maxwell james

New blog address

2008-12-01T11:58:00.000-08:00

From now on we will be posting to our new address:

http://maxwellandsam.blogspot.com/

we thought Sam should be included

Sam Mateo Lassen

2008-11-25T13:01:00.001-08:00

He's here, at a whopping 9lb and 21 1/2 inches, Sam Mateo Lassen.

I realize it's been over 2 months and I'm only just getting around to posting a picture - I've been a little preoccupied and very disorganized. I wasn't ready for the shock of looking after two babies!! Nobody adequately warned me. It's exhausting but wonderful and Max (to our great surprise) is a most loving and sweet big brother.

There are many more photos and updates waiting for me to post and we have set up a new blog address which I will post here soon. Thank you to our wonderful friends and family who have done soooo much to help us during this crazy time.

living life to the Max

2008-08-24T19:32:00.000-07:00

A few photos that give a glimpse of the mischief that is cooped up in this little body:

look at the glint in those eyes

up to no good in daddy's shoes - which frequently go missing for days at a time - do I look like I care????

I just love sticks

why bother with clothes?

Just woken up

4th July fun with fire

you'd throw things too if you were stuck in this chair all journey long

I have no idea who lost the remote

I like Richard's sense of style

Don't take my drink

Things taste so much better when you have to break through cupboards with child locks to get to them

Sometimes mum and dad get reeeaaaally frustrated with me but they never seem to stay cross for long - how could they??

Our summer

2008-08-24T18:22:00.000-07:00

Most of our summer was spent at home in Nicholasville, KY. We have enjoyed doing our projects in the house and yard and watching Max discover his interests. So far he seems to prefer tools, other people's shoes, things with wheels that he can turn, rocks, sticks, dirt and kitchen utensils. He watches his dad work in the garage and garden and will copy most anything he sees him do. We will often find him bending over something Matt has been working on pounding it with a tool of some kind. Over the summer while Matt was off school he became quite the daddy's boy and now he gets very upset when dad leaves without him.
Matt, Max and Richard working on the patio

Max "helping" dad move roadbase

On the finished patio - note also the fence in the background.

Max loves tractors - old...

or new

Fruit picking at Boyd's Orchard

Quick bath in the kitchen sink - sometimes Max has to take several baths a day

All tuckered out after a long day of work

Dad's summer treat was a giant ribeye roast that he cut into steaks. He justified it as a thank you dinner to those who have helped us with work on the patio - Thank you again.

Father's day cheesecake made with fresh picked Kentucky berries.

Family trip to Pittsburgh

2008-08-24T13:02:00.001-07:00

We headed up to Pittsburgh, PA for a few days to visit Uncle Nick and Auntie Dorothy. We had a great time exploring the city, playing in the pool and going to a Pirate's baseball game. We would have had a very relaxing trip had max not just received his 15 month shots and developed a fever. When he was fun he was very very fun but when he was bad he was "horrid". We'll be lucky if we ever get invited back.
Overlook of the city

PNC park where the Pittsburgh Pirate's play

Uncle Nick and Auntie Dorothy

Watching the game and devouring popcorn. Can't wait for mom and dad to give me the next mouthful - I need the whole bag.

Just can't stop eating this stuff

love the oversized Pirate's jersey

Splashing in the pool

Daddy's flip flop and Uncle Nick's Budweiser cooler make drinking milk muck more fun

Weekend at Tar Fork

2008-08-24T12:45:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we went up to the Hollows of Eastern Kentucky with the Hamiltons. It is a little piece of paradise. We stayed in their lovely cabin where "Uncle Tom" was actually born - though it has changed a little since that time. It was so nice to get away and be out in the peaceful hollows. Somehow, in all this beauty, all we managed to get on camera was photos of us all on the 4-wheelers and our dog peeing! Don't know how we managed that.
The family on bikes

Uncle Tom and Aunt Bonnie

Baby boy 2 at 7 and a bit months.

no explanation needed

Marilyn and Abby visit from Utah

2008-08-24T12:32:00.000-07:00

It was so nice to have Marilyn and Abby come and stay with us for a while. Having been adopted into the family since moving to San Diego in 1999 it is difficult not seeing them for so long - especially as they don't get to see Max growing up. Abby made up for lost time by spending every moment she could with Max. Unfortunately Max is not quite the snuggly baby she remembers from a year ago and didn't think that being held or picked up was an acceptable activity. The bottom photo pretty much depicts the relationship. I don't know what happened to any photos of Marilyn - I can't find them at the moment.

