Traveling

Brian and I really miss traveling. We didn't do much last year because I had such horrible morning sickness for the first half of my pregnancy and then my doctor didn't really want us traveling. I think we miss it so much because we traveled so much in 2007.

We started out slow with me tagging along to Dallas in the spring where Brian had training for a week. The training was at the Gaylord Texan (link) - a really amazing place to stay. I was really busy at work at the time so I did a little work in the hotel in the morning, went shopping in the afternoon, went running with Brian when he was done with class, and then we'd go to dinner. It was a really good break from the 60+ hour weeks I was working at the time.

Next, we went to southeast Utah for a week in May. We hiked around Arches and Canyonlands National Parks and the surrounding area. One of our favorite hikes was to the slot canyons of Little Wild Horse and Bell Canyons. We also stopped by Mancos National Park in Colorado on our way back to Denver (there's a nice direct flight now between Knoxville and Denver). We spent our last night in Durango, CO where a bike race was finishing that day and there was a great little street festival where we got to try the beer from some local breweries (including Ska Brewing Company). It was an awesome trip. I'd been to Utah once before in college and hiked the Escalante area and it was Brian's first time to the area.


In July, Brian went to Paris for 3 1/2 weeks for work and I joined him for a week. I did a lot of sightseeing during the day and worked on my photography. Then I'd head back to the hotel to watch the end of the Tour and meet up with Brian (and his co-workers sometimes) for dinner. By the way, I'd never been to Europe in the middle of summer before and I hope not to again. The lines to get into anything are insane. The line to get into Musee d'Orsay was so long that I didn't even bother waiting even though it's my favorite art museum. And Brian was lucky enough to get to go to Bangkok for a few days in the middle of his stay in Paris.


Next was Vienna in November. Again, Brian was there for work - this time for three weeks - and I joined him for a week. This was the third time he was there for work. We missed Christmas Market by a few days, but I got to see them setting up all the booths around town. I again worked on my photography, tried to see things I hadn't been to before, and took a day trip to Melk. Brian and I flew to Munich for a weekend where we about froze but still had a lot of fun.


And the best trip of all was to Peru. We hiked the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. It was the hardest thing we've ever done but was super rewarding. We even lucked out and had a guide to ourselves on the trail (as well as a cook and handful of porters). We got to watch the sun rise on Machu Picchu on New Year's Day. We also spent a few days in Cusco at the beginning of the trip acclimating and a day in Lima at the end.


So, I think we are now ready to start taking Carter on some adventures with us. We will definitely be doing shorter hikes and staying in more hotels than tents but as long as we get to start traveling again, it'll be fun.

Right now we are considering a trip to southwest Utah and maybe the Grand Canyon. We'll see though.

Rolling Over

Carter is starting to roll over from his back to his tummy now. He did it for the first time Monday night when trying to get a toy that was on the floor above his head. He's done it a few more times since.

Carter and Charlotte have been really sweet with each other lately. Carter watches her all the time. Whenever she comes up to me and I'm holding Carter, he reaches out for her. Sometimes he'll get a hand on her and ends up with a fistful of fur. She's been sniffing his face more when he's down on a blanket and sometimes licks his nose or eyes. Carter will squench up his face but he seems to like it.

Charlotte still hates when Carter is fussing a lot or crying. She still does her own sort of crying or howling when he does this. I'm not sure if she's trying to soothe him, trying to get my attention because she thinks he needs me, or if she's competing with him.

Neighborhood Walk

One of the reasons we chose the neighborhood we live in now is because it is so big. At least big for a new neighborhood. In Knoxville almost all new construction is in small pockets of old farmland with less than 100 houses. I took Carter and Charlotte for a walk this afternoon and without leaving our neighborhood (except for walking a short bit on the road that connects the two entrances), I did a 2.2 mile loop. There are sidewalks on the main roads outside of our neighborhood which easily connects us to a bunch of other neighborhoods which is great when I want to do a long run.

Here's a picture of Carter right before we set out on the walk.


It's around 60F today, but super windy so I put a sweater on him. He looks like such a big boy in this outfit.

I still haven't gotten any shipping information about the jogging stroller I ordered. I hope it gets here soon so I can enjoy it before it starts getting hot!

Avocado

I fed Carter avocado today and he LOVED it (though you can't tell from the picture I took of him).



