Phoenix Zoo

Last Monday while in Phoenix, we decided to go to the zoo.  But, oh man, was it chilly.  It was high 50's.  We got our tickets and the lady said 'oh you braved the weather to come out'.  Yeah well we wanted to do something and laying by the pool was out of the question and we found out that in Phoenix many things are closed on Mondays.  It is weird since pretty much everything in Chicago is almost always open.  Since it was chilly we didn't take Logan out of the stroller to pose for pictures.

The animals were cold too - cuz they didn't do much.  Some highlights of our trip to the zoo:

There are trails that aren't paved that go into different parts of the zoo - so that was pretty cool.  The zoo's in Chicago are laid out so symmetrically - Phoenix offered a bit 'off roading'.

Two water muskrats played tug-of-war with a dead squirrel.  Another visitor told one of the zoo keepers about it so they could remove it.  Could you imagine if it was a busy day and kids saw that!?!?!  John, on the other hand thought it was cool and took a video - I will spare you.

A lion was basking in the sun...on his back...with his legs open....he was definitely a 'he'. Eeewww!

Their petting zoo was neat - we didn't pet anything, but we got a cow to say 'Mooo' on video - so that was good fun.

And the biggest highlight of our trip was John & Logan vs. Tom the Turkey in a foot race.  It was close, but Tom the Turkey won.  (Video is Below)

The Giraffe probably provided the most entertainment - eating.

Logan's first picture with a cactus.

John & Logan enjoying a nice view...

Haha...this is hilarious.  So we were coming down one of the trails and this 'statue' was around a corner of a half-wall.  John at first didn't know it was fake and he was so startled by it.  So here is the picture of John & Logan with the statue that scared John.

Logan & I admiring each other....by the flamingoes.

Logan on  Bear Watch.  ( There was a bear in the background, but he moved right as I took the picture.)

Just a cute picture.

Logan and Tom the Turkey (before the race)

And the race video you've all been dying to see....

 

3rd Time Is a Charm

Tonight I tried cereal for the 3rd time...and it was pure success!!!  Logan ate the whole bowl and then drank about 5.5 ounces of milk.

I first tried cereal a week ago, while on vacation - Logan cried and spit most of it out.  He got some in his mouth, but the tongue reflex was really working.  :)  I decided to wait until we were in our own environment to try again.  

I tried 2 nights ago and this time a little more got in, but again, he cried a little...so I gave him some bottle and then tried again, but to no avail.  I didn't want to give up, but didn't want to push it especially since it wasn't 'recommended' for another couple weeks.  But the last 2 nights he has woken up in the middle of the night to eat, which is very unlikely for him.

So I tried again tonight...voila!  He was so happy.  The first spoonfuls actually went down the hatch and not much leaked out the sides of his mouth.   Then he actually opened his mouth and leaned forward to signal that he wanted more!  I was so excited..and so was he!  His legs were kicking like crazy.  Sure some spoonfuls leaked out, but I expect that is bound to happen - even when he gets the full hang of it.  So I think this will become part of our nightly routine.

What a big boy!

Logan's 1st Plane Experience

Logan was 3 months old (& 2 days) when he took his 1st plane ride.  He did wonderful! Since John works for United we flew standby.  We were a bit nervous as we've been bumped off of flights in the past, but the numbers looked promising that we'd get on...and we did!  We even got economy plus (there wasn't 1st class on this flight) so we had extra leg room.

We bought a new lightweight stroller that held only his carseat - it was sooo perfect.  Our travel system, while wonderful, is heavy & bulky and not the best for travel.  Again, since we went standby, we got Logan his own seat so he could stay in his carseat - it was great.  He slept during takeoff.  We were nervous about his ears popping and tried to get him to suck on his pacifier, but he was so 'out' that he wouldn't budge.  Halfway through the flight he woke up  and looked around.  He 'talked' loudly for about 15 seconds and then I rocked him to sleep.  Right after he fell asleep, he pooped.  But I didn't dare wake him up on the flight.  We just prayed that nobody else smelled him.  ;)

There was another baby his age on the flight - the mom had to stand up in the front of the plane almost the whole flight to keep the baby calm.  I was just so glad Logan was sleeping (even if he was a bit stinky).  :)  After the flight several people around us complimented him saying he did SO well.  We both let out a big sigh of relief as I'm sure they did.  Here are some pictures of Logan's first plane ride!

