A new friend

It's funny how life and blogging are - I can have a week where it's so normal there seems to be little to mention here. And then there is a week with so much going on, I hardly have a moment to sit at the computer.

Anyway, at top we have photos from our fabulous evening Monday with Juliana, Maya, Daryl and brand-new-baby Natalia Marie!

They moved about a half-hour out of SClarita a month ago, and Juliana gave birth to Natalia last week. We were lucky enough to meet her on her fifth day of life! She is gorgeous and so tiny, making Violet look gigantic.

Cora and Maya had a great time together, and their new home is beautiful.

On our way home, Cora asked what freeway we had taken. She is very interested these days on where we are going and how we are getting there - she wants the names of roads, and pretty much exact directions.

I told her we took the freeway, and that people call it the 210 freeway - the "two-ten." I went further, for some reason, and said that it could be called the "two-hundred-ten freeway" but that people say "two-ten."
Cora then wanted to know what Daddy called it. "The two-ten," I said. She asked what Juliana called it, and I said "the two-ten."
Then, she declared. "I call it the fifty-eight."
Typical!

Other recent Coraisms: She was excited to put up a scarecrow in her window as an autumn decoration. She then said, "Can we decorate my room? With stickers? All over everything?!?!"
And, when she and Violet were together in the playroom, Violet started crying. I asked what was wrong, and Cora said, "I just hit her head with my bus. But I said 'Sorry.' "

And a last bit of Cora news - she is now wearing big-girl panties to bed! More than a year after being potty-trained during the day, our big girl is truly done with diapers. She has been dry most nights for a couple of months, and a few weeks ago we started giving her stickers in the morning for waking up dry. That seemed to spur her on to making sure she got up in the night when she needed the toilet.

In other news, we took Somer in last week for another steroid shot. The vet said that if the steroids work, they typically wear off after four weeks, so we were right on schedule with her needing another shot.

She is such a good kitty - Violet was wanting to pet her the other day, and obviously that means grabbing handfuls of skin and fur, and Somer stays put.

Violet's Half-Birthday!

Happy half-year birthday, Violet Mae!

Our little blue-eyed beauty has added so much joy to our lives, and we already can't imagine life without her sunny presence.

Violet loves playing with her sister and listening to Daddy play the guitar.

She sleeps well at home but doesn't nap longer than 20 minutes when we're out and about.

She likes her pacifier, though I'm trying to only use it for naptime, and random really-fussy-times. She still sleeps better swaddled, so I'm using large double-layer flannel blankets for the purpose. (Thanks, Michelle and Brooke!) Thankfully it's been cool enough to do so!

And, we've started using a white noise CD to help her sleep well. My thought is that the CD would be great to take when we go to England, and anywhere else we travel, so that Violet will sleep great when she isn't in her own bed.

Violet didn't quite make it to crawling by her half-birthday, but she sure is close. She rocks back and forth on her knees, and then can lunge forward to get a toy.

At a consignment sale last week, I bought a large baby gate to enclose the carpeted playroom. We want to keep her off our tile floors as much as possible until she's walking really well!

Though Violet can sit for 30 seconds or so, she prefers to be lying down so she can roll around, or rock on her knees.

Cora, Violet and I were having some quality time on my bed the other morning, and I was pulling Violet's arms up to try to help her sit. But no - she straightened both legs each time, so that I was bringing her to standing instead. She only needs help with balance, and she can basically stand.

Also, the other morning she was leaning over, propping herself on her elbow to reach up into her toy basket to get out her own toys. (See photos - sorry they're blurry, I had to hurry because they move so quickly!)

Everything goes in her mouth, but no signs of teeth yet. She is nursing four times a day, sometimes five if she's having a fussy evening. We haven't started any solids, as she has shown no interest yet in food.
(By this age, Cora was trying to grab our food and watching intently as we ate.)

I plan to follow Violet's lead in giving her solids, and when we saw Dr. Brockett this week, she agreed that there is no need to push food at this point.

At the doctor's office, Violet was 15 pounds, 3 ounces, dropping her down into the 34th percentile. She is 26 1/4 inches, or 70th percentile, and her head circumference of 16.9 inches ranks Vi in the 67th percentile.

Violet had one shot and one oral vaccine, which she gobbled up! You can see her here trying to guide the nurse's hand with the dropper.

