Paige has had such a busy couple of months in November and December!  We recently became homeowners and are doing lots of home improvements (kitchen, floors, walls, ceiling...) prior to moving, and Paige has been there 'helping.'  

Incidentally, this is the view from the condo (and why we bought it!)

  

Other fun events:  Brunch at 706 with Uncie Rob... Paige very much enjoyed his hummus (thanks again!!)

And, if there was ever any doubt, Paige is definitely Dustin's child... note the ability to fall asleep anywhere:

We've been playing in boxes with Grandma B:


Hangin' out by the lake with Mama:

And, so cute... discovering the fun of bathing.  It's another video, enjoy!!

Solid food

I would like to start this post by saying that, for anyone who doesn't already know, a baby eating mush ('solid food') is the cutest thing ever. Paige started solids (rice cereal; mush) last weekend. It has been a hilarious week of her blowing raspberries with the cereal, learning how to drink water, learning how to eat off a spoon, etc. Below are a smattering of pictures of the cuteness... followed by a short video of her "eating." Enjoy!

October

Paige is such a cutie in her Gator outfit!!! She loves Gator football!!! (ok, she doesn't actually get Gator football, but she loves it when we get excited about anything) And, she looks radiant in orange and blue.

Paige is now sitting up on her own, and trying desperately to escape from her 'buzz' chair.

... and we are officially eating our feet. For those of you who doubted my honesty about such things... HA! PROOF!! Foot in mouth (and not just her's.... muhahahaha....)

We've also been utilizing the jogging stroller... by which I mean brisk-walking stroller... just look how happy the baby is after a jog, or brisk walk, whatever.

And, of course, our obligatory trip to the pumpkin patch with the little pumpkin. She hated sitting on the hay, but loved the grass... super cute, either way!!

Rolly-Poly Gator Fan

Paige's tummy time no longer exists... or, at least it is greatly diminished. Not that it was ever all that pleasant for her, but we knew it was good for her (for your own good, kid!!) But now she has mastered that art of rolling over, and will absolutely not stay on her tummy if she can help it.

Also, some pictures from Paige's first UF-Tennessee football game gathering! Thanks to Auntie Alecia, the baby is festively clad in her Gator-gear!!

Northwest trip!

On August 23, 2008, we began our adventure into the great Northwest. This marks Paige's first airplane ride - and she handled it very well (as well as an almost-4-month-old can). We arrived in Portland, rented a car, and left for Forest Grove, which is about 1 hour west of Portland, for Pauline and Keith's wedding. They chose a resort called McMenamins (http://www.mcmenamins.com/) which was an awesome venue. They have their own microbrews, along with their own wines, and a very relaxed, chill atmosphere. We highly recommend visiting one of their hotels/restaurants/bars if you are in the area.




Poor little Paige - we had her schedule so messed up with the 3 hour east-west time difference. She tried to make it through the wedding reception, but spent most of the time in her carrier before going to bed:



Day after the wedding: hanging out with Uncie Rob in the McMenamin's beer garden :) Paige was still a little cranky from having her sleep schedule thrown off...


After the wedding festivities, we headed back to Portland for a couple of days. We visited several coffee shops, bookstores, etc. around town, and on Monday we decided to get some hiking in along the Columbia River Gorge. There were a plethora of trails to choose from, most with great waterfall vistas, and we ended up selecting three. Paige 'hiked' along with us - by that I mean she rode in her Baby Bjorn, giving Dustin and I a good workout with those extra 14 or so pounds.



After all that hiking, we were all pretty tired.



The next day, we drove out to the Oregon coast on our way to Seattle. Canon Beach was beautiful; we didn't have time to do much hiking, but the views were breathtaking and we had gorgeous weather.

This last photo of the Oregon coast is in Astoria, overlooking Cape Disappointment (lots of shipwrecks) where the Columbia River meets the Pacific.

One recommendation: when driving the north part of the Oregon coast, skip Seaside. Its a touristy, tacky little town that you don't really need to stop for... unless you like that sort of thing...

We finally made it up to Seattle, spent some time in the city (Pike's Market and Pioneer Square), and spent a day up near Bellingham. All very cool.



Ultimately, we made our way back to Portland. Washington Park has a spectacular rose garden, and overlooks the city... good stuff :)



And on our last day, we visited Oregon's wine country (southwest of Portland - lots of great wineries; Pinot Noir is what the region is known for). We finished up in Eugene (U of Oregon) which is a great college town - we just happened to be there on a game day (Oregon vs. Washington) so that was a really fun atmosphere.

And that was the end of our trip. Paige was awesome; travelling with her and Dustin is such a good time :) What a great family I have!! I'll leave you with a view of Mt. Hood taken from Lost Lake... the mountain almost (but not quite) revealed itself through the clouds...

Hangin' out

This post is a hodge-podge group of pictures that we've collected in the past few weeks. Paige is growing like a weed... She loves hanging out with mommy, daddy, grandma... actually, whoever happens to be here; thank goodness for an easy-going baby!!




Mommy (me... whatever, I flip-flop between first- and third- person...) made me (baby) wear sunglasses because she said it is too bright outside for babies. Thankfully, I rather like them, and don't protest too much when I am wearing them.


One other rather disturbing development - I (baby) like watching TV. Particularly the olympics (there could be worse things)... Micheal Phelps is definitely my first crush!!

Note in the next two pictures - Paige is twisting herself to see the TV. I (mommy) suppose that my TV watching-with-baby-present days are done now. Sigh.


Last but not least - a video (yes, a video - for those of you who didn't realize the last one was a video.) Paige has been putting everything in her mouth that she gets her hands on... this toy was the latest taste-test.