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  1. Gobble Gobble

    Thursday, November 29, 2012

    So grateful for our little family.  Happy Thanksgiving from the Kramers!

    We spent Sam's first Thanksgiving gathered around our aunt's table in Lake Mary, FL.  We had a delicious meal and enjoyed the company of Grandma Ewen, Grandpa Mark and many of our aunts, uncles and cousins. Sam got to play the guitar with Grandpa Mark, take a turkey-induced nap with Daddy and watch Mommy and Grandma play black-jack. Yep, nothing says Thanksgiving like a little gambling! Don't judge.

    Hey, dealer...hit me!

    Enough with the chords, Grandpa Mark, let me show you how to pick!

    Reindeer Sam and Mimi, ready to ring in the Christmas season

    We also stopped by Aunt Tammy's house to visit with the other side of Mommy's family. We managed to squeeze a second Thanksgiving dinner into our bellies, and Cooper (Tammy's dog) gave Sam the usual face bath with his tongue.  Sam cracked up laughing, of course, and couldn't have been happier. This kid is cuckoo over dogs! We also got the chance to teach Sam about the game of Corn Hole. We can see him now, getting into some fierce competitions with his cousin Olivia.. just as soon as he can stand up on his own! 

    Grandpa Ewen, Sam and all of the Ewen girls!

    C'mon, Livy...hit me with your best shot!

    Over the holiday weekend, we headed to Aunt Kath and Uncle Mike's house in Palm Harbor, FL. We had a great time catching up with the Kramer side of our family, eating more delicious meals and exploring cousin Lleyton's awesome toys!  Sam discovered that there is such thing as a Hess helicopter with a car inside of it.  Jackpot! 

    Daddy in his Boilermaker gear celebrating a Bucket win with Sam, and the start of basketball season!

    Who needs basketball when I can fly a helicopter?!

    On the Sunday after Thanksgiving, Sam hit another major milestone - his first public temper tantrum.  Such a proud moment for us (sarcasm). We were finishing lunch at a Palm Harbor restaurant when Sam's patience had expired and he decided that he was done with being confined to a high chair. He screamed at the top of his lungs, arched his back and slid down in the chair until he hit his head on the back of the seat. We were genuinely surprised since our "chill baby" has never acted out to this degree before. This display was as equally fascinating as it was concerning.  I guess we'll be working on a discipline plan sooner rather than later!  Stay calm, young Samuel...use The Force.  

    Temper tantrum and all, this Thanksgiving we couldn't be more grateful for all of the amazing gifts that we have in our life: each other, our healthy and strong-willed little boy, a warm and safe home, food to eat, great jobs and the love of our wonderful family and friends.   Happy Thanksgiving, everyone.  Tonight we will fall asleep counting our blessings...    

    Posted by Heather Kramer at 1:12 AM | Labels: , , , | 0 comments |


  2. Sam's first Halloween was an exciting and fun milestone for all of us at the Kramer house.  It's amazing and heartwarming how having our little guy around makes every holiday so much more special!  While Daddy is especially looking forward to the year(s) when the costume choice will be the patriotic "Uncle Sam", this year we decided to honor Sam's birth during the Chinese zodiac Year of the Dragon.  His Vietnamese name, Tieu Long Tu, means "Little Dragon"...and we think he is the cutest little dragon in the whole world!  

    You may think I'm cute now, but wait 'till I learn how to breathe FIRE!

    We put out one heckuva spread at our house for Halloween, complete with a "driveway picnic" of homemade crock-pot chili with all of the fixins', cornbread, and old-fashioned Root Beer (plus some Yuengling on ice for the grown-ups) and of course plenty of candy! All of our family, neighbors and friends were invited to grab a bite, take a seat and sneak some treats!

    Grandma Ewen came over dressed as one of Sam's favorite Disney characters - Minnie Mouse.  Sam wasn't as fascinated with her as he is with the real deal, but he was quite fascinated with her painted-on black button nose.  He kept grabbing at it, which only confused him when he could never quite "gotchyer nose", but only ended up smudging his hands and her face with black make-up!  It became pretty comical after a while...

    Minnie Mouse and Little Dragon, ready to get some treats!
      
