Summer is Here!

That means the smell of sunscreen, dinners outside, sleeping with the windows open, BBQing, camping, boating, corn on the cob.....

Almost 1 - 11 months old!!!

Gemma is already 11 months old!!!!  We can't believe it.  She's changing every day and is so much fun.

On her 11 month birthday, we got a boat!  A budget-friendly, used, fun, family boat.  We took it out to Lake Berryessa for the day where this little lady rocked a sweet life vest that she hated all day long and was captain of the ship.  She loved standing up and pointing to things along the way. 

 It was so hot out (over 100!) that she even wanted to get in for a dip - she played in the water splashing and swimming around for 15 minutes or so without even a shiver or a goose bump.

And then she got a fresh, dry outfit and got to shed the lifevest and hat which was probably her favorite part of the day.  Too bad it lasted only a a few minutes before those pesky items came back on.

Here's a little more about 11 month old Gemma....

- She can drink from a straw

- She loves MEAT

- She likes to climb on the toilet and beat the seat lid like a drum

- She can point at things

- She can climb the stairs

- She can eat veggie burgers like they're going out of style

- She can drink cow's milk in a bottle or a sippee cup

- She can climb over Riley's back and back again

- She can open drawers and empty them in 30 seconds flat

- She can cruise (walk while holding onto something) on just about anything

My First Mom's Day

This year we got to celebrate a new holiday for a new reason - because I'm a mom now!  I was very much looking forward to this Mother's Day.  For an early celebration, we went to Brian's mom and Gemma got to spend a few hours with her Grandma while we made a yummy Mother's Day Eve dinner.  On Mother's Day morning, I got to "sleep in", then I got a steaming cup of coffee brought to me and a smiling, chatty 3-toothed baby.  Then it was off to brunch...

 We went to Postino in Lafayette for a delicious brunch outside with my family.  Gemma was in a feisty mood, but everyone enjoyed her smiles. 

Then in the afternoon, I got a nap (when was the last time I got a nap??????) followed by some quality family time with Brian, Gemma and Riley and then a delicious homemade (by chef Brian) dinner.  A Mother's Day success!

10 Months Old

Guess who's 10 months old?!

This happy, happy baby!  Who's latest nicknames are...

Gemmacita

Gemmaline

Tooties

Tootsies

Choochie

And what is this big girl doing at 10 months old?

Getting into everything.

Eating anything and everything she can get her hands on - her favorites are the tiny treasures she finds in the nooks and crannies of our house.

Eating food with her fingers - baby puree is not a favorite for this big girl!

Pulling up and climbing on everything and cruising along on furniture.

Throwing mini-tantrums when things she shouldn't be playing with are taken away (like Riley's food and water bowls).

Fighting naps.

Showing off her snaggle tooth (yes, her first top tooth is NOT a front tooth, but the one next to the front tooth).

Practicing standing without holding on to anything for milliseconds.

 

 We are so lucky to have such a happy, busy baby.  Looking forward to summer adventures with this chubby cheeked love-bug.

First Friends

Watching Gemma make her first friends is so fun! Her friend Katelyn's mom captured this gem yesterday at daycare when she dropped Katelyn off - she went in to hug her friend!!! Too cute! These two little tots are with each other almost every week day and on daycare BFFs!! Let's just hope Gemma doesn't bite or hit her like she does us and Riley!

Goodbye, Grandma, We'll Miss You

Rest in peace, Grandma (June 3, 1932 - April 18, 2012).