A few of Max's pals

2008-08-24T12:17:00.000-07:00

Max's best friend, and up and coming swimsuit model, Rylee Romney.

Max's idols - Jacob and Drew - the big boys next door who love to throw mud and play rough. A few minutes after this picture all three boys ware covered head to toe in mud.

Max's good friends from the neighborhood - Matthew and Jonathan - who let us tag along on morning walks with them. Here they are playing in our back yard. Note the middle picture - an action shot of Max falling backwards from the slide while Jonathan looks on with his sippy cup.

oh and by the way...

2008-08-24T12:05:00.001-07:00

for those of you who may not be aware, we are expecting another boy on September 9th. Just a small thing I neglected to mention by not updating the blog. Here's how Max felt when he first found out he was going to have to share toys and attention.

v

He soon got over it and realized it will be fun to have someone else to push around in his cars

So here we are, quite excited and very scared. I hope the shooting below didn't damage the baby's ears - do they have real ears at 18 weeks?

more with Net and James

2008-08-24T11:53:00.000-07:00

So, as though 4 months had not just passed without a single blog entry we start up where we took off with another few photos with Annette and James. They didn't come back again, I just couldn't find these ones last time. Nothing so out of place as two English girls with big old guns and a truck in the middle of the Kentucky country-side.

UK blue

2008-05-02T10:55:00.000-07:00

Many think Max is often sporting University of Kentucky attire but we know that he is just proud to be half British.

Auntie Net and Uncle James meet Max

2008-05-02T10:14:00.000-07:00

Annette and James came all the way from England to meet Maxwell - and to visit us too I suppose. It was so great to spend the week with them and Max took to the immediately - especially James who he always wanted to hold him and loved to hug. His dad was a little jealous of all the attention showered upon James. Here they are splitting a Chinese meal. They both have the same expression - fiercely guarding their food after a long day shopping in Cincinnati. Max didn't mind the mall too much though as he got to play on the spaceship. And the best part is that he doesn't realize yet that you can put money in and have even more fun.

James and Annette seemed to enjoy Kentucky - The highlight of Annette's trip was, of course, getting to spend time with me! and James enjoyed the Lexington Legends baseball game, ribeye steak and shooting guns on a farm with our friend Lyman. I promised not to post any pictures of Annette and James in their shooting glory for fear that they may be picked up in England under suspicion of terrorism. Here is Max at his first baseball game. Annette and I enjoyed the first little part of the game and the baseball snacks but then took Max to check out the other entertainment.

The big 1st birthday

2008-04-23T08:29:00.000-07:00

Max turned one on April 4th. His grandpa Lassen came in from Utah to celebrate with him and on his birthday he had a space party. Max wore his NASA commander suit, and felt very proud of himself. His silly mum forgot to take photos at his party with his friends but we have a few surrounding the event.

Max had a chocolate spaceship cake with lots of frosting. We were a little concerned that he wouldn't really know what to do with a big cake as he hadn't had one before, so the day before his birthday we gave him a practice run. We didn't need to worry as a few seconds in to the experiment he was digging in to the cake with both hands and stuffing fistfuls into his mouth. Just look at those eyes in the first picture to see the fierceness with which he is digging in. After a short while we had to pry it away from his for fear that he would make himself sick and also that the novelty might wear off before his real cake at his party.

As it happened, the real cake did not go down so well. I think the fact that he was stripped down and put in his chair in front of a room of cheering and laughing people may have contributed to his displeasure. He screamed and cried and tried to get out of his chair - but even in his anger, he managed to shove several large handfuls of cake into his sobbing mouth. So, though not quite what we anticipated, it was a very entertaining event. Though the cake was not a huge hit, Max loved his party balloons and loved being spoiled by his grandpa...

and to our surprise, was a very interested and appreciative gift receiver.

All in all a good first bithday

Grandma England's visit and Easter

2008-04-22T10:18:00.000-07:00

After a very long, cold, and uneventful January and February our lives have been brightened by a string of fun visitors. Grandma came over from England to visit us over easter. It was still very cold outside so we didn't get to go out and about much but we had a lovely time and Max loved having her here. He soon worked out how to boss her around too. Here we are freezing to death at High Bridge - on the Kentucky River just South of where we live. Don't you love the clear blue water?

Grandma bought us all English easter eggs and Max seemed to get right into the spirit of it with his Cadbury's chocolate buttons egg.

