Colorado Part 2

In order to get Henry, a car seat, a diaper bag, two carry ons, a regular suitcase and a golf bag through the airport with ease, we had to find some creative solutions. So Henry rode in his car seat, attached to the carry on suitcase. You do get some strange looks when you are dragging your child through an airport like luggage, but Henry enjoyed it and we didn't have to lug an awkward car seat. Problem solved.


On our first day, the wind was incredibly strong, so we got out the kites to let the kids fly them. At one point, Gabe was holding the kite, I was holding Henry, and the kite string, running to get the kite up in the air. Henry was tickled pink by this, as well as the sound of the kites flapping in the wind, watching the little kids run, and running in our arms himself. Yes, we actually took this picture ourselves, it's not a Google Image.

We stayed at a beautiful ranch, with one main house and lots of little houses. Old farm equipment, barns, a creek, and a sand pile set the scene.

My favorite part? The rocking chairs. With lots of porch sitting, rocking, reading, relaxing, and blowing bubbles, we had a fun time enjoying the cool Colorado breeze and warm days.
Henry's had lots of experience with animals, so when we saw lambs galloping (do lambs gallop?) after the car upon arriving, we took him to touch them. Turns out, after 12 hours of travel to a new state, two airplane rides and a long car ride, Henry is in no mood to see lambs that BAAA very loudly and run away. He warmed up to the after a while, just as a long as they didn't BAAA too loudly.


There were many horses on the ranch, including a little foal that stayed close to his mother and hidden in the bushes for most of the time. Henry enjoyed watching the horses, and we were able to get close and let him touch some of them as well.
A fun trip, and we hope to go back soon!

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Colorado

What a view - from the back porch of the house in Colorado where we vacationed with the extended family for a week. A fun filled, restful week filled with ....

patiently waiting for fish....

with Barbie poles....

and catching some! (Henry's kind-of cousin Luke)
A pirate treasure hunt...

playing with cousins and crawling around after them...
patting the dogs and pulling their tails....and the most intense rainbow you've ever seen!

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Advice for the dad-to-be

Maybe I missed it during our six week childbirth class, or didn't think to look for it on a website, or didn't get it emailed to me from BabyCenter, but I didn't give much thought about what to pack in my overnight bag for Henry's birth. With several of our friends expecting soon, here's what I recommend for the big day(s):

• Pack clothes for all seasons. The lowest recorded temperature on Earth was -130° F (Antarctica, July 21, 1983), and Pam's hospital room wasn't far off. Which is fine, she was the one doing all the work, but Henry was born in August and I thought shorts and t-shirts would suffice. I was wrong.
  
• Bring cough drops. (And breath mints). You go ah-hee-ah-hee-ah-hee-a-hoo for sixty seconds at a time, twenty times an hour for nineteen hours, you can get a little parched.
  
• Bring everything in from the car when you go into the hospital. We packed some snacks and I left them in the car thinking I'd go back and get them later. But turns out, bringing a new life into the world keeps you pretty busy.
  
• Epidurals are magical. I'm proud of Pam for going so long without one, and it probably helped move labor along, but epidurals are magical.
  
• Camera, video camera, scrapbook page for the footprints, pen and paper, a kid's book. The video camera not for the actual birth (I don't think they let you do that, and besides, nobody wants to see that), but the first few minutes of Henry's life on film is something I'm glad we have. We didn't have a page ready to go for Henry to put his first footprints though. We had the blinds closed in the delivery room and the whole seventeen hours of childbirth in the hospital kind of blurred together. You may want to write some notes down about what happened when so you can remember the next day. I also wanted to read Henry a story once we got settled in the postpartum room, but forgot it at home.
  

That's all I can think of for now. I'd be interested to hear advice from other fathers too (one dad who was in our childbirth class would suggest not paying attention to what goes on directly after the baby is born).

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Father's Day EXTRAVAGANZA

Since we'll be out of town next weekend, we celebrated Father's Day this weekend. Or as Gabe likes to call it, Father's Day EXTRAVAGANZA (in a deep, loud voice that makes Henry smile).


A few days ago, I decided to become adventurous with Henry and have him make a fun card for Gabe. I stripped him down to the diaper, had a bath ready to go, put out the finger paints, and let him go to town. His art turned out really well, and he was a fun mess too. I had to keep his fingers out of his mouth of course, but he was having too much fun squishing around the paint and chasing the bottles to mind. Too much.

