The Mik Spot

Cougar Games

2011-12-31T16:48:00.001-08:00

My mom is a major cougar fan; a trait she has definitely passed on to my kids. They went to 4 or 5 games while we were in Utah.

(Uh oh...looks like Lil's worried for the Cougs)

(Go Cougars!)

Christmas Morning Part 2

2011-12-25T22:23:00.001-08:00

Next we had round two of present opening with the Blakes.

(Lily's Microphone-much needed for all the solo gigs she has these days)

(Charlie's Buzz Lightyear gun)

(Books)

(Awesome Batman cars and track)

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Christmas Morning

2011-12-25T22:23:00.000-08:00

Christmas just keeps getting better with the kiddos! Santa has the best job! What could possibly be more fun than seeing pure excitement from your kids?!

(Before the kids woke up--looks like Santa came!)

Let the present opening begin!

(Lily only asked for one thing from Santa...another phone.

I guess the other 3 she has just aren't cutting it anymore)

(Charlie's favorite gift--

a Cars lunchbox so he can keep up with Lily and her princess lunchbox)

(And it was filled with his OWN crayons and paper)

(Both the kids got mini nerf guns in their stockings...perfect for sibling rivalry!)

(Luckily, Charles LOVED being shot in the stomach)

(Even Mom's and Dad's stockings were stuffed!

"Who wouldn't love a can opener?!"

"Socks? My favorite!")

(And what's Christmas without a little Snow White action for Lil)

(My mom also got the kids these amazing art tables! Lily is in heaven...she pretty much lives at her desk.)

(I am often floored by how much these two genuinely love each other)

Pioneer Village

2011-12-22T14:52:00.000-08:00

This year we did something I've never done. We went to Pioneer Village for their Christmas stuff. It was actually really fun! I wasn't expecting to like it as much as I did! They had train rides, carolers, crafts, a puppet show, and elf village, santa, and a live nativity.

(Of course it was cold so we bundled up...Charlie in Dad's gloves)

(Live Nativity: both Lily and Charlie were totally taken with baby Jesus)

(Complete with sheep)

(Sitting in a sleigh, waiting for Father Christmas)

(Lil and Father Christmas having a nice chat)

Nutcracker

2011-12-19T14:54:00.000-08:00

We started off the Utah holiday season right with the Nutcracker Ballet at the Covey Center for the Arts. I was a little worried about Lily's attention span but she did great! She loved it so much she was inspired to jump out of her seat and dance along!

(The many faces of Lil at intermission)

(Lillerina)

Ward Christmas Party

2011-12-11T13:56:00.000-08:00

Gotta love a ward Christmas party! I'm not totally sure why all these pics are so blurry and crazy-eyed and crappy but they're all I have.

(Meeting Santa)

(Super blurry Christmas tree shot)

(Super crazy eye family pic)

Presidio Tree Lighting

2011-12-03T13:55:00.000-08:00

This year we missed the big tree lightings in the city but our own little Presidio does a small one that we were able to make it to!

And of course we had to make a Ghirardelli stop:

Natural History Museum

2011-11-24T13:50:00.000-08:00

While in Utah, we also got to check out a new museum, the Natural History Museum at the University of Utah. There were a lot of great kid-friendly exhibits!

A visit to the 4th grade

2011-11-23T13:50:00.000-08:00

One of our mornings spent in Utah we visited my mom's 4th grade class. My mom set up a desk for Lily and she fit right in!

(Working hard while the kids take a test)

(Eating lunch in the cafeteria)

Lily also decided she needed to sing a few solos to the whole class!

(Christmas Bells Are Ringing--the beginning is cut off because I didn't believe

for a minute that she would actually get up there and sing!)

(Star Spangled Banner)

Charlie's 18 month stats

2011-11-07T09:18:00.000-08:00

The Stats:

Length: 32 in. (41st percentile)

Weight: 24 lb. 9 oz. (31st percentile)

Head: 19 in. (72nd percentile)

Trick-or-Treating

2011-10-31T11:38:00.000-07:00

We had a blast trick-or-treating this year! We hit up two neighborhoods, Avila Street (in the Marina) and Pacific Heights.

Chestnut Parade

2011-10-31T11:37:00.000-07:00

On Halloween morning the marina was having a little Halloween parade. The kids got to walk up and down Chestnut street trick-or-treating at all the retailers on the street. So cute!

