Baby's First Christmas

Ah, baby's first Christmas. The one year her stocking will be bigger than she is. Lexi will obviously continue her mommy's tradition of getting up EARLY on Christmas Day, as we were up at 6am. We went to town and did the whole works - stockings, presents - then breakfast and a nap (for baby, although Mom and Dad probably needed one too). We then headed to my parents place and spent the day there with my brother and sister, and enjoyed a fabulous turkey dinner. Thanks to everyone for the beautiful gifts we received, especially for all the thoughtful things for Lexi, she was certainly spoiled.

The Whole Fam-Damily (or Damned Family?)

Left to right: Aunt Barb (mom's sister), Catherine (my sister), my mom, Aunt Liz (mom's sister), my Nana (mom's mom), Me

Tonight my parents hosted a BBQ for my mom's side of the family who have flown in from as far east as Newfoundland. My Nana (my mom's mom) flew from Newfoundland to Ontario a couple weeks ago, and then flew out with my Aunt Liz and Uncle Ern to BC. They are staying with my Aunt Barb and Uncle Joe in Pitt Meadows. Lexi was a doll and on her best behavior for them.

Four generations on my mom's side

Back in Action

Mommy with the stomach flu + baby going through a growth spurt/teething/not sleeping = no new blog posts. Sorry!

Just a quick update on Lexi - she is now pulling up to standing and trying to cruise on the furniture. This girl wastes no time in learning new skills.

My family has all flown into town for Christmas - my grandma, aunt and uncle arrived earlier this week, and my brother flew in from Edmonton yesterday. We'll have lots of new pictures to post soon!

We've got proof!

I managed to sneek a vid of Lexi crawling. Enjoy!

The day we had to lower the crib mattress...

We knew this day would come. Lexi has been rocking back and forth on her hands and knees for over a week now, and this morning she took several paces. Our baby girl can finally crawl. She's smart enough to realize that if she needs speed (like when she wants a sip of Mom's water or to fondle her shiny slippers) she reverts to commando crawl.

We put Lexi down for her afternoon nap today (she's able to pretty much put herself to sleep these days, a big accomplishment). I checked in on her about 10 minutes after putting her down. I found her on her knees hanging off her Rainforest Mobile. Yikes. She was so darn proud of herself. It would have been very cute aside from the fact that she could have really hurt herself. Needless to say Doug and I lowered her crib mattress down before she got her nap. Oh, my back is NOT looking forward to this new development!

Let the Winter BLAH's begin

Ick, I hate this time of year. It's a bit too early to get seriously excited about Christmas, the days are short, and baby, it's cold outside. I'm much more of a summer person - enjoying warm sun on my face during my daily walk and eating peaches, blueberries and nectarines by the box. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy eggnog and mandarins as much as the next person, but it's just not enough.

I tried to lift my spirits by getting a jump on my Christmas shopping at Metrotown Center yesterday. Back in the pre-baby days, it was always my favorite place to shop - a good variety of stores. I've come to realize that as a new Mom, I now have a big time HATE ON for Metrotown. Parking is a complete gong-show, and you've got to be willing to fight to the death for your place in the queue for the elevators, which are often frequented by ABLE BODIED middle ages ladies and teenagers. GRRRRR. I hit a couple of stores and then resigned myself to finishing my shopping at Brentwood Mall this year. Besides, they have the cool Santa.

Some sad news...

This week Doug's Nana (Lexi's Gran-Nana) passed away at the age of 80. She was a big part of Doug's life, and she was very much smitten with her great granddaughter. Lexi got to meet her twice - once back shortly after she was born when Diane came to Burnaby to attend my baby shower, and just a couple weeks ago when we made a trip back to Victoria. She will surely be missed.

Our Visit to the North Pole (AKA Brentwood Mall)

It should come as no surprise that I would take Lexi to get her picture taken with Santa this year. I'm a big Christmas lover, and since it's baby's first Christmas and all. So Santa arrived at Brentwood Mall (our local mall which is a mere 10 minute walk away) on Saturday. I wisely avoided the weekend crowd and waited until Monday morning. Lexi was fed, napped, happy, dressed and smiling up a storm as we arrived to Santa's set up. I opted for one professional shot, but it was also a bring your own camera affair if you wanted so I did that too. Lexi was really good for about 1.5 minutes. Then she turned around, took one look at the stranger with the white beard and deep voice, and started bawling. Photo op OVER. But our professional shot is great, and this is the best one Mommy could muster. Enjoy!

PS - If you're looking to take your kids to visit a "mall" Santa, this one is great!