Georgia Eats Food!!!

The time has finally come and Georgia is getting her cake and eating it too... Due to an increasing interest in our own appetites for solid food, we've begun to introduce Georgia to her own palate. We started with the usuals such as banana, avocado and plums, but will soon branch off to more adventurous morsels when the allergy trials are over. This after she's been introduced to approximately 12-15 different foods without showing signs of allergic reaction. Then its no holds barred. We went to a "First Foods" class hosted by Anne Keppler this last weekend, and were quite enlightened by much of the information. Apparently, rice cereal is not the way to go, much to my relief, and we should expose her to as many different foods and spices as she shows interest in (within reason of course). I can't wait to offer her something with saffron, cumin or turmeric and, NO, we're not going to proceed to hastily on this, but she's definitely interested as you can see in the picture above. Coincidentally, this is also when we get introduced to copious amounts of food on the floor. Here you can also see her enthusiasm for bananas while she takes over Julie's recent lunch. Don't forget to set an extra place at the table the next time you have us over for dinner!

Bessie's Bahama Birthday Bash!!!

New Year's this year was quite special for the Stokkebye, Madsen, Boll and Sauvage clans as we colonized the quiet island of Man-O-Way Cay in the Bahamas for Bessie's birthday. For us, it was well earned as we started out the evening of the 26th and after 2 commercial flights, 2 cab rides, a charter flight, a ferry ride and a golf cart trip later we arrived at our condo the next evening. The island is located in the Abacos Islands which is in the northeastern corner of the Bahamas. The picture here shows 1 end with the Atlantic on the left and the bay on the right. The beach seen here on the right was where we spent the majority of our time swimming and snorkeling. And with the exception of sight seeing and grocery shopping we didn't need to leave the island. However, we had rented a boat for such excursions and, as seen here, I got to be captain for a day trip to Hope Town. There were 27 of us for the trip so we split our time and activities according to group preferences in order to give everyone an opportunity to explore. Such outings included fishing, scuba diving, sight seeing etc... and with only 2 golf carts, 1 boat and such a large group we managed to coordinate quite well. Two events that stood out above the rest were the much anticipated soccer match and the inaugural Stokkebye Olympics (next games to be held in the Seattle area). The soccer game quickly went from an international friendly match to a World Cup final right from the start. After a promising start, it became evident that we were being outhustled in every way and found ourselves down by mid match. Then in the second period, thanks to some halftime adjustments, we held our own until I scored the winning goal (bruised toes and all). Of course, the MVP goes to Eric Stokkebye for his stellar play as keeper. The Olympics, on the other hand, consisted of each of the 5 families (vying for gold in the following events; conch dig, human sand burial, Frisbee toss, freestyle swim, Bessie quiz, coconut throw, coconut water race and the much anticipated final event... the 100 yard flipper dash. I was nominated for the conch dig (literally digging for conch shells in a designated area) and immediately put our team on the board in first place. The next event we didn't fair so well as our digging skills could only afford us a 4th place finish. The Frisbee toss went to the True Danes as Frederik played it safe to edge out the victory. The freestyle swim again went to the True Danes but, being the most physically demanding event, kudos to all swimmers here. The Bessie quiz proved yet again that its a great way to both learn more about someone and find out who should know more about someone! In the coconut throw, we utilized an unconventional throwing style to award us another win. The coconut water race was full of numerous violations so don't even get me started! And easily the most entertaining event of the games, the 100 yard flipper dash was nothing short of hilariously competitive as each competitor showcased his or her own unique style of high-stepping their way to victory. The trip also included an unforgettable New Years celebration which included a formal dinner on our boardwalk, a late night cruise and an unbelievable party in Hope Town where dancing and fireworks were not in short supply. The trip had many more fun and memorable times, far too many to keep rambling on about, and it was great to have the entire family there. OH, and this last picture is of our vantage point from the charter plane as we passed the slow asses who took of in front of us for 1 final victory. Isn't competition great!!!

