Diving right in

Today Rosie went for a swim! It's been months since our last swim (not since Ba Ngoai was in town!). Rosie was cautious at first, making sure to hang on tight. But it didn't take long before she was splashing and kicking. Being in the water really brought her joy. And she was adventurous! I'd sit her on the edge of the pool and on the count of three, she leaned forward letting herself fall into my arms. She also giggled after each dunk underwater. She's our little fish!
I couldn't get a shot while we were in the water so here's a before picture.

A berry good day

It was straight up hot today! We started the afternoon with berry pancakes






Then headed to Happy Hollow.



Afterward we walked through the Japanese Friendship Garden where Mommy had to make sure Rosie didn't jump into the ponds. The blossoms were out!



When DaddyO got home we walked down the avenue with a friend and got Mexican food. A long day for Rosie's got her pooped out.

Dandelion

Rosie walked all the way down the block, stopping to pet all the trees, smell the flowers, and practice blowing dandelions. hen we got to the end of the block she didn't want to go back. I think she was headed to the library (closed on Mondays) and was disappointed to turn around.

Jackson Pollock

Rosie has now entered the Pollock phase of her art. Highlights of this video:
- the deliberate and careful strokes she makes
- studying her own work (the arm behind the back is too much!)
- how quickly she figured out the paint brush compared to her first time painting (helped that DaddyO is a good teacher!)

Oh and I forgot to mention before that our inspiration to start painting came from Di T's birthday painting party!

Painting worked up quite the appetite:


(p.s. that's a chicken leg)

Priceless

16 month birthday

16th month! This picture makes me giggle because she isn't really a very serious baby but you couldn't tell by this picture. If you didn't know any better you'd think she were at the DMV. But still cute.

16 month highlights:

• Growth percentile stats: Went to the doctor's and it turns out Rosie has gained very little weight and has dropped to the 1% at 18lb, 2oz. The doctor wasn't too concerned and said we just have to keep offering her healthy food options frequently throughout the day and she'll need to do the rest. She is 2'6" (26%) and still has a gloriously good-sized head in the 76%.
• Communication: Rosie always surprises us with how much she understands. She is good at following directions (when she feels like it) and is picking up more signs. Her repertoire includes: more (she also says something that sounds like 'more), please, thank you, love, apple, cheese, milk, berries, eat, water. Now DaddyO and Mommy need to learn more so we can teach her more!
• Potty Party! We have started to introduce the potty to Rosie since she is starting to communicate more. We've had a success a few times, though right now it is mostly about getting her used to it. She does gladly sit on it and makes funny faces (mimicking us, I'm sure). Rosie has also gone with Maria, who watches her in the morning! Then again, Maria can make Rosie do most things, possibly better than us sometimes!
• Animal sounds: She loves animals and can mimic dogs, cats, horses, cows, and monkeys. On the cusp: duck, tiger, chicken
• Movement: Rosie walks with ease now and loves to spin. She even tries to jump, though hasn't figured out how to get air yet. She also loves to wrestle!
• Books: Rosie still loves books! For a while now she's been choosing books and sitting on our laps for story time. 
• Music: Rosie LOVE to shake her little booty and bob her head to music and also LOVES to sing songs! She'll ask for "more" whenever a song is over.
• Social butterfly: The social caterpillar has blossomed into a social butterfly. This came in handy when we were last on a plane and she started to get grumpy. All DaddyO had to say was that there were people who she needed to say hi to and she was easily distracted. She's really learned to pucker up the lips and will gladly blow kisses to those willing to receive. Today we were at the park and she kept trying to give another toddler hugs. We may need to soon have a talk about other people's personal space, but for now we'll just enjoy it and run intervention if needed.
• Other interests: Rosie has taken to her shoes and will gladly take them on and off for entertainment. One morning she woke up grumpy and walked straight to a pair of pink boots. She also loves to close doors, drawers, and gates. She loves to brush her teeth. She has figured out how to turn on and off the radio on our alarm.

Love her!

A regular Van Gogh

First Rosa painting!

Taking a spin

Today we visited friends in Oakland, one of which was kind enough to give Rosie a lift:






It was great seeing Rosie play with other kids. She and her friends were very kind and enjoyed sharing toys. Rosie was also smitten with the 3-week old baby, which turned into a kiss-the-baby contest with the baby's big brother.

Bonus pic: windy day!

CarTalk with Click and Quack

Rosie was very chatty today!

Kia con buom vang

Ba Ngoai, with backup vocals from Ong Ngoai, started singing this song to Rosie before bed over FaceTime. Rosie really loves it and claps at the end everytime, then asks for more. It is about watching a yellow butterfly as it moves its wings and flies.

Tech Museum and more

Today we went to the Tech Museum in SJ to explore and scope it out for mommy's field trip next week:





Rosie's silly toothy smile:


Ore-bedtime yoga:


No hands tooth brushing:


Rosie hard at work picking flower petals, the scattering them, then picking them back up:

Snapshots 3.9.12

Early morning banana while watching the garbage trucks:



It's harder to take pictures now that she likes to play with the phone:


Comically large balloon:


Felt like summer at the park:


Digging in the front yard with a shovel, aka the pasta utensil from the kitchen. Check out her squat skills!

Purple Vans

Rosie was excited to finally fit in her purple Vans, which she got for her birthday. These are the first shoes she's worn with hard soles. She made a few laps around the house...sounded like wooden clogs!

Shadow puppets

At one point tonight Rosie and mommy found themselves on safari in a blanket jungle with only a flashlight to fend themselves against shadow puppet wild dogs and ducks and...more dogs. And maybe a butterfly (turns out mommy needs to diversify her animal hand puppetry).



With Rosie cuddling with me, laughing at the shadow puppets, and giving me looks of such sweetness, I took a mental snapshot because I knew it was going to be one of "those" moments of joy that I'd always hold onto.

Maybe it's because Rosie misses DaddyO or maybe knows to take it easy on her mom this week, but Rosie has been especially sweet and loving. And frickin hilarious too! Even with a 6th tooth poking through.

Bedtime miracle

Today we said bye to DaddyO who is on a school trip until Thursday. We had a calm day together with a trip to a sandy park to meet friends after a long afternoon nap. Then we facetimed with DaddyO (so sweet to see her excitement seeing his face) and with Baby J, Auntie A, and Uncle M. Then something amazing happened: Rosie totally rocked bedtime! I'd been talking to DaddyO about establishing a better sleep routine and Rosie must have overheard. Tonight was the first time in a while that she didn't get upset when I put her in the crib awake. We're off to a good start!

Snapshots 3.4.12

Dirt nap:


Not amused:


Ready for the big swings:


Brunch and Farmer's market with Vavós, Auntie, and Cousin A:





Cal v. Stanford men's basketball game...it's serious business:

Bags and tunnels

Yesterday we were at Stanford and had an awesome impromptu meet up with a good friend. So good, in fact, that R almost tried to sneak Rosie home with her:



Here's a shot from a playground by DaddyO's school. Rosie loved playing peekaboo in the tunnel