Park Day

The kiddos and I went on a park hunt before Thomas had his second dentist appointment (a second opinion on his cavity being filled and the need for surgery to remove his tooth).   We headed closer to his dentist’s office and then found a great new park to explore.  The kiddos loved the climbing wall…especially Elin my itty bitty rock climber!  Later that night we met some friends at the park and William tried out the big boy swing.  He loved it and thought he was pretty cool as well.  Loving the cooler fall days and being able to get outside without sweating or too many layers just yet!

William is 3 Months Old

William turned 3 months old while the kiddos and I were in Minnesota on vacation.  William continues to be a pretty chill lil guy who loves smile and hang out.  He thinks his big brother and little sister are pretty great to be around and when they are in the room they are typically trying to play with him, do belly time, hold him, or are kissing on him.  It can get overwhelming for Mike and I as we try to keep the little guy safe from all the love!

He has really started to become more of a wiggler this month.  He loves to lay and kick his feet and wiggle around.  He is rocking his tummy time and can hold his head up with his chest off the ground for longer and longer periods of time.  He has had a few tummy to back roll overs, but is not yet a total roller.  He also inch worms his way around when he is on his belly with his strong legs, it won’t be long before he’s going places. 

He loves to smile and is quite the flirt.  I am not going to lie, when he is awake it is hard to get much else done other than to hang out with him and smile and “talk.”  He is cooing back and forth with us more and more.  His sweet coos and ahhs are music to my ears.  He also has several distinct cries for different things and my favorite are his hungry cry which has a bit of a “maahhhh” to it or his sad cry which he gets a huge pouty lip.  The first usually means he’s hungry and the second is if he is totally offended.  At this point he still thinks I am pretty great and when I smile he will flash me the biggest gummy smile he can.  They are so stinking cute!  I will be honest I don’t remember T and E being this smiley, but I am sure they could have!

He is still doing a great job eating and seems to be getting both longer and heavier. He eats between every 2 to 3 hours and then cluster feeds many nights eating every 15-45 minutes a few times.  He then goes to bed and sometimes wakes 1-2 times sometimes 3 or 4 to eat, just depends I guess.  There have been a few nights when he even has slept 7 ish hours…I am not going to complain about that one!  He eats and goes back to sleep so at this point I am pretty happy with that.  He does have reflux and is taking medication for it which seems to be helping his tummy discomfort.  After a little trial and error and cutting out milk and creams, I am now completely dairy free and that has made a huge change in his spitting up, gas and overall comfort. 

He is starting to have a somewhat predictable schedule waking in the morning between 7 and 8.  He then sleeps about 45 minutes to an hour and fifteen minutes after awake time.  If our schedule allows he will then take a long couple hour nap, if it doesn’t he will take a couple shorter naps and then will generally sleep in a wrap while we are out and about.  If we are at home he is taking either a long morning or afternoon nap and a few shorter ones in the day.  So really when I write it out he isn’t in a pattern pattern yet, but I can somewhat predict what his schedule will look like based on his/our day.

We don’t have a doctor appointment this month.  So no official height or weight although he is quickly outgrowing his size 1 diapers and his 0-3 month clothes.   

Elin is 3 Months

Our newborn in the blink of an eye is now a cooing, smiling, infant with more on her mind than we know.  She continues to change daily and it is hard to believe that 3 months ago we were waiting to meet her. She had a big month with her first plane ride, meeting all her aunties and uncles, Baptism and bunch of other adventures.

She loves watching Thomas and Stella and all their activity. Thomas has quickly become her new favorite and every time he is around she is staring and smiling at him. He is loving all her new attention and ability to play with him. In fact today they played the drums and piano together and he was thrilled.  He will also be quick to get her a toy and help her grab for it, getting just as excited as Mike and I when she is successful. 

Elin is loving her new found ability to sit and stand up with help.  She is also getting good at grabbing things and loves to chew on her fingers and anything she can get into her mouth.  She still loves bath time and splashing her feet around in the water.  We have also taken her in the shower a few times without complaint.

Her schedule has not changed too much since I last posted about it at 2 months.  She still eats every 2-3 hours, cluster feeds at night and then sleeps well through the night waking a few times.  She loves to snuggle, but has also been sleeping more on her side alone too. 

