Levi's Golden Birthday

2011 marked Levi's golden birthday (4th of June), and although he was at first resistant to getting older (aren't we all?), he quickly decided four wasn't so bad after all.

The whole big Phillips family sang "feliz cumpleanos" to Levi in Playa following a Morris family dinner at the Palapa restaurant at the Haciendas on Friday night. The following week, we invited the rest of the gang over to our house for a backyard party in honor of the birthday boy.

This charismatic little guy passed the kindergarten reading test just before his birthday, still signs and speaks more than 100 words in spanish, and is ready for his second season in t-ball and peewee soccer.

His coloring skills have advanced to where we can't tell if we colored it or he did, and he is starting to draw ROY G BIV rainbows and people with hands/hair/feet.

Toy Story made way for a love of super heros - be it Spider Man, Batman, or any one else with a cape!

Levi likes to act out scenes from the Wizard of Oz (the Tinman is his favorite), and he modelled for a big box retailer in the spring. At 40" tall and a slender 31 lbs, this four year old melts your heart.

Playing in Playa 2

In place of the annual fiesta in Cancun, the Phillips clan (as well as Morris family and Fox duo) ventured a little further south to Playa del Carmen following Uncle Chris & Aunt Krista's wedding in May. "Playa" translates to "beach" in Spanish, so the straight translation is "beach of Carmen" or "Carmen's Beach". However, when clear turquoise water, pure white sand, and a lush jungle combine to create this world class beachfront, it no longer needed to the anything to differentiate itself from the pack. It simple became "Playa" (with a capital P).

Quickly outgrowing the 2 bedroom villa Papi bought to accommodate the Phillips family for 50 years, we spread into three separate villas at the Royal Haciendas.

A week of relaxing poolside until "hora feliz", hammock snoozing, and guacamole by the gallon was on tap for this party of 12. Levi and Bianca loved the playing in the pool each day.
Bianca wasn't a huge fan of the waves though, tame as they were.

Paul, Robin & the Kids booked a tour of nearby Xcaret - Mexico's version of a theme park. The whole family floated down an under water river that let out into the wave-less cove. We walked the Mayan ruins, visited the small nature preserve with jaguars, climbed down into the bat cave (no glass to keep those bats inside), and the butterfly pavillion (think large net over forest canopy ... that is more lush any manufactured pavillion back home). A family favorite were the giant sea turtles that were more than 5 feet in length.

The Best Little Ring Boy

In May, Uncle Chris and Aunt Krista were married at the Evergreen Lake Boathouse. After donning a tux with the other guys in penguin suits, Levi enjoyed the ride from the hotel to the lake in a limo.
As paid professional with a snap happy mommy, Levi was no stranger to the camera when it came to time to pose for the wedding shots. However, a bio-emergency arose in the midst of the group shots, and, soon-to-be Auntie Krista helped Levi aim carefully off the deck and into the lake.

Levi was a seasoned professional at his ring bearer duties, trying to coax the prettiest flower girl, Kennedy, to walk down the aisle with him. He eventually gave up and confidently carried on solo.

Nearly 4 years old, Levi witnessed the blessed event with ring side seats, standing between the groom and best man, Uncle Adam. A couple giggles and a case of the three year old wiggles, but the ceremony went off without a hitch.

Springtime in Colorado

Days with the kids seem to fly by. Our baby Bianca is a full-fledged toddler now with more than a hundred words and nearly as many signs. Quite the smoocher, she can "say" KISS in three languages and isn't afraid to share them. We aren't sure where she got her rhythm from, but she can shake and shimmy with the best of them - whether it is to the Go, Diego, Go themesong or her daddy's iPod playlist. Life is too short, so she has decided she should save some time by running where she needs to go. She loves swaddling her baby doll Jenna, and getting into whatever her "Bruber" Levi is trying to play with. As he says, "She is our little trouble maker."