I should mention at this point how thankful I am to everyone who took the time to vote on the black and white pictures of Violet last week!
Out of more than a dozen votes, Photo A was the winner (7 votes). Photo B received three votes, C received two votes, and two voters chose "all of the above."

Trunk or Treat

The Halloween season has begun in earnest in SClarita, and this week is a busy one.

On Wednesday night our girls were decked out in their finest for the Trunk or Treat event at Valencia United Methodist Church, where I go for MOPS and Cora has Skipper Club.

This year, Cora is Jessie, the cowgirl from Toy Story II, borrowing parts of a costume Auntie Mel created years ago.

Violet is a tiger - no, a tigress. I added bows to the costume Cora wore her first Halloween. The bows really change it up a lot.

At Trunk or Treat, people decorate their cars and pass out candy, and there are game booths and popcorn.

Cora walked around the cars with Ave, Johnny and Owen, who were all dressed as superheroes.

Then we caught up with Rigo, Colleen, Lucas and Liana.

They decorated Rigo's old truck with lots of cool pumpkins, and a pumpkin-headed scarecrow. Lucas was a bat, and Liana was a leopard.

Violet loved playing with Liana's costume, and kept lunging for her spots.

This was the second time Cora got to channel Jessie.

She also dressed up at MOPS on Tuesday, and will wear the costume again Thursday for her preschool party, Saturday night for our church's Halloween party, and of course Sunday evening. Geeesh!

On the bright side, she is letting me do her hair, so that is a positive.

In other news - Violet is a half-year old! More on that Thursday. I'm too tired to do more!

Lovey Violet

I love these photos Stace took of Violet in Seabeck, and it's now Reader Participation Time.

If Violet was your beloved baby, which photo would you print and frame? A, B or C? Leave your answers in the comments, if you please.

Violet has changed quite a bit over the past few weeks.

She now definitely prefers me over other people. She's recognized me for a while now, but lately it's become more like separation anxiety when someone new picks her up - especially if I'm in her view. Then she'll lean toward me, arms out, and fuss.

When I am holding her and someone talks to her, she will do that bashful thing, turning her face into me as if to hide.

Thankfully, she also really likes Daddy, and no one makes her giggle quicker than Cora.

She has become very affectionate with me - she nuzzles into my face and shoulder, and it really seems like she's giving me (open-mouthed) kisses already. I love it! I hope she stays a lovebug! Cora is a sweetheart in her own special way, but she isn't generally a cuddler.

Violet also is strengthening herself for crawling. She will get up on all fours and rock back and forth, like you see in the last photo. (Usually, she does it without crying!)

And, Violet also can take her pacifier out of her mouth, play with it, and put it back in her mouth.

I'm happy to say that I've got Violet's nap schedule to coincide with Cora's. This is a big coup for me, one I worked on for a couple of weeks.

She now naps from 9ish to 10:30ish, eats around 11, and goes down between 1:30 and 2, and eats again around 4:30 or 5. This is the aim, at least - when we are out in the mornings, she doesn't usually sleep much. On days when she doesn't nap for at least three hours, I will put her down around 6 for a catnap. Then she goes to bed around 8:30.

Seattle odds and ends

Here's Cora the Explorer - sorry, couldn't resist that one! Too easy!

We picked up this Dora suitcase the night before our trip, and our little traveler couldn't have been more proud of it. It's garish. Obnoxious. Cheaply made. But as soon as Cora saw it in Toys R Us, she "loved" it. As it was the only small rolling suitcase we could find that evening, we had no other option. She packed and repacked it several times, all by herself.

Aunt Patty turned Alison's old bedroom into Cora's room, and Cora firmly adopted it as her own. She slept in a real big-girl bed - a twin size - for the first time, with lots of cozy covers and sheets.
Thankfully, Bill and Patty have saved lots of toys, so Cora had books, Duplos, Hotwheels, and trains and track to occupy her. She was excited to show Alison, her boyfriend Tyler and his family "her room and her toys" when they came over for dinner.
Here, she is asleep holding a tucked-in Woody, which belonged to my cousin William, during a nap. But when we returned home, she decided she still doesn't like the Woody she was given for Christmas from Grandma and Grandpa.

No visit with Aunt Patty would be complete without some kid-assisted baking! Here, she and Alison involve Cora and a friend, Jenna, with cupcake baking.

