Happy New Year

I miss sleep. Yesterday, Dylan was awake for a few hours, started to get a little fussy, so I wrapped him up and put him down. He went right to sleep. However, the rest of the day he continued to sleep, waking to eat every so often. As a result, at night he woke up at 1:30am, then 2:30am and then 3:30am. So today I am really sleepy (I did get a little extra sleep thanks to Nana visiting). Today, Dylan was awake more so hopefully tonight will go better.

Gina has been missing preschool so today I invited her friend Gabriel over for a playdate. She was very excited to have him over. Gabriel immediately headed for the train table, but Gina talked him into going outside to play soccer. It was mostly her keeping the ball away from Gabriel but he seemed to have fun chasing her. Gina was especially eager to try out her new shovel that she got for Christmas so next they headed for the backyard and took turns digging up rocks and getting dirty.

Ever since we moved to this house we have hosted a New Years Eve party with my friend Becky and the Creeches. This year the Creeches to decided to have a party at their house. The one plus to having it at our house is being able to put the kids to bed at a reasonable hour. But having going somewhere else means that I didn't have to clean and prepare everything. The kids had fun at the Creeches, playing with Merrick's old toys, drinking juice and eating a lot of sweets. Dylan slept the whole time, waking up only when all the kids started to blow horns.

The past year has had definitely had its ups and downs. But this year is ending on a high note with three sweet kids, tucked in bed. Happy New Year.

Here is Dylan at 6 weeks. He is staying awake a bit more each day, though once he is asleep in the car seat, he sleeps very soundly. I tried to get a picture of both Gina and Dylan (each are wearing clothes they got for Christmas from Rich and Toni) but wasn't very successful. I guess I need to practice a bit more.

Yesterday we took the kids to the park. Both kids love the swings. Gina is now very good at pumping the swing herself while Andrew is just getting the hang of the big kid swing. They also had a lot of fun on the airplane. Gina picked flowers. It was very cold at the park, but the kids didn't mind.

Christmastime Fun

Last weekend when Vic was on his trip to Seattle, I took the kids over to my Dads house to help decorate his Christmas tree. Gina and Andrew had a lot of fun putting decorations on the tree. Andrew wasn't too sure about putting the decorations on the tree so he just pointed out where they should go (Dylan of course slept the whole time). I'm glad we went to my Dad's house because with Vic going to Seattle and then coming home with a bad cold, we never did go out to get a Christmas tree for our house.

During the week I found time to make gingerbread cookies. Noemi came over with Julian and Katrina to help decorate the cookies. The three big kids had fun decorating the cookies, using the food coloring pens that I bought last year. I also got tubes of colored frosting which they also enjoyed trying out.

The two babies were also very good. Katrina is a very cute and smiley baby but she is also very wiggly as Noemi often describes her. It will definitely be fun when Dylan gets a few weeks older and is more smiley and interactive.

During the week, Dylan finally got his first hairwash. He was definitely due. He wasn't completely happy about it, but afterwards his hair came out very curly.

Christmas started early with my Mom and Alice coming over on Saturday for a visit. Alice was only up here for the weekend and so they could only come over on Saturday. The kids got an early start on opening presents from Nana, Auntie Alice and Big John. John had a lot of fun buying presents for the kids such as a blowup Bozo the Clown, Wikisticks for Gina and a toy VW bus for Andrew. They were big hits with both Gina and Andrew.

Christmas Day didn't start very early. The kids slept until 8:30am which was great and then they were eager to go see their stockings and presents. With no Christmas tree, I had piled the presents in front of the fireplace.

The kids were very excited about opening presents though as always, it was a little too much. Gina was very excited to get her shovel, robe and dora slippers. Andrew loves his John Deere lawn mower. That was definitely a big hit.

Later in the morning we also opened presents from Uncle Rich and Aunt Toni. Gina loves her toy sewing machine and Andrew enjoys playing with his MegaBlock castle. Both kids also got cute outfits. The biggest hit though was the toy phone and car keys that were meant for Dylan.

