Beatrice Virginia Jarvis

Introducing Elizabeth Mary Jarvis

2009-12-13T17:54:00.000-08:00

Dear Friends and Family,

We are very happy and proud to announce the arrival of Elizabeth Mary Jarvis. She was born on Sunday 13 December at 5:54pm, 9lbs and 22 inches long. Beatrice is enjoying being a big sister and is excited to hang another stocking for Santa to fill with those tasty "lolly-canes"

Love,

Sarah & Zach

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To see more...

We have a new (secure!) website for our future blog updates. I will send out emails with that information. If you haven't received an email from me by the end of the year, send me an email or comment on this site with your email address (I moderate all comments, so you're info won't be posted). Looking forward to sharing more pictures and stories about Beatrice and Elizabeth with you via the new site!

Waiting, waiting, waiting

2009-12-12T15:54:00.000-08:00

We spent the time after Beatrice's birthday (me at 37.5 weeks pregnant)...waiting. And waiting. And waiting. Though hard to believe from the photos, I didn't actually get that much bigger. So we hung out, and started getting ready for Christmas.

...and Grandma Elizabeth's arrival! Once she arrived, we decorated for real. With new tacky Christmas stuff added in!

Per doctor's orders we did go out and do some fun things while Grandma Wibbs was here (as opposed to just sit around and will the baby out). We spent a lovely afternoon and lunch at the Ferry Building in San Francisco. Which inspired us to do a gingerbread house with Beatrice. Beatrice decorated with "lollycanes" (her new word - candy canes + lollipops).

I couldn't believe it when I reached 39 weeks pregnant. So incredibly uncomfortable. Seriously. Especially as contractions had been going on for about a week off and on! But we did have distractions - Jas came to visit one evening. And Beatrice had lots of time with Grandma Wibbs and Daddy ("Dad-a", as she calls him sometimes)

Then finally, after changing Grandma Wibb's ticket from Tuesday 15th to Friday 18th, labor really started (on Dec 12th). Beatrice started walking everywhere with a very wide-legged stance (guess who walks like that these days?) Grandma Wibb's took a picture of the 3 of us prior to going to the hospital.

Unfortunately it turned out to be our first trip (of 3!) to the hospital, but you get the point...baby was coming soon!

Happy 3rd Birthday!

2009-11-27T19:05:00.000-08:00

Oh Beatrice, I can't believe you're a big three year old girl! Daddy and I just have the best time with you. Given it's your big day, I thought I'd attempt to summarize some of your 'things' for posterity. It's impossible to capture your spirit, but I'll try. I think the photo Tom took of you on the swing out back does a very good job, but even that isn't close to capturing all of you. So here goes:

* Your latest 'thing' is nursery rhymes. "Black sheep, black sheep, have you any [mumble], yes sir, yes sir, three bags full, [you can't remember the words, so you mumble some more] some for the little boy that lives down lane." Today you informed Daddy that the little boy lives down the FAST lane, not the slow lane. Good to know.

* You also love books. And we love that you love to 'read' on your own. For a good 25-30 minutes. Love it. Though every now and then you insist that we read to you non-stop. I will admit to threatening you with TV if we didn't stop after one particularly long session. Your Daddy loves reminding me about that one.

* You are still very much a people person. Though now you have to at least know the person first. Still at your party you ran and jumped up to kiss everyone as they arrived at your party.

* While you don't yet actually care what you wear, you have put your foot down about hairstyles. No more ponytails. Barretts only.

* You have an absolutely amazing sense of direction. We were driving near Aurora and Amalia's house (you call her "Tamalia") the other day and you pointed out the rough direction of their house. It was incredibly impressive given we hadn't been there since a party there the previous December!

* You, like your Daddy, love maps. Any and all maps, but especially ones with England included so we can point out where you were born. It still slightly freaks me out how many of the 50 states you can name by shape / location on the US map.

* You really enjoy school. Your teachers, Betsy, Sheila and Lorena, tell us the ~5 month age gap with the other kids really isn't noticeable. And that your fine motor skills are amazing (thanks Sarah B and all those stickers!) Every morning you rush to get there to be first on the swings. I think you must swing at least an hour a day.

* Sharing is still not your favorite activity. But you're getting much better at it. When Anna and Eleanor came over recently you decided the only way you could share was if you just watched them play with your new toys. Joining in with them was too tough. It was adorable and hard to watch, all at the same time.

* Daily routine: Wake up, call out for Mommy or Daddy depending on the day (Mommy on weekdays and Daddy on weekends). If a weekday, we cuddle together for a few minutes and then I begin the long drawn out process of getting you dressed and ready for school. While you love school, getting you dressed takes a battle of wills. Still not sure why. Eventually I get showered while you read books in the bathroom, and then I find some sneaky way of getting you dressed. Then we go downstairs, you get the paper from the front porch and we have breakfast (usually cereal) together and check the weather and the funnies. Your favorite is Family Circus and Garfield. Then we aim to get to school between 8:30 and 9, though you try to be first to be sure and get one of the swings. Weekends are much slower and we all go downstairs in our PJs for a bit.

Weekdays you get picked up from school at 12 by Jessica. Then it's lunch and nap and playtime. You and Jessica go to the library LOTS. Jessica leaves at 5:30 most days and then you and I hang out till Daddy gets home. The more pregnant I get, the more we've been watching Sesame Street on the couch together. Then it's dinner, Daddy home, reading, bath time, battle over going to the bathroom, and Daddy puts you to bed at 7:45 or 8.

Weekends are a toss up. Anything can happen. But whatever we do, you are very involved - asking questions and wanting to help plan. And trying to sneak in a trip to Babies R Us. "Daddy, where we go next? After that then we go to Babies R Us, ok? Ok Daddy?"

And in between all of our daily activities we have some of the most wonderful, joyful moments. Along with moments that make us all want to tear out hair out in frustration.

Now we're all getting ready for you to become a big sister.
Happy Birthday Beatrice! Mommy & Daddy love you!

Happy Thanksgiving

2009-11-26T19:00:00.000-08:00

We spent a lovely day with family and friends. Absolutely perfect day, except for the fact that I am still 9+ months pregnant. So ready...

Beatrice, Anna & Eleanor were adorable. Both clothed and not.

Luckily Tom shared his photos, as I've given up taking photos!

Happy Mommy!

2009-11-24T18:55:00.000-08:00

My card from Beatrice this year says:

"Happy Mommy!

I love you.

Beatrice"

Doesn't get much better than that. Oh, perhaps NOT being 9 months pregnant on my birthday. I could handle that.

I did tell Zach the other day that I finally felt like my face looked pregnant - puffy cheeks, nose, etc. He just looked at me for a minute and then said with a grin, "Um...Sarah, I'm pretty sure people aren't looking at your face to figure that out." I laughed for about 10 minutes.

37 Weeks

2009-11-23T22:00:00.000-08:00

My favorite part about this picture is that we're wearing matching striped outfits. This was absolutely intentional, of course. Too bad I don't have sparkly house shoes to match Bea's.

We're all very ready for the baby. And a thousand house guests by the look of our bathroom closet...seems I have been nesting for a while now, I just didn't realize how bad it was until I decided to organize the bathroom closet. Everything is getting rearranged and made just so. I can't help myself. Nesting! The other photo is of me 37 weeks with Beatrice. I can't tell if I'm bigger or not, certainly just as ready.

Now, I just have to get through tomorrow. So do not want to give birth on my birthday!

Birthday cake for breakfast

2009-11-22T18:12:00.001-08:00

One of the best traditions ever

3rd Birthday Party

2009-11-21T22:11:00.000-08:00

We had a very small gathering (for us) over on Saturday to celebrate Beatrice's birthday. We hadn't planned on having a real party, but she really wanted a chocolate cake with pink frosting. So, we had cake from 4-5pm. Zach made chocolate cake the night before, and he and Beatrice made the pink frosting on Saturday. I decorated the cake.

We decorated the dining room with streamers and balloons and B's artwork from school. To prep for the party, Beatrice also spent time swinging out back and at least an hour 'reading' her new library books. The girl loves to 'read'.

The party itself went off without a hitch. We had cake, Beatrice opened presents, and I did not go into labor.

After the party Beatrice had another piece of cake and decided to skip clean-up and go read in the living room. So adorable.

I'm glad we had a party. Especially glad we had it with chocolate cake and pink frosting. When Beatrice told us she wanted a party (by asking people to come to it and telling us what kind of cake she wanted), I was reminded of the story Mama told me about when she was 8 and invited friends over for her birthday (it was the Depression and she wasn't allowed to have a party, as they didn't have enough extra to make a cake). But she wanted a party and presents. I think she said she told her mother about an hour or so before her friends were due to arrive, just in time for her mother to whip up a cake. Pretty sure Mama got a spanking after the party, but she also got a birthday party out of it. I could see Beatrice resorting to something similar had we outright banned a party.

