Best. Sound. Ever.

Yesterday I heard Winston laugh for the first time -- not just a little giggle, or a funny sound as he smiled, but a full-on laugh! I have no idea what he was laughing at, as he was just shnuggling on my shoulder before I was about to put him down for a nap, but he suddenly sat up and just started laughing. It was the best. sound. ever!!! I can't wait for him to do it again, and I can't wait for his daddy to hear him laugh. Soooo sweet!! I wish I could have recorded it for everyone to hear, but instead I'll just share an adorable bathtime photo with you :)

Winston looks up at me with those big, beautiful eyes the whole time I bathe him and when I pause and look him in the eye he gives me a huge grin. Too bad it's Winston policy to never smile for the camera.

Stretchy Face

Since the day Winston was born he has always stretched the exact same way when he wakes up from a nap- arms high above the head, feet drawn up like a froggy, and face scrunched up tight! These first two photos we took of him in the first couple of days home from the hospital and the first one is one of my favorites because it is so Winston! The second two I took recently and he is clearly the same little babe.

Phone Pics

I've never been a fan of phone cameras before, but I understand how convenient they can be now that I'm a mama. I pretty much always have my phone on me (it's Tyler policy), but I don't always have my camera so I've been using it to catch little cute moments of Winston. The photos are a little blurry, which is why I don't like phone cameras, but I think his cuteness still comes through just fine. Here is a sampling of the sweet moments:

 Eating makes me sleepy :)

 I'm all strapped into my big boy seat and ready to go!

Just talking to that cute baby over there.

 Sweet baby boy

My fist-pop is my favorite snack!

Family Campout

Thanks to the little heat wave we've had here in Southern California, we decided to have a family campout in the front room the last couple of nites. The first nite we moved into the living room at 2:00am after I had stripped Winston down to his diaper and gave up on the ice pack I had pinned to my forehead. The second nite we even set up a makeshift changing table on the sofa so that I wouldn't have to set foot into the stifling bedrooms all nite long. One of the joys of cheap apartment living is only having one air conditioning unit that works, although I'm very grateful we have any air conditioning at all.

Tyler and I switched off on the sofa, and yes, now that the Olympics are over we're fully committed to shark week :)

Mama's Boy

I haven't seen any photos of Tyler as an infant yet, but I still think Winston looks like me- at least for now. We even had the same male-pattern-baldness going on :)

Baby Kate

Baby Winston

Baby Kate

Baby Winston

 Baby Kate

Baby Winston

Summer Fun

This summer has been sooo busy already and we've barely made it to August, but we've been having so much fun! My younger sister, Jay, and my mom came out to visit. My mom stayed with us for about two weeks while Jay stayed for a whole month. Being her first time in L.A. we tried to squeeze in a lot including the La Brea Tar Pits, the Noah's Ark exhibit at the Skirball, ice skating, the beach, lots of drives through Beverly Hills to see the pretty houses, the Getty Villa, the Korean Bell of Friendship, lots of eating out, the Wayfarer's Chapel, the Hollywood stars and sign, Grauman's Chinese Theater, Disneyland, lots of movies/ESPN's 30 for 30 films, and lots of shopping (which included a trip to The Grove where I was happy to point out what looked like the wax model of Mario Lopez, but it turned out to be the real him. He likes make-up and fake tans :)

Now that all of our excursions include a stroller and baby bag I don't always have my big DSLR camera with me, because it's just one more thing to carry. We're looking into getting a small point-and-shoot, but for now the following photos are a sampling of all our activities.

Jay and the giant sloth bringing it in for a hug at the tar pits (which are, in fact, actual pits of tar).

 

Snapshots at the Getty Villa

 

 Tyler and I showed Jay the little alcove in the gardens at the Getty Villa where Tyler proposed four years ago. We didn't notice until now that he proposed to me right in front of an almost nude statue of Venus. So classy!

 

 

Seventeen with no cares in the world! 

 

 Wayfarer's Chapel

 Granna and Jay trying to get in some shnuggle time with Winston.

 

Mama and babe at the beach

 Mo and Jay at Disneyland

 Jay wanted a photo with a Disney character, but most of the lines were so long that we kept skipping it. Luckily she was able to grab a quick photo with Goofy right before we left the park!

 Winston on his first ever Disneyland ride- the Jungle Boat Cruise

A couple of notes:

1. Jay discovered she LOVES roller coasters. It took a little coaxing from Tyler to get her on Space Mountain, but she absolutely loved it and went back for a second time on her own. She did the same thing at Thunder Mountain and apparently couldn't stop laughing during the Indiana Jones ride. We're so happy to have introduced her to the world of roller coaster thrills!

2. I still love Indiana Jones and the Tower of Terror, but my new favorite thing about Disneyland is the Babycare Center. It was located at the end of Main Street closest to the rides and provided an air conditioned space for feeding and changing the babe. The nursing area is private, which means I could sit in a comfortable chair sans nursing cover for as long as I liked. The five or so changing tables have disposable changing pads so I didn't need to carry a pad around with me, and when we ran out of wipes, they had plenty more for me to use (not to mention diapers, baby food, baby Tylenol, Purel, etc. And the sweet, old ladies who work there gave Winston a big "1st Visit to Disneyland" button with his name and the date. I loved it!!

In addition to my mom and Jay visiting, my older sister Amy, her husband, and their three kids drove down from Idaho for a weekend, and two of my best friends, Monica & Jess, came to visit as well. Tyler started a new job with Virtu Financial, which is located practically right on the beach in Santa Monica, and so far he loves it. We also blessed Winston at church when he was only a week and a half old and, of course, he was sooo good for Daddy. And last nite Tyler, Winston and I were able to meet up with my brother, Ang, right after he proposed to his now-fiance, Mary. We haven't seen Ang in over two years and, just like it looks in the photo below, it was awkward giving him a hug because he is sooo much taller than I remember!

Ang, baby Winston and I

Sorry for the long post, but like I said, we've been pretty busy this summer! And we still have a few friends coming to visit and some more fun activities planned for August and September. Fortunately, we have the perfect baby who just goes with the flow and still never cries unless Mama is a little slow driving home and I make him wait an extra five or ten minutes to eat. We love him!