One Day in Monterey

For Memorial Day weekend, Joe anxiously awaited his annual boys camping trip. Time to get away from a crying baby, a nagging wife, and the harsh city life. But alas, Mother Nature decided to snow out the site, and he was left campless. So instead, he was forced to spend family time with us, and we took an impromptu overnight to Monterey, courtesy of a really good deal on hotwire.com. A 4 star hotel for $116?? Hell yah! Hotwire is my crack - I get this gambling high right when I buy, as the website is about to reveal the name of the hotel I've just purchased. Credit card imputed...please wait while we process your card...your hotel is...The Hyatt!! Score!

So we strolled along the coastline, walked around Cannery Row (which was exactly like Fisherman's Wharf, but not as good), and took photos along the way. At night, instead of a romantic meal at a nice restaurant, we took out from Whole Foods and had bbq chicken and roasted marshmellows by the Hyatt fire pit. Because it was vacation, Joe let me indulge on Whole Foods handmade artisan marshmallows. You get like a dozen for $6, what a rip off, but they sure were ooey gooey delicious.



Gotta love his expression. When he smiles like this, it reminds me of my Yeen Yeen.












Finally a good family photo.












Perched precariously on a cliff overhang.

Ok, it wasn't that precarious. I mean really, you think I would have let Joe take him if it was?? But in the photo it looks it, huh.










And finally, my little yoga master. Joe says no Marshman has ever maintained flexibility, so this may be the last you see of this pose.

BOO!

For those who missed my facebook posting, this is by far my favorite video of Tristan. I gotta warn you, after watching this video, you may never recover from how painfully cute he is. I'm just saying.

Reaction to Prunes

We've tried oat cereal, and bananas, which he's loved. Then avocado and prunes, which he did not love. Here is his prunes fiasco, recorded.

Tasty Arm

Tristan has been chomping on everything in his path. Nothing is sacred, including Joe's harry arm. In this video, you can see how voracious my son is, and if you watch closely, you may even see the back and forth gnawing motion he makes which is very monster-like of him.

Introducing Dr. Jeanna!

Today Auntie Jeanna graduated from UCSF Pharmacology, and I wanted to go and bring Tristan to watch. But what I didn't want was to be one of those mothers who have babies who, in the middle of a quiet and respectful ceremony, are screaming at the top of their lungs. And we've all heard Tristan's lung power; he's not a gentle creature. But braving the event, we headed towards Davies Symphony Hall and sat with Auntie Chris and Auntie Kim, who sacrificially found us all seats in the upper back where Tristan could scream all he wanted. Surprisingly he was ok; with some rocking by Auntie Chris. He was quite content in her arms, being bounced up and down, with his hand down her shirt. Yah heard me, hand down her shirt. My son likes putting his hands down women's shirts. I think it's a comfort thing, or maybe it's a warm and cuddly space. Who knows? I hope he grows out of that, cause that will make for some awkward parent/teacher conferences in the future.

I can't believe that in my little girl group of 6, there are already 2 doctors. Only they could make having a masters feel...regular. =)

Here's a picture of Dr. Jeanna, myself (and yes, that's my new hair), and Baby:

First Solids!

Last night I got 6 hours of non-interrupted, non-waking, non-feeding, non-crying sleep. "How?" you may ask. Well, it's this little miracle called OAT CEREAL. Behold my new best friend:












Yesterday we fed Tristan solids for the first time in his life. Grandma bought him classic Beech Nut Oatmeal, which we mixed with formula and fed him from spoons from Auntie Katie. At first, it was a bit awkward for him. I mean, think about if you've never eaten from a spoon before in your life, and all of a sudden a 6'2" man called "Daddy" is shoving stuff into your mouth with this foreign object called a spoon. You'd have some adjustment issues, too. So needless to say, it got all over.





















But he got used to it, and pretty quickly I might add. In fact, he couldn't get enough of it, and we stopped only because the doctor's instructions for the 1st time dictated so.























