San Diego

Beautiful weather in San Diego (as always!) and it was great to see Tio Coco who is entering his final year at UCSD :)

Here are some pics from the SD Zoo - I didn't appreciate it fully until we tried the SF Zoo (what a dump!) LOVE THIS PLACE...almost as much as Charlie.

My boy sure loves his pack....what a sweet face.

On the tour bus with the boys...great idea credited to Julian. This time we were able to see a bunch of stuff we didn't see the first time and because we got on the last bus it was getting dark and more animals were waking up!

In the hotel lobby

Date Night in Santa Monica

Jose took us out to Santa Monica for a little night on the town. I kept seeing the Third Street Promenade on the local tourist/hotel channel and had been wanting to check it out for some time-it's super cute! Here are some pics from our walk down to the pier...

Roxbury Park, Beverly Hills

We stayed in century city and I went looking for a playground online to take CC to while Jose was at work.  Jose suggested a park he'd seen in passing off of olympic - that tip led me to roxbury park, super close by. Don't be fooled, though it's on the edge of Bev. Hills it was no scene from 90210! Not that B.H. can't be super fab - it certainly can be, but this place was something you'd find in small town America - except for the metered parking! That's right, had to bust out the quarters so my boy could play!

In front of the rose patch

He was so excited - he "drove" his cart all over :)

My boy loves his swing - he stayed in it for a new record of almost 30 mins! The tiny baby next to him fell asleep in the swing.

Play time @ The Hammond's New House

Our friends Jeff & Heather

post root beer float sample, courtesy of Mrs. Hammond...

playing outside with Dad...

Travel last week to LA & San Diego

So I'm wayyy behind on blogging - I've been concentrating on getting more settled in the house, entertaining friends in our new backyard, and chasing my boy who - in the last couple of days has gone to 3-4 steps to walking down the hall! Unbelievable!  Here are some photos/memories from our trip last week to So. Cal. We tagged along on a business trip with Jose which we hadn't done for nearly 4 months! Needless to say travel with Charlie has evolved again - well, never stops evolving.  The plane rides to LA and back from San Diego went pretty considering he used to sleep the whole time previously. The trip out we just concentrated on keeping him entertained - it was so stimulating with all the people, brochures in the back seat pockets, the windows, the peanut packs....he pooped himself out and fell asleep on the decent. On the trip home he was already pooped and slept a good portion of the flight :)  Since I feel it's really important to let him get down on the ground and "do this thing" every day (he's much happier) we packed his wagon and let him "drive" for long stretches down the hotel floor hallway and in the lobby. (In San Diego the lobby is extra grande and there is a side carpeted "pavillon" where we hung out a few times :)

Driving in the San Diego lobby...

The flight out to LA - double fisting the cell phones just like Daddy :)

Back from the Bookdocks

No, this isn't my photo, but I had a similar idea and I wish it was. Yesterday Charlie and I traveled through the altamont pass to visit my mom in the boondocks and I packed my camera with the idea that I would take some photos of these beautiful green energy masterpieces on my way but I ran into a few issues:

a) lack of places to pull over to get a great shot - less willing to go to the side of the freeway and take risks with your baby in the car

b) traveling alone 

c) Charlie was asleep through the pass on the way there AND back - don't disturb baby sleep on road trips stupid. I did pull over ever so briefly on the way there (on a real exit) but as soon as Charlie started to murmur I hit the freeway again (and he was out)

We had a great time visiting my mom and Bill and wish the drive wasn't so long so we could see each other more frequently. Gotta love staying in the guest house with your own coffee maker and a quiet place for babenakins to sleep.

I really missed my hubbie - gross I know! Can't help but be in love with this man...definitely over a decade now and don't want to spend one night apart :-)  

Traveling at 7 + months is no picnic

Frankly I don't have much energy to blog... Charlie is quietly watching baby einstein and I want to curl up on the couch and cuddle with my giant cup of joe. We're home from L.A. and it's a testiment to how our boy continues to grow and change. It's been a couple weeks since we last traveled and it's becoming a lot more difficult. Charlie has started the full blown crawl, still not quite as effective as his commando but his belly is off the ground. He still goes into a plank then "downward dog" as he's trying to figure it out but it's a definite crawl. At home we have a few "safe zones" where I obviously still have to supervise him but the area is generally free of hazards. At the hotel that all changes. We tried to proof the outlets but wouldn't you know that Charlie kept going after the only phone cords we couldn't create a block in front of ( Since there was one in the bathroom, I ended up unplugging them so that there were no cords hanging).  We are putting sheets down to cover the carpet as much as possible but can't cover every square inch and I'm getting more comfortable with just saying "whatever" when we rolls onto yucky carpet. More later - for now...going to rest

Traveling with outlet covers

Sweet Face

He crawls OVER things now too - usually face plants, watch out!

