Stuck in the Airport

We have had some adventures this week. We had planned on flying out to Nebraska on Sunday so we could celebrate Christmas with Micah's family and then attend his brother, Luke's wedding. However, the weather threw a wrench in that plan, we had snow, freezing rain and more snow. Totals over 9 inches at our house. Some flights had been cancelled on Sunday, but not ours, so we headed out in the crazy weather and made it to the airport. When we got to the gate we found out it was a half an hour delayed, no problem. We boarded the plane and were ready to go. And then we waited, and waited and waited. The pilot told us we were waiting for de-icer. And we waited, and waited and waited. After two hours on the plane, the pilot told us that there was no more de-icer for Frontier. So all flights would be cancelled for the day. So we de-planed and Kim and Andrew were picked up. Micah stayed at the airport to wait in the loooong Frontier line to talk to the Customer Service Agent. He ended up waiting 3 and a half hours. The only option was to fly standby on the 6am flight the next morning.

So Monday morning, the Frontier phone line said the flight was on time, so did the Port of Seattle Web Site. We got to the airport at 5am and found out our flight was already delayed 3 hours. Then later we found out it would be another couple of hours. They had to wait until the de-icer equipment was ready. We spent our time playing with Andrew and talking to the other people around us. At 11am we found out they were still waiting for de-icer and they had cancelled the rest of the flights for the day. But....they would try to get this flight out since we had been waiting so long, but it probably would not leave until sometime after 6pm, more like 8pm. That would mean we would not get in to Denver in time to catch a flight to Omaha that we didn't have confirmed seats on anyway. And getting in that late meant we would not be able to make it to Nebraska in time for the wedding. Needless to say we decided to just go home and bag it.

We ended up having Christmas with Micah's family over the phone. That was a new experience. We are thankful Micah's parents are coming out here in a little over a week. We also hope to get together in a month or two with everyone.
Who knew that even with purchasing tickets we wouldn't be able to fly out for Christmas? I guess we should just stick with standby.

He Did It!

Last Monday Andrew rolled from his tummy to his back for the first time! I was so excited! I have been waiting and waiting for him to do it. He has been close for awhile, but would only be able to go on his side. And now that he has mastered this skill he keeps doing it. Every time I put him on his tummy he rolls over, sometimes it takes him a little longer, but he loves being able to control his movement.
He is also close to rolling the other way--from his back to his tummy. But I'm not anxious for him to master that one. I think it might make diaper changes more challenging.

Matching Outfits

A little while ago we went over to Michael and Lyndsay's house for Greek food. One of our mutual friends got our boys matching outfits, so we dressed them up and took pictures. What cute boys!

Reflecting on Christmas

This being my first Christmas as a mom I can't help but think of that first Christmas. What was Jesus like as a baby? What did Mary and Joseph think about raising the Savior? It still amazes me that God loves us so much that He sent his Son as a little baby who would grow up to give his life to save us. And I ask myself what gift can I give Him? How would He want me to celebrate His birthday? It's wonderful how becoming a mother has added a new dimension to how I view life.

Let It Snow!

Last night we had some snow! We got about 2 inches at our house. When we came home we had hot cocoa and watched the snow a little bit. The snow is so beautiful, and now it is starting to feel more and more like Christmas!
And the weather people are predicting more snow on Wednesday, and Sunday (whether people are right remains to be seen). In fact, it's not supposed to get over freezing until after Sunday.

Mommy's Birthday

Last week was my birthday. Andrew and I spent the day shopping with my mom. Then in the evening, Micah and I went out to Red Robin for my free birthday burger. This coming Friday I get to enjoy my present from Micah: we are going to see Handel's Messiah and are also going out for a nice dinner.

Happy Thanksgiving

On Thanksgiving we fed Andrew rice cereal for the first time. We thought it was fitting for the holiday. Then we headed over to my grandma's to have dinner with the family.

Uncle Justin's iPhone

Andy loves lights, he always likes to look at them and follow them. So of course he was fascinated with uncle Justin's iPhone. He liked watching the game my brother was playing. And we don't get Justin to hold Andy too often so I had to catch a quick picture.

