Help in the Kitchen

I love having the girls keeping me company in the kitchen!

I am truely spoiled to have a large enough space for us all to "work" without me tripping on them. That said, you know, as well as I do, babies and toddlers ARE underfoot, no matter how much space you give them! :)

mmm... mmmm... mmmmmm...

Sheep

The HOA has brought in a flock of sheep to do some grassland management. We've been following their progress.

 One day last week we bundled up (it's been chilly here) and took "the buggy" out to pay them a visit.

While the sheep were shy and didn't let us get very close, we hiked around some, found some golf balls, and watched some sheep. Gosh, they are loud, and whiny!! wow!

hmmm, this little lamb seems to be escaping!

We followed an interesting noise and found a pretty little stream! What a fun little bit of exploring!

Kids and Dogs

There's no getting around it. there is just something about kids and dogs. Especially puppies.

Dear friends of ours came out for a visit last weekend and brought their well-behaved (giant) 8-month-old Saint Bernard puppy, Sabella.

Camila was enthralled! Going up for kisses regularly. Which of course made the parents (on both sides) a bit nervous, but was extraordinarily cute! I missed the good kissing shots, but trust me -- super cute!

I get asked with some regularity from many different sources, if or when we might get a pet.

Most commonly, my response is laughingly that with two kids in diapers, I have enough poop in my life right now, thanks very much! I'm just not ready to go there, yet.

Valentines Day

The girls and I had a lot of fun working on a valentines card project.

It took a couple weeks of short (5 - 10 minute) craft sessions to complete the project and we just barely got them in the mail on time! Its no surprise that toddlers have a very brief attention span, but its still fun to work a simple project with them! We traced their hands on foam, mommy cut out the hands, Livvie used glue dots (excellent product!) to glue the fingers down & make the ASL "I love you" sign.

And both girls helped put heart stickers and the occasional mark on the cards and envelopes. We sure hope our grandparents and aunites liked their cards - we had a wonderful time puttting lots of love into them! 

Valentines day brought gifts and cards in the mail to us as well!

How Delightful! 

Jeff commented on what a great holiday this is.

How one generally has very limited expectations, and is then always surprised and greatly warmed by any sentiments that are freely given!

Feeling Loved!

thank you!

Guess How Much I Love You

A five minute video of Liv "reading" (reciting) "Guess How Much I Love You" by Sam McBratney.



She whispers the last bit (as it is usually a goodnight story). "I love you all the way to the moon." "I love you all the way to the moon... and back."

Working Man

Jeff was on the news locally, here in CA, in his role as facility manager at the local Waste-To-Energy plant.

Dr Visit

Liv and I took Camila to visit Dr. Moilanen for her One Year Well Baby Exam. 

Consensus is she's a well baby.

She weighs 18 lb 9 oz (10th percentile) and measures 29.5 inches (50th percentile). Which our pediatrician, bless her heart, assures us is long & lean and a great shape for a toddler! 

She got a couple of vaccines and will get more at 15 months. No adverse reactions so far!