just us.

a rare night for two.

Mike and I got to go out and play for a night.  wanted to watch a movie, but nothing in the theaters even remotely grabbed our attention. oh well.

but instead we shopped, had dinner, and walked off dinner at our favorite place with the big, red bullseye.

shopping at the Gap:

new pairs of jeans for the both of us...at 25% too!!  so I decided to splurge and buy two pairs, plus a cute ruffled henley sweater.  score!  we didn't dress appropriately for the cold weather, so we ended up wearing the jeans out of the store.

waiting for our table at the Cheesecake Factory.  not the best picture of us, but that's what a tired mommy and daddy look like.  hey, at least we're smiling.

dinner for two: an appetizer of crab wontons, bread (we love the brown one with the seeds), a strawberry and a raspberry lemonade, chicken and shrimp gumbo, and louisiana chicken pasta.

we took home 3 leftover bags.  yea, we were stuffed.  no cheesecake dessert for Mike and I, but we did bring home a piece of Kahlua Coffee Cocoa cheesecake for my mom and dad.

since nothing at the movie theater seemed to interest us, we decided to stop by Target on the way home to pick up Up and watch it when we got home.  We assumed the kid would be in bed by then, but...

this little one greeted us at the door when we pulled into the garage.  I guess that's what happens when she takes a 2.5 hour nap at 5 in the evening.

my mom watched Keira for us and said she ate a ton of rice porridge for dinner.  She gave Keira a bath too, and said it was like bathing a wrestler, since Keira just wouldn't sit still.  my mom ended up soaking wet in the end!

Mom, thanks for watching the little munchkin for us tonight so that we could go out on a date.  we can't wait to see you and dad again in 2 weeks!

we can never resist the dollar spot at Target.  we saw these kid mittens and bought a pair for Keira.  she seemed a little confused as to where her hands went when we put them on, but she didn't mind them.  the best $1 we've ever spent!  now her hands will be warm this winter :)

Nor Cal, it does a body good

Keira decided she was big enough to help with the laundry.  so I let her.  she's not tall enough to put the clothes in the washer, nor is she coordinated enough to fold.  but she's really good at pulling all the folded stuff out of the laundry basket, go figure!

uncle Ryan thought it would be fun to build Keira a cage.  Keira, not so much.  Take that Uncle Ryan!

family photo.  we dropped Mike off in Half Moon Bay on Tuesday to go crabbing.  he amazingly felt a lot better after resting for a day.  when he heard they caught their day's limit in an hour, he was rearing to go! 

just look at the smile.  you know Mike is totally happy to be out at sea.  I've said it before, it's his home away from home!

we met up with my cousins Mary and Craig and their son Oliver at the California Academy of Sciences.  it's been completely redone recently and I've heard how cool and neat it is.  I didn't take many pictures inside but we got to see the aquarium and the indoor rain forest, and had gyros for lunch right afterwards.

since Keira's been doing more cruising lately, I decided it was time to put some proper footware on her feet.  a lot of the shoes she already has don't fit her, so she usually just wears socks.  my mom and I took her shoe shopping (starting early!) and initially bought her a pair of tennis shoes, but she wasn't used to walking in them.  so grandma wandered into Baby Gap, and found these cute little numbers on sale!  she does really well in them, so hopefully they'll last her until she can walk on her own.

this week at my parents' house has been a week full of milestones for Keira.  just last night, she started holding her own bottle!  she's been feeding herself puffies more consistently too, and eating a lot more.  I'm thinking she might be going through a growth spurt, and hopefully putting on some weight.I think it's going to be any day now that she'll start walking.  my dad has been trying his darndest to get her to take a few steps and she actually took two of them on her own last night!  she might've gone a little bit more had it not been for all the squealing and happiness that was coming from all the adults.

she's been sleeping really well here too.  she normally doesn't sleep very well the first few nights due to being in a new place, but she's been sleeping 7 or 8 hours each night.  which is super nice for mommy and daddy :)  we're thinking maybe she should stay at Po Po and Gung Gung's more often!

Sunday the 8th

 this post isn't going to be very witty or super exciting.  just saying.

 

my Uncle Vernon stopped by today to drop off a gift for Keira.  He was on his way home from dropping off my soon-to-be-Auntie Stella at the airport.  He seemed truly excited to meet Keira this time around and she even let him hold her.

 
driving the new portion of the Bay Bridge.  I didn't realize it was such a short section and that S-curve most definitely needs to be taken at 40mph.  or else you'll end up swimming with the fishes.

and the most exciting part of the day...

crab!!  Mike and my dad went out dark and way early at 430am to head out to Half Moon Bay.  from what I hear, my dad spent the whole boat ride with his head overboard and was pretty much out of commission.  Mike smashed and bruised his finger somehow while helping bring the crabpots in and out of the water, and came back with major sinus congestion.  despite all that, they still brought back their limits worth of crab...20 total!  Mike would be going out again tomorrow, and was planning to, if it weren't for the fact that his cold got worse.  so Tuesday will be his next time out.

we wasted no time introducing Keira to the crab.  I thought she would be afraid, but she reached out and touched them with no fear.  I told her one day, she'll be going out with Daddy to catch a few of her own.

 
 say hello to my little friend...

the loot.

  
my dad caught these pictures of Keira in the backyard with her walker.  she was pretty happy to be outside in the sun, I think the fresh air did her some good.  there's a lot more room to wander and more things to explore.

it was a pretty lowkey Sunday, and I already feel like half of our vacation is over.  we still have a few fun things planned for the rest of the week, and I'm looking forward to spending some time with Mike.  its been hard not having Mike around to help with Keira, especially since she's still sick and clingy to me.  thankfully, my mom got up with her this morning and my dad took her so I could eat dinner tonight.  she went to bed early tonight, so I'm gonna hit the sack while I still can.

more adventures to come!

