But this little girls loves her, and I think Kate makes the doll looks almost cute. Or at least less creepy.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Creepy
I find this doll really creepy. Maybe it's her eyes that open and shut, and sometimes only one opens and the other is shut. Maybe it's the fact that she looks kind of real like...whatever it is, she gives me the creeps.
But this little girls loves her, and I think Kate makes the doll looks almost cute. Or at least less creepy.
But this little girls loves her, and I think Kate makes the doll looks almost cute. Or at least less creepy.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Harvest Time
Our garden has been producing an incredible amount of zucchini's and tomatoes. Our basil has also taken off, and we are reaping the benefits!! Check out the 44 tomatoes and huge zucchini that I just picked from our garden. Now, what to do with a huge zucchini that rivals the size of Kate and 44 tomatoes?
Monday, July 26, 2010
Shaver Lake
My extended family on my dad's side takes a trip every July to Shaver Lake, and this year we were able to join in the fun! The last time Jeff and I went on this family trip was 9 years ago, just weeks after we were married. The girls were so excited to camp again and we had a great time boating, swimming, kayaking, eating, talking, and playing.
Hannah showed her fearlessness by inner tubing and rock jumping into the lake. She especially loved driving the boat.
Kate loved watching everyone on the tube and enjoyed the boat ride. She loved kayaking and Smores!
Jeff was able to wake board for the first time and was able to get up on the third try!
We also had a talent show on Saturday night and although Hannah and Kate did not win the trophy (which is returned and passed on every year) they really stole the show. I should know, I was a judge this year (which is not an easy job...just listen to the tough crowd).
Hannah showed her fearlessness by inner tubing and rock jumping into the lake. She especially loved driving the boat.
Kate loved watching everyone on the tube and enjoyed the boat ride. She loved kayaking and Smores!
Jeff was able to wake board for the first time and was able to get up on the third try!
We also had a talent show on Saturday night and although Hannah and Kate did not win the trophy (which is returned and passed on every year) they really stole the show. I should know, I was a judge this year (which is not an easy job...just listen to the tough crowd).Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Post Nap Blues
Both girls happened to nap today, and they both woke up grumpy.
So we decided to beat our blues away with Otter Pops!
Do you see Kate smiling...I think it worked! This may be repeated a lot this summer!
So we decided to beat our blues away with Otter Pops!
Do you see Kate smiling...I think it worked! This may be repeated a lot this summer!
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
23 Months
Next month my baby girl will turn 2. I thought she could tell you all what she likes to do these days.
And now for her mama's account for who my Tatters is at 23 months:
Kate is such a toddler. She wants to be held, cuddled and taken care of like a baby, and then she will turn around and show her independence in the most surprising ways. The other day she was eating her oatmeal for breakfast and she reached out to give me her spoon and said, "Feed me, mama." But, if you try to help her get dressed or buckle her in the car she will tell you, "No, I do, I do!!" What a mix of baby and little girl she is right now!
She works hard to do anything her fearless sister does, and will spend time watching and learning from other kids in social settings or on the playground. Although she can out scream her sister and talk just as much as Hannah at home, she remains reserved around new people and new settings. After spending 4 months in her MOPs class the teachers said, "You must be so excited that she is talking now!" I smiled knowing that my sweet girl was finally comfortable in her class.
She is the most ticklish little girl ever, which makes for a really fun family time together. Her laugh is infectious and fills our house with such joy. She loves playing games with me and her sister like Memory, Candyland, and ABC lottery but she quickly loses attention span and will say, "Hannah you take my turn" which Hannah happily accommodates. She also loves dancing, being chased, hide-and-go seek, red light/green light, and DOLLS. This girl take care of her dolls like they are real babies. I love seeing her care for them so tenderly!
She still has a plethora of nicknames: Kate, Kay-Kay, Cakes, Sweet Cakes, Tatters, Tatter-Tot, Grace, Gracie, and one of my favorites Catherine Grace, which is really not a nickname, but her actual name. Jeff has started singing a "bonus" song to the girls at night and when he sings Amazing Grace she will say, "Me, daddy. That me!"
Kate has two jobs in our house: setting cloth napkins on the table before dinner and then after dinner taking them to the dirty clothes. When I ask her to do her job she jubilantly responds, "Ooo-kayyy!" then she runs to get the napkins and run to do her job. She also puts her clothes away in her draws after I fold the laundry. The only down side to giving her this job is that sometimes the clothes end up under the sink, in the draw with her shoes, or in the dirty basket. I am relieved that her clothes have never been in the trash can! Kate has so much enthusiasm for her tasks that I think I can learn a lot from her!
