Hike, Hike, Hike

TGIF! Uncle Nicho drove up for the weekend. We all had lunch at Google and then we joined Cameron for her music class. Everyone enjoyed having a visitor during music time. Cameron was so excited she couldn't sit still. After a short nap, Daddy and Uncle Nicho picked up Cameron for a hike on Russian Ridge. It was a great way to kick off the weekend.

The sun was shining and the view was awesome. Daddy pointed out all the sights along the way. Since daddy is in training he carried Cameron in the backpack all around Russian Ridge. Luckily Uncle Nicho took lots of great pictures.

But after such an exciting day. Cameron had to take a long nap. Hiking is a lot of work!

WaterBabies

Cameron had her first swimming lesson this week. We joined a Waterbabies swim class at the local swim school and will be swimming each week. Cameron is the youngest baby in the class as usual. She was very serious throughout the whole class. She was watching the other kids and the instructor trying to figure out what was going on. The class starts with some songs and then the kids have to put their heads under the water. Cameron was a little surprised by this but didn't cry.

Next the teacher gave her a noodle to practice gliding through the water and kicking. She didn't do much kicking but did seem to enjoy going through the water and the tunnel. After the noodles we practiced jumping into the water, which Cameron did not even hesistate and then she had to swim to me. She had no problems and even did an underwater swim for a second.

I started to think she was bored of the whole thing because while practicing floating, she yawned and leaned back against me as if she wanted to nap. It was a good class.

This just ain't cutting it anymore....

So I like this stroller and all. Its comfortable. The rain cover is helpful. The color is good. I like that my toys attach to it. The shocks keep the ride smooth even on the Guadalupe trail and on the beach. But I'm just thinking that maybe I need more.....

Now this is more like it!!! I like sitting above everyone. I have a great view, and this canopy keeps me protected from the sun. I especially like this vantage point for watching PJ. Thanks Mommy!!!
As a gift for Cameron and Daddy I bought this REI baby carrier. Jeff wanted to hike the Tahoe Rim Trail (165 miles) for his birthday, but he hadn't been doing any training because he didn't want to leave me home with the baby and dog each night. But now that the days are longer, he will be able to use this and take Cameron with him. The pictures are from our trial run at the Sun campus, but on Friday, Jeff took Cameron for a short hike at Russian Ridge. It was a clear day and he said she squealed with glee at the summit when she could see San Francisco.

Pretty in pink and sitting on the beach

After a week of sunny warm weather we knew we had to go to the beach. Ellie was especially anxious about going since her parents had been to the beach everyday this week (still in Hawaii). So we spent a few hours at a dog beach in Half Moon Bay. It wasn't too crowded and it was a bit overcast on the coast. A good day overall.

Cameron pretty much felt the same way about the sand that she did about the grass. She didn't like that it stuck to her fingers and got everywhere. She did like going to the water with Daddy and PJ. When the waves came in she braced herself as if they would hit her, and then she seemed surprised when it only covered daddy's feet.

PJ and Ellie had all sorts of fun. They both chased the tennis ball and romped in the water and sand. While Ellie likes the water, she doesn't go deep. PJ would swim out to get the ball unless a big wave was coming. They each dug their own hole, PJ's strategy was to go deep, and Ellie liked to make her hole wide, big enough to sleep in.

They played hard and ran around in circles. They raced from the blanket to the water and back again. Cameron laughed everytime they got close. We stayed until the wind picked up and Cameron started to get cold. Nobody wanted to leave but when we finally got to the car, all the babies fell asleep: PJ, Ellie, Cameron, and Daddy.

Daylight Savings....

Mommy is very tired and wishes she could catch up on that hour of sleep she missed, but Cameron is loving the warm weather and long days. At school this week she got to paint a rainbow outside and went on several buggy rides. During one ride she got thirsty and took the bottle water from Ms Shelby!

However, Cameron is not so keen on the grass. We went to the park several times this week and when we introduced Cameron to the grass, she was less than enthusiastic. She kept picking up her feet and not wanting it to touch her skin. The grass was cold and prickly, but hopefully she will warm up to the idea of being barefoot in the grass.

PJ and Ellie also enjoyed the long days. Its so nice to take them out after work and it still be daylight. We let them play in the parks and walk all around the neighborhood. They got lots of playtime this week.

In fact we walked them until they could not walk anymore. It was nice to have them very tired at the end of the day. Cameron liked it too because they did not move as fast when she wanted to go after them. Both the dogs are pretty calm around Cameron. They somehow know that when she is playing, they are required to sit still and watch.

Ellie is Back!!

Ellie's parents left this morning for their last vacation as a single couple. The baby is 5 months away so they figured it was their last chance to get on a plane. So they headed to Hawaii after dropping Ellie off with us to enjoy the next week hanging out with PJ. She was relunctant to get out of the car, after all our house has things like baby gates, and dog crates.

I decided to make it up to her and took Ellie and PJ to Google so that they could have some playtime at our new offices. It was heaven! They went swimming in the multiple ponds, jumped the waterfalls, and ran through all the landscaping.

