Family Davis-Ross

busy bees

Some days, like today, are just bursting with fun from start to finish.

    
Gelled-up hairstyles + games of catch in the baby pool.

    
"Babycinos" with friends.*


"Pie" food for dinner. (That's "Thai" for those who don't speak Peter.)


A downtown street party that turns into an opportunity to run through the streets, balloons tied to shirts, with more friends.

And other updates:
I think we've turned the corner on the teething front. After a few nights of "why-can't-I-sleep!" anger and frustration from Lucy, I'm reminded of just how good and easy she is 99 percent of the time. (And how thankful I am that I've yet to have a colicky baby.)

Peter has grown the extra quarter inch or so he needed to reach the pedals on his tricycle. Rumor has it he can pedal as far as "Jungle Park," several blocks away. He still prefers to ride the tricycle Flintstone's style.

We made our last trip to the Academy of Sciences on Sunday, where we tried to see all of our favorites one more time.

It was on this trip I realized exactly why the Academy causes me such stress, even though it should be a place the kids love (full of cool animals, real and stuffed): the railings. Oh, the railings. Every exhibit is surrounded by these metal railings that, to Peter and Lucy, must look like the most perfect playground ever. I can't count the number of times I had to pry Lucy's tight grip off of the narrow bars, while she wildly shook her head and bucked her body in protest.** It's not the most pleasant way to spend an afternoon.

The trip was interesting also because it was the first time Peter realized what was recreated in one of the African Hall dioramas: a cheetah, hovering over his kill. Peter was really perplexed by the small deer, obviously injured, on the ground, and returned to the scene again and again, pointing out that the animal had gotten hurt. ("Animal ouchie, Mommy! Animal fell down.") His innocence remains intact, thankfully, as he didn't implicate the cheetah in any crimes of nature, and we didn't have to talk about death or killing.

Also, Lucy was roughed up while playing a tunnel in the Early Explorers Cove. As far as we can tell, she took a hit across the face by another child who was not playing well with others. She was as upset as we have ever seen her, and was calmed only when Kevin took her into the hall to look at the taxidermied giraffe family.

We spent the rest of our week enjoying the wildlife, both indigenous and exotic. A quick trip to the Zoo with Shannon, Sofia, and baby Sebastian yielded a few new sights, including a fight between one of the baby giraffes and an ostrich, a snacking giraffe just feet away from the kids, a glimpse at the tiny baby gorilla, and a roaring tiger. Peter was beyond excited to show Sofia the dik-dik, but I'm not sure if Sofia was as taken by the little creature as Peter is. (I'm not sure Peter's as taken by the dik-dik, either. His excitement over the dik-dik has waned since our recent visit.) And since we had to do something to shake of the chill of a San Francisco summer day, we stopped at a nearby coffee shop for warm drinks, including Peter's first hot chocolate. He was beyond thrilled with his first three or four sips - you could see him thinking, "what is this, and why haven't I been drinking it all my life?" - but he quickly reached his limit and was more than willing to donate the rest of his drink to Sofia. I'm certain Lucy would have enjoyed the rest, but she was content enough to hold an empty coffee cup and "drink" along with the rest of us.

And, on our weekly hike to the farm, we saw a crazy amount of non-farm wildlife, including a family of deer, a wild turkey with her two turkey chicks, several lizards, and a coyote, from across a field. I'm sure I was more excited about the coyote than Peter or Lucy. All we need to see now is a mountain lion and I'll have seen all of the animals on the "these animals may kill you" signs posted in local parks.***

*A not-so-hot espresso cup of foamy milk, topped generously with cinnamon. What's not to like?

**This said, a friend just relayed the tale of her daughter, feet through the railing, a dropped shoe, and the albino alligator's afternoon snack. I'm glad Peter wasn't there to see it, or he would have been throwing his shoes in the swamp, too.

***To be clear: I do not wish to find myself near a mountain lion, unless it's behind metal bars and/or bulletproof glass. I'm just pointing out that we've seen rattlesnakes and ticks and the Cheerio-hungry squirrels of Cuesta Park.

teething

why the radio silence?

Lucy's teething. Four, possibly more, teeth all bursting through at one time.

It's made for some sleepless nights and some significant lack-of-blogging time.

But we'll be back, soon, with tales of: trike-riding toddlers, ostriches chasing baby giraffes, cute baby gorillas, Peter's first hot chocolate, and our first coyote sighting.

Fourth of July (in review)

You may recall we watched the Redwood City Fourth of July parade last year, but Peter didn't recall this, so our weekend visit to watch floats and marching bands was as new to him as to Lucy.

The parade was a pretty basic affair - some marching bands, some floats, local dignitaries, fire engines and horses. Certainly tame by parade standards, but more than enough for the toddler set. (Lucy found it all so overwhelming that she fell asleep just minutes after the parade started.)

Two memories will capture the weekend for me: first, during the parade, when Peter discovered a knocked-over traffic cone just a few feet ahead of us. That kind of disorder is not to be tolerated - Peter pointed to it and cried, "uh-oh!" I told him to run over and upright the cone, which he did, to the applause and cheers of a dozen or so nearby observers. He was so proud of himself to receive such congratulations.

