December

Max tried skiing in Tahoe. Twice. He wants to go back again. His instructor is Melissa.

Mormor, Finn and Mommy went to San Francisco while Brent and Max were in Tahoe. The first time we visited Coit Tower (where unfortunately the elevator was closed due to repairs until mid-January) and the Ferry Building. The second time we drove across the Golden Gate Bridge to get a closer look, visited the indoor flower garden in Golden Gate Park and had lunch at a great spot somewhere in the "Russian Hill" area.

We spent a sunny day in Santa Cruz mountains and left with a Christmas tree.

Mormor, Max and Mommy went to see a Lucia celebration. Santa came to visit! He gave Max a present! He brought a present for Max! We looked for the reindeers and Santa's sleigh when we left. They must have just taken off.

We all went to Marlene and family in Half Moon Bay to celebrate Lucy's first birthday.

Christmas finally came. Max left cookies and milk out for Santa and an apple and a carrot for the reindeers. It was all gone! Max got lots of Christmas presents. His favorite gift was the razor scooter from Santa.

Mommy received a promotion at work.

We spend New Years Eve with our great friends and neighbors.

First trip to the slopes for the little man. As you can see, he was quite comfortable (at times). Admittedly, dad did a less-than-stellar job of bringing things that would make him feel at home (e.g. any toys--at all..., familiar videos, etc...). As such, there was an inordinate amount of sugar ingested over the weekend...

First day was really not productive. Dad (allegedly) forgot to feed Max breakfast so, by late morning, he was non-communicative and in a less-than-stellar mood. However, his little partner failed to show on day 2 (they pair the kids up and assign them instructors) so he effectively got a half-day, one-on-one lesson. Huge strides and he's ready for the pony lift now.

He came to us last night and told us that his teacher at preschool took his money and he didn't have any left for ski school. We assured him that he would be going back and we just confirmed reservations for the 18th. He's stoked...and so is dad.

Mastering tummy time