My grandma passed away peacefully in her sleep last week.  We'll miss her so much, but I know she's not suffering any more and she's taking deep breaths of heavenly air.  Lots of Grandma memories came to light over this past weekend during family time for the Rosary and Funeral - Grandma always used straws and had them around the house....she had a little candy dish on her side table in the family room where she kept stale candy, she made the BEST jello salad, she never swore ("oh, sugar!" was the worst you could hear come out of her mouth), she liked her white zinfandel, especially from a box.  She made the most delicious Christmas cookies.  She cooked Thanksgiving turkeys in a bag and her pot roast was delicious.  She always taped checks into cards for birthdays/Christmas/special occasions.  One of my most vivid memories of Grandma is from my 9th birthday at Chuck E. Cheese...I walked into a shelf/stage and cut my eyebrow and was bleeding everywhere and Grandma took the $5 bill out of my hand and made sure to wipe it clean of all the blood!  She also always put a piano bench out for holiday dinners and us grandkids would fight over who got to sit on it.  She also kept cheese balls around which were so good as a kid!  Lots of great memories that will live with us forever.  Grandma, I know you're watching down on us from above....

Ready for the Easter Bunny

Eggs are cooked and dyed!! Gemma says thanks fort cards, Grandpa Tim and Great Grandma Althea! And thanks, Grammy for the egg holder!

Best Pals

Gemma loves Riley. Riley loves and fears Gemma. She uses his fur to pull herself up, grabs his face and pulls/squeezes his jowls, tries to play in his water bowl and eat his kibble. But he always falls asleep at the foot of her crib and gives her kisses every day.

9 Months Old!

Once again, Gemma is almost to the next month milestone and I'm just now blogging about her last month's milestone!  She's been a busy 9 month old!

 We celebrated St. Paddy's Day with cousins at Ava's 1st birthday party.  All these (part) Irish babies were sporting their green so there was no pinching going on!  Gemma got to play with her cousins, Noah and Faith.

 She had her first taste of corned beef and cabbage at Grammy and Nonno's that night, too.  She doesn't look sold on it in the picture below, but she gobbled up the few bites she had.

 She's a smiling, chattering, crawling, standing, cruising busy baby these days.

 One of her favorite places to scamper off to is Riley's food and water bowls - that little troublemaker pulls herself up and tries to eat dog food and play in his water constantly!  Poor Riley thinks he's in competition for his own food.

 She's busy laughing and making a mess every night during dinner, too.

 She's now able to not only pull herself to a full standing position, but also sit back down from that position (gracefully, not just letting go and falling).  She's also cruising now (walking while holding onto something like the coffee table or ottoman).  She's jibber-jabbering away all the time, too.  She's got two bottom teeth and is working on one on the top now, too.  She loves to gnaw on the coffee table, the fireplace, our bed footboard and anything else she can put in her mouth that's NOT made for chewing! 

Can't believe our sweet girl is in the last quarter of her first year!  Birthday party planning is in full swing!

Baby Food Creations

I've been making a lot of Gemma's baby food since she started on solids.  We've gone through lots of purees, but she's now prefering menu choices with more texture and more flavor.  So, I've been perusing baby food cookbooks, pinterest, blogs, etc. to gather ideas.

 One of her faves is broccoli, cauliflower, cheese, brown rice.  See, one of my favorites is brocolli cheddar rice so I thought, hey, why can't Gemma love something similar?  So, I set out to create it.  I started with dry brown rice (not the instant kind).  I boiled that up.

 Then, I washed and chopped some fresh broccoli and cauliflower and put it in a pot on the stove with a little water to steam.

 When it was all cooked up, I dumped it all in the food processor (ah, amazing wedding gift) and ground it all up into a lovely baby mush.  I also added a modest amount of shredded cheddar cheese.  I then divided it into baby food ice cube food trays to freeze for future use.

It came out a little thicker than Gemma can comfortably handle, so I add a little milk (breast or whole cow's) each time I take a frozen cube of it out of the freezer for her to eat.  She's a huge fan.  It's healthy and flavorful!  A few other favorites - Beef Stew (just the regular old recipe in the crock pot, then I ladled some into the food processor and mashed it up for her and froze a few portions), Bean Puree (white cannellini beans, sauteed zucchini, leeks and tomatoes), and Sweet Potato Chicken (sweet potatoes, chicken, rosemary all sauteed up and pureed in the blender). 

Spring is Here!

