Tuesday at home...

This morning Mommy's friend Dolly came over to play with Libs and Tobee. It was really fun chatting and eating love cake while Lou Lou chatted away. I enjoy hearing about all of the adventures of Lucas, one of my all-time favorite students-- he is now in junior high school.

We also finally got the Olds donated to a charity. It took a great deal of phone time this morning, but it was sent to a better place around 10:30.

This afternoon we just played, read, and sang-- no traveling about. Libs also let me take photos of her two front teeth, which can be seen on Picasa. When Daddy got home we all played together. Tonight we showed Libs how to play penguin bowling-- I think Tobee enjoyed it more than Libs. Libi is enjoying making all kinds of sounds-- ttt-ttt-ttt, ma-ma-ma, da-da-da, ba-ba-ba and zrbtts fill the house.

Daddy fed Libs and took a shift after bath time so Mommy could scrapbook. I got several pages done for my Disney Club next week. Mommy also heard today from her MOPS table leader, Lorri. She seemed very nice and Mommy looks forward to meeting her on Sept. 11th.

A great Sunday and Monday...

Sunday - It was an early morning for members at the LA Zoo yesterday. We got there at 8:30 and had the zoo pretty much to ourselves until 10 a.m. The animals were all very active-- the lion and the lioness were awake and roaring, the koalas were walking and climbing everywhere, and the bear and tiger were both out. We left at about 10:30 when the park began to get busy and hot!
On the way home we stopped at IKEA to do some shopping and BJ's in Burbank for lunch. Libs enjoyed all of the excitement at both locations, but she especially enjoyed her lunch at BJ's (don't fret she just had cereal and fruit.)
Grandmalito came over for a short visit in the evening after the whole family took a nice long nap. Mommy made a quick dinner and we hung out. When we were trying to get Libs to fall asleep this evening, we had her on our bed and she crawled forward. True, she had to stick her rear up in the air and her face in the bed, but she was really moving forward. Pretty soon she will figure out how to do it on her arms, not her face.

Monday - Today we are going to run over to Mint Canyon for their book fair, then we're going to Uncle John Krinkle's farewell party at Rio Norte. We'll let you know how things went later.

We ran up to Mint Canyon for a short visit. Libs got to see Dung, Amy, Betsy, and many other of Mommy's school friends. After that we went to the district office to see Kathy and Mandy. We scheduled a date for lunch next week. Mommy and Libi then went on a quest to find Mimi. We went to Saugus, no Bonnie-- then to Canyon, no Bonnie. We never got to see Mimi but at Canyon we did see Mrs. Purdy and Peggy. While in the choir room Libs got to play the piano for the first time.

Libs and I then went to Rio Norte for Uncle John's farewell. Libi got to see lots of Rio Norte staff and was once again passed around for all to hold. She even got to go on-stage with Daddy to help him do his master of ceremony duties. We are now home and preparing for dinner.

Saturday at home...

It was a nice day for sleeping in today. We spent much of the day hanging out as a family. Grandmalito came over for a short visit this morning. Mommy cooked breakfast, lunch and dinner-- a very rare thing in this house. Libs is having so much fun playing with her toys. She really spends a great deal of time studying them and seeing what she can do with them. It is really fun to watch her move them from hand to hand, bang them on each other, and talk to them.
Daddy went to school this afternoon and Mommy and Libs took a few pictures, here's one of the best:
Tonight we are spending more family time together. Tomorrow we will go to the zoo for early member mornings to see all of the animals when they are most active.

Catching up!

Sunday- Today was Grampy's birthday! We spent the morning preparing the house for the party and then Daddy, Grampy, Grandmalito and Aunt Andrea when to see the Simpson Movie. Mommy and Libi spent the afternoon playing and cooking. Libi is getting to enjoy her time in the kitchen-- she talks nonstop while we're in there! She is also having fun playing with her new tooth. She can spend hours taking her tongue and flicking her new tooth-- she's making lots of new funny faces.
After the movie everyone came here and Aunt Violet came over to enjoy dinner. Mommy's meal of fried zucchini, garlic bread, lasagna, and salad went over well, but the chocolate trifle was the big hit!! Grampy liked his presents and the time he got to spend with Libs-- it was a fun night.

