by Papa K on November 15, 2015
It was only a matter of time – the tooth had been hanging by a thread (literally) for about two weeks. Every morning Maile would show it to me and we’d wiggle it and I’d ask her if she wanted me to pull it out. Of course, she’d always say no. We had a few consultations with Papa Boston as well – he was keeping an eye on things from afar.
And then on Friday, out it came! Let’s hear about it from the source…
And now we have a new smile…
Maile's new smile
(Click here for the video.)
by Papa K on November 12, 2015
Busy week at work and at home, so no post tonight, but since its Thursday, a #tbt “wore Daddy out” picture from 2011…
I think I wore daddy out...
Have a great weekend!
Maile watches a show before bed and then we read a few books. She often asks Christine or I to watch with her. A little while ago I started get tired of the same old cartoons she’d watch over and over so I started looking for something else we could enjoy watching together. We started with American Idol and So You Think You Can Dance? last year. This fall we added The Amazing Race and then the other day I asked if she wanted to try watching one of the cooking shows that Christine had saved. She absolutely loved it and has been on a cooking show binge ever since.
In parallel, the girls have been complaining about dinners. It can be really frustating (particularly for Christine) – get home from a long day of work, cook something nice for dinner and then get two little pouty faces. No fun. A couple weeks ago we had the idea to involve the girls more in the dinner planning process in an effort to make them feel a part of it (vs. us just dictating what they were eating). It’s actually worked out pretty well so far – each week, each of us gets to pick a meal for a night and then the last night is a wild card.
On Sunday, we decided to combine both! Maile chose to make some recipes that she picked up from a Giada de Laurentis episode where she did some cooking with kids. And then she did all the cooking herself (with me as her sous chef 🙂
We made Baked Macaroni and Cheese Cupcakes and Rasberry Ice Cream Sodas. We had a lot of fun – and boy was everything delicious!
First, Maile carefully chopped all the veggies...
... then she sautéed some ground chicken...
... then Maile filled the cupcake tray with some macaroni, some cheese, some veggies and some bread crumbs.
And then we posed for some chef pictures 🙂
The cooking team - chef and sous chef!
And, of course, after all that cooking, we had to try it out – two thumbs up from the whole family…
(Click here for the video.)
A couple weeks back one of Maile’s friends reached out to see if she was interested in being the running leg of a three girl team competing in the Marin Triathlon (Family Relay division). Apparently, word had gotten out about Maile’s very strong debut at the Aloha Run a few weeks back…
So on Saturday, we headed up to San Rafael for the race. We had two teams – a team of girls and a team of boys – all friends of Maile’s from school – in fact, she’s known all of them since she was basically two years old. Maile’s friend, Tori, was going to a 50 yard swim, then Sophia would complete a 1 mile bike ride and, finally, Maile would run a half mile to the finish line.
The day was a great success – all the kids had a blast. The boys team had a little trouble (broken bike chain and a wrong turn on the run), but everyone overcame the challenges and we were all smiles at the end. I particularly liked see the girls (and boys) work as a team – cheering each other on during each one of their legs. We will definitely be keeping an eye out for future triathlons in the future – and, who knows, if we can get those pesky training wheels off the bike, we might not be too far away from Maile completing all three legs herself!
Here's the crew - Aiden, Ian, Kai, Maile, Tori and Sophia
Maile Girl strikes a pose - ready to rock!
Even with the kids they did the whole setup - Maile got her numbered marked on her - just in case her number got lost amid the action...
I asked them if they wanted to come up with a name and they just said 'Girls!' - so here they are. All business.
Maile and Aiden were the runners - here Maile is talking some last minute strategy while they await the bike leg to complete...
At the finish, Maile was quite pleased to have collected a medal...
Celebrating a great job!
One of my favorites from all way the back in 2010 – timely as well because Christine has been making noise about cutting her hair again…
(Click here for the video.)
On Saturday, before we headed out for some trick-or-treating we headed over to Golden Gate Park for a pumpkin carving party thrown by one of Lauren’s classmates. Apparently, this is a tradition that’s been going on since 1998 or so – pre kids(!) It was an awesome time – check out some of the highlights below…
Family Picture - Halloween 2015 (Maile 6 and Lauren 2 and 3/4ths)
Maile made her very own trick-or-treating bag - she used it for a bit that night, but was concerned it wasn't big enough for all the candy...
Some serious pumpkin carving going on...
Maile was very excited to pose for the caricature artist...
... and loved the result too!
Lauren putting some good thought into painting her pumpkin...
This year we had a couple of princesses on our hands (well, technically Maile was a character from Lalaloopsy). Once again, Grandma Gail outdid herself with a couple amazing costumes that the girls absolutely loved. They got good use out of them too – wearing them to school on Thursday for a Halloween parade and then out and about on Saturday for some serious San Francisco style trick-or-treating on good ol’ Avila Street (fast becoming our traditional spot).
Maile Girl in her Lalaloopsy outfit.
Our Orange Princess, Ms. Lauren
The full crew ready for some trick-or-treating...
And we're off! The parents were playing catch up the rest of the night...
Thank you Grandma Gail! Maile and Lauren are already thinking about what they want to be next year!
You’ll need to wait until Sunday to see this year’s costumes, but thought it’d be fun to take a stroll through Grandma Gail’s creations over the years…
2014 - The Bees
2013 - The Unicorns
2012 - The Flower
2011 - Maile Elmo
2010 - Curious Maile
2009 - Totoro
On Sunday, we went with some of Maile and Lauren’s classmates to the Pumpkin Patch at Nicasio Valley Farms. The girls had a lot of fun running around with their friends – and we brought home some killer pumpkins that we are looking forward to carving this upcoming weekend!
So. Many. Pumpkins.
How about this one?
Heavy.
Maile and her friend Aiden haven't quite figured out the wheel barrow...
Dudes. You are doing it wrong.
Cutie pumpkin for a cutie pie...
Lauren and Elena goofing around...
On Saturday, after dinner, Christine and I noticed Lauren and Maile sitting off by themselves reading and coloring. There was so much craziness going on around them, but they were perfectly content and quiet with each other focused on their respective projects. Christine and I got a good kick out of it – not sure if the picture conveys, but it was quite sweet.
Sisters on the quad...
... hard at work 🙂
Perhaps a glimpse of the future on a TBD college campus…
