Three Months with Noe

12 October 2016: About three weeks overdue, but here it is — the post you’ve all been waiting for — Noe’s three-month post! That means we’re working from 8/21 to 9/21 so no pics from Laos here (sorry!). But some fun pics nonetheless…if you like cute babies, that is.

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So, yes, in the Mister’s third month on Planet Earth, he’s getting much better at tolerating the dreaded “tummy time” and holding his head up. But not rolling over yet. That feat I’m told is reserved for the next month or two.

It’s hard to believe we started Noe’s third month at our friend’s cabin in Tahoe. We were there for a week, which afforded us plenty of time to bond with the little guy.

Reaching three months was also a big milestone because it meant he has graduated from the “fourth trimester.” According to some experts, the first three months of life are meant to mimic the previous three months in the womb. Once they’ve made it out of that fourth trimester, though, they pretty much should be driving and covering the occasional round of beers at the bar. Any expert will tell you that.

Noe got a fair amount of hiking in — certainly his most hiking to date — though, to be fair, he didn’t have to put forth that much effort. Ok, let’s be honest, Noe put forth zero effort.

Noe: “OMG, I cannot believe that woman showed up in that!”

Hard to tell the real black bear from the stuffed one…

So ferocious.

Riding the rails of the Union Pacific…in Old Town Sacramento.

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After Lake Tahoe, we headed west to Amador County to meet up with Lori’s parents and attend a family reunion of sorts. Good times were had by all, even if Noe looks like he’d rather be on a fuzzy blanket under a ceiling fan.

One of the highlights of our trip back up through Northern California was Noe getting to meet my Grandma (and vice versa, of course), along with a gaggle of great uncles, aunts and a cousin thrown in for good measure.

We absolutely love our Guava Family Lotus travel crib. It packs up smaller and lighter than a Pack ‘n Play and has a convenient side door for easy access (and Noe loves it too). It’s essentially been his bed everywhere we’ve been (including hotel rooms and cabin) after he graduated from his bassinet when we left Portland (and with the other exception of the airline bassinets on his trip to Belgium and Laos).

For the first month, we didn’t bother zipping up the side-door at night, because the dude really wasn’t all that mobile…until, that is, we woke up one morning and found this…

We knew he had started an inch-worm phase, but had never inched his way more than a couple of inches. Apparently, Noe decided to change that on this particular morning. What is even more amazing is that he was still waking up every three hours or so, which meant he had managed to accomplish this feat in about an hour. From then on, the side door has been zipped tight. No baby is going to escape again on our watch!

Looking at this photo now makes even me exhausted! I think the Punky Brewster leg warmers may have put him over the edge.

Crab feed! Mom and dad caught some crabs (as they do from time to time) and were kind enough to share their bounty.

And here, we have a little man who just crested the 10-pound mark! Moments after, Noe got his second round of newborn immunizations. Our pediatrician’s office in Portland was able to put him on an accelerated schedule so that he would be all ready for all the crazy maladies that Belgium has to offer…and Laos, too.

We returned to Noe’s birthplace in late August to finalize some things before the big move in mid-September. As an added bonus, Noe got to hang out with his favorite (and currently only) two cousins in the whole wide world.

And, he was treated to a special visit by his Uncle Dan, and then promptly pooped his pants. Nothing like changing a blowout on the couch of a trendy donut shop.

Before leaving the Portland area, we had one final stop to make — the Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum in McMinnville, home of the legendary H-4 Hercules (aka, “Spruce Goose”).

Sitting up in the actual cockpit of this ginormous flying boat was a childhood dream come true. I could tell Noe was equally impressed.

Equally as exciting (for Noe, at least) was our stop at the Oregon capitol in Salem. We met up with two of Lori’s favorite professors at Willamette U. and introduced them to the little future Bearcat (well…we’ll see how that tuition reform goes over the next 18 years…)

On a bittersweet note, we made our last visit to a McMenamins (this time two in Corvallis) before leaving the country. Noe may not know this, but after we found out about him last November, daddy went out and bought a “passport” to the largest tavern chain in the Pacific Northwest and, along with mommy, began to visit and drink (daddy only) their way through something like 40 different locations. It didn’t quite happen that way (pure coincidence that the passport was purchased a week or two after the big news…) but it ended up being a fun and memorable pastime making our way through our first Portland winter. Noe’s love of music may very well come from the many local live music shows we went to at Al’s Den (or the Bob Marley mix CD I happened to have in our car for nine months…) Or, it could all be attributed to daddy’s magical singing voice. We’ll never know for sure, I guess.

One of Noe’s favorite things to do during his time in Roseburg was to hang out in the garage and listen to Classic Rock with his Poppy. His second favorite thing to do with his Poppy was to go on his “Loop Trail” (essentially a semi-wooded loop around the house). One of the highlights of the Loop Trail was stopping to stare at (and feel) the Baco Noir wine grapes. This is Southern Oregon, after all…

Though viticulture and rock music generally weren’t on tap, the Mister loved spending time equally with all of his grandparents, including his beloved Nanny.

Spending quality time with Grandpa, contemplating life and telling stories about “chasing wild women.”

Sporting Grandma’s favorite shirt. Little Hunk very quickly became Big Hunk…at least too big for his shirt beloved shirt.

First fishing trip with Nanny and Poppy. Nothing was caught and the Mister was content to remain in the confines of his ErgoBaby carrier (probably sleeping, but maybe peeping…you never can tell with the hood on…), but a fun day, nonetheless.

Noe got to visit his first ever U.S. National Park! It took him all of three months to accomplish this feat (and, in all honesty, didn’t have much of a choice in the matter), but, hey — First National Park!

Which, if you haven’t guessed by now, was Oregon’s one and only National Park: Crater Lake!

We visited the lodge and drove around the rim with Lori’s parents. Noe was so moved by the experience that he graced us with a big, ‘ol blowout shortly after this photo was taken while he was taking a similar photo with his poor, poor mother, who somehow gets all the good stuff.

Noe’s first steps! With an assist, that is. We’ll gladly wait another eight or nine months for the real thing.

The Mister, in his element (and creepily being monitored by his parents, who are probably drinking wine and eating ice cream…)

…and, a not-so-sleepy Noe, giving his most pathetic stare in the hope that somebody will reverse the decision to invoke the swaddle statute and free him on his own recognizance. Sorry dude, not today. You’re going down.

Noe got to share daddy’s preemptive birthday bash with him and the family. Front and center, a very confused and captivated young man…and Noe was there, too.

At Portland International and off to Brussels! A quick moment captured amidst a crazy morning.

Finally, on the plane — DC bound! Baby’s First Plane Ride — a five-hour flight. No problem.

Baby’s Second Plane Ride (90 minutes later) — a seven hour overnight flight. At least one of us got a good night’s sleep!

Baby’s First Train Ride! In Europe, nonetheless. Traveling effortlessly from Brussels to Bruges for a fun day trip.

Could this be Baby’s First UNESCO World Heritage Site, as well? Me thinks so.

And what visit to Brussels wouldn’t be complete without a stop at mommy’s employer’s headquarters, right? But first, a thumb check. Yep, still there.

On his three-month birthday (and, coincidentally, daddy’s 37th), Noe spent most of the day on a ten-hour flight, staring at the bulkhead (and thankfully, the inside of his eyelids, for a very long time). But not before donning his favorite shirt in the whole wide world.

Laos, baby, here I come!