Christmas

We stayed in Portland (for the first time) this year. We missed seeing our family, but had a great time spending time with a number of our friends (who also decided to avoid travel).

We spent Christmas Eve at the Horihans. Jason put together an excellent Duck. So much better than Turkey!!

Here is a photo with Clara and Jagan.


We hosted Christmas at our place with help from Julien, Michelle, and Michelle's mom. Julien took the lead on cooking, and we had quite the spread. Foie Gras, Oysters (raw and cooked) that we shucked ourselves, veggies, cheese, Goose, Squash Soup, Tandori Chicken, Sweet Potatoes, and lots of wine and cookies.

Here is a photo of the oysters:


Clara also had lots of fun this month. Her neck is now strong enough to put her in the "Jumperoo":


And one of her sitting amongst her presents under the tree:


I also took some videos of Clara. Here is one of her in the jumperoo:


You can see all the photos on my picasa page here.

Bathtime

We decided to take some photos of giving Clara a bath. I avoided any embarrassing ones, as that drove me crazy when I was a little kid :).

Getting ready


During the bath


Getting out


Drying off


You can see all the photos here.

Family Photo

We took some photos as a family. Here are a couple:

Portland Visitors Guide

This is a write-up on what I think are fun things to do in and around Portland. I have always wanted to throw something together, but never really found the time. I love living in Portland, but frankly I think the best stuff to do as a visitor is in the area around the city rather than inside it. Anyway, with that said, let's get down to business.

Downtown

Beer
The Northwest is well known for microbrews. Find out if there is a beer festival going on while you are here (assuming you are a beer fan). I talk about some of my favorites in this post.

If you are not so lucky, then I would suggest checking out some pubs. A lot of them have beer samplers -- ask!.

• Laurelwood (there are a couple locations) has good beer and food.
• McMenamins has good beer but the food is not great. You can also catch movies, play frisbee golf, get some good wine, and more at various locations.
• Bailey's Taproom is a good place to try a bunch of local beers.
• Deschutes - Another Oregon favorite. Pretty decent food too.

Some other places I like: Lucky Lab, Hopworks, Tug Boat (if you really like hops), and Lompoc.

Japanese Garden and Rose Garden
This is located (really) close to downtown Portland. I am a big fan of the Japanese Gardens (especially when the Cherry Blossoms are out). The Rose Garden is really close and worth a walk through. You can do both in 1-2 hours.

Powell Books (downtown)
If you like bookstores, check out Powell Books (the one on Burnside downtown). This is a popular tourist destination (and also popular among locals). I personally don't see bookstores as being particularly exciting -- but if you are in to this sort of thing then check it out. Not a bad place to drop by and get some coffee and do some people watching.

Brunch
Brunch is very popular in Portland. If you are here during the week, I would suggest grabbing something (when it is not as crowded). Some popular places: Tin Shed, Screen Door, and Mothers. Your best bet is to check out Yelp.

Timbers Game
The Timbers are our soccer team (MLS). PGE park is pretty cool. Thursday is a popular game day ($2.50 cheap beer).

Food Carts
Portland is known for its food carts. Check them out!

Chinese Gardens
I have not been there yet :), but I know that some of my friends have enjoyed it. It is not particularly large, so don't plan on spending a lot of time there.

Voodoo Donuts
This place is a Portland landmark. They have all sorts of crazy donuts. Expect to wait in line (especially if you go at a popular time like in the AM or late at night). Janel and I have actually never been there -- it is one of those things that lots of people only do with visitors. Some locals really love it though.

Esplanade
Walking along the waterfront can be fun ... especially if you like bridges. I personally prefer to walk on the East side, as you can look across the river to downtown.

Outside Portland

Gorge
The Gorge is East of Portland. It is one of my favorite places. Lots of good hiking along with stuff to see if you are not interested in walking too far from the car. If you are going to hike, be ready to get your footwear muddy. It is pretty wet year round. Things also can be icy in the winter, so be careful.