Second, when, after the parade, we headed to a post-lunch ice cream. While waiting in line, Lucy spotted a kid nearby with a huge ice cream cone. She began reaching and grabbing for it in earnest. Then, she became aware that she was surrounded by people with giant ice cream cones, all of which she wanted to cram in her mouth.

happy fourth of july!

, originally uploaded by amy_and_kevin.

I *had* a great post which Typepad just ate. So, instead, a picture of the kids.

Yes, I made the shirt for Peter. It was glittered and he LOVED it. ("Peter sparkly! Mommy art project!" was a frequent refrain.)

Both kids also sported some rockin' bald eagle tattoos on their shoulders.

We were aiming for irony, but might have crashed straight into trailer park. Oh, well.

Friday lunch

I am amazed at how calm, contained, and focused on eating the kids in this picture are. Who are they? Certainly not the kids from our Friday lunch group, who are more often found running and playing than calmly eating while seated at a table. (Then again, if Emelie, Jessie, and Alara had been here, it might have been a different story.)

Also, please note that Peter's wearing a dress. Yes, a dress. His choice, and he specifically requested to wear one of Lucy's dresses. (As opposed to one of his dresses?)

naked!

Peter and Sofia, decent again

Could there be anything better than getting wet, getting sandy, swinging "silly style," getting wet again, then stripping off all of your clothes and running around a park, doing naked somersaults with a good friend?

If you are under 3, the answer is an unequivocal "no."

Thanks to the good people of Sunnyvale who didn't seem to mind two naked toddlers running around one of their fine parks and to Shannon who suggested we visit to begin with.

"water" just one of Lucy's words (and loves)

And while the older kids were off causing mischief? This one was content to play with the water.

You know the notion of being "raised by wolves?" I think Lucy may be "raised by preschoolers." When two older girls threatened to use some of the faucets Lucy had claimed as her own, she reacted just as her older peers would (on a bad day): cries and shoves. Yep, she's learning life lessons all over the place. But really, an almost 11-month-old pushing aside two 3-year-old girls is a funny sight, however it comes about.

watering our sunflower seedlings

watering our sunflower seedlings, originally uploaded by amy_and_kevin.

Elmo's World isn't our primary pedagogical tool, but it's amazing just how much Peter has learned from the program.* For example, last week at the beach Peter started jumping rope with a huge piece of seaweed he found.

Kevin: Peter, where did you learn that? (to me) Did you teach him how to jump rope?
Me: No. He learned it from Elmo. (to Peter) Hey, Peter, who taught you how to jump rope?
Peter: Mr. Noodle!

After watching the Flowers, Plants, and Trees episode for the 80th time, Peter decided he, too, wanted to sprout some seeds in a clear jar. We rounded up the materials - jars, paper towels, some sunflower and green bean seeds, and water.

Our sunflower seeds sprouted roots and shoots and were transplanted into a little pot with just a bit more room for them to grow. I'm not holding out high hopes for them, although I'm always willing to be amazed.

Now the green beans are in our jars, waiting for their own roots and shoots, and Peter's more than willing to continue his watering duties.

*Especially amazing given Peter's insistence on watching only two or three episodes overandoverandoverandover. Bananas, I'm looking at you.

another day at the beach

We were more than happy to join friends Lisa, Steve, Samuel and baby Shira at Natural Bridges State Beach in Santa Cruz today. Multiple beach trips in one week? Yep, these are California kids.

Peter, Samuel, and Lucy enjoyed making and destroying sand castles, pushing around Samuel's little wagon, and venturing to the water's edge.

And, once our friends left, we took the opportunity to explore the beach a bit more. On the north edge of the beach are a series of rocks which jut out and host tide pools. We weren't able to make it to the interesting tide pools (since we'd started walking without shoes, over pointy rocks, and someone was determined to master walking in the most dangerous place, ever), but we did come to a rock which hosted mussels, limpets, and other sea snails.

On our way back to our beach camp, Peter realized the crumbling sandstone provided more than enough ammunition to launch into the lagoon underneath us.

Oh, yes. We also dug holes.

*very* Peter and Lucy

Today, at the Children's Discovery Museum, while Sofia and other kids were busy creating artistic masterpieces, my children could more often be found washing their hands at the child-sized sink.

I appreciated Peter's strategy, as it showed a bit more sophistication: he would purposely get his hands messy (with the paint or with the liquid watercolors) and then, holding his hands up to me as if before a judge, say, "Peter wash hands. Hands dirty!"

Lucy employed a tactic just as effective if a bit more annoying. She planted herself at the sink, hand outstretched, hoping to catch any stray stream of water that happened her way as other kids (most often her brother) washed their hands.

Obviously, we should have visited the water play area first.

Monday, Monday

Of all of the days of the week, Monday is the one with the most predictable rhythm: a little extra playing and cleaning in the morning, downtown Mountain View errands, coffee with friends, and then the playground, for as long as the kids can handle it, which lately has been 3 or 4 hours.

Yesterday, though, had a different rhythm.

We walked outside into our neighbors' water balloon fight. (They invited Peter and Lucy to play.)

Lucy got some impromptu walking/jumping/dancing lessons.