(Lily's costume as worn by Greg 18 years ago)

(Getting a delicious bit to eat after)

Pumpkin Carving

2011-10-30T14:39:00.000-07:00

Sunday night was pumpkin carving!

(Batman and a Cougar)

Ward Halloween

2011-10-29T11:37:00.000-07:00

Our ward had a Halloween party, too. The primary was in charge so I spent the whole time running around keeping things together, so I didn't get to follow my kids around while they were doing all the fun stuff and take a million pictures BUT we did take this horrible family shot as we were walking out the door.

Musee Mechanique

2011-10-29T11:36:00.000-07:00

While my dad was here we also hit up the Musee Mechanique, a collection of tons of old school arcade games.

Couples Party

2011-10-28T11:36:00.000-07:00

Some friends had a little Halloween party up on their roof. Couple party=no kids...YES PLEASE! Dave and I threw together a quick costume and had a blast!

I am an Occupy Wall Street protester (sign says: I AM ANGRY without a concise message 99%). And Dave is the 1%

Preschool Party

2011-10-28T11:35:00.000-07:00

I, somewhat unexpectedly, ended up teaching our preschool co-op the week of Halloween so we threw together a little party.

(Scary Snacks--not pictured: blood/ketchup for mummy dipping)

(Ghost bowling)

(Batman Girl)

(The kids--missing Miles)

Half Moon Bay: Lemos Farm

2011-10-27T11:35:00.000-07:00

We had the most action packed Halloween week ever! Papa Mike and Papa Debbie flew in and we partied hard! First up: Half Moon Bay pumpkin patch, Lemos Farm!

(Feeding Goats)

(Rockin' the Plaid)

(Pony Rides)

(Train Rides)

(Hay Rides)

(Huge Pumpkin Jumpy House)

(Picking out Pumpkins)

(Happy Family)

Sailing

2011-10-22T11:34:00.000-07:00

For our anniversary (last May) we bought a sailing tour...Groupon FTW! It may have taken us 5 months to actually cash in on it but we finally got around to it and it was a blast! The weather was gorgeous...which wasn't so great for the wind needed to actually sail...but basking in the sun, overlooking our stunning city, cuddled with my hunny is my idea of a good time!

Charlie's got the moves like Jagger

2011-10-20T14:42:00.000-07:00

Hair cuts

2011-10-10T14:37:00.000-07:00

My spunky, not to mention devious, little 3 year old decided to play a little beauty parlor. She cut not only her own hair, but Charlie's, Elmo's, and Rapunzel's horse Maximus'. I was pretty beside myself. But as far as kid cuts go...it definitely could have been worse!

Flying Solo

2011-09-16T14:50:00.000-07:00

Lily starting preschool means Charlie and I get a few hours, two days a week of quality, one-on-one time! I totally don't even know what to do with myself with a single 16 month old anymore! The Academy of Sciences of course!

(Playing at the fountains out front)

(A little sass)

(A little sweet)

The some quality playtime at the secret garden of playgrounds in GG Park!

First day of Preschool

2011-09-14T14:36:00.001-07:00

I'm dying. I can't even stand it. What the what?! Lily...in preschool. Ack!

We are doing a little preschool co-op with some friends and it is SO fun! Lily couldn't be happier!

Mt. Tam

2011-09-06T14:35:00.000-07:00

For Labor Day we decided to get out of the chilly city and hike around Mt. Tamalpais! It was a gorgeous day and I actually took my camera so excuse the picture overload!

Project Runway

2011-08-27T13:29:00.000-07:00

Lily is into redesigning her princess dresses these days.

(The proud designer)

*Again, sorry for grainy iphone pics

Charlie's 15 month stats

2011-08-17T11:48:00.001-07:00

The Stats:

Length: 31 in. (25-50th percentile)

Weight: 22 lb. 14 oz. (10-25th percentile)

Head: 18.5 in. (25-50th percentile)

Cable Car Museum

2011-08-15T20:59:00.000-07:00

It was so fun to have my cousin Stephanie and her sweet family stay over for a few days. We love having the excuse to play tourist in the city! We finally got to ride the cable cars! Unfortunately we didn't get pics of us actually riding them :( We stopped by the cable car museum...it's pretty small but I thought it was very interesting!

(The cute kiddos)

Thanks for coming to stay guys, it was a blast!

