October...family, friends & football!

The Tour de Henry continues...the past three weeks have been a whirlwind! The day after our last post in September Henry performed his best trick yet..Rolling Over! (1st time Sept 20th - see video below.) We began the month with another trip to the USA. First stop in Michigan for a visit with Tara's family, then hopped on a plane to Atlanta to visit with the Kaasa's, meet the Sittons and Bartlett's and attend GT's homecoming game. We returned to Toronto and three days later jumped back in the car headed for East Lansing, MI, for Tara's surprise birthday tailgate and MSU Homecoming football game...planned in secret by Mark and 20+ sneaky friends and family members. The trip wouldn't have been complete without a stop at the Cider Mill for Hot Apple Cider and Doughnuts!

Henry Rolling Over - Sept 20, 2010


Henry and Great Grandma Juanita. She is 86 and busy knitting more wonderful things for Henry.

Henry and Brodie getting to know each other.

Henry with Grandpa and Grandma Kaasa. Big THANKS to Grandma and Grandpa for watching Henry so we could go to the GT Homecoming game.
Henry and Papa Andrew at the MSU Tailgate...Sparty is 7-0 this year. I think Henry is the green good luck charm!
Surprise Tailgate at MSU Homecoming October 16, 2010

Mark, Tara and Henry in the suite inside Spartan Stadium.

Henry and Jake - Thank goodness Jake is so sweet. This is just a preview of what's in store!

Northville, MI Cider Mill - Pit Stop for Hot Apple Cider and Doughnuts before crossing the border.

Getting chilly & getting bigger

While it's sad that summer is coming to a close, there are a few elements of fall we are ready to embrace. The crisp cool night air coming off the lake, the hope that Henry will soon be sleeping 12 hours straight when we introduce him to cereal and of course...college football. Go Tech! Go State! Henry has outgrown his bassinet and moved into his "big boy" stroller seat. Henry's favorite teething toy, "Sophie" the giraffe. Go Green! Go White! Henry sporting his MSU gear before the OT victory over Notre Dame.


Jake must have overheard us saying it was Henry's bath time....he offered his services.

Florida Vacation

We took our first family vacation last week and went to Naples, FL. The weather was steamy hot (think fog up your glasses) and the Gulf was like bath water. Henry was mesmerized by the ocean and quickly fell into our beach routine of sleeping under the umbrella.








We think Jake missed Henry as he snuggled into his car seat for the road trip back to Toronto from Detroit.

August 2010

This has been an exciting month for our family. The weather has been amazing all summer long and we are enjoying it to the fullest with walks along the lake and around our neighbourhood. We've had quite a few visitors and met fellow ex-pats through our Meet Up group. We took a quick trip to Michigan and met the MacIsaac cousins and just yesterday we had our first family photo shoot. Henry continues to develop new skills such as sitting, standing, reaching and grabbing. His favorite objects to reach and grab are his rattle, Daddy's finger and Mommy's hair. He also loves to "fly" like Superman and continues to amaze us and brightens each day with laughter and smiles. Sample from photo shoot. Tara and Henry in Nana's Pool. Cousin Sarah and Henry. Left to Right: Cousin Sarah, Uncle Scott, Henry, Cousin Jordan Henry at the ex-pat picnic in Port Credit. Grabbing the rattle. First time in the "Stage 2" Exersaucer. Jake and Baxter poolside. Nana and 'flying' Henry. Reaching for toys.
Video of Henry's new tricks!

100 days of Henry

We thought it would be fun to post a few "first" photos and compare them 100 days later. Amazing how much he has changed in this short time.

The first day home in his car seat, barely enough of Henry to wrap the straps around...

...100 days later we need to adjust the seat straps because he has grown out of the first setting.

The first day at home in the Boppy Pillow his entire body fits inside...

..100 days later he stretches across it and hangs over the sides!

All skin and bones, falling over to the side in his bouncey seat the first week...

...100 days later he can hold his head up straight. He loves to sit in it and stare at himself in the mirror...just like his Daddy.

Oh these little toes! Typically I am not fond of other people's bare feet. But I just can't get enough of these toes...they are so sweet!

Here's a tricky one...Tara and Henry in the top photo...who is in the bottom? (No guessing if you already know the answer...this means you A.L.!)

Family Fun Weekend 8/6-8/8

This past weekend we relaxed and enjoyed a few fun places in the city.

"We bought an old house on the Danforth...she loves me and her body keeps me warm..." That's right. Canada is home to the Bare Naked Ladies and this is the street they sing about. Sunday we visited "Taste of the Danforth" which is just about 5 minutes North of our neighborhood. The festival is a huge attraction so we joined a few thousand of our closest friends and toughed it out through the drizzling rain. Danforth is known for Greek food...think gyros and bakalava. "What do you mean he doesn't eat meat?? Okay, okay, we'll have lamb."



Henry took up his usual position when we cart him around the city. He took in a few of the sights through his weather shield and then fell asleep.
Mark was quite pleased with his gyro selection, tough to choose when there are 100 or so tents all claiming the best lamb. Does anyone else think it's weird to eat meat that's been roasting on a spike for who knows how long?

For those that don't favor lamb....there's always plenty of roasted quail.

Just 10 min outside of city centre is Bluffer's Park, named for the beautiful bluffs behind the beach. We found a trail leading further down the beach and claimed our place in the sand where Henry could nap peacefully and Jake could run off leash and swim. Mark and I even got a quick nap after our picnic lunch.





After a long day of fun, Henry cuddled up on the couch to rest. Beautiful blue blanket courtesey of Grandma Kaasa!

3 Months Old

So many parents we know have told us, "Treasure this time, it goes by fast." They are so right. Seems like just a week or two ago we brought Henry home from the hospital, and now he is 3 months old. He weighed in at 5.38 kg or 11 lbs 14 oz today, he has almost doubled his birth weight. He has become very chatty and will carry on a "conversation" with us for several minutes. Enjoy the videos.

We had a wonderful weekend, with a Civic holiday here in Canada (not sure what the holiday was for, but we'll take it) Mark had Monday off work. We took a short road trip on Saturday to a town north of Toronto called Barrie which is on Lake Simcoe.

Sunday and Monday we spent at our beach and took Jake and Henry to Lake Ontario. Jake is becoming quite the swimmer. He even charged into the water to scare off a flock of Canadian geese that were threatening to come ashore.