Elliott Visits Seattle

On Monday Dan, Elliott and I drove up to Seattle so that Dan and I could attend the holiday dinner for his job. This was scheduled a few weeks ago but because of the snow they postponed it so we could attend. This also gave Dan an opportunity to do some work in Seattle - he usually only meets with his co-workers 2 times a year. Auntie Lauren helped us out and babysat Elliott while we went out to dinner.

Saying "Bye" to Auntie Lauren:


Elliott has been smiling a ton recently, unfortunately I haven't really been able to get any of those smiles on film. Thankfully yesterday morning he was giggling and smiling like crazy. I grabbed my camera and got these two:





While Dan worked on Tuesday installing a new server Elliott and I took a drive over to West Seattle and did a short walk along the beach and watched the ferries in the sound. Here's Elliott with Elliot Bay in the background:





Chillin' with Dad:


This is what we call, "Milk Drunk" when Elliott has just had a bottle and looks totally drunk :) This usually only lasts a few moments and then he is back to being wide awake.


I hope everyone has a safe and happy new year!!

-Wendy

Christmas Day

Here is Elliott hanging out on Christmas day with family.

Great-Grandma Jean:


Grandpa Bob:


Grandma Karen:


Aunt Sarah:

Aunt Amy:


All his cousins (well...most of his cousins, Cameron is making a run for it...):

Christmas Eve + More Pictures

First, some pictures of Elliott being cute:





And hanging out with family on Christmas Eve,

Auntie Lauren:


Great Grandma Jane:


Grandpa Larry:


Grandma Chris:

Christmas is coming...

This post isn't really about Elliott, but since it's his first Christmas I thought maybe it would apply...

Here is our Christmas tree and the new sideboard that Dan bought for me for Christmas:


Dan walked to the grocery store a bit ago and got a great picture of our house:

This year we were lazy and only did the lights that line our front path. Since they are now completely covered in snow I wondered what they would look like if I turned the lights on:


I hope everyone is staying warm :)

Trapped in the snow

It is still very snowy and icy here in Portland. Usually when it snows here we are lucky if it stays around for a few days. So far we've had snow for a full week. Last night we also got ice, lucky us. Yesterday we braved the weather, put chains on the car and drove over to a friends house to do some sledding. Unfortunately I didn't have my camera on me so I don't have any pictures to share. We put Elliott in the bjorn, wrapped him securely in a blanket and zipped him inside of Dan's jacket. There was about 1 inch of him showing :) Dan and Elliott did one trip down the hill, I did two. It was a lot of fun, but very windy which made it very, very cold!

We weighed him on the Wii yesterday, according to that he's up to 11.8 lbs. He now has fat rolls where I didn't imagine you could get them.

Here is Dan checking the chains on the car yesterday:


This is the view out our front door looking across the street (taken today):


Dan let me sleep in today and decided to dress Elliott. Yes, those pants are size 6mo - 12mo. Apparently Dan doesn't know how to read the labels:


I felt bad for him in those giant pants and changed him. Now he's a monkey:


Here is Dan and Elliott haning out watching "Scarface":


According to the poll people wanted to see more pictures, so I'm trying to post more for everyone to see. - Wendy


Update:
Little Elliott hangs out with Big Elliott

Snow Day

On Sunday we woke up to about 5 or 6 inches of snow coating everything in the neighborhood. I love it when it snows here, even though everyone freaks out and acts like it's the end of the world. Dan and I took Elliott out on Sunday evening for a walk around the neighborhood to check out how "bad" it was around here. As usual, once he's in the Baby Bjorn he fell right asleep basically missing all the snow. I was able to drive to my 6 week doctor appointment yesterday afternoon so the roads weren't all that bad. I did think I was going to be blown away by the crazy winds though!

Elliott got many comments at the doctors office, mainly, "wow, check out those cheeks!!" Yes, they are huge. When he has "tummy time" and his face is looking down the cheeks hang lower than anything else :) He has also finally started to smile at Dan and I. He had been smiling a ton in his sleep, but rarely when he was awake. Today Dan and I both got some huge smiles, hopefully that means he likes us.

Last night I was trying to entertain Elliott while he was being fussy. So, I decided to teach him to swim...

He wasn't very impressed with it.

-Wendy

Elliott laying in his crib

Elliott still sleeps in his Moses basket at night, but we sometimes let him spend a few minutes hanging out in his crib. He really seems to like it.



Last night we had our first date post-baby. My parents somehow found a few hours in their schedule to watch Elliott. He apparently did really well. Our friends said we did a good job not talking about our baby the whole night.

Today I took Elliott for a walk while Wendy was shopping with her mom, and we ended up going to Golden Touch (a local diner) for lunch and coffee. I got really good service, and he was popular with the ladies.

Here is Elliott wearing an outfit my mom just bought:



-Dan

Update: I just changed the theme of the blog to match the fish, stars and moon from Elliott's room (as seen in the video above). You can tell I'm not much of a graphic designer.

Cozy at the Zoo

Yesterday I took Elliott to the Portland Zoo for the first time (and my first time in probably 12 or more years). We met up with my two sisters and their kids for a few hours.

It was pretty cold out so I had to go out and find some cute cozy outfit to keep him warm enough. I went a little crazy at Baby Gap...

Just Add Milk - so cute!


















Elliott does not like to put hats on.


















Happy to be snuggled into his car seat


Elliott is starting to track objects now, mostly our heads going from side to side. He's still very interested in staring at lights. Those are usually much more exciting to look at than anyone's face. He is beginning to smile more, though still more in his sleep than when he's awake. Hopefully I'll be able to get a picture of him soon.

One month old - video and photo extravaganza

Elliott is one month old today! He is up to 10 lbs and 9 oz (approximate weight, according to Wii Fit).

Here is Elliott at 4 weeks hanging out on his stomach, having "tummy time". He did some better head lifts, but we weren't filming him.



Elliott brings home his first Christmas tree:



Big head:



Eating after a bath:


Sitting with Great Grandma:


Heads up:


Wild hand:


4 weeks old:


One month old:

A question for babies

So, when you fall asleep with your foot in your face, do you wake up sore?

Still waiting on an answer because he is still asleep.

-Dan

Elliott visits the Chinese Garden

Today, we visited the Chinese Garden in downtown. The second to last picture is a dwarf pomegranate, but we aren't sure what the tree in the last one is.