Four Months (and some days)!

Hey! Things are moving at a million miles per hour over here with kids, work, dogs, upcoming nuptials, etc. However, I always have time (ok, not always, but often) to give you a quick update and a few (ok, not a few, but lots) of pics. 

Baby J's four month birthday came and passed last week. Her doc was very pleased with her eye contact, head holding skills, as well as the hard stats: 

• 14 lbs and 13oz (49th percentile), 
• 25" long (74th percentile) and 
• 84th percentile head circumference. 

This lil'gal is already such a wonderful addition to the family. Other than some vague recollection of having an abundance of time, I can't remember life without her. She grins just about every time I help her stand or sit. She loves ABC's and has a little squeal'o'delight which can break hearts (and maybe a couple windows). For the most part, she only cries when hungry...though the switch between not-hungry to hungry happens in a blink. About half the time, she'll sleep a full night, which is nice. Very nice. 

A couple of weeks ago, Lisa was in San Francisco for Tante Ness's Bachelorette party, while E spent the weekend with Oma & Opa (and they went to Santa Cruz -- lucky ducks), so Baby J and I got some good daddy/daughter time. It was so much fun. That Saturday, the two of us drove up to the city and met up with Lisa so she could nurse. Though trying to locate the girls and navigate the city was difficult, when we finally caught up to her, it was with a beautiful view of the Golden Gate Bridge on a beautiful day in the city. The capstone of the mini-road trip, however, was J and I going to the Green Chile Kitchen, one of the only (?) true New Mexican restaurants in the bay area...it was nice since baby J's been wanting to try it. 

Also, we celebrated several  birthdays: Oma, Uncle Brian, Kristi, Aunt Dasha, and me. So E definitely got his fix of birthday singing and cake. And if he wasn't convinced of it before, he's sure that every meal should be in celebration of someone and should end with candles for him to blow out. In fact, the other night we sang for Fuzzy Bear's birthday, since we had no actual birthday to enjoy. 

And even all those b-days weren't enough, we had a great family dinner honoring Oma and Opa on their 40th wedding anniversary. What a serious and wonderful achievement. If you're alive, a birthday comes around no matter what you do...but marriages take a lot to cultivate for that long. I speak for Lisa and myself (and probably everyone else who's ever met them) in saying that they are an impeccable model to work toward. 

Our Fourth of July was fun too, especially since Nana, Papa, Beau, and Miss Belle (as E calls her) were visiting. We did our traditional day in the park, enjoying the sunshine, BBQ vendors, and the happy residents of Santa Clara. This year, we decided to watch the fireworks from our front lawn so as to not interfere too much with bed time (mine, not the kids...jeez, the show didn't start until 9:30...most nights, I'm brushing my teeth by then). The rest of the trip with Nana & Papa was nice and relaxing. The goodbye wasn't too tearful either, since we'd be seeing them very soon for Ness's wedding. 

E has been a hoot, as always. He's entering the question phase, though not "Why?" (yet), but rather, "What HAP-pened, Dad-dee?" At which point I'll explain myself. "Oh, I dropped the scrambled eggs on the floor. It was a mistake." He'll ponder for a few beats. "Daddy made a mistake. That's okay." Though within a minute he's asking, "What HAP-pened to eggs, Dad-dee." I believe this is a 2-year-old version of rubbing it in. 

The other day Cody came up to him and E started to scratch the dog's ears, mimicking Papa saying, "That's his FAV-orite." Happy with the attention, Cody started breathing heavily, giving E a good dose of dog breath. E's face twisted and he shook his head. "Cody will move. Cody will move. Cody is TOO spicy."

Besides melting our hearts every time he's around his, "Sweet baby J," E's been showing his compassion for his GG too. When we told him that she had to go to the doctor's office, he was very thoughtful before saying, "She needs a Band-Aid. Maybe I kiss it." It's moments like those which are shining lights in these busy, stressful times.