Elsa's First Thanksgiving

Elsa's first Thanksgiving Day was spent at my Mom's house in Millbrae. This year we are very Thankful for having Elsa in our lives.



My Aunt Frances, cousins Matt & Alex, and others joined us for a lovely meal.



The week began with an outing to SF MOMA with Mom and Aunt Frances.



They we all had dinner at the Hayes Street Grill. Elsa was a big hit!



The week ended at the Los Altos Festival of Lights - where Elsa enjoyed all the bright lights and costumes.

Elsa & Karna November Adventures

November is my last full month home with Elsa, so I took it as an opportunity to take Elsa on some great adventures. She is now 4 months old and 15 pounds and a great traveler.

Our first overnight plane trip without Daddy was to Newport Beach to visit my friend Tracy and her daughter Sage. We wandered around Balboa Island and found giant Pumpkins.



Sage was wonderful at the big sister role and even had a matching sleeper!



The next Monday was Track Suit Monday in the park. This was our last outdoor park meeting, as it is getting colder and wetter and not as easy to meet up. Sunny continues to be a good friend to play with.



Our big November trip was to Boston. Elsa dressed up in her outfit from Uncle Carter as we packed for the trip.



While it was a long flight with a lap baby, it was nice to arrive and get to enjoy sunny cold New England Days. I liked dressing Elsa in my childhood warm weather wear and let her play in the fall leaves.



We visited my friend Phoebe in Bedford and enjoyed some Bedford Farms ice cream!



Then we met up with my mom's cousin Betsy, who lives in Brookline, near where I used to live.



Also in Brookline was Joy and her kids Axel and Annika. Elsa had fun playing with Annika who is 2 months older then her.



On Saturday, Amanda and Carter took us around Boston, starting in the Boston Gardens. We stopped by the Make Way For Ducklings statues.



Elsa is my special little duckling.



It was nice to have Amanda carry Elsa for some of the day - they looked very good together.



We even got to meet with Santa.


There was a random photo booth for the Boston Ballet that took a crazy photo of the 4 of us and the nutcracker bear.



When we got home, Carter and Elsa took some time to chill out on the couch.



We had a wonderful trip.

Elsa's First Halloween!

Elsa was a Sunflower for her first Halloween!



She had an exciting day of making Daddy orange waffles for breakfast.



Then adventuring around town in the sweater her grandmother made her.



And the evening was spent trick or treating until she wilted.

SoCal Fun with Elsa

In late October we had a great weekend visiting family and friends in LA, and showing off Elsa!



First we saw Susan and Sarah. They dressed Elsa up in a fancy hat.



We then spent Saturday night with Steph, Bruno and Noa and enjoyed a wonderful homemade meal.



Sunday morning we visited Dick Lee, one of my father's best friends.



Then it was off to Pasadena and Helen, a good friend of Arne's mom. Helen turned 99 last month and still has a very keen mind. She talked about how important is for women to vote. Some people, like Helen's mom, worked really hard to secure that right, so Helen's never misses an election.



We also visited my cousin Phil at his new home.



Then it was off to Palm Springs for the CalPERS Educational Forum conference.



Arne was know as the guy with a baby, after he took Elsa to breakfast Monday morning and the Monday night cocktail hour.



Before leaving, we went up the Palm Springs Tramway and saw the sights before heading home. It was a wonderful trip.

100 Days of Elsa

Elsa is now 100 days old! She is over 14 pounds and almost 26 inches long. We hope she will be a tall volleyball player someday.



Her favorite activity is to roll over from her back to her tummy. It is fun to watch her flip herself over and then check things out.



She also goes to the park and hangs out with friends like Sunny and Sierra.



Beyond her family, Elsa has been blessed with many "aunties" and "uncles" who love to visit and hold her. Here are some pictures of Elsa with them over the last month.

Rich and Ellen with Elsa


Marci (who used to hold Karna as a baby) with Elsa


Megan with Elsa


Tim with Elsa


Doris (who used to hold Arne as a baby) with Elsa


Cat with Elsa


Julia and Caleb with Elsa


Elsa and Justin


Uncle Warren with Elsa in her cute winter outfit


Julia A with Elsa, just a few days before Sydney was born


Craig and Bethany with Elsa

Hawaii with Elsa

Hawaii! Our first plane adventure with Elsa was wonderful. On Thursday night we headed out to Hawaii. In the airport we had two great surprises, first, an upgrade to first class, and then getting to take a picture of Elsa with the Stanford Women's Volleyball team.


Elsa slept in Arne's arms for the flight and was super peaceful. On arrival in Hawaii, we were greeted with leis at our hotel, The Kahala and headed up to our room to sleep.

We stayed at the hotel beach during the day (private, quiet, and no waves) and practiced swimming with Elsa.


Then we headed out to Waikiki and enjoyed the sunset.


Next it was off to The Stan Sheriff Center to watch the University of Hawaii women's volleyball team crush Nevada in 3 games.


On Saturday, we had a wonderful brunch and Elsa got to show off her bikini.


The morning was once again spent playing in the sand.


After our midday nap, we headed up the coast for some garlic shrimp, ocean swimming, and watched the Blue Angels do a show over the Marine Corps base.


After the show, we met up with my cousins in Kailua and enjoyed a lovely dinner in their new home.


Sunday morning we met up with Mike & Nan and their family for brunch at our hotel. Then we headed out to the Kuli`ou`ou Valley for a hike up to the ridge. Unfortunately, we missed the turnoff for the ridge and ended up going up the valley. It was a beautiful but hard hike. Elsa was a great hiker on her daddy's chest.


That night we headed over to Mike & Nan's house for his birthday dinner. It was wonderful to see their home and have a bouncer for Elsa to play in.


For our last night, we got room service desserts!


Monday morning we toured our hotel, learning that it include the set for the bar in Magnum PI.


After play in the ocean, we stopped by Diamond Head on our way to Pearl Harbor.


After a short stop in Pearl Harbor and then the Dole plantation we headed up to Waimae Bay to play in the waves. They were huge and wonderful.


Then we had dinner in Haleweia and watched the sunset, before headed back to the airport and home to California.


Elsa was a great traveler and we will need to take her on more trips!