Doe a dear, a female dear

2011-08-09T16:16:00.000-07:00

Lily has really gotten into the songs from the Sound of Music lately:

Charlie's moves

2011-08-02T15:34:00.000-07:00

I LOVE this age...Charlie is too cute for words. I love his elbow dance!

Lagoon

2011-07-31T22:35:00.000-07:00

While in Utah we hit up Lagoon with the Blakes. It was so different to be there with my kids but so FUN! Lily loved getting to run around riding the rides with her cousins. I didn't get too many pics--too busy having fun and all--but here are couple.

The Performing Arts

2011-07-27T18:30:00.000-07:00

Please try to ignore Charlie coughing in the background cause Lily's song is awesome!

Dress-ups

2011-07-22T18:30:00.000-07:00

Grandma Sherrie has the BEST dress ups! She has a big box full of old Halloween and dance costumes. Every time I saw Lily she was wearing something different!

(Fancy princess)

(The Little Mermaid)

(Jasmine)

(Tough soldier)

(Batman)

(Ballerina Batman)

(Charlie wanted in on the action--Bugs Bunny)

(The cutest twinner bears EVER!)

Utah fun

2011-07-20T18:29:00.000-07:00

Summer in SF is actually kind of a bummer...it's the cold/foggy season. So we ditched the city for most of July and basked in the Utah sun! We loved every minute of it!

The 4th in the City

2011-07-05T18:16:00.000-07:00

I think it's pretty common knowledge that I am in love with SF; I have very few bad things to say about this city. But I'll tell you what...I was missing good ol' Provo like crazy on the 4th of July this year! SF has to be the least patriotic big city in the country! I couldn't find any fun festivities to take my kids to...not even a parade! And what is the 4th without a parade, BBQ, and fireworks?? Eventually I found a tiny local parade in Sausalito. Let's be honest....it was pretty lame but the kids had fun and I guess that's the point anyway!

Also, thankfully we were able to get our BBQ fix at the Hagen's.

We ended the night with fireworks. The city does them down at Pier 39 but we didn't want to fight the crowds so we just watched from our house. They were a little far but it was a great view of the whole bay.

All-in-all not a terrible day!

Yosemite

2011-06-26T21:30:00.000-07:00

We were lucky enough to get invited to a Yosemite trip with some friends! The Hightowers had a camp spot at the Housekeeping camp in Yosemite Valley. It was our family's first trip to Yosemite and it didn't disappoint. Yosemite had more rainfall this year than they've EVER had and the waterfalls were stunning-albeit fatal to many!

(Campsite)

(Flooded river next to camp)

(The raging river at the bottom of the Mist trail)

We did a crazy fun hike up the Mist trail. With the water levels so high we were all completely soaked in 2 seconds flat.

(The whole group-2 kids, 2 babies in utero, the Hightowers, the Ericksons, the Farrs, the Blakes)

*Thank Laura for letting me steal all your pics!

New Table

2011-06-16T22:41:00.000-07:00

A little while ago our bishop was getting rid of his dining room table so we snatched it right up! Nice big table, 8 chairs, 2 leaves...we can fit pretty much everyone we know at this table so come on over!

As I'm posting these pics I'm realizing that they don't do the refinish justice at all! Oh well, I'm pretty proud of my first refinish anyway! The chairs had never been finished and had been ~~destroyed~~ loved by 5 children for the last 10 years.

The new digs!

The dangers of having an older sister

2011-06-08T18:22:00.000-07:00

"He's just so pretty!"

Chef Lily

2011-06-02T18:18:00.000-07:00

Gotta look good in the kitchen.

Oh hi!

2011-05-30T14:44:00.000-07:00

It's me. Mikel. You know....Mikel Blake. The lame-o who writes this blog.

I am back with a blogging vengeance. I was having some problems with some posts and since I am completely OCD and can not make myself blog out of order I let that back up my posts for...how long...oh yeah that's right, almost 3 months!

The primary purpose of this blog is to be a journal so I do really want things in order. So I finally got my stuff together and here we go...

Lily's 3 year stats

2011-05-24T20:03:00.000-07:00

The Stats:

Length: 39 in. (75-95th percentile)

Weight: 34 lb. 7 oz. (75-95th percentile)

Lily's appointment was less traumatic. Yes, she had shots. But only 2. And she is old enough that the promise of princess stickers was enough to keep the crying to a minimum.

