Ponies and Swings

Around our new house in Los Gatos, we have half a dozen parks to choose from either within walking distance or less than a 5 minute drive away.  One of the many benefits of Carrie working part time is that the girls generally have these parks all to themselves on Mondays and Tuesdays.  As a result, Cassie is basically used to having her favorite toys all to herself with no need to ever share.  And her all time favorite is the swings.  We continue to work on the idea of sharing, but 90% of the time there just isn't anybody to share with and she gets to have a great time on the swings by herself.

Another recent development is "ponies."  As you can see in the picture, these are some of the first ever pictures where Cassie has little pigtails.  She refused to have anything on her head for the longest time, be it hair bands, hair clips, hats, whatever.  However, some of the other girls at school have started getting ponytails because everybody's hair is growing longer, so peer pressure influenced Cassie to want the same thing.  She now has 1-3 ponies in at any given time.

Swim Lessons Start

With the weather finally warming up after an unseasonably cold and rainy spring, we are back in the pool.  Temps are actually still a little chilly to be in the main pool with the water temperature usually around 72F, but we can heat the spa to 90F pretty quickly and efficiently.  The spa is perfectly sized for Cassie right now, with space to float on her own, or walk around the seats on the edge.  Carrie has taken on the challenge of teaching Cassie how to swim, which has been a pleasure since Cassie loves the water so much.  She is able to "eggbeater" and tread water on her own briefly, can kick both freestyle and breast stroke, likes to blow bubbles, and has even started enjoying "dunking" her face in the water.

Trains!

Without question, Cassie's #1 favorite interest right now is trains.  She loves the Thomas and Friends train TV show and movies, her favorite clothes all have trains on them, she has dozens of train toys, and many of her activities revolve around trains.  Even her class at school has adopted an entire train curriculum to encourage the interest amongst all the children. 

We had the opportunity to visit the California State train museum in Sacramento a few weekends ago and Cassie got to ride on her very first real train!  She was obviously beside herself with glee throughout the entire experience.  You can see here that we got to play with the steering wheel on one of the cabooses.

Visit to see Lauren and Jaymie

Cassie has had the same primary teacher for most of her time at Google daycare, from 6 to about 20 months.  We really love her teacher, Lauren, and have all gotten to each other really well.  Lauren recently went on maternity leave to have her own daughter, Jaymie.  Although it's been fun getting to know the new teachers and see all the amazing new things they've brought to the room, we do miss Lauren lots.  The plan is that Lauren will be moving with Cassie and the older toddlers to the new young-preschool room in August, so we've tried to stay connected while Lauren's been on leave.  She lives just a few blocks from school, so this is a picture from when John and Cassie stopped in to visit Lauren and the baby after school one day.  Obviously a fun time.

Planting Seeds

It's no secret that we think Google daycare is amazing.  Just one of the many things we like is how they come up with interesting activities for the children that would never cross our minds.  The other day, Cassie's room did a joint activity with another toddler room and planted some seeds that they'll watch grow over the next several weeks.  You can see here that Cassie immediately took to the activity, and really enjoyed scooping dirt into her cup and planting the little seeds.  Seems like all her practice in the sand has paid off!

Cassie Expanding Her Boundaries

As Cassie nears her second birthday in a few weeks, she is experiencing a roller coaster of emotions and feelings.  Toddlerhood has brought with it a great desire to broaden her horizons by seeking new (and more dangerous) adventures, to try everything by "self," to express her opinions more, and to really challenge the limits of her world.  On the flip side, Cassie also has moments where she clings to mom and dad more than she has in her entire life.  We've had the first tears on school dropoffs in over a year recently, and the most time spent snuggling into a shoulder that we can remember.  The picture here however, is her finding new adventures.  At school they have set up a riser next to a big soft mat where the children can take giant leaps and land safely.  It's one of Cassie's favorite things to do now.

It's a Girl!

We just got from Carrie's 4-month ultrasound appointment and found out that we're having a second baby girl! We are very excited that Cassie will be welcoming a little sister this fall, and are especially happy that we can keep all of our pink clothes and toys. =D

Cassie at 21 Months

Cassie's really been enjoying counting and learning numbers. Here's a quick clip of her latest trick as well as her playing with some of Carrie's shoes.

Corn!

Though not in the potty, this BM is just as memorable. Happy April Fool's Day!

Forster comes to visit

John's good friend, Brian Forster, came to visit recently. Forster was in Vegas on bachelor business and was able to take a couple days off for a Bay Area swing by as well. We had a great time, hit up Santa Cruz, played some poker, and even golfed at Poppy Hills on a gorgeous spring day!

Potty shot!

This post is a few weeks old, but it is momentous enough to share here. Cassie sat on her potty and made a poop for the first time! Granted, she stood up afterwards to see what happened and was so startled that she immediately started crying hysterically, but it's a start!

Jump-O-Lene

Cassie made out like a bandit over Christmas, but one of the items that she didn't get to play with until a few days later when it finally got setup was the Jump-O-Lene. It's this big inflatable circle with inflatable walls for jumping. Just like her trampoline, Cassie loves jumping and flopping on it. She's gotten good enough now where she can get in and out safely on her own too!

Sick days at home with daddy

As with all kids, and especially kids in daycare, Cassie gets sick a fair amount. Because Carrie only works part time and John has a pretty flexible schedule, if somebody has to stay home from work - it's usually John. It's not so bad really. We generally spend the day curled up on the catch watching TV. Kind of like vacation.

Bath time!

Cassie has been a water baby since she was really little. She immediately took to the pool in the new house, and she really enjoys taking baths. She's now starting to be able to help wash herself and understands enough where we can tell her to close her eyes when rinsing her hair. Far fewer soapy eyes!

Cassie at 19 Months

Cassie continues to learn things quickly. We captured some special moments in this video.

Happy New Year!

Happy new year! We had a wonderful 2009 and a wonderful first decade to this millennium, looking forward to more great adventures in the future! John's family invited us to meet them in Monterey over the holiday break. Cassie most enjoyed being near the water to watch the waves break, play in the sand, and see the seagulls buzz the beach.

Wei Family Christmas

John's side of the family got to spend Christmas day together with all four generations. We had lots of yummy food, had fun sharing stories and opening presents. Cassie enjoyed being able to play with her great-grandfather!

Merry Christmas!

We wish everyone a safe and very Merry Christmas! Cassie absolutely loved Christmas this year, really being aware of presents and toys for the first time. Her "killer" gifts included a new playscape, a jump-o-lene, a push car, a tricycle, and a fun water table!

Cassie School Video

It's no secret that we absolutely love Google Daycare where Cassie spends 3 days a week while Carrie works part time. Cassie's teacher, Lauren, put together this video of Cassie's first school year there and shows the developmental progression from January to August (7-14 months). You also get to see a lot of the school environment in the video.

DIY Hair

We have dropped John's haircuts from the monthly budget as we try to balance the books with the new house. That doesn't mean John can't have some find in the process though...