Isaac's first camping adventure

This past week-end, we took Isaac on his first camping trip. We found a nice spot at Brown Creek Campground in the Olympic National Forest. He did surprisingly well, and enjoyed crawling around in the tent, playing outside, and going for a nature walk. He even slept from about 7pm to 8am! All in all, a good first trip out into the wilderness. Hopefully we'll have many more trips this summer/fall.

Isaac cuts his first teeth

At the ripe age of 10.5 months old, Isaac is finally starting to cut some teeth. One on the top and one on the bottom. He's been a happy little fella and enjoys making silly faces, especially when the camera is on!

Funny fella

Isaac is a barrel of laughs these days. He just started doing this "fake" laugh that just cracks us up. The best part is when he mixes it with his genuine laugh interspersed with little cries or whines.

In this case, he started to tire of laughing and finally had enough (or "ahna...ahna!" in the end.

Finally Summer

Last week-end, we were going to do a 5k then go to the Solstice Parade...two of the most crowded, congested events in town. Instead, we took a hard right and headed for the hills!

We had a nice stroll around West Tiger Mountain, where Isaac got to break in his new backcountry pack. He enjoyed the view and riding on Jesse's back. Enough so that it put him right to sleep in no time!

Happy Fathers Day!

Although we were all fighting a cold, we managed to get out to a Mariners game to celebrate Fathers Day. We all enjoyed the sunshine and good company. Isaac enjoyed eating, sleeping and listening to all the crazy fans.

teething biscuits

Isaac is starting to make the transition from pureed to chunky food. He loves the new teething biscuits we just got him, although most of it ends up on his face!

More crawling adventures

Isaac is really starting to crawl now. . Gone are the days of just putting him down on his blanket or playmat. All he wants to do now is go go go! We just bought some baby gates and other childproofing gadgets.

He is also pulling himself up to standing. Jesse just lowered his crib down as far as it will go so he won't spring out of his bed.

Trip to the Olympic Peninsula

We had a great trip out to the Olympic Peninsula for Memorial day week-end. We found a nice pet and baby friendly resort in Long Beach. It had an indoor pool, playground and BBQ pits, and was just a short walk to the beach. Isaac loved playing in the sand. He really started to crawl this week-end, and had fun moving around on the beach. He did have a couple face plants, but didn't seem to mind too much.

The weather was pretty cloudy and cool (50's), but the sun came out for a minute! Overall, it was a nice & relaxing trip!

5 months

Isaac has hit the 5-month mark! He has become Mr. Personality, as he really enjoys interacting with us, Kaley, strangers...anyone who will take interest in him! His "vocabulary" is expanding, as he has moved from cooing, blowing raspberries and squealing to making gurgling noises and repetitive consonant sounds, such as "bla bla bla". Jesse swears he heard him say "o ba ma". Since he is teething, he seems to enjoy gnawing on our fingers, and subsequently making silly noises.

Next month marks several big milestones, including Isaac's 6-month check-up, Jesse's return to work, Isaac's start at "school", and the introduction of solid foods! Check back in a few weeks for more updates on our precious babe.

4 month update

Isaac is now 4 months old! It's been amazing to see all the changes just in a few weeks. Here are the highlights:

• Weight: 13 lbs 14 oz (23%)
• Height: 2'1" (37%)
• Head Circ: 42.5 cm (52%)
• Isaac has started to vocalize like crazy. His favorite sounds are high pitched 'ahhhhs', laughing/giggling, and "pffft" noises with his lips.
• He has started rolling over from back to front, and back again! He had a hard time at first, as he wasn't quite sure what to do with the arm that was stuck beneath him. He has since mastered the roll!
• He has found his thumb, and often sucks on it while his pointer finger is hooked around his nose.

In other news, Mom is sadly back at work after a nice 4 month hiatus, while Dad mans the fort with the baby. Jesse is taking 2 months off to play Mr. Mom, then will resume work in March. We are furiously looking for daycare, as most places around here have a 18-24 month waiting list!!

3 months old!

Wow! It's been 6 weeks since the last blog update. We've been pretty busy and trying to get out (and away from the computer!) as much as possible! We just returned from Isaac's first plane trip back East. Once we recuperate from the flight and catch up on sleep, we 'promise' to give an in-depth update on all things Isaac!

