Santa Cruz! Summer has officially arrived now that we have been to the beach and have been nicely burned to a crisp! My three sisters are down to visit for a week and we went to the Boardwalk in Santa Cruz for the day, and then down to Monterey for the night and next day. Dan had to work, but Russell did GREAT in his stroller- he just loves to watch everyone and everything. He only had one 5 minute screaming match, and then he was done. We are so proud of him!

My three sisters on one of the rides at Santa Cruz's Boardwalk.

Look at what washed up on the shore in Monterey!

A closer up look...

I think we'll keep him:-)

"Mom and Dad and I are going to the pool today. I wear a special swim diaper to keep the pool clean;-) I sure love my stroller, though, and anywhere we go in it, I am so happy! It has been too hot lately to go to the park and the pool is fun as long as Mom or Dad holds on to me tightly."

Hangin' with Dad at the pool...

and hangin' with Mom.

"Only one shot, Dad? I'm sure Mom wants me to have two!"

Russell's favorite pasttime is figuring out how many fingers/thumbs can fit in his little mouth all at once. Yesterday, I stuck my finger in to feel his gums, and he is cutting his bottom two teeth! Wow. He isn't crabby (yet?) but we are armed with Orajel just in case:-)

"Aunt Laura in Vancouver would be proud that I match the flowers! They are called gerber daisys. I guess that would make me a Gerber baby!"

"Mom and Dad bought this Jumperoo off their favorite site, Craigslist- I think they are trying to hide the fact that there are real toy stores with aisles of new toys for kids like me. Anyway, my swing was too slow for me. I need to continually wave my hands and kick my feet."

Dan's sister, Bev, and her husband, Kurt, came to visit us for the weekend. It was wonderful to see them once again and we enjoy a lot of good conversation and some tasty meals- especially at Kurt's Aunt Linda's in Oakland. "Thanks Aunt Bev for the bright blue blanket!"

Taking an early morning nap in the Big Bed. We think Russell wishes for pillows in his crib but not quite yet.

Four months old!

Four months old! Last year at this time we just found out we were pregnant. A lot has changed:-) At Russell's pedi appt, he was 15 lb, 11oz and 25 3/4 inches (total gain of 8 lbs, 11 oz, and 6 inches).
Russ loves to suck on his fingers and/or thumb and he likes to kick the water in his little bathtub at night. During the day, he is spending more time on his belly but still doesn't like to be there very long because it inhibits his leg and arm movement.
He is doing much better on our 'outings' to the stores, church, and the mall but I still don't grocery shop with him as it is too much to handle until he can sit in the seat of the cart.
Lately, he has been more talkative and it is so amazing to watch him 'talk' to us with his sounds. He looks so sincere and animated when he speaks that I wish we could understand him.
We've been able to leave Russ with some friends on occasion in the evenings. After arriving, I'll feed him once more and lay him on the hosts' bed and he falls asleep. This has given Dan and I some time to ourselves just to go out on dates.
Anyway, just a litte update:-)