It's interesting (probably only to me) to watch this blog's progression...first, a weekly recap of the incredibly full, fun, and decadent life Scott and I were leading, then we had a baby and it became ALL about Noah, and now it seems to be coming into a bit of balance. While Noah is still, obviously, the focus of the blog and our lives, Scott and I seem to be carrying on a life outside of Noah as well. Of course, Noah is usually with us every step of the way, but it looks a bit like that former life we used to know!
This past week Noah was actually not along side us, though. Scott and I embarked on our first vacation (or even overnight) alone since the peanut was born. My mom flew out to stand in for mom and dad while we gallivanted around wine country. We could not be more thankful for her being here as it allowed both of us to truly relax knowing the Noah was in the best possible hands (seriously, he probably got more attention than when we are home!).
Day 1 away was chock full of wine tasting. Seriously, I don't know how we even got out of bed the next day...there was a lot of whining.
When we checked into our amazing hotel we were told we had been upgraded to a suite. I am 99% sure that this has NEVER happened to me before. It was divine.
That night we went to The Girl & the Fig for dinner. And took pictures of each other across the table...just like old times!
I sure do love him.
The initial reason behind our weekend getaway was Pam & Jeremy's wedding. Lucky for us, it just so happened to fall on the weekend before our anniversary so we got a two for one deal! ANYWAY, after dinner, we decided more drinking seemed reasonable so we met up with these lovely ladies (and their dates).
And the next day, to avoid a certain death, we camped by the pool and nursed our hangovers so we could rally for...
The wedding! Seriously, amazing. It was unbelievable...not a detail left untended.
Thank, Crick, for supplying my wedding fashion this season!
I mean, seriously?! Could this place be more beautiful?!
I will leave you to create your own caption for this photo. Let's just say I miss these characters!
Any more takers on caption ideas?!
Out of order...but a little pre-wedding celebration.
Scott learned about Instagram...it was a good day.
Sunday was spent in pure luxury. Rotating in and out of naps, laying by the pool, and staying at the hotel for dinner. Our hotel reminded us SO much of our honeymoon in Tuscany and we took advantage of the chance to truly relax. Monday we were extremely anxious to get home to our boy. I am pretty sure Scott sped the whole way to avoid hearing me whine about how badly I wanted to get him in my arms!
PEANUT!!!!! This is after bath that night...LOOK at that hair. One of these days we'll stop his comb-over :-).
Going away was much needed and so much fun, but coming home from vacation now that we have a son is pretty great, too. As I have blogged about before, Scott and I both want to make sure we always make time for US in order to keep our relationship healthy so we can be the best parents and individuals for our Noah. I can't think of a better way to spend our anniversary weekend...it was the perfect blend of activities, relaxation, one-on-one time, and time with friends. Only down side...by the time our actual anniversary rolled around on Tuesday we were SPENT! We pretty much said "cheers" and goodnight!
I'll be back with Noah's week 42 update. It will be pretty short since we spent a majority of the week in a wine induced stupor :-).
My jammy girl sleeping away. Her muzzle went grey at about 2 years old...silly anxious dog.
I am starting this post the night before we have to say goodbye to Lola. How do you even get to the point where you have to schedule your best friend's end? It is pretty much horrific and I don't wish it on my worst enemy. It has been my finest moment in procrastination ever and there was never a more appropriate time.
Lola on our move out west.
My Lola (I can't help but say "my" even though I know and Scott has reminded me that she is our family...this is oh so true, but stick with me and you'll see why "my" comes naturally) came into my life in 2005. I was an intern at Crocs and about to start my full time adult life as a PR career-woman the following week. What better weekend to get a puppy, right?! Suffice it to say, I have grown up a lot since Lola came into my life and I would consider myself a better decision maker these days. However, I wouldn't change this decision for anything. To not know my Lola would have left me a different person.
Seriously, this dog had me wrapped around her paw from day one.
