Nights 1 and 2

Well, so far Thomas likes the floor better than his crib!

Friday night, 10 pm

Saturday night, 9 pm

Adventures of a big boy

We have been trying some "big boy" things lately, in part motivated by friends/family's kids and in part because T seems to be ready (in some cases).

This one was not our choice. T has been able to (pretty smoothly, actually) climb out of his crib since before the holidays. It became an issue this week, when he did it 4-5 times per night, each night. Last night we put the mattress on the floor. After about 30 min. and many trips into the room by us, he fell asleep on the mattress. At 3 am, I checked on him and he was asleep at the door to his room (we had a baby gate up to keep him in). Tonight, Ed took the front of the crib off, so he's in bed but able to get out. He's now been roaming/playing in his room for 1.5 hours. We'll see where/when he falls asleep and what we try tomorrow night...but he thinks this new bed is very cool! Just apparently not for sleeping.

While Ed was gone this week, I was bored and my sweet tooth kicked in so we made cookies. Thomas liked pouring measuring cups of dry ingredients into the bowl, turning on the mixer and LOVED eating cookie dough.

Not really a big boy thing, but still cute. T loves "appowsau" (applesauce). When he can't spoon anymore out of the bowl, he lifts it up and drinks the rest. Every night. We don't mind...it's pretty much his only fruit intake, sadly.

Encourged by seeing cousin Lauren sitting on the potty, we bought a little seat and have been trying it out. So far, T likes the seat because Elmo and "fishies" (his new favorite) are on it, but doesn't get the concept. We're not pushing this...we'll stick with one big change at a time, and that would be the bed...

Colorado visit

Ed had a work trip out to Fort Collins, so we added a weekend to the beginning of it and tagged along to hang out with our friends Cliff and Jen and their son Zack. Cliff and Jen were our college roommates, and we've visited back and forth over the years, but it had been a year and a half since we'd seen them. The boys had both grown, but beyond that, not much had changed. We hung out, played with the kids, and ate some great meals, both at their house and out in Boulder. The weekend went way too quickly, but we're glad it worked out!

Saturday after a delicious breakfast of beignets and more, we did a short walk in Chatauqua Park. Zack rode on Cliff's shoulders for a while.
Thomas kept veering off the path.

Boys on the swings.

The boys did a pretty decent job sharing toys and really enjoyed each other's company (last time we were together, Zack was 15 months and T was 6 months, so things have changed!). They both love trains and trucks, so they have that in common to say the least! :)

Saturday night Jen and I let the boys play in a bubble bath. They had a great time and left the bathroom looking like a monsoon had hit it!

The mommas and the boys

They were happy to give each other hugs on command, and sometimes just for fun. So cute! Jen said that after Thomas left, Zack kept asking, "where my friend Thomas?" Hope we can get together again soon!

Waterslide

Check out Thomas and Ed having fun on the waterslide! Notice how Ed sacrifices himself to keep T from going under...

Destination Christmas: Swenson family cruise

After Christmas, we met mom, dad, Jenn and Pat in Florida for a cruise. Sun, sand, way too much food, and plenty of family time...what could be a better way to spend a week in December/January!?! We all had a wonderful, relaxing time, and Thomas had a ball. He thought the glass elevators were great, he was spoiled with attention, and he got to run around, pretty much non-stop, for 5 days. Heaven....

Our ship, Navigator of the Seas. Dad's company has done some costume and curtain work for several Royal Caribbean ships, including this one, so we got to see some of those pieces in action, which was cool!

The first day we visited Coco Cay in the Bahamas. It was a little cool, but the sun came out and we enjoyed a day on the beach.

Ed and Pat in their man shawls

Palm trees in December!

Naptime in a hammock

Playing in the sand

Beach walking with Boppa

One of the bars on the cruise ship (I think there were about 19 total) did a piano bar in the evenings with different themes--Jimmy Buffett, Billy Joel/Elton John, John Denver--we went most nights. Here's me and Ed and then Jenn and Pat in the bar.

On Grand Cayman, mom and dad took Thomas for the day while the four of us did a catamaran/snorkel trip. Eighty degrees, sun, and a catamaran...ah!

We met up with mom, dad and Thomas at a Margaritaville restaurant in town. It had a waterslide. This might have been the highlight of T's trip. :)

Posing with (the?) pirate captain. One of many in Grand Cayman, and we also saw pirate ships...

New Year's Eve! The dining room was full of streamers, hats, and horns.

Plus fancy desserts

The seven of us, all dressed up for New Year's Eve

The next day, in Cozumel, Ed and I took Thomas to a beach club while the other four did excursions. We had a pool, lounge chairs on the beach, and chair-side service. It was a pretty nice way to spend the day!

Mmm...a plate full of nachos, quesdaillas, and tacquitos on the beach.

Showing off his new hat!

The last sea day we played shuffleboard. Thomas really enjoyed pushing the pucks around, but it meant we had to play most of the game with 3 pucks instead of 4, and sharing sticks. We didn't mind.

Post shuffleboard picture. I'm not positive who won, but I think it was me and whoever my partner was. :)

We visited the casino a couple times, and Jenn played roulette and Ed played blackjack. The last night I sat down at a slot machine (the only casino game I'm not intimidated by) and won $55. Then I got bold and used $20 of that to play roulette with Jenn. Big spender, I know. We both walked away without our $20s, but I still had my $55!

The all-you-can-eat nature of a cruise is very dangerous. It only took us about 2 nights at dinner to figure out that if more than one appetizer/entree appealed to you, just order both. Then we'd head up to the cafeteria for a mid-evening snack. Add in the ever-available soft-serve machine, and pretty much all we did was eat. Yikes! Good thing we took the stairs instead of the elevator most of the time!

Ruble family Christmas

We started out our 12-day odyssey by heading to North Carolina to spend Christmas at the Ruble house. We usually only get to see the cousins twice a year, so it's great to get in some quality family time! We'll all be together again in May for Alli and Micah's wedding.

Thomas entertains himself at the airport by pushing around his car seat/stroller combo. Unfortunately, steering is not a talent he has learned yet!

Christmas Eve, the three girls continue our annual tradition--making dumplings for paprikash for dinner.

All 13 of us...and everyone is looking at the camera...amazing!

The 5 kids...Jakin (9), Thomas (almost 2), Annie (almost 5), Lauren (almost 2) and Corban (7). again, everyone is looking at the camera. The next three pictures in this sequence (not shown) are of Thomas trying to take off and Jakin trying to hold him back.

Another Christmas tradition: Tom reads the grandkids 'Twas the Night before Christmas.

Alli and Micah listen in too, snuggled in the big chair.

Christmas morning, looking down at the tree and stockings.

Nakey time for the babies! Thomas may have a couple inches on Lauren, but she's solid and therefore pretty good at holding her own!

The day after Christmas, we got hit with 4" of snow. Contrast this with the day before Christmas, when we were outside playing football in 55 degree weather!

Thomas and Lauren got matching puzzle stools with their names. This became the perfect spot for morning cheerios.

Zerberts!

and...we're back! Go Pack!

Life is finally in order again after a lot of holiday travel. Let the holiday blog posting begin (lots of pictures to share)...but first, GO PACK!!