In CA

Pete and I are in CA. We got here Saturday without too many problems. It was a long day of traveling for mom and son. We left the house at 8am MI time and got to CA at 5pm CA time. Basically 12 hours of traveling with a little boy who finds it impossible to nap unless he is in his bed, it's dark and it's perfectly quiet. But he did a great job for not sleeping and being stuck in a seat on mom's lap the whole time. I thought my arms were going to fall off after "restraining" him to our small little space for 3 hours on the first flight. I didn't know how I was going to finish the trip but on the second leg they let me bring Pete's car seat on the place because their were open seats. It gave my arms a break for a little while until he decided the car seat wasn't a lot of fun either and wanted out. But that flight was more manageable and shorter and we were very happy to land on time in Orange County. Grandpa was there waiting and Pete told him all about the trip on the drive home.

The first thing we did after settling in was have In N Out burger. Man that stuff is good. Can't wait to have some more. Pete went to bed pretty easily in the pack n' play but woke up the next morning around 4am. It has taken him almost a week now to get on somewhat of a schedule. But overall he has not been phased too much by the new surroundings, new bed and all the action. We went to my brother, sister-in-law, niece and nephew's house Sat and we stayed over night there Sun night. It was a good time of good eats and catching up. But Mon afternoon I started to feel a little under the weather. By the time I got back to my parents house Mon night I was sick as a dog. I spent the next 2 days in the house and in bed and that was really hard because who wants to be in CA and be stuck inside? I seem to get sick when I travel a lot. I think the stress, lack of sleep and changes in environment take it's toll on me. Thursday I filled my purse with kleenex, saline nasal spray and eye drops and mom, Pete and I headed to the beach. We had a wonderful day walking along the pier and taking some pictures. I was in heaven. Sun on my face and looking at the beach that I love so much. Pete didn't seem to notice we were at the beach but it was fun for me to take him there for the first time. Wish daddy was with us.

Today we laid low, went to Starbucks and did a little shopping. We spent most of the day outside and I even skipped laying down during his afternoon nap for a little time sunbathing in the backyard. Again, heaven. Tomorrow we go spend the day with my best friend and her family and I am looking forward to that time very much. So far my time here has been quite enjoyable. There are always those adjustments you have to make to being in a new place, especially with a baby but I think we are doing pretty well. Pete has captured everyone's hearts. He is a complete doll. One big smile. Doesn't matter who you are, you get a smile, and maybe even a wave. He laughed all night long tonight. Everything was funny. I had tears in my eyes, from laughing and joy. He is a joy, every day. He is asleep now and I can't wait to spend time with him tomorrow. I just with P. could be here with us enjoying the weather. MI is cold and snowy and I am telling him all about being outside in the sun with shorts and a tanktop on. He is happy for us though. And my little white boy is getting some color, he needs it. We have a busy next few days with family and friends. Most days are filling up with time with either friends or family. We might try to fit in a day to Disneyland and I am going to see Reba with my sister-in-law at The Honda Center on Sat the 28th. Can't wait!

Here are some of my favorite pictures from the trip so far. If you are in MI or CO sorry for bragging. On a day like today I wonder why I ever left.....but then I hang out with my mom and remember why sometimes it is so good to be far away. I will try to check in again soon.

Have I Mentioned......?

Have I mentioned how much I love this little boy? I spend every day, all day with him and I just can't get enough of him. Yes, things are getting busier and messier, and quite a bit more active but he is still the cutest, sweetest, best little boy in the whole world. And have I mentioned how cute he is???? :)

So, Pete and I are traveling to CA on Saturday to spend a couple weeks with family and friends. It was a last minute trip through a friend of mine whose husband works for Southwest and I am flying standby all the way there. I am very excited. I have wanted my family and friends to get to know our sweet little boy and now I have my chance. I won't say I am not nervous to travel with him across the country though. He is a very active boy and I can tell sitting on an airplane for 5 hours (and a hour layover in Denver) is not going to be a lot of fun, for him or for me. We went to my doctor's appointment today and he didn't want to sit in his car seat for a half hour, not sure how we are going to do this, but we are. And I am very sad to be leaving P. for 2 weeks. I love spending time with my husband and look forward to seeing him every day. It's going to be hard to be away from him and I am sure Pete will miss him too. He is a great dad and Pete has a lot of fun with him.

