First family bike ride

Last weekend, we went on our first family bike ride. We had a blast! Owen rode his balance bike and Tucker cruised in the bike trailer. We figured out a way to strap Owen's bike to the trailer so he could ride one way there and relax on the way back. It worked out perfectly. We loaded up with snacks and water, and rode to their school, along the Folsom bike trail. It was beautiful out and it felt wonderful to be out exercising and enjoying the unusual warm weather while being together as a family.

We made a picnic stop and arrived at our destination about 30 minutes later. From there, we decided to go check out the bike-skate park. Lucky, for us, we ran into one of Owen's best buddies, Aiden, and his family. Owen and Aiden practiced riding the balance bike down the hill and then they had a blast jumping off a rock.

We rode home, over the new Folsom foot-bike bridge, and really enjoyed the trail. It was the first time on one of the paths and we enjoyed the serene trail immensely. There are a bunch of hills, and I even though I had to use the lowest gears, I impressed myself by making it up every hill without walking (these are minor hills, but its been a LONG time since I have that type of work-out)! I figure- it helps to count the small wins!

Owen learns to ride a bike

For the last few months, we've been on the hunt for a bicycle for Owen. It's been a challenge because he's still on the smaller side and most of the standard 12 inch bikes don't fit him. Last weekend, our search ended. We stopped at a local bike shop for a helmet for Tucker and while we were there, Owen tried two of the small kid bikes. We didn't expect them to work out, but we were happily surprised to learn that both bikes fit him! We couldn't buy the one we liked best right away because it was purple and Owen simply told us that purple bikes are for girls. A few days later, we went back and bought the red one they pulled from their warehouse. We took the bike home Monday night, and he practiced pedaling with the back wheel up. Once he had that down, we took off the training wheels and started to count down the days until the weekend. We bought bike pads Friday night and chatted about his new bike all week. He was pretty excited, but the truth is, we were the super excited ones!

Saturday morning, after an early breakfast, we went out to the local school, and Owen learned how to ride a bike. We brought his orange balance bike because he wanted to start with that one. After awhile, he agreed to try the new one. He was a little nervous at first because he thought pedaling was hard, but within seconds he was going without Kris' help. He picked it up immediately. After a short but successful ride, he wanted to play on the playground. He took off all his pads and he and Tucker played for a long time on the slides and climbing gyms.

After awhile, he tried out his bike again. The second time around, something clicked, and he started to love it. He was making laps in no time and asking to ride down the small hill at the playground. From a balance perspective- he had it down perfectly. It really was absolutely natural for him. Pushing backwards on the pedals to brake and starting were a little harder, but by late morning he had made some progress with both areas. We were at the park for nearly three hours and after nap and a short snack, he couldn't wait to get out front and try it again.

The balance bike experiment worked exactly like we hoped it would. It's so cute to watch him on the bike. We need to practice a bit more with the pedal brakes and starting without help, but he'll have it down in no time. Soon, we'll be able to try out another family bike ride with Owen riding his bike instead of pushing/gliding on his balance bike! As I write this, Kris and Owen are outside - Owen couldn't wait to get outside today and try his new bike! WOO!

The first video below shows Owen's first try and the second video is a few tries later, after the playground break.

little Tucker on his bike!

Tucker's 1st Birthday Party

To celebrate Tucker's 1st year milestone, we had a sledding birthday party!

We went to a great sledding park in Tahoe and set up base camp at the bottom of the beginner sledding slopes. We had a small table for snacks, a couple of blankets, about five or six chairs, and lots of sleds! It was pretty much perfect. The weather cooperated and the crowds stayed away until mid-afternoon, at which point the kids were content to climb up and down on a big snow mound and play king of the hill in an open snow field situated right behind our chairs. It was low-maintenance, but very fun, and somehow even the muffin and juice celebration worked out smoothly and maybe more importantly, mess-free!

Tucker absolutely LOVED sledding and all the kids were in heaven playing in the snow together. We had a blast and I'm pretty sure we'll have the same party for the next few years!

A few of the many pictures and one video!

Kris, Tucker, & the Galvins chilling @ base camp - situated next to a small card table, behind 2 blankets, just across a walking path at the bottom of the sledding slopes and a big snow mountain, and in front of a big snow field

sleeping baby Evin

More muffins please!

Tucker's 1st Year Doctor Appoitment

On Monday, I took Tucker to his first year doctor check up. Overall, he is doing very well. He developed a cough on Sunday, but the doctor confirmed it was just a cough and nothing to be worried about. It was a typical check-up appointment, with a general health scan, measurements, and shots. He did cry for a quick second when he received his shots, but it was very short and he was quickly comforted. Tucker is growing according to his normal curve, but just like last time, the Doc was surprised by his weight; he expects Tucker to weight more than he does every time he sees him.

Unfortunately, Tucker became very sick on Tuesday. We are not sure if he caught a random fly bug or if he had a reaction to the shot, but he ended up with a terrible stomach bug which wiped him out and caused him quite a bit of pain and discomfort. We were very grateful that it didn't last much longer than 24 hours and that by Wednesday afternoon he was nearly back to his normal self.

Stats:

Height: 29 inches - 30% percentile (Owen 29.5 - 40% - hard to imagine how the 1/2 inch difference makes for a 10% difference, eh!)

