So, we made it to Washington and have been busy (with Seder dinners and family time) ever since. I wondered below how Zoe would do on the plane, and she wound up being a real trouper. Other than one broken glass, an occasional outburst or two, and an unfortunate (but not catastropic) drawing-on-pants-with-blue-crayon incident, it was really quite a good flight!

We’ll post some pics soon.

-M

So, we’re off this morning to Washington DC. (Time to celebrate Passover with Pop Pop, Safta and the rest of the family.) This will be the first time Zoe has flown since Christmas-time, and I’m curious how she’ll handle the air travel. On the plus-side, her attention-span is longer than ever before (she’s now able to, for example, sit through a full-length movie) and you can usually talk reason to her. On the negative-side, she’s also more prone to throwing tantrums than she was just a few months ago – so there’s a chance our fellow travelers will hear a loud “No way!” at some point.

Traveling with Zoe was an absolute breeze for the first year-plus of her life, and my personal theory (based on observation and friends’ anecdotes) is that the toughest time to travel with kids is the 1.5-3-year stage. It may be wishful thinking, of course, but perhaps by the time Poppy hits her difficult-to-travel-with stage, Zoe will be a breeze to fly with once again. I’ll have to report back in a year or two…

-M

On our way home from Santa Cruz yesterday, we made a quick pitstop at Lemos Farm in Half Moon Bay. We were last there to celebrate Zoe’s birthday; this time around we treated her to a pony ride. We’re pretty sure Zoe enjoyed herself: she kept telling Q how much fun she was having, and when it was over she bent down to thank her “horsie” for the ride!

-M

In need of a little get-away, the three of us headed to Santa Cruz for the weekend. The beach town has emerged as one of our favorite places to visit – it’s an easy trip and there’s a lot to do there (and in neighboring towns like Capitola, where we spent much of Saturday). The temperature didn’t rise much past 70, but it felt much warmer when sitting in the toasty sand, soaking in the hottub, and running around. Here are a few fave pics from our adventures.

-M

It’s started. After going 26+ months without really using the (dreaded) word, Zoe has begun asking “why.” A lot. When I picked her up from Elena’s last night, she asked me a series of “why” questions – and her use of the word continued on today. A sample conversation:

Z, in the car: “Mommy, I need help.”
Me: “Okay, in a little bit. Mommy can’t help right now because she’s driving.”
Z: “Why?”
Me: “I’m taking us home.”
Z: “Why?”
Me: “Because we’re done shopping.”
Z: “Why?”
Me: “It’s just time to go home.”
Z: “Why?” (and so on…)

I know it’s normal for toddlers to ask lots of questions – but what took me by surprise was how she adopted the word out of the blue. I’m not exactly sure where she picked it up (maybe she got it from one of the other kids at Elena’s, or maybe it’s just instinct for toddlers to start saying it), but I have a feeling we have a lot more “why?s” in our future.

-M

Zoe got a present this morning from Mommy and didn’t want to take it off (even though it will be in the mid-60s today.) Here’s another new phone picture of Zoe on her way to Elena’s this morning…

Jon Q

Several people have asked me recently if Zoe knows what’s going on with our family. Does she understand that a baby is on the way and that she’s about to become a big sister? I think she’s too young to really understand, I tell them, but we do our part to get her prepared. We have a few “big sister” books (like the one below) that we like to read with her, and I’m often pointing to my belly and reminding her that a baby is inside. (On more than one occasion, she’s given a nice big kiss to my stomach – which is so sweet.) What makes me laugh, though, is what happens when I ask her if she wants to say “hi” to the baby. Most of the time she just shakes her head and responds, “No, she’s sleeping.” I guess since she can’t hear or see the baby, she assumes she’s taking a snooze!

-M