March madness

It's been a while! Maybe you thought I had given up. I thought I had, too, because some kind of madness has taken hold of our lives and seems unwilling to let go. So this blog may be a remnant of a bygone era, when I used to sleep more than four hours a night on a regular basis and not have to cram more work into every spare moment that the kids are not awake at night and on weekends. Or maybe I should say, when times like that would exist in short bursts instead of seeming more and more like the new normal. (Don't get me wrong, I love the work, and I LOVE the amount of time it still allows me to spend with my kids. It just leaves me zero time to do anything else, including something as seemingly simple as taking photos off my camera and putting them on my computer.) However, as I was complaining about this to my very smart husband, he suggested that rather than abandon any family archiving altogether, I may just need a new media to better meet my needs. Enter Tumblr. This is the new next everything: thenexteverything.tumblr.com

I'm going to try to post much more frequently, but also much more briefly. If nothing else, its structure will capture the essence of my life right now. But for old time's sake, and because I had all these poor orphan pictures on my camera that I was feeling really guilty about, here is March 2012.

We started off with an amazingly gorgeous and fantastic belated meximuse with Sadie's godparents to Tahoe. Some friends you feel like no time has passed since the last time you saw them every time you're with them. These are those kinds of friends. Except, the darnedest thing: our kids keep growing like weeds! Clara wasn't even walking the last time we saw her, and now she was chasing Jack around the cabin, and sometimes even catching him.



Jack was a big fan of Clara, as evidenced by the kissing we only had to barely encourage, but I think the biggest spot in his heart is for Nick. Perhaps this should not surprise me since nobody else has ever helped him build a dilophosaurus out of snow (why would you build a snowman when you could build a snow dino??).

Sadie tried to get in on the action but we really did not equip her very well to face the snow, so I think she kind of preferred to remain on our laps, in our arms, or inside where she could climb the stairs and other things she really had no business being on top of. She also enjoyed some quality time with her godsister and godparents.



Of course the snow beckoned, and, snowsuit or no, we could not miss out on hiking and sledding. Unfortunately all my hiking photos were on my phone which has since been stolen so the photos are gone because I was too lazy to sign up for iCloud. Incidentally I find it highly ironic that as I'm struggling to keep my Lenten promise to give up multitasking because it's just so hard to unplug from the phone, the universe goes and loses my phone for me. But back to the snow. It was gorgeous and fluffy and deep and just what we had been waiting for all winter. We hiked up a steep trail right from our cabin door, which we had gone up together two winters before, and made it about one tenth of the way. We thought of all kinds of excuses, the kids were heavy, the snow was heavy, etc, but I think we all felt a little sheepish and wondered hmm is this what being over 30 means? oh well! You know what does not get harder with age (yet)? Sledding! We had such a time!



It was really just so gorgeous up there. We haven't managed to make it back since, because it's been snowing every weekend and I refuse to get stuck on 80 with two screaming kids in the car, so I'm glad to have had such a perfect weekend to look back on.

All that snow up there has translated into rain down here, which was good because it had been one of the driest winters on record until this month. The hills have finally started to green up, a few months late, but just in time for St Patty's day. I've never really been that enamored of this Irish holiday, I guess because I'm not really any part Irish I don't think, but for some reason we got excited about dressing our whole family in green this year, and then went to a party where everyone was also dressed in green, and it's kind of amazing how a dress code can really make you feel festive. Something about seeing kids running around together in their matching cheerful shades of green just puts you in a good mood. That and I never met a corned beef I didn't like. Especially one from MSF!



And here are some other assorted favorites from the past month.




So this may be it for the Wordpress version of the blog. Maybe I will still add to it occasionally, when there are too many pictures to post one at a time. Or maybe not.

favorite Jack sayings

"My ears are crying!"

"I can't see my eyes."

"It's pretending to be real."

"I want to stay here forever and ever."

"But now I want a last last last last LAST one"

"You be a people." OR "You be a wolf. No, you be a pretend finger wolf." OR "You be he."

"Big storm coming!"

"What's he saying?"

Sadie Grace is 1!

...and that makes a whole lot more sense to Jack than counting months. He really wasn't convinced that she could be zero years old, so he's very satisfied that now he can officially hold up fingers to tell his sister how old she is. Or a finger, anyway.

Grammasue stayed until Sadie's birthday, which we celebrated the night before because she had a flight out early in the morning. I've always thought the first birthday was more for the parents than the kid, an anniversary of When Your Life Changed, or When Your Life Changed All Over Again, depending on which kid. So it seems to me like the parents should be getting presents as much as the baby. Clearly my mom agrees with me, and what she got for us for our anniversary of When Our Lives Changed All Over Again was: swept floors, clean dishes, folded laundry, groceries, dinner, and A RED VELVET BIRTHDAY (/WOLCAOA ANNIVERSARY) CAKE!

Sadie is apparently as big a fan of red velvet as her mommy is.



Big fan.

The next morning we celebrated again briefly over breakfast (mmmm breakfast cupcakes...) and had a quick photo shoot before walking Grammasue to BART.



But not before Sadie showed off her new 1-year-old skills.



