ABCZ

We celebrated Fathers' Day at the Giants game today, and it was Zach's first game! (And we managed to bring home the win...YEAH!) He actually did great! I fed him when we got there, in the car. He fell asleep in the Baby Bjorn on the way to our seats, and then slept in my lap through the first 6 innings, despite the heat (under a blanket to keep him out of the sun). We woke him up to trek to Build-a-Bear for Anna, and then fell asleep on our way back to the car. Smooth day!

We had a great time celebrating the day...and the WONDERFUL Daddy that these two kiddos have. Curtis is so amazing...as a husband, friend and a father. We're all so luck to have him. :)

Cuteness!

At swim lessons this year, Zach is quite a popular guy. Anna is doing her lessons, as usual, with her two friends Ashley & Brittney (twins). They all battle for space around his stroller, vying for his attention. Babysitters in the making!

Grandma & Alisa hosted a family BBQ last weekend and we had a great time hanging out, relaxing, watching the kiddos playing in the pools and catching up with each other. It's so fun to watch the girls all play together, now that they're old enough to actually interact. I hope they have as much fun growing up together as my cousins and I did. Zach is the lone boy right now! He's going to have his hands full pretty soon!

Yes, at the ripe old age of 11 weeks, Zach has said his first word! He's a child prodigy! Well, maybe...maybe not. But Anna still SWEARS that he has said his first word, and she's been swearing that he speaks to her since the day we brought him home from the hospital. When I asked her what that word was, she replied, "You know that word I say when I didn't hear you, and go "HUH?" - he said that!" It probably won't be the last time she puts words in his mouth, huh?

Anna graduated from Kindergarten earlier this month. She did such a great job this year, and we are so proud. She finished all of her timed math tests before any other students, learned to read like a pro (we're amazed at how she's taken off!), made lots of new friends, and went the entire year without "having her star flipped over" (getting in trouble).

The graduation ceremony was adorable. All of the kids announced their own name, and they told what their favorite Kindergarten memory was. Anna said that hers was the Spring Egg Hunt.

Anna's teachers this year were just phenomenal. We adore them both! They made a little certificate for each graduate, and on it was an excerpt from the Dr. Seuss book "Oh, The Places You'll Go". Now, this was not the first time I had read this poem. In fact, I own two copies of it. I think it's great. But it's nothing new. Yet, on this day of our baby girl's Kindergarten graduation, reading the line, "KID, YOU'LL MOVE MOUNTAINS!" completely choked me up.

Even funnier is that while confessing my sappy moment at a celebratory breakfast with our family afterwards, I got choked up trying to say that line to them. And while I'm typing this blog...again. Damn you, Dr. Seuss! You know why it chokes me up? Because she will move mountains. She's amazing. She's smart, and funny, and compassionate, and thoughtful, and such a blessing to us. CONGRATULATIONS, ANNA BOO! Go move those mountains (after you clean your room)!

For the second half of this school year, Anna had a new boyfriend, James. I asked her once what exactly it meant that he was her "boyfriend". She gave me this longsuffering look, that said, "OK, I can tell you're slow so I'll explain this to you in simple terms," and replied, "It means that at recess when we play Star Wars together, *I* get to be Princess Leia." Hmmm...OK, I can live with that. Yesterday, she told me that she wished they were "teeangers, so they could see eachother and go for walks and stuff." OK, not so sure about that one. But I love James...he's a total riot.

At their kindergarten graduation, Curtis & I brought Anna a boquet of flowers. She asked me to pull out one specific orange daisy from her boquet, and then she went and gave it to James (in one of those, down low, secret kind of passes so no one would see her and make her feel embarassed). It was so sweet.

Well, now that it is summer, they are apparently missing eachother. Anna has asked every day at swim lessons if James will be there, but we keep missing eachother. So we signed them up for a day camp thing together next week. His response when he found out that Anna would be there was this: "My friend is going to see my girlfriend and have hearts floating around his eyes!". What a prefect cartoon representation of true love. It still makes me chuckle... I hope love is always that simple for her.

And, a few more moments in comic relief from Anna...
----------------------------------------
This afternoon, Curtis called my cell phone and I missed the call. After watching me say 'hello' and then look at my phone to see who I missed, Anna said, "Um, Mom...I think you just got BUTT DIALED."
----------------------------------------
Anna and I were watching a magic show on TV, and the magician was wearing a long kimono. At one point, a sword is stabbed into a box positioned between his legs. Anna said, "Whew! Good thing that didn't cut him in the NUTS!" I don't know why that struck me as so funny or inappropriate. I guess "nuts" isn't a bad word, but somehow is sounded totally inappropriate coming out of my little girls' mouth.

Pa had to drive the motorhome up for some work today, so he came and hung out with Zach and I for the day (and Anna, once she got out of school). He and Anna went for a long walk/bike ride to the Sonoma State duck pond and saw baby ducks and huge turtles. They spent the rest of the afternoon doing fuse beads and playing Legos. Zach even hung out with Pa for a bit and gave him some BIG smiles!

Remember that game telephone? One person tells another a story, and that person tells another and each generation distorts the story more. Based on my experience, I think the amount of distortion must be directly proportional to the age of the re-teller. Push play below and see Anna's version of a joke that Curtis told her today...

Zach had his 2mo well check today. Anna was disappointed that it was during her school hours, so she wouldn't be there to hold his hand for his shots. She said, "But he's never had shots without me holding his hand!!!" I promised to schedule the next one when she was out of school...but then she started a fever during the night so I had to keep her home anyway. She was feeling fine though, so we all went to see Dr. Tsao! He's awesome.

Zach got a clean bill of health. He's a growing boy, already measuring 23" (up from 21" at birth, although I think the 23" measurement today was shy of his true length) and weighing 12lbs 15.4 ounces (up 4 lbs from birth). And he was a trooper for all of his shots, and his oral vacc. Good boy, as usual! Shots seem much less traumatic this time around...for me anyway. :) I don't know if I am less stressed about it because I think he'll take it in stride better, or if it's "Second Child Syndrome" (which I hate the idea of). Hmmm...food for thought.