Halloween was so fun this year! We started off the festivities over the weekend at the BMC annual Halloween parade. Everyone gathered at the park, then walked over to downtown Burlingame Ave, where we went trick or treating at the stores. It was a very popular event, and I got to meet up with lots of my friends there.
At the BMC pumpkin patch. We all got to pick a mini pumpkin.
Top: Me with ladybug Kyla and Princess Olivia
Bottom: Me with fellow bumblebee Meagan, and with Superman Braden
Trick or treating down Burlingame Ave
A funny story about my bumblebee costume: Earlier in the week Mommy tried to put it on me but I refused to wear it. I kept pulling it off over my head and throwing it on the ground. So Mommy panicked, went online and ordered a backup costume, even paying extra shipping so we would receive it by Halloween. The next day after work, Mommy and Daddy were hanging out in the kitchen. I disappeared into my room and came out, wearing my costume! I had somehow decided to put it on and managed to pull the thing over my head all by myself! Mommy and Daddy just stared in disbelief.
On Halloween we gathered at the Chiu's for pizza, then all went trick or treating in our neighborhood.
Our neighborhood has a lot of young families so the sidewalks were crowded with trick or treaters. Many houses went all out with the decorations and some of them were even scary. Although I didn't understand the concept of trick or treating at first, it only took three houses and watching the bigger kids to figure out what it was all about. I had fun collecting candy at each house and throwing it into my bag. I lasted for about an hour before I wore myself out and fell asleep in the stroller for the rest of the evening.
Halloween is becoming one of our family's favorite holidays. We're already looking forward to next year!
I am 16 months old! October was a busy month with lots of weekend trips and outings. Aside from that, here are just a few quick updates:
I can understand and say the following words: dada, hi, bye-bye, ball, doggy, birdie, sí, yes, no, agua, leche, nose. The list hasn't changed much from last month but it's slowly growing. Currently my favorite word is "no." I've gotten very good at expressing myself when I don't want something, shaking my head and repeating "no" over and over again.
I understand the following commands/gestures: peek-a-boo, touchdown, high five, wave goodbye, kiss, flying kiss, oh no, I don't know, and "quiet time." I learned "quiet time" in day care by watching the big kids - whenever I hear the phrase, I will stop what I'm doing, rest my head in my arms and close my eyes. It works every time. One time I even rested my head on my ball popper toy.
I am thriving in day care. I still attend the same in home day care that I started at a year ago, and I continue to love it. There are only four other kids that attend full time, so I get a lot of attention (especially because I'm the second youngest and the only girl). When I get out of the car in the mornings and see where I am, I get really excited and run from the sidewalk to the front door. I'm usually too busy saying hi to my friends or starting to play that I don't even say goodbye to Mommy and Daddy (but I'm always happy to see them when they pick me up). I love the owner Johanna, and her 8-year old son Anthony treats me like his little sister. I even had a weekend sleepover there once when Mommy and Daddy had to attend a dinner event.
Activities: My favorite activities around the house involving opening and closing cabinets and drawers, organizing and collecting things in containers (Mommy is so proud), making Mommy or Daddy read to me (I always insist on sitting in their laps when they read), and climbing up on anything I can.
One of these days, I'll learn how to put on my own shoes. But as you can see from this video, I'm not quite there yet.
Last week we flew down to LA for Mommy's cousin Jeffrey's wedding. Since the wedding was in Pacific Palisades, we enjoyed four days hanging out in West LA and Santa Monica. We went to lots of malls and, of course, Mommy's favorite West LA joint (California Chicken Cafe). It was fun for Mommy and Daddy to go back to where they spent so many years working.
At the new Santa Monica Place mall. It has completely changed since Mommy and Daddy last visited long time ago!
Hanging out on 3rd Street Promenade. It hasn't changed much over the years.
