Bouncing Buzz

Olive practices her jumping (bouncing) skills.

Busy Busy, Happy Happy

We've been busy little bees with the holidays and everything leading up to them. Here are some teaser shots until I get the blogs posted. (I know those of you in blizzard conditions are getting antsy.) Aunt Sue! Whoops, I mean ah-choo (I have a cold.)

Niko's gingerbread man made at Grammy & Pop-Pop's. Too bad Aunt Beth lives too far to enjoy the toppings.



The kids with our cookies for Santa (Grammy Lewis' recipe.)


All ready for Santa & the reindeer.


Christmas morning playing with the new kitchen (2.5 hour build time.)


This afternoon enjoying Hungry Hippos and monkeycake on the deck.


Showing off her new "Olive" cape from Grammy.


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The Foot Book

Nikos wanted to "read" Olive one of his favorite books and then he directed me to video it.

Finally - the SANTA Pic

Santa Pic Plan (est. after picture last year): Take picture early, before lines get too crazy. Target dates right after Thanksgiving.

FAIL.

We didn't make it out to get the Santa pic until today, despite all of the best intentions. We planned to get there right when Santa opened at 10am, but arrived 15 minutes late and ended up waiting an hour. Conveniently, 10am is also Olive's usual naptime so I already knew we were going to be up for a challenge. For a bit of backstory - the kids had already had a small Santa experience at Niko's school party last week. Niko ran right up to the guy and provided his requests while Olive was fine when I was walking her up there and once we got close she let loose with a chorus of "NO TANK YOU!"s.

We pretty much had a replay of the same scene here, with slight differences. Nikos got in his requests for "a Walking Talking Buzz Lightyear" and "Thomas Crashing Into a Mountain" and Olive clung to me with her whole body. The photographer was taking a little while so Santa was bantering with Nikos about how Buzz and Woody were already at the North Pole. The fact that Santa was on a first name basis with Buzz and Woody garnered Olive's attention. "Buzz, Buzz?" she asked him. She then talked to Santa about how she wanted a baby and how she saw Mickey at Disneyland. Woohoo, this may go better than I envisioned - I naively thought. Once the photographer signaled she was ready I tried to place Olive on Santa's nap and I got more of the earlier "No Tank You" resistance.

I am amazed that Santa was able to hold onto her in this photo with the way she was squirming. I think Nikos was more worried about the fact that Olive was drowning out his toy requests.

Raising a Snob (or a MiniMe)

After the Children's Museum we enjoyed more time in the pool. Nikos asked to go to his new favorite pool "the one Grammy took him to." I have to say, one of the only (or possibly the only) downfall of timeshare ownership is your kids become pool snobs. Nikos seems to only want to go in pools with waterfalls or water features nearby - and after this trip he added "gradual entry" onto his list of must-haves. Snooooty. Thank goodness he is too young to remember the lazy river pool at our timeshare in Aruba or we would never hear the end of it! Come to think of it, I think I may know where he gets it from...

While Mom and Dad enjoy a maitai, Olive enjoys the fruit that comes with it.

Eagle-eyed observers will note that she is chowing down on an orange, yes, an orange was garnishing my maitai. What?? The color of the drink itself was also a neon orange, so I guess I shouldn't have been shocked that it was horrible. Luckily when I switched to a greyhound for the next round the bartender was able to handle it.

Nikos really enjoyed showing off and dunking his head under water. (Sidebar - I couldn't wait for him to get back to swim class to show his teachers how much he was lovin dunking his head under water. Let's just say that didn't go quite as planned since he was miserable the entire class and when he got out told us he didn't want to go in the Y pool anymore, he just wanted to go back to his Palm Springs pool. Please revert to opening paragraph regarding pool snobbery.)

On our final day in Palm Springs we soaked up some more pooltime. Or should I say hot tub time since it was getting cooler.

On our way back to the timeshare we enjoyed the desert landscaping.

The kids walking back to the timeshare - notice Olive's left arm in the upswing - full power.

The back of our timeshare.

Olive's latest form of protest followed by a loud "NO TANK YOU".

After we cleaned up we loaded the kids into the car for the long drive home. Movie time!

Wow, they really are little minis of Taki and I sometimes - aren't they? (Comparison shots circa 2002.)

Our drive home was largely uneventful. We stopped at the same McDonald's and let the kids get their wiggles out and then continued home. I'll close with another example of how Nikos takes after Taki...many pee breaks.

Palm Springs Follies

On Black Friday we did NOT get up early to shop - instead we slept "in" and then headed to the local Children's Museum with Mel's family and Linda and Annette (my parents had left to drive home that morning.)

We used our Habitot passes to get in free - whoop whoop. First up, an exhibit where you use a carabiner to hook your child onto a length of rope and they have to follow it to the other end (while climbing over and under other ropes.) I am contemplating setting this up in our living room so I can get things done while the kids are home. That is Nikos in the middle in orange pants, Kira is off to the left. Nikos wasn't a huge fan of this (I think he did it once) but both Mason was there for awhile.

While Nikos explored the ropes Olive played with blocks with Aunt Annette.

Next up, the pulley where you pull yourself (or help pull someone) on a chair to the top. This was harder than it looks.

Taki pulling Nikos.
MaileMason (note Mel in the background, you know she is thinking "that is so easy!"

Not so easy now...huh? (Hee hee)
AnnetteAnd finally, me and Olive.
For the record, I obviously had to work the hardest since I was pulling not only myself but Olive as well!

We found a really cool magnet wall that everyone had fun throwing metal things on. I was all set to build one in our garage until someone reminded me of how loud it was.

Mason gets air while Nikos and Olive grab something to throw.

Kira practices what it would be like to date someone in the CHP (or be in the CHP I guess. Girl power.)

Olive, super excited to paint the VW Bug (just like they had in San Diego!)

Nikos paints the Bug.
Flashback to Nikos and Kira painting the VW Bug in San Diego - Summer 2009. In these pics Kira is a month younger than Olive is now.

Back to the present (and by present I mean three weeks ago since it has taken me so long to write this post...)

We wondered outside and found a sandbox that occupied the girls.

While the boys played catch on the lawn - don't you love the backdrop!

Back inside, Olive reveals she has a knack for carbo loading her grocery cart. NO idea where she gets that from (ha.)

I think here she is complaining that the kid in line ahead of her is going to take the last reusable canvas grocery bag. How very Berkeley of her.

And I can confidently say that I have the exact moment that Olive developed her love of purse on film.

What I do NOT have on film is the tantrum that followed when I took said purse away when we had to leave. NOT pretty.