(and happy 32nd birthday to me!)

9 months old...and mommy almost forgot

thank you grandma Ko for reminding me that Keira turns 9 months today.  I pretty much forgot.

so here's the few pictures I took of her on her 9 month birthday.  picture taking has decreased lately and that's so sad.  I've got to do better at that.

can you see her spriggy sprouts?  Mike and I both love the fact that her hair is growing.  it's getting darker and longer and thicker.  yet she still gets mistaken for a boy.

playing with mommy's phone.  she still loves our cell phones and working remote controls.  she's quite the cruiser and climber right now, and just the other day we found her climbing on top of the toy piano keys.  she'll use anything to get up a little higher, including boxes, toys and Mommy's head.  She's getting really good at using the walker the Chen kiddos passed on to her.  She can only go in straight lines, and has yet to figure out how to turn left or right with it.

gung gung gave her an old keyboard to bang on, so she would leave daddy's laptop alone.

Keira's still wearing a size 3 diaper and in 9 month clothing.  she hasn't gained much weight in the last few months, hovering around 17 pounds.  her 9 month appointment is in a few weeks, so we'll find out the specifics then.  she's on solids 50% of the time, and on both breastmilk and formula the other 50%.  my milk production isn't what it used to be, so we started her on formula a few weeks ago to supplement and hopefully stretch out what frozen milk I have left.

Keira and Po Po.

I fake sneezed in order to get her to smile in this picture.  she likes it when Mike or I does that.  Her two top teeth are coming in, and the left one has already cut through.  she's fighting off her second cold of the season, and is so sad and pitiful looking when she's sick.  it makes Mommy's heart so sad.
 
 
Keira playing with her cousins, Brandon and Kyle.

Keira loves it when other kids are around.  she can be cranky and bored if she's alone but if there are other kids for her to play with, she's as happy as a clam.

 
 sleeping on daddy's shoulder.

Mike has the magic touch when it comes to putting Keira to sleep at night.  she fusses a lot with me, but is an angel with Mike.  is she turning into Daddy's little girl already?
 
 I can't think of much else as far as Keira's milestones right now.  she changes and grows all the time, and I need to do a better job at documenting them when they happen.

happy 9 months baby girl!

home sweet Bay Area home

we made it up to the Bay Area safe and sound...and in 6.5 hours too!  I was a bit worried about how Keira was going to do on the drive up, but thankfully she slept most of the way up here.  We knew by the end, she was ready to be out of her carseat so as soon as we got to my parents' house (with a stop at my dad's work so he could show off), she went hogwild.

 

my parents didn't really do much babyproofing before we got there, so we learned really quick what was okay and what had to be put away.  we pretty much took everything out from under the coffee table and moved it to higher ground.  I think the only thing left was a basket of coasters that ended up all over the floor.

my parents took us out for dinner to a place called Great China in Berkeley.  my mom's been raving about it for weeks and has been waiting to take Mike and I there.  for those Nor Cal locals, it's on Kittredge right above Shattuck.  it's quite the popular, and not very big, place and it's a good thing we got there when we did because a crowd soon developed outside.  probably should've taken pictures of the food, but gasp!  I didn't.  we had a rice paper noodle dish thing, a plate of dumplings, a peking duck with all the fixings, green beans and steamed clams.  it was pretty good and even Keira got to have a taste.

right now, I'm sitting at home with a napping Keira while my mom is at her private practice and Mike and my dad are headed out to Half Moon Bay.  this weekend is the opening weekend for crab fishing, so Mike and I are off the whole week so he can go.  we're looking forward to seeing family and friends and doing some touristy things, like the California Academy of Sciences, cupcakes and Daiso.

stay tuned for our week's adventures! 

the end-of-October round-up

haven't been around these here parts much lately.  I've had intentions of posting, but just never got around to it.  so here's the rundown as of late:

Keira's Halloween costume for this year.  $36 costume picked up for a mere $6.  thank you BabyStyle-going-out-of-business sale!  these pictures were taken a week early, since I was itching to see how it looked on her.  and it turns out that these are the only pictures we have of her with the whole costume on.  she wasn't having much to do with the hat.

 
 
 

a day at Disneyland to catch all the Halloween decor before it goes away.  Keira ate like a champ at New Orleans Cafe, she probably filled up that hollow leg of hers and then some.  We rode the Haunted Mansion, Pirates of the Carribean, Buzz Lightyear and Winnie the Pooh.  you know, your standard "it's okay for babies to go on it" kind of rides.

another picture of our little pretty girl doing her "I'm so sexy" pose.

