Following Grandma and Grandpa

Well, it's been awhile! We have had a great summer and Will has learned to do so much in a very short two months. It's truly amazing how fast he is learning new things. I've posted a couple videos to Facebook recently that show just how fast he is getting around now. Our life has completely changed again that's for sure.

Pat and Scott left on their United States adventure last weekend. They gave each of the grandkids a map to follow them on their journey. Thomas has been mapping their travels with William. We put it down low so he could see it and follow grandma and grandpa as they travel. He loves the bright colors! Pat has created a blog (www.vannicetravels.blogspot.com) and we have enjoyed following them this week and getting to experience their travels through pictures.

 

 

Easter Egg Hunt

I took William to St. Anthonys for his first Easter egg hunt. We arrived about 9:58 am and the hunt was supposed to begin at 10:00 am. However, by the time we got there, the kids had already hunted all the eggs and there weren't any left for little Will. So here he is... eggless on his first hunt (I'm pretty sure he didn't care). 

Zoo with Grandpa!

William and I went and spent two days in Portland with my  dad. We had a great time visiting and William got to go to the zoo again! This time the flamingos were in town. 

Swing!

Thomas and I spent today making a new swing for William. We completed it with some daylight left so we let him try it out. He seems to love it already! We can't wait until the weather warms up so we can start spending lots of time outside in the yard.

Zoo Trip...Part 2

Today Hannah uploaded her pictures from the zoo and there were some that I loved and wanted to share on here so I decided I'd just write a second post. Besides, I didn't do a very good job of telling the whole zoo story the first time so here it goes again.

Hannah and I had been scheming to surprise everyone at the zoo. We had everything planned out including where we would happen to "run" into them and what time it would happen. Then William got sick. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday were really rough days and I didn't think there was much of a chance we would actually make it to Portland. In talking with Hannah I told her we probably couldn't make it and of course she was understanding and just wanted us to do what was best for Will.

When texting one night she said, "You better not be lying about being really sick so you can surprise me too!" And my reply was, "I wish I was." Then it hit me...I still wasn't sure if we were going to make it Portland or not, but either way I wasn't going to tell anyone I was coming if we did end up being able to go. After all, I already knew "the plan". (Although I did call mom Friday night to confirm it without her knowing that's what I was doing).

Friday night we went to bed still unsure of whether we would make the trek or not. We woke up Saturday morning and Will was doing alright but not having a great morning. I questioned again whether we should go or not. Then Thomas and I just decided...let's go! We were tired of being cooped up in the house and Will's doctor had told us we were fine to go. Besides we figured it was only a three hour drive home if everything went awry.

We left Pendleton about 8 AM on Saturday morning and drove straight to the Portland Zoo. William slept the entire way! We got to the zoo around 11:30 AM and the zoo parking lot was full (it was a beautiful, sunny day in Portland). We had to park in the overflow zoo parking lot which is about a mile away from the zoo. There are two options when you park in the overflow...wait to catch the shuttle bus or walk. The line for the bus was long and we had already spent 3 and a half hours sitting in the car so we decided to walk. I had been expecting the whole time to see someone in my family in the parking lot but we never did.

As Thomas and I walked down the hill to the zoo, car after car passed us traveling from the zoo to the overflow parking. I turned and said to Thomas, "I bet someone is going to pass us on our way." And then as I looked ahead I said, "I bet that is Tanner and Mom right there." Sure enough it was. I honestly wish I had a video of that moment when my mom realized it was us. She was beyond excited. We teased her afterwards that she had her Pendleton Rodeo Court wave on that day.

I tried to text her not to tell my sisters because they were already at the zoo entrance waiting but I didn't get the message to her in time. She had already called Hannah and let them know. It was so fun to surprise everyone!

William had a better day than he'd had in a while. He slept for a large portion of the day but when he was up it wasn't constant crying or coughing. My mom spent almost the entire day packing him around. I don't know how she did it-- he is only a little over 11 pounds but man does he get heavy. It was so fun to get to spend time with all of my siblings. Getting all five of us together doesn't happen very often anymore.

 Sam and his usual shenanigans! 

Two Months

Just after midnight on Monday, March 4, William woke up with a terrible cough and was having a hard time breathing. Thomas and I took him to the ER where he was diagnosed with RSV and we were given a nebulizer for treating him. It was so scary to see him in distress and I am so thankful that almost immediately the nebulizer eased his breathing. Last week was a pretty rough week and as his mother I felt so helpless that there wasn't more I could do to help him or relieve the pain of the cough.

Saturday was his two month birthday and we had been planning a trip to the Portland Zoo with my family. We weren't sure we were going to make it because of Will's condition but after our doctors appointment on Thursday we got the clear from the doctor to go if we wanted and on Friday Will seemed to be feeling quite a bit better so we decided to go. William seemed to really enjoy the change of scenery (we'd spent 5 days straight at home...something I don't think he has done since birth) and the moist air of the valley seemed to be good for his little lungs. 

Here are a couple of pictures from his two-month birthday zoo trip: 

While we were in Portland, William also got to go for his first dip in the swimming pool at our hotel. The pool water was a little cold and he wasn't a big fan. The luke-warm hot tub water was much better though and he loved his first float with his dad. Can you tell which pictures are in the pool and which are in the hot tub? :) 

Road Trip!

William got to go on his first big road trip, visit the beach, and meet a lot of important people! We left Pendleton on Monday, February 11 around 9 AM. On our way to Lincoln City, we stopped in The Dalles where he met Great Grandma Bev and Uncle Bill (oh, and Sharyn Smith, his baby sitter, too!). We then headed to Portland where we had dinner with Great Grandma and Grandpa Cain. After dinner, we  drove to Lincoln City for his first stay at the beach. We arrived that night around 11 PM, so Will and I went to bed while Thomas took Ginger out for her promised beach run. 

On Tuesday morning, Uncle David met us at the beach and William got to breathe in his first breath of salty ocean air. He slept the entire time in his Ergo and kept me really warm on the windy beach. We drove down Highway 101 on Wednesday on our way to Drain. We stopped in Newport, Waldport, and Florence. We actually got a little sun in Florence and took William out to enjoy a few rays of sun on the beach. 

We arrived in Drain on February 13 in the evening and Will got to meet everyone that had been waiting so patiently to meet him in person-- Great-Great Grandma Dee, Great Grandma Hess, Aunt Candi, Uncle Tanner, Aunt Alley, and Uncle Andrew. While we were in town he also got to meet many other family members. Of course, Grandma Jocelyn, Aunt Hannah, and Aunt Jessica also got to have more snuggle time with the little mister! 

On our way back home on February 19, we stopped at WOU and got to show Will off in the science, humanities, and education departments. It was good to see everyone and share William with them. 

We had a great trip and William was the perfect traveler. We can't wait for many more road trips and many more trips to the beach! Ok, ok...I know...enough of the jabber. Here are the pictures.