Lil' Meatball

A true Italian. His first pasta with sauce.... and LOVING it! Mangia!

95 degrees

This is what we do when it gets hot... Swim, relax, eat fresh berries, melt down 'cause its too hot for these parts. It was a good day :)

Sent from my Verizon Wireless Phone

Gray's favorite thing to do at Tar-jay

Sitting on the big red ball! As long as we do this on the way in and out.... Target shopping goes smoothly!! (Yay for me!)

Sunscreen Spike

Hanging outside with my cool 'do, courtesy of Coppertone Baby :)

Book Baby

Grayson loves to read!! This one is a personal favorite of his. :)

Too cool for school

G's new shades. What a stud!

Cousins!

Gray and Oli swinging at Grant Park! Fun!!

Birthday Swing!

My cool new swing is finally up! Thanks Oliver, Aunt Kath, and Uncle Gordon!

Fish face + man capris

My shorts are a little long Mom.  But here's a kiss for you anyway :)

Trivial Pursuit, anyone?

gray getting a one-up on future classmates.... Studying "The 80s" via TP at Fire.

Sunday Mornin' goodness

Today's breakfast was whole wheat blueberry pancakes and fresh kiwi. Someone liked it... A lot. :)

I'm cute.

Sometimes my mom watches me sleep. And takes pictures. Is that weird?!? ;)

P.S. I love my monkey.

ONE.

Birthday Boy!

our little peanut grew into a big peanut :) Grayson is ONE! i am so PROUD to be his mama for so, so many reasons. he is such a funny boy, makes me laugh so many times throughout the day. he 'hams it up' with just about everyone (anyone!)...us, friends, family, strangers at the grocery store... it is hilarious! he is so smart too, i feel like he is the smartest one year old in town! :) he has several words that he 'says' ... now i know what other parents meant by understanding their child's nonsense! he also understands so much, which is really, really cool. future genius?! we are still waiting for the day he takes his first step(s)... and are secretly glad that day has not come yet.  i can only imagine my heart racing everytime he lunges forward or topples over!  i am SO not ready for that!!! the last year has flown by, and i fear that in a flash, we will be at his kindergarten/high school/college (MSU) graduation!! does life really happen that quickly? most parents would say YES i think. 

we had a fun celebration on july 4... a backyard BBQ ... it seemed appropriate as that is how the life of G started (meaning me going into labor at our 2010 party on july 3). grayson's first birthday party was complete with friends (big and small!), balloons, kiddie pool fun, lots of food, an ELMO cake to smash, and perfect weather.  later in the night, after an exhausted one year old boy went to sleep, we watched fireworks with friends from our yard (all the while G slept the entire night through all the noise! good boy!). a wonderful day!

opening gifts with Mom

happy first birthday my little one. you are the best thing i've done and i love you so, so much. love, your mama






check out our pics :) picasaweb.google.com/pdxarmingtons

the 10th month of G

true portland kid

hello! it's been awhile since i've posted anything. but i just uploaded a bunch of photos to facebook this AM (and our picture page last night) so i am motivated.  let's see, what's going on in the life of G? he is so much fun at this age, such a little ham. he smiles and laughs at everyone! when we are out and about, he literally stares smiling and laughing at people until they smile back at him... it is so funny and cute! he's like "HELLO!!! LOOK AT ME!!!"

he pulls himself up on everything and has finally learned how to get back down to the floor. still crawling all over (first started the night we returned from our michigan trip, ha! wanted to wait for daddy!) and not ready to walk yet, or even stand alone, which chad and i are both very ok with.  he is talking a lot, mostly babble, but he does have a few words and knows just about everything in our house by word recognition. he is very smart!!! chase the cat is getting used to this other "thing" at his level, and usually is ok with the subtle tormenting grayson gives.

as much as we can, we spend time outside. spring in portland usually graces us with several nice days mixed in with the rainy, grey ones.  we even had a few days in the high 60s and 70s.... lovely! we take him on walks around the neighborhoods, hikes at mt. tabor, swinging at the parks, and just recently now bike rides! his new bike seat is super cool and he seems to love it! a future biker ... makes daddy very proud! we all can't wait for summer and more chances to ride around this bike-friendly city.

enjoying some adult time in mexico!

