Sightseeing

Since I took this week off from work, we have been taking in some of the sights up here in New England. We've had to pick strategically due to the cold weather. Here are two visits that we've done so far.

One of the areas up here that I found fascinating is the Newport, RI mansions. Some of you may remember me sending pics of these places last year when Abe and I visited. They decorate 3 of the mansions for Christmas and so Oma, Opa & I drove down to see them. We left Izzy at home with daddy due to the length of the trip. We first saw The Breakers... the summer home of the Vanderbilt family. I don't think Oma & Opa were ready for how extravagant this house was. Then it was off to see The Elms.... the summer home of coal baron Edward Berwind. Never heard of him??? Neither did I. But don't be fooled.... all these people took care of each other. Berwind coal supplied the Vanderbilt railway. No wander when one got rich, the others did as well! Sorry... no photography was allowed inside except for near the Christmas trees.

Opa & Oma in front of the Christmas tree at The Breakers.

Liz in front of the Christmas tree at The Elms.

Liz & Oma in the gardens at The Elms.

Liz & Opa at the back of The Elms.

We then decided to see the JFK Library here in Boston. This is the place where Senator Ted Kennedy's body was placed to be viewed by the public. Since I did not grow-up knowing President Kennedy, I found this place very educational and well done. For others who know him, this is a place of strong memories... both happy and sad. And Izzy held up just fine for this trip!

Oma, Opa & Izzy in front of JFK Library. Yes... it was that cold!

Izzy testing out Robert Kennedy's Attorney General's desk.

Enjoying the view of Boston from the JFK Library.

Merry Christmas!

We have been blessed to have Oma & Opa visit us over the holidays. They both arrived safe and sound this past Tuesday between snow storms back in Nebraska. Ironically, the weather has been better up here than back home for them. Since they are here, Izzy has been staying home from daycare to be spoiled by constant attention. Here are a couple of pictures from Christmas Eve & Christmas Day. Hopefully all of your celebrations were as special for you as they were for us.

Izzy is excited about her flying dragon!

Clay decided that everything was not intended for Izzy. Her box is mine... ALL MINE!

Izzy being shown a present from Oma & Opa... a barnyard puzzle. But the crinkle ribbon was just too mesmerizing for her.

The men (all 3 of them) carving the turkey for Christmas Eve dinner.

Izzy's first taste of Oma's famous Christmas cookies. Like true Bures women, she LOVED it.

Teta & Judo were able to send a Christmas card to Izzy all the way from Syria. She enjoyed this one as well.

A Barkoudah family picture before we all headed to Christmas Eve church service.

A gift from Santa.

Santa Claus is Coming!

Time was running short for us before Christmas but we still found a way to see Santa. The local toy store in JP had him come tonight. So, Izzy & I packed up to go see him despite the chilly air (see those rosey cheeks!). True to herself, all the smiles & giggles escaped once the camera came out. She didn't quite know which one to be intrigued by as mom was taking pictures along with a store employee. Dad... she asked for a new car.... already!

First Snow!

Today is a day for firsts for us. It was Izzy's first snow fall. There was just enough to make a few neighborhood children go sledding. I'm sure there will be more to come... get ready Oma & Opa! And if that was not enough... Izzy decided it was about time to roll over! It's about time! At first she seemed a bit perplexed... how did I go from my tummy to back and then just squealed. I guess this means we will be keeping a closer eye on her from now on.

I'm sure Abe will be a bit irked that I added this photo but it was just too funny. We have a feature on our new computer... it's call Photo Booth. If you can remember back to those photo booths you used to sit in and it would take 4 photos... this is the same thing. So he sat in front of the computer while it took 4 photos making these type of faces. And of course, I'm hard at work in the background :-)

There wasn't enough snow to make a full-fleged snowman, but this will do :-)

My pink stay-puff marshmallow baby! Izzy was all bundled up before our walk today. She couldn't even move those arms & legs.

This is how Izzy helps mom fold laundry. She sees a pile, reaches for it and then can't stop... so many things to touch!

Happy Thanksgiving!

The holiday's are here! There's nothing like having family around during Thanksgiving even if it was just the three... oh, I mean four of us! Both Abe & I had Thanksgiving off. So while I cooked away in the kitchen, Abe watched Izzy. We had the traditional feast.... turkey, mashed potatoes & gravy (still not as good as Grandpa's though) and green bean casserole. I decided to do a spin on the cranberries and made a cranberry cream cheese tart. The turkey was one of the better ones I've had because of a recipe that said to brine it. Even the white meat was so juicy that it was falling off the bones. Originally, we were planning on trying to go out on Black Friday for a new TV. But Izzy was sick the past few days staying up coughing. Plus the weather was not the best up here (cold rain) making us rethink our plans. So we settled for Black Friday internet-style and got a new computer.

