We enjoyed the use of Aunt Emily's Little Lamb baby chair while we were there; it provides a backdrop for many cute shots of Vianne on the trip! Here she is wearing one of cousin Miriam's outfits.
On Day 3 of the trip, we went garage sale-ing (sp?) with Aunt Vera & cousin David. Here are the shoppers, ready to go, and looking so thrilled about what the morning holds...
Little David is such a smiley, happy guy! He also loves pulling his socks off.
After our morning adventure, it was off to the Terwilligers' house for lunch & long-awaited introductions. So fun! Here's V with Jaime...
...with Derek...(after an 'accident' required an outfit change)
...and Jim...
...Kirstin...
...and Mel!
She fell asleep with her face smashed into Jaime's chest. It was so cute & funny!
Back 'home' in the lamb chair. At home in California, it's the black & white lamp that tickles her fancy. At Grandma G's, it was the ceiling fan. That's what provoking the various expressions in this series...
(Grandma merits a smile, too)
Then, after another wardrobe change, we were off to meet Uncle Chris - the only immediate family member left to meet! He was very entertaining and composed an original tune for Vianne about her similarities to Fluffy from Harry Potter...
Miriam decided to take her turn at holding V.
The next day, we had took advantage of Oregon's wonderful bounty of berries and made strawberry & raspberry jam!
David entertaining himself
A few shots of V on the quilt in Grandma's guest room, since it matched her onesie (a gift from our friend Melissa).
Vianne & I were up in Oregon for two weeks! We sadly had to leave Patrick/Daddy behind to work on his dissertation and we missed him terribly, but I was super busy introducing Vianne to all of her Oregon family and many dear friends.
Waiting to board at Ontario Airport
Hanging out in Sacramento, waiting for the plane to load & take off for Portland!
Vianne's first flight, despite some anxiety on the part of her mother for days before the trip, was a huge success! We had the whole back row to ourselves on the first leg, but then had a full flight for the second leg. I knew when those last passengers having to take the only free seats saw me with a baby, they were hoping to sit elsewhere (and I was hoping they would, too) but the man who drew the short stick and had to take the aisle seat, and the man who drew the even shorter stick and had to cram into the middle seat, were just as astonished as I was that she was quiet the whole time. The man in the middle turned to me half way through and said, "I don't want to jinx it, but your baby has been an absolute joy to ride next to!" :-)
Grandma/Mom Gustafson picked us up at the airport and our first stop was to my Grandma's house so Vianne could meet her Great Grandma for the first time! It was a very special visit for me, since this is my Dad's mother and my only grandparent still living, and when Vianne & Great Grandma first saw each other, Vianne smiled at her, and Great Grandma was so delighted. Vianne was pleased as can be to let Great Grandma hold her and enjoyed looking around at all the things in her living room. Great Grandma declared Vianne a sweetheart, and I left, overjoyed that my little one had gotten the official Grandma Gustafson Stamp of Approval :-D.
Next stop: Vancouver, WA, to see Aunt Emily again and meet Uncle Thom and cousins Bea & Margot for the first time. The girls had each grown at least 3 feet and learned 5000 new tricks since I saw them in January. Such a joy to finally introduce them! They were so sweet with Vianne!
Margot had the luck of the 'I'm up from my nap' draw, and was the very first cousin to meet Vianne.
It was warm in Oregon! Quick wardrobe change, and introductions were made to cousin Beatrix.
Saying goodbye for now...
And the next stop: Beaverton, OR, to meet Uncle Geoff, Aunt Vera, & cousin David. A short but sweet visit and so fun to see David again at last (it had been since November!).
The next morning, Grandma Gustafson got some bonding time before her house was overrun with family.
Morning nap...
...and still asleep when the cousins arrived! How cute are they?!
Soon after, the Storey cousins arrived to meet Vianne!
Here she is with Rachael, the eldest of the clan.
Reunited with Aunt Jenny
Snuggling with cousin Matt
With cousins Grant and Miriam
Surrounded by Storeys! :-)
Photos of my beautiful sister Jenny (taken by my beautiful sister Emily)
Second round of being held by cousins!
And then, a bit later, Aunt Vera brought cousin David over. Emily shot this hilarious & cute series of the four youngest cousins (all born within about 2 yrs & 3 weeks of each other).
And this was just the first two days! To be continued...