My mom and I looked on in horror as she started to figure this out before our very eyes. Part of me wanted to intervene and another part wanted to cheer for her, but most of me just groaned oh dear she really is going to be trouble. So I did what any good mother would do. Took pictures.

Once we got Jack off to school, I decided to take the morning off to be with Sadie. I made this promise to myself on Jack's first birthday that I would take the day - or at least part of it - off for my kids' birthdays each year so that we could do something special, whatever they want to do. What Sadie wanted to do with her birthday morning that I had taken off and kept her home from the nanny share to spend with her was take a big fat three hour nap. You know what, Sadie? You can do that. It's your birthday. So when she finally woke up, we went out and bought treats for ourselves and sat in the bright sunshine and ate them, we went to the toystore and Sadie showed me what presents I should buy her (because I am a little ashamed to admit, I had no idea... but that was fine because it turns out she has very strong opinions of her own anyway), and then we went to the park and met up with her friend Rita and the nanny to have a picnic and play for a while. It was a very special morning.



And when Jack came home from school, he helped her open presents. And he pushed her around on her new little hippo car she picked out for herself. And he offered to take it away from her and drive it himself, and to play with her new toy boat for her, too -- what a nice big brother! But he did remarkably well considering mommy forgot the cardinal rule of birthdays with siblings is you're supposed to get the sibling something too. And Sadie was so excited she didn't really care who was playing with what when. Her Grandma and Grandad called on the videomaphone to sing her happy birthday, which she loved, until her parents tried to keep her from pounding on the keyboard just as hard as she might like. And her friend Ezra came over to help her celebrate, which she loved, too. I still don't know if he likes her very much, and it probably doesn't help that she's a little aggressive about how happy she is to see him, with the grabbing that might be a little too close to pinching and the patting that sometimes looks a little more like slapping. Poor Ezra. He hung in there, though, and Sadie our birthday queen giggled and clapped and danced the night away. I'm not exaggerating about the dancing, either. She actually boogies. Shaking her head back and forth, swinging her hips. The girl has got some style.

Happy birthday, Sadie Grace! You are a daredevil, a spitfire, you keep us on our toes, and keep us wanting more. I love your rich throaty laugh and the way you scrunch up your whole face when you're really happy. I know you can't wait to grow up so you can keep up with your big brother, but I hope you'll slow down a little so we can enjoy you as our almost-toddling toddler for as long as we can. I love you, my sweet wonderful Sadiekins!

Grammasue!

This week we had a very special visit from Grandma Sue, or as Jack likes to call her, Grammasue! (pronounced excitedly with such emphasis on the last syllable that you could almost say gesundheit in response). Unfortunately Poppa was working and couldn't get away, but now that Grammasue has retired she can come visit us as often as she wants. And I hope she will!

My first plan was that we were going to take her up to Tahoe but when she got here she reminded me that she comes from the land of snow and wasn't especially eager to go see more snow, a minor detail that I had somehow overlooked. No matter- there's plenty to do around here! Maybe even more! We had one big outing a day and still didn't quite manage to show her everywhere we like to go. But we did show her Fairyland (which she had been to before, but is much more fun now that Jack's a little bigger) and the bird sanctuary at lake Merritt.



Sadie kept Grandma busy by demanding to walk everywhere. She will only tolerate being carried for so long now (and tolerates the stroller even less), until she wants to get down on her own two feet. Which is backbreaking work, to lean over her and hold her hands. I remember this stage with Jack, but I don't remember how long it lasts. I remember very little, it turns out, and the blog isn't especially helpful in this capacity. I'm not consistent enough.

On the weekend we took her to the Lawrence Hall of Science on one day and Tilden's Little Farm and Steam Trains the next.



It was our first time on the steam train and I don't know why we haven't done it sooner. I also don't know how, as many times as we'd been to Little Farm, we'd never been there on one of their petting zoo days. There were a gaggle of tweenage volunteers holding chickens, ducks and rabbits, and walking goats for people to pet. I think I've found Jack and Sadie's future jobs.

On Monday we went down to San Jose to visit Nana. This was where I stopped being fun and had to get back to work. I had some lingering revisions for my old job, on the report I started almost exactly a year ago-- in fact it was this very project that I was working on the day Sadie was born. As I started going into labor, I was finishing the slides for a prospectus talk I was clearly not going to give (on account of the going into labor) but still had to finish so my magnanimous coworker could give it for me (thanks Julie!). Funny little bookends, that are much more humorous to me now that I'm finally finally all done with it. But while I was pounding my head against my computer, trying to please five different reviewers with five different agendas, Jack worked diligently with his grandma and nana to get his valentines done. 

It was very good that we were at nana's house because she has much more craft supplies than I do, and the next day at school was valentine's day, and mommy had no time to go to the store to buy valentines! So this worked out beautifully, and I think he got extra points at school for making them himself. This was Jack's first valentine's day that he legitimately celebrated and I had no idea how excited he would be. He loved all the cards he got from his friends, almost more than the candy. Okay he liked the candy too. So did Sadie. This was Sadie's first valentine's day, period, and she celebrated with gusto. She is totally ready to eat candy like a big girl, she wanted me to know. Poppa (via Grandma) bought them both heart boxes of candy and there were a couple days in a row where it was a real struggle not to eat chocolate for dinner.