Hey Diddle Diddle

2009-11-19T21:44:00.000-08:00

Beatrice loves this nursery rhyme. She says it over and over and over - in the bathtub, running down the street, swinging in the backyard. I finally managed to catch it on video when we were out back. Unfortunately I find my photo taking and video making are in direct inverse proportion to my ability to get up from a seated position unaided...happening less and less often these days!

Dr Seuss

2009-11-18T02:54:00.000-08:00

There are times I feel like I'm living in a Dr Seuss book. Beatrice has picked up a few interesting things from school. One of our least favorite of these is "Poo-poo head", which she picked up from one of the kids with older siblings. Every now and then I'm also reminded that she is the youngest in her class by about 5 months, save one other kid. Anyway, here's a recent dinnertime conversation with Beatrice:

B: "Poo-poo head!"

Daddy: "Beatrice...that's not nice, you know that..."

B: "Sorry Daddy, sorry Mommy. I no say Poo-poo head again. (pause)

I no say Poo-poo head at school.

I no say Poo-poo head at home.

I no say Poo-poo head in the car.

I no say Poo-poo head on the swings.

I no say..."

Mommy: "Ok, ok, we get it. Not at school, not at home, not in the car, not on the swings, not anywhere."

B: "No, I no say Poo-poo head anywhere.... (then very softly under her breath) Banana head."

Farmer Bea

2009-11-16T17:21:00.000-08:00

Today a neighbor rang the doorbell to see if Beatrice would like her old rocking chair. We said sure, especially as Beatrice has been asking for "three things" for her birthday:

1) a "'mall baby cradle" (small baby cradle)

2) a "rocking chair for me"

3) a bike

We have the first in the attic, and I was going to go find some cheap plastic rocker (as you can never find good wooden kids furniture that isn't pink or blue anyway). #3 will probably be for Christmas. Anyway, we said yes and our neighbor went back home and returned with this. Wow. I'm pretty sure it's nicer than most of our other furniture!

Visit from KMB and Karen

2009-11-15T17:37:00.000-08:00

Karen and Karen trekked over to the East Bay to take me to brunch today. While Beatrice was very happy to spend time with her Daddy, she was less pleased to miss out on time with visitors. She insisted on a photo.

In other news, we've just been getting ready for the new baby. Beatrice has taken to carrying around Cabbage Baby, dressing him in our new baby's clothes, putting him ni-night in our new baby's crib(s). Lots of work.

During the week, we had a nice visit with Megan, Colby, Eleanor and Anna too. Veteran's day...no school for Beatrice or Eleanor!

Hot water

2009-11-11T20:10:00.000-08:00

Anyone who's ever tried to take a shower or run a bath upstairs at our house will appreciate this picture. This is just the HOT water. Our landlord fixed the water pressure upstairs, so now when we run Beatrice a bath we don't have to start 10 minutes early. And, as Andreja put it, the taking a shower is "ah...America", which I believe translates into luxurious, over-the-top, bliss. Zach said he sang the Team America song to himself the first time he took a shower with the new water pressure. I think I just moaned the whole time.

Bye Ziva!

2009-11-10T20:07:00.000-08:00

Ziva, Andreja and Urban had to go home today. We don't envy them the flights back to Slovenia. Or trying to fit half of Target back into their flat.

We're so glad you came to California. Next time Slovenia!

35 Weeks

2009-11-09T20:04:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I'm posting these pictures.

Me at 35 weeks. The one with the tape measure is of me at 36 weeks pregnant with Beatrice. The tape says 43.5 inches. For comparison Zach and I had ...fun?...taking my measurements this time. 41-46!-42. I should look like a (very large) column! Instead I don't have one straight line on my body. Ok, maybe the bridge of my nose, but that's it. Everything else is ROUND.

I did realize recently that it could be worse. I could be this pregnant in Georgia:

Random stranger on the street: "Whoa girl, you look like you gonna pop tomorrow!"

Me: "Yeah, so I hear. Only 5 more weeks to go."

Stranger with the accent from GA: "FIVE? Good Lord! You must have twins in there."

Me: Sigh.

Stranger: "No, seriously, you are big, girl!"

Best part of this interchange? He was yelling from across the street. Nice. Makes me miss London, where at least everyone waited until I was 36 weeks pregnant to whisper, "Wow, luv how far overdue are you now?"

Duck songs

2009-11-08T20:13:00.000-08:00

Lots of baby time recently. It's tough, especially when you have so many babies to diaper and put down for their naps.

There's also cooking and reading to be done too, so Beatrice is quite busy these days.

She also is learning new songs at school. This one, as far as I can tell, is about ducks. There's another 4 minutes of the song. I tried to post, but I think the multiple error messages mean it's just too long to put up. Probably for the best, as not even Grandma Wibbs and Granddaddy Bill could stand it for that long (too many memories of me doing something similar at that age!)

LBS mini-reunion

2009-11-01T19:41:00.000-08:00

John & Jas came up from LA for the weekend, as Andreja, Urban and Zhiva are all here (that, and I can't travel to LA). We had a lovely time all together again. It was just like London...just with kids.

Zach and Jas cooked an amazing meal - butternut squash soup, Andreja's bruschetta, leg of lamb, Jas's tamarind veggies, followed by a cheese course and chocolate pound cake. Yum!

The ladies also escaped to the spa. We had a lovely time, even if I do look ENORMOUS in a white terry robe.

Such a nice LBS mini-reunion....if only we all didn't live so far away from each other! We'll have to go to Slovenia next time.

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T22:08:00.000-07:00

Three buzzing bees and two soccer players. Doesn't get much cuter than that!

Until the 4th bee arrives that is! Anna, Eleanor and Beatrice wore their matching bee costumes ("bee fairies"). Zhiva got the last costume at the kids store - guess what?

All in all, it was a good evening. Even if I couldn't walk very far.

Beatrice made out in the candy haul. She even shared some with John.

Halloween Party

2009-10-30T20:11:00.000-07:00

We went to Daddy's office ("The brown one? The tall building? That Daddy's office? You sure Mommy??" from the backseat) for a lunchtime Halloween party. Once again Beatrice had a blast. And once again she decided to wear her skunk costume. Well, she did change out of it halfway through the party.

Daddy's office is so fun because you get to park, ride an elevator and escalator to the big elevators, then go all the way up to the 50th floor, and then people give you tons of CANDY!

And did I mention the TVs everywhere? And phones? Not to mention the view, wow. Beatrice had lunch on the desk. Then she decided to work the phones. Trading or telesales, we're not sure.

So the only bad part of the day - the Bay Bridge has been closed for a few days. And since I can't handle the more-than-two-blocks-walk to BART, we drove the long way round across the Richmond/San Rafael and Golden Gate bridges. The ride in was ok - about an hour. The ride home nearly did me in - an hour and 45 minutes. Luckily Beatrice napped and I managed not to pee that entire time. Shocking, considering at 8.5 months pregnant I pretty much go hourly.

Want to see what candy for lunch looks like in an almost 3 year old? This:

Where the Wild Thing Is

2009-10-27T19:53:00.000-07:00

There are some very good reasons to live in/near a big city. I think this is one of them. Jessica took Beatrice into SF (on BART! Hooray! BART train, who-hoo!! - getting there was half the fun) to see the Maurice Sendak exhibit at the Contemporary Jewish Museum. The two of them go to the library and read lots of different children's books together, so this was a perfect fit for them. They prepped with lots of reading of "Where the Wild Things Are" and "In the Night Kitchen".

When they finally got home, Beatrice was all, "MOMMY, MOMMY, MOMMY!! We saw...we saw...we saw..we saw some...oooh...Mommy, we saw..."

Me: "What did you see Beatrice? What?"

B: "We saw ferries!"

Jessica: "Um, yes we saw some of the ferry boats on the Bay, but what else did we see?"

B: "We saw BART!"

Poor Jessica, Beatrice loved the show too, she just couldn't get it all out, she was too excited.

33 Weeks

2009-10-26T12:03:00.000-07:00

From this weekend...me at 33 weeks with a beautiful view of the Bay behind me. Makes me look smaller, right??

Andreja is 16 weeks pregnant - here she is showing her "tummy". I'm really, really trying not to hate her.

Pumpkin Carving Party

2009-10-25T17:26:00.000-07:00

We hosted one last big party before baby #2 arrives. It turned out a bit bigger than we planned! The kids certainly had a blast, though getting more than two to look in the same direction and sit still for a photo is beyond my abilities.

Love Pam's pumpkin!

Beatrice also wore her new party dress. Until she had a scene change mid-party... (I can't blame her, I did the same thing at my wedding!)

And a pre-Halloween warm-up: Eleanor, Beatrice and Anna in matching "Bee-fairy" costumes!