One of Kate's favorite things is to look at or listen to books. Her attention span is incredible too. She can sit by herself for 30 minutes (or longer!) just looking at a stack of books. Usually for book time Kate sits on my lap, but the other day Hannah sat down on my lap and asked me to read her a book. Kate fell to the ground crying, "I your baby, mama. I sit there!" Hannah graciously gave her my lap which Kate instantly took and said, "Thank you, Hannah" with the happiest voice ever.
Mommy, Daddy, and Hannah love you very much dear Kate!! You are such a joy in our family and a light in my life.
And now for her mama's account for who my Tatters is at 23 months:
Kate is such a toddler. She wants to be held, cuddled and taken care of like a baby, and then she will turn around and show her independence in the most surprising ways. The other day she was eating her oatmeal for breakfast and she reached out to give me her spoon and said, "Feed me, mama." But, if you try to help her get dressed or buckle her in the car she will tell you, "No, I do, I do!!" What a mix of baby and little girl she is right now!
She works hard to do anything her fearless sister does, and will spend time watching and learning from other kids in social settings or on the playground. Although she can out scream her sister and talk just as much as Hannah at home, she remains reserved around new people and new settings. After spending 4 months in her MOPs class the teachers said, "You must be so excited that she is talking now!" I smiled knowing that my sweet girl was finally comfortable in her class.
She is the most ticklish little girl ever, which makes for a really fun family time together. Her laugh is infectious and fills our house with such joy. She loves playing games with me and her sister like Memory, Candyland, and ABC lottery but she quickly loses attention span and will say, "Hannah you take my turn" which Hannah happily accommodates. She also loves dancing, being chased, hide-and-go seek, red light/green light, and DOLLS. This girl take care of her dolls like they are real babies. I love seeing her care for them so tenderly!
She still has a plethora of nicknames: Kate, Kay-Kay, Cakes, Sweet Cakes, Tatters, Tatter-Tot, Grace, Gracie, and one of my favorites Catherine Grace, which is really not a nickname, but her actual name. Jeff has started singing a "bonus" song to the girls at night and when he sings Amazing Grace she will say, "Me, daddy. That me!"
Kate has two jobs in our house: setting cloth napkins on the table before dinner and then after dinner taking them to the dirty clothes. When I ask her to do her job she jubilantly responds, "Ooo-kayyy!" then she runs to get the napkins and run to do her job. She also puts her clothes away in her draws after I fold the laundry. The only down side to giving her this job is that sometimes the clothes end up under the sink, in the draw with her shoes, or in the dirty basket. I am relieved that her clothes have never been in the trash can! Kate has so much enthusiasm for her tasks that I think I can learn a lot from her!
One of Kate's favorite things is to look at or listen to books. Her attention span is incredible too. She can sit by herself for 30 minutes (or longer!) just looking at a stack of books. Usually for book time Kate sits on my lap, but the other day Hannah sat down on my lap and asked me to read her a book. Kate fell to the ground crying, "I your baby, mama. I sit there!" Hannah graciously gave her my lap which Kate instantly took and said, "Thank you, Hannah" with the happiest voice ever.
Mommy, Daddy, and Hannah love you very much dear Kate!! You are such a joy in our family and a light in my life.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
The Beach
It was such a pleasant weekend we hit the beach with Roger and Cindy. Hannah has a buggy board now, which she loves using, racing in and out of the waves and riding on as well.
Kate sill loves her tent, playing in the sand, and will put her feet in the water if she is holding your hand.
Kate sill loves her tent, playing in the sand, and will put her feet in the water if she is holding your hand.
Picnic Day
It's heated up here in San Diego. We went from June gloom overcast weather with temperatures in the 60 to heat all day and temps on the 90-100's. And living in a place with no AC has been rough.
Kate is not napping well since she is so hot. Instead of her awesome 3 hour nap she has been taking 30-45 minute naps, and then spending the afternoon fussy. Poor baby. This is how she woke up from her nap the other day. She clearly wants to sleep but is simply too hot.
So we headed to the library to enjoy some AC and cool off.
Then we set out for Picnic Day at Jeff's work, which was actually quite a bit cooler being right on the coast. It was a hit with all the essential "B's"
...bounce houses...
...beach balls...
...bubbles...
...balloon toss and BBQ. Hannah quickly realize that the balloon was going to break if she tossed it and refused to be in the toss with Jeff. She didn't even want to hold the balloon but said she was too scared!
