The Best Sound in the World...

Is that of a laughing baby...enjoy!

What a Day!

Am I really looking FORWARD to Sunday? Yes, yes I am because THIS was my day:

2am: Get woken up by Jason because we both fell asleep on the couch watching TV...argh.

4:45am: Get woken up by Logan, unusually early. I bring him to bed to feed him, he's coughing as he eats (He has a bit of a cold right now), that annoys Jason and Jas asks if I can just feed him a bottle...which I figure is code for: "Do you really need to feed him in the bedroom?" So I take our show out to the living room.

For the next hour or so, Logan and I drift in and out of sleep out in the living room...definitely not the kind of deep sleep required to get you through the day, but hey, sleep is sleep some days.

9:00am: Logan takes a nap I get a quick workout in (woo!)

9:30am: And he's up again! I decide it's time for Jason to join us for the weekend so we go wake him up, feed Logan and start our routine all over again.

We had grand plans of walking to the Playa Vista Farmer's market to get Logan some organic apples and pears for his next round of homemade baby food, and we were going to pick up Jason's drycleaning and drop off a dress that I wanted cleaned, maybe "splurge" on some coffee and tea at Coffee Bean...but that didn't happen. Instead, Logan was EXTREMELY fussy- more fussy than I've seen him in recent months...nothing would satisfy him...he just seemed uncomfortable. I dare not say it was teething, because we've been saying THAT for quite some time and we still don't have any chompers. Jason suggested he may be tired still...and by the look of his heavy eyes I had to agree. I put him in his crib, but he would only sleep for about 5 minutes before crying out again...very UNLIKE our little sleeper...I decided to jump on a 5 minute window and take a shower, assuming Jas could take over if drama struck the nursery....it did, and Jas did his job quite well. He brought the little man out to the living room and put him in his swing for a "Quick" nap...it was about 11:45 at this time...the Farmer's Market closes at 2...plenty of time, right? Wrong.

Logan slept until 2:45! I know- amazing right? And it is, don't get me wrong, I'm glad he got some good sleep in...but it kind of screwed our schedule for the entire day. Both Jas and I were STARVING by 1pm, but there was no way we were going to wake the monster so we could go out somewhere to get food. I didn't want to leave Jas with Logan for fear he wakes up as soon as I walk out the door and would be hungry (We've evolved a LOT over the last "few" years, but breastfeeding is still one thing men CANNOT do)...I'm not sure why Jas didn't head out to get some food, but that turned out to be a good thing as you'll see later...we sat and waited. Jas made phone calls, I blogged. Why didn't I sleep, you ask? I don't know. Something crazy goes on in your head when you have a baby and you KNOW you're supposed to sleep when they sleep, but I feel like EVERY time I try that, unless I lay my head down at the EXACT moment Logan's eyes shut, it doesn't work. Just as I'm drifting off to a deep sleep, he wakes up...I was SO tired today I didn't think I could handle being woken up before I was ready...so I just stayed awake.

So at 2:45, Logan wakes up and the Farmer's Market is VERY much closed. Logan is in a better mood, but now our day is kind of shot and we're not sure what to do. Jas decides he still has errands to run, so he heads out to get his car washed, get his hair cut and a few other things while I stay home and give Logan a bath, feed him some solids and play. That was the plan at least.

As the tub is filling, and I'm about to put Logan in it, my phone rings...it's Jason...who had just left the apartment. He's in our garage, and his car is dead...he needs a jump. So I gather Logan up (Turned the bath water off, of course) and head down to the garage....I jump Jason's car and away he goes. Away Logan and I go to resume bath time, solid eating time and play time. That was the plan at least.

About 20 minutes later, after the bath but about 10 minutes in to Logan's next nap...my phone rings again. Jason's car is dead. Again. This time, at the Car Wash. Awesome. No one at the car wash has a car that can jump his and he needs me to come to the car wash to jump him again. Sigh. I look at my sleeping baby and think, "Really?" Ok!

I wake Logan up (did you hear that? That was the sound of all Mother's cringing), get him in the car seat and away we go, back to the garage, in to the car and over to Millennium Car Wash (The entire time Logan is giving me the WORST look....).