Steam Trains

2009-10-24T12:38:00.000-07:00

Another trip to the steam trains...Zhiva enjoyed it. And it was actually a bit warm for once. And perfectly, beautifully clear.

Andreja, Urban and Zhiva arrive!

2009-10-23T20:58:00.000-07:00

Andreja, Urban and Zhiva made it in from Slovenia on Thursday. We were very excited to see them. I think they were happy just to be off the plane!

It took Beatrice and Zhiva about two minutes to get used to each other. With B at almost 3 and Zhiva at 18 months, the language barrier is not really an issue. They understand each other. Meanwhile, my Slovenian is certainly getting better!

Zhiva loves Bea's tea set and is learning wonderful tricks (like how to "boing, boing" on your knees on the couch) from her. Luckily she hasn't mastered purple hair (see photo) - this is how Beatrice came home from school the other day. I wasn't expecting this until age 15...

We're having a great time, and the girls are adorable together. Zhiva calls me "Teta Sarah" (pronounced "Ded-a Sahr-ah", which means Auntie Sarah) - I love it!

Halloween Card

2009-10-21T20:20:00.000-07:00

"It say, 'Happy Bill and Halloween...Halloween and Ah-Boo you too'...it's from Grandma Wibbs and Bill...it's for me, for Halloween"

Map of the United States

2009-10-20T20:45:00.000-07:00

Beatrice loves this puzzle. We probably do it forty-'leven times a day. At least. But I have to brag on her a little bit - this was the first time she did it all by herself. I was "cooking" dinner and she did it all on her own.

And yes, the puzzle has the outlines of the states, and yes we've done it a million jillion times, but still... she did it all by herself! That and she actually knows many of the states! That's better than many 30 year olds I know. California, Georgia, Montana, North Dakota-South Dakota-Nebraska-Kansas-Oklahoma-Texas (she knows they all go in that order too), Alaska, Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, Florida, Ohio, Iowa, Tennessee (the "banjo state"), New York, "the stamp state" (Pennsylvania), and "little Virginia" (West Virginia) and "big Virginia" (Virginia). Wow.

She did take a break in the middle to try on her new dress. We all need scene changes every few hours, right?
A video from the weekend...very dull, but it has some moving belly shots and Zach and Beatrice doing (guess what) the puzzle together.

On Monday we had Keeley, Kolya and Casey over for dinner. The boys came in their costumes - Casey was a puppy dog and Kolya came as Iron Man.

Tikki tikki tembo

2009-10-20T14:12:00.000-07:00

Tikki tikki tembo-no sa rembo-chari bari ruchi-pip peri pembo

Don't know what that is? Me either, but Beatrice sings it over and over and over. From a book she and Jessica read. Over and over and over is my guess.

Really? Again?

2009-10-13T23:27:00.000-07:00

Seriously? Another fallen tree limb on our car? Again? From the same tree? No way. No damage this time, but at 6:45am, in the cold and rain, the 12' limb (at almost 8 months pregnant) was more than I could handle. Luckily a neighbor was able to move it off the van. Crazy.

Oh well, hopefully things don't come in threes for us with this tree. One lesson learned - I'm never parking under that tree again.

In better news, Beatrice decided to pick her own outfit for school. Then she wanted her picture taken.

31 Weeks

2009-10-12T23:16:00.000-07:00

So it turns out I can't do math after all. My previous "week" postings were all a bit aggressive. So...here I am at 31 weeks. This week four different people asked if I was "due this week." I must admit it is somewhat depressing to say, "No, I've got two more months to go." Their reactions are priceless though. Most just sputter and say something to the effect of, "Wow, you're HUGE!" After I saw the picture Zach took of Beatrice, baby, and me...I get it.

HERS apron on Zach - love it. And Beatrice continues to be baby obsessed. Wonder why?

New skills

2009-10-11T23:09:00.000-07:00

Beatrice and Jessica made cookies this week. From scratch. Zach said they remind him of childhood. I am totally intimidated, but man oh man were they good! Beatrice made an "M" for me and a "B" for her.

Beatrice also enjoys "reading" on her own, especially if they are our books. Beatrice did manage to get Grandpa to read to her. Why she picked the guest bed for the spot - beyond me.

Our almost three year old

2009-10-06T19:48:00.000-07:00

Beatrice is almost 3. We've decided this means she has definite opinions on things. Last month it was that her hair shouldn't be done. This month it's that she should pick her own outfits (this includes PJs). Exhausting. I didn't manage to capture it, but in the photo above she was actually wearing a blue polka dot shirt, her pants end just below her knees, she has on red knee socks. We did manage to talk her into rubber boots, as we were at the Little Farm. Goodness.

One of my other recent favorites was her pink shirt, pink skirt, pink leg warmers, sweater and flip flops. Wow. She has also been including the stroller ("struhler") in all of her baby-play recently. Including mimicking of baby cries.

In other news, Beatrice remains obsessed with swings. A favorite activity, after spending at least an hour every morning at school on the swings there, is to have Jessica push her on our swing out back. They have a great time.

Besides swinging and baby dolls and dressing/grooming herself, Beatrice is also trying to figure out the world. As we drove on the highway the other day, Beatrice asked me to point out Zach's office in SF.

me: "There it is, the brown one. Daddy works on the top floor."

B: (after thinking for a minute) "Daddy take the stairs to work on top floor?"

me: "No, no, he rides in an elevator to his floor. It would take him a long time to walk all the way up."

B: "Hmm. That make sense."

Babies R Us

2009-10-05T21:21:00.000-07:00

Beatrice and I spent a late afternoon at Babies R Us on Monday. She had been asking to go daily (hourly) for about a week. So I finally caved.

We sang the newly made-up Babies R Us song ("We are going to Babies R Us...We are going to Babies R Us...") all the way to the store. When we get there she screams, "Babies R Us! See that sign Mommy?" and then I hear from the backseat, "Be-twis, Be-ull and Babies R Us all have Bs!" Whoa...

[Then later that evening, after calling Granddaddy Bill to let him know his name starts with a B, she informed Grandma Wibbs that she (Beatrice) has TWO Es in her name, since Grandma Wibbs name (Elizabeth) starts with an E. Crazy.]

We spent the next hour and a half (I am a saint) wandering around the store trying out every stroller, carseat, and baby swing. I did a puzzle while Beatrice ran around with her baby doll. Needless to say, the staff thought we were raving mad.

So Beatrice is super into babies these days. I am enjoying what she's calling Zach's old Cabbage Patch Doll ("Mommy, where dat cabbage baby is?")

This weekend we also decided it was time to get Beatrice a doll bed that doesn't collapse every 5 minutes (the one she had was driving us batty). So off we went to the toy store...and whoops, this was the only one left. So she's got a bunkbed for her babies now.

Gavin

2009-10-04T17:58:00.000-07:00

Gavin, and his parents Marin and Aaron, came to visit for the weekend. We had a lovely weekend with them and did lots of kiddie activities - steam trains and the little farm. And lots of good chasing around in circles in the house. Over and over and over.

Preparations

2009-09-30T16:59:00.000-07:00

Beatrice is getting excited about becoming a big sister. At least we think she is. Her new favorite place in the whole world is Babies R Us. We went there a few months ago to pick up some random baby item, and then again more recently for something else I can't remember. I spent an hour and a half watching her try out every carseat and stroller in the place. Well...now she wants to go back everyday. Jessica took her today and they played there for TWO HOURS. Beatrice took one of her baby dolls and tried out every single carseat, stroller, bassinet, etc. etc. Jessica said it was hilarious.

In other news, Beatrice also seems to love school. She brought home this picture the other day and said it was for Mommy, Daddy, the baby and Bebe. I asked her what is was. She gave me this patronizing look and said ever so patiently, "It's pink and purple, Mommy."

A Grand Visit

2009-09-29T16:06:00.000-07:00

Grandma Wibbs and Granddaddy Bill ("Be-ull") arrived on Wednesday for a nice long visit. We surprised them and all met them at the airport. Beatrice was so ready to see them. Love her placement of their welcome sign...eye level for her. And I was over the moon to see them. While they were here I caught up on R&R. Still, we managed to do lots...the park, Out & About in Rockridge (where Beatrice went down a 15' bouncy slide!), construction at M&C's, parties, cocktail time, cooking by candlelight (the power went of twice for a few hours!), school trips, Smokehouse lunch, Little Einstein shows, ultrasounds...so fun.

But mostly, we just relaxed. And the grandparents got to cuddle with Beatrice. And take care of me! Thanks for all the food and laundry and entertainment!

Baby Bump Bash

2009-09-27T19:57:00.000-07:00

Megan & Colby threw us a baby bump bash on Sunday. It was a great afternoon, filled with swings (Beatrice and the girls are MAD for swings these days), good friends, babies, cupcakes, mexican food and margaritas!