Lucy developed a fondness for park friend Yash, who was born just a few hours after Lucy at the same hospital. Here, she's giving him her patented full-on, full-tongue kisses.

And, just when we thought the day was winding down, a friendly ice cream vendor gave Sofia a free cone, which she generously shared with her mother and Peter.

heat beating

It's gotten suddenly hot around these parts, and rather than complain about it, we've decided to embrace it or avoid it.

Saturday? Avoid it. We took advantage of the area's best natural climate control: the foggy ocean beach.

When we arrived, it was chilly and so foggy you could barely see 10 feet in front of you. When we left it had cleared but was still a good 10 degrees cooler than home.

And in between? We watched horses, played silly hat games, played in the rough ocean surf,* and did the obligatory hole-digging, castle-erecting (and razing) and jellyfish hunting. Peter invented a few new games (including "taking seaweed for a walk," since the beach was full of truly amazing mounts of huge seaweed - it looked like someone had dumped piles of thick cables tied with balloons at times), and Lucy cried out in delight each time a new caravan of horses came past our camp.

*Actually, only Kevin and I did this. We left the kids back by the beach tent and blanket. It was fun for a few minutes, until we were hit by a huge wave and Kevin was pulled down by the strong undertow.

   

monkeys + bed = jumping, naturally

An outtake from the Friday lunch group, minus Samuel, LIllian, and Alara.

You can imagine that much screaming accompanied the frantic jumping action

Lucy, a full foot shorter than the two-year-olds, protested not when she fell and bumped her head during the jump-a-thon, but when I tried to "rescue" her from the crib

Clearly, she thinks she's just one of the kids.

ode to the pool

We have a pool in our apartment complex.

It's not fancy, at all.



But it's wet.

And cold.



And close.

And free.

And on these hot summer days (today was in the 90s!), what more could you ask for?

(Well, I asked for soft serve. I could see how a Popsicle could be nice, too.)

weekly zoo trip: now with more touching!

here they are loitering by the train, hoping that I'd let them ride again
(unfortunately for them, I stick to my guns)

I'm amazed that we can take a trip to the same zoo week after week and still find ways to make it new and interesting.

armadillo touching: "bumpy!"

Last Thursday was such a day. Several teen docents were out with dozens of animals for kids to touch, pet, and examine close up. Peter was able (and excited!) to touch several snakes, tortoises, ferrets, and a hedgehog, armadillo, and chinchilla. We also got up-close looks at a parrot, frog, and the San Francisco garter snake.

cheap, non-union and very illegal laborers

But really, within twenty minutes of arriving at the zoo, I knew our day could only go downhill. Peter was asked by a zookeeper in the giraffe barn to spray down the giraffe poop and leftover pieces of hay with an industrial spray hose. How could I possibly top that - water play AND poop AND getting to help the animals? It's like a toddler's vision of Shangra-La.

We did ride the carousel and the train, which delighted Peter but thrilled Lucy, who arched her body to ride one of the carousel animals and started waving to passers-by with no prompting from me the minute the carousel started spinning around.*

encounters with a donkey's donkey?

Peter and Lucy both seem more willing to engage the animals in the children's farm area, which is good news for me but bad news for the sheep and goats. Luckily, the miniature donkeys and hen chicks were the winners of their affection this week.

*Also, I wish I could explain just how many times a day Peter talks about carousels. I think he's found his first love.

clearly, not a baby any longer

This is a baby on the cusp of becoming a toddler.

I missed this moment with Peter. I was too focused on him being a baby that I didn't really recognize the transition from "baby" to "kid." I mean, we definitely noticed when he started understanding what we were saying, or when he started to walk, but I probably thought of him as a baby for much longer than he really was.

This time around, though, my parenting senses are trained enough to pick up on the clues. Multiple words? Check. On frequent rotation: that, mama, water, doggie, and a very cheerful "hi!"

Helpful and properly-used gestures? Yep. You should see this kid shake her head no. But in recent weeks she's started pointing, waving, and - most adorably - holding hands when we pray the nightly "Our Father" in the bedtime routine.

Following simple commands? Check. Today, I said, "Lucy, can you point to the doggy" - all words, no gestures - and she did. Later, I said, "Lucy, can you get the bear that sings?" and she crawled over to where the bear was sitting on the floor and brought it over.

Eating "people food?" Oh, yes. On our walk back from the farm today, Lucy munched both on a huge chunk of cheese and a ripe peach. She still has only two teeth, but that's clearly not stopping her.

She's also so close to walking and standing on her own, unafraid to exert a strong will of her own, and quite happy to crawl into other rooms (in strange houses!) to keep herself occupied.

But if I had any doubt about the waning days of Lucy's babyhood, it was put to rest today when we got to meet tiny two-day-old Shira. In what can only be described as a feat of superhuman nature, our friend Lisa gave birth late Sunday night and still made it to the weekly walk to the farm, newborn and toddler and helpful husband in tow. And I thought we were adventurous taking Lucy out on day two for a walk to the library and lunch.

a visit to the seal doctor

Since Peter and Lucy have such a great time watching the sea lions and seals we find on our adventures, I thought they might appreciate a visit to the Marine Mammal Center. It is a not-for-profit marine mammal rehabilitation hospital in the Marin Headlands, and it just reopened after a complete renovation.

scale model of an adult elephant seal - huge!