Monday - We ran all over town today. Mommy and Libs ran errands-- the grocery store, the video store, the butcher-- we were all over town. When we got home we spent most of the afternoon in the kitchen. We had chocolate chip oatmeal cookies waiting for Daddy when he got home from his first day with students. Note: he also took a home-made lunch to school.
We spent the evening eating dinner and playing together. It was a new food Monday for Libs and she ate sweet potatoes for the first time today. She really didn't make any faces at all and ate them all up!

Tuesday - Libs and I went to the mall today. We walked the entire mall and went into several shops just to look around. We made dinner for Daddy and then Grandmalito and Grampy came over for a short visit.

Wednesday - We went to Nana and Pop's for lunch today. Libs did all of her tricks for them-- she "read" them books, rolled over, and crawled backwards. She enjoyed eating her lunch with her great-grandparents and Mommy enjoyed Nana's stellar potato salad (Daddy enjoyed the cupcakes she sent home.) Grandmalito came over for a short visit this evening to show Daddy the food she ordered for John's farewell. Today Libs also figured out how to make her animal train play music. She is really getting good at exploring her toys-- she has figured out things about them that Mommy and Daddy didn't even know!

Thursday - Mommy and Libs decided to stay home today and play. We spent the day in the kitchen and scrapbook room playing and singing. Daddy took the evening shift so that Mommy could have a little alone time. He fed Libs, played with her, comforted her when she was fussy, and tried to teach her how to do fishy kisses.. Sometime during the day, Libs second tooth broke through-- it wasn't there when Mommy checked in the morning but it was there when she checked at about 8 p.m. Libs decided to stay up until nearly 2 a.m. so Mommy was very tired by the time that she crashed.

Friday - We slept in today-- thank goodness! When Libs finally woke up happy at about 10 a.m. we ate breakfast, got dressed and headed out to the grocery store. While we were at the grocery store Libs sat in the cart for the first time. As we were walking through the aisles I noticed that she was doing fishy kisses like Daddy showed her last night-- boy is she a quick learner!! We will be entertaining again tonight when Grampy, Grandmalito and Aunt Andrea come for dinner. This afternoon we have been playing and Libs took a very short nap.

Dinner was fun! Everyone enjoyed the meatloaf, potatoes and brownies. It was nice to have everyone back at the house. Libs especially enjoyed her time with her Aunt Andrea. Auntie has a special gift for making Libi laugh and smile. You can see the photos on Picasa.

Movin' and Shakin'

Thursday-- Mommy woke up at the same time as Daddy-- wow it's early! It was fun going back to Mint Canyon for the first day. Miss Emma looked adorable on her first day of Kindergarten-- it was so fun to take Amy's class for a few minutes so she could walk her over.
When I got home we all loaded into the car for a visit to Nana and Pop's. We had a nice visit, Libi showed off all of her new tricks. While we were eating lunch Libs got to experience her first earthquake. She was sitting in her highchair, playing with her toys when the ground started to shake. She didn't seem to mind, but it did freak Mommy out a little bit.
We came home and Mommy made dinner. Afterwards Jammy and Mommy ran some errands and Daddy was on Libi patrol.

Friday-- Jammy left early in the morning and Libs and Mommy spent the day at home. Libs is getting to be such a good helper-- she helped Mommy clean the kitchen, do laundry, and cook dinner. OK, so all she did was sit near Mommy, talk to me and keep me company while I did all these things.
Mommy made dinner, Grandmalito came for a short visit, and we watched High School Musical 2. It was a nice family evening!

Saturday-- Daddy woke up early and went to work to finish up his classroom. Mommy and Libs have spent the morning playing and eating breakfast.

Sunday - Daddy made it his mission today to get his car into the garage. Grandmalito came over to watch Libs for a few hours so that Mommy and Daddy could focus all their attention on that daunting task. By the late afternoon, we had both cars in (unfortunately, we have a bunch of stuff inside the house that used to be in the garage.)

