Summer is gone, yet I'm hoping for a long Indian Summer as September has arrived. Although Fall has never been my favorite season, there is so much to love about Fall in southeast Michigan, that it has become more enjoyable.
Our September started off with a long trip to the UP for Hugo and I. We took a week to spend with my family, celebrate Gatlin's "golden" birthday, and be together to remember AJ.
September 2, 2011
Gatlin is certainly a chameleon...now, he's big into poker and casinos. Here, he and I had a wild night playing poker and drinking "beer". I love how he had to wear his shades so I wouldn't be able to read his eyes. God, I love that kid.
September 3, 2011
I don't know what I was thinking weather-wise for September in the UP --- I barely brought any warm clothes for Hugo and I (must have been wishful thinking for warm weather). No worries, with two big cousins, there was plenty of hand-me-downs to choose from. Here, he's wearing one of Cash's
18 MONTH onesies. Yes, my 9-month old is in 18-month clothes. He doesn't seem that big...
One of the things Gatlin has been "in to" is the Titanic and all things shipwreck. So, for his birthday, we went on the Glass Bottom Shipwreck Tour that is offered out of Munising.
A little piece of paradise featured in Kid Rock's "Born Free" video, right in Munising Bay!
The tour was very cool - both for the boat ride itself and for viewing the shipwrecks. In total, we went over 3 shipwrecks. At each one, they would open up the bottom of the boat for viewing and ride back and forth over all sections of it so you could get a good view. Highlights included the captain's bathtub and toilet of one shipwreck - still sitting at the bottom of Lake Superior. My baby boy all bundled up....
September 5, 2011
One of the best things about going home is that I get to spend a LOT of time with my two other favorite little boys, Gatlin and Cash. On Saturday, we decided to head to Lakenenland, which is on M-28 between Marquette and Munising and check it out. It turned out to be VERY cool. It's a metal sculpture park (that is much bigger than it looks from the road) and has a ton of metal sculptures that are interactive - to climb, hang, play on. There really was something for everyone. It was so much fun to be there with the boys, just when we thought we had found the Holy Grail of sculptures for them (first, a skeleton), we'd find something better (a spider) and better (the Marines) and better (a slot machine) around every turn. We had a really, really good time.
The first sculpture was this giant balance beam scale that was actually functional. The baskets for the scale were so large, you could hop right on. Tonya = Cash + Gatlin!
I love this picture here ---- you always hear the phrase about how you can see "wonder" in children's eyes. I think I actually captured it on camera here with Gatlin. Even though you can't really see his face, you know he's smiling. And that makes me happy.
The second sculpture we came upon was this awesome skeleton that doubled as a chair.
A wolf that was made for climbing...
An "outta this world" spaceship....you can't tell it here, but it was propped up about 6 feet in the air, but the boys had to climb it, of course!
Even something for me! Sunflowers in the UP forest.
A dinosaur...
A peace sign for grandma....
A spider for the two biggest Spiderman fans I've ever met...
Then we came upon a slot machine and OH - MY - GOD - was Gatlin EXCITED! Just look at that huge smile on his face. What are the chances that there is a metal slot machine sculpture in the middle of the woods. Then, what are the chances that it actually is functional and, in some lucky cases, spits out money! It must have been our lucky day because it made Gatlin very happy. Which made us all very happy.
A pirate ship for Cash...
A Marine Corps sculpture to make us smile and think of AJ...
And a bad-ass Harley guy to make us smile even more and think about AJ even more. Man, I wish he were here to be with us (always) but especially today. It was such a great day, we all had such a good time and Gatlin and Cash couldn't contain their excitement...they were literally running from one thing to another. It was a great day, and I really wish AJ was there to enjoy it with us.
A giant pink elephant - which is cool enough, but the really awesome part is that its butt (yes, its butt) opened up and inside the belly of the elephant was a little table with benches. The doors were saloon-style (they swung back and forth) which made Gatlin think this was some secret poker-playing-saloon. So we nicknamed it the EB Saloon (i.e., the Elephant Butt Saloon).
