Merry Christmas!

Happy holidays everyone. We are getting so excited about Freja's first Christmas. Presents are stacking up under our tree, and we are certain at this age that just like our cats, Freja will love the boxes and wrapping paper more than what's inside. She's wowing us lately with pulling herself up to a standing position, and even starting to move her feet a little bit. OF course, she wows us just by being her cute little self most days. xo

Funny Baby

Freja is doing this new thing lately where she crinkles up her nose, and sometimes she does it then sort of snorts like when she is excited about something, but now she also says "Nah-nah-nah" when she is doing it, and it's just the silliest thing.  This kid is a nut.

Today Freja & I previewed a Music Together class.  Music Together is a nationwide organization that offers family music classes for mixed ages encouraging young kids to experiment with music.  She was probably the youngest one in the class today, and really seemed to enjoy watching the big kids play the drums, shake bells and dance around. We are going to sign up for a 10-week-long session that starts in mid-January.

Ho Ho Ho!

Freja met Santa at one of two Christmas parties we went to today. Needless to say, the girl is a trooper! I'm taking her to another holiday party at the office tomorrow, and one more on Friday. Thank goodness we have plenty of cute holiday outfits like this one!

Babyproofed

Hi everyone, here are a few quick pics of our former dining room now Freja's play room. We spent all day Saturday rearranging furniture, moving plants, covering outlets etc so that we have one safe spot to put Freja down without worrying (too much) about her getting in to something she shouldn't. Our former living room is now a combo living/dining room and as you can see there was plenty of room for the dining room table once we took the leaf out. To top off our busy day we put up the Christmas tree. I figure once we take the tree down the room will seem so much bigger.

Is it just me or does "babyproofed" sound like we are protecting ourselves from the baby?

Guest Blogger: Grandpa Dirk!

At nine months  Freja now crawls, points to things, talks with good intonation (but with a vocabulary we don’t yet fully understand –but we’ll learn; give us time), smiles in that charming way of hers that captivates everybody she sees, and continues to be the center of adoring attention everywhere we go. She now has a completely new wardrobe, having outgrown the old since we last saw her in July, and a ton of new, fun toys.
 
Grandma Jeanne and I (Grandpa Dirk) were invited to spend Thanksgiving week in Basalt with Freja, Kelly and Jan. On Thanksgiving Day we went to Rachel and Brian’s beautiful house along with ten other couples and a group of adorable little girls running around the house. Of course Freja wanted to join in and run with them, but she’s not quite up to running on two feet yet, so she watched and listened and registered the activity for later when she learns to walk and run. Then she went down for a little nap while the rest of us ate a delicious Thanksgiving meal complete with the requisite turkey, ham, several great wines, cranberries, and some very interesting, intellectual adult conversation with some fascinating, articulate people while the kids entertained themselves or slept.

On Friday night we went out to Hestia restaurant in Carbondale, and of course Freja was perfectly behaved in a public place and smiled and waved at complete strangers who then felt perfectly free to come over and talk to her and admire the gorgeous child. She graciously smiled, said a few words to them, and melted their hearts. She has a way of doing that; she does it with us all the time. She talks to us, making all her needs known, and then gives us that disarming smile that gets us every time.
 
Freja has opened up a new level of love in our hearts that we couldn’t have imagined before she came into our lives. At this season of the year, when we traditionally express out loud the things that we are thankful for, I have too many things to say, so I’ll limit it to saying that I’m thankful for having Kelly and Freja in my life. There is no greater love.

Nine Months Old

Sweet Freja is nine months old already. So hard to believe she has been with us as long as I was pregnant with her! It sounds like a cliche but it really is hard to remember our lives before her. 

Freja is a busy and thriving baby. At nine months she is crawling all over the place, jabbers up a storm and has two bottom teeth. They are coming in crooked and Jan is already worrying about the expense of braces. We've been lucky enough to inherit some great hand-me-down toys including an interactive door with mailbox, doorbell, lights and all kinds of music (music we have heard over and over and over...), and also a little music table.  She just loves pushing buttons and moving parts, all the bells & whistles of cause & effect toys. 

We went to Santa Barbara last weekend to go to a wedding. Freja was a great little traveler - passengers on one of our flights even told us she was the world's best baby. Of course, we agree! 

Jeanne & Dirk arrive tomorrow and will be here through Thanksgiving week. We'll be sure to get guest blog posts from them while they are here. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Vondos in the House!

Aunt Julie and Cousin Kacee reporting on our week with Freja.... We must have picked the right week to be in Colorado, because the weather was as wonderful as Freja. The blue skies and warm sunshine were perfect. Kacee enjoyed a long hike on Sunday with Kelly, while Jan went to Snowmass (I think) for a long bike ride; I spent QT with sweet, sweet Freja.  She babbled and played and napped right on schedule.  Every morning, Jan was up with Freja, either holding her while she had her bottle or chatting with her like daddies do. Kelly worked from home Monday and Friday, and at the office Tuesday-Thursday. Martha, one of Freja's sitters, spent Tuesday with Freja, while Kacee and I enjoyed a day of mom/daughter togetherness. We savored lunch at Ajax Tavern and indulged at the Aspen Candy Company. But enough about our fun, I know you want to hear about Freja...By the end of the week, she had mastered sitting but was still using the "super-stretch-belling-crawl" as a method of movement. Her first tooth began to come thru. She enjoyed using a finger as a chew toy as well as the sound of a trilling 'r'...that made her laugh, laugh, laugh. Kel has colorful letters, that spell her name, I would spell them out and then sound them out while pointing to each letter, she smiled and giggled.  Kacee drew a picture that is taped to the underside of a shelf over the changing table...we hope it gives her something to focus on while she's in for a pit stop. Kacee and I also worked an some simple baby-proofing projects like moving plants and stands and installing outlet covers. I went thru drawers pulling precious baby clothes that she's amazingly (and beautifully) outgrown. Oh, and not to be left out...Shady made it perfectly clear that I wasn't to use the dryer when he was around and that not everyone in the house was happy we were there. He certainly doesn't hide his feelings. We can't wait to see Freja again.  As her onesie says, "The Best of Mom and Dad."