Andy and Jack

Last week I went over to my friend Lyndsay's house so we could make baby food together. We took some pictures of Andy and Jack together, they are getting so big! Jack is now over 5 months old, and Andy will be 5 months old next Wednesday.
Making baby food was lots of fun, probably because Lyndsay and I were doing it together. Although Andy woke up early from his nap so I wasn't a whole lot of help. Lyndsay ended up doing most of the work. I can't wait to see what Andy thinks about the food we made. We made carrots, avocado, green beans and sweet potatoes. He won't get to try it for a little while though. We have yet to try rice cereal. I am waiting for a while longer. Maybe we will try it in a week or two and then he will get to try other foods. Yummy yums!

Into the Woods

We took another walk to our local Starbucks. I just love how cute Andrew looks in this adorable bear suit. It kept him nice and warm, and lots of people at Starbucks commented on how bundled up and cute he looked.

Johnny Jump-Up

This week we bought Andrew a Johnny Jump-Up because he loves to bounce. When we hold him standing up on our lap he tries to bounce, so we figured he would love to have a Johnny Jump-up to jump in. And we were right. It is so much fun to see him jump and giggle!

I've Been Tagged

My friend Lyndsay at Handsome Little Men tagged me to post 15 things that you all might or might not know about me so here they are...
1. I am LOVING being a stay at home mom
2. I just finished making my own baby food for Andy for the 1st time. (Although Lyndsay did most of it, thanks Lyndsay!)
3. I actually like using cloth diapers, it is not as bad as I thought it would be.
4. I have started just guessing on some measurements when cooking, and it has worked pretty well so far. Why dirty more dishes???
5. I make a monthly menu of the dinners we will have, and then make a grocery list from it.
6. I wish I had more time for blogging, making cards, scrapbooking...
7. I am not a fan of spicy food.
8. If I could go anywhere right now I would go to Disneyland or Paris, or better yet Disneyland Paris. :)
9. I have watched every season of Survivor
10. I don't mind doing laundry, but don't like cleaning the bathrooms.
11. Micah and I have an ongoing contest to see who has gone to the most states, sadly he is currently winning.
12. Even though I love to travel, and have gone to many places, my favorite place to be is at home.
13. I have not gone to see a movie in the theater since before Andrew was born.
14. I LOVE coupons! And I use them every chance I get.
15. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful husband, and adorable baby!

Cute 4 Month Pictures

One of our friends wants to become a photographer someday, and so she is trying to build her portfolio. She has been doing pictures of Andrew every month. Here are some of my favorites.

Balancing Andrew

Most of you probably know that Micah is able to balance almost anything on his nose, chin, or in his hand. So of course he had to try and balance our baby. He has been doing it for a while, ever since Andrew could keep his legs stiff. Micah usually does it right before we put Andy to bed because he is wrapped up in his Swaddle Me blanket. Andrew thinks it is great fun!

When It Rains, It Pours

Last week was a bit of an interesting week for us. First of all, on Saturday Micah noticed that our hot water tank was leaking in a few places. Not good. So he did some research to find out what to do: should we hire someone to replace it or could he do it himself. He decided it didn't look too complicated so he figured we would save some money and he could do it. Then on Sunday morning I went to run the dishwasher, and it made a grinding noise. Not good. But since Micah was already trying to figure out the hot water heater situation he did not have time for the dishwasher. Then Sunday afternoon Micah went to run the garbage disposal, and it exploded under the sink. Not good. Thankfully that was an easy, although messy, fix. At this point I was almost ready to cry. Was everything in our house going to break??? Micah reminded me that God is in control and not to worry. What a wonderful husband!
On Wednesday one of our friends was able to help Micah pick up a new hot water tank and install it. Then on Saturday Micah took the dishwasher apart. He found a small piece of rock, or something like it, stuck in one of the grates. He put the dishwasher back together and it ran great. We are thanking God that everything is working well, and just hope that nothing else decides to break down on us.

