miss money bags

Oh yes, I almost forgot to post Miss Money Bags with her Chinese New Year loot.  Cha-ching!  Happy Year of the Dragon!

stinson beach and cataract trail

Today, we had a lovely day in nature.  Now, mommy and daddy are not the outdoorsy type, so Auntie Rachel had to convince us to take the 4 mile hike on Cataract trail in Marin.  It was such a beautiful day, we stopped off at Stinson Beach for a quick stroll (actually, Rach was car sick so we made a pit stop), but the weather was so nice that we didn't even need jackets.  Now that's crazy for a January day on a California beach.  After that, we headed off into the forest to catch the beautiful waterfalls.  

Maddy was such a trooper.  She pretty much walked the entire 4 miles on her own without complaint.  It wasn't an easy hike; there were many MANY steps, some very steep and she managed to climb every single one on her little legs.  We're so proud of her.  We finally made it to the picnic area after two hours of hiking and we had a nice lunch of sandwiches and snacks before heading back. 

It was a dog friendly trail, so Baxter and Booda came along.  They had a grand ol' time wading in the pools and meeting the other dogs along the trail.  

maddy at school

Maