiced sharing

Gabriel discovered a love for balloons!

(having fun with iphone apps)

Fun Pics

2011-02-21T18:11:00.000-08:00

I have been having a blast snapping pics with my new iPhone and utilizing vintage & toy camera apps. It has given us some great images to share:

Happy Birthday Podi!

2011-02-19T21:31:00.000-08:00

Podi turned 11 years old this month! Our little loyal, protective, independent, regal, Captain Podi is all grown up. Podi joined our family in the summer of 2000, he was distinctly Podi even back then!

A few fun Podi stories:
* As a puppy, Podi's favorite toy was paper... as college students, this was not good news for us. Podi literally ate our homework, chewing up several of our college papers, textbooks, and pens/highlighters.

* Just before graduating and moving out of our college apartment, Podi chewed up a red pen all over the beige carpet. We actually got our full deposit back though - the carpet seriously needed replaced anyway!

* Podi was an amazing study buddy, curling up with us during our insanely long all-nighters.

* Podi has a rap sheet... for biting a police officer. Ugh! He has a thing for guys in uniform.

* Podi was quite the scholar, graduating from doggy school... 3 times!

* On the long drive from Oberlin to Portland, Podi was a great co-captain. He sat in his bed, on top of the cooler, just hanging out.

* More recently, Podi ended up in a dog fight during our wedding. He pushed through and joined us for our big day. The three of us then spent our wedding night in the doggy emergency room for Podi's broken toe.

* The addition of Gabriel to our little family has been rough for the pups, but Podi has been so great with little G! He lets Gabriel pull his hair and "pet" him with his feet. Gabriel loves his pup and Podi seems to feel the same :)

In honor of Podi's special day, I pulled his first video from our archives! Podi's Afternoon Treat was filmed and edited during a winter afternoon in Oberlin. The quality is pretty questionable, but the cuteness remains :)

Baby G's 8 Month Slide Show

2011-01-24T21:17:00.000-08:00

Lil GeeGee turned 8 months old on Friday! We've all been sick for the last few weeks, but we've enjoyed the month with our little guy. He is scooting, army crawling backwards, and rolling all over the place. It seems like he'll be crawling then walking before we know it! We leave him sitting up and playing with his friends at daycare now and he's up to two meals of solids each day. He said Da-Da just before Jonathan's birthday last week and is getting more and more aware of his world. He's definitely going to keep us on our toes :)

Who do you think Baby G looks like?

2011-01-04T20:23:00.000-08:00

Baby Gabriel

Daddy

Mommy

Happy Holidays! Card & Update

2011-01-01T18:47:00.000-08:00

Happy 2011!
2010 was a truly exciting year for us as we welcomed baby Gabriel (also
known as Baby G, Lil’ g, or sometimes just G). Gabriel is now seven
months old and we are amazed at how quickly he is turning into a little
person, complete with preferences, a sense of humor, and a developing
curiosity for his world.

Gabriel and Mama’s maternity leave seemed to fly by. They enjoyed the time to visit with friends and family, and most importantly it was a time to establish their bond and breastfeeding routine. Sarah returned to work as a Senior Enrollment Coach in mid-October, and is balancing the responsibilities of work with pumping and trying to visit Baby G at daycare when she can. It’s definitely a challenge. Jonathan is enjoying his job and was promoted this year to Team Manager of the general business and nonprofit segment. He is working hard to balance the new management responsibilities with his consulting work.

We celebrated 14 years together at the beach over Thanksgiving. We enjoyed the family time, and Gabriel amazed us with how quickly he is growing. He started solids (in addition to nursing), sits up for long periods of time, and loves to stand with minimal support. His latest milestone: his first tooth is coming in!

On the crafty side of life, we learned how to work with copper metal clay this spring. Copper has a warm tone and provides an interesting (and less expensive) alternative to silver. Having a baby has opened a new world of crafting opportunities. We enjoyed painting G’s nursery and creating framed letters spelling ‘Gabriel’ for his room. Sarah has knitted some super cute baby hats and is working on sewing birds for G’s mobile.

Our doggies, Podi & Meko, are still adjusting to the baby, but are doing quite well and join us in wishing you a happy 2011!

