Angel Island Camping - August 2011

We did it!  We backpacked for 2 nights with an almost-4 year old and 18 month old.  Before the trip, I was questioning our sanity, but it was quite an easy introduction to non-car camping.

We took the ferry from Tiburon to Angel Island.  The grown-ups anticipated carrying the gear and having Erin in the Bob stroller, Robin in the Ergo in a front-carry.  It was MUCH easier, however, to cart all the gear in the stroller and hoist the kids.  Erin even figured a new way to ride in the stroller, atop the canopy, and imagined herself to ride a horse named "Lala" all weekend.

Our site was remote (heck, there's only 10 on the island), and was a bit windy, but we had incredible views of the East Bay.  The evening/morning fog kept temperatures kind, and pesky wildlife was limited to a few raccoons.

We hiked about the island, checking out this historical sites, including the West Coast's Ellis Island equivalent and an army base used throughout WWII.  It was sobering to have such crumbling monuments nearly next door to where we live. We ended the day with a hike to the top of the island, Mt. Livermore.  Perfectly clear weather permitted a spectacular 360 view of the bay area, complete with the picturesque San Francisco skyline, the Golden Gate, Richmond, Berkeley (we could see the UCB campanile!), Tiburon and more.

This was the 3rd summer camping trip so the girls were total camping pros.  But backpacking limited the gear (toys, books, etc) we could bring.  The girls did just fine, making up lots of fun games and being generally energetic and silly. Plus, they got to eat SPAM.  I think there will be more backpacking in the future!

Of course, there were TONS of pictures.  And movies.  But pictures for now:

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It started much earlier than I thought

Today Erin expressed displeasure at the wondrous red curls that grace her head. Curls that many people pay lots of good money for.  Curls that spontaneously happen, full of energy, élan and intensity.  So, like any good mother of an almost 4-year-old, I busted out the straightening iron. 

With questionable results.  Erin was happy with the "smooth" texture of her hair.  I won't speculate too much on her impetus behind the statement that she hated her curls and wanted to find a way to change it, although it may have a little to do with how ev.er.y.one. who sees her exclaims how wondrous her curls are. Or maybe it's that her BFF has straight hair.  Who knows.  I know that we all harbor things we'd like to change about ourselves.  I'm not gonna worry about hair.  I'll listen to that, and maybe she'll let me in on other things, as they arise. 

Easy skirts, attempt 5

Every girl in Erin's phonebook will get skirts this year for their birthday.  I made this one last weekend for her BFF Ella.

 Cute fabric, no? I made Erin a matching one, since it was her BFF and all.

I liked the fabric so much I bought 2.8 yards of it, all they had.  And for the size all the girls are now it's just about perfect: the width of the bolt is a tad bigger than the recommended 2x waist size.  The heart pattern is length-wise so I figure I can get about 7 skirts out of the deal, costing about $3 per skirt (including the cute pink trim).

Orders anyone?

Erin the composer

Erin had a great jam session yesterday on the piano.  I'd pose to her animals/things, and asked her what they would sound like.  She'd contemplate, then bust out with some music.  And she pretty much nailed the impression every time.

Guess it's never too early to start learning improvisation.

Robin June: 18 months

Stats

Height: 33 inches (75-90%)

Weight: 24 lb 0 oz (50%)

Robin is in full toddler mode.  She runs. She climbs.  Time has its own meaning when she's interested in something, and these days she's interested in everything.  She sings, makes jokes, and absolutely knows the meaning of "mine".  She loves her little blankie (LB), Erin, Mommy, and Daddy. In that order.  She'll gladly tell you if something is big or tiny. She counts while climbing stairs or contemplating her toes.  She loves if you read a book to her, but loves even more to show you what in the book she already knows.  Her investigations are mostly self-driven, and she often quietly busies herself with interesting rocks, laces, water, and other fascinating tidbits.  She loves music and demands, "more" whenever there is a pause between songs.  She's a social butterfly and charms anyone nearby - so long as she's safely in Mommy's arms.  Her favorite food is a toss up between hot dog and palak paneer, but also begs for chocolate milk (koko mulk), doughnuts, lolly pops, otter pops, cookies, or other sweets.  She knows how to open the freezer to look for ice cream.  She has 18 teeth and loves to brush them.   

On a Mommy note, these 18 months have gone by very fast.  

Negotiating with a toddler

Robin: (from the back seat) mama, need a pop-pop.

Me: No sweetie, we don't get a lollypop until after lunch.

Robin: Peeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeees?

Reason #7,294 why I love my husband

He loves getting flowers.  He especially loves tuberoses.  He's commented 4 times tonight how wonderful the whole house smells. 

Wordless Wednesday: Flower and fly

The A's Game

So behind on blogging.  It's been a busy summer.

Brian and Erin went to Erin's first baseball game last weekend. They had a blast.  They had just missed getting free jerseys, but the amount of kid-friendly stuff made it a super memorable event.




 Erin was engaged, got to carefully select a treat from the vendors (ice cream, of course), played in the play area, colored pictures, and, by far the coolest, got to run around the bases on the field after the game was over.




Oh, and did I mention Brian got the tickets for free from someone outside the stadium?

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