But as everyone knows, the best part of Google is the food. They each got to enjoy some organic cheese sticks and some leftover grilled chicken from our chefs. Now this is what I call breakfast. They ran and ran and ran, and when I thought they were done, they ran some more.

Most of the pictures I took were blurry, but that is actually true life. The whole time we were there they were just a blur. We are going to try and make this a good vacation for Ellie too. After all, things will change for her too in 5 months.

Hello Ellie!!

Glad to be back (to school)

Cameron was so happy to return to school. She shared her drum and some of the Irish pub music she got from Dublin. She had hoped that the postcard she sent to her class would have arrived but it did not. But now they all have something to look forward to.



Now that Cameron is almost 9 months old, she is one of the old-timers in the infant room. She is now mentoring one of the other girls in the class about how to rule the class room and make sure the boys fall in line. Here is a picture of her teaching one of the younger babies how to read a book.





Unfortunately for all of us the week did not end very well. Cameron caught a bug from another baby that left us all unhappy. Cameron had it for 6 days, daddy had it for 4 days and counting, and even mommy got it for a day and a half. We've decided to not try that bug again.

Princess Cameron

First Cameron found her throne.

Then she found her castle.

We finished our Ireland trip with a walk around Dublin. We visited several parks, walked along the river, did some shopping, and visited the childhood home of Oscar Wilde. It really is a nice city to walk around and see the Georgian homes, old churches, and castles along the way.

And of course the trip would not have been complete without enjoying a pint of Guiness. The funny thing is the locals didn't look twice at Cameron entering the pub.

Wicklow

Today Mommy took the day off so Daddy and Cameron could get out of the hotel. Its been raining so only short walks have been possible. We took a bus to Wicklow, which is south of Dublin. We drove along the southern coast and then into the hills. The tallest peak in Dublin is 4000 feet so we didn't really consider them mountains although that is what the locals call them.

Into the hills we got to see the bogs and some mining of the turf. Our busdriver/tour guide was a very depressing story teller. He talked about all of the sad history of Ireland and its people. It was kinda weird. Through the hills we passed the Guiness estate, and we stopped at a village in the hills before proceeding to Glendalough. We had a great Irish stew and did some shopping.

Here Cameron met her first kitty in person. There were 3 young cats who were all identical but different sizes (S, M, L). After meeting the kitties we went on a short walk along the river and then got back on the bus.

We finally made it to Gelndalough which is a medieval monastery. What's left is some of the ruins of the various buildings and the tower. This monastery was raided by the vikings regularly so there were lots of stories of how the villagers and priests kept the monastery open. The graveyard is still open but there are only a few people who are slated to be buried there before it closes. Jeff didn't seem to comfortable walking around a graveyard, but to me it felt normal. I guess thats from growing up in New Orleans.

It was a good day for Cameron. After her long adventure she sat down and played some of the pub music she heard all day with her new drum. Cameron picked out this drum and played with it the rest of the time. I think this is going to be a fun toy to share on music day at school.

Flying International Business Baby!!

We had to wake up really early to get to San Francisco airport in time for our international flight to Dublin. We were flying United Business to London and from there we took BMI to Dublin. Although it was early Cameron was very excited to be back at the airport. She loves all the different people and this time she had her passport in hand and giggled the whole way through the security line. She was getting lots of attention from the other passengers and everyone she met left with a smile.


Once on the airplane her enthusiasm did not falter. She was as happy as could be and let everyone around her know it. She dug into her goody bag and found a toothbrush. She had no problems figuring out what to do with it. The socks in the goody bag became a very very funny puppet but it had to be put away because the other passengers couldn't sleep.


Cameron explored everything. She checked out what movies were playing, ate the menu, played with her toys, met all the stewardesses, and all the other passengers. 10 hours later when we arrived in London, she was still wide awake, laughing hysterically, and making sure mommy got no sleep at all.



At the end of the flight, she enjoyed her warm towel and gave all the stewardesses goodbye hugs. Thank goodness we were flying business class because we got to hang out in the BMI Business lounge during our layover. 5 hours later we landed in Dublin and took off to the hotel to sleep off the flight and hopefully get our baby calm. We stayed at the Four Seasons in Dublin and the staff was so great. They had a crib setup for Cameron along with baby soap, diapers, and toys. We would definitely stay at the Four Seasons again.

Half Moon Bay

Today we finally went to Half-Moon Bay to see Cookie, Chip, and Mikey's new place. They are in a house that they hope to buy and its only a few block from the beach. After having lunch and checking out the new house we headed to the beach.

It was a great day to be at the beach. The temperature was nice and only a few clouds around. When we got close, PJ started to get really excited!!! I think he could smell the ocean and couldn't get to the water fast enough. There were horses to check out and sticks along the shore. He of course went swimming and chased Jeff back and forth.

Cameron really enjoyed watching PJ and she was really interested in tasting the sand, but we didn't let her. She actually fell asleep listening to the water and had a nice nap while PJ help Mikey dig some holes.

Watch what I can do!!

One

TWO

THREE

And it keeps getting funnier!!!