raspberry heaven

my sister saw a place online where you could pick raspberries for an amazingly cheap price.  we put our heads together and decided to make jam.  bonus? the farm is super close to her house.  neither one of us had picked raspberries before (slave labor at gma's doesn't count), but we were up for the challenge.

the 'farm' is in this sweet couple's backyard.  they have such an ideal operation.  retired, grow lots of plants and have people come pick the fruit and haul 'em away.  it was charming!

however, i was not ready for the intensity of the berry bushes.  good thing i wore jeans!  you tied buckets around your waste and went to town.  you could eat as many as you wanted while you were picking. 

 they were taller than ava!

 bivi fell asleep while we were picking.  having a baby strapped to your chest takes the difficulty factor up a notch, but we managed!

 my hip bucket.

 weighing the goods.  7 pounds for $21!  crazy talk.

oh, and this cute little dog was the doorbell that let the owners know someone was here.  we pulled up to their house and he comes running out and barks, so they know customers have arrived.

all in all, a great experience.  super cheap and fun for adults and kids!

perfect

passed out after a bottle with dad.

just what i like to see at bedtime.

Musings

My post has no purpose other than to share thoughts swirling around in my head.

My gma passed away in June.  I had flown out so she and bivi could meet one another and she passed away a day after I left.  On bivi's one month birthday.  It is very hard to have her gone, but much better for her.  She is with her husband now and we know that's where she wanted to be.

We have a very small family and my grandparents had a lot of beautiful things, so we have all had the chance to take all that we wanted and we've had to get rid of the rest.  I am a throw it away kind of person, so it has been very interesting to be surprised at how I've reacted to giving things away.  I haven't minded parting with the objects, rather I'm sad at 'giving away the memories'.  I know the memories are always mine, but the thing that triggered it is now gone.

However, I've loved having their things around and being reminded of them in unexpected ways.  The salt and pepper shakers on my table, the painting that hung next to their dinner table that is now in my bedroom, the quilt that bivi and I lay on to look at the trees, the hand embroidered dish towels now in my kitchen, the china set I'll use with my own family one day, the music box my sister has put on her dresser.

I know they are just things, but it is nice to keep my grandparents with me each day.  Little reminders help.

sweetness

running together

bivi and i went running this morning.

my sister is letting us use her baby jogger.  i was wanting to buy one, so i'm very happy to save the money!

i picked out a route that i thought would be moderately difficult.

wrong.

try a lot harder than i thought.  the first half is all up hill and i think i underestimated the difficulty of pushing 20 lbs up a hill.  oh well.  we walked and jogged and got it done. 

bivi was happy the whole time and loved the view.  it is so nice to be able to exercise and not have to depend upon aaron to be home. 

we've got our work cut out for us!

swimming!

too cute.

i've been wanting to take bivi swimming to get her used to water.  we'll start lessons as soon as she can.  i'd rather have my child know how to swim or paddle at an early age in case, heaven forbid, she ends up in a pool without me knowing. 

my worrying could be an additional blog in itself.  i have regular dreams of the most unrealistic things happening to her.  i have no idea where to come up with my nightmares other than to say i get that portion of crazy from my dad.  but, i digress...

we recently received a swimsuit and super cute matching terry cloth dress (thanks, aunt jen and uncle derek!) and a swim diaper (thanks, mom!), so we were all set. 

i snapped this adorable picture with my phone before we hit the pool.

we had a blast.  she was laughing and squealing the whole time.  it was an indoor pool, so it echoed throughout the building and everyone was looking.  she was so amazed that her feet were moving the water.

she fell asleep almost instantly on the way home.  sounds good to me!

sling

she was tired and ready to sleep, so i pulled out the sling.

my thought?  she can sleep and i can finish dinner.

her thought?  uh, no way, lady.  i'm not sleeping in that.  it's my chance to watch.

of course she squirmed and cried until i faced her out and she could see what was going on.  i wasn't the happiest woman ever when aaron got home, but oh well.  dinner was done!

