Sleepin' in the Heat

It's good to know that Carina takes after her mother in at least one way...

Beach Baby

This past weekend we took Carina to the beach (we went to Moran Lake Beach in Santa Cruz) for the first time. We've visited the ocean a number of times, but this was the first trip that involved sand and getting wet. It was not the best beach weather (kind of windy and cold), but we had a nice time. Carina was not a huge fan of walking in the sand and although she enjoyed watching the waves, she didn't love her feet in the water (well, actually "didn't love" is being nice - "detested" might be a better word). Here she is at one of the few times she got her feet sandy:

Here she is watching a big wave with Daddy:
Today was my first day back to work after summer and it was an adjustment for everyone. I did have a few tears saying goodbye this morning as I have so much enjoyed our extra time together over the summer. Carina (who is really in to holding and sitting on any kind of towel or washcloth these days) was sweet and wiped my tears for me. We were both happy when 4:30 rolled around and I picked her up from daycare!
Carina still doesn't say many words, but she says things that sound more and more like words every day. Her two newest words are baby and cookie (which if you say to her you better be able to produce one :-). It's fun to wonder what the next word will be! We also had her 18 month appointment last week. Carina is up to 23 pounds and 31 inches. Her other big development is recognizing that she has to go to the bathroom. She'll now grab her diaper when she has to go/is going and sometimes even runs into the bathroom. I don't think we're ready for potty training yet, but it's a good sign that she's starting to figure out what's going on down there.
So, summer is over, but I know that won't slow down our little Carina!

The SLO Life

The past five days, Carina and I have been down visiting family in the San Luis Obispo area. I love visiting down there. This visit was no exception! Carina had a fun time...

...gardening with Grandma Laural.

...playing dress up with Mommy's old baton stuff.

...visiting the Paso Robles Mid State Fair. Carina loved the animals and all of the people. Her favorite part, however, was probably the ice cream we shared later.
...getting a haircut from Aunti Callie (Crystal's good friend that we've adopted as one of our own - she also gave Liam his first trim).
...riding on the tractor with Grandpa John.

...playing with Grandpa Spencer.

..."conducting" a train at the San Luis Obispo Children's Museum.

As for me, I just enjoyed having some time to relax and enjoy my little baby. She is such a sweetie. I also enjoyed the nice weather (98 degrees most days!), blue skies, and going outside at night to look at the stars (which we don't see too many of here in the light pollution of San Jose). I go back to work in just a week and a half so it was nice to have such a great time. Only 10 months until next summer! :-)