Much Love, Sarah, Jonathan & Gabriel

Then & Now

2011-01-01T18:46:00.000-08:00

It's amazing to think back to last winter when we were newly pregnant and beginning to tell people about our special news. It has been quite the ride preparing for G's arrival, welcoming him into the world, then learning how to care for him and transform into our new family. Baby Gabriel is growing into quite an amazing little person. I love that we have captured so many wonderful images to document the journey. When looking back through these photos, I was excited to see a recent photo that reminded me of one from early on - turns out they are quite similar... minus about 5 1/2 months!

July 2 (1 1/2 months) December 22 (7 months)

Winter Holidays 2010

2011-01-01T18:43:00.000-08:00

The winter holidays are always an interesting blend of traditions for us. We celebrate Hannukah to honor me and G being Jewish, and do a few gifts and spend family time together Christmas morning to honor Jonathan's traditions growing up. Thanksgiving is always extra special as our first anniversary falls that week and we got engaged that same week 9 years later.

Thanksgiving
After we got home from our beach trip, we jumped right into Thanksgiving meal prep. It's always a long process (with a yummy outcome of course), but having a 6 month old really added to the challenge this year. In between oven schedules, chopping, and boiling, we had naps and nursing sessions and a few meltdowns (I'll leave you guessing about who the meltdowns belonged to). It all came together though and we enjoyed a tasty meal with Debbie, Toby, Ethan and our little family.

Mashed potatoes and gravy, asparagus casserole, apple & cranberry stuffing, whole cranberry sauce, veggie roast, deviled eggs, warm biscuits, wild greens salad... all homemade, vegetarian, and absolutely delectable!

Mama & G prepare for dinner

Toby & G being silly

Podi & Meko get photographed again!
They used to be photographed all the time.

Annual Thanksgiving photo tradition... this time with Baby G!

Hannukah
Hanukah was very early this year, only 6 days after Thanksgiving. We jumped in with both feet, hosting three dinners: Sharon & Richard, Sophia & Ben, and Debbie, Toby & Ethan. We enjoyed spending time with friends and family and everything came together well (although late some nights after work), minus the mini break where we all came down with the stomach flu!

Latkes with dill sauce, applesauce, matzo ball soup, warm challah, and apple pie for desert - Yum!

Mama & Baby G read about the story of Hannukah

Baby G lights the menorah for the 1st time!

G enjoys the candles and his Hannukah gift

Baby G & cousin Ethan - such cuties!

Christmas Morning
Gabriel slept in a bit (after going back to sleep once :) ) and we all got up around 9. Gabriel nursed then had some present time. It was both exciting and a little overwhelming, he needed a nap before finishing up. We were so focused on G, we forgot to give the dogs their gifts... they are still on the table as I write this. Poor pups!

G loved his new toy box

Wrapping paper is just as much fun as toys!

Baby G helps Daddy open his present... and tries to eat it, of course!

Baby G helps Mama open her present!

Baby G's 7 Month Slide Show

2011-01-01T13:43:00.000-08:00

First Solids & Eating

2011-01-01T12:48:00.000-08:00

Still wrapping up a few posts from 2010 :)

In addition to nursing, Gabriel started solids in early November and was very ready for the new milestone. He would watch us eat, grab at our plate, and even mimic chewing!

Sitting in his highchair for the first time

Anticipating the first bite!

Gabriel experienced a range of emotions while eating his rice cereal. Everything from surprise to contemplation to yucky to yum!

Contemplative -- Yucky

Excited -- Yum!

Wrapping up with excited & a lot of food on his bib :)

After trying rice cereal & baby oatmeal, he quickly moved on to vegetables and then fruit. He's enjoying sweet potatoes, one of his favorites, in this video:

Since starting solids, Gabriel has tried a lot of different foods and has definitely displayed his preferences right from the beginning. He wasn't a big fan of the bland rice cereal, tends to increase his reaction (both positive and negative) each time he has a food, and is not a fan of the green foods! We keep trying though.

