Merry Christmas!

With Christmas here we were lucky enough to spend a lot of time with friends in Colorado and family visiting us.  Dom and I got to go to the Ball "ball" this year as his work party.  It was at the Denver museum of Nature and Science which was fun to be at without kids since we got to actually look around more.  They had food and drinks and music and we had a good time going out while Uncle Erick watched the sleeping kids.

Logan also had a Christmas party for his preschool at the rec center.  They created ginger bread houses and then lined up to sing songs.  Logan was not wanting to line up to sing but once the songs started he sang along and had a good time whether you could see that on his face or not ;)

showing off his half eaten gingerbread house :)

Daddy and Fiona

Time for Christmas carols

Merry Christmas!

 Our first Christmas festivity was the "low key" Christmas party at the Valania's with the Dilley's.  We wore ugly Christmas sweaters and had fun doing a white elephant gift exchange between the adults and one between the kids then we all celebrated with some games and flip cup, like we were in college again ;)  We got to go to another get together with our neighbors who all have kids around Logan's age.  We brought cookies over to Brad and Kristin's and the Tobins came and all the kids had fun playing together.  It's nice to have so many nice families in our neighborhood!  The day before Logan's last day of school before Christmas break the poor guy got sick and was throwing up...all over the couch, bleck.  Luckily it was only a 24 hour bug because he was feeling better the next day but did end up missing school.  Fiona got a touch of the bug too but she wasn't throwing up so that was good, just lots of blowouts, still no fun.  Everyone was feeling better when Granny Mo got into town, hurray!  We had fun spending time with her while she was staying with us a few days.

Ugly Christmas Sweaters

white elephant gifts!

These cute kids!

Christmas Eve rolled around and we went to mass and Fiona did great, she had fun waving at the people around us and laughing while Logan played with her.  On Christmas morning Logan woke up and we let him play in our room for a little while to give Fiona more time to sleep before we woke her up and went downstairs with Granny Mo to see what Santa left.  Logan got a Baymax action figure and a Boba Fett Rocket Launcher from Santa, just what he asked for.  Fiona got a busy ball popper toy and she thought it was great.  They both enjoyed their presents from Santa and we had a lot more to go! Uncle Erick came over and we all got to open the rest of the presents. Logan enjoyed opening his presents nice and slow like a Lewis ;)  Fiona wasn't so much into the unwrapping or the toys themselves as much as she enjoyed crawling around to find the little pieces of wrapping paper that were left on the floor.  The kids were very spoiled by their grandparents this year and got lots of awesome toys.  We made our appetizers and had fun playing with new toys then the Valania's came over for a little while.  All the kids had fun playing in the play pen with the balls Fiona got for Christmas and everyone enjoyed the ball pit.  Fiona got two new walkers and she did great using them, she was happy to walk around the house.  She also figured out on Christmas how to go up the set of two stairs that separate the rooms downstairs.  Now it's the going down that we need to work on :) I can't remember now if it snowed on Christmas, I think it started later in the day and snowed through the night and for a few more days after.  We had lots of snow and a fun white wintry holiday.

Fiona's first Christmas!

 Our handsome Logan!

 All dressed up for Christmas Eve Mass

 Christmas morning, Thanks Santa!

 Santa brought Logan this Baymax toy

 crawling through the presents

 little bits of paper, Fiona's favorite part of Christmas ;)

 Still happy to get anything Star Wars!

 Santa, Baby

 The best gift!

 Logan got mommy a trip with him to Elitch gardens when it gets warmer out!

 testing out the ball pit

 mmm thanks for the meatballs Granny Mo!

 Cousins and Christmas Jammies

 Granny Mo makes me smile :)

The day after Christmas Auntie Panda came and stayed with us.  We had fun going to the aquarium together, Fiona's first time and Logan's "favorite part of the Christmas break" according to him.  Fiona enjoyed watching the fish and she would grunt at them the entire time.  Mimi and Papa came the 30th and stayed with us as well.  The kids got to have a second Christmas opening all the presents from them and the kids enjoyed the process and the gifts just as much!  Lucky ducks!  We had a good time playing and relaxing with Mimi while Papa and Dominic worked on house projects, the fireplace got re-tiled, a new kitchen sink was installed and the coat closet in the living room was magically turned into the beginning of a small office nook.  They did a great job with everything, my husband is so handy :)  Fiona has two of her own walkers but had fun playing with Mimi's too, just like baby Logan used to!  She had fun teasing Papa and playing keep away with him.  We had a good time with everyone and were so happy that we got to see all of our family over the holidays!  It was a fun and busy two weeks!