Grandparent Rendezvous in Minneapolis

Micah's mom had been planning on flying to Fargo to visit Micah's brother and our sister in law who just had a baby. Yes, Andy has a new cousin. Her name is Violet. And Micah's dad was going to surprise her and come along on the trip. So, Micah thought it would be fun if we also surprised her and came to visit for a few hours in Minneapolis while they had a layover before their flight to Fargo.
Alaska Airlines just started flying to Minneapolis last week, so we would be able to use Micah's flight benefits to fly out there. And the flights had plenty of open seats since it is a new route and not very many people know about it yet. It took some convincing for me to say yes. But we did decide to make the quick 13 hour trip. We were going to keep it a secret from his mom, but ended up telling her a few hours before we left so she wouldn't want to catch an earlier flight to Fargo. So yesterday we left Seattle at 7:30am and flew to Minneapolis.
While we were there we ate lunch, sat in a family seating area, had fun visiting and played with Andrew. We thought it would be great for Micah's parents to get to see Andy at this stage since he is so much fun right now. And they definatly don't get to see him enough. The next time they will be able to spend time with him isn't until Christmas. They really appreciated us coming out there, if only for 6 hours. The time for our flight came too soon, and it was time to say good-bye. So we headed back home to Seattle and touched down at Sea-Tac at 8:30pm. Micah's parents are now having fun visiting with Troy, LaRae, Eden and Violet. We are looking forward to December when we all get to be together.

4 Month Check Up

On Wednesday we took Andrew in for his 4 month check up. He now weighs in at 12 lbs. 12.5 oz. and is 25 inches long. It is so much fun to see how much he is growing! And he did get two shots, but he didn't even cry this time. It was so nice, hopefully it goes that well each time.
Speaking of shots, we have decided to space out his vaccinations. He is only going to get half his shots this month, and then we are going to take him in next month for the other two shots. We didn't like the idea of him getting injected with little bits of all the different diseases. This way he only has to deal with a smaller amount of diseases at a time.

Reaching and Grabbing

Andrew is now realizing he can use his hands. He has been reaching for things, and can grab onto them now. It is so fun to watch! I can tell he is really thinking and concentrating on getting the toy that is in front of him. He really likes his jungle mat that has toys to reach for. The kitty on the right is holding a ball that plays music when he hits it, too fun.
And last week I put some links and toys hanging from our coffee table so that he could reach and grab those too. He really likes it, and I can let him play on his own for a little bit while I fold laundry or check emails or whatever.
However, he is also starting to grab other things as well. It is not so fun when he grabs our skin (ouch!), hair or clothes. Thankfully he has not started grabbing for our food. I'm sure it won't be too much longer until he does, though.

Finished Patio

Here are some pictures of the finished patio at my parent's house. Doesn't it look great? Micah ran electrial lines to the planter in the center, and also to the pond which is on the south side of the patio. Justin put in all the pavers. What a lot of work, and it looks fabulous.

Hike to Starbucks

On Sunday Micah and I strapped Andy into the Baby Bjorn and walked to the nearest Starbucks for breakfast. It was a beautiful, crisp autumn day. We walked down to Lake Fenwick and took the trail down the hill into the valley and then continued along Meeker Street. It ended up being a little over four miles round trip. When we got to Starbucks we weren't sure we were going to be able to walk ALL the way back since we had a huge hill to go up. And if we took the trail it meant we had to climb LOTS of stairs. So we thought about taking the bus back, but we ended up missing it and ended up walking and taking the road home instead of taking the trail.
Andrew was supposed to nap the entire time we walked down to Starbucks, but he ended up only sleeping for about a half an hour. And on the way back he only slept for about ten minutes. But he looked really cute sleeping in the Bjorn.

Micah Working at My Parent's House

Every Thursday we go over to my parent's house for dinner, and then we watch Survivor. This last Thursday Justin and Micah worked out in my parent's back yard. They were getting ready for putting in the patio. They had to break up some concrete so they could plant a tree by one of the posts. That is why they are wearing the lovely eye wear. On Saturday Micah again went over to work on their yard. Justin finished the patio and Micah worked on some electrial work, so now there is an electrial outlet in the middle of the patio and another going to the pond. I need to take some pictures of it finished and then I will post them.

Napping with Grandpa

Andrew and Grandpa taking a nap together after dinner.

Exersaucer

Andrew loves being in his exersaucer. It is so wonderful to be able to put him in it so he can entertain himself. I put him in it when I eat breakfast and lunch and also when I'm cooking dinner. On Saturday he even sat in it while my friend Lyndsay came over and we stamped and made cards. Our good friends Heather and Dave gave the exersaucer to us. They have blessed us with lots of their baby things they don't need anymore. They are fabulous! In fact, most of Andrew's clothes are from them. They had two boys, so she had lots of super cute boy clothes.

