San Diego - 2

Our first full day in San Diego dawned. D and I stumbled out of bed, blurry-eyed and exhausted from the previous night (and travel day). But it was gorgeous and warm and SUNNY outside, so that really helped our attitudes. We did discover that Boyd had picked up a cold somewhere along our travels, and I was really hoping it wouldn't turn into something worse.

My aunt and uncle, plus two of my cousins and their families came over to Grandpa's on Sunday at midday for lunch and to hang out. It was great to see everyone and marvel at how much the kids have changed. I think all of the activity was a bit overwhelming for Boyd so D took him back for a nap a little early.

The ramps at Grandpa's provided hours of fun. We spent a lot of time outside, enjoying the lovely weather.

Every single time we head out to the store, Boyd will stop at least once to take a seat and hang out.

Old sailing ships that were a part of the Maritime Museum.

Talk about amazing weather - this was unlike anything I've experienced in California during the winter. Usually it's overcast and temps hover in the 60's. We were blessed with sunny skies EVERYDAY and mid-high 70's.

I purchased something called the "Go San Diego card" through Costco, which is good for a 4 day span and valid at a ton of San Diego attractions, museums and parks. It was an amazing deal through Costco and if we hadn't had to stay home one day due to illness, we would have made money off the card. As it was, we pretty much broke even.

The first attraction we visited on Monday was the USS Midway, a decommissioned aircraft carrier. It ended up being a pretty cool experience - these carriers are just mind-blowing in how huge they are.

As we walked in, the staff had headsets and self-guided tours available for us. Each exhibit had a letter and number that corresponded to the handheld computer we carried around. 

On the USS Midway flight deck. It's the longest-serving aircraft carrier in the United States. 

The Midway is massive! Even with the size, it's crazy to think that jets can take off and land on the runway. 

Looking down into the parking lot and the water beyond.

Boyd was obviously getting a cold so we wanted to take it pretty easy on all of our excursions. After the midway we decided to drive further down the Embarcadero (waterfront businesses, hotels, shops) and then walk along the water for Boyd's nap. Perfect plan, right? Boyd didn't agree and refused to nap in the stroller. In his defense, he was sick and it was hot out. So D and I pushed the stroller to the end of the Embarcadero and almost to the highway. We ended up going around and around in a hotel parking garage (cool & out of the sun) for almost an hour before Boyd fell asleep.

We made the mistake of stopping. Boyd woke up 5 minutes after this photo and was super pissed off.

After his unsatisfactory 40 minute nap, we grabbed a quick lunch (during which I had to pop outside with a fussy baby) and then walked back to the car. We learned a valuable lesson this day - Boyd would rather nap in the car than in the stroller (at least when he's sick).

A whole cargo ship just for Dole products! That's a lot of bananas and pineapples. 

After begging to get out of the stroller, we figured a little walking would be good for B. He stepped up and down in this area for a long while. 

Quite possibly my favorite photo from this whole trip. "I AM NOT AMUSED, MAMA!"

Back at my grandpa's house, the neighbors across the way have 2 turtles roaming their yard. Everyday Boyd would ask about the turtles and want to see them.

This turtle was surprisingly fast - see him trying to make a break for it? 

Sunset glow on the hills. 

Video: Reading - 23.75 months

Here's a sweet little video of Boyd reading the informational sticker on our dryer. It's a lot of "ooh ooh, ee ah ooh" but so very cute!

Boyd - 23.5 months

The last few weeks have been a whirlwind of activity, what with our trip to San Diego, work and other life events. I totally overlooked Boyd's 23 month update.

• Read about our San Deigo trip in separate blog posts - it was a blast!
• D has been running a job for his company that has him working the swing shift in the evenings. It's the worst shift, in my opinion. Boyd and I hadn't seen D since Monday afternoon, but were able to spend a few minutes with him this morning before heading out. Boyd was SO excited to see Daddy - he was running around, giggling, and making dragon noises.
• I try to give Boyd the chance to make choices: what shoes or pants he’ll wear for the day; cheddar or babybel cheese...you know, life's big decisions.
• I’m pretty he knows his colors – the basics anyway.
• In addition to “reading,” Boyd will also sing quietly to himself.
• His second molar on the bottom right is halfway in. It may be partly to blame for his sleep problems in San Diego.
• Sleep: I've accepted that we won't ever have a perfect sleeper, so I'm thankful for when he does sleep! After our trip, Boyd's bedtime has shifted to sometime between 8 and 8:30 p.m. so that means approximately an hour earlier than before. Yay for more adult free time in the evening! It also means B wakes up an hour earlier in the a.m. but it's a fair trade-off.
• LOVES his turtle pillow from Grandma & Grandpa Patrick and a kitty stuffed animal that I think was a gift from our friends Joe & Beth. He cuddles with them all night long, and then points them out in the morning when we walk in his room.
• Favorite animals? If you ask him, it’s kitty, turtle and whale (usually in that order).
• We brought home a nice 2-tiered dark wood step stool from Ikea, which Boyd uses to gain access to the bathroom sink for handwashing. He'll turn on the faucets, attempt to work the soap dispenser and wet his hands. For some reason he hates having his sleeves pushed up.