A description of Lakenenland from the Creator himself....
Although Hugo wasn't old enough to actually climb on any of the sculptures, he still had a blast - watching the boys and enjoying being outside in the beautiful weather. He was perfect, just chilled in his stroller the entire time.
September 6th, 2011
One of the main events for our week home was to help Gatlin celebrate his "Golden" birthday --- he was turning 7 on the 7th. The festivities got started a night early with his "friend" birthday party at Pasqualis. It was a BMX themed party, including a BMX track cake!
The super-cool birthday boy. How has 7 years gone by? I remember meeting him just a few days after he was born and here he is, a super cool kid. Gatlin, you are one of my favorite people in the entire world and I'm so glad that you are in my life. Thank you for being so awesome, funny, loving, sweet and kind. I love you so much and Happy Birthday!
Hugo hanging out with Grandma and Grandpa at the party.
I love this picture - both he and Grandma are crazy!
September 7th, 2011
Today was Gatlin's actual birthday. Because it was a Wednesday, it was the boys' night to spend at Grandma and Grandpa's, so after school, they came over. It was a beautiful night and so we spent hours playing in the back yard. As usual, Hugo just chilled.
After lots of play time, we went to Bonanza for Gatlin's birthday dinner. How cute are these two? I don't think they planned it, but they have the same sort of expression on their face. Gatlin is right, they really
do look alike after all!
September 8-9th, 2011
One of the things that I was really excited about for this trip was taking a side-trip to go visit Oni, Dan and baby Ellie who are now living near Appleton. Although Wisconsin is just the next state over, to get there from our house in Ypsilanti takes forever because you have to go around Lake Michigan and through Chicago. But from my mom and dad's house, its just about a three hour drive. Since it has been over a year since I last saw Oni, and we'd never met each other's kids, a mini reUNIon was definitely in order.
Oni's baby daughter, Ellison, was born just about a month before Hugo. Although he was bigger, she definitely had acquired a few skills that Hugo hadn't yet mastered yet, like crawling. Nevertheless, I think they were both glad to be around someone their own size, and so they played together really good.
We had a great time at Oni's. We talked and the kids played and it was just so nice to be with her. Our second day there we had some normalcy, a lazy lunch at IHOP and a trip through Hobby Lobby. I wish she lived closer so that we could have that be part of our normal lives again, getting to hang out, shop, chill together. And it was so awesome to see our kids play together --- how is it that we now have our own kids? I feel like it was just yesterday we were squeezing into our black bar pants for a night at Sharkies! Anyways, it was a great trip! Thank you for hosting us Oni - your house is beautiful, Ellison is a doll and I miss you so much. I'm already looking forward to our next reUNIon.
September 10th, 2011
Another beautiful day. Hugo LOVED the toy car at my mom's house. Once she put him in, he reached for the steering wheel and knew exactly what to do. I texted Jaime a picture of how much fun Hugo was having in the car and he wanted to go out immediately and get him one! I said he had to wait until Christmas!
Cuddle time with a sleepy little boy. It doesn't get any better than this.
September 17th, 2011
I had the opportunity to attend the large osteoarthritis conference - OARSI - which was in San Diego this year. However, after being away from Hugo for the Montreal conference and missing him so bad, I decided that I was not going alone again. The solution? Jaime and Hugo were going to join me and we'd double it as a family vacation! I flew into San Diego a day earlier for when the conference started and then the next day, Jaime and Hugo met me there. I still had one more day of conference to go, so Jaime and Hugo did a little sightseeing on their own.
We were staying in the Gaslamp Quarter in the heart of San Diego. It was a perfect location --- near enough to the conference to walk but far enough away that it was affordable. Plus, there were lots of restaurants and shops nearby.
Jaime and Hugo walked down the boardwalk and made their way to the ship yard where they saw some of the aircraft carriers.
After the conference ended, I couldn't wait to see my guys and hear all about their day. We decided to go out for Mexican for dinner and found a great place not too far from our hotel. Hugo was obviously VERY excited about it!
