5!

Hey Buggy,

It is such a cliche parent thing to say – but you are growing up so fast!

The last six months I have seen more development in you than any other span that size. Everything from social aspects to life application of learnings to openness to new things and experiences. Your art has improved dramatically, and your knowledge of letters and numbers have evolved at a rapid pace. Even the way you play has taken on a much more mature attitude – taking our orders and cooking us play food is a great example of how you are developing workflows and executing against them. I plan to really begin honing your technical skills and seeing if something like coding is something you find interesting.

Among many things you did for the first time these past six months, one of the more exciting activities is that you went skiing for the first time. Not only that, but you were great at it! We went up to Bogus Basin on a bluebird day, and I was not really sure what to expect. We rented gear for both you and Ethan and just went to the bunny hill to try things out. We got you both all geared up and I started having you hold my hand as we went along. Your brother (mind you, 2 at the time) struggled as the gear was too big for him and he just didn’t really seem that excited about the activity. Mom took him to get some hot chocolate while you and I practiced.

As time went on you progressed quickly, and within an hour I had you near the top of the hill coming all the way down to me. You didn’t fall once. Your balance was incredible and the speed didn’t seem to bother you. You weren’t turning or anything, but it was apparent that for you this just came naturally. A couple weeks later we went back up again and you got a private lesson where they took you on the chair lift and you spent an hour with an instructor. You started turning and going down a bigger hill, and seemed to love it. The season is nearly over so we likely won’t get up again, but I cannot wait for next year.

You are coming up on the end of your last year of preschool – your time as a Ladybug will end. We still don’t know where you will end up next year but we have kicked off the process of looking and applying for schools. Mom is still holding on to the prospect of transitional kindergarten – a concept that is new at this point but might be an afterthought when you read this – but I am on the side of going to kindergarten. Mom is, of course, not sure what she wants but we will continue to work towards a decision.

You have made a lot of friends in your class and in our neighborhood. While the neighbor girls (Elli, Maci, Allie) can be brats you seem to have fun. The interesting thing though is that you frequently turn them down to play because you “want to spend time with your family” instead. You are as sweet as ever and really love both us and your brother. I can’t explain to you what a joy it is to have you around, and how much you make live easier and more fulfilling. I can’t wait to write the next post and tell you all about your next six months.

I love you more than anything in the world.

Love, Dad

4 1/2 – Summer 2018

Sep1

Here we are again 6 months later and going into the fall of 2018. This summer has been an incredible one – and the change is you in happening daily. What hasn’t changed – you are still sweet as ever.

Lots of firsts this summer:

Caught first fish
First MLB game
First dance recital
First bike
First swimming lesson
First Starbucks

Swimming

As you can see it has been busy! Probably the most surprising part of the year has been your new found love for swimming. When we first took you to Maui getting you into the pool was a struggle. We would hold you and swim around with you and half the time you cried and screamed to get out. However this summer was different. Your friends Ally and Macy from two doors down have a pool – and in an effort to play with them more you have taken to swimming. After you started swimming more we needed to ensure that, well, you could swim. You started lessons and have been in the pool multiple times a week. You have improved tremendously and hoping that by next summer you can swim on your own.

Fishing

You were finally old enough for me to take you fishing as well! After a failed attempt at finding a pole in Hailey (bought a pole that then didn’t have a line on it), we found you a Mickey Mouse pole in Ketchum. We then headed to Penny Lake out warm springs, where basically you will catch fish unless actively to try to not catch fish. After a few minutes there we hooked one, and you reeled it in (see video below) almost all by yourself. You were so excited, and to my surprise wanted to pick up the fish and hold it. You were not squeamish at all about it being slimy or alive – you picked it up and posed. We stuck around for a while longer and caught a couple more fish until you got bored. I want to at some point take you out fly fishing but hopefully in this case just made it fun enough to instill excitement.

Baseball Game

Selfishly, and probably not surprisingly, this was the highlight of my summer. I wanted to take you to a game last year but you were still a bit young to both appreciate it and deal with the travel. This year was perfect, and I picked a day game in August where the Rockies were playing the Pirates. Here is the play-by-play (pun intended).

We flew out of Boise on a Wednesday morning on a direct flight to Denver. One of the perks of traveling as much as I do is that I have flight status, so we were both upgraded to first class for the flight.

You watched the Greatest Showman (your favorite movie at the time) and had apple juice. At this point you are an expert flier.

We landed at DIA and made our way down to the train that goes from the airport to Union Station. Because I didn’t bring a carseat we did all public transit or walked. I got us a hotel in the middle of downtown so that we could access everything easily. This was your first time on a train, and to say you were excited would not be fair – you were ecstatic.

When we arrived at Union Station we were immersed in people. You haven’t had too many instances like this – where there is actually a crowd. We made our way through the station and walked to the stadium. It was a perfect day.

We went into the stadium and got snacks, stopped by the gift shop and then took our seats. We were pretty close behind home plate, but it was a sunny day and you were getting hot so after a couple innings we moved up a few rows into the shade.