Date	Food	Reaction
11/6	Rice Cereal	Mostly yucky
11/13	Baby Oatmeal	Much better than the rice cereal
11/16	Sweet Potatoes	Yum!
11/19	Sweet Peas	Yucky! But they got a few giggles
11/22	Carrots	All time fave!
11/26	Green Beans	Yucky and fussy!
11/27	Green Beans & Oatmeal	A little better!
11/29	Bananas	Yum & squeals!
12/2	Peaches	So-So
12/3	Peaches	Better today
12/6	Prunes	Really yummy!
12/9	Squash	Leaned forward excitedly - Yum!
12/12	Pears	They were ok
12/15	Apples & Pears	Apples were pretty good - loved the pears today
12/18	Pear Blueberry	Total yum!
12/28	Green Bean Casserole w/ onions	Yuck!
12/31	Butternut Squash & Corn	Loved It!

On December 27, Gabriel was particularly interested in our water cups as we ate breakfast. He decided to try his first sips of water directly out of a grown up cup! We were ready with our phone and snapped some great video:

After some serious fussiness and sleep struggles, we discovered another first:

Look! I have a tooth!
First sighting: December 13

Update: Gabriel now has two teeth. Both of his bottom front teeth are up and making sleep difficult. They aren't quite fully in, but we're looking forward to cute toothy smiles soon!

Beach Trip

2010-12-31T18:43:00.000-08:00

We spent the first part of Thanksgiving week at the beach in Manzanita. It has become quite a tradition for us. We rent the same house and spend time together enjoying the beach, the local shops (especially the yarn store), the hot tub, and quiet time as a family. We have celebrated many anniversaries, got engaged, and now introduced our little guy to the house. It was a special time for us. Gabriel also enjoyed some firsts!

This is part of the wonderful view of the ocean from the deck/hot tub and the living room/dinning room/kitchen area. So gorgeous!

Gabriel got to try out his pack 'n play for the first time. He especially enjoyed talking to his little friends. We were worried about how he'd sleep in a strange place and a new bed... but he did really well!

Gabriel enjoyed lots of floor time with his toys and his Daddy! Podi & Meko were more curious than normal in the tight quarters. Gabriel was rolling and creeping all over the place :)

Gabriel continued trying new solids.

Why me?!
Gabriel isn't a big fan of green beans.

It was unusually cold during this trip (even for November), so we only got down to the beach once and kept it pretty short so Gabriel didn't turn into a popsicle! Despite the cold and the fierce wind, he got to see and hear the ocean for the first time... and take some photos of course :)

Posing with the fam and hasn't quite gotten the hang of the self portrait!

Gabriel, meet sand!

We ran to the car just as the downpour started and got warm

we got some yummy food and G sat in a highchair for the first time at a restaurant
(he really wanted some chips and salsa, who wouldn't?!)

Since it was so unusually cold, we also got snow and ice on this trip! At one point we were iced in and didn't want to brave the super steep 75 yard driveway. We enjoyed introducing Baby G to snow.

Baby G's first snow
He thought it was rather cold!

Who has snow on their nose?!

I love to go to the local yarn store, the T-Spot. We found some super cute little gifts for Baby G, and (of course) some amazing yarn. I picked up a cute pattern and some fun yarn for Baby G's new hat and nearly finished it before heading back to Portland.

Gabriel likes his new hat

Baby G was having so much fun, he wasn't quite ready to head home

The drive home was a little scary. Jonathan forgot to bring the chains, so we had to head home through Astoria (Hwy 26 required chains). Even though the route we chose was lower elevation, the roads were pretty bad. It wasn't very encouraging to see a truck on its side and a few cars in the ditch as we made our way. Thankfully we had a safe drive!

Nursing Update

2010-12-27T01:40:00.000-08:00

I recently met a woman who was having a hard time nursing and it took me back to the first few months of nursing Baby G and I realized I never really captured those memories. So I decided to do a little update. There have certainly been a lot of ups and downs in our nursing adventure and every time I think this is going to be "how it is," it changes.

In the beginning, Gabriel nursed for an hour and I pumped for thirty minutes (after every feeding). This realistically left me about an hour (if I was lucky) before I started the whole process again. I made sure I stayed up until at least 1am for my last pumping session to ensure I didn't go more than 6 hours before pumping or nursing - for fear of damaging my milk supply. I had no idea how challenging breast feeding was going to be and I certainly had no idea how much time I would spend on it either.

