Post Christmas Fun

I took a couple of extra days off work after the Christmas weekend to hang out with my favorite people. We spent some time on Monday at what is probably our new favorite, Mesa Park.

Zoe really did not want to leave the park and she made the whole neighborhood know exactly how she felt. Here she is giving us the stink eye for making her go home:

The view on the way home was breathtaking:

We took a family trip to the Zoo on Tuesday... it had been way too long since we had last been. Zoe ran around the entire time (stroller? what stroller?) and was facinated by the all the animals.

...BUT...the kid's play area (and the churro vendor) were her all time favorite parts of the zoo. They have a small hill there where the kids slide down on cardboard boxes. I don't know who had more fun!

I already can't wait for our next vacation days!

Christmas 2010

We drove back to Santa Barbara to spend Christmas with my parents. We started the day off opening up presents and it was, once again, all about Zoe. I don't know what she liked better, her toddler sized chair and chalkboard table (thanks Mimene and Fanfan), doll (thanks Kim!), or the tent with tunnel.

We didn't take an official family picture (lesson learned for next year) but here we are at our best, in this fabulous pj shot:

Mimene and Fanfan gave lots of love to their grandaughter this past weekend. It's as it should be :)

We wrapped up the night with a fantastic seafood and steak dinner. The oysters were dad's favorite, the crab was Francis' and mom's sauteed potatoes were mine. Mmmm...

Christmas Eve 2010

We spent Christmas Eve in Bakersfield with Francis' side of the family. The day started with a trip to the local grocery store...I truly believe that every store should have a cart like this one for kids. Zoe thought it was nothing less than amazing. Natalie needs to practice on her car sounds however ;)

We all enjoyed a delicious turkey dinner thanks to Chef Wayne (who really should be a chef!)

Cousin McKenzie kept watch over Zoe and Maya while we got dinner ready. Poor Maya got really sick after eating a few pounds of chocolate the day before. She was either sleeping or throwing up throughout the day. It was very unlike her not to chase and terrorize the cats.

Everyone totally spoiled us...especially Zoe. Seeing this through her eyes made this holiday so much more special. Even if she did love the wrapping paper more than anything else ;)

Next year should be interesting, I wonder if she will believe in Santa Clause then?

Pre-Christmas

My parents came down to Santa Barbara to watch Zoe on Dec 23rd since both Francis and I had to work. They took a walk down to the local park and took some great pictures!

Showing off her stickers and sharing her hat with Fanfan on the porch:

16 Months!

I'm a couple of days late posting Zoe's 16 month chair picture...apologies to all of you who have been sitting there waiting patiently for this picture ;) She's getting so big!

Earlier in the night, Zoe was playing with her stickers (I highly recommend getting some if you have a toddler)...and this is what happened when I left her and Maya alone for a few minutes:

First School Picture

This picture is perfect on so many levels...I can't stop laughing!

Christmas Party 2010

Thank goodness for the party Zoe's daycare threw a this past weekend or else we might not have left the house. The weather has been horrible, it rained the entire weekend and it is scheduled to continue until Christmas. The rain did give us an excuse to take out Zoe's rain jacket (thank you, Alice!) and rain boots. How cute is she??

Despite the heavy rain, Santa showed up to the party! I'm hoping to get some better pictures but here are a couple...Zoe wasn't quite sure what to think of him. I think she was more interested in the new toys that Santa brought.

It was adorable to see all the kids together! And it was hilarious to see all the parents (myself included) scrambling to get a picture before they all melted down.

Perfect Summer Day in December

Sunday was such an amazing day here in Santa Barbara. Mid to upper 70's and clear blue skies. We took our girls to the Rose Garden and it was so clear we were able to see the islands. Zoe loved playing chase around on the grass. She's getting so quick and always keeping us on our toes these days.

It's really hard to believe that Christmas is only 2 weeks away!

2010 Christmas Tree!

We got our Christmas tree today, it's so much fun now that Zoe is a little older. Here we are at Big Wave Dave's (yes, that is the real name) picking out our tree.

And the finished product!

It's amazing to see how much Zoe has changed in a year. Here are some pictures from last year...

Taking It Easy

I have been sick all week so we had a pretty mellow weekend in return. But mellow does not mean boring! ;) She might be a little young but we started off the weekend by getting Zoe a new hot rod. She loves doing wheelies (with daddy's help).

Then we spent some time at the Santa Barbara public library where we thought there would be a fun holiday event but the kid size water fountain was a thousand times more entertaining and educational.

Here is Zoe discovering the water fountain, wondering what it is:

Oh, I get it! Yay!

It never ceases to amaze me how beautiful this town is. Even the view from the library parking garage is amazing.

All weekend long, Zoe climbed into the rocking chair to read her books. This is her new favorite spot in the house these days. Her favorite books are: "Brown Bear, Brown Bear", "Who Said Boo?" and "What Am I."