We got to go to Hollywood and stay at the Hollywood Renaissance Hotel right in the heart of Hollywood for LEVEL Studios’ New Years Kick Off Party. We had a really wonderful time filled with laughter thanks to some great co-workers but mostly our fantastic table-mates and good friends the Thompsons.

Before we headed out we made sure to stop by the Hollywood Walk of Fame to take a picture of Tom Selleck’s star for my mom.

More pictures in the LEVEL Hollywood Party 2011 Album

P.S. Samuel turned 1 1/2 years old yesterday, so there will be a post and pictures to come soon!

Samuel is now 11 Months old and only one month away from having been on this earth for one full year. It has been a very busy month with several travels to visit family, lots of events, and fun visits by friends. I wanted each event to be a separate post, but things have been busy, so they are all on here

Samuel’s personality continues to emerge and he is loving to babble constantly. He still hasn’t decided he wants to stand on his own or walk, since he is content crawling and leaning against furniture. This is one of my favorite pictures from this month, since he looks like a little man:

He is a hungry little boy and loves waffles and cheese, although he continues to love bananas and enjoys blueberries. He also loves to eat paper, so we only let him play with it while supervised:

There are many more pictures in the Samuel 11 Months Album.

San Diego Visit

Samuel had a lot of firsts this month, starting with his first time being around a dog. Samuel and Baron really enjoyed playing with each other, although maybe a little too much. Baron is Joe’s parent’s dog and there is a great picture that Joe took of the “guys”:

Samuel also got to meet his Great-Great Grandmother:

And his Uncle Craig:

And family friends:

We had a really fun visit and there are more pictures in the San Diego Visit Album.

Brenda’s Visit

Samuel also went to Pismo Beach for the first time when Brenda came down to visit. He and Brenda really enjoyed the company of each other:

Brenda and I have been friends for a really long time and it was fun for the three of us to hang out:

Brenda brought an early birthday gift to Samuel, and he really really enjoyed the bag that Brenda put the gift in (he’s also wearing the shirt she got him from Honduras):

My parents were also down for their anniversary and dropped in to say hi:

There are more pictures in the Brenda’s Visit June 2010 Album.

Samuel & Friends

Samuel also had the opportunity to play over at his Godparents Josh & Sandra’s house and they taught him how to play the piano:

He is quite the natural:

They also let him play with wood blocks and he thought they were rather tasty:

There are more pictures in the Samuel & Friends 11 Months Album

Folsom Visit

Samuel also had his first time in the pool when we went up to visit my family in Folsom. We went up because we needed to get a “new” car since our car was totaled (it was just me in the car, wasn’t my fault and everything is fine). Samuel wasn’t too sure about the pool because it wasn’t as warm as he is used to with his bath, although he certainly is the cutest little shark ever:

He also played for the first time in a tent. The tent had a tube for him to crawl through and he had a lot of fun:

While Samuel was in the pool, we also had a BBQ with my extended family:

The day before Joe and I also had a little “date” when my mom watched Samuel while we hung out at the mall and shopped. It was the first time we have been out without Samuel that wasn’t a wedding, since our anniversary last year when Samuel was 2 weeks old. It was strange not having him there, but we felt like teenagers again – in a good way.

The next day was Father’s Day, so I got to give my dad a card and had some special gifts for Joe’s first Father’s Day. The first gift was a signed copy of Geek Dad: Awesomely Geeky Projects and Activities for Dads and Kids to Share, and the second gift was an engraved silver ring that said Samuel in Hebrew. Later that day, my mom watched Samuel again so that my dad and us could go see Toy Story 3. I wish my Mom was there so that I wasn’t the only one balling my eyes out. We left that day in what was formerly my Dad’s car, a really nice Toyota Camry – in Silver! Yeah for grandparents!
There are more pictures in the Folsom Visit June 2010 Album.

PHEW. That was long, thanks for reading!

We have been having lots of fun with friends and enjoying our newly re-done downstairs.

Daniel & Lynn’s Visit

Last weekend we had a really fun visit from our friends Daniel & Lynn with their baby girl Arianne who is 3 months. We had fun playing at our house but my highlight was going to Montaña de Oro. I got a really sweet picture of them in front of the water.

Lynn, Laurie and I hung out a bunch together during the weekend with our babies in tow. We managed to get a picture where all of us were looking at the camera.

There are lots more pictures of the cute babies in the album Daniel & Lynn Visit.

