Sunday, November 25, 2007
Leaving Cairo
Alas, Erik and I have finally left Cairo overnight! She stayed an extra night at her Nana and Papa's with G&G Biggle while Erik and I headed back to Monrovia. Of course, Erik and I began to miss her immediately. We especially missed hearing her go buh-buh-buh-buh-buh-buh as she spits and blows little bubbles. Erik and I tried to think of something to do with our free time and, for several reasons, came up with just going home. So, what do us Cairo-free-parents do? Well, we did laundry, cooked, did dishes, cleaned, organized papers, watched a movie, groomed the dogs, and played about 30 minutes of video games. Because we couldn't handle an easy cartrip where all we have to do is just walk out the door, get in the car, and drive away, we brought the dogs with us to pick up our Bacon Cheeseburgers. Sad, huh?
The Family
Visiting with family is exhausting!
This Thanksgiving weekend Erik, Cairo, and I traveled to my Nana and Papa's house in Santa Maria. We were joined by my parents, brother, sister, and brother-in-law. Cairo has only seen her Nana and Papa two times, so I was excited to spend a few days at their house. I really want her to get the chance to know all her great grandparents. When Cairo is older, I hope that she gets the same warm, happy, fuzzy feelings about her great grandparents that I get when I think of my Great Grandma Steis. She is pretty lucky to have five of them to get to know and love.
Cairo is beginning to know who she knows and who she doesn't. Two weeks ago, Cairo became very distraught when she went out to lunch with Grandma Biggle and Auntie Heather and two of Heather's colleagues. Cairo sat in the backseat of the car with Heather's friends, looked at them, realized they were strangers, and broke out into big crocodile tears until her Grandma rescued her. By the end of lunch, Cairo was smiling at them and happy. When we first got to my Nana and Papa's Cairo was not happy to see them. They were these strange people smiling at her. So, Cairo cried and gave a great boo-boo lip. As the weekend progressed, though, Cairo warmed up to them and really began to enjoy their company.
Here are a few pictures of Cairo spending quality time with her family during this past holiday weekend.
Enjoying cocktail hour on the patio with Grandma-
Grandma teaching Cairo how to run-
Nana and Cairo
Papa and Cairo
Grandpa helping Cairo chew on her Binky
Uncle Paul and Cairo
This Thanksgiving weekend Erik, Cairo, and I traveled to my Nana and Papa's house in Santa Maria. We were joined by my parents, brother, sister, and brother-in-law. Cairo has only seen her Nana and Papa two times, so I was excited to spend a few days at their house. I really want her to get the chance to know all her great grandparents. When Cairo is older, I hope that she gets the same warm, happy, fuzzy feelings about her great grandparents that I get when I think of my Great Grandma Steis. She is pretty lucky to have five of them to get to know and love.
Cairo is beginning to know who she knows and who she doesn't. Two weeks ago, Cairo became very distraught when she went out to lunch with Grandma Biggle and Auntie Heather and two of Heather's colleagues. Cairo sat in the backseat of the car with Heather's friends, looked at them, realized they were strangers, and broke out into big crocodile tears until her Grandma rescued her. By the end of lunch, Cairo was smiling at them and happy. When we first got to my Nana and Papa's Cairo was not happy to see them. They were these strange people smiling at her. So, Cairo cried and gave a great boo-boo lip. As the weekend progressed, though, Cairo warmed up to them and really began to enjoy their company.
Here are a few pictures of Cairo spending quality time with her family during this past holiday weekend.
Enjoying cocktail hour on the patio with Grandma-
Grandma teaching Cairo how to run-
Nana and Cairo
Papa and Cairo
Grandpa helping Cairo chew on her Binky
Uncle Paul and Cairo
Thanksgiving Feast
Cairo officially started REAL people food this Thanksgiving. While we were all enjoying our stuffing and turkey up at my Nana and Papa's house, Cairo was enjoying sweet potatoes and peas. She took to the peas, but made some cute little twisted faces with the sweet potatoes. This sure does beat that tasteless rice cereal! She does a pretty good job of getting the food down and not all over her face and bib.
Cairo's place setting-
**I WILL UPDATE THIS WITH BETTER PICTURES AS SOON AS GRANDMA BIGGLE GETS HOME**
Cairo playing with Heather's Eeyore Turkey.
Naked Baby!
Cairo loves to have her diaper off! Right after her baths she gets some diaper free time to play with her feet.
