Close encounters

So Greg and I were catching up on our tivo tonight when we heard something break and shatter in the backyard. Greg suspected that it was the cat knocking over the ceramic flower pots on top of our fence (yeah, probably not the brightest idea to put ceramic pots there). So he heads to the back door and as he is opening it I'm ABOUT so say "make sure it's really the cat" - well I didn't even get that sentence out...when Greg yells, "oh sh*$" and slams the door. Here is what he saw...

Our little raccoon friend took off running when Greg opened the door. As soon as he slammed the door, it came back! While Greg went hunting for the camera, the raccoon and I just locked eyes. It had no fear. It just stared me down. Actually it was kinda cute, but it was big. Then it started eating the cat's food again, while the Oreo just sat at the top of the fence behind the raccoon, watching this wild animal eat its food. By the time we found a soft foam ball to throw at it and scare it away, it was taking off for a tree in our backyard which it climbed. (If anyone has any advice on how to scare away a raccoon please share! - it didn't seem to be scared of us at all!).

Well we've seen raccoons in the neighborhood before, we've smelled skunks (hopefully we don't encounter one of those!), but I'm not really sure we can prevent them from eating our poor kitty's food. One thing's for sure - next time we hear something suspicious outside, we'll definitely flash a flashlight BEFORE opening the door!

Independence Day - Island Style

We spent a fun weekend on Catalina Island to celebrate the 4th of July. This was Maria's 2nd visit to the Island; she's much more mobile now and was able to enjoy it much more than last year. The weather was wonderful and absolutely perfect for a weekend on the Island.

Getting ready to walk on board the boat with her backpack...
...and enjoying her yummy cookie in the commodore lounge :)

She made a new friend with 2 1/2 year old Sienna, who was seated behind us. Sienna, Maria and I sat in the aisle and played with Maria's toys, read her books, and kept busy. Sienna's mom seemed to be pretty content with having Greg and I watch her kid for most of the boat ride. While she talked on her phone she would apologize to me (Alana as she called me) for having her daughter climb on me, play with our toys, eat our snacks. Greg held her hand as he carried Maria around the room. Whaaa??? Really I didn't mind at all - she was really cute, polite, Maria had fun playing with her, and I was just making sure that Maria didn't get seasick and puke all over the little girls' pretty outfit! - but still kinda annoying that her mom was just sitting there most of the time while we entertained her daughter!Luckily Maria never got seasick. She enjoyed going outside too and feeling the wind making our hair go crazy all over the place.

Once on the Island we headed over to Mi Casita for some yummy Mexican food and even more yummy Margaritas. Two years ago in Catalina I was pregnant, last year I was still breastfeeding, so this year I lived it up by enjoying some drinks! This mango margarita was delicious! The food was so-so, but we came to a consensus that it tasted better accompanied by a beverage.

And of course, what do you do on vacation ,but eat, eat, eat. The next morning we had a delicious breakfast at Jack's. Note to anyone who goes there - make sure you order your kid's food as soon as you arrive! We didn't, but luckily I had cheerios and snacks to distract Maria with since it probably took a good 30 minutes to get our food AFTER we were seated. Once we got it thought, it was delicious! Maria got to sit in a booster sit for the second time. She was pretty good in it, so we may transition to that soon!

I think one of Maria's favorite activities was wandering the streets of Avalon.

Her other favorite activity that provided hours of entertainment was playing in the sand. Just like in Hawaii she loved wiggling her toes and covering herself in the sand. Unlike Hawaii (luckily) she didn't face plant into the sand.

Luckily for Daddy, he now has a beach buddy to build sand castles with all day long. The big dig they made was the envy of other dads and kids on the beach, who eventually came and played in it, too :)

At the end of the day, joining mommy do what she loves best at the beach, relaxing.

Of course, it wouldn't be Independence Day on Catalina without the 4th of July golf cart parade. I actually enjoy the parade and think it has a quaint, small town charm. Greg can't stand it! But, you gotta suck it up for your baby and take her to the parade. Below is a golf cart that was probably one of the best decorated, followed by the Catalina Island High School cheerleaders doing their Michael Jackson tribute.

OK I guess I'll also post the USC marching band, although as a loyal Bruin I have to apologize to all of my Bruin buddies for even posting this.

That night we had a bbq - decked out in our red, white and blue :)

Here's a comparison shot of us last year :)

Posing with Nana :)

Maria stole the heart of little Andy, a 2 1/2 year old from down the street. He came up to Maria and kissed her (I was too slow with the camera - darn!). She made the cutest little face with a coy smile. Then she kissed him and in what is now typical Maria style when kissing boys, ran off! He chased after her and made her hold his hand. They walked hand in hand with him telling me and his mom that they were going to watch the fireworks together. It was too cute! Maria did get tired of holding his hand and wanted out, but he would keep putting her hand in his. This is at the end when she was obviously over it, but he was still excited! When we told him that she had to go, he started crying! Ahhh young island love.Finally that night we spread our blankets on the beach and watched the fireworks. What a difference a year makes - last year Maria hated lound noises and I was afraid that she would wake up and freak out from the fireworks. This year she loved the fireworks and the booming sound and actually fell asleep in the middle of the show! Poor kid barely napped all weekend with all of the excitement so she was pooped!