You did awesome at the game. It didn’t hurt that I bought you a hat, beads, popcorn and, actually another first, cotton candy. You were skeptical at first, as you are about most things, but ended up loving the cotton candy.

Mom was of course nervous about the trip for a variety of reasons – but one that stood out was foul balls. In the years after your mom and I got married and before we had kids I played in baseball leagues while we lived in San Diego and Denver. It was pretty fun, and in SD specifically pretty good competition. One game I remember looking back and not seeing mom in the stands anymore. I wasn’t concerned, but was curious as to what happened. After the game ended I was packing up and she re-appeared. I came to find out that during the game a foul ball had gone into the stands, and she had a striking fear about getting hit by one. She had disappeared and spent the game reading a book in the car.

When I got our tickets her first question was about foul balls. I assured her that I bought tickets directly behind home plate specifically because there would be a net that extended from the backstop to the announcers stand – protecting everyone in that area from foul balls. When we got there I realized that Coors Field did not have one of these nets. My first thought was of your mom.

I am obviously not scared of foul balls, and the probability of one coming near are slim to none so I didn’t think much of it. But sure enough in the fifth inning, a Rockies batter fouled one off right in our direction. The first thought was of your mom and how I was going to get you hit by a foul ball and never, ever live it down. Fortunately it was a high foul ball so I had time to react. I stood up, reached over the seats in front of us (which were vacant) and caught the ball with my right hand. The crowd cheered and I sat back down next to you and gave you the ball. In true Harper fashion, rather than being excited about the ball you said “you bumped me” with your bottom lip hanging out. I apologized and gave you the ball. Then sent this pic to your mom to let her know you were ok.

You made it to the 7th inning stretch – which for a 4 year old is impressive. After the game we walked to our hotel, checked in and went up to the room. This was not your first time staying in a hotel, but the only other time was a Holiday Inn Express when we were moving from Trailwood to 14th so this was the first time you remembered. You were pretty excited. Jumping on the bed, watching cartoons, and we even got a little room service.

After getting settled we headed out to dinner. The 16th street promenade has busses that go up and down it all day/night, so we jumped on a bus (you love busses) and went to Yardhouse because it was near the theatre. We had some dinner and then went to see Christopher Robin in the movie theatre. You had more candy and snacks and sat through the whole movie.

After the movie we took a bus back towards our hotel, walked to the room, and as soon as we got inside you said “Daddy I’m tired, I think I’m going to go to bed” – and you were out like a light. The next morning we got on the bus, took it to Union Station, got on the train, got on the plane and went home. You told mom and Ethan all about our trip. You had the best time – and for me you created a memory that I will never forget and forever cherish. Since then you ask to watch baseball proactively – and we have watched many games together.

The rest of summer

You got your first real bike! I bought it in Sun Valley when we were there and got the last one they had. Was crazy because I didn’t settle and just grab the one I could find – the bike fit your personality perfectly. Since getting the bike you ride almost daily all around the driveway and cul-de-sac. Your friends have bikes too and you guys ride around in a little posse. We ride to the park nearby and to Bown Crossing to get lunch.

At the end of May you also had your first dance recital. You can see in the video – you are obviously a gifted dancer. You did so well and had so much fun doing it – although I think your favorite part was the flowers that you got afterwards.

We also went and saw the hot air balloon festival one morning while it was going on. We woke up around 6, got dressed and was at the park before 6:30 to get a good spot (had to get there before it got light out). It was a little cold and wet but you loved it. We watched the balloons for a couple hours. They were letting kids get int he baskets and go up 20 feet or so in the air – but you refused, which came as no surprise.

The rest of the summer was spent playing with friends, trips to Sun Valley, more swimming and hanging out with us. You are growing up so fast and can do so many things now. You started your second year of preschool in September and love it, and we are beginning to look at kindergartens for you next year. You are more fun to play with every day that passes, and as always a joy to have around. Can’t wait to update you again 6 months from now.

I love you more than you will ever know.

Love, Dad

4

Mar1

You have been going to preschool and are getting ready to finish up your first year! As mentioned previously, you are in the 3/4 class at Wesleyan and your class is adorably called the Ladybugs. The school is in North End and your teachers are teacher Gina and teacher Beth. We were worried about you from a social perspective, but you have been doing incredibly well. You are still shy, but once you get into playing you forget we are even gone. Obviously your mom is struggling with not having you around but she is acclimating quickly. You have made friends and go on play dates.

Consistent with the past, your favorite thing to do is color. You color so much that we don’t have places to store all of your drawings. We sit down with you once in a while and ask you to choose the ones you want to keep and the ones that you want to throw away. If this exercise was done by your mom, nothing would ever get thrown away. You on the other hand are incredibly decisive. We will hold them up for you and ask yes or no and you will choose quickly, and are actually about 50/50 on keeping versus tossing. I would expect most children to want to keep everything or not be able to decide, but you are incredibly quick with decision making (pretty sure you got this from me, btw).

In addition to school, you also started dance classes. You do ballet and tap once a week and seem to enjoy it. It is pretty much just an adorable show for the parents every time because, well, you guys are not very good. However, you look freaking adorable in your ballet outfit.

