LHG reaches 15 months!

I blinked and before I knew it the strenuous 3 hr feeds are over and our baby Levi is now sprinting around the playground, sleeping through the night, and demanding he feed himself w/ cutlery (must be the Southerner in him)!

Favorite activities include chasing the ball w/ Hank, playing w/ pans & spatulas, anything having to do with water, the big toy at the nearest park, snuggling his two blankies, music class w/ his Mama, and being tickeled by his Dad.

Coloring is still holding his attention, along with climbing and walking across the dining room table... I have a new appreciation for my Auntie who raised 4 (yes 4) boys. All in all, Levi is still super smiley, very adaptable, and a genuinely happy baby. Lucky us!

PS. his favorite foods are (no big surprise) blueberries, banana pancakes, chicken fried rice, and cottage cheese (what a combination)!

A Friday night w/ the kiddos

One of the many beauties of living 8 min from our cousins is that we can get to take advantage of free babysitting! We had Hazel and Sadie over last Friday night and we did it all... Made dinner, colored, listened to the Annie soundtrack, bathed you name it we did it!

We even had an Uno tournament...Hazel remains the Queen of the World (she's seriously really tough to beat...it's a bit frightening how many times John and I both lost to her)

Story time

Special treat included giving Hanky a bath!

Of course brushing him. Hank fell a sleep immediately. We ended the night w/ popcorn and watching the Olympic ice skating. I'm not sure who had more fun...the kiddos or the adults!

Time to add some colour!

Everyone told me that they grow up fast the 1st year. I didn't believe it...but then I had one of those 'Milestone' moments and when I realized it was time to introduce a little bit of colour into Levi's life...

Levi didn't waste anytime diving into the Crayon box

The Crayons captured his attention for 15 min (which in Toddler-time is eternity). And, they keep him coming back for more each day. The question I keep pondering is, "Will Levi be a lefty like his Papa Lyons?"

Of course, once the colouring got a bit boring, he managed to climb up on the table and dig into the pens....never a dull moment w/ Levi!

Our NEW Home...

We finally found a home! It's a rustic, vintage house built in 1920 and is 4 blocks from the beach in Santa Monica. We can walk to shops, restaurants, local library, the beach and most importantly the Farmer's Market. Oh, an were only 8 min away from our cousins So Cal Holmes Fam!

It even has a white picket fence to contain Levi and Hank! Oh, and our neighbors are English!

10th St West Reunion

Dad was delighted to see Jennie since it had been over 10 years that he had seen her and after all we were neighbors for 12 years!

Levi is a very outgoing child and not shy to try new things. He's mastered climbing aboard the bee at our favorite playground. What's next?

Toddler days...pulling him off the playground now creates major meltdowns...

So Cal Superbowl party with the cuzzies

The biggest benefit to living in LA is that we're 8 min from our cousins! We kicked off the new year w/ a Mexican buffet Superbowl party!

Levi and Sadie enjoyed a Mexican buffet prepared by MK all to themselves!

All gathered around intently watching the game only none of us follow Professional football!


Hazel took a break and opened up her 'Massage Collage.' At 6 years old, she has talent!

The clean up crew... hands down the best Superbowl party I've ever been too!

Papa Lyons comes to town!

We're counting our blessings for having Papa Lyons in town. It's making house hunting, car registration, new jobs and adjusting to a new city much easier!

Papa's #1 fan was over the moon with his new ball

We took Levi and Dad to the Farmers Market in Santa Monica and enjoyed a super sunny, warm Winter day in LA.

Levi enjoyed a basket of home grown blueberries his most favorite food!