Happy Meal

I took a picture of what I thought was Brooklyn's first happy meal.  When my friend and her daughter suggested McDonald's for lunch one day, I had to think about it because I never go there.   The last time I remember taking Brooklyn to a McDonald's was when we were waiting at a coin-op laundry mat in Covina and I had a craving for a fruit 'n yogurt parfait.  Pretty much the only two things I ever buy there are the soft serve ice cream cones and the fruit 'n' yogurt parfaits.  Maybe it's because I showed the gut-wrenching movie Supersize Me when teaching a summer school health class years ago.    In the end, I thought it would be a necessary cultural experience for Brooklyn to eat there.  The more I thought about it, maybe I was a bit of an odd parent for not introducing my child to this American pop culture icon.  So when I finally decided on it, my friend was surprised.   The whole time we walked over there, Brooklyn kept referring to Old MacDonald.  She seemed to have no other connections to that name other than the song.  Also when Brooklyn's friend talked about getting a happy meal, Brooklyn was clueless.  This is why I didn't even give her the choice of having fries.  I was hoping the happy meals still came in those cute little boxes, but no such luck. I remember one of my first happy meals came with a big awesome E.T. poster.  Brooklyn enjoyed licking every last trace of carmel out of the little cup that came with the apple dippers.  I ordered a salad.  (See bottom of picture.)  I was disappointed that the chicken was seasoned with a ton of salt.  Other than that, I was glad to see that there are a few "fresher" choices on the menu these days.  A cheeseburger, apple dippers with carmel, CHOCOLATE milk (gasp, I know!) and a funky monkey toy later, we had officially experienced Brooklyn's first happy meal. The funny thing is, I found out later that it wasn't her first happy meal.  Stephen said they got one somewhere on the Louisiana road trip with Mark, Drew, and Alyssa.  So maybe it's just the first happy meal that I've ever bought for her.  I'm sorta glad it wasn't all that impressive to her.

Happy Father's Day!

This post is a tribute to the Man who makes it all happen. None other than Theodore Jenkins Badger Jr.

First let me share one of my favorite memories growing up. It was on one of our annual trips to Gulf Shores and Dad took just me and Mark with him. While Dad was in meetings all day, Mark and I ran all over the beach, swimming in the pool (jumping back and forth between the hot tub and the pool), spending one of the days at the water park, going deep sea fishing, and asking dad to leave a couple of bucks each morning so that we could play in the arcade in the lobby. I also had my first experience ordering a "Shirley Temple." It was a blast and one of my all time favorite vacations! I loved spending time with just my bro and my Dad. The picture below is not from that time period, but it's classic Dad with his Texas Long Horn shirt. I'm pretty certain that it was taken in the gulf where we went as kids. I also had to include a picture of Brooklyn and Ian. Ian can't ask yet, but his big sister constantly wants to call and talk to "GrandDad." Even though my Dad doesn't always understand "Brooklynese," he is patient as he listens and asks her about her day.

And as most people know, I love my Dad and want to be like him. I hope that I can set just as solid of an example to my kids as he set for us. My Dad has always been a rock - firm in his testimony and always supportive.

Another example of my Dad's generousity is pictured below. It's the great time that we all had as a family because my Dad gave me Guitar Hero as a Christmas present. Because of this generous gift, we were able to "rock out" and had a great time!

Thanks Dad for all that you've done and continue to do. This short post doesn't do you the justice you deserve, but I wanted you to know how much we love you and appreciate you. Happy Father's Day!

Disneylandia!

Even though I was not a huge fan of the season pass purchase we made at the time of Brooklyn's birthday this year, I decided to at least not be a total drag and try to get some use out of those puppies before the summer came with weeks on end of "blackout days." (Was that a run-on sentence?) We ended up going twice in two weeks, and I actually enjoyed it!  My Disneyland memories growing up seem to be tainted by so much of the time that was wasted in LONG lines.  Fortunately, things are much different now.   
First of all, it's no longer just Disneyland in Anaheim.  It's the Disney Resort.  So basically there's another theme park, California Adventure, and tons of Disney hotels that are all clumped together as part of the experience.  What I like is that California Adventure is smaller, newer, less crowded, and more little-kid-friendly than the bigger park.  Actually I didn't even go to Disneyland both times that I went up because there was plenty fun stuff to do at the Adventure park.  Brooklyn loves the Bugs Life area and King Triton's merry-go-round.  She liked the big Mickey Ferris Wheel, but was disappointed that I chose a non-swinging gondola.  Maybe next time we'll have to step it up a notch and go for the other ones.
Ian enjoyed it too. My favorite part was riding the "Golden Zepper."  They didn't show any height restrictions on the map, so when I asked about it, they said Ian could ride it, but that there was "absolutely no lap sitting."  Well folks, that didn't stop us.  The top picture is Ian enjoying his very own seat NEXT to me on those fun silver-colored rockets.  (The name is a little misleading, huh?)
After all the excitement, both kids were pretty exhausted.  To keep Ian happy on the walk back out of the park, I gave him his favorite water bottle of mine.  He likes sucking on the lid for some reason.  He couldn't part with the thing, even with his eyes closed!  
I can't wait to go back again on those few open days in August!  Hopefully we can catch the new and improved Main Street Electrical Parade!