I would definitely suggest doing a little driving tour on the Historic Columbia River Highway (the part between Corbett and Cascade Locks). Start at Vista House. Get out and see Latourell Falls (about a 2 minute walk). Consider walking up to Wahkeena Falls. Definitely get out and see Multnomah Falls. Before starting the drive, you should also consider driving up to the top of Larch Mountain if it is a clear day. This is a bit of a drive, and is only worth it if you have blue skies. Also be aware that the road to the top is closed during the winter months.

There are lots of great hikes in the Gorge. Three of my favorites:

• Multnomah Falls to Wahkeena Falls Loop -- ~5.5 miles -- a good number of waterfalls
• Eagle Creek -- lot's of options here (all "in and out") -- 3 miles to Punchbowl; 6 miles to the bridge; 13 miles to Tunnel Falls (but if you get this far, make sure you walk ~.25 miles past it to some awesome cliffs)
• Wahclella Falls -- A nice short (~2 miles?) hike with some nice falls at the end
• Dog Mountain (WA side) -- ~7 miles -- this is a great hike when the wild flowers are out (~May). It has a good amount of elevation gain, so don't be tricked. Probably not worth it other times of the year.

Wine Country
Oregon is known for Pinot Noir, but you can also get other varietals. There are a ton of options (see here. Your best bet is to go on a tour (so nobody needs to be DD). I have used this place twice. They are relatively cheap.

I like Elk Cove and Carlton Winemakers Studio. I am not a huge Pinot fan, so keep that in mind.

Saddle Mountain
This is a nice hike ~1 hour West of Portland on the way to the Coast. ~5.5 miles with moderate elevation gain. Great hike on a nice day. You can see the coast, the gorge, and most of the Cascade peaks.

Mt St Helens
Climbing this peak requires a permit which you need to get well in advance. It is not as hard to get permits on week days. You can definitely do this in one day (including driving up from Portland), but you can also camp at the trailhead. This is 10 mi + ~5K elevation. Other than the start, this is not really a "trail". Most of it is either scramble up bolders or a trudge up volcanic ash (at the top). This is a LOT harder than your typical 10mi hike. I have done this hike on both a perfect day and a terrible day. If the weather is looking ugly on the day you got your permits, you should consider just not going (unless you enjoy suffering).

The Visitors Center on the North Side of the mountain (the part that blew out) is also supposed to be cool. I have not been there, and it is a lot farther away than the South Side (where the summit trail is).

Silver Falls
This is a state park ~1.25 hours south of Portland. There is a 7 mile hike with a ton of great waterfalls. I suggest doing the loop starting at the main parking area at South Falls. Do the loop "counter-clockwise" (follow the rim to start out rather than dropping down near South Falls). This trail is well maintained and suitable for children.

The best time of year to go is when you are getting some snow melt (Spring and early Summer). It is good at other times -- just not as good.

Oregon Coast
You can make a day trip out to the Coast. I would suggest Ecola State Park and Cannon Beach. Seaside is a "tourist town" (mini golf, cotton candy, etc). There are lots of other options farther south, but they are too far to be a day trip. Crabbing can also be fun in months that end in "ER".

Mt Hood
Skiing/Snowboarding is pretty good from Dec - April. Snow shoeing can also be fun (White Mountain is a good one). Dinner at Timberline Lodge is solid (any time of the year). Ramona Falls is a good hike (just make sure that the road is open).

Outside Portland -- Farther Away

South Sister
This is my favorite hike in the area. It is a good distance from Portland, but something to consider. It is ~10 miles w/ ~5K of elevation gain. The trail is good until the end (which is a bit trickier on some scree). It is a great hike on a nice day. Definitely not worth the drive if the weather is not so nice. No permits required. I suggest getting an early start so that you can make it to the top before it gets warm. Note that you can do this as a day trip; just be ready for a LONG day.

Mount Rainier
This is an amazing National Park. Paradise is ~3 hours north. Probably too far for a day trip, but good for a couple days. Comet Falls and Skyline Loop hikes are good ones (near Paradise). Reflection Lake is a great place for sunrise/sunset photos.

Crater Lake
This is long way south. You definitely can't do it as a day trip, but you also don't need to spend a long time there (1 day there is probably plenty). You probably need 1 day for travel both ways. Definitely go on the boat tour.