Then back on the boat for our ride home. Maria fell asleep on the top deck - what a great weekend!

Daddy's Big Day!

What a day! We started out with some yummy McD's breakfast (Maria's first McD's meal) and then headed off to Dodgertown for Father's Day catch at the park. Dad's day at the park is awesome - you get to get play catch with your dad on the field, get a free ball, and free hot dogs, water, soda, and ice cream when you leave. We're hesitant to blog about this, because it's a fairly well kept secret in Dodgertown. Hopefully they'll keep it going, even as it becomes increasingly popular, because it's a tradition we now really enjoy every Father's Day morning.

Thank you Dodgers!!!

The tough little Dodger cheerleader!

Of course Daddy has to take advantage of the opportunity to steal a home run from a hapless Giant player in Mannywood - what a jump!

Maria dancing to the music, which earned her a spot on Dodgervision! :) (I have to remember not to sing, especially if I'm the one videotaping!)

In the afternoon we hosted the family over our place. Here the three cousins pose with their Daddy's. Another amusing highlight was having the three little ones take their first bath together. Some more hilarious videos will follow in future blogs on the chaos that ensued with these three (the cousins, not the daddy's of course!) playing together!

Happy Father's Day, Greg!

Good Times with Uncle Matt

So not only does Uncle Matt bring you fun toys (a submarine Elmo for the tub and an Elmo shape sorter ;), but he's loads of entertainment, too! Uncle Matt was in town for a week, so Maria got to hang out with him for a few days. Luckily she didn't freak out when she first saw him like she did during his last visit. At that visit, Matt walked in and Maria was thoroughly confused - here was a guy who looked so much like her Daddy, but he wasn't her Daddy - she really freaked out and started crying. We prepped her enough this time by showing her pictures and videos of Uncle Matt to prevent a recurrence! By the end of his visit this time, he knew he was in with her because a) she let him pull around her pull toys, while she instructed him on where to pull them; and b) she piled him up with her dolls and toys. Mommy and Daddy love when Uncle Matt visits, because Maria sleeps in until 9am the morning after! woo hoo!

We had fun playing with you Uncle Matt & we'll miss you until we see you again!

Cousin Time

Last weekend the cousins came over to play. First we met up with Aidan and Elisa at the park to introduce Aidan to Maria's ducks. Aidan wasn't as thrilled as Maria is to feed the ducks out of his hand, but he did enjoy running around the park - I'm freeee! The video is pretty funny, as his mommy chases him around and Maria just laughs :)

After the park we headed back to our house, where Maria and Aidan sat together to read books - they look so serious at first, until Aidan makes Maria crack up and the silliness begins. These pics are too cute - I couldn't pick just one! By the time they were finishing up, Isabella was up from her nap and joined us all to play outside :) It's so fun watching these three grow up together!

Little Red Caboose

One of Maria's favorite songs is "Little Red Caboose", so of course we had to finally take her to the railroad museum. Although small, it was just enough to impress a toddler who is a fan of trains :) Here are some pictures of us, and of course a video of her dancing while we again sing - this time it's All Aboard the Choo Choo Train - that hip hop-y style song on some kids show (can't remember which channel)!

Welcome to Juan Pierre-wood

Our first Dodger game of the season was last week! The drive to Dodger Stadium was quite an adventure on account of us exiting the freeway near USC, instead of staying on the freeway, hoping to get a shortcut to the stadium. Of course a disagreement ensued between Greg and I, since we were on Hoover and 23rd (an intersection neither of us had ever been on!) and Greg insisted the stadium was to the left and I insisted it was to the right. Of course, I was right (although I still had to prove it to Greg on mapquest when we got home after the game!).

We would have been sitting in Mannywood - except for the mischief he got himself into recently. So instead we sat in Juan Pierre-wood. Thanks to Cat and Jose who had extra tix for us to enjoy the game with them - and we were honored since it was Cat's first Dodger game - ever! How does a 20-something year old native Los Angeleno go without ever having attended a Dodger game? So we were happy to join her in her first game.

This was Maria's second game and as expected she enjoyed every minute of it - dancing to the music all night long. She also got to wear her Dodger cheerleading outfit that she got at my babyshower from the Reynolds - GO DODGERS!

and at the end of the night in her winter coat on an unusally chilly SoCal evening.

WARNING on this video. TURN YOUR VOLUME DOWN, UNLESS YOU WANT TO HEAR MY OFF-KEY SINGING OF THE 7TH INNING STRETCH!. As Greg said, "that's some bad singing there" - especially at the end. I guess I should've thought twice about singing while videotaping since I'm so close the mic. oooops. I'm a dork, but I'm having fun! hee hee.