Newburyport, MA

Yesterday we took advantage of a beautiful day and went to Newburyport, Massachusetts - a quaint little seaside town north of Boston.

Here's a photo of a side street looking toward the town center. There are great nautical shops that sell antique brass sail boat instruments and gear.

The photo below is the center of town where all the roads meet and where many people were sitting around taking advantage of the sunny day. There were vendors and performers entertaining the crowds. There were even two guys throwing knives over a volunteer's head (the kid was probably 5 or 6). We couldn't understand why the parents let the child participate in such a dangerous activity and we didn't hang around to see if the act caused injury.

Grant enjoys the richness of maritime history that New England has and can always spot an interesting sign or old sailing establishment. Here's a photo of the Marine Society of Newburyport building. The brick building is gigantic but has since been subdivided and now contains scores of boutiques and shops that sell anything from children's books to designer clothing. Obviously a lot has changed since 1772!

The Maritime Museum is located beside The Black Dog store near downtown. Look at the huge buoy that sits outside.

McClane seemed to like walking around town in his Baby Bjorn rather than his stroller. We were trying to get him accustomed to it before he takes his first flight next week. Here we are with an old wooden sailor who is used to market tours of the city.

We found a great addition for McClane's room at a local hand-crafted gift store in downtown Newburyport. "We Three Sisters" sells all handmade goods by local artisans. Grant spotted this piece of driftwood carved into a sperm whale. We knew from our trip to Nantucket that the sperm whale was important to early island dwellers and was used for food, candles, and even make-up. The whales sustained an otherwise isolated island for hundreds of years. The sperm whale has become an icon of New England and this carving will look great hanging in McClane's room.

Until next time,

Grant, Lacey & McClane

McClane's Room

This is our second post today - unusual for us. Here are some pictures of McClane's room. We still have a few things to add but it's mostly done. I'm really pleased with the way it turned out. His bed and changing table are both navy and the bed will convert to a toddler bed and then a full-sized bed eventually.

Here are the paintings I did.







Grant picked out this picture. He plans on teaching McClane all of the sailing flags really early!








Love,
Grant, Lacey, & McClane

Trip to Newport, Rhode Island

On Saturday we took a day trip down to Newport - a beautiful seaside town in Rhode Island.

We had lunch at The Barking Crab. Its flagship restaurant is located near where we work and is on the Boston Harbour so we decided to try their new location out. This mural is of The Barking Crab's location in Boston. The food was great and the people and service even better (I'm starting to realize that we get more attention and interest when we're with McClane).

Newport's shopping area is primarily on Thames Street but there are also shops on the surrounding wharfs. Here's a photo looking toward one of the wharfs - you can see sailboat masts in the background.

We saw the American Sail Training Association when taking a shortcut from Thames Street to the International Tennis Hall of Fame. McClane's Pappy sails nearly every day and Grant sailed the Boston Harbour and islands after studying at Boston Sailing Center. When Grant saw this sign he had to get a picture. Hopefully McClane will enjoy sailing one day.

Newport not only has beautiful ocean views but great parks too. Here's one of the family.

Newport was home to the US Naval Academy during the Civil War. We were lucky enough to have a couple of our finest walk by and they were kind enough to endulge us with a group photo. Thank you in more ways than one.

Our last stop was the International Tennis Hall of Fame. We're not tennis players and haven't even watched a serve on television, but when you step into this venue you're certainly aware of the richness of the sport's history.

We hope to be making many more daytrips with McClane while we still have a couple of nice warm months ahead of us (hopefully!!). We will post more soon.

Lobsters and Such

For those of you who don't know, Grant is a phenomenal cook and is not afraid to cook anything.  The other night when Grant came home from work wanting to go buy some lobsters and cook them, even I was a little skeptical at how they would turn out.  Well, they turned out great!  They were delicious and we had quite the New England feast.  I am so lucky to have a husband who loves to cook because otherwise, we would all starve!

Here is a picture of one of the lobsters about to meet his fate in our big steamer.

My mom got here at the end of last week and she has been a huge help since arriving.  I had an eye doctor appointment this morning in Boston and I left McClane with her.  That was my first time being away from him for more than 30 minutes and I was nervous about leaving him but he did just fine with his Grammie.  I think she enjoyed him too!

Hope everyone has had a good week!  Happy Friday!

Happy Memorial Day!

Happy Memorial Day!  We took a family walk today on the beach - it is a beautiful day!  McClane really enjoys his stroller and being outdoors - every time we've put him in it, he just passes right out.  Hopefully he will be a good little traveler.  Here are some new pictures from the past week.

Such a sweet little face.

Getting ready for his first walk on the beach with mama and Nana.

Posing with Nana

Passed out!  My aunt Wanda made this beautiful blanket for McClane.

McClane's first trip to Swampscott - this is where he will be going to Daycare in September.  It's right down the road from this sign and across the street from the beach.

Strolling on the beach

Posing with Daddy at the beach

We'll post more soon!

McClane Week One

What a whirlwind week! I can't believe just a little over a week ago, we were still waiting on McClane. This past week has flown by. McClane is doing great - he has such a good temperament and is sleeping and eating really well. I am so thankful that Grant was able to stay home with us for a week - we had a great time bonding with McClane. We are also very thankful that his mom was able to come up here and help us out as well for a week. Catherine arrived on Saturday and has been waiting on us hand and foot. She's been my extra set of hands and has been preparing my meals and making sure I'm getting rest. She's been awesome.

My mom will be coming up next Thursday to help out for a couple of weeks too. McClane is lucky to have such wonderful grandparents eager to help out!

We will be going to the doctor next week for McClane's two-week check-up. We're anxious to find out how much he weighs because he is a little piglet when it comes to eating!

Here are a few new pictures from the past week. Enjoy!

McClane napping with his Nana.

Mr. Bright Eyes



So peaceful.


McClane loves his crib - he sleeps really well in it.


We got this amazing cookie bouquet from our friends the Critchfields. We didn't eat them for two days because they were too cute to eat, but then we couldn't resist. They are just as delicious as they are cute!

McClane is here!!!

Our sweet baby boy finally made his appearance!  William McClane Norman was born on May 11, 2009 at 3:43 pm.  He was 7 lbs, 3oz and 20.9 inches long.  Labor and delivery went really well.  Everything went just as it should have thank goodness with no complications for mama or McClane.  

We came home yesterday and McClane is adjusting to his new home and we are adjusting to his crazy schedule!  Everything is good though - we are just glad to have a healthy baby!  

Here are a few pictures from the last couple of days.  Thanks so much to all of our family and friends who have been checking on us and giving us support and love.

We will be posting more soon.

Love,

Grant, Lacey, and McClane

I love those big eyes and those lips.

Family photo

Going home!