Reflection on the first 7 weeks

I have found that people tend to forget the first couple months of parenthood, so I thought I would write some stuff down before I forgot it all (mostly for our future reference for our friends). This is going to seem really long. It is targeted at pregnant Mom's (who tend to not mind reading about baby stuff).

Before I get into things, I think that Clara has generally been a relatively easy baby so far, so keep that in mind.

Books
Just ask us and you can borrow ours. We have a lot. Books for pregnancy, early childhood, and bbreast-feeding have all been useful. The "dad" versions are decent.

Classes
We went to a childbirth class. This was worth it, but took up more time than it needed to. You probably won't enjoy the classes, but I think they were worth it in the end.

Hospital Tour -- This was short and sweet and well worth it.

At the Hospital
This is already getting a bit fuzzy in my memory :). Epidurals are the best thing ever and Pitocin is evil. There is not much you can do about getting Pitocin, but it is evil. I would recommend against having a hard-set plan for how you want the labor to go. As with many things in life, flexibility will help to keep your stress down (and you don't need need extra stress). The last thing your wife needs is to feel bad if things are not going according to plan.

Changing the first diaper sucks. Babies first #2 is this nasty tarry stuff. These diaper changes are really a pain. I would suggest bringing your own diaper wipes with you, as the things they give you are junk. You might want to practice on someone else's baby ahead of time. I volunteer Clara :).

Don't hesitate to ask for help. The nurses will be happy to answer any questions you might have. Take advantage of this. Also, talk to a lactation consultant while you are there.

Coming Home - the first few days
Lots of people say that putting the baby into the car is one of the scariest things ever. I actually did not find this to be too bad.

The first night was hard. We constantly thought the baby was going to choke on her own spit-up. You probably will feel the same way -- but know that this is not going to happen. Babies have an awesome choke reflex to prevent this.

You are not going to sleep much these days. Clara was breast feeding, and generally wanted to feed every 2 hours. In the first few days when your milk is not really flowing, it takes like an hour to feed. 1 hour break every 2 hours does not leave much time for sleeping. Don't worry -- this gets better after the first week or two. You are actually supposed to wake your baby up to eat if she has gone 3 hours -- so you are pretty much guaranteed to get no good sleep. Babies on formula tend to go longer between feedings.

Try and get out and take a walk or something. You will both feel better if you have some time to get out.

We had a lot of food frozen and ready ahead of time. This was critical.

The First Month
Our parents were not there until Clara was ~2 weeks old. I was a bit worried about this, but I think it actually went pretty well.

I took 1 week off, and worked from home the 2nd week. I thought that went pretty well. Just be ready to avoid any early morning meetings for the first month or so, as there are going to be nights that just don't work well.

The mom needs to sleep whenever she has a chance. The dad needs to take care of as many of the chores as possible so that the mom will actually sleep (especially in the first 2 weeks or so).

Sleeping
The first few weeks are going to be terrible most likely. Don't worry -- it will get better.

For the first couple weeks, the Dad should plan on getting up for all the feedings. If the mom tries to do this by herself, she will just get over tired and end up crying and being unhappy for the next day. Nobody wants that. I was in charge of all the "non-feeding" stuff. That meant getting her up and changing her diaper, and then soothing her as needed (after feedings). I did not stay up while Janel was feeding Clara, but tried to make sure Janel was getting as much sleep as she could between the feedings.

We kept Clara in our room in a Bassinet (Graco Travel Crib) for the first couple weeks. Then we moved her into her own room. There are many ways to deal with this (common topic in books) and kids seem to end up the same regardless -- so IMHO you need to do what makes you happy (whatever that is). We found that you don't need a baby monitor (at night at least) (they are still useful for naps during the day). You really don't want to hear all the little squeeks that the baby will make -- and you should have no trouble hearing the crying when it comes time to feed.

Pacifiers are great (as soon as breast feeding is established). We started after ~3 weeks. I would buy a variety of them and find out what they like the most -- then buy a bunch of the ones they like the most so that there is always one handy. Clara likes the Nook ones the best.

Diapers
We are using a cloth diaper service (Tiddee Diddee). So far we like it. I don't think we are saving much money by doing this (after taking into account the diaper covers you need to buy), and you do need to change them more often (they cannot absorb as much). Not sure if it is true or not, but I have read that babies tend to potty train sooner (since they can actually feel it), but who knows if that is true or not.