The process was discouraging because Gabriel didn't latch well, I was sore, my milk came in late, Gabriel didn't reach his birth weight again until about 5 weeks, and the process of nursing and pumping to build up my supply was taking a lot of time and energy. I used to joke that Kaiser was my second home because I practically lived at the lactation office for the first few months. At first I had appointments twice a week because Gabriel wasn't gaining weight fast enough, then weekly as he started to gain more, and then eventually set out on my own. It was both a relief and a little scary to say goodbye that last time. I ended up buying a baby scale so I could track G's weight on my own.

The next phase found Gabriel gaining weight (though he's still a little guy) and me cutting out some of my pumping sessions. I transitioned to pumping only twice a day so I could keep my supply up and build a freezer stash in preparation for returning to work. It was a relief to cut out the pumping sessions, it gave me back some time and really cut back on the dishes I had to wash!

Just when I thought I had it all down, going back to work provided even more challenge. I no longer had time to nurse Gabriel for an hour in the morning before work, so I started cutting Gabriel back to 30 minute nursing sessions. I also had to increase pumping again and pumped twice at work and twice in the evening. My supply was doing well and a this point I had so much freezer stash I decided to relax the 1 am pumping session. Things continued smoothly like that until last month when I got sick. First I caught a cold, then a week later got sick with the stomach flu, and then two weeks later caught another cold... daycare is brutal with the germs (we now refer to G as Lil Petri)! I was dehydrated and tired and missed some pumping/nursing sessions, all of which really affected my supply. I have had to use some of my freezer stash, but am now getting back to normal.

I was excited to pass the 6 month mark and relaxed a little, finally realizing we are doing it! Gabriel is still a slow eater and pretty much refuses to nurse in public, but I've accepted that and we're halfway to our goal of nursing until Gabriel turns 1. Fingers crossed!

Freezer Stash
250 ounces

Gabriel's Dishes
(and that's before returning to work)

Baby Gabriel's 6 Month Slide Show

2010-12-08T00:04:00.000-08:00

Gabriel turned 6 months old during Thanksgiving week. We were at the beach (blog post coming soon) celebrating our 14 year anniversary and had a great time. Gabriel must have gotten the memo because all of a sudden he started acting like a grown-up 6 month old. He rolled over (tummy to back and back to tummy) every time we laid him on the floor, he started sitting by himself for several minutes at a time, got really talkative, and grabs at everything! It's amazing how much he has changed and grown in only 6 months. He is such a great little guy. Enjoy!

Halloween

2010-12-07T00:30:00.000-08:00

Halloween fell on a Sunday this year, so instead of one day of Halloween, we had a whole weekend! Gabriel even dressed up in two different costumes.

Friday
Gabriel celebrated Halloween with his daycare friends on Friday. All the babies got dressed up in their little outfits and set out on their parade! We traveled around to several offices in the building. It was so fun to watch everyone's reactions to the little costumed babes and the parents enjoyed all of the yummy candy.

Mama and Baby G stopped for a photo op before heading out to daycare. G's onesie says "Mommy is a Rock Star" and he sported black baby legs with silver stars, little sneakers, and his rockstar hoodie! Mama went as a rockstar, of course.

Gabriel was entranced by a snow globe on the desk in this office. The office staff was amused with his little costume and his cuteness, of course! The other babies were pretty cute too: a pumpkin, a puppy, and Yoda. One of the toddlers was a little gym coach, complete with wrist bands and a little moustache!

The InsideTrack daycare crew!
Mama & G, Laura & Aven, Sharon & Lillian (& little Violet in the pumpkin belly!)

After work that day, Laura, Sharon, and I went over and picked up the babies to take them to the InsideTrack Halloween party - the festivities continued there!

Melanye & Brady, Lindsey & Beckett, Mama & G
Love the paleontologist and the dinosaur :)

Baby G & Brady are destined to be bestfirends
They are getting off to a great start by holding hands - so cute!