Charlie's 1 year stats

2011-05-24T20:01:00.000-07:00

The Stats:

Length: 30 in. (50th percentile)

Weight: 21 lb. 10 oz. (25th percentile)

Head: 18 in. (25th percentile)

This was a rough appointment...for both baby and mama. Three shots and a blood draw. There are few things worse than having to restrain your screaming, sobbing child while doctors repeatedly stab poor little baby arms and legs. But everything is looking good. He even had a little height growth spurt!

Happiest Place on Earth

2011-05-22T20:32:00.000-07:00

As part of the birthday festivities we were able to take a little trip down to Disneyland with the WHOLE Blake clan! It's the first time we've all been together in a couple of years! It was so fun to take Lily for her first Disney experience...she's at the perfect age for it. Princesses all day long!

(Small world--both kids' favorite ride!)

(Charlie was mesmerized!)

(Cute cousins together)

(Grandma Karen set up appointments for the little girls to get princess makeovers at

Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. Lily was a little overwhelmed in the moment

but she hasn't stopped talking about it since...see video at the end!)

(The line to see Rapunzel was insane so we just snapped a few pics by her

tower and our own little Rapunzels!)

(Gotta see Mickey!)

(Almost as good as home??)

(The only picture we have with EVERYONE! Thanks for the FUN trip!!)

(Happy Family!)

She was pretty shy for this video (turn up the volume!) so I'm repeating most of what she says

but I think her excitement still shows through!

A few tentative steps

2011-05-19T19:12:00.000-07:00

Charles was inspired by all the fun and family in our lives lately and decided to take his first steps!

He's still not a full time walker but he does like to entertain us with his efforts often!

Princess Lily turns 3

2011-05-18T20:35:00.000-07:00

What can I even say about this beautiful girl?! Lily has turned into a sweet and smart, creative and crazy, sassy and spunky, happy and hilarious little BIG girl! She is already the queen of the drama queens. She can talk circles around anyone. She can get under my skin unlike anyone else on the planet BUT she can also melt my heart unlike anyone on the planet. She's the life of our family party! And I couldn't love her more!

(Opening presents!)

(An awesome princess castle--complete with furniture and dolls--from
Papa Mike and Papa Debbie!)

(Charlie loves it too...yum!)

(Princess cupcakes)

(Princess Lily!!)

A visit from the Texas crew

2011-05-17T20:32:00.000-07:00

My dad, Debbie, and Greg came out to party with us for a few days around Lily's birthday! They stayed at an gorgeous lodge hotel right across the bridge in Sausalito. A blast, as usual!

(B-day gift for Charlie-Thomas train set)

(A visit to the Discovery Museum which is right across the grass from their hotel!)

Thanks for coming out guys!

Charlie's very first

2011-05-10T16:44:00.000-07:00

It's a well documented fact that kids grow up too fast. But less well known is the fact that second children grow up way faster than the first! I'm not ready for my baby boy to be so big! The big day was pretty low key. Just some yummy vanilla coconut cupcakes and a few presents.

Presents

The big moment...birthday cupcake!

Best family shot of the night.

Charles is the sweetest thing on this planet! He is happy, playful, affectionate. How did we live life before him?

Happy Birthday little one!

Stow Lake

2011-05-01T15:35:00.000-07:00

Saturday in SF

Dave has been one busy guy these last few weeks so we haven't been able to do our usual Saturday in the City excursions. Finally last Saturday we were able to get out again. We hit up Stow Lake in Golden Gate Park for a little peddle boating with the Merrills!

A gorgeous day and such a blast!

Easter Outfits

2011-04-24T15:53:00.000-07:00

Easter Sunday outfits. I didn't get it together enough to get my kids all match-y but oh well.

(Charlie doing his over the shoulder pose)

We stopped at Crissy on the way home from church for pics.

Unfortunately, Charlie had already fallen asleep so Lily got a solo photo shoot!

(Twirling in her flowy dress)

Easter Baskets

2011-04-23T15:52:00.000-07:00

Backwards

2011-04-17T14:46:00.000-07:00

Lily is in a major naked phase. The minute we walk in the door she strips all her clothes off and runs free!

This was one such occasion. She had been running around naked but we needed to go somewhere so I told her to go put her clothes back on...

completely backwards.

Trader Joes

2011-03-29T09:28:00.000-07:00

What's not to love?!

Sunday afternoon walk to the beach

2011-03-20T21:15:00.000-07:00

Jimmermania

2011-03-19T21:11:00.000-07:00

So this video was supposed to post over a week ago and I just barely realized that it didn't work for some reason. Dunno...so, it's a little late but....

