Four generations of Garrisons

This past week, I (Shelly), Soren and my mom (Ann) paid a visit to Vashon Island to visit Ann's parents -- Soren's great-grandparents!

(He has three of them, but Nana lives in Tennessee...don't know just when we'll get on a plane to see her.)

Great-G'pa Gerry and Great-G'ma Karin were pretty thrilled to meet their FIRST great-grandson. After a nice lunch and photo session (we captured all four generations of Garrisons), we left them gazing adoringly at Soren in his car seat while we packed the car. When we returned to fetch him, Gerry said, "Oh, you can leave him here with us." "I don't think you remember what that entails..." Mom chided. Just wait till he got hungry!

Baby for Obama

OK, so Obama didn't pay a visit to our state, as Washington's predicted to go blue in the presidential election that is just a week away, but Soren's auntie Nora is living in Colorado, a "swing state." And Obama came to a rally in Fort Collins that she attended, along with Soren's grandparents, Ann and Bill, (who were visiting Nora this past weekend).

They got seats behind the podium and Nora took these great photos.

How historic! We're jealous! And these pix are going in Soren's baby book.

Vote early, vote for change!

Our purple people-eater

I know, I know -- it's been a long time since my last post! My excuse is that I have been stumbling through a newsletter contract I accepted before Soren was born, thinking "how hard can it be to put together a simple four-page newsletter with a newborn? Won't he sleep all the time, etc., etc.?" HA! is all I can say in hindsight. But a smashing newsletter will be going to the printer on Monday, and then I'll breathe a huge sigh of relief and settle down to mothering Soren full-time.

I've been steadily taking photographs of our boy, however, and have lots to share, so I'll pop a few up here and add more in the days to come.

The Baby Bjorn is Soren's newest favorite carrier, worn here by Dad:
And when we take him on walks outside, we zip Soren into this adorable purple fleece suit. At first we called him "Our Li'l Grape."

Then the family that handed down the suit to us informed us they always called their daughter "Our Li'l Eggplant" when she was zipped up in it.
And the latest nickname is "Our Purple People-Eater"... or Mr. Purple Smiley Face!

My musical pop & a bonus photo album

Checking in after a very busy week! We've been swinging and walking and feeding Soren like crazy. (Fortunately Ann & Bill are here and committed to being here for the first three weeks of October, or else our arms and legs might fall off. Alas, there's no substitute for Mama's breast...) Soren is growing almost visibly day to day. Weighed at six weeks, he was 10 pounds, 12 ounces. Check out how long and leggy he is looking in Grandma Ann's arms:


And we continue to introduce him to new cltural experiences, such as an up-close-and-personal with Dad's banjo:

After some initial skepticism, Soren decides after a tune or two that he likes banjo music after all!

And for those who can't get enough of his sweet little face, click through to a Kodak album with 42 photos, my latest order for the baby book. Enjoy!

Guest post from Auntie Jill

Auntie Jill here. Well, there's a new man in my life. Even though he's less than two feet tall, isn't quite potty trained yet, and is a total mama's boy, he's stolen my heart. We have many of the same interests...we like to go for long walks on the beach together, enjoy taking long naps, and are both big fans of dairy products. Yeah, my nephew Soren is a pretty special guy. Here we are before one of our morning walks.I've been able to spend both the first and last week of September with Shelly, Jeff, and Soren, and my time in Port Townsend has been wonderful. Soren and I have spent many hours exploring the beaches, trails, and neighborhoods here (while Shelly and Jeff sleep, work, or get chores done around the house). He stays snugly asleep inside the red wrap for up to two hour walks! Soren let his parents go to a play while I watched him (he slept soundly the whole time they were gone), and he accompanied me on a shopping trip downtown. People treat me differently when I've got a baby with me! It's funny suddenly having the world see me as a motherly type...everyone smiles at me and drivers hit the brakes instantly when I want to cross the street. Back in my auntie role, I attended a breastfeeding tea and midwife visit with Shelly, cooked and cleaned at the Randall Roost, and helped with diaper changing and Soren soothing. I've learned so much about what it means to be parents of a newborn! I now have so much respect for everyone who has gone through the parenting process...thanks Mom and Dad! Here are Soren's Mom and Dad, thinking about how different their lives are now than they were a few months ago, and how excited they are to have little Soren around.
Since I was here for the first and fourth weeks of Soren's life, I was able to observe a few of his developmental changes. He seems fussier now, and harder to console when he's crying (sorry, Shelly and Jeff!). He is much more curious about his world, and gazes, wide-eyed, at all the interesting people and things around him. Most exciting, he has started to smile! Check out this happy grin!I have to leave tomorrow morning to continue my nursing school program in Portland, and I can barely tear myself away from Soren. The only hard part about being an aunt is that I can't be with Soren all the time! I'll be back soon...
P.S. At four weeks old, Soren weighed in at 9 pounds, 13 ounces -- having gained an average of 1-2/3 ounces a day for each of the 14 days prior. This is a very healthy rate and evidence of the feeding frenzy he has recently undertaken!