In the evening we all went over to my Dad's for Christmas dinner. This year, Kathie and Bruce drove down from Washington and Erica was here from LA. Mollie and Andrew also came over so it was a full house. The kids were a little wild, running up and down the hall way (which now echoes since the carpets are gone). Andrew was doing his best to get into trouble, such as banging his fork on his plate during dinner and banging an old key on whatever he could find. He was also very cute at times, entertaining everyone with singing Holly Jolly Christmas and Jingle Bells.

Just before we left, we were able to get a group photo though without Dylan who was fast asleep. Big Andrew is wearing Cliff's old bomber jacket. This is the last year having Christmas at my dad's house since he is planning on selling in the spring. It was great seeing everyone (especially Mollie who is due to have a baby boy in May - Yeah).

Visit with Santa

Dylan is now 1 month old. He had his 1 month check up on Friday and his weight is up to 9lb 11 oz. So he has gained two pounds since birth, though most of the gain has occurred in the last two weeks. He is awake more during the day and gets cranky at night, but once he is asleep, he sleeps very soundly. He is also pretty easy to soothe when he does get upset, usually by just holding him and rocking slowly.

Today we went to the farmers market in Los Gatos to visit Santa. Gina has been looking forward to the visit. Vic is away in Seattle for the next few days, so it was just me and the kids. Dylan of course, slept the whole time. Once we got there, there was a line to see Santa. It didn't seem that long, but it moved very slowly. We waited about 40 minutes. Gina and Andrew were able to keep themselves amused during the wait, and they burned off some energy by running back and forth across the grass. Andrew was not enthusiastic about visiting Santa so I didn't expect much. Once we got to the front, Gina went right up and started telling Santa what she wanted for Christmas though she was a little disappointed that Andrew wasn't with her. Instead, Andrew had wandered off across the grass and was watching the fountain. I got a good picture of Gina and then Andrew came back. I asked him one more time if he would like to visit Santa and this time he said yes. He wouldn't talk directly to Santa but did say yes when Santa asked if he would like a truck for Christmas.

Tonight I got all three kids to bed by 8:50pm and the garbage taken care of by 9:20pm!! Yeah!

Picture of all Three

I finally got pictures of all three kids. Gina wasn't entirely enthusiastic about the idea of wearing the Santa hat for the picture but she finally agreed to do it. So I got my holiday photo of the three kids. Dylan was mostly sleeping though occasionally he opened his eyes.

Yesterday, I went back to the lab at Stanford for lab meeting. It was fun seeing everyone and showing off Dylan. I even got a gift card to Watercourse Way in Palo Alto, good for a massage package. I can't wait to try it out.

Today was a rainy day so we didn't get to go to the park. Instead we first went to Starbucks. Andrew lasted as long as his chocolate milk. We tried to go to the library next but it turns out the library doesn't open until 1pm on Tuesdays. So we tried to go to Learning Express. Andrew loves playing with the trains and Gina likes the dolls and Calico Critters. But after about 10 min, Dylan started to get upset. It was definitely hard to pull the kids away from the toys.

After Andrews nap, we went to Chuck E Cheese along with Kristi, Sandy and Carmelita. The kids had a lot of fun, though I had Gina constantly demanding my attention. After 2hrs I was definitely ready to leave and it took a little effort to convince both kids that it was time to go.

Music and Dance

Here are some pictures I took of Dylan with his little Santa hat on. It was hard to get a get a good picture. I still have to get a picture of all three kids to send with Christmas cards, maybe later today it will work out.

Yesterday, my Dad and I took Gina to see "A Scottish Christmas" at the Fox Theater in Redwood City. My Dad was very interested in taking her to the show, though originally I had hoped my Mom would go with them as well. It turned out she already had a committment to take John out to dinner for his 60th birthday so I used the extra ticket (with Dylan in tow of course).

I had planned to pick Gina up from Whistlestop by 5pm but after running a few errands, I didn't end up picking her up until 5:30pm. We were supposed to meet Boppa in front of the theater at 5:45pm but I lamely decided to take surface streets to Redwood City (El Camino to Middlefield) instead of 280. So we were later than I had planned though parking wasn't too bad since there is a big parking garage nearby (we also got a taste of Beard Papa cream puffs which just opened, YUM). We still had time to go get a quick dinner across the street and get to the theater by 7pm. Dylan slept all through dinner and Gina had fun coloring in her Princess coloring book that she brought.