Going through security.

John and Logan by the United sign.

Getting ready to board the plane.

All buckled in (several flight attendants walked by and then as the plane was pulling away from the gate a different flight attendant walked by and told us that Logan couldn't sit in the middle since (in case of an emergency) his carseat was blocking my path.  Makes sense, but we just wish the other million times they walked by they would have told us.  This picture was taken just before we moved.

And here he is in his proper seat by the window.  He was checking out his toys.

Ah, sound asleep and all buckled in!

Safe and sound at the Mesa airport.

Logan's 1st Vacation

This past week we took Logan on his first vacation to Mesa, AZ.  We didn't use our timeshare last year and had to use it by the end of March or else we'd lose out on $$ - and who wants that??

After researching a few places where we could trade within our timeshare, we decided on Mesa, AZ - since they had the warmest weather.  Well, wouldn't luck have it that the week we went it was not only the coldest week in AZ, but it was the warmest week in Chicago!  In fact, last Tuesday was 6 degrees warmer in Chicago than in Mesa - can you believe it?!?!  So we weren't able to have the nice laying by the pool vacation as we originally thought, but we still had a good time.

All in all - Logan was amazing!  We enjoy traveling and want to continue to do so with our kids (as much as we can)...so we thought we'd get Logan started early!

'From Wisconsin'

So without fail, any time we are out to dinner (outside of the state of Wisconsin), John's Dad, Bill makes sure that the waiter is aware that he's from Wisconsin and we're from Chicago.  The waitress may just ask 'how are you tonight' and he'll say 'Good.  We're from Wisconsin and they're from Chicago'.  It is mentioned as if we will get some sort of special treatment if they know this information. We look at him and kind of laugh because it is so random....it has simply now become a 'Bill-thing' and it is expected when we go out to dinner with them.  :)  Haha...one time we were at the airport many, many years ago and the gate agent asked a question.  The response was 'well, we're from Wisconsin'.  :)  It's hilarious - that was not the answer to the question, but somehow it was the answer given.  Oh man, I am cracking up as I type this - I think it's cute (even though for a while I thought it was embarrassing....eh, who cares!).

Well John and I laughed at dinner tonight...there were 2 older couples sitting behind us.  They were looking at the Specials Menu and discussing what they were going to eat.  Then one of the gentlemen said 'Well, I didn't come all the way from Wisconsin to not get this meal.'  Hilarious....I peeked around to make sure that it wasn't Bill!  Must be a wisconsin-guy thing????  Haha...just had to share!

He listens in his sleep.

John and I went to dinner tonight; Logan was parked in his stroller right next to me and across from John.  John looked at me and said "gosh, isn't he an adorable baby?".  I looked over and while I was getting ready to say 'yes'....we both noticed that while Logan was sound asleep...he let out a really big SMILE.  We bust out laughing.  He knows when he's being talked about.

We love this boy!!!!!!

Logan's Ticklish!

Yesterday I tried tickling Logan on his collarbone.  I've tried this a few times in the past and he normally just stares at me...yesterday he squealed in excitement!  I did it a few more times (because seriously...who just stops at one squeal?) and he continued to squeal/giggle.  I posted a video (I hope it works!).

1st trip to the zoo

Logan, John and I went to the zoo yesterday. While he slept most of the time, I could tell he had a wonderful time. ;) We were on vacation and went to the Phoenix Zoo. It was surprisingly chilly so we kept bundled. Logan saw lots of animals and I believe there will be many more visits (to the Chicago zoo) in our future. :)

Growth Spurt Alert!