(Nobody struggled with that more than me.)

Marine Mammal Day Dos

...and we're caught up! This has to be a quick one because I'm out of time, but I don't want to save this as a draft and then find it two weeks later, because we know that's what will happen. So, briefly:

- Danny felt horribly about recent failed whale-watching excursion; wanted to show Jack charismatic sea-fauna

- Danny found out Pt Reyes hosts elephant seals that you don't have to pay and/or make advance reservations to see

- Our chicks Sweetie and Tweetie have grown so big they needed to be put outside, which means we needed to get rid of one of our three older chickens

- We decided we don't have time to slaughter and butcher a chicken -- seriously, what were we thinking?

- Danny's boss offered to let us put one of our birds out to pasture (... literally. On his pasture. So now she lays eggs professionally!)

- Said pasture is conveniently located in Pt Reyes, where you don't have to pay and/or make advance reservations to see elephant seals in order to redeem yourself in the eyes of your three-year-old

- The perfect way to spend a Saturday in February:

Is it winter yet?

I see photos on my sister's blog of kids (okay, just my niece) outside in bathing suits this winter, so I know it's not just here that the weather has succumbed to global weirding. But it has been a very strange winter. Every delightful sunny summery day, I feel a tinge of guilt for enjoying it so much when I know we need more rain in the rivers, more snow on the mountain. It's hard not to enjoy the warmish evenings that are warmer even than the evenings we get in the summer when the coastal fog settles in, and the ability to plan outdoor weekend activities with little fear that they will get rained out. But the lack of snow in Tahoe has been a serious disappointment to us this winter, so we were obviously overjoyed to hear about the winter storms that came through this week, and rearranged everything to make it up to the cabin. Unfortunately it's so warm up there, too, that most of it had melted by the time we got there. And what was left had gone through so much freeze-thaw that it was more likely to cut you than oblige a snowball-making effort. BUT: there was enough snow left on one particular hill near the cabin and the consistency was perfect for sledding.



There is the perfect little snow hill two blocks from the cabin, which doesn't sound very far but apparently feels very far to a toddler when it's 45 degrees out, which doesn't sound very cold but apparently feels very cold to a toddler who's wearing rain boots because his silly parents have not bought him snow boots. Hence, daddy gets talked into carrying Jack a lot even though he's already carrying Sadie. (Why doesn't mommy carry Jack since daddy's already carrying Sadie? Because mommy's philosophy is: toughen up, kid! Or it was until I found a hole in one of his rain boots that was making his feet all wet and felt terrible about it for the rest of the weekend and then when we got home immediately went out and bought him snow boots.) I'm not sure Jack really knows what to make of winter yet, and this has been the weeniest winter! It's a gorgeous sunny blue-sky snow-melting "winter" but he says it's too cold and seems a little uncertain about why we would purposely want to be in snow. I feel like a failed Minnesotan. And I guess I kind of am, since I moved to California. He may enjoy sledding, at least he seemed to while he was doing it but then right after both runs he took down the hill he threw tantrums about snow being cold, which I think had more to do with needing a nap than snow actually being cold, but we'll have to try it again on more sleep and see. Oh, Jack. Luckily my daredevil Sadie is impervious to cold in her big marshmallow suit and wants so badly to eat snow that she will try to jump out of my arms while sledding. She's quite a gal.

And luckily both kids had lots of fun indoors. The cabin is so much more fun than our house because there are stairs (that Sadie likes to climb about 200 times a day, and Jack likes to chase after her without actually being helpful), and playmates. This week featuring Elise (6 months Jack's senior) and Gabe (6 weeks Sadie's junior): best playmates yet.



There was lots of footy-pajama romping. And some not-so-footy-pajama romping, too. Nothing excites children like nudity, and nothing bums them out like being told to put clothes on (see above, bottom right).

My favorite part of Tahoe was the drive home. I know, that sounds absolutely crazy, but that's when this happened:



So stinking sweet!

Neximuse

This year Meximuse, the celebration of winter godparently love for their godchildren, is happening in stages. It is a looking-forward-to-Next-Meximuse, when we can all get together, together. It is Neximuse. Neximuse Part I was Scott's visit in November, which happened in Tahoe. Neximuse Part III will be Nick & Libby's visit in March, also in Tahoe. Tahoe is the essence of Meximuseness. Neximuse Part II is Godmother Julia's visit, which was almost in Tahoe, in that she was in town and we were leaving for Tahoe, but not everything always works in favor of the symmetry of blog posts (to the extent that a set of three of something could be symmetrical). However, despite our venue, which was our decidedly un-snowy and almost summery backyard, this was an especially special visit because we got to meet Godmother's new beau, Emilio. Jack instantly took a shine to him, and not just because he helped him poop (sorry Emilio- he was supposed to be napping!) and helped him build a stegosaurus. But seeing as how those two things meet 90% of Jack's needs, they couldn't have hurt either.



But I think the real reason Jack loves Emilio is because he loves his godmother so much and therefore loves anyone who makes her so happy. Aw.