the Beach (cont.)

There were adults there too. The whole Van de Water/LaFontano familyand all but the Phoenix Taylors for a total of 30

very silly relatives.

Cousins at the Beach

I just finished up a week on the beach in Sarasota, Florida with tons of family. My parents were a little worried about all of the travel from Oakland to New York to Florida but I told them it was totally worth it for a week at the beach with my cousins. Every day I would wake up and say - kids? pool? water? - and that is pretty much how we spent every day - with kids in the pool or at the water. What could be better? Courtie, Lily and I shared snacks, threw rockets in the pool for others to dive for, and posed with flowers. Marley and I did a rain dance and walked on the beach at sunset.

And pretty much any time I saw a kid doing something, I figured I should do it too, so when Jackson decided to lie down on the shuffle board, well, so did I. All of the playing really tired me out!

North Country Family

Our visit to the "North Country" was rounded out by seeing many aunts, uncles and cousins. Special thanks to Aunt Jean and Uncle Hugh (Happy 70th Jeanie!), Aunt Becky and Uncle Peter, and the whole Syracuse/Canton clan who hosted us, kept us well fed, and introduced me to fun on the family farm where I found lots of fun pine cones and learned to fly a kite with my cousin Grace.

Great-Grammy

This weekend I took a very special trip all the way up to Canton, New York to meet my Great Grandma Van de Water. We had lots of fun together telling stories and playing. She handmade a really fun doll for me named Raggedy-Ann, complete with her own stitched heart saying "I Love You, XO Grammy". I also learned about a really yummy treat that Grammy made called cookies. I used to think that crackers were good, but it turns out that my parents were holding out on me. Here my dad is looking at pictures of Grammy's parents - my great-great grandparents! Then I decided to join the Mennonites.

Fiona & Lars

Now that it's getting light and warm in the evenings, I've been spending more time outside and that means more fun with my neighbors Fiona and Lars. From playing with camelia flowers to swinging like monkeys and jumping in the pool, they sure are fun!

Back Flip

HOT Saturday

It was HOT, HOT, HOT here today. And not in that kinda-warm-but-still-coastal-foggy-SF-Bay-Area sorta way either. We were a few degrees shy of a record, topping out at 83 degrees... in mid-April! We took full advantage, dining on breakfast burritos, fruits and veggies and dipping our toes in the fountain at the farmer's market this morning, testing out my royal bike carriage this afternoon for the first time (this helmet thing is a bummer, but otherwise...), and playing and eating outside for dinner tonight with my good friend Bahia, (that's her right there with the shovel) her Dad Glynn and brother Quincy, and Mom Annie.

Reverse Color Coordinated

I had my official 18-mo "well baby" check-up this morning. New stats:
height -- 2'7" (25%ile)
weight -- 22lbs 14oz (25%ile)
head circumference -- 20" (off the charts)
BMI -- 16.74 kg/m^2 (?)

Firefightin' B-Girl

In Oakland, we like to wear our firefighter "helmets" sideways. You know, gangsta style.

Bye-bye Rob and Avery! Have fun in Omaha!

You may not know this, but right near our house in Oakland is this big city called San Francisco. I have hardly ever been there, but last week we had the occasion to go for a going away party for our friends Rob and Avery, who are moving to Omaha, Nebraska. Seriously. They conveniently held their party in Dolores Park, right next to the playground - it was fun!Not only did I get to play, I got to check out frisbee players, hula-hoopers, a concert in the park, and hippies trying to create an alternative to our capitalist consumer culture. We will miss Rob and Avery, who had many adventures with my parents, from the ski slopes of Alpine Meadows to the top of the Trinity Alps.