I jump Jason's car and it starts again- phew!

Logan and I head BACK home to resume play time (The 10 minute nap he took was all I was going to get apparently).

Jason comes back about an hour later (He took advantage of being out and finished running his errands, all the while leaving the Tahoe running (and locked) at each stop so it wouldn't die again) and tells me not only is the Tahoe completely dead, but he parked it in our tandem parking spot and my car is blocked in. He needs another jump.

So, we gather Logan up again, and head BACK down to the garage. I attempt to jump Jason's car, but the 3rd time is NOT the charm...the battery is, as Charles Dickens would say, "As dead as a door nail". Awesome. So I hop in the driver's seat of the Tahoe, throw it in neutral as Jason pushes it backwards so he can get my car out (At least Jas got a good workout pushing his car back and forth!). We do the old switcheroo and off he goes to buy a new battery from somewhere (and to pick up dinner because I am STARVING again).

Logan and I head BACK upstairs, and thankfully, Logan is rubbing his eyes by this point and is READY for bed. We read a quick story, sing a couple of songs and off he goes to sleep land.

So now I'm home, stranded without a car or a husband waiting for him to come back with dinner (Chipotle...it's been one of those days). I've poured myself a glass of wine that really isn't that great, but it's doing the trick tonight, and am about to indulge in some trashy reality TV.

All in all, the day was fine...but I'm not ok with days that end with me not going outside ONCE...or days where I basically got zero time to do either anything for myself or anything I had set out to do...Jason's going to work tomorrow, so I won't get that time tomorrow either, then it's back to work on Monday.

But I have next weekend to look forward to... and the rest of this glass of wine.

Cheers!

Logan in his Crib

A little video of Mr. Logan laughing, bowing and playing in his crib...no, I didn't find him like this, I think I sat him in there so I could get his stroller ready for a walk, but he managed to occupy himself as you can see...

You can hear him snoring at the very end...

Really?

Ok, I know that in general, I'm a pretty low-maintenance gal, but there are certain luxuries in life that I can justify....but THIS? No, THIS is ridiculous. The only reason this item was purchased and is currently residing in my home is because the ORIGINAL price-tag of $98 was marked down to $21, and I had a 20% off coupon on top of that, so it was fine. But paying $98 for ANY clothing item for a baby is absurd....but I guess if I WAS going to pay that price for something, I WOULD expect it arrive in its own garment bag complete with a matching satin hanger. Do you think I should make a scene on our plane next week and demand that it be hung up in the front closet of the plane? Hilarious.

We got this jacket for Logan to wear at my cousin Courtney's wedding next week...he'll be sporting this jacket and a sweet pair of dark jeans, a button up shirt and a tie! Pictures will most definitely be posted!

Celebrity Apprentice: Baby Edition

Dear Donald Trump:
Please see the attached photos of my son Logan. Aside from the fact that he's brilliant (Just look at the size of his head), he's adorable in a suit and therefore I think he would be perfect for your show if you ever do a Baby Edition of The Apprentice.

Thank you in advance for making my son the youngest millionaire ever.

Love,
Ashleigh

PS- please don't hold that last photo against him...he's the product of Jason and Myself...what can I say?

I think I had too many carrots...

Let's get this party started!

FOOD!

Logan is an eating MACHINE these days! Aside from his daily dose of milk (Which I can no longer keep up with his needs so he has to be supplemented each day with formula), Logan now gets 2 helpings of a new vegetable or fruit (Depending on where we're at with his schedule) and 1 helping of rice cereal. We've gone through the first three veggies we were told to start with: Carrots, Butternut Squash and Sweet Potatoes (he loved them all) and now at the end of this week we'll try out some fruits: Apples, Pears and Bananas! here's a quick pic of the little piggie in action...oink oink!