chad and i got a chance to get away for alex's wedding in mexico, it was amazing. of course being surrounded by family in the sunshiney warm weather and beauty of a gorgeous resort helped :) we enjoyed relaxing by the pool or on the beach sipping adult beverages and enjoying being a married couple again (instead of parents). grayson had a wonderful time at home with gramma jo and grampa dick, and only missed us 23 hours of the day! we got to spend some quality time with the Armington's - all of them - and look forward to this fall when amanda and ben tie the knot in georgia.

as we quickly approach the dreaded day of june 6, i am reminded how lucky we really are in the grand scheme of things. every single day i wish that my mom was here to experience our lives with grayson; i am hoping that she is experiencing it somehow. i guess we just keep moving forward and keep sharing stories with him. she will be remembered through us. 

it's been a busy few months, but that's just how i like it.  this past year has flown... in about 6 weeks our little guy will be a year old. wow!  until next time.........

oops....

SHOOT! the last post from earlier today never got posted when i wrote it!!! darn it!!!!! (obviously i am not blog saavy just yet.)

crazy Sheldon's at Dad's 60th shindig

so, i originally wrote that last one in january. we just returned from our surprise trip and it was awesome. my dad was absolutely shocked and even shed a few tears when we came walking up to greet him. i am so glad we went and the only thing i would have changed was to have chad come with me. darn spendy flights!

i am still wishing we lived closer. being far from family is so hard. on the way back last week, i was wondering why we even live out here. when i returned home (here) i remembered how much i love living in oregon...but it makes me wonder...what is more important??? obviously our jobs are here. but still makes me ponder... 

grayson and oliver playing together again!

G+G :)

gray and gramps swinging...a daily activity!

grayson with grandpa and grandma on our last morning there

 

sadness turns to excitement

june, 2010

as usual, i am missing my people :) i do LOVE living in oregon, geographically not-so-much but the actual city/state is fabulous.  there isn't a day that i don't wish we lived in michigan... only because a majority of my family and friends are there, actually moving there w/o jobs and everything is not ideal. (my solution: everyone just needs to move to oregon, it's way more fun and awesome here! hee hee)  i am sad when i miss out on family get togethers, friend's dinners, playdates, etc.  last weekend alex and dayna had their official wedding ceremony...  if it were not for skype i would not have been a part of it!  yes, we will be in mexico standing up in their "real" (non-legal) wedding.  BUT it would have been nice to have been able to actually hug my brother and now sis-in-law on their (first) wedding day... wait, which day will be their anniversary?!? :) anyway..... after saturday's family event, it made me sad to be far away, and more and more adamant about planning another trip to michigan, and soon.  i'm itching to go.......

well, my itch has been scratched! i booked a flight home for mister G and i to fly in, and even more exciting is that we are surprising my dad for his 60th birthday in march! i cannot believe he is not going to know we're coming! luckily, at least for this, he does not EVER use a computer, much less know how or where to read my blog :) he is going to be so happy, i cannot WAIT to see his face when we walk in the door.  (for any of you that might happen to see my dad, talk to him, or whatever.... SHHHHHHHH!!!!)

so... i'm excited! yay!

Snoozin' baby

Picture from our walk this afternoon. G was cashed out from 2 not-so-great naps, lots of errands, and swingin' in the sunshine! Mama walked around the neighborhood for almost an hour while the little one was snuggled up in the baby carrier and my sweater :)

Testing......

7 months!

sunny days in portland

our baby is 7 months old! every single day is a blessing with my little carrot top! he is so much fun these days... laughing, making us laugh, talking (everything is "da da da"), drooling through several shirts a day (teeth soon!?), and putting every single thing in sight into his mouth.  we have been taking gray to the park almost every single day, as he has demonstrated great joy in being pushed in the baby swing! it is so, so cute.  (if you are friends with me on facebook, you have seen the pictures! i have about a gazillion! sidenote: you can see our photos at  http://picasaweb.google.com/pdxarmingtons)

the past two nights our little angel has slept through until the morning... i know, i know, just by saying that he will not do it again for months. (yet i am still exhausted when i get up? WTH?)  i am amazed at how quickly things change in baby-world.  one day he's barely pushing up onto his hands, and now he is trying SO hard to crawl! chad and i are secretly hoping for a couple more months before he is mobile... lots of baby proofing to do! he is up on his hands and knees, rocking back and forth... we turn our heads and somehow (although not by crawling) he has made it off the blanket onto the wood floor turned in a different way, smiling up at us like, "What? I'm sneaky!"