I told Scott tonight that Lola taught me how to be a mom. Lola was a demanding, whiny, pain-in-the-you-know-what. You see, from the moment Lola came home she had me on my toes. She had kennel cough so badly that I am pretty sure it was never 100% cured. That, combined with her inconsolable separation anxiety (and crazy demeanor in general) made for demanding early days. Lola destroyed the molding around doors and even a couple of actual doors with her scratching and need to get to her people. Because, let's face it, that is all Lola has ever wanted. Her people. She is the most well behaved, sensitive, licky, happy little girl as long as her people are around. But hop out of the car to pump some gas and you will have a lunatic on her hands.
Lola and her daddy. She is his girl, too.
This is where Arnold entered the picture. He was/is the antithesis of Lola. You could leave him with some food and water and he wouldn't miss you for a couple days (aside from his morning scratches). But, since this isn't about Arnold, I will save my rave reviews of him for another day. Suffice it to say, he helped Little Miss Lola A LOT. She calmed down once she had a friend, but I wouldn't say she was cured.
Snuggle monsters back in Colorado. I worry about AP without his sidekick.
Lola was a companion. She wanted to be with me always. Anywhere we went, she was right on my heels. I never had to put her on a leash, even as a puppy. Straying was not in her nature...she was mine and that's how we both wanted it. Lola quickly made it clear that crate training was not going to work out and snuggled in to life as a 5th appendage. And there she has stayed.
My little hiking buddy.
I truly believe that Lola is being taken away because she was sent to be with me when I truly needed her. Of course, I still need her and still want her, but I am in a different place now than I was in 2005 or even last year. Scott says to everyone, "Thank God she has Noah". Because he knows that not having my first fur baby would be unbearable without my Noah. Lola taught me patience, understanding, rule setting (yeah, I was awesome at that...hence I learned the lesson that I need to be better!), and true love.
At our house in SF.
I went through so much self exploration in my lifetime with Lola. To be honest, I grew up. She saw me through some rough moments in this growth...licking every salty tear she could find! Lola had a sixth sense for a sad mom. She knew the exact moment to snuggle in and care. She also joined in some of the happiest moments of my life. She was right there, tail wagging, ball chasing, tongue wagging, when Scott proposed. Lola had an energy in her life that could not be contained.
Snuggling me whenever I needed it most.
I often joked (yes, this makes me hate myself now) that Lola was taking off half her lifespan with the amount she ran and span. When we hiked, she would run ahead and then run back to make sure I was still there. When we came in the door, she would spin like a top until she was satisfied with our greeting. Lola was a 9lb. greyhound! This dog LOVED a good run. She came along as Scott and trained for the SF Half Marathon and was still raring to go.
Once, Lola ran away because she was afraid of the smoke detector. When we got her back we gave her a million snuggles and a bath as a punishment ;-).
Unfortunately, the girl snuggled up to me now is not this same pup. She is 7 years old and pretty much incapable of walking. She still spins, but can't really stop and it isn't so much voluntary. Lola has a cancerous tumor in/around her spine and the medicine has reached its limit. Finding the strength to actually let her go has been agonizing. I knew it was a matter of time, but the past few days have been rough. I know she isn't happy...she can't run to greet us, she can't jump on her couch and look out the window, she can barely make it out the doggy door. She is s shell of her former self and if I look at it objectively, I have been keeping her around for me. I tried to let her go on Tuesday but I choked. I wasn't ready...so I let her get worse.
Running since the beginning.
I told Scott today I wouldn't be able to do this until someone told me, "You are f***ing crazy and need to let her go, she is miserable". He took a few expletives out, but pretty much laid it out in plain truth tonight. And he is right. My girl is suffering. She needs to be able to run Crissy Field in doggy heaven and be free of this disease.
She can be so pretty when she's calm!
Cancer sucks. I know that Lola is a dog and it doesn't compare to human affliction. But she is mine, and saying goodbye is horrendous. I decided that being a grown up sucks. I want to tuck tail and let someone else hold her while she exits our world. But what kind of mom would I be to leave my girl when she needs me most? So, tomorrow today, I will hold her and kiss her and let her go. I will be there for her, just like she has always been there for me. If dogs had tears I would lick every salty one (seriously, give me points here for comedic effort!).