Visit from my Uncles!

My, what big eyes you have!

Lately a lot of people have been remarking how Isaac has nice, large eyes. Since his eyes are closed 95% of the time, everyone is finally getting a glimpse of his baby blues (well, slate grey/blues).

He is very alert when awake. He especially loves his new bouncy seat that Seth, Kelly and Allistair gave him recently.

He's mesmerized by the water and bubbles...for about 10-15 minutes then he's ready for something else....usually another nap!

I'm one month old now!

Baby brigade

Yesterday, Isaac made it out to Alki Beach with his new West Seattle posse.
We meet up weekly for coffee, walks and Moms Night out (read: baby and Dad get to bond at home while Mom gets a break!) :-)

Later in the week, we went to Linclon park for another walk. It's been great to get out while the weather is still nice!

Sunday dinner at Grandma Theresa's

Isaac went to Grandma Theresa's house for Sunday dinner and lots of snuggling. Both were happy campers!

Isaac couldn't wait to call Grandma Tamara and tell her all about his exciting visit!

He is eagerly awaiting his big road trip to Portland next month to visit Grandpa Tom and Grandma Mary..and hopefully meet Great Grandma Lorraine. How many lucky boys have 2 Grandpas, 3 Grandmas and 3 Great Grandmas!

funny faces

Isaac has many different "looks" depending on his mood and sleep state. Peaceful, squishy and smooshy....

...curious, suprised, indifferent, hungry....

..but most of all, cute as can be :-)

Brunch, Bathtime and Belly Button!

Ok, I finally have a couple minutes while Isaac sleeps to update the blog and post some more pix. I know I *really* should sleep when he sleeps, but the family needs their weekly fix so I am sacrificing a few moments of shut eye just for you.

Two weekends ago when the family was in town, we went out for a nice brunch. Isaac slept the entire time, so it was a rare occasion that we got to eat and drink coffee at a leisurely pace... and with two hands! (We're getting very nimble at doing daily tasks one-handed while holding Isaac in the other...)

Later that day, we gave Issac a sponge bath in his new bathtub. We were told not to give him a full immersion bath until his belly button stump falls off. Oddly enough, Jesse discovered that it was "gone" when he went to change him (and to my dismay we still have not "found" it....ugh)

Anyway, it was still healing so we were careful as we cleaned him up. Here, Isaac is looking very calm and peaceful...almost doll-like:

Kaley wanted to help "clean" the baby too.

Isaac was happy when we were finally done and wrapped him up in a warm, dry towel.

..and so was Jesse!

We are hoping he learns to love bathtime instead of screaming bloody murder the entire time!

Watch the video of bathtime here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3-gMiuE83Rs

**Warning** Video contains screaming and crying baby .

Isaac's Busy Social Life

Starting at the ripe age of 5 days old, Isaac started going out about town and seeing the sites of Seattle. Actually... on Doctors orders, I was instructed to try and get out and walk as soon as possible to help expedite the healing process. And Grandma Tamara was in town to help us expand his horizons!

Here we are at Alki Beach on a beautiful sunny day. I was still moving very, very slowly and feeling the pain from the surgery, but it felt nice to get out and get some fresh air:

Both Isaac and Kaley were tired after the first outing:

At 7 days old, Isaac made his first trip to the sushi bar after some retail therapy at University Village:

And at 8-days old, we went to the SAM Olympic Sculpture Park.

We took a couple days "off" to catch up on sleep and figure out how to deal without Grandma Tamara in town :-( Then by Friday, we had Grandpa Tom, Grandma Mary and Auntie Renee come into town for a fun week-end visit. We made a trip up to the Prime outlet stores for some more shopping and walking.

..and finally to cap off the exciting week, we headed to a Mariners Game on Friday night with the family. Grandude, aka Grandpa Tom, was very pleased (to say the least) that his grandson made it to a game at the ripe age of 11 days old. With the Mariners win over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, Isaac has a lifetime 1-0 record. Off to a good start!

Kissy Boy

Isaac loves his Auntie Renee!!