California Christmas!

I've never spent Christmas in the sunshine before (except for maybe one year in Hawaii, but I can't remember if that was on Christmas or just Christmas break), and I have to say it didn't really feel like Christmas.  However, I was willing to overlook the non-Christmasy feeling because it was 75 degrees, sunny, and fabulous!

Randy, Trey, and I went to Riverside, CA for what I like to call Clark Invasion 2011.  We spent a week with Randy's parents, his brother, his sister-in-law, and their three children.  All in one house.  For a week.  Luckily, everyone gets along well, and, minus the whiny teething baby, we were all in a good mood.  Amazing!

Here are some pictures from before we left:

Trey has a thing for shoes right now.  He loves to stand in other people's shoes.  The other day he tried to stand in his own shoes (that were not on) which was really cute but not very easy for him to do.

Randy and I took Trey to OMSI specifically so he could play at the water table.  We were prepared this time and took a complete change of clothes.  Our boy is such a water baby.  He could be in water all day long.

This is from Kris's holiday party.  This expression is so classic of Trey.  I love it!

(You might have to click on it to see it close up.)

A holiday tradition from the past few years is to go to Horsebrass and then walk through Peacock Lane.  We modified our tradition a little (darn kiddos) and went to Moon and Sixpence with Julie and Tim.  Our plan was to meet for drinks at 4:30pm, go to Peacock Lane at 5:30pm, and come back to our house for delicious vegetable soup and crusty bread afterwards....hmmmm.....

Note to self for next year: Peacock Lane doesn't start until 6:00pm.  Damn.

There were a few houses that had their lights on early.  

Still, quite the disappointment. 

We left for Clark Invasion 2011 on Monday.  Trey was a trooper on the airplane and only cried a little. Grandma Carmen and Grandpa Doug were plenty happy to see us, but the real person they wanted to see was Trey.  Bob, Randy's brother, and his family arrived later in the day.  We all flew out on Christmas Day (Carmen was right - the airport is practically abandoned on Christmas Day).  We had a good time with the family, but I think my favorite moments were watching Trey with his grandparents.

Grandpa playing with Trey in front of the stockings

Trey was fascinated with the bin of oranges in the pantry.  

Doug makes freshly squeezed oj every morning and it is delish!

Doug and Carmen's gift to the family was a day at Disneyland!  We had a great time and the weather was perfect. 

In front of the Matterhorn.  

This may have been the only time for the entire day that Trey wore his new Disneyland sunhat...ironic that it is in the shade.

Trey's first ride - Alice in Wonderland

We stood in line for 45 minutes for this ride and it was totally lame.  

They need to have some sort of review posted at the beginning of the line with the degree of lameness.  Would save everyone a lot of time.

Trey's second ride - Winnie the Pooh's Adventure.  

You can tell from his expression what he thought of this one.  

Also quite lame, but better than the first.

Trey's third ride - Jungle Cruise

This one was the best because he could see all of the animals off the side of the boat.  Love his expression in this picture!

Checking out the primates

When people ask me how Trey liked Disneyland, I tell them that he seemed to enjoy it, but he was just as interested in the bolts on the garbage can and the ducks, which is looking at here, as he was the rides and other entertainment.

Trey's fourth ride - the carousel

Trey freaked when I tried to get him on a horse with me, so we stood next to Grandma Carmen for the ride...well, until the carousel operator stopped the ride to make me move and stand between the butts of the horses.  Seriously?  What difference does it make to stand between the heads or the butts?

Trey with Grandpa Doug

Don't mind the drool - poor boy had FOUR teeth coming in while we were in California. FOUR.  AT ONCE.  It led to some painful nights (for all three of us), some early mornings (for all three of us), and A LOT of drugs (just for Trey).

Waiting in line for Trey's fifth and final ride - Pirates of the Caribbean.  

My favorite!

It's amazing how much of it is the same from when I was a kid...

well, except for Johnny Depp.

So if you use Facebook, you may have already seen this picture.  It's worth posting again...