White Christmas

Well it finally happened. We had ourselves a White Christmas this year. Thanks for dreamin' Mr. Crosby! It was actually quite fun and nostalgic for me as I seem to remember opening gifts with the site of snow in the fields more regularly on the farm. The first picture was actually taken after the first storm which we thought was large in and of itself, but boy were we in for a surprise with the next couple of storms. The winds accompanied the 2nd storm with some extraordinary ferocity so the accumulation was not as apparent. Of course the 4 foot snow drifts throughout Snoqualmie were good indicators. A few days later the snow returned and this time it was a steady 8"-12" dumping that lasted through Christmas night. Naturally, I shoveled out the cars and driveway in between each snowfall thinking we'd be set until it melted. All in all, it was a great way to transition the layover between Mexico and the Bahamas. Definitely a winter to remember!

Doug Turns 400 in Puerto Vallarta!!!

Of course, I'm accounting for the exchange rate from Mexican to American years which is currently about 10:1. It's been a while since the actual trip, but for those of you who couldn't be there, here's a little summary. We all flew out on the morning of December 9th taking up 2 entire rows of the airplane as Doug had booked us as a group for the flight. That is with the exception of Alan who was living it up in first class. Once in Puerto Vallarta, we went straight to the Villa - about a 45 min ride through town. We stayed in a beautiful 4 story, 8 room Villa complete with a pool, an open air living room and our own Chef...compliments of the owner for booking out the entire place. From there we were 2 minutes from the beach and shops. After taking it easy that night, it was beach time the 2nd day as we spent most of it soaking in the 85 degree sun and saying no to the roughly 200 beach vendors. Mmmmmm, more meat on a stick please! Later that night we had a totally awesome "wall e" birthday party for Brody complete with an authentic pinata which he proceeded to turn into debris by his 2nd turn. The next day was pretty much more of the same until the much anticipated birthday party for Doug. We all sat up on the balcony outside of the room Julie and I had where we consumed tequila and told stories about Doug. We even had a couple of quizzes which were very well done and provided much insight into his life. A couple days later the boys went for one of the famed zip line canopy tours of the jungle. We ended up with a great tour and had lots of fun. Check out the slide show for more details. The following day we all went to a sleepy fishing village in the south end of the bay only accessible by boat. There we indulged in Pina Coladas and more lounging on the beach which I've concluded is the best thing to do anywhere with sun and beach side beverage service. On the way back we saw some whales, but come to find out its quite common in the bay there. The next day the boys got together to take Brody deep sea fishing. We only went for 4 hours so Spanish Mackerel ended up being the only option, but we caught around 15 so Saul cooked them up for us that night and it was great. We had our 3rd birthday party of the trip that night for Jeff and again enjoyed margaritas into the wee hours. It was a fun trip full of memorable moments and I can't wait to do it again when I turn 400!!!

Sorry for the Delay

For those of you wondering where all the witty, funny and roundly entertaining updates on the Sauvage family, namely Georgia, have gone, I just wanted to provide a little update, and proof, as to the reasons of the delay. We were recently hit with the fourth "100 year" flood for the Snoqualmie River in the last 25 years, so as you can imagine we got WET. Yes we were able to get out in time and yes our house is raised and supposedly out of the designated flood levels, but we suffered some major damage to our heating system (standing water in the heating registers) and a few other issues to remedy before we can return home. We are currently staying in North Bend at the Grina household. Here are a few pics to demonstrate the enormity of the flood... The first shows the water level which came 6 inches from soaking our living room and the other shows the damage to the crawl space under our house... that's the ducting from our heating system hanging from the floor. Coming soon will be installments of both the Mexico and Bahamas trips...

Lt. Col. James Gordon Johnson: 9/16/22 - 11/20/08

For those of you that have not heard, my Grandad from my mom's side of the family passed away recently. It was a bitter sweet end to a long illness as we were all brought together for the Thanksgiving weekend which was filled with some tears, a few stories and lots of laughs. Here is a video I put together a few years ago. It's a family history based on his autobiography and I thought you might enjoy it.

Georgia Speaks: The Movie

Here is some random footage I shot of Georgia over the Thanksgiving weekend. I'm experimenting with the video embedding feature of this blog so please provide feedback on how it performs so I may adjust accordingly. Here you'll see a typical conversation between us and Georgia. She loves to talk while laying down and we usually get a bunch of smiles, but this conversation was more of a spat, most likely pertaining to her being hungry and having a camera shoved in her face instead of you-know-what!

Georgia Signs Modeling Contract!!!

