All dressed up...

...and somewhere to go!

I'm going to dress them alike as long as they let me. Isn't it the cutest??

Complying after I asked them to actually stand closer together so I could get a good shot.


OOOH...SCARY!!! Might be the first and last time they wore the masks...


Ready to rumble! Declan on his way up each and every driveway "more candy more candy more candy more candy..."

Cuties on vacation

We went to the beach last weekend...good times with two demanding kids! Well, it wasn't so bad. We had a wonderful, warm day on the beach - you'll see the proof below in Declan's close up. I love doing these family trips, I truly do, but man alive if they aren't exhausting...I need a vacation from my vacation!

Birthday and First Movie

Annika's 6th birthday was this past Friday. I've never been a fan of the number 6 (yay 48!) but it suits the little girl. I think she's determined to be a "big girl" and has slowly but surely proven herself capable of more an more. Some of her latest tricks include:

- Going to the bathroom in the middle of the night without assistance. No, she's not peeing the bed...she gets up to go to the bathroom.
- Buying a wallet and storing her cash in it, and asking if she can pay for stuff. She wanted to buy Declan a book this weekend, and she's also offered to help us out with dinner. This is a very helpful development.
- Getting dressed and ready every morning - without an alarm clock. Before I can say "coofffeeeee" Annika is fully dressed, with teeth brushed and hair combed. I need to bottle some of that energy up and sell it to myself. And pay for it with Annika's money.

I'm just so proud of this little girl...Happy Birthday, sweetie!

Separately, little Dex finally got to see his first movie in the movie theater. We;ve been prepping him with non-stop encores of both Kung Fu Panda and Cars at home, with both Chris and I debating about whether he was ready, and if so, which movie would be be more likely to sit through? We opted for Kung Fu Panda, because honestly, I can only take so much of Larry the Cable Guy.

He did very well for the first half of the movie, but started to get a little antsy towards the latter half. I mean, I was crying like a baby (the panda loves his goose daddy!) but Dex was wandering around the front of our seats like a trapped animal. We had to silence him a few times - he loves to talk at that big screen - but overall, it was successful. I won't do it again for a while, though.



This picture is taken with the Cars 2 poster for 2 reasons - 1) Declan is obsessed with Lightning McQueen and 2) there was no Kung Fu Panda 2 poster. So there.

Incidentally, Annika's first movie theater movie was the first Kung Fu Panda...Too bad there will NOT be a Baby #3 for Kung Fu Panda 3.

The kids being cute

Here's a couple of pictures of the kids...they make me think of summer (Hi Summer!) because it was so warm in these pics...and now it's barely 70 at the end of May. Oh global warming, why don't you actually *warm* us???

Annika is almost done with her first year of Kindergarten. She's an ok reader, pretty good at simple math and a very attentive and obedient student. I sorta think she'll be that kid who gets A's and B's but every teacher wants her in their class because she's so good. I'm ok with that. We'll push on the straight A's for high school - you know, so she can get into Harvard (Hi Summer!).

Declan is knee deep in his terrible 2's which is upsetting because Annika never had any. So we don't know what to do. I've told Chris a number of times that I think one of our problems in dealing with him is that we discipline him like we did Annika...and that isn't what works for him. But what does work? Hell if I know.

However, he is wonderful to his sister, is very funny (tells some great knock knock jokes!) and is super handsome. He's so cute...hmm, gotta go so I can go cuddle him. xoxo.

Two whole years

Believe it! The little monster is now two...



His latest tricks:

- Telling knock knock jokes.
- Proclaiming "I did it!" when he keeps at a task and gets it done.
- Running...everywhere.
- Asking to read many books at a sitting.
- Crying to get his way (oh, that's not really a new trick).
- Yelling, "DOOO!!!" when he wants to watch Scooby Doo.
- Telling us "I sorry" when he makes a mistake.
- And apparently, he really likes to and is very good at, blowing out candles.

I love you my little two year old!!! How lucky is a Momma like me to have a baby like you?

Valentine's Day Eve

Look how old this little girl is...and wow, is this a baby or a little boy?