Without getting too far into the post, let’s cover a few firsts over the last 6 months:

First face-painting
First time willingly going into the ocean
First time driving (barbie jeep)
First dance class
Potty trained!

I will cover each of these and more, but it is worth mentioning there were a couple pretty big life moments that have occurred.

New House

As you can see it is a bit different from where we were living. Basically, your mom doesn’t like North End because she is not a fan of people in general. There are also a lot of things that are left to be desired in our north end house: alley behind the house, no driveway, your rooms are on a different floor, small backyard, no garage, etc. The location could not be better, but for two young kids it is tough and more city like living than your mom wants.

She found our new house months ago and fell in love with it. Someday you will watch the move Father of the Bride, it is a favorite of hers. In that movie there is this iconic, large, white house with shutters and a lined walkway. This house loosely resembles that one (on a smaller scale) and your mom has been pining over it for some time now.

We had not gone to see the house because it was very overpriced (like $825k or something) and she didn’t think we could get it. We also had not been in our house for that long, and to save you from a bunch of financial and tax related reasons let’s just say it was not a great idea to move that quickly. But she loved the house – and as corny as it sounds, I wanted her to have it. For me it was not in the location I wanted (I like being where everything is happening), but it was near the river and within walking distance to food and activities. She also agreed to let me put in a projector if we got it.

Before moving forward though I wanted to go see the inside (with the secret hope that maybe she would see the outdated interior and fall out of love with it). When we visited it was pure 90’s style: valences over the windows, wallpaper EVERYWHERE, brass sconces, light wood floors with carpet all upstairs – and that is just listing few of the hurdles. We left after seeing it, and she loved it more than ever.

I began negotiating with the owners, and after a few months we picked up the house for $706k. Our house went on the market and we received a full price offer the first day (actually for more, $729k). We took the profit and dumped it into the new house, replacing floors and painting walls among other things. We moved in early December, and so far love it.

New Job

I left Balihoo at the end of the year and began a new job with a company called Vacasa in January. I came on as the Vice President of Digital, and oversee everything about the website, vacasa.com. The site currently produces just under $100 million per year – and I have a team I am growing. The company is over 2,000 people, and I am one of 9 execs. It is a much bigger role than the one I had at Balihoo – much more stress but also more opportunity. Currently, my plan is to see it through to an exit (either IPO or acquisition) and then take it from there. Would like to take a month off after so hopefully that will happen,

Back to you. The last 6 months have treated you well and you continue to grow socially, intellectually, and gain confidence. You have friends in our new neighborhood that you play with frequently and are becoming more assured in your personality. When you began playing with them you were very subservient and accommodating, and while you are still sweet you have become more aggressive with doing what you want to do. We live in a cul-de-sac, so you play quite a bit with them.

We also took a week long trip to San Diego (Encinitas) and had a blast. You and I went on a number of bike rides – you sitting in a seat on the cruiser – to get ice cream or to the park. We went to the beach, and after seeing Ethan make a beeline for the water you finally succumbed to the desire of going into the ocean willingly. Like most things, once you tried it you loved it. We would go at least once a day to let you guys swim and play in the sand. We also went to the San Diego zoo, which left you and Ethan amazed. At the house we rented you played in the front yard and did art projects. Mom’s aunt Joey and Michael came over one day for lunch – and the rest of the trip was a random assortment of activities.

You have also started coming with me to run errands on a very regular basis. On weekends there is a lot to do (especially with the new house), and whether it is Home Depot or the grocery store or whatever else we need to do you love coming with me. We put another car seat in my car and you are now at the age where bringing you places is easy. One of the major pieces that make it easier is…

You are potty trained!!!

We got sick of changing your diapers and decided it was time to stop. I won’t go into the details of how we went about it – but I don’t think there has ever been a faster potty training in history. By the end of the first day you were getting the hang of it. By the end of the second you were enjoying it. By the end of the third you were done having accidents and totally grasped the concept. You also didn’t put up much of a fight. You handled it like a champ and we were both so proud of you.

Your favorite things to do right now are drive your jeep, ride your scooter, color, make cookies with mom and, above all else, play with your brother. You still have the sweetest demeanor in general, but especially with him. You love him and he loves you, and watching you guys interact and grow closer is more than we could ever have asked for in our children. I can’t explain how amazing you are and how proud we are to have you. When I see other kids and the way the act and treat others I sometimes cringe, but that doesn’t happen with you. We are truly lucky.

I will talk to you again in 6 months. I love you more than you will ever know.

