Baby Boy Minion!

We hope that everyone is having a fantastic start to the fall. Charlotte is growing like a weed and will turn 1 in a month! She'll also be a big sister soon too with her baby brother set to arrive early in 2016. We will be celebrating Charlotte's birthday on Halloween in conjunction with Minion's sprinkle (baby shower).

For Minion, we've updated our registry with selected items that he will need. There's no obligation on any gifts, but if you are interested we have registered with the places below. We found out on Gordon's birthday that Minion is a boy :)  Borrowing/donations are always welcome.

Tot Tank
Our local baby store has been indispensable thanks to the friendly, knowledgeable staff. We've created a registry at Tot Tank, but Tot Tank Gift Cards are welcome as well since we will be frequenting this store for many miscellaneous items - Tot Tank Registry
*We can pick up items in store, no need to ship.

Amazon
Some extra necessities for the little one.  - Amazon Registry

Earth-Baby
Earth-Baby is the compostable diaper service we use. They have been fantastic and have outstanding products.  Earth-Baby Gift Cards


Our mailing address for those who need it:
2137 Otis Drive, Unit 203
Alameda, CA 94501

Pool's Open

Now that everyone is healthy it's time for us to get back in the pool. Friday family swim is one of our favorite activities and something we look forward to all week. It should come as no surprise that Charlotte has taken to swimming given her fishy parents. What started as 5-10 minutes in the pool has turned into 30+ minute sessions, often with no end in sight.

Friday family swim is everyone's favorite activity

Charlotte is a vivacious little swimmer and loves being in the noodle

Hopefully the pool in our complex will open soon and we can get Charlotte in the water more regularly. Lest you think Charlotte just floats around check out the video of her swimming.

Whew! All that swimming tired us out. See you all soon!

A Plague!

The last three weeks have been rough around here. First, Charlotte brought home a virus from daycare and was sick at home for a week. Naturally mom and dad followed suit and three weeks later we're still sick! We'd been warned that the first year is like this - constant sickness - but we had no idea it would be so bad. Here's hoping that everyone is healthy soon.

Despite our maladies we still manage to have fun here on Alameda. Warm spring weather has got us outside for regular walks with Charlotte along the beach. Thanks to longer daylight hours we can walk after 5pm, however this also means it's harder to get Charlotte to bed at a reasonable time. Thankfully she's still sleeping through the night...  mostly.

Speaking of sleeping, Charlotte seems to have turned her crib into a dance floor - it's the return of Charlotte's All-Night Dance Party!

How we find Charlotte most mornings

Despite being swaddled and in a sleep sack, Charlotte manages to move around in her crib nightly. Every morning we look forward to seeing how much she's rotated. We're speculating whether or not she's completed a full 360. Freestyle sleeping!

Perhaps she's just trying to get a better view of her sweet Totoro mobile :)

Totoros everywhere!

Some people have pointed out that Charlotte gets her hair styling from dad. Mom pushed back recently and the results were, predictably, hilarious.

Mom forcing the hair issue :)

That's all for now. As always, let us know if you'll be visiting San Francisco so we can meet up. See you soon!

Family Photos

Back in January we did our first family photo shoot. At the time Charlotte was 3 months old and her personality was really starting to come though so the timing couldn't have been better.

Our friend, the very talented Jaime Lauren Fenwick (Jaime Lauren Photography) shot us in a variety of settings - both indoors and out - and the results were spectacular. Below we've shared some of our favorites. We hope you enjoy them as much as we do.

Waking up to this smile every day is the definition of joy

Inquisitive and beautiful...  and dad's hair

Charlotte's friends came along for the shoot

Mom and daughter looking radiant

Like Mom, Charlotte tolerates bearded kisses from Dad

Happy family enjoying a warm California afternoon

Fun with Friends

Kids grow up so too fast. One minute they're snuggled up inside your sweatshirt, the next you're dropping them at daycare and having play dates. If four months go this fast...

We've been busy since the last post! Charlotte has officially started daycare and we're getting her into a semi-regular schedule. The condo feels empty now on days when Dad works from home but productivity has certainly increased. Mom is back to work too and can't wait to pickup her bumpkin at the end of each day.

As the post's title implies we've had lots of visitors and time with friends lately. Check out the photos for some recent highlights. Hope to see you all - erm, y'all - here in California soon!

"Stop looking at the older boys!" says Dad. Charlotte and Henry at Alameda Beach.

Fun at the beach with the Besson family.

"More boys?!" Charlotte and Tristan at the beach.

Rolling across SF. Big city adventures with Rose and Abigail.

Abi showing Charlotte how to use the baby gym.

Happy Valentine's Day

Nothing lifts our hearts - especially during the wee hours - like a smile and laugh from Charlotte. We hope this little photo montage will lift your heart too on this St Valentine's Day. With love from Alameda <3

Charlotte showing off her deft sense of fashion

The nursery :)

Charlotte takes hair styling tips from Dad

Charlotte giving a shout out to all her PDX peeps

Photo shoots are exhausting - see you all soon!

Go Pats!

Charlotte has been a Pats fan since week 9 of this season when she watched New England dominate Denver; punishing the hapless Broncos 43-21. Now on Super Bowl Sunday she looks forward to cheering on Brady and the Pats against some team from Canada... or Seattle, whatever.

Bottom line: This little lady says "Go Pats!"