Lil's got the fever!

Visiting our old haunts

2011-03-17T20:08:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we were lucky enough to make a short appearance in Utah. It was super fun! Of course we had to hit up some of our fav places.

Thanksgiving Point Dino Museum

Thanksgiving Point Farm Country

We've been trying for years to get Lily to ride the horses. Usually she screams. Not this time!!

She laughed her head off the whole time...so cute!

It was so nice of the Blakes to have us out. What a blast!

Tot Time

2011-03-07T10:12:00.000-08:00

We just finished the winter session of Tot Time at the rec center in the Marina. Basically they just fill up the gym with tons of toys and let the kids run wild. By some total fluke I snapped this picture when no other kids were around which is crazy cause there are about 30 kids in the class.

They also have a little art room where they get to do art projects for the letter of the day.
Lily is wearing her D is for Dog mask.

After free play they do singing time--which I don't have any pics of.
Then they do little exercises.

And they end by running laps. I'm pretty sure that's Lily's favorite part!

Japanese Tea Gardens

2011-03-06T21:51:00.001-08:00

Saturday in SF

This week we actually didn't have anything planned in advance. We kinda threw this outing together at the last minute but I think it still worked out nicely! We took another trip to the Golden Gate Park (that place just never stops!) and hit up the Japanese Tea Gardens.

Charlie might have been more interested in the hilarious texts from his G-friend.

Charlie's check up

2011-03-04T15:31:00.000-08:00

Because of Charlie's weight issues we were going into the doctor's office quite a bit. Our last weight check was at 8 months and since he was doing great the Doctor thought we should wait a few months before he was checked again. So we pushed the usual 9 month apt until he was 10 months...which is now!

The Stats

Weight: 19 lb 15 oz (10th-25th percentile)

Length: 28 in. (10th- 25th percentile)

Head: 18 in. (25th- 50th percentile)

It's so good to see him rising in those charts! Charles is the sweetest thing! He crawls like a mad man, he babbles like lunatic, smiles like his sister (can you say total cheeser!), and cuddles like a mama's boy!

He says two words now, "Hi!" when I walk into his room to get him out of bed. And "Mama" --pretty much only when he's sad though.

Charlie brings so much light and happiness to our home. Every single day I'm grateful that I get to be his mother!

Conservatory of Flowers

2011-02-27T21:50:00.000-08:00

Saturday in SF

This week we hit up the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park. I had heard somewhere that they were doing a special SF exhibit (not really sure if that's the right word..?) that kids love so we thought now would be a good time to check it out.

Here's where the special exhibit started. It's miniatures of many of SF most famous landmarks!

Palace of Fine Arts

Ghirardelli

Ferry building, Coit Tower, Transamerica Pyramid

And of course, the GG Bridge

Yet another attempt at a family picture--maybe one day we'll get it right!

Daddy/daughter race to the car

Chef in training

2011-02-20T18:04:00.000-08:00

Papa Mike and Papa Debbie got Lily this kitchen for Christmas (which she loves with all her heart!) And now that Charles is mobile I think he's enjoying it just as much--if not more--than Lily.

Let's go fly a kite

2011-02-18T10:32:00.000-08:00

One day some friends (the Merrills) invited us to meet at the beach for some kite flying! Unfortunately for me, Charlie was still sleeping but I sent Lily and Dave and from all accounts it was a blast! AND Carrie took these DARLING pics of Lily to capture the moment for me!

Ghirardelli: A Valentines Treat

2011-02-15T10:29:00.000-08:00

It's no secret...Dave loves him some Ghirardelli. So for a special Valentines treat on Monday night we headed on over for a chocolate fix.

Lily always commandeers Dave's milkshakes

That's not to say she doesn't help me out with my sundae too

Even Charlie snuck in a sip...oops!

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

Monterey Bay Aquarium

2011-02-13T14:51:00.000-08:00

Saturday in SF (Monterey really)

Since Valentines was coming up we decided to do something extra fun on Saturday so we packed the kids up in the car and made the 2 1/2 hour trip down to Monterey to see their amazing aquarium!

After the aquarium we strolled down Cannery Row and grabbed some lunch. Then we took the Highway 1 along the coast to get home. It was a little longer but so gorgeous and well worth it! Such a fun day!

Alamo Square...