Beatrice wore her special dress, as she is big-sister-in-training - the pink dress that Grandma Wibbs made for me 30+ years ago!

Scan day

2009-09-24T22:28:00.000-07:00

With my parents in tow, we paid Megan a visit and got to 'see' the little one. He/she was a bit camera shy, but Megan still managed to get some amazing photos - profile (above) and fist (below). We even got to see it wave and 'breathe'!

Perspectives

2009-09-23T17:09:00.000-07:00

After a trip to the hospital (I'm fine, baby is fine), we've decided a few things:

1) I need to take it easy

2) We should probably do some more planning for what to do with Beatrice once the baby is on the way

3) While pregnancy is no fun, we've agreed with the baby he/she had better stay inside for another 8-10 weeks. Safer for all involved!

Luckily Grandma Wibbs and Granddaddy Bill arrive TOMORROW!!!

Mendocino County Fair & Apple Show

2009-09-20T19:16:00.000-07:00

We went up to the Mendocino County Fair this weekend. Our last 'big' trip away from home before the baby is born. It was a great short weekend away. We got to see the farm animals, sheep dog trials, rodeo, and even get in some wine tasting (well, some of us).

We stayed at the cabin with a whole host of folks...the morning fog made it feel like we were on an island.

Husch Vineyards (www.huschvineyards.com) was lovely and chill as always. They happily provided grape juice for B and me. We also ventured to Roederer too - saw wild turkeys!

Belly shots (moving)

2009-09-18T22:12:00.000-07:00

I got bored watching Barney with Beatrice today (shocking). Thus I filmed two of the most boring videos ever: watching the baby kick me silly. Well, Zach and I enjoyed the videos. I don't remember Beatrice kicking this much this early. Then again I wasn't capturing every moment then via the blog...

In other news Beatrice is herself again. Still two-and-a-half, but the sweetness has returned (it's a nice balance). My sweet and sour child. Here she is at her most adorable - getting ready to walk her baby with Daddy and me.

Matilda's visit

2009-09-17T22:22:00.000-07:00

Matilda, with her parents Kristin and Andrew in tow, came to visit this week. It was great to spend a lovely few days with them. Definitely helped Beatrice get over her hurt ear faster!

The girls had fun playing together and EATING POPSCICLES! Who wouldn't? Matilda took a liking to B's flip-flops, and Beatrice insisted that we go out and get a new stroller to match Matilda's. (Remember the guilt? Well, given the 'matching' version we found was $20, I said sure.) So now we have a new red "stwoh-wer" (stroller).

We had a great time visiting! Can't wait to do it again.

Ear infection

2009-09-16T19:57:00.000-07:00

Turns out Beatrice hasn't become possessed in the last week. She just had an ear infection. A bad one, which finally ruptured her ear drum early this morning. Like between 4am and 7am. We know this because she was up all night up to that point, alternating between tossing and turning and screaming and crying.

And we thought she was just being two-and-a-half, not wanting to go to bed. I'm not winning any mommy of the year awards anytime soon. Pretty sure those don't exist anyway.

Oh, but the guilt. I feel awful. At 3am, I finally figured out something else was wrong. It had to be, she just never (except progressively over the past week) had acted like this. That and Beatrice finally said, "Mommy, my ear hurts"

She's been her old self again today. I'm glad to have her back, but I thought I was going to lose it when the pediatrician looked in her ear and said, "Wow, that is a horrible one, she must have had that for days!" Then she looked at me barely holding it together and amended with, "Well, you never know, I've heard they can happen in 6 hours too, it could be a case like that." I think she wasn't up for heavily pregnant weeping woman in her office.

Luckily, Beatrice will mend, all will be fine again, and she should be pain free within the next 12 hours. Good thing she doesn't realize she can now get WHATEVER she wants out of me because I feel so awfully guilty.

Sunday, Sunday

2009-09-13T20:20:00.000-07:00

Zach and I rearranged and packed up baby gear this weekend; Beatrice found a sling and a front pack...Jackey's been carried around every since. We had a nice, busy weekend at home, but I'm afraid preschool has officially hit - Beatrice is missing her first day of school tomorrow with a bad cold. Should be an interesting next few weeks/months!

Hopefully we didn't get Raiden sick, as he and his parents visited us this morning for breakfast.

In other news...poor Zach, he has taken over bedtime duty completely. Over the past month this has become quite a task each night. I wish I could do something...tomorrow night I might provide duct tape and a stiff drink.

Negotiations

2009-09-12T22:03:00.000-07:00

We're the parents. Beatrice is the child. No negotiating. Right? Well, yes and no. Mostly no these days. My favorite negotiation recently went something like this:

Me: "Beatrice you have 5 more minutes to play and then we're going upstairs."

B: "No, no, no Mommy. I want TWO more minutes. Two, not five!!"

Me: "Um...ok, yeah fine. Two minutes it is."

Zach and I agreed knowledge is power.

28 Weeks

2009-09-11T20:14:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I'm really and truly pregnant. I'll admit it. At B's school I overheard a dad say to his son, "You're right that lady has a baby in her tummy." Aww, sweet. And then he finished up with, "...and by the looks of things it looks like it's coming out very, very soon." Well, 3 more months 'soon'!

By way of comparison of me PG with Beatrice, I found this photo from one of our last 'hikes' in London, at Hampstead Heath. At 35 weeks pregnant!

4am conversation

2009-09-10T05:52:00.001-07:00

Beatrice: "Daddy, my arm cold. I come sleep with you and Mommy? I need Jakey and Bun-bun. I no can find them."

Daddy: "Ok, I'll get them. Let me put the covers back on so you'll be warm."

Beatrice: "Daddy, Jakey pink and Bun-bun she no pink, she have 'mall head."

First day of school!

2009-09-09T11:35:00.001-07:00

Beatrice had a great first day at school today. She picked out her own outfit (and managed to convince me to wear matching dress and leggings combo), got her lunchbag and tote bag ready, and once Daddy ran back home from work, we all headed off for the school dropoff.

She studied up beforehand too with "Spot Goes to School" - she was convinced Spot wouldn't want to leave. I overheard her having Spot tell his Mommy when she came to pick him up, "Just 5 more minutes, ok? Spot no want to leave." I finally told Spot's Mommy to tell him that he could come back tomorrow. I think she's ready for school!

After school she was grinning ear to ear. Turns out I was the only who cried today!

LA with the Chaines

2009-09-06T19:59:00.000-07:00

We stayed with Olivier, Randie, Anabelle, Gabe, and Natalie in LA for the weekend. Beatrice was on cloud nine the entire time.

Natalie and Anabelle played dress up with Beatrice; funny, it was only 6 or 7 years ago that Anabelle made Zach and Alexis play dress up!

The rest of us played Wii...Zach's pretty good, for an 11 year old girl.

While there we also taught Beatrice how to effectively crash a party - Marie's goodbye dinner. She inserted herself no problem!

Laina & Ian's wedding

2009-09-05T20:21:00.000-07:00

We spent an absolutely lovely Saturday afternoon at Ian and Laina's wedding in Santa Barbara. Beatrice was ecstatic to see them again. Zach and I enjoyed the wedding-as-told-through-song-lyrics aspect, as well as the amazing BBQ.

And there was a carousel! All the wedding party (+ Beatrice and kids) jumped on after the ceremony.

Beatrice did break in on their first dance, but luckily Zach made it up there in time to carry her off. She was very confused why they wouldn't want to dance with her too. Luckily it was an open dance floor immediately after their dance and Beatrice hit the dance floor for a full hour.

Summertime

2009-09-03T19:43:00.000-07:00

Nothing better than popsicles on a hot day with your cousins (and your blackberries and phones...)

June Lake

2009-08-31T17:57:00.000-07:00

We headed to June Lake for a long weekend away with Ryan and Chiara. I took way too many photos...it was just so pretty there. Unfortunately there was a fire in Yosemite, so the air was a bit hazy, but not too bad. Not enough to stop me from taking a jillion photos. I didn't even come close to capturing how pretty it was. Ah, but it was nice to get away and relax. And in such beautiful surroundings. June Lake is where Zach spent many weeks each summer as a kid, so he really wanted to get Beatrice up there. It is pretty amazing to drive through one of the most beautiful national parks in the US (Yosemite) and still end up somewhere just as pretty, with enough civilization mixed in.

We hiked, we played in the park, we played cards, we read, we walked, we ate great meals, both in (steaks, yummmm) and out (Mobile Station and Silver Lake Resort) and boy oh boy did we eat PIE! People in the Eastern Sierras like their pie; we ate some everyday we were up there - at the Tioga Pass Resort (www.tiogapassresort.com), at Rock Creek Lake Resort (www.rockcreeklake.com), from a vendor on the side of the road. Yum. I will say the Eastern Sierra definition of 'resort' does not quite match the East Coast version of 'resort'...bit more rustic out here.