A Weekend with Elizabeth

A couple of weeks ago my dear friend Elizabeth flew out to LA for the weekend to stay with Jason, Logan and myself. I love Elizabeth so much, and it kills us both that whenever I go home to Seattle and we get together it's for just a snipet of time- not nearly long enough for either of us to get our fill! So Elizabeth generously bought a plane ticket and took a day off from work and flew out to LA so we could have a solid 3 days together- and it was perfect! Despite the fact that she flew in the morning that the LAPD had shot and killed a resident of my neighborhood and our community was an official crime scene, it was a flawless weekend (And to be honest, Elizabeth is used to this type of thing as she works for the Seattle Police Department Guild back in Seattle). We went to a roof top party (ok, it wasn't THAT glamorous...Jason company completed the concrete work on their building so they had a party to celebrate that milestone- an industry tradition....and yes, that is as picture of me walking up a ladder with Logan in our front carrier...we both survived), we took in some culture by enjoying our time at the Getty Villa museum (ok, to be honest, this trip to the museum did NOTHING for Elizabeth and me except show us that neither of us are mature enough to go to a museum...Jason will be in charge of chaperoning all museum trips with Logan's class...I will partake in watching the kiddos at the zoo), a movie date for just Elizabeth and I (We saw Country Strong at like 10:30 at night which we realized was WAAY to late for us, but thanks to a little Justin Beiber action and slurpies, we made it through the movie....though I think our time would have been better spent outside with our friends the statues as it was kind of a lame and VERY sad movie), then on Sunday we ended E's visit with a trip to Hermosa Beach where we got some Starbucks (And celebrated having Starbucks in our 6th state together) and took Logan to the beach and let him "walk" in the sand.

We were very sad to see Miss E go, but it was so much fun having her here! She's the best and it meant so much to me to have her take the time to come out and sit in on my life in LA!
Love you girl!

PS- Please ignore the order that these pictures are in...I don't know what's wrong with me this morning, I've tried uploading these pics about 8 different times and I keep getting the order wrong...blonde moment? New Mommy Brain moment? Not sure....whatever it is, forgive me and enjoy!

Jas has a secret love for all things CRIME so he was ecstatic about what was happening (Not ecstatic about the loss of life, of course)

Washington, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New York and CALIFORNIA!

Check out those THIGHS!!!!

Beach Baby

Hermosa Beach on Dwellable

Not 1, Not 2...but 3 Days of walking for Breast Cancer!

I can't believe it, but this weekend I signed up to do the 3Day Walk for Breast Cancer...again! In 2008, Gretchen, my Mom and I did the walk in Seattle and it was an amazing experience. The following year, I cheered on my BFF Lindsey as she did the walk with her friend Kelsey...this year it's time for Lindsey and I to do it together and I could not be more excited!

With the help of our friend Melissa, we've created a team called The Milkin' Mamas (we're all first time mom's who have chosen to breast feed our little ones so the name is MORE than fitting...as is the fact that we're participating an event that benefits the health of boobs!) and this coming September we're going to be walking 60 miles over 3 days...all in the name of defeating Breast Cancer!

In order to participate in this event, we each have to raise at least $2,300....yes, you've read that correctly...Two-Thousand-Three-Hundred dollars. That's a lot right? Yes. But I have a solution that will make it easier for YOU to donate...

Can you spare $10? I've made a list of all of my facebook friends, co-workers, Jason's co-workers and my family members and if ALL of those people donate a mere $10 I will FAR exceed the required fundraising amount...BRILLIANT!

To donate to my account, you can click on the 3day image to right hand side of my blog, or you can follow this link:

http://www.the3day.org/site/TR?px=5718351&fr_id=1629&pg=personal

or you can email me and I'll get you a form you can print off and mail in with your check donation.

Thank you in advance for all of your support- emotionally AND financially! I can't do this walk without you!

Love,

Ash

Putting It All In Perspective

This picture takes my breath away.