His cuddle space - the bear was a gift from coworkers, the fake sheepskin is from Ikea, and his favorite kitty is at his feet.

His new play space is a tent we brought home from Ikea. Most nights you'll find at least one parent held hostage inside of it.

Pre-bath hijinks.

Checking the mail on Saturday morning. Mommy is stuck inside the tent (at least I have coffee!)



Family trip to Titlewave - they sell used and new books. D and I both had old books to drop off. Boyd found a book about lynx in the Alaska section and kept exclaiming, "kitty! kitty!"



Always such a good helper.

Video: Spoon feeding - 23 months

When eating off of a spoon, Boyd tends to lick just a tiny bit and then will finally take a big bite. I've seen him do it with oatmeal, yogurt, and basically anything that will just sit on his spoon.

First haircut

After the flight attendants on one of our planes commented on how well our little GIRL behaved during the flight, we figured it was time for a haircut!

BEFORE

I know, this is ridiculously long but it seemed to grown like an inch in just a few days.

My mom did the actual cutting because I couldn't bear to do it.

I have to admit, this is much cleaner and better looking.

We bribed Boyd with a blueberry muffin and videos on my iPhone.

Ack! A little short in the front, but it'll grow.

Video: Sliding in winter - 22.5 months

Back when we still had snow (before this current heat wave and melt-off) Boyd would toddle around the yard and play on his plastic slide. I had to clear the snow off of it and you'll see him imitating me in the video.

Video: Selfie - 22.5 months

Like any toddler, Boyd loves seeing himself in photos and on video. He especially enjoys when I turn around the camera on the my iPhone and he can watch himself as we record.

San Diego - 1

I'd say all in all, our recent trip to San Diego, CA, was a success! It was sort of a mad dash to finish all of our preparations but we managed to do so. I only forgot a few non-essential items, so I was happy with my packing job.

Prior to leaving Anchorage, D and I woke around 2 a.m. and then got Boyd up at 3 a.m., which was just before Risha drove us to the airport (huge thanks to my sister for doing the airport drop off in the early wee hours!) My cousin Angie let us borrow a car seat so we didn't have to lug one of ours on the plane, but that meant we couldn't cab it to the airport (no car seats provided). We did gate-check our awesome BOB stroller and Alaska Airlines was pretty great about having it waiting for us right as we debarked the plane, sometimes it was even unfolded and ready to roll.

I booked an early morning flight, figuring it was better for Boyd to get a good chunk of sleep instead of crossing our fingers and hoping he'd fall asleep on a red-eye. A cranky, tired Boyd is nobody's idea of a good time.

TSA in Anchorage was also a breeze. The agents were super nice and patient - our BOB folded up and actually fit through the scanner and they even gave Boyd a "Junior TSA" sticker. I haven't flown since my dad passed away in August 2011 so it's been 2.5 years - I'm a pretty savvy traveler but adding a kid to the mix really threw me for a loop! This was Boyd's first airplane ride and I was NERVOUS, even with D there to help. I checked and rechecked my lists, going through every contingency I thought might come up. But our flights to Seattle and then San Diego were surprisingly fine. No big issues.

5 a.m. and waiting for the plane to take off from Anchorage for our first leg to Seattle. Boyd is still under 2 so he sat on either my lap or D's.



Snackies are a baby's best friend on the plane!



Boyd slept for about an hour on that first flight. We had an empty seat in our row and it was perfect to allow the three of us a little stretching room. In Seattle we walked around, changed Boyd's diaper, got a bite to eat and then headed onto the next plane to take us to San Diego. Boyd didn't sleep at all on that flight (uh oh) but was pretty chipper. My uncle picked us up in my Grandpa's CR-V (which he generously let us use the whole week!) and we headed home.

Basically we settled in that first day and expected Boyd to fall asleep that night since he was obviously exhausted. No such luck. He pretty much screamed and cried for hours. My poor Grandpa - what a good sport, seriously. D and I were SO TIRED I can't even explain it. Finally Boyd fell asleep and his two zombie parents fell into bed.

The next day we discovered that Boyd was sick with a horrible cold. Damn those dirty planes and germ-infested travelers! Over the week he would be coughing, sneezing, stuffed up with mucus and itchy eyes. Oh it was just awful - and then he gave it to us! Even with all the sickness, we managed to visit quite a few attractions and make the most of our trip.

My grandpa's house in El Cajon, a suburb to the east of San Diego.

More recaps to come!

Goodbye Drift

We said goodbye to our sweet friend, Drift, a few weeks ago. He had been battling diabetes for almost 2 years (that we know of) and his quality of life was just not what it used to be. D made the very difficult decision to end his suffering and let his best friend go.

I've never had a dog before. Growing up, we had a cat that lived to be 17 before my parents put her down due to dementia. And my crazy cat lady status was cemented after I somehow acquired 3 cats! But Drift made me love dogs - and how could you not fall in love with such a sweet soul like Drift? Even my mom, who is not a big dog person, spoiled Drift like he was her very own grandson.