When did this little girl become a big girl? When did this baby boy get all old? Who are these children?

Happy Valentine's Day!

Ok, just one more year off...

So last year I pled busy (or rather, lazy) and said I wasn't going to send out Christmas cards. Well, the day of reckoning has arrived, and it won't happen this year either.

Here's what this year's Christmas card might have looked like:



This year was a big year for us. Declan started to walk and talk. Annika started Kindergarten. Declan fell in love with trucks and Annika fell in love with her friends. She's starting to read and write a bit and Declan is learning that the world doesn't revolve around him. They love each other so, so much and we couldn't be happier watching their relationship grow.

Chris and I continue to work way too hard, so I'm hopeful that 2011 will be a new year to appreciate the joy that we have in our lives and be a little easier on ourselves. With the kids getting bigger and incrementally independent, I'm cautiously optimistic that I'll be able to spend more one-on-one time with my fabulous husband.

Chris and I marvel often at the fortune in our lives and appreciate the people who make it possible. Much love to our family and friends who have read this blog for five (!) years - Merry Christmas!!

Love, Jenn, Chris, Annika & Declan

When the cave girl met the dinosaur

Apparently Neanderthals and dinosaurs did not co-exist. I say, what is history if we can't re-write it?


Here's a picture of the kids at the Negrete annual Halloween bash. Though it cuts off the top of her head, I like the picture because it really captures them at play. And their craziness.


This is right before we went trick-or-treating. Declan lasted about an hour, Annika lasted 2.5.

Oh, and did I mention...THE GIANTS WON THE WORLD SERIES!!!

Pumpkin patch

Pumpkin Patch time! We got dressed in patch-appropriate gear, drove to the patch, ran around trying to get some good pictures in the patch (not very successfully), bought three pumpkins from the patch, got Annika really mad because we told her she couldn't go into the jumpy house at the patch, got back into the car...and then as soon as the car started, it began to rain. Ha! We win, Pumpkin Patch! You LOSE.

Stuff that's happened

We've had some fun the last few weeks.

Well, unless you count each of the 49ers' heartbreaking losses. And by heartbreaking; I mean embarrassing. But we did try and get into the spirit the weekend before last:

Chris actually noted they were winning for the 10 minutes all three of them were wearing the jerseys. Of course, this was during a September heat wave, and those jerseys don't really breathe and they each got too hot. Our commitment matches that of the 49ers.

Then Declan got his first haircut! Sadly I got some pretty crappy pictures because he wouldn't stay still, but I think we were able to capture the essence of the Before & After:

He was decently behaved for the ordeal, but was not like Annika's first cut who didn't move an inch and was completely quiet and obedient. Not that I compare! But he did a lot better than I thought and the end result is my baby who's turning into a little boy before my eyes. Can't lie...that bums me out.

Then yesterday Annika went to her "best friend's" birthday party. Her best friend is a friend from preschool and her mother and I are so taken by how cute they are together. This was her first "drop off" birthday party where she hung out on her own and we weren't there to smooth over the rough edges. The best friend's mom reported Annika was "a little angel" so I'll choose to believe that.

It was a princess themed party, so we dressed for the occasion, complete with a Hello Kitty clutch purse. She behaved like an angel...and looks like one, too!

Acting rashly

Chris was home with Declan on Friday and he developed an unknown rash. Chris was trying to get a picture to send me, and per Chris "he decided it was a photo shoot." Looks like a happy kid with a nasty rash.



Speaking of the rash, here's a better picture...and if you know what it is, tell us!

Boring but good

Not much new going on in this here parts....oh, well, Annika is starting Kindergarten this week. Ok, that's a big deal! She's been acting up lately...maybe related to the whole life-changing thing, but maybe it's actually how 5 year olds act. We've been pretty spoiled. More to come on the Kindergarten front. For now:



We went to Sacramento last weekend to visit our cousins for their birthday party. These kids cannot travel. Declan is good for two hours; tops (Sac is a nearly 3-hour drive) and Annika (literally) asks "Are we there yet?" 448 times. I might need to work on my patience, but I vote that they need to work on their travel tolerance.

