Aloha, y'all

So, we made it to Hawaii. All of us had a GREAT flight. Alex slept a bunch, but even when he was awake, he was THANKFULLY really good. He didn't even seem to be bothered much by the pressure changes or the strange plane noises, etc. He was, however the center of attention everywhere we went :-)

We were met at the airport by Aunt Cate, who wrapped us in leis. Cute picture of Alex in his leis to follow! Our hotel is nice, although their definition of "kitchenette" and mine differ a little bit. There is a dorm-room fridge, a microwave, and a coffee machine. No dishes or anything useful like that! But, we're doing fine. I brought -some plastic containers to be plates-bowls-storage things since we'll be in our new place at least 2 weeks before our stuff actually gets here. So, we're not completely out of luck, but I was a little surprised.

On the topic of surprises, the biggest sticker shock of our time here occured a few days ago, at the grocery store. Dan and I eat about a box of Special K a week. The big box. It costs $7.50 here. That's about twice as much as we used to pay. Seriously! It's not made of anything different here...no little gold Hawaiian chunks in it or anything. And the milk, all over $6.00 a gallon. Alex is going to have to get a job just so we can buy groceries! We will be looking into a Sam's or Costco membership ASAP.

The best news so far is that we found a place to live. We'll be in a neighborhood called Nuuanu (maybe there's an apostrophe in there...not sure). It's about 6 blocks from where Dan is going to work, very close to the intersection of two major highways, has a yard for Sydney and a nice porch, and it looks like a nice neighborhood for walking, with a big park area not too far away. The downstairs neighbors are a teacher and a lawyer with two little girls, so it's a family place, too.

All right, I have to get some food together for a picnic with some of Aunt Cate's friends, but we'll be in touch.

Aloha!

Radio Silence in 5...4...3...2....

There is a moving van in front of our house. By this time tomorrow, we'll be on a plane, or we might even be to San Fransico or over the Pacific! Any minute now they are going to take this computer and put it in a box and there will be no more babyboyg updates for a while. Of course, there are the public computers at libraries or whatnot, but probably no pictures for about a month...EGADS! Alex will be a grown-up by then! ;-)

We will keep you posted briefly about the important stuff, of course.

Big toothless grins and slobbery kisses to all y'all! (For those of you not from the south: yes, we really do say "all y'all".)


Alex enjoys one last visit with Grandpa before we take off!

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

(Note: Actually written on Tuesday, just not posted until Wednesday...)

Alexander's awful day actually started yesterday. He's been a little congested for a couple of days now, but it was very noticable yesterday. Every time you got near his face, you could hear the wheezy sounds, and he was coughing . As the day wore on, the snot started, too. Oh, joy. I read up a little about babies and colds, and was surprised to find that several websites confirmed that most babies will get 6-8 colds in their first year. I started out feeling pretty bad when I saw that A had a cold...Did I take him out too much? Do I not wash my hands enough? Is it from the dog licking his face, or letting strangers touch his cheeks? WHAT DID I DO WRONG? OK, it turns out that 2 colds by 4 months is actually a bit below par (uh-oh, now he's BEHIND all the other kids!!), so we are doing pretty well :-)

Last night was the worst night we've had since about Week 2. At least by Week 3 or 4, Alex was sleeping for 2 or 3 hours at a time. Last night, it was less than an hour at a time. There was one decent chunk of sleep, from 7:30am or so until about 9:00 am-- and thank goodness Dan got him that time because I was a WRECK by then. The problem seemed to be that he was so congested that he kept waking himself up, or that he'd cough and wake himself up. Then he'd remember that he was congested and didn't feel good, and the only thing that made him feel better was eating, which was also kind of difficult because he couldn't breathe very well. So, he'd wake up screaming, eat a bit, wiggle and whimper, eat a bit, cough, cry, eventually fall asleep for 1/2 hour or so...and repeat. BTW, walking didn't help, rocking didn't help, bouncing didn't help, and he was having trouble even eating laying down in bed, so really it was up to me to cure all that ailed him. As much as Dan might have wanted to be sweet and pitch in, it was only the magic of Mommy Milk that could save the day...or the hour, as it were.

