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.

FastFastFast

Hi.

I'm gettin' speedy.

Easter Wrap-up

I'm not sure who this resurrected Jesus/bunny guy is but his return meant I got to have brunch with my friends Sally and Chris, slam a hard-boiled egg into purple dye over and over, find eggs magically growing in Debbie and Papa's yard, and blow bubbles and jump on the bed like monkeys with cousin Ro-Ro.

Happy Easter!

May you have bunny ears, good friends & good food, and of course,

time to run around naked. (We had lots of fun with my friends Dylan and Cole who visited from Oregon - I hope they come back soon!)

Super Baby!

This past weekend during a quick break from sleddingI sensed a disturbance and took off at once

to save the day.

Turns out, it was only my cousin Andrew who was in town from NH and needed a break after a long conference in San Jose.

Baby Bookclub goes to the mountains

This weekend was our annual book club 'camping' trip. This year we rented an enormous geodesic dome with fun skylights and staircases and rooms named "Lion's Lair" and "Moose Lodge" and some very entertaining acoustics. There were 6 of us kids there to discuss the book. Here Bahia is acting out the book's title (Paddy Clarke, HA, HA, HA). Despite its entertaining title, we did not find the book very riveting, and therefore demanded many readings of Dr. Seuss' Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now! throughout the weekend. Quincy is recommending a good book for next time - Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. Baby Lena couldn't quite sit at the table yet, so my dad held her up to get in her two cents. With all the good food,singing, and outdoor playtime

we tuckered everyone out.

Thanks for the Visit OmmaPop!

This weekend my Omma and Pop came to visit. While they may have thought they were coming for a relaxing vacation, we put them to work! Omma made us some delicious food, and Pop spent some time planning out our whole day. We did have some fun though - I took them to the zoo, the park, the lake and the farmers' market. After all of that activity, we took a rest and shared some raisins. Ever since they left I have been asking about OmmaPop.

Mama's Birthday

My mama's birthday was this week and she had to go out of town, so I threw a belated party this morning. I arranged a space in my favorite park, invited all my friends, flew Omma and Pop in from Denver, and told my dad to get a bunch of yummy food like grapes and Mighty Bites - you know, all the usual party stuff. Fortunately for my mom, my friends parents are her friends - what a coincidence! - so even though it bore a striking resemblance to a kid birthday party, Mom blew out the candles in her own birthday coffee cake on what turned out to be one of the warmest days of the year. Zoe and I had so much fun palling around on the pirate ship playground, that I made my own boat at home and made Mom join me for an encore sail.Or is that pillage?

Goodbye Grandpa Bernie

Today my Great-Grandpa Bernie passed away. I met him when I was just a little baby,so my mom has been telling me stories today about him. I have heard about how he and Dudley always brought the family together for Thanksgiving and Hanukkah and how my mom used to go visit him at the rendering plant which was one of the companies he founded. She said it was pretty interesting to see how the company worked but it stank at the plant! One of her favorite memories was how Grandpa Bernie used to take her out all by herself on her birthday and they would go shopping together to get something special. Grandpa Bernie was a big presence in the Stevens family and will be missed! My mom and dad were happy and honored that Grandpa Bernie made the cross country trek to their wedding in Yosemite.