Guess what? Seriously, guess what? You did the most unbelievable thing since you were born during the last six months. It was something neither of us thought would ever happen. An action we had given up on long ago. But your surprised us, and in the most positive way possible.

YOU ARE SLEEPING THROUGH THE NIGHT!

I know it sounds dramatic, but going 14 months without a single night where we didn’t wake up take a bit of a toll. But you did it, and are doing it. We see the world differently. Everything is sunny and bright. Thank you!

You also did some other stuff worth noting. As a matter of fact, this is likely the most notable post yet. Let’s just list them out first:

• First time sleeping through the night (covered that)
• First steps (a big one as well)
• First time to the beach
• First time not breastfeeding
• First time to an island
• First time in a pool
• First time hiking

Those are the major notables. Another thing happened that was nearly as exciting, as your skin finally cleared up. You have had terrible eczema the first year of your life but, as you can see from the pictures, your skin is finally clear. We think this might be the reason for your sleeping improvement, and believe that you not breastfeeding also contributed. Although your mom went gluten free, egg free, peanut free and tried a variety of other diets there was nothing that seemed to fix the issue. Regardless of what the reason really was it has taken care of itself now which is a huge relief.

Hawaii (Maui)

You took your first trip to Hawaii! We all went to Maui and stayed in Wailea for 2 weeks with Papa and Damian. We stayed in a condo about 100 feet from the water in the Ekahi Village (unit 20, I believe). Four of the seven firsts listed above happened on that trip.

Just a little note, I had never been to Hawaii in my life and you go the first year of yours. This, IMO, served as your official certification as a spoiled child.

You were incredible on the flight there. Although you didn’t really sleep, you were totally content just staring at people from mom’s lap. This is a favorite pastime of both you and your mother: staring at people uncomfortably. You will see a picture below that is you and mom on the plane as people are boarding…creepers. You read books, ate, and did take a short nap. You were still breastfeeding at the time so that helped. You did pop up from time to time to say hi to other people but mostly kept to yourself.

Maui was beautiful. You took to the pool pretty well, allowing mom and I to swim around with you for hours. The ocean, that was something different. You were not a fan of the waves, the noise, the sand on the beach or really anything about it. We did finally get to the point where we were able to play in the sand a little, but that was the extent of your beach going. In the condo you found the coasters extremely interesting, ransacked the books, enjoyed pineapple (surprisingly) and had a blast for the most part. Your sleeping was atrocious, as you would wake up every night between 11-1 and we would bring you into bed with us. You also woke up no later than 5am any day we were there.

The early mornings sound bad, but they were actually my favorite part of the entire trip. We would wake up around 4:30 every day, head out to the kitchen and grab a snack, and then go for a run along the beach. We did this every single day we were there. Mom came a few times, but it was mainly our activity. There is a boardwalk type path along the ocean that passes the beautiful beachfront hotels and allows you to go on the sand as well. I would pop you in the stroller turn on some music and we would head out usually for a 4-6 mile run. The sun was not up yet when we would leave, but it would rise during out run. At the end of the run we would stop at a Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf next to the Hilton hotel so I could get a coffee, and then return to the condo. Sometimes no one would be awake and we would read books, other times everyone was up (not Damian) and the Harper show would begin. These were, by far, the best memories I have from the trip.

Another awesome time was your first hike. We hiked the Waihee Ridge Trail, a 5 mile out and back that goes up 1,500 feet. It was easily the most beautiful hike I had ever been on, and rode along in the hiking backpack on me. You also were awesome. On the way up you were all smiles, and on the way down you slept most of the way. You an I were along a lot of the hike as when I hike, I kinda have to go at my own pace with is pretty fast. We were the first to the top and the first back to the car at the bottom. The trail was incredible and the weather could not have been better.

Other things we did were brunch at the Grand Wailea, visited Kihei and Kapalua, spent much time at the pool, had bbq’s many nights, went to some incredible restaurants and did a lot of relaxing. Your mom’s 28th birthday happened while we were there and we got to go to dinner alone for the first time since you were born.

It was a killer trip, one that I will never forget.

Walking

Throughout the entire trip you were also on the verge of walking. You would get to the point where you would walk holding our hands, or even just one hand. You would also stand up by yourself and look as if you were going to take off at any moment, only to “realize” you were standing and get scared and fall down. The entire trip we were trying to get you to take your first steps, but you held out and didn’t go with the plan.

We got back from the trip late on a Saturday, recovered on Sunday, and on Monday I had to go to San Francisco to visit Google on business. I got off the plane and called your mom to check in on things. I could tell there was a little something different in her voice, but couldn’t quite pin-point what it was. I was getting out of an Uber at the Google campus and let her know I was heading into a meeting and had to run. She then laid it on me…you had taken your first steps. I was in shock, a mixture of joy/guilt/excitement/sadness. I think your mom felt guilty for some reason she couldn’t understand, but there was no reason for her to encompass that emotion. I had just spent 2 straight weeks with you, every day all day. It was the most time we had ever spent together, and then you walk when I leave. Thinking back on it now it is kind of funny, just one of those things in life.

You were not one of those kids that walked and then couldn’t walk enough. You were very calculated (as you always are) and wouldn’t push your luck. Writing this I still don’t think I have seen you fall once. You do not rush into it, you take your time and plan your steps. You are walking more every day, but in some cases still prefer to crawl. It is an incredible thing to watch, the learning that is happening and how unbelievable your brain is to enable the progress. As your dad it is also just cool to watch your kid grow like this, you are proud of it. I am proud of you.

The Rest

You are a reserved child. As you mature and begin exhibiting more social cues it is apparent that you are skeptical in nature, and prefer the safety of mom or me over branching out to others. A healthy level of skepticism is a good thing, and you are by no means chronically shy. You will get crazy and play with mom and me, and you are very comfortable with Mia as well. Outside of that group it is a crapshoot. I mention this because I think it will be really interesting to see how you turn out, and if this behavior is indicative of your social nature as an adult.

As far as everything else, here are some tidbits: you love swings and sunglasses; you hate grass and cats; you are getting really into painting; french fries are your favorite food; your eyelashes are long and your hair is crazy and blonde; you are making many attempts at words and making more sense each day; you won’t sleep without having books read to you and your highest aspiration is to make Layla your best friend. It is a fun time. Talk to you at 2!

Love you more than you will ever know,

-Dad