April showers...

Shortly after our return from Alaska, Grandma Jo flew down from Oregon to visit the three of us. We had a great time! Highlights included fun walks, a drive down to Pt. Reyes (mmmm, the Bovine Bakery and tasty cheeses), a hike in the sun-dappled woods, and blue-ribbon cinnamon rolls. Caden had a great time being cozy with Grandma, touching plants along the trail, and getting lots of attention.

Since our last entry, Caden has enjoyed a couple of fun pizza Tuesdays with his friends Owen and James. He especially likes sharing things with James (who can't scoot away yet) and playing with Owen's cool toys. And we all enjoy the great company.

Caden is experimenting more and more with the possibility of mobility lately, and is spending lots of time on his tummy trying to get at things. He has learned that a series of directed rolls and wiggles will get him where he wants to be, which is usually the front door. He loves to push and pull the door open and closed. Given his enjoyment of all things outdoors, we're going to have to keep a close eye on that little guy as he becomes more mobile.

This past weekend, we ventured out in the spring showers to watch the boat-building contest at the annual Bodega Bay Fishermen's Festival. The drone of the engine and the patter of raindrops lulled Caden to sleep, and we waited until just before the race was set to begin to wake him up and head over to the waterfront. Unfortunately, they decided to run the race early (the boat builders had been laboring and waiting in the rain for over three hours), and we missed our chance to see the Sinking BMLvises entry, paddled by Owen's dad, dressed up in a sequined jumpsuit and pompadour wig.

On Sunday, we enjoyed another rainy-day outing to the Luther Burbank gardens in Santa Rosa, where we admired the horticultural genius's many experimental varieties, including Shasta daisies, elephant garlic, white blackberries, and spineless cacti--we'd include a picture of Caden patting the spineless cactus, but the rain made photography difficult. The rose garden was especially nice, especially when the sun broke through the clouds to sparkle on the raindrops on the flowers.

This week, Caden has expanded his dietary repertoire to include strawberries (yum!), blueberries (not so sure about the skins...), salmon, and cow's milk. He also experimented with feeding himself using a spoon, though he still usually prefers to have Mommy or Daddy spoon the food in.

Learning table manners

Happy Spring!

North for Easter

We just returned from a mini-vacation to snowy southeastern Alaska, where we spent Easter with Nana and Grandpa in Petersburg. It was a fun and relaxing trip, and Caden was a great little traveler, despite three jet flights each way. A few people made negative comments or groaned when we sat down near them on the plane, and Caden made sure to prove them wrong, to the extent that several of those same people smiled and complimented him on their way off the plane. What a good boy!

Of course, last Wednesday (over a week ago, now!) was Caden's first birthday, which was a reminder of how far we have all come this past year. On Caden's birthday eve, we made a breakfast dinner to commemorate the similar dinner we had on the 3rd of April, 2006, a few hours before we left for the hospital. On his birthday, we celebrated with more cake--Daddy made cupcakes using the same tasty banana recipe as the dragonfly cake--and tried to convince Caden to blow out a candle. We also opened more presents from friends and family. Daddy and Caden started to put together his new walker wagon from Grandma Jo and Grandad Bruce, but Caden kept trying to eat the tools, so Daddy finished the job after the little bug went to sleep.

On Friday, we got up super early to head to the airport in Sacramento, then flew to Petersburg, via Seattle and Juneau. Winter is slowly giving way to spring up there, especially since this past winter was the snowiest on record (almost 20 feet of cumulative snow in Petersburg!) in southeastern Alaska. Caden wasn't too surprised at the snow, since our trip to Missouri and Colorado in January featured plenty of it, but it was quite different from the 70-plus-degree temperatures we've been enjoying in northern California. The flight into Petersburg was really bumpy because of high winds, and the pilot received a round of applause when we touched down safely in Petersburg. Mommy and Daddy didn't like the rough ride, but Caden clapped after each round of turbulence. Nana and Grandpa met us at the airport with balloons for Caden, and the balloons became one of his favorite playthings for the rest of the weekend.

Right after our arrival, we celebrated Caden's birthday again, with pizza and cake. A few family friends joined us for the party. It was particularly fun to watch Caden open presents (he's becoming quite adept from all of his recent practice) and interact with Liam, a friend of our family who is a few years older than him. On Saturday afternoon, the weather cleared, and we went for a nice walk along the waterfront toward town.

Sunday was, of course, Easter, and Caden had a great time playing with his Easter basket and the goodies in it. He's had plenty of practice opening gifts and getting into things lately, so Easter was lots of fun. We went to church on Easter morning (and Caden was remarkably well-behaved), then to the pot-luck brunch after the service. A highlight of the brunch for the kids was the annual Easter egg hunt, and Caden really liked picking up the brightly colored eggs nestled in the snow outside. We spent the afternoon playing with toys from our Easter baskets (Caden especially liked the Easter iguana, complete with taped-on paper bunny ears, from the Easter Bunny's recent trip to the Galapagos) and preparing for Easter dinner. Our friends "Uncle" Brian and "Aunt" Tina joined us for dinner and bunny cake, a Bracken family tradition. Caden played "pat the bunny" and got frosting all over his hands. Yum!