Spring is here and to celebrate, Gemma had a visit with the Easter Bunny yesterday.  We were pretty sure she was not going to be a fan of the Easter Bunny because she's a little more particular these days about who she hangs with, however she was quite entertained and we got a sweet smile out of her for this photo.  She also is pretty stoked about her gorgeous Easter dress she'll be sporting this coming Sunday, as well.  She even got a new hair bow yesterday to match - oh my!  That little shopper...

Home-brewed Cafe Au Lait

Mmmmmm. Every day I work from home and every weekend day, I make myself a delicious cup of coffee with steamed/foamed milk. I got the milk frother for Christmas and it makes my day 5x a week.

8 months old!

Time is flying (as it always is).  Not only is Gemma already 8 months old, but she's now almost 9 months old and I'm behind the ball in posting this.  But, let's be honest, I don't think I even posted a 7 month update at all. 

Let's talk about this little lady and what she's doing at 8 months old.....

The day after her "8 month birthday" she started crawling.  There was no progression, ladies and gentlemen.  She wasn't an army crawler, not even really a scooter (maybe some backward action)...she mostly rotated on her belly to move around and she didn't go far.  She did, however, often get up on all fours and rock back and forth.  So, on February 19, she finally put one hand in front of the other and TOOK OFF!  We have an official, properly crawling baby!  Are we ready and baby-proofed?  Not at all...work in progress.  She also loves to sit on her knees and bounce - smiling at us or Riley while she does it - so proud.

She's also VERY vocal - she likes to boss us around and shout all the time (sounds too familiar to me), and lots and lots of laughs and shrieks, too.  She's very much into Riley these days, too.  She likes to smile at him, crawl to him, "pet" him (ie. pull his hair and pound on him), take his toys, share her food..... 

We also have had some major hair growth lately.  I've been looking at older pictures and videos and my baldy is not quite as bald....she's got beautiful golden hair that's coming in.  Brian says she looks like a boy when I swoop it to the side, but I think she looks like Lloyd Christmas when it's combed forward.  Also, we're not out of the "oh, what a cute little boy" woods, yet - we still wear bows in public.

She's also eating lots of new foods and she prefers foods with flavor and texture.  She's begun to spit food back at us that she doesn't like, too....which is lots of fun.  We're lucky, though - Riley has all of the sudden decided he LOVES plain vegetable purees.  She can also pick up foods with her thumb and forefingers (like cheerios or yogurt melts) and put them in her mouth (which also means she can pick up anything she finds on the ground, too).  She's eating a couple of solid meals a day now.

Her favorite toys are these little balls that she has for her rolling hippo toy, any magazines she can get a hold of, my phone, the remote control, Riley's toys (gross), the bathroom scale, Vulli Sophie, and books.

Good Morning, Daddy

Here I am! Pulling myself up to stand on you, bright and early!

Hawaii 2K12

It seems to be my MO lately to not blog about stuff until about a month after they occur.  Ha!  So, in line with that, I wanted to fill you all (and I think my blog followers total a whopping 5 people) on our trip to Hawaii!

First off, I did not want to come home.  In fact, I was like a crazy lady the last day looking at alternative flights and asking the resort if they had vacancy and brainstorming ideas for finding a computer to use for work...

This pics are not in order and I do not have the time or the patience to reorganize them. 

On the first full day in Maui, the boys went on an 8 hour deep-sea fishing trip.  Let me tell you - they himmed and hawed over whether or not to drop $200 on a fishing trip with no guarantee of success for like 2 months.  Then, they both claimed they TRIED to contact the fishing company several times...and we drove by a billboard or a sign on a car or something for the company and I gave them a ring (this was on our drive from the airport to the condo) and someone picked up on the first ring.  Luckily, they had room for them on a shared charter with some Canadian old dudes.  They had the time of their lives and were so stoked that they caught so many fish - including some sort of rare spear fish.  Amongst the catch were Ono (AKA Wahoo), Ahi (AKA Yellow Fin Tuna) and Mahi Mahi (AKA Dorado).  We ate fresh fish like tropical kings for 2 dinners and 1 brunch.  We even had leftovers to feed to wild cats and our cab driver (yes, Gabriel and Brian tried to barter with the cab driver to pay him in fish....we just ended up giving him fish).

