This past week has been…social! It’s been wonderful. We’ve had plans nearly every single day this week and it’s just felt so right. It’s been busy and we are also gearing up for our trip to Michigan but I’ll take this lifestyle over the lonely secluded one any time. Both of our girls are obviously positively affected by the social events as well and seem to thrive in them.

Monday: Reese and Bryan had a daddy daughter date at Macrina Bakery for a croissant and coffee before doing a second orientation day at Reese’s new preschool. We then had our new nanny share family over for a meet and greet with the babies and for a drink of Bryan’s beer for a post work happy hour. It was the only time we have ever been the last to pick up Reese at school so that was the con for the day.

Tuesday: We all shared a walk to school in the morning. We picked up Reese a little early to head south to Renton and the south end of the lake to play at the massive Gene Coulon Park, spend some time with Bryan’s old coworker Mark and his wife Kim, and then all got fish and chips from Ivar’s for their birthday BOGO to eat in the sunshine and 60+ degree weather. We had a wonderful evening out, maybe a bit too late because Reese went haywire, we lost Brooke’s Wubba, and then she wailed the whole ride home.

Wednesday: Less social but we still enjoyed our morning walk to school (we have so few left now). In the evening, after putting Brooke down for the night, I went over to sit for our neighbors so they can resume date nights. We will try for our turn when we get back from Michigan. It’s urgent now as our neighbors have bought a house and have plans to move in May 🙁 Bryan got the short end of the stick though and had to settle Brooke twice when she woke up and then had a disgruntled Reese to put to bed after that, bottle some beer, and do some other prep around the house.

Thursday: We invited friends over for the March Madness games and dinner. Polly and Ryu and Jeff were able to come over and with Polly’s birthday on Friday we also made her a cake (chocolate covered strawberry cake because she had once told me that is her favorite and the one her mom always would make for her). Michigan and Texas Tech both lost which was a sad outcome to the game but we thoroughly enjoyed having our friends over again and Bryan’s excellent beer can chicken and other snacks and home brew during the game. This is where we could see the girls thrive and it was fun to see our two girls, who sandwich Niko in age, and how all of them mixed together. Since it was so nice outside we watched a portion of the game outside on the big screen as well.

Friday: Sad day as it was Reese’s last day at Mother’s Place. I’m tried to hold it together because this place is so special. Reese knew it was her last day but what that exactly means to her I am not sure. Bryan made his special chocolate chip cookies for her classmates and teachers for her last day. And for whatever reason Reese wanted to ride her scooter to school, which she pretty much did aside from the uphill portion of our walk. After her last day of school we said our goodbyes and then headed off to Madison Park for her second ever hair cut and then a play at the the park with Lottie who met us there before heading home for dinner with Lottie and Sarah.

We had a birthday party to attend today for our friend Philipp and Sara’s daughter Emelia who is turning three, Elsa themed and small, but there was multiple sicknesses in the small attendee group that we decided to not take the risk. It’s also been quite the process to get all of our laundry done this week since getting the new washing machine installed on Monday afternoon (and a few rare accidents for Reese in bed). I cannot wait for a week off of work and a week spent with family coming up. Will definitely be wonderful, although I wish I could just teleport us there and skip the flight and drive.

Chelsea

We are just pushing through these transition periods, enjoying each stage, and particularly enjoying the blossoming trees and longer days thanks to spring forward. We’ve enjoyed several walks in the morning and afternoon to go get Reese or drop her off. We’ve enjoyed spending some time at the playground with friends on a few occasions. And we’ve enjoyed being maskless for the first time in what feels like forever. March 11th was the last day of the Washington mask mandate and since then Reese hasn’t had to wear a mask at school (or us or the teachers) and we’ve slowly started going maskless in stores (albeit it’s habit now so sometimes I even forget that I can be maskless). Unfortunately, Reese’s new school is still wavering on whether or not to remove the mask requirement so she will probably have to go back to wearing a mask at least in the short term.

Since being back from Arizona we have tried to get back to our routine, see some people we haven’t in awhile, and will soon get ready for our next trip to Michigan. Unfortunately, as soon as we got back from Arizona our washing machine went kaput. Not great after getting back from a trip and having full suitcases of dirty clothes but at least our landlord jumped right on ordering us a new one. The issue is that the earliest delivery was not until the 21st so we still have a few days to go before we are back on the laundry train. In the meantime, we were fortunately able to use Sarah’s appliances last weekend when we went over for takeout dinner of Kin Dee Thai and a play date. We got a majority of the clothes cleaned from Arizona and have just been making due since then.