Abe could hardly wait when he saw this.

My babies waiting to eat.

Even Clay waited patiently for his turkey by his bowl... not one single jump on the table.

Post-turkey Izzy. Notice how she's moved all her toys into one pile... that's talent!

Another tradition... putting up the Christmas tree & decorations the day after Thanksgiving.

Baby Splash

In true Abe style... this is Izzy's buffet. She has made an excellent choice!

After going to our local community gym to work-out and swim, I noticed that they had a program called "Baby Splash". It is an 8 week swimming class for infants. We've had fun attending. Izzy is the youngest which makes some of the activities a bit difficult because she doesn't have the motor skills to do them yet. But she is always bright eyed and full of interest when we attend.

Izzy demonstrating her "reach & pull" with the seahorse.

Blowing bubbles. It looks like mom is doing all the work.

At the begining, all the babies take turns in the middle. We all say "hello Izzy". At the end, we do the same thing saying good-bye.

One day I thought Izzy might be tired of her old toys. I then remembered that Abe and I bought this Mickey Mouse during our anniversary trip to Disney World. It has now become one of her favorites.

Barkoudah's Week in Review

The big news in the Barkoudah household is from Abe. He recently accepted a job at Brighams & Women's Hospital at a Hospitalist. He will continue to work on research in their cardiac center as well. This is a major change both in his job and in location. BWH is located right next to Childern's making our commute easy as well as getting to and from daycare.

Izzy has found her feet! She seems to forget they are there when she's wearing any type of clothing. However, when she's naked they are her favorite "toy".

Yes, we found Izzy like this in the morning several days in a row. She would play with the blanket and eventually fall asleep, leaving it be where she last used it.

This is one of Abe's favorite songs to sing to Izzy. She always responds to it the same way. We call her "dancing".

Izzy is a Babbler!

Like clockwork, Izzy has achieved one of the funnest milestones.... babbling. She loves to sit there figuring out items and babbling. Of course, when mom goes to capture this glorious achievement, she stops & is curious about the camera. So this is just a "taste" of what our house now sounds like. It also shows one of her favorite things to play with... her feet!

Halloween

Izzy's first Halloween was busy! On Friday, her daycare had a party in the park near the center. Even though it was meant for older kids, they still dressed up the babes which was fun to see. On Halloween, we were invited to a party with a costume contest. So naturally the whole family dressed for the occassion. Too bad none of us won. Finally, we took Izzy out for trick-or-treating. The businesses in Jamaica Plain open their doors for free candy. I've never seen so many youngsters in costumes. Before the night was over, we had to include our first "child" with his costume as well. It was a fun first Halloween!

Izzy's daycare party.... In the stoller with her fellow babes.

"The chicken"... aka Clay

"Mr. Frog"... aka Izzy

Trick-or-Treating in Jamaica Plain at the firestation.


Izzy's Loot... I'm sure she's going to eat all of it :-)


The super-Barkoudah's and Izzy

Fall....

It's that time of the year.... leaf peeping season! This is truly one of the most beautiful sites. Since Abe gave me a new camera for my birthday, we decided to take it on a test run. These are just a few of the trees right near our home. There are so many more that pictures just don't do justice. To be "festive" we added a couple of pumpkins, the largest weighing in at a whopping 23lbs!

Fall at Jamaica Pond

The Barkoudah's - family picture care of the jogger photographer

Looks like Izzy likes the trees as well.

See... I can fit inside a pumpkin and still look cute.

Izzy's Week in Review

There are so many things that occur on a daily basis that don't fit into neat categories for this blog. Therefore, I decided to do a "Week in Review" so that our family doesn't miss out on the many things that are Izzy.... oh, and us as well :-)

I guess this means we are officially friends!

I finally like tummy time... see mom

Hello Mr. Frog


I'm a big girl now... no bump to hold me up

Modeling my hat that Teta made for me. I definitely need it now!

Apple Picking Time!

Yesterday we decided to get out of the city. We agreed to go apple picking since it seems to be that time of the year. We picked a farm close to Boston (Shelburne Farms) in Stow, MA since it was the closest. We bought a medium sized bag and off into the orchard we went. There were so many varieties to choose from... cortland, empire, macoun & "the ever picked over" Jonagold. They recommended that we pick an apple and taste-test them first which Abe didn't mind doing. They were the best tasting apples I've ever had! Izzy held up wonderfully and had smiles for everyone. Abe & her even went on their first hayrack ride.

What are they doing to me now!

The hayrack ride

Pumpkins galore


All the beautiful apples

Look at the size of those things!