At the end of the day in Disneyland, Trey and I were both pretty much done.  Randy, Carmen and Doug were going on the Matterhorn, so I tried to feed Trey dinner (total failure) and walk around before meeting them at the ginormous Christmas tree.  One thing we didn't factor into it was the Christmas parade.  Trey and I had trouble getting through the crowds, he was getting pretty fussy, and my back was hurting.  I saw a corner of a store that looked pretty bare, so I took Trey in and let him "walk" around pulling several stuffed Mickeys off the shelves while I sat and rested on the floor.  I decided that this would be a good self-portrait, so I called Trey over.  What did he do?  Four magical steps from my boy!  This was so exciting to me because he has yet to walk independently and it is driving us crazy.  Needless to say, the timing was perfect (just what I needed), but now I think I may have been hallucinating because he has yet to do it since then.  

Trey and his two loves - shoes and stairs

Randy and Trey playing badminton in the backyard

Clark family fun 

Amy was a big help in opening Trey's stocking with him

Heaven

Between the iPhones, iPads, laptops, and other smartphones, 

we were a typical American family.

Randy and Trey swimming 

Lunch with the Snyders, our travel companions in Beijing, at Dana Point

Trey in Amy's shoes

Caleb, Trey and Amy

Brothers hanging around the grill on Christmas Eve

This may be the only shot we got of the three of us the entire week. 

Classic Trey 

Grandma and Trey 

Where's Trey's nose? 

Where's Trey's ear? 

Where's Trey's mouth? 

Clark Cousins: Caleb (9), Amy (6), Sara (15) and Trey (1)

A pretty typical view of our afternoons

What a great Christmas at the Clark house!  It was so special to be together and share these memories.  We aren't sure when we will all be together again, but it might not be until Doug and Carmen retire to Port Townsend.

And, last but not least, a picture at the airport bar where I convinced the guy to serve us even though they were closed.  Hey, a week with the family is great, but we were in dire need of a Christmas cocktail.  Bartender: "Do you want me to make that a double?"  Me: "Yes, please." 

Some of my favorite things

In the spirit of Oprah's favorite things (does anyone miss her besides me?), here are some of my favorite things of the moment:

My girlfriends at book club told me about Downton Abbey, a show on PBS.  I just finished watching the first season, and I can't get it out of my head.  It is replaying this month on PBS before the new season starts in January, and I can't wait!  This show also makes me want to read some Jane Austen, but I have to finish my mammoth book club book, Outlander, first.

I have been reading books to Trey since he has been a few weeks old.  We read books every day, and I love how much he enjoys them.  The following three pictures make me a very happy mama, and by the way were not in any way posed!

One of my biggest weaknesses is baked goods, and Great Harvest has some really delicious pumpkin muffins.  If you don't have access to Great Harvest, try making these:  Country Pumpkin Muffins.  They are also pretty delish and freeze well too.

Last night I got to babysit for Grady, my sister's 9 week old son.  I loved holding him for three hours and feeling his warmth.  It reminds me of when Trey was his age, but it is a lot more relaxing.  I actually got Grady to smile a few times, but I couldn't capture it on camera.  Here's a shot of him, but it doesn't do his cuteness justice.

Having girlfriends who are also mothers has made my journey as a parent more fulfilling and rewarding.  I spent many years as an observer when my friends had their kids, so most of the children in my life are older than Trey.  That has turned out to be beneficial to me because those moms (and dads!) can provide support and wisdom through their own experience.  I also value my friends who have kids who are the same age as Trey because we are often in the same stages at the same time.   Being able to complain and commiserate with Mindy, Dyer, Kathleen, Sarah, and Sarah who all have kids within a few months of Trey is such a relief.  Poor Mindy really gets an earful:  here is her daughter, Camille, and Trey playing at Laurelwood last weekend.

So very thankful

It's a Sunday night and Randy is away in San Diego for Bronco Adventure 2011.  Trey and I are back from our five night stay at my Dad and Sandy's.  He is down to bed, and I am sitting here drinking a glass of wine, watching some of my favorite cooking shows from the DVR, and thinking about the last few weeks.