That evening we went to dinner at Don Cuco's. There Libi sat in a restaurant high chair for the first time. She ate her meal with us-- although she did not have Mexican food. Mommy also ran into an old friend from high school, Christy Nixon-- well at least that was her name back then. She is now married with two sons-- one of which is in third grade. It was nice for her to get to meet Libs.

Monday - Daddy went to work registration today and Mommy and Libs hung out at the house. At about 1 p.m. we went to Rio Norte to help Patti finish out the day. Mommy really likes counting up the checks and making sure that everything balances.

Afterwards we went to Sam's Club and did some shopping. Mommy let Daddy take Libs home and then she went to Albertson's for more shopping. When she finally got home, she made dinner, and the family all ate together at our little butcher block table.

Tuesday - We went to Disneyland for the 4th time today-- one final family outing before Daddy returns to work. It was a late start, we didn't get to the park until 12:30, but it was perfect! We went to Toontown to see Mickey, went on the Jungle Cruise for the first time, went back to the Tiki Room and Libs saw her first parade! We left about 4:15 and made it home by about 5:30. We spent the evening relaxing, Daddy made dinner, and Libs nearly crawled backwards under the sofa.

Wednesday- Mommy and Libs got back into our old routine today as Daddy headed back to work. It was quite a shock to Mommy's system to be all on her own for the day--- she really missed Daddy. Libs is all over the place-- crawling backward, playing with all her toys, and drum roll please........ today we found her very first tooth!!!!!

Jammy came into town at about 3:30. Mommy went upstairs to take a shower and the two girls played. During their play, Libs began gnawing on Jams and she made the discovery. When Mommy came downstairs Jammy said, "You didn't tell me Libi had her first tooth."

Mommy replied, "No she doesn't!" Then Jammy proceeded to show her-- sure enough the lower right tooth is poking out.

We spent the rest of the evening calling everyone we could think of to tell them about our tooth. Mommy made dinner for everyone and Grampy and Grandmalito came over for a visit. Daddy spent several more hours tonight in his room trying to get his stuff ready for Monday.

Tomorrow Mommy will go to Mint Canyon to cover Amy's class for a few moments while she takes Emma to kindergarten for the first time, Jammy will babysit before we go to Nana and Pop's for lunch and Daddy will be back at work.

Behind again.

Wednesday -- We woke up and drove into the valley to pick-up Grandmalito at Hugo and Ann-Marie's. We then went to Valley Pres. to see Great-Grandpa Limon. He has been in the hospital for several days for dehydration treatment. It was nice to see him, despite the fact that he wasn't awake for the visit.
After we dropped Grandma Cris off we went to Nana and Pop's house to see everyone there. Nana is still wearing her brace, which fascinated Libs. While Nana couldn't hold her, Libs sat next to her and touched and studied the contraption. It was a really nice visit-- Libs did all of her "tricks" for them.
In the evening Grampy came over for dinner. He fed Libs her meal of cereal and green beans while Daddy cooked dinner-- how nice for Mommy to not have to do anything!! Mommy was pulled away from the table to have a nice long talk with Aunt Linda, but Daddy and Grampy kept Libs entertained. Grampy even stayed for Libi's bath time and then he walked her to sleep before he left-- a good time was had by all.

Thursday-- Libs and Mommy went to the Strassner's house for swimming and lunch today. While we were having fun, Daddy was working at school trying to get his room put together. Libi loved watching Emma and Ben jump off the side of the pool and swim around. We had a really nice lunch and visit with our good friends.

Friday-- We took Libi to her first country fair today. After getting the house re-sprayed for ants we loaded into the car and headed to Ventura. It was a really nice day at the fair-- the weather was beautiful, the grounds were clean and the food was good. Libi loved looking at all the people and animals. She especially liked the big bubbles in the kids area-- you can see pictures on Picasa.