2011-02-07T15:59:00.000-08:00

aka The Full House park!

Another gorgeous day and family picnic:

China Town

2011-02-06T14:44:00.000-08:00

Saturday in SF

This week we hit up China Town. It was pretty crazy so I didn't get many pics (which is why I'm forced to post this gross one of myself) but it was great! We hit up the Golden Gate Bakery for some egg custard pastries...weird, good.

Lily was pretty stoked to go see where Mulan lives!

Fort Point

2011-01-30T10:25:00.000-08:00

Saturday in SF

There is a cool old Civil War fort just down the hill from our house. A couple of times a year they have Civil War reenactors come. It was kinda fun...Lily was a little freaked!

(Up top-the city)

(Lighthouse)

Cliff House and Sutro Baths

2011-01-23T10:22:00.000-08:00

Saturday in SF

(Lunch here:)

(Sutro Baths)

(Ocean-killer waves)

(Beach)

Baker Beach

2011-01-17T15:49:00.000-08:00

The weather this month has been phenomenal. Whodda thought we'd be having lunch on the beach in January!

Coit Tower

2011-01-16T10:19:00.000-08:00

This year we made a goal to do something San Francisco-y each Saturday. We really wanted to make sure we got around to seeing all the amazing stuff this area has to offer!

Our first week we decided to hit up Coit Tower. We met up with some friends the Merrills and Hagens. It was a gorgeous day and the views were fabulous!

(The mural inside the tower)

(Bay Bridge)

(Golden Gate Bridge)

(One Happy Family)

Giggling

2011-01-14T15:25:00.000-08:00

Charles has the cutest laugh!

(FAIR WARNING: This video may make you a tad dizzy...)

The big tub

2011-01-08T21:07:00.000-08:00

Charlie is turning into a big boy. Taking a bath in the big tub (as opposed to the Puj) with his sister!

I think he likes it!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-27T20:45:00.000-08:00

Christmas is so fun with kids! We were all so excited we couldn't sleep...except Lily. That girl has never slept in a day in her life but Christmas morning we had to wait until 9:00 and she still wasn't awake so we had to go in and jump on her bed to get her up!!

(Matching BYU jammies)

Christmas Eve

2010-12-26T19:56:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve festivities at the Blake's.

(Gingerbread houses)

(Kid's nativity--both girls wanted to be Mary and both boys wanted to be cows)

Exploratorium

2010-12-21T20:33:00.000-08:00

Muir Woods

2010-12-20T21:05:00.003-08:00

A couple of shots from our little jaunt to the stunning Muir Woods.

Alcatraz

2010-12-18T21:05:00.000-08:00

Heading out to Alcatraz!

Taking our sweet time getting to the top

At the top. Views from the prison.

A family shot in the wind and rain...this is the best we could do!

Greg's 21st

2010-12-17T21:06:00.000-08:00

Greg, my dad and Debbie came to the coolest city in the country to celebrate Greg's big 2-1. We had a super yummy birthday dinner at some Thai place.

Love you Greg! We're so glad we got to be with you to celebrate your birth!

Lily's first ballet recital

2010-12-16T16:02:00.000-08:00

Lily had her first dance recital...so unbelievably cute!!!

Lily being a sugar plum fairy...

All the girls from class...with their roses!

Lily's fancy hair do--"ballet hair"

And here's a long video of their routine.

Ward Christmas Party '10

2010-12-05T21:59:00.000-08:00

Saturday was our Ward Christmas party. Lots of Christmas cheer to go around!

(Lily coloring pictures for a children's hospital)

(Bishop reading the Christmas story)

(Musical number)

(Chattin with Santa. Notice the lack of tears...she's getting so big!

(Another chance at a family pic)

Great start to the Christmas festivities!

Turkey Day '10

2010-11-27T20:51:00.000-08:00

This year we loved getting to stay home and host our first Thanksgiving and have family come to us! I cooked the turkey (shocker, I know!), cranberry sauce and a pumpkin bread pudding (not pictured, unfortunately) and Dave did the rest.

Here's the spread (sorry the pics are so blurry) All I have to say is...YUM!!

Another one for Dave

2010-11-24T18:48:00.000-08:00

26...27...28? We're not really sure with Dave anymore! This year we celebrated with a quiet dinner at home. Artichoke appetizers, kibosh squash and coconut soup with a corn relish, and a mascarpone buttetcream cake with red wine mixed berries! Yes, I made all that from scratch without Dave the master chef's help! It was quite the stretch for me but I think Dave liked it...and that's really the point right!