Home Improvement

I’ve been meaning to post this now for a month, but during January and February Joe and I with some help from friends transformed our downstairs. We painted all of the walls a really beautiful blue and it makes everything really stand out so much more. We have a bit of touchup to do, but that will come later. Painting was prompted by us putting in an entirely new entertainment area to make things safe for Samuel. We did a bit of decorating to match the color by getting a photo I took in the backyard of the sunrise printed and hung with two sconces on the wall. Here is a picture of what that part of the room looks like:

Joe and I only completed the living room side of the wall and didn’t have much energy to finish the other side of the room (kitchen/dining room). A few weeks later I had the day off of work and was able to get some friends to come over to surprise Joe with the other side of the room being painted. He didn’t even notice it when he got home because it just seemed to fit so well!

For the techno-geeks here’s what we did with the entertainment area:
New LCD TV that is mounted on the wall with a speaker bar and the subwoofer is on the ground. The component cabinet is actually a TV stand that we use just on its own. Inside the cabinet is a component switcher, Blu-Ray player, Mac Mini (we are borrowing) that is connected to the TV and controlled using Mouse Mote, DVD/VHS player, printer, Wii, and PS2. As you can see from the outside it doesn’t look like all that is in there since we got some cable management devices behind it that are painted the wall color to blend in. The TV mount swivels and extends and our speakers are hooked up also to the Airport Express. Everything is controlled by our Harmony remote. Phew. There are times when I wish we didn’t have any electronic devices at all.

Even though all of these changes and techno-gadgets are nice – especially now that the TV is the appropriate size for the room – it still doesn’t compare to being able to let Samuel roam around the living room and have his playthings available to him. He seems to really like the new setup and the extra room he has to play. Joe and I are really enjoying it, even though it was a lot of work, it was worth it.

Samuel had a really fun Christmas filled with a bunch of activity. A warning from here on out – my gift for Christmas this year was a very nice camera which has made me take even MORE pictures. As always, make sure to click on each of the photos to be taken to the album which has even MORE photos.

It all started with him getting some photos with his baby friends:

Then on Christmas Eve we went to church and got all dressed up:

On Christmas Day he had his first taste of real food. We gave him Avocado because we thought the color was appropriate for the day:

We also let him play with the wrapping paper and I found a gift under the tree:

In the afternoon I made some sandwiches and we went on a picnic to our favorite park – Heilmann Regional Park:

That night while Samuel was sleeping Joe and I watched a bunch of Charlie Brown Christmas movies on Hulu. After that for the next week we had the Grandparents come visit.

First to visit was Nonno & Noni:

Nonno decided to introduce Samuel to tennis balls, hoping that he would follow in his and Joe’s footsteps:

Then he had time with Grandpa and Grandma:

All in all we had a fun Christmas time and are excited to see how Samuel enjoys it as he gets older.

Two weekends ago my wonderful friends Robin & Sandra threw a great Baby Shower for me. I was glad to see my friends and a few people came from pretty far away, including Joe’s mom Vivian and her friend Margaret. It was a beautiful day by the beach, and there were some really fun games:

• Guess the Baby Item – Robin placed baby items into a bag and I had to guess what they were. I got most of them right, but the hand sanitizer was a tricky one.
  
• Price is Right – This was a lot of fun. Robin gave really funny descriptions of baby products and all of the guests had to guess if the price mentioned was higher or lower. What was even funnier was that the people who won don’t have children.
  
• Gift Bingo – People had to fill in the squares with gifts that they thought people would give and if they got a Bingo, they would get a prize. A great way to keep people’s interest during presents.
  

In addition to the games there was also yummy food. All kinds of fruits and pastries, as well as blocks of cheese and Robin’s Aunt Theo’s Potatoes. They know my food tastes well.

Margaret, Joe’s mom’s friend made a really beautiful diaper cake. I’m going to have a hard time disassembling it.

Robin gave a really wonderful devotional that made me laugh and be encouraged at the same time. All of the Bible verses she quoted were very meaningful for raising children and really spoke to me – see them here. At the end of the shower Sandra prayed for me and for Samuel, and all of the candles on the table that were favors said “Pray for Samuel”.

My friends are so wonderful and it was great to feel so loved! Thank you to everyone who came!

P.S. You can see all of the photos in our gallery in the album Baby Shower South. Thanks to Sandra for uploading all of the photos!