On a walk in Petersburg

Bunny cake (carrot, of course!)

On Tuesday, we headed to Juneau for a quick visit with Daddy's family there. Grandpa Barry flew up with us, and it was really special to have four generations of Brackens--Caden, Daddy, Grandpa, and Great Grandpa--together for the first time. We arrived in time for a late lunch with Great Grammy and Grandpa, then drove over to the Mendenhall Glacier for a quick walk on the snowy trails. We then returned to Great Grammy and Grandpa's house for a tasty salmon dinner with our Juneau family: Great Grammy, Great Grandpa, Great Aunt Barb and cousins Kate and Amanda. On Wednesday, after we spent a few more minutes visiting with Great Grammy and Grandpa, we got on the plane and returned home.

Cozy with Great Grammy

Notice any similarities?

At Mendenhall Glacier

One last thing...

"Now you try a cracker!"

Caden's first birthday party!

Highlights of this past week have included lots of walks in the sunshine, more of Caden's time spent on his tummy and trying to be mobile, a new double stroller for walks with Bodhi (Caden's nanny-share friend), the start of our "Music Together" class, and, of course, Caden's first birthday party this afternoon. Yep, our little bug turns one this week, and we invited his friends (and their parents) over for a celebration in our sunny backyard.

Caden had a great time today! He took a 1.5-hour nap, which gave Mommy and Daddy plenty of time to set things up in the backyard, prepare snacks, and decorate the cake. Several of Caden's friends came over to play, including (in order of increasing age) Cormac, Sierra, and Owen. Caden enjoyed his birthday cake (banana with whipped-cream frosting) and especially liked playing with his friends and opening presents.

After everyone went home, Caden played with his fun new toys for a while, then the three of us went for a walk to the park near our house. We were excited to see a brand-new clutch of tiny ducklings at the pond, the first we've seen this year.

Gallery

A new shape sorter

Fun with Owen in the backyard















With Bodhi in the double stroller

Jumpin' up

While Daddy was away...

Daddy left last Wednesday morning to fly to Atlanta for a meeting. While he was gone, Caden and Mommy had a lot of fun playing and spending time with friends. Caden even learned some new skills, such as how to use a cash register. Thank goodness for Amy, Brian, and Owen! Mommy and Caden saw them every day while Daddy was away, and they were great company.

Of course, Caden and Mommy had a great time together, as illustrated in this set of photos, taken at bathtime:

Peek

A

Boo!

Sun, sippy cups, and surprises

This past week, the beautiful weather has continued, and we've been spending lots of time outside. We recently discovered that a portion of the West County trail can be accessed from a road just down the hill and across the highway from us, so we've been enjoying walking along it. Everyone has finally recovered from our colds, so we're all having a lot more fun.

Earlier this week, Caden got a surprise package from his 2nd cousin Juliana. She knitted a long, rainbow-colored rope, and Mommy made it into a set of ties for Caden's sun hat. With the bright weather, it's been especially important to keep that little head covered. The thing is, one of Caden's favorite games is to pull his hat off and throw it on the ground, making it difficult to keep him out of the sun. The ties (see the picture above) are both stylish and functional. Thanks, Juliana!

Caden's new favorite mealtime activity is drinking water from his sippy cup. In fact, he may love his sippy cup more than he loves Cheerios, if you can believe it. We have to hide the cup behind things, or he will refuse to eat his food (even his Cheerios), reaching instead for the cup. He usually manages to get about 2/3 of the water down his throat, so the bib is crucial to catch the remaining 1/3.

This afternoon, we got to meet the newest BML baby boy! Tessa and Brian's little boy, Cormac Vincent, was born last Monday. We all had fun oohing and aahing about how cute, cuddly, and tiny little Mac is.

Little Cormac

Hooray for sunny weather!

This week, we've all been a bit under the weather--stomach bugs and colds--but we're starting to feel better. Yesterday, we took advantage of the sunny weather to wander downtown, run some errands, and have a snack with Tessa. We also visited briefly with Randall, David, and little James--it's so nice to be able to walk over to their place now--and had dinner with Amy, Brian, and Owen at East West Cafe. Today, the weather was even warmer (in the low 80s), so we put on our shorts and headed over to Howarth Park in Santa Rosa to enjoy the sunshine. The park, which was crawling with people on a sunny Sunday afternoon, features a miniature train ride, carousel, pony rides, really neat playground equipment, a lake with paddleboats, and tasty ice cream snacks. It was the perfect place to take an almost-one-year-old on a sunny day.


Checking out the ponies at Howarth Park
With Owen at East West Cafe

Crib cutie