Christmas

Xander's first Christmas/Hanukkah highlights...

Investigating the box of groceries....
Basking in the Christmas day sun (with Lilly)...
Playing with new toys...
More playing....
Playing with the boxes that gifts came in (especially the shiny ones)...
Laughing about almost anything (this is Xanders new favorite face and it is accompanied by rapid sniffing)...
Again with nose wrinkles and sniffing...

X-country with the X man

Xander went on his first X-country ski trip around Trillium Lake on November 14. He laughed and cooed for the first 3 miles as we watched Lilly bound around the freshly fallen snow. Then we stopped for lunch beside the almost frozen lake and Xander got to sit and play in the snow. On the way home, he fell asleep in the backpack as we completed the 6 mile loop around the lake. What a great fist ski trip.

Dining with Xander

Halloween!

Xander was a dalmatian dog for Halloween this year. We dressed him up and went to the Beaverton farmers market and saw the other kids that were dressed up there too. We had lots of trick-or-treaters come to our house, but Xander was asleep by the time they came around. He can wave now, as you can see from the photo below, and I try to get him to do it whenever we see anyone, even Lilly.

New Photos

Happy Baby

Alaskan Fishing and Trapping Adventures

There were a few more fishing and trapping adventures worth mentioning from our Alaska trip...Gordon and I floated the Kenai River in his river drift boat, the "Seam Robber", fishing for rainbow trout. There is no better reminder of how controlled and unhealthy the rivers in the lower 48 are, than a float trip down winding, swirling, vibrant bends and seams of the Kenai.
















The fishing on the Kenai was not spectacular for Alaska standards but the trip was still amazing.

On the trapping end of things...Owen and I did a little squirrel trapping on the day he had a sleep-over up on the hill. We initially just wanted to see if we could catch one but then Grandpa said he wanted us to give the squirrel a new home, down the road.


What would a blog post be without a Xander photo, so here is a parting shot.

Alaska

The family was in Alaska for 10 days in mid August. Our adventures in Alaska were not of incredible journeys or numerous fish, they were of a more gentile pace where we had long walks, passed a baby around, and chatted over healthy meals (you really can not find fresh salmon, garden salad and pasta as good anywhere else than on the Homer hill). Here are a few of the, Xander gets to know Alaskans in Alaska, highlights...

Introducing Xander to Grandpa Marsh (they hit it off and grandpa is already convinced Xander wants to move to Alaska).

Seeing Grandma Betsy again (sweet grandma and sweet potato face)

And introducing Xander to Dante (close encounters of the Bernard kind).

Meeting Uncle Ian and Aunt Stephanie (Here Ian gives Xander back after a quick hold as he is called into action to tend to one of his own)

Meeting, playing and learning from the cousins.

Going for a spin in an LRV (Living Room Vehicle).

And of course seeing the beautiful forests, fields, and creeks (and willow patches) of the Diamond Ridge.

Mom leads the way through the willow thicket by way of a coyote trail. Based on Peco's struggles during this outing it is obvioius the St. Bernard was not bred to rescue from forested areas during the summer months.

Teeth and food

Xander and company have been busy over the past few weeks making it difficult to keep up on the blog. But here is a bloglet...

The news of the week: teeth and banana cubes!!! Yes, at 5 and a half months the little guy has sprouted teeth and started eating solid foods. Xander loves to suck on these sweet, cold morsels and gets excited just looking at them. His hands go out, his eyes get big and he starts shaking with excitement. The frozen banana cubes second as a teething pain reliever. We tried some avacado yestarday but it was not recieved with the same open arms.

Mom and Xander sport some stylish summer ware. It will be a little while before those shades fit...

Xander and dad stay cool in the shade. It has finally cooled down since last weeks heat wave of temperatures between 105-110. We managed to stay cool with central AC. Alaska next weekend will be quite a shock.


















Xander is also making good progress in the mobility department. He rolls over with ease and is pushing up to 90 degrees. I have also seen a few times when he puts his knees under himself and is up on all fours for a moment.

Back to Work

Xander- just kickin' back and keepin' it real.

Mommy makes Xander laugh!

I have returned to work after an 18 week maternity leave and I have to say my first full week wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I was definitely tired and there was a lot of running around, but I made it through and that feels good! Work came back fairly easy to me, I am lucky with the routine nature of working in a lab. I just fit right back in. Xander seemed to do pretty well at "school", as I like to call it, except for his nap routine was a bit jumbled. There are three other girls and one boy in his "class" and the teacher, Miss Jenica, is really nice. I managed to go twice a day to nurse Xander at school since it is only 5 minutes from work, eating my lunch as I was driving. Today, Friday, Lyrik had Xander for the day and the boys came out my way for lunch and a quick nursing session, which was wonderful. I just can't seem to get enough kisses from Xander when I only have these short visits with him throughout the day.