We will re-evaluate this after she starts eating solid foods (this is @ ~4 months).

You need to get diaper covers for cloth diapers. You can buy them from Amazon. We have tried three different kinds:

• Thirsties (Snaps) -- These cover a wider weight range, but the snaps require a bit more effort. These are a bit of a pain at night, but are good during the day.
• Thirsties (Velcro) -- These are our favorite.
• Bummies (Velcro) -- We find that these stain faster than the Thirsties, so we don't like them as much.

Note that poop is going to get on the covers. You are going to have to wash them. This is not a big deal, just be ready :).


Crying
Clara is really good about this. I am not a good person for advice here.

Stuff to Buy
First off, different babies like different things. I would suggest getting 1 of a bunch of things. Find out what your baby likes. Then buy more.

Amazon has a new "Baby" store. Today they give you a free 3-month membership to Amazon Prime (free 2-day shipping on everything). If you keep buying stuff from their baby store, they extend your membership (with some limitations). This is awesome. Get it. You can find a lot of stuff at Amazon for substantially cheaper than Babies R Us.

Swaddling Blankets -- We don't use them for swaddling, but they are still nice to have. I would only get a couple.

Miracle Blanket -- These are for swaddling. Clara liked them for about a week or two. She now hates them. I would suggest getting 2. You can buy more if the baby really likes it.

Sleep Sack -- I would suggest getting 2. Clara loves these. We have 2, and don't need more.

Graco Travel Lite (Portable Crib) -- This is the "cheap" one. I think the more expensive ones are pointless. Good for a bassinet early on.

Fisher Price Bouncy Chair -- Not too expensive. Clara seems to like it more the older she gets.

35mm Prime Lens for DSLR -- Only 1 chance for good photos. If you are going to go the DSLR route, make sure you get your camera a while ahead of time so you know how to use it. Otherwise you are better off with a regular digicam.

Clara's First Halloween

Here are a few photos from Clara's first Halloween. We did not get too creative with a costume this year. You can see all the photos here or download them (for a limited time) here.

Not quite sure what to think...



Janel, Clara, and the Pumpkin

At the Park with Clara

Janel and I went to Dawson Creek Park with Clara to take some photos and go for a little walk.

You can see all the photos here or download the photos (for a limited time) here. Here are a couple of them.

New Halloween Record

We destroyed our previous record of ~200 trick-or-treators by hitting 239 tonight, mostly between 6:00pm and 8:15pm. Pictures of Clara to come ...

Steiner Grandparents Visit Clara

After Janel's parents headed home, my parents came in to town to help out and spend time with their first granddaughter.

You can see all the photos here. For a limited time, you can also download all the photos here (jpg).

Here are five select photos from the visit.

Clara with Grandma and Grandpa.


Grandma with Clara at the park:


Grandpa with Clara at the park:



Ian giving Clara her first bottle:


Blue eyes coming in:

Grandma and Grandpa Alonzo Visit

Grandma and Grandpa Alonzo came for a visit and to help us out with Clara. We all had a great time and the help was much appreciated.

You can see all the photos here.

Clara enjoying her visitors.



Clara and the grandparents.


Clara and Grandpa A.


Clara and Grandma A.

Birth Photos!

I have gone through most of my photos now I think. I only took ~140!

You can go here to see 13 of our favorites. I have another "private" album, so if you want to see more photos you can me an email and I will send you a link.

Here are a couple:

Our new family (just a minute or two after birth thanks to one of our many wonderful nurses):


One of Clara:


Clara and Janel:


Clara and Ian:

Home

We are now home from the hospital (finally). Everyone is pretty wiped out. I will probably be catching up on emails and my photos tomorrow (assuming I get some sleep tonight).

Clara is doing great. No excitement so far. :)

Clara Faye Steiner

Our first child was born today @ 9:33am after Janel was in labor for ~30 hours (ugh). She weighed in at 7 lbs. 5 oz. and was 20.5 inches in length. Everyone is in good shape, but tired.

I have some photos posted here with many more to come :).

