Happy 31st, Rudy!

Today was Rudy's birthday. Although the meaning of a birthday still doesn't register with Kyle, he did understand that it was Papa's day and that everything we did or made was for Papa. He took pride and ownership of our little projects and proudly carried Papa's presents out to him. It was so cute. After our early morning birthday traditions, Ru surfed with a good buddy.

Later on, my parents and sister took us out for dinner at Benihana's. Yum!!! (and THANK YOU!)

Then, some of my cake experiments at home.
Happy Birthday, Ru Ru! We love you.

A pet for Kyle.

Otto

Rudy and Kyle came home a few nights ago with Otto, the fish. This Betta is named after the fish in the story, A Fish Out of Water, by Helen Palmer.

Kyle loves his little fish and calls him, "Ahh-toww." He takes pride in caring for the little fella by feeding it "Otto pancakes" twice a day, saying, "Bye" when we leave and "Good-night!" when we go to bed. We can tell he likes having a little friend in his room with him.

Now, who wants to take bets on whether or not this pet lives? And/or that he stays in his little tank with minimal living decorations?

"Kyle did it!!"

That's the new phrase in our house we've been saying often after Kyle goes potty on the big toilet! And yes, believe it or not, we have a potty-trained little boy!! Hooray for Kyle and hooray for no more diapers!! :)

We would never have thought to try so soon, but after Kyle gave us several signs showing he was ready, including constantly saying, "No diaper!!!" we decided to give it a try during our spring breaks. After a few days, Kyle pretty much had it down. Today, we ventured out of the house to run errands in his little, cotton underwear (the same underwear he had worn all day, including his 2 hr nap) and came home dry, having gone to the bathroom in a big (scary) public restroom!! My heart melted as I watched my little boy conquer his fear.

He's able to tell us when he needs to go and can hold it until we get to a potty. So there's very little guessing, repeated attempts, or coaxing to get the job done. It isn't a big production, for which I'm thankful! ;) While he sleeps we have him in a diaper but he's showing us that maybe even that's not necessary. He wakes up dry and even wakes us up in the middle of the night to go potty. It's been amazing to watch his progress and learning each day as it gets easier and easier ... and he's looking much older, too. We are so proud of our big boy!!!! And can I just say? Big boy underwear is just about the cutest thing I've ever seen! He runs around so proud. I have some great pictures, but I draw the line in posting pictures of my child in his underwear. So you'll just have to imagine the smallest briefs you've ever seen covered in cars, trains or superhero figures and my little boy's tiny waist, tiny bottom, and quick little legs flying all around the house! :)

And for the sake of documenting ... we also have an EATER in the house!!!!!!!!! YESSSSSS!

The Pirate Ship Park

Kyle and Lukas claiming their territory on the ship.

Kyle loved "driving."

Lukas, Jonas, and Kyle all fascinated with a BUG!!! Pure entertainment!

Testing limits seemed to be the theme of the day! :)

And then Kyle found this rope ladder...

Monday Beach Day

Auntie Michelle joined us for our trip to the beach yesterday and Kyle and I were giddy with excitement! We loved having her join us for breakfast burritos and coffee, playing in the sand and jumping in the water. Then, we got to show her our library story hour and Kyle taught Auntie how to shake the shakers.

We have to leave? Say what???
Well, you'll have to catch me first!

Just like Dad

Helping Daddy repair his skateboard. Kyle loves all the tools, wheels, and bearings.

Ru tried to sneak off and get some studying done... not only did Kyle find him but he brought his laptop to join him, too!

Only a nap shortens Kyle's ability to hang.

Kyle says, "I'll have whatever Papa's having."

Or play whatever Papa's playing.

"Camping" in the "backyard."

Kyle continues to enjoy shaving just like dad does, towel and all ... (Kyle is wearing the hand towel, standing on his potty!)

Good-bye, Psoi

We lost a member of our family today ... our 18 year old "kitty", Psoidos. It was so hard to say good-bye. Fortunately, we knew this was coming and had about a week to prepare ourselves. Of course, that doesn't help when you're actually putting her down. We knew she wasn't well, but we were seeing just how many more days we could get with her before she suffered any. We feel really confident we timed it right. Her doctor was 99% positive she had an intestinal tumor that was most likely cancerous and that this was the cause of all her sad symptoms.