Levi is just a few months from his fourth birthday, although he recently stated he isn't going to have any more birthdays. I guess he is just happy being three. He loves going to school, and although we had a fun Spring Break tubing and going to the zoo, he was very anxious to get back to school to see his friends. He is a solid reader, though his true passion is in the arts. He colors at least an hour a day, and if we try to color with him, he reminds us to color slower and stay in the lines. He declared he is going to be an artist when he is a grown up. He is waiting for the days to warm up so the worms will be back in his garden. Levi bowled his first strike on Robin's birthday this year with six pound ball and went tubing down Fraser Hill in his own sled - solo.

As for Paul and Robin, well, there aren't enough hours in the day with two kids, two careers, two pets, and two extended families nearby. The house isn't nearly clean enough, the bills are probably a few days late, and there are more than 300 emails waiting for an answer. However, our kids aren't going to be little for long. So tonight, we'll leave the dishes in the sink, let the mail go unopened, and the laundry can wait another day. There is a pirate hat waiting to be worn, dancing to be done, and an oversized color book calling my name.

Playin' in Playa

Dec 2010 - March 2011 was expected to be a super busy time for the two elders in the Morris Four-Family. Paul turned 40 in December, Robin and Paul celebrated their 7th anniversary in January, Valentine's Day would occur in February, Robin would celebrate a birthday in March. The Morris clan decided to package the quad-celebrations into one, with a weeklong trip to the Royal Haciendas in Playa Del Carmen on New Year's Day.

Just 45 minutes south of Cancun, Playa Del Carmen is the heart of Riviera Maya. Lush jungles, cobblestone roads, proximity to Mayan Ruins and adventure parks, and a fraction of the American chain clubs and restaurants customary to Mexican tourist ports, Playa held the appeal of relaxation, playing with the kids in the ocean, and margaritas under beach palapas.

We invited friends, Anna and Ivo, to spend the week with us. Ivo took advantage of the proximity to world-class scuba diving destinations, and Anna took a much needed vacation for a busy, important career. We loved having them with us... especially our kids.

Between long, leisurely dinners, daily Hora Feliz, and breakfast on the patio, we squeezed in time for Robin and Levi to try kayaking in the ocean.





We attended a Mexican and Mayan Fiesta, complete with cowboy roping, dancing, and all the guacamole and cotton candy we could consume!










Levi snorkelled and Bianca floated in the pools and they played on the beach every day.






Levi befriended a monkey named Benito on the beach one afternoon.






Ivo planned a trip for everyone down to Hidden Worlds, an adventure themed park deep in the Mayan Jungle. After a fifteen minute ride on the jungle buggy through the very bumpy dirt path into the jungle, we arrived at our final destination. We cycled through the treetops in the Sky Cycle.



Then we zipped through the canopy on the Jungle Zip Line, where fearless Levi declared he wanted to ride the next one on his own.

Next up... the Zip Line Splash Down into a cenote cavern, where Levi zipped solo and landed into a pool of crystal clear water where Paul was waiting for him!




It was on to rappelling into the cenote, then a snorkel tour into the caverns.

What an adventure!

Swim Baby Swim

Bianca began her first round of ISR with a new instructor in September, just before her first birthday. After four weeks of daily 10 minute lessons, Baby Bi (pronounced "Bee") was successfully doing her "roll back to float" with Ms Kim at the Golden Rec Center.

We took the month of October off, and resumed swimming class after Halloween.

Soon, Bianca proved her swimming skills, as she mastered her "swim, float, swim" sequence.
The month culminated with her final exam, which our little Bi aced. Her little 18 lb body was loaded down with winter clothes, that, when wet, added an additonal 11 lbs. The extra weight didn't weigh her down, and this little fish finished her ISR lessons like a champ!

Levi, having already graduated from ISR, was ready to advance his pool skills. In preparation for an upcoming trip to Playa Del Carmen, Ms Kim taught Levi to snorkel. In just four lessons, Levi mastered his snorkel and fins. He loves trolling the pool for sink toys and can't wait to try his technique in the Gulf of Mexico in January.

Sweets and Schools

Summer turned to fall, and our sweet baby girl, Bi, celebrated her first birthday on September 16th. No stranger to sweets since stealing a bite of brother's birthday cake earlier this year, Bi truly enjoyed her first birthday cake, without hesitation. She is starting to fillout a little more, thanks to the new palette of foods available to a toddler and recently took her first steps.