The happy family headed home. What a great day, and a great way to beat the heat!
Kate is not napping well since she is so hot. Instead of her awesome 3 hour nap she has been taking 30-45 minute naps, and then spending the afternoon fussy. Poor baby. This is how she woke up from her nap the other day. She clearly wants to sleep but is simply too hot.
So we headed to the library to enjoy some AC and cool off.
Then we set out for Picnic Day at Jeff's work, which was actually quite a bit cooler being right on the coast. It was a hit with all the essential "B's"
...bounce houses...
...beach balls...
...bubbles...
...balloon toss and BBQ. Hannah quickly realize that the balloon was going to break if she tossed it and refused to be in the toss with Jeff. She didn't even want to hold the balloon but said she was too scared!
The happy family headed home. What a great day, and a great way to beat the heat!
Sunday, July 11, 2010
High School Flashback
It was a total flashback weekend. A getaway filled with walking and talking, eating and laughing and sleeping in my home town, Torrance. Jeff planned this great trip without the kiddos and it was so, so fun!
It started with the ultimate high school moment when we borrowed my parents car (it was a practical way to accommodate the carseats rather than switching the seats to my parents car but it was totally reminiscent).
We then headed to burnout beach for a coffee and a walk. In the early years of our relationship, Jeff and I would call each other to meet up and hang out. We would often ask, "Your beach or mine," referring to either Burnout or Cabrillo. This was a highlight because Jeff and I were able to have uninterrupted conversation for the entire morning. He even posed for a picture for me. What a man!
After a while we headed to El Paseo Cantina, one of my favorite Mexican restaurants where the salsa is so good you want to eat it with a spoon. Such good salsa. YUM!
We then watched a matinee, Knight and Day, the new Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz movie. As high schoolers with curfew matinees were a huge part of our dating life, so it was fun to see a movie in the middle of the day again.
We then checked into our hotel which overlooked the marina in San Pedro and got ready for a nice dinner at Ports O' Cal Restaurant, where Jeff and I went for our third date together (our first date restaurant closed years ago, and second date was a picnic on the beach).
Overall it was a fantastic, relaxing weekend spent doing things that we enjoy together. We missed the girls, but know that they were well loved and cared for this weekend. It's a blessing to have each other and to have spent 9 years together being married.
It started with the ultimate high school moment when we borrowed my parents car (it was a practical way to accommodate the carseats rather than switching the seats to my parents car but it was totally reminiscent).
We then headed to burnout beach for a coffee and a walk. In the early years of our relationship, Jeff and I would call each other to meet up and hang out. We would often ask, "Your beach or mine," referring to either Burnout or Cabrillo. This was a highlight because Jeff and I were able to have uninterrupted conversation for the entire morning. He even posed for a picture for me. What a man!
After a while we headed to El Paseo Cantina, one of my favorite Mexican restaurants where the salsa is so good you want to eat it with a spoon. Such good salsa. YUM!
We then watched a matinee, Knight and Day, the new Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz movie. As high schoolers with curfew matinees were a huge part of our dating life, so it was fun to see a movie in the middle of the day again.We then checked into our hotel which overlooked the marina in San Pedro and got ready for a nice dinner at Ports O' Cal Restaurant, where Jeff and I went for our third date together (our first date restaurant closed years ago, and second date was a picnic on the beach).
Overall it was a fantastic, relaxing weekend spent doing things that we enjoy together. We missed the girls, but know that they were well loved and cared for this weekend. It's a blessing to have each other and to have spent 9 years together being married.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Visiting My Nieces
These smiles say it all. What a great day we had with my sister and her two lovely daughters! We love you Jenna, Amy (Aimes, which Hannah insists everyone call her from now on) and Natalie!
Can't wait to meet my nephew in a few weeks!!
Can't wait to meet my nephew in a few weeks!!
Monday, July 5, 2010
Happy Fourth of July!
This was the first year that Hannah anticipated and stayed awake long enough for fireworks. She loved them!! We watched the show with some people from our church and Hannah and three other kids her age jumped and screamed the whole time. Kate on the other hand was frightened at first, but after snuggling in with dad she agreed that she liked them with a simple, "Uh-huh." Maybe next year!
As an added fourth of July bonus, Jeff took this morning and afternoon off and we headed to the Wild Animal Park. Hannah and Kate loved seeing the baby elephants, and I would have gotten a picture/video of the "elephant run" but we ran out of batteries...maybe next time!
