Kokochi

Katherine Coleman

One reason I've not been posting is that Dav's sister Kathy and her handsome boyfriend John were in town, and I've been happy to run around with them and just hang out. I was having so much fun that I took surprisingly few pictures (Dav and Kathy have their own so I was happy to let them document). I was really looking forward to showing Tesla to Kathy. I knew it would mean a lot to her (and me). Sure enough, she mentioned several times, as Dav was changing Tesla's diaper or playing with her, that she never imagined she would get to see Dav as a daddy. I only know Dav as a super sweet loving husband (and now daddy) so it doesn't strike me as odd, but I'm getting a sense of their childhood, and can see what she means. From what I hear, Dav was, well, let's say sorta wild, daring, and eh hem, a bit of a bully to his little sis. They went to Napa, and I joined them in late afternoon (they left in the morning to go ballooning which doesn't allow babies). By the time I arrived, John was feeling like a tired parent having driven two playfully bickering children around, tempted to butt them out the car for misbehaving. I don't know what kind of wine they had, but it got them back to good 'ol sibling days :) It was pretty funny to watch. And I got a feeling of little Dav. But as Kathy got to see, Dav is a great dad! On the last night, we played our favorite game Carcassonne. It's a great game since it's very social, and each time we play, it's different because of the group dynamic. In this game, John and I teamed up to build a massive city that would make any chance of the others to win nil. Dav tried to mess that up, but John picked the perfect card/tile to complete our plan. Kathy had ended up helping us too, despite Dav's protests that we should all be out to beat each other, not help. It became the theme where John, Kathy, and I were all fuzzy feeling helping each other out, while Dav tried in vain to point out that we weren't playing the game right. It was fun for us! John won, by the way. : )

Grandma Marie and Great Grandma Maria

I went to visit Tesla's Great Grandmother Maria (first 3 pics), along with her Grandmother Marie the other day. Two incredible women, and I'm very happy Tes gets to be around them. The last 2 pics are of a dinner I made for Grandma Marie and Anthony...a dinner we'd been promising like ever since I moved here! Finally. Tempura, buckwheat noodles, daikon salad with seaweed, and tofu mixed with lotus root. We had wine, a tiny bit of sake, and bubbly rose wine. We learned more inside stories about the Callaghan family!

Belated b-day pics

Sheesh...am I behind in updating! Here are some quick pics of a sushi roll potluck party I threw for Dav's b-day (er, that was weeks ago...). It was the first time to have a gang of campalicians over since Tesla. I miss having dinner parties at home so it was fun. Luckily, Tesla kept her usual snooze schedule and was sacked out by 8. Dav set up iSight so we could keep an electronic eye on her in the bedroom while we relaxed in the living room. I am not a baker. I love cooking meal dishes, not cakes. But I decided to try when I found the cutest heart-shaped baking pan. It looked OK...but you know what? It just tasted like a giant brownie...and I had sifted flour, beat egg whites, and all sorts of fancy steps. I can do pies/tarts. But a tart for a special birthday just didn't seem right...sigh.

Mornings with Tesla.

Click to see video.

Kari at mile 20!

Looking great.

Early a.m.

Just dropped Kari off at the shuttle stop that will take her to the Nike Marathon start line. I will drive later to Sunset to see her running. Go girl!

We got a roll over!

This is to mark the day when Tesla rolled over on her own. Actually today was the 2nd day, but yesterday when she did it, daddy was lying right next to her as she played in her gymini and had started snoozing. When he looked, there she was rolled over back to tummy : ) So we missed it then. But she's doing it again and again!

Tes at a restaurant

She's such a good baby.

Baby friendly

At the new Westfield downtown and I must say it has won me over for their sweet Family Lounge. Daddy got to come in and there were free binkys and rattles.

Mama's group

Katia is awesome. She is organizing a mamas' group. There are many around, and I've signed up with several email groups, but I prefer intimate. And that's what Katia is organizing...where we can relax, really talk, or just hang out. Yesterday, she came over to our place as the other mothers were busy. Heh, I wouldn't mind just a Katia and me group, but that's unfair since her Lucia is older so I reap the benefits of hindsight and can't offer much. It was great to see Katia with Lucia. Katia is clearly in love with Lucia as I am with Tesla. When I last saw Lucia, I gasped at how big she was. Now, Tesla is about Lucia's width...just a tad shorter (and she's 2.5 months younger!). Good to hear what is in store for us over the next few months. Lucia's eyes were so bright and blue. And she had her doubts when she first arrived, but I don't blame her. I opened the door while she was studying the pink wreath on our door and I totally surprised her. Sorry none of the pics show Lucia's adorable face...I was so focused on me baby...