September 18th, 2011
We decided to spend our first day at the San Diego Zoo. However, after breakfast, Hugo needed a power nap which was good given that we had a long day ahead of us. I love the way he sleeps with his little butt up in the air!
We finally made it to the Zoo! Our first stop was to ride the Zoo Trolley which takes you all around the Zoo with an audio tour. Since this Zoo is
massive, we figured it would be a good way to get our bearings and see an overview of everything.
Then we were on our own! First stop, monkeys!
One of the really amazing things about the San Diego Zoo is that it isn't just a Zoo but also a botanical garden. So many of the paths were lined with beautiful bamboo.
One of the best stops of the day was checking out the hippos. There were two hippos in the tank, a mommy and her baby and when we got there, they were both pressed right up against the glass for a good look. Hugo loved them. To me, it looks like the baby hippo is smiling, so they must have loved him, too.
The hippos were so awesome. We sat there and watched them for a good 5-10 minutes and Hugo never once took his eyes off of them, nor did they move or shy away. To commemorate our time with the hippos, we found this great kids book at one of the gift shops. It's called "Hippo says yawn" and has a hand puppet hippo to help tell the story. I know that every time I read it to Hugo I'll remember what a great day we had.
One of the things the San Diego Zoo is famous for is their panda population. Unfortunately, when we stopped through (and we tried twice), all of the pandas were zonked out sleeping.
Rhinos!
Somewhere near the giraffes, Hugo started getting sleepy. He fell asleep on Daddy's shoulder and then took a good nap in the stroller.
But he woke up just in time for the elephant exhibit.
Although the polar bears were sleeping as well, at least we got to see them --- when we were at the Detroit Zoo earlier this summer, they didn't even make an appearance.
I had to take a picture of the reindeer in honor of my Christmas baby.
Hugo riding the brass hippo. I was so nervous he was going to fall off! But he maintained his balance long enough for one quick photo!
The other exhibit that we were able to get up close to was the gorillas. I'm always amazed watching monkeys and realizing how much they are like humans. Here, my 9-month old human baby was sitting just across the glass from a baby gorilla and they were having a stare down. So many mannerisms the same. I'm not saying my baby is a gorilla, just that we as a species aren't so far off from them...
The Zoo ended up being a GREAT day. We got a lot of exercise, sunshine, good food, and interactions with lots of amazing animals. I could tell that Hugo had a blast --- he noticed the animals so much more than last time we went to the Zoo and he got so excited when he could get up close to them. After the Zoo, we walked back to our hotel, changed and went to the Hard Rock Cafe to eat. Fell asleep watching Mall Cop!
September 19th, 2011
Our last full day in San Diego. We walked down along the boardwalk and ended up at Seaport Village - a collection of restaurants and shops right on San Diego Bay. We had lunch, perused some of the specialty shops, and had ice cream. There was a historic carousel right in Seaport Village, so of course I had to take Hugo. We got on, found a beautiful horse and enjoyed the ride. I think Hugo enjoyed it, he held on tight and smiled the whole time. The carousel went way faster than I thought, and so while Hugo was fine, I got a little queasy!
Have I mentioned lately what an amazing dad Jaime is? Jaime, if you ever read this --- you are a wonderful father to Hugo. You never see your role as "helping" but instead doing just as much as anyone. You feed him, change his diaper, bathe him....but more importantly, you make him laugh and are so proud to call him yours. I'm so lucky to have you as my partner on this crazy ride and Hugo is among the luckiest to have you as his dad. Thank you for having the guts and willingness to take Hugo on this trip. I'm so glad we had this time as a family.
I
LOVE this next series of pictures. I'm not sure what it is about them...maybe its the nice backdrop of the blue umbrellas and globe lights or maybe its that Hugo just seems so happy, but when I think about our wonderful memories together, these snapshots will always come to mind.
After being all shopped-out, we decided that we needed to do one more San Diego "touristy" thing before heading back to the hotel. I spotted a booth for one of the amphibious tours and so we decided to give it a try. Once on board, Hugo enjoyed the view from the very get-go.