We've been trying to postpone the inevitable, but much to our apprehension, Georgia has signed her first modeling contract. We're unable to disclose the terms of the deal, but People magazine has reported the figure to be in the 6-7 digit range and will include appearances at Nordstrom's, Macy's and the new Snoqualmie Casino. Also, it hasn't been confirmed, but rumors hint at an album including a duet with Hannah Montana! We're actually quite relieved as we were worried that she'd have to tour the pageant circuit for a while before hitting the runway. Now, all we have to worry about is trying to find black stilettos in a size 1! Here you'll see her modeling REI's Winter '08 'Little Miss' collection. See how she works the camera with that seductive stare. I think its going to be her signature look!

Madsen Costume Party

Here we are all dolled up for the big night at the Madsen's house for their costume party. I'll spare everyone the suspense by saying that I'm Johnny Cash, Julie is Little Red Riding Hood and Georgia is decorated in a pumpkin laden onesy. I even found a real pair of black cowboy boots and a hat at Value Village for only $15 and they were in my size and the only pair. I guess you really can't take the country out of the boy. Anyways, we had a lot of fun and there were some very creative costumes and spooky food (the spider-covered devilled eggs were especially scary).

Mystery Solved

The debate is finally over and this picture is the proof. Georgia officially takes after her Dad. This fact is even more obvious when we attempt to watch anything on the TV. It's a riot watching her squirm and wriggle her neck in a zealous effort to get a glimpse of what's on. Looks like I'm going to have to start reading again. I hope it hasn't changed much since High School.

Georgia Continues to Take Shape

Georgia continues her development through a self-motivated regiment of diet and exercise. We hadn't noticed until recently that Georgia has took it upon herself to get in shape by eating well and working out. To assist her in this crusade she has instituted a regular regiment of 'Five-Finger' sandwiches (in addition to her steady diet of free-range breast milk) and twice-a-day work-outs on her exercise mat. Pictured below you can see her knocking out some leg lifts which I can only imagine was a result of our leaving the Palates DVD playing during a restroom break. All kidding aside, the 'Five-Finger' sandwiches are actually Georgia's way of working out her gag reflexes and the exercise is real, but its what we've come to label as 'tummy time'. This is when we put her on her stomach and encourage her to work out those neck muscles. She's been quite successful from an early age - relatively speaking. Dad tried taking her on one of his bike rides, but she couldn't keep up on the hilly stretches so we'll stick to the 'tummy time' for now.

Georgia's Speaks!!!

This just in!!! Georgia has spoken her first word(s)... And, as I'm sure, much to the surprise of everyone the word was "GAAGAOIEOWAGAE". We're still not quite sure the language of origin, but we think it comes from an ancient Gaelic dialect. We've narrowed down the meaning to either "I'm hungry Mom...give me milk!" or "Dad, you need to shave 'cause you're scratching my face...". Its now just a matter of time before she starts speaking English or even Danish but, while we have the opportunity, the two of us have taken up this rare language in an attempt to communicate with Georgia more clearly. So far the results have varied... And if her speaking skills weren't enough, she's also showing signs of super human strength every time she kicks dad in the gut while he holds her upright on his lap...OUCH!!! Anyways, I thought everyone would be excited to hear the wonderful news of little Georgia's amazing talents.

Pumpkin Patch and Carving

In this blog entry I just wanted to show everyone how much Stronger I am than Katrin...Actually, we went on our first family pumpkin patch trip. Katrin went with us and was very excited to get into the spirit of Halloween like a true American as its not widely celebrated in Germany. We went to the aptly named, Mount Si nursery, as you can see in the background. We spent an hour or so comparing our Pumpkin treasures until we decided on 5 worthy candidates to take home. Once there We exposed Katrin to the art of cutting holes into a giant orange squash...or 'Pumpkin Carving' as its also know. Well, my tutelage became rapidly unnecessary as Katrin took to carving her first pumpkin like second nature as you can see by the results. She chose the more conventional 'Jack-O-Lantern' approach, while Julie and I tried our luck at some of the more sophisticated designs from a book. That's my Alien on the left, Julie's ghost is in the center and Katrin's is on the right. All in all, it was a valiant effort on everyone's part and we were all very proud. However, our timing was a little premature as this morning I finally had to scrape off the rotten remains of our beautiful creations before the trick-or-treaters got to see them. Oh well, it was still fun. Then we capped off the day with a nice dinner and Pumpkin Cheesecake for dessert...Mmmmmmmm!

