NYE

Clara insisted on staying awake through her first New Years Eve. We joined my sister and her husband up at my Aunt and Uncle's house for game night. Pizza was ordered, treats were eaten and many, many games were played. We determined that when it came to games, Clara was an unlucky baby. She spent the evening passed from lap to lap to make it fair for everyone. She fought any attempts at napping, staying up until her first New Year's kiss. We then put her in her car seat and she promptly passed out.

Chris and I actually consider the anniversary of our relationship to be New Years. This year makes 5 years that we have been together. I'm rather proud of myself that I got Chris from a confirmed bachelor to owning a house, married and a kid all within 5 years. We long ago gave up on trying to eat out on New Year's day, since everything is closed. We started a tradition where we make our own fancy dinner, something we've never made before. This year it was lamp chops. Chris pulled out his best Martha Stewart impression and cooked up a super tasty meal. I'm so lucky to have him not only as my chef, but husband as well.

Christmas

We had an active Christmas season this year. It's true what they say, Christmas is more fun with kids. Even if those kids have no idea what is going on. On Christmas Eve we spent time and enjoyed a tasty dinner with Chris' Mom's family. Christmas morning Clara and I sacrificed our morning nap and arrived at Chris' folks house in the morning. The Christmas spirit must have been with Chris and I because we even brought Jackson. Luckily it was an unusually warm Christmas so we didn't feel too bad about putting him outside when he got to be a bit much. The gifts were thoughtful and plentiful. Clara made out like a bandit! While she was just as entertained by the lights on the tree, when she's ready there's toys, books and 20 puppets all for her amusement. We snacked and ate all afternoon and managed to fit in games with the family. It really was a lovely Matson Christmas.

Eventually we had to hustle home to do our own Christmas. Chris was impressed with his new egg cooker and I was thrilled to receive a diaper bag I had been eyeing for many months. We went light on Clara's presents this year, expecting a windfall from the grandparents. She got some age appropriate toys from us and hasn't complained yet.

My sister, brother-in-law and brother then arrived for our annual make-your-own pizzas Christmas. We ate, played games, called our parents and enjoyed the end of our Christmas festivities.

Updates

At 3 months Clara is a real joy. She is super, super smiley. When I took her in to get shots at three months she sobbed a little at getting poked, stopped to smile at the nurse that just stuck her, and then sobbed a little more. It made me laugh that she would stop crying for an opportunity to smile at someone new. She's a charmer, that one. I told her about Christmas and presents and she's really turned it on since then. She's able to keep her fingers in her mouth and happily slurps away all day. Anything within reach also has a good chance of entering her mouth. Clara is a really happy baby and loves any attention she gets.

Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving has an interesting tradition in our household. It seems as thought at least one of us gets sick. This year it was my turn. I made a batch of brownies and ate the brownie batter. In my defence, I have eaten brownie batter since I could remember. What I didn't realize is that we switched to organic eggs and the irradiated eggs gave me salmonella. The day before Thanksgiving I was out for the count, resurfacing only to feed the baby. Clara decided to end her 4 day poop strike with predictable results. Chris braved the aftermath. While attending to his sick ladies Jackson took advantage of the situation and ate the half pan of remaining brownies and a bag of rolls. With the help of google and advice of our dog friends we had that puppy puking up every last brownie in the backyard. To say that Chris had a bad day is a bit of an understatement.

Thanksgiving day I was still in recovery mode so I enjoyed Thanksgiving lite. I was still able to get down some turkey and made room for lemon pie. We had our first Thanksgiving at Chris' aunt's house. In the evening we joined his siblings at his folks' for turkey sandwiches and pie. A few days later we recreated Thanksgiving with my siblings. The holiday started terribly, but we enjoyed the festivities as they occurred. Clara rewarded our efforts by sleeping through the night for the first time on Thanksgiving. We were very excited for her, but it hasn't been often repeated.

Updates

Clara had her 2 month appointment right after we returned from our vacations. She weighed in at just a tad over 10 lbs., putting her in the 26th percentile. She came in at 67% on height and a whopping 79% in head size. Who knew she had such a giant noggin? She had her first shots. She turned bright red and then screamed louder that I have ever heard her. It was pretty sad and we snuggled a lot that day. Clara really is all smiles these days and really hams it up for attention.
A few days before Thanksgiving we had our Christmas photos taken. Clara did great with all of the extra stimulation for about an hour. And then she was over it and tired and let everyone know. Here's a little sneak peak.

Vacations

In early November Clara had her first vacations, back to back! Chris had an automotive show in Las Vegas, so we tagged along. On our way into Vegas we visited with Chris' family, the Fusch's and ate dinner with my Aunt Carolyn and Uncle Randy. Everyone wants to see the baby. The first night we arrived was Halloween, which was just awesome people watching in Las Vegas. We really enjoyed our hotel, The Signature at MGM. When Chris was off to his show during the day Clara and I slept in and did some shopping. It was pretty low key, for Vegas.

We got home Wednesday night and Thursday morning we were off for Yellowstone! My sister had access to a time share cabin in Island Park, just outside of Yellowstone. We met her up there and really enjoyed the facilities. You could easily fit 20 people there. Chris and I liked the hot tub the most. We played a lot of board games together, played on the Wii and spent many hours driving through Yellowstone. Chris had never been before, so there was a lot of nature excitement from his end. We got super close to elk and bison. We saw a lot of waterfalls, steamy holes, mud pots and even fed fish and a muskrat.

The park was closing the day after we left so the place was a ghost town. We'd stop to see something and be the only car in the parking lot. It was pretty great to have the place to ourselves. We couldn't imagine how nuts it must be during high season. The weather really cooperated while we were there and even shed our jackets one day. It started snowing the morning we left, just enough to make things pretty. We were there 5 days and really enjoyed ourselves. Clara did great unless she was hungry or we were driving below freeway speeds. That girls likes to go fast!

October

Little Miss is all smiles these days. This is a dress my sister made her. I was sad when she outgrew it.

October was a big month for our little family. Around 8 weeks Clara decided to start sleeping more, much to my delight. Currently she is eating around 10:30 pm, then 4am, then 7am. We're still sleeping in until 10, but I'm feeling much more rested with the long stretches.

She loves her bouncy seat. We also call it her poopin chair for the inevitable results.

Clara's Grandma and Grandpa Harper visited in October! They got in some great baby snuggle time. We even bullied my Mom into cooking us up a tasty early Thanksgiving dinner.

Clara's doulas also visited and she sure turned on the charm for them.

For Halloween we dressed up as Wizard of Oz characters. I was Dorothy, Chris was the scarecrow and Clara was a flying monkey. Clara visited my old work, Chris' work and then we visited Grandma Matson. And we attended a party with friends in the evening. It was a full day! Clara made an adorable monkey and we were happy to help her eat her Halloween candy. I have a feeling it won't be the last time, either.