Look out world, here she comes!



Levi was accepted at Denison Montessori, a DPS choice school, this spring and started five-day-a-week preschool in the 3-4-5 year old room with Mrs. Dorothy in September. Not a single tear was shed as he walked confidently into his classroom on the first day and never looked back. Already a strong reader at just three, Denison fulfills his thirst for knowledge and new friends.

Words and Motion and Waves

Our sweet little Bi is nearly ten months old, and is making her way from room to room military style. Our super skinny little girl has a thirst for grown up foods, astonishing us daily by out eating her older brother who is too playful and inquisitive to sit still for meal times. Bi rolls and sits up too, saying "Mama" and signing "milk". She is still nearly bald on top, with two bottom teeth that popped out on vacation last month.

The little man, Levi, turned three in June and speaks like a teen ager with phrases such as "Well, actually..." and "not quite". He mastered his alphabet sounds and began reading three-letter words just before he hit the big "3". He loves cruising on his Skut, playing with his Thomas trains, and reading his "BOB books" before bedtime. As a special treat, we took him to view his first movie at the theater recently -- in 3D no less -- and he is now hooked on the "Toy Story" series. He loves his his Buzz and Woody action figures! He played his first season of soccer on the Tangerine Sharks and is starting TBall with the Lime Lizards in July.

The Morris clan were welcomed "home" at Nani and Papi's villa at the Royal Sands, Cancun in June. Bianca was a wonderful traveler and enjoyed sitting under the palapas, nibbling on fresh fruit with Papi in the shade while big brother Levi swam in the pool and splashed in the Gulf. Levi was fearless -- holding a huge parrot, iguana, and swimming in the ocean with Davinci the Dolphin. Paul and Robin relaxed poolside over Hora Feliz drinks while the kids were entertained by Auntie Jess and Uncle Adam.

Bizarre Love Triangle: Thomas, Dorothy, and Mary

Levi is growing taller by the day. High water pants are a constant issue in our house with this 5th% weight/85% height 2.5 year old. He finished potty training right around Bi's birthday, and is almost always dry overnight too (woo hoo for cloth diapered babies who potty train early!). He loves Thomas the Tank Engine... books, movies or trains and got to ride Thomas this fall at the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden. A reader like his dad, he begs for as many as ten books to be read before bed. He counts to 10 in Spanish and 20 in English, knows how to count up to ten objects, and recites and recognizes his ABCs in Spanish and English. He goes to Mommy and Me preschool at the Front Range Waldorf school on Fridays, likes Tots in Action at Carmody Rec Center and story hour at the Belmar Library, and can't wait til Spring to start searching for bugs in the yard with Daddy. His favorite movies are the Wizard of Oz and Mary Poppins, and he skips and sings along with the showtunes. He is looking forward to the Broadway Play of Mary Poppins in March as his "special activity". Levi did a great job as Ring Bearer in Auntie Jessie and Uncle Brad's Las Vegas wedding in January.

Smiles and Sleep

Bianca Blu is growing up so quickly. Levi adores her and is often heard saying, "Isn't she adorable?" and smothers her with besos. She smiles and coos at everyone and laughs loudly at her brother. She started sleeping through the night before the holiday season, so Robin and Paul feel energized! Bi has rolled over a couple times already, and enjoys sitting up in her Bumbo seat. She loves her Mommy, but she is going to be Daddy's Little Girl for sure. She modeled for ecoPOLITAN last month and can be seen in the February issue of 5280 Magazine around Denver.

eco•POLITAN Grand Opening

Fall and winter were a crazy time at the Morris household. In addition to the normal holiday frenze, Robin worked many long days (and nights) turning ecoPOLITAN online into a brick and mortar location for her local customers in Denver. It was more than a six month project, but with the help of family and friends, ecoPOLITAN opened its doors with a Green Ribbon Cutting ceremony on Saturday, January 30th. Thanks to State Representative Andy Kerr, City CouncilWoman Sue King and the West Chamber for helping us celebrate, and the Village Rooster, Noodles and Jason's Deli for sending over food and drinks. Next time you are in Lakewood, stop by Lakewood City Commons to say hello!