I had my doctors appointment a little early because I am leaving for a couple weeks. So it was today. I am almost 14 weeks along and have my 20 weeks ultrasound in exactly 6 weeks from today. March 26 we will get to see our little baby again and hopefully find out if we are having a boy or girl. I can't wait! My best friend Kristyn and I are going to do the drano test again when I am home so we will see what it says.....

I lost another 2 lbs. I was sure I had gained weight this time because I have been feeling better and eat all day long. But no, today I was 154 lbs. Started in Dec at 159. That's ok, it will all catch up to me soon enough. The baby's heart rate was 160 and I asked, does that mean girl, and my doctor said, not necessarily, it is always high in the beginning. Guess we will know in 6 weeks. So everything looked good and we are all set for our trip to CA.

I better go start packing and doing some laundry. Lot's to do before Sat. Here are a couple of my favorite pictures from this week. Like I said, he is getting messy! And the bigger he gets the more CD's he can pull out from the rack. Today he pulled out more than half of the rack. Enjoy and hopefully I will have some time in CA to post an update. If I don't, pray for safe and smooth travels for Pete and I.

A Little Funny From My Father-In-Law

My father-in-law sent this email forward to me today because he knew I would find it funny. Well, actually it is only a little funny. It's more sad but true. I have changed the bad words to less harsh ones just in case my kids read this someday and because I am not a fan of cuss words. But it is funnier with the bad ones in there. Still funny though. If you are from MI and love living here sorry for the put down. It's just not for everyone and not for this CA girl. Here we go....

Aug. 12 - Moved into our new home in Mich. It is so beautiful here. The hills and river valleys are so picturesque. I have a beautiful old oak tree in my front yard. Can hardly wait to see the change of seasons. This is truly God's Country.
Oct. 14 - Michigan is such a gorgeous place to live, one of the real special places on earth. The leaves are turning a multitude of different colors. I love all of the shades of reds, oranges and yellows, they are so bright. I want to walk through all of the beautiful hills and spot some white tail deer. They are so graceful; certainly they must be the most peaceful creatures on Earth. This must be paradise.
Nov. 11 - Deer season opens this week. I can't imagine why anyone would want to shoot these elegant animals. They are the very symbol of peace and tranquility. I hope it snows soon. I love it here!
Dec. 2 - It snowed last night. I woke to the usual wonderful sight: everything covered in a beautiful blanket of white. The oak tree is magnificent. It looks like a postcard. We went out and swept the snow from the steps and driveway. The air is so crisp, clean and refreshing. We had a snowball fight. I won, and the snowplow came down the street. He must have gotten too close to the driveway because we had to go out and shovel the end of the driveway again. What a beautiful place. Nature in harmony, I love it here!
Dec.12 - More snow last night. I love it! The plow did his cute little trick again. What a rascal. A winter wonderland. I love it here!
Dec. 19 - More snow - couldn't get out of the driveway to get to work in time. I'm exhausted from all of the shoveling. And that snowplow!
Dec. 21 - More of that white crap coming down. I've got blisters on my hands and a kink in my back. I think that the snowplow driver waits around the corner until I'm done shoveling the driveway.
Dec. 25 - White Christmas? More freakin' snow. If I ever get my hands on the SOB who drives that snowplow, I swear I'll castrate him. And why don't they use more salt on these roads to melt this crap?
Dec. 28 - It hasn't stopped snowing since Christmas. I have been inside since then, except of course when that SOB "Snowplow Harry" comes by. Can't go anywhere, cars are buried up to the windows. Weather man says to expect another 10 inches. Do you have any idea how many shovelfuls 10 inches is?
Jan. 1 - Happy New Year? The way it's coming down it won't melt until the 4th of July! The snowplow got stuck down the road and the jerk actually had the balls to come and ask to borrow a shovel! I told him I'd broken six already this season.
Jan. 4 - Finally got out of the house. We went to the store to get some food and a stupid deer ran out in front of my car and I hit the thing. It did $5,000 in damage to the car. Those beasts ought to be killed. The hunters should have a longer season if you ask me.
Jan. 27 - Warmed up a little and rained today. The rain turned the snow into ice and the weight of it broke the main limb of the oak tree in the front yard and it went through the roof. I should have cut that old piece of crap into firewood when I had the chance.
May 23 - Took my car to the local garage. Would you believe the whole underside of the car is rusted away from all of that salt they dump on the road? Car looks like a bashed up, heap of rusted cow poop.
May 30 - Sold the car, the house, and moved to Florida . I can't imagine why anyone in their freakin' mind would ever want to live in the God forsaken state of Michigan .