Kendra and Jim get Married

Our friends Kendra and Jim got married yesterday in Troutdale, OR. Congrats to them! I got to play with my new 35mm Prime Lens :). Here is one as they were walking down the aisle after the wedding was over.



You can see all the photots (just a few) here.

Pig Roast

Last weekend Allen attempted a Pig Roast. A good time was had by all despite the fact that the pig did not cook quite as well as we had hoped.

So, how did this work?

Allen dug a big pit in his backyard. Saturday evening they built up a huge fire in the pit at about 3:00AM. Allen had a ton of wood from cutting down some large trees in his yard. They then threw a bunch of lava rock on top the fire (which were intended to hold the heat). Then, in went the pig (wrapped in a burlap sack and banana leaves). Then went a tarp, followed by filling in the rest of the hole with dirt. The goal is to slow-cook the pig.

Here is the pit around 3:00PM the next day (yes, 12 hours later):


Pulling the pig out.


Uh oh ... looks a bit undercooked.



Luckily the other side (which has rested on the coals/rocks) was in better shape.


The undercooked meat was thrown on the grill. Here is Allen battling it out with the head.


Next time around Allen is going to try and get the pig buried in the hot rocks rather than just resting on it. We will see how round 2 goes.

For more pictures, go here.

Fantasy Football

We are getting our fantasy football league together. This is not a serious league (no money involved), but we are looking for people who will actually try (that means spending ~5-10 minutes every Friday making sure your players that are injured and on bye weeks are subbed out). We do have a live draft (but you are welcome to try your luck with auto draft).

If you are interested in playing, email me.

Google Analytics and Picasaweb

Looks like Picasaweb (where I keep my photos) recently started to support integration into Google Analytics. Analytics is a free tool for monitoring your webpage stats. This is a handy way to watch the popularity of your photos (if you are in to that sort of thing). Instructions can be found here (it is easy).

Last Vacation Before Kids

Janel and I took a 3-day weekend out to the coast for a little break before our daughter arrives. We stayed in a little hotel in Depoe Bay (Inn at the Arch Rock) which was okay. Friday we drove down to the coast and took it easy ... reading, napping, etc. The weather was so-so.

Saturday morning we drove down to Newport and visited the aquarium which we both enjoyed. Definitely a good place to bring the kids in a few years.

Here is a photo of a puffin getting ready to take off with his mouth full.


A jelly fish:


For lunch we ate at "Local Ocean Seafoods". Highly Recommended.

Janel and the bridge in Newport. She is getting pretty big ...


That afternoon the clouds came in so we took it easy. I took advantage of the soft light to take some flower photos.

And a flower shot from outside our hotel room.


You can see all the photos here. Reminder: You can now click on the photos above to see them full screen (this only works so-so for those of you reading in facebook and not on my webpage).

Baby Shower

Anna and Michelle threw Janel a baby shower. Janel's parents were in town, which was nice timing. I was forced to attend this typically all-female event :) and was relegated to photographer. Along with Michelle, Anna, and Janel's parents, we had Kendra, Kim, Katherine, Lynn, and Rachel.

All the photos can be downloaded here.

Note: You can now click on my photos and get a full-screen image instead of getting sent to Picasa.

Janel and her parents playing the "guess how big Janel's waist is" game.


People guessing what kind of "poop" (melted candy bars) is in the diapers.


Me with the clothes that I am rumored to have come home from the hospital in.

Pregnancy Update

Things are moving along nicely with the pregnancy. We have entered into the 3rd trimester (where things get difficult again) and the baby is busy punching/kicking Janel frequently. I think I hear the phrase "I can't breath" about 10 times a day now. I am glad I am not the pregnant one :P. Janel is really starting to show, and will really start to put on the pounds over this final stretch.

We will be starting baby courses and such later this month (common question), so that should be both useful and painful.

I posted a bunch of photos of Janel at different points in the pregnancy. Here is one from today. You can click on the album name (below the image) to see more.

From Pregnant Janel

Parents Visit

My parents came out to visit for the weekend, and we had a busy one.

Saturday we spent much of the day doing some shopping getting ready for the baby.

