Saturday, February 23, 2013

Christmas in Thailand

      Christmas of 2012 was an amazing one! We had the chance to go to Thailand to visit with Hans' parents! We had so much fun! Here are a few photos from our trip. Sorry there are so many. We crammed as much as possible in the 10 days we were there. It was also KG's first Christmas! 

Top Left: KG's first Christmas outfit
Top Right: Our Christmas tree at home
Bottom: family Christmas picture
     Here we are on the airplane. I was rather nervous about flying with two kids. It was a little crazy at moments... like when all of our tray tables where loaded with those obnoxious food trays and Lexi decided it was time to go to the bathroom! KG only slept for maybe 10 minutes in the little bassinet, but thankfully he slept for a couple of hours in Hans' arms. Overall, he did great for his first flight. Lexi enjoyed having her own little TV and playing with her little animals on the floor (we had bulkhead seats! A must for kids!) But, poor Alexis really struggled with her ears during landing. My heart broke for her because I couldn't take it away, and she didn't understand what was going on. The airports were a breeze. Its amazing how you get to skip in line when you have kids!


     Our first few days were spent at Grandma and Grandpa's house because we all had the stomach bug. But we really did not mind because Grandma had her house decorated like a Christmas wonderland! Alexis loved playing toys and reading books with Grandpa. We got to catch up on some needed rest and enjoyed playing Phase 10. 
Christmas day was so nice. Alexis was thrilled to see that Santa ate the cookie and drank some Coke! She also loved opening presents. KG mostly just ate the wrapping paper. After opening presents we ate a really yummy feast! 
Christmas Morning


     A few days after Christmas we went to the Sanphran Elephant Ground and Zoo to see crocodiles, monkeys, tigers, and of course ELEPHANTS! And finally I got to cross riding an elephant off of my bucket list. Alexis loved the tigers. I think she would have climbed all over them if we had let her. 

It's a little hard to see in the picture, but Lexi is holding the tiger's tail!

    
     Hans and I went to Bangkok a few years ago to help with Disaster Relief after a cyclone. Traveling the city with little kids, was a bit more adventurous than that time! We had to fight to get all of us on the sky train, and I am sure Grandpa was getting tired of hauling the double stroller up and down several flights of stairs. But he was a good sport! KG loved being around people. He smiled at everyone and made many friends. I am sure there are several Thai women (and an entire Japanese tour group) who have pictures of my kids on their phones! 


Playing baseball in the courtyard

     We loved spending time with Grandma and Grandpa! And I think Grandpa enjoyed having Lexi be an excuse for being able to eat lots of ice cream! Oh course, Lexi did not mind one bit. She loves sweets.  Our time was wonderful! Thank you Grandma and Grandpa for letting us stay and make new memories with you!




 I know this is almost two months late! But I'm trying! I want to post a few more to catch-up and then I will go back to posting more recent things :) thanks for your support!


Friday, February 8, 2013

KG is 6 months

Ah! I cannot believe I have gone so long without a post...

So much has happened in the past two months. We have had many adventures. But, I will get to those posts in a few days.  Got to start somewhere, and why not with KG's turning 1/2 a year?

6 months stats:
Height: 27.2 inches
Weight: 17 lbs
Clothes: 6-9month onesies, 9-12 month pants, and 12 month PJs

Our very big baby boy has kind of hit a plateau in his growth. It's a good thing, I guess, since he was growing like crazy for several months.

Sleep:
Finally! We have a schedule. After our little vacation to Thailand (will post about this next) he started taking routine naps and sleeping much better though the night. Also, a big milestone: KG has started sleeping in his own room! We were keeping him in our room, mainly because we could not find the power cord to his baby monitor. Lame excuse? We did not want to spend the $ on another monitor. (those things are already overpriced!) and our walls of made of concrete so I was worried I would not hear him wake up in the night. (this is on top of the fact that I sleep with my good ear buried in a pillow) Also, we kind of liked having him close to us. Not going to lie, however. We are enjoying having our room back again! No more tip-toeing around in the dark at 8 pm!

Eating:
Ok, more truth: because parenting is a learning process. I think I thought that the BLW was a sure-fire method of feeding a baby. But KG gagged his way through many of his "first foods." I don't know if it was because I was offering him the wrong things, or if it was because he was so eager about eating that he was trying to devour everything he could get his hands on! We quickly learned that he was not ready for crackers or bread. I was really discouraged. I really did not want to give him only pureed food, but there were a few times that was the only solution. Then, it clicked! He was so determined to eat that he worked out how to manage food. So far his favorite combo is mashed potatoes and strawberries.
He has backed down on nursing, too. Most days he nurses 5-6 times. We have offered him water and little bits of juice, but he does not seem interested.


Likes:
Playing with his sister's toys, and being silly! KG has the best since of humor; always laughing at the right times :) He is a happy baby and he only really cries when he is hungry. Oh, and he loves being NUDE! In between diaper changes/ wardrobe changes he flashes a huge grin, rolls over as quickly as possible, and starts scooting like his life depended on it!

Dislikes:
He does not like not being included! He gets really flustered if he is left on the floor while others are doing things. Also I don't think he knows he's a baby.
I thought I was going to put shots here, but I took him to get his 6 month shots and cried for a second and then he LAUGHED!

Baby Items we are thankful for:
the BOBA baby carrier. We used it a lot this month! I carried him all over Bangkok in it, and also took him mountain climbing!

Big News:
Crawling! Ok, so it is more like scooting/arm crawling, but he is quick! Gone are the days of being able to place him on the floor while I do a chore. Nope, now we much keep an eagle eye on him at all times! He loves getting into the electrical cords. And of course his new found skills really bother Alexis because now he can get her toys. He is still not sitting up yet. I guess that will come with time?

Firsts:
first time on a plane (he did great!)
first time to Southeast Asia. He now has been to 3 countries
first Christmas
first time on a boat
OH! and his first time "driving" a car! Yes, and a Range Rover at that!



Kristopher Graham,

       The first 6 months of your life have been quite the adventure! Not going to lie, buddy, the first two months were a little overwhelming! You rarely slept, ate pretty much non-stop, and wanted to always be held by only one of your parents. BUT you knew what you wanted and went for it. We admire that about you! You are such a motivated little baby. We love watching you discover new skills! You got so excited when you learned to roll over both ways, and you were giddy when you learned you could scoot! Let's not forget the time you finally got to eat real food; we have never seen a smile so big! Your smile, ah, your sweet smile...you smile with your entire face when you smile! You flash those little white teeth and show that cute little dimple in your cheek! Makes us want to smother you with kisses! You also have the best sense of humor! You love to laugh and seem to always know when to do so. WE love you little buddy! Can't wait to see what the rest of the year has in store! May the adventure continue! 

With so much love,
Mommy and Daddy