Sarah: 9 Months

Our sweet girl is 9 months old! She is turning into such a big girl. I can't believe how much she grew up in the last month.

 What's up with Sarah this month:

• She can sit up on her own, army crawl, and even crawl on all fours occasionally. If there is something she wants, she will find a way to get it.
• She can stand on her own if she is holding on to something and takes steps if you hold her hands. She is really much more interested in walking than crawling.
• She has several new sounds, and she is rarely quiet. Her favorites lately are "guh" and "ung"
• She is in to everything now that she can reach more things.
• She loves anything she can feed to herself, including cereal, baby puffs, broccoli, melon, bread, and pancakes.
• Our baby is going to be a toddler before we know it!

Oregon Part 3: Daddy Came Home!

Kelson got home about a week before we were scheduled to fly back from Oregon, so we decided at the last minute to fly him out for a week of vacation. He hopped on a late night flight just a few hours after he sailed in. I was afraid that Sarah would take a day or two to warm up to him again, but she was excited as soon as she saw Daddy.

The awesome thing about staying with my parents was that we had built-in babysitters. Kelson and I got to go out for lunch and to a movie baby-free.  It was great!

 The Shriners parade was in Baker on Saturday morning, and it was really fun. There were Shrine clubs there from all over the state, and they all had different kinds of go-carts and floats.

 Later that day, we went for a hike above Catherine Creek State Park. Sarah loves hiking, especially if it involves riding on Daddy's shoulders.

We had fun splashing in the creek after our hike.

 That weekend was our family reunion, so Jeremy and his family came over. We had over 100 of our Baxter family there, and it was really fun to see everyone. 

 We tried to get a good cousin picture, but it was challenging. Sarah decided that Will's dessert looked pretty tasty. He had good reason to be afraid. Sarah's a pretty skilled thief.

 On Sunday, we went to church in Union in the chapel built by my great-grandfather with a congregation that was at least 2/3 made up of my relatives. I have such a rich heritage and a wonderful family. I am grateful that we got to spend this time with them.

 Monday night, we went camping at McCully Fork, a beautiful little campground on a creek above Sumpter. We were the only ones in the campground for the night, and it was very peaceful. We left the hatchet at home, so Kelson had fun smacking the firewood apart with a hammer.

 Mom found a little boa by the creek. Of course Kelson had to catch it.

 Mom, Dad, and Grandpa came up for dinner. Sarah was very happy to see Grandma.

 It was a little chilly in the morning, so Sarah got to dress like an Eskimo. A very cute, pastel, plaid Eskimo.

Kelson got to pick his first huckleberries too. 

Sarah went for a morning dip in the creek. It was a little chilly.

 On Wednesday, it was time for us to pack up and fly home. We were sad to leave, especially since we would be arriving in Hawaii only a day ahead of Hurricane Iselle. Thank you, Mom and Dad for the wonderful summer vacation. We love you!

Oregon Trip Part 2: Huckleberries, Cousins, & New Skills

More adventures in Oregon:

 Sarah spent lots of time playing on my parents' new lawn. Mostly she loved pulling up the grass and trying to eat it.

Sarah grew up a lot while we were at my parents' house. She mastered lots of new skills and was rather frustrated at her inability to learn faster.  One night, she managed to get up on all fours for the first time, and then sat herself up for the first time a few minutes later.

 We were there for Miners Jubilee, Baker's summer festival. We went down to the park one night and enjoyed a buffalo burger.  It tasted pretty much the same as a regular hamburger.

 The next day, we took Sarah to her first parade. She thought it was pretty fun chewing on the bag of gummy bears that someone tossed to us.

 Later that day, we initiated Sarah into the great summer pastime of huckleberry picking. The ride up into the mountains put her right to sleep, and she loved it once we got there.

 The reward for an hour of huckleberry picking: huckleberries on ice cream! YUM!

 My brother and his family came over on Sunday, and Sarah got to play with her cousins. Anne was very generous and went to the garden to pick peas for Sarah to chew on. She was also very skilled at feeding Sarah her lunch.

 Mom was in charge of a craft at girls camp, so Sarah and I went to help. We had a great time playing at Catherine Creek for the day. I have so many wonderful memories there!

 Most of the time we were in Oregon it was very hot, but there was one day that it was pretty chilly in the morning. Sarah and I put on our long pants and socks, and I drank a cup of cocoa. We don't do that very often in Hawaii.

 Sarah has become very adventurous in the bath tub. She spends her time crawling, rolling, and discovering things. She doesn't even mind if her face gets in the water now.  You may also notice the sad state of her skin. Her eczema did not appreciate the change from humid Hawaii to dry Oregon.

 We went up to the mountains for a picnic one night, and the mosquitoes were so bad that Sarah had to get wrapped up tight. She did not appreciate this.

 We went huckleberry picking again, and this time Sarah picked and ate them herself. She thought they were pretty tasty. She is definitely my girl.

 Playing with Great Grandpa

 We drove over to Fruitland one day, picked up my niece, Anne, and brought her back to Grandma's to play for a few days. Our first night together we had a girls-only movie night in Grandma's bed. We all ate popcorn and enjoyed Aladdin.

 We celebrated Dad's birthday by taking an ice cream cake to work for him. Anne decided that Grandpa definitely needed the blue cake.

 We spent lots of time crafting, swimming, and playing in the kitchen while Anne was there. Anne was a big help with Sarah, especially in the car. Apparently Sarah would like a sibling. That may not happen for a while.

Summer in Oregon: Part 1

Kelson spent 3 weeks at sea during July, so Sarah and I went home to visit family in Oregon. Sarah's grandparents couldn't wait to spend a month with her. We flew out on a red-eye flight from Hawaii, and she slept most of the way, which was awesome. It was definitely nice not having to entertain her for 6 hours. I didn't get much sleep, but it was worth it.

 Sarah got to try all kinds of new things while we were in Oregon, including swinging. She thought riding in the swing was great fun.

 It was really hot while we were there, so Sarah enjoyed lots of pool time. She didn't seem to care that the water was cold.

She rocked out on Grandma's bouncy horse.

 She tried cheerios for the first time. I'm not sure what that face means, but she did like them.

 My parents left us alone while they went to Ontario one day, so Sarah and I got to go on a dinner date with my grandpa.  Sarah had a great time playing with her great grandpa.

 I thought it might take Sarah a few days to warm up to her grandparents, but she was ready to play with my dad as soon as we got off the plane. 

 She even gave Grandma some snuggles a few times. That is a very rare gift from Sarah.

 I got to enjoy the snuggles too.

 Grandma introduced Sarah to the joys of peas from the garden. She chewed on all of the pea pods while Grandma was shelling them for dinner. 

 Kelson's birthday happened a week into our trip, so we had to celebrate via e-mail. 

 The only bad part of our first week in Oregon was that I came down with some kind of awful virus that started turning into pneumonia. I was sick for almost 2 weeks. Fortunately, my parents were there to help with Sarah, and no one else came down with the full force of the virus. It wasn't how I planned on spending my vacation, but it is always nice to have your mom to take care of you when you are sick.

Stay tuned for part 2!