Ha. Something not so funny today, we tried to go to the grocery store and on the way Pete threw-up. He never throws up so it not only freaked him out but I was pretty shaken up. I heard him gurgling and gasping and then it was everywhere. If he was ok we probably would have continued on to the store but we could tell he was having a hard time. We brought him home because he was just not well and he has been sleeping since. Poor little guy. The morning started weird so now that I look back on it I am not sure he has been feeling well all day. And I keep thinking back to what I fed him. I have been letting him taste what I am eating more often and today he took a bite of my bagel, some watermelon and a few sips of a smoothie I had made. Might have been too much for his virgin stomach.

Anyway, I am sure he will be fine and hopefully be back to his silly self again soon. I am going to work on putting the Accord up on Craigslist so I can get it sold and start driving my new van. Just wanted to share the email on MI. Let's just say I am looking forward to spring....or moving! :)

13 Weeks and Pete turns 10 Months

I am 13 weeks and starting to show! This week my stomach totally popped and today I actually wore maternity pants. It is amazing how quickly I started to look pregnant. Someone that didn't know me wouldn't be able to tell yet but I can, and P. can. It's pretty neat but at the same time a little scary. If I look like this now what am I going to look like 6 months from now? Will I get stretch marks this time around? How will I come back from a bigger belly when I never really did the first time. Oh well, those are all silly things a woman worries about. Back to the important stuff.....I am still feeling pretty good. I am hoping it still gets better from here though, soon. We have a doctor's appointment a week from Monday and I look forward to hearing the heartbeat again and getting some info back from our ultrasound and other tests. I will try to take some pictures tomorrow to start my belly log.

Pete is now 10 months old. This week has been so much fun with him. This is officially my favorite age but like P. says, every age is my favorite age. I love how interactive he is getting and how much I see him learn and enjoy every day. He loves to explore everything, every cabinet, every drawer, every everything. My house has never been this messy, ever. But that's ok because he is learning and having fun and it's nothing I can't put back together at the end of the day. Here is our little explorer investigating the pots and pans.I took him to the mall and we played in the kids area. He loved it so much we went back the next day. He made a friend right off the bat, ventured off on his own and came running back to mom each time. He smiled at all the kids and watched the older ones run around with amazement. I can't wait to find more new things for us to do and see his sweet face soak it all in. This is his friend Lydia, they followed each other everywhere.And here is a picture of Pete eating watermelon. He likes it but it is not a very clean food for a baby. We had to change his outfit after this meal.More updates this week and like I said, belly pictures to come. Oh and a couple more things. There is no movement on the house. The weather was 50 degrees here today and it was such a nice relief to run errands and be in just a sweatshirt and comfortable. And I am going to FL with my friend Erin for a long weekend in March. I can't wait. Can't wait to see her and put my feet in the sand, lay on the beach and sleep in. How will I be away from my little boy? P. took him to Walmart tonight and was gone for a couple hours and I couldn't wait for him to get home. I was happy to see P. too of course. :) Will Pete be ok without me? Will I be able to enjoy my vacation without seeing him for 3 days? But I can't help but be ready for a warm getaway and a little mommy break. Yay!

Super Bowl

We went to the church again for their Super Bowl party and once again it was a big ol' bash. Tons of food, games, prizes and a good game if you are rooting for Pittsburgh. We are not. P. doesn't like the Steelers and if I don't prefer one team over the other I always root for the underdog. So far it is not going our way, but that's ok, it is a good game.