The other big difference between CA and GA mountain vacations is the altitude. At 8k+ feet, hiking (walking/breathing) takes on a whole new meaning. Especially, I discovered, while pregnant!

The Corvette club from LA also drove up for the weekend. 20+ Corvettes in the June Lake Motel. Quite a sight.

Our first 'hike' was just a little walk around Silver Lake. Zach packed great lunches every day, so we ate like kings. Beatrice enjoyed the ducks and watching people fish.

After our very long hike in Rock Creek, Beatrice became fascinated by the backpack again and carried her dolls everywhere. Wonder why?

Great trip. Can't wait to do it again...with Baby #2 on the outside!

Rock Creek Lake Hike

2009-08-30T18:36:00.000-07:00

While up at June Lake, we hiked the Rock Creek Lake trail. Well, hiking may be a strong word for what we did, but at an altitude of 9k+ feet, with a 2.5 year old, and a very pregnant me, I'm going to call it a hike. Beatrice hiked 1.5 miles in. At 1.5 miles we had to stop for lunch (did I mention I'm pregnant?), and then she caught a ride on Daddy on the way out. Luckily Ryan and Chiara are very patient!

We took the obligatory kid-in-front-of-sign photo (even Baby #2 got in on the action). I'll have to dig up the photos of Zach as a kid in front of this sign. I'm sure there's one of him at this age.

It was such a gorgeous walk. And I did enjoy all the commentary from passersby..."Wow, that kid looks heavy in that backpack...Whoa! Did you see that lady? She's really pregnant!"

Post hike we enjoyed a slice of pie each at the Rock Creek Lake Resort. The lady that makes them runs 50-100 mile races (seriously), so the pies were absolutely scrumptious (she's not scrimping on butter, sugar, the good stuff). We also stuck our feet in the stream, and I laid in the grass for a long while trying to catch my breath.

"Pop! goes the weasel"

2009-08-29T15:38:00.000-07:00

We don't talk about the new baby all that much with Beatrice. At this point, I figure we cover it plenty, and we'll talk about it more and more in the coming months. We pretty much just let Beatrice bring it up when she wants to talk about it.

So I was a bit surprised when she said to me out of nowhere, "Mommy, when the baby is born it is going to say, 'POP! goes the weasel!'"

I tried my very hardest not to laugh and said, "Well...babies can't talk when they're first born...but it might making some popping noises."

Then she wanted to know if it was going to be born in a hospital. And why? (Everything these days is "Why?") Zach and I explained that both of us were born in hospitals, and she was born in a hospital, and that lots of babies are born in hospitals. That seemed to satisfy her.

Then she wanted to know what color the hospital would be. Yellow or silver? That one took a bit to decipher, but we finally figured out the hospital Zach was born in was silver (he pointed it out from the road one day) and Oakland Children's Hospital is yellow, with a yellow rubber ducky on the roof. So...

We're going to do a field trip to see the outside of the hospital sometime soon, as I'm not 100% sure of the color, but it's important to Beatrice. "Pop! goes the weasel"...too much, it cracks me up everytime I think about it.

Sleepless nights

2009-08-28T19:18:00.000-07:00

So I'm stretching it a bit to say we've had sleepless nights. Certainly nothing compared to the kind of sleepless nights we'll have with a newborn again. I certainly know that. But Beatrice is putting us through the ringer.

She's two and a half (plus) and does not want to go to bed at night. Seriously, she's doesn't want to go to bed. Crying, screaming, kicking doesn't want to go to bed. Zach has taken the brunt of this, as it seems my very presence (or the baby's?) sets her off even more. Plus Zach can physically restrain her if needed. The other problem is that she seems to have finally realized when we give her a "choice" (e.g., "Beatrice do you want to have Mommy or Daddy put you to bed?") there is actually another "choice" for her - "NO! I no want to go to bed!! I'm not super tired." Ugh.

In daylight, non-exhausted hours I think both Zach and I realize this is all for the best. She's growing up, maturing, etc. But oh, at 9pm when she is still battling to stay awake, Good Heavens...

In better news, Beatrice and Jessica are still having a blast together. They went to the teaching garden the other day and picked tons of food. Beatrice, of course, wore her overalls.

And we got in a last visit with Will before he left for France. Bea is definitely going to miss his weekly babysitting afternoons!

Reentry

2009-08-27T05:00:00.000-07:00

We've played a lot of "airport" since we got back. "Mommy, take your shoes off for security!"

All in all, it's been a relatively smooth transition back into 'normal' for us after vacation. Though Beatrice has had her moments. The other evening turned out to be one of them. A doozy of one.

Me (after her 8th meltdown): "Who do you want to read to you tonight?"

Beatrice (in sing-song): "My-Daddy, he's-my-favorite"

Another evening Zach and I traded off getting her to bed duties; we were essentially just watching each other so that Child Protective Services didn't need to be called. 45 minutes of screaming and crying until 9:30pm, then up from 11:30-1:30. Ugh.

On the bright side, Beatrice has been having a fantastic time with Jessica. They've played and gone to the market and to the library. Beatrice still misses Sarah B, but she did get to see her (and Becky!) this weekend on Saturday for the afternoon and dinner. We convinced them to stay and see us over dinner too. It's amazing what Zachary's Pizza can do for luring guests.

But she's definitely readjusting - to Mommy and Daddy working again and Sarah not being here and not having a minimum of 5 adults watching her every move, as she had in Georgia! Or maybe she's just being two and a half.

Luckily she's pretty adorable, even in the midst of her two-year old tantrums. Especially since she insists on wearing her new overalls every day.

Polka dot "outfit"

2009-08-26T21:23:00.000-07:00

The hat. The pants. The leg warmers under the pants. The arm warmers. All polka dots. Wow.

Sadie brought her parents Rick and Audry to visit us on Monday night. We had a lovely dinner together and enjoyed seeing an adorable baby close up.

Week 24

2009-08-24T11:11:00.001-07:00

So I've been asked a few times about cravings. I really don't think I had any with Beatrice, not that stood out anyway. With Baby #2...Chips Ahoy, definitely. I can't get enough of them. I'm just hoping the baby doesn't come out covered in chocolate chips.

Which may also explain some of why I already look like this at 24 weeks. The second shot is of me laughing after Zach told me to try and suck my stomach in.

By way of comparison...the last two shots are of the belly (and me) in London in 2006 with Beatrice. Only 2 weeks (& 3 years) off in terms of timing! To be honest, the shots look surprisingly similar. I thought I was incredibly bigger this time around. Maybe I just feel it more this time (or the cookies). Love that I'm wearing the same PJ pants. It is nice to be able to drink water again without gagging. Other than that, I'm still not 'glowing', at least not that I feel. Very ready to be done with this all day 'morning' sickness thing.

Finally, my new favorite photo: Anna and her baby. Anna loves my big pregnant belly. She always wants to check on the baby. The only confusion is she is convinced the baby's head has to be resting in one of my breasts. Makes for interesting conversation to say the least!

Playground

2009-08-23T21:04:00.000-07:00

On Anna & Dada's birthday ("Dada is 85!" Beatrice kept saying all day), we spent a lovely Sunday afternoon with Colby, Megan, Eleanor and Anna visiting a local park. Though the pics make it look like the adults had to help the girls a bunch, they really did most everything on their own. Frightening at times, actually. The grown-ups got in on the action too, but luckily no one captured my attempt across the monkey bars (I only made it halfway before my arms gave out...must be the extra 25lbs on me!)

Happy 2nd Bday Anna!

2009-08-22T20:57:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday Anna! As usual Tom took some great photos of the day. I stole two of them. Love the cake shot with a fork and little hand sneaking in from the right!

We're back

2009-08-15T11:09:00.000-07:00

Beatrice and I arrived back home yesterday. Zach met us at the airport. Beatrice screamed with delight when she saw him. Just relaxing since then, as traveling with Beatrice + baby #2 is exhausting to say the least! Someone in the airport said I should take a picture of Beatrice pulling her pink rolling bag in the airport. With which third arm, pray tell?

Luckily she has spent the past 24 hours playing at packing, going to the airport, and riding on our airplane-couch. So I captured that instead.

Perfect

2009-08-14T11:20:00.000-07:00

Grandma Wibbs: "Beatrice, how would you like to have breakfast with Mama & Dada?"

Beatrice: "That would be perfect"

The whole trip was perfect, according to Beatrice. So what did we do exactly? Lots of reading (below: Wall Street Journal, GA paper, and US Weekly - the full spectrum)

Lots of eating, drinking "Cocktail time!", and napping

Beatrice also had fun reciting everyone's names and then saying, "They my family". I love the pictures of Beatrice and Dada - first she was sucking her thumb and then Dada sucked his. Beatrice thought this was HILARIOUS. We have looked at these two pictures a thousand times already and laughed.

