Above & below – Alo and Kando cherry picking last weekend. Together with Robb they picked 11 pounds of cherries!

Amma and Sparty on a walk to the end of the pier.

Annie’s All Stars.

… and someone who couldn’t get enough of them!

This is Alo’s class activity. Alo was really good with the sand. The rock, not so good …

Maya and Sparty doing sit-ups at gymnastics. Sparty’s on the far left, Maya 3rd from the left.

Chugga Chugga Choo Choo. This is how Coach Laura keeps the kids in line. Maya makes sure she’s in front. Every time.

Amma and Pappa took these two for FroYo.

Last weekend – Alo and Kando at the water park.

What kind of daughter takes a picture of her mom on the surgery table? That would be me. Don’t worry. It was a small skin cancer and it looks like she’s going to be just fine after the bruising goes away and the stitches are taken out.

That’s about it. There are more. There are always more and there’s always a next time.

Blogged on Amma’s iPhone and MacBook with LOVE!

Above – Group photo! There was a big turnout for Sparty’s 3rd birthday party.

Our day started with a short visit from Ron and the kids to pick up a couple things for the party. The kids didn’t waste any time moving bar stools around so they could get up close and personal with “The Birthday Cake.”

The bounce house! I even went in it for a while and had great fun bouncing and sliding with the little ones. I think there’s a video out there somewhere …

The birthday boy.

Maya the Bee.

Face painting!

Minnie Mouse.

This is Maya’s friend, Eva, who lives up the street from her.

Street tacos were the order for Seis de Mayo!

I guess a couple hours of bouncing around will do a little one in.

Make that two little ones (that’s Henry in there) …

Then there was “Pin the Tail-Pipe.”

Here’s Maya pinning the tail-pipe somewhere far, far away from where it should go.

This is Ron’s friend, Chase, handling the blindfolds. It was so much fun watching him. He took over the job and I can tell you why. He loves kids! He started with the smallest ones and worked his way to the older kids, situating the blindfold, then lifting it just enough so they could see where to put the tailpipe, then he’d pull the blindfold back down and direct them toward the motorcycle. He’s a big guy but very calm, soft spoken and gentle with the kids – such a nice guy. Those are his two sons in the photo below.

Sisters who talk and laugh alike.

Here’s Eva’s mom and little sister Valerie.

There was some very serious bean bag tossing.

Ron had some trouble lighting the candle because the wind decided to pick up at the wrong time. It never did light.

Presents!

And some good ole hearty laughs!

Piñata time.

Thank God for the big kids coming in to finally bust up the piñata.

Scramble!

Pirates booty and a happy birthday boy.

The party was a blast – Lots of things to do, good food (& cake), very nice people and a lot of sweet, respectful kids.

Blogged on Amma’s iPhone and MacBook with LOVE!

Above – A masterpiece! Pappa and I spent many hours today building a cake for the Sparts’ 3rd birthday – German chocolate cake complete with motorcycle and stop sign. There’s a story behind this that has to do with playing the motorcycle game and stop sign game while driving wherever we’re headed. The game is simple (after all we play it with a 2 & 4 year old) – we take turns finding either a motorcycle or stop sign. Usually Maya and Sparty make up the rules as we go along but I suppose that’s the way it goes.

To give you an idea of how big this cake is, we brought this young subject in to sit behind it.

If that doesn’t do it, how about this – 4 cake mixes and 7 tubs of frosting! BIG!

Meanwhile, we have another empty nest. These precious little – teeny tiny actually – eggs …

That hatched into these hungry little beings…

That grew into these beautiful, amazing creatures …

… have flown away.

Let’s take a look at what Robb and the boys have been up to – another outing in the Bay Area – Tennessee Beach, Marin.

Here at Amma & Pappa’s – pizza for breakfast.

And a challenge for Amma to crawl through the doggie door. It’s a tight squeeze!

Blogged on Amma’s iPhone with LOVE!

That is, except for the two adults in the photo above. That’s my (& Bruce’s) friend Larry from San Francisco who I ran into at a yoga workshop in LA last Sunday. That was his “Hi to Bruce” photo. It’s a small yoga world.

Below, two tired kids having a little rest.

Pretty braids … 

Maya, Sparty and I took the wagon to OB Park just down the street. This little monkey spent most of the time going back and forth on the monkey bars.