My first two babies...one furry, one not so much.
It hurts like hell to say goodbye to my girl, my friend, my companion. I will miss her more than I think I even know but I will talk about her constantly and tell Noah all about his first puppy. We'll give Snooch so much extra love that he might vacate the premises. I am not sure one dog can handle love for both of them!
In a few weeks we will be returning Lola to Crissy Field where she can play ball and run forever!
Lola, bucket, banana, jammie, jam jam, jam-i-kins; I will miss you and I love you. Thank you for the past 7 years...I couldn't have done it without you.
And just like that, time marches on. On to the next week, next scrunchy face, next scream because I took my hair brush away. One little man has so many opinions. And it is 100% amazing.
Our little monkey.
The light bulb goes off - This is a bit delayed as I meant to type it last week (have to give my boy the credit where due) BUT, we have officially started catching on to the fact that Noah really "gets" things. He knows what his ball is, what "no" means (not that he behaves when told), and a variety of other words and phrases. He is truly beginning to have a strong opinion of likes and dislikes and will shower us with all the smiles in the world when he is happy...which is 99% of the time. Sigh...I have a wonderful little boy.
Look at that belly!!
Mom needed to fill a few hours so we went and toddled around Dad's work.
London Bridge Our bed is Falling Down - After cautiously climbing into bed for the past 9 months, trying to minimize the ever present creaking, our bed bit the dust. We had been daydreaming about a new bed for months but kept putting it off in favor of spending money elsewhere. However, when your husband is sleeping on a downhill slope, it is time to pop for the new frame. In the meantime, it is the best toy EVER. Noah gravitates to our bedroom and when you round the corner and see him headed toward the mattress he speeds up and scurries onto the bed to nuzzle, roll, flop and giggle! He will be one sad peanut when the new bed arrives.
I owe you a picture of him playing on the bed...until then more macaroni shots!
Bye bye - Noah caught us by surprise the other day...I was standing in the doorway and waved "bye bye" and Noah looked right at me, waved and said something that sounded a heck of a lot like bye bye. Scott and I both looked at each other as if to say, "did you hear it, too?". He isn't a pro just yet but from time to time he will recreate his moment of genius! For the record, he waves all the time...usually to people who have no idea that he is waving to them (i.e.-the men washing my car at the car wash this week).
Saying hi to the baby ostriches.
Let's be honest, Noah is pretty darn cute and makes me smile constantly. However, I am not very capable of concentrating on his news this week because it is Lola's news that is consuming me. Thank God for my little boy who is keeping me happy! Lola's post coming up in a bit.
40 weeks. Yes, that means my little peanut has been out as long as he was in. It is amazing that little ones go from a thought to a person in 9 months and then a blob to a fun, stubborn, smiley, walking little boy in 9 more months.
40 in.
40 out.
9 Month Tid Bits:
Food - Noah likes anything that involves cheese and some kind of bread-like product. Macaroni stand NO chance against our little eater. He is still taking about 20 oz. of formula daily but we are going to start tapering back on his morning bottle as he is not eating breakfast as a result of being too full. He is getting most of his veggies from Plum Baby Food pouches but that is mostly because we are on the go a lot and it is the easiest way to fill him up AND get the good stuff in (most restaurants don't have over steamed broccoli on the menu).
Macaroni Monster!
Sleep - Noah is still a wonderful sleeper. He takes two naps daily (9am & 2pm), each about 2 hours, and sleeps from 7:30pm to 6am. 6am now officially feels like 4am to me even though it is a completely reasonable time to rise. I never was an early riser but I am trying my best to acclimate.
Teeth - Two bottom toofers! According to the pediatrician he is working on two more down there and two on top. No word on when they might actually make an appearance though.