Love, Dad

3.5 years

Sep1

Another 6 months gone by and another list of first. A few general updates:

You are an incredibly caring big sister. You love little Ethan boy so much and are constantly trying to help us with him, play with him, love on him and tell everyone about him.
Perhaps TMI – but I got snipped recently. We will not be having any more children, you guys are it and we couldn’t be happier. Mom is still a bit on the fence (but only because she can’t actually make decisions), but you guys are it. Don’t disappoint.
Couple of firsts:
- Ice skating – you have been asking to go for months and we finally got the chance in SV. It was actually a first for both of us but we did just fine – and you LOVED it.
- You also took soccer lessons at Camelsback Park near our house. While reticent at first, once you realized all it was about was kicking balls you got into it.
- You flew your first kite. Daddy accidentally dropped it at one point and had to chase it across the park (you were beside yourself when this occurred), but few things bring you as much joy as watching a kite fly.
- Stomach bug – you got sick. You never get sick. Not only did you get sick, but you got sick alllllll over me multiple times. You had rice for dinner, and I slept with you all night get puked on. Part of the issue was that I kept giving you water, not knowing that I was supposed to limit it (oops). I then left for LA for work after you were better and got sick myself, leaving me in a hotel room in Santa Monica puking. It was a lot of fun. Then you got another bug a few months later, and again chose me as your target for vomit. Honestly though, it was one of the saddest things ever seeing you sick. Hope it never happens again.
- Ummmm, you started preschool! Yes, you are in the 3/4 class at Wesleyan. The school is in North End and your teachers are teacher Gina and teacher Beth. We were worried about you from a social perspective, but you have been doing incredibly well. You are still shy, but once you get into playing you forget we are even gone. Obviously your mom is struggling with not having you around but she is acclimating quickly.

We had your birthday in Palm Desert with Tita again and got you an epic Dory cake. Among other things, swimming is one of your faves. You spend 1/2 the time in the jacuzzi swimming and couldn’t get enough. You are also awesome on planes now – all that travel has paid off.

Speaking of travel, you also went to Maui for the third time in your life. You also went first class. You’re not spoiled at all…

While you definitely have a tantrum now and then, and don’t always listen, you are for the most part an easy child. You are also so sweet it is hard to handle sometimes. You are making a lot of friends in preschool and really enjoy it.

Mom is doing well, especially as Ethan is getting older (he doesn’t sleep, just like you). You guys do activities all the time. You are about to start preschool in a couple weeks though, will have to see how mom handles that. 🙂

I am working quite a bit but otherwise good. Work is a bit tumultuous as our parent entity (Engine Group) decided what they want to do with our business. I have been getting recruited a bit so trying to figure out what to do next.

All is well, and cannot wait for another six months to pass and see how things are going.

I love you more than you will ever know,

Love, Dad

“Threen” is a real thing

Mar1

The title of this post is accurate, but not as dramatic as it sounds. While we had hoped we would skip the terrible twos, we haven’t quite made it out unscathed as we recently learned about the “threens”, and you are beginning to show signs of its effects. Now, like I said, it’s not as bad as it sounds, but it has been a bit more bumpy recently than in the past. You have begun to say “no” more often, throwing some tantrums here and there, demanding certain things (mostly foods) and putting up a bit more of a fight when sleeping. This is all I will touch on it though because compared to other children you are extremely tame, and still embody your sweet/caring nature and excitement for life.

Hard to believe but you still experienced a few firsts in the last six months. The first, your brother was born!

November 15th at 7:28am Ethan Charles Donegan was born. He popped out at 7 lbs 1 oz, and just like you, was in the 98th percentile for head size. 🙂

Ethan’s actual delivery was far less eventful than yours (as in he came out breathing fine). Mom was in labor for about 9 hours. Mia had actually come over on the 14th to watch you and your mom went into labor that evening and we headed to the hospital around 7 or so. When we arrived she was 4 centimeters dilated (exact same as you) and could not be admitted until she was over 5. Again, we went for a walk.

I documented our walk when you were on the way here, so I won’t reminisce too much, but it was pretty incredible that again we found ourselves walking the sidewalks of Boise in the dark getting ready to have our second child. We walked the same route, and talked about you and the excitement we were about to go through. You were home sleeping at the time, no idea that we were even gone, and would wake up the next morning as an older sister. Pretty incredible how life works.

After our walk we were admitted to the labor unit, and 9-10 hours later Ethan was here. The name was a debate, but just like with you I actually won that one. We liked both names (Ethan, Wyatt) but I always knew if I had a boy it would be named Ethan. The Charles part was easy, as it is a name in both your mom’s family and mine. He was born without issue, your mom even pulled him out (yes, this was as horrifying as it sounds). Dr. West was able to be there this time around, and soon after we were moved to the maternity ward.

I won’t go into too much detail here as this is meant to document your life (although Ethan is obviously a big part of that), but once we got there I noticed that his breathing was pretty labored and fast. We brought in the nurse and then some specialists and he was admitted to the NICU. Both of you just HAD to have some drama, should have known. There was never a major scare and it was determined that he just had a quick breathing pattern and over time it would fix itself. He was there for almost two days, but after that was discharged and perfectly fine. Soon after we packed up and headed home.

You met him when we got there for the first time (didn’t want you to see him the way he looked in the NICU), and was immediately excited about him. Honestly, I didn’t know a child could love something or someone so quickly. All you wanted to do was hold him, kiss him, help mom take care of him and be this amazingly empathetic child. We read about introducing children to their new siblings and all the pitfalls, you didn’t exhibit a single one. To this day nearly four months later, you are just as loving to Ethan. You are not annoyed when he cries or wants to hold a toy of yours, or when he demands mine or your mom’s time. It is unbelievable to us, we are so very lucky.