 Never too cold for Ice Cream at Sweet Cow :)

Aquarium

 Checking out the fish and scuba divers

 at the shark tank...

 helping Papa open his presents

 testing out Mimi's walker

 Mimi and Papa!

And for one more comparison shot between Fiona and Logan's first Christmas'.  Fiona actually fits in these Christmas jammies Logan has on for his first Christmas, but we went with her own girly version for her first Christmas morning.

Logan's First Christmas 3 months old, 2010.    Fiona's First Christmas 10 months old, 2014

10 months

Wow there were so many changes this month and a lot going on too, very exciting!   We had a great Christmas and were lucky to get to see most of our family in Colorado this year!  That, of course, gets its own post!  As for Fiona she got better at crawling and learned how to go up the set of two stairs that separate our rooms downstairs.  No going down yet though, she does just try to keep on crawling over the edge like she won't tumble down them but we will work on that ;)  She was doing a funny thing for a little while too where she'd crawl then straighten her back legs as if she wanted to just stand up but that's as far as she would get.  She got some walkers for Christmas and is working on getting around with them, she is doing well!  She is seeming so much more grown up these days!  She is 17.2 lbs and still 26.5 inches long.  She's had a crazy appetite lately, girl is wolfing down food, she doesn't always chew though so she ends up with a mouthful and little chipmunk cheeks!  She's found a new love for greek yogurt and meatballs.  But really she's a carbs girl.  She gets excited to see cheerios :) To help out with all that eating she finally got her front middle tooth on the right side and the one to the right of it on January 11.  I can see the middle and left tooth to match on the other side coming also but they haven't broken through quite yet. Other things Fiona has started to enjoy are lift the flap books, touch and feel books which she has always enjoyed but she really loves Pat the Zoo.  She enjoys looking at the balloons in the grocery store, they hypnotize her.  As always her brother is her favorite entertainment and she loves laughing at him, just seeing him always brings a smile to her face.  She's had fun watching Logan and daddy play football and wrestling together.  When she gets excited she starts waving her hands up and down and makes an oooo oooo sound, you can see it in her face that she likes what she sees haha.  Fiona has been babbling more and more lately, she's got the baba, gaga and yaya sounds down now.  Some silly things Fiona has fun doing these days are finding stickers or tape on things and spending all the time in the world picking at it until she gets it off.  Well now I know a cheap way to keep her busy ;)  She also loves stinky socks... yes the old worn socks that the boys take off and leave on the floor, she will crawl excitedly to them and pick them up like it's a prize, and yes sometimes that prize ends up in her mouth ew.  She also has fun playing peek a boo, pretending to talk on my phone- she will lift it, or anything that could be a phone, up to her ear and smile.  And if you ask her how big she is she will lift her hands over her head as you say So Big.  She is such a doll lately and she is still always just so happy and easy going!  It's been fun as she is growing up to see her little personality start to develop.  She is keeping us busy and always making us smile!

ring ring, hello!

Fiona matching the doll Grandma Ruby sent

cuddly little thing!

Fi and her favorite book

playing with magnets

omg, yogurt is awesome!!!

9 months

Little lady is 9 months old and a lot of changes have been happening it feels like.  Here's some quick facts:  She is very ticklish.  She mainly sleeps on her tummy now (although she still rolls all around in her crib all night).  She likes to do a snorty scrunched up face now for some funny reason.  She likes to make a wawawa sound with her hand against her mouth (like an indian noise).  She started babbling, mainly "baba" and "gaga" sounds, although she is not a chatterbox all the time.  She has gotten waving down.  She's getting better at standing while holding on to things although she hasn't figured out how to pull herself up to do so and that she can move while standing yet.  She has started getting close to crawling, she can scoot a little while sitting up or slither like a snake while laying down, she can put herself on her hands and knees but doesn't know what to do next so nothing that gets her very far yet.  She still only has the bottom two teeth but the two right next to those and the top fangs look like they should be coming soon.  She has started noticing smaller things and trying to pick them up, she is also interested in what we are eating so we started her on some finger foods.  She was skeptical at first but now she has got it down.  She likes puffs, buttered toast, cooked carrots, cheese, peaches and bananas.  Although the slippery ones she still has a hard time picking up, she's motivated :) She still refuses the bottle and hasn't figured out any sippy cup I've tried yet, so that's made things a bit difficult, but it's managable.  Fiona is now 16lbs 8oz which is the 21st percentile and 26.5 inches long which is the 12th percentile, looks like she's still following the petite trend.  Her noggin on the other hand is in the 81st percentile at 17.75, although she doesn't have the bobble head look like Logan did ;)

Love these two!