Noises - (no real changes from 8 months) Ba, ba, ba and Ma, ma, ma. No new "words" this month but he
is definitely getting louder! He gets very feisty when he isn't getting
what he wants and also squeals with excitement these days.
Favorites - Walking, macaroni, blueberries, leaf "hunting", running away from my when I chase him, balls, dancing.
Not so favorites - Being confined, sleeping past 6am, getting dressed, diaper
changes, not getting to eat when mom & dad have food (we always give him something but are still taken back by his screams when we grab something for ourselves).
Leaf Hunting - I mentioned that one of Noah's favorite things to do is leaf hunt. Now that he is walking, the house just doesn't seem to be big enough for all his energy so we have been trying to play outside more (ok, a ton). The thing that makes that very difficult is his need to put every leaf he finds in his mouth. That, along with any other non-edible ground item creates a lot of "NO!"s every time we leave the hosue.
Two
favorites in one: ball and leaf hunting. Well, in this case, dandelion hunting.
Noah, No! - Speaking of, no... Noah definitely understands what no means but has not taken to actually abiding by my rules just yet. Every time I tell him no he takes pause, looks at me, and 99% of the time continues with the naughty action. Dog food/bowls are especially fun for testing the limits!
Grown Up Fun - We had a great weekend last weekend that included a date night AND a trip to Napa to soak up some sun, and, of course, plenty of wine! Who would believe we have a 9 month old...we are like our fun old selves!!!!
Giants Date Night.
Kirk & Jess at Nickel.
Cat Scratch Fever - Noah found out the hard way that cats are not man's best friend. Terra is the Frog's Leap house cat. This is the LAZIEST cat I have ever seen. It is always perched up on a chair or in front of the fireplace and I have never seen the cat so much as flinch. I figured this was a pretty harmless kitty and let Noah pet his tail. Well, Noah got bored with that and moved to Terra's hindquarters. Not ok. Terra wigged and scratched Noah's arm with his non-declawed front paws. Noah was surprisingly ok about this and even wanted to go back for more (bleeding arm and all). All boy, I tell ya. All boy.
Terra. More feisty than she looks!
I owe this post some 9 month "formal" pictures. I'll get to work on that as soon as I muster up the strength to have a battle with my little mover (and find a white onesie that fits).
Going for Gold - Scott and I are trying to win a gold medal in the sport of Olympic TV watching. Seriously, NBC is killing me. Two hours of synchronized diving before the good stuff comes on? Tons of filler stories (about 20% of which are moderately interesting) and an end time of MIDNIGHT?! I should have been warned so that I could train appropriately for this marathon of TV viewing. Maybe I'll time my next baby with the next Olympic Games so there is always something on to watch (all hours of day & night...brilliant!). ANYWAY, Scott and I love the Olympics and the summer games hold a special spot in our hearts because 4 years ago we were living in different cities, talking every night while the games were going on and cheering on Michael Phelps in separate time zones. Of course, when we were together we would whip up yummy dinners and snuggle in to watch :-). Kind of crazy all that has happened in four years. I sure do like where we have landed though!
I put one of these into my last post a bit belated but I lack many recent pictures of Scott and I. Apologies for the repeat.
Nom, Nom, Nom - Speaking of Olympics, Noah could win a medal in competitive eating. He will eat pretty much anything I put in front of him and is not very interested in purees any more. This brings to my question of the day, what do you cook your kids?! I contemplate just feeding him what we eat but I am worried about spiciness, sodium levels (I don't cook with much salt but I can't imagine taco seasoning is low in sodium), and likeability (9 month olds aren't seen eating chicken caesar salads very often). But I am struggling with not just giving him cheese and bread products constantly (quesadilla, mac n cheese, ravioli). He gets his veggies via baby food but I need some meals. HELP! Oh, and I should say that he doesn't like a bunch of purees so I need some real baby food.
He needs all that food to fuel his long walks!