So that is the story of Ethan, and now you are not the only child in the fam! That said, we will not be adding any more. I went and got a vasectomy last month once we knew Ethan was good to go. Two kids (to me) is perfect, and we lucked out with getting one of each. Now we are just looking and planning for the future, and all the fun we will have as a four (five with Layla) entity unit.

While Ethan was the big first, you had some others as well. One that could have gone horribly wrong, but instead went incredibly well, was your first movie. We took you to Finding Dory (which you are now obsessed with, hence the cake you see in the pictures below) and you absolutely loved it. I guess what is not to love, you crushed popcorn and M&M’s the whole time.

More exciting than that, you spent the night in your big girl bed for the first time. With Ethan here, we needed to begin the process of moving you out of your crib and into a real bed. I went out and found a white four post bed, and your mom proceeded to buy the princess canopy you see. I spent the night with you down there for the first week or so, and you learned to love it. You still come into bed with us a few nights a week after sleeping down there, but you are now sleeping down there every night.

In other news, Halloween has become a favorite of yours. This year you wanted to be a ballerina, so we found you a full costume. But not only did you want to be one, you wanted me to be one too (there is a picture of it below). The other dad’s we met and went trick or treating with laughed, but you were absolutely ecstatic which made it more than worth it. We went all up and down Harrison, did some ballet dancing, and had an awesome time.

We also had the worst winter that Boise has ever seen. Boise averages like 9 inches of snow a year and this year, so far, we have received over four feet. It has absolutely crushed the city (we haven’t had trash pickup in over a month), but has provided you with the opportunity to play in snow for months (which you love). You and I went sledding the other day and I scared the life out of you, probably won’t do that again anytime soon. You are many things, but adventurous is not really one of them.

What was nice was that we did Christmas in Boise for the first time this year. Normally we head over to Sun Valley, but this year with the newly born Ethan and the crazy snow, the travel didn’t seem worth it. I got you your first elf on the shelf which you named Annie, and tried to get you to understand the concept behind her. You also cleaned up as far as presents go. This year was the first that you really understood what presents were, and you were a fan. Meticulous as always, you had to open each present and then play with the toy before opening another. Mom made homemade cinnamon rolls and we opened presents for hours. You will learn about my obsession for Christmas, and this years in my own house with just our family was the best I have ever had.

You continue to speak more often and with more clarity, know all your ABC’s (actually you have since you were closer to 2), can count to almost 20 and are absolutely beautiful. No joke, we get stopped all the time just to be told how gorgeous your hair and eyes are. You are also learning how to work me. Mom says we are screwed because I have a serious problem saying no to you and I need to reign it in. But just look at those pictures, how could anyone say no? We are three years in, and things are getting more fun everyday.

I love you more than you will ever know.

Love, Dad

(the pictures imported weird so they are not in order, just a heads up)

2016-09-23_19-52-05_000

2.5 years – You are becoming a human!

Sep1

I know that sounds weird, but really, before now it has been really fun watching progression but they were things like sitting up, walking, saying gibberish and so on. You are now starting to exemplify real human traits, and it is really exciting!

This was a big 6 months for you. You took your second trip to Hawaii (brat) when we went to Maui in April. You are beginning to say real words and structuring sentences, which is really helpful. You discovered television, which you absolutely love (Daniel Tiger and Thomas the Train are your current favorites). And bubbles, ohhhh sweet bubbles. You love them like nothing else.

This was also a big 6 months in all our lives. First, WE ARE HAVING ANOTHER BABY! You are going to be a big sister to….a little brother! One you can play with, torment, grow up with, torment, and take care of. We found out towards the end of March, and he is due November 10th. We are still working on a name, but we are down to Ethan and Wyatt (I am pulling for Ethan). He will be around 2 years and 8 months younger than you, and you are really excited about him. You don’t completely understand the concept, but we told you your baby brother is coming. You frequently point to mommies belly and say “I like your belly” or “Your baby brother”. I have put on some weight recently, so you are also a fan of my belly :). Your mom and I are extremely excited, and are in the process of preparing for his arrival. This means, among other things, moving you out of a crib and into a big girl bed.

Another item that occurred was that we bought and moved into a new house! We bought a house in the North End and sold the one in Harris Ranch. We ended up closing on our house on a Monday (April 25th) and moving into the new one later that week (29th). It was an incredible stressful move due to the timeline, and compounded due to us having returned from Hawaii on the 23rd and your mom’s birthday on the 28th. Oh, and I had to travel the 25th-27Th which made things really fun. Was madness, but we got it done. It is a brand new build. The owner was the founder of Balihoo (Pete Gombert) and they bought it with the intention of moving in after the renovation. Circumstances arose and that plan changed, so we jumped on it. Right now North End is an incredibly desirable place to live, and getting a place there is really tough. We totally lucked out, it’s absolutely gorgeous. We plan to be in it for a long time.

