Game On!

Now we know how it feels to have a kid addicted to video games!! Yesterday we dusted off the ol' rainy day pile and plucked out the Leapster Explorer that Katie got for her birthday in January. (Yeah, it takes us awhile to get to our rainy day stuff....) This little device is basically the preschoolers' version of a Sony PSP or Xbox Handheld. We got Katie a Dora adventure game and downloaded a few dinosaur and marine animal applets, and she has gone ga-ga for everything! We've already had to limit her to half-hour chunks so that she doesn't spend all day on it. It's fun to see what a 4-year-old can quickly master and what she has trouble with. Basically, she cruises through anything that requires drag-and-drop, touch identification, etc. (She learned all of these skills with her Mom's touch screen Droid.) On the other hand, she has a lot of trouble with the toggles and buttons. We guess that if all technology is trending toward the touch screen, she's got the right skills! Ipad next, anyone?

Ahhhhhhh!

 What a perfect day to hit the spraygrounds - mid-80s temp, no humidity, full sunshine! Katie and Traci took Michael to his first sprayground experience, with mixed reviews. Both kids were scared of the sprays for about 10 minutes, with Traci thinking that she would have to just pack up and head home. Finally, Katie got up the nerve to get in (and loved it) and we found a bucket of water for Michael to play with (and he loved it). Both kids got refreshed, were able to swing on a nearby playground, and ate some yummy snacks. A successful afternoon, all around!

Shedding Some Pounds

 

That's right...we have a SON! Michael got his first haircut today in preparation for the beach in a couple of weeks. Nothing too drastic...the red locks are still flowing. But it was enough to give his parents pause throughout the afternoon as we wondered who this new little dude is in our life. He definitely looks like a boy now, which should stop the she/sister/beautiful girl comments that he's been getting in recent months. Let us know what you think over the coming week of photos. Too much? Didn't you say he got a haircut? What's up with the layers? He looks like a _________ .

Oh, and in other news, here's a nice quote from Katie this evening...

Mike: "Katie, maybe you and Michael could cook dinner for mommy and me sometime. What do you think of that?"
Katie: "Um, but maybe when me and Michael get older, maybe you guys might die."

Never a dull moment of conversation in this household!

Trainsquatting

My beautiful girls! It was off to Burke Lake today to take advantage of the gorgeous weather. Unbelievably, with no humidity, we actually thought it might be too cold for our shaded neighborhood pool this afternoon.

To follow-up on our last post, we took Michael on the train ride along the lake to see if his recent "play" interest might hold up in real life. He seemed to enjoy it and it was a fun thing for the whole family to do together. Do I sense a custom Halloween costume being ordered from Menlo Park, CA this October?

Too-Too-Too

Following exactly in the footsteps of his sister, Michael is developing quite a love for toy trains and tracks. (Katie was so enamored with trains at Michael's age that she had a Thomas cake for her 2nd birthday!) In fact, the trains are the first toy that Michael has ever sought out on his own...usually he just wants whatever Katie is playing with. He'll sit on his own with the train box for a good half-hour, which is un-heard-of for this 20-month-old! He loves connecting the cars, pushing them around the track, and yelling "Too-too-tooooo!" Maybe Daddy will be able to replicate that Thomas cake for September?!?

Take the Good with the Bad

For the first time since we moved here, we decided to join a neighborhood pool for the summer. Now, one does not take this decision lightly as the pools around here cost an arm and a leg for the privilege of staying cool in this perpetual swamp. We've only been members for a week, and we are already seeing the good (Katie) and the bad (Michael):

THE GOOD (aka Katie) - Our little girl is in heaven at the pool. She loves "practicing" skills in the baby pool, such as doggy-paddling, jumping in from the side, and dipping her head underwater. Even more so, she adores the big pool, where she can touch and play around in the 3-foot section. She has already met some new buddies; and she looks forward to when our friends Rose, Kelly, and Megan (3-years-old) show up to play. Katie would spend the entire day at the pool if we let her.

THE BAD (aka Michael) - Michael has always been somewhat of a restless explorer, so sitting in one place at the pool for an extended period of time is not his cup of tea. He'll give you 10-15 minutes of relaxation time at the baby pool before he is whining/tantruming to move on to another (not-fenced-in) location. He hates the big pool because he basically is just being held by one of his parents....no freedom to move around as he pleases. If he had his wish, he would just spend his time exploring or swinging over at the playground. To give him the benefit of the doubt, he may just be tired by the time we get to the pool, but he sure hasn't shown us that he loves it yet.

Well, such is the life with two very different kids, right? We'll have to wait and see if our money was money well spent.

Welcome, Amber and Trevor!

Our good friends Angela, Ben, Lyla (4.5 years-old) and Anamarie (almost 3) welcomed a new member to their family in late April, baby Amber! We finally got over to visit with and bring gifts for all three of the girls. Amber complied with the best baby hospitality...she slept on Angela's or Traci's lap the whole time.

The bigger kids got a kick out of playing dress-up and other games. Michael kept disappearing, but we usually found him staring at one of the family's dogs. Guess he just finds animals more interesting than jewelry and princess dresses. Here's a great photo of three of the princesses, hanging on the ol' tire swing.

Congratulations, Ben and Ang...she is beautiful! Oh, and on the same note, we would like to send a huge congratulations out to our loyal blog viewers from Miami who also welcomed their third baby TODAY. Welcome, Trevor Anthony! We have a troublemaker male here who you may not want to introduce to your little dude!