Friday, December 30, 2011

Random Maya Videos & Pics

My old boss, Tim Williams, went to work at Hasbro after leaving Gillette... Remember the movie "Big"?  That's basically his life.  Anyway, that's good news for Maya - since she got a BIG box of free toys this Xmas from Tim.  Here's Maya playing with her new Elephant toy:  Notice how she already knows how to turn the toy on:



Maya also turned 6 months on Dec 26th - in the past month, she's getting VERY active, wanting to stand more than sit... and now starting to pull herself up on sofas, toys, you name it!  We're not going to be able to leave her alone soon:



Maya spent her first Xmas down in Maryland, where Grandma and Grandpa made sure it was an unforgettable first one!

So many presents!
When all was said and done, Maya took home a huge HAUL of Xmas gifts (well, technically Marc will bring them home to Boston for Maya), but they were gone in the blink of an eye.  All that was left was the beauty of an Xmas Tree:

Where did all the gifts go?  This tree is pretty... 

Spending 10 days with mommy & daddy has been pretty amazing - I'm sure to miss them when 2012 comes around:

I love my mommy!  Even if she makes me wear PJs that make me look like a candy cane!
Winter's coming - given that I was born in the midst of summer, this is going to be a shock to my system!  But I'm prepared!

Marshmallow Baby!  I'm in the outfit somewhere!
Lastly, I would be remiss to say that I'm sad that we couldn't be in Hawaii to help my Grand-Umma and Abba celebrate their 50th Anniversary!  I can't wait to celebrate the next 50 with you guys.

Happy Golden Anniv Grand Umma and Abba - Love you!
Till next time - love Maya Rose Lee

6 months old!

I've been 6 months old for a few days now, but it's taken Mommy and Daddy a while to get organized enough after Christmas to post these pictures. Sheez, what have they been doing? Oh yeah, I guess they've been busy with 2 intense jobs, interviewing (Mommy), launching a new device across the US (Daddy), buying a new house (Wellesley), selling their current condo (Marcus)  and of course, watching me grow into an energetic 6 month old! And Grandpa thinks he's the busiest Laich...

I had my 6 month doctor appointment today. Mommy and Daddy tried to guess my weight before hand. Mommy thought I would be 15lbs 4oz, Daddy thought I would be 16lbs. Guess who won? NEITHER! I was right in the middle - 15lbs 10oz. I've dropped back down to the 40th percentile, but no one is worried - I'm growing pretty healthy!  Here are the other stats:

Weight: 15 lbs 10 oz
Height: 25.5"
Head Circumference: 16.8 cm

It's been SO nice spending the last week with Mommy and Daddy - and I still get them for a few more days before they go back to work (boo). But it will be fun showing Gloria all my new toys, if Marcus ever brings them back from Maryland!

Next up - New Year's Eve!





Tuesday, December 27, 2011

Maya's 1st Christmas


Maya had a great first christmas! We were down in Maryland with the whole Laich clan: Grandma & Grandpa, Mike, Lauren & Clara, Danielle and Marcus. 

The festivities started on Christmas Eve, where we all opened a present (or 2 or 3) to help make a dent in the 104 presents under the tree.
104 presents, give or take a few

Pajamas!?! Where are my toys?

Ho Ho Yummy
I love opening presents! Or at least, I love ripping paper!

Yay! My favorite toy from day care. How did Santa know?

Cat Butt!
 We had planned to open presents at 6am on Christmas morning, Clara was just so excited to start Christmas early. But she was the last one to wake up! So we had a nice breakfast of French Toast, to power us up for the gift opening marathon.

Reading the paper with Grandpa

More paper!

Eyeing Daddy's whiskey





Lucky little owl


The winning ticket! And my bookie

Hats!
 The rest of the day was pretty relaxing. Marc, Richard and I went for a jog. Maya and Clara played with their new toys. Mom made an impressive feast of Prime Rib and Dad's famous Potato Pancakes. Then we played some Poker, relatively tame despite all the whiskey being drunk that night!

Best present ever - a happy family!
In the few days we've been down here, we've noticed how much Maya is getting ready to move! She knows what she wants, and she'll usually lunge to try to get a toy just out of reach. She can wiggle on her stomach to move a few inches if needed, but she hasn't yet figured out how to balance on all 4s. Once she does, watch out! It's a good thing we're moving to a bigger house soon!

Merry Christmas to all our blog readers!



Sunday, December 25, 2011

Sunday, December 11, 2011

Dancing Queen

Maya LOVES to dance! She must get it from her Daddy. Or from Aunt Erin. It always puts a smile on her face, and when she watches Daddy dance she cracks up! Enjoy!


Sunday, November 27, 2011

Thanksgiving in Newport with the Lee's, Maya's 5 mo & new nanny!

I should be in movies ; )

I'm on a horse!  Actually a camel... 

It's been nearly four months since Grand-Umma and Grand-Abba have seen Maya Rose Lee in person (we've had numerous Skyp-ay calls, but it's hard to appreciate Maya's cuteness over the Internet!  One needs to experience it in person to get the full effect!  Anyway, we rented a beautiful (if somewhat haunted and mildly flawed) condo right on Thames St in downtown Newport and were mostly blessed and happy to be together and thankful for everyone's happiness, health, and overall good fortune.