Regarding work, we are in the process of an acquisition where we would become part of a larger entity. We don’t know which one yet, but there are a few interested parties and it will likely happen sometime in October. This is exactly what I was hoping would happen, as being the leader of product and then having that product sold is pretty fantastic for a career. It should also mean a decent payout, which always helps.

Another first was your mom and I took our first vacation since you were born. With the new guy on the way we figured it would be our last chance for a while. Originally we were slated to go to New Orleans as I have never been there and your mom has an odd obsession with the South. However, there is currently an outbreak of something called the Zika virus which is transmitted through mosquitos and can lead to birth defects. It has not been found in New Orleans as of yet (mainly an issue in third world countries currently), but NO is a likely target for when it does make it state side due to the swamps and humid nature. Ensuring that we don’t run the risk, we switched our plans to Chicago. I go to Chicago about twice a month for work, but your mom had never been. You stayed with Mia while we were away, and appeared to have a great time. Your Uncle Matt met us there and we did all the touristy stuff I had never had the chance to to previously (included some pictures below).

I finally feel like we are in a place where things are a little more figured out. You are at the point when we go places we don’t have to pack up the entire house, and we can handle things as they come. You sleep better and eat well. And above all else, you are getting more fun by the day. We go to the store and you drive the the car shopping cart or push the baby cart at Trader Joe’s. Hiking in a backpack is one of your favorite things to do, and you are also in a dance class that you attend with mom. We are in a good place, and just felt like we would disrupt it all over again with the second kid. 🙂

Cannot begin to tell you how incredible you are, and how much you are loved. Undoubtedly bias, but you are better behaved and far more compassionate than any child you spend time around. You share, you have manners, you tell us you love us on a regular basis and just can’t believe how well you have turned out so far. Cannot imagine our lives without you. Look forward to you turning three in a few months and updating you on all the changes.

I love you more than you will ever know.

Love, Dad

1+1=2

Mar1

HAPPY BIRTHDAY HARPER MAE!

You’re two!

I keep thinking how weird it is going to be when you read this and just see your life in 6 month increments. Will seem like it went so fast. Trust me, it didn’t. Kidding (kind of). As always, another full round of firsts!

First babysitter (Lindsey, or as you say “Linds”)
First time to Tucson (and McKale Center)

This has been another big 6 months for you, and as you can see by the pics you are starting to look like a little human rather than some sort of troll or gnome (although the first picture is questionable). You have been walking for a while, but you are starting to speak intelligible words even if they are just “momma”, “dad”, and “Lalla (Layla)”.

We kicked off this timeframe with a trip to Tucson. A favorite activity of your mother’s which she can tell you about. We had not been down since you were born and it was time to make the trip to see your great-grandparents, Boppie and some of my friends. You met Mike and Onnie, as Mike was my best man in my wedding and we took you to breakfast at a restaurant my buddy Nate owned called Prep & Pastry. You met him and Will that day, and mowed some delicious french toast as well. You also met Jax, my cousin Jordan’s son.

But most importantly, you got to see McKale Center for the first time. One thing you will learn about me is my passion (or obsession as your mom calls it) for UA basketball. I grew up watching it, lived it during college, and while I can’t catch every game like I used to it is still a very big aspect of me. What was awesome is that the day we went, there was a door cracked open unexpectedly. While your mom (the rule follower forever and always) tried to talk me out of going in, you and I were already hustling down the hallway towards the court. We walked it together. Was a very special moment for me, being able to bring my child back to a place that I went to with my dad growing up.

This year for your birthday we decided to not invoke incredible chaos on our house and home, and just did a small bday party with family. You got to eat real cake this year, and while you couldn’t blow out the candle it made for a damn cute picture.

You survived your second Halloween, embellished in your second x-mas and enjoyed your second NYE. You were also cleared fro your allergy to both wheat and eggs (as long as they are cooked), which made it a lot easier to feed you.

They call it the terrible twos. We will see if this rings true in your case.

I love you more than you will ever know.

Love, Dad

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1.5 and going strong

Sep1

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

Made it a year!

Mar1

I am happy to report that we have made it to the year mark and you (and we) are still in one piece. The last six months were very different than the first. Let’s start with some of the firsts you have had over these last six months:

First crawl
First (and second) plane ride
First solid food
First time in the snow
First Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas
And of course, your first birthday

I am sure there are many more that I am forgetting, but needless to say it was an exciting times with a lot of memories.

One of the largest surprises was your sleeping, or lack thereof. You still have yet to sleep through the night, and normally wake up no less than 3 times during the night. You have pretty bad eczema which we believe is causing a lot of your discomfort and inability to sleep well. You are also not a fan of bottles meaning mom is breast feeding you around the clock. I could say you are an easy baby, but that would be a lie.

All that said, you are a happy baby! You smile and laugh, you attempt to talk and you are very active. Your hair is unreal and people constantly comment on your beautiful eyelashes. You are extremely meticulous and we find you many times taking items from one place and placing them neatly in another, only to then return them to their original location.