Mommy and Daddy took me to a toy store on the promenade, where I picked out a stuffed doggy all on my own. Although I have a bunch of stuffed toys at home, I have never shown interest in any of them. For whatever reason, I quickly became attached to this one and refused to let him go. Mommy even tried to take it out of my hands several times to make sure I really wanted it before she bought it (I responded by starting to cry and clutching it even tighter). That was enough to convince her.
My new lovey. Mommy has never seen me hug something for so long.
He looks a lot like the doggy I met on our camping trip a few months ago, so we named him Budda.
Grandma and Grandpa also came to town for the wedding. We got adjoining hotel rooms and I loved running back and forth between the two rooms. As an added benefit, they were able to babysit at night while Mommy and Daddy went out for drinks and late night eats. :)
At Century City mall, we discovered Giggles N'Hugs, a restaurant/playspace tailored just for kids. It was the perfect place for an energetic toddler like me to run around, play, and socialize (Mommy and Daddy enjoyed the food too).
There was also a slide - I recently discovered how fun they are. Here is a video of me going down all by myself (and then attempting to climb back up).
Jeffrey and Linda's wedding was held at the Bel Aire Beach Club in Pacific Palisades. Although the fog never lifted, it was a beautiful wedding and I was on my best behavior.
Practicing for my flower girl duties for Auntie Alzira's wedding next year!
The day after the wedding, we had some time to kill before heading back to the airport, so we decided to walk around The Grove and Farmers Market in LA. I even had my first Hollywood celebrity sighting!
Mario Lopez interviewing Jonah Hill (Superbad, Moneyball) for Extra!
Now that I'm home, I'm still attached to my doggy Budda and I give him hugs and kisses everyday. :)
Mommy and Daddy went to wine country for their anniversary weekend (and I tagged along), where they rented a cute cottage in Healdsburg. On the way up, we drove through Sonoma and stopped by Viansa Winery, where Mommy and Daddy got married the same day four years ago!
Mommy is secretly hoping that she gets to plan my wedding here in thirty or so years.
To celebrate their anniversary, Mommy and Daddy stuck me with a babysitter while they enjoyed a decadent eight course dinner with wine pairing at Cyrus. They were told that after they left for dinner, I stood by the front door for awhile waiting for them to come back. I eventually gave up and (hopefully) behaved for the babysitter the rest of the night.
We spent the rest of the weekend eating and walking through downtown Healdsburg, visiting the Farmers' Market, and visiting a couple of wineries. It's a lot harder to go wine tasting now with me around. Luckily we found a nice winery with a huge lawn out front and plenty of room for me to run around.
I even met a nice family that let me pet their dog. (I LOVE doggies!)
I look so tiny standing in front of that barn!
I couldn't leave wine country without picking some grapes from the backyard of our cottage. They were super sweet too so Mom cut off a bunch so I could enjoy them at home.
It's been awhile since our last monthly update, so we've got some catching up to do. Kaitlyn is now 15 months old! She's an active toddler that loves exploring and is learning new things each day.
She is 19 lbs, 6 oz. and 30 inches: I can't believe she still hasn't hit 20 lbs yet!
Walking: Kaitlyn was taking solid steps by 13 months and quickly picked it up from there. I think the turning point of her walking ability came when we went camping in August. After a whole weekend of trying to walk through the uneven grassy campground, by the time we got home she was walking steadily around the house. By the following weekend she was practically running.
Eating: Kaitlyn has always been a good eater but lately it's been hit or miss. At mealtime she will either eat anything we give her or will take one look at her food and refuse everything. The only foods she never refuses are goldfish crackers, cheese, yogurt, and fruit (she goes crazy for melons, berries, and peaches/nectarines). She also loves those squeeze pouches, especially the applesauce pouches from Trader Joe's. Lately the biggest challenge has been getting her to eat enough protein. She never seems interested in the meat dishes we give her, unless it's jarred baby food, which I would prefer to not give her at this point. I need to work more on disguising the meat with cheese or fruit so that she'll eat it!