Over the past few days I've been preparing Peter for the visit to the "seal doctor," so he definitely knew what to expect when we entered the MMC. He knew that he wouldn't be able to touch any of the seals or sea lions (much to his disappointment), but that he could see the doctors and volunteers taking care of the animals.

from the upper observation deck, watching the seal pups at play

I wasn't entirely sure what to expect when I realized the kids could view only three of the rehabilitation pools where the animals were kept, but the animals we could see were active and fun to watch. (We had a good view of harbor seal pups that were lost from their mothers before weaning or before gaining enough weight to make it on their own.)*

watching a seal pup necropsy

"Peter kiss sea lion! Mwah! Mwah!"**

We also wandered around the facility, touching the various sea mammal pelts in the education room, coloring pictures of sea lions on police cars (based on a true story), and enjoying the view of several life-size bronze sea mammals. Peter and Lucy also viewed their first animal autopsy, a seal pup,*** and had a nice encounter with a friendly vet.

budding architect?

After we said good-bye to the animals (Peter requested "a couple more minutes" with them), we drove down the street to Rodeo Beach, where we ran across incredibly hot sand to a cool patch of beach, perfect for pelican-watching, hole-digging, castle-making, and lunch-eating. Before long, Peter and Lucy headed toward the water, and, to my great surprise, Peter stuck his feet in! (Not to anyone's surprise, Lucy tried to crawl away, through the waves, to the ocean's deep floor. She was deterred neither by the waves crashing over her nor by the cold water.) Before we left, we found a jellyfish washed up on the beach, which Peter too great pleasure in poking with a stick, just as his grandfather would have.

it happened once by accident; she made it happen again on purpose

*I tried to explain this to Peter - "what would happen if you got lost from Mommy and Daddy like these seals? where would you go?" and was completely unsurprised by his answer: in the water. Apparently, he'd like to go live with the seals.

**This is why my children most certainly will contact swine flu: their inability to keep things out of their mouths.

***The docent kindly tried to steer us away from the window, but I correctly assumed that neither Peter nor Lucy would have any idea what was happening inside. Plus, the vet had just started the procedure and was taking measurements. We left just after a few skin samples were removed.

long, bright nights

The kids have been staying up longer at night, possibly because they're getting older, possibly because they're kept up by the long summer nights, but most probably because they have so much fun together that it's always hard to get them to wind down after a fun, splashy bath and some good Daddy story time.

For the first week, Kevin and I rebelled against this. These kids need to go to sleep by 8! we thought, and we fought them to sleep. Now, though, we're embracing the later bedtime. Trips to the park, muddy outdoor play, and family play time are now a post-dinner activity, too.

That said, I wouldn't mind a return to the 8 p.m. bedtime at the end of the summer. Hint, hint, Lucy and Peter.

father's day fun at the park

Kevin requested a family day at the park for his father's day present, and Peter and Lucy were only happy to oblige. We visited Oak Meadow Park and the adjoining Vasona Lake Parks in nearby Los Gatos and had our fill of fun:

real Air Force airplane in the playground

steam train around the park

Peter and Lucy took their waving responsibilities very seriously while riding the train. It's possibly more fun than the train ride itself. They're practicing a variety of waves, including "princess" and "pope," but their favorite might be the enthusiastic double-handed wave. Peter's starting to realize when people wave back (and, sadly, when they don't), which makes this game all the more fun.

carousel

The carousel featured only horses, but they went "roun-an-roun-an-up-an-down" as Peter would say, which is enough for them. Bonus: not manned by tyrants, unlike some carousels we know.

We landed at the park the same day as the Silicon Valley Duck Race, a huge fundraiser in which you adopt a rubber duck and hope it beats out 14,999 other competitors as they float down the creek. We didn't mean to make the duck race -although we had tried to go last year - but it was a happy and welcome coincidence. Peter bounced his little heart out in the bounce house, and Lucy did not want to leave the fire engine once we placed her in the driver's seat.*

Lucy to the rescue!

Alas, a day so full of sun and fun tends to end in tears and whimpers. We didn't really get to see the ducks float down the creek as the kids were mounting a full-scale meltdown, but what we did see was impressive. Also, on the drive home, Kevin pointed out that we were just 10 yards from Appleman, dancer, and Los Gatos resident Steve Wozniack, a fact I missed as I was trying to keep Lucy from flinging herself in the creek.

We ended the day with tacos and, kicking off a Famiy Davis-Ross tradition, ice cream cones. It is the first day of summer, which calls for a special treat. Soft serve, anyone? Yes, please!

*Peter did not want to go in the fire engine. Lucy also wanted to go in the bounce house. I can already see a future in which Lucy's jumping off the high dive and Peter's still wearing arm floaties.

once again, we become tourists

In our last few weeks here, we're trying to see all the sights that the Bay Area has to offer.
Today: touristy in San Francisco!

Peter received a cool California counting book for Easter, and ever since he's asked to see the cable cars. (He's also asked to see the Railroad Museum, which, you may remember, we also visited.) He reads the book several times a week and when he gets to the page with the cable cars, he points to the picture and says, "Peter ride someday."

