Must I share everything?

It doesn't matter if we've just stuffed the kids full, once we sit down with a plate of food...they want some! It's shocking to me that even after they have eaten until they are completely full, if they see us eating something (anything for that matter) they want some. We can be eating something that they wouldn't touch in a million years if we put it on their plates, and if it's on our plates, they say, "Mmmmm! Bite!" They are like little pigeons attacking! And when 3 of them come attacking, you better be willing to share!

Yogurt

The kids have recently decided that they LOVE yogurt! We've started buying the super big containers because the small individual sizes weren't going too far. I think their favorite part is to actually scoop the yogurt out of the bowl all by themselves. They've grown very fond of eating with utensils ("Poon" & "Ork"). I haven't quite given them free reign with the bowls yet, but I will hold the bowl and let them scoop it out by themselves. Yes, I am a control freak, but trust me...they get quite messy even when I hold the bowl. I can't even imagine letting them hold the bowl...I guess that'll be next! I'll have to work up to that!

Happy Father's Day

I happened to walk in the room the other day & snap a few good pictures of story time with Daddy. These pictures weren't actually taken on Father's Day, but I couldn't pass them up since they show what a great dad the kids have. The kids are truly lucky to have such a loving, caring, generous and amazing dad! Their faces literally light up when he walks in the door after coming home from work. He truly does think of us first and we are blessed to have him in our lives! I think we'll keep him! :)

Story Time

Every night before putting the kids to bed, we read stories together. This is one of their (and our) favorites times of the day. I actually think these particular pictures were taken on a Saturday morning, however. Usually, Eric & I both sit on the floor in the kids bedroom and the kids sit on our laps (usually fighting over whose lap they are going to sit on). They usually rotate between the two of us, each one sitting on each of our laps several times. It's quite amusing to watch! :)

Flowers

The kids have recently learned how to "smell" things. One of their favorite things to smell are flowers. Every time we go for a walk, we don't get very far because we have to stop and smell every single flower. I guess that's where the saying "Stop and smell the Roses" comes from. They put the flower up to their nose and say "Mmmm".

Fine Dining at Casa Orinda

We found ourselves in Orinda this weekend & after a trip to the park we wanted to grab dinner. We have been scoping out the neighborhood for some time looking for restaurants. We drove by Casa Orinda awhile back and both said it looked like a place that would have three high chairs in stock. I dropped Rebecca off to inquire within and parked the car. After walking the kids across the street like a bunch of ducklings, we went inside. We thought with a name like Casa Orinda, it was a mexican restaurant. It turns out that it is one of Orinda's nicest Italian American restaurants with a long high priced wine list, a waiter in a tux, a matre d and full service in every regard. We sat down with the kids and then realized where we were. It was like walking into a biker bar and ordering a Cosmo before you realize it is completely full of people that order beer and shots, not fruity drinks! After a few deep breaths, we decided to abort if the kids created even a hint of disturbance. We joked that we hadn't even moved into town yet and we were already bringing down the standards:-)

As it turns out, our kids can do fine dining too! Alana was flirting with the waitstaff smiling at every sign of eye contact. Alexa and Josiah were well mannered as well with an occasional dadum (our kids language for "thank you"). It was about 10 months ago that we ate out as a table of five for the first time. That was an early lunch on the outside patio at the Elephant Bar. There have been several moments in our journey where we have broken through barriers, some perceived and some very real. A full day alone with the kids, vacationing as a family and eating out to name a few. To take our kids to dinner at a really nice restaurant on accident and then be amazed at their behavior is just another fantastic step. The next step: Passports!