Wow...Logan sure has had one heck of a growth spurt this past week.  He went from consistently eating 3 times a day (6am, 1pm, 8pm - all about 8-9 ounces) to eating the same amount 4-5 times a day!  I've even depleted my 'freezer' stash of milk.  I used to have a nice supply - all over our freezer were packets of breastmilk.  But slowly, I would need to add 2-3 ounces here and there to what I had pumped or he ate because it just wasn't enough.  We started supplementing with formula - for about a week now.  He took it with no problem.

John and I are thinking that we may be a bit rebellious and start cereal a bit sooner than 'recommended'.  "They" say 4-6 months to start solids.   I believe they say to wait until that time period to reduce the risk of allergies and problems with digestion or something.   Naturally any time you mention doing things earlier or later than the 'books' recommend, you get all kinds of opinions.  I would say, for the most part, people that we've mentioned this to all agreed that we should start him now.   

I've read many, many websites about this (sometimes the Internet is just an awful thing).  They talk about allergies, childhood diabetes and obesity.  I have a feeling the obesity reference is NOT from feeding rice cereal too early, but maybe from letting your child eat crap and sit on the couch and do nothing or play video games all day long.   Just a thought.  ;)

Other sites have mentioned to start rice cereal if he is 4 months or weighs at least 14 pounds, drinks at least 30 ounces a day and has good head control.  Well, Logan definitely over 14 pounds, drinks about 30 ounces (sometimes more) a day and has great head control.

Sure, we are eager to try something new, but if he is not ready, we definitely will not push it.  So, we will probably try it soon via the spoon and see how he does.  If it is success, great!  If not, we will wait a bit and try again.  :)

It may be inevitable...

He keeps finding his thumb...  I keep trying to give him the pacifier as it is easier to take away a pacifier than a thumb....but it may just be inevitable.  Ah well, he's still super-cute doing it.

Visit/Playdate

On Tuesday, my friend Liliana came over with her daughter, Ariana...she played and walked everywhere and Logan just stared at her (he thought she was sooo pretty).  :)

Superbowl

I love to watch football, especially if the Bears (since we're from IL), Packers (since John is from WI) or Steelers (my parents grew up in Pittsburgh and my Grandpa was a die-hard fan) are playing.  Luckily one of those teams made it into the superbowl!  While we didn't have any 'Steelers-wear', John and Logan celebrated in their Bears apparel!

Pictures from this weekend

A new outfit from Nicole - it shows off his beautiful blue eyes!

He was not as happy in this photo... (I don't know why I love crying pictures so much...kids just look so pitifully cute in them!)

He was so excited when I put this fun toy bar back on his carseat.  I've never seen him stare so intently at any toy before..it was so cute!  (Thanks Abbey!)

Our cool little dude...with his hands clasped together so nicely like he's praying!

Cute little smirk.

Logan's many sleeping poses....

(this is his favorite sleeping pose...)

A little Home Improvement

We are slowly transforming our 'office' into a guest bedroom.  This weekend we (mainly John, but Buddy, Logan and I did help) changed the dark green blinds to nice white blinds (that go with the rest of the house).

BEFORE

AFTER

Dinner with the Square

On Thursday night, Logan joined me for dinner with the 'Square' (me, Abbey, Julie & Nicole).  We all used to work together and anytime we'd go out to lunch (which was quite often) we'd reference ourselves as the 'square'...silly, but it has stuck.  We may not work together anymore, but we still go out to dinner (typically to Stir Crazy) every couple months to catch up.

Abbey & Nicole thought it would be hilarious to dress Logan in Nicole's PINK scarf.  I may not have found it quite as funny, but still, I did take a picture!  (Logan will not appreciate this picture when he's older).

Then they thought it would be funny if Logan talked on Nicole's cell phone (which it does really look like he's paying attention to the 'call').

Julie just played nicely with Logan and didn't make him do anything crazy...this time.  ;)