Well, that someday was today.

In the end, I think Peter would have enjoyed a streetcar just as much, and he certainly got a thrill out of the bus ride from Fisherman's Wharf to Chinatown, but he liked the cable car just fine. He especially liked it when the conductor let him ring the bell.

a nice view for our picnic lunch

We visited the sea lions, ate some lunch, played at the beach (where Lucy sprinted across the sand the moment we put her down to a pile of abandoned sand toys and began sand-play in earnest, with breaks only to let Kevin put her toes in the bay), ate some cupcakes, then took said bus to Chinatown.

Our primary stop in Chinatown was the Golden Gate Fortune Cookie Factory, a little hole-in-the-wall factory on an alleyway in Chinatown. I'm not sure if Peter really understood what was happening, but he certainly understands what fortune cookies are, and didn't mind when he was handed a bag of cookies.*

Kevin and sleeping Lucy in Chnatown (Bay Bridge behind)

free cookies!

*We pass our favorite Chinese restaurant almost every day, and half the time we pass it Peter says, "Chinese food there! Get cookie there!" I'm pretty sure in his mind the point of eating Chinese food is to get a cookie. That, and as much rice as he could ever want.

simple pleasures

HOLY COW THEY'RE EXCITED TO EAT WATERMELON!!!!!, originally uploaded by amy_and_kevin.

watermelon
a good friend
a summer evening, up past your bedtime
following a fun day full of playing with friends

it's a good life, Petey Joe-Joe

olallieberries + child labor = delicious fun

To my great surprise and delight, it turns out that toddlers are great olallieberry pickers. I suspected the kids would like an outing to a berry picking farm, but had reservations - would they be able to pick the ripe berries? How long would it hold their attention? Would the effort of picking a berry from the bush seem worth it, given the pint (or seven or eight) of berries the kids put back every week?

After a period of pretty intense concentration and stick-to-it-ive-ness, Peter ran off to check out the animals. Which remind me: I knew he was excited to pick berreis because when we arrived at the farm we gathered our berry picking supplies and then wandered into the animal yard. Peter took a look around and said, "Peter pick berry now?" Which, if I may translate, means; "I ordinarly would love to look at all of these amazing farm animals and even climb on the old tractors, but I'm really, really interested in picking berries RIGHT NOW."

our berry picking crew: Samuel, Peter and Sofia

    

 But no: after a few minutes of instruction (and the consumption of an unappetizing underripe berry or two), they took off to fill their buckets and their tummies. Mostly their tummies. I think we should have paid for the extra pound of berries that found their way into Peter, Lucy, Samuel, and Sofia's stomachs. (Lucy spent the picking portion of our day on my back, but was fed a steady stream of berries by anyone who passed by her greedy, outstretched hands.)

    

quality control inspectors

now, off to tend the fields

After the children had their fill of animals and berries, and we adults had our fill of delicious sandwiches, Shannon and I drove two minues away to the beach, to satisfy the toddler's desire to play in the sand.

this is one beach baby

summer snail hunting

You may remember that snail hunting in the bushes outside our apartment was a big hit with Peter.

Last night we had our first snail hunt of the summer. Still a big hit, made even more so by Peter's ability to (a) spot, (b) remove, and (c) store his own snails.

This one, though, is banned from snail-catching activities until she decides snails aren't food.

Instead, we'll send her to practice walking. Any day now!

memories + exhaustion

busy at work defying the laws of nature

We drove to the city today to visit the Academy of Sciences. It's the first time I've tried to take the kids without Kevin, and, perhaps sensing the peril of the situation, I wisely sought backup in the form of our friends Shannon, Sofia and Sebastian.

On the drive up I found myself not listening to NPR* but instead the albums Kevin had loaded in the CD player. They were an interesting mix, and I realized as I started browsing them that they were mostly bands we saw perform live the first year we lived in the Bay Area. While listening to Sonic Youth, I commented to Peter, "did you know that you went to see these people while you were still in Mommy's belly?"

Peter replied, "yeah!"

I then asked him, wondering just where this would go, "did you like them? was it fun?"

Peter replied, "yeah! Fun!"

And, for good measure, I had to ask, "did you dance when you saw them?"

And to this, Peter replied, "no! no dancing!"

Which probably is not the case, since Peter started hopping and flipping around 13 weeks gestation and frankly hasn't stopped since.

back in our show-going days (4 days before finding out about Peter)

Back to the Academy. When describing our day to Kevin, I could come up with only one adjective to describe it: exhausting. The drain of toddler-wrangling plus 20 pounds of baby-wearing compounded with pushy crowds and stroller maneuvering made it a fun, if completely draining, day.

I think the kids had a good time, although it's always awkward to know you've planned a big adventure for them and they're perfectly content chasing birds and poking dirt with sticks, and they did for 10 minutes outside our parked cars.

I know Peter enjoyed seeing the albino alligator, feeling the urchins and sea stars in the touch pond, and poking his head inside the eel garden. I'm not so sure how much he really likes looking at the fish in their tanks; while he's interested, he's not captivated.