It took my breath away today while I was walking to my car after work, just thinking of this moment. I was reflecting on what a great day Sunday was- Jason didn't have to work, and we took Logan to the beach to do a little photo shoot to test out a new camera lens we got. Nothing special, right? That's what I thought, until I said those words over in my head again...We took Logan to the beach. He had never been to the beach. He didn't even know what beach was- or what sand was, a bicycle, a seagull, the ocean, waves, surfers, seaweed....none of it. He experienced ALL of it for the first time yesterday. I can see this picture from where I was standing so clearly in my head- I don't need to see the image that came through the camera. My son, mesmerized by the ocean- not taking his eyes off of it, his feet touching sand for the first time- he's a bit apprehensive about the feeling and isn't putting his foot all the way down in the sand- he's arching it up to keep it dry. I'm wondering what he's thinking- the only thing he can relate any of these sounds and smells to is his sleep sheep that we put on Wave mode every night as he goes to sleep...I wonder if he's thinking there must be one HUMONGOUS sleep sheep around here to generate this large of a wave sound!

For some reason, this image brings tears to my eyes...it just screams HOPE in my mind. This little boy is experiencing something for the first time and it just makes me think of all that his life will be. I start to imagine all of the other experiences he'll have in life, what friends he'll make, what lessons he'll learn, what adventure's he'll embark on. The look on his face as he stares out in to the waves, these waves he's never known before this moment, has such a wonderment about it, such a desire to learn more. I'm looking forward to giving him the opportunities in life to have more first time experiences. I'm looking forward to teaching him new things and being able to see that look on his face once again. I'm sure that every time I see it, it will bring me back to this moment- wind blowing, waves crashing, and his adorable little feet too scared to squish in to the sand just yet, so instead he'll just hold on to Daddy's hands and take it all in, waiting for the next wave to crash around him.

What Logan's Been Up To!

I apologize for my lagging in posting so far this year...but I was waiting to post until Logan had his 6 month check up, which occurred this past Friday :) I figured I'd give the run down on what Logan's latest stats are and what milestones he's conquered since those are often impossible to see in just a few snapshots!

As of last Friday, Logan weighs 18lbs and 13oz (above the 70th percentile), he's 27.25" long (also above the 70th percentile) and as you all know, he has a noggin not to be messed with (While I'm not sure of the exact circumference, I'm well aware that he's in the 98th percentile there).

Along with all of that great information, Logan has also begun "Talking"...or babbling, whichever you prefer (But if you were to ask him, he most certainly believes that everything coming out of his mouth is talking and that he must repeat himself several times and speak VERY loudly to make sure you hear him correctly). Our once quiet apartment is now filled with Baaa Baaa BaBaBa's and Daaaaa Daaaa Dada Dada DaaaDa and my personal favorits MaaaaaMa MaMa MaaaaaMaaaa. Jason and I of course LOVE these new sounds, but the cats could do without I'm sure.

Our nanny insists that Logan is quite the steam roller during the day- but we've yet to see much steam rolling....we've witnessed a LOT of roll overs- but generally just to the left, then back to the right, or to the right, then back to the left. I have set Logan down in one spot on the floor, then walked away to the kitchen only to look back and see him in another location which is shocking at first to say the least!

He's also sitting up like a champ! I am especially excited for this milestone because it means that someday SOON (maybe even this weekend!) I can take Logan to the grocery store and have him sit in the front seat of the cart (while, of COURSE, sitting in the awesome grocery cart fabric seat protector that Jason's Grandma made)....being able to shop without trying to look over or past a car seat sounds SO awesome to me right now! He's doing REALLY well sitting up, so I'm sure we can handle a 20 minute grocery store run...we'll see!

We've started to let him use a sippy cup for water during his rice cereal meals- he really likes it! It took a few different sippy cups to find one that he could actually figure out (Turned out to be one that Uncle Matt gave him that says "Logan" on it! It's adorable to see him use it!). And yes, we're still on Rice Cereal as far as the solids go...we may try actual FOOD next week, but he still hasn't quite gotten the hang of the rice cereal so we don't want to rush anything. If you catch him in the right mood he's all about it...but that seems to be difficult to do. Oh well...we'll get it at some point.

That's all for now. Jas bought a great new camera lens that we tested out at the beach today and got some GREAT pics of the little man. I'll post those later this week :)

Happy Monday (tomorrow) everyone! Make it a great week!

Love,

Ash