 We spent one day in Lahaina because it was overcast and windy as all hell.  We walked around, shopped, had lunch at Cheeseburger in Paradise....here's a photo of Gemma and Brian with their shades on.

While shopping, we found a really cute hula outfit for Gemma.  Most of the ones were found were gross plastic grass skirts and fabric bikini tops.  I wanted real-looking grass and a coconut bra.  Low and behold, I found it for a mere $6.  How cute is she?  I think we are going to use this for her 1st birthday invite and theme - Luau! 

 We spent about 2.5 days at the beach.  Gemma started out as a sand hater (see below), but by the end, she was playing in it and digging her tows in.  She did love, however, sitting on the beach towel and playing with her toys.  Luckily, she also didn't mind hats!

 Pale daddy, pale baby (pale mommy is missing form the photo).  The beach was awesome.  As you can see here, Brian's wedding ring is missing - we think he lost it moments prior swimming in the ocean or digging in the sand.  No good.

 Like true tourists, we also went to a Luau.  It was pretty neat - we all got a lei, open bar, buffet of island food, and a show.  Unfortunately for me, Gemma had a meltdown in the middle of dinner so it was kind of a stressful evening.

 Our resort was awesome.  The condos were new and large and the grounds were great.  Lots of pools and great amenities.  Our room was on the ground floor, which is what we requested, but unfortunately our view sucked - it was of a green tarp covering off a construction zone.  Oh well, we didn't splurge the extra $100 a night for view.  The pools could have also been a few degrees warmer.  When the wind got going, it was COLD.

 Gemma LOVED the pool so we spent a lot of time there.

 Good morning, Maui!  We rented some baby gear that was delivered to the condo before we arrived and picked up after we left.  Super cheap to do and a great idea!  Here's Gemma in a rented walker that was too tall for her - no walking possible. 

 Our condo was on the Ka'anapali Beach Walk which was awesome.  Kind of far, though.  Took about 35-45 minutes to walk from our place to the Whaler's Village, but it was a great walk and such beautiful scenery.  Gemma took a fat nap one morning and the other evening we walked it, she was awake the whole time which backfired on us - our plan was to talk to dinner so she'd nap and not be a sour-puss at dinner, but alas she didn't and she was.

 As previously mentioned, initially Gemma hated the snow.  In all capacities.  Here she is proving my point.

All in all, a great trip!  A tropical vacation is a whole different animal with a baby in tow, let me tell you.  However, it was awesome quality time.  No distractions of laundry and cleaning and errands and work - just 1:1 family time.  I'd love to go back to Hawaii - maybe next time we'll try a different island!  Hawaii is so baby and family friendly - I highly recommend!

Mmmmmspaghetti!

A baby after my own heart...PASTA!!

Tyrant Baby

Here's a cute video of Gemma-girl playing with her Valentine's gift from Mommy and Daddy....she's a tyrant, I tell ya.  

Instagram

I downloaded the Instagram app for my iPhone. I'm trying my hand at "funky" and "vintage". So, I leave you with a bathtime photo tonight. Sleep tight! I know I will if Gemma lets me...

Ol' Riley

There's been a lot of posting (well, maybe not A LOT) about the new gem in our lives, but the oldie is still a goodie. We love our boy and are so proud of the wonderful transition he's made into being a patient and loving big-dog brother.

Veggie Monster!

Guess who loves her homemade spinach and swiss chard???

Aloha!

We are here in Hawaii - enjoying our last day!

Gemma LOVES the pool, not a big fan of sand, and is not down with the ocean. She's been a great beach and vacation baby though. She's also tried lots of new foods!! Mahimahi, poi, kalua pork, cheese, etc. - yum!

More to come - and better photos - when we get back!

Happiest Baby

Wherever we go or whoever we are catching up with - we often hear "Wow, she is such a happy baby!  Is she always this smiley and easy?"  Um, yes, we are SO lucky.  Gemma is a very easy baby (she's still a baby, so "easy" is relative".  Here are some videos of our little chatty, happy baby. 