Georgia in California

I'll have a glass of the '98 Chateau and she'll have 2 ounces of warmed breast milk... I should have known that Georgia would be fine dining with the Grandparents during her trip to Cally. I just hope the restaurant they chose was black tie optional. Well, some of the family got to meet Georgia for the first time last weekend as she and Julie flew to the Golden State for a quick visit. Everyone had a blast as expected and Georgia aced her flying exam extending her perfect track record for passing tests. Julie, on the other hand, had a bit of a snag when it took 3 flight attendants and a couple of other crew members to unstick the carseat from the plane seat causing them to be last off the plane.

Georgia Gets a Bath

Georgia is really enjoying her bath time. So much so, in fact, that we've had to stop using the kitchen counter on account of the liquid shrapnel that litters the vicinity. Her favorite antic is to vigorously kick in the deep end of her infant hot tub causing the need for me to change my shirt (coincidentally, I'm usually wearing the shirt I had just changed into due to the spit up). As you can see in the second picture its quite a fun time for all. We've since moved the operation to the bathroom tub in the hopes of salvaging our hardwood floors, but its only a matter of time before you'll see us wearing rain suits for future bath time pics. Once again Katrin is the photographer for these as she has quite a knack for capturing Georgia's infectious smile.

More 'Georgia Smiles' Pictures

Georgia has become quite the smiler as you can see here. Unfortunately, it mostly occurs in the morning after Dad's gone to work, but he gets a few grins in the evenings. Mom even admits to hearing the occasional giggle while Georgia's sleeping (she must be thinking of the way Dad looks and acts when trying to get her to smile). Its only a matter of time before she's starring in one of those "baby smiles" calenders...July of course. She's also become quite photogenic. So much so, in fact, that she was complimented by the passport agent at the post office as being one of the best ten week olds she's ever taken a passport photo of. She even gave us the extra five tries it took get a keeper, so that should explain the contents of this years Christmas cards.

Katrin Visits

Katrin arrived Sunday night for a little over a weeks stay and we immediately put her to work. She even went with us to the Post Office to babysit while Julie and I filled out the paperwork for Georgia's first passport. Not to brag, but the city of North Bend experienced unusually delayed mail delivery today due to the popularity of Georgia with the Post Office staff...we understand. Katrin's been to Northwest a couple times before so this trip will mostly be filled with Georgia time and shopping for her Abercrombie & Fitch hungry brother Thomas back in Wuerzberg, Germany. Although, all of the Grandparents will be happy to hear that she is taking lots of pictures and has a knack for capturing that georgious Georgia smile.

Grandma Feeds Georgia

Georgia has started taking from the bottle and, as luck would have it, Grandma got to administer the daily dose during her last visit. As you can see, its quite a bit of fun, but beware when you run out 'cause she'll be wanting more in a hurry. She's become quite the eater. But with all this consumptive success comes the downside...more product returns in the form of spit up. This would explain why if any of you see me more than once in a day, I'll be wearing a different shirt each encounter. Apparently dad hasn't learned that spit up is non-ddiscriminatory when it comes to clothing. By the way, for those of you not in the know, the "Boppy Pillow" - pictured here - was the single most useful tool ever invented for parents. On the contrary, its the single least liked invention by all chiropractors.

Georgia Smiles (kinda)

For all of you who haven't heard, Georgia has started smiling (sort of). It's not ear to ear yet, but its still pretty darn cute. Her best grins are in the morning so sadly dad doesn't get to see them, but he gives it his best shot in the evening! Georgia is now approx 8 1/2 lbs and growing which has started to show as she is becoming chubbier by the day. Everything else is great and Mom has started attending the "1st Weeks" class available for all new moms to have a support network. They discuss everything from feeding techniques to the best places for diapers and its a great place to learn from others as well as dawn a bit of your own wisdom. That's all for now, but please follow the slide show links to view our photo albums.

Georgia's First Days

Here is one of the first photos of the new family. We had a wonderful and exhausting experience through labor and the birth (refer to "birth story"). Ballard Swedish is truly an awesome place to have a kid. The nurses were all helpful and very involved, even to the extent of filling in for baby sitting duties whenever needed. In fact, the beanie Georgia is wearing in this picture was a gift from the nursing staff. That being said, it was a long and foreign road home from the hospital and we were on our own.