Uncle Bill bonding with Violet... who did great on the trip! She got a little squirmy on the airplane, but not bad at all. She was generally happy in Seabeck, and slept pretty well in a travel playpen at night and during naps.
Cora's first firepit! We had promised Cora a fire and marshmallows, so even though it was late when we got back from Mt. Rainier, Uncle Bill gathered the kindling. Another great memory was had, complete with shooting stars in the bright night sky.

On our way home Wednesday, Cora the Explorer traveled by foot, car, boat, airplane and train! (The train was a terminal connection system at the airport.) She loved the ferry, and had fun feeding the seagulls. That's what brought out the huge smile you see above.

Violet enjoying the wind and sun... I had a similar photo taken with Cora on her five-month-old trip to Seattle, so I wanted to recreate that moment. For more on that trip, you can click here and read the posts from July 7-11.

Swinging into Poulsbo

Not far from Uncle Bill and Aunt Patty's village of Seabeck is the adorable Norway-focused village of Poulsbo.

We spent Monday afternoon there and enjoyed a late lunch at the Hare and Hounds, an English pub. Since Violet was missing a nap, and doesn't nap too well when we're out, Aunt Patty worked her magic so I could enjoy my lunch (and pint of IPA).

We strolled through the cute downtown, admired some beautiful waterfront homes, and ended up at a crowded park.

It was Columbus Day, and it was nice to see so many families enjoying the sunny weather outside together.

Cora had her first time on a playground merry-go-round, and her laughter could be heard far and wide.

She is getting so big and strong! A year ago I would have been nervous about her playing on one of these, with the bigger boys pushing it so fast. But she's just fine.

Violet had her first time in the swing! For some reason, I haven't put her in our neighborhood's swing yet, and I'm glad, because it meant that Stace got to be part of her experience.

She loved it, as you can see.

When I watched the following video on the computer, it made me a little seasick, so be warned. But, it is great to hear her little laugh!

Walk in the Woods

Uncle Bill and Aunt Patty's homeowners' association allows them access to a rocky beach packed with clams and oysters.

Cora had a great time collecting shells and small stones, once she got over the fact that "going to the beach" doesn't always mean playing in the water in swimsuits.

Uncle Bill cracked open an oyster and a clam, and Violet got a good sniff. Cora didn't want to get that close.

He also turned over logs, and we found spiders, beetles and a mouse nest. That's great stuff when you're three!

We then took a nice walk in the woods, and checked out huge mushrooms and toadstools.

Stace found a new trick for getting Cora to better cooperate with photos, too. If he allows or instructs us all to be silly for a couple of shots, she'll usually then acquiesce to smiling nicely for another photo.

This came after another photo struggle, in which Cora at first kept sticking her tongue out, and after a stern talking-to, smiled nicely, with her eyes shut.

Later, she found a giant leaf and played peekaboo with Violet.

Mount Rainier

We came home from Seattle on Wednesday evening, and I took Thursday to unpack and attack the laundry.
Now, I have a moment to update the blog...

We had a fantastic trip! We made a number of happy memories we will carry with us forever.

Perhaps tops on that list was our trip Tuesday to Mt. Rainier. Now I've been up to visit my aunt and uncle countless times since they moved from SoCal 17 years ago, and this was my first trip to the glacial-volcanic monster, which reaches more than 14,400 feet into the sky.

Forgive this picture-heavy post, but as you can see, the views were breathtaking. (Remember that you can click a photo to see it larger on your screen.)

The mountain itself is amazing, dominating the skyline for hundreds of miles on a clear day. (This is the Northwest, so "clear days" are special. We were very blessed with gorgeous weather, as you can see.)

Coming in the fall added to the scenery. The brush was burgandy, peach and salmon, begging to be admired.

We parked near the visitors' center and "hiked" a few miles on a couple of different trails. The trails were all paved, so the difficulty was in the thin air and steepness of the grade.

The weather was great, sunny and crisp but not too cold. We saw deer, blue jays, hawks and chipmunks.

Cora had an amazing time. I have memories of Uncle Bill carrying me on his shoulders in Yosemite when I was four, and I hope she likewise remembers this trip!

She hiked like a champion, and tackled a set of rock stairs on her own, "all by myself!" with no help from Daddy. She was very proud of herself, as you can see, posing with Stace by the "Skyline Trail" sign.

Violet also enjoyed herself, in her stroller and later in an infant carrier on Aunt Patty's back.

The only thing better about this part of our trip would have been to stay the night near the park. It's about a two-hour drive from Seabeck, and with two little ones, longer than that. Next time!