The many faces of Vincent (one month old)

Vincent is now one month old and he's starting to give us more faces. He's pretty adorable! It just doesn't get old looking at this little guy. He's so sweet!

Tomorrow we have his one month check up, so I'm sure we'll have more news at that point. But, as you can see, he's starting to fill out and pack on the pounds. He's a good eater! He's also becoming a good sleeper. He goes to bed between 12-1AM, and sleeps until about 5 or 5:30, then sleeps again until 9 or 10 depending on the day. It's nice because I can finally get some decent sleep! He's started moving his head to follow someone when they walk by, and he's been doing well with tummy time. His neck and back are getting stronger! Vincent also enjoys watching football with dad- he lays on Josh's belly facing the tv and loves it.

In the past week we've had to organize a few things- registering for his pediatrician with the healthcare system, picking up birth certificates at the city hall, and going to the US Embassy to apply for his social security number and passport. It was so easy going to the embassy to apply for everything!! I forget how efficient things are in the states compared to Italy! It was actually a nice change :) We get to pick up his passport in only a few weeks!

Josh had fun on Sunday taking one month old pictures of Vincent, and here are his many faces... Enjoy!

Poop face...

The Thinker

Elvis Face

So serious...

Where are you going?

The start of a smile



Should I cry or not??

Food?



Confused... amused... not sure.

Sweet face

Pirate face

Someone just farted and it wasn't me!



Go Vikes! #1!!

Usually his face when watching football with dad

Norway Part 2: Saturday



Morning ice cream!

Saturday: a tour of Western Norway! We started the day leaving Sissel and Ragnar's house in Drammen really early that morning and started heading west to Laerdal. We made a few stops on the way for some ice cream and coffee (at 10:30AM... oh it was so good!), and of course we had to stop for pictures. There was also the Stave Church, beautiful scenery, and even snow!! After lunch in Hemsedal and the Stave Church, we arrived in Laerdal for a three hour tour of the Sognefjord and Naeroyfjordden. It was awesome! Every time we turned around we wanted a picture. Unfortunately they just don't do the scenery justice! The ferry was great because we were one of three cars on it- we pretty much had the deck to ourselves :)


An awesome waterfall we saw from the road

It started getting colder the higher we got, and this area was
REALLY cold! This house has grass on the roof- an old tradition
in Norway. I guess it helped with insulation during the winter.

Yes, that is snow! In June!

After getting back to a lower altitude it cleared up and we
were able to enjoy the Borgund Stave Church. They had just
tarred it, so that's why it looks black. It's made entirely of
 wood and it's incredible!



Where we caught the ferry in Laerdal

The ferry opens at the end to let the cars on board... I've
never seen anything like that before!

We started out thinking this was the most amazing view!
Oh, were we in for an awesome trip...

At the one and only stop on our tour, Kaupanger

Me and Sissel

The awesome tour guides!

Just inside the ridge on the far left, there is a portion that looks
like a hand coming down the mountain towards the water...
We decided that's the troll that lives in the mountain. If we
weren't on our best behavior, he was going to get us!!  ;)
And yes, those are glaciers on top.

We were picture taking fools...

In the Naeroyfjorden

A bunch of sea kayakers

After dinner in Flam, we stopped at this brewery/restaurant.
It was viking inspired, and completely awesome!!

There was even a fireplace with benches
that had furs to keep you warm!

After Flam, we headed once again into the tundra...

Again... it was freakin' cold!!

See- the car says 0 degrees celcius!! (32 degrees F)

The last thing I remember before falling asleep in the car

That night we finally arrived at the cabin around 12:30AM. I was exhausted from an awesome day! So I pretty much crashed as soon as we arrived. The rest of the crew stayed up and enjoyed the midnight sun of Norway. What an incredible day with incredible views!

On the final installment, you'll get to see our day at the Cabin, and Monday in Drammen. Stay tuned...

Keukenhof Gardens

The Keukenhof Gardens, the most visited tourist destination in the world! Apparently it’s also the largest garden in the world. What an amazing place! You can easily spend all day wandering around on the paths and enjoying the beautifully cultivated flower beds. Getting there is easy- from Schipol Airport you can take the Keukenhof express bus (line 58 I believe). There are no stops and it will take you directly to the gardens. The bus ride is about 45 minutes from the airport and goes through some amazing flower fields and cute little towns.

At the Keukenhof you can rent bikes to see the site, or you can just walk like we did. There are a few buildings on the property where different displays are created out of flowers. We entered one building that had an orchid show and it was absolutely amazing! Orchids are my favorite flowers, so I was in heaven. If I could have a room in my house just for orchids I would! Unfortunately, Josh couldn’t wait to get back outside to see the tulips and other flowers.

Some of the coolest flowers we found

The day is best described in pictures, so here you go! Enjoy!!

 

The orchid building

Josh's favorite flower bed

They had some amazing color combinations!

Some of the fringed variety

Break time! Chocolate milk for me...

... and beer for Josh. He was happy!

This was my favorite section of flowers- right by a little pool

some strange sculpture in the pond...



I loved these dark purple flowers