Whole new way to eat!

[Reed demonstrates the joy and pride of feeding himself]
10.5 months

Sun Chasers

Last weekend we went on another fabulous hike with the kids. We were at high enough elevation that we made it above the clouds and fog and found the only sunshine in the bay area that day. Click here for more pictures of the day.

[First time in the backpack carrier]

[Peek-a-boo, solution some pretty intense sun and no desire to wear a sun hat]

I heart chords!!

What is it with chords and babies? There can be 1000 toys, books, and even kitchen utensils in front of Reed but he heads strait to the outlets and chords in the house. He seems to have a mental map of where all the things are in the house that are "off limits". We have done our best to hide chords behind locked doors or up higher than he can reach, but as soon as that door opens he makes a beeline for them.

[A moving chord attached to the vacuum, even better!]

[A few weeks ago I caught the kids trying to get into our office armoire, Maya was especially interested to see what's inside]

Reed & Maya (10 months)!

You have all heard me say that our dear friends Molly and John live down the street and that their daughter Maya is just 3 weeks older than Reed. Well, this set up couldn't be any better. They kids love each other and get so excited to see one another. We have been swapping baby sitting a lot lately because they enjoy each other so much and practically entertain each other with no help from the parents. Here is a glimpse into the lives of Reed & Maya together!

[Maya hug-turned-body slam in St. Malo]

[Sandbox friends]

A perfect Mother's Day

I had a wonderful first Mother's Day! We saw great friends, ate great food, played in the yard and sandbox, relaxed in the hammock and reflected on our lives one year ago when I was anticipating being a mother to Reed Wilder but did not yet know what that meant. Pictures here

Adding "mother" to my identity was instant. It happened during his birth in one flash moment when our midwife said "reach down and grab your baby." Now, to my great joy, I will never not be a mother again.

At almost 10 months, Reed is a funny, sweet, agreeable, adaptable, silly, kind and curious little boy. The basics are that he is still eating as well as ever, sleeping most nights through the night, crawling all around using the famous monkey crawl from his older cousin Eli, starting to truly play with Samba, and overall a busy busy baby. He is starting to really enjoy books that we read together, and prefers to be outside with his hands in the grass, dirt or sand more than anything.

Still very comfortable with many other people, he is starting to show just the tiniest bit of stranger anxiety and can get shy in public. It is now clear that he saves his best silly behavior and cuddles for B and I. This, as you can imagine succeeds in absolutely melting our hearts making us crack up with laughter numerous times a day.

Billy's mom says that Mother's Day is a very proud day for her and now I understand what she means. I am eternally grateful to have the wonderful mother that I do, and to have learned so much from her. I am also blessed to have so many other amazing mothers in my life (Nana, Sherry, Jenny, Jenna, Helen, KJ, Carmen, Molly, Elizabeth, Miyo, Kate (x2), Kir, Karen (x3), Kris, Shelly, Angela, and more). Some wiser and more experienced and some newer to the role like myself. I take little bits of knowledge and support from each of you and honor you today.

Happy Mother's Day!!

Party move!

[Calling all my peeps to come party!]

8 friends, 4 kids, 1 amazing weekend

We took our annual trip to Oceanside, CA to stay at our dear friends Karen's parents house on the beach. Here is a link to the pictures. This is our third year vacationing at St. Malo and it was fun to reflect on the many changes in those three years. This year there were 4 babies Reed (9.5 months) Maya (10 months), Carter (17 months) and Alita (20 months) and 8 adults.

We are so blessed to have such wonderful friends with kids all near the same age. During the weekend we enjoyed many wonderful meals, volleyball and tennis matches, bike rides and long overdue conversations with our friends. The kids provided non-stop entertainment and laughter as well. This trip was especially noteworthy because Reed became a lot more vocal and he learned to crawl forward!

[Reed's first crawl caught on video]

[Nightly bath time with his best friend Maya]

[All four kiddos in the bath after a fun and very sandy day]