Sydney in Sydney...

I know what you're thinking...Sydney in Sydney sounds like a bad chick flick.  Well, in this case it is just reflective of the fact that our little Sydney's first big trip was, well...to Sydney.  We considered the trip to Australia a huge success, mainly because we actually survived the 15 hour flight to get there, after the shorter 2.5 hour flight from Seattle to LA.  I think the key to a successful long flight is to book a night flight, when they naturally want to go to sleep.  We didn't fair as well on the return trip (a daytime flight), but we still made it home.

Dennis, Christina, and Rebecca were all great to us.  They are very wonderful people that are enjoyable to be around.  We look forward to seeing them down the road, and wish them the best with the recovery!!!

The written portion of this post is short, mainly because we wanted to share some of the pictures from our Sydney experience.  And since a 'picture is worth a thousand words,' this is probably the longest post I've done...hehe!

18 months and coming out of her shell!

On June 15th Sydney turned the big 1.5 years old.  There is a lot of experience gained in that extra half-year, and she really has come a long way with her vocal speaking abilities, physical coordination, and general outgoing attitude.  So, she really does seem to be coming out of her shell!  This first picture was taken at the Taronga Zoo in Sydney, Australia (please note: no animals were hurt in the taking of this picture...actually, I'm sure it had already been dead for quite some time).  While at the zoo, she also decided that she was going to be the navigator.  She was more than happy to tell us which direction to go, and which animals to see.  Among all of the different species, she liked the koalas.

Regardless of where we went, people would comment on how cute she was.  She loved the attention, and she's even developed this one face, which we refer to  as 'cheesy face,' where she tilts her head back and comes up with the biggest and cheesiest smile you could picture.  She really is a ham.  So where did she get that, among her other odd  behaviors?  Well, I guess it's not that hard to understand where Sydney gets some of her unique behaviors...please see next picture...need I say more???  Actually, it was all in good fun and we had a great time at the zoo!

Sydney did pick up some new words while we were over the big blue.  She has learned 'apple, up, shoes,' and a few others that escape me right now.

There is sooo much to share about our recent trip to Australia (including pictures), but I thought I'd pick up the blog with just a couple of experiences from the trip.  But, before concluding this post I just have to mention that Karen did a great job on the trip.  She donated bone marrow for her Uncle Dennis.  She was a trooper during the procedure, as well as prep visits to the hospital.  We are wishing Dennis the best of luck, and hope the graft works.  We also wanted to wish the best to Rebecca and Kris, who are both being such wonderful support to Dennis.  We enjoyed getting to spend time with each of them.  Well, that's it for now, but expect more Australia pictures over the next few posts.

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

Speaking of...

Sydney has covered all of the critical words.  Momma and Dada have been spoken, much to the relief of her parents.  She has also said puppy, repeated 'kitty' on rare occassion, and has also said yeah, as well as yea!  These are all fairly basic, and nothing to be surprised about.  So, it made sense to expect the next few words in her growing list of vocabulary to be somewhat similar. 

Well, it turns out she decided one of her next words was going to be 'doctor.'  Really?...how strange is that?  But there is a context for this...it does come from the 5 silly mokeys book.  But what are the odds she would pick that word to say?  Then, during the same week her dad was watching the new JJ Abrams Star Trek movie, and Sydney was playing with toys next to him.  When she looked up and saw the tv, her dad pointed and said 'Spock.'  To his amazement, she repeated 'Spock.'  I wouldn't have guessed that either of those two words would be a part of her limited vocabulary, but I guess you should just be proud, whatever word comes out.  The fact that she is increasing her vocal skills is great!  The only other word she likes is boat.  There is a picture in the house that has a boat on it, and she appears fascinated with it for some reason.

This will be our last post until we get back from Australia.  So, I hope you can wait for an update until we get back in mid June.  So, if Sydney comes back saying g'day, crikey, and few other terms that are common to that continent, don't be surprised. 

Great Grandpa Pagels took some great pictures the last time we visited that we just had to share.  He managed to get one of Sydney with her Great Grandma, another picture with her dad, and one with her favorite pet species...dogs.  Grandma Gloria was also able to get a picture of her while she was reading.  A thumb to suck on...a good book with predictable story line...what could be more perfect :) 

Have a great few weeks everyone...and wish us luck on the 15 hour plane ride!!!

Aussie and more...

Ropes?...check.  Duct tape?...check.  Chloroform?...check.  I know you're thinking this must be a checklist for some decent amount of mischief.  Actually, it's part of the packing list for Australia.  These are supplies that we may deem 'essential' for the long flight.  I'm only kidding, Karen does pretty well on planes...haha!  Actually, we will employ every possible strategy to make the flight as pleasant as possible, for Sydney, us, and the other passengers.  I guess if anyone complains on our flight to Australia we can act like we don't understand, since we don't speak Australian...haha!

Well, we have bought some new toys for Sydney specifically for the flight.  We assume this might buy us an hour (possibly more) of peace on the more than 15 hour flight.  Please, send your thoughts and prayers with us through our darkest hour!!!  Actually, with just about two weeks to go, we are eagerly awaiting our trip to Australia.  While the trip's purpose is to help out Great Uncle Den, I'm sure there will be some fun and adventure integrated into the adventure.  And Sydney and Joe are both looking forward to meeting that part of the family!