Our little girl was so much more than just a cat to us. Her little soul connected with ours and she responded to us much like a dog would. She felt our emotions and loved to show her love to us. She was a cuddle bug, which was one of the reasons I picked her out of the litter. She also was the runt and stayed pretty small her whole life, which is why we could never really call her a "cat." We got her when I was 13 and changing school districts right at my freshman year of high school. It was a miserable year and my kitty was seriously my only true friend. I'd come home crying and she'd cuddle me and lick the tears off my face. This was how we began our relationship and 18 years later, she's as much a part of our family as any other member (as weird as that may sound).

These pictures were taken last week when we first saw the vet. We knew they'd be our last...

We love you, dear Psoi, and we're so glad we got to be with you as you left us. We know you knew you were loved and we thank you for all the love you gave us... there just won't ever be another cat quite like you!

New Life

Marcella June Guppy

A week ago today, had the honor of assisting my friend and her husband bring their little daughter into this world! It was amazing. I had been "on call" for over 3 weeks, as my friend was 3 weeks overdue. It was a bit stressful having to always plan ahead for the next 24 hours in anticipation of the "what if?" (Thanks Ru, Mom and Michelle, for being so flexible!) At 43 wks pregnant, it became apparent that she would need to be induced. When I got the call to come, I was so excited to pack up and help get that girl outta there!

I'm so proud of my friend and her husband for all the planning and preparation (including 10 weeks of classes) they did for a natural childbirth. It takes all of that and some serious resolve to pull through with a pitocin-induced natural labor. She and I both can attest to that as well as the fact that epidurals sound amazing!!! :)

Little Marcella took 26 hours to make her entrance, and by that time we were all a bit delusional. It took my breath away to watch new life being born. I was practically sobbing! I will say, though, that it served as some serious birth control for me... I'm really not in any hurry to repeat that process, and although I truly felt for my friend's pain, it certainly was nice to be the one watching instead of doing. All in all, the wonder of what a woman's body can do, no matter how it is done, is beyond amazing and it was an honor to be witness to such a life-changing, special event in my friends' lives. Thank you, friends!!

Like Momma, Like Papa

One of my favorite things to do is curl up on the couch or bed with a blanket and a good book! Since having Kyle, reading has been mostly reduced to the last 15 minutes of my day while trying to keep my eyes open in bed. Hope is on the horizon though, because Kyle's already showing some promising signs that he just might be my future little reading buddy! Here he is doing a total "Kyle thing" by crawling up on to the couch with a book and sitting up to read. This of course makes me so happy to see! ;)

Then, just like Papa does, Kyle: drills, hammers, nails, vacuums, fixes and makes things, plays in Ru's truck, wants to ride the skateboard, helps carry heavy things, and keeps up with his manly hygiene...
And before anyone panics, there is NO razor blade! See the hole where the blade would be?
We love seeing our little guy watch us with total fascination and try to act "SO big!" It's just too cute.

Valentine's Day :)

My super thoughtful cousins in LA came out Saturday to give Ru and me a Valentine's night out. We took PCH (Pacific Coast Highway) down to Laguna Beach and walked the beautiful paths along the cliffs and then went to dinner at Salt Creek Grille, a place we'd been wanting to check out for a long time now. It didn't disappoint! :) Thank you, cousins!

Today, on Valentine's Day, I shared my little Valentine with Auntie Michelle. Kyle was waiting at the door, on the landing, for his beloved Auntie to round the corner and make her ascent up to our apartment. It's always so sweet to see the love between the two. We had so much fun taking Auntie M to our spot at the beach. We'd already been earlier in the day, but enjoyed going with her to catch the sunset. Kyle was giggling out loud as the two jumped and splashed in the water. Is there any cuter sound than that of a giggling child? Here's our condensed photo journal. And I do mean condensed... I took over 100 pictures and found 50 of them to be "blog worthy." It was torture to cut out some favorites! ;)

"K+Auntie"

"Jump!" Kyle must have said this at least a couple hundred times! He thought it was the most hysterical thing to do!

Thanks, Michelle, for loving my boy. And Happy Valentine's Day to you all!