Sunday Danny and Anna were hosting a Chicken Roast at their place in the afternoon/evening. So, we headed downtown and spent some time at Hoyt Arboretum and Pittock Mansion (we had never been to either place). Nothing particularly amazing -- but definitely a nice place for an easy walk (great for a pregnant Janel).

Here is a photo of some flowers with Janel in the background.


Here is a photo of my parents.

From hoyt arboretum

And one of Janel and I:

From hoyt arboretum

After walking around Hoyt and Pittock Mansion, we headed over to Danny's Chicken Roast. Apparently this is a popular thing down South. It was definitely a good time :). Here is a photo of all the chickens on the spit. You basically just shove a bunch of chickens on a big long piece of wood held up by two car jacks, spread coals out on the ground, and let 'em cook a few hours. Tasty.

Organic Beer Festival

We went to the North American Organic Brewer's Festival (www.naobf.org) with some friends yesterday (no -- Janel did not drink anything if you were wondering). I am not a huge fan of Organic Beers -- but we really enjoyed this beer festival. The beer was only okay -- but the "other" parts of the festival were great. It was not incredibly cramped like the winter beer festival (which is still my favorite because they have the best beers). It was not dusty like the "big" beer festival on the river-front. There were lots of places to sit and relax, shade, and a good number of little kids running around with their families. It will probably be our best-bet for beer festivals in the future (after kids show up).

My take on Oregon Beer Festivals:

• Holiday Ale Festival -- very cramped (tents on Pioneer Square); best "dark" beer festival (stouts, porters, etc)
• International Beer Festival -- small festival; good variety of beers that you don't usually see
• Oregon Brewer's Festival -- biggest summer beer festival; lots of good IPAs; dusty; not very well setup to relax with friends
• Organic Brewers Festival -- Okay beers and decent variety, great setup for relaxing with friends on a nice summer afternoon
• Spring Beer and Wine Festival -- Indoors; not the best selection -- but you get both beer and wine

Netflix for Ebooks

This year I started going to the library instead of buying books, and I have really come to realize (1) what a waste of money buying books is and (2) that public libraries are an amazing resource.

As many of you probably know, the release of the iPad (which I think is a waste of money) has caused eBook reader prices to drop like a rock (Kindle is now only $189). I really would like to be able to "rent" books (similar to netflix) on an ebook reader, but there does not seem to be any good services like this available. My library has ebooks, but the selection is pretty poor. I read that the New York Public Library was supposed to have a decent selection (and you can pay to become a member if you are out-of-state) -- but it looks pretty poor to me as well. Does anyone know of any services that provide this? I would be happy to pay a small monthly fee as long as the selection was good.

Ultrasound Photos

Here are a couple of our ultrasound photos ...

Arms and Legs

From ultrasound 1

Yawning

From ultrasound 1

It's A Girl!

We had our 19 week ultrasound last night. It's a girl. We are looking at a due date of Sept 21st.

I have some more ultrasound photos to post. Hopefully I will find some time to scan them before I head to South Carolina this weekend.

For those of you who do not know ... ultrasounds take a LONG time (like 45 minutes). I expected it to be over and done in like 15 minutes. They take a ton of photos of all sorts of stuff that all look like strange blobs.

Falls Creek Falls

We went up to Falls Creek Falls in WA for the first part of Julien's bachelor party. The falls there were gigantic and well worth the long drive up from Portland. The hike to the falls was pretty short and easy. We also climbed up on top of the falls. This was a bit more difficult, but nothing particularly challenging. However, the views were not particularly exciting, but we made it worth our while by screwing around in the snow :).

Here is a photo of Falls Creek Falls itself:

Falls Creek Falls 1.3s @ f/22, 12mm, ISO 100 From Falls Creek Falls

Afterwards we went to Walking Man brewery in Stevenson, WA. I had heard good things about the place, but none of us were particularly impressed. There was a lot of beer options, but it was nothing all that exciting. The pizza was pretty crappy (but, I am a pizza snob, and am never impressed by anything more than 150mi outside of Chicago).

Silver Falls

I took Wednesday off this week, and Janel and I headed over to Silver Falls. We did the 5-mile loop. Janel held up really well!

Lower South Falls 1.6s @ f/22, 24mm, ISO 100 From Silver Falls 2010