At the end of Grandma's trip, Auntie Dorothy and Uncle Nick came to visit us on their way back up from Florida. Max had a lovely time with them at their RV and had his first experience on a park slide - which he loved.

and his first word is...."DAD"

2008-02-21T10:11:00.001-08:00

Said in a husky little voice with much emphasis on the last D. He spent Monday evening crawling all over Matt saying it over and over again. He's very proud of himself but Matt is even prouder. I'll try to get a video of it.

other achievements:

Can stand alone, until he realizes he's doing it - then he sits down fast.
Climbs the stairs in a few seconds flat
Sleeps 11 hours a night consistently - finally back on track after Christmas break.
Has 7 teeth
Can command a 55lb dog
Can make a defiant face after breaking the Kitchen Aid blender - just in case you think he may feel bad for his mistake.

Destruction prevails

2008-02-21T09:42:00.001-08:00

I often find myself hoping that no one will drop in on us unexpectedly. Usually most of the contents of our bookshelves, drawers and cupboards are spread about the house. It is amazing that 15 minutes after waking up from a nap Max can have pulled back out all the things I just spent his entire nap putting away. He loves to have books crash all about him and then to sit in the mess he created for a while. Sometimes we hear him yelling from the kitchen and when we go in he is inside a near empty cupboard while the rest of its contents are strewn about the floor.

appreciate also, the ginormous stream of happy drool in this last photo.

Last Sunday the kids from my primary class at church gave me a painted vase with lollipops in it. That afternoon Max unpainted it with his mouth.

Then, realizing his mistake, he headed upstairs to clean himself up

Then a brief break while he plans the next adventure

2008-02-21T09:27:00.000-08:00

Winter on our farm

2008-02-21T09:15:00.000-08:00

We often take drives in the Kentucky countryside dream of buying an old farm and bringing it back to life. For any of you who have seen me before 7am, or witnessed me try to lift anything more than a milk carton, you know that the reality of me lugging hay bales at day break to feed the animals is unlikely- but we like the idea of it. So no, this farm is not ours but we do know the people who own it if that counts for anything.

toy of the day

2008-02-21T09:03:00.000-08:00

Our friend's Jeremy and McKenzie Ware used to laugh at their little boy Channing for having a "toy of the day." It was pretty funny to see him carrying a truck or dinosaur EVERYWHERE he went. Then the next day it would be a different toy that would go everywhere. Well Max has apparently taken this idea from Channing but he chooses the strangest "toys". Some days it will be a recharger for the phone, others a toothbrush or Richards collar. He will crawl around and play with many other things but all the while be gripping tightly to his toy of the day. In the photo above his choice for the day was a miniature ornamental gourd left over from Halloween. He wouldn't even put it down to get in the bath - just look at that grip.

Fun with Food

2008-02-20T09:50:00.000-08:00

As you may be able to tell from his photos Max enjoys his food. His favorite food so far is mini Kosher dill pickles. We originally gave him a bite just to see what he would do. He puckered up his face and then kept asking for more and more. When other foods don't tempt him you can always rely on a pickle to keep him busy. Sometimes when we need to get something done without Max's help we put him in his high chair with some pickles and enjoy peace for a while. He also loves grapes, grapefruit, oranges, and bananas.
This is Max trying his first boiled mini carrot. I think he felt tricked. Now he loves them especially if they are cooked in the crock pot with gravy. I'm a little afraid he's in love with salt already.

Max also discovered noodles - and even better that noodles are fun as well as food, especially when Richard is involved.

can't stop laughing

2008-01-07T19:29:00.000-08:00

Max-ventures

2008-01-07T15:37:00.000-08:00

I got a lot of cool new toys for Christmas but nothing compares to giant kitchen utensils. Even when we go to other people's houses I always seek out their largest salad servers or outdoor grilling spatulas - those things are huge. And those dishwasherthings ... I could spend hours inside there if mum would let me. I get to climb AND play with big spoons.

One day mum left the kitchen for a few seconds and when she came back I was already standing on the pull down door.

I love to unload things - I think it's a talent of mine. Mum calls it "unhelping". As well as the dishwasher I can unload..

the washing machine,

curtains from their rails,

boxes packed with small messy things,

and my favorite of all - the firebox.

It gets me so nice and dirty when I don't get caught for a while.

I can also climb all the stairs in the house - with no help.

Nothing can stand in my way now - except Richard and his giant tongue.

Here I am helping daddy do his homework. In the top left corner you can see some notes I helped him to get through. Because he's going to be a dentist I'm learning the proper way to brush teeth. As I don't have many yet I'm practicing on his big plastic model.

