Our PB&J Adventure Book

20 months

Twenty. How can it be? Our little baby is now twenty months old!

Time is flying 

We’re one month closer to 24 months aka 2 years of parenthood. If you’re an avid reader of this blog you may have noticed that we're missing our traditional recap for month 19, but for good reason. We had experienced some of the craziest times, both good and bad during July. Time got away from me and by the time I was ready to do a belated recap, we were already halfway though August... so a combined super recap post would have to do and here it is!

Month 19

Simply put, our month 19 was a rollercoaster. July started off on a low note with the passing of my grandmother. She had been battling Alzheimer's Disease and at the beginning of July, she lost the hard fight with the disease. Her death took a toll on our entire family. She was our core, our home base, our matriarch and her passing left a gaping hole in all of our lives. We miss her each and everyday, but we know she's shining down on us from above. She's finally at peace and I'm just thankful for the love she bestowed upon all of us our entire lives. If you missed it and are interested, you can read my little tribute to her HERE.

My grandma was such a huge part of my life. Not only did she help raise me, but even into adulthood she was always such a huge a part of my days. Not having her around feels like life is a little less full. I'll admit that there was fear about how we could all go back to "normal" since she was no longer with us, but some light and much needed smiles were in store for my family just a few weeks later.

Alaska. A trip that was pre-planned months before my grandma passed for my mom's birthday. It was much needed getaway and dose of cheer after such difficult times. The trip ended up being really fun and just what we all needed. Our Alaskan adventure helped us find our smiles as a family once again and look forward to the good that is still yet to come for all of us. I know that my grandma was shining down on us brightly, too. She'd be happy that we were all happy once again. If you missed it, you can catch my Alaska recap HERE and my cruise recap HERE.

Ring security 

After a July filled with many twists, turns and adventures, we ended up in month 20 aka August! This month has proven to be another hectic and nonstop time, thankfully filled with happier events and new memories to add to our adventure book.

Fresh off of celebrating Ben's 19 months at sea on our Alaskan cruise, we kicked off the new month  with a weekend getaway in the mountains to Lake Tahoe, California. We were there to celebrate my cousin's wedding and Ben happened to have a very special job during the wedding: Ring Bearer. Unfortunately our little guy has started to NOT enjoy all eyes on him and got a little aisle stage fright when it was his turn to shine. But he was a trooper and with the help of mommy, made it down the aisle and checked off his first wedding party experience! It was a beautiful weekend with family and much deserved smiles and happy memories all around.

Apple family days

The following weekend we got to experience something special as a family. We finally got to visit “dada’s” workplace! PB has been an engineer for Apple Inc for the past 7 years, but due to confidentially and security reasons, I’ve never personally been able to visit his office. His old work campus, the famous "1 Infinite Loop" allowed employees to sign guests into the lobby and eat at the employee cafe, Cafe Macs. But I never had a chance to visit since his office was always restricted and that combined with my prior work schedule, timing just never aligned.

The the new HQ opened, Apple Park. If you're an Apple buff you might have already heard of this behemoth of a workplace, but it's basically the new HQ for Apple. The "campus" is massive, to say the least. Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, it's a literal tech spaceship and has been closed to the public for the first two years since it's opened, until now. Apple Park welcomed family and friends of their employees for a special series of "family days" where the campus was open for us to visit and see what all the hubbub was about with this new workspace. It was so special to finally see where PB makes the Apple magic happen. It was amazing to see him in his element and for him to be the proud "dada" showing his son around. Unfortunately, we still couldn't see his actual office desk space since it's still super confidential, but seeing the rest of the campus was wonderful. 

Our little man

I say it every month, but Ben grew leaps and bounds Over the past two months. Physically, he’s grown taller, this kid is well above the next tier of Disneyland ride height requirements! He's growing out of all his shoes and clothes once again, too. I've definitely got a little man on my hands now.

Personality wise, Ben is totally understanding the world around him. He responds to commands like “are you ready for breakfast” and be greeted with a yes/no or nod of the head, or he'll flat out run to the kitchen, attempt to open the fridge and get his breakfast out himself! He also won’t hesitate to let us know what he wants, or if he's not satisfied with current options. He's a kid that loves variety and one of his current obsessions is getting to "choose" his activities like what he'll wear for the day, the books we'll read and his favorite? Snack time treats. He's quite the dancer and loves to ham it up with games of peek a boo or hide and seek. He's also exploring his tastebuds and is loving crunchy items and has discovered the power of "dips" like faux salsa (chips in water), dipping sauce for his chicken nuggets and how glorious it is to combine his breakfast waffles with a little bit of syrup and fruits! 

Perhaps the biggest parenting goal we're working on right now, potty training! We have a LONG ways to go, but we’ve noticed he’s been giving us little signs that he’s ready to try it out. We bought him his own little potty that he’s successfully used a few times now!!! Baby steps and hoping that this means more potty milestones soon.

Hello, fall!

September is just around the corner and historically it's a month always filled with lots of fun and fall events to begin to look forward to. Who knows what adventures we’ll have or new things we'll get into as parents to our full blown toddler? Only time will tell. Until next month's recap, take care and thank you for reading along! 💜