Opening presents

We sure are grateful that Dave was born! Can't imagine life without him!

Front room camping

2010-11-20T22:33:00.000-08:00

We were supposed to go camping this weekend with some friends but the weather didn't cooperate. Lily had been beyond excited to camp and it would have broken her heart if we had cancelled all together so we just pitched our tent in the front room and had a blast!

It was our first time using our tent and we didn't know how HUGE it was...it took up our entire front room!

Roasting s'mores over the stove:

Cuddling in the tent. Awesome Friday family fun!

Tide pools at Crissy Field

2010-11-18T14:57:00.000-08:00

These pictures are also from a while ago...just never got around to posting them. There are some cool tidal pools down at Crissy Field. Lily had a heyday!

6 Months

2010-11-15T14:39:00.000-08:00

Charlie turned 6 months old at the beginning of the month. We went to the doctor for the ritual weigh and measure...unfortunately Charlie wasn't doing that well.

The Stats

Weight: 13 lb 6 oz (less than 5th percentile)

Length: 25 in. (less than 5th percentile)

Head: 16.5 in. (less than 5th percentile)

He used to be squarely in the 50% percentile. He actually lost almost a pound since he was last weighed--just over a month. I've been stressing over my milk supply from the beginning and it appears to finally have caught up with me. The good news is that he is doing great in all other developmental aspects (sitting up, sleeping through the night, cooing, laughing, rolling over, etc) so it's just a matter of getting more calories into him. So the doctor told me to continue nursing him and just supplement with formula after. Unfortunately, he would not take the formula no matter how I gave it to him--bottles, sippy cups, medicine cups, syringes. So we really worked on getting increased calories from solid food and two weeks later we were able to get his weigh up to 13 lbs. 14 oz.

It's always heartbreaking to know you've been starving your child but we're still working on it and things are looking up so hopefully we'll have him back on track by our next two week check up. This boy is an absolute doll. Can't even stand the cuteness sometimes!

SF Farmers Market

2010-11-11T14:54:00.000-08:00

A few Saturdays ago we did a quick trip to the San Francisco farmers market. We didn't get to stay long but it was fun to see all the exotic food. And maybe eat a little gelato...

Happy Holidays from Shutterfly

2010-11-10T20:49:00.000-08:00

I'm pretty sure Halloween was just yesterday but I'm told it's already time to get crackin on Christmas cards. While I love receiving everyone's cute holiday cards, it totally stresses me out trying to come up with my own! Luckily a friend blogged about Shutterfly's new holiday collection. I've used Shutterfly for photo books in the past but it hadn't occurred to me to look there for Christmas cards. They have a wide range of quality and price. And their designs range from traditional to retro...something for everyone. Just upload your favorite family photo and you're done. They even have a service where they'll mail the cards directly to your friends and family. Talk about easy! Since I've used them before I trust their quality AND my packages always arrive ahead of schedule!

If any of you need some inspiration check THESE bad boys out.

And if you're a blogger YOU could get 50 free cards. See this for more details.

Bay Area Discovery Museum

2010-11-07T20:53:00.000-08:00

One of our favorite places to play here is the Bay Area Discovery Museum. They have all these little buildings each with a theme: the train room, the art room, the wave room, the fishing room, etc. So fun!

And the best part...it's just minutes away, right across the GG bridge and has the coolest view!

See that green patch on the left at the end of the bridge...yup...that's where we live!

Fleet Week

2010-11-05T15:25:00.000-07:00

So this was actually back in October. But I forgot to post this! Every year San Fran has Fleet Week. The Navy comes to town and puts on a few events. They host tours of some of the ships. And they have an AMAZING air show. It's pretty cool. The only downside is that they practice the air show all week right above our house which is actually kinda cool except it's SO LOUD!!! It kept the kids up terrified during naps all week!

(Some of the kids down at the Pier checking out the Naval ships)

Saturday was the actual Blue Angels air show. Dave was out of town all week but I took the kids on a walk down to Crissy Field to watch some of it. Lily was kind of in the middle of potty training and had an accident while we were there. In true two-year-old-Lily fashion, she waited until I sat down to nurse Charlie and she stripped off all her wet clothes and ran around the crowded field...just far enough so she could pretend she couldn't hear me calling to her to get her clothes back on! You can't tell in this picture but here she is buck naked lying on the grass! That girls has an unusually large sassy-ness level for a girl her age!