3 months

last week bivi turned 3 months old.

i can't believe it.

it feels like she's been with us forever, but i also can't believe that much time has passed.

i still go crazy thinking about the day she was born, but i'm sure time will eventually mellow me out.  on to bivi!

she is super fun.  a ball of energy.  she loves to move.  whenever in her carseat, she is always moving both arms and legs.  no wonder the girl eats a lot.  now that she knows how to roll, it's all she does.  put her down and she's on her tummy instantly. 

she loves being talked to and anything that involves movement.  dancing, bouncing, walking.  she is one curious cat and always wants to look around.  anywhere we go, i put her in the front carrier and can't get enough.  costco, walks, making dinner, she wants to view it all.  she especially loves trees.  whenever we go under trees she twists her head around to get a better view. 

i'm discovering she loves water.  we went in the pool for the first time the other day (i'll post a picture soon) and she was all about that.  laughing and totally amazed that her feet could make the water move. 

with aaron working and in school, she is my constant companion.  i love her to bits and am so thankful she is part of our family.  we waited so long for her and she is worth the wait! 

cool relief

we moved to some wicked heat.

there is no ac in our apartment. 

finally, after about a week of near death we installed our window ac.  it provides some relief, but it is still pretty nasty.  the only true relief will be fall.

i think bivi has been quietly suffering through the heat.  how do i know this?  everytime she feels a drop in temperature, she's loving life.  yesterday we went to costco and i was worried about taking her in the fridge units.  i shouldn't have been.  she instantly loved it.  cooing and laughing the whole time.

this picture is of her in her favorite spot.  propped up on the couch in front of the window ac.  she'll stay right in the breeze until her hands and ears are freezing.  as you can see from the smile and the steady stream of drool, she's one happy camper. 

bumbo

this was bivi's first time in her bumbo.  she did great.  a little wobbly, but she was feelin' it.  i'm sure sitting up for the first time is a trip! 

blessing

we blessed vivien on july 8th and had family join us in san diego.  we waited 6 weeks to bless and her and i honestly can't imagine doing it any sooner if family comes to town.  love em, but when they all get together it can be a lot!

we went to the beach, balboa park (of course), dinner at a friend's house (thanks, hg and family!), and lots of other stuff. 

vivi got to meet all of her cousins and they got to know her.  they were all great and so nice to the new baby!

it turned out great.  i still can't believe we have a baby.  amazing.

a little help from my friends

I need some baby help.

Ok, here's the info:

She is 3 months and can easily roll from back to stomach.  We are still swaddling her at night.  Without it, she gets a small catnap at best.  However, when she is swaddled she seems like she is frustrated and rolls on to her stomach, then freaks out because she can't get back.  She goes to bed ok at night, but wakes up frequently at night and rolls.

A few weeks ago, she slept 8 hours at night, woke for a quick feeding and went back to sleep for 2 more hours.  I think she's gong through her 3 month growth spurt, so she wants to feed a lot more, but what to do about the rolling?  Try to break her of the swaddle?  Duct tape her to the crib?  Really, I'm open to anything.

Advice would be appreciated!

Oh, and I'll get my act together soon and post some pictures.

Baby olympics

Aaron recently made a video of bivi, called Baby Olympics.

I can't find time to post pictures of her but he makes a movie.

Maybe it's because my sanity is gone by noon, but that is beside the point.

Anywhoo, check it out.  She's a cutie.

recent deliciousness

i've been doing a lot in the kitchen lately.

we blessed bivi two weekends ago and i baked up a storm for family in town.  i should get around to posting pictures of the weekend sometime this century.

stay tuned.

however, on to the important stuff; food.

i made almond joy cookies and they are t-tasty.  will make again and love them again.  they flew off the platter and, when asked, everyone heartily agreed to take some home.  they make a bunch.

peanut butter sheet cake is a nice treat.  since it's a sheet cake, it makes a lot, so take it to a party.  note, the frosting doesn't react well to hot weather.  keep that in mind.

brooke's best bombshell brownies are an amazing alliteration and a decadent dessert.  really, these are crazy good.  i added nuts to cut the sweetness and feel that was the best decision i made all week.  very dense and rich, so share immediately.

and, just so you don't think we only subsist on sugar around here, i made mexican flatbread pizzas last night.  they're the homemade version of taco bell's mexican pizza.  aaron is the skeptic-in-chief in this house and he approved. 

i'm always looking for new recipes, so i thought i would share. 

enjoy!

rolled over

Bivi rolled over for the first time yesterday! Back to front in the morning after breakfast. Since I'm a first time parent, I know I could be wrong, but doesn't that seem a little fast? She's 7 weeks old. It was fun to watch and I can't believe she's getting so big!