    Uncle Scott came by for a bowl of chili and some trick-or-treating. Our first stop was right next door at our wonderful neighbors' house, where Sam picked up his first-ever Halloween treat from Hello Kitty!  Nothing but smiles and laughter all around!

    So...how much candy do you think I can fit in this big bucket?

    Another neighbor, Officer Ray, brought his huge Great Dane by for a visit, which we thought might be the trick of the night for our tiny boy.  This dog stands at least a foot taller than Sam!  But Sam just looked that huge dog right in the face and giggled hysterically.  This big dog's name is Princess, which is pretty ironic.  And we are learning that our little boy LOVES dogs of all shapes and sizes, and even loves their "kisses"!   

    Our Little Dragon getting kisses from a real Princess!

    Shortly after Princess arrived, we all had to dart inside when a blanket of hungry mosquitoes suddenly appeared in blitzkrieg style and put a damper on our driveway party!  But it was still a great Halloween since Sam got to visit with so many of his favorite friends and neighbors.  We were visited by lots of ghouls and goblins throughout the evening, even after Sam was fast asleep...and by the end of the night our candy bowl was empty.  We will call this first Halloween a success!  BOO! 

    Posted by Heather Kramer at 12:33 AM | Labels: , , | 0 comments |

  3. Cloud Nine

    Tuesday, October 30, 2012


    Sam turned nine months old on October 25. We visited the pediatrician and our boy weighed in at 21 lbs, 14.5 oz (85th percentile!) and 28 1/4" long (50th percentile). Dr. Gordon is pleased with his growth and the milestones that he's reached... of course, we are on Cloud Nine that we've raised a happy, healthy boy thus far.

    Sam is taking two naps a day, lasting 1.5-2 hours each. He has five teeth - two on bottom and three on top. He now eats a full menu of solid foods including strawberries, squash, chicken and Gerber Graduate Puffs! And best of all, he has finally learned how to drink from a sippy cup! We've been offering it to him for a while, but he just couldn't figure out how to get the liquid out.  Then one magical day a couple of weeks ago, we heard him drawing the water out of the spout! Three cheers for Sam!  And cheers, Sam.  Bottom's up!

    He loves taking baths, swinging in the swing at the park, crawling around on the floor and going for walks in his stroller. And he enjoys watching TV - Sesame Street, Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and Handy Manny are his current favorites (along with the dark drama of Purdue football). He seems to really love being outdoors so we take him outside as much as we can. He adores dogs, especially his "big brother" Teddy, and is completely fascinated by other kids.

    Hanging out in the back yard with Teddy
    With his friend, Reese (these two were born only two days apart)
    There are more photos from this month that didn't quite make the blog posts. Check out all of our October photos. 


    Posted by Heather Kramer at 9:29 AM | Labels: , , , | 0 comments |

  4. Not So Scary Sam

    Sunday, October 28, 2012

    How can I put into the words the sheer delight that came over me when we were offered tickets to Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween party? A special holiday event for Sam's first trip to the Magic Kingdom - the only thing that could have made this more magical was if it were Christmas too!

    So on September 30, we dressed our little trick-or-treater up as a Phillies baseball player, packed the diaper bag and the stroller and headed over to the Magic Kingdom for the party.


    Sam was amazed... his little head kept turning back and forth as he took in all of the decor and costumes. We were so excited to share one of our favorite places with him. Our first stop was the castle hub where the Move It, Shake It, Celebrate It parade was in full swing. Sam LOVES Mickey Mouse and seems to be very fond of Minnie Mouse too! He was smiling, giggling and kicking those feet to the music and characters. It was awesome to see him SO excited!

    Moving, Shaking and Celebrating!

    Look out, Minnie.... that baby smolder is powerful
    And no trip to the Magic Kingdom is complete without the quintessential family photo in front of the castle.


    From there, we started toward Tomorrowland to give Sam the chance to do a little trick-or-treating. Man the lines were long just to get CANDY! So we decided to follow the candy trail over to Fantasyland and take Sam on his first Disney attraction - Dumbo, of course! They've recently reopened the attraction so we were excited to see the latest enhancements. They have a new, fancy play area for the kids so that they don't have to stand in line. And the parents are given a pager that buzzes when it's your turn to ride. Pretty cool, eh?  But there are some things that should never change and thankfully one of those things is the Dumbo ride. It was perfectly appointed for our 8 month old, even though it started raining pretty hard while we were "in flight." But our little trooper didn't mind... he was having the time of his life!

