merry holidays, happy xmas!

Yes, it's been 3 weeks since our last post. And a busy and quickly passing 3 weeks it has been! Quick review:
My store opened and looks fantastic now. Everyone did tons of hard work and Leora was an excellent coordinator. Every detail came together wonderfully. The last weekend before the opening, Dec. 8/9 was crazy and we had lots of friends and family come out to help us finish things up in time. It's so nice to have a beautiful place to meet with clients and a comfortable area to eat and have the kids when needed. The press room in the back still needs to be painted, floor finished and area organized. But the front is very presentable and that's what matters most. The back garage also needs organization, but that will come in time. We were very busy with a couple of holiday orders and I was at the store for countless hours finishing up all of the samples for the stationery book. I'm in Maryland now and Leora is staying with the store and getting our samples and book constructed for the Atlanta show. Mom and I will be leaving for that (with Laurel in tow of course) on the 8th. Alex and Megan fly back on the 1st.

Alex was super busy these last couple of weeks too. His studio has been low on support and he was the only animator on his current project. His to-do list was too long, but he's managed to get it done and now has a chance to relax.

Our xmas holiday was pretty low-key. We've been staying on pacific coast time to keep Laurel on track. With all of her sleep particularities, I'm hoping to keep change down to a minimum. Our flight out to MD was a red-eye and went very well. She didn't sleep until very late though. Our flight was 2 hours delayed. She was too curious about everything! She dozed in the line at check-in and then was over-tired later. She finally fell asleep and slept all througout the flight. She didn't even complain about the air pressure at take off and set down. She stayed in my arms the whole time and we dozed off together. I popped her into the sling to get off of the plane and wait for baggage. She awoke briefly when we put her in the car seat, but slept on the way home and we pulled her into bed with us when we got in. All in all, a success. We still have 3 more flights though, to Atlanta and back, and then back to LA in the end, on the 18th.

Xmas day was nice and calm. Lots of presents exchanged and we put Laurel in her holiday onsie and took her picture under the tree. Our best present of all this year. Sounds sappy, but it's true. Laurel loves the xmas lights on the tree.

Laurel updates:
She's found her thumb and is getting more accurate with sticking it in her mouth. I don't think she was a baby that sucked in-utero because it's taken her a while to use it. She jams the thumb way in so that she's sucking on her palm a little too. And she splays her fingers out above her nose into her eyes instead of curling up a fist. It's pretty cute. :)
She is also starting to laugh clearly. She's had some half laughs, but just yesterday was squealing and giggling.
Laurel is moving into the 3-6 month clothes. Not really for girth, but for length. Not all clothes are the same, so there's lots of 3 month clothes she still wears, but the arms and legs are starting to get too short. She got several new outfits for xmas that will look so cute!
Her sleeping is mostly the same. She takes her morning nap, can only stay up for about 2 hours stretches, afternoon nap and maybe a tiny doze around 5. And still the same, the inconsistent quality of the naps and the nap durations. So the schedule remains loose and unpredictable. Seems like when we want her to nap, she won't and when we have plans and need her to get up, she sleeps!
Laurel is getting much stronger. She tries to pull herself up and can sit propped up easily. She pulls on your hands to pull herself into a standing position. She loves to stand.
We think that teeth may be coming around the corner. She's sucking endlessly and munches down hard on her fist. There's nothing to feel in her gums, but it's possible that she's working on something.
I feel like she's always doing something new, so I'm probably leaving things out. But that's a good summary for now:).
These are pictures taken on Dec. 16th, 3.5 months old.