Bryson's First Roadtrip - Humboldt!

Last weekend we decided to take our little guy on a big adventure up in beautiful Humboldt County. We were able to catch up with lots of old friends, and they were able to meet Bryson for the first time. We had a blast.

This was a trip full of firsts for our little boy. The drive itself was Bryson's first road trip and his first time out of Santa Clara County. Our little guy showed us his first smile this weekend too, but not at us - he saw a pretty girl (we love you Raya!) and couldn't help but grin. Our Humboldt adventure also meant the little guy would go to the beach for the very first time. We figured that Bryson's first glimpse of the ocean should be at the most beautiful time of day in one of the most beautiful spots we knew, so we hurried off to Murray beach in McKinleyville to catch the sunset (and take an amazing family photo!). Don't mind the scruffiness - Matt can't help but revert back to Humboldt mode whenever he's up there.

This is Bryson and his as yet unnamed monkey. It's his favorite, or it will be his favorite. We figure if we keep the monkey around him all the time, he can't help but love it. I mean, look at them - aren't they adorable together?!? This picture is currently the background on Matt's laptop, and his students all agree its the cutest baby picture they've ever seen. :)

traditions

Because Matt and I knew we were having a baby so close to Christmas we decided we were not going to make it home for the holidays. It was sad but it just did not seem realistic, so we had to figure out what we were going to do with our little family!

Matt's family has always had chili and corn bread so we decided to do that. We also looked up some neighborhoods in the area that had cool Christmas lights! All I can say is WOW! They had it set up where there was music cued to the movement of the lights it was crazy! One house even had a little snow making machine!
We came home and opened gifts; it was very different from what we would normally be doing at our parents', but it was nice.

Baby Bryson

We want everyone to see our cute little boy. He was born December 12 at 9:45am. It was a really long night. We were not really expecting to see the little guy for a few weeks, but because of the wonderful joy of kidney stones, the doctor told us she was going to induce. It was fine by me. I'll be honest, not only was I excited to see him, but I was also excited to sleep on my back, not have heart burn, and be able to walk without feeling like I was going to die!

So.... it all worked out for the best! Bryson was 7lbs 2oz and was 19.5 in long and sooooo cute. He has already met his grandma and grandpa Hill and his uncle Travis #1 (he has 2 uncle Travis). This weekend he will meet his Grandma B. and he is super excited! Thanks to Skype, he has also met his Grandpa that is in Afghanistan, his aunt Nicole and uncle Austin; he is still waiting for uncle Travis #2 (we'll have to figure out easier names for the two...) to come meet him.

It has been interesting getting used to a new baby. Having a baby - our baby - is still surreal. Part of me almost expects someone to walk up and ask for their baby back!