4 Generations

My great-grandpa Louie, Mom, and her sister Marilyn, and her family, recently embarked on a wonderful family vacation. They left Chicago for a two week RV trip. Before stopping here in Folsom, they made it to Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone, Reno, Lake Tahoe and many other stops in between. My aunt Laura flew in to Sacramento to meet up with the RV gang at our place and join the crew for the second half of their trip. They are currently making their way back to Chicago and have already toured the California Coast, Las Vegas, and the Grand Canyon.

The RV gang arrived in time for an evening of pizza and some good old fashion multi-aged kid play in the street with tricycles, bikes, and kid lawn mowers. It was the first time my Grandpa had the chance to meet my sons and I'm pretty sure he enjoyed watching the wild play from his "throne" on the driveway. The visit was much too short, but the time was definitely well spent.

Here are a few photos:

The RV & the gang

Grandpa surrounded by the boys

Great-Grandpa & his youngest great-grandson

Family help- Part 1

We have had the opportunity to have our family help us out this summer and care for the boys. We were hoping for the chance to keep Tucker out of day care an extra month or two, I wanted a bit more time for him to learn to take the bottle and to start food, and really I wanted a chance to mentally adjust back to the idea of being a working mom again. Time off with the boys went by so fast. I will still visit Tucker every lunch at day-care once he starts, but having the opportunity to just run home and feed him and play with Owen really warmed my heart. Somehow the stars aligned and it worked out for us to have seven weeks or so of family help. We're about half way through at this point, and while it hasn't been seamless, smooth, or perfect, it has been very special and our boys have been very well loved.

My sister Jamie, her son Dylan - ~10 months, and mom came for the first week that Kris and I were both back to work. They had their hands full - mainly with the extra attention required for three kids - a 2 year old that is sort-of kinda potty training, a ten month crawler/cruiser, and a five + month old baby trying to learn to roll over, apart from both his parents for more than an hour or two for the first time. What a week! Needless to say, we all turned in for bed early most every night!

Kris' parents graced us for the second shift. For a few hours, they overlapped with Jamie & my mom and they enjoyed their chance to dote on Dylan. Unfortunately, they came for our first heat wave of the summer which impacted our daily fun outings a little. Since it was a bit to hot to enjoy the patio most of the time, Granddaddy decided to help us out and install ceiling fans in the boys' rooms. What a difference a fan makes! I'm sure they don't really agree, but in our opinion, week 2 has probably been the easiest week to date. We had 2 adults for 2 kids and as demanding as that can be, we are now quite aware of how much more 1 extra child adds to the mix! Our best indicator, however, is the fact that we actually had a chance to watch a few movies in the evening. By "we", I really mean Kris and his parents. I think I slept through the only one I attempted to watch!

Kris' parents left on the 4th of July and my sister Kristin and crew arrived on the 5th.

Kristin and Charles planned to stay for one month and return to OC with us on a road trip in early August. My brother-n-law Jeremy and step brother Gianni planned to stay for about a week, and my dad planned to join us for a fun, long weekend before Jeremy, Gianni, and my dad went back to OC.

It's probably fair to write that all hell broke loose when late on the 5th, Owen woke up from his sleep with the stomach bug. By early morning, I had it, and by the next afternoon Kris had it. Oh my - this was a nasty bug; quite possibly one of the nastiest bugs to ever inflict itself on me or anybody I know. We weren't even attending day-care and we were hit! Our entire day-care - with the exception of a handful of kids and two teachers, was hit with it at one point during a month long period (as were most other facilities in the area). Owen was okay- off and on for a few days, but remained sick for most of the week. The bug kicked my butt and I was down for about two days. Relatively speaking, it was mild for Kris. And sadly, my entire visiting family came down with it at some point during the first week. We postponed my Dad's flight to Sunday afternoon, with the hopes that he'd miss it and that with our intense cleansing with bleach- we'd kill off most of the germs. Jeremy got sick shortly after me, but Kristin, Charles, and Gianni all seemed like they were golden. Within a few hours of picking up my Dad from the airport, Jeremy, was hit again and Kristin & Gianni came down with it. Charles came down with it on Tuesday morning- and at that point, we gently suggested to my Dad that he and Gianni leave before he came down with it, too. He ended up with a mild version - but thankfully, it wasn't too bad.

As I write this, I'm aware that there is no way I can convey how awful Kris and I felt - physically beat up from the bug and emotionally drained from Owen's ordeal and the worry about my family getting it to the strain and horror of them actually getting sick, especially Charles who like Owen cried multiple times when sick. The week was so long! We are grateful because it could have been much worse. We were able to help each other and for the most part the intensity only lasted 24 hours. Many friends inflicted endured a longer 76 hour strain. Believe it or not, somehow, Jeremy managed to do a bunch of yard work for us and he also cleaned our garage! We have no idea how he found the strength to attempt those jobs, let alone finish. We had a few fun hours at Lake Natomas with my Dad and the whole gang before we knew round two had set in and we also recovered well enough to enjoy a couple of meals together and the boys were able to get in a couple of games of laser tag.

After the "sick" week, we decided to put Owen back into day care a few days a week. While Kristin is an absolute pro with kids, it's tough to provide enough quality care and attention to three kids - age 8, almost 3, and 6 months, especially when the two younger ones have different nap-eating-potty schedules. It would probably be different if Owen was completely potty trained- but the fact that he is in training really doesn't help the cause. Plus, Owen was really starting to miss his friends. We're optimistic that the the next month will be easier for everybody. We've had a few healthy days to create a new routine and so far everything has been great.

