Some recent pics of the dude

(Loves the danger spinner at the playground)

("Driving" the parked car every morning) 

(In a waiting room) 

(Chilly weeknight biking) 

(He never wants to take his helmet off) 

(Donut date) 

(Surveying the scene) 

(Always backwards down the slide) 

(Mornings)

I've never texted while dating

(an oldie. newly dating in Dominican)

I have a semi-rant about texting. I am a texting fan because it is sweet to keep in touch with my bff and my sister during the day about stupid things like what I am having for lunch or what they are wearing. I am not a fan because it's so hard to read people's emotions. Read on, if you want....

The dream dome

(comfy, cozy bed)

(reading chair)

(kitchen)

(cozy)

(loved the sheepskin)

(the tiny bathroom)

(Japanese hot tub)

My main Christmas gift from Jon last year was a three night stay at the dream domes, a few hours away from my parent's house. We finally went last week, and it was awesome. Jon and I chickened out and only stayed one night. It was so hard to be away from our little guy! We made the most of it though, and we were both totally relaxed when we drove back to my parent's house.

When you first arrive, the host gives you a long lesson on taking care of the fires. There is a fire to keep the hot tub heated, and a wood stove inside the dome. They give you a ton of wood, and you need it. Jon was pretty much constantly tending to at least one of the fires. The hot tub takes 4 hours to heat up! I think it kind of works out, though, because the fire management forces you to relax and do nothing but read, nap, whatever. Jon and I spent a lot of time drinking tea, reading, and chatting in the hot tub. I read magazines and this book, while Jon was totally into The Orenda.

I texted with my mom the whole time to see how Cohen was. She sent me lots of pics of him hanging out, riding the lawn tractor, organizing cheerios, etc. I was most worried about bedtime and nap times. He did awesome. Mom said that for one nap, he just went right into her closet, pointed at his crib, and so she picked him up and sat him in the crib. And he grabbed his teddy and just rolled over and went to sleep. He actually put himself down for a nap! I loved knowing that he was happy at my parent's house. When we got back, I ran in and went to hug Cohen. He smiled and hugged me, then he wanted down right away so he could keep playing on the floor in the kitchen. The whole trip basically could not have gone better. And it really was amazing to have some time alone with Jon.

A few vacation pics

(Loving the demo toys at Chapters in St. John's)

(En route)

(My dad ended up on the same flight as us) 

(Cohen prefers to have his own seat) 

(Just the two of us in a car on a boat) 

(Dinner out sans the little dude=really relaxing) 

(Ferry ride number a million on our road trip) 

(We had a GPS and iPhones, but we preferred to take a pic of a real map with my phone. We are old school like that) 

(Our munchkin and my sister's munchkin. 8 months apart) 

(Taking a bath. It was cute) 

(Jon asked the teenaged DQ worker if she would write "Go the f$#% to sleep." She said no.) 

(Almost home) 

(Cohen loves this part of our trip)

We are back/Cohen's 20th flight

We just got back from a week in New Brunswick. We visited with my family, a few childhood friends, and took our first overnight away from our little guy. We had such a great time, though it is always so great to be home. 

Cohen had his 20th flight, and was mostly really good. On flights we pretty much do anything it takes to keep him happy. Usually that includes pulling out his teddy, giving him snacks like crackers, cookies, and those pouches of fruit puree. We always have our iPad ready with a few of his favorite videos. On one of our last flights we accidentally sky checked our bag with most of our baby gear. We didn't think it would be a big deal, but, um, it was. Jon ended up walking Cohen up and down the aisles. A few strangers started handing Cohen anything they could find including old receipts and boarding passes. The man sitting behind us was working hard to make him laugh with funny faces and peek-a-boos. I love how whenever we have Cohen with us, strangers are so much more likely to smile, say hello, even help us out. People are always grabbing the door for us, picking up a dropped toy, etc. So basically having a kid makes travel 50% harder, but 20% friendlier. I'll take it.

Almost 14 months

Cohen will be 14 months old next Thursday, and since I probably won't be blogging on our little holiday, I figured I would write a little update now. And it seems like so much has changed in him since 13 months!

