Summer here we come.

Wednesdays are SS and Mama day, it is our time to sleep late (in theory, because it has yet to happen) and spend the day together. Last Wednesday P went to work at an ungodly hour and came home early to spend time with us. Good thing we like the guy and allowed him to crash our girl day. P enjoyed himself so much that he did the same today, and we headed to the water park for some fun, because it was a very hot 103 degrees. Last night P gave me my anniversary present (even though we have a long standing no gift agreement), an Olympus waterproof camera. I was very disappointed when my previous waterproof camera broke during our last days in Maui. Since we take so many pictures of SS in water, P thought it would be a good idea to buy a new one. We are hoping this one holds up.

She's lean, she's mean, she's a sun and water worshiping machine.

Belated Baba's Day dinner. Old age has made P a pragmatic man. He did not feel like waiting for hours at his favorite steak joint last Sunday (they do not accept reservations), instead, he wanted to hand out with us, and wait until it was less crowded.

Taking a picture of Baba. SS is really good with Baba's iPhone, I won't let her mess with mine.

We were very impressed with how well SS did with her first steak dinner. She had not eaten this much in a long time. P had to text a picture of his tiny carnivore to Grandpa.

SS is getting more daring on the slide and we are having a blast watching her progress.

Yummy sushi.

Even though SS has had quite a few wild moments lately, her behavior when dining out is still consistent. So far we are grateful that we do not have to worry about where we dine, because SS always does well. P suggested sushi yesterday for dinner and I was doubtful when we left the park. SS was in a mood, and we were all tired since we had not been exposed to the sun since Maui. We chilled out at home for a while, showered, and hunger made the decision an easy one.
BTW, SS managed to acquire color during our short time under the sun. P and I acquired redness. Again, what happened to my ability to tan? Is that something we lose with age?

The sushi place P chose is very good, very small and we had never seen children there. The last time we were there was shortly before we departed for China, so quite a while. We waited outside for a table and once we entered we immediately encountered the look. You know, the "Great, there's a little brat here to ruin our dining experience" look. Not even SS's cuteness can prevent the look. But soon people realize that we have not brought a screaming, cutlery throwing, water spilling, miniature Neanderthal into their happy place, and they chill. Granted, SS does engage in the aforementioned behaviors at home, we are only praising her out of home behavior. There was only one tense moment when SS unexpectedly began to sing at TOP volume, we quickly reminded her to use her inside voice, and she immediately reduced her volume (a miracle). By that time SS had the patrons and staff eating out of her hand, and they just laughed. Thank you SS for a a fun dinner.

Now I feel horrible owning up to less than stellar behavior on my part. Although SS is used to seeing and never getting wasabi, this time she could not let it go. Our usual explanation that it is very spicy, that it would hurt her tongue, is usually enough. After the 50th explanation I decided to allow SS to have the tiniest taste possible. I am ashamed to say it worked, the expression on her face was priceless, and we were ready with a lot of water. I felt horrible, but some things we need to experience in order to understand. We do not think SS will be asking for wasabi anytime soon. I think that one lost me the mother of the year award.








We kind of overdid it with the ordering, blame it on our long absence. Plus we had to get potstickers and rice for SS. The roll in front of the water glasses is a Pierre Roll, P ordered it on a whim and it was delicious. Best roll we have had since Vancouver (WA), wish we had noted what was inside. Funny that our best sushi experiences were in Vancouver (BC) and Vancouver (WA). We obviously had a lot of leftovers.

Ten years married, and we celebrated at the water park.

The weather G0ds have not smiled upon us until today. Even though P purchased our season passes a month ago, it was not hot enough until today to return to one of SS's favorite places. So that is how we ended up spending our tenth wedding anniversary at the water park. Next time you are tempted to state that having children does not or should not change your life or priorities, think about this one.

It's funny that this small water park is so dear to SS, and the place where her progress is more noticeable. Last year she was still wobbly walking uphill and needed our help at times. Today she plowed upward on her own, not bothering to look back. Last year one of us would go with her to the top, wait in line with her, while the other waited at the bottom of the slide. She still freaked out when a child would stand behind her and leave the line. School has paid off in this regard because she did not ask us to go with her to the top, and nicely lined up, not moving from her spot when a child stood behind her. True, many kids do the same by their second birthday, but we don't care; SS is stronger emotionally and physically and we are proud of her.