Saturday-- Today Mommy and Libs hung out at the house while Daddy ran some errands. We had quite an adventure while he was gone, but I won't trouble you with the messy details.
This afternoon Grampy and Grandmalito came over for a visit. Libs loves riding on Grampy's head and showing Grandmalito all her toys.
This evening we headed to Santa Paula for Nick's birthday party-- he's the science teacher on Daddy's team. Libs was the hit of the party, being passed around to anyone who had a hand out. It was nice to meet Nick's girlfriend and to see some friends from Rio Norte. It is now late and Mommy is tired. Tomorrow we will be cleaning the garage, trying to make room for Daddy's car.

Wow am I behind!!!

Thursday - Jammy, I need you help-- my memories fail me as to what we did for much of Thursday and Friday.

Friday - We had dinner at Bob's-- of course we did! If it's a Friday and you're in Stockton you go eat a burger at Bob's at the Marina cooked by the highly talkative chef, Guy. Libs was so funny with her Zwieback all over the place-- she really likes those little toasts! Aunt Renia also made Libs do her big belly laugh with the basked monster. You really have to see the video to understand it-- it's on Picasa.

Saturday - Mommy ran out this morning to weigh in and grab some movies at Blockbuster so Libs stayed with Jammy and Granpa. The nights have been pretty rough lately as Libs won't stay the whole night in her travel crib. At some point very early in the morning, or very late at night depending on your view, Lou Lou wakes up and needs consolation and to hog much of Mommy's bed. This makes Mommy very tired and cranky these days :(
We kept things very low key today-- watching movies, watching Libs roll all over the floor, and being home-bodies. Unfortunately we got word this evening the Ron's grandfather was taken to the hospital with severe dehydration. Grandmalito said that they believe that he is going to be fine, but it will be nice to get home to see him.

Sunday - Daddy came home this afternoon! We spent much of the day waiting for him and hanging out with Jammy and Granpa. Daddy, Mommy and Granpa took Libs to the pool for a final swim-- the little fish had a great time! We had a nice family dinner and watched a few movies on TBS-- all in all a really good day!

Monday- Jammy was on Libi duty for the afternoon so that Mommy and Daddy could go to the movies. We finally got a chance to see Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and we weren't going to miss it! It was a wonderful flick-- very much foreshadowing of things to come :) (Can you tell that Mommy finished book 7?) On the way home we stopped at two wineries, but struck out on the things we were looking for.
For dinner we met Bob and Renia at Lodi Beer Company. Libs was great entertainment there. She ate green beans for the first time today. It was a bit awkward having her in the stroller, but Mommy and Daddy are becoming pros and improvising!

Tuesday - We made the long drive home from Stockton today. Everyone did well on the drive and it seemed to just fly by-- most likely because we were excited to get back to our own house and bed. It is wonderful visiting Jammy and Granpa, but 10 days is a long time to be away from home.
This evening Aunt Andrea and Aunt Violet came over for a Libi fix. It was great timing for me because while we were gone Miss Libs outgrew a great deal of the clothes in her closet. She is now in 9 month clothes almost completely. In no time at all we will have to move into the 12 month simply due to her length.
Libs fell asleep in Mommy's arms and is resting comfortably in her own bed. Mommy will be doing the same soon.

August first...

Libs, Jammy and I all went to get our nails done this morning-- actually, Mommy did Libi's nails before we left the house. Afterwards we went to Mr. Pickle, a sandwich shop, for lunch. Libs slept through the meal, but Jammy and I enjoyed our sandwiches.
We then ran over to Granpa's office for a visit. Libs got passed around to everyone and had a good time until she needed a change.
Daddy came home this afternoon. We all took a nap together-- all four of us in the little bed. We had a nice family dinner-- we ate tri-tip and Libs had cereal and peaches. Tonight we went for another night swim, but this time Daddy came with us. Once we got back we watched a Food Network princess cake challenge from Walt Disney World and Mommy began to again long for her beloved theme park. I can't wait to take Libs there!
Tomorrow Daddy returns for the last camp and Libs and I will wrap up our visit with Jammy and Granpa.