Otto's First Christmas

Otto spent his first Christmas Eve in Olympia at Grandma and Grandpa Hicks' house. He got to meet his step cousin, Lauren, for the first time. She turns 8 years old the day before Otto's first birthday. She was so much fun to be around and so sweet to Otto.
(Otto and I actually arrived in Olympia on the 23rd and had a sleep over with Great Grandma Stewart who is visiting from Wenatchee. What fun we had together :)

At Grandma and Grandpa's house Otto helped pass out a few presents. Notice his shirt says, "I ate Santa's cookies." It's true! Can't you tell from those chubby cheeks?
It was nice to visit with my family and see my step brother's family also. We all had a fun time!

Christmas morning we were at home and had a leisurely morning opening a few presents. This was one of the many new books Otto received for Christmas. Thank you everyone for all the books! How did you all manage to coordinate your gifts and not duplicate a single book? Otto must have received at least 25 new books and they were all different and ones we didn't have yet. Impressive! Otto loves to read books!

Later Christmas day we went over to Grandma and Opa Richter's house in Kirkland. We got to see Aunt Jessica and the three little dogs. We had a delicious duck dinner and more wonderful presents.

Otto got a new sleigh that we can use next week on our snowy family vacation to Lake Wenatchee.
Thank you for all the thoughtful gifts that Otto received on his first Christmas. We are fortunate to have such generous family and friends.


P.S. Desrae, Otto loves his new track suit and wore it on Christmas day and ...Congratulations on your engagement! Will the wedding be in Boston or New Zealand? We'll come regardless.

Snooooooozing

We are not family bedders, but on a rainy Saturday morning you may just find us all snuggled up together. I caught these two taking an extra long snooze this morning.

Exciting New Milestones

Otto turned 11 months old today and today was the first day of not breast feeding him. It totally wasn't planned and as I write this I'm just coming to realize how coincidental this is.
I feel really sad, but am also glad to be finished. I'm happy for mine and his independence, but feel a loss for our cuddling and bonding time. We'll just have to have more hugs and kisses each day instead.
Otto weaned himself and now drinks formula from a sippy cup. In another month he'll be drinking cow's milk, which hopefully has a lot more calcium to build strong bones because Otto's just beginning to take his first steps. (Not to mention it's a whole lot cheaper. Can't believe formula cost $15 a can. Thank goodness I've breast fed him for this long!)
The last couple days Otto has been unusually fussy and it's not because he's teething nor is it from the red wooden wheel that's still adrift in his intestine. It's because he's mastering the wobbly art of walking. All day long he wants to practice walking and his four wheeled lion doesn't cut it, so that means I spend the whole day bent in half so Otto can lightly hold my fingertips while he practices.
I have a great sense of pride when I think about how much Otto has grown and changed in less than one year. He is amazing!

Otto's First Christmas Tree

Andrew and I go every year to this wonderful tree farm in North Bend. This year was extra special because Otto was with us. We bundled him up and trekked around for a little while in search of the perfect tree. We decided on the one just behind us in the picture, a beautiful 7 foot noble fir. Otto loved watching Daddy saw it down. Then we watched the workers put our tree on a shaker and then on a bundler. Finally we watched Daddy tie it on top the car.

Then we went inside the shack for some warm cider, a yummy cookie and a roaring fire. Lo and behold there was Santa again, waiting to hear what Otto wanted for Christmas. This time Otto sat on Santa's lap for about 5 seconds before trying to leap off. He's still not too sure of all that facial hair.

Santa gave Otto another candy cane and this time Mommy let him eat it, well part of it. Remind me to put a bid on next time! What a sticky mess, but a very happy kid. This was the beginning of a fun family tradition.

Otto's First Santa

After sharing a slice of Pagliacci pizza together on the Ave. we took Otto to see the boats on parade on December 1st at the Museum of History and Industry near the UW campus. We listened to the Seattle Girls Choir sing Christmas carols, sipped warm cider and munched cookies, but most importantly Otto met Santa for the first time. Unfortunately, Santa had too much facial hair for Otto's liking, so as you can see from his expression he wasn't about to tell Santa what he wanted for Christmas.

Daddy's Birthday

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Otto's First Snow

On December 1st we woke up to white stuff on the ground. What a fun welcome to the month of December. I wanted to capture Otto's very first experience with snow, hence he's not appropriately dressed for the weather in the photo. After waking up and having some milk we went outside to get the newspaper, which was covered with snow. Otto didn't hesitate to grab the snow off the newspaper and of course it went directly into his mouth. Moments later we were back inside our warm house looking out as it continued to snow. Hopefully there'll be more to come!

Otto's First Swim Class

Andrew and I take Otto twice a week for swim class in the evenings from 6-6:30pm. He started on November 20th and despite the chilly water he loves going. Each class begins with warm up followed by some songs, a lesson, some practice and ends with play. So far we have learned about water safety including signs of hypothermia, kicking on stomach, kicking on back, pushing off and getting head and face wet. Otto loves to splash and is getting better at kicking on his back. His instructor, Junco, says he's a born natural, which of course was music to Andrew's ears.

Otto's First Thanksgiving

For Otto's first Thanksgiving we feasted with family and friend at our house. Everyone brought something delicious so I didn't stress about the entire meal. It was fantastic! Thanks especially to Doug for his table and chair set. Otherwise we would have been sitting on the floor. Otto sampled a little of everything and even ate an olive off his finger, a family tradition. He especially liked the stuffing, cranberries and pumpkin pie. Auntie Jessica was grossed out by Otto's mixing of foods on his tray, but luckily she still loves the little guy.

Matching Sweaters

An incredible woman, Valarie, that my mother works with, knit these beautiful sweaters for my two favorite guys. Don't they look cute together!

Auntie Jessica

Such a cute picture!

Yep! He's a Stewart

So now I'm convinced he's part of the family. Otto has been sinking his teeth into delicious apples like this one. Since his great grandmother, Mary Stewart, owned an apple orchard and his grandmother, Joan, grew up on an apple orchard, I was glad to see his appreciation for this delicious snack.