Happy New Year!
Welcome 2017!
Here is how we spent the last week of our vacation together...
December 27th - We mostly hung out at home. We spent the late morning at Snowcreek Park so I could go for a walk and Audrey could frolic in the sunshine!
December 28th - We traveled down to Long Beach for a play date with Miles. The impetus for this journey was Jeff forgot his jacket at the Culvers' after their Christmas party! So we got the jacket and a cute little play date out of it. It's a magical kind of thing how well Audrey and Miles get along even though they don't see each other very often at all. I wonder if they view each other as cousins or the like? During all this travel time, Audrey and I finished reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. She had the typical reaction to Aslan's death but got really excited at the end when he came back! In the afternoon, we went up to Claremont to walk and Audrey to scoot. She mostly wanted to play in the "forests" around Bridges Auditorium. Of course she was pretending she was in Narnia! At night, Jeff made me a French Martini (pineapple juice, Chambord, and one other liquor I can't remember...) and we watched The Beatles - Eight Days a Week: The Touring Years, which I asked for for Christmas and received from my dad. It was good - there were a few new nuggets I learned about but Jeff and I agreed that as it was, it wasn't really necessary what with the whole Beatles Anthology being done before. Still, a fun watch for my Beatles-loving self!
December 29th - It seems every year around this time we ventured out to Los Angeles with Audrey and now with both kids. So we ventured out to Vista Hermosa Park in L.A. It was a beautiful 70 degree day in L.A.! The only awkward part for me was nursing Oliver in the park. I'm not opposed to public nursing, I just don't like doing it..... Everything about it is awkward - how to hold the baby, how to sit, how to cover up, where to sit. But we got it done and got on with our day. We had Panda Express for lunch and then hung out at home again. Close to dusk, we played in the backyard, Audrey jumping on her trampoline wearing fairy wings like a cute little Tinkerbell! At night, Jeff and I started watching Season 2 of Fargo. Oh man!
December 30th - Today I took Audrey to see the new Disney movie Moana. We went to the AMC Theater in Covina because we had some gift cards. We shared some rootbeer, peanut M&M's, AND licorice! Wow! I liked this one more than Frozen! It was beautifully done and the story made more sense (in a Disney nonsensical kind of way...) and there weren't any annoying trolls! After lunch, I had planned to take her to Shakey's for some pizza but it was really really crowded. So we ended up at Zumo ZuZhi Burrito thinking it was Mexican food, but it was so much more!!! This was an asian fushion restaurant - think sushi burritos! But since I was with Audrey, we played it safe and just got a rainbow roll and California roll. I actually wouldn't mind going back and trying one of their fusion dishes. After lunch, I took her down to the Disney Store at the West Covina mall and let her pick out something Moana-ish within my price range (less than $20 since I got the movie and snacks for free!). She chose a Moana plush doll and loves it to death (of course!).
Meanwhile, Jeff stayed home with Oliver and took great care of him! We brought him home a Starbucks drink as a THANK YOU for letting Mommy and Audrey have a day together! We also discovered that Oliver LOVES watching the cars on his sister's new track go 'round and 'round. And I made yummy chili with cornbread for dinner since it was a chilly night!
(Yeah, I'm just a tad OCD about Oliver's schedule....)
December 31st - We spent the day AND NIGHT in Encinitas! This was Oliver's first night away from home. His naps were still short and sweet but he definitely caught the "Encinitas Bug" at night. The "Encinitas Bug" is a phenomenom that happens to babies when they visit Gramps's house. They sleep so much better than at home! It happened with Audrey for sure and I was hoping it would happen with Oliver. Sure enough... this kiddo slept TWELVE HOURS at night! What the WHAT?!? I was soooo thankful because I stayed up to ring in the New Year and enjoyed myself and didn't want to wake up at the butt crack of dawn. He was the last person in our little family to wake up!
Happy New Year, indeed! -zzzzz!