I think my mobility and personal hygeine skills are coming along swimmingly. Pitty my driving lessons are going so slow - Dad won't even let us out of the driveway yet.

Christmas in Utah

2008-01-07T09:04:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas from Max - in case you can't tell, I just want to point out that his shirt says "CHEER".

Max spent his first Christmas in Utah. We had to get up at 4am to fly out there. Max did surprisingly well considering. He still managed to make plenty of friends along the way. One lady stopped and played with him for half an hour. This is him stealing my apple in the airport.

We stayed with his Grandpa and Grandma and all the aunts and uncles from Matt's side of the family stayed at their house too so you can imagine all the attention that was showered upon Max - never mind the presents. He also got to see all three of his little boy cousins on this side of the family.

Here is Max on Christmas morning - just imagine his excitement in a couple of years when he actually understands a little of what is going on. Max is in his Christmas pajamas -his dad did not really approve.

He was so excited that he hardly slept the whole week. We think he must have been too busy re-living memories from the day. One early morning Matt ruled that we were NEVER going on vacation again. Here is Matt in the morning looking extremely tired ...but how do you stay mad at that.

Here is the family. Note Max's little girl cousin featured bottom right below.

It was so nice to see family and friends - and puppies.

On the move

2007-12-05T09:26:00.000-08:00

There's no stopping him now. On Monday night something clicked and Max finally realized that this crawling business is more than just a trick to perform for the crowds. It's a means of transportation to a whole world previously out of reach. Now he seems to realize the time he's wasted and wants to see it all. Nothing is safe - especially Richard's food. Richard seems perplexed that this thing which has never really moved before can now track him down. Yesterday morning while I was getting ready for the day, Max crawled up in to the shower.

All the adventures are tiring both Max and I out but Max is so excited to keep discovering that he resists naps even more now. He refused to go to bed in the afternoon on Tuesday and then exhaustion got the better of him and he fell asleep in his high chair. Check out his skills below.

Holiday Season

2007-12-05T08:47:00.000-08:00

We're almost ready for the holidays. We've decorated the house and as you can see from the photo above, Max was very excited to find Poinsettias on sale at Home Depot.

We tried to take Christmas photos with some intention of making a family Christmas card. It was so cold that Max was shivering and we had to wrap him up in a blanket. If you really want to see how cold it was just look at Rylee's nose. Max preferred to keep warm in the car and had his first driving lesson. The only member of the family who we managed to photograph with any poise was Richard. So unless you'd like a Christmas card starring Richard, please don't expect one from these Lassens this year - maybe next.

For Thanksgiving we went over to our friends Ryan and Kristy's house. They have great kids who love Max and kept him happy all day long. Ryan smoked the most delicious turkey I've ever tasted so that kept Matt happy all day long. They have a crazy but sweet boxer named Sunny who Richard can't decide whether he loves or hates. They are the family who will look after Richard so we can go to Utah for Christmas - meaning Max gets to visit family. Thank you Smiths.

In fact Ryan's turkey was so delicious that Matt went out after Thanksgiving and found two 28 pound turkeys on sale. He and Joel smoked the ginormous birds well into the night. Here they are with Max before the smoking took place - three butterballs all in a row (note the whisk that Max has adopted as one of his favorite toys).

The House

2007-12-05T08:23:00.000-08:00

A few people have asked to see photos of our house. We love our house in Kentucky. Though it may not be full of the charm and character of an older home, it is lovely to be able to concentrate on doing simple things like putting up shelves and pictures rather than knocking down walls and fixing broken pipes. One day we'd love to restore an old home but for now this is perfect.

Max facts

2007-11-21T21:51:00.000-08:00

Max is still thriving here in Kentucky. He has reached 29 inches and 23lb putting him around the 95th percentile for both weight and height. He now has two very sharp bottom teeth and slightly more hair. He has been almost crawling for over a month now and we keep thinking it will happen any day. Currently he gets around by rolling or getting up on his hands and knees and lunging.

If you didn't guess from his healthy size and squeezable cheeks let us inform you that Max enjoys his food. He has liked everything he has tried so far - even peas and prunes. Yesterday as I was making a carrot cake Max was getting impatient as he waited in his chair. The carrot he was chewing on had lost it's appeal and he was ready to play. I handed him an empty bag of sugar to keep him occupied. He was remarkably quiet. When I turned around I discovered that the bag hadn't been quite as empty as I thought. Max was sucking on his arms and fingers which were covered in a sticky syrupy saliva-sugar mix. Notice in the photo the shiny sugary covering all over him. If you couldn't tell, he really enjoyed himself. Also, if you look carefully you can see his bottom two teeth.