Bianca Blu

Trekking across Western Europe proved to be a bit much for 19 week pregnant Robin, and just a few days after our return, Robin was sent to the high risk OBGYN for evaluation for an incompetent cervix. Shorter... shorter... shorter... eventually 50% effaced at week 24 put Baby Morris at risk for a seriously early arrival. Eight stitches in a drawstring fashion were put in place, cinched closed, and double knotted by High Risk OBGYN in Sky Ridge Hospital operating room in June. Baby Morris's path of uterine escape was sealed shut. One trip to the ER with 4-5 minute contractions on September 1 and a cocktail of contraction-reducing medications ensured Baby reached full-term. The stitches were snipped at the end of week 36, and Robin and Paul were sent home from the hospital to wait and see how quickly that cervix opened.

Robin was 2 cm dilated the following day. A week after the cerclage removal, "Nani" Phillips arrived at the Morris home at 5:15am to stay with big brother to be, Levi Bentley, while Robin and Paul headed for Sky Ridge Hospital with two suitcases and a backpack full of camcorders, cameras, backup cameras, batteries, chargers and iPods.

3 cm dilated, 80% effaced, and -1 station when we checked in at 6:30am. After a couple hours, the OB decided Robin's contractions weren't painful enough, so she sent Karen (the Nurse Practicioner who was at Robin's bedside for both the cerclage insertion and removal and preterm labor) to break Robin's bag of water. That really kicked things into gear at 8:30am and by about 9am, Robin called "uncle" and started signing the paperwork for pain relief. Epidural in place by 9:30am when Robin was 4cm, 90% effaced and at 0 station.

Then things got wild.

Robin was starting to wonder if the epidural was in the 'right' place, as the contractions were still strong enough to take her breath away. She was on the phone with Nani and Levi when the OB arrived at the hospital at 10:15am.

Dr. G checked to how Robin was progressing. "You're complete," she said. The nurse assumed OB meant 100% effaced. Or +1 station. "Baby is right here. You are ready to push," clarified Dr. G. During the previous painful 45 minutes, Robin dilated from 4cm to 10cm. Ouch. Baby was making its escape. And fast! On the first push, we could see a quarter-sized amount of black hair. Paul started frantically calling the Grandmas to head for the hospital sooner than later. Final adjustments to the camcorder, camera close by, mirror in place. Push for 10. Breath. Push for 10. Breath. Push for 10. Rest for 90 seconds. Repeat.

The baby's heart rate was decelerating with every contraction, so Dr. G was concerned the umbilical cord was wrapped about the neck. Since the baby was moving so fast, they let Robin continue to push as they watched the monitor.

Twenty minutes later, Dr G. says, "We'll have a baby on the next one". Paul - quick, grab the camera. Forget about that leg, I can hold it up myself. 5 10-second pushes and out pops the head covered in black hair. "Stop! Don't push!" What do you mean, don't push? There is a baby half out of me. Suction. Ok, ready. One push and the baby comes out at 10:47am.

It's a girl!

She's early (12-18 days depending on which OB you ask), so she's covered in vernix. She inhaled a lot of amniotic fluid on the way out, so there is gurgling as she cries. Low O2 levels in the Colorado air meant she was a little blue, receiving an 8 and 9 APGAR score. No umbilical cord wrapped around her head afterall. She's is beautiful, healthy and perfect in every way.

Big brother Levi arrived at the hospital about 45 minutes later, and Paul brought him in to be the first person to meet the baby. Who is this, we asked. "It's a baby sister," he says ... just as he claimed to know throughout the pregnancy. We offered two names and asked, "What's her name?"

"Bianca Blu" he replied twice, without hesitation.

Later that night, he said, "I just love her so much."

So do we.

