Friday, May 29, 2009

The Happiest Place on Earth...

Back in January, when I was supposed to be going back to work, my long-term sub asked if I would be able to take my students to Disneyland. At the time I thought, "Of course! Hank will be so old by then, and he'll be sleeping through the night, and it will be nothin'!" Well, live and learn.

It was such a difficult process - in the weeks leading up to Disney, I had to go in and conduct and was basically working, but with no child care and no pay (just for the love of it all - do I win a prize?). Hank was not too happy about being with someone else during the class and proceeded to cry for the whole hour that I taught, while my poor sub tried to distract, entertain, and field all the dozens of people who thought THEY could make him happy (nope, just mom could do that!).

Needless to say, I ended up conducting my class with him in the Baby Bjorn. A true sight to see and I only wish I had a picture. The kids thought it was hilarious and would play peek-a-boo while I tried to work with them, Hank thought it was great because he was connected to me and had the attention of a whole class of kids, and I...well, I had a backache.

I do think all the exposure was good for Hank...for awhile he was sticking his arm out in a fist (think "Olympics 1968")...rather than Black Power, we thought he was trying to conduct. It might just have been the early stages of a wave...but we won't discount the time he spent watching me conduct, and I will still hope he'll become a famous musician or conductor because of it! hehe

During the trip, Hank: had his first airplane ride (never cried-woohoo!), visited Disney for the first time (loved "Small World), got his first tooth, and learned to wave. Not bad for a three day weekend.

We also got to see Uncle Thomas, Aunt Ness, and Cousin Josie while we were in Disneyland (another bonus of going). A VERY, VERY big "Thanks!" to Grandma Hardy and dad (of course!) for going with me on the trip and taking time to help me out - even when it would have been more fun to be partying it up with the Long Beach Hardy Fam!

Bring on the pictures. (Note: I was working a lot, so I don't have many, but we'll all have to hit up Josie's blog once she gets pictures up)
Watch out for your hair! (Grandpa Hardy said he has had his share of hair tugging while flying...)Grandma Hardy worked wonders to keep little Hank happy during the flights. What a blessing (cuz this kid doesn't sleep!).


Dinner together on the first night. Hank shared his prunes with Cousin Josie - how nice :)

This picture cracks me up...I had one where the kids didn't look so crazy, but their eyes look INSANE in this one! What goofballs :)
Mornings were the best...they'd wake up early and smile at each other, roll around, and try to poke each other's eyes out (with some hair pulling on Hank's part...ahh, good habits).
Diaper time!
Do you think she was happy?
"Small World"
Neither of the kids could take their eyes off the characters. They were soooo into it!
When B, T, and V went on Splash Mountain, we sat outside and watched the ride. Everytime people came down the "waterfall", they'd scream and Josie would do this hilarious face. A woman next to us kept watching her and cracking up. That Josie gets 'em all laughing!


Thursday, May 28, 2009

New Tooth

Here it is...his first tooth! We tried to get pictures of it for about a week (he got it in Disneyland), but to no avail. Then, he started crying in the car and I was not going to miss the opportunity to get the picture!

NOW she likes him...

I sat Hank down the other day by his playmat and went to get some cereal. When I peaked around the corner, he was gone...he had rolled under the table, grabbed Lucy's cat toy, and was flicking it around. It took Lucy about .2 seconds to hear her toy and run to join in on the fun. She just might grow to like Hank afterall...or not-hehe.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

We did Disney...

There will be a post dedicated to Disney later, but these summed up how we all felt after a whirlwind trip to Disneyland!
(The one of Hank makes me feel like the worst mom ever...put that kid to bed already...his eyes are purple! Scary, huh?!)

Crazy Outfit Alert!


When B is home to dress Hank on the weekends, I always know that he'll either come out looking adorable or crazy. On this occassion, I was finishing getting ready and I walked into Hank's room saying, "What is it today, cute or crazy?" and Bret laughed and said, "CRAZY!" There were a few outfits strewn around the room (they were much worse than this one!), but this is the one he ended up in. Grandma H, B, and I thought it was pretty cute...Uncle Asher compared him to a Fraggle :)

Baby Legs are the silliest, but most fun!

Monday, May 11, 2009

We Love Parks

If there's one thing that living in the NW makes you appreciate, it's a nice day! In Seattle, we're also lucky to have beautiful parks lining the multiple lakes in the area. So as soon as there's a tiny glimmer of sun, we're outside!

The first picture was taken at Seward Park...it was a bit of a "Three Hour Tour" (sung to the tune of "Gilligan's Island"). B, Dev, Hank, and I decided that we needed to take a stroll before dinner one evening. We started out on the trail and every so often said, "Should we turn back?" But we kept walking, and kept walking...until finally, we were too far along to go back. Lucky us, we got to walk the majority of the time in the wind and shade (yes, I'm being sarcastic). Further down the path, we all got kinda pumped that we were out exercising and we were applauding ourselves for getting out there...a 1/2 hour later, with the end in sight...and still very far away...we started to drag, whine, and curse ourselves for not knowing what we were getting into! 2.5 miles later (Hank still strapped in the Bjorn) and we made it back to the car. The barbeque we ate after never tasted so good! Now we know how long the walk is, we know to wear better shoes (Bret: "Well, now I know these shoes aren't as comfortable as I thought!"), and we'll bring the stroller next time! But we got exercise, dammit! These next pictures are at Coulon Park...just 3 miles from home and down the driveway from Grandma and Grandpa Hardy's place. We love it! I meet here to walk with some moms usually about once a week, and Bret and I hit it often as well. You'll notice Hank's new sun hat. I've come to accept that my boy will not be able to bake in the sun (as I LOVE to do)...that Norwegian white skin just won't allow it! So he's all covered up. Everytime he wears this hat it makes us laugh...we can't stop saying, "G'day Mate!" I bought it because it has little cute skeletons all over it and I thought it would look cool...nope, still dorky-hehe. But at least he won't get a sunburn!
There is nothing cuter than a mommy and daddy duck with all their ducklings...especially when your own little baby is looking on (and talking to them as they passed...melt my heart). This is the same family from the "Mother's Day" post!
We've tried the swings before and he's OK with them...not overjoyed. We'll give it time :) Told ya the hat is dorky!

Slide time! Grandma Hardy first took Hank down the slide on her lap, but then he was ready to go at it alone (well, not quite alone...Grandma is standing close by...you'll see in the video!).



Sunday, May 10, 2009

Happy Mother's Day!

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there! Just over 7 months ago, I got to join the club and it's made me so happy. Until I had Hank, I never realized the extent of how much you could love your child. Now, I get it...
I watch every episode of "Baby Story" on TLC and even before I had Hank, I would watch them deliver their babies and get weepy. It just seems like the universe is rocked in that moment - when you become a mom. Below is that moment I had with Hank. It was the most perfect moment - ever. My favorite memory is how they put him on my belly right after and I kept trying to pull him closer and closer to me...they kept saying, "Hold on! He's still connected!" hehe. It was a, "Give me my baby!" moment.
Mom's are the best, and being a mom is the best - love you guys!