It's Been a While...

"If you ask me where my smile is one more time..."

"OK, here it is!"

Morning Coffee

Mama and Papa

Forgive me.  We've been busy and the Fiona and I got sick.  Not too much fun.  She quickly recovered and my cold is still lingering as colds tend to do.  Blah!  This weekend was Crab Fest.  It's a big deal in Kodiak.  The carnies come to town and people have food booths set up.  We were fighting our colds and didn't spend too much time down there.  Last year I was all about it though and couldn't get enough of all the good food... I found out the next week I was pregnant!  It's fun to think about what we were feeling at this time last year.  The excitement of finally getting that positive test was settling in!  And now our girl is here!  We couldn't be happier!

Happy Mothers Day!

"Petting" the ever patient Willie

Our sweet girl

All my girls!

Walking at Spruce Cape

(This was on Saturday)

What a perfect day!  I woke up with my little girl snuggled up next to me in our family bed.  I'm so grateful for her and am amazed by the love I feel for her.  She's such a special little person and a true miracle to us.  I'm so happy to finally be a mom!

We spent the day together as a family doing some of our favorite things.  We sat in the morning sun having our coffee on the front porch.  Well Brian and I had coffee and Fiona had the usual mama's milk!  Fiona enjoyed "petting" Willie's fur.  By petting I mean grabbing fistfuls of it!  Later we took her for a walk through the neighborhood and she slept in her ergo for a bit.  Then it was off to one of our favorite coffee shops for lunch!  She and I sat and nursed in the car on the beach while Brian took the girls swimming on the way home.  Then it was back to nap time!  While Fiona nursed and napped I read my new Mothering magazine.  I might have closed my eyes for a few minutes but mostly I read in bed.  It was a nice treat.  We just got back from walking to Safeway for some dinner groceries.  She dozed off on the way home so we kept on walking just to make that evening nap last a bit longer.  We just started using the jog stroller which is great.  She likes it and there is room for a few groceries too!  The weather in Kodiak has been gorgeous!  This is why we live here!

Happy Mothers Day to all the mom's out there.  I hope everyone else had such a great day!

3 months old!

Carolina's Birthday cake!

Walking at the Buskin

Summer clothes!

Fiona with her Papa and her puppy, Maia

Tummy time

Fiona turned 3 months old on Friday!  I brought her in this morning for a vaccine (yikes, we hate those) and weighed her.  11 pounds, 1 ounce.  She's getting bigger and gaining new skills every day.  She is much better at grabbing things now.  Among her favorites are her dangling toys, Mama's hair, and best of all Papa's beard!  It's really fun to interact with her and have "conversations".  She goes on and on in baby talk.  We are just loving every day with her!

This weekend we were blessed with gorgeous weather.  It was about 60 degrees and totally clear blue skies!  Keep in mind that our "hot" summer weather is about 65.  We took the girls down to the Buskin River for a swim and to soak up some rays.  The fog suddenly rolled in that evening and it looked like rain so I made a mad dash outside to bring the diapers in from the line.  It made me think of how many times I had pulled laundry from the line when I was younger at our old house on Forest Street when it started to rain!  Despite the rain last night we are thrilled that Spring has finally arrived.  The tulips are starting to come up and the grass is getting green!  Yeah!  Oh and I'm so excited to have garlic coming up in the garden. :)

Our friend Carolina had her 13th Birthday this weekend too.  It has been a tradition to help her make a birthday cake every year since we've lived here.  We have a lot of fun.  She doesn't ever want just a basic round cake either.  Over the years we've done a teddy bear, a fish, a lady bug and this year a soccer ball.  It turned out great!  Carolina and I have learned that the key to success is to keep her mom, Alex, out of the process!  It's fun to think about what types of cakes Fiona will like for her birthdays.

Here are a few shots of our Little Bean just looking cute.  I've been really busy lately organizing the Sum'Arts for Kids camps.  Its a series of art camps taught by various teachers in the community to fill the gap in art education. My role is organizing the teachers and advertising.  Not a small task I'm realizing and harder to do with a baby then I thought!  The program is through the Kodiak Arts Council.  I'm enjoying it but I'll be happy when its done!  

We get our buddy Max tomorrow and all next week too!  I'm so excited.  I used to take care of Max before I started full time at the refuge.  I love him.  It will be fun to see Fiona with a little kid around.  We're taking care of him while his regular sitter recovers from a bad back.  I'm not so sure how nap time is going to work out for Little Miss though since she has decided that she'd rather not nap unless I lie down with her for at least an hour.  I can't complain about getting a rest in, but it won't work with Max around.  I think she'll be napping in the baby wrap! 

Fiona loves her thumb!

HAPPY EASTER!

We woke up to 8 inches of fresh snow today!  We are really ready to say goodbye to the snow and welcome Spring.  I wonder how many eggs will get lost in the snow! Hope you have a great day!

A trip to Anchorage!

We successfully had our first airplane ride with Fiona!  I'm happy to report that she did great and was either sleeping or nursing the entire flight.  Along with the flight, Fiona had several other firsts.  Her first elevator, her first traffic, her first hotel, her first mad dash to the airport!  So many things to discover when you get off the island!  She was also away from me for the first time while I had my dental surgery.  3 hours!  She didn't sleep but she did do well.  She and Brian paced the halls of the hospital for a bit but she was happily sitting and sucking his finger when I got to the waiting room!  I think being apart was harder on me then her!

This video is from the hotel room.  Fiona was so happy to get out of the car seat and stretch out on the bed.  She was able to get her thumb to her mouth and keep it there... also a first!  We thought it was pretty darn cute!  It has become a favorite past time.

Squeaks and Squeals

Ok, so I got it to work!  Yeah!  Here are some nice squeaks and squeals from Fiona.  She is talking more and more these days which we love!  It's really fun to see her personality emerging.  She's a happy girl as you can see.  I'm pretty sure she's saying hello to YOU here! :)