Talking: Kaitlyn is still a chatterbox talking in her native "Kaitlynese." The only real words I've heard her say are: bye bye (while waving), dada (Daddy), baba (ball, bubble or balloon), hi, and "dah" (yay). Her daycare teacher insists she also says "si," "gracias," and "leche," but I have yet to hear it.
Sleep. I can't complain anymore about Kaitlyn's sleep. We put her down between 7:30-8pm each night without a fight and she sleeps solidly until 6-6:30am. She still takes two naps a day, with her first nap being around 10am and second nap at around 4pm. At some point she'll need to consolidate naps but right now keeping her awake for any time beyond 5 hours is really pushing it.
Teeth: She currently has four upper teeth and four bottom teeth. It's been awhile, but we think she's starting another round of teething. In the past few days she has been waking up in the middle of the night crying, cranky at home, and drooling up a storm. I hope it doesn't last too long this time.
TV: We *try* to avoid having the TV on all the time, but there are two shows that always catch Kaitlyn's attention: Sesame Street and Mister Roger's Neighborhood. I DVR'ed a few episodes and whenever she hears the voice of Murray at the beginning of Sesame Street or the tinkling music of Mister Roger's Neighborhood, she will drop whatever she's doing and head straight to the TV. She is absolutely mesmerized by Mister Rogers - it must be his soothing voice and gentle demeanor, but unlike other shows or cartoons, Mister Rogers will always hold her attention for at least 20 minutes. We don't want to become dependent on the TV for entertainment, but sometimes it's a good way to help her calm down (and buy us a few minutes to get other things done).
Personality: When she is with people she's comfortable with, Kaitlyn is talkative, playful, and curious. She loves to get our attention and make lots of noise, whether it's yelling at the top of her voice or banging on objects around the house. In contrast, in group settings such as music class or playdates, she tends to sit back and quietly observe, and it takes her some time to warm up to those around her. Kaitlyn is selective in how she reacts to strangers. Sometimes she gets very shy, clinging to me or hiding behind my leg when she meets someone new. Other times, she'll see a stranger at a grocery store or mall, and will do everything she can to catch their attention (point, wave, stick out tongue) - it's very cute. :) Overall Kaitlyn is a happy, fun little toddler and these past few months have been a blast.
In the coming months I'm hoping that Kaitlyn will learn some more words, be less picky about the food we give her, and drop the use of her bottle and pacifiers!
We went on vacation to SoCal last week, and spent a few days in sunny San Diego. I loved hanging out with my cousins, and enjoying the beautiful hot weather! We got to go to the pool, beach, and Legoland!
I need to start going to swim class again. I was pretty nervous in the pool, even though Mom and Dad were holding me.
This was my first visit to a beach. At first I didn't like the feeling of the sand under my feet and kept lifting my feet up every time Mom tried to put me down. But after putting on some flip flops I felt more comfortable. My favorite activity at the beach was playing with all the rocks. I had at least one in my hands the entire time and kept trying to bite them.
The next day we went to Legoland. We wandered through mini cities made out of Legos and checked out the Star Wars exhibit.
San Francisco
Both made out of Legos!
I was actually scared of most of the Lego statues at the park. Whenever Mom brought me close to one I would clench onto her tighter, and I refused to touch them. I guess I'm not used to seeing giant 3D faces yet that don't move or talk.
It was a hot day and one of the best parts of the park was the water fountains. I could have stayed here all day.
Of course I didn't bring a bathing suit and got soaking wet. Good thing Mom packed a change of clothes.
Since I was too little to go on most of the rides, I spent a lot of time at Duplo Village playing with the giant Legos.
We did so many fun things on this trip but the best part was spending quality time with my cousins. I followed them everywhere around the house and wanted to do whatever they did. They took such good care of me!
During the San Diego blackout, Alex shared her crayons with me and I happily colored nonstop.
I was glad to find other people who were as awake as I was at 6:30 in the morning.