Traveling with a baby can be interesting. Now, Cairo has been on several long car rides (June Lake, Bay Area, Humboldt, Nana and Papa's) and a plane ride and each time it takes a while to figure out what to take and what to leave behind. Baby stuff is VERY bulky and the majority of the stuff that fills up the trunk is there to make life more convenient for the parents... not that the baby actually NEEDS the stroller, rather the parents don't want to exhaust themselves carrying around a heavy baby. One item that never makes it on car rides, though, is the baby bathtub. Cairo isn't quite large enough to be in the bathtub on her own and is a little too big for some small sinks.
In the end it is always easier to throw her into the shower with Erik or I. Hold on tight! She is VERY slippery when she gets wet and wiggles around.
Baby buns!
Traveling with a baby can be interesting. Now, Cairo has been on several long car rides (June Lake, Bay Area, Humboldt, Nana and Papa's) and a plane ride and each time it takes a while to figure out what to take and what to leave behind. Baby stuff is VERY bulky and the majority of the stuff that fills up the trunk is there to make life more convenient for the parents... not that the baby actually NEEDS the stroller, rather the parents don't want to exhaust themselves carrying around a heavy baby. One item that never makes it on car rides, though, is the baby bathtub. Cairo isn't quite large enough to be in the bathtub on her own and is a little too big for some small sinks.
In the end it is always easier to throw her into the shower with Erik or I. Hold on tight! She is VERY slippery when she gets wet and wiggles around.
Baby buns!
Decorating for Christmas
Last weekend, my sister, my mom, Erik, Cairo, and I all started to decorate the house for the holidays. This year, more that ever, the holiday season is going to be busy and we knew if we didn't get a head start, we would never get it done. So, last Saturday, the tree went up, decorations came out and were dusted, the stockings were hung by the fireplace (with care), the lights were hung, and Christmas carols were playing (which isn't saying that much since Heather listens to them ALL year!) Cairo was very helpful. She crinkled paper, taste tested some soft ornaments, played with bells, told us her opinions on how we decorated, and had a starring contest with the lights on the tree (the tree won). The most helpful thing Cairo did, though, was play nicely with her new toy (thanks Laureen) that she absolutely loves. She also snuggled into a big soft blanket on the front lawn while the lights went up on the house.
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Big Girl
Cairo is finally big enough to enjoy a high chair. Erik assembled it yesterday and Cairo has been enjoying it ever since. Of course, Cairo isn't eating solid food yet, but the highchair does provide the perfect platform to play with all of her toys (and she is getting quite a collection of them!).
We like to call this "having options".
To update Cairo's recent progress:
--She can roll from her back to her tummy and back again (when she feels like it).
--Cairo can talk up a storm, but no real words yet (Erik is working on Snickerdoodle, but I feel we should start with a one or two syllable word like mama).
--When she's on her tummy she can lift her top end or her bottom end, but not both at the same time, yet.
--She can roll and twist her way halfway across the room (if given the chance).
--Her toes are her new favorite toy and, when she's on her back, are always up in the air and on the way to her mouth (though she has rarely made it to her mouth).
--She can almost sit up on her own, she is definitely working on balancing.
--She is losing the last of the hair she was born with (bye-bye mullet). The hair on top is growing longer... Sadly, I must tell you that she will not be blond like her mama, but brunette like her daddy... I think.
--She is very intelligent. She already has her GED and is now working on her Master's degree in physical chemistry. She is a human calculator and can solve the most advanced mathematical problems in seconds. What a baby!
We like to call this "having options".
To update Cairo's recent progress:
--She can roll from her back to her tummy and back again (when she feels like it).
--Cairo can talk up a storm, but no real words yet (Erik is working on Snickerdoodle, but I feel we should start with a one or two syllable word like mama).
--When she's on her tummy she can lift her top end or her bottom end, but not both at the same time, yet.
--She can roll and twist her way halfway across the room (if given the chance).
--Her toes are her new favorite toy and, when she's on her back, are always up in the air and on the way to her mouth (though she has rarely made it to her mouth).
--She can almost sit up on her own, she is definitely working on balancing.
--She is losing the last of the hair she was born with (bye-bye mullet). The hair on top is growing longer... Sadly, I must tell you that she will not be blond like her mama, but brunette like her daddy... I think.
--She is very intelligent. She already has her GED and is now working on her Master's degree in physical chemistry. She is a human calculator and can solve the most advanced mathematical problems in seconds. What a baby!