Europe 2009 - City 9

Travel between countries, cities, and sites ate more time than we hoped, so we were left with one day in our departing city. We arrived late, checked in to the smallest hotel room imaginable, and found an outdoor cafe to grab a late dinner. One of the most recognized landmarks in the world was just a block away, and on the hour sparkled for a full five minutes. Even at the 11pm, the base was bustling with activity, so we returned the following morning to ride the inclinator to the top. It reached so high in the sky, the weather at the top differed from the weather midway down or at the ground. Even on a cloudy, rainy day, the view was amazing! We visited the largest museum in the world, arbitrarily picking one of it's four wings. Home to the great paintings, sculptures and artifacts, we walked past Egyptian antiquities from thousands of years ago, past paintings of renowned artists who went on to Ninja Turtle fame, and marble statues from the great Greek and Roman eras. We peaked in to see the hype around La Jaconde, glanced down at Venus di Milo, and then spent a thirty minutes trying to navigate out of the multi-floor, multi-winged former palace. We strolled along the river past dozens of alternating pet shops and flower stores to see the gargoyles that guarded one of the world's most famous churches. Mass was going on in the center of the cathedral, while hundreds of tourists stolled down the side aisles to snap photos of the priests in action and beautiful stain glassed windows.

We picked up Subway for dinner and took the subway back to our hotel to get ready to depart the European continent early the next morning.

Where in the world is Levi?

Europe 2009 - City 7/8

I'm not sure how 132,000 soldiers arrived on the beaches of our next European city, as it was quite a feat for the Morris clan to get there. It started with a very crowded commute from the city to the southeastern Naval city, where we stopped overnight. Then on to the ferry docks for the four hour "high speed" boat across the water to our fifth and final European country. A bus to the hotel, then a walk to the office of tourism where we learned the city buses would not run the following day and the morning tour bus was already full. So we walked to the Train station near the site of William the Conquerer's castle, and rented the last remaining, severely overpriced Citroen to drive the final 45 km to our eighth destination.

Luckily, we allocated a couple days to visit two of the five beaches, museums and cemeteries in the area. The military feat accomplished at this site 65 years ago was astonishing, the loss of young lives tragic. The white crosses and stars went on as far as the eye could see, then we walked along the beach where these young men were lost just a few kilometers away from their final resting place. We visited their Canadian counterparts on a nearby beach and toured the crumbling bunkers and craters on Point du Hoc where the Army Rangers scaled the cliffs before capturing the target. A week here and we still couldn't have grasped everything that transpired on these European shores, so we returned the car and hopped a train to our final city.

Where in the world is Levi?

Europe 2009 - City 6

We travelled 300 km/hr across the country side and through the Channel to our fourth European country and sixth city. More expensive and bustling than Manhattan, the sites were laid out along the river. We opted for a hop-on, hop-off double decker bus tour with the Wades to ensure we viewed the big sites during our short stay. Big Ben towered above Parliament. The Tower looked like an old fort but is reputed to house the Crown Jewels, and the Tower Bridge was striking, though oddly painted with aqua accents. The H.M.S. Belfast, the first ship to fire upon Normandy, was docked in the river and was a mix of genuine-original WWII under too many coats of paint. St Paul's was breathtaking, inside and out. There were more theaters in Picadilly Circus than anywhere else in the world, and fabulous shopping in Oxford Circus. The oldest underground (the Tube) took us where we needed to go, which was welcome since the streets are congested with black taxis and red buses driving on the wrong side of the street. It rained the next morning, so the Guards did not formally change for the thousands of tourists that were waiting. So we hugged the Wades goodbye and headed south towards our next destination.

Where in the world is Levi?

Europe 2009 - city 5

Quickly learning to navigate the local, national, and international trains, we met the Wade family in our third European country. Grotemarkt (old city center) was astonishing, St Katherine's church was beautiful, and every cobblestone street in the downtown area was quaint, romantic or historic in this amazing city. Paul sipped beer, while Levi nibbled on chocolate covered waffles (we counted a whopping five waffle vendors in two city blocks) and Robin sampled fine chocolate. After dinner, we strolled by the Royal Palace and their equivalent of the eternal flame at the (US) Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. The next morning, the Wades got an early start off to the next destination, and the Morris family viewed Atomium, a landmark from the 1958 World's Fair. The Cinquantenaire was worth the walk, though it seemed odd the historic, arched building would also house 'AutoWorld'. After collecting luggage, we headed to catch the underwater train to our next European country.

Where in the world is Levi?