In other news, Sydney has really become quite good at her signing.  She is even able to do signs in combination, such as 'food...please' and 'milk...please.'  She was really incredible when she signed "Dad, you better set the DVR for the Sounders game."  Her little arms were tired after signing that message!

As far as the pictures on this post, the first one was taken by Rebecca Brethauer.  The second one I took on the way home from Redmond last weekend...I just thought to myself..."man, I wish I could sleep that hard!"  The final picture was fun to take, and really shows how much Sydney has grown.  Technically she is at (or slightly pushing) the recommended weight limit for her bouncer, and it has actually been in the garage for many months now.  But, at daycare each morning she stops in the infant room and gets right in the old bouncer, so I thought it would be fun to get hers out and let her reminisce a little. 

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

Fear of the unknown...

It's not uncommon to fear the unkown.  And when you are little, everything seems new and you never know what to trust.  Sometimes, things that seem tame are really dangerous, and things that seem dangerous are really tame.  But when you are confronted with such sheer awesome strength...power....and fierceness, what could be more terrifying...than, slippers???  That's right, I guess.  Sydney's dad possesses a pair of tiger slippers.  While her dad thought they only had the ability to attack cold feet, apparently there is something very terrifying to Sydney about them.  Over time, perhaps she will learn that they will not eat her, but we will see!  And who knows what other fears may lurk around the corner.

Ironically, Sydney does not fear much as a rule of thumb, and in fact she is often the one to be feared (sorry bite victims).  In her daily life she also attacks every obstacle and challenge with such zest and vigor, you would think she was invincible.  Well, we'll take it one day at a time and hope she learns the right things to fear, and the right things to just wear on your feet.

In other news, HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!  To all of the moms, the mom of moms, and the mom of moms of moms, we hope you have a great day.  Quite simply, without any of you, none of us would exist.  So, to my Mom Gloria, Mom Donna, Grandma Pagels, YaYa Sherri, and MorMor Terrie, thanks for all that you do!  The word 'Mother'...just six little letters, but a word that conveys a mountain of meaning.  Have a fun and relaxing day...you all deserve it! (following picture taken by Rebecca Brethauer)

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

Mooo! Meowww!

So, Sydney has been a master at communicating.  She recently has been saying please, thank you, more, milk, and a few other things in sign language.  She's also been able to beef up her vocal skills beyond just momma, dada, puppy, and grande vanilla latte.

While we celebrate the many advances in her communication, she has branched out and also explored a new area...working on her vocal communications with other species.  When we ask her what sound a cow makes, she makes low moooo sounds.  And of course when we ask her what a kitty says, she quickly replies with a bright meooow.  Since she has picked these up so quickly, I feel it necessary to challenge her with other animal species.  When presented with the task of making the sounds of the Yak, she promptly rose to the challenge...which of course surprised her dad, and also temporarily stumped him when thinking of the next challenge.  Her dad thought he could surely break up her streak with the trick question..."what sound does a sassquatch make?"  Being a clever little girl, she calmly imitated sounds from her Unlce Nathan...haha!  I guess she wins this week, even though sassquatch doesn't really exist!....wait, or does it?

In all seriousness, it is exciting to see her communicating very intentionally.  When she wants or needs something, she can get the point across fairly easily.  And while her spoken skills are in rapid development, it is truly amazing to see how much she truly understands when we ask her to complete tasks.

In other general news, Sydney has had a lot of fun this week...just playing, learning, and enjoying life!  I guess it's a good reminder that we should all strive for those things.  It's hard to believe she is almost 17 months old!  I've included a few more pictures taken by Rebecca Brethauer in this post :)

Have a great weekend everyone!!!

The 'look'!

Sydney has recently been trying out 'the look'.  While there are many types of 'looks' one can give, in this case I am refering to the look that women can give other people to easily beat them into submission.  The look that can drop the temperature in the room, and make the hair on the back of your neck stand on end :)  She must have seen someone else doing this, because she has figured out a way to crinkle her eye brows and deliver a complimentary stare at the same time.  I think it's just a matter of her developmental and physical aging...and that uncovering new facial expressions and trying them out is natural.

Although I do believe it is interwoven into the genetic structure of every human female, I do think there is also a shared environmental teaching that brings this look to it's full and damaging reality.  This is a powerful weapon, and most women wield it responsibly.  When certain situations arise, this one look can convey a million messages without uttering a word.  For obvious reasons, we do not have any pictures of Sydney completing this act.  After the first few days of this, we decided that when she showed her 'look' we would make a silly face at her.  Sure enough, and without a doubt, you could slowly see the edges of her mouth start to turn up, her brows release, and a smile comes out.  She just couldn't resist smiling and giggling a little about it.  I think she must have thought this whole expereince was a fun game.

Fortunately, I think this was just a short lived period in Sydney's infant/toddler life.  She is now back to her giggly, smiley, happy self.  So, hopefully we won't see 'the look' again...or at least until her teen years....haha!

In other news, Sydney is still trying to prep for her big trip to Australia.  She's got her passport, and she'll be looking into getting a travel visa in the next few weeks.

Included in this post are a few more shots taken by Rebecca Brethauer at our last photo session :)

Have a great weekend everyone!!!