Have we mentioned that Lucy likes giraffes? Because she does. I don't want this to be her "thing" - that she's 16 and she's still the girl who likes giraffes, even if she's much more interested in boys and nail polish - but she really likes them. The Academy features a family of taxidermied giraffes which had Lucy kicking and laughing and pointing and cooing every time we walked past them. Later, in the under-5 play area, she pounced on a plastic giraffe figurine, literally giving it several kisses before then placing its head in her mouth.

The under-5 play area may have been the big hit of the day. What's not to like about a special space dedicated for kids, complete with nearby bathrooms and plenty of bench space upon which to feed hungry babies?

We made it back to our cars completely spent. Lucy fell asleep on the walk; Peter within minutes after getting strapped into his seat. I know that Shannon, Sofia and Sebastian were similarly exhausted. When I started the car to drive home, the music picked up again where it had left off. I remembered thinking as I parked in the morning, "Kevin and I really should get out and see another show. We'll have lots of cheap/free/good babysitting when we move to Philadelphia." Then, driving away, I could only think to myself, "uh, who am I kidding? I couldn't possibly stay awake long enough to see a show. I'd fall asleep before the first crappy opening band finished its set."

Maybe that's why God invented coffee.**

*I once told Kevin, "I listen to NPR every day!" in a kind of bragging and haughty way, probably when he exposed some ignorance about current events. If I didn't listen to NPR I might not know about anything, ever. This sounds terrible, and it is, but for a week I had no idea what Sonia Sotomayor's last name really was. Soto Meyor? Sohtomeiyor? Who knew? Not me, that's for sure.

**Or evolution. Probably evolution.

Peter and Lucy, mid-June updates

It's been a while since my last update. This one might be a bit random, and most certainly more for posterity than for general amusement.

Peter
He's really been talking up a storm lately, more so than the last time I wrote that he's talking up a storm. There are some days when he never, ever shuts up. Mostly he's engaging us in conversation or making requests or observations, so while the commentary is constant, it's not unpleasant.

We have started to get into the age of repetition, however. Several times a day I get asked, "Choo-choo puff smoke, Mommy?" or one of three or four other questions/statements he makes. (Another common one: "Monkey eat banana, Mommy?")

He's also started trying to talk with his friends, which is adorable to watch, especially since his friends don't really seem to understand him.

For some reason, Lucy has become "Lucy Clare" at all times, even when Peter's kind of whiny and upset with her. When not "Lucy Clare," Lucy's also "LuLu" or "Lucy LuLu" or "Peter's sister."

And the mimicking! He has really started to use the catchphrases and common sayings of the Davis-Ross household. "Sure!" is a common response if you ask Peter to do something. He recently told me to "stay right there, don't move, I'll be right back," when going to get a book from another room. And, perhaps the sweetest of all, he'll offer a sincere "miss you!" when you leave (or just happen to walk into the bathroom and out of his sight).

I caught the following conversation between Peter and our upstairs neighbor, who is four.
Evan: Where's the baby, Peter?
Peter: In the bushes!
Evan: Where's the mommy, Peter?
Peter: Inside. Right here!

(The baby Evan referred to was Lucy. The baby Peter referred to was the baby in the bushes, the mysterious doll we discovered one day who watches over the patio like some sort of sacrifice.)
Then, there are gems like this one:

Peter: Mommy pee-pees sitting down. Daddy pee-pees standing up.

We're so rarely home to play with his toys, but when we are the trains are a big hit. Books, too. But the trains - Peter and Kevin and Lucy could spend hours building (and destroying, in the case of Lucy) elaborate train set-ups. ("Don't mess it up, Lucy," Peter will say, even before Lucy makes a move toward the train tracks.)

Perhaps because we are so busy, or perhaps because he's better able to keep himself entertained, Peter has waning interest in watching Elmo on television. (And he has, thankfully, very little interest in watching anything else, although he has been curious whenever Kevin turns on the television to watch a basketball game or to see the Kentucky Derby, but I suspect it's more the novelty of having a television on than the actual content.) This isn't to say that Peter doesn't enjoy himself some Elmo; we have been known to leave the public library with only an Elmo DVD in hand.  But television is more of a once or twice a week occurrence, and usually only because Kevin or I are too lazy, busy, or exhausted to find an alternative.

There is absolutely no advancement on the toilet training front, and my one recent step forward - having him sit on the toilet after his nightly bath - was met with tears and anger. My new strategy will be to toilet train Peter and Lucy at the same time, followed quickly by a thorough carpet shampoo.

We've had some serious setbacks in the bedtime front, just as we've had some breakthroughs on the naptime front. From the front lines, I think I prefer horrific naps and easy bedtimes, but I'm obviously not in charge of this. Just a month ago, Peter would bounce up and down in his crib, waving "good-bye" to us as we walked out of his room, turning off the light and shutting the door. Now? We've reached a compromise where Kevin will stay with Peter until Peter falls asleep, further reducing our married-couple time to approximately 10 minutes a day.

And the night waking...

Food also has been a source of contention lately. Our biggest problem is that food items must be "big" - that is, an entire banana, an entire orange, the whole plate of food I put in the freezer to cool down for both Peter and Lucy. Sharing food, more than toys or other activities, causes problems too. But he's showing signs of growing up: he's been eating a peach a day, fuzzy skin and all, and today he surprised me by eating an apple and its peel.

