My First Mother's Day

For my first Mother's Day, Ben planned a day at Hakone Gardens for the family. The gift was to reenact some of our wedding photos that were taken 4 years ago on May 8th but this time to include our new little one. The picture above was one spot that we had our wedding photos taken. It was a lovely surprise and a really fun day.

Taking pictures is an arduous process on a wedding day but even more so when you're trying to entertain an 8th month old and get her to look where you want her to. Izzy was pretty cooperative for the most part but she definetely had her moments. Cindy and Ben had some creative ways of getting her to look at the camera. This is one of my most favorite pictures taken and it totally reflects Izzy's personality.

A big thanks to Aunt Cindy who came to play camera woman on our day. Even though it was Mother's Day, Cindy's love for Izzy is totally incredible and we are so grateful to have her help us while she can. Happy Mother's Day to all moms (including loving aunties)!

Happy Anniversary to Us!

Happy anniversary to us! It's been 4 years since we've made it official - almost 11 years total of having each other in our lives. Through the past four years we have accomplished a lot, more than we thought we would and with the addition of Isabel and Ozzie, our little family is growing.

I think back to our wedding day and even though friends have come and gone and even lost touch, for just one day, everything was perfect. The day where you didn't think about any negative thoughts, any horrible things or drama. That day, you feel as if the world was in its right place and everything in your life was together.

So for my anniversary, my single wish is to remember all the happy moments and cherish them dearly. Although many events have happened in the last 4 years both good and bad, for a single moment in time nothing could be more joyful.

Big Basin, CA

So Uncle Rory (a friend of our's) moved to Pleasanton not too long ago. Rory is our "outdoorsy" and "active" friend. So before you know it, he dragged (well dragged my butt, Ben wanted to go) to Big Sur to see the Redwoods. It was as close as we could get to redwood trees without driving up north.

Yes, more nature. There was a bit of walking involved but what was worst was the drive. I had forgotten how horrible it was to drive through the mountains, that sucked!

Isabel had so much fun. I am getting a feeling that she is an outdoor girl. Sad me, good for daddy's wallet. Well, Steve Irwin's daughter Bindi does have a line of clothing now.... Maybe she can wear Timberlands with her Juicy Couture!

First Gymboree Class!

My attempts at trying to give Isabel a normal "stay at home mom" schedule prompted me to try a Gymboree class for free. I've always wanted to take her to one and see if she would like it. Since she had so much fun with other babies her age at the Children's Discovery Museum, I figured we would try it.

So my little darling princess LOVED the class! Izzy was smiling and laughing the entire time. Well, there were a few exercises she didn't like and you could totally see it on her face. She loves to stand and jump and any exercises lying down, she hated.

The lesson for the day was tunnels and encouraging babies to crawl through tunnels. Izzy can't crawl yet so we passed balls through the tunnel to show her. She was in love with those plastic balls. Well we signed up so I guess she's going to be a regular!

Children's Discovery Museum

Today our good friends Jessica and Alexya came down to San Jose to visit us. We all went to the Children's Discovery Museum in downtown San Jose. It was nice to take the day off so I could see Jessica and Lexy while Cindy could have some time off and do some traveling. It was amazing. Isabel is at the age where she is noticing all of her surroundings and can interact with people. She can't crawl yet but she's really good at balance and standing with help.

Here is Izzy sitting in front of some toadstools! They remind me of the ones in Super Mario. She's stunned because there was so much to look at. I don't think she knew what to do!

After taking it all in, she got into the groove and played with some of the other infants in the room. The boy on the left is 10 months old and Isabel is just as big or might have even been bigger. At one point, she was interacting and playing with an 8 month old and a 9 month old. She looked just as big as them and actually she had better balance than they did.

The lovely ladies are incredibly pooped by now. At the end of the day, they seemed to be uninterested in each other.

But wait! Lexy didn't forget that Izzy had toys still! It was so cute watching them interact with each other. Isabel was mesmerized by Alexya and everything she did. In a few more months hopefully Izzy will be able to walk and then the two will really have fun together.

Hooray for Asian Culture!

Ben found this brand new show on Nick Jr called "Ni Hao, Kai-lan" (translation, "Hello, Kai-lan"). It's about a little Chinese girl named Kai-lan and all her little friends. It's an interactive show that's aimed towards 2-5 year olds and is similar to Dora but Kai-lan teaches Chinese! I was very happily suprised to see that Asian culture has hit the mainstream, especially on a children's network. I am really excited that this is availabe and I hope it doesn't get canceled. I am not a Dora fan and thanks to my nephew who made me watch hours of Dora, I really like how Kai-lan teaches certain topics to young children. I'm a huge fan of anything that helps cultivate Chinese culture and I'm so happy this show exists. The DVD isn't available yet but I'm hoping it will come out some time soon! Izzy watches this and she seems to like it. Anytime I speak Mandarin to her she cracks up. Well, this is a good show for both her and Ben to watch, they can learn together!

Goofing Around

This weekend was supposed to be full of errands to run and things to do. I was planning on taking Izzy to her first Gymboree class today at Oakridge Mall but the little one got sick on Friday evening and unfortunately continues to be sick. It started off with 100.00 and then fluctuated between 100 and 105.00. Ben and I normally don't panic and we've read enough books and website articles to feel confident enough to have her stay home and tough it out. I think that if her fever had gone even higher than 105.00 we would have gone straight to the emergency room. It sounds so scary when she gets a fever that high but for some reason, doctors don't panic and there really isn't anything to do about it except take some Tylenol or Motrin.

The sick little girl just finished lunch and is smushing her daddy's face under a pillow. She loves to grab your face and squeeze. It was also hot today too which was perfect to bring out her cute tank dresses and summer clothes. It's actually the first hot day that we've had all year (I think).

Here is Izzy totally passed out on the couch with her ducky. Uncle Tony got her this yellow duck from Pottery Barn Kids that quacks three songs. She LOVES this stuffed animal. She has lots but this one makes her laugh like crazy. It's a totally ingenious toy from Pottery Barn. My poor girl! She's still sick!