Family Vacation: Big Bear

 Family Vacation: Big Bear

After Christmas we headed to Big bear to spend time in the snow with my entire family and their little families. My oldest sister Courtney and her husband have 3 kids, a 10 year old, 3 year old, and a 2 year old. My middle sis kelsey and her husband have a 14 month old boy and then there's my parents and my brother and his sweet girlfriend who we met for the first time on this trip. Way to go Garrett, it could've been a lot for his gf to handle but she was a champ and fit right in! My sweet boy slept all 3 houris that it took us to drive to Big Bear, only waking up to nurse once and then went right back down. My husband and I lOVE road trips because it gives us a chance to just sit and talk without any distractions, we enjoy each other's company so much. He truly is my best friend. I lucked out big time. 

We spent the first day getting situated and then took all the kiddos on a walk to see the snow for the first time. I wore my little guy and bundled him up well so he wouldn't be cold. We sat out on touching and playing in the snow, but had a blast watching all the cousins. We headed back and ended the day playing games like 'Apples to Apples' and making dinner together. 

The following day half of us went snowboarding (I stayed home to nurse my little guy) and the rest of us headed out for another walk and then the zoo. The zoo was my favorite. We all had a great show of a huge wolf fight of around 20 wolves against 1 mighty wolf. It was insanity!! I don't think Cash knew exactly what was going on but he definitely has a huge interest in animals as of this past month. We saw a ton of animals, some of my other favorites were the black bears and grizzly bears, the fox's, bob cats, the cutest little owls, and these poor mountain lions that were HUGE (I'm talking SO BiG that there was a sign posted clarifying that they were not pregnant & in need of some donations for exercise equipment). So sad! But they were pretty cute and cuddly to look at. We headed home as the zoo was just about to close and relaxed and hung out with the whole crew. Some of us played games, others watched games (lol the men) and then there was the outdoor jacuzzi, SCORE! 

The next day we dedicated to going sledding (SO FUN, I was terrified at first but we all went down on inner tubes together holding hands and it was a great time), then walked around The a Village (a huge outdoor shopping center) and went out to dinner (which was nearly impossible with my sons 6pm bed time, and my nephews 6:30 bed time). We aimed for an early dinner but the restaurant was so packed that it took over an hour to get any food and by that time the kids were bored and overtired (shortage of naps didn't help the situation). So my sis and I left together with our two kids and had the rest of the gang stay and get our food to-go. We headed back to our cabin and put our little boys down. I'd say That was the most difficult part of the trip.. Cash was freezing at night and everyone else was hot in their rooms so we'd put him down in the pack n play and then he'd keep waking up from being cold.  I finally would end up bringing him into bed with my hubs and I. That seemed to work great for Cash but not so much for mommy.. My sleep was terrible but that's just what the life of a parent is all about.. Making sacrifices. He slept great for most of his naps though. So unfortunate but everyone except my dad, my hubby cash and I were all sick. So I knew we'd most likely catch what they had.. And Saturday the day before we left to go home, we all got sick. My poor baby was coughing up a storm. He slept the entire way home again, thank God, but When we got home to Orange County all of our sick symptoms intensified. Poor Cash has been sick since! And this mommy is having a hard time getting well with all of these crazy sleepless nights. On Friday of this week I discovered his first tooth was visible! So some of this sleepless night stuff, fever and fussiness is probably from him teething too! Today (Sunday) I can see it citing through. Ouch! I cant believe my little baby has a tooth! So needless to say this past week back home has been difficult and restless! 

Any of you mamas have any tips to help him and I both get well quickly? We leave for Aspen for one of my best friends weddings on Thursday! Hoping we are healthy by then since we are 8 days 'in' of being sick! 

We appreciate any suggestions. Love. love.

Xo

Road trip pit stop at starbucks

Stairing out the window at the cars going by

Are you kidding me with this face?!

Playing games

napping in our bed

walking around looking for snow!