    First ride on Dumbo... in the rain
    Since it was raining and WAY past Sam's bedtime, we decided to call it night. But not before stopping at City Hall to get a souvenir of Sam's first visit to the Magic Kingdom.  It's worth noting that he was having such a good time that he stayed awake during the entire visit. As soon as he was buckled into his car seat though, he was out like a light! What an amazing, memory-making night!  It's sure to be followed by many more great moments in The Most Magical Place on Earth.

    First trip to the Magic Kingdom



    Posted by Heather Kramer at 1:10 AM | Labels: , , , , | 0 comments |


  5. Our little "baby" Sam is really on the move this month! He's been rolling around and scooting on his belly for a few weeks now.  But even though he can get into the position, he hasn't quite mastered the full hands-and-knees crawling technique yet. He's really motivated to travel by his desire to reach the dog toys and the TV remote.  Much to our horror, he immediately puts them in his mouth when he reaches them. Eww! (we really try to avoid that)

    Able to leap through small buildings in a single bound!
    From the blanket to behind the rocking chair faster than a speeding train!
    Following the leader... or trying to get the leader's toys

    While Sam gets around okay with some help, he is easily frustrated because he's just so ready to be totally independent. He loves being in his baby walker because it gives him the mobility he desires so much.  But be warned - get out of the way when you put him in there - this get-up-and-go kid will run right over your toes!  He can also stand up and hold on to the furniture quite well (with a spotter), and has started to try to pull himself up on his own. It won't be long now before we have a totally mobile baby!  Run for your lives!

    Posted by Heather Kramer at 12:48 AM | Labels: , , | 0 comments |

  6. Out of this World

    Tuesday, October 2, 2012

    Shawn is a bit of a history buff and has also always been a big fan of the space program. So when he heard that we could see the retired Space Shuttle Endeavor being loaded onto a 747 for it's final flight, we headed over to the Kennedy Space Center to bid the shuttle farewell.  We really wanted Sam to be a part of this historic moment.  Since he won't have any memory of it, he will hopefully one day appreciate the experience through the photos! It was a great family day spent browsing the sights at the KSC Visitors Center and snapping some fun pictures of Sam "blasting off."

    Space Shuttle Endeavor
    Sam at the loading area...far more interested in the pacifier than the shuttle!
    "Hey Rocket! I'll race ya!
    Speaking of blasting off, our little space cadet has really shot up! He's around 3 pounds now...if he lived on the Moon (20 pounds on Earth).  And he is wearing mostly 12 month-old sized spacesuits. The installation status of Sam's first two bottom teeth is: mission accomplished!  And based on current telemetry, we estimate there will be two top teeth emerging within the next lunar cycle. [end of Daddy's dorky space terminology]

    The new teeth will come in very handy for Sam, as he's becoming more interested in table food now. We've offered him watermelon, toast and baby puffs, and he has even tried a tiny taste of cake and one of those crunchy noodles from a Chinese restaurant. He often makes a really disgusted face when he bites into a solid food - whether new or familiar - and he's been known to display some dramatics in the form of choking or gagging. Sometimes it's concerning, but he always pulls through and ends up enjoying (and wearing) whatever he's nibbling on.   

    Look at those two bottom teeth!  Cheeeeeeese!
    Enjoying a crunchy noodle...secretly wishing he could have the Kung Pao Chicken
    Here are some more photos of our September adventures. 

    Posted by Heather Kramer at 11:48 PM | Labels: , | 0 comments |



  7. We were recently invited to our nephew Lleyton's first birthday party. Boy that kid really knows how to party! We had penguin cake, played with a classic tin top, and Sam took his first ride in a big boy swing. He giggled and smiled the entire time! Sam is really observant and especially enjoys other children, so we think it was fun for him to be part of the action. Afterward, we hadn't even made it out of the neighborhood before our party animal was fast asleep. I think that's a sign of a good time. 

    Delighted to be in the big boy swing

    Lleyton and Aunt Kath showing Sam how a top works
    And... scene.


    Here are some more photos of our September adventures. 

    Posted by Shawn Kramer at 11:47 PM | 0 comments |