I thought this last one was funny :-)

Working on Crawling - In Century City :-)

We're home from another L.A. trip and it was good to sleep in my own bed last night and wake up to a cage to put Charlie into at 5:20 this morning :-) We've been tagging along with Jose quite a bit and I'm sure child rearing experts would have something to say about that but I have something to say about it too. Because of the demands of the economy Jose has started to take more last minute and multiple day trips. As a family we are committed to not being away from each other more than 1 night whenever possible.  I feel like we're really fortunate that I'm at home with Charlie right now and that we have the companion pass so we can fly with big daddy...and I think we'd be crazy not to. I feel like it's important for all of us to be together, especially Charlie with his favorite buddy in such a critical developmental time and if we can make that happen why not take advantage? I found myself exhausted at the end of this trip and I can only imagine how Jose feels. I know that if I were the FactSetter (as many women are) that I couldn't be away from Charlie for this kind of travel and because they have such crazy check in/out clients visits, I couldn't make even pumping (much less breastfeeding) work away from him. (Though breastfeeding is much better rec'd in the workplace after legislation in the last decade could you see me toting an ice chest in with my work bag to a client?) I'd have to bring the nanny with me and have my baby in the hotel room while I worked downstairs because that's crazy quite frankly. Though I know the role of a dad is different, I know Jose hates to be away from Charlie in much the same way and if I can make that easier, I will. Plus I know my hubbie likes to have his bag unpacked, clothes and toiletries put out for the morning, and after I get up and take Charlie for the early am walk to let Jose sleep a little longer he always gets his coffee delivery :-)

Because Charlie rolls, forward scoots to wherever he pleases we had to get extra sheets to cover more surface area on the floor :-)

Push-ups

He's really trying to get up on his knees - push up/plank to yoga downward dog... but no crawls

With the PBK puppy Tia Ryn got him before when we first registered for the shower

Pre-baby, I thought baby life would always look this way, a sweet little book on top of his blanket...ready to head to the airport

But often times being a new parent feels like our poor carseat bag looks. BTW - if you plan to do more than 2 plane trips don't buy this bag! We've broken 1 zipper and as of this trip BOTH shoulder straps! Let me know if you  have a rec for a super durable car seat bag!

Asleep while out in the LA sunshine :-)

Griffith Park Observatory

Daylight savings sure makes a difference, though nobody told Charlie about it :-) These pictures were taken around 6pm and they still look so beautiful.  Sometimes when traveling with Jose we are lucky enough to sneak over to some local attractions around dinner hour. I've been wanting to visit Griffith Park which is absolutely HUGE. From pony rides to 3 golf courses, etc. etc. etc. They even have their own ranger station open 7 days a week 7am-9pm - who keeps those kinds of hours anymore?

If you've seen the movie "Yes Man" this is where the jogging photography class takes place :-) It's absolutely breath taking up here.

My favorite boys with the hollywood sign in the background

view

Seeing my first coyote out of captivity - it was roaming near the exit street! (this photo taken from inside our car)

Back to L.A.

Making himself comfortable on the plane...

Waking up from a nap to have lunch by the hotel pool

Phew it's bright out here!

Pool Cabana

Century City (Los Angeles)

Perched up on the chair in the hotel room

Because Charlie's weight has not kept up with his height growth we discussed some "solids" (they aren't solid foods, they're liquid...but whatever) solutions with Chan-Sizzle. She says he can take up to 4 tbl of food per seating 2x day but he's doing about 1 tbl per feeding. We've changed the process but trying to feed him 3x/day and by adding formula to his rice cereal (instead of water that I was doing before for extra calories).  3 feedings a day can be challenging, especially when you are on the road and need to be patient. On the road this time I realized I'd better be able to do it on my own and not count on Jose to hold him. Charlie is quite the squirmer so I strapped him into his stroller harness and sat him up like a big boy and he did quite well. Another bonus to the peg - just wipe it down and you're ready to hit the road.

Charlie always likes to put his feet up - wherever he is! We ended up staying for an extra day and as a result I got smart and starting feeding him in just his diaper (and bib) to save clothes.

Mmmm...that's good.

Steps: (a) Mix soy formula, 2 ounces of water for 1 scoop formula. In a small bowl measure 2 teaspoons rice cereal and add formula (mix) until not chunky but not runny :-) Feed/mix with solid of the week - this week we're all about sweet potatoes. During and afterward I'm trying to give Charlie the extra formula in his sippy cup.
With consecutive rolling it's getting more and more difficult to leave Charlie alone even to go to the bathroom. We need to get babyproofing or  just get an indoor fence/octagon so I can keep him away from the hazards but he can have  enough room to play. Unless he is sleeping the travel bjorn/pack n play only lasts about 10 minutes because he can't roll very far. At home he likes to roll wherever he wants to go and then - many, many times will only be inches (maybe centimeters) from his goal item (usually the remote control) and he will squawk because he can't reach.

Yes, that's a hot tamales box in the bjorn....he wants to touch/hold/gnaw on everything and I make few compromises but this was one of them.