Boyd - 24 months

We celebrated our baby's SECOND birthday! Boyd says "noooo" when we ask if he's a baby, but I tell him he'll be my baby for a long time yet. My mom taught Boyd how to say his age, so his answer to "how old are you?" is "TWOOOOO!" with outstretched fingers. Actually, everyone is two if you ask him.

His birthday party was a small affair at our house. I'll have those photos and a recap later.

• Our boy is a great helper. I'm a fan of some aspects of Montesorri education and one of them is teaching children to take responsibility by helping with housework and small tasks. It's appropriate for a child to clean up after themselves, help us tidy a space, throw things away, etc. 
• If there is something that I worry about with Boyd, it's his physical development. He invariably hits gross motor milestones but it's almost always at the later point of the scale. The doctor says not to worry since everything is basically on track but this is my first baby so I'm hypersensitive, I think. In that vein, he's still not really jumping - he knows how to do it and definitely tries but both feet don't leave the floor at the same time. He is however hanging from a bar for longer periods so his upper body strength is much improved. 
• We are getting a little more serious about potty training. I am attempting to bribe him with stamps (as opposed to food or candy), which works about 50% of the time. 
• Much better about wearing sunglasses - see hilarious photo at the end of this post. 
• We got a peek at Boyd's sensitive side while watching the Olympics. A snowcross skier or snowboarder didn't land correctly and totally wiped out - next thing we know Boyd is super upset about it and crying. D and I looked at each other like, what the heck was that? He doesn't watch much TV, but we have to be so careful about what he does see. 
• He constantly wants to go "bye-bye," as in a ride in the car or out to do something fun. Or he'll say "bye-bye" and push us away if we're interfering with his playtime. 
• I let him sit in the driver's seat of my car the other day and he proceeded to pick up my keys and insert them into the ignition! He can also automatically lock the doors on our cars so I told D that he can never ever sit in the vehicle by himself or we could potentially see him driving down the street. 
• Knows how to turn on most items - computers, phones, electronic toys. He can play videos on my phone and swipe from photo to photo. 
• Is obsessed with swiping my credit card at the grocery store. 
• Loves, loves, loves his two teachers - Miss Angel from gymnastics and Miss Hannah from music class. Gets a big smile on his face when we mention them and always gives hugs when in class. Miss Angel has told me in confidence that he's her favorite, ha ha. :-) He has been sitting in her lap during circle time and is always game to try the featured skill in class.
• Boyd's 24 month appointment is scheduled for this Monday. 

Lining up his toys - a pretty normal occurrence around here. 

The tent is still a favorite. 

D purchased an annual family membership for the Anchorage Museum of History and Art downtown, so now we are able to visit whenever we want (not just once a month of free days, yay!). The three of us went earlier this month and spent a lovely few hours. The kid space/Imaginarium is always our first stop and then we check out the adult areas if we have time.

One of the major exhibits was centered around the world's consumption of plastics and the effects of that on our beaches and oceans. Really, really cool. There was a photographer taking marketing photos of the exhibit and he happened to be someone we've hired for projects at my workplace. He had the three of us pose next to a life-size dogsled team made entirely of plastic products. Supposedly we'll be getting a digital copy of the image soon.

Water table fun. 

Turtles are one of Boyd's very favorite animals, so he looks forward to visiting "Chomper."

I always like to get to the Museum when it opens and is less busy. More room to play and no waiting! 

The next day we took another family trip out to a small lake up north that we really like. D brought the snowmachine and hooked it up to a utility sled, which is where Boyd and I hunkered down during the ride. We were all dressed very warm, but the day itself was chilly and the wind on the lake just made it worse.

Loves to pretend drive.

Boyd was actually fine on our short ride down to the lake. However, once we let him out of the sled for a quick walkabout he did not want to get back in and pretty much cried on our whole short ride around the lake and back up to the truck. Ah well, it's always good to get out and every excursion is a learning experience!

The view for Boyd and me. We had a cushion to sit on and then were covered by a big wool blanket. 

When we're in the car or out and about, Boyd absolutely hates to have the sun shining straight into his face. I usually have a pair of sunglasses for him, but last week I forgot and he was fussing up a storm in the backseat. Finally I handed him an extra pair of my shades and laughed so hard when I saw him in my rearview mirror. He looks like an old lady! I felt like I was driving Miss Daisy around town.

Yes madam - where can I chauffeur you today? 

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.