Monday, October 26, 2009

Dear Mothers-To-Be

Just to let you know, at one point, we ALL had pretty high ideals on how we would raise our babies. Things we would NEVER let them do, see, watch, own, etc. I am reminded (daily) of oh-those-awful-things-I-would-never-buy when my daughter is playing in "her office" every day, something I said I would NEVER own, and if I ever did, it would NEVER be a fixture in our living room (along with a swing, and a bouncer too). HAHA. Jokes on mom. It's funny to hear moms-to-be planning their parenting approach, knowing that in a good 4 months, they will have completely tossed that approach out the window, realizing how unrealistic those ideals were...

Now, I am thanking my lucky stars for this horrifying, gigantic piece of plastic that entertains my daughter long enough for me to take a shower, fix a salad, MAKE THE BED, and for the love of God sit down for 5 minutes. I love this office. And yes, it typically sits in the corner of our living room (gasp).

Lucca enjoying her "office"

Other things on the list of "I would never":
1. Use a Pacifier - I've discussed this before....l-i-f-e-s-a-v-e-r. Parents who are against these are just crazy. And by the way, shoving your pinky in the baby's mouth every time they cry is the SAME THING as using a paci, people. Actually, way worse.
2. Watch TV - hahaha, Lucca would NEVER watch TV. Ever. Ever. Ever. She should be building with wooden blocks or learning to play a musical instrument instead, right? HA. Our favorite show right now? Sid the Science Kid on PBS. Enough said.
3. Electronic toys - Gross, just gross. Anything made of plastic that made ANY kind of noise or lit up was on the Do Not Buy list for my baby. And you guessed it...our Top 2 favorite toys are 1) the blinking stop light that entertained Lucca the entire way to New Zealand and back and 2) the Talking Caterpillar, that stops any baby I've ever met from crying. Including middle of the night screaming-bloody-murder crying. That caterpillar lives in my diaper bag, for JUST IN CASE moments. It also has become THE toy I buy any new mom.
4. Nurse my child to sleep - what a terrible habit to start. Just atrocious. Yeah, this is the way Lucca pretty much goes down for every nap. Where is my worst mother of the year award?

The list goes on. New mothers, beware. Your perfect parenting ways just might change once you actually become a parent. And I wrote this as a reminder to myself to not judge that terrible mother at the grocery store, who promised her super annoying kid they could watch Elmo if they would just stop screaming at the store. What kind of mother would use bribing tactics? ;)

Sunday, October 25, 2009

Cutest Pumpkin in the Patch


Let the Halloween festivities begin! We took our pretty pumpkin to the Noe Valley Harvest Festival on 24th Street in San Francisco. Lots of Halloween excitement on a gorgeous fall day...face-painted kids, creative costumes, pumpkin painting, horses, clowns on stilts (scary), live music and a farmer's market. We kept picturing ourselves in a few years, with Lucca running around in a costume getting her face painted, going on pony rides and carving pumpkins. This year, she didn't have clue what was going on, but was a happy little camper/pumpkin strolling the street having a good time. In fact, she was having such a good time she didn't even mind when a bird pooped on her. Smart bird though, for finding the cutest kid on the entire street to poop on!

Friday, October 23, 2009

Lucca & her twin

Park Day


We had yet another gorgeous October day in Sausalito, so Lucca and I spent an afternoon in the park. Lucca loves dogs. She squeals every time she sees a dog. Mama likes dogs too, but not when the dog is a pitbull, laying on your baby's blanket. We had to kindly ask "Buddha's" owner to take him away (or at least put him on a leash!). I took Lucca on the swings, but this time all she could do was stare and smile at the blonde boy climbing on the jungle gym. Shh, don't tell her daddy!

Trouble...

"Hi Mama, I'm about to empty out this entire basket of toys and will not help you pick them up...but aren't I cute??"

Saturday, October 17, 2009

these two capture my heart...

A daughter adoring her daddy? Or a daddy adoring his daughter?

Friday, October 16, 2009

Flower Power

There's nothing sweeter than our freshly bathed little flower <3

Thursday, October 15, 2009

we have a tooth!

BIG NEWS!
Miss Lucca's 1st tooth popped through today...at exactly 7 Months old :)


My babe.


A babe in the house is a well-spring of pleasure, a messenger of peace and love, a resting place for innocence on earth, a link between angels and men” ~Martin Fraquhar Tupper
Today marks 7 MONTHS since the glorious day Lucca was born. What a joy she is! Somedays I stare at her and still can't believe she is mine. OK, every day I stare at her and can't believe she is mine.
She is perfect.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Baby Gymnast

Lucca went to her 2nd class at the Little Gym, and loved it. She is the youngest baby in the class, but definitely keeps up with the rest of her little friends. Actually they try to keep up with HER! Today we did a somersault, an obstacle course, bounced, walked, ran and played with balls. Oh, and how can I forget the mama/baby barrel rolls? So fun...if you have a baby, you must find a Little Gym.
trying to figure out how to go forward
one for each hand....like usual
climbing the obstacle course
made it to the top!
Lucca's favorite: the bubble machine
Mama's favorite: naptime!

Monday, October 12, 2009

Friday, October 9, 2009

The Little Gym

Lucca has officially had her first work-out at the gym. She's a Chao, so fitness is in her blood! I took her to "Baby Bugs" class at The Little Gym this week and she LOVED it. Watching the little bugs playing on the mat was the cutest thing I've ever seen. The instructor leads songs, exercises and stretches that the mommies do with their babies, and then she dumps out a bucket of balls that all the little ones go chasing. While the goal is to increase mobility in the babies, I just wanted Lucca to be able to play with some friends at class since we miss the company of lil Lincoln + Lila so much!

Lucca did great. She walked across the balance beam, did her first somersault, and kinda hung on the "high" bar (with one hand on the bar, the other hand in her mouth...).

We will definitely be going back to the baby bugs class next week.



Wednesday, October 7, 2009

6/7 Months Old

We took Lucca to her 6 month check-up yesterday (even though she is 7 months old now!). We had missed her appointment during all of our September travels - oops. She is perfectly healthy and "growing beautifully" according to Dr. Brock, our fab pediatrician.

She is in the 75th percentile for both height and weight:
height: 26 3/4 inches
weight: 18.6 lbs

Lucca was a perfect little patient and gave the Dr. lots of smiles as he examined her little body. She got 3 shots, and the flu vaccine...and, as usual, didn't shed a single tear! She is 3 for 3 now, and makes her parents look like wimps (we are both scared of shots).

We are moving to solids 3 times a day now, and got the OK to start trying a few finger foods -- probably avocado first. Time is going by so quickly, it feels like tomorrow she will be going to Kindergarten. :(

We are so thankful for Lucca's health. The doctor told us her life expectancy at this point is 90 years old...isn't that crazy? Cheers to 90 years.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Monday, October 5, 2009

Such a (Hawaiian) Coco

Hawaii!

We are back to reality, after having the most amazing trip to the big island of Hawaii! Lucca and her cousins were perfect travelers. We stayed for a week on the Kohala Coast (the sunny side!) in a gorgeous home with our own pool and tennis court. This was definitely the way to go with 3 babies. The views from our house were incredible, and every night we got to see breathtaking sunsets overlooking the Pacific ocean. We all wanted to move in by day 2 :) Our days consisted of swimming, eating, playing Taboo on the lanai, snorkeling, tons of tennis, the beach, opening coconuts, and drinking tropical goodness.

Here are a few photos from my iPhone...i went to Hawaii WITHOUT my camera! :(

the lil world traveler