Visit with Grammy and Papa

Jared's parents came to visit and the kids were in heaven.
















Can that mouth get any bigger?

Playing on the Piano

She just put the apron on and started to "wash" dishes.



Notice the right hand. Any guesses as to what she's "holding"?



Also, notice her own kitchen on the left that she never plays with. The real one is more fun? At least there is real water and real soap to play with.

Happy Nowruz!

May we survive another March

Every March since I have been in New York, I have wanted to move. It's New York's least attractive feature (every August, I dream of growing old here). It feels like winter is letting up and so I start thinking about putting away my sleeping bad coat and going for a stroll in the park, but March is the cruelest month with its teasing and non-fulfillment.

Here are a few examples:




(Rebecca, that's Adelaide's hat. If you leave things at our house (or if you drop them and we pick them up), we will use them).





The best thing about babies is that they have such a short-term memory that they feel like they are seeing everything for the first time. It's been a while since I took Lucia to Central park and this is her face right when we walked in:











And then she said hello to everyone we walked past--just like a tourist. Soon, she will learn the city scowl.

She does this practically every day

Who knows why. She just gets the little apron and hat and towels and wants me to put them on her and just struts around. I don't think I have ever worn an apron in my life (I have home clothes--see below).



"Oh, why didn't you tell me you were taking a picture?"





Blowing a kiss.





And here they are hiding:







Dad put them up there.

Dancing

This is the face Lulu now makes every time I pull out the camera. It's her "smile."





Lulu loves to cuddle with Cyra. Whenver Cyra is sitting down, Lulu will back into her lap or lay on her or just bear hug her down. Nothing (nothing!) makes me happier than watching them love eachother.


Even though sometimes it's a little rough.

Recession shoes

If the recession goes on for another ten years, your shoes will look like this:


What nasty thrift store or museum did I find these shoes in, you ask? Actually, these are the shoes I wear every day and have been wearing since 1993!!! Am I kidding? Unfortunately, no! I bought these shoes in 1993 because they were all the rage in my high school (yes, I was in high school then). I wore them to school for a while and then I just started wearing them around the house. People from the middle east have outside shoes and house shoes (same goes for clothes). So I strutted around the house in these shoes and my baggy sweatshirts all during high school. These puppies were on my feet while I ate cheesecake straight from the Shoprite tin and laughed, braces glistening, at Saved By the Bell. These shoes were on my feet as I rocked out to Swamp Ophelia in my room and called my friends and hoped that no one else picked up the phone while I was on. These shoes are older than my brother. They came with me to college, my mission, law school, etc. They are starting to show their age and have recently become a bit embarrassing.



So that is why I am announcing a GIVEAWAY!!! I don't usually do this on my blog, but if you post a comment, you automatically enter to win them. They are size 6. I will pick the names randomly so don't try to sweetalk me. (kidding)

Just thought I would write the post, say goodbye to the shoes (but not throw them away) and wait for Amazon to send me the new house shoes I just ordered (just doing my part to stimulate the economy, folks).

Circus in New York

25 Things

So, I tag myself to write 25 things about Lucia.


1. She expresses love by coming right up to your face and just yelling at you (with a smile). You express it back by yelling too.

2. She wakes up at 11:30am every day (and goes to bed around 9pm)--and takes a 3 hour nap.

3. Just today, she put her hand in the toilet, walked around with a garbage can on her head, spilled 2 cups of juice, took out all her clothes from the drawers, got into paper clips and spread them all over the room, spilled the veggies she didn't want all over her high chair and started pounding on them with her hands, got some colored tabs and took out each one, took out all the pots from the cupboard, took out all my clothes from my drawers before she woke up......because...

4. She still sleeps in my closet. We tried to move her up to her own room, but she was up all night.

5. Every morning when I get her, there are several of my clothes in her bed with her. Always the same bright-colored ones. And they always smell. (no offense, Lulu).

6. She gets so excited when dad comes home and sometimes she works herself up so much that she starts crying.

7. She never hits or hits back or gets angry. Her emotions are extreme though: Extreme happiness; Extreme frustration; or just extreme loudness.

8. She laughs when she farts.


9. She opens her mouth wide for kisses.

10. She does everything passionately.

11. She loves to be thrown around and hung upside down.

12. She plays hide and seek with me every morning.

13. When she eats, she puts everything in front of her in her mouth. I have to give her one thing at a time to prevent this.

14. If she has something in her mouth and you give her something else to eat or drink, she spits out that thing and grabs the other thing you give her, even if it's the same exact thing.

15. The adjective we use most to describe her is: "Crazy."

16. When people ask Cyra about Lulu. Cyra's response is always: "She sticks her bumbum in the air." I have no idea why. And then she says: "Is that funny?"

17. Lulu loves to watch Jon Stewart on the computer with me. (She also loves Barack Obama--just kidding. I have no idea what her political views are).

18. I worry about her being a teenager.

19. The only time she will cuddle is when she's sick or really really tired.

20. Whenever she bonks her head or falls, she just laughs and rubs the hurt part and walks off. Unless it's a really bad fall. Then, she cries for a bit until you show her something interesting.

21. Her favorite person in the world is my mom and when I try to take her away when my mom is holding her, she gives me a dirty look and swats me away.


22. Her favorite place is our bathroom. She just goes in there and sits down and if I don't come in there quickly, she plays with the plungers. (I know, gross.)



'

23. Changing her diaper is impossible. I have to hold both of her feet really tight and also hold down her hands while she flips a few times and tries to pull wipes out furiously.

24. She has so much hair that I am worried she will resemble Blagojevich when she grows up. Though I am sure she will be much more ethical.

25. My favorite part of the day is when Cyra and I go to get Lulu out of bed. She gets so excited and tries to climb out of her crib and just yells out of sheer excitement.