Berry Picking

is quite an adventure with a 3 year old and wee little tot. May have been next to impossible if big Aunt Kate wasn't there to corral, pick berries, and save little girls from falling in big dangerous ravines.

Kate handed me an ollaberry right when we got there and said, BERRREEEE with a big smile on her face. She went on to eat many.

This is how a mother with two young ones can pick berries, for a moment. After a few minutes Kate wanted out and Charlie wanted to see just how fast he can pull the wagon.

We soon found out that most of the ollaberries are not ripe, Kate's face says it all

She mastered picking berries quickly. But then graduated onto picking any and everything and throwing them as far as she could....sigh

Charlie entertained himself for about 20 minutes being a workerman, dragging the wagon back and forth.

Lucky for us there were ripe, delicious strawberries right around the corner...

Some of my favorite people all in a row:

Love the colors here, and the people of course:

Sorry strawberry plants, hope you survived the onslaught of two tots:

Mommy's Little Helpers:

So cute:

Who needs to spend money on gymtowne when you can perform gymnastics everywhere:

Coming in after a long day of picking, throwing, and occasionally eating:

One little tired strawberry picker not happy to be leaving: 

Tuesday idigs

1. Staying calm, focused and positive through a long, busy day

2. Making two delicious seitan potpies, and the look on the face of the mother when i dropped hers off (she just had her second baby)

3. A nice hard workout all to myself after 9 hours of doing things for other kids and people.

4. Charlie loving swim class and actually swimming on his own (for six feet, but still)

5. adam, and knowing that I found and married a wonderful man who makes me laugh, think, and appreciate life everyday.

Families that camp together...

Families that camp together...

Work together:

Watch the night arrive together:

Look at bats and stars together:

Sleep together:

Greet the day together...

Eat together:

Read together:

Hike together:

Explore together......

Camping is good for families.

Park Day!

It dawned on me recently that just because it is cold and foggy in HMB doesn't mean it is that way everywhere. Some of my friends have been talking about how wonderful the parks over the hill are and so today, despite not sleeping at all last night, I packed up the kids and went searching for some sun.

I have been struggling with the desire to stay close to home and stick to our daily routine vs. the strong desire to pack everything and everyone up and spend a day running around somewhere new. I do feel more balanced, the house is cleaner, more food gets cooked, and everyone is better rested when we stay home, but I also have so much fun with these two guys when we are out and about.

Hopefully I will sink into a routine that incorporate both things.

My hope was that I could spend a few hours running around at this new and wonderful park, and the drive would be short enough so that both kids would not fall asleep in the car, and therefore I would get at least an hour to rest recharge once we got home. no dice. Kate slept for 30 minutes in car and it is 3 and charlie has not napped.

But we had so much fun!

Ten reasons I love Stulsaft park in Redwood City

1. It was close to home (25 minutes drive), sunny, and beautiful.

2. There was a water area with crayons that shoot up water. Your handprint makes the water shoot out, which was fun for Charlie who for some reasons didn't feel like getting wet, but loved watching all the other kids get wet.

3. They had swings, which is a mother of two's easiest part of playing at the park. You have both kids  right next to each other and your only job is to push, pretend they are kicking you, and do underdog, which by the way the baby loves and said over and over, "un un dog"

4. They had a shaded picnic area with tiny benches for the kids to sit and eat at. so cute!

5. The park was completely little toddler friendly, meaning Kate LOVED playing in the water, the climbing structures were safe, and I felt at ease with both kids running around and playing.

6. The park is on over a hundred acres. I am not sure why I felt motivated to go on a hike down to the river. I had both kids, two towels, a sweatshirt in my arms, a large diaper bag, all forging down a very steep hill.

7. They had these long slides that were fun, and a fun ramp to run up and down right under the slides.

8. There was a great little structure where Charlie could swing, rock climb, and explore.

9. They water area made a great drinking faucet for a hot, tired, and thirsty baby.

10. The sand area had this very cool waterway structure and together Charlie and some older boys worked hard together to make a river and dam.

 

 2.5 hours went by fast, Kate ran around and had so much fun that she fell alseep twice on the swing.

idigs

An amazing mother invited me to become part of her little online group called idigs: i (like apples imac, iphone) d-daily, i- inspiration, g-gratitude.

Every night any or all of these women send out a group emailing listing 5 idigs and a little nuggest (food for thought) to everyone else. 

