First trip away

We survived my first business trip away from Reese. Ok, to be fair, I survived. CK and Reese were just fine and I knew they would be before I even left. I can't tell you how nice it is to leave for a few days and know that your baby will be with her father the whole time. Although I missed them both, I really wasn't ever upset or worried. Guess that's what having a really qualified Mr. Mom does. And good thing, too. Back in Helena for 24 hours and then it's off to Provo for my first week on the project.

The much anticipated roll over video...

As you all read yesterday, Reese rolled over for the first time 3 days prior to turning 5 months old. And after a day of practice has mastered the back to front roll-over, and has no interest at all in rolling back over - unless it's an accident (you'll see what I mean in the video)... Enjoy.

Milestone: Rolling Over

Reese has decided she is ready to roll over (as I type this she just did it twice). Yesterday I had her laying down on her back playing with a toy while I was packing up the kitchen. I looked over and she was on her stomach. I asked CK, "did you move her?" and the answer was "nope" she just decided it was time. So far she is only rolling from her back to her stomach (which is funny because all of the books I've read say that stomach to back is easier but then we already knew we had a quick learner on our hands, right?) CK did manage to get it on video so perhaps he will upload one here soon.


We have a busy few weeks coming up. My project in Provo, Utah has finally sold so we will be temporarily relocating there on 2/15. In preparation we are packing up our stuff for the 2nd time in 8 months :) This week I am heading to Florida for some work training while CK drives up to Malta to pick up our "moving van" (a.k.a. 32 foot trailer). Next week I am off to Provo for the first week of our project while CK finishes packing. When I get home we will pack most of our stuff into the trailer and CK will drive it back up to Malta for storage while I fly to Portland for more training. When I get home on the 13th we'll pack the Edge with our clothes and baby stuff and drive down to Utah. Did you follow all that? Me neither. I have to write it all down to keep it straight.

We decided not to rent an apartment/house in Provo for 10 months so we could be flexible in returing to Montana to build or to do any other "projects" that tend to materialize when one is retired and handy :) Because of that we will be living in my corporate apartment (which is really an extended stay hotel room) in Provo for the next few months until it's warm enough to think about any building. We'd love to have visitors so feel free to fly out to Salt Lake City for a long (or a short) weekend anytime.

Jumperoo and a new president

Some pictures of Reese from Sunday. Even though the JETS are out of the playoffs, Reese and I are still rooting for our favorite team. Reese in her Brett Favre jersey is pretty darn cute if you ask me. For now, however, we'll be pulling for Arizona.

Today Reese got her new Jumperoo (Daddy's first gift to her, you know, besides life/good genes and all)...as you can see I think she likes it. Mommy's gift was that Reese slept through the night last night for the first time in a L-O-N-G time. It was absolutely wonderful. We are all happy campers today.

Finally, today is a historic day in our nation's history and I hope everyone gets a chance to reflect on the significance of this day. Regardless of your political views, here's to hoping this administration makes the right decisions for the future of our country and our children.

Future marathoner?

Today was a big day in the LaFond house. Reese and I finally went for our first run together! We had to wait first for Reese to get big enough so it was safe. Then, of course, it had to be warm enough. Well today it was in the 40s with little to no wind, a perfect day for a tandem run. As you can see, Reese was all geared up. She had a great time. Mom was tired. It will take some getting used to pushing an extra 30 pounds around while I'm still struggling to get back in shape myself. But it was fun and well worth the extra work. The stroller is great- thanks again Nana! I can't wait for the Spring/Summer when neither of us has to put on three layers before we can head out. I think we spent more time gearing up than actually running :)

Big Blue weekend

It was another sports-filled weekend and coincidentally all the teams we were cheering on were Blue. Saturday night we went to a Helena Bighorns hockey game with Val, Steve, Andrew and Kaitlyn.Saturday afternoon Reese and I cheered on the Blue Devils as they battled Florida State (and won!)

Sunday it was time to cheer on Big Blue...or the GIANTS. Unfortunately, they didn't fare too well.

And some other miscellaneous pictures from the last few days:

After a bath, Reese donned her robe and slippers

Mom and Reese napping

It's a tough life

18 lbs, 1 oz and 26 inches

Reese had her 4 month checkup yesterday and her official stats are:

Weight: 18 lbs, 1 oz (Dad guessed right on the money)
Height: 26 inches (or for those of you keeping track 42.6% of Mom's height)

She's still tracking at the top of the charts (for those of you who've seen her recently, this should come as no surprise) and the doctor said she's doing great.

She also received her second round of immunizations and other than a brief wail, did just fine.

New Year's Day 2009

We drove up to Malta for the weekend on New Year's Eve with Val and her kids. Jen, Derrick, Tanner and Lindsey joined us for a snowy holiday. Grandpa Greg bought Reese an adorable Santa outfit that she donned on New Year's day.

On Saturday we attempted to go sledding after a great snowfall. However, the blizzard-like conditions (it was 0 degrees without the windchill) that you can see below kept the fun to a single run by Val and CK before we gave up and headed in for hot chocolate and poker instead.

It was a fun weekend and a smooth ride home despite the weather (the van said the outside temperature was -30 degrees in Havre!) and we're back now in Helena. Reese is growing more and more every day and tomorrow she goes to the doctor for her 4 month immunizations and height/weight check.