Like, totally L.A.!

Here are some photos from Saturday's Concert in the Park - below is our friend Mark, his daughter Kelsie (foreground) and Cora.
So you probably have heard about (or felt) our little earthquake Tuesday. Cora, Grandma and I were down in Hollywood in the cool Larchmont area for an eye appointment, on the seventh floor of a tall building, so we felt it pretty strongly. It was a bit of a worry, and we decided to take the stairs down instead of the elevator. Of course I had brought the heavy jogger stroller instead of the lightweight stroller, so I carried Cora and my mom carried down the stroller, with some help from a nice man who was leaving the same office as us.
Once we got down to the street, we immediately noticed a low-flying police helicopter circling overhead. Cora pointed it out, too. Then we saw several LAPD cars pull up in front of the Wells Fargo bank right across the street from us,and officers got out with their guns drawn. Great! An earthquake and now a bank robbery? You've got to be kidding! But we then learned that the earthquake most likely set off the alarm, and it was a false alarm. (Thanks Grandpa, sometimes it comes in handy having law enforcement in the family!)
So we made our way to the Starbucks, to get some nerve-calming caffeine, and I'm pretty sure it was Topher Grace (That 70s Show) with two guy friends coming out as we were in the doorway.

You don't get much more of an L.A. experience than that!

In the afternoon, Stace, Cora and I went to Hurricane Harbor, and Cora was even more fearless than on our previous trips. She loved the wave pool, and didn't mind the waves lapping into her chest and face. She also went on the baby slides by herself, and marched around in areas she didn't love on our prior trips.

British Car Show

You may be wondering why the blog has not been updated for a while.
Last Wednesday Lisa was ill and took a few days to get back to full fitness.
I had to come home and look after Cora for the day while Lis stayed in bed.Cora kept me in line with what I had to do. She is really good at saying "all done" when she's had enough to eat.

On Sunday, Cora and Lisa dragged me off to Oxnard marina to attend the Central Coast British Car Clubs annual show. There were Jags, Austin Healey's, Mini's, Triumphs and many other great classic British cars. There was a Spitfire with an American V8 in it. Crazy!
It made me realize how much I miss owning and working on these old cars.
It was a gorgeous day at the seaside, the temperature was about 80 degrees.
Here's Cora showing me what's what under the bonnet of a heavily modified Spit.
Here's some good humour on the back of a nicely done Triumph GT6.

A Walk in the Park

This weekend we had fun at the parks. On Saturday night, we attended one of the free Concerts in the Park, where we had a picnic lunch and Cora made friends...
...and played with the buckle of her new friend's helmet (after wearing it around).
On Sunday, we took a long walk through some neighborhoods we really like, looking at a couple of homes for sale in our price range. We ended up at the park, where Cora had fun playing with Dad.
They also enjoyed the slides.

Cora really didn't want to leave. She does this whenever we leave a park. Thankfully, it generally is short-lived, and she's giggling again in a couple of minutes. This video is for Duncan.

Also, Cora has developed a less-than-thrilling little habit. When she hits me, I firmly reprimand her and move her hand firmly away. She then kisses my arm, or whatever part of me is closest to her, because a few months ago I would remind her to "gentle touch," and to not hit. So now, when she is upset, she (sometimes) will hit me and then immediately kiss me. Oh dear!

Chasing and running

Here is a video from our weekend in San Luis Obispo that I couldn't get to load right a few days ago...

And here is how Cora occupied herself for 10 minutes or so yesterday while I ate my lunch.

Back and forth and back and forth she went. She will truly be running soon!
This week, Cora has been practicing using the words she has learned. When she spots something she knows the word for, she says it. We were at a store and there was a poster with a dog, one that I hadn't spotted. "Doddy" she said. Then, a poster with children playing in a lake. "Wawa." She saw a picture of a lion and growled, and when she hears a dog barking, she will start panting.
When she wants to get down and walk, she points to the ground and says "Wawa." We're hearing "all done" frequently. "Diddy" for "kitty" and "Sada" for "Somer." Also, she is using a couple more signs - for eating food, and for drinking, when she is either hungry or thirsty. It's fun having her better able to communicate!
Also - a few minutes ago Cora pointed to her high chair to say she wanted breakfast. We went in to the kitchen, and I got the box of cereal out. She went straight to her drawer and pulled out her bowl and handed it to me. Another first!

San Luis Obispo for the weekend

We spent the weekend visiting with Christy, Mitch and William, meeting them in San Luis Obispo. Our friends moved to northern California a few months ago, and it was nice to reconnect. Cora and William got on well, like the old friends they are. We had lunch in our motel room, and the toddlers explored the entire room.
Cora decided it would be fun to follow William around, holding onto his shoulders. He didn't seem to mind, at least for the first few minutes.
The phone also proved to be a fascinating toy, occupying several minutes.
Is it for Cora? No, it's for William.
We then took a hike at a nearby state park and beach. Both babies enjoyed the water and the sand.

That night, we went to a great Italian place in Pismo Beach. Cora was shortchanged on her daytime sleep, and wasn't in the best of moods. She was very happy when she was walking around the restaurant, or pacing out front, but did NOT want to be in her high chair. (These photos are actually from the next day, at a more casual lunch spot in San Luis Obispo, but they illustrate the story pretty well!)