My little snow bunny all bundled up

Cannan is LOVING the snow

And becoming more and more confident at walking

Caught this sweet moment of my niece holding my little boy so sweetly

Alpine Zoo 

Cuddling up close to this hansome fella

Little snow angel

All the cousins ready for sledding

this sweet angel fell asleep on me in his carrier while everyone else was sledding

These two just melt my heart

Im pretty sure we had the biggest group of people that all went down the sloap together

So handsome

Passed out on the way home after attempting to go to dinner with everyone. He knows right when 6pm hits that its bed time. 

My sweet nephew Parker is such a cuddler and i can only hope that Cash still cuddles me this close when hes 2

That smile just gets me every time.

Our Baby Boy Is 5 Months Old!

Our Baby Boy Is 5 Months Old!

My happy, sweet, adorable, lovely, darling baby boy is 5 months old! Im going to freak out next month when hes halfway to being 1 year old! I am SO not ready for that. He still seems so tiny and like such a baby to me, Im going to have such a hard time one day when I realize how big hes gotten. For now Im in denial. I am enjoying my "infant" (supposedly they are "infants" until they are 6 months old) cuddling him closely, and soaking up all the love and attention he gives me. I know one day not too far away he will be crawling away and then running! I want to remember all of him, every inch of adorable baby fat, every deliciously chubby wrinkle on his legs, neck, and tummy, the way he smiles at me right after he eats, his soft silky hand brushing against my arm or my chest as he nurses, the energetic happy kicks he does all day long, his squeals, squeaks, yelps, and giggles. The way he looks at me when faced with a big group of people, as though he wants me to rescue him and hold him close. The smell of his hair, his cheeks, and his breath. The softness of his tummy, his buns, and his feet.  The splashes he has started to make in the bath. The way he is ticklish now. The flirty faces hes made since he was born, his adorable tummy and hands trying to prop him up as he now SITS, yes, he sits! Ahh! His side profile is just the dreamiest little thing i have ever seen, his hair is a couple inches now on the top and spikes up if we put water in it.. otherwise it lays flat and does a little swoop at the end on his forehead to the side, his tiny little neck and his pointy chin, his delicious lips that are always rosey and so lucious and filled with drool, the way he puckers and sticks out his tongue. The way he wraps his arms around me and holds me in his tiny hands. The sweet sounds he makes to let me know hes awake from his nap or from his long night of sleep. His eyebrows always have such a concerned look on them when hes curious, which is another thing i love.. he is so so observant and curious. He is calm in a crowd and crazy at home. He is so playful, so cuddly, so loving, so gentle, so excited, so so sweet and also lets you know exactly what he wants.  I want to remember all of it. I wish I could. I already have forgotten so much, I know its not possible to remember every single detail,.. but i want to so I will journal and remember as much as my mind will allow. 

My sweet baby boy, Happy 5 months... now lets freeze time and stay here for a longer moment. . . because im pretty sure this is my favorite stage. Although i've said that every month of your life. [hehe]

This past month (things to save for my memory):

He moved from his bassinet at night into his crib. No complications, he did fine because he was use to it from naps. 

He rolls around everywhere, sometimes i find him sideways in his crib or facing the opposite direction

He can sit!

He is going through the 4 months sleep regression (still, going on week 3 now with only some improvement), struggling mostly with naps but a few nights have been rough too. 

He can sometimes put his pacifier back into his mouth if its in his hand.. he's working on it. 

He finally switched from the baby soothie paci's to a big boy 0-6 month Avent pacifier

Hes wearing 3-6 month clothes or 4-6 month.. His 0-3 months dont fit, most 3 months dont fit anymore. 

He has started kicking his legs and splashing around in the bath, he loves it!

He seems to be interested in big people food, but still havent introduced solids (dr makes us wait until 6 months).

I've started to allow him to watch Baby Einstein and age appropriate videos for 20 minutes a day to get him to do more tummy time (he still hates tummy time after 5 or so minutes unless hes distracted. But he holds himself up great and his head doesnt bobble anymore.. hes a big boy!)

His current favorite toy is STILL the piano where he plays it with his feet. 

He started using the bouncer last month (with a blanket behind his back since hes still pretty tiny width wise).

xo