Reese has enjoyed school and her friends and we are at the bittersweet end to her time at Mother’s Place. Reese and I went to visit her new school, Interlaken Preschool, yesterday morning for the first time. We met three of the teachers and her new fellow classmates (including another female Reese!) and she set right out to exploring what toys were available inside and out of the classroom. This will be an adjustment, making new friends and having new teachers, a new environment, and a new way of doing things. I’m hoping this will be a good move for her and we are still deadset on continuing our friendship with her current classmates, especially since in a year’s time they should be back in school together again when they start kindergarten. She will have one friend that will be coming with her, Lilly. This new school spends a lot of time outdoors, the door is always open to the outside so they are really free to go outside whenever they please, which Reese might find especially great.

We’ve all been battling a cold this week and it hasn’t been fun for any of us. Reese was lethargic for about two nights and irritable and both Bryan and I have had sore throats, aches and pains, and just general fatigue. It’s not Covid, I tested myself, but just a cold that sucks as I feel like we haven’t felt truly 100% in a few months now. I’m hoping once through the weekend we all start feeling a lot better. But before the cold hit I did run my first run in a year and had a time of less than 9 minutes a mile which honestly took me nearly two years to do after having Reese so I was over the moon about that, and both Bryan and I have been trying to get some home workouts in when we can, and when our body will allow it.

In other news, March Madness has started and although we have watched little to no basketball so far this year, it’s still so fun to fill out a bracket and follow along with the madness. Already so many great games have been played! We’ve enjoyed a few donuts from Raised Donuts and pastries from Nuflours thanks to Intentionalist Seattle celebrating national women’s month. We also celebrated St. Patty’s Day with a sous vide corned beef brisket and classic sides of carrots, cabbage and red potatoes, which was fun and delicious, paired with Bryan’s beer. And really I just feel like celebrating spring every single day because I. CANNOT. WAIT. FOR. SUMMER!!!

Chelsea

We got to spend five days in sunny Phoenix with some quality time with Grandma and Papa Miller. It was our first time flying as a family of four, Brooke’s first flight ever and introduction to her grandparents, and our first time seeing Bryan’s parent’s new digs. We had no set itinerary but a few things we wanted to do while we were there and it was the perfect mix of both rest and relaxation and spending some quality time as a family.

We were packed and ready to go on Saturday morning. We drove to the airport, took the shuttle from the parking lot, took the train in the airport to our gate, took the plane to Phoenix and then drove to the Miller’s new house. The girls did pretty good with the trip although there was no nap to be had for Reese (an occurrence that happened more than once during this trip). We got the grand tour and the car unpacked and Reese immediately made herself comfortable by taking in every room, the backyard and the toys. We even did a down and back in the neighborhood on the tricycle before dinner. Trish had made some delicious spaghetti and meatballs for us and a surprise pudding for dessert and we enjoyed catching up with one another on this first night.

We had three full days ahead of us and we had more toys to explore and spent a lot of time in these days building towers in the backyard, swinging on their porch swing, getting various snacks, and watching some movies.

We spent Sunday morning walking/biking to a few different parks in the adjacent neighborhood. These parks were surrounded by sand which I think Reese enjoyed more than even the park itself. We set out to try a Mexican place near the new casa but unfortunately were disappointed by this highly rated restaurant. The best part of the meal were the alcoholic drinks but unfortunately the chips and dips were pretty lackluster and all of our tacos and burritos were cold and not the best. I was just delighted that Brooke fell asleep in her car seat at the restaurant!

On Monday we decided to hit the pool at the Miller’s new complex. We walked to the clubhouse and Grandma and Papa met us there. Although it was only in the low 60s while we were there the pool was heated to a nice warm temperature and the sun was hot. It was surprisingly comfortable being in the water, just chilly once you got out. We even took a dip in the hot tub, which Reese was technically not allowed in. Brooke was not allowed in the pool thanks to their “no diaper” policy, but she enjoyed hanging out by the water for awhile. Reese conked out after the time in the sun and water and took a nice long nap, then woke up pretty irritable. Lon and Trish picked up Chinese food from Chou’s while out running some errands and we had a nice takeout dinner at home.