So, that leads to today. The front room is still a mess, and someone bought the TV cabinet this evening, so now the electronics are on the floor, along with all of the stuff (papers, a globe, keys, and all the other items) that called the top of that cabinet "home." I tried to pack today, I really tried, but some baby was pretty much inconsolable and I could hardly sit down, let alone put him down. So, I got 2 boxes packed. I don't get it at all. When I'm sick, I don't want to move. I want to sleep and be left alone. This little guy hardly slept at all last night and took two naps no longer than 30 minutes each today and is still (at 10:30) awake and needing love. Luckily, he's finding love from someone else right now so I can type into the blogosphere and let you all know all about it! This day made me want to move to Australia!**


Here is Alex, being a little trooper. Despite that runny nose and the fact that his house is an explosion of half-packed boxes, he's managing to enjoy a little play time. Thanks for the walker, Grandma W. I've been playing the music and amusing the whole house with it since Christmas!

** For those of you who are not teachers or other lovers of children's literature and therefore have not run across this book recently, moving to Australia is the solution that the title character of "Alexander and the terrible, horrible, etc...day" thinks will solve all of his problems. I don't know if Australia will help, maybe moving to Hawaii though... :-)

Four Months Old!

Which beautiful baby that you all know and love turned 4 months old today?

That's right! Alex! :-)

We went to the Dr. today and my big boy weighs 21 lbs and is 26 inches tall! He's above 97% on weight and 90% for height. This is no puny baby! The minor inconveniences that come along with such a healthy young man are that he has outgrown his infant car seat and now is in a "convertible" seat that will eventually turn around and be his toddler seat. The downside to this is the loss of the baby bucket convenience. Honestly, the baby bucket had gotten less and less convenient as Alex got heavier and heavier, and Dan suggested that the seat doesn't become unsafe for the baby at 20 lbs, rather for the backs of the parents of the baby. Towards the end there, I was hardly able to carry that thing from the car to the house. It wasn't the actual weight, but the fact that you have to carry it about a foot from your body. The physics of that hold have to be damaging to your back and shoulders.

So, he's outgrown the bucket, and now he cannot be so easily "snapped" into the top of his stroller. So, he's now riding in his stroller like a big boy--facing the world! I was afraid that he would not be as happy, not being able to see me, but I'm a bit of a narcisist. He was fine. In fact, this is all coming as he is starting to be able to play with toys (OK, so he breifly picks up and drops toys again and again and again...) so he seems even happier in the new-and-improved stroller set-up than with the old version!

Here's Alex, ready for an afternoon walk around the neighborhood. He enjoys that little Lamaze toy, with all its handles. He can grab and drop for the whole ride. Plus, it jingles a bit and some of the sides and handles even crinkle. It's way better than TV or computer games!

Get Out The Baby Book!

Yet another "first" to log in the calender of "Baby's First Year": the first time that Alex was such a pain at a restaurant that Mommy left wishing she'd just cooked at home...

We went to El Mercado, a favorite Mexican restaurant on our "tour of Austin eateries we will miss when we move." Alex was on less than stellar behavior. Actually, let me just say he was awful. He has this habit now of yelling. Just yelling. It doesn't always sound like something is wrong or like he needs anything in particular. It really just sounds like he's enjoying listening to the noise he can make. Which is fine, but not in public. We do the check: hungry? No. Dirty diaper? No. Too hot? Cold? Some article of clothing hurting? Need to burp? Etc. It seems that the only comfort for the screaming Alex is for one parent to be up and walking. Well, this sort of kills the enjoyment of a family dinner outing when 2/3 of the family is up, admiring the flourescent beer signs while the remaining 1/3 is munching alone. *sigh* At one point, the waiter came over and asked me, "How's everything over here? Can I get you anything?" I wanted to ask if he could take this baby back to the kitchen and bring us a quieter one.