Basically, the EXTRAVAGANZA (ok, I'll just type it regularly now, you get the idea) consisted of many delicious meals made especially for Gabe. Except, due to other commitments this weekend making a lot of cooking difficult to do in a day, we had to spread the meals out, thus creating a weekend of extravaganza. Saturday, after sleeping in - a rare treat - Gabe woke up to a breakfast of blueberry pancakes, and Henry had some too. Mom got to practice with Mickey Mouse pancakes. Henry loved them, so we'll be fixing more pancakes for special breakfasts for him too.


For as a dinner treat, I made chicken piccata and risotto, a favorite, with homemade cinnamon ice cream for dessert, using my Mother's Day present of an ice cream maker. For lunch, Gabe requested homemade macaroni and cheese since he loves baked pasta, but all that cooking was difficult to fit into one day, so we're having it tomorrow for dinner. Our Father's Day activity was using Gabe's previously given present of the bike trailer - we took a ride around St. Patrick's park. Henry fussed for a little bit, but then got really sleepy being pulled around, stairing at the wheels which he loves, and sucking fingers. He probably would have fallen asleep if we rode longer. What a life. How did we get to St. Patrick's park? Our neighbors found an old bike carrier that previous renters had left, which they gave to us! We installed it the best we could, and what didn't look right, we fixed with bungy cords. The bikes made it to the park safely though. St. Patrick's didn't really offer many places to ride, so we'll be going to a larger park in the future. After bike rides, we played on the playground, Henry's first playground experience

Henry really loved the swings. When we first put him in, and gently swung him, he didn't seem all that enthused. Turns out, he's a bit of a dare devil. High, fast swinging is definitely his speed!
When the swing kicked back, and he was looking at the ground, he kicked his arms and legs like swimming, so excited. Pretty cute to see.


Such unbridled enthusiasm. Henry, I hope you're always so happy. Maybe not always so drooly, but always so happy. I love seeing both my boys so happy.

Henry liked the slide too, but he actually liked climbing up it more. We wanted to see how far he could make it, and he actually did pretty well before gravity took over.

Being caught in the momentum of the day, I forgot that I had planned to pick up Bang Bang shrimp from Bonefish as an appetizer for our fancy dinner. So instead, we featured it as a meal last night, with chicken caesar salad it go with it. Father's day this year really has turned into the holiday that keeps on giving. Here's to EXTRAVAGANZA!

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Bowling and Babies!

What a whirlwind of a weekend! Not only did we celebrate Father's day a week early since we'll be out of town next weekend (see future post for details), but we had a full plate when it came to the calendar. Our nine month Lamaze reunion was this weekend, with plans to grill out at the park and let the babies crawl and pull up on playground equipment. Rain changed those plans, and the rain location quickly became Henry's house! After waking up from his late-ish nap with new playmates over, Henry was a little confused at who was playing with all of his toys. But he quickly warmed up, and was a good sharer. Four Lamaze babies, two toddlers, and all their parents made for a full house, but good play times. The kids made a huge mess - a sure sign of a successful playdate. It was interesting to see the babies at such different stages and sizes - the differences are really apparent now. One not quite crawling yet, one almost walking, and the two boys are crawling machines. Actually, the girls had much better fine motor skills with hand clapping, waving, and pincer grasps, while the boys had none of those skills yet. I can't wait for Henry to wave - we've been working on it but with no success as of yet.

Anna, Colt, Evi and Henry

Henry's car was a huge hit with the kiddos, and a big lesson in taking turns. The little boy standing in front of the car is 14 months. Henry got to show his friends how to drive, as well as climb the stairs and play with blocks. It really was interesting to see how one baby found a toy, and the others naturally gravitated right towards that toy.

In other weekend events, Friday night was bowling night with our family and one of the families that we have gotten to know from Lamaze class also. Sponsored by RecSports, $1.00 bowling can't be turned down! We shared a lane, which made switching off with holding babies easier to manage. Sadly, the other family beat ours, but still made for a fun night!

Checking out the bowling action with dad.

Playing toys with Anna

This shot is actually a strike, believe it or not! Luckily, I captured it on film. However, upon seeing the shot, Gabe was upset since it neither profiled the pins being knocked down, nor his bowling form.

Sign him up for the PBA.

Fun family times at the bowling ally!

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These Are a Few of My Favorite Things...