But they're so cute:



Annika asked me "Why is Declan's hair so dark?" Um, what do you mean, honey? "I mean, why is it brown while mine is blonde?" Hmmm... Darker brown? You decide:

The boy

I was paging through some pics and came across this one...I know...he's in Christmas pajamas. But it's August, you say. Well, I say Hannah Anderson is expensive and it still fits, so it's Christmas in August!



I post this picture because this is how he is...all the time. Underfoot, getting into trouble. When he's not scaling his toy BBQ to get onto the coffee table, he's trying to eat one of Annika's toys or wants to use the remote control to use as a phone. Chris and I regularly refer to him as a "menace". Why didn't anyone warn me about boys? Oh, many of you did. Woops.

However, when he's been naughty, all you have to do is give him a stern "Declan!" and then command him to give you a kiss. He'll walk over to you with that grin you see in this picture and open his mouth, lean into you, and give you a nice wet one. Maybe boys aren't so bad.

Sit still

Getting the kids to sit still, next to each other, smile and look in the general direction of a photo lens....at the same time...very near impossible. I tried to do just that this morning. I was marginally successful.

Real quick

Annika "graduated" from preschool. Sigh...the milestone industry must rake it in.





Declan is Filipino. And he needs a haircut. And he now walks 98% of the time.

First swim of the summer

Stuff and stuff

As we know from this movie, Declan turned 1 two weeks ago. (By the way, why so little comments on the movie? (Thanks Mandy) I love that song! It took me nearly two hours to put together! Come on, people. If I don't get more comments this time, I'll be forced to link to it in every post until I get enough to satisfy me. Don't test me.)

Declan got his one year check-up and is right on track physically and developmentally...he's skinny (for a child of ours), cruising in at the 50th percentile for weight and 70th for height. I know, not "skinny".

As Declan gets more aware and interactive, I see the relationship between him and his sister grow. She loves to help out with him and he generally is annoyed by that...but no one can make him smile wider. Makes me miss my own brother!



Annika graduates preschool in a month. Yes, I said "graduates." I might think the ceremony is ridiculous, but I'll be the first fool there taking pictures! Don't you worry.

Declan hates milk.

Annika is starting to clean up after herself.

Declan had the croup.

Annika had the croup.

I have the stomach flu.

I love my family.

My son turned one

Love you, baby boy!

Check this out.

Declan sees the ocean for the first time

Monterey, CA

Distinctly them

Annika and Declan have quite the little personalities. I'm sure it's tedious for most to hear about Annika's interest in zombies or Declan's fascination with dropping plastic Easter eggs, but for us, it's what makes them distinctly unique. Here are a few pictures celebrating who they are.

Annika

Annika is a ham. She loves to pose for photos. She likes getting into preposterous positions for each shot. That is annoying because what I really lack is one really good face shot of her. Recently I got a couple. The one on the left is this face she makes when telling a joke or when she's looking for a reaction. The one on the right is one of her many, many poses that she thinks I'm looking for when I take out the camera. Though that usually ends in some half-closed eyes or blurry images, this time I managed to get the ridiculous position...but it's definitely all her.



Declan

Declan is a wanderer, always lusting for the next interesting experience. If he's holding an iPhone which he's spent the better part of an hour trying to wrangle, once he has it, he wants to know how if he can get the gum out of my purse, right now. He loves drawers, cabinets and anything that opens and closes. Doors, window blinds, boxes...you get the idea. The picture on the left is Declan in our hall cabinets - a favorite destination. The picture in the middle is the windows in our great room where he stares out the window and then grabs for the blinds to rip them down. Finally the picture on the right is an image of determination. His absolute favorite spot in the house is our desk shelves which happen to have our printer in his line of sight. He loves that printer, having spent the first two weeks of his crawling skills heading right to it and touching it over and over and over. I don't know the specifics of this picture, because Chris took it, but pretty sure he was in the middle of getting changed and decided to crawl over to his favorite spot and cause some trouble...Declan style.



None of these personality quirks alone are probably all that interesting. However, sprinkled together over their little hearts, they belong to them and them alone. Love you guys!