The Fox theater is very nice inside, with lots of Art Deco architecture. I held Dylan in my lap with the sling and he was quite comfortable sleeping the whole time. The music was definitely Scottish, with bagpipes, drums, pipes, fiddles and a harp. We initially sat in the middle and it was a little difficult for Gina to see the stage clearly. She also asked me a lot of questions, though very quietly (such as, Mama, why is that man wearing a skirt).

Towards the end of the first part, Gina insisted that she had to go to the bathroom, so at the end of a number I took her out. Of course, once we got to the bathroom, she said she didn't have to go. But once we went back in, we found seats in the aisle a little further back with no one else around (the theater was only a third or so full, lucky for us). Gina enjoyed sitting back there since she could easily see what was going on the stage. Her favorite parts were when two dancers came out. They did Scottish dancing as well as a tap number. They were fun to watch. Towards the end of the show, Gina was getting antsy, but since we were towards the back, her squirming didn't bother me (or hopefully any one else).

One of my favorite parts was when the drummer came out for a demonstration. He is a member of the Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corp (they perform at official events such as inaugurations, state funerals, etc). He was really amazing.

Today was Gina's turn to perform. Her Music School had a recital with all the preschool classes. Her class wore snowflake costumes. When I dropped her off in the room, she did not seem at all eager about the performance and it took some coaxing to get her to put on her costume. But once it was on, she seemed better and I was able to leave her there with the other kids and teachers. Vic, Andrew, Dylan and I found seats in the church and waited for a while for the show to begin.

I was able to amuse Andrew for a while with my camera but by the time the show began, he was totally uninterested in sitting still and listening. He was climbing all over the pew and eventually I had to take to the back of the church. I was still able to see everything but I was also watching Andrew who was trying to get into trouble.

Just before Gina's group was going to perform, I dropped my camera and then it wouldn't work. So much for taking a picture during the performance. I could see her clearly in the back row of kids and I could see that she was singing and doing all the movements for the songs. She definitely did a good job.

Once home, my camera started working again so I was able to get a picture of Gina in her snowflake costume.

Clean House

Yesterday I finally got my birthday present from my Mom, two hours of cleaning by Merry Maids. It was supposed to be last week but got postponed. So I spent the night before and the morning putting stuff away. I thought they were coming at 1pm but the doorbell rang at 11:30am. They were here. I still hadn't finished going through the dining room and kitchen but they were able to start on the two bathrooms so I was able to get all the junk out of the dining area and clear some stuff from the counters in the kitchen.

The two cleaners worked hard the whole two hours (I think it was closer to 2.5 hrs) and it looked so nice once they were done. I was a little bummed when the kids came home and we had to start using the kitchen and dining area again for dinner. But even today, everything still looked clean. (Though the kids were definitely trying to return it to its previous state, with orange peels, spilled milk, etc) .

Tonight Dylan had his first bout of being somewhat inconsolable. It definitely seemed like tummy distress and he was crying off and on for a good hour while we got Gina and Andrew ready for bed. But after an hour or so, he finally settled down and fell asleep on me. He stayed asleep when I put him down in his bassinet.

Dylan is starting to stay awake more during the day. He seemed to enjoy looking at Gina while we were in the car today and she had fun trying to entertain him.

These pictures of Dylan are from yesterday when he was 3 weeks old. The picture of Gina and Andrew is from last Sunday when they were both helping me make cookies for the holiday party.

Park Day

Today we made it to the park in the morning and afternoon. The kids slept in until 9am but we were still able to get ready to go by 10:30am. We went to Wilson Park in the morning and met Stacey and Kristi there with their kids. Gina enjoyed the swings and is finally learning how to keep the swing going without me constantly pushing her. Andrew also liked the toddler swing and was trying to imitate Gina.

Andrew took a short nap this afternoon which was just as well since we had to go to Palo Alto to drop of a check at daycare before going to Creekside Park to meet up with the 04 LM group. Dylan slept while in the car. At the park he looked like he was going to wake up but in the end, he slept the whole time we were at the park. He was awake for awhile during Andrew's nap and then during dinner. He doesn't mind staying in the carseat and looking around.