Some battles show no end in sight (morning tooth brushing, changing out of pajama shirt, quickly getting into his carseat) while others are ebbing (diaper changes, transitioning from inside/outside, leaving different venues).

In general, on any given day, Peter's a really delightful and happy little kid who generally listens and obeys, finds delight with simple activities, and seems to really enjoy spending time with his sister and his friends. He's a good kid. I suspect he gets that from his father.

Lucy
Oh, Lucy. If I ever feared you'd be lost in the shuffle, those fears were for naught. This little girl has an amazing amount of personality - both adorable and charming and trying and exhausting - in such a round little body.

Most excitingly, Lucy's started talking! I think Kevin and I are used to deciphering Peterspeak so we were more attuned to Lucy's babble, but there's do denying it: the girl's a talker. She says, "that" about 300 times a day, so clearly that a hearing-impaired stranger could easily discern it. As the primary word in her vocabulary, "that" takes on many meanings. Mostly, though, it's her pointing to something she wants, and, knowing Lucy, it's food. She's not a huge eater, but the food she wants is the food on your plate. Five days out of the week we sit down to exactly the same meal before us, but when she sees my fork hit my food, she gives me a look of curiosity and desire, points with her chubby fist, and says, "that!"

Other words: "I got it," "thank you," and, of course, "mama."

But "I got it?" and "thank you?" Yes. I assure you. And I can tell you why, too: her brother tells her these words all day long.

basic recipe, with many variations
Peter: (taking something from Lucy OR giving something to Lucy) Thank you, Lucy.

We're trying to transition Lucy to sleeping in her crib, even though she's not ready for it. We're ready for it, though, and, frankly, we're not set up to safely co-sleep any longer. This was proved last night when Lucy landed with a thud and a shriek out of the bed - and neither Kevin or I have any clue how she made it to the floor without a bump or a scratch, given the deathtrap nature of our bed. Lucy's not too keen on her crib. Her reaction toward it ranges from outright anger (the sight of it makes her cry) to generalized anxiety (she arches her back and turns away from it). And most attempts to put her in it to play - in an effort to make it a less scary place - are met with tears, even if Peter joins in the fun. But, she'll gladly play for days in Peter's crib, which, I might add, is exactly the same model.

She has a few tricks of which she's particularly proud. She can sign the "twinkle twinkle" part of "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star." She can say "touchdown!" give high-fives, blow kisses, and wave spontaneously to people who catch her fancy.

Lucy's also coming along on the physical development front. She's standing with so little support or effort from us that I think that walking's not too far off. She loves to throw (Kevin notes she uses her right hand) and to play basketball. She's really quite good about entertaining herself, especially considering she's just 10 months old. Almost daily she'll crawl over to the toy shelf and pull of the toys we've put down there for her. It keeps her occupied for only 15 or 20 minutes, but come on! That's at least 4 hours in babytime. Today at the park she crawled all over, without me, without hesitation nor concern. She'll also crawl right out the back patio door if it's left open, keeping herself entertained for another 20 minutes or so.

But she's not that independent. One of her favorite positions is what we like to call "monkeybaby," in which she's clinging to and grabbing handfuls of me. Mornings are tough because often Lucy begins crying when she hears my voice as I emerge from my hibernation and doesn't stop until I've carried her around for half an hour or so. It makes brushing your teeth difficult.

That said, Lucy loves all of the other mothers in our play group, and at times with ask them to hold her while she showers them with kisses and real, honest-to-goodness hugs. Her nickname? Babymaker.

She's started to enjoy being read to, and has definite favorites. Brown Bear, Brown Bear has just edged out Head to Toe (but not before Lucy mastered the "clapping like a sea lion" page). Ten Little Ladybugs, a book about the farm, the Little People books with flaps to open and close, and the books in the Mommy Kisses, Mommy Hugs, etc. series.

She has a really funny sense of humor. She makes noises and funny faces to get us to laugh at her. She is a champion raspberry blower, and she and Peter will get into competitions to see who can slobber the most on my legs. (The winner? Duh. Peter. That kid might not ever stop drooling.)

But, she can be tough. When she's ovetired, she'll arch her back, jerking out of my arms, making a very unhappy yelp. Over and over and over. Sleep isn't easy for her, which I know is entirely my fault, but I can't help but believe she likes our out-and-about lifestyle since she always perks up when we leave the house.

Things she doesn't want to hold any longer or at all? Thrown across the room. A drink you're offering her? Thrown at your face. Her brother's security blanket, which he's lovingly shared with her in the stroller? Thrown along the greenway path on our morning walk, never to be seen again.

Oh my word, with a post like this I'm taking our 10 minutes of married-couple time straight to 5. I'm sure there are a million other things I could write about the kids. All you need to know is this: they're happy, they're loved, and they're adorable.

Now, who wants to babysit?

this is what I'd get you for your birthday, but I think it would melt on the drive back from St. George

Grand Canyon, side view, originally uploaded by amy_and_kevin.

And who am I kidding? By the time I got on I-15, it would be half eaten.

Happy birthday, Kevin. I hope to again trash a rental car in the middle of Utah, have it repaired for free (warranties!!), and discover a delicious ice cream parlor with you.