This tiny milestone is my little miracle. At least for now, this means that Joe can feed him with a spoon (since he still won't take the bottle), and he'll eat. Which gives me a few hours of more freedom. And it also means that he might sleep longer in the night (which happened last night), though that too could be temporary. But I'll take it!

Then we had a little fun with a newly acquired wig (really my recently cut hair, bundled in a rubberband):
















Like father, like son. This is how Joe would look with hair:

My First Mother's Day

Last year, around this time, I tried to convince Joe that it was technically my 1st Mother's Day, being pregnant and all. Thought maybe I could squeeze out a present. But he didn't bite.

But this past Sunday, we celebrated my for reals 1st Mother's Day.The morning began with homemade waffles and strawberry jam, a dozen peach roses, and a big box from Williams Sonoma. Upon opening it, I discovered an oval 6.75 quart Le Creuset oval dutch oven, in the newest, most gorgeous color: Linen. My favorite part though was a card, signed by my son. Well, more like scribbled, but whatever.

Then we headed to Morimoto, Napa to celebrate with the 'rents, Boo-Boo, Jordan, and Auntie Jane's family. The restaurant decor was beautiful; I especially loved the teak wood sink in the bathroom. Tristan sat in a highchair all by his little self, too. What a big boy!













Fancy clear chopsticks. So cool.














My Mom had the chirashi bowl and Auntie Jane and I had the seared yellowtail bibimbap.







After returning home, I realized that I had no pictures with my son, and no pictures with my Mom to remember this day. =( So I made Joe take this one.


At the end of the day, Joe conked out at 9pm, ready for bed. "I am soooo tired," he said. "I took care of him alllllllll day!"

Wow. Gold medal for doing what I do everyday.

Joe promptly fell asleep a 10pm, and didn't wake at all, even though Tristan and I woke up three times that night. But despite my husband's clear lack of endurance, I love him and am extremely grateful for making my 1st Mother's Day amazing.

Mother's Day has new significance. Not only because I am a mom myself, but also the way that I see how my Mom raised me. Like they say, it's the hardest and most rewarding job in the world. There really is no such thing as a mother's love. Like I would jump off cliffs for my son, and I know Mom would do the same for me or Boo-Boo. It's this kind of unconditional, deep love that comes from the fathoms of your being. And my Mom always said, "you won't understand until you're a mom". Now I get it. Thank you, Mom, for everything you gave me and gave up for me.

And belated Happy Mother's Day to all the new and seasoned Moms!

Videos

Here are some videos taken on my Droid. Not the best quality, but you get the gist.

The first is called "Swimmies" and you'll see why.

The second is called "Hit Me" and I apologize for the inverted nature of the cinematography. Just tilt your head to your left to view correctly. Or I guess you could tilt your laptop to the right. Whatever floats your boat.

Sittin' Pretty

Another milestone to note. Homeboy is actively trying to pull himself up and sit. He can sometimes successfully sit upright, as demonstrated in this photo shoot.




















And sometimes he just chills and throws up gang signs. It's one or the other.

And yes, that's a "Made In San Francisco" onesie. Yal betta recognize.

Birthday Boo-Boo

Thursday we celebrated Uncle Boo-Boo's 28th birthday. I like to remind him that he's no spring chicken (rooster?). I cooked a fabulous time-consuming meal of Thomas Keller's Beef Bourginion which took me all of two days to prepare, but did come out rather fancy looking. I mean really Thomas, do you really have to cook the red pearl onions separate from the white pearl onions in their own pot of 12 peppercorns, 2 springs of thyme, a pinch of salt, and a bay leaf? But, to not offend him, I did. Then we had a Kalua cake that my mom baked, spiked not only with Kalua, but also vodka (apparently she's a closet alcoholic baker), and a strawberry icebox pie that I made since strawberry ice cream is a continued Boo-Boo favorite.



















Here are some photos of the day, including this one of Tristan and Po-Po.

















And this one of Tristan's tiny adorable hand and Joe's massive appendage.








This one was Tristan coming up for breathe, then biting down on the table. For what reason? Who knows. Maybe he likes beef bourginion crumbs.












And this one of him and Auntie Lauren. I swear he knows how to make love to the camera much too well.