Buffalo at the Hardin's

We left Thursday morning for the hour drive northwest to Buffalo, NY to visit Jeff, Tiff, Luke and Roan. We timed it so Bailey would be sleeping in the car for her morning nap. We got there and had lunch and went to the park for some play time. We played on the swings and slid down the slides. It was a beautiful afternoon. Tiff cooked a yummy pulled-pork dinner and went downstairs in their unfinished basement to play with all of Luke's toys. Bailey started pushing a baby carriage around--walking!!! For the first time! She just took off. And TJ got it on video too. It was amazing to watch her move like that for the first time.

The next day we all went to north to see Niagra Falls. We first stayed on the U.S. side where you could stand practically right next to falls. We got sprayed pretty good. Bailey liked it. We decided to go across the border to Canada to see the falls from the other side. Boy, was it worth it! They were amazing. We were short on time with Bailey needing a nap, but just seeing it was so great. They had a tour where you could go underneath the big falls which would have been fun to see. We got back in the car and headed north on the scenic Niagra River Parkway to the edge of Lake Ontario. Bailey slept for the car ride back and was ready to play when we got back to the house. TJ and Jeff picked up some Buffalo Wings and we had white chicken chile!

The next day we packed up the car and headed back to Stamford. We had a long day of driving ahead of us and we made plenty of stops. Luckily, we were in no rush so we stopped often to let Bailey crawl around on a blanket and stretch her legs. She was a trooper in the car and was a wonderful traveler.

Rochester with the Gallagher's

We arrived in Rochester late Tuesday evening at about 7. Bailey was getting cranky in the car and we thought for sure she would eat dinner and crash when we arrived. Boy, were we wrong! We bathed her within 5 minutes of arriving and gave her a bottle but she was up past 9 pm exploring the new house and getting to know James and Allison. She finally went to sleep and slept the whole night. The next day we woke up and "attempted" to go the Lilac Festival, which was being set up for the upcoming weekend. However, the new Subaru Tribeca developed a severe vibration in the rear end. After calling the tow truck and arranging to go to the Subaru Dealer, the tow-truck driver discovered it was the Emergency Brake that was on! I never set the Brake and don't know why I did pulling in the driveway the night before. The big red "BRAKE" light didn't alert us in the dash either. After solving that mystery, we all had a wonderful time walking around the beautiful park and seeing the flowers and trees in bloom. Bailey really enjoyed being caried around by James.

After naps in the afternoon for all of us, we decided to check out the Erie Canal and take a short walk. It was really cool to see the lock systems. It was fun to see the paved bike path that runs from Albany to Buffalo...maybe we will return for a major bike ride someday.

From there, we went out to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory and had a yummy dinner. James got to feed Bailey her carrots and he did a pretty good job. Perhaps James and Allison are ready for one of their own now!

The next morning we woke up and headed out by 10 (nap time for Bailey) and drove to Buffalo, which was only 60 miles away, to see Jeff, Tiff, Luke, and Roan.

Bailey's First Road Trip

We decided to make one last trip before Bailey and I moved back to Idaho in May. TJ has two close friends from the University of Utah that are also doctors and are doing residencies/fellowships in New York. We haven't seen them in years. We set out on a 5 day road trip to visit Rochester and Buffalo, New York. We also took the chance to visit Niagra Falls, which we had yet to see during our time in NY.

Bailey did great in the car. The day before we left, TJ and I bought a portable DVD player that was on sale at Target. It sure paid off and then some. We only put it on if she was getting cranky. Most of the time she was happy playing with her new Elmo phone or sleeping. We stopped in Binghamton, NY in a downtown park so Bailey could stretch her legs and crawl around on a blanket. We also put her in the swing and she loved it! She was giggling the whole time.

Good bye to Egane

We went out to our favorite sushi place in Stamford tonight.....Egane. It has been a great place to go as a family. We brought Bailey there when she was 10 days old...on Susie's 30th Birthday. We have been back many times since then because the place is usually not very busy in case Bailey freaks out. She never did, but it was always nice to know that if she did, then we wouldn't disturb anyone. The girls that work there know her by name and know that our table is the one by the window so Bailey can look out. We always ordered the Hawaiian role which is cream cheese, crab meat, and rice fried in tempura...Ymmmmmm. Bailey loves it there. She looks oustide at all of the people going by. People look back in at her and smile. We will miss going there with our Bailey.

Bailey Chop Sticks

We went out to our favorite Sushi place in Stamford one last time before Bailey and Susie move back to Idaho. It has been a great place to go as a family. Bailey learned to eat from chop sticks tonight. I fed her cheerios and gerber stars with my chop sticks. At first, she just wanted to play with them. But then she figured out that I had treats to give her. From then on, she just opened her mouth when she saw them coming.

Grandpa Kemp Babysits

We are packing up the condo in Stamford this week. Susie and Bailey are headed home to Idaho on the 12th of May. Grandpa Kemp came out to help us watch Bailey while Susie and I pack. He feeds, and puts her down for naps. She likes his beard. He is getting pretty good with the diapers, but still prefers one of us to change her. Especially when she poops.

Bailey's first bug encounter

Sorry, no pictures here, but Bailey just had her first encounter with a bug. Unfortunately, it was a wasp. We had our spring service on our AC and I think the wasp flew in when the door was open. I was sitting at the table eating lunch and Bailey was over by the slider door, sitting and playing on the floor. I looked up and saw something fly up away from her. I thought it was outside. Then she looked at me and started crying. Red face and tears. She had probably tried to grab it while it was on the floor. I don't know if it stung her - I searched her exposed skin and didn't see anything that looked like a sting. Guess I'll just watch her.

We are going this afternoon to pick-up Grandpa from the airport. He is in town for a short visit and to help watch Bailey while we pack the house...then Bailey and I will fly back with him to Boise.

Rita's Last Day

Rita is our babysitter that has come to our house since mid-October to care for Bailey while I have been at work. She has been so wonderful for Bailey. When Rita comes inside and Bailey see's her, she gets a big smile on her face and starts kicking her legs as I hold her. She takes her on walks, to the park, reads to her, and plays with her. Rita, we thank you for all you have done for our little girl and you will definitely be missed, but not forgotten.

Text Message from Daddy

"I love you and b. I would love to spend the day with my girls. Daddy"
Got this message from TJ today. So cute. He was hoping to get out early but their first case got bumped to the second case so everything is delayed. That's a common situation at WMC.

Easter Sunday

Happy Easter! We put Bailey in this cute seer-sucker, spring dress from Great-Grandma Thompson. She looked so cute! She had trouble crawling in it though, as her knees would go up and keep her pinned down as she tried to go forward. We took some family pictures, then changed her into pants for her Easter egg hunt. She crawled around and found the eggs. TJ put little stars in them and we would open them for her and she would pick it out and eat it, then move on to the next one. Check out the video.