Happy Holidays!

Dear Teo,

Last month, we celebrated your first Thanksgiving with Grammy, Auntie Sarah and Oceana, and we started a new family tradition: The Gratitude Wall.  We have a chalkboard wall in our kitchen, and every year between Thanksgiving and Christmas, we'll write things that we are grateful for on the wall.  Here is what we have up there this year.

A couple of weeks ago, I returned to work at the Relief Nursery.  The first day I went to work was the first time I've ever been away from you for more than an hour and a half.  I was really nervous because you had never taken a bottle (and cried loudly whenever one was offered to you).  But Grammy and Aunt Sarah worked their magic, and after my four hours of teaching, I came home to find you fussy but not frantic, and Grammy said you hadn't cried much at all (although you still didn't take the bottle). 

So, I took you back to the Nursery for the second half of my work day, where you made friends with my coworkers and seemed to enjoy the excitement of being somewhere new.  Here you are with my friend (and fellow teacher), Jessie H.  We have a joke at work that she is the "Bad Jessie" and I am the "Good Jessie," but I think you bring out her angelic side. 

The second day that I had to leave you to go to work, your papa took care of you, and you were peaceful and happy when I got home.  So, in spite of my concerns, I think this transition will go pretty smoothly . . . at least for you.  As for me, it will take some time to adjust to this new schedule and dividing my energy between work and home. 

The weekend before Christmas, we went up to Portland to see the Grotto - a family tradition.  This year we took the train up, which is a great way to travel with a baby.  You were totally content the whole trip, except that evening in the hotel room.  You seemed really nervous to be going to sleep somewhere other than your own familiar bed.   

Our friends, Kelly and Colin and their three children joined us at the Grotto.

Their youngest daughter, Maya, alternated between calling you "Matato" and "Potato."  

Your first Christmas - We kept things pretty simple this year, enjoyed time with friends and family and ate a lot of good food.  

Oceana trimming the tree.

 Oceana's gingerbread masterpiece (complete with a shop, a playhouse, a garden and a compost heap).

Your Papa cooked Christmas Eve dinner - breaded fish, which was his family's tradition.

Here are some other photos from your third month.  

Checking out your friend, Leto, at Birth to Three. 

Hiking at Mt. Pisgah and Willamette Park. 

  Hanging out with Auntie Sarah.

Chewing on my wrap . . . we think you are teething.

We love you, sweet boy!