Mike's office Halloween party.  can you spot him and Keira?  if not, here's a close-up of the two of them:

 
 Mike's costume is pretty awesome huh?  he got good use out of it too and was able to wear it 3 times!

a rare Thursday playdate with the Hari girls where pumpkin carving was involved.

Keira decided she wanted to help Uncle Ben get the pumpkins ready and had to pull her sleeves up to get down and dirty.  if we weren't watching her, she would've been eating pumpkin seeds the whole time!

  
I tried to dress her to somewhat resemble a pumpkin.  the green pants were $2 at Target and a tad big for her..sized 12months...but it worked!  and thanks to Auntie Candace and Uncle Paul for her Halloween shirt!

at Uncle Pat's Halloween party.  Keira wasn't so freaked out by the giant panda holding her compared to the first time Mike donned the outfit...she screamed like a banshee!  she got to meet Auntie Melissa and Uncle Timmie for the first time too.  we made sure to ask them for a little friend for Keira as well :)

Mike and Keira's godfather, Uncle Vince.  the two of them just crack me up.

we went trick-or-treating in downtown Claremont today, where all the stores were handing out candy.  It was really cool to see all the little kids dressed up and walking around.  I can't wait until next year when Keira can go and collect candy on her own.

 

the little panda bear just hanging out.  the second picture showcases her newest face (she learns it from mommy!) with the scruncy nose.  I'll have to find a picture of myself as a baby because I used to do this ALL the time.  ask my parents, they'll tell you.

going door-to-door with her cousins.  I think this might've been the only doorstep she crawled up too, the rest of them she was carried by mom or dad.  and she brought back some pretty good loot too.  I think we'll be heading to Claremont again next year :)
 
Mike's costume was a hit with this one little boy we befriended while out tonight.  he was in total awe of Kung Fu Panda and even chased after Mike as he walked away. Mike said bye to him by name, and he couldn't believe that the big panda knew it!  it was so cute!

so that pretty much finishes up our October.  can't believe there's only 2 months left of 2009...where did the year go?  gotta remember to set the clocks back an hour too.  aw heck, it'll just have to wait until morning because we're beat!
 

super quick post

before i head off to work (a whole 4 hours..woo hoo!), some pictures i snapped of our budding little pretty girl...thanks  to auntie theresa for making Keira the headband!  I can't get enough of her wearing it.

be back soon for more pictures and updates!
 
 

our little explorer

this past Sunday we headed up to Claremont for a family get together.  we were early (and no one was home) so we headed down to my old stomping grounds downtown.  they've done a lot of developing down there and I wanted to walk around and check things out.  It just so happened that the farmer's market was going on too.

my pharm school friends will recognize this place.  we used to go here a lot and they serve huge glasses of beer and big portions of food.

while Mike got a smoothie from Jamba Juice, Keira and I found a fountain to check out.  I put some sneakers on her that day, just to complete her outfit.

Keira crawling around.  Yes, I know the ground is not the cleanest place to be, but I'm all about letting her explore her surroundings.  God made dirt, so dirt don't hurt!

parts of the fountain were at floor level, so I let Keira get up close and personal.  it was so neat to watch her discover the water (yes, more dirtiness involved), and realize that she could put her hand into it.  eventually she started splashing around, and I had to pull her away.

 
 

okay, well playtime  wasn't over just yet.  I thought I'd perch her right next to the higher fountains and let Daddy take a few pictures.  well, she got even more into the splashing and ended up soaking the front of her clothes.  if we didn't have somewhere to be and if she didn't have a runny nose, I'd let her have at it but Daddy said no more.  next time, Keira, next time!
 
 
 
 

the joys of an 8 month old

Keira gets distracted fairly easily when she eats, and a portion of the food ends up all over her face.  I don't know why I don't just feed her in the buff, since it'll make cleaning up a little easier.

she got a bath shortly after this, and I took some cute pictures of her scooting around in her birthday suit.  but since this is a public blog, I don't want to be posting naked baby photos.
 

week-end round-up

this little booger has lots of boogers.  that's because she's caught herself another cold.  this time around she's got a lot more snot which leads to a cough since she's probably got post-nasal drip.  and because of the fact that she can hardly breathe, she doesn't sleep very well at night.  both Mike and I have been having to sleep sitting up with her on our chest, to make it easier for her to breathe.

she's got a bruise on her forehead as well, due to a friendly collision with a walker.  it's starting to turn yellow now, which means its getting better.

 

it was family flu shot day today.  we weren't sure if we should or if we even could get them since we're all down with a cold (although not all the way down), but we got them anyway.  Keira didn't even flinch.  she was too busy staring at the nurse and probably didn't notice she was getting stuck.  her and Mike got matching Daffy Duck bandaids, while I ended up with a shiny metallic one.

we're having a pretty carefree Saturday so far, did a few errands (bank, AAA and Target) and now we're home hanging out, watching college football (Mike is, anyway).  kinda feel like going out again, but we'll chill at home for a bit and then see how it goes.  have a great weekend!