Carousel Ride

On December 23rd, the three of us visited the Salem Riverfront Carousel.  My aunt and uncle, cousins and my cousin's wife's extended family had a little party there and invited us to join them. 

Matthew got to ride the carousel three times--twice with Papa and once with Mama. 

I LOVE the above picture of Michael and Matthew--the expression on Michael's face is so endearing.

 

And here are the three of us. 

It was a fun experience (great for babies with all of the lights, sounds and colors) and I am already thinking about maybe having Matthew's first birthday party there.  :)

First Visit With Santa

On December 20th, I met my mom at Lloyd Center in Portland so we could take Matthew to visit Santa.  Michael wasn't really interested in going but I think next year when Matthew is more aware of Christmas and Santa, he will be more on board with it. 

I dressed Matthew in a reindeer outfit (again from Grammie), complete with reindeer booties and hat.  The 20th just happened to be Matthew's eight-month birthday, so I also brought his sticker to commemorate the event.  We waited in line for a good half hour or so and Matthew didn't fuss a bit.  He loved looking around at all the people, little kids and Christmas decorations--and he got to ride the escalator a few times, which he loved. 

I wasn't sure how Matthew would react to Santa, especially when another little boy a few months younger than Matthew cried pretty hard on Santa's lap.  When it was our turn, Santa let Matthew stare at him for a few seconds and touch his white glove before having me place him in his arms.  I warned Santa that Matthew would likely go for the gold spectacles perched on his nose and well within reach, but Santa laughed and said that would be fine.  Matthew did not go for the glasses, however.  He just stared at Santa and then at the camera and all of us calling to him to get him to smile like he was trying to figure out who this guy was and just what was going on. 

The pics above are ones I took with my cell phone.  I ended up using the "official" picture below as the photo on our Christmas card this year, and I think it turned out really well. 

 

Christmas Monkey

My mom got Matthew this little monkey outfit, which reminds me so much of long underwear.  The monkey face on the butt is so adorable.  We are using the outfit as jammies, and this picture was taken of him before bed. 

Impromptu Photo Shoot

During this little photo session, I was trying to get one picture of Matthew to send to my mom.  I think I wanted to show her how tired he looked (see droopy eyelids in last picture).  Michael was holding him and Matthew was bouncing around all over the place.  Too cute.

Honest To Goodness Crawling

The end of the first week in December was when Matthew went from scooting on his belly and rocking back and forth on all fours, to actually crawling on all fours.  It seemed like it happened overnight!  He was pretty unsteady at first, and toppled over a few times, bonking his head on the floor (my heart stops every time), but now as I write this (Dec. 28th), he is quite a pro at balancing himself on his arms when he goes from crawling to sitting.  And now the big thing is standing.  He loves to pull himself up on everything (sofa, chairs, exersaucer, Mama and Papa's legs, etc.)  My mom thinks he will not do much more crawling but will go instead right to walking!  Not sure I am quite ready for that . . . but we shall see.  At any rate, I am almost positive he will be walking by his first birthday in April--maybe running!

Oh Christmas Tree

December 6th, we had a playdate at Sam's house. He had a real tree! Neither of the boys seemed too terribly interested in it, however, even though it had lots of exciting things hanging off of it~just right for grabbing. They were much more drawn to all of Sam's toys, especially the ones with flashing lights and sounds. Eileen and I laughed because both boys knew which toys were theirs, and would immediately reach for whatever it was that the other one had in his hands. Guess they are still a bit young for real sharing. :)

Later we walked to a fun toy shop in Multnomah Village, and then had hot drinks and pastries at a local coffee shop. It was the perfect end to a chilly afternoon stroll.

Random Cute Pics

Playdate With Sam

In late November, (has it really already been that long?), Sam & Eileen came over for a playdate. The boys had fun "sharing" the exersaucer, while Eileen and I chatted. Matthew had just turned 7 months old and Sam was almost 11 months old. What a big guy Sam is now. He was almost walking, really, pulling himself up easily and holding on with one handfor balance. And he was an exoert crawller. Matthew was getting close to crawling, doing his "skydiver" impression with arms and legs lifted.  So glad these two can be buddies.