Cora has added "all done" to her repertoire of phrases, complete with the hand motion you see below. At dinner Saturday, she ate a couple of yummy rolls while we waited for our food. Then, when her meal came, she had a bite or two and decided she was finished, and ready to resume exploring the restaurant. Stace and I really preferred to eat our meals, and didn't rush to let Cora loose. She then started repeating again, and again, and again, "All Done!" "All Done!" "All Done!" with hand motions and frantic pointing to the ground. We had to look away to keep her from seeing us laugh. She just couldn't understand why we weren't responding properly, when she was so very clearly communicating her needs!
William, meanwhile, was perfectly well behaved at both meals. He is a great kid, and he'll be a great big brother come October!

On Sunday we shopped in SLO's fantastic downtown, and then had lunch at the above barbecue restaurant. Another yummy meal. Then we drove to Avila Beach, with the idea of getting out the towels and swimsuits, but both babies were asleep. So we changed plans and went our separate ways, allowing our little ones to get their needed naps. Still, a great weekend away!

17 months old

We start out today's entry with a photo for Duncan. He remarked that we don't put photos up of Cora looking anything other than sweet and nice, so here she is reacting to having her teeth brushed. (Never mind the hat, it hasn't been cold by any means but she found it and thought it was funny to wear it.)
Speaking of teeth, at 17 months old Wednesday, Cora still has six teeth in the front (three on top, three on bottom), and two molars on one side and two more coming in on the other side. I've been giving Cora homeopathic teething tablets at night to help her sleep, as she's had a few restless nights lately.
The second photo shows the result of Cora feeding herself applesauce. It was a little too runny for her to control on the spoon, and I didn't notice until she had multiple spoonfuls piling up on her chest. She continues to demand to feed herself, sometimes to her own detriment. Twice lately, she's turned down ice cream/frozen yogurt, because it was offered to her already on the spoon.
The next two photos are from a recent trip to the park. Cora loves the park. She loves playing on the slides and swings, climbing up onto play structures, and just wandering around.
She also likes trying to put on her shoes, or my shoes, or Stace's shoes. It's pretty cute watching her walk around with a big shoe on her foot. She still loves playing with Somer, and Somer really loves playing with Cora. It gets a bit rough sometimes, with Cora stepping on the cat, falling onto the cat, and hugging the cat tightly while giving her lots of kisses. I sometimes try to encourage Somer to escape to the couch, but she jumps back down to join Cora on the floor.
Cora also loves roughhousing with her daddy. They often play together on the floor while I finish making dinner, or wash the dishes. Cora will climb onto Stace's back while he's on all fours.
At night, Stace brushes Cora's teeth and reads her a story before bed. Hopefully this new nighttime routine will help when I wean Cora from nursing; for now she nurses upon waking in the morning and before bed, before Daddy does the final stories. Lately, he tells me that when he finishes reading to her, she points to her crib to show she is ready to go to bed. She had a few weeks recently where she cried after I put her to bed, but lately she is back to going to bed well.
Cora is saying more words now. I can make out "walk," "water," "dirty," "all done," and "milk," along with "more," "uh oh," "mama," "dada," "doggy," and "No." That last word has become a favorite, as every parent of a toddler comes to discover. She uses it often, and often when she doesn't mean it. Stace got Cora out of her crib this afternoon after a nap, and asked if she wanted to get out. She had her arms upraised, while answering "no." We're trying to teach her "yes" but so far, she doesn't have that one down.
The final photo is from Stroller Strides today. After class we take the toddlers out of the strollers, so they can wander around and play while we finish stretching. Today, Cora ended up wandering pretty far down the sidewalk. I called to her, and she laughed and kept going. Our instructor laughed too, and yelled out, "Bye, Cora!" Cora turned again and waved "bye bye" to us, then kept going. It was very funny, especially since Cora still isn't consistent with waving hello and good-bye at the appropriate times.

Fourth of July

Here is Cora, crashing after Santa Clarita's annual Fourth of July parade. Although she looks miserable in the photo, I think she kind of enjoyed the parade; it was just very, very hot. After Cora napped, we went up to a barbecue/pool party at the home of one of Stace's coworkers. Cora amazed me again with her fearlessness. We were at a new house, with all new people, and Cora walked - well, stomped - like she owned the place. The terrier puppy kept barking at Cora (playfully) when we first arrived, excited to have a young friend closer to his size, and even that didn't faze Cora. When she spotted the pool, her tantrum-throwing twin appeared. She wanted to swim right then, and kept pointing out the door and yelling (and then crying). Eventually, we did do some swimming.
We got back to Santa Clarita in the evening just in time to take in the fireworks show at the mall. The noise woke Cora up, so she watched too, and kept saying, "Whoa."
On Saturday, we celebrated with our dear friend Kelly, who had a party to celebrate her earning her master's degree. It was a great time.

Cora clips

For your viewing pleasure. Cora dancing (she was doing it without us asking - Stace and I were working on something at the kitchen table, and I glanced up and caught Cora enjoying the music) and loving her brand-new shoes.