seaside sunday

this past sunday funday, we stuffed our backpacks, stopped for sandwiches and headed west. to the water's edge. at dillon's beach. ahhhh.....

thanks be to my trusty co-pilot, trevor, a.k.a. the man maid, for the beautiful scenery shots.

queen anne's lace will forever remind me of my own mum.

at long last. we made it!


immediately, shoes came off.



and baby berry was happy. i know because i am baby berry's mother. and any baby of mine must either be born to love, or grow to love the beach.


many sandcastles were built and then in typical little boy fashion, smashed to smithereens.


sandy hands,


sandy toes,


and sandy bums.

this next image will forever make me laugh. even if i am alone.

beachy beautiful.

handsome and funny...what a package.

happy girl.

and before we packed up our bottlecaps and empty sandwich wrappers and glumly put our shoes back on, a group picture with the camera haphazardly placed on rock, as a little toddler runs away.

i love it just the way it is.

slumber party

you know your saturday night will pretty much be a blast from the past when these two faces greet you on the porch, promising you a slumber party like the old days.



after some play time in the sun, it was agreed that supper time it was.

behold, the magic of oxbow...

first stop: gott's.



hello heaven.

and the face of a boy who is told cupcakes are for dessert:


kara's cupcakes to be exact.



there is something so lovely about a long, pink box, erika and i concurred.


especially a pink box hiding such treats.


ever agreed to give just the frosting a whirl...


just a tiny bite...


and then he jumped, feet first, into a cupcake cloud...


for the grown ups, a ritual latte could not be resisted...





it truly is the best latte i have ever sampled...the foam is like butter. and is quite pretty too.


a full moon accompanied our drive home.


and our night ended with the following fun:

bathtime (always a good time)

book time (strega nona is one of my faves)

magazine time (searching for a hair cut - found it - thanks katie holmes)

bravo time (oh bethenny and real housewives of nyc - i have missed you)

reading time (erika's doula and childbirth literature was very informative)

thanks for the fun, e. you really know how to keep the old fashioned slumber party in style. promise we will still do this when we are white-haired old birds?

24

dear baby:


it has been a big week for you! you have grown to be a foot long (and i can't stop picturing a sub sandwich). the book tells me to imagine you like a sweet, crisp ear of corn - long and lean! i finally feel like my belly matches your size requirements.


this weekend, we are heading west for a bestie beach day. it sounds like a dream to me: warm sun (hopefully), sandy feet, uncontrollable laughter, genoa's deli treats, bottled sodie, and a little boy named everest. it will be a good time.


get busy and grow, baby.



love, mama mia

p.s. thanks to our wheat grass that grew tall this week and thanks to your daddio, who thought we could use some tulips, our house looked and smelled like easter all week. it also made me daydream about easter bonnets and baby khakis, egg hunts and bunnies...this spring feels pretty great, but something tells me that next spring will really knock our socks off.

i think this may become my new mantra...

Learn to like what doesn't cost much.
Learn to like reading, conversation, music.
Learn to like plain food, plain service, plain cooking.
Learn to like fields, trees, brooks, hiking, rowing, climbing hills.
Learn to like people, even though some of them may be different... different from you.
Learn to like to work and enjoy the satisfaction of doing your job as well as it can be done.
Learn to like the songs of birds, the companionship of dogs.
Learn to like gardening, puttering around the house and fixing things.
Learn to like the sunrise and sunset, the beating of the rain on the roof and windows, and the gentle fall of snow on a winter's day.
Learn to keep your wants simple and refuse to be controlled by the likes and dislikes of others.

-Lowell Bennion

*****

as beautiful as this is, it may be difficult for me to learn to enjoy "plain food" and the "companionship of dogs"...just being honest. however, as a whole, i adore this message. it reminds me that a simple life, free of rubbish and silly wants can be the most rewarding. and most importantly, this mantra reassures me of what i learned not so long ago: life's best gifts are free and are often right in front of us.

twenty three weeks

dear baby:

* we are heading into our sixth month together and my body has begun to feel a bit cumbersome. and this is really just the beginning of the long haul. i wonder how on earth my skin and bones will stretch even more to accomodate you, my ever growing babe.


* i had two dreams this week about running for miles, getting sweaty, and feeling the "burn". much to my suprise, i miss that feeling. both dreams were so vivid and it felt glorious. i look forward to hitting the pavement with you soon enough.


* chocolate has officially taken on a new meaning in my life and i am comforted that i am not alone in this obsession. legend has it that ryan's dear granny had to have chocolate daily while with child, and i think its safe to say that i am eating a bit of chocolate every day. oh boy. or maybe i should say, "oh girl". either way its dangerous, but oh so delicious.


* this week also marked a change in your movement. it is suddenly much more frequent and much stronger-i suppose it should-you now weigh over a pound-as much as a large mango! instead of little flutters, sometimes it is like i can feel complete back flips. it is pretty neato.


* we love you, lil' mango baby.

date night: down by the river

i am quite partial to this companion of mine. i am smitten with the sinking sun. i am enchanted by this river. and i like sacramento sunsets quite a bit. we walked for an hour and a half. sometimes chattering. sometimes quietly observing. oftentimes laughing. all the time holding hands.

birthday boy

my dear father in law, or daddy david as we prefer to call him, had a birthday on sunday, so we had a little celebration at casa de kelly on monday night. i wish i could say that i delicately slaved over that beautiful wedge salad that you see, but alas, i did not. instead, mama marsha, who will soon be known as mimi, brought all the fixin's for davids favorite. so sweet. and soooooo delicious. it was the perfect compliment to the pizza that ryan and i worked so hard to order and pick up.


for dessert, we had david's favorite: cheesecake (which i whipped up courtesy of my mama's beloved recipe - i still can't believe she shared that treasure with me) coffee and a rousing game of jeporady. daddy david is good. real good.


happy birthday, dear daddy david. you are quite a guy, always telling a good joke, are our biggest fan, and is someone who would do just about anything for us. we are so lucky to have you!

sister slumber party

while the mister worked hard all weekend, my sisters headed up for a slumber party...

i busied myself at the farmer's market (my first of the year!) and with flower picking until they arrived. i was jumping up and down when this view was visible from my doorway. it meant that i was in store for a lot of fun and even more laughter.

after some chatter around the table while we ate strawberries, we agreed outside is where we wanted to be. so old sac it was.

we perused the stores and tried on many hats...

and masks and shoes and rings and taffy too.

after sunset we headed home for supper. we whipped up ina's parmesean chicken, asparagus, salad and bread. and for dessert, movie time with our dad's banana milshakes recipe.

the morning came and we ate cinnamon french toast with fruit.

and then we planted wheat grass for easter treats. such fun.

A sister is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost. ~ Marion C. Garretty

twenty two weeks

dear baby,

at long last, the clouds have parted and the warm sun is shining through. i have never been more excited for spring in.my.life. although i may be longing for winter come july when my belly is full and the temps are high, today, i am just excited. because you see, the arrival of another season means we are that much closer to meeting you. i can't stop thinking about what you will look like, whether or not you will have hair, and the simple fact that only you, little one, can make us a family.

love, mamasita

****

a couple of things i want to always remember:

*your daddy picked me up for a surprise lunch this week. we ate outside at la bou. after he kissed me goodbye, he smiled and said "stay pregnant" and turned and walked away. he has a way of making me feel so loved and cute, even on days when i feel large and in charge.

*yesterday morning as i rolled out of bed, ryan pretended to stop in his tracks and with a shocked look on his face, shouted, "whoa! what happened?!?!" like i had just gone to bed the night before and woke up very pregnant. we laughed and laughed. it made my morning.