And, of course, watching the ants carry off a chip we dropped. Seriously. This kept us busy for at least 20 minutes.

Other things we learned/remembered:

* Georgia is HOT in August, especially if you're pregnant.

* Skinny dipping is fun.

* "Thunder - clouds go clap clap BOOM!"

* Beatrice loves being wrapped up like a burrito, with "beans, cheese, gaucamole, rice, salsa and BEATRICE!"

Getting bolder everyday

2009-08-14T11:17:00.000-07:00

Every day in Georgia Beatrice got a bit more bold in the swimming pool.

Armed with her floaty ring, she soon learned she could 'swim' by herself and often paddled around the shallow end of the pool.

Then came jumping into the pool from the side. Luckily she never went so far as to jump without an adult there!

After almost two weeks she was going under all by herself. With each step forward Beatrice would demand of us, "Wanna see something cool!?!" Wow!

Belly shots

2009-08-13T13:44:00.000-07:00

I think the heat melted my brain. I have no idea how many weeks pregnant I am. Almost 5 months? A little over? Anyway, some pictures of my belly...

Ziggys

2009-08-12T23:19:00.000-07:00

We all trekked out to Ziggy's to eat and watch Granddaddy Bill perform both Wednesday nights. Beatrice had a great time having the run of the dance floor!

On the second Wednesday, even Uncle Graham got in on the act!

You talkin' 'bout jokes?

2009-08-11T23:14:00.000-07:00

We arrived in Georgia and almost immediately Beatrice was settled into her St Simons Island routine. Breakfast at home or the beach house, swimming, lunch, nap, more swimming, cocktail hour, dinner, bath, bed. Repeat. We didn't do much else - it was wonderful!

Of course Grandma Wibbs and Granddaddy Bill kept Beatrice very well entertained (and vice versa). The favorite Beatrice-ism: "You talkin' 'bout jokes?"

The three of them spent a lovely morning together while I worked - going to the library, the park in the Village, and McDonald's for lunch. And of course Beatrice spent ample time harassing poor Molly kitty.

And we all enjoyed the amazing sites around the swamp...this spider was at least 2.5 inches and the spiderweb spanned 6 to 10 feet, depending on how you wanted to count it.

We also enjoyed our visit with Harry. He and Beatrice hit it off, and I had a great time calling him "Granddaddy" and "Baby Daddy" while having lunch at the Cloister.

And Beatrice and I got our hair cut at Lynn's, just like everyone else in the family. Beatrice loved the first 10 minutes, less so the next 10. But the old fashioned hair dryer at the end was a treat for her!

One day Beatrice asked Grandma Wibbs, "Where Bill is?" and after hearing he was next door, she said, totally unprompted, "I love Be-ull"

Backyard birthday party

2009-08-02T17:15:00.000-07:00

Zach had lots of helpers blowing out his birthday candles. Pretty sure they didn't actually get 32 on there, but close. We had a lovely party in the backyard - good food, good friends, and good weather (it was cold and then it got warm).

We had two babies there - Eero & Raiden. This picture of Eero blows me away - talk about Gerber baby.

For his birthday we all pitched in and restocked the bar for Zach. It had gotten down to beyond the essentials, as I'm not drinking these days, and Z was having some pretty weird cocktails.

So we're off to Georgia tomorrow. Almost two whole weeks - hooray! With the weather here, I still can't believe it, but I keep having to remind myself NOT to pack any extra sweaters. Insane! I think my pregnant body is going to miss the 60 degree mornings and highs in the 70s.

In with the new

2009-08-01T19:35:00.000-07:00

Big day - new driveway, new washing machine, new flour/sugar/coffe/tea tins in the kitchen...and new BABY DOLL STUFF!

Have I mentioned we're into babies recently? Big time! To prepare for our upcoming trip to Georgia we got Beatrice a few (!) baby things for her dolls. A front pack for Charlie and lots of baby food/diaper stuff for ... Emma (or William, depending on her mood).

While Beatrice enjoyed her new toys, we have been playing with the new kitchen toys. See how cool they look in our kitchen? Chrome from the 50s!

The washing machine is nice too (it's nice to have one that works!). My friend Kaori visited us on Friday. Beatrice was impressed, as Kaori is famous...she's Dahlia's mommy and on one of our regular blogs.

Ready for Georgia

2009-07-31T20:03:00.000-07:00

Beatrice is soooo ready for Georgia. I got her up from her nap today and she said, "We going to Georgia (Jawh-juh) now? It Monday?" I also found her this morning in our spare bedroom packing the clothes I had laid out. She actually did a good job, I might just add to it. She wants to see "Mimi kitty, Be-ull, Grandma Wibbs, Mama, Dada, Uncle Graham" right NOW. So far she's ignoring me when I tell her Daddy has to wait a few days before he can join us; she made sure his suitcase was out ready to pack too. We're all very ready!

Goodbye Sarah!

2009-07-30T19:51:00.000-07:00

Today was Sarah B's last day as Beatrice's official nanny. Sniff, sniff. I'm so sad - it's the end of an era! She's been with us for the last two years - from when Beatrice was 9mo old to 2 yr and 3/4s! Here's their first picture together:

They've been through so much together. We were so lucky to have Sarah as long as we did!

But we did have a nice party last night to mark the occasion. And Jessica, Beatrice's new nanny was able to make it for the festivities too.

Here's B getting ready for the party (lots of parties this week!)

We will all miss you Sarah! Beatrice most of all (although I'm a close-runner up!) But we'll see you in a few weeks, and I'm pretty sure there was a clause in your contract about weekends away when she's 4, right?

Zoo time

2009-07-29T19:42:00.000-07:00

Sarah & Beatrice headed to the Oakland Zoo today. Wild times were had by all.

After the zoo they picked me up for a trip to McDonald's, a favorite Wednesday lunch spot.

I usually ask Beatrice about her dreams - if she had them and if she remembers what she dreamed about. Recently she's been dreaming about 'crocodiles', but the other day it was 'crocodiles and chickens!'

Happy Birthday Daddy!

2009-07-28T09:50:00.001-07:00

I'm taking Zach out to dinner tonight for his birthday. When I told Beatrice that yesterday, she was none too pleased. "How 'bout Daddy-Bebe go to dinner? Mommy stay home?" was her response after thinking for a few minutes. She is quite Daddy's girl these days, especially after his weeklong trip to NYC.

We compromised by having a special birthday dinner for Daddy when he got home last night - all 3 of us. Mmmm, frozen pizza, salad, and angel food cake with strawberries. And balloons, candles and a freshly painted card.

Beatrice practicing all the words so she could sing Happy Birthday to Daddy was the best part by far.

Halfway...again

2009-07-27T09:38:00.000-07:00

The good news - we have what appears to be a happy, healthy baby.

The bad news - the due date is now again 14 December, which makes today the halfway point.

Beatrice went with us to the ultrasound. She liked the part where we could hear the baby's heart beat. We're very happy all looks well...and that there's only ONE!

Yummy weekend

2009-07-26T20:37:00.000-07:00

We finally enjoyed some of the tomatoes from our garden this weekend. Seriously yummy. We actually had a slightly larger crop but only these made it from the cutting board to the plate for our afternoon snack.

We also went up to Nanny's house to visit. I couldn't resist taking a photo after Eleanor dressed up Beatrice in the play clothes. Wow, what an outfit.

It is so nice to have Zach home. We resorted to all sorts of entertainments on Friday before he got home. The 'boat' turned in to a puppet show....

This video cracks me up (and makes me slightly nauseated) - kids do love spinning around in circles!

By the way, when Beatrice is dizzy, she'll tell us she's "busy" - very cute.

Purple sparkles & princess tattoos

2009-07-24T14:30:00.001-07:00

I got a text at work the other day that said, "She picked purple sparkles" - I didn't figure it out until Sarah B clarified this is what Beatrice picked for her toenails. I still can't believe she goes to the beauty parlor at 2 years old!

Then when I got home from work Beatrice showed me her tattoo: 'Princess' with a tiara underneath in gold sparkles.

I am so getting this for my growing belly!

Halfway there!

2009-07-20T22:27:00.000-07:00

Today marks week 20 - halfway there!

For comparison, a photo of me at 20+ weeks with Beatrice in Berlin at Checkpoint Charlie for Zach's birthday in 2006. I had to stop wearing that red skirt at Easter this year!

Have a safe trip, Daddy!

2009-07-19T22:39:00.000-07:00

We'll miss you this week. Enjoy New York!

Summer brunch

2009-07-17T20:49:00.000-07:00

Beatrice and I went to Erika's house on Friday to visit with Natalie and Gabe. We had actually invited them over to our house, but somehow we ended up over in their backyard with a gorgeous spread of fruits and french toast laid out before us. Beatrice had a wonderful morning, as she just adores Gabe and Natalie.