Memorial Day

This is how we spent our Memorial day!  We hiked a short while along some bluffs overlooking the beach and then gave up the trail for the waves below.  Ian and I were fully entertained watching Dad and Brookie frolicking, screaming, and laughing in the waves.  

Brooklyn, letting the wave catch her.
It was great that the beach wasn't crowded.
These action shots tell it all...

"Quick, Dad!  Save me....."  Too late.  Hair is wet in all of the following pics.  Yes, she took a tumble but that did not slow her down.  

Now this is the gleaming white skin I fell in love with 8 years ago!  Woo-woo!  Hot stuff!
First we run away from the wave...
then we chase it back down!

Memorial was fun for our little family. We obviously never tire of the beach!  Can't wait 'till the warmer summer weather, but for now we'll take the clouds.  We can't really complain when the weather usually stays between 60-80 degrees most days of the year.

Big Girl Brookie

The most accurate adjective for our 3-year-old Brooklyn is precocious.  Of all people, it was my visiting teacher who first used this word to describe Brooklyn after maybe the second visit to our house.  This post will illustrate exactly why the word is so befitting.  

Brooklyn had her 3-year check-up with the doctor the same day that Ian had his 6-month check-up.  So here are her stats:  weight = 37.5 lbs.,  95th percentile, height, (I don't actually rememeber the exact inches, and she is sleeping, so I'll have to update this later!) was in the 90th percentile.  What?!  She usually is about average here.  So I guess Stephen is right when he comments that Brooklyn has grown a ton recently.  I don't notice it as much because I'm with her all the time. 

For better or for worse, she usually cannot keeps her hands off of her brother.  He so has the just-woke-up-from-a-nap look in this picture.  Brooklyn loves that he now eats real baby food that she can see in containers.  "I think he needs some vegetables" or "let's feed him some rice see-yo," are what she usually says around mealtimes.  

She is also great at entertaining him in the mornings when I haven't yet retrieved him from the crib.  This morning I even showered while she entertained him at the safe distance of the outside of the crib.  Of course, half her body was leaning in towards him thanks to the help of her step stool.  

She loves dress-ups but has thankfully not outgrown naps yet!  Notice how loved the fairy wings are.  They already have a hole in them.  You should see how tattered the tutu is looking these days after a couple trips to the zoo!  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that my luck will continue in the nap department.  I feel so liberated to have a couple hours to myself on the days when their naps overlap.  Right now this happens about half the time.  But with a little more effort on my part, it could happen more regularly.
She is very creative at playtime!  She often can be heard mothering her dollies, changing their clothes, putting them into time-out, or putting them to sleep.  Can you guess what she's doing in the picture above?  Painting her toenails - with Play-doh, of course!
This was her clever rendition of "She'll be Commin' Round the Mountain."  These things she comes up with totally on her own.  I guess I really shouldn't feel guilty on the days we just hang out at home.  I love the white horse for the main gal, to go along with one of the verses in the song.  But check out how the guy is riding Pumba and I think the little girl on her knee is riding a bunny rabbit?  This is hilarious.  How could I not document this kind of stuff with photos?
Here we are at Brooklyn's grandma's house building a super tall tower.  You should see her excitement rising as it kept going up!  "Bigger, bigger, BIGGER!" She cheered emphatically as we added the last few "stories" to the top.
Here she is acting as my assistant chef and helping me whip up some delectable Texas Sheetcake.  And yes, I was wearing the matching apron.  Thanks Mom!  Chocolate and sour cream....Mmmmmm!  So scrumptious!
How would you love to walk past this little arrangement on your living room floor?  I couldn't help laughing to myself when I noticed the detailed attention that she gives to grooming not just her dollies, but pretend pets too!  The goggles on the mommy dog and the bone and bibs or doggie clothes on all three of them crack me up.
Who says white girls can't wear more than two pony-tails at a time?!  We are breaking the mold, people! 
The only downfall to this nifty life-vest is that Brooklyn thinks that she now knows how to swim like a big girl.  We are trying to instill the concept that the vest, not her swimming skills, or lack thereof, are keeping her afloat!  Is it already time for swimming lessons?  She loves going to the pool and ocean and is not afraid of cold water or crashing waves.  Uh-oh...