Any plans for your 35th birthday?

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk

Day Two of our Lost Tahoe Weekend: the beach. Specifically, Santa Cruz's historic Beach Boardwalk. I appreciate it for its calm, reasonably warm beach; its close, reasonably clean public restrooms; and its abundant and not-at-all reasonably healthy food options. (Actually, we partook neither of the food nor the rides, making this both a fun and frugal outing. Free parking to boot!)

The kids had exactly the reaction we were hoping for when we spread out our bright yellow blanket on the sand: the beach is just like a gigantic sandbox! And with very little prompting from us (I believe a "your sand toys are in this bag" was offered), they proceeded to get very, very sandy and have a great amount of fun.

Peter still exhibited some wariness about the water, its waves crashing, and its cold temperature. Lucy, on the other hand, seemed willing to crawl right into the surf, if only the water weren't so cold.

(Also, since we knew there was little danger of the kids actually getting in the water, we didn't bother with bathing suits. And that's Peter in his little oxford button-up shirt, which he picked out himself, looking perhaps he got off at the wrong exit and should have been at the Country Club instead. I mean, I personally don't care what he wants to wear, but this was a bit much.)

On our way back to the car, we stopped to visit the sea lions hauled out just off the Santa Cruz wharf. Peter and Lucy enjoyed the sea lions as much as the sand, although Peter had a keen interest in trying to get in the water under the wharf.

We also randomly ran into friends Britta, Jorg and Emelie in the same spot (we both were walking in opposite directions) twice. It's nice to know people even when you're 40 miles from home.

Oakland Zoo

We were set to go to Tahoe this weekend - bags packed, camping gear unearthed and freshened, air mattress borrowed - when multiple checks of different weather reports yielded the same dire forecast: cold, rain, thunderstorms. I've decided my camping cut-off is below 40 degrees, especially since we certainly can't have a campfire with two flammable kids scurrying about.

So, to the backup plans. Day One of our Lost Tahoe Weekend: the Oakland Zoo. It's been on our radar for a while as being a close zoo with elephants, plus we get reduced admission with our SF Zoo passes.

human animals are more interesting than elephants, apparently

This is the part of the post where I say, "Peter and Lucy had a great time at the zoo." And it's true - they had a great time. But the fact is, these kids have a great time playing with the mulch outside our patio and watching the nesting birds in our bushes feed their young. So, when I say that they had a great time, what I think I mean is that Kevin and I had a great time.

lunch by the lemurs

Big hits at this zoo include the elephants, the actively swinging gibbon, river otters, some amazing and really disturbing flying fox bats, and a nice train ride along the outskirts of the zoo.

Lucy likes to see the giraffes - I'm not sure why, but they're a big treat for her. Peter was excited to see the elephants, having never seen one before, but has talked more about a snoring pot-bellied pig than the elephants. That said, Peter always enjoys watching animals poop and pee, and we saw that in abundance. (Elephant poop, anyone? Holy COW.)

cake having and eating, too

Thank you, Mountain View Public Library, for sponsoring a family picnic today.

Thank you also for providing free cake.

And thank you Peter and Lucy, who still retain the capacity to self-regulate sweets eating. After a few bites, Peter said he was all done and proceeded to run around like a crazy man. Lucy quickly followed. Kevin and I, meanwhile, sighed with disappointment when we realized we'd not get a second or third slice of cake.

Ardenwood Historic Farm

baa! one of several friendly sheep

Today's adventure took us across the bay to Fremont and to Ardenwood Historic Farm. As the name suggests, it features many historical elements - an original homestead, a blacksmith station, and, to Peter's delight, a horse-drawn train.

Sofia feeds the goats (Peter wasn't so brave)

I was curious how the kids would like the farm, since we visit another farm on a weekly basis. I think this farm was just different enough - more animals, more spread out, and, perhaps most importantly, more open - to keep them interested. I think Peter, Sofia, and Lucy could have spent a good hour playing with the sheep and the goats. (Baby Sebastian, not so much: a sheep bleated in his tiny baby ears, which he didn't like.)

train ride #2

I though the highlight of the farm, for Peter at least, would be the horse-drawn train. According to the docents, it's the only horse-drawn train in the country, and perhaps the world. We rode the train twice, and both times Peter and Lucy enjoyed the ride but were a bit wary of the horse pulling our wagon.

peacock watching

Instead, the highlights were threefold: animals pooping and peeing, the rabbits in their toddler-level hutches, and the roaming peacocks and peahens.

Any doubts I had about the kids' enjoyment of the farm was quickly dashed when a very sleepy Peter kept mumbling in his stroller "more animals! more animals!" as I walked back to the car. He returned to this refrain when I transitioned him from the car to napping inside our house, too.

a bunch of kids

One of the new highlights of our weekly walk to the farm are the new animals.

Today we were able to see all seven of the kids born over the past two weeks. They seemed very playful and friendly and oh-so-tolerant of rambunctious toddlers and excited infants.

This one in particular was very friendly, allowing Peter, Lucy, and Sofia to pet him through the fence and even trying to lick the kids.

(Well. It's very possible and indeed probable the kid was trying to bite the children. Thank goodness for the three layers of fence separating our kids from those kids.)