Nate has been really busy the past few days at work and he's even been working a little over-time at night to catch up on his never ending demands at the office. The kids have sure missed their daddy so I thought if we can't see our daddy at home than we'll go see our daddy at work!! I also figured it was about time that Nate's coworkers meet baby Caleb! So we drove down to the Hebo Ranger Station with a plate of cookies and some art work the kids colored for their dad and surprised Nate with a little visit! I don't know what the employees liked more the gingersnaps or seeing a cute baby! Ty and Mara love daddy's office: spinning in the chairs, playing with smokey bear, going through his drawers and finding gum and treats! Nate was just finishing work for the day but had a couple more tasks to complete before he left so he let Ty stay at work with him until he finished. Ty loved that! He thought that was great to be with his daddy at work. He sat at the desk and colored a Smokey Bear paper while daddy made phone calls and finished his job!
On the drive home I noticed a herd of elk in a field close to the highway. Nate's always telling me about these elk, he sees them a lot on his way to and from work but I've never seen them up close before. I pulled over to take a look and after hearing about the famous albino elk I was finally able to see it! If you look closely in the photo you'll notice that one of the elk is not like the others, that's an albino elk! Interesting huh?
Ty said this week, "I think Caleb will look just like when he gets older!" I think you might be right Ty! It will be interesting to see if Caleb will take on his own little look or continue to look like Ty's twin!!
My goodness how fast time flies! He did wonderful at the doctor and got a great review! The doctor said "WOW Caleb, I am very impressed! You are AMAZING!" He couldn't believe how well Caleb is growing! Caleb now weighs 10 lbs 6 oz and is 22 inches long. One ounce shy of the exact weight and height of what Ty was when he was born! Can you believe that?! This puts Caleb in the 75% for both height and weight! Way to go little boy! You are doing great!
Today as we were driving over to pick up Ty from preschool Mara said "Please Mama can I go in Ty's preschool?" Usually she stays in the car while I run in and get Ty but how could I turn down such a cute request? When we got in Ty's preschool there was Ty so excited to see his little sister! Although Mara has been to Ty's preschool before Ty gave Mara a tour of his preschool by taking her by the hand and showing her all the toys. Then he went around to each of his friends and introduced them to Mara. "Hey Elliot, this is my sister Mara! Avarie do you want to meet my little sister Mara!!" It just melted my little heart! So cute!
I woke up this morning so excited to make a Valentine's breakfast for my little family complete with heart-shaped pancakes, with whip cream and strawberries, bacon, fruit parfaits, and orange juice. What more could say "I LOVE YOU?" Well I got the bacon fried and I had just made the pancake batter when all of a sudden the lights start to flicker and then BAM the power goes out! It wasn't even windy or stormy--clear as day! So we wait a few minutes still no lights! Nate calls the power company and of course the line is busy with everyone else calling to complain about no power! So we decide to forgo the heart shaped pancakes and have cold cereal with strawberries on top! Bummer! The power was out for over an hour so I'm glad we didn't wait on breakfast! Oh well! It was still a special day even without heart shaped pancakes, and although we didn't have a romantic dinner or a special night out it was fun to be a family and watch "Horton Hears a Who."
Caleb LOVES going outdoors-- we went for a walk last week on a sunny day and he enjoyed the ride in the stroller.
Caleb LOVES being wrapped up tight like a burrito! Thanks Trish for the little snuggler--he's been sleeping ten hours at night wah-hoo!!
Caleb LOVES his daddy! Every time Nate holds him he gets this little smile on his face. I thought at first it was just gas, but no this little guy just LOVES that dad!
Here's our little Valentine with a cute heart on his bum! I thought this was the perfect outfit for the day! We LOVE you baby Caleb!
This morning I woke up thinking "What am I going to do with my kids today?" I'm sure all moms think this, and I knew it must be something creative! So... we spent the day making a fort in our familyroom and oh boy was it fun! We used blankets and sheets, card tables, chairs, and a piano bench. We used tunnels, tubes, a tent, and a TP to give it more rooms! It seriously took up the entire room! You know you've done something right when you hear "This is the best day ever" from your four-year-old and when you hear your little two-year-old say in her best language possible "this is so fun!" SCORE! The kids played with toys in their fort and hid from the hunters! We had a picnic in our fort and read stories and even took a nap!! Who knew one little fort (or a gigantic familyroom fort) could be so fun?! Now tomorrow...hmmm How am I going to top the fort?
