First babyless weekend

This weekend was our first without Hayden. We dropped him off at Grandma Melissa's and headed to a suite right on the Pacific ocean in Lincoln City, OR. Despite initially being worried and sad, it went good. Hayden behaved himself with Grandma and even slept better than he does at home.

Us, on the other hand, had a much needed 2 days of relaxation. Friday night we got into town at about 6; headed for some dinner checked out an car show and had some drinks on our patio listening to the waves. We ended up sleeping on the pull out couch with the patio door open so we could hear the waves all night. Saturday morning we woke up at 6. I know I thought we would sleep in, but no. So we headed to breakfast and then to Newport Beach. We were walking down the historic Bay port and decided that we wanted to go whale watching. While we were waiting to head out, we found a Sea Lion hang out and watched them for a while.

OK, back to the whale watching, Amanda and I have both wanted to go for a while, just never have. Boy, am I glad we did. About 15 minutes into the hour and a half trip we spotted a gray whale. Really all you an see is the water shoot up from their blow holes, and their bodies as they swim. We got quite the treat when the whale decided to breach (jump out of the water). I guess it does not happen very often with gray whales and it was amazing to see. I even got a picture!! We named the whale Jerry, and I decided I should work for National Geographic as a photographer.

Well that was about all the excitement of the weekend. It was great to see Hayden again when we got home, but decided maybe we need to take a weekend twice a year just to get away. Hope everyone had a great weekend as well, and feel free to come visit!!

Baby to Boy in a matter of weeks

I can't tell you how amazing it is to watch Hayden grow. Jon and I have decided we no longer have a baby that likes to be held, cuddled, and kissed; rather we have a little boy that loves to play, crawl, and get into as much trouble as possible.

Staying at home with Hayden has been a challenge these last few weeks. The other day while cleaning up a bit I swore Hayden was playing with the cat in the tunnel (which can keep him distracted for hours), and the next thing I knew he was gone. What do you know he found the bathroom and the toilet. Lets just say we are going to keep the bathroom door closed from now on. Yesterday, I was making Jon dinner before he came home and Hayden was helping by playing with the gobs of Tupperware all over the floor. The next thing I knew Hayden was chewing on something. He had grabbed a hand full of cat food and stuffed it in his mouth without me noticing. I got the majority of it out, but I think he got a few pieces down.

He is starting to stand by himself for longer than 30 seconds now, and is even attempting steps. I am not encouraging this, but I guess he is ready to grow up, even though Jon and I aren't ready. He has learned how to give "high-fives" and can even chase the cat around at a pretty good pace. The cat is handling it pretty well, but he sure runs when Hayden spots him anywhere.

But from day to day when I look at him I smile to myself and think of how lucky I am to be blessed with such a wonderful boy. He is becoming a handful with shorter naps, wondering crawling adventures, and sleepless nights, but he is truly a blessing. It makes me wondering how long it will take until he is just like his father. Which by the way does everything Jon does, he is teaching him some pretty sneaky stuff. So watch out Grandma and Grandpa, next time you see Hayden he may just remind you of your own son.