Lindsey & Matt dressed as hounds to match Baby Beckett as the fox - how cute is that?!

Saturday

We started out with breakfast at Cup & Saucer. Jonathan decided that it was his turn to dress as a rockstar with Baby G, so they went hardcore for breakfast.

Saturday evening we went to Debbie, Toby, & Ethan's Halloween party. This required a costume change for G & Daddy... as they transformed into scurvy pirates! Argh!

G is a little more interested in eating his sword

Our first Halloween Family portrait :)

2 pirates, a rockstar, a steam punk lady & a baby

Apocolyptic Toby

Steam Punk Debbie

A steam punk apocolypse!

Ethan took his job as a security guard very seriously
He stood at his post as we pulled up and made sure we parked correctly in the driveway
He also radioed Toby to announce our arrival :)

Onesie Extravaganza!

2010-11-30T13:31:00.000-08:00

During my fabulous baby shower for baby Gabriel, friends made cute onesies for the babe. I had been working on a post to highlight these cute little gifts, but recently realized the post was just waiting for one more pic. Unfortunately, we never got an in-focus pic of Jena's "G" onesie (featured in the group photo to the left). Bummer we missed one - but thanks Jena - G loved his onesie!

We've really enjoyed the onesies and loved playing dress up with his cute clothes. These pics are a bit of a retrospective as he has outgrown them now!

Fabulous Friends

Kara's Robot Onesie

Melanye's "I love my family" onesie
(complete with Podi & Meko)

Sophia's dinosaur onesie

Shelby's tropical island onesie

Sharon's TM ugly doll onesie

Hannah's G is for giraffe onesie

Kristin's "Mama's Little Star" onesie

Ann's smiley onesie

Debbie's moo cow onesie

Thank you ladies - these are adorable!

A Working Mama

2010-11-28T22:06:00.000-08:00

I have been back at work for a little over a month now and realize my blog has been a little neglected--I haven't even posted about being back at work! Being inspired by my friend, Melanye, turning her blog into a book as a way to document her family's memories, I really want to capture our family highlights along with the small moments that we experience together. And going back to work has been a BIG transition for us.

I spent the week before returning to work acclimating Baby G to daycare. We did some trial runs of what we would need to pack and how long it would take us to get him there and get us off to work... requiring us to get up nearly 3 hours before we need to arrive at work! Here are a few pics of Baby G visiting daycare for the first time.

Baby G meets one of his new daycare friends

Mama & Baby keeping up a brave face :)

The weekend before returning to work, we spent a lot of time as a family, ate breakfast at Cup & Saucer, swinging in the park, and Auntie Debbie brought Baby G his first pumpkin!

Pumpkin spice chai - yum!

Having fun on the swings!

A Few Things I Learned While On Maternity Leave

Ferris Bueler said it best: "Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it." I knew time would fly, which kept me very present, but it really did move too fast!
Drive thrus are a blessing! I found myself strategizing which Starbucks had a drive through and basing my drink decisions accordingly. It's rough when you have to cart that heavy baby carrier around.
Online shopping is a must. Don't be fooled, not all online stores are created equal. I strategized the online sites that allowed me to pay with Paypal so I didn't have to enter my credit card/debit card info every time. My current faves are diapers.com and soap.com.
Keep your camera close by. I don't even want to think about all the cute little faces and moments I wasn't able to capture because I didn't have the camera ready. Babies do the cutest things!
Breastfeeding really takes up a LOT of time! For most of my leave I was breastfeeding for at least 7 hours a day! Baby G is a really slow eater.
I love my baby so much! I really wasn't in doubt, but spending every day all day with my little guy created such a great bond and I really treasure that time.

A Few Thoughts On Returning To Work

I was surprised how quickly things started to come back and I remembered how to do my job :)
Fitting in pumping and visiting G is rough.
Visiting G during the day presents a dilemma: saying goodbye once is hard, twice is harder!
Evenings turn into diaper washings, bottle prep, and lots of dishes from the bottles and pumping during work.
Lugging the breastfeeding pump, diaper bag, diapers, carseat, bottles, and the baby every day is really building my muscles!
Miss Baby G so much - but work is quite a distraction.
It's nice to return to a grown up flow and conversations.
I am seriously questioning the super woman paradigm right about now!