Brown Eyed Boy - Our pediatrician said eye color is typically finalized by 9 months. Since Noah turns 9 months tomorrow (eek!) I will go ahead and call his eyes brown. If you want to be reaaaalllllyyy particular they might be a tinge hazel but for all official documents, let's just call them brown! Of course, if you consult the internet there are about a million answers to when eye color is definite and some websites say it can change over the course of your life. But, Noah's eyes are brown...the end.
Written at 8 months...being published at almost 9. Whoops!
8 months old!!!
Kind of a funny smile, but cute no less!
8 Month Tid Bits:
Food - There are very few things off limits in this department any more (except the pediatrician and general mandated 1 year foods). He CHOWS and is loving getting more and more food that he actually has to chew versus purees. He is a pro at munching on pasta and adores Cheerios.
Teeth - One and a half! His first bottom tooth is very prominent and the second has just barely popped.
Noises - Ba, ba, ba and Ma, ma, ma. No new "words" this month but he is definitely getting louder! He gets very feisty when he isn't getting what he wants and also squeals with excitement these days.
Favorites - Standing, solid foods, hummus, ice cream (yes, mother of they year over here), playing with the dishwasher, dancing.
Not so favorites - Being confined, sleeping past 6am (we've improved from 5am! Dare I hope for 7am for month 9?), getting dressed, diaper changes.
Overall - Noah is so incredibly full of life. He is constantly seeking out new things to explore and is always living life on the edge trying to accomplish something never done before (i.e.-climbing into the suitcase or going down stairs standing).
These pictures are increasingly hard to take. He would not pose with that bear!
I'm outta here.
Baby has sticker, bear has sticker, baby has paper, baby eats paper, baby still refuses to cooperate.
Sorry for my absence. While my blog is really just a report of what goes on in our lives (or Noah's life, really) I have been feeling less than inspired to write lately. That, combined with a trip to St. Louis, visitors, and a cold and I have officially been M.I.A. But, I am back and will be trying my best to find my inner writer once again.
Hi, friends...my mom feels really bad about being a bad blogger. I'll talk some sense into her!
My Best Friend - There will be a couple of best friend sections in this post, but this one is about my furry best friend, Lola. I think this is actually why I have been avoiding writing. My Lola is a very very sick puppy and I am unfortunately facing a very tough decision in the coming month or so. To make a very long saga short, we took Lola in for some long running neck pain and after a CT Scan/biopsy it was made official that my girl has a cancerous tumor on/in her spine. We have been given a gift of time with some steroids and she is happier than she has been in weeks, but it is simply a band aid on a huge problem that will eventually resurface. So until then, I am soaking up every possible snuggle I can with my girl.
My girl with her crooked head.
Everybody Clap Your Hands - In happier news, Noah learned how to clap! He did it the first time for his Great Grandma Koon but then seemed to forget all about his new found skill for awhile. BUT, it's back and he is a clapping machine!
I took this picture to highlight Noah's awesome new kicks and he just so happened to be clapping, too!
Little Frankenstein - We officially have a walker! Before we took off for St. Louis Noah was taking one or two steps. By the time we came home, we had categorized him as walking. While he still crawls if he wants to get somewhere really fast, his preferred form of transportation is upright these days. 8.5 months and walking...blows my mind.
Stair Master - Another fun trick Noah learned in St. Louis was how to go up stairs. Here in California we only have one little baby step for him to go up and down, but my parents have a whole flight to keep him entertained! He was a speed demon going up by the time we left. Maybe we'll master going down next time?
I only have video of his stair mastering skills so you get a picture of him in his tunnel instead!
So You Think You Can Dance? - Great show, but that isn't the point. Our little Noah LOVES to dance. As soon as he catches a rhythm, he starts busting out his moves!
I just can't bring myself to sit through more video uploading...so a pensive Noah it is.
Violet Noah Beauregard - Noah is obsessed with blueberries. He shovels them by the handful into his little mouth and gets particularly perturbed when I cut him off. I am pretty sure he might turn into a blueberry sometime soon...
He also likes ice cream but let's focus on the healthy things I feed my son, shall we?!