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To make up for complaining about my usually sweet and wonderful baby, a cute picture from earlier today:


I propped Alex up for picture time. Unfortunately, he is all smiles until I try to take pictures of him. I guess the camera isn't as good at coaxing a grin out of him as the faces of his Mommy and Daddy. These days, the right look can send him into a little giggle fit, and he's starting to respond to tickling, too. He gets a startled look on his face and then starts to laugh, as if he's not sure what's happening, what that feeling is, but man, is it funny!

Little Fan (a follow up picture)

For Jenna:
Here's some Longhorn pride. And it's so nice to wear it now that we know who won :-)

Loyalty Schmoyalty

I dressed Alex this morning with the intention of taking a couple of pictures to post that would make his Grandpa and all of Grandpa's coworkers smile:

This shirt was a hand-me-down from a little friend of his who also has grandparents that live in Lubbock.

But, as we were driving around town doing errands today, I was reminded that today was not a day to show pride in any college other than the University of Texas. The entire city of Austin was a sea of the color known as "Burnt Orange," the color of the Texas Longhorns. T-shirts, bumper stickers, flags, jackets, banners, signs outside of businesses all reminded me that the Longhorns are in the Rosebowl and we were just about the only people in town not wearing orange.

So, we ran errands, I took my pictures, we packed some more, and then we changed clothes. Into another shirt, given by the same little friend, that happened to have a little longhorn on it and be burnt orange. I am such a follower.

Then we went to church to enjoy the game with some friends, on a big screen. Alex was in a lousy mood, so we went home early. But he was a cute little fan while it lasted.

Chit Chat Among Friends...

Alex and I went out to Genuine Joe's Coffee Shop this morning to spend time with some college friends. Gary, Robin, and Josh met us there. It was the first time G & R had met Alex, and Josh hadn't seen him in at least a month, so it was fun for all of them. Alex of course wowed them with the amazing smiles he flashes regularly these days. He also managed to chatter up a storm and then fall asleep for a while, so they got to see the wide array of Alex's talents.

Trip preparation is going well. We were concerned about some timing issues with Sydney and the strict rules regarding importing animals into Hawaii. It turns out that our kitty Niki will not be able to come with us. The regulations are pretty stringent, and I have been less than vigilent in keeping Niki's records of shots and stuff. Plus, she doesn't have an ID chip in yet, and other things that just can't get done before we go. Soooo....we're going to be looking for a place for this cutie pie to live, at least for a while.

The packing is also coming along. I packed a bunch of clothes and shoes tonight, and I'm moving on to towels, sheets, and dishes as soon as Dan gets back from Walmart with some boxes.

Alex is doing really well. He is getting more and more animated every day. He smiles, talks, plays on his tummy, in his swing or walker, or in one those toys where he lays on his back and bats at toys. And the length of time he can do this without losing interest is increasing all the time. As long as he can see me, he lasts a good 10 minutes or so. This is good since I need to have free hands to do stuff around the house. Holding him does not help me pack!

Pssssst. Pooh Bear. Can you keep a secret? Tummy time always causes me to pass gas. Don't tell Mommy that it's me. I always blame it on Sydney!


Ahhhh. I feel better already.

OH! Mommy. How long have you been sitting there, taking pictures? Did you hear me talking to Pooh?

Who doesn't love a surprise day off?!?

Today started like every other Monday. The little boy woke up around 7:15. If he wakes up after 6:00 but before 8:00 (the sanctioned wake-up time, as per Mommy), I just take him to bed with me and snuggle, try to lull him back to sleep if possible, and generally just ignore that it's a new day, since I am very definitely not a morning person. So....Daddy gets up in a little while, gets ready for work, etc. He leaves and is back about 15 minutes later. I assumed he'd forgotten his laptop as happens sometimes.

Nope, apparently his company had the day off, and no one had told him...or he just didn't get the memo. So, it was a happy day of working around the house for us. Our living room, as I explained before, is a disaster area. But yesterday we sold the 7-foot tall book case that holds about a million books. Now the books are all over the office. Some are in little stacks by subject so we can sell them. The living room is getting better. Dan used this day off to really work hard. I, on the other hand, was not so productive today. Alex and I played for a while, then I did a little work while he slept, then we went to play group. It was a lovely day so the mammas and babies went to the park. The group consists of babies born in September and October, so Alex is actually the oldest one in the bunch. It's less a play group than a social time for moms, but it's nice to compare notes and, of course, to chat excitedly about our amazing offspring! So, we enjoyed ourselves there and then came home. Dan surprised us by having sold both the bed frame and a little desk lamp. Yeah...getting rid of stuff is the name of the game right now!

