Winter at the Beach

One of the best things about living in California is the weather! With rain on the way, Mommy and Daddy decided to take advantage of a warm and sunny day and take me to the beach. First, we got cinnamon rolls for breakfast. Then, I got to run on the sand and splash in the water!



I ran and ran and ran! The water kept washing up onto the sand and back again, making my toes sink into the sand. It also revealed buried stuff, like rocks!


While I was running in the water, a big wave knocked me over! But my Daddy came and caught me and kept me from floating away. I talked about how he saved me for the rest of the day. (He modestly said I was never really in any trouble, but here's video proof! He's my hero!)




My dress got all wet! But Daddy just peeled it off me so I could keep playing. I decided to build a sand castle that turned into a sand chair that I sat in. I loved lying in the sand! The only problem is ... it got everywhere!


Daddy rinsed me off at some outdoor showers, then wrapped me up in a blanket and stuck me in my car seat. I was cozy and dry and warm again. What a great day! I can't wait to go back to the beach again ...

Fun with Pumpkins ... and Friends!

I just love pumpkins.

Every year, we go to a pumpkin patch to get pumpkins for Halloween. If we're lucky, the ones that don't get carved stick around until Thanksgiving. Daddy picked out some big pumpkins this year, and me and my friend Natalie wanted to get a big one, too, but we're not quite strong enough yet.


We decided to leave carrying the big pumpkins to our dads. Then I picked out a little pumpkin for myself. It was so cute! I didn't want to let it out of my sight for the first few days. I held it in my car seat, carried it from room to room at home, and even snuggled up with it in my bed at night!


The other thing I like about visiting the pumpkin patch is seeing all the animals that live there! There are chickens and goats and pigs and donkeys and all sorts of things, and you can buy vegetables to feed them all!



I can't wait to go back next year! Maybe I'll be strong enough to lift my own big pumpkin ...

Stroller Giveaway!

Two kids means we will eventually need a double stroller. I love this one from Bubmleride! We could never afford it, but it is worth trying to win one! You can enter to win too at the blog Two of a Kind, Working on a Full House.

Welcome Baby Tilly!

Matilda Jane Miller was born May 18 at 3:30 in the afternoon. She weighed 6lbs, 1oz. She was born on the bathroom floor of French Hospital. Ryan caught her. Please go to our other blog, Commonplace, to read all the details. Here are a few photos of her birth:

On the bathroom floor, minutes after Tilly was born. Our nurses and OB were amazingly supportive!

Hattie managed to get a nurse to take her in to see all the action. This was seconds after Tilly's birth. I'm pretty sure Ryan is still holding her.

Hattie adores her new baby sister! We adore her too!

Learning about birth...

A couple of months ago mom and dad took my placenta out of the freezer and defrosted it to show their childbirth class. After class I got to look at it! I was so excited and kept saying "my placenta!" "Baby Hattie's placenta", "new baby placenta inside mommy". I really liked to look at and touch it. I have been talking lately about the placenta being born after the baby.






I love to help our midwife, Mary, listen to the baby and can explain how babies are born. At least once a day I will tell someone, "baby inside mommy... will come out here (points between legs)... in the mommy baby bath (I have watched lots of water birth videos)... baby placenta come out too... baby nurse". I'm super excited to be a part of my baby sister's birth whenever she decides to arrive- sometime in the next few weeks!

The Conservatory Overcoat GIVEAWAY!!!!

My mommy loves this coat, and the beautiful photos on this blog:

The Conservatory Overcoat GIVEAWAY!!!!

Ichiban

Mom and Dad took me out to lunch today. We went to Ichiban, one of our favorite restaurants in Santa Maria. In fact, I had my first solid food at Ichiban about a year ago (tofu from Mom's miso soup). The staff there knows us, they have watched me grow up from a tiny baby. They know that Mom and Dad always order the same thing, the California Roll Combo, they even know that Dad loves iced tea so they always leave an entire pitcher of it for him at the table. What they didn't know was that today, I was going to order my own meal, all by myself! When our waitress came to the table for the formality of taking my parent's orders, I turned to her and said "rice please". A minute later she returned with my very own bowl of rice! I have officially ordered my first meal in a restaurant! I am very proud of myself. Mom and Dad are proud of me too!