Eventually she sauntered close enough for me to grab her...She certainly keeps my life exciting.

Ballet

2010-11-04T20:33:00.000-07:00

A few girls from the ward have just started doing a little ballet class. It is SO darling. And Lily couldn't be more excited!

(Getting prepped...curlers, princess shoes, and milky)

(Warming up)

(Some of the other cute girls in the class)

(Lily loves everything ballet now...so we made some play ballet shoes)

Curlers

2010-11-02T20:27:00.000-07:00

Lily real enjoys volumizing her hair.

Halloween Treats

2010-10-31T21:14:00.000-07:00

We had some fun in the kitchen this Halloween. I only took pics of two of our creations but here they are:

(Mini pumpkin cupcakes)

(Mini caramel apples)

Ward Halloween

2010-10-30T09:15:00.000-07:00

Our ward did a great job with the Halloween party. Chili and corn bread for dinner, costume parade, pumpkin carving contest, bobbing for donuts, fish pond, face painting, scary spook alley, and trick-or-treating! Whew!!

Dave used this as an excuse to wear his tights again...

Lily gave up 'bobbing' for donuts and went in for the kill...

Lily loved scaring Charlie with her awesome purple vampire teeth...

Both the kiddos. Charlie trying to sneak a taste of candy...

A rare family photo...

Zinch Halloween

2010-10-28T21:15:00.000-07:00

We did some major partying this Halloween. First we had a little kiddie party with some ward friends but I didn't get any pics AND I hadn't made Charlie's costume yet but it was super fun...cupcake decorating, pumpkin decorating, treats, friends! A great way to start off party week.

Next was the Zinch party. AND my camera battery died so I only got these few pics...

But Charlie and Lily won one of the best costume awards so that's always fun! {Charlie is Dopey for those who may not watch Snow White on a semi-daily basis!}

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-26T21:14:00.000-07:00

Fall is here, or so I'm told. It's hard to really feel it without the cool, crisp Utah air (not to mention BYU football) and orange and red leaves but the festivities are in full swing! First...pumpkin patch of course.

We really missed having Hee Haw's so close. Here everyone drives about an hour south to Half Moon Bay for the best pumpkin patches. I really wanted to head down there to try it out but there was never a time that Dave was free to come with us and I really didn't want to drive all that way by myself SO we just went right across the GG bridge into Marin and found a super cheesy pumpkin patch on the side of the road. As cheesy-lame-o as it was, Lily had a blast!

The first thing we saw was this little house...nothing else mattered...it was Snow White! Lily wanted her picture taken with all the dwarfs...

This "horse" swing was her other favorite part. She probably would have played on this all day!

Both the cute kiddos. Excuse the squinty-ness, they were looking right into the sun!

Like shoes?

2010-10-25T21:25:00.000-07:00

Check out this new site... The Shoeologist

This girl owns over 200 pairs of shoes and is wearing a different pair each day and writing about it. She also does shoe giveaways...who doesn't love FREE shoes!

Sittin like a champ

2010-10-10T15:31:00.000-07:00

Baby wearing

2010-10-06T15:25:00.000-07:00

First food

2010-10-04T19:31:00.000-07:00

There are no words for this cuteness...

The new toy

2010-10-02T21:52:00.000-07:00

Charlie is kinda high maintenance. He is happy as a clam...as long as he is being held. Put that kid down for a second and he'll break your heart with the saddest cry you've ever heard. Normally it's not too much of a problem but it was causing some problems during the intensive potty training days. Solution:

Not a perfect solution but it did buy me a few extra minutes of peace each time I had to haul a peeing Lily to the potty.

Potty Training (aka: the worst parenting phase ever!)

2010-10-01T09:35:00.000-07:00

We did it...we finally did it! After a few false starts we finally got our hands on a 3 day potty training program (thanks again Telisa!) that worked like a charm!

(Throwing away all the diapers)

(Drinking lots of juice)

The first day was rough, maybe only 3 or 4 successes, wet nap, wet night. Day two was much better, wet nap but dry night. And by day three she had it down! Best potty training moment: she ran into the bathroom by herself (cause I was feeding Charlie) and apparently peed successfully because she came running back in to me exclaiming, "I did it! I'm so proud of you mom!"

Handsome Charlie

2010-09-28T09:45:00.001-07:00