The Lee family even temporarily welcomed Marcus Laich and started to indoctrinate him into some Lee family traditions, like how Eddie convinces everyone to order what he wants to eat so he can try it... and how everyone eats off everyone else's plates.  Marcus was a good sport, and in fact even started openly sharing from his plate by the time he left!  Now, if we can only get him to buy Maya an Xmas gift...

The weather was UNBELIEVABLE for end of November in New England - which is fortunate for the Southern Belles visiting the harsh Northeast.  But, the Bostonians actually got to enjoy more of the weather, with Lisa, Marcus & Richard going on jogs on the breathtaking Cliff Walk - Marcus must've slowed us down.  Since the next day, Lisa & Richard ran MUCH faster sans him.

Afterward, everyone took a nice stroll along the Cliff Walk, so Maya and the rest of the Lee family could enjoy the view.  Maya even committed her first "crime" as we somehow snuck into the Breakers Mansion without paying - whoops!  We actually didn't go INTO the Mansion, and even spent some money at the gift shop, so we don't feel that bad.  But don't get used a life of crime Maya!

Saturday was also Maya's 5-month birthday!  She is growing up so quick... and we're constantly amazed by how fast she's developed physically, intellectually, emotionally.  Mostly, we're ecstatic that she's a happy and healthy baby - the other stuff is just gravy!  Having said all that good stuff, there were some rough nights with Maya sleeping - she basically woke up about 15 times on T-giving night - keeping mommy, daddy (and Marcus) awake!  Then the next night, more of the same - fortunately for Marc, he decided to head home that evening to guarantee himself a good nights sleep (wise move).  But, during the day, Maya was an absolute angel - so the fussiness may have been a combination of (1) new surroundings; (2) being excited to see her Grand Umma / Abba / Uncles; (3) possibly a little cold... in any case, on our first night back home, Maya slept most of the night again with few issues!  She's back to being super-baby (and hopefully staying that way!).

We also tried to celebrating Xmas a little early - dressing Maya up in cute holiday outfits, and Maya getting tons of gifts from Eddie & Grand Umma / Abba!  Since we're going to MD for the holiday, we'll be missing our Grand-Umma / Abba's 50TH anniversary... wow, what an accomplishment!  Given that we've only been married for 3 years, it's hard to even comprehend what we'll be like 47 years from now!  Hopefully, we'll be as healthy and happy as my parents are - I really hope that we'll be as good parents, role models, emotional supporters and life partners.  They really are a perfect match for each other and an inspiration for us to follow!   We will Skyp-ay with then while they're in Hawaii celebrating with Uncle Eddie and other family members!  We love you Grand Umma & Abba - and can't wait to celebrate the next 50 yrs of your marriage together (just no more climbing trees, Abba!).

Lastly, tomorrow Maya begins a whole new chapter with her new nanny, Gloria!  We're really excited about starting, since Gloria is so loving, hard working, and trustworthy!  We fully expect Maya to develop even faster under Gloria's guidance - not to mention it will make our lives a little less stressful!  We'll definitely miss day care, but not drop-off/pick-up!  We hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!

Love,
Maya, Lisa & Richard

What a cute family!  Wait a second... that's not Maya's daddy!

But he sure is fun to play with!

Now I know where my daddy gets his silliness from!

My grand-abba's face is so strong - but he should use daddy's i-LIGHT to get rid of spots!

T-giving sunset from Newport - so beautiful!

Now, THAT's my daddy... 

And my mommy ain't so bad either... she LOVES hugging me.

Marc doesn't think we took any pictures of him (you need to hold Maya to get in pics!).

Maya loves to explore new things - xmas holly!

I love playing with my Grand Abba & Umma!  

My grand-umma now I know where my daddy gets his good looks!

Provocative sweater  - I wear lots of pink too!

I love eating adult food - but it makes me poop alot more!  

Playing with Grand Umma / Abba!

Checking out Cliff Walk - we chose the picture where Marc isn't putting rabbit ears behind Richard

But he is trying to block Richard with the menu in this photo.

The whole family (Marc's shadow on the left).

Oh no!  Don't fall off the cliff daddy (esp with me strapped to you!)

Marc offered to teach Maya how to throw a curve ball

Guy talk

Awww... aren't I cute?

Even cuter when I'm happy & smiling!

Sneak preview of my Xmas outfit

This is how I will eat Xmas cookies which we'll bake at Grandma's house!

Why are you hiding my amazing hair with this hat?

Saved by grandma (reading "My Grammy Loves Me")

Cute candy-striped PJs with reindeer booties!

And a reindeer on the butt too!

My grand-umma does such a great job feeding me!

Green dress & red tights - I look like a leprechaun!

And it's 60 degrees outside!

I'm gonna miss the sun this winter : (

Mommy modeling off Ocean Ave

Why does mommy look so much taller than daddy?

The beautiful view - too bad Maya and Grand-Umma were sleeping!

Lisa & Grand Abba watching the kites flying all over!

I'm 5 months old already!

Hey - that's my Santa hat!  But you can borrow for a few more weeks...