....bananas, ground beef, blackberries, cheese and oranges

Henry has really branched out on his foods lately, adding a new fruit now that it is summer and there are lots that are ripe. He also now eats cottage cheese, peaches, apricots, grapes, mangos! He'll be trying spinach, raspberries, honeydew, chicken, plums, and nectarines in the near future. This past weekend I went on a baby-food-making spree, which makes food for about 2-3 months in the freezer, which is so handy to just defrost and have ready for him, and then cut up some fresh fruit to go with it.

....bead mazes, pop-ups, stacker toys, and wheels

Henry is into toys now that do more things - he loves to push down the animals on his pop-up toys, he's a pro at moving the beads on the maze, and can pull the wooden blocks off of the stacker rod.


.....pulling cloths out of a box of wipes


In search for a new, interesting toy, I made a pull toy for Henry. Using old scraps of material, I cut small pieces in different colors, textures and patterns and sewed the edges. Then, using an old wipes box, I stuffed them in all wrapped up together so that when he pulls one out the top, another pops up. Voila! Easy, zero-cost toy that Henry loves! Although now, whenever he sees a regular box of wipes, he thinks he can empty out the whole box.
.....getting a hold of the cell phone and computer
Whenever Henry spots the computer or cell phone or TV remote within grasp, that is the first thing that he goes for. Even when they are not in grasp. So interesting, and the adults use them, so why can't I? This little boy is going to love using the computer like his daddy when he gets older.

.....shaking my head so my parents shake theirs


Lately Henry has been shaking his head side to side, which doesn't necessarily mean no, although sometimes it does seem like he can associate it. It mostly is an attempt to get an adult to shake their head. Such powerful control for such a little guy. It's pretty cute, and always makes us laugh!

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Family Fun Walk

In honor of the Sunburst Marathon From the Hall of Fame to Notre Dame, which is run this weekend, the downtown area hosted a family fun walk to kick off the weekend. Basically, a two mile walk up and down the East Race, with plenty of families and strollers in line. We joined the end of the parade, and had fun enjoying the beautiful day. Henry even won his first medal for finishing the walk - we're so proud! We have it displayed in our shadow boxes in the living room. (I wanted to take pictures at the actual walk, but grrr, the camera battery died.)


Showing off the medal with dad

In other news, this week Henry started cruising around with his walking toy. With big, wobbly steps at first, he was able to push the car all the way across the living room. He was so proud of himself, especially with Mommy smiling and clapping and cheering him on; he was full of smiles for himself. He enjoys walking from the living room to the kitchen and back, and with practice this week, he's getting better and better at being able to control the length of his step, his momentum, and regaining his balance. Look out parents - we've got a walker on the way! Actually, it will probably still be awhile, which is fine by us!

See my little baby bottom teeth? Actually, this picture, besides being cute, shows the two fused bottom teeth pretty clearly.

Unfortunately, Henry hasn't been all smiles this weekend. We went to the doctor on Friday since Thursday night he spiked a fever, and has had a rash on his leg for a week that I wanted looked at. With our first fever comes our second ear infection, and the rash is impetigo. Poor kid, sick times two. But, with lots of pain medicine and antibiotics, his fever is gone and he's already in a better mood, more his normal self. Friday was a pretty tough day for him, all he wanted was to eat and cuddle and rock and be outside and sleep, which definitely made him feel better. We just took the day on his terms, and actually went to the walk in the evening knowing that being outside for him would be more tolerable than playing inside.

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Henry "Lance" Brown

Family Bike Rides this weekend! As an early Father's Day present for Gabe, we found a bike trailer for Henry so that we could tour the neighborhood in style. Gabe put the trailer together, and of course we took it for a test drive. We found a helmet for me (Gabe already got one earlier this summer, just to be good role models for Henry), and we even found a teeny tiny one for Henry at Toys R Us. The age recommendation is 1+ and is the smallest that they make, but Henry's head is still too little. When he's not trying to take it off, the helmet falls over his face, and then he is able to take the whole helmet off. Needless to say, he doesn't like it at all and cries when we go to put it on. So once his head grows a little, we can put the helmet back on. In the meantime, bike rides around campus where there is less threat of traffic. He does, however, really like to ride in the trailer. We put some toys in there for him and that keeps him entertained, in addition to looking all around. Plus, with all the hard work being pulled around, a sippy cup is necessary for water breaks! What a life - you've got your toys and snacks and your mom to pull you around. Since Gabe rides his bike to work, we actually installed the trailer to my bike, but it turns out that it is easy enough to detach in the morning, so we might switch it. Although, its really not too difficult to pull Henry at all, and its really fun to look back and see what he's doing. And I do want to take him during the week. Weeeee, bike rides!

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