A Few Minutes Post Work-Pre Dinnertime

Sometimes it's a good idea to do something different right after coming home from work/daycare. It's enough of a "head change" to break up the routine. So, this day, RT gave me so time to do some grocery shopping after work while he did the daycare pick-up. They went to the beach and took a nice walk in the foggy refreshing air.

Our Little Goldfish

We started P on some swim lessons back in July see previous post. After that first 8-session class, she was hooked! We felt that she was really coming out of her shell, enjoying the lessons, and really seemed to be soaking up all the new things she was learning and transferring those skills during her bathtime.

We took a couple weeks' hiatus and resumed for another 8 session-class.

This time, she was pretty much one-on-one with her instructor Calli. She had a blast! She is a true Pisces and just loves the water. I am so glad because I am afraid of the water, so I want to be sure she is comfortable and starts as early as possible.

Some of the things she learned this time around were:

• blow bubbles
• two dives in succession (dolphin dive)
• pull up on the side of the pool
• jump off the castle
• float on her back with floaties on her arms

RT also mentioned that this has been a great bonding opportunity for the two of them. Plus, he gets to learn all these really cutesy cool songs! When these two sing their swim songs and I join in, P tells me, "no Mommy!"

My mom asked me at one point if we were pushing her into doing something she wasn't ready for...take a look at the photos and you be the judge...

A Napkin, A Blanket

I watched my girl this morning take a napkin, spread it on the floor, grab her little pink bear, lay it down on the napkin, and then proceeded to lay herself down on this napkin, and said, "good night!" Pretty thin and small for a blanket, but it was good enough for her! Who am I to argue with ingenuity?

Heat Wave, Cavity, and SD Card

We've had our first heat wave of the year, which is pretty typical this time of year. While we're lucky in only lasts a few days, it's still miserable without air conditioning or even fans. Plus, being upstairs for most of the day doesn't help much.

Miss P was able to stay cool just being in her diaper and nothing else. I didn't think our neighbors would appreciate it if I did the same thing!

We inherited a horse from some friends. At first she would pet the horse, talk to the horse, and couldn't wait to get home to the horse, but never she never wanted to get on it and ride it. She also started saying this word which sounded like "cabidy" or "cavity". We couldn't figure it out at all. Finally, one day I asked if she wanted to get on the horse, she said no. Then, she just threw her leg over and started rocking on the horse! I also paid close attention to when she would say this word "cavity". I figured it out---when she was on the horse rocking back and forth...GALLOPING!!

Now, as for the SD card. She always grabs my camera case. I keep extra SD cards in the pocket. It never fails. She always takes the SD cards and hands them to me. Today, she grabbed the SD card and tried to stick it into my laptop (the way she sees me do that to download my photos). What a smarty-pants!

Daddy At Home

"Daddy at home" is P's expression and her daily song. Well today, she got her Daddy all to herself this morning while I worked at Waterfest/Conservation Celebration at our local zoo. Judging from these pictures, they both had a wonderful time! Hmmmm...maybe there should be more Daddy Daycare days in the works???

Starting out on the trail...somewhere at Montana de Oro.

That's a long way down!

Snack time in the bus!

The bus looking pretty snazzy! Anyone want to buy it?

Daddy, these objects look awfully far away!

Headed home and asleep as soon as they left the parking area. Mission accomplished!

Knot Again!

It seems like each week Miss P is bumping her head on something and getting all black and blue. This week was exceptional in that she got a big goose egg on her forehead from stepping on her Daddy's guitar case, falling, and taking a fast nose dive onto the hardwood floor! Just a day and a half later, she bonks her head on a basket where I keep our blankets--and hits the same, exact spot. The goose egg reappeared, but more angry and bigger than before! I guess if you're going to hit your head, it's better to do it on the strongest part rather than the back, says Daddy. It still doesn't make it easy to witness or see. Thankfully, our girl is a champ and doesn't cry too much. She gets over it pretty quick and goes back to being the daredevil that she is! I think this is why I've gotten so much gray hair in the past year!!

Nothing like a sippy cup to take away the sting.

Oh Mommy! Stop taking pictures of my forehead!

Bath Skills

Our little one has been taking swim lessons for the past couple of months (a swimming blog post coming soon) and taking what she learns and applying them while in the bathtub. What a smart little "goldfish"!

She has been laying down flat in the tub and letting the water come past her ears--this has been her thing for a while. She's very proud of herself for doing this, you can tell.

The next lesson I noticed was her trying to blow bubbles in the water. This consisted of her sticking her mouth in the water and swallowing the bath water. Yuck! I kept telling her, "Don't drink the water!" This went on for a couple of nights. So, the following night, I showed her how to blow bubbles. Still, she kept swallowing the water. On the next night, all of sudden, I see bubbles coming from her mouth. She did it! I was so excited for her and couldn't believe how quickly she was able to catch on.

She still blows bubbles during her swim class. So, it's not old yet.

The laying down flat in the tub, by the way, is old news. Now her thing is to take the little blue shark toy (only that one, not any of the other 10 or so animals she has) and to make the shark "glide" and "dive". It has been so fascinating to watch her extend her lessons at home. We are pretty proud of our little swimmer!