Elin loves to talk with coos, squeals and “purrs.”  It is so much fun talking with her and wondering exactly what she is thinking and telling us.  She also loves laying in her crib and talking to her mobile and holding her stuffed animals. 

I know that  I am her mother but I can’t get over her deep blue eyes, long lashes, gummy smile and dark reddish brown hair.  She sure has quickly found a place in our hearts and wrapped us around her tiny fingers.  Can’t wait to see what the next month brings!

Grandma and Grandpa Laschen Visit

Mike’s parents came into town for 5 days.  On Wednesday we went out to dinner at Sabor Latino. Thursday Grandma and Grandpa babysat while Mike and I had to go to work, and then we made a yummy dinner at home.   Friday Mike and his dad went fishing.  Thomas, Grandma Kathy, and I went to met Pat for lunch at Cherry Creek Grill and then went and saw his new apartment.  Friday night we all headed out to Oceanierre for dinner to celebrate Grandma’s upcoming birthday.  Saturday we had the Shuttlecock Tournament.  We still had time for a patio dinner that night and Sunday they had to leave.  It was a great trip and both Grandma and Grandpa got a lot of snuggle time in!     

A Great Sunday for a Swim

Sunday after our guests had all left Mike and I decided we wanted to go swim some laps.  So we went and took turns swimming laps and then at the end we took Thomas into the kids pool.  It was warm like bathwater (or pee as Mike says) but Thomas loved it.  Thomas loves the water and loved talking and smiling at everyone who was passing by.     

California

Mike, Thomas, and I headed to California for the weekend.  We dubbed ourselves the “support team” for our good friends that were competing in a half ironman triathlon.   We got in late on Friday night, Thomas did great on the plane and stayed up way past his bedtime!  He crashed once we got to the hotel, then Mike and I went up to the hotel bar for a bite to eat and a drink.  Saturday we got up and headed down to the  Ferry Plaza Farmers Market.  This market was amazing, all the food was certified organic, sustainable, humanely raised                             , and was DELICIOUS!  I am jealous of the people that can go to the market every week, but I would go broke spending money there!  We then headed to Sausalito, CA for lunch. We didn’t know where we would eat, but had heard that this would be a great place to do it.  We ended up finding Horizon’s which was super yummy seafood with a view.  After we left we stopped at the boardwalk so we could let Thomas put his toes in the Pacific Ocean.  After we saw a friendly crab I was quickly reminded why you should be careful about what you put into the ocean!  So a splash of Pacific water on his feet would do.  Thomas loved watching the water splash against the rocks. We then were off to meet up with the rest of our crew at the cabin we rented.  We got there about dinner time and Mike was nice enough to cook a fresh dinner with all the produce, pasta, and meat we had picked up early in the day at the market. 

Sunday was RACE DAY!  We were all up early to see the crew off at 5 a.m.  Then Mike and I got ready and headed down to watch the start.  We were able to see each different person at a few different stages.  We got to see the start of the swim, the transition from swim to bike, start of the biking, and the finish.  Whew, what a race!  It was 70.2 miles they had a 1.2 mile swim, a 56 mile bike, and a 13 mile run.  When they finished they all had smiles on their faces, but wondered what they were thinking. 

Monday we got up and headed out to wineries to taste some wine.  We started at Korbel, which is the champagne that many of us drink.  Then we just headed up “River Road” to see what other wineries we could run into.  Thomas was a hit and loved flirting with all the ladies.  For lunch we went into Healdsburg. We made it to 5 wineries before the day was over.  We then headed back to our house and then to pizza for dinner.

Tuesday we were back off to San Francisco.  First we stopped in for a quick visit to see Colonel Armstrong, a “BIG TREE.” We then drove down the coast for a bit to see what we could see.  Thomas slept most of the way.  Along the way we saw the water, lots of cows, some seals, and a harbor.   Once back in San Francisco we had lunch and then headed to the airport. 

It was a great trip.  Thomas surprised both Mike and I with how well he did and how well he rolled with the schedule fluctuations.  He was a trooper. This was his last picture from the trip when we got to the Denver airport and were on our way to the car…he was a sweepy bear!