Great Grandma Galicic

Here is a picture of me, Andy, and my mom with my grandma. I am so thankful to still have her in my life. I love seeing her with Andrew, she is so cute.

Sick Mommy

Well, I just got over my first time being sick and having a baby to take care of. It sure is hard to be sick when you still have be a mom. And it was a horrible sickness too. I had a bad sore throat and a fever that lasted for almost five days. I was sick from Saturday to Thursday of last week. Thankfully Micah was a huge help and was able to bring me meals, play with Andy and change him. And I was very thankful that Andy has not gotten sick. The doctor said babies can get colds pretty easily, but they usually don't get sore throats. Now I just hope Micah and no one else gets what I got.

Where'd He Get That Red Hair?

This is a question we get ALL the time. It is one of the first questions we are asked when family, friends, and strangers see Andy for the first time. Of course they look and me and Micah and see that we don't have red hair, and so they wonder why our baby has red hair. Well, we tell them that Micah has two aunts with red hair. And that in order for a person to have red hair it has to be a recessive gene on both sides of the family. We found out that there is red hair on my grandma's side.
We were surprised when we saw that Andy had red hair; I was expecting to have a bald baby because I was bald when I was born. Or that we would have a blonde baby since both Micah and I were very blonde when we were little. So we couldn't believe it when we saw his cute red hair. And his red hair is a nice color, it is more copperish than red. We really like Andy's red hair and hope that it stays. We think that his hair is getting to be darker red, but we don't know if that is because he is growing more hair, or if it is changing color. I guess we will have to wait and see what happens.

Cutest Outfit Ever

I just have to post this picture of Andy. I love this outfit, it is just too cute! There are little turtles on his pants. My aunt Joyce got it for him. It is still a little too big for him, but he still looks adorable. And the shoes are from my aunt Judy.

Day at the Fair

On Saturday we went to the Puyallup Fair with our friends Michael and Lyndsay and their two boys. It turned out to be a cold, rainy day. But we still had fun. Since it was so cold we had Andy all bundled up. He looked so adorable.
While we were at the fair we walked through the barns and looked at the animals. We also had yummy fair food; Micah and I had scones, mmmm. And we also enjoyed walking around and looking at the different booths. Micah was excited to get a free $5 Starbucks card by doing a vision check.

Spiro's Greek Island

One of our favorite restaurants is Spiro's. Kim has been going there since high school. They have fabulously yummy food. We took Andy for his first Spiro's experience last week. Micah had Wednesday off so we decided to go out to lunch. Andy did really well and just sat with us and liked checking everything out.

New Skills

Andrew is almost 3 months old, and he is learning many new things. Now he is getting better head control. He can also hold onto something if we put it in his hand. And his new favorite thing is to lay down and he grabs our thumbs and we help him sit up and then he pushes himself up to stand. He loves it!

How'd You Do That?

This morning I woke up and went to get Andy up and I found him like this. I put him all the way at the top of the white sheet saver and he somehow was able to scoot to the end of the crib. We better watch out, he will be getting mobile soon. Oh, and by the way, he ended up sleeping 9 and 1/2 hours last night!!!

Jack and Andy

A little while ago my friend Lyndsay came over to visit and see our new house with her two boys. Her son Jack is exactly three weeks older than Andy. It was fun visiting with her and showing off our house. And it is always fun to put the babies next to each other and take pictures. They are too cute!

Just Hanging Out

I love this picture of Andrew. He looks like he is having fun hanging out in his Baby Papasan seat. He does okay in it. He will only stay in it for about 20 minutes or so before he starts fussing and wants to be held. This does give me enough time to take a quick shower, or eat breakfast, or fold laundry or whatever. It is fun to see how he keeps growing and filling up the seat more and more. Here is a picture of him in it the day we came home from the hospital. He looks so tiny.

My Parent's New House

This past year my parent's have been having a house built. It was finished at the end of July, and they moved in on August 1st. They have been wanting to build a house for as long as I can remember, and now they are finally living their dream. Here are some pictures of their beautiful home.