Home Again, Home Again - Sometimes I feel a little conflicted on where "home" actually is. While I obviously call my California home, home, I still call my St. Louis home, home. My parents live in the house I spent all 18 years of my childhood in so I still have some really strong emotional ties to my "home". ANYWAY, as we all know, Noah and jetted off for some fun in St. Louis. It is always so nice to back and just enjoy family and friends. Each trip back is always a whirlwind of visiting and this trip was no exception. We jammed each day as full as possible and found ourselves wondering where the time went 8 days later. Noah got to soak up a ton of quality time with Grandma and Grandpa...I'm pretty sure they enjoyed it too :-). It was really cute to see Noah recognize them on FaceTime this week! He was SO excited to see them and even tried to touch them through the iPad. I think I'll have one excited boy in a few weeks when Grandma gets here! I was once again a really bad blogger/mom and took almost zero pictures of our visit. I took a fair amount of video since our little guy was starting to walk but I'll spare you the hours of footage! Next visit, I promise to pack up my good camera and get lots of good shots to share. Suffice it to say, I love being home...the only downside was that it was SO hot and humid we didn't even want to go to the pool! But, there was a pretty great upside...
This was at about 8am...the only acceptable time to play outside!
SURPRISE - I believe I have mentioned once or twice how much I love my husband, yes?! Well, he was at it again, reminding me just how amazing he is (in case I got hit in the head with an anvil while traveling and forgot). Noah and I arrived in St. Louis on Sunday and Thursday I got a call from Scott and he broke the news that he was getting on a plane...to come and see US! I was, of course, ecstatic and anxiously awaited his arrival. I was really missing him and we were both sad he wasn't able to see Noah's walking progression so it was such a great surprise on so many levels to have him join us for the long weekend.
It was also pretty great to have an extra set of hands on the way home ;-).
Weeeeeee, up in the sky - That's what airplanes do according to Noah's book. I will have to say, flying with an 8 month old was slightly more challenging than flying with a three month old. Especially a mobile 8 month old. I can't really complain, Noah was a trooper...no crying, just a lot of wiggling! The challenge at this age is that they want to move and explore and obviously can't, AND they are too young to be truly distracted. No iPad games or DVDs will hold his attention at this point so it was pretty much just feeding him a million Cheerios and letting him have whatever he wanted to make him happy (my iPhone headphones were a huge hit). All in all, both flights went great, but I am looking forward to being able to distract him just a bit more!
Getting ready to board our airplane!
My Best Friend: Human Edition - This whole trip to St. Louis was initiated because Allie was having a birthday and I wanted to be there with her to ring it in! It was so nice to get to spend more than just her birthday together. Noah loved playing with Eli and Jillian (if you can call staring at them playing) and I loved getting some quality Allison time. It makes me sad that we don't get to be closer so our kids can truly grow up together. AND, selfishly, I would just like more of her in my life daily. Of course, I have zero pictures of the birthday girl, so you'll have to settle for her adorable Jillian instead.
Cutie patootie!
Love them.
Update: my dad actually took some pictures before we left the house! Me and my hot date for the night.
Apparently when you wait two weeks to blog things get fuzzy and I forget all of the funny details of our week :-(. Apologies for the lackluster performance here, folks. Hopefully next week will be full of great anecdotes and smiley faces. Until then a bunch of pictures for your enjoyment (because let's face it, that's why you really visit this blog!)...
Noah "brushing" his two bottom teeth. They are some nice sized chompers now.
He loves to watch the laundry spin. It is kind of a 5 minute babysitter...
Babies in shoes are pretty much more than I can handle.
Jess and Kirk had us over for a BBQ the night before we departed. Noah had a ton of fun torturing Olive and Hoffman while the adults chatted!
Ohhhh, to think I was once their babysitter. Two wonderful girls!!
Bath time fun at G&G's.
Post bath time fun. Isn't vacation great?!
Our visitors...Theresa and Robert. We had a blast hosting them for a few days!
