Weekend BBQ

So cute!!

Fun with food

Olivia has finally taken some interest in feeding herself which translates to rice crackers and bananas in her hair and stuck to the underside of her shirt.

San Francisco

Alisa and Olivia on a cable car in San Francisco. Olivia must have made twenty new friends just sitting there and smiling. The world seems like such a friendly place when we're traveling with her.

On the down side, Olivia's growing awareness of the outside world makes her far less patient with long car rides, confined to her seat without much to do. Gone are the days where she could sleep through an entire outing, leaving us nothing to do but gaze at her angelic, slumbering face.

Still, we fared well, trading off baby-appeasement duty in the back seat. I see more road trips in our future.

Oh, and let's not forget misson burritos at La Cumbre. They say they're the creators of this San Francisco treat, though I've since learned the claim is disputed. Never mind the history, the burritos were delicious.

Portland to San Francisco, Carmel and Back!

Yes, it was ambitious. Drive to San Francisco, then to Carmel, and back in five days. With a baby. Sure, why not?

Chris & Olivia in Maxwell, CA, the site of our imaginary cafe in the middle of nowhere.


Olivia in our hotel in San Francisco.

Investigating acorns at a rest stop along the way.

Olivia's new favorite toy, a frog we named Dr. Katz, pondering the parking lot in SF.


At Fisherman's Warf in S.F. Chris is thrilled.

That's Alcatraz behind us.
In Carmel: Olivia, obviously impressed with the grandness of the ocean.

The reason for the trip: The wedding of my step-brother Casey & Lauren.

At the reception at Holman Ranch in Carmel.
The babies.
Olivia & Ava.
And what a wonderful homecoming after a 15-hour drive: my sunflowers bloomed!


Oh, and Olivia's two bottom teeth finally came in! Yeah! So cute.

america's most gorgeous baby

Photos by Heather Hawksford!

Equality now.

Chris and I have always done this parenting thing as a 50/50 proposition. Everything (everything) involving the care of Olivia is divided equally between the two of us, from night wakings to diaper blow-outs, one person is never doing more than his or her share.

The division of labor in our house is not haphazard--no, it's a constantly evolving conversation between us that goes something like this:

Chris: "I need to take a shower every morning."
Me: "Well, if it's my turn to wake up with her at 5:30am, then why don't you shower between 6:00am and 7:00?"
Chris: "Then I'll watch her from 7 to 8 when I go to work."
Alisa: "Except for the days when it's your turn to wake up at 5:30..."

And it goes from there....

This approach really works for us because it's very clear who is in charge of the baby every moment of every day. Well, most days. Weekends are wild cards that can quickly turn into an argument if one of us has a project waiting to be conquered (like the weeds in the yard...).

Equality also means that I give up the rights to the "All-Knowing Giver of the Last Word." I'm not the one in total control, I don't get to have the final say, and I don't get to steamroll over Chris. There are very few Olivia topics that we don't discuss and mull over until we come to a conclusion together (topics not up for discussion: her fashion).

And actually, that is quite refreshing because then I never feel like I'm in this alone.

* I really related to this 2008 article from the NY Times even before we had the baby: "When Mom and Dad Share It All"

Olivia on film

Here are some pics I took with my grandpa's film camera. It's been years since I used film and I realize how dependent I've become on digital, where all adjustments are magically taken care of. And, of course you can take a million pictures and it's ok...