Swim Class

2009-07-16T20:33:00.000-07:00

In preparation for our trip to Georgia, Beatrice is taking swim classes for two weeks. She can now go underwater holding her nose, and the day I took her, she decided to jump into the water to me. She did this by randomly counting to 5 or 6 or 9 (and once 18) and then jumping in without warning. This does not bode well for Georgia! In this process I also discovered I desperately need a maternity bathing suit. I got away without one in London, as I never went swimming, but the one-piece I wore for the 30 minute swim class may never be the same again!

The video is definitely for the grandparents only:

Cuteness x3

2009-07-15T20:26:00.000-07:00

Each of these girls is so adorable on their own, but when you put the three of them together and leave them alone. So, so cute.

Eleanor and Anna came over when I was doing Beatrice's hair the other day. All 3 insisted on matching ponytails. I kept trying to get a good picture of them. Finally Colby told them to put their foreheads on their knees. Love it.

Big girl bed

2009-07-11T20:40:00.000-07:00

Another big day for Beatrice - we moved her to her new big girl bed. "Just like Eleanor," as she says.

Beatrice had a great time putting her bed together with Daddy. She's was a very good helper.

When Beatrice and I went to get her bed a few weeks ago, she suggested that we let the baby use her crib since she's done with it. I told her that was a very good idea.

So Beatrice is very happy with her new bed. And in case you're wondering, yes, that is a Star Wars duvet. Antique bedding (early 80s?) from her Daddy. Sleep tight, Big Girl!

Dressing herself

2009-07-10T15:23:00.000-07:00

I went to New Jersey this week for work. Sarah B said Beatrice insisted on picking out her own outfit (purple shirt, denim skirt, tights and sandals). Wow, such a big girl.

Since I've gotten back we've been enjoying the benefits of having large cardboard boxes (leftovers from the big girl bed) in the house. Mostly they are boats, but she and Anna have also found other strange uses for them. What that is exactly ... they're not saying.

Wow, is she really 2?

2009-07-05T14:38:00.000-07:00

Every now and then Beatrice does something that just floors us. We know she's growing up, but...she knows how to set the table (see photo!), she can make (pretend) coffee, and a few weeks ago she up and sang us her ABCs. Wow. It took me a few weeks to capture it on film.

Luckily, we still seem to be a few years from scary things like reading and being able to understand the words Zach and I have to spell, like T-R-E-A-T. She does know Z-O-O though, so that one is now "Zed, double O," British style.

So besides wowing us with her ABCs and being generally helpful around the house, Beatrice has been playing with her dollhouse (constantly) and practicing being a big sister. Most recently with her dolls, though we did have visit with Raiden, Ayanna and Will on Friday too.

Happy 4th of July!

2009-07-04T21:57:00.000-07:00

Every now and then I'm reminded of how different Beatrice's childhood in California is going to be from mine in Georgia. In Georgia, people do not own "Fourth of July sweaters." I got Beatrice ready for the 4th of July parade - she was wearing a bathing suit and t-shirt. Zach said, "Don't you think she should wear a sweater, or at least pants?" For those of you who know Zach's preferred temperature (freezing), you'll understand the enormity of that statement. I responded, "But it's the Fourth of July!" Zach then pointed out that in California, especially Northern California, all that meant was you weren't sure if the fog would interfere with the fireworks that evening. So we compromised - Beatrice wore pants over her bathing suit and jumped around to stay warm during the parade.

The Piedmont parade was fun. Lots of candy and interesting sights. The entire day though I kept thinking, "But it's supposed to be hot, really hot on the Fourth of July...like melt-your-eyeballs-HOT." Guess we'll have to get our fill in August when we go to Georgia.

After a nice long nap, John and Jasandra joined us for an afternoon of relaxing and a long dinner. Beatrice had an excellent time with them, and the four of us relived our London days (though I did it without wine) after Beatrice went to bed for the night. A very fun 4th of July, even if I did have to change into jeans and a sweater before dinner because I was COLD!

Week 17

2009-07-03T14:13:00.000-07:00

Me and baby at week 17 (above). Me and Beatrice at week 25 in Paris (below). Fantastic - at this rate I won't be able to make it out my front door by October.

Muir Woods

2009-06-28T18:42:00.000-07:00

Sunday was a perfect day to get out of town for a bit and escape the heat. Muir Woods fit the bill.

Beatrice was so excited to go for a 'hike like Uncle Graham'. Not sure we actually hiked much, but it was a nice walk.

After a full 5 minutes of walking, we had to stop for a "'nack" of crackers, cheese and apples. Yum.

In my defense of this next video, in which Beatrice yells, "Mommy no take a picture!", she made me get out the camera and take one of her in the tree tunnel. It's a love-hate relationship with the paparazzi.

If you haven't been to Muir Woods, it's definitely worth a visit! www.nps.gov/muwo

Three Girls

2009-06-27T21:47:00.000-07:00

We kept Eleanor and Anna on Saturday afternoon and evening. We all had a blast. I know I took too many photos. I have a problem, I know it. But seriously, I don't think I've seen 3 cuter people in the world. Especially when they're together (and being sweet the whole time!)

Post naps, we had snacks on the porch and a dog party in the house (with stuffed animals), then we went to the park and Zach and I taught them hide-and-seek. Through trial-and-error, they finally got it. Sort of. I love the video of them on the slide - Eleanor is tapping her foot READY TO GO, Beatrice is weepy at the bottom (too many emotions for that girl), and Anna is game for another try. So cute.

Our 'let's wear them out' tactic worked very well.

The evening was more supervised chaos than anything else, but we did manage to get everyone seated and eating at roughly the same time. And no, we didn't serve them cake for dinner, as Anna told her parents later. They had pasta. Then cake.

Grandpa joined us for dinner, storytime, bathtime, etc.

I said to Zach at one point - this is what it would be like if we had three kids under 4 and one on the way. He didn't respond verbally.

And these are from a few days ago. Gratuitous, I know. But they get so happy by the mere idea of spending time together. I was worried the reality would be fighting and tears, but they were perfect angels. Guess the fighting and tears will be when they're 15, 13 and 12. Or next time.

Big Sister

2009-06-26T19:25:00.000-07:00

Beatrice is very excited to become a big sister. She wants pictures "with the baby" which I've been able to accommodate to varying degrees, above and below. She's also quite happy with her new "Big Sister" t-shirt from Eleanor.

So we're getting ready. This is me at week 16, or thereabouts. I'm currently in an argument with my OB. She thinks the baby is due Dec 14th; I'm gunning for Dec 7th. We get to decide for sure after the '20 week' scan. Fingers crossed for late November!

What is it? Beatrice thinks it is a boy ("brudder"). Zach wants it to be another girl ("Beatrice 2"). All I know is there's ONLY ONE!

Green toenails

2009-06-25T20:13:00.000-07:00

Beatrice picked the color.

Best card of all time

2009-06-24T20:04:00.000-07:00

"Merry Christmas - 2004 to 2008. Love, Harry"

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T15:50:00.001-07:00

Zach went in to get Beatrice up this morning. I heard a bit of their conversation through the monitor.

Daddy: "Good morning Beatrice"

Beatrice: "It's Father's Day?"

Daddy: (surprised) "Well, yes it is"

Beatrice: "Right now?"

Daddy: "Yes, right now is Father's Day."

Beatrice: "Happy Father's Day, Daddy"

Aww, so cute.

To celebrate, we hosted a bunch of fathers for brunch. Here they are with their kids:

Jim also joined us for brunch. The minute Beatrice saw him at the door, she quickly ran and dumped out her puzzle map of the United States, grabbed Alaska, brought it to Jim, and screamed, "Jim, you live in Alaska!" He does. He was quite impressed (so were we, actually). Colby also won best dressed honors today; yes, his t-shirt says what you think it says.

My favorite part of the day was after Beatrice's nap.

Zach & I got out the dollhouse Dada made for me years ago.

We filled it with Playmobil ("play-mo" as Beatrice calls it). It was like Christmas morning.

I love that Zach did all of this on Father's Day.

We also had a lovely dinner at Megan & Colby's new (empty) house. The adults toasted the new digs and the kids played in the backyard. I haven't seen Beatrice that dirty, or happy, in a long time.

The weekend was such a nice start to the summer.

Happy 4th Bday E!

2009-06-20T20:02:00.000-07:00

We went to Eleanor's birthday party today and had a blast. The weather was perfect and all the kids from Eleanor's preschool were there.

The cupcakes were absolutely delicious (I had 6 at least)

And Colby sang songs for the entire party. I have some good ones of him singing, but decided this one was the funniest (and I wasn't sure if he'd be pleased that I put him on the blog singing). I particularly enjoyed that Beatrice is dancing the whole time (note: there's no music)

2.5 year check up

2009-06-19T14:45:00.000-07:00

Beatrice is really growing up. She had her 2.5 year check-up this week. She's now 32.5 lbs and 37 inches tall. With this growth spurt, she's now in the 80th percentile for both height and weight.