Off and Away
This past weekend Cairo and I flew up to Arcata for a girls' weekend (Cairo and I threw a bridal shower for my best friend Katie). This was Cairo's first plane trip ever. I was told to get pictures of Cairo at the airport so that I would be able to add a picture of her first plane ride into her baby book. After juggling Cairo, our bags, her diaper bag, stroller, and carseat through security and onto the plane by myself I just didn't have the energy to dig for the camera. So, just sit there and imagine a really cute baby with big cheeks, a little drool trickling from the side of her mouth, screeching while sitting on my lap in the airport terminal.
Cairo is a great traveler. I am sure as soon as she becomes mobile this won't be the case. The flights went well and Cairo seemed to enjoy the ride. I made sure to keep her entertained. Every time she would start to screech, I would put my finger to her mouth and tell her "no". That seemed to distract her enough to get her to stop (thank goodness). At the end of the flight I had several people come up to me and tell me that she was the best behaved baby they had ever seen on a flight... I am sure that it helped that flight time and bedtime coincided.
Other than that, we had a great weekend. After two and a half months, Cairo was reintroduced to all the family up north. She spent all day Saturday with Grandma Jill, Grandpa Lee, and Uncle Nick while I ran all sorts of errands and went out to dinner. On Sunday, Cairo helped me get ready to throw her Auntie Katie a bridal shower. Cairo helped entertain the guests, she held the paper and helped me read answers for the games, she did quality control for the wrapping paper and packaging for Katie's gifts (Cairo would have liked to taste test everything to make sure it was good, but I didn't think that she needed to be that thorough), and she helped distract her Auntie Katie so we could clean up. What a help she was.
On Monday, Cairo went to Ferndale to see part of the Tipple clan and Grandma Dedini. Uncle Nick, Grandma Jill, Cairo, and I enjoyed lunch and conversation with everyone. The next time we're back, I am sure that Cairo will be mobile...
Here are a few pictures (I didn't take very many!)
Cairo is a great traveler. I am sure as soon as she becomes mobile this won't be the case. The flights went well and Cairo seemed to enjoy the ride. I made sure to keep her entertained. Every time she would start to screech, I would put my finger to her mouth and tell her "no". That seemed to distract her enough to get her to stop (thank goodness). At the end of the flight I had several people come up to me and tell me that she was the best behaved baby they had ever seen on a flight... I am sure that it helped that flight time and bedtime coincided.
Other than that, we had a great weekend. After two and a half months, Cairo was reintroduced to all the family up north. She spent all day Saturday with Grandma Jill, Grandpa Lee, and Uncle Nick while I ran all sorts of errands and went out to dinner. On Sunday, Cairo helped me get ready to throw her Auntie Katie a bridal shower. Cairo helped entertain the guests, she held the paper and helped me read answers for the games, she did quality control for the wrapping paper and packaging for Katie's gifts (Cairo would have liked to taste test everything to make sure it was good, but I didn't think that she needed to be that thorough), and she helped distract her Auntie Katie so we could clean up. What a help she was.
On Monday, Cairo went to Ferndale to see part of the Tipple clan and Grandma Dedini. Uncle Nick, Grandma Jill, Cairo, and I enjoyed lunch and conversation with everyone. The next time we're back, I am sure that Cairo will be mobile...
Here are a few pictures (I didn't take very many!)
Screecher
On Thursday, the day before Cairo and I were supposed to fly out of town, Cairo learned a new trick- screeching and yelling. This is not the most desirable trick to have on an evening/ nighttime flight where people will probably want to sleep. Cairo really seems to enjoy hearing herself make a whole lot of racket (much to Erik's dismay).
Well, Cairo may look like Erik, but she sure does have my lungs. Here is a short clip of Cairo's new trick. At the end of this clip, Cairo got a little fussy. Most of the time, though, Cairo just keeps on happily going.
Well, Cairo may look like Erik, but she sure does have my lungs. Here is a short clip of Cairo's new trick. At the end of this clip, Cairo got a little fussy. Most of the time, though, Cairo just keeps on happily going.
Sunday, November 4, 2007
Mucho Personality
Cairo is a crack up. It is amazing that so much personality can be wrapped up in something so small. As the days go by Cairo is becoming more and more talkative. Her sounds are becoming more developed... and MUCH louder. She talks, sings, yells, coos... and laughs. She must have a great sense of humor because the craziest things set her off into a belly laugh. Here is another example of Cairo cracking up-
Where'd she go?
I came into the bedroom the other night and I couldn't seem to find the baby.... I wonder where she went? Hmmmm.....
Who does she look like?
I am pretty certain that Cairo takes after her dad in most all ways... the exceptions are her huge cheeks (they would be mine), her very cute lips (mine), and her crazy long tongue (Grandma Biggle). What do you think?
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)