So let’s talk about some of your experiences. The first big one was your first trip to Chapel Hill, NC to see Uncle Matt graduate from UNC. Accompanied by mom and Mia (I had to travel for work unfortunately) you flew cross country. One thing about you is that you are a calm and, this might be an odd term but I feel is accurate, respectful baby. You were great on the plane, just looking around at people and sleeping.

You also took a trip to Palm Desert to visit Tita for the first time. Again, on the plane you were great. When we landed in Palm Springs we were stopped for about an hour on the tarmac because Air Force One was about to take off with President Obama. You watched as the secret service and the President rode onto the tarmac and he boarded the plane. We spent 4 days in PD, and even had a little early birthday party for you there with Tita, Aunt Kathi, Boppie, Papa, Charlene and mom (I had to leave to go to NYC for work, but I video-conferenced in to see everyone). Oh, and the best part, you had In-n-Out for the first time.

Christmas, you cleaned up. Never seen so many toys for a child (not that I have seen all that many Christmas’ with children). We had it in Sun Valley and got to see Mia, Nonnie, Papa and Uncle Matt. You went sledding and played in the snow.

As far as mom and dad are concerned, everything is moving along. Mom has been really busy with you, and is doing such an incredible job. You require a lot of attention because of your skin and the lack of sleep makes it extremely challenging. She is part of a moms group that does activities every week so you guys are very active. I am mainly working and traveling, but it is paying off. I go visit Google, SMG and other agencies frequently to show off our product. Any time I do have available I spend at home helping out. Our lives are very busy, but it’s fun!

I have included as much as I can recollect, but I am sure I missed plenty. Don’t worry though because every picture taken is being saved. You are a fun, shy, beautiful, skeptical, exploratory and sweet baby and we are lucky every day to have you. Cannot wait for your first steps, which should be coming any day now. I included a bunch of pictures in this post, so enjoy!

Love you more than you will ever know

-Dad

6 Months Gone By…

Oct1

I’m back! 6 months later and we have successfully kept you alive. Round of applause, please.

Just a quick housekeeping item, you can expect posts on this cadence. I thought that I might be able to keep it up on a more regular basis, but really with everything that happens in this size of timeframe it makes for some pretty robust posts. Not only that, finding time to put these together is a bit difficult (most of these are while I am flying for work). Don’t want to sacrifice quality for quantity.

That said, I might pop in here and there when possible and if something major happens. Also going to change the layout a bit to create some consistency. I will try to start each post with an update on your mom and I before jumping in on you. Think it is important that you get a clear picture of our lives at they evolve. Right now is an extremely interesting time for us in that we just started a family, own our first house, building a career and are still young enough that we haven’t figured it out.

Mom: Sleep is a commodity!

We are learning quickly that sleep may not be your thing. Mom is handling it like a champ (a grumpy one) and getting the hang of it. Breast feeding was a struggle out of the gate. Mom went to classes, met with specialists and read more than I have in the last year. It was a rough time for her, but she got it figured out and now loves it. She talks a lot about the bond it creates, and how happy it makes her. You are her light.

She has become really involved in some mom’s groups and made some new friends with children the same age. Being responsible for an infant is the hardest thing in the world (big statement, but believe it to be true) and having other to talk to is important. Your mom gives every second of every day to you. At this point her life revolves around you and leaves no time for anything else. She does a lot of it alone (which I will get in to) which makes it that much more impressive.

In summary: she is sleep deprived, always at your side, stressed, happy, anxious, proud and feels very lucky to have you. The life of a mom at this point is not glamorous but she handles it well just like she does anything put before her.

Dad: Work is picking up.

When I took the job at Balihoo I was brought in as the SEO Analyst (probably a profession that will not exist when you read this) and then moved into product marketing plus the SEO and analytics piece. In February of this year, just before you were born, I was promoted to Senior Product Manager. This basically meant that I was responsible for the direction/strategy that we build into our software. I am expected to be an expert in the digital space and be able to reflect the newest technologies in our product. I have two people that now report to me and I am under the VP of Product. I also know our software inside and out and demo it for clients/potential clients frequently. I will save the geeky details, but the point is more is on my plate. Went from working about 45 hours a week to about 55. Even with the added work, the first three months of your life I was around a lot. Then the travel started…

I traveled a bit for my last job, but in spurts and only made probably 15 or so trips over the 2 years I was there. As I mentioned I demo the product a lot and talk to the details, and most of the happens on-site. I have recently started traveling quite a bit. In June is when it really kicked off, and I have been taking 3-4 trips a month since then. This has made things hard on mom as she is alone a lot, and hard on me as well. I don’t have the bond with you that mom has (yet) simply because of the time and interaction I have with you is limited. You are still amazing to me in that we created this little creature, and you belong to us. It is overwhelming at times, and exciting other times. All I know is that you are a gift for which I am unworthy, but so grateful to have.

We got some professional pics taken 9 days after you were born. I added a couple here. I would add a link but fear that in 18 years from now wherever the picture is hosted will no longer exist, so just keeping it in the media library on this platform (WordPress). They turned out awesome!