Baby Gabriel's 5 Month Slide Show

2010-10-26T21:25:00.000-07:00

Gabriel turned 5 months old on Thursday! He's getting so big and displaying his little personality more and more every day. He likes tummy time more now and holds his head up so high. He practices sitting up in "tri-pod" pose and spends time in his bumbo while Mommy and Daddy do the dishes and make dinner. He's in love with the pups even though the feeling isn't always mutual. Here are some fun pics from the last month:

Baby Gabriel's Nursery

2010-10-11T19:19:00.000-07:00

Thinking back to when we first started transitioning the craft/art room into Baby Gabriel's nursery is surreal. It's as if I'm looking back on a whole different time and it reminds me just how much things have changed in our life. It was a big project that required clearing out all the art/craft stuff, purging and finding new homes for the supplies we chose to keep, redesigning the room with our existing and some new furniture, and painting (which required keeping the pups out of the paint while we were working)! After many test swatches on the wall, we settled on Prairie Sage (a light sage green). We still have a few projects left to do, but finally have the "after" pics to share!

The Nursery

My PhotoShop compilation of the whole room

Nursery Details

G's woodland friends

G already has quite the library

Finally finished the curtains!

Looks so comfy!

Fun name project finished!
G - Giraffe, A - Aligator, B - Bear, R - Robot, I - Ice Cream, E - Elephant, L - Lhasa

Changing table and forest friend

Enjoying Baby G's room

Mama & G in his room

Gabriel Giggles

2010-10-05T20:24:00.000-07:00

Gabriel decided to be a little giggle box today and we actually caught it on video! The video is a little dark, but the sound is what matters anyway. Enjoy!

Goodbye Summer

2010-10-04T14:18:00.000-07:00

I know it is cliche, but where did summer go?! I have been in denial now for quite some time... but it's hard to overlook the falling leaves and impending call to the gutter cleaners (yikes! my to-do list is growing out of control). Now that Starbucks has pumpkin spice lattes, there really is no way to deny it: Fall is here!

Looking back over our summer pictures is really fun! We attended three weddings, a pool party, had lots of family in from out of town, spent time with great friends, and (of course) got to watch our little guy grow and become more of a little person every single day!

My maternity leave is coming to an end and we're preparing Little G to start daycare. It's going to be quite the transition - makes me teary just thinking about it.

Baby Gabriel's Month 4 Slide Show

2010-10-01T14:48:00.000-07:00

Baby Gabriel turned 4 months old last week! He is getting so big and changes daily! Just yesterday he started making new sounds and is "talking" all the time now. He had been making "a-goooo" sounds and giggling, but now it is non-stop and we get to hear new sounds every day. He's smiling and giggling and grabbing everything...which quickly ends up in his mouth. The hair pulling has started and is my least favorite milestone :) He grabs his little feet and pulls them up to his chest in the classic baby pose! He is rolling over and watching us eat, even grabbing my plate, and loves to practice standing. Here are some highlights from month 4:

A Few Firsts

2010-09-26T21:14:00.000-07:00

I started this post in mid-June, but quickly realized it is never-ending, of course! Every time I get ready to finish it, there's a new "first." So I should say this is by no means an exhaustive list, but many of Baby G's firsts to date. Amazingly, all but one were actually captured during the first moment (though maybe not the exact first, but you get the idea :) Stay tuned for first videos - coming soon!

May 24, 2010
First Car Ride

June 2, 2010
First Bathtub Bath at Home

June 5, 2010
First Birthday Party
Happy Birthday Cousin Ethan!

June 13, 2010
First Family Walk in the Park
(I'm in the stroller)

June 14, 2010
First Playdate - With Baby Beckett

June 15, 2010
First Sling Ride

June 25, 2010
First Reactive Smile

July 4, 2010
First Wedding

July 4, 2010
First 4th of July & Firework!
Mama may be more excited than I am

July 17, 2010
First Trip to a Library

July 26, 2010
First Time Grabbing a Toy

July 28, 2010
Really Showing Me Grabbing the Toy!