Anyway, we had a really fun time in Encinitas with Gramps and Charlie and Audrey especially liked getting to know Shayly, their collie dog! We decorated sugar cookies, Audrey got to watch Despicable Me, ride in the cool carts at Gramps's grocery store, and go for a rainy walk with Gramps, Charlie, and Shayly! Oliver did Tummy Time and took naps and was his usual baby self! Meg and Jeff relaxed, filled up on coffee, and toasted in the New Year! We had bean and ham soup for dinner.
After Oliver was tucked in, Audrey got to stay up until 10PM with the adults! A real treat for her! We played Christmas Charades, lit sparklers and fireworks (yikes!), and played other parlor games. Audrey had such a fun time and we could tell she loved staying up with the adults! When I tucked her in, she was ready to fall asleep smiling big. So sweet!
January 1st - We drove back home today and experienced two big poop episodes with our kids. Oliver had his first diaper blow out. It happened in his car seat. How did he respond? He took a shorter than normal nap on the way home and then played with his fingers.... This kid is just so chill! He had poop down to his feet and up his back, which Jeff and I worked together to clean up when we got home. Then, Audrey clogged her toilet with a ginormous poop.... urgh. Not the first time so that was pretty frustrating and took the bulk of the afternoon to try to unclog.
In an effort to dismantle the tension, I sent Jeff to the grocery store and took my kids on a walk around the neighborhood. [I am bound and determined to stick to my exercise regimen this year! 30 minutes of exercise 6 days a week at least!] Oliver was in the carrier and Audrey walked. We talked mostly about dogs and how she wanted a calm dog like Shayly and didn't like all the dogs we saw on our walk that barked at us. It was a nice walk and when Jeff got back from the store, we were all calmed down from the poop-fest earlier!
Jeff made a delicious shrimp and potato dish for dinner with arugula salad and sparkling apple cider - yum! We listened to the Moana soundtrack and Oliver rolled from back to front for the first time! It was a lovely end to the first day of 2017! (P.S. Oliver slept 11 1/2 hours last night! Maybe the "Encinitas Bug" will become the new norm for 2017! *fingers crossed*)
Here is how we spent the last week of our vacation together...
December 27th - We mostly hung out at home. We spent the late morning at Snowcreek Park so I could go for a walk and Audrey could frolic in the sunshine!
December 28th - We traveled down to Long Beach for a play date with Miles. The impetus for this journey was Jeff forgot his jacket at the Culvers' after their Christmas party! So we got the jacket and a cute little play date out of it. It's a magical kind of thing how well Audrey and Miles get along even though they don't see each other very often at all. I wonder if they view each other as cousins or the like? During all this travel time, Audrey and I finished reading The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. She had the typical reaction to Aslan's death but got really excited at the end when he came back! In the afternoon, we went up to Claremont to walk and Audrey to scoot. She mostly wanted to play in the "forests" around Bridges Auditorium. Of course she was pretending she was in Narnia! At night, Jeff made me a French Martini (pineapple juice, Chambord, and one other liquor I can't remember...) and we watched The Beatles - Eight Days a Week: The Touring Years, which I asked for for Christmas and received from my dad. It was good - there were a few new nuggets I learned about but Jeff and I agreed that as it was, it wasn't really necessary what with the whole Beatles Anthology being done before. Still, a fun watch for my Beatles-loving self!
December 29th - It seems every year around this time we ventured out to Los Angeles with Audrey and now with both kids. So we ventured out to Vista Hermosa Park in L.A. It was a beautiful 70 degree day in L.A.! The only awkward part for me was nursing Oliver in the park. I'm not opposed to public nursing, I just don't like doing it..... Everything about it is awkward - how to hold the baby, how to sit, how to cover up, where to sit. But we got it done and got on with our day. We had Panda Express for lunch and then hung out at home again. Close to dusk, we played in the backyard, Audrey jumping on her trampoline wearing fairy wings like a cute little Tinkerbell! At night, Jeff and I started watching Season 2 of Fargo. Oh man!