Even Caleb joined in on the fun in the fort!
Today was a special day for our little baby Caleb. Caleb was blessed by his daddy today and it was nice to have grandma and grandpa Lewis with us for his blessing. Nate gave him such a beautiful name and a blessing, and you may be wondering how Caleb got his name...well, we just liked it! Actually Nate chose the name Caleb and I wasn't sold on it at first! It took a little time for me to warm up to it! I wanted to spell it with a K so that he would have the same letters in his name as his uncle Blake, but Nate said no it had to be a C. The meaning for Caleb means faithful and bold which I hope Caleb will always be! Caleb's middle name is Daniel which is also Nate's middle name as well as his Caleb's grandpa's name. So that's a little about Caleb's name.
I too feel blessed at this time with such a perfect and wonderful baby boy. He truly is a miracle sent from a loving Heavenly Father. I don't know what I did to deserve such wonderful children, but it makes me want to strive daily to be a perfect mom. I love my children so much and I'm thankful that Heavenly Father would trust me enough to raise them. I hope that I can teach them and help them to have strong testimonies and to be righteous children. They are so fun and make me smile, we have a wonderful happy future ahead of us!
We sure had a fun week with Grandma and Grandpa Lewis! We just love having company come visit, it makes us feel like we are on a mini vacation! We love going to the tourist sights and also seeing new things. Nate is the perfect tour guide, always telling interesting facts and info about what we are seeing! I love to be the hostess, and I really didn't have to do too much, G&G were such good helpers, I will miss their helping hands and loving hearts around here!
On Wednesday we went to Portland. Ty and I had an appointment with an Asthma and Allergy Specialist (which we've had for months!). We had many questions to ask the doctor about Ty's asthma and we wanted to know if he was allergic to anything. The doctor pricked his arm to give him the allergy tests and he was so mad! He cried and said, "I'm never coming back here again!" We did find out however that he was only allergic to dust mites. I on the other hand was allergic to not only dust mites, but practically everything he tested me for: grasses, cats, dogs, nuts...! While we were in Portland we took advantage of the sunny day and went for a picnic in Washington Park, the kids played at the playground while the grandparents toured the Japanese garden. Then we went to the World's Largest Bookstore--Powell's Books. This store is amazing, and too big to really explore in just a short time.
We never get tired of going to the cheese factory! And this time when we went we had a special surprise, they were celebrating the centenial for the cheese factory being open. That's right--100 years of the Tillamook Cheese company! We had sample after sample of the finest cheese! They also passed out samples of the new kind of ice-cream "Sweet Centenial". It was quite fun to be there to celebrate!
We went to Garabaldi to see the boat dock, and while we were there we saw many fisherman coming in with their catch of the day. One man had caught 14-15 crabs and showed us those as well as a bunch of fish he caught. It's neat to live so close to the ocean and see a fisherman's life. Someday we are hoping to go out on one of these huge boats out into the ocean!
About two hours north of Tillamook is a 'ritzy little tourist town' called Cannon Beach. (It reminds us a little of Jackson Hole.) We walked through the shops and galleries, the kids had fun in one of the toy stores. By the end though the kids were tired of being 'good' and were ready to play at the park! (That is one of their favorite things to do! They love playing at parks!)
This is one of the most famous State Parks along the Oregon Coast. We've seen many pictures of this place but never have been here. We enjoyed a picnic lunch and the sights and views were really breathtaking! It was a little hazy, but it was sunny and nice as well. We went for a little hike up to the viewpoint and overlooked the ocean and a lighthouse.
Boy did we get a winner of a baby! Our 'little broder' as we like to call him is just so wonderful! He's growing ever so quickly and got a great report from the doctor at his two week check-up. Caleb is past his birth weight, he weighs 9 lbs 6 oz and is two inches taller than when he was born now he's 22 inches. That puts our little baby in the 90% for weight and 75% for height--just like the other two tall but a little on the husky side!!
On Saturday we said good-bye to Mimi which was quite sad for all of us. We had a good cry about it, and I'm sure she did too! She was a huge help and a lifesaver. We are trying to get by without her but it's not quite the same! After having her here for a month I relied on her for everything! We were partners and a team taking care of the three children and running the household! But I'm managing pretty well by myself and I even triumphed taking the three kids to the store all together all by myself! It was a quick trip and we all survived! Victory!