The main "schtick" of this tour was that it is a "Seal Tour" --- both meaning that it, like a seal, operates on land and water, but also that it actually takes you out to see the large population of seals living in San Diego Bay. The water within the Bay is a protected habitat and so there is a huge population of them living there. Hugo loved watching the seals ---- first of all, they were huge so they were easy to spot. Second of all, they were loud with all of their barking, so they definitely got Hugo's attention. He stood up right to the railing of the boat to get a close look.
Did I mention lately what an amazing dad Jaime is? Oh yes, I did...just above here in fact. Please refer above but I think these pictures capture it all.
Hugo - a true San Diego Seal Captain! I'm so glad we did the tour --- it was interesting and enjoyable and I could tell that Hugo genuinely liked it. Plus, how cute is this dorky hat?
September 20th, 2011
Heading home. Lucky for us, we had a direct flight from San Diego to Detroit, which is great so we don't have to kill time or try to maneuver all of our stuff through the airport. However, this also means that we have 4 1/2 hours of uninterrupted time to keep Hugo happy and busy in our seats. No problem, he was entertained with a box of Wheat Thins and the flight safety insert. Who needs toys?
Oh yeah, and cuddle time with daddy and mommy helps too...
September 23rd, 2011
Back home and back to normal ---- story time with mom before bed!
September 25th, 2011
As I mentioned above, despite the fact that fall has never been my favorite time of year, it is a great time to live in Southeast Michigan because there are so many fun fall activities, one of which is apple picking. Today was our annual apple picking trip with the gang to Wasem's Orchards in Milan. I don't know why Jaime insists on climbing a tree each year to get the "best" apples...
Toni and Liam.
Hugo picking his perfect apple.
Although Hugo only has two teeth (and so can't really take a big bite out of an apple), he was making such a fuss watching everyone else eat the apples, I gave him some of mine to try. He bit in as if he had all the teeth for the job and LOVED it. He put his two teeth to work, shaving off bit by bit of apple. It was so cute. Every time I tried to take it away, he would whimper and whine until I gave it back to him. It kept him happy the entire time we were there. Check out this pure bliss on his face.
Happy baby with a belly full of apple!
The day finished with us getting some (AMAZING) donuts from Wasem's and then we headed to Leo's Coney Island to meet everyone for lunch. Cuddle time with two of my babies when we got home.
Despite all of the excitement of the day, we didn't forget the most important part of all ---- Hugo's 9 MONTH BIRTHDAY! It's crazy to me to believe that he's 9 months ---- not only for the fact that he's growing up and how fast time has flown by, but to now realize that he has spent more time outside of me than inside of me. Somehow that seems to meet the definition of not a baby anymore to me....Anyways, he was very happy to pose for his 9-month photo shoot. Happy 9-month birthday Lovie. You have brought us so much joy and we are enjoying each month more and more --- not that we didn't love you the month before, but it's a cumulative effort ---- it just keeps getting better and better.
One of the things I love the most about babies Hugo's age are their chubby thighs. Tonight, wearing just a onesie was a good opportunity to document Hugo's.
September 28th, 2011
Quiet night at home - Hugo got in some good play time. I'm so glad Tonya was willing to pass along some of the boy's toys to Hugo --- they definitely keep him busy!
Hugo's official 9-month photo shoot at Sears is coming up soon (see pics in next post) and I wanted to use this adorable new hat in the photos. The hat is a gift from Kelly to Hugo for Christmas --- although, it was so cute and "fall-like" that she couldn't wait until Christmas to gift it, so we got it early and I'm so glad we did! Not only is it super cute, but its also nice and warm and will keep him nice and cozy all winter. Thank you Kelly! We had to let Hugo try the hat on for a bit to get used to it in preparation for his upcoming photo shoot.
Hugo's 9-month photo shoot
As usual, every 3 months we go to the Sears Portrait Studio to get updated pictures of Hugo. I was really looking forward to this one because he's become so animated lately, has so many facial expressions (including lots of smiles) and can stand up on his own. The pictures definitely did not disappoint. Here are two of our favorites!
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