43 weeks

I'm 43 weeks old!

Her first train ride

Picking out grapes at the San Francisco Ferry Building Farmer's Market

Riley loved looking at the Macy's window displays

Aunt Amy and Grandma Cathy in front of the Union Square tree

It was really, really big

Christmas California style - palm trees!

Daddy pulls out Christmas trees for Mommy and Riley to examine

Good thing we brought along Aunt Amy!

Tree is in the stand, double slayer!

This is going to be trouble

Daddy tops the tree with an angel

I fit inside the stocking Grandma Cheryl knitted me...lots of space for Santa to fill!

Helping Mommy hang the first ornament on the tree

So many pretty ornaments!

Playing with beads and lights with Aunt Amy

Aunt Amy, Grandma Cathy, Riley and Mommy

No Mom, I'm not headed for the tree

Let's see if I can get this present open before anyone notices. (NOTE: I obviously had to move the pretty, sparkly, low-hanging ornament you see in this pic)

Mommy keeps me away from Seamus's bowls but Daddy is so fun, he plays in the water with me!

Dump the toys, play with the basket

Helping Mommy in the kitchen

Riley had a great visit with her Grandma Cathy and Aunt Amy. They were here for over a week and it was awesome. More than ever I needed their help preparing Thanksgiving dinner: one person entertained Riley while the others cooked. Actually, this is how we spent the entire week. I really appreciated being able to make dinners and do other things while Riley was happily playing and being kept safe.

We did all kinds of fun activities. Riley went along and enjoyed it all. She’s a great shopper and loves to touch clothes as we walk through the racks – which is good because we definitely did some shopping! Saturday after Thanksgiving Grandma Cathy, Aunt Amy, Mommy & Riley headed to San Francisco for the day. We went to the famous Ferry Building Farmer’s Market and bought some amazing fresh produce. Then we went to Union Square for lunch and to take in the sights. Riley enjoyed looking at the Macy’s window decorations and the huge Christmas tree in the middle of the square. But mostly she enjoyed looking at the other shoppers. We rode the BART train into the city and even though it was noisy at times, she did great on her first train ride. It was a long day and we all took a nap when we got home (Riley took her morning nap while riding on my back at the farmer’s market). I’m amazed at how good this baby is on excusions!

We also picked out and decorated our Christmas tree. Riley enjoys touching the needles on the tree and of course is thrilled with all the colorful, sparkly, breakable ornaments. No casualties yet, but I’ll be amazed if all our Christmas decorations survive the holidays.

And no visit would be complete without a home improvement project. This year we removed the glass doors and metal frame in the baby’s bathtub and installed a rod and curtain. I had been worried about having heavy glass doors where she bathed, and the doors made bathtime difficult because I could only access half the tub at a time. This is a huge improvement.

Riley really enjoyed the extra playmates. The first afternoon after they had left, she was fussy and needed to be near me constantly. I could tell that she really missed their love and attention. We miss them too!