Pumpkin Patch

Today, Andrin and Mami went with Dana and Owen to the pumpkin patch. The weather was unexpectedly beautiful and really warm. Dana and Mami were worried that the youngsters would sleep through the experience of the pumpkin patch, but they both stayed awake / or woke up again :)

Andrin's first surgery

Just wanted to let everyone know that Andrin's surgery went fine. We had an early start and Andrin also woke up at 5.00 am. We were told by the nurses to be at the hospital at 5.30 am, but the doctor told us not to be there before 6.00 am (and not to tell anyone that he told us that :). Andrin was a big trooper! He was not allowed anything to eat and /or drink after midnight and even though he signed like crazy to Papi in the car that he wanted to have some milk, he was able to make it. Around 7.00 am, he got his preop medication and it made him tired. I just held him and pretty soon, he was sound asleep. I was allowed to carry him in the operation room and put him down. He was sound asleep and did not even stir when they put the mask on for the anesthesia. The nurses were all amazed and laughed because they have never had it that easy! And then the waiting started ... we already got after about 10 minutes the call from the doctor that the operation was done and that everything went fine. Andrin's right ear did not even have fluid in it and the left ear had fluid, but no infection. Around 8.30 am, we finally were called to the recovery room. Clemens almost ran back to the room (it was the room at the far end of the hall, and it was a long hall), but we had to wait again until Andrin finally came out. He still was drugged, but he was smiling and started babbling and drinking and eating ... just being himself. This afternoon has been difficult, because Andrin still has pain, but he is slowly getting better.

One-year checkup

Andrin just had his one-year checkup. As a matter of fact, I am still sitting in the car in our drive way, giving him his long-overdue nap. He was not a happy camper at the doctor's office. First, he got five vaccines, the flu shot, and then he had to draw blood on top of it ...

The nurse practitioner that we adore gave him an excellent report. She was glad to hear that he will get tubes in his ears next week and predicted that it might make a big difference (which we are hoping for).

But here are his most current statistics:
Height: 29 inches (25th percentile) / 74 cm
Weight: 22 lb. 13 oz. (50th percentile) / 10.347 kg
Head: 18 1/2 inches (51st percentile) / 47 cm

Manzanita

Our little family left town on Sunday and headed west to the Oregon coast. Since we knew that Andrin would not be happy in the car for four hours, we decided to stop in Newport and visit the Oregon Coast Aquarium. It was a lot of fun! Andrin loved to see all the animals and he seems to have Mami's genes because he especially liked the seals!
Late afternoon on Sunday, we arrived in Manzanita and were pleasently surprised by our cabin. It was beautiful and relaxing. Manzanita was different than in the summertime because there were hardly any tourists there. We had some really good food, also some good quiet times in coffee shops and a wonderful time at the beach. Andrin loved the sand and really went digging for it.
I spent my birthday with my most loved and cherished people in my life and it was so good to be away for a little bit!

Looking at the seals.

Ready to hit the beach.

Did you see all the sand on his face?

Trapped in a sand hole.

Getting out of the above hole.

Giggling party with Mami in the cabin.

Big sacrifice ... room switcheroo ....

Papi made a big sacrifice and gave up his own office. He is now sharing the office space with Mami. That means that I have my own bedroom now. It was really excited to see all the commotion, but I was also a little bit worried when Mami started taking my bed apart (yes, it did not fit through the door and she had to dismantle it). Now that I have my own bedroom, Mami can also work in her office when I take naps (problem being with that that I have to take longer naps :) And to be honest, I think she has to clear off her desk some time as well. She has been busy working on my scrapbook, but she is not finished yet and just ordered the prints up to my first birthday! While Mami is writing these lines, Papi is taking me up to my new room to get me ready for bed. I hope that I will have a good first night in my new room.
Mami wants to let Papi know that she is grateful and that her nagging paid off! She will reimburse you in an adequate way!

My wheely cow

Even though I was a little bit intimidated by my new wheely cow in the beginning, I am really taking a liking to it! It is especially fun when Papi pushed me around on it.

Happy Anniversary!

Yesterday, Clemens and I celebrated our fourth anniversary! I was cleaning and organizing my office and came across these pictures and decided that it was perfect timing. I am glad that we did not have a blog back then because it would have been hard to decide which pictures to post! Clemens and I had a nice day together. We even got the special treat of eating together (alone) dinner (at home with Andrin early in bed). Clemens got me beautiful flowers and I think he is up to something ... when I called him, it sounded not like the lab in the background at all! We will leave on Sunday to spend a few days at the Oregon coast, in Manzanita. Perfect place to celebrate our anniversary, to really show Andrin for the first time the coast (last time, he was only about three months old over Christmas), and maybe celebrate my birthday a little bit as well. The last four years have gone by quickly, I can hardly believe it. And Clemens even tells me that he does not regret getting married! Je t'aime, Clemens!