August 1, 2010
First Time Sitting in Bumbo all by Myself

August 4, 2010
First Time Holding Head Up So High During Tummy Time
(okay, the first time Mama captured it on camera :)

August 21, 2010
First Time Looking at a Book During Story Time

August 28, 2010
First Saturday Market Trip

September 4, 2010
First Hot Tub Toe Dip

September 5, 2010
First Time Swinging and Road Trip

September 12, 2010
First Cloth Diaper

Hardcore Baby

2010-09-25T15:48:00.000-07:00

As you can tell from most of Baby Gabriel's photos, he has a super cute wardrobe. I realized, however, those pictures don't tell the full story: Baby Gabriel has a hardcore side as well! Here are some great pics of Baby and Daddy sportin' an edgier look :)

Yes, Baby Gabriel has a one-of-a-kind, custom made, NIN onesie. Would you expect anything less?

Baby G's 3-Month Slide Show

2010-09-07T00:24:00.000-07:00

Gabriel has been busy meeting family, friends, and playmates. The 12 week post highlighted a lot of baby G's current activities, but we wanted to share some other highlights from month 3, enjoy:

12 Weeks

2010-08-19T01:49:00.000-07:00

The past twelve weeks have been... well, the only word I can think of that even begins to describe it is: full! We've faced challenges we'd only read about, we've fallen in love with our little guy.... again and again, and we've watched him grow and change so much already. Little G came home a sleepy bundle of baby who rarely opened his eyes and is quickly developing into a little person. Here are a few of his latest activities:

loving to smile now

getting into a nap routine

making bubbles

maybe not loving tummy time, but look at that head control!

starting to love toys & blankies

see, I can hold my Sophie!

... and swing her around!

love to be a cutie patootie and hold my hands together

Urban Knitting Hits Kenton!

2010-08-18T01:25:00.000-07:00

I'm taking a brief break from blogging about my cutie patootie to visit another love of mine: craft! Not only do I love to engage in crafting endeavors myself, I also love to learn about other crafters and their work. I saw a crafty special on urban knitting a couple of years ago and have been intrigued ever since. Sometimes Jonathan and I will point out a public space we would like to see tagged by a knitter. On the way to our favorite Kenton spot, Cup and Saucer, we were excited to spot some knitted graffiti and had to snap some pics to share. Enjoy!

For everyone unfamiliar with the act Wikipedia has this to say: "Yarn bombing, yarnbombing, graffiti knitting or yarnstorming is a type of graffiti or street art that employs colorful displays of knitted or crocheted cloth rather than paint or chalk. While yarn installations – called yarn bombs or knit bombs – may last for years, they are considered non-permanent, and, unlike graffiti, can be easily removed if necessary. The practice is believed to have originated in the U.S. with Texas knitters trying to find a creative way to use their leftover and unfinished knitting projects, but it has since spread worldwide.

While other forms of graffiti may be expressive, decorative, territorial, socio-political commentary, advertising or vandalism, yarn bombing is almost exclusively about reclaiming and personalizing sterile or cold public places."

2 Months Old

2010-07-23T17:41:00.000-07:00

Gabriel turned 2 months old this week! And it all happened so fast! The past couple of months are a blur of meeting our sweet boy, bringing him home, and diving right into the feedings, diapers, smiles, cuddles, meltdowns, and all the struggle and love that goes along with a new baby. We are sleepy and in total awe of this gorgeous little person who has completely taken over our life. Here are some of our favorite photos from his 2nd month!

Baby G's Month 1 Slideshow

2010-07-19T18:26:00.000-07:00

So much of our time is spent just looking at our little guy and loving all the poses and expressions. We try to capture those with the camera as much as possible... here's a few pics from his first month and the friends and family who came to visit with him:

Baby G's Newborn Photo Shoot

2010-07-17T18:27:00.000-07:00

We were so excited to recieve the photos from Gabriel's newborn photo shoot! I can't believe we managed this during his first two weeks of life! That time is such a blur now. We absolutely love these photos and thank Rebecca Davis from Catch Lights NW for her amazing work. Here are a few of our favorites!