Ian: 6 Months

Usually Ian is not camera shy.  He knows the routine.  He sees the blanket being thrown on the rocking chair and he is cued up and ready to bring on the charms.  This month, however, he could barely hold still long enough to glance at the camera before attacking the giraffe!  Maybe it's because he's teething right now and painfully so!  The first breakthrough bottom tooth was immediately followed by the second, right next to it.  I feel so bad when he cries because I know he's in pain.  I've given him baby tylenol a couple of times daily, and have also distracted him with outdoor walks/stroller rides.  
Now for the stat's.  He and Brooklyn had their checkups at the same time, it was nice to get them together instead of two trips to the doctor's office!  (Sidenote:  I've got to talk to that hospital management!  They've double the price on parking!  You would think we're in some kind of recession or something!)  Anyway, here they are, enjoy the news, as I did!  Brooklyn will get a separate post, later.

Ian's weight: 17 lbs. 10 oz., 50th percentile

   height: 27 1/2 inches, 75th percentile

   head: 18 inches, off the charts! 

The doctor tried to lighten things up with, "Einstein's head was big."

If that's the case, then I'm sure Ian is destined to pursue a degree from the Albert Einstein College of Medicine like his uncle David.  Apparently he'll fit right in!  Check the side shot of the noggin below.  Now I understand why most babies I see these days seem to have unusually puny heads!  My kid's massive head is skewing my perception!

What a funny guy!  So things he's into right now are... trying out different foods and seeing which ones project the farthest.  Squash wins.  Rice cereal-thickened banana mush is a close second.  Hhmmm.  What else?  When he's not flaunting his Gaston-sized talent of expectorating, he enjoys grasping toys and passing them from one hand to the other.  He can also pull himself up to standing when he's sitting, holding onto my fingers.  He loves to stand upright with help.  However, he cannot sit upright unassisted very long.  It may have something to do with the difficulty of balancing a disproportionately large head.  We love him so much though.  He is very observant.  His most common look is the wide-eyed, loose jaw, drool hanging stare.  Unless he is smiling or laughing at one of his sister's wild antics, in which case he smiles and laughs.  He also says a very indistinct "hi" with an arm wave to greet his favorite people.  He also lets us know when he is NOT happy about us taking something that he is joyously sucking on, like watermelon or keys, by screaming and crying (fake) very distinctly.  

"Lemme tell you 'bout Sad-uh-day..."

T.J. and Michelle were nice enough to come and visit us this past weekend while they were staying up in Valencia at Michelle's parents' house.  This is Brooklyn's summary of the events that took place that fun day: (This summary was shared with Stephen and I from Brooklyn's "way-back" seat of the car on the way home from church Sunday.) 

"Lemme tell you 'bout Sad-uh-day... Michelle and Jeff came over."

Me, "Do you mean T.J.?"

Brooklyn, "Yes. T.J. and Michelle came over and we went to the beach...

and I got a lot of, lot of sand on my legs and on my feet and on my tights...
then we went to a picnic and had lunch and there were babies and mommies and daddies and kids.  We had a lot of, lot of watermelon and ham and cheese and mayonnaise and mustard and chips..."
"Wait, Brooklyn, can you tell me again about the picnic?  I'm trying to write this all down."

"I telled ya 'bout the picnic already, Mom." She stated this so matter-of-fact too, almost like another question she gave Michelle the day before.

Needless to say, it was quite entertaining to me and Stephen.  She was pretty accurate in her summary, except for mistakenly referring to Jeff, my sister's husband, instead of T.J.

Now I will share my own version of "Sad-uh-day."  When T.J. and Michelle visited, we first ate some home made BBQ chicken pizza, a la Stephen.  :) Then we headed out to that cool beach trail that Stephen and I walked a couple of weeks ago on our date night. (See previous entry for details.) The weather was cooler, it was the middle of the day, and Stephen carried the baby and a heavy backpack while I toted Brooklyn about half the way. 

We did eventually make it down to the beach, though.  And yes, Brooklyn did enjoy feeling, throwing, and make-uping in the grainy black sand.  Lovely.  The day was topped off with a fun picnic in the park with two other couples in our ward.  

Some of the highlights of our day included Michelle's brave back-seat experience next to Brooklyn on the way to the beach, (see the top picture!) during which she was randomly asked by Brooklyn if she needed to go poo-poo.  Also, T.J. fed Ian some rice cereal and mashed bananas (see second picture from the top). And, of course, we got to chat with T.J. and Michelle and catch up on things going on in their world!  (Can't wait to see the brace-face look, T.J.!  Be sure to take a picture with your matching son and blog it up!)