tulip dress circa 1976

the little tulip dress dottie wore this past sunday was mine as a child. my dad was sweet enough to dig through some pictures to find a picture of me in it to compare. we wanted to get a picture of dottie sitting on our front steps but unfortunately she wouldn't cooperate and insisted on holding a plastic camera and getting up.... TODDLERS! next time.

the county fair

this past sunday we drove up to petaluma to check out the sonoma-marin county fair. penny, jason, wyatt, and malcolm met us up there and marla and brian joined us with oliver. it was scorching hot but we had LOADS of fun!!! the fair was done really well and really catered to children. there were farm animals, games, a petting zoo, huge slides, and best of all, dottie got to ride her first roller coaster and pony! what more could a little girl ask for? each ride she went on, she got off and wanted to turn around and go again. we already can't wait for next year and BONUS....oliver will be able to toddle around with the big kids which will be loads of fun (sorry oliver, we were so excited by the kiddies riding the rides that we didn't get a pic of your sweet self)! for more pictures of our day, click HERE.

surf's up

hooray for saturday! we woke up, ate breakfast (dottie's new favorite is cheerios served with milk), and then headed to check out music with enzo. dottie loved it more than ever today! we have been to breakfast with enzo 3 times recently and with each time, dottie is having more fun with it. today she sat on our laps and bounced for much of the program but by the end was up and jumping and clapping with glee, especially when "old macdonald" was played. after enzo, i headed to my studio and worked for several hours while chuck was on baby duty. then we headed to the beach with our friends ian and pooja so the guys could surf and the ladies could enjoy the sun (we are having a heat wave right now. 80's in sf is rare!). dottie had loads of fun playing in the sand and enjoyed taking pointers from ian and chuck apres surfing....

bedhead

dottie had some major bedhead today when she woke up from a 3 1/2 nap. thanks siena and toscana for wearing her out!!!!!

helmet heads

earlier today we went for a visit with our friends marie and siena and their friend toscana (1 year) in the east bay. we had a lovely visit and the girls totally wore dottie out. we met up at marie's brother's house who has 2 kids who are older than ours. they had lots to play with including a cute doll stroller and some bike helmets that the girls kind of obsessed over. we also brought the girls some parasols that dottie still couldn't get enough of. the pictures aren't the best because several taken on my iphone...

dot in dots

enjoying a madeleine in front on the boulangerie in hayes valley.

when bad things happen to good dogs

milo got hit with some flying spaghetti this weekend (courtesy of dottie). poor thing couldn't even reach the spots of tomato sauce with his tongue...

father's day

yesterday we had a lovely day celebrating father's day together. we went on a walk in the morning, chuck went surfing, and then the two of us went to see the play spamalot while our friend allie watched dottie. later in the afternoon, chuck and dottie decided to collect some rocks in the backyard. kind of a hard picture to attach to this but it captured the moment so i thought i would post it. dottie was oohing and aahing in delight!

thank you for being being such an amazing dad chuck. you make life fun and we can't imagine a life without you!

new bike

here is another bike video (sorry) because i couldn't resist posting it after chuck posted the last one. we went to dinner with friends jon, kim, and frances tonight at liberty cafe and sat outside to eat so the girls could play around while we ate. dottie was happy to show frances her new bike but when it came time to get off of it so frances could have a turn, she didn't want to budge. eventually they worked out a system so both could have a turn and the other one could push. when we got home, dottie truly did not want to get off. after a few tears and coaxing with a book, we were able to pull her off. a new bike is fun stuff for a 17 month old i guess! time to get a helmet....

Heck's Angel

dutch and milo

yesterday we went down to SOMA to go on a walk with our friend mindy and her corgi dutch. dutch and mindy are on the top of the list of milo's favorites so milo was really excited to go on the walk and so were dottie and i. dottie tried to use the ball thrower with no success (it will take years i think!) and had a great time laughing and running around with the dogs. a perfect way to spend a thursday afternoon!

daily routine

ever since zayneb's birthday party, dottie has made it part of her routine to water her plant when we get back from our walk with milo in the morning. when the water runs out in the watering can, without fail, she says, "mo, mo, mo, mo..." (more). she also insists on keeping the flag stuck in the dirt that says "dottie" on it.

boo!

mara got dottie a new umbrella today. what could be better....

strike!

this afternoon, we headed down to daly city because heard rumor there was a carnival in town. we got there and of course, dottie couldn't ride on any of the rides and it was actually quite small. kind of a letdown all in all only to realize that it was in the parking lot of a bowling alley we used to frequent back in the day. the ball was a touch big for her to actually get down the alley but she tried and had fun cheering us on. she actually beat me by 2 points (with the help of her daddy!). i am crazy for videos lately. this is a short one that we thought was cute.

