What Weekends are Made For

This weekend was a rare and special treat.  We had no plans going into Friday afternoon and were able to spend the weekend just the 3 of us.  We spent Saturday running errands and hanging around the house working on the yard and on Sunday, when I asked B if there was anything fun he wanted to do, he said he wanted to go explore Tiburon.  Tiburon sits on the North side of the Bay right behind Angel Island and across from San Francisco and is a slow artsy town with lots of character.  I had only been there a handful of times but had never made a day of it before so we loaded Luke in the truck and drove the 45 minutes to Tiburon's cute downtown.  It was a beautiful day and we loved exploring the park near the water, watching all the boats sailing behind Angel Island and all the people boarding the Ferry.  We laid down a blanket and rolled on the grass, soaked in the sun, picked flowers, watched the waves crash on the rocks and practiced our walking.  We had an early dinner at Guaymas, a lovely Mexican restaurant right on the water and Luke chowed down on his cheese quesadilla while we devoured some fresh red snapper fish tacos and margaritas.  We all left happy campers and our little man crashed hard on the way home.  It was a perfect day and a good reminder that sometimes having weekends to do nothing end up being the best of all.

Luke's 1st Birthday Party

Luke's birthday party was almost a month ago... sheeeet time flies by fast.

We had a small gathering of family and our friends with kids around the same age as Luke, and had a casual BBQ with lots of fire trucks, hot dogs and topped with a delicious strawberry shortcake.  I bought cute fireman hats for the kids which Luke wore for just about 3 seconds before crumpling it in his hands, and I made homemade banners, fun favors,  and 1st birthday decorations all of which I forgot to take pictures of...

Our friend Jersey came all the way out from Arizona to help Luke celebrate turning 1 and he was such a huge help as we prepared for the party!

Luke playing with his buddies, Owen and Ava.  

Yummy Strawberry Shortcake.

We sang 'Happy Birthday' while B and I wore our hats... Luke wasn't feeling it.

And when it came time to try his very first cake, he looked at it wearily...

...dumped it on his lap trying to feed it to the dogs and then went for the single Cheerio on his tray.  I was having doubts if this really was my child.  What kid doesn't like cake?!

Towards the end of the party we tried to get all the kids together for a group picture.  These were the best two shots of the group. Luke had been teething and decided to take a nice chomp on his friend Ava's arm hence the crying baby girl.  He also went in for a chomp on his buddy Owen's bum, but thankfully got his swim trunks instead.  Chaos ensued and the party ended shortly thereafter.  It was nap time - for all of us.   

 We survived our first year and it was great to be surrounded by so many wonderful people to help us celebrate.

Outside Oasis

We've been working on the yard, preparing for summer and living in our outdoor oasis.  We've planted our veggie and herb gardens, potted pretty new flowers and succulents, spruced up the seating with fun pillows, and even made Luke his own play area.  Here's a look at our progress so far.

Our outdoor living room. 

B refurbished our old bench swing with natural redwood. Luke and I love sitting here together and swinging.  It's my favorite place in our whole house. 

Raspberry and Blueberry bushes. 

All ready for some sun lounging. 

 Bringing bursts of color to the yard with potted succulents. 

A special way of remembering our beloved rottweiler Momo. 

Luke's new outdoor play area. 

Sleep Deprivation

I was warned this time would come.  Luke was sleeping through the night, going to bed easily around 7:30 pm and sleeping soundly until 6:00am.  It was blissful.  I was getting my much needed 6-8 hours of sleep a night, and after we would put Luke to bed I was able to wrap up work, or get mini projects done around the house or just lounge with B... but then one day it happened.  Luke has been fighting his bedtime, often times having bouts of tearful sobbing until 8:30pm or so and then waking up around 5am and talking to himself which is adorable and all, until you reach for the monitor to turn it off and realize it is off, and he is practically shouting from his crib.  They say all kids go through different phases of sleeping patterns and it's normal, but I guess part of me was in denial or just mercilessly hoping it wouldn't happen to us.  I am hopeful it's just a short phase much like his episodes with teething, but in the meantime, the chores are piling up and I have a backlog of DVR'd episodes of Smash, Downtown Abbey and GCB that I am dying to catch up on! Work with me Luke!

This book. 'Go the Fu$k to Sleep' by Adam Mansbach and illustrated by Ricardo Cortes, is pretty much the most accurate and hilarious portrayal of our battles with bedtime and I strongly recommend it for any new parents or moms in need of a pick me up after a few nights of sleep deprivation.  

My favorite quote from the book:

"The eagles who soar through the sky are at rest

And the creatures who crawl, run and creep.

I know you're not thirsty. That's bullshit. Stop lying. 

Lie the fu#$ down, my darling, and sleep."

Here's to hoping it's a short lived phase. 

Goodnight.