D took him into the vet the day we left for San Diego. In some ways, it made the transition a little easier - being away from home and all the reminders of how empty our house (and hearts) are without Drift. But even now, weeks later, we still look for him outside in his dog house or think about needing to adminster his medication.

A sad but fond farewell to the best dog I've ever known.

Ski day

D, Boyd and I headed up to the Glen Alps trail head to enjoy our first family x-c ski outing of the season. The rec area is about a 10 minute drive up the hillside from our house - it leads to both Flat Top Mountain and Powerline Pass, which is where we decided to go. It felt to great to be on skis for the first time this season, and I realized how much I missed this wintertime activity.

Boyd was dressed super warm, as you can see below, but it wasn't very cold when we left our house. I would say the temperature was hovering around 20 degrees. However, when we got out on the trail that parallels the power lines (hence the name "Powerline Pass") the wind picked up in the valley and just blew us all over the place. Luckily the Chariot keeps the wind out and Boyd was fine, but D and I got the brunt of it. We managed to stick it out for an hour or so, which is a lot less than we would have liked - we used to ski for 2-3 hours straight, pre-baby!

I really love my Skhoop skirts - the one I'm wearing here is a lighter-weight version (since it was above 20 degrees) and I have the sides zipped up a bit to account for the range of motion when skiing.

Thankfully D did all the Chariot-pulling on this excursion and I got to ski baby-free. It's a pretty strenuous workout to pull the Chariot plus a 27 pound toddler and his gear!

Boyd's mitts are a new purchase. They're Stonz toddler mittens that go all the way up past his elbows - fleece-lined with cinches at the wrist and bottom. They stay on so much better than regular gloves and are used when we're going to be out in the cold for a longer length of time.

You can see all of Anchorage from up here! Amazing views.

Boyd - 22.5 months

6 more weeks until Boyd's 2nd birthday! Not quite sure what to plan for this celebration - quiet event at home or invite people over? We'll probably do something at home and schedule an outing to the zoo or museum as a fun family treat.

• Boyd has been saying "mail" quite a bit. What's funny is that it is probably the clearest and most succinct word he has uttered to date. He really pronounces the "l," where usually he drops the last consonant from his words. D reports Boyd has also been saying "bail" and "whale."
• We have finally achieved two-word phrases, used fairly consistently. His favorites are "uh oh, mama," "more, dada (or mama)," and any combo of those with "no" and "please." We heard "uh oh, banana" for a while, which was good for a laugh.
• He has pretty much perfected his "feed the puppy" routine - from getting the lid off, filling the hard hat, presenting it to Drift, putting everything away and then closing the pantry door. He's a great all-around helper - always wanting to assist us with everyday tasks.
• A kitty obsession has emerged. He's leading us upstairs to look for the cat or asking for Little Dude. A lot of gentle petting, nose touching and ear poking ensues after we find him.
• D, Boyd and I met up with friends to check out the "Zoo Lights" at our local zoo on the Friday after Christmas. It was pretty chilly (below 10 degrees) and windy, so I wasn't sure how long Boyd would last. Many of the animals were tucked inside their dens and houses, but we were able to see the wolves, moose, caribou, eagles, mountain goats and snow leopards. The leopards were Boyd's favorites! Big smiles when we came up to their enclosure. He kept saying "kitty!" and pointing. Once we left the zoo and got him to the car, Boyd starting screaming - we thought he was cold, but when I asked him what was wrong he cried, "kitty, kitty!"
• Boyd is signed up for 2 toddler classes in the new year. We're continuing the Monday gymnastics sessions (which I'll take him to) and then my mom will bring him to music class on Tuesdays at 10 a.m. Gymnastics runs through mid-May while Music Together is an 8-week program.
• For the New Year's, the boys arrived home in the afternoon after a 2-day deer hunting and fishing trip in Prince William Sound. No shots fired, but it's nice for them to head out of town for some guy time. My mom had her own plans, but Risha and Gabe had dinner with us after which we celebrated Gabe's birthday. After Boyd went down to sleep, we all headed into our hot tub - which amazingly CAN hold up to 4 people. I think we were in there for 2 hours and finally ran into the house with 15 minutes to spare before midnight!

Fishing puzzle from Grandma and Grandpa Patrick. He caught on pretty quickly - you have to use the magnetic pole to pick up the puzzle pieces. His favorites are the turtle, crab and whale.

This wolf at the zoo was totally focused on Boyd - it licked it's lips and was staring hard! When we walked, it was totally tracking us and couldn't take it's eyes off of Boyd.

Snow leopard enclosure - so happy!

He's pretty skilled with the toddler spoon and fork now.

Boyd and I on a neighborhood walk last weekend while D and Gabe went hunting/fishing in PWS.

The sweetest little face - pretty lucky that he's all mine.

We took the opportunity to visit Kaleidoscape, a local indoor play place. I purchased a promo card so our visits are approximately $6.50 as opposed to $10.

Outside of Kaleidoscape - good thing he isn't aware that the helicopter moves, I didn't have any quarters.

Happy birthday Uncle Gabe!

Joint New Year's/Birthday celebration. Risha made Gabe's favorite - pineapple upside cake.

Kitty peeping in on Boyd in the bath.