Sentences!

Day are day we see differences in Rosie's verbal skills. Quotes from today:

"I like to eat spicy things." (It's true! Salsa, jalapeño potato chips, spicy seaweed)

"I really love you so much" (cue heart melting!)

Special People Day

This morning mommy had the honor of going to school with cousin "Ina" for special persons day. It was fun getting a glimpse of a day in her life. Meanwhile, Rosie got to spend the day with her special people, Tia in the morning and Auntie and cousin A in the afternoon before the most special Daddy picked her up.

Happy birthday Auntie

Early birthday teppanyaki dinner for Auntie G.


Our chef was very entertaining and talented. And trusting, handing over his utensils to Rosie:


We were all mesmerized, some more than others. Rosie was very cute trying to copy the chef. Lets hope she doesn't try and imitate his egg-throwing routine:


Happy birthday Auntie (while you're distracted by the camera I'm going in for the candle!)


Post dinner walk to the cafe:


Bedtime:

More randoms

Karate kid 3.0:


Gettin ready for the snow next week:


Snack time with P. amazing to listen to them have a conversation with each other. Hot topics included goldfish and bowl color:


Chasing to pass the hour long wait for dim sum:


Fun with sculpture. Look closely...see any familiar faces?


Uncle L smiling Rosie-style:


Storytime:

Little thay

Baby shower

Yesterday I went to Aunt J's baby shower while DaddyO and Rosie visited friends in Oakland. Excited for Uncle N and Aunt J's baby boy! It was nice to catch up with family (and play with Baby M!). And while everyone asked for Rosie, it was a nice change of pace to go solo and for Rosie to get in good Daddy time.

Creek

The sun came out to play today so we just had to take advantage. We ended up at Robertson Park.

Rosie's first game of Pooh Sticks (with adapted rules):



The water was so enticing so we went down creek side and played with the rocks. Rosie even stuck her feet in the water.






O mai-looking rock:


Rosie didn't want to leave. Nature exploration to be continued!

oobleck

...because sometimes life is more fun when it's messy.

cafe w friends

Met up with friend M and his mama E at Tully's down the street. We had some treats, played games, and then walked over to the library for trains and books. On the way home Rosie and I got caught unprepared in the rain. We may need to get some rainboots :)

CHEERS!

Dream

Underneath the Christmas tree this year was a new book, I Have a Dream, excerpts from Martin Luther King's speech with paintings by Kadir Nelson. Tonight Rosie listened so sweetly through the whole book, asking "who dat?" on almost every single page and holding my cheeks as I read. It made me think forward to conversations about how "special" (for lack of a better word tonight) Martin Luther King is, how he inspires DaddyO's work, and how grateful he makes us feel.

Happy birthday cousin J!

How time has passed!

26 months

Highlights:

• Curiouser and curiouser. Rosie has no doubt entered that stage where she questions everything. My personal favorite: "Who dat?" So now it is finding a balance between answering her and turning the question back on her.
• New favorite books: The Three Little Javelinas (with Daddy's Southwestern accented), Where the Wild Things Are, The Mitten.
• Track and Field. This girl loves to run. And she loves to shake her hips while doing it.
• Family. Rosie loves her family! She walks around her Vavos', aunts' and uncles' houses like they're her own and usually doesn't want to leave. She shares laughs (and food!) over FaceTime. We recently found old photo albums and Rosie has been obsessed with looking at younger versions of loved ones (who dat?).
• "Pretend!" What a magical age we are in of pretend play. We dive into the ocean under our fuzzy blue blanket (a turtle named Chris lives there), replay the life cycle of a butterfly (replenishing with nectar when we're tired), and take drives to the beach (using one foot for gas and the other for the brakes...we're working on drivers ed). So much fun!
• Big Girl Bed. Rosie is more consistently falling asleep in her big girl bed (though we're still working on removing ourselves even more from the falling asleep process) and then comes in to snuggle with us in the morning.
• Food. Rosie's still a picky eater but has her good days. Tonight she her first well-balance meal (in one sitting) in a while: spaghetti with meat sauce and lots of green beans. She's still a fruit bat and a carb monster. She likes things salty (pickles, salami, cha) and sweet ("ous" cream)...you know, all the things bad for you in large quantities.
• Chef. Rosie really loves to create in the kitchen. When we go to the library that's her choice activity and when we're cooking at home she loves to get right in the mix (literally, she is often elbow deep in the mixing bowl). 
• People person. Rosie hasn't been shy to connect with new friends or wave to a person on the street who happens to make eye contact with her. At gatherings now we often don't see her until the end of the night!

Sunny zoo day

A warm and sunny day here in the Bay! With Daddy home for the day we decided to go to the Oakland Zoo. Apparently we were not the only ones with this brilliant idea.
Here we are hanging out at the bat exhibit:




Goats were a highlight. We groomed:




Showed off our cowboy boots:




Made friends:




And made sure everyone heeded the sign. Rosie loved reading the sign. English "goats and sheep only on the rocks" translated into Rosie is "Don't go! Goats":




And what would a trip to the zoo be without a ride with a gorilla:




Sweetness by the zebras:

Heart to heart

Party time!

And by party we mean potty!

Tonight marks the first night Rosie willingly and independently (read: no prompting!) used the potty (TMI? Sorry big Rosie). We've been giving her more diaper-free time recently and tonight she may have proven herself ready for actual potty training....(yay! and ugh).

No picture to accompany this post.

Alviso Adobe Community Park

Today we stumbled upon a nice little treasure along the Pleasanton hill, the Alviso Adobe Community Center. The historical site was home if the first dairy farm in the county and is home of cool binoculars!






Cowgirl:


This area apparently used to be home of grizzly bears, bigger and more populous than in Alaska:


The changing landscapes:


Artsy oak trees:


Little explorer in the making:

basketball game

Today was spent mostly relaxing and Mom recovering from a cold. Which called for joint nap time! 

We finally made it out the door this afternoon for "Sissa"s basketball game. Rosie had a blast cheering her on. In fact, she quickly picked up some key cheers from the crowd: "take a shot!" "defense!" "nice try!" She also loved playing with Uncle G and Auntie G in the stands:

Rosie felt so at home in the gym. In fact, she climbed down a few levels and made friends with the person with the best seat in the house:

Afterward we all grabbed dinner downtown (Baci...another one to check off the list!) and are now having a quiet evening at home. DaddyO and Sissa are pre-bedtime reading with Rosie as my congested head and I veg out :)