Dominican December

Another month gone by! Ack....only 2 left until I'm back at work again. I wish it were longer, but I'm determined to enjoy the final two months of my leave as much as possible. Now that Audrey is a bit older, and I'm better at our routine, it's much easier to leave the house and explore Dawson Creek together. The spring like weather we've been having has helped that too! Yesterday I took her downtown in my Ergo carrier and didn't even need a coat. In January.




December was an exciting month for us. We took Audrey on her first long drive (to Edmonton), her first trip across Canada by airplane (to Toronto) and to her first foreign country (the Dominican Republic).

We left on the 16th and arrived late on the 17th. My family converged on the Toronto airport, everyone excitedly fighting over who got to hold Audrey first. She slept through the entire thing. Then we began our 7 night adventure in Punta Cana. There were 19 of us there in total to attend my sister's wedding. The first few days were relaxing, although we had one rainy day where we missed heading out to the beach. Thankfully, a group of my relatives and Mike headed out on dune buggies for an excursion, while my sister, her maid of honour and I got pedicures! Even when it is pouring rain, being in a tropical country is still fantastic. I sat on the balcony and breastfed Audrey while watching the palm trees sway. I ate as much as I wanted without ever doing dishes or cooking. A wonderful lady cleaned my entire room and organized my things every day while I gorged myself on the breakfast buffet. It really was fabulous. And I got to swim every day! In December!

Swimming is by far my favourite summer activity, so getting to enjoy outdoor swimming in the dead of winter was amazing. The Dreams Resort where we stayed has the largest pool in the DR, which was great. It was nice and cool,too, whereas some pools are too warm.

The best part of the trip (besides the actual wedding of course), was getting to introduce Audrey to my family. She loved spending time with her Aunties. She was also an excellent traveler. She slept on the plane, in the car and at the airport. She rarely cried and was happy to play with everyone at the wedding.

On the 21st, we celebrated my sister's wedding. It was a beautiful day, and we had fun getting ready together in her honeymoon suite. The photographer took amazing photos, and the wedding gazebo was gorgeous. The weather held out and we took outdoor photos in the tropical garden and at the beach. We finished off the night with dinner on an outdoor terrace, games, a toast and dancing. My sister and Billy looked beautiful and I was so happy for them to finally have their special day. Mike did the toast to the bride and groom and their MC came all the way from Ireland! A grand time was had by all.

For the last 3 days, we hung out as a family by the pool as the beach was super windy, reading our books, swimming, tanning and playing volleyball in the pool. The weather was perfect, sunny and blue sky and I didn't want to leave when Christmas Eve finally came around.

Now we're home and Audrey is officially 4 months old! In the past month she has had many firsts, including learning to roll over from back to front. She had lots of practice in our King sized bed in the Dominican! She slept in her crib last night and made it through the night--a full ten hours. Mommy really enjoyed that.

She's growing up so fast, it breaks my heart. I'm always looking forward to the next milestone, but at the same time each new step she takes makes me miss the Audrey I knew a week ago, a month ago. She's developing her own little personality full of giggles and sweet smiles. Happy four month Birthday Audrey!