I took more pictures of stuff, posted more stuff on Craigslist, made some dinner, ate some dinner, Alex was crabby so I put him to bed, and then I fell asleep. Dan came out to do something else and found me passed out on the couch. Maybe New Year's is still haunting me.

So much to do so much to do. Our household is so busy right now!


Alex is so eager to sit up! Whenever he is in an inclined position, he tries so hard to lift his head. His head is almost always a couple of inches off whatever head rest he's suppoesd to be relaxing on. So, we've been practicing sitting up lately. He uses the Boppy pillow and a hand from Mom, and he can do a pretty good job.

Oh, a little stretching feels good. Yeah...stretch and reach...ahhhhh....

OK, feel the burn...this is becoming less like sitting and more like yoga...um...Mommy? The only thing keeping me from folding completely over is my diaper. Well, that and my Buddah belly! Maybe sitting isn't my thing quite yet.

First New Year!

Last night was Alex's first New Year's Eve party. He surprised us by actually making it until the ball dropped. He was asleep when we arrived (the car will do that to a little guy), and slept for about an hour, until about 10:30. When he woke up, he was passed around, cooed at, and doted on by our friends, as it was a non-kids (unless they are too little to get into any trouble!) party. We did the big countdown 5-4-3-2-1 and yelled Happy New Year, and Alex was either scared or just wanted to join in, because even after the other voices died down, he could still be heard shouting a delighted "ahhhhhhh!"

We came home shortly after midnight and all went right to sleep. Alex slept WITHOUT WAKING UP from a little before 2:00 until 10:00. Is this foreshadowing of great days to come, or was the poor guy just really tuckered out from all the excitement of the evening?

We have our fingers crossed....

I am a party animal!! In the New Year, I resolve to sleep through the night.

NEWS

Dan and Alex and I received a long-awaited letter in the mail last Tuesday. It was the offer letter for a new job for Dan...in Hawaii. This is something we've talked about pretty much since Dan got back from visiting Cate in HI last Christmas. But the search began in earnest last August-ish, when Dan began to really not enjoy his current job. The pull factor of Hawaii combined with the push factor of crappy Austin job did the trick. Apparently, though, there's not a huge tech community in Hawaii, so jobs for Dan aren't just popping up all the time. Then, all of a sudden this opportunity came along and BAM, it was a phone call from a recruiter to job offer in about two weeks.

So, the fun of making a HUGE move is overtaking this household. We are in the process of selling all of the big furniture right now: bed, couch, desk, bookshelves, etc etc. because it is more expensive to ship stuff than to just buy new stuff. The good thing is that this is the same on the other end. Craigslist in Honolulu (an on-line classifieds website) is FULL of people doing the same thing in reverse. They are leaving the island and have to sell it all. We should be able to furnish our house with nice used stuff pretty easily once we get there.

In addition to selling the big stuff is the process of purging the little stuff. Dan and I both have pack-rattish tendencies, and so between us we have quite a bit of stuff that we are sure will be useful...someday...but currently is sitting in a box and has been ever since we moved here, making it seem as if maybe this stuff is not as useful as we thought. So, we have several boxes going in the living room now: stuff to pack, sell, give away, throw away, etc. The living room looks like bombs have gone off. Unfortunately, this is the room that people have to go through when they come to look at the stuff we are selling. It's mildly embarrasing everytime. I try to head off the embarrasment by meeting them at the door with, "We're moving, excuse the mess," but I know that people must be feeling sorry for Alex..."How can that baby survive in this pig sty?" And I am afraid to put him down for fear that I won't be able to find him again :-)

It's New Year's Day. I'd like to toast to a very empty house very soon (anyone out there need a new bed or t.v. cabinet??).