Weight: 21lbs 2 oz -30% (Owen 19lbs 8.2 oz 8%)

Head circumference: 18.5inches 75% (Owen 18.03 inches - 33%)

On a side note, Tucker has been experiencing separation anxiety at day-care. Over the last month it has been pretty bad, with more days than I care to admit where I know he cried an awful amount at school. It started to improve last week, when he transitioned into the toddler room full time. I think the fact that there are more things to climb on and the fact that he actually goes outside daily and can play (walk around and climb on equipment, etc) makes a big difference. Every day it seems to be getting a little better, but it has been rough on him and on me! I have stopped going to day-care at lunch now that he's in the bigger room and on the toddler schedule (I miss it!). He can eat lunch at the table with his pals and now nap on the cot. He's still learning how to fall asleep on the cot with gentle pats from his teachers, but he seems to be getting the hang of it. I hate that he's had so much anxiety, but I have to say, that I'm impressed with the level of care he has received and I feel much better about his last few days. The doctor reassured me that the behavior is "normal" and not cause to worry about anything serious.

Owen & Tucker playing in the bus at school this week. There is no anxiety on the bus!

Owen's 2011 Winter Gala Performance

Owen had his second school performance tonight. For the last few weeks, he and his classmates have been practicing for the big event and I'm happy to say the practice paid off. The event was less chaotic than last year and very well organized, which helped to keep the kids calm. Owen did need a bit of reassurance from me when the kids gathered before the show. One of the directors showed him I was in the audience and then he gave me a big hug and said he was ready to go! By the time he and the others walked onto the stage, Owen was thoroughly enjoying himself. On stage, he sang and smiled through both songs.

It was great fun for us to watch the kids perform! Here is a short video from the event:

Tucker's first year

Happy 1st Birthday Tucker!

Dear Tucker,

We love you. We love you. We love you. We can't express how much we love you.

This year has been so incredibly special because you joined our family. You are precious. You are sweet. You make us laugh and bring us joy. We especially love witnessing the growing bond between you and your brother who is very smitten with you. He sings, "I love Tucker" songs repeatedly throughout the day and gives you big fat kisses and hugs.

In a flash, you have changed from a teeny tiny little baby to a walking, toddling little boy. You have two teeth and the most innocent smile in the world. You have dozens of expressions and we are constantly surprised by how much you understand and how well you communicate with us. You make sounds for mommy, daddy, oh-oh, hi, on, and off. You have started to sign "more" though you usually only do it when prompted. You walk! You climb the stairs in seconds flat and you know how to get off beds or couches or even the stairs by turning around on your belly and sliding down (of course we do our best to only let you test this skill of yours in safe places). You often walk directly to your high chair when you are hungry. Yesterday you completely surprised us. We had the highchair set in the lowest position because earlier in the evening you sat next to Owen at the kids' table. As we were putting/playing, you quietly climbed into the high chair and then made a noise to let us know you were sitting there, hungry, and ready to eat. You did the same thing this morning for breakfast!

You continue to be comforted and nourished when Mommy nurses you, but you enjoy most of your meals on your own, with finger foods. You love to feed yourself and seem to like just about everything you have tried, with the possible exception being chili and plain broccoli. There is no doubt, however, that your favorite food is green beans.

You love to dance and are still soothed by rock'n'roll. Death Cab for Cutie is your favorite, but you are happy with just about any type of music. The second you hear it, you start to dance and bop and usually you end up with a huge grin on your face. You also love to climb on things and to play outside. You dart for the door every chance you get. You are happiest when you are walking around with something in your hand and you really like to play with toys... the play kitchen, cars, books, musical instruments, and loud toys are your favorites right now.

We look forward to watching you grow and change, but it is also difficult to say goodbye to this last year. We will forever remember what it felt like to hold you for the first time and how it feels to cuddle you in our arms today. You like to gaze into our eyes and touch our faces with your soft tiny fingers; these gestures surly comfort you, but we wonder if you understand that they comfort us more. You warm our souls and remind us daily that we are blessed to be your mommy and daddy. We all love you so much. Happy Birthday!

P.S. We had some major technical difficulties this morning so this slide show is missing a few pictures at the end from today. I'll will repost it once I get it fixed.

Babysitter - NYE

It was easy for Kris and I to go out and celebrate this year for New Year's Eve since we knew the boys would be in good hands with one of their daycare teachers and that they would be playing with their own friends during the night, too.

Before our sitter arrived, our friends, Mika & Mark Galvan and their two boys Aiden & Evin, joined us for dinner. This gave the kids a chance to play together while us parents were still around to witness the chaos and fun. We enjoyed a yummy Thai takeout meal with two babies and two very loud three/four year olds. And by the time Ms. Samantha arrived, they had made their way through dinner, rode the bikes throughout the house, and had a dance party demonstration for us.

We knew it was time to leave when Owen gave me a goodbye hug and said, "something is stinky, mommy it smells like a "kunk". A couple of tries later, he spit it out clearly, "skunk". We all laughed, and I thought, hmmm, so much for putting on perfume!! A few minutes later, we took a group picture, the two older boys bolted upstairs without any concern, and we left for the party smelly and all.

As the evening progressed, we all found that it was so easy to enjoy ourselves and relax because we received frequent texts about the boys through status updates and cute text message pictures from Samantha. If this doesn't justify the cost of the recent smart phone upgrade, I don't know what will.

This one made us all smile.

And this one made me feel reassured and gave me the peace of mind to stay out much later than we originally planned.

(how is it that there are only a few days until my sweet little baby is going to be one)

We had a blast at our New Year's Eve Party. We're grateful for such a great babysitter and we feel quite lucky to have such good friends that indulge us as we share text updates and photos during a special and rare adult-only party. I promise, we didn't talk about our kids all night long, but gosh it was nice to whip out the photo of Owen and Aiden tapping their apple cider classes just before we toasted to the New Year ourselves.

first hubby & wife photo of 2011

Happy New Year!!