 Snow white

 trying on some cool glasses ;)

this is the snorty face lol

We had another busy month, October is usually our busiest it seems, but maybe because it's my favorite and there's always a lot to do.  We went to the pumpkin patch and picked out pumpkins with the Valania's.  We got to carve them with the Dilley's and we trick or treated with the Tobin's so we had a very neighborhood-y Halloween.  Logan wanted to dress up like "orange Boba Fett" from Star Wars, he was insistent there was an orange one (I could never find one online) so we just made it work!  Daddy went as Darth Vader "Logan, I am your father"!  Fiona was a little Dalmatian while I was Cruella De Vil.  I guess the parents were on the "evil" side this year ;)  Logan had fun trick or treating and he lasted a long time!  Him and Patrick and friends ran from house to house like it was a race and Fiona tagged along in her stroller.  The weather was cold but not as cold and windy as last year!  It was just a normal cold ;)  Fiona made it a little past bedtime with trick or treating then had to tap out early while I took her home, Dom finished up trick or treating with Logan.  He was very excited about all his candy!  He's already mentioned about five things he wants to dress up as for next Halloween ;)

 Logan chose to carve a Boba Fett pumpkin with daddy's help

 go Broncos!

 Logan drew a scarecrow on Fiona's pumpkin for her

 "orange" Boba Fett

 cute little Dalmatian

 Cruella and Darth Vader

 trick or treating with friends

 check out all that candy!

November brought a trip to Arizona.  We flew to Phoenix early in the morning on a Thursday and the kids did good, not the easiest of flights but they did well.  We stayed with the Maes' and hung out at their house, Ashley got to come over Friday morning and play with the kids for a little until we left that afternoon for Tucson.  We went straight to Nancy's house and got to see her and Mark for a few hours before we went to the Kelsey's to have dinner and meet up with the Cicchini's.  Logan had a blast playing with Stella, Cleo, Aurora and Jake, while the adults had fun catching up.  My dad came over for dinner too since I told him we'd be in town, he came up to see us.  We all had a sleepover at Will and Laura's and the kids actually slept :)  So cute, Cleo and Stella on the sides and Logan in the middle of the mattresses laid out on the floor.  Saturday morning we all met Melanie for breakfast which was really delicious and went to watch her clog for a bit.  The kids had fun dancing along.  The Maes' drove down that afternoon and we gave them the kiddos while we went to Jenny's wedding.  It was beautiful and she looked amazing and I cried.  It was in our old church and we remembered just how much we liked it there compared to any place we have been here.  The reception was across town in a pretty outdoors venue, the weather was great.  I just had to make a trip back to feed Fiona for bedtime since she won't take a bottle and then I got to enjoy the reception too without kids.  We had fun with all our friends dancing and drinking.  It was a great wedding!  Sunday morning us and Dom's parents and Will and Laura all met the Roussel's (who were in Tucson for a different wedding that weekend, what a coincidence!) for breakfast at Beyond Bread.  It's always nice to see them, no matter what state!  From there we headed for a trip down memory lane walking the UofA campus and going to the bookstore for a few souvenirs.  From there we headed to a BBQ with Dom's old Raytheon coworkers.  My dad and the Maes' came along too and we all had a good time chatting and eating while Logan had fun playing with all the kids.  After that we drove back to Phoenix for the night and left early Monday morning to fly back home.  The kids did great the entire trip, they hung in there even though naps were missed and there was a lot going on, they are nicely adaptable!  The flight home was more difficult since Fiona was tired but didn't fall asleep.  The last 20 or so minutes of the flight we hit a lot of turbulence and Fiona passed out, she was the only one that enjoyed it ;)  When we got back to Colorado it was freezing!  The snow was coming and we got a few days of snow after our trip, so long 80s!  Now we are learning how to dress a baby for the freezing cold!