This year we had Pete so the party was a little different for us. Not bad different, just different. I found myself watching my sweet boy more than the game. I was more concerned with entertaining him than being entertained. And he did great. At first he hung back and checked everything out from his car seat. Then when he felt safe enough to come out he hung out in his highchair playing with football decorations that were on the table. When he got antsy I walked him around to check out all the kids playing Wii, ping pong, and this football punting game. He would get everyone's attention by staring at them or grunting at them then smile and wave. Then while we ate some dessert he ate some cereal and we headed home at half time to get him to bed. He is a great boy and we can take him anywhere. Here are some pics from tonight and one from this past week of him and the dogs.Oh and his new favorite thing is to hang upside down when dad puts him on his shoulders.
12 weeks! Officially through the first trimester. I have been soooo hungry the past couple of days. For about 2 months now I have survived on bland crackers/toast, cereals and fruit. The baby must have gotten hungry because all of a sudden no matter what I eat it is not enough. I can eat a full breakfast and be hungry a half hour later. Last night we went to Panera for dinner. I had a sandwich, salad, bag of chips and an iced-tea. Then I ate a bagel with cream cheese. Then I had P. go back and get me another bagel and cream cheese. About an hour later we had snacks, punch and birthday cake at a friends house. I don't want to eat this much and I am not trying to eat a lot, I am just starving. Hopefully it will calm down in a few days. Maybe the baby is going through a growth spurt. The morning sickness has been worse the past few days and I have felt some tugging, pulling and cramping lately so the baby might be growing. Overall the morning sickness is better than it was but I still deal with it every day. My evenings and nights are pretty miserable still. So I am getting pretty excited about the new baby. I can't wait to hold him/her for the first time and lay them on my chest. I can't wait to see their face.

Time to put my feet up. Have a great week!

Pictures

11 weeks. Deja vu huh? Oh well. As long as the baby is still healthy I don't mind. How am I doing. Better. Not great, but better. I am eating more and enjoying it.

I have so many great photos from this week that it was hard to chose which ones I wanted to share. Pete is growing up so fast. Every day he gets smarter and cuter. I didn't know that was possible! Here are some of my favorites.

This is Pete getting into trouble with the electrical cords behind the couch. One second he was next to me the next I heard something behind me. I got a picture then quickly moved the couch to retrieve my son. That won't be so easy when I am 9 months pregnant.
The chair obstacle course. He finds this fun for a few minutes until he gets stuck and mommy has to come save him.
Cheese! I can't get enough of this smile. I wish you could all see it in person.Pete and I at our friends house for dinner.
Mom and Pete today. Mom got a new short haircut.
Me and my boy. Look at that sweet smile.
Oh yeah, and the dogs, my girls. I guess they are pretty cute too. You gotta keep warm somehow out here.
No pictures of my hubby, not because he isn't loved but because he was either at work or behind the camera. Thanks for looking and loving. If I had one wish it would be that everyone we love could be a part of our every day lives and get to know our sweet little boy. I am so proud of him and know you would fall in love with everything about him if you had the chance to get to know him. God made such a perfect little being and gave him to us and I can't imagine my life without him.

Ultrasound Pics

Here is our little boy or girl. You can see the whole body here starting with the head on the left, arm, body and legs.
And here is a picture of him/her bouncing around. You can still see the head and body and slightly see the arms and legs but the little thing was moving all over it was hard to catch a better shot.
And this is just a picture of his/her head and arm. It kind of looked like he/she was waving at us so the technician wrote HI MOM on the picture. And that's our baby. Can't wait to get the next ultrasound and find out what kind of private parts we have growing!

