Who needs clothes

We've all been enjoying the warmer temperatures here in California.  The boys seem to be getting into the spirit of less is more.

Reading Bear a Story

Bear needed to take a nap, so Ben decided to read him a story.

Welcome to Summer

After 27 hours of travel, door to door, we arrived in California at "nana's house".  Also known as Ben's summer camp, the house is set up for every soon-to-be 3 year old's dream vacation.  Ben has got a new bike, a Thomas ride on train, a train set on a table, some tractors, lincoln logs, legos, books... you name it!  Josh is equally set up with 2 exersaucers, one in the family room and one down by the swimming pool.  Josh also likes the swing set up out on the deck.  Both boys were given a few summer clothes for their time in California. 

We're still adapting to the heat and the daylight hours and both boys arrived here with winter colds, but all in all we're doing well.  Our journey over went fairly well, all things considered.  The most stressful part was the line for immigration.  Ben decided he had to go pee half way through the line and then proceeded to scream for the better part of the next 20 minutes.  

Both boys have taken a dip in the swimming pool.  Ben is a bit overzealous with his love of the water, jumping in every two seconds.  Josh wasn't as excited about the water... but he thoroughly enjoyed his nap down by the swimming pool this afternoon (see above photo).

Toy Basket

Ben thinks it's quite fun to empty out the toy basket all over the floor. I know it's a stage and eventually he'll get better at putting everything back into the toy basket. In the mean time it's hard to stay mad at him when he looks this cute.

Class of 2026

There's been a baby boom in Wanaka! This photo was an organized photo shoot for all the babies age 1 and under. Can you find Josh?

A day in the life...

Some days I think life as a stay-at-home mom with two small children is just grand. We bake muffins, go for nice walks, visit with friends, drink coffee, etc... and other days we have our moments and I take lots of deep breaths and try not to lose my cool. Today Ben decided he didn't want to listen to me when I said we were going to the grocery store. I nearly lost my patience as he whined through the entire shopping trip and then refused to get in the carseat in the parking lot.

But, as with life, things change... Both boys are currently asleep, even Ben (who doesn't officially nap, or at least not in his bed!). I've made our dinner for tonight, done the dishes and picked up the living room.

Oh the trials and tribulations of being a mother.

Josh, 5 months

• Weighs 17lbs, 13 oz (75%)
• Likes the exersaucer
• Enjoys eating toys
• Doesn't like the pacifer
• Has been introduced to bananas and kumara, didn't like the rice cereal
• Loves breastmilk
• Enjoys singing the "ah ah ah" song (according to Ben)
• Doesn't like sleeping long stints at night
• Enjoys rolling from his back to his tummy
• Has enjoyed a few good hikes in the backpack
• Loves to watch his big brother play with toys
• Doesn't really like getting into the carseat
• Enjoys walks in the buggy
• Loves sucking on his fingers and thumb

Food, Take 2

We tried rice cereal with Josh a few weeks back in hopes that it would help with our night waking/feeding issues. Unfortunately all it did was give Josh a terrible case of diaper rash and pissed him off. Post move, the dust has settled a bit and we're back to addressing these round the clock feeding demands. So today we tried apples and pears. We'll report back if the boy is truly ready for foods or if I'm just going to have to continue to produce enough milk. He weighed in today at 17lbs 13 oz (8 kilos). Not bad for 5 months old.

oh the joys of a box