Guest post from Auntie Nora

As a guest in the Randall household for the past 5 days, I thought it would be nice to get an outsider’s perspective on Soren (although both Mom and Dad lend their wonderful writing skills on this blog.) Unlike them, though, I’ll try to be brief!

I’m Auntie Nora in the picture below who looks like she doesn’t know how to hold a baby, but he likes that position, I promise! Soren is my first nephew and I wasn’t sure what to expect, although I’d fallen in love with his pics before I had a chance to come all the way from Colorado to officially meet the little guy.

He’s adorable – I know that I may be completely biased, so that said - I have to brag a little by saying that he’s boyishly handsome, agile (well, he’s working on that!), smart (it’s already evident!), entertaining (time flies when you just sit and stare at his infinite facial expressions), and completely charming (when he’s not squalling in your ear!). I like to call him my little “hot water bottle” as his tiny toasty body feels so cozy when he’s curled up in your arms. I can already feel my biceps from carrying him around; I’ve enjoyed our special time together on our early-morning walks around PT (Soren bundled in the amazing Moby Wrap); I have changed innumerable diapers (and washed even more dishes!); and learned the calming position of holding him against my chest with his frog legs tucked up and his little head nestled under my neck. That, in particular, I will miss…


There’s no denying that Soren is one special kid and I’m glad that we’ve had some bonding time in his first weeks of life. If you have the chance to meet him, I would jump at it (just make sure you can dance to Irish music while bouncing him up and down ‘cause he likes that!). Plus, Mom and Dad sure enjoy the extra hand so they can do things like sit through an entire meal, make a few phone calls, and maybe even take a shower (you know, the little things in life).

OK, it’s almost 9pm – bedtime – as the quiet of evening settles in and Soren snoozes peacefully as he drifts off to sleep…

Charming the ladies

Some new women entered Soren's life this week, starting with his first friend his age. Little Tayla was born only 11 days before him, and as his mom and I are friends (same birthing class, etc.), Soren and Tayla surely will be, too. They have matching car-seat strollers, and we enjoyed our first walk together on Thursday, picking blackberries all along the way.
On Friday Auntie Nora arrived on a special meet-the-nephew visit from Colorado, where she has just started a grad school program and will be living for the next two years. We won't get to see her too often, so this was special indeed. She is staying for five nights. Seattle friend Sierra picked Nora up from the airport and stayed with us for two nights. They cleaned and cooked up a storm; the house hasn't looked this tidy since before Soren was born. Count two more Soren fans -- he's charmed them as well.

Soren surpassed his birth weight last weekend and as of Wednesday weighed 8 pounds, 5 ounces. I took him to the weekly "Breastfeeding Tea" at the county health department and the nurse certified his latch as very passable. I queried my fellow moms about favorite nursing bras/tops, since I'll be needing to update my wardrobe in this regard. Any tips out there, please pass them on -- especially clothing easily purchased online. (A trip to the nearest mall an hour away seems too daunting at this point. We're enjoying being homebodies.)

If you've noticed that we are booked up with visitors, we decided a few days after Soren joined our family that we really appreciated the extra hands and help. So we have the entire month of September scheduled with family members and a few intrepid friends who are just as happy being asked to vacuum as bounce Soren. Our house is set up well for overnight guests, with those sleeping on the ground floor reporting they can't hear nighttime squalling on the third floor. The important thing is for everyone else to get a good nights' sleep so they can relieve me during the day! So far, it's working. Nobody is too sleep-deprived. For now.