Weighing on my mind all day is the loss of a college acquaintance.  While this person and I have not been in touch for several years, I keep thinking about the tragedy of sudden loss, especially of someone in the prime of their life.  It has made me think a lot about the things I am thankful for and most appreciative of...in no particular order...my sweet and healthy son, my marriage, my home, a job that I enjoy going to each day, the fact that my family (and Randy's family too) gets along so well, the strong and lasting friendships in my life, a daycare that Trey loves, the memory of my mother who guides me as a wife and a parent...the list could go on and on.

A photo journal of our recent adventures:

Randy, Trey and I went to Anacortes and Seattle to visit Randy's grandma and some friends.  We stopped at Bob, Randy's brother, and Lisa's house for lunch on the way to Anacortes.

Trey laughing at something - probably Amy

Trey and his three Clark cousins: Caleb, Sara, and Amy 

I think Amy was trying to take Trey's blanket away 

(which we kept warning her to stop doing).

We spent Friday night and Saturday morning with Grandma Alice.  Trey impressed me with the speed at which he became comfortable in all of the places we visited, but he still kept his distance from everyone.

Holding Trey while he actually touches Great Grandma Alice 

The singing pirate bear had Trey in a trance. 

A family shot, including the pirate bear, of course

This was about as close we could get Trey and Great Grandma Alice.

After Anacortes, we headed to Samammish to visit Laura and Ryan.  I can't believe I didn't take any pictures while we were there, but it was really great to introduce them to Trey.  We spent the afternoon there before heading to North Bend.  We spent Saturday night with our friend Kaye, an old friend of my parents.  As I said before, Trey impressed me with how quickly he acclimated to all of his new surroundings, but he really surprised me with how comfortable he was at Kaye's.  I'm so glad she got to see the silly and easygoing personality of my sweet boy.  

This is the only picture I got at Kaye's.  

It doesn't truly illuminate his silliness while we were there, but it's a shot. 

Inbetween our roadtrips, we went to some wine events in wine country with Kris and John.  We visited Archery Summit, Barking Frog, and a Crowley event.  Super delicious wine!

Randy with two of his favorite things: 

Trey and a bloody mary (with bacon to boot!). 

Trey has been learning to feed himself with a spoon.

He's also practicing a new way of feeding the dog.

I had the entire week of Thanksgiving off due to furlough days.  We decided to go to Eugene on Tuesday to spend five nights at my dad and Sandy's.  I realized on Saturday that I had not left the house since we arrived on Tuesday afternoon.  I can't believe I didn't have cabin fever.  Having Trey around my dad and Sandy for 6 days and 5 nights was really fabulous because he made himself at home and they got to see all sides of him.

Trey making himself comfortable in the man chair 

Building blocks with Grandpa 

One of the many things that kept Trey busy:

rearranging pumpkins...again...and again. 

Trey LOVED this little chair that he could use while playing with his new toy. 

Holding sweet Grady so Julie could have some time to herself

Erika, Grady, Trey and I on Thanksgiving Day 

Relaxing before dinner 

Our sweet boy at 17 months out by the river 

Finding our noses

Not sure why Trey never smiles for our family portraits 

Randy's trying to get Trey to smile...it usually works. 

Julie with Grady at 7 weeks 

 We spent the majority of the weekend following Trey up and down these stairs.

Trey learning how to play the piano 

You can see for yourself his natural talent...

How could you not love this face? 

Trey discovered an even bigger piano with LOTS of new sounds.

Another thing to keep Trey busy...

A family divided

Grandpa holding Grady during the Civil War game

As you can see, we have had a long of bonding time over the past few weeks.  I thought I would be looking forward to going back to work tomorrow to get a little time away (the last time I was alone was on the drive down to Eugene), but I'm actually dreading it a little.  I have really enjoyed my time with Trey and am so thankful for our days together.  Even when I think about the bedtime and middle of the night woes we have had over the past few weeks, I look at my son and just feel blessed.