December 30th - Today I took Audrey to see the new Disney movie Moana. We went to the AMC Theater in Covina because we had some gift cards. We shared some rootbeer, peanut M&M's, AND licorice! Wow! I liked this one more than Frozen! It was beautifully done and the story made more sense (in a Disney nonsensical kind of way...) and there weren't any annoying trolls! After lunch, I had planned to take her to Shakey's for some pizza but it was really really crowded. So we ended up at Zumo ZuZhi Burrito thinking it was Mexican food, but it was so much more!!! This was an asian fushion restaurant - think sushi burritos! But since I was with Audrey, we played it safe and just got a rainbow roll and California roll. I actually wouldn't mind going back and trying one of their fusion dishes. After lunch, I took her down to the Disney Store at the West Covina mall and let her pick out something Moana-ish within my price range (less than $20 since I got the movie and snacks for free!). She chose a Moana plush doll and loves it to death (of course!).
Meanwhile, Jeff stayed home with Oliver and took great care of him! We brought him home a Starbucks drink as a THANK YOU for letting Mommy and Audrey have a day together! We also discovered that Oliver LOVES watching the cars on his sister's new track go 'round and 'round. And I made yummy chili with cornbread for dinner since it was a chilly night!
(Yeah, I'm just a tad OCD about Oliver's schedule....)
December 31st - We spent the day AND NIGHT in Encinitas! This was Oliver's first night away from home. His naps were still short and sweet but he definitely caught the "Encinitas Bug" at night. The "Encinitas Bug" is a phenomenom that happens to babies when they visit Gramps's house. They sleep so much better than at home! It happened with Audrey for sure and I was hoping it would happen with Oliver. Sure enough... this kiddo slept TWELVE HOURS at night! What the WHAT?!? I was soooo thankful because I stayed up to ring in the New Year and enjoyed myself and didn't want to wake up at the butt crack of dawn. He was the last person in our little family to wake up!
Happy New Year, indeed! -zzzzz!
Anyway, we had a really fun time in Encinitas with Gramps and Charlie and Audrey especially liked getting to know Shayly, their collie dog! We decorated sugar cookies, Audrey got to watch Despicable Me, ride in the cool carts at Gramps's grocery store, and go for a rainy walk with Gramps, Charlie, and Shayly! Oliver did Tummy Time and took naps and was his usual baby self! Meg and Jeff relaxed, filled up on coffee, and toasted in the New Year! We had bean and ham soup for dinner.
After Oliver was tucked in, Audrey got to stay up until 10PM with the adults! A real treat for her! We played Christmas Charades, lit sparklers and fireworks (yikes!), and played other parlor games. Audrey had such a fun time and we could tell she loved staying up with the adults! When I tucked her in, she was ready to fall asleep smiling big. So sweet!
January 1st - We drove back home today and experienced two big poop episodes with our kids. Oliver had his first diaper blow out. It happened in his car seat. How did he respond? He took a shorter than normal nap on the way home and then played with his fingers.... This kid is just so chill! He had poop down to his feet and up his back, which Jeff and I worked together to clean up when we got home. Then, Audrey clogged her toilet with a ginormous poop.... urgh. Not the first time so that was pretty frustrating and took the bulk of the afternoon to try to unclog.
In an effort to dismantle the tension, I sent Jeff to the grocery store and took my kids on a walk around the neighborhood. [I am bound and determined to stick to my exercise regimen this year! 30 minutes of exercise 6 days a week at least!] Oliver was in the carrier and Audrey walked. We talked mostly about dogs and how she wanted a calm dog like Shayly and didn't like all the dogs we saw on our walk that barked at us. It was a nice walk and when Jeff got back from the store, we were all calmed down from the poop-fest earlier!
Jeff made a delicious shrimp and potato dish for dinner with arugula salad and sparkling apple cider - yum! We listened to the Moana soundtrack and Oliver rolled from back to front for the first time! It was a lovely end to the first day of 2017! (P.S. Oliver slept 11 1/2 hours last night! Maybe the "Encinitas Bug" will become the new norm for 2017! *fingers crossed*)