As an added fourth of July bonus, Jeff took this morning and afternoon off and we headed to the Wild Animal Park. Hannah and Kate loved seeing the baby elephants, and I would have gotten a picture/video of the "elephant run" but we ran out of batteries...maybe next time!
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Catching Up
First trimester is over - Praise GOD!! I am feeling better, eating better, and generally have more energy. I reached the valley and am now climbing up toward a healthy third baby. Praise GOD!!
So here's a random recap of the last few weeks when I haven't been laying on the couch playing "doctor" with the girls.
We cooked our first pie together. My friend Roxana sent me a hand made beautiful apron that I said as soon as I was up to cooking again I would wear. So, yesterday we all put on our aprons and made a peach-a-berry pie which was good, but was chosen so we would use up some neglected fruit. Hannah and Kate love helping me cook, although "helping" to them mostly involves standing on a chair, sampling or asking to "sample some" of whatever they are pouring into the recipe. While making this pie Hannah tried to convince me that she loved baking soda and asked for some. When I finally caved and gave her some she said, "Oh, that's enough."
Jeff just got a new bike. His other one was purchased from craigslist for $100 (which a standard road bike goes new for $800, so this tells you the quality of the bike). After a year and a half of riding his temporary bike, he finally got a real road bike, still from craigslist, but only 6mths old from a guy that said he wanted to be the next Lance Armstrong and just doesn't have time - I love craigslist ads! Here he is, busy in the garden with the girls. These three are something else!
Hannah has recently announced that when she is a grown up she wants to be a grandma. Funny, most kids pick professions such as teacher, fire fighter, doctor, librarian, trash collector (which really trash day is a huge day in our house!) or people they see in the community. I guess this goes to show that she loves her grandmas and gets to see them often! I know as she grows her job selection will change, but right now I think a grandma is too funny to forget.
Kate has taken to saying, "HHHeeeyyy" a lot lately. Such as "HHHeeeyyy, Hannnah, no take my toy!" or "HHHeeeyyy, man" when things are not working as she wants them to. It's really funny to see individuality emerge, especially because it's still matched by her deep love for Hannah and the rest of our family.
We are gearing up for baby 3. I am now 13 weeks down, 27 to go. When I got up this morning Jeff started talking to me about a Honda Odyssey that he had seen online...yep, we're getting a mini-van. I suggested getting it before a family wedding in August so we can drive around our of town family, so be pre-warned that one day you may see a mini-van on this blog.
So here's a random recap of the last few weeks when I haven't been laying on the couch playing "doctor" with the girls.We cooked our first pie together. My friend Roxana sent me a hand made beautiful apron that I said as soon as I was up to cooking again I would wear. So, yesterday we all put on our aprons and made a peach-a-berry pie which was good, but was chosen so we would use up some neglected fruit. Hannah and Kate love helping me cook, although "helping" to them mostly involves standing on a chair, sampling or asking to "sample some" of whatever they are pouring into the recipe. While making this pie Hannah tried to convince me that she loved baking soda and asked for some. When I finally caved and gave her some she said, "Oh, that's enough."
Jeff just got a new bike. His other one was purchased from craigslist for $100 (which a standard road bike goes new for $800, so this tells you the quality of the bike). After a year and a half of riding his temporary bike, he finally got a real road bike, still from craigslist, but only 6mths old from a guy that said he wanted to be the next Lance Armstrong and just doesn't have time - I love craigslist ads! Here he is, busy in the garden with the girls. These three are something else!
Hannah has recently announced that when she is a grown up she wants to be a grandma. Funny, most kids pick professions such as teacher, fire fighter, doctor, librarian, trash collector (which really trash day is a huge day in our house!) or people they see in the community. I guess this goes to show that she loves her grandmas and gets to see them often! I know as she grows her job selection will change, but right now I think a grandma is too funny to forget.
Kate has taken to saying, "HHHeeeyyy" a lot lately. Such as "HHHeeeyyy, Hannnah, no take my toy!" or "HHHeeeyyy, man" when things are not working as she wants them to. It's really funny to see individuality emerge, especially because it's still matched by her deep love for Hannah and the rest of our family.
We are gearing up for baby 3. I am now 13 weeks down, 27 to go. When I got up this morning Jeff started talking to me about a Honda Odyssey that he had seen online...yep, we're getting a mini-van. I suggested getting it before a family wedding in August so we can drive around our of town family, so be pre-warned that one day you may see a mini-van on this blog.
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