our good friends here had their little son 3 1/2 weeks ago, grayson's future bestie miles :)  hearing their stories of his behavior at 3 weeks old brings me back to last summer and honestly i cannot believe how quickly time flies.  what a blur, now G is so big his legs hang off me as i rock him to sleep, seems like not long ago he could fit in the bend of my elbow and snuggle in to my chest so easily. 

this month brings lots of fun planned in P-town: super bowl sunday tomorrow with friends, a visit to seattle to see "auntie" meg and hopefully other friends up there, and of course the long awaited return of gramma jo! (it has been since new year's eve that we have seen her, a long time for her to be away!)  plus of course lots of trips to the park and hikes (we're hoping for more of this sunny, dry weather!), hopefully a tooth or two, and a couple date nights for mama and daddy!

GO PACKERS! (did you know aaron rogers moved to oregon as a kid so his dad could go to western states chiropractic college?!? my alma mater!)

my ABCs of 2011

since i have a kid now, a lot of my mind and focus lately has been about his development, future schooling, etc... so instead of posting my new year's resolution(s) i thought it might be more fun and appropriate to my life to add a little twist to this year's resolutions.  it might be hard but i think i can come up with 26 things i want to do better or focus on a little more in 2011.  here we go!!!

A-Appreciate. i have so much to be thankful for. sit back and appreciate all that we have every day. this should be a given for everyone.
B-Balance. really work on finding the balance between being a mom, a doctor, a wife.
C-Challenges...in practice, in relationships, in life...not just getting through life's challenges but to actually challenge myself in all of the above
D-Dinner. make more dinners!
E-Exercise. as nike says, just do it. it feels good and i DO have time to fit it in.
F-Family. staying connected in any way possible...skype, email, phone, family trips, date nights...
G-Grayson, this one was obvious :) i am so excited for what this year will bring for the little guy!
H-Heal/Hope. one in the same for me right now. hoping to heal a little more each day.
I-Ice cube trays! fill them with homemade baby food :)
J-Jammies. spend more time relaxing in our PJs! get comfortable and be lazy sometimes. it's ok to do that.
K-Kindness. be kind. kill 'em with kindness. be nice to everyone even if their views are a little different than mine.
L-Love. plan more date nights even if they are at home!
M-Mom...Continue to grieve. Continue to miss her. Continue to share her stories with Grayson. Continue to reflect on what she taught me and use those things in my mothering. Continue to love her. Continue to wonder where she is and what she's doing.  Continue to ask her for help with life's challenges. Continue to remember. Visit her at least once.
N-No. say NO!!!! i have the hardest time saying no and often get myself so stressed trying to fit everything in. it's not good for me or for my life! see item B.
O-Oliver :) i am so excited for grayson and oliver to start recognizing each other on skype. even if we are not close in miles, the cousins can become the best of friends.
P-Phone calls. i need to get better about actually calling people and less reliant on texts :)
Q-Quinoa. eat more of it... it is so good and so good for you! high in protein, heart healthy, and delicious. i love it in a cold salad with veggies, fresh herbs, and a little balsamic.
R-Relax. Relax. Relax. Relax. (hello, Mexico in April!)
S-Sewing! try for 1 project a month with my new sewing machine. And take a class.
T-Travel....already have 3 trips for weddings (alex/dayna, maya/JL, amanda/ben), but plan a trip that is not wedding related and that chad, grayson and i can enjoy as a family... maybe the coast or crater lake?
U-Used. used books (go to the library more). used baby clothes (shop consignment and share old clothes). used bags (don't forget re-usable bags when i go to the grocery store)!
V-Veggies. enjoy more vegetables. pretty easy one since we get a box of fruits and veggies delivered to our house every week. BUT still, there are weeks when we don't use all of them.
W-Work. work harder AND smarter. continue to grow in practice. and sign up for an interesting seminar for CE.
X-"x"pectations... ok X is hard.  this year i will raise my expectations of myself as a practitioner. aim higher=better doctor.
Y-Yesterday. forget it. begin each day as a fresh new one. don't dwell on what didn't get done yesterday.
Z-zzzzzzzzzz 2011 will be better in the sleep department, i hope....