It has changed my life.

All day long I am thinking about my idigs, looking for sources of inspiration in nature, my friends, my family, perfect strangers. Every day I am thinking about what I am grateful for. And everyday, and this is especially helpful on days where I wake up tired, upset, or in a funk, I jump ahead in my mind to the end of the day and think about what I want my idigs to be. Does that make sense? For example, a month ago I felt overwhelmed, tired, burnt out, and such on mothering two little ones all day everyday. I woke up one thursday and thought to myself, "crap what am I doing to do with K and C all. day. long. and then I thought about our idig group, and immediately my attitude changed. I realized that my day  was just that: My day, and I can make it or break it.

So here are my idigs for today:

1. Meeting up with Ellie, Jed, and baby Madeline tomorrow at the Oakland zoo, and the love and understanding ellie and I have for each other which allows me to have nothing but great thoughts about spending the day with her (in other situations I feel nervous about others judging me, charlie not being "obediant" or "perfect" But with great friends like Ellie I can fully just be who I am. and I dig that.

2. Feeling playful and calm with my children, and accepting that things may not always go the way I want them to, and then being pleasantly surprised when they do go the way I want them to.

3. Charlie being so sweet, thoughtful, smart, curious, and really using the language I have worked so hard to model.

4. going to la honda to meet up with a mom i really like, admire, and feel i can learn from

5. adam coming home for lunch, and spending 30 minutes reading to charlie, telling stories to charlie, and rubbing his back until he fell asleep

6. the inner peace and happiness i am lucky enough to wake up with everyday

Kate is 16 months

ok, a little late, so she was 16 months about 15 days ago, and now rounds up to 17 months. 

This is my only journal about the kids and their development so I really want to try to stay up to date with info. Here is where Kate is now:

She is unbelievable charismatic, completely adorable, full of personality, talking more everyday, starting to sign more seriously, and wants nothing more than to cuddle with her parents, run around with Charlie, and explore the outside

 world.

She spends her days eating, reading books, grabbing Lily's tail, stealing her brother's toys, learning to be gentle, picking daddy's flowers, digging dirt from mama's tomato planters, and being silly.

She has some phrases: bad doggy (i know, that sucks for Lily), Mommy's shoes, more please, read book, no mine...

the other day Adam had to leave to play tennis and her face fell apart, she started crying so hard and ran towards me and said, "NO Daddy Go" I was astounded. 

She can eat with a spoon and fork, and get ready for this she can even slide her own shoe on. Adam and I have watched this amazing feat. She stands up and holds onto a table or something, positions and repositions her shoe until it is exactly right and then moves her little chubby foot around until it slips in just right. It takes time, concentration, and patience....we are amazed really. Charlie still doesn't do that.

She has the funniest little dances, walks, and runs. She pumps her arms like a bird flaps its wings. She hits often but follows it up with a gentle kiss while saying  "gentle" which sounds like "den den"

She has about 60 words I am guessing, and uses signs more regularly.

Her favorite people are still hands down Pa, daddy, and Charlie. She is full of spunk yet as sweet as can be, soft spoken and shy around those she doesn't know too well, yet the life of the party around here.

Her newest words are: yucky, poo poo, potty, pee pee, blake, papa, milky, bird, this, that, artichoke which sounds like "arte"

I look at her and even among my most chaotic days, she makes me want a million more kids. (don't worry adam, hypothetically speaking)

Oh and perhaps the most exciting news is she is finally growing some hair. The other day she woke up from a nap and Charlie said to me, "mommy what is wrong with baby's hair?" I looked at her, and I said, "oh, nothing is wrong it is just starting to grow and therefore sticking up a little."

If you look closely she still only has 6 teeth, a tooth hasn't popped through in something like 5 months.

 

This is her new face, the kissy fish face, here she is giving me a drive by of it.

She is always on the run, once you let her out of that stroller it is almost impossible to get her back in.

Her pensive look...she gives this expression often when really observing something. The world is so big for this little girl and she is so curious about how it all works.

A girl and her dog, what else do you need?

She spends seriously half her day laughing at her brother, then again so do I.

 

She spends another good part of her day finding anyone who will "read boo" with her. I can't believe what a big girl she is becoming. crazy!

 

"mom, doesn't give me enough naps, so I take them where I can get them...on lily"

She loves to walk around carrying a stuffed animal, kitty, or doll.