Archive for the '27.Almost Two!' Category

A morning at the museum

Saturday, November 22nd, 2008

As a way to kick off Zoe’s birthday weekend, we headed to the recently opened California Academy of Sciences this morning. The major highlights were exploring the rainforest and seeing butterflies, frogs and snakes; visiting the fish (including “Nemo”) in the downstairs aquarium; and running around after an outside lunch. Zoe was so worn out from all the activities that she fell asleep within minutes of getting into the car!

-M

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2 points.

Friday, November 21st, 2008

After last week’s barrage of defensive scoring in both the NFL and NCAA (mostly Wisconsin), Zoe has learned a new referee signal – the safety! Here she is demonstrating over Skype…

Jon Q

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Big girl

Friday, November 21st, 2008

Zoe, just two days shy of her birthday, had her two-year doctor’s appointment today. Even Dr. Fernandez commented that she couldn’t believe Zoe was two already.

The appointment was pretty uneventful, though the doctor confirmed what we already know: Zoe is a big girl. At 34 pounds and 36 inches, she’s about the size of a 3.5-year-old. And the doctor thinks it might be a good time to stop giving her (the very caloric) whole milk. Guess Zoe will have to wash down her birthday cake with 2% on Sunday!

-M

A birthday lovefest

Wednesday, November 19th, 2008

After Zoe’s party on Sat., we hung out and had dinner with our friends Karen and Henry. Zoe and Henry have spent time together before (most recently at the zoo) and they’ve always enjoyed each other’s company – but I’ve never seen them do so much giggling and hugging. They were really affectionate towards each other (at one point during dinner, Henry put his hand on Zoe’s arm, and Zoe smiled and put her hand on his arm), and they seem to have developed a big brother/little sister-type bond. It was really sweet to see.

-M

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A fun Friday night

Monday, November 17th, 2008

Though Zoe’s birthday party was on Sat., the celebration really began the night before – when Uncle Dan and Jenny stopped by to see her. They brought her a big present (her very own jumpy house – to practice playing around in before the party) and then hung out with her in her little tent. It was a good way to start off the festivities…

-M

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Birthday party!

Sunday, November 16th, 2008

So, we threw Zoe her second birthday party yesterday. We lucked out with the weather – it wound up being sunny and in the 80s – and also with the fact that a lot of our friends were able to make it down to Half Moon Bay. The celebration was again a joint one with Zoe’s little friends Miles (birthday = 11.19) and Zander (11.22), and the three of them seemed to have a good time. There was a lot of bouncing, train-riding, animal-petting, and running around – and the kids enjoyed a cupcake (lemon with white frosting) after a round of Happy Birthday. I’m proud to report that Zoe ate every last crumb of her birthday treat.

Here are some pics.

-M

A “cheese” for the road:

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Riding along with Mommy:

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…And with Zander:

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Goofing off with Uncle Dan:
Fun with Uncle Dan

Emerging from the jumpy house:

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A birthday treat:

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The mommies:

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The daddies:

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Family shot:

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A birthday squeeze with Mommy:

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Zoom, zoom

Friday, November 14th, 2008

It was unseasonably warm (75 degrees) here today, and Zoe enjoyed the sun by cruising around in a little convertible at the park. Check her out below.

-M

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Big day tomorrow!

Friday, November 14th, 2008

Zoe’s second birthday isn’t for another week or so, but for a variety of reasons (including the fact that Uncle Dan and Jenny won’t be in town next weekend), we’re throwing her a little party tomorrow. We decided to head back to Lemos Farms, one of the places we visited before Halloween, where they offer pony rides, train rides and a bouncy house for kids. Zoe doesn’t know what’s about to happen, I don’t think, but Q and I are super excited!

-M

Shells

Thursday, November 13th, 2008

Last night, Zoe was examining one of her bibs, which is covered with ocean animals. She pointed at the fish and seahorse and then stopped at the shell. “Shell here,” she said and then looked up. “And Shell there!” she said and pointed to me. Zoe has always heard Q call me “Shell,” and sometimes even calls me by that name to be funny. I couldn’t help but smile that she made the connection between the two types of shells!

-M

Football, part II

Tuesday, November 11th, 2008

We managed to capture Zoe’s football signals on video this morning. She had a little trouble with her false start, but I’m a huge fan of the off-side hip wiggle. Check her out below.

-M

Football!

Monday, November 10th, 2008

Zoe’s been exposed to football since the day she was born (and I mean this literally: much of my labor was consumed by football talk between me, Q and our L&D nurse), and I’ve always said that she’s going to grow up to either really love or, in a fit of rebellion, really hate the game. So far, the “love” part seems to be winning: Zoe gets quite excited when we turn on a game (“football!” she’ll cry out), and this weekend she perfected several official hand signals. She’s known touchdown for awhile; now she’s also able to throw the sign for first down, holding, false start, and off side. Might we have a future official in our midst?

-M

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Are these my size?

Sunday, November 9th, 2008

The three of us did some shopping yesterday, and Zoe was on the hunt for some new accessories. This particular pair of glasses was a bit big on her, but trying it on made for a great photo op!

-M

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How much is that doggie… ?

Saturday, November 8th, 2008

Our next-door neighbors are doing construction on their house, and things were pretty loud over there yesterday. The bad thing was that it interfered with Zoe’s nap, but the good thing was that it led to a sweet moment with a curious Zoe checking things out. She moved her little pink chair to the window and pulled aside the curtains to get a look at what was going on; I was lucky enough to have the camera nearby.

-M

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Little black dog

Friday, November 7th, 2008

I was brushing my teeth last night when I spotted a black stuffed dog hanging from our towel rack. I glanced around and spotted a few other curious things: a box of crayons lying by the toilet, a folded (clean) diaper perched up near the sink, a small red ball in the corner by the door. And as I sit here typing, many interesting things can be found strewn throughout our bedroom: a small purple sock by the bed, a copy of “Are You My Mother?” by the television, a half-eaten cookie on my nightstand.

I bring up these things not to point out our housekeeping deficiencies (it’s close to impossible to put away every little thing picked up and plunked down by a busy toddler, after all), but to illustrate just how much a little girl can take over your space – and life. Though just 35 pounds, Zoe has a huge presence in our house – not just with the little items she leaves throughout the house, but with her big personality and fun/energetic/demanding/occasionally frustrating toddler ways.

It makes me smile that a black stuffed dog in the bathroom is the new normal for us!

-M

Zoe and the big election

Tuesday, November 4th, 2008

Zoe is very into the presidential election. Just a few minutes ago she was working the phones – for Obama, natch – and checking the latest poll data. Here she is in her little war room. (And check out her patriotic red-and-blue table!)

-M

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