He ate it so quick. I didn't want to give him too much since it was his first time trying it and I don't know how his stomach will handle it, but he would have eaten more if I had offered it to him. It was easy to feed it to him because it was a little thicker than the rice cereal and sweet potato I have fed him before but it's really creamy. And it's so easy to "make" since you don't have to cook it or puree it - just mash it up a little bit.

Brian fed Carter solid food for the first time this weekend. They weren't too messy considering it was the first time Brian tried it.


Brian also gave me a break and fed Carter a bottle this weekend. Carter really wants to feed himself, but the bottle is a little too heavy for him when it's full.


And here is what Carter often does with his paci ...

He Napped!!!

Carter took a nap today that was longer than 30 minutes for the first time since he was about 2 months old. We had gotten him down in his bouncer and he woke up after about 25 minutes crying. Brian was able to sooth him back to sleep after about 5 minutes and he slept for another 50 minutes. It was so nice! We didn't know what to do with ourselves though!

Carter is starting to show some interest in crawling. When on his tummy, he'll bring one knee up underneath him and squirm around, but he hasn't figured out how to push off the ground with his foot to push himself forward. But if you put your hand behind his foot he'll push off of it and move forward. Carter still has a ways to go before he's crawling, but we're starting to see the first signs of him figuring it out. It's probably time for us to start figuring out what we need to baby proof!

Carter is also finally starting to babble again. He used to a lot but hasn't been very vocal for a couple of months. I was starting to get a little worried about the decrease but today he was super, super "talkative". It was a lot of fun "talking" with him all day.

Carter has been doing okay so far with his teeth that are coming in. He's fussy sometimes but that's normal for him and I have no idea if it has anything to do with his teeth. Here's a picture from Friday that shows how much his teeth are in now.


Carter has been doing great lately with letting us go out to eat. We had only gone out to places where you order at a counter, but tonight we went to a Mexican restaurant. It's still not fancy but a step in the right direction!

Home Office

We finally have our home office (almost) finished! We still need to set up our computers under the desks and hang a few more things on the walls, but we're essentially done. I'm so happy that the first room you see when you enter our house finally looks nice instead of a mess of our old furniture.

Dogwood Festival

Carter and I went downtown today for the Market Square Arts Fair that is part of the Dogwood Festival. There were a few good artists with pottery, jewelry, etc, but nothing so great that I wanted to buy anything. The Cirque de Chine group which has a show in Gatlinburg was performing on the stage when we had finished going through all the vendor booths. They do acrobatics, dancing, and other "tricks". Amazingly, Carter slept through most of what we watched, including the really loud drum performance.


I used the new Maclaren stroller we got today and loved it. It's so nice having a smaller stroller in crowds!!! There is a pocket on the back side of it that is perfect to hold my wallet and phone so I don't need a purse and the basket underneath easily holds everything I need for Carter. I really love how the end extends out for Carter's feet since he's not big enough yet to sit with his knees bent over the edge. Carter seems to like the stroller as well!

Carter also tried out his new swing today. He's a little small, but I stuffed a blanket around him to make the seat a little more snug. He really enjoy being outside and swinging.



Carter heard Charlotte on the deck above him and was looking for her.

Sweet Potato

Carter tried his first food other than rice cereal today - sweet potato! I baked a potato this morning and then pureed it with breast milk to thin it down some. Carter did really well and ate several bites.

Gimme, gimme, gimme ...


I think I like this stuff ...


I can even wipe my own face!


My plan is to continue the sweet potato for a few days and then try avocado. I'm glad Carter seemed to not hate the sweet potato as much as I dislike it - it's just too sweet for me.

BOB Stroller

I did it - I ordered a BOB jogging stroller tonight! I got the Single Utility Stroller.


Yes, they are expensive, but the reviews are awesome. And they seem to resell for 1/2 to 2/3 (at least) of the original price. I got the Utility instead of the Revolution (which is even more expensive) because I plan on using the stroller solely for running and thus wanted the fixed front wheel.

I can't wait to get it and take Carter running!!! I foresee a lot of family runs in the near future!

First Illness

Carter seems to be over his first very mild cold. For about a week he had some nasal congestion and had a snotty nose, but today he seemed to be back to normal. He was sneezing and coughing a little more as well this past week but none of it seemed to bother him.