Tuesday was the day that Bryan and I were aiming to get a hike in at the nearby San Tan Mountains. Lon and Trish’s new place is only a short 15 minute drive to the trailhead for the mountains and Bryan scouted what ended up being a nice 4.5 mile loop to take. Bryan carried Reese on his back and I had Brooke on my front and we left the car just after 11 am. The hike up was short but steep and we took a breather at the top at the bench to take in the views and get some water. From here, Reese walked some of the distance down the steep backside of the mountain before getting back in her pack, and we continued from there for a lengthy but relatively flat walk around the mountain and back to the car. Mid-hike, we promised a bored Reese another stint at the pool, so we made some good time to get back to the car in time to get Reese back to the pool before 3 pm (when kids are no longer allowed at the pool). Reese got about a 10 minute nap in but as soon as we were back home to change into swimsuits for swimming she was full throttle excited and jumping around. The grandparents tagged along while Brooke and I remained behind at the house to relax a bit and keep the baby out of the sun. Reese came back purely exhausted after such an eventful day and Trish cooked up a wonderful last dinner at home of ono fish and then we had a backyard campfire complete with s’mores.

Wednesday was our last day in Arizona and we were flying back in the early afternoon. After having a disappointing Mexican dinner we decided on hitting an old standby, Si Senor, for an early large lunch before our flight. It was delicious as usual and then we made it to the airport to say our goodbyes and check in for our flight just before 1 pm. Our flight went smooth and we pulled another no-napper for Reese which meant we had one irritable and tired toddler on our hands. We’ve learned no car seat on the plane means no nap for Reese and we are already trying to figure out our approach for our next two lengthier flights we have coming up. Brooke did the same and once back in Seattle we had the train, to the bus, to the car and finally made it back home just after 6 pm Seattle time. It was good to be home but we had lots of good memories and even a little tanner skin to remember our time in Phoenix by. Just two more weeks before our next trip. Time is just flying by!

Chelsea

This last week we are celebrated little miss Brooke turning a whopping three months old but I had yet to write about it. So much has happened already in her short little life and yet there is so much more to come. She is always full of smiles and chatter but let’s take a closer look at Brooke’s developing personality, likes, and dislikes…

• Brooke still loves laying on her activity mat and will do so for chunks of time. Still not too keen at swatting at the hanging objects but loves to push and kick the side bars to make all of the objects move at once.
• Brooke also has found a liking to her boppy pillow and Bryan has found this to work best for bottle feeding.
• She is also taking to her Wubba pacifier these days, which helps calm her but has also helped with the introduction to bottle feeding. It helps that she can start to hold onto the Wubba herself.
• She did not like getting her two month vaccines. She did not tolerate it well that night and it was a rough night for Mama. It was a rough night for Daddy and Reese too before putting Brooke to bed. We were able to give her Infant Tylenol after calling the nurse’s line but she was still needing a lot of comfort during the night.
• Brooke is still a petite little thing compared to babies her age. Like her sister, and I think like both her mom and dad were too.
• Brooke has really become more alert and aware of her surroundings in just the past week or two. She has been coined “Big Eyes” by her big sister, as she looks around at her environment. She is wide awake on walks these days until the motion is too much for her to handle staying awake and really enjoyed a walk through the giant trees in the Arboretum this past week.
• Brooke is all eyes on Reese when Reese is in the room. She watches her closely. Her first laugh was more of a chuckle and came during a Reese and Daddy dancing routine. Made me chuckle.
• Brooke still doesn’t love car rides or her car seat but is gradually getting better.
• Brooke is starting to desire to face out in the Ergo carrier these days, so that she gets a better view of what is going on around her.
• We went to visit friends two weekends ago who have a 1-year-old and it was the first time Brooke saw a baby and she was fascinated. She wanted to be close and watched that baby the whole time.
• Brooke is smiley, every morning when she wakes up and just generally throughout the day, and I am here for the smiles!
• Brooke is a talker. She is constantly having conversations with herself on her mat or to us when we sit next to her. I just love it so much all her cute sounds that she is strumming together.
• The girl has found her hands and sucks on them a lot. That and the amount of drool she is currently producing makes me think there is some teething going on, even though I don’t think she is anywhere close to actually getting teeth.
• We haven’t done a whole lot of tummy time but she has fantastic head and neck control probably from always trying to look around the room when we carry her. She also loves to pull up to stand on her own legs.
• Brooke was not a fan of the (artificial) grass in Arizona. I think she found it too prickly on her skin but it was pretty funny when you would set her on it she would instantly start to scream. She did just fine laying on a blanket on the grass in the shade though and seemed to like that a lot.
• Brooke did decently well on her first roundtrip flight. There wasn’t a ton of sleeping going on but she was mostly content and quiet on the flight. I remember Reese just conking out on flights at this age but that does not appear to be Brooke just yet but we also didn’t have her car seat on the plane with us.

