Part 1 - Joshua Tree for the Memorial Day holiday

Uwe and Astrid spent an entire week in Joshua Tree, (3 days of which were without me). It was a great bonding experience for both of them.

After Astrid was born I was fortunate enough to have 10 months with her, as a stay at home mom, to bond with her and spend entire days with her, but Uwe went right back to work after only 2 weeks. By spending 24/7 with her around the clock Uwe was able to pick up on patterns in her behavior, her daily routine, and how it feels to be her sole caretaker without the assistance of a spouse. (We both realize that raising a child as a single parent would be tough!)

Uwe was also touched to see how Astrid would check in with him every 10 minutes or so by going up to him, touching him and getting the affection she needed, and then would go back to doing whatever it was she was doing. (Astrid is very independent and Uwe has expressed how he wishes she'd be more affectionate and close. But this week he got to see how she expresses affection in her own way and how she'll let ya know when she needs it.) Here's a photo of Astrid in front of the boulders next to the house.Astrid loved running around the house. There were so many things to look at and discover, as well as great big open spaces. Here she is taking out some toys from a big gift bag she received on her birthday. Uwe used this bag to store her books and toys for this trip. She had no problems tipping it over and finding what she wanted. And look at how good she's getting at bending over while standing to reach for things. Uwe reported that Astrid was sleeping like crazy and he'd have to wake her up because he was worried about her (taking two 3 hours nap is a record!) sleeping so long.

Even in the mornings she'd be sound asleep long past the usual time she wakes up (7 AM). He would open the door to her room and she wouldn't even stir. Then after a few minutes he'd return and say, "Astrid, it's time to wake up" and still no movement. So finally he had to take her out of her pack and play to wake her up. I guess it was all the exercise and the pool that tired her out.

(Blogger now has this strange quota on pics per post, so I'm going to have to split this post up into 5 parts.)