WEEK 31 - December 23-29, 2010 - 30 Weeks Old

MERRY CHRISTMAS 2010!  This week was HUGE - I can hardly wait to tell it all.  Not only did I get to celebrate my very first Christmas, but I turned 7 MONTHS OLD!  Mommy and Daddy cannot believe how much I'm doing and how much I change every week and this week was no exception.  It was filled with travel (to Florida to stay at Grammy Chris and Grampa Ward's), meeting all sorts of new relatives (my Uncle Jason and Great-Gramma Rose), seeing new sights (my first trip to a theme park!), and learning new things (I love to practice standing and have found out the bath is pretty much the coolest thing ever!).



Daddy and Kaety napping - Day 1



We started the week by my Mommy, Daddy, Sissy and me taking a redeye from Seattle to Orlando, Florida.  We went to go spend the week and Christmas with all my Mommy's brothers (she has 4!), her Daddy and step-Mommy, my brother Brian and soon-to-be sister-in-law, Alyssa, and my Great-Uncle John, Great-Aunt Ro and cousins Dave, Ashlynn, and Lucas.  It was a whirlwind to be sure.  I was so good on the flight...I was the only one who actually got to sleep.  There were LOTS of babies on the flight and they were all screaming pretty much the entire flight.  They woke me up a couple of times, but I just played quietly in Mommy's lap.  When we got off the flight, the nice man sitting across the aisle from Mommy said, "Your baby wins the "Best Baby Onboard" award for the flight."  Mommy was so proud.  Do I get a certificate or something? :)  Though I slept a lot, I was still tired when we got to Grammy and Grampy's house...I ended up helping Daddy take a nap; aren't I a good baby?

On Christmas Eve, we celebrated with a good 'ole family party.  I got to meet my Great-Grandma Rose and my Uncle Jason and spend some quality time with them and my Great-Aunts and Uncles and my awesome cousins.  I love to play with lots and lots of people and play, I did!



Great-Grandma Rose and me



Meeting my Uncle Jason for the first time!



Great-Aunt Ro and Great-Uncle John...he can jam a mean pink guitar!

Cousin Lucas and me...we're only 2 months apart!

Cousin Ashlynn and me...she's a spitfire!

Big Brother Brian showing me cool stuff...

Grammy Chris and Grampa Ward

Uncle Connor and me...

Uncles Kevin and Tommy...they are the funniest uncles EVER!



Tired out in my new outfit from Grammy Chris



Soon came Christmas day, and did you know the Big Guy, SANTA, himself, found me at my Grampa Ward's house?!  He brought me lots and lots of presents.  I got plenty of toys from my Uncles and my Grandparents and some nifty clothes.  We spent the whole day together as a family and had a really wonderful time, but boy, was it exhausting.  After a few hours, I had to take a nap right while I was in the middle of playing with some of my new toys!



Look at me in the big-girl tub!



One of the things I discovered while in Florida was how fun baths are!  I have graduated from my baby tub to a full-fledged bathtub and oh the joys!  I may have mentioned previously how much I like to be naked, well naked with water is definitely better!  I like to scooch and roll all over in the tub and I have found it is just plain fun!  Sometimes I get hung up on my belly and I have to fling my arms back and forth until I can move around again, but that causes lots of splashing and OH, I JUST LOVE IT!  Grammy and Grampy and Uncle Connor took Mommy and Daddy and Sissy and me to see some manatees while we were there and Daddy and Mommy think I look a little like a manatee in shallow water when I'm playing on my belly in the tub!  It's a good thing I think the manatees are cute, or I might take offense to that!



Happiness is taking a bath!

Mommy and Baby Manatees playing in the shallow water...is there a resemblance?





Kaety at her "standy" table

One of the cool new toys that my Uncles Kevin and Tommy bought me is a table that you can stand up next to, press buttons, turn pages, and it sings songs like the alphabet song and the numbers song, and it plays all kinds of catchy tunes.  I spent HOURS at that table while we were in Florida.  I was sad to have to see it go when Mommy and Daddy had to ship it home...I won't get it back until the second week of January.  BUT, the coolest thing about it is that it lets me spend time standing up (well, really leaning).  I LOVE to stand up (almost as much as I love a good bath).  Mommy and Daddy noticed that after a few days of playing with my table, I was much stronger and starting to lean a little less...we think Ms. Colleen will think this is good therapy for me.  Plus, it's really fun to boot...did I mention it makes a LOT of sounds?!

Sissy and Uncle Connor in front of Hogwarts Castle!

On the next-to-last day we were in Florida, I got to experience my very first theme park!  Mommy, Daddy, Grampy and Grammy took Uncle Connor and Sissy and me to Universal Studios!  Uncle Connor and Sissy wanted very much to see the Harry Potter World that was there and get to experience first-hand some of the awesome adventures in Hogsmeade.  Unfortunately, pretty much everyone who was in Florida also decided to go to Universal Studios that day.  We waited in line for 2 1/2 hours just to get into the Harry Potter World once we were in the park.  Then, once we were in, we waited over an hour and a half just to walk through the Harry Potter castle and go on one ride.  Then, Sissy and Uncle Connor waited 1/2 hour for Butterbeer and then they waited an hour to go into the wand shop.  You see a theme?  Waiting was pretty much what we did all day.  It's a good thing I'm a patient baby, or there might've been some serious meltdowns.  Despite all the waiting, the HP World was really really cool and very well done...they just need to work on crowd control a little!  Next time we go back, Mommy promises to spend some time in Seuss Land for me...we walked through there on our way out of the park and it was filled with lots of wonderous lights and colors...looked pretty neat to me!

Mommy, Uncle Connor and me INSIDE the castle...sooo cool!

Did I mention Florida was COLD?  And we did a lot of waiting.  This is definitely the way to wait in line!!!

Unfortunately, our Florida visit had to come to an end.  I so loved spending time with all my family and getting to play all the time.  I was REALLY REALLY good on the flight home as well...the guy across the aisle from Mommy (a DIFFERENT guy!) remarked to her that I was a pretty fantastic baby.  Well, she knew THAT! :)  I guess the awesome pj's my Grammy and Grampy bought me are fitting...they have angel wings on the back...how cool is THAT!? :)

Kaety's Angel Wings :)

I hear next week brings with it a New Year and expectations for all things good.  I'd have to say I think this year has been pretty spectacular, I mean, after all, I was born!  Next week, Mommy will take a moment to help me write about all the things I've learned and done this year and all the promise the next year brings.  Until then, we hope you have a wonderful New Year!  Ta Ta For Now!!!