Here she is climbing on her Daddy like he's her own personal jungle gym. And doing some talking.

And here's our non-stop chatter in the bathtub.

And here's a baby with a full belly of homemade squash and cauliflower and oatmeal (Nasty, right? She loves it).

Mobile Blog? Yes, Please.

Well, it's finally here. Blogger app. Now I can post my thoughts on the go. Which, believe it or not, will likely happen more often than on the computer. I can also more easily upload videos and pics from my phone. Which, the quality isn't great, but it's better than nothing which is what you've been getting.

And so, I leave you with a photo of the Gemster in red and gold, supporting her local team this past Sunday.

Christmas has come...

...and gone.  Too quickly!  And then almost another month has passed, too.  I know, I know...I'm consistently getting worse with the blogging.  Our lives have gotten sooooo busy and now when I have the choice between Gemma-time and blogging....I choose G....and when I have the choice between the over-flowing laundry and blogging....I choose the laundry....and when I have the choice between QT with Brian or blogging....I choose Brian.  And so it goes.  Anywho, need to blog while I have the time. 

We had an amazing Gemma's 1st Christmas.  It was a whirlwind weekend - complete with a clog in our main plumbing line and no plumbing from Saturday to Tuesday. 

For Christmas Eve, we headed up to Vacaville to Debbie and Mitch's.  But first, we stopped by Grandma and Grandpa (or Great to Miss G) to say hello.  Here she is with Great-Grandma Pancoast:

And with Great-Grandpa Pancoast:

And then we were off to Vacaville....due to the plumbing fun, we arrived in our pjs without having showered, dufflebag in tow.  We showered and got ready and then the fun began!  Baby G was looking good in her Gymbo gingerbread girl outfit.  We love ruffle pants.

She is such a lucky little girl with so much family that love her!  Here she is with her Great-Grandma Haberman: 

 And Great-Grandpa Haberman (and her new doll she loves)!  What a lucky girl to have FOUR great-grandparents!

 And Uncle Bren.....

 Here're the three of us enjoying the Christmas Eve festivities.  It was a great night and Gemma was SPOILED.  She got so many fun gifts - a toy tea set, a doll, books, new jackets, new outfits and more!

 We celebrated our first Christmas morning as a family of 3 at our house (sans plumbing).  Santa came a-visiting.  He brought Brian new golf clubs!  He left so many gifts for Gemma, too!

 Here she is soaking in her first Christmas morning.  We had to wake her up if you can believe it!  We had a busy day planned.  She was all smiles and baby-talk - she loved looking at the gifts and finally being able to touch them!  She pulled at the paper and ate the bows and ribbon!  She didn't even know what to do with all her new stuff - a My Pal Violet doggie, books, a toy cellphone, a sit-to-stand walker toy, clothes, galore!

 Santa even filled her stocking with two summer-jumpers for Hawaii and a teething toy.

 Daddy picked out a laptop for her which she loves!  It teaches her Spanish,too.

Riley was not left out either - he got toys and treats from the Big Man, too!

 After we wrapped up our Christmas morning, we packed our duffle and headed to my parents for ANOTHER Christmas morning (and showers!).  Here we are with the star of Christmas morning herself.  And boy did she make out!  Grammy and Nonno more than spoiled her!  Toys, a new wardrobe (for this winter/spring and Hawaii!), a picnic table, a bath seat, shoes, books!

After presents with my family, we headed to Tim's for brunch/lunch.  Gemma was having a good time with Grandpa!  She loves her new books he gave to her.

Then it was back to my parents for Christmas dinner with the extended family.  Gemma had a blast hanging with her cousins.  Here's a shot of her admiring Mackenzie's hair - always jealous of other girls' manes.

More presents!  What a fortunate little girl!

Family photo time!  Gemma loves her Riley-boy.

That pretty much wraps up Christmas 2011.  Whew!  It was amazing and only makes us look forward to many more Christmases with our precious baby girl.