Baby, it's cold outside!

As part of the fun holiday festivities with Grandpa and Great-Grami, we also went to the Grotto to check out their Festival of Lights. Since it was an all-outdoor festival, we really lucked out with the weather. Super cold, but no rain. We'll take that any day in Portland!


Bundled up for the cold night!

Full moon watching over the Grotto (perfect viewing night for the lunar eclispe - too bad we didn't get to see it though - and it sounds like the next one won't be for another 400 years!). This is such a beautiful and peaceful place. One of my favorite things to do around Christmas time is listen to holiday music. When it is sung by angelic-sounding choirs, it is even better! We got to listen to two choirs sing in the chapel - what amazing voices they had!



There was even a petting zoo. Tristan loved reaching out to all the animals. He didn't seem too intimidated by the big animals - probably because he has his own petting zoo at home with B&B!

After looking at the lights and listening to the choirs, we went up north to Vancouver to watch the holiday ships on the Columbia. Talk about trying to pack in as much as possible into a Christmas time period! As the post title says, it was cold outside - so much so that I didn't dare dig around for the camera. We saw a few ships then went inside the nearest restaurant for some warmth and food and called it a success. Next year, I think we'll be a little smarter and make a reservation in one of these restaurants so we can view the sailing ships while also enjoying the inside climate.

Four Generations - Part Deux

We got to start our Christmas celebrations early this year with the arrival of Grandpa Danner and Great-Grandma Jones (also known as Grami). They came into town over the weekend to spend part of the holidays with their two favorite grandsons.

Both Tristan and Lincoln have never met Grami, so this was an extra special occasion. We began the holiday festivities by having brunch and opening a few presents. This was also the first time Little Man got to open gifts. And how exciting it was! I'm not sure if it was the present he was excited for, or the chance to eat the wrapping paper and gift boxes. Either way, he enjoyed his first experience!


Four generations of Danners



Love these little boys in their matching sweater vests! I promise we don't plan their outfits - it just happens that they match so often!



Of course Little Man's first present was a Ducks' jersey - hmmmm...foreshadowing his future alma mater?

All I want for Christmas is my two front teeth...

Well, I guess Little Man was good this year because not only is he getting his two bottom teeth but he's getting his two top teeth as well! This song definitely applies to him this year - x2!!


Little blurry, but you get the idea :)

Happy 7 month, Big Baby T!!

So, if I thought there was a lot of change between 5-6 months, it doesn't compare to the amount of growth between 6-7 months! Here is why:
* He can now pull himself up and "walk" along the furniture
* He now has four teeth coming through!
* He is still army crawling, but does it just as fast as if he were crawling the "regular" way
* He loves to "talk" which basically either sounds like he is ET or from Jurassic Park.
* He can give "high-fives". I don't think he quite understands what they are for, but it's fun to see him so excited after he gives one!
* He loves to hang out in his high chair. It's not just used as a place to eat, it has now become where he plays while Mom or Dad make dinner and clean the kitchen.

As you can see, our lives just got a lot busier!! It's crazy how he went from a dependent baby, to a more independent little one. It's also fun to see his personality develop more and more. And to see how curious and inquisitive he is :)

Also, here are some stats from his 6 month appointment (which was really closer to 7 months):
Weight - 19.5 lbs - 70.85%
Length - 26.75 in - 44.36%
Weight/Length - 89.8%
Head - 17.75 in - 75%
His weight and length have gone down in percentage from the last appt. I was surprised by how little weight he had put on. It's probably due to his active lifestyle now!


Not too sure what to think of sweet potatoes


Showing off his standing skills

Look ma, one hand!

'Tis the Season

We had another weekend full of holiday activities! Not sure if it's just me, or if everyone seems to be more into the holiday spirit this year. We have so many holiday plans that it really keeps things exciting around here!

We started these festivities by going to our holiday work parties. Both Brian and I had them on the same night, so Little Man came with me first. Tristan was so excited to meet his future little lady friend, Ellie Baumbach! We look forward to many more playdates with her!


I told you the red sweater was going to make a repeat appearance! I'm trying to get as many wears as possible because come January, it will (sadly) never be worn again!

Tristan and my principal Rose really hit it off at the party!

We continued the holiday activities by going on the Polar Express train ride in Hood River. My Mom & Doug came down for the weekend and brought Lincoln to join in on the fun. It didn't turn out exactly how we had wanted since we were all split up into two different cars. Mom, Doug and Lincoln were in one car without a camera to capture Lincoln's first encounter with Santa while Brian, Tristan and I were in another with the camera even though Little Man was just a little too young to fully enjoy what he was seeing. Oh well. I think next time we will find something a bit closer to Portland and make sure we can all experience it together!

Looking out at the snowy scenery

No red sweater this time. Dad picked out this outfit - not too bad!

Not too sure what to think about this hairy man we call Santa :)

Jingle Bells

And then Saturday night, Mom & Doug kindly offered to babysit so that Brian and I could go out for our fourth solo night together. We first stopped by to say farewell to our good friends who are about to tour the world for the next year and a half. How do you send off friends who are about to embark on this kind of adventure? By posing for group pictures, including trying to make an adult pyramid, of course! Pictures to follow, I promise!

We then went to Hillary & Drew's annual cocktail party. Since Arctic Blast '09 kept us from going last year, we were determined to make it this year. And of course, it was a great time had by all. Can't believe we were able to rally and make it to two parties - haven't done that since our pre-preggo days!!

Mom & Dad night out! Technically, I guess this would have been our third party. We tried to make it to Kevin's CD release party, but missed his band by over an hour. Oops...

Apparently Sam heard "cheesy" instead of "cheese".


Here is what Tristan was up to while Mom & Dad were out :)

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

This past weekend was the first of many holiday-packed events. For some reason, I've been in the holiday spirit since the day after Halloween. Maybe it has something to do with having Little Man in our lives, or maybe it's because all the Christmas decor has been in the stores since early September. If that's the case, their marketing campaign definitely worked on me this year!

We started the weekend by going to our friend's yearly Christmas sweater party. The most outlandish the outfit, the better. I was pretty impressed with the outfits Brian and I pulled together, until I saw some of the crazy get-ups people had on. I so wish I would have taken out my camera more that night. It was like a Halloween-themed Christmas sweater party. There were some great ideas!



The next day, all of us girls got together for our yearly Ornament Exchange. We started this our senior year of college when we all began getting our very first, adult Christmas trees. We realized we didn't have a lot of ornaments to fill these trees, thus coming up with an ornament exchange. This was our 11th year - wow!! And it was definitely a different kind of year with our four little babes joining the festivities. It's always so cute to get them together!!

Aubrey, Logan & Tristan showing off their standing skills

We tried to get all four of them together, but now that most are crawling, it's a bit harder to get them all in the same place at once!
And yes, Tristan's wearing the red sweater again. It's our staple holiday sweater this season. And no, this will not be the last time you see it :)

1st tooth!

Little Man has his first tooth!! It started to poke through at the same time he turned 6 months. I've tried desperately to get a pic of it, but each time I try, the tongue gets in the way! Hopefully I can trick the tongue into staying off the tooth long enough to snap a good photo!