Dear Santa,
My name is Rayleigh and this is my first letter to you. My mom and dad are helping me write this letter since I am busy sucking on my thumbs. They say if I write to you and tell you all about the nice things I’ve done this year you will fill my giraffe stocking with teethers, hats and butt paste. They also said there was no use in leaving out my naughty habits since you’ll already have known about those too.
Unfortunately I don’t remember much about the first seven months of the year. Mom said she and I spent two weeks in New Hampshire training for her new job with Maine Drilling & Blasting, and that Dad spent a lot of time at the end of May finishing his comprehensive exams for his PhD (whatever that means). A few months later, after many cramped hours in our new family car (a Mazda5 I’m told), I was warmed by the sun at the Outer Banks, NC. And on August 11, at 8:46 PM, I saw my mom and dad for the first time. Some nurse whisked me away and poked and prodded me for a while, and the whole experience was a little scary. The upside was that mom, dad, MiMi, and Pop Pop basically didn’t put me down at all for the first two weeks, and I got to meet Grammy and Grandpa my first weekend home.
When I got home, Mom and Dad started using cloth diapers, which I liked a lot better than the disposables I wore at the hospital! I got to sleep in a really neat boat cradle that Pop Pop made me, which Mom and Dad kept in their room so I would be close to them. We didn’t wait long to go out and see the world, though – the first weekend after I was born, we went to the outlets in Lake George to go shopping (mostly for me!) and get out of the house for a while. About two weeks later, I started going to campus with Dad to learn about STS. The same day, we went to the Washington County Fair. Dad kept me wrapped up in the Sleepy Wrap, which felt like home to me!
My first big car trip was at the end of August – a driving tour of Pennsylvania to visit relatives I’d never met. We went to Danville to see both sets of grandparents and two of my great grandmothers, plus some cousins and friends. Then, we went to southwest PA to visit four of my cousins and two sets of aunts and uncles plus my other great grandmother. From there, we went to Meadville to see another cousin and aunt, plus some more extended family. I was good the whole way! I like traveling with mom and dad.
It’s a good thing too – in the beginning of September we drove down to Bethany Beach, DE for my first beach trip with Autumn, Wes, and Ailey. Ailey is only six months older than me, so we had some fun baby time together. When we went to the beach, I even put my feet in the sand and the water, and I loved it! I took my first boat ride on the way back from the beach, which was the Cape May-Lewes ferry. The next weekend, Mom and Dad and I went camping in Lake George. I discovered that fire is not only warm, but really fun to look at.
A bunch of new friends came to visit in September – Jesse and Jessa and their daughter Eily (a year older than me), and Andy and his son Liam (two years older than me). We met up with my friend Rory, who is three months older than me, and her parents, Jim and Natasha, and all went to the Irish 2000 Music and Arts Festival at the Saratoga County Fairgrounds. Mom and Dad bought me a pair of noise dampening headphones so the loud music wouldn’t hurt my little ears. Mostly I snuggled with Dad in the wrap, but I liked being with new friends!
Mom went back to work on September 20 after about six weeks off, and Dad started taking me out to Mom’s work for lunch every day, and down to campus with him on Wednesdays. Mostly I just take naps during the day, so it doesn’t matter to me! We went apple picking and Dad made applesauce and froze some for me, so I can see what it tastes like in a few months.
During October, Dad was really happy because he finished working on the master bedroom closet (with Pop Pop’s help). Now maybe he can put the door back on my room! Sheesh! I also went to my first political event – a debate between our incumbent Representative, Scott Murphy, and his Republican challenger, Chris Gibson. I got to meet Scott Murphy after the debate and got a photo with him. I was also in a political ad with Mom and Dad that aired on TV in our area!
Mom and Dad were kind of mean to me for Halloween. Dad dressed up as a chef, Mom dressed up as a maitre’d, and they dressed me up as a lobster and put me in a pot! How completely inconsiderate. I suggest you give them coal for Christmas! I’ve been told that I looked cute though, so it’s not that big of a deal, I guess.
I turned three months old in November while in New Hampshire for one of Mom’s company meetings. Dad and I spent all day in coffee shops. He worked on his dissertation proposal, and I worked on learning how to chew on my stuffed cow.
We went back to Danville for Thanksgiving and saw more friends and family. I’m told we’re going back there for Christmas, so if you could deliver my presents there, that would be nice. Besides, we’re having work done on our roof, and mom says that the reindeer’s hooves might tear up the felt. If it seems too complicated, make it easy on yourself: just send money. How about tens and twenties?
Merry Christmas,
Rayleigh Ann Elizabeth Forrester (and Kelsey and Kevin too)
P.S. I don’t know what kind of technology you have at the North Pole, but Dad says that you should go to our website – http://www.kelseyandkevin.com (I like how I’M not mentioned in the URL, psshhh) – and subscribe using your email address so you can get an email every time they post a new blog entry with cute photos of me, or you can just check back every once in a while. Drop us a note in the comments!