She's also started telling jokes. I asked her the other day what we should serve Ari for brunch on Saturday.

Beatrice: "Dog food!"

Me: "What? We can't serve him dog food. What should we have for brunch?"

Beatrice: "Cat food!!!" (giggle, giggle, giggle)

Bye bye Uncle Graham

2009-06-17T09:09:00.000-07:00

Uncle Graham returned for a few days before flying back to Atlanta. Beatrice was so very, very happy to see him.

Graham tried to teach her lots of things, some with more success than others.

We'll miss you Uncle Graham!

Oh baby!

2009-06-12T10:38:00.000-07:00

Yep, it's official, Beatrice is going to be a big sister. I'm pregnant. Almost 15 weeks now. Due December 7th. However, anyone who's seen me recently (i.e., anytime in the last 8 weeks!) already knew that. If you didn't notice, you might want to get your eyesight checked.

By way of comparison, and because it made me laugh/cry instead of just cry, here's a picture of me at 6-7 weeks pregnant with #2 (left) and me 7-8 weeks pregnant with Beatrice (right):

I USED TO HAVE A WAIST!!! A little one. Wow, I'd forgotten about that. And if memory serves correctly those were my 'big' jeans. Ha ha ha, sniffle. So the funny part:

The picture of me blowing my hair dry - there's a very good story behind that. Zach and I planned to have Beatrice...only we thought it would take a lot longer than it did for me to get pregnant. So, living in London, trying to conceive, and planning lots of far away trips, thinking 'oh this won't happen for at least 6 months!'...Barcelona, Croatia, South Africa, Namibia...all places I went in the first trimester with Beatrice. Seriously, seriously bad planning.

The picture was taken in Croatia. We went to visit Andreja and Urban in Slovenia, and we traveled with them over the long Easter weekend to Croatia. We all stayed in a rental flat above the owner's home. When we arrived the wife was at mass, and so the husband showed us around and offered us homemade alcohol and food. I know I passed on the first, who knows on the second. The next day, or the day after, was Easter morning and our hostess brought up homemade bread with hardboiled eggs baken in, a plate of meats, cheeses, pickles...and homemade grappa in an old Evian bottle! At 9am.

When I passed on the early morning shots, she demanded to know why. Urban explained (as he was the only one who could speak Croatian), that I was pregnant and not up for grappa. At least not at that hour. Well, this woman lit into me. After about 10 minutes of near-yelling, I got Urban to translate: "You're pregnant!?! Go dry your hair, put some socks on, you need to take care of that baby!" Really, that was it after 10 minutes? But she was serious; she marched downstairs (still yelling) and returned with her daughter's hairdryer (still yelling). Which she wanted me to use right then. Too bad the picture didn't capture my feet - they were safely ensconced in thick socks by that point.

And here I am at 17 weeks pregnant with Beatrice in Georgia, June 2006 (left), and at 12 weeks pregnant with ? in Princeton, June 2009 (right)! What a difference having no stomach muscles makes.

We're all very happy.

What Beatrice likes

2009-06-12T08:54:00.000-07:00

At two and a half Beatrice gets a kick out of a lot of things. Vehicles are a particular favorite these days. When we're on the road she'll call out "Prius!...Bug!...Mini Cooper!...Element!" anytime she sees one of those types of cars (note: there are a gillion Prius cars in Oakland!). Sarah B got her to say them all on tape. I may have to take the camera on the road though...there's nothing like speeding down the road and having a tiny voice scream out from the backseat, "PRIUS! MOMMY, PRIUS OVER THERE!!! YOU SEE IT?!?"

Another favorite activity is playing in the van (or any parked car). I have no idea what the fascination is but she LOVES it. It's more of a treat than anything else we can dream up. Want her to eat her lunch, wash up and wax the dining room floor? All I have to do is offer up 30 minutes in the van, and it's done. And I really, truly have no idea why this is, but sitting in the van with her for 30 (45-60) minutes is TORTURE on every adult that agrees to it. You'd think it would be relaxing, especially with all those bucket seats, but it isn't. It takes forever and it is so, so boring.

Sarah also captured on video one of Beatrice's new sayings, "How 'bout that"

Another one she says all the time, "Der you go (there you go)"

Beatrice has started playing 'baby' a bunch. Wonder why? Here she is with her "paci" (it's a plastic thing from one of her sippy cups)...something she gave up years ago.

Finally, legos...she wanted me to save her lego castle for Daddy to see last night. He was so excited that a) she was playing legos and b) she wanted me to save it so he could see it. So sweet.

Ryan & Chiara's wedding

2009-06-08T15:36:00.000-07:00

Zach & I trekked to Decorah, Iowa (via Minneapolis) for their wedding. It was a lovely weekend, even if the weather was less than ideal, and a perfect wedding. Especially when the priest made the bridal party redo their march into the chapel.

We enjoyed small town Iowa (LOVE the co-op) and seeing lots of friends and the Mississippi River.

When we got back to Oakland, Beatrice and Graham were having a fine time. And the weather was nice enough that we had a BBQ out back.

In Decorah, we visited a outdoor gear/hatchery on Main Street, thus the t-shirt: "Another Quality Chick - Decorah Hatchery, Decorah, Iowa" www.decorahhatchery.com

Uncle Graham is here!

2009-06-05T15:21:00.000-07:00

Uncle Graham arrived for a long visit - Beatrice was SOOOO excited. He's babysitting her this weekend when we go away to Ryan and Chiara's wedding in Iowa. Clarissa came for the first part of the week too, so Beatrice has been enjoying herself immensely.

We've had fun with them too. Sarah B even came over so we could go out for a nice dinner to Chez Panisse!

In other news, Beatrice has been pretty content since we got back home. We had a trip to my office (Beatrice enjoyed putting plastic monkeys on Kristina's glasses). And of course she's gotten to see Anna and Eleanor.

We know they'll have fun this weekend!

Happy 4th Eleanor!

2009-06-04T15:32:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday Eleanor! You are quite a ladybug!

Goin' back

2009-05-31T14:23:00.000-07:00

We made the trek back to Old Nassau for Zach's 10th Reunion. I think Beatrice was awed by the amount of orange and black, but her absolute favorite was the bouncy castle. She spent THREE HOURS in it one day.

Friday we took Beatrice around and showed her the sights of Princeton. Just to play it safe, she didn't walk in or out of Fitzrandolph Gate.

And we enjoyed Hoagie Haven at the E-Quad. Beatrice hitched a ride on Daddy's shoulders most everywhere.

On Friday night we got to see Matilda, Beatrice's internet buddy. We look at their blog at least once a day. Usually more. So it was wonderful to get to meet Matilda and Kristen (& Nardo too, but we already knew him, just not as Matilda's Daddy). Our internet friends!

On Saturday Beatrice got to walk in her first P-rade. While she enjoyed the 3 hour lead-up, she didn't actually manage to stay awake for the walk. Given that she was 2 hours overdue on her nap, we weren't that surprised!

I think Beatrice enjoyed the costumes, but her favorite part of the whole affair was MATILDA!

Post P-rade we were off to Charter for dinner and more hanging out.

The last night we gathered to watch the fireworks. Beatrice was a bit scared at first, but soon joined in the festivities and danced to the music accompanying the fireworks.

See you in another 4 year Princeton!

Visit to SSI

2009-05-28T21:36:00.000-07:00

Beach babe Beatrice had a great visit to St Simons Island. Her favorite part?

I hate to say it, but it was probably Mimi kitty...followed closely by her adoring grandparents - Grandma Wibs and Granddaddy Bill: "Gwanma Wibs 'n Be-ull - where is 'em?" was a constant refrain.

She helped get the mail and recycling.

She stalked Molly kitty.

She picked blueberries with Grandma Wibs.

She picnicked with the Grands and made fun of Daddy for dressing like Dada.

She showed off her new Wonder Woman bathing suit to Mimi kitty.

She went swimming with Daddy (and "shishing" with the noodle)

She sewed, she read.

She loved on Marshall and Kaitlyn.

She watched TV with Be-ull.

In short, Beatrice had a blast in Georgia. And Zach and I had a blast too...naps everyday, lots of good food, and built-in babysitters! What more could we want?

During our trip we noticed Beatrice's interesting sentence constructions..."Where's Bill is?" was a favorite. I never caught it on camera, but I did catch a snippet of "ahboo" with Granddaddy.

We went to the new park near the pier a few times. The play structure was something else. And Granddaddy Bill bought us blue snow cones. Yum.

The last night we went to Ziggy's to watch the very start of Granddaddy Bill's set. Beatrice had a blast. She took over the dance floor and wowed the crowd. Herb, a local 83 year old man, enjoyed dancing with her for a number of tunes!