tofutti cutie and the loo

for some reason, as i have written before, dottie really likes to hang out in the bathroom. tonight we went to penny and jason's for dinner and dottie decided to take her dessert, a tofutti cutie ice cream bar, into the bathroom and eat it there. a little later when chuck explained to her that we had to leave, she was pulled out of the bathroom crying. when we got home, she had a little milk and of course, ended up taking it into the bathroom to enjoy it on her frog potty. we're just gonna go with it! :-)

breakfast with enzo

this morning chuck, dottie, and i checked out breakfast with enzo in our neighborhood at the community center. enzo plays all kinds of instruments (banjo, accordion, guitar, the saw, ....) and sings folkie kids songs that are really quite sweet. the kids run around dancing, many of them singing along with enzo because they have been to see him so many times. dottie had a great time and even broke away from us at the end to do a little dancing! here are a couple of pictures and a quick little video of dottie clapping with the music.

free jazz

jammin' with wyatt parker...

(another video from the same "jam" posted HERE)

petaluma

on sunday, we drove to petaluma for a barbeque at brian and marla's house and most importantly, to meet their son oliver who is about 4 months old and cute as can be. penny, jason, wyatt, and malcolm also drove up. we had a great time and the kids ran around playing in the tent we picked up at a garage sale that morning, trying to skateboard (only wyatt could kind of master this), playing on the organ, ...... all while the parents sat back (not really) and drank old milwaukee. watch out brian, marla, and oliver, we will be back!!!

a new do

on saturday, inspired by a haircut that lula got, we decided that dottie was in need of a trim. the first and only other time her hair has been trimmed was when i cut it and it was VERY uneven. we headed down to our local, KIDS CUTS, and they very sweetly evened out the mullet. as you can see in pictures that we post, dottie's hair is growing in the back but not on top. it makes for an interesting look i would have to say. the kids salon had cars to sit in and they played cartoons so dottie was happy as a clam sitting while the woman cut her hair. at the end of it, the "stylist" asked if we wanted to do pigtails. as you will see in the pictures, she really did it up. we didn't know dottie's hair was capable of 4 little pigtails with the hair on the top of her head. we opted out of the glitter that they offered. she got lots of attention at the ice cream parlor afterwards where she enjoyed a nice treat. i am thinking i will not repeat this look!

zayneb turns 2!

last thursday anna's (my business partner) daughter, zayneb, turned 2 and they had a little party on friday to celebrate. there were a total of 5 kids there and we all had loads of fun! the kids sat around a low table in kids chairs to eat their lunch which was pretty darling to watch instead of the high chair she usually sits in. zayneb received a baby doll sling from marie and siena which dottie was happy to test out for zayneb... dottie also enjoyed playing with their play kitchen and doll beds. i don't think she understood that the doll beds were for dolls. she kept laying down on them. to see more pictures, click HERE.

little hands

this morning dottie and i met basak and lula at the zoo. we spent most of our time in the petting zoo area checking out the goats, ducks, and pigs. dottie and lula held hands while they walked around checking out the animals. this was a first with a buddy so it was very cute for basak and me to watch. watch out for the goats!

and a few pictures too...

here are some pictures from the zoo because i coudn't resist posting them. in the second picture, dottie and lula are checking out the baby chicks. notice the cute hand holding! to see even more pictures, click HERE. (sorry about the onslaught of posts and pictures tonight!)

another reader for dottie

if i haven't menioned it lately, dottie is over the top into books right now. she gets to the end of a book and already wants to read it again saying "more, more, more". our friend mindy came over for a visit with her dog dutch the other day (and was kind enough to bring balloons!) and got instantly pulled into a ready session. thanks mindy!

dottie's top 10 favorite books of the moment:
1. dear zoo
2. a boy and his bunny (this isn't just a promotion of my brother's book, she honestly LOVES it!)
3. the juggling pug (ditto to the above statement)
4. goodnight gorilla
6. bing bedtime ( new favorite, she squeals with delight at this one)
7. seven little postmen
8. gingerbread baby
9. trucks
10. tootle the train

a nice visit

this past week, my parents came for a visit and it was lovely. dottie intantly felt comfortable with them and i think they must have read a combined 50 books by the end of the visit. we went on walks, out for dinner, hung out at the playground.....all of the usual stuff but even better with grandparents! dottie is sad they had to leave (and so are we!). to check out more pictures of the visit, click HERE.

a "dottie-go-round"

my dad took this video of dottie while my parents were here. pretty funny! dottie got dizzy as can be but loved every second of it!

3 generations in shades

lots going on so haven't had a chance to get pics/posts up since my parents were out for a visit. in the meantime, here's a picture of us in shades. dottie puts her sunglasses on and keeps them on which i think is a hoot! i would have predicted that she take them off right away but not this girl...