All About Family

October in San Francisco is typically when we get to really enjoy the warm weather, blue skies, gentle breezes...it is so beautiful. Over the course of a few weeks we experience an accelerated summer and then we swan dive right into fall. It's one of the best parts of living here and we love to share it with visitors.

Which means: we've been busy. I know, I know: I sound like a broken record. But I'm really not kidding - weeks of wonderful and trying like hell to keep even just my nostrils up and out of the water so that I can take little sips of breath. Reminds me of the days when I could and would spend over an hour in the pool swimming freestyle...back and forth and back and forth...counting the laps in my mind so I wouldn't lose count of how many miles I swam in that one workout.

So I'll pick up where I left off last post. Lots of pictures and few words. For real, if I don't tackle the folders of pictures now, I never will. That would  be sad because there are some good ones.

Farmers market with Dip. I miss her. You can read her account of our meeting HERE. We shared our taca-flaca-flaca while watching the singing lady. Every weekend with her washboard and harmonica and dancing wooden cat. What a life!

I made the foolish mistake of thinking I could take an uninterrupted shower. Ada kept whipping back the shower curtain...she was soaked by the time she tried to climb over the edge of the tub. I was crabbing about it, "Oh, you're all wet. Why do you want to be in here?" and so on when I thought, "Geez. Why are you acting like such an asshole? Just change her clothes after she gets all soaked." And so I did. My baby showered with me. Fully clothed. And fully happy.

On Thursday I got a call, "Hey! We're at Fisherman's Wharf!" and so we went there after our shower. I love in this picture how she is so tiny compared to Pat. I have pictures of Tim and Ada together like this and I love it. He is, like, 6 times taller than her. So sweet.

At Baby Gap it became clear that the major shopping influence in Ada's life will be her Aunt Stephanie. Ada is already learning how to thumb through the racks... too funny! She danced in the windows of the Baby Gap - and then she realized that her Mom (me) was on the other side of those windows and she suddenly got real sad.

Uncle Pat and Aunt Stephanie watching the sea lions on Fisherman's Wharf

Last year we never got around to getting a pumpkin for Halloween. We at least made it that far this year. It's possible that next year we'll even get around to carving it. Schedule being what it was, we had to skip the trip to Half Moon Bay and settle for a  "pumpkin patch" near Berkley. It was super lame. Luckily, Ada is still too little to know how lame it really was. She is a toddler so she just lives in the moment, loving it for whatever it is. She loved the goats and the slide and the big orange round things.

He's a good Dad.

Ada gets awesome presents. I mean, all the time. Uncle Colin and Aunt Maiken got a rocking horse for Ada and she loves this thing. At first she stood next to it and rocked it with her hand. Within all of 3 minutes she was on it and loving it. Aunt Stephanie and Uncle Pat brought her an entire new wardrobe including a dress with a little black tutu attached - we refer to it as the Lady Gaga outfit. Thankfully, it's not the meat one.

I might love my kid a little bit.

Stephanie, Maiken, Colin

Aunt Stephanie and Ada. We spent a lot of time talking about how Stephanie will help Ada flirt with the boys that Uncle Pat will then scare off with giant guns and stories about water boarding. I can already imagine Tim placing a frantic phone call to his brother whenever Ada has her first date. These poor future boyfriends don't know what they're in for.

Maiken and Ada.

Uncle Colin and Ada.

More family fun.

These are 3# weights. She can lift them.The funniest part of this picture is that she is wearing a black tutu, has a shiner over her right eye, avocado all over her chin, and is lifting weights. Oh. my girl, who will you grow up to be?

Fun in the rain.

Tim, Pat, & Colin

At the Buena Vista - this family is really something. After this Colin and Maiken went home. Tim and I went back to Pat and Stephanie's hotel and stayed up talking for a few more hours. It could have gone on all night except that I had to work the next day and the nanny really needed to get home.

I mentioned that Moira and Ben welcomed Fiona Lynn. New life....so amazing. I remember those first couple of weeks at home so well. Finding our way, learning what she liked, struggling with breast feeding, wondering if we were doing things "right", being so tired.... now that I'm more comfortable, comparatively well-rested, and I realize that there is no such thing as "right" when it comes to raising babies I can recognize this period of time as one of the sweetest in my whole life.

It may be selfish and I do worry about the consequences of asking too much of the universe, but I can't wait for our family to grow. I can only imagine that the love just exponentially expands.

Newborn love -  twiggly legs, randomly moving arms, and downy smell. I love it. Fiona is so sweet.

Life will continue to creep towards "normal" - whatever that is! Normal is a moving target continually redefining itself. We're getting there!!