That is Brooke this month. She’s a cutie and I love her and can’t wait to see what the next month entails!

Chelsea

We have made it through. We “defeated” COVID, or maybe it “defeated” us, but we are out the other side with all of us testing negative and feeling like a million dollars, or at least feeling pretty invincible these days. I’m back to being able to drop or pick up Reese, go into stores or restaurants, or you know, just feel like a wanted human being in this crazy world we are living. In addition to pushing past the illnesses in the household, we have accomplished a few other things this week:

• Found Reese a replacement preschool as hers is closing in the summer. We actually were able to choose where she was going to go with multiple options which was a blessing but also rather easy to narrow it down to our preferred school. Even after luckily getting a lottery spot and the very unique and interesting outdoor preschool run through UW, we toured that option and decided against it. Just didn’t feel it was the right spot for Reese nor did it really feel warm and inviting to us. Plus her new school will have one friend she knows attending and starting with her!
• We chatted with our potential nanny share family and are already off to a much less stressful start this go around; already knowing and having used and loved the nanny we plan to use and knowing (albeit barely) and feeling comfortable with the other share family. I can’t tell you how good this feels this go around and I’m hoping for a similar experience to ours with Sarah and Lottie, but that would be tough to beat. I mean COVID has certainly brought us even closer and we don’t want to go through that again.
• We were able to finalize our vacation schedule to visit both of our families and nothing should stand in the way of those visits now. Plus I can actually start to visualize and dream of our Maui vacation and I AM SO EXCITED!
• Brooke has successfully drank from the bottle with Bryan. After Daddy Daycare Day #1 was not so successful and thus not so stress-free for poor Bryan, Brooke started drinking from the bottle on Day #2, finding her right position and that feels like a major success. I know it provides Bryan a sense of relief in the ability to feed Brooke and now be able to go out and do things with her while he takes his paternity leave but it also provides me an equal sense of relief knowing that my ticking clock is not always on when I leave the house. Plus, now it might actually be possible to get a sitter for a night when we are ready for it…I think Reese will have the most difficulty with that concept at the moment.
• We have even gotten out of the house and dined at a restaurant (mystery shopping too!) for the first time in eons and that felt as relaxing as it could when dining with two children, which was surprisingly pretty relaxing. Helps that the location is also a brewpub so the brews definitely helped with winding us down.
• We got Brooke into the doctor’s office for her well baby checkup (a month late) and her vaccines and it’s good to know that the delay in our visit won’t hinder our vaccination schedule moving forward. I felt like I was back at Reese’s 2 month well baby check up; we have a very alert baby with excellent strength, good eye contact, nice muscle tone, happy demeaner and she falls in the 7th percentile for weight, 32nd percentile for height, and 5th percentile for BMI. I think Bryan and I are starting to get the picture that Brooke and Reese are more similar than different so we will just see if it continues that way. But the doctor says that Brooke looks healthy and happy so my only complaint right now is disrupted sleep patterns ever since she had COVID.

So as you can see things are looking up. I feel bad that I’ve portrayed the last few months as doom and gloom. There have been so many good times and a lot of extra time I’ve gotten with both of my girls, but there were a lot of hurdles and stressful days and moments in there, and I really felt like I had to live by the hour and really live in the present moment to survive. It feels good now that we have some breathing room, some social life, and some normalcy back in place. So good! I’m back at work and that has it’s pros and cons but overall it’s been good and we have our first trip coming up on Saturday and we are ready for AZ and to see Grandma and Papa Miller.

Chelsea