By the time we got home for dinner (dinner courtesy of Rachel, Antonio's mom), Andrew was pretty cranky. I think he didn't get enough to eat earlier in the day and he was really hungry. He was demanding a cookie before dinner and got very upset when he couldn't have one. Once he started eating carrots and pasta, he was definitely better. While having him starving wasn't good, he did sit down and eat dinner which he hasn't been doing lately.

Day without the Kids

Yesterday was the Christmas party for 02 Las Madres group so we spent the afternoon making cookies. Gina was very excited about helping me make the cookies and of course Andrew wanted to help as well. As we were getting all the ingredients together, I realized we were short on peanut butter (essential for peanut butter cookies), the one thing I forgot to check on the day before when I went grocery shopping. So after a quick trip to the grocery store, we were back to making cookies. I think Andrew was mostly interested in licking the mixing spoons after we were done, but he did help some. Gina enjoyed measuring out the ingredients, cracking the eggs (one ended up on the counter) and turning on the mixer.

This year the party was at Kristi's house. Both Gina and Andrew had a lot of fun playing with all the new toys. Dylan was hanging out in his carseat most of the time. He was asleep when we arrived but after awhile, he woke up and was just looking around at everything going on. After a while I started to feel guilty leaving him in the carseat, so I carried him around for awhile, still relatively content. In contrast to Dylan, Noemi's little girl Katrina was very tired and cried a lot since she couldn't get to sleep. Noemi spent most of her time attending to Katrina, trying unsuccesfully to get her to go to sleep.

Today, both Gina and Andrew were at the Whistlestop all day. We didn't actually get there until 10:30am since Gina slept in until 9am. It was just as well, since I had a doctor's appt at 11am in Palo Alto. The rest of the day was spent hanging out at home, with Dylan sleeping and eating. Stephanie dropped off some 0-3 month size clothes since her son Nicholas is now at 11lbs. Dylan still fits into them, but probably for only a few more weeks. It looks like he is around 8.5lbs now which means he is gaining weight at a better rate.

Tonight we put Gina and Andrew to bed at the same time. Since it was new, it was much easier to put them to bed since they were excited about talking to each other once the lights were out. They were both asleep after about a half hour.

Tomorrow all three kids are at home. Hopefully we will be able to make it to the park so Gina and Andrew can run around.

Dylan at 2 weeks

Dylan is slowly starting to stay awake more during the day. I ended up taking Gina to the toy store to pick out a birthday present for her preschool friend, Brianna, and left Dylan at home with Vic and Andrew. So of course, he decided not to take a nap at that point and instead was fussy and wanting to eat even though I just fed him before I left. Vic took Gina to the party at the Jungle so I stayed home with Andrew and Dylan. Dylan slept the whole time while Andrew went down for a nap but never actually went to sleep.


Above is Dylan at 14 days and then two pictures of Dylan at 15 days old.

Day with Andrew

Today the kids schedule at Whistlestop changed from afternoons to Gina going 3 full days and Andrew 2 full days. So today Gina went to preschool and Andrew spent the day at home. Gina was very happy to be going to preschool all day, she loves going in the morning. Today was Little Gym day and since she doesn't want to do it, she got to spend extra time drawing pictures.

Once Gina was dropped off, it was back home to pick up Andrew and Dylan to go to the Cupertino library to meet up with the 04 group. Andrew had fun playing in the atrium with the cars and toy garage that one of the other mothers brought. Dylan slept the whole time, waking up at the very end to eat and then back to sleep.

Once we got back home, I put Andrew down for a nap. He stayed in his room for an hour but without sleeping. No nap plus a very late night last night (I put Gina to bed last night while Andrew was still awake and they stayed up for quite a while talking) meant that he was very cranky when we went to pick up Gina. He was crying about his snack for most of the drive to Palo Alto and then he fell asleep. He was better on the way home, though he kept hitting Gina every so often. After a few warnings, he lost his TV pick for the night, a first for him.