September Update

Well, summer has come and gone, and both girls are still transforming before our very eyes.  Anika turned three while we were up in New Hampshire with Grandpa Tom and Grandma Mary, and Avery rounded out nine months while we were in Colorado visiting all the grandparents in late August.

Avery is now crawling, pulling to stand, waving, and (as of this week) sleeping through the night.  Hooray!  She is so sweet, so happy, and SO busy.  Once this kid is up and running we are truly in for it.

Anika is currently attending her first day at her new "escuela", Pine Village Preschool.  Again, she will be in a Spanish immersion program two days per week; however, this is a bigger, more school-like setting.  Also, as of yesterday, Anika is enrolled in gymnastics class!  She seemed to really enjoy it, despite her difficulty separating from me and her tendency to, um, stray from the flock.  She is becoming so grown up these days; she's fully potty-trained, talks nonstop, and her meltdowns are fewer.  So far, I'm liking age three much more than two.

So, needless to say, life for me is getting easier.  The girls are still a ton of work, but we're all generally making it through our days with less drama.

Andrew is in the process of applying for fellowships in Gastroenterology.  Beginning at the end of September he will be interviewing for positions at the University of Washington, the University of Colorado, Brown, Yale, and Oregon Health Sciences University.  It's a tough year for applying in GI, and he's still conflicted about pursuing this specialty, but hopefully he'll find an exciting opportunity along the interview trail.  We'll see...

Happy Half Birthday Baby!

As we round out six months, Avery has plainly become a very photogenic little person.  Although we're still trying to get a grip on her sleep issues, she's generally very happy and interested in the world.

In recent weeks we've graduated from baths in the sink and started experimenting with eating solid foods.  New experiences in both arenas have so far been a hit.  We've decided to try skiping purees and moved straight into finger foods.  She won't actually be chewing a swallowing for awhile, but she's been eager to knaw on everything we've given her--bread, pears, carrots and broccoli.

And just within the last couple days she's begun rolling over a lot.  I won't be surprised if she really starts getting around soon.  Her sitting is still sort of a work in progress, and well, she's eyeing a career in professional jumping.

Yay baby!  We're so glad to have those fussy early months behind us and to have a baby we love and love to be around.

Easter Egging

Here are a couple photos from Anika's first Easter egg dyeing and hunting experiences, thanks to our friends Dan, Kim, and Baby Miles.

Andrew took these with the Hipstamatic app on my new iPhone. He's enjoying my phone much more than I am.

April at Home

Photos from March

I'm just posting a few photos from our adventures at and near home this month. The warmer weather has permitted us to get out some, thankfully. Also, Avery's advancing age is making it easier to get back to some of our former routines.

A typical week for us these days includes toddler yoga, music class, a visit to the gym (and occasionally Baby and Me yoga), my second time mom's group, a few trips to the playground, and two days at "escuela" for Anika. It's always a juggling act, but I'm slowly getting used to the mayhem.



Here's Avery enjoying some freakishy warm weather on our front porch (Anika's favorite smoothie sipping spot).


And here she is enjoying the company of a few of her neighborhood peers at our local library.


Needless to say, we live in a very fertile 'hood.



Avery has become very social (and so cute!) during these past few weeks. She's beginning to laugh, and is doing lots of smiling and cooing.

Anika is becoming a non-stop talker and is very much tuned in. Whenever Andrew and I start discussing something she doesn't understand, she shouts, "Mama, stop talking! What are you talking about?" And she's very interested in what she doesn't quite understand. The word of the week is "weird"; she demands that we listen to The Beatles' song "Number 9" whenever we're in the car, and then laughs about how it's "weird" and "so silly" as she listens.

Hooray for Art!

Here's Andrew and Avery with our friends Dan and Baby Miles at my gallery opening last week. I'm in a show called "Within" at The Alcove Gallery this month. The owners (and my co-exhibitor) are actually Anika's preschool teachers. This is their first show; I'm very happy/honored to have been invited.

Unfortunately, I didn't have the hands or presence of mind to take more photos, but the opening was very fun for us all. Even if I don't have the opportunity to make any more work in the foreseeable future, I'm glad to have had a show during our time in Boston (and to celebrate Mama's art with my daughters).

Also, it was really nice to have so many of our friends stop by. We are really beginning to feel like we're apart of a community.

More Nearly 3 Month Photos

These photos were taken just a few moments before Avery first rolled from tummy to back. So much for tummy time!