- The biggest development: he is walking, and loving it. He still looks like a drunken little man, and he falls sometimes, but he is getting pretty pro.

- He just got his 10th tooth, and number 11 is so close. The teething thing is pretty tough. His little cheeks get even redder than usual, and he gets pretty cranky. But. It's so cute when he smiles big and you see all those little teeth

- His new obsession: sitting in the drivers seat of the car while it's parked in the driveway. Jon or I sit with our coffee in the passenger seat while he pushes every button in sight.

- More and more, Cohen is able to occupy himself with his toys or the stuff in the bottom shelf of our cupboard. It means that sometimes I can actually prepare a meal or do the dishes while he sits near my feet, stacking cups or "organizing" the bottom drawer. I really love that. I think it's something I always kind of imagined when I thought about being a parent. I am just really loving this age/phase.

It's Friday!

I am so glad it's Friday, because we are heading to New Brunswick to hang out with my family for a few days. Jon and I are also spending our first night away from our little dude. We are staying at these cool "glamping" dream domes an hour from my parent's house. I am so excited, but so anxious to leave Cohen. The thing I think about over and over is how he will feel when he realizes neither mom, dad, or his babysitter will be putting him to bed. I have been collecting stories from other parents about the first time they left their babe. Lots of parents wait until their youngest is five or six. Other parents do it when the baby is only a few months old. There is no right time, of course.

I am so happy that Cohen will get lots of quality time with my parents, who love him so much. They have bought so many toys and have so many plans for their few days with him. And I'm probably not going to dislike sleeping in with my husband and have a coffee without someone constantly trying to steal sips of it/pour it all over the floor.

On the weekend

(making his nightly mess) 

(library) 

(we discovered a new park) 

(swinging) 

(hiking) 

(biking)

We spent another weekend hanging around town, which was so nice. We pretty much moved here because of the beautiful harbor, and I find that the more time we spend around said harbor, the better I feel about this place. 

Jon and I also made a small change in our evening routine that is working really good for us. Up until last week our evenings consisted of hanging out with the dude while he ate his supper around 5, then playing with him from 5:30-6:30, then bath time, and bedtime at around 7:30. Then Jon or I would make supper, and we would eat around 8:30. So this weekend wee decided to start eating when Cohen eats. So much better! It means one of us preparing supper right after work so we can eat around 5:30 with Cohen. It means eating way earlier than we ever have. But it also means we get to sit at the table with Cohen as a family and talk. Now, after supper, we usually go on a family bike ride or take Cohen to the playground for a few minutes. And now it feels like Jon and I have so much more free time after Cohen goes to sleep to play cards, hang out, do whatever. So much better.

Pictures of recently engaged people

When my best friend and her longtime boyfriend showed up here in Newfoundland for a little vacation a few weeks ago, she had a giant ring on her finger! I had a feeling it was coming soon, but still, it was so exciting! I was like, we need to take pictures of you guys all newly engaged and in love and on the rock with your new rock. And Jenny was like, of course, whatever you want Jess, you are the best at taking the slightly sloppy, semi-candid pictures that I love*. 

So we kind of planned to go to a wharf/beach somewhere and take cool Newfoundland pics. But then suddenly it was the day they were leaving, and we had just gone for a greasy breakfast, and I just pulled over and said we were doing these pictures, and I don't care that it's raining, and Mark is wearing his Sunday Funday t-shirt with a beer stein in place of the U.

And seriously, look how cute they turned out. I only got a few because it was raining and there was water actually on the lens of my camera, and Cohen was super annoyed that we weren't going to be going down the slide over and over like we usually do when we go to the park.

I love the pictures, mostly because you can see how up-for-anything these two are. I really get the impression that they have a good time together, whatever they are doing. Some stuff they love doing together: softball, dodgeball, bowling, darts, golf. I wish we lived closer.

*Jenny, feel free to get actual real professional engagement pictures. Also, Jenny, I didn't exactly ask your permission to put these pictures on my blog, so hopefully you're cool with it. Rest easy that only my family and our close friends read this blog.