We got to see our little baby today. Our little, little baby. Our little baby went too and watched the little thing move around on the screen. Because I was nursing Pete when we conceived they were not sure of the due date. They originally estimated August 7th but I was sure that was a little early according to my calculations. The ultrasound today showed me at about 10 weeks putting my due date more like Aug 15th. Which is only a week later and in reality babies can come anytime 2 weeks earlier or later but it was good to know more of an exact date. So, unfortunately we have to take a week away. I went from 11 weeks pregnant to 10 weeks. It's hard to think I have lost a week that I worked so hard to make it through. But we saw a sweet little head, arms, body and legs, all forming right on schedule. He/she was active, bouncing around so much it was hard for the technician to catch the heartbeat. But she got it and it was high, 176. Girl???? What a blessing to get to see our little one today. Here is a picture of us after the ultrasound with our sweet babies. I will try to scan the ultrasound pics soon. Pete had a doctors appointment today too. 9 months, height 28", weight 17lbs 11 oz, healthy, happy and right on schedule. Skinny though. Apparently he is in the 80th percentile of height and 15% of weight. He didn't get that from me, I have never been classified as skinny, or lean or anything of the sort. He doesn't look skinny, does he? The doctor answered all my paranoid mommy questions like is he eating enough, am I feeding him the right things, is it ok that his knees are always bruised from crawling all day, is his pee pee normal, should he been getting flouride, etc, etc. But then, Pete had to get a blood test because we live in a house built before the 60's and they need to test for lead. Can you say, mother's worst nightmare. We had to hold him down, keep his arm out, they had to put that tie around his arm but then couldn't find a vein. He cried, they poked, poked around some more, and he cried some more and all the while we are having to hold him down and watch this happen. In the end they never were able to draw blood and we have to go back again later to try again. Heartbreaking. Poor little feller. Anyway, the most important part of today was that he is healthy and happy and once again I end my day thanking God for such a wonderful little boy that I am so proud of every minute of every day. Here are a couple pictures of him today. One of him at his appointment with his nice doctor who calls him Peter. And one of him being silly with dad while eating dinner. I say "Cheese!" and he gives me his goofy smile, eyes shut. Dad joined in. I love my boys. Enjoy.

Updates

11 weeks pregnant today. I am almost done with my first trimester! P., Pete and I went to my second prenatal appointment yesterday, first official doctor's appointment, and I was reminded of why I chose to put myself through this again. For awhile there I was wondering "What was I thinking??????" We heard the strong steady heartbeat and for the first time since seeing that positive pregnancy test I was excited again.

At my first appointment 3 1/2 weeks ago I weighed 159. 8 lbs more than my first prenatal appointment with Pete. I never got around to losing that last few pounds of baby weight but I think I did pretty well. Yesterday I weighed 156. Pregnancy is the only diet that has ever worked for me. And I am not even trying, in fact, I would much rather be able to eat than feel the way I do all day every day. I almost feel hate towards the "man" that named morning sickness, morning sickness. The name doesn't give those of us who feel sick from the minute they wake up until the minute they go to bed enough credit. I make a point of eating whether it sounds good or not for the sake of Pete, the baby and my extremely tired body hence only losing 3 lbs. It could have been a lot worse. My doctor scheduled an ultrasound for Monday to check how far along I am. Because I am still nursing Pete my cycle is not regular and I could have ovulated anywhere within a two week period. I am thrilled that we get to see our little baby this early. God knew I needed the encouragement right now.

Oh and I liked my new doctor. I wasn't completely happy with my last doctors so I changed to a different office and so far I like it. She took her time with me and gave me the compassion I needed regarding my nausea.

Now on to some Pete updates. Oh Pete. My sweet baby boy. I could go on for hours about how proud I am of him. What a great little guy. I can't believe how fast he is growing up. He can feed himself now, pull himself up to stand on pretty much any piece of furniture, he gets people's attention to smile and talk to them and sits in highchairs in restaurants and shopping carts like a big boy now. Pete is such a good boy. We can take Pete anywhere, anytime. Everywhere we take him people comment on what a good, happy boy we have. Today we went to the Olive Garden for lunch and probably 10 people in the restaurant stopped to compliment us on how well behaved Pete was. The waitress fell in love with him. He sat quietly and played with the sugar packed and straws. He ate his food, smiled at everyone, talked with the waitress every time she came by and even though he was tired after a long day of running errands and driving around never once fussed about anything. At the end of every day I can't imagine loving or being more proud of our little boy. I wish everyone we knew could be a part of Pete's life. He is truly a blessing in every way.

Another update....our house is officially up for sale. It went on the market on Monday. We had 6 showings and an Open House in one week with no interest or offer. Am I discouraged, sure. But I never had high hopes for selling it in the first place. With the market and the type of house we are trying to sell I would have been very surprised if we got an offer in the first week. But I still have hope. It will eventually sell. Hopefully soon, probably later. I just have to have patience and trust that when God is done with us here in Grand Rapids that we will be free to move on, to warmer and sunnier days. If you pray, pray that our house sells and P. can find a job back out west. We are ready to go.

I would talk about the weather but I don't want to ruin the mood. Let's just say I am not looking forward to the heating bill this month! Thanks for checking in and stay tuned.

Looking Outside

Now that the Christmas tree is gone we have access to the front window again. Here is a picture of Pete looking outside at our snow covered front yard.