Weekend with Dad

Look who got a train table set! This thing’s amazing!

AND a new bike!

Of course, Kando gets Alo’s old bike and everyone’s happy!

As it turns out, the perfect time of day to Skype the kids is in the afternoon. Their attention seemed to be much better at that time of day.

Out for a ride.

Last Sunday Robb sent us these photos from the Lake Chabot Bicycle Loop. I think I went there with them a couple years ago when I went to visit. It looks very familiar to me.

They look pretty happy!

Blogged on Amma’s iPhone and iMac with LOVE!

Above and Below – Robb and the boys visit the farm.

While Sparty and Maya search for Roly Polies.

I must remember to check my shoes before putting them on …

Meanwhile, back at the birthday party we had for Mom on Easter Sunday. That’s our chef and neighbor Nicole who catered the event. Nicole is a real-life Italian (with an accent and everything) who served up a genuine Northern Italian fare.

And, of course, the birthday girl with her light-up flashing tiara.

Monette & Danny …

Joanne, Cindi & Bob …

A couple of goofballs …

Mom & Maeann …

What is that thing on the cabinet?

A closeup reveals … a princess bandaid? How do you suppose that got there?

Blogged on Amma’s iPhone and iMac with LOVE, remembering to keep my heart open for whatever comes next because nothing is certain and changes can lead to happiness.

Above – Group photo of Mom’s 89th birthday celebration this afternoon (l-r -Cindi, Chere, Bob, Joanne, Monette, Maeann, Bruce, Danny, Mom & Ron). We hired our neighbor, Nicole, who’s a food coach and caterer to prepare our meal. It was a very nice day and especially nice to not have to cook or clean.

Below – Easter morning  in Walnut Creek.

Day at the Dock last weekend. The kids loved fishing. They were catching fish left and right!

Robb sent me the photos below the week before he and the boys came to San Diego. I did a computer search of the East Bay Regional Park District (see sign 3rd photo down) and found out this is at the old Wildcat Canyon Nike Launch Site which might explain the cement cats in a couple of the photos. It looks like a beautiful place to spend with the kids.

Robb sure keeps the kids busy on his days with them with lots of fresh air and exploring. I’d be tired too!

I’ll get caught up on posting all the photos I have one of these days.

Blogged on Amma’s iPhone with LOVE!

Maya and Sparty were gone on a trip to visit family in Florida with their mom when Robb and the boys were here. Jen sent me these photos of them. 

Back to San Diego and Robb and the boys’ visit…

After we left the Science Museum we headed to the Natural History Museum.

Edit
But that’s not all. Then we went to the Model Railroad Museum (all of these free).

After we had some lunch at Casa de Prado we headed home for the kids to get a little shut eye while Robb packed up before dropping them off at the airport. We packed in a lot of activities on this last day.

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Above – Robb and the boys at the fountain outside the Ruben H. Fleet Science Center

It was our lucky day. The first Monday of every month San Diego residents get free admission. Robb and the boys got in free too! The museum is great for kids. There are so many hands-on learning experiences.

“Kid City”

Look – Alo times four and me times one.

Alo generating electricity.

Colorful shadows.

Taking a journey inside a human cell.

Pappa finding nano …

… and Robb building a giant nanotube.

Learning about pixels.

The making of a tornado.

And this was only part of the day.

Blogged on Amma’s iPhone with LOVE!

Above – More with the gorilla.

Below – Backsides. All of ours and the elephants!

Rule #1 – Never leave your lunch unattended in a stroller while riding the bus (or probably anywhere else at the park). We learned that the hard way. Squirrels chewed right through our snack bag, chewing up the zipper to get into the bag.

Lizards.

At the petting Zoo where the critters now have “no pet zones.” I wonder why?

So cute these little penguins!

Reclining after a long day …

Blogged on Amma’s iPhone with LOVE!

Above – At the Zoo!

Below, Alo helping Kando with his popsicle.

Below, on the double decker bus at the Zoo. Monday was a partly cloudy day and a lot of animals were out and active. Another great day with the kids.

Look! Another gorilla. Kando wanted nothing to do with the gorillas.

Playing at one of the many Zoo playgrounds.

More photos to follow.

Blogged on Amma’s iPhone with LOVE!