We had an awesome trip to the beach last week with the whole family. Great weather, great food, lots of fun. Lyrik and Jason kiteboarded quite a bit and Chrissy and I did some extreme mountain biking, even got lost! We went clamming and crabbing and had a great seafood feast with mojitos. Xander had fun at the beach too, but still can't handle the harsher weather conditions like heavy wind. Also, he rolled over for the first time at the beach, July 3rd! It was so exciting! Now, a few days later, he is a rolling over expert and seems to want to sit up on his own as a next accomplishment. Slobbering is at an all time high and he has reached for my water glass a few times, after which I let him suck on the rim and take tiny little sips. Food is still a very interesting thing to him, and watching people eat is like a sneak preview into a new and exciting world he knows he will enter soon. It's like he is taking mental notes for later. Xander is also examining Lilly's every move, and smiles when he gets kisses from her. I tried to show him the sign for "dog" which is a snap of the fingers. It would be so cute to see him try it someday.

Daddy with Xander and cousin Ava on the beach.

The whole family at the Manzanita fourth of July Parade

Bonfire and s'mores on the beach

Lilly showing off with her big stick.

Smiley Face!!


Grandma gives Xander a bath in the sink at the beach-what a little kicker!

Last Week as a Full-time Mommy

So the time has come-I have to go back to work. Next Thursday is my first day back to work after a 16 week maternity leave. I am definitely trying to savor each moment that I have with Xander, especially in the mornings when he is in a great mood and we are just hanging out in bed together. Lyrik and I will go through yet another adjustment period with our little man-except this time it will involve juggling all of the things we were doing plus working full-time. I have to say-I think I will get the brunt of the juggling just because I am in charge of getting Xander to daycare, etc. But, the bright side is that I will get to be with Xander twice a day on my nursing breaks from work, and I will overall get to see him more than Lyrik. Lyrik is still going to do the four day work week though-so he will get all day Fridays with Xander. That- I am jealous about! Everything will be fine though- I am only mildly freaking out about the return to work. I really thought this day wouldn't come so soon- a lament of many a new mother-I am sure.

In the meantime-we are watching all of the new developments in Xander. Drooling has become his number one hobby, with babbling at a close second. His sleep has been great-and he is now on a four hour routine, meaning that he eats four every four hours, so that's been nice for me. He has become infatuated with his feet-he just discovered them, and his hands are constantly in his mouth being sucked away on. Oh, and Xander seems very interested in watching Mommy eat lately. I guess it's only a couple more months until he gets real food-that's hard to believe! What really made me realize he is growing up, was the other day when my Mom took him for a walk in the umbrella stroller! He can totally hold his head up now-so it was no problem for him.
Today we are heading to the u-pick strawberry patch to get some berries for the freezer-I am happy to have found a place that doesn't use sprays. Yay!

Camping with the Xander Man

This last weekend we went on our first camping trip with Xander. We headed over to Tillamook State Forest and settled in around Elk Creek and the Wilson River. It was great to get away from the scorching heat in town and relax in the shade next to the cool creek. Lyrik tried casting a few flies, but a wound up dog, off leash, does not make for ideal fishing, and Lilly was definitely excited to be in the water. Xander just took it all in and loved looking up at the tree canopy above our camp. We opened up the top of the tent so that he could see out the netting while he was settling in for his naps.

He did great staying on his routine while we camped. His naps went pretty well, although I was worried it was too hot in the tent in the middle of the day, but he didn't seem to mind. Getting to sleep for the night was a bit more difficult because I think he is used to having darkness in his room at night and it was light until 9pm or so. We tried to make the tent as dark as possible at 7pm bedtime, but it seemed not to matter, he stayed awake until 9:30. But it worked out because he only woke once in the middle of the night to nurse and then slept all the way through to the morning. My biggest fear about camping was that he would wake often during the night but he didn't, even though Lilly had about six rounds of barking through the night.

We went on a great hike along the creek and had lunch by a nice little pool where Daddy went for a dip in the freezing water! Xander dipped his little toesies in the water and let out a cut little shudder, as you can see in the video here. All in all, it was a great trip and it gave me some hope that camping with a baby is possible. Next time, we want to try backpacking, although, I have a feeling it is going to be difficult to pack light with a baby in tow.

In the backpack with Daddy. I guess he likes hiking!


Daddy and Xander playing at our campsite.


Hanging out in our prime spot down by the Wilson river.