 Mr. and Mrs. Tatum

 game night group

 fun night :)

 getting a lift from Papa at UofA

8 months

Happy fall!  Welcome to my favorite season Fiona!  Little miss is about the same,  15 lbs. and  26.75" long.  Fiona has been welcomed to the future tooth fairy club, she got her right bottom tooth on 9-24 and the bottom left came a few days later on 9-28.  She has been letting us know how she feels about these latest developments, she is not a fan.  Since those new pearly whites have broken through Fiona likes to have her tongue hanging out like a dog feeling them.  She has not figured out crawling but she has managed to move around in a circle using her harms when she's on her belly. She has learned to lift her arms up for you when you go to pick her up and she is working on waving hi.  Fiona has not started to babble but she has found her voice and does enjoy screaming when she is happy and when she is mad.  So she is getting more vocal, for better or worse ;)  She is getting better at using her sippy cup but not fully there yet.  She has completely refused the bottle now and won't drink my milk from it no matter who is feeding her or what they put it in, so needless to say, Fiona and I are inseparable.  She has been trying new baby foods, no solids yet.  She likes bananas, spinach and pear mixture and anything fruity.  She does not like peas, no matter what it is mixed with, she knows haha.  Sweet little girl is doing better sleeping now, we let her cry it out and she did pretty well figuring it out on her own.  When she is tired during the day and fighting sleeping, she likes to nuzzle her head into your shoulder and rub her eyes, that's a pretty good sign!  She usually takes one long nap during the middle of the day and then sometimes gets 1-2 shorter naps in the morning or late evening.  Bedtime is about 7/7:30 and she has been sleeping until about 3/4am, eats then goes back to sleep till 6:30/7am. We have a video baby monitor so we can see her throughout the night and she is kind of like Logan when she sleeps, constantly in a new position. She sleeps a lot on her side and a surprising amount of time on her tummy. Teething has sometimes thrown a wrench into that nice nighttime cycle but she's doing much better then a month ago.

bottom teeth!

playing with her favorite shaky shake maraca toy

lounging on the floor with mommy

bath time

We had another busy month enjoying the last of summer and welcoming the nice fall weather.  Our outdoor adventures will probably slow down now that things are getting cooler and the days are getting shorter thanks to day light savings time.  We had a long hike up in Estes Park to Fern Lake, apparently we thought 7 miles was doable with 2 kids...which it was but it took us 8 hours!  We had a good time though and came down from the hike in time to watch the Elk come down for some rooting.  Another weekend we went kayaking at Brainard Lake, the last time for this year since it was already cold and rainy up there!  Erick got a new kayak for his birthday so we went up with him and Mike to take one last trip before next summer.  On the way back from the lake we got to stop and take pictures of all the pretty fall colors.  It was a pretty drive.  We got to go to Albuquerque to see Auntie Dre and go to the Balloon Fiesta for the weekend.  The car ride there went pretty well, it took us about 7.5 hours and Fiona and Logan only lost it for a little bit towards bedtime.  The rest of the trip deserves its own post since we had a full weekend!  Fiona did get to go to the zoo for the first time.  She enjoyed sitting with brother and looking into the water exhibit for the polar bear the most I think, even though they never saw the polar bear ;)  Fiona also got to meet Andrea's parents, Karen (#1) and Mike (grandpa mike) and grandparents nana and tata and Fiona's great grandma Ruby for the first time also.  The drive back was a little more rough then the drive there, but I feel like that somehow always happens on the way back home.  Overall the kids did well for the car trip and the weekend and we had a lot of fun.

Fern Lake

Brainard Lake

Albuquerque Zoo

 Balloon Fiesta

 Meeting Great Grandma Ruby

And here's one more comparison for baby Logan (6.5 mos) and Fiona (7 mos.) in Logan's old jammies.  They are looking different now!  Fiona is on the top and Logan on the bottom

Ride On!

Logan has officially learned how to ride his big boy bike all by himself!  Almost exactly one month after he got his pedal bike he figured out how to ride without help (or ever any training wheels) on 10-13. He was really good at his strider bike and had been talking about wanting a pedal bike so for his birthday we bought him an Ironman one. At first he was a little cautious and worried he would fall so he did a lot of riding the Ironman bike as if it were his strider. Dom would help him get started and he could ride by himself on flat or downhill but he was still afraid so wouldn't go far once he realized Dom had let go. Slowly he got more confident and one day out with Dom he just got it and from then he figured out how to start by himself and now he can go all by himself!  He still needs a little help pedaling uphill since he's not quite strong enough for that yet otherwise he's an independent little bike rider!  We were all very excited for him and so proud. Such a fun moment for us all!