We planned to go out for sushi this evening. Hopefully Her Highness will allow us.

Making sure Baba got wet.

Back in the wetsuit because there is no fat in that body. We thought she was going to need a new wetsuit this year and planned on going shopping Saturday. Looks like she is getting a third year out of this one. Not a bad investment.

SS decided that sharing is not her thing after all, no more fries for Baba.

What do little pirate girls do after water fun? They warm up by donning their little pirate girl robe.

The Snoopy sippy preceded SS by six years. We went to Knott's in 2002, and upon checking in noticed that there was a Snoopy package. We asked the desk clerk what it entailed and she showed us a Snoopy pail with some items inside for children. The clerk gave it to me after realizing I was a Snoopy fan. We kept it in the garage and had forgotten about it until now. We love finding things we had for SS for so long.

Three years ago...

We saw SS's beautiful face for the first time. Although I love my children equally, and I reacted with equal joy upon seeing their faces, there is something to be said in favor of a fully cooked child. No gooey mess, no swollen face, no cone head. Looking at her referral pictures is something we do daily. SS never fails to note that she WAS a baby in those pictures and now she IS a big girl.

True, in some ways SS is so far removed from those pictures. Her facial features have changed significantly. Then there's the hair, the hair her grandpa gushed about when he met her one month after we arrived home. Grandpa requested that we keep her hair long, because it was "beautiful and lustrous." As I have said many times, I asked if he was willing to move nearby and take over hair duties. Although her physical growth has not been what we hoped for, she has grown, she is no longer that tiny little baby. She has lost the baby chub she acquired when she came home, her elongated face tells her age to the careful observer.

In many other ways SS is still the little girl in those pictures. We often see the deer caught between headlights look of her mug shot (middle picture). And in a weird way we can't explain, it has become our favorite. Maybe because other than her blurry finding ad, it is the earliest picture we have of our daughter. We have also been blessed by many smiles and laughs, like the picture on the left. SS has a contagious laughter that is also melodic. OK, she also has a maniacal laughter that is plain creepy, but we are going for sappy here. Then there are the moments that have left no doubt that SS was teed off in the picture on the right. Although we had never met our daughter we were dead on when we proudly posted her referral pictures. SS, we are so lucky to have you.

Some people never learn.

With the current hyper awareness of how texting/sending/posting without thinking can ruin someone's life, one would think everyone would be mindful about engaging in any kind of electronic discourse that might come across as improper.




Apparently not...

Anothergain.

Move over S@r@h P@lin, you are not the only one taking a stab at reinventing the English language. An obviously downside to spending so much time with the inarticulate mess that is me, is that SS is becoming increasingly adventurous with her interpretation of how English should evolve. Quite a while ago SS began asking for "another again," and we consistently corrected her and explained that again was sufficient, she did not need another. Not only did the another agains increased in frequency, SS drew her line on the sand to let us know she was not about to take grammatical lessons from the likes of us. She did this by combining the two words into "anothergain," and we can't get her to stop saying it. Cowards that we are, we stopped trying. We are confident that SS is intelligent and will eventually find her way back to proper use of the language. For now have fun little one.

Ms. A told P that SS is now talking even more at school, and LOUD. That cracked us up because we are sure that they are regretting their initial position that our daughter was mute. Now we are not the only ones who miss her mute and cute days (thanks for that line Teresa). That being said, we are pleased with SS's progress in preschool, with her new routine and how both she and P are easing into their new found, albeit forced closeness. I have not dropped off nor picked up SS from school in a few weeks. I really miss that time, but it's P's turn to bask in the joys of more hands on parenting. It is also time for me to cede some of that time, and to know what is like to miss my child.

I am trying to convince P to recreate another disastrous TJ trip with SS for me on video. Poor guy braved the store with SS, handed her a little cart, thinking it would go well, but SS had other plans. She went from placid little girl, into banshee on acid mode. P's mind was still reeling from what he had witnessed when I came home, and did the most freaking hilarious imitation of SS. He had never seen SS like that, but sadly I had, and glad now that he knows what is like to take our banshee out in public. It's a gamble and we do not always win.

I should have known that this picture of serenity was not going to last long.

This is what she was up to barely five minutes later.