Here are a few more photo's of the little guy.

Fun with family

2007-11-21T21:35:00.000-08:00

Grandpa Lassen and Auntie Chrissy came to visit this week. Max was showered with kisses and attention. We had a lovely time and were sad that they weren't here longer.

Matt just got a new smoker so Matt and Gary smoked enormous quantities of ribs. They were very tasty.

Max and Richard

2007-11-21T21:22:00.000-08:00

Max loves his puppy Richard. And Richard loves his baby Max. When Max comes down in the morning the first thing he wants to do is play with Richard. We are a little worried about what it will be like when Max can crawl around and keep up with Richard. We already spend most of the time trying to prevent Max feeding Richard his crackers and trying to stop Richard cleaning Max's face. Richard knows he is not allowed to lick Max but still gets the odd swipe in when he thinks no one is watching.

Kentucky living

2007-11-21T19:19:00.001-08:00

I've now lived in Kentucky more than half of my life. Since we moved here we've really been enjoying the Kentucky way of life. We take a lot of drives to see the beautiful horse farms and we've been to the horse races at Keeneland. That's me in the blurred picture below and the things in the background that look like greyhounds are actually horses. We've even been to the Keeneland auctions several times but I don't know why because we never come away with a horse. I thought that's why dad was building that big fence but apparently that's just for me and Richard.

So, we came to Kentucky 'cos my dad's gonna be a dentist one day. This was me at his boring white coat ceremony - I don't know why I had to wear a fancy blue coat. I am however a fan of my University of Kentucky basket ball outfit which is much more comfy.

Though I've never even been there I am actually an English baby which means I celebrate bonfire night (a.k.a. Guy Fawkes night). We celebrated it with a bonfire on Seth and Lisa's beautiful Kentucky farm. Here's our friend Seth with Guy just before Guy caught on fire. It was a freezing cold night - I had to get dressed up in so many clothes that I could barely move.

I've also toured two bourbon distilleries during my short time on this earth. I don't know what the big deal is and those tour guides go on and on forever. I got really cross at the last one and refused to listen to anymore so dad took me for a drink in the barrel house.

All this sight-seeing really wares a boy out.

Halloween

2007-11-02T12:35:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween

For Halloween I was going to be a zebra - as you can see in the picture where my England Grandad is holding me. By the time my England Grandma came out 3 weeks later I had decided to be a giraffe. I'm trying to get through all the zoo animals by the time I'm 4.

I went to three Halloween parties all with my best friend Rylee who was a chicken. Here is a picture of us with our dads who didn't dress up at all.

One of the parties my mum took me to got a little crazy and my costume changed again - this time I heard someone call me a pimp but I've never seen one of those at the zoo.

Kentucky ladies

2007-11-02T11:22:00.000-07:00

All of Max's Kentucky friends are girls. It seems he's already quite popular with the ladies. Gabriella and Sara are very pretty and quite cuddly but don't hold his attention yet. Rylee, on the other hand, is a little older and a lot more feisty. They have a lot of fun and inside jokes - though she can be a little forward, which makes Max worry. Sometimes they just hang out with Max's dog Richard.

He likes to flirt with the older ladies too - when we are at the store he will stare at someone and make a noise until they turn to look at him then he'll crack a big smile. He makes friends very easily.

bath time

2007-11-02T09:49:00.000-07:00

At first I hated to bathe - it was cold and scarey. Then I learned to tolerate it. Now I think it's the best time of the day. I think having my own bath rather than the kitchen sink helps - as does my little bit of extra insulation. Do you know that I went from being 7th percentile for weight at 2 weeks to 96th percentile at 6 months? Mum says I'm sturdy not fat, and I'm 100th percentile for height so relatively I'm quite thin really.

A little history ...

2007-11-02T08:54:00.000-07:00

Unfinished kitchen... baby almost here.
If I were to give advice to expectant mums it would be NOT to let your husband restore your hardwood floors and rip out the kitchen during your third trimester. Nailing a kitchen floor at eight and a half months pregnant isn't ideal. We finally had a working kitchen just a few days before Max arrived.

Max was born April 4th weighing exactly 7lb. Here he is at just 5 hours old. Apparently the c-section had taken him by surprise as he was not ready to enter the world - he screamed like a tortured piggy for the first two hours and then slept most of the day with a worried look on his face. In fact he looked quite cross for the first few weeks of his life.