A tooth!

Pete got a tooth, finally. Bottom, front, left. We had no idea. All of a sudden it was there. There were no signs from Pete that a tooth was breaking through his little gums. And you would never know he has been so sick these past few days. Through a stomach bug, throwing up, having diarrhea and now a cold...and a tooth, Pete was never fussy. Not a single fuss or whimper. Just a happy, content baby. That's our boy.

I can't get a picture of the tooth yet because it's just barely above the gums. But as soon as you see it in his sweet smile I will show ya. But here is a pic of him and dogs today. No room for Pete on the bed but that didn't stop him from trying.

Pete Turns 9 Months

Pete turned 9 months old yesterday. Our little baby is growing up so fast. Everyday we see a change in Pete whether physically or mentally. He loves to stand but forgets he needs to hold on to something to stay up so falls a lot. Most of the time he is ok but once in a while he bonks his head pretty good and needs mom to run and comfort him. I don't mind. I just hate to see him hurt. We have had dad home with us for 2 weeks now over the holidays and it has been great. I have needed the help desperately and Pete has loved all the extra time with dad. P. is such a great dad and I don't know what I am going to do when he goes back to work tomorrow. This pregnancy has taken everything out of me, literally. With Pete I was just sick. With this one, I am sick times 10 and completely exhausted . It's like my body can't find the extra energy to grow this baby. I am worried about it's health only because I don't feel healthy myself. But they say the baby will take what it needs from you at your expense, hence the way I feel I guess. I just don't know what I am going to do if this lasts 21 weeks like it did with Pete. I can't do this for another 3-4 months. But I will and it will all be worth it. Right now August seems really far away.

What else can I update you on......
Well, since I haven't really blogged on anything in over a month I will give you a quick update. Christmas was really nice. Katie was home for a week and we spent a couple days up north with my in-laws. Besides having morning sickness all through Christmas it was a good time for all. Pete had no idea what was going on but it was great to share it all with him anyway. I got a baby video monitor that I love. It works in the dark. Now I can sit and stare at my baby boy all night long and never have to go in to check on him. We stayed home and went to bed before midnight on New Year's Eve. To sum up 2008...pregnant, had a baby, baby is 9 months old, pregnant again. What a year. Best of my life. Being a mom is the best, and hardest thing I have ever done in my whole life. And having a partner like P. makes it all that much better, and easier. 2009 hasn't started out that well but I plan on it getting better. We all came down with a stomach bug and spent days sick or recovering. Like I needed a stomach bug....Ha.

December in MI was terrible. We had record breaking amounts of snow, freezing temps every day and get this less than 4% sunshine. 8 hours of sunshine all month. 8 hours. Not 8 days, 8 hours. Ugh. 2009 resolution, move somewhere warmer.

So I am done with my update and ready for bed. I miss blogging I just don't have the energy for it much anymore. Enjoy a sweet video of Pete laughing with dad. These laughs make it all worth it.
And here is a picture of our big boy in his little boy bathtub. I guess it's time to move him to the tub.

Mommy's Pregnant!!!!!

I had such grand plans for announcing my pregnancy on my blog for all to see. I was going to come up with a cute way to share the news, talk about how we found out, how I was feeling and put it all up here Christmas Day as our "Christmas surprise". Instead, I waited and I got sick. And boy am I sick. I thought I was sick with Pete, and I was, but this time I am SICK, SICK. Like can't get out of bed, if I do just head straight to the bathroom sick. So, this is my announcement, short but sweet. And yes, it is still sweet news. We are thrilled. Our baby is due August 7, 2009 and I am currently 8 weeks along. I would write more but I want to go to bed. The only time I don't feel sick is when I am sleeping. Here are some hilarious pictures of Pete right after I took my pregnancy test. I came out of the bathroom, he had just woken up from a nap, and gave him the test to see. I gave him a big kiss and realized, maybe he shouldn't be holding the test I just peed on. So I took it back and he wasn't happy about that. Honestly, Pete never cries. He never gets upset about anything but this time he wanted that test back. I grabbed my camera, gave it back to him and got a classic shot of what looks like his reaction to the news.

Here are a few pictures from this weekend of our little man and the dogs. This morning I caught all three of them watching the snow fall in the backyard.