So we brought you home, that is where we left off We successfully brought you inside, removed you from your carseat, and….said holy shit now what! Kidding (kind of). Mia came home with us stayed for 7 days. She was a tremendous help with things, and although we handled the sleeping and mom handled the feeding, she had great advice and definitely gave us a break once in a while. I took a week off work and then worked half days for another week. We basically spent those first two weeks learning how to be parents and trying to get in a routine (you will learn that I am a very routine oriented person).

Basically first few weeks you MUST eat every 2 hours. After a baby is born they lose a bunch of weight, so it is integral that you replace that weight. After 3 weeks you were back to you birth weight, which is actually expected. The hardest thing to do is when you have a baby sleeping, and you as a parent have barely slept in a couple weeks, and you have to wake the baby up to feed them. It is so counter-intuitive, but that is what you have to do.

You slept in our room the first three months, and then we moved you into your own room. You woke up every 3-4 hours every night that whole time. The first 3 months, after the initial phase of feeding every 2 hours, you actually slept pretty well. Not through the night, but close on some occasions. The fun began when we moved you out. Mom can’t bear to hear you cry so we used (and continue to use) a no cry methodology which basically requires us to tend to you anytime you are upset. Right or wrong, that is the approach and therefore we have resolved to the fact that we will never sleep again. I am talking a lot about sleep, but when you don’t get much it is all you think about.

You also have pretty bad eczema and we have gone to great lengths to figure out why. We are still trying to solve the mystery, but think it may be an allergy. We are taking you to an allergist in December and will hopefully get some insight.

You have also had some really exciting moments. You can support your own neck now! This sounds stupid, but trust me, when you don’t have to cradle a baby all the time it is pretty epic. You can also roll over. We literally hovered over you for weeks waiting/urging/begging you to do it. When you finally did, it is like experiencing a miracle first hand. Yes, it is that unreal.

The first month or so of your life there are many moments we shared that were awesome. The first time you smiled (you farted and then smiled) I was holding you. You fell asleep on me a number of times and I would just lay down with you and rest. There was a night during March Madness when we were playing and you were rocking your UA onesie and fell asleep in your swing in the corner of my office while I watched the game (we won). There were many other milestones like the first time you took a bottle from me, when we took you to the farmer’s market or to Sun Valley. All great memories.

But I will never forget the first time we were alone together. And since I am writing this, I am going to be selfish and share it (I know your mom has many moments she would like to share too, but she doesn’t know about our secret project here). It happened when one of mom’s friends, Laura Hamister, came into town from SD. They became friends in law school and she flew out to meet you. They wanted to go get lunch and see a matinee. This was literally the first time your mom was away from you unless I had you in the other room or something.

The Masters

It happened early April. There is something that happens every year in early April, and it is an event that my dad made special for me. Not because of the sport or anything unique to the event, but just that I remember watching it with him when I was little. The Masters tournament is usually the first weekend of April, and it is one of my favorite things to watch. Someday I want to go and take Boppie (maybe by the time you read this I will have done so).

Anyway, they left to go see their movie and had lunch and we had about 5 hours that would be just us. I was nervous, not going to lie. What if something happened? What if you cried and I couldn’t get you to stop? What if you wouldn’t eat? Everything ran through my mind. I also was not as comfortable around babies as mom was (remember, I had just held one for the first time a month ago) so there were many thoughts that ran through my mind. I remember, vividly, getting settled on the couch with a bottle and remote next to me and your mom handing you to me and saying bye. I always wonder if all the doubts I had about my ability occurred to her as well (I am sure they did). But, they left and it was me and you.

Nothing crazy or exciting happened that day. But for the net 5 hours we sat there, together, and just got to know each other. I fed you a couple times, you took a couple naps on me, you played with a stuffed animal and we watched the Masters. It was the first time that I felt like we really, truly bonded. You got to know me and I got to know you. We shared many stares and giggles. You didn’t cry once (although this was not uncommon, you weren’t much of a crier at this age). I loved you before this day, but that was when I realized how much more you meant to me than I even knew. I can’t explain why it happened then or what it was that did it, but I can tell you that I was different after that day. There will be times when I get frustrated with you and vice versa, where you hate me or I don’t make you the priority when I should. I am not perfect and really unsure of how I will be as a dad. But I (again) tear up writing this because that day was so special to me. It will not be anything you remember, but it will be a time that I will never, ever forget.

OK, now that the sappy part is out of the way, what else has happened these last six months? How about some pics to help illustrate…

A lot has happened, too much to remember, but it has been new in so many ways. Watching you evolve into a real little girl has been incredible (oh, and it looks like you will be keeping your beautiful blue eyes!), and we can’t wait to see more of your personality emerge. Now that you look at us, smile, laugh and do it all intentionally it is getting real quickly. The next post should be fun as you are going on your first trip (actually trips) and will have your first birthday!

I hope I can look back on this and be confident that I included the major milestones. I won’t remember everything but it has been an amazing six months. We are so excited to have you and as we work through learning how to be parents we ask for your patience. Just know that you are loved, so much.

I love you more than you will ever know

-Dad