Let me just say - we appreciate our family SO much!! I'm especially grateful to Kristin, who decided to hang in with us for the rest of the summer. Even though we are ready to put Tucker into day-care in August, it's really wonderful to know he can stay at home for a few more weeks!

Part 2 - to follow in a few weeks. Here's to wishing the stomach bug stays away for a very long time!

Tucker's 6 month doctor appointment

For Tucker's 6 month wellness check up, we visited a new doctor because our doctor is out on maternity leave. The new doctor's office was very kid friendly, adorned with many toys, fish, small kid chairs, a television playing a child friendly movie, and best of all - a moving train that runs along the ceiling between the lobby and each of the office rooms. What a treat! We liked this new doctor a great deal, but we will probably go back to our current doctor - boring office and all, once she's back from leave, because we already have a nice rapport with her.

Tucker's stat's at this appointment were remarkable. He measured in at:

Height: 26 3/4 inches - 60% - Owen was 25 1/4inch

Weight: 18lbs 12 inches - 75% (WOW!) - Owen 17 lbs 4 oz

Head: 44.5 cm - 75% - Owen 43 cm

We have known for quite awhile that Tucker is a chunk, but the fact that he weighed in at nearly 19 lbs still surprised us. As for his shots, he handled them better than his last visit and only cried for about twenty or thirty seconds, which was a big relief to me. All in all, he's a healthy little guy with a happy personality.

Since the last post, Tucker has really started to move! He's scooting every so slightly, but now he's really rolling all around. He's a quick one and actually rolls across the room and it seems like he does this to reach his toys. Owen rolled back and forth a bit, but he never rolled around as a way to move - so we now we really have our hands full!

Happy 6th Month Birthday Tucker!

It's amazing that six months have passed since the birth our sweet Tucker. How is it that half a year has gone by quicker than a blink of an eye? Will I ever come to terms with this reality?

This month, Tucker has learned a few new things. He's learned how to roll over from front to back and back to front and does so now with purpose and glee. He's now had a month worth of non-maternal daycare - shared by his loving daddy, Aunt Jamie, Granny, Nana, and Granddaddy! Thank you helpers! He started rice cereal at the start of the month and has also enjoyed his first few days of carrots mixed into his cereal. Today, he surprised both Kris and I by happily taking a sippy cup full of breast milk! Woo! He has also started to play sitting up a bit more, although he can't do it on his own yet. He's teething, but he doesn't have any teeth. I keep expecting a tooth to break through the skin any day, but I have been saying that for over a month now, so we'll see how soon it actually happens; I'm in no rush, but I would like for this current wave of pain Tucker seems to be experiencing to disappear!!

Here are a few photos from this month...

Cousin Dylan, Tucker, and Owen in the pack n' play

He loves music!

Could he be any sweeter? This is Tucker's first time in his jumping toy and boy was it a hit. He wore himself out bouncing and actually slept like this for almost two hours.

quite possibly one of my favorite pictures

Cooking mishap

It's a life goal of mine to become home cook extraordinare. Seeing how I'm no where close to being able to call myself an extraordinary home cook, I like to practice. This weekend, I attempted to make homemade, restaurant style salsa. I was following a recipe posted at www.thePioneerWoman.com and couldn't have been more excited to try it.

Everything was going well until I was about halfway done pulsing the mixture in the food processor. Suddenly there was a loud, terrible noise. It was as if I was grinding metal. Kris noticed that I had more liquid in the processor than the machine could handle. I was happy for the reminder since we'll soon be using the processor a great deal as we start to make baby food. We went on with our merry way. Kris tasted the salsa and liked it; feeling quite proud, I began to pour the salsa into the container. Unfortunately, I found this a second later:

When something sounds like it is metal grinding, it probably is.

Tucker's 5 Months

Happy 5th Month Birthday Tucker!

Tucker is growing so fast. Even though we're not experiencing it for the first time, we're constantly in awe and amazed how quickly he develops.

He is very interested in his toys - especially those that he can stuff into his mouth or ones that make noise. One of his favorite things to do now is sit in his little exercise play toy, pushing all of the buttons to hear the different noises they make. He isn't showing any signs of teeth yet, but he does drools like a fool.

Like his big brother, he loves to fall asleep to rock n roll. His favorite music is Death Cab for Cutie, but really just about anything will do if he's tired. He is usually out within one to two songs, but he still has a hard time staying asleep if we try to lay him down. Maybe it's our crib mattress! Recently, he started to sing himself to sleep and the sounds are just precious.

In the last month, he's rolled over a few more times, but for now he seems to enjoy on his belly and spin himself around. He's done full 360 turns a few times- usually when Owen's moving all around him. He is always touching and grabbing whatever we have near us - so we have to be careful to watch him if he's in our lap while we're eating.

Tucker started baby cereal last week and has spent the last few days working on adjusting to his new schedule and routine. He also enjoyed taking a bath in the big tub with his big brother and taking a dip in the kiddie pool.

We constantly feel incredibly lucky and blessed.

Mini-vacation to Calistoga

Before returning to work, Kris and I overlapped our bonding leave for a few days so we could take advantage of the time together on a mini-vacation. We decided to opt for a close getaway in Calistoga, which is a small town on the north side of Napa. We just went for a couple of nights, but had the chance to stay in a nice B&B and enjoy scrumptious breakfasts and tasty food from many of the local restaurants. We visited a few different parks, tasted olive oil, explored the grounds of the incredible Castello di Amorosa, made a stop at the Culinary Institute, stopped at California's Old Faithful geyser, hiked through the Petrified Forest, and took a beautiful drive to the coast. It was fantastic.

on the castle grounds

hiking among the petrified forest

beautiful geyser in Calistoga