Here is Pete all bundled up on the way to the mall today. Yes, despite the blizzard we ventured out to the mall. I needed to get out of the house and P. needed to stop by work to take care of something. I say "cheese" and he smiles at me. Normally he squeezes his eyes closed but today he wasn't that into it. Pete loves the dogs bed. I hate that he does because he comes out of it with his knees all covered in dog hair but it is really cute to see him sitting in it either by himself or with Serra. Abby won't stay if Pete is around. Tonight Serra and Pete were like a Hallmark card. She was looking at him, he was looking at her, you could see the interest and curiosity while they hung out.
The weather here has been ridiculous lately. How do I explain to my family and friends in CA what we go through every day here? I can't. My friends and family told me they were "freezing" this last week in Southern CA. Temps in the 40's! 40's!!!!! What would I give for a day in the 40's. Most days we are lucky to get out of the 20's, lately with windchills we stay in the teens. Here are a couple of pictures of our grocery store parking lot today. With more to come Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday we are uncertain of our holiday travels and ready for spring to come.Hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas this week. We are especially excited about our first Christmas with our son. He has made our life better than I ever could have imagined. Stay tuned for holiday updates and pictures. See ya back here on Christmas day.....

Oh, and one more picture of our baby boy pulling himself up on the coffee table to say hi....and find something to play with. (Rachel, do the pajamas in these pictures look familiar? Thank you!!!!)

My Family

Hanging out together today. By the way, the dogs were just sitting that way on their own, butt to butt. No strategic placing for the photo by us. Cute huh?

Sweet Pete

A couple cute pictures of Pete from this week. He is crawling all over and pushing himself up on things to stand. He loves the kitchen cabinets but can't quite open them himself yet. He sits in front of it and grunts until I open it for him then he pulls out whatever he can get his hands on. Because he is so active now I couldn't leave him alone while I went to get the laundry tonight so I put him in the laundry basket and carried him with me. He thought it was hilarious.

Pete Chasing His Crackers

Pete is cruising. Here is a video of daddy making him chase after his cracker biscuit. In the end Pete gets a bite of biscuit and daddy sneaks in a kiss. I love when Pete stops for a second and sticks his bottom up in the air then keeps going. Makes me laugh every time. Pete is such a joy. I have loved every stage of his life so far from the couple day old little blob in my arms to the reactive, silly 8 month old crawling and exploring this world.

There were times this weekend when I felt overwhelming contentment. I felt like I couldn't ask for anything else in this world that would make me any happier than how I felt right then. On the way to the mall Saturday I heard the Martina McBride song Blessed. I never really paid much attention to this song and to tell you the truth, never really liked it that much. But Saturday the words spoke right to me and I knew then that this was exactly how I felt about my life.

Here is a little bit of the song:

I think to myself, I think to myself
This world is a beautiful place
I have been blessed
And I feel like I've found my way
I thank God for all I've been given
At the end of every day
I have been blessed
With so much more than I deserve
To be here with the ones
That love me
To love them so much it hurts
I have been blessed

Here is another short video of Pete. He does this thing where when you say "Petesy wins!" he puts his arms up in the air like a celebration or touchdown. Love it. Check it out.

And last but not least a picture from the ITT Christmas Party Saturday night. Good times with our good friends Rachel and John.

Watch out! Pete is on the move!

It took Pete about a week to go completely mobile. He is officially into everything. We have a step into our kitchen and he figured out how to get up it in about 3 minutes on Thanksgiving night. He loves to crawl around and find the dog's toys and put them in his mouth. He crawls right past his own toys. The Christmas decorations on the floor or near to the ground are in danger of being destroyed by the end of this year. Some have scared him quite a bit when they fall over next to or onto him. We have had a lot of falls and bumps on the head lately. He will forget to hold himself up as he reaches for something and topple over, usually face first. He cries, mama picks him up and we get a little cuddling time in before he wants to get down and move again.

Here are funny pictures of him getting into the Christmas stuff. Good thing our tree is high enough off the ground that he can't quite reach it. Not that he didn't try.Checking out the baby bottle tree my dad made from hand years ago. Check out this hilarious face he made after the Santa fall over. Chewing on an electrical cord. And a couple pics of our recent snowfall. Here is P. out snow blowing our driveway. Our backyard.