Weekend in the Desert

 We continued the Thanksgiving celebration through the weekend with a trip to Palm Springs to visit my parents during their six week road trip through the West.  Beautiful skies, crisp mornings and hot afternoons were the perfect recipe for a getaway.  

 Harrison loved his daily nature walks with Gran Gran, spotting road runners and rabbits.  Lucia loved all of the extra attention,

 giggling at Gigi, 

 and getting to sport some rather styly outfits.  

 Here is a series of photographic attempts by my mom to capture that perfect family moment...and in a way she did - here is our family, pre nap time, unedited.  

 We spent a morning on El Paseo, admiring the shops and interesting artwork, 

 and riding escalators countless times just for kicks.  

 The pools were delightful, and Harrison loved his nightly dips and meditation, 

and wearing his new Tom's shoes sans pants.  

A Roar of a Thanksgiving

We were fortunate to get to spend the week of Thanksgiving with Andy's parents in town.  A trip to the San Diego Zoo on Thanksgiving day provided us the opportunity to be grateful for all of the incredible and unique animals living throughout our world.

Harrison was enamored with the monkeys, 

crocodiles, 

exotic birds, 

and an elephant tree.

Lucia rather enjoyed her visit as well, soaking in the sights and sounds of the zoo...especially from under her tent.

 The zoo was so impressive and we so enjoyed getting to experience the wonder of the zoo with Harrison and Lucia. 

 From pandas, polar and sun bears, to a whole host of monkeys, exotic birds, and big cats, we happily made our way through this magical place.

 and even convinced Andy's parents to ride a gondola,

with breathtaking views of the zoo and surrounding monuments.   

 We made it home happily exhausted and continued the celebration with a delicious, traditional Thanksgiving feast.  Thank you Harold and Karen for the great memories.

Lucia at 3 months

Baby Lucia, I can't believe you are three months old now!  What an amazing month this has been.  Visits with family and friends, exciting adventures in California and Oregon, celebrating Halloween and an introduction to trains, planes and automobiles have made for quite the busy month.  You have welcomed these new experiences with heart melting smiles, and the occasional giggle as of late.

You are so strong, holding your lovely head up solidly, and trying to sit up with every opportunity provided.  It is so incredible to observe your personality emerging more and more with each passing day, and I love how curious you are about your new world.  It's becoming increasingly more difficult however to capture a clear picture of you as you are in a constant state of wiggly motion.  

You love your brother, and your eyes light up every time he says "hi baby Lulu"!

Thanks to your new reflux wedge (pictured below), you have moved from waking up nearly every hour during the night, to miraculously sleeping for 8-9 hour stretches.  Hallelujah!!!  It is so wonderful seeing you in a much more comfortable state than this time last month.

You are also an excellent communicator...letting us know, rather loudly, when you need extra cuddles, food, or help getting to sleep.

You are such a bright spot in our lives and we cherish each new moment with you.  

Here is a look at some of your first "words" that emerged this month.  

A weekend with baby Asha

Kevin, Simmi and baby Asha (born one day after Lucia), graced us with their presence on a not so sunny San Diego weekend in November.  Despite a series of northwestern like rain storms, we still had a blast hanging out with dear friends and getting to know the Corcoran's newest addition.

Harrison loved Asha, and felt the need to be wherever the babies were...especially when they were exploring the jungle.

From playing with (and dressing like) uncle Kevin,

to sitting with the ladies (and holding Asha's hand), this boy had a wonderful weekend.

We spent a fantastic day exploring the Wildlife Safari Park...

where happy babies become butterflies,

 and other adult like creatures turn into bats.

Both the challenge and highlight of the adventure turned out to be the rain:  while we weren't wild about the wetness, the animals absolutely came alive in the safari park (see Mufasa and his lady friend)...

and provided an opportunity for Kevin to sport this adorable number while aboard the train.

A rare and up close interaction with a lioness was quite the treat for Harrison, 

who perhaps didn't realize this dangerous beauty was envisioning a tasty treat of her own.

The elephants at the park recently welcomed another baby to their herd, and we were thrilled to experience this little one wobbling around with his mom.  

A return to normal San Diego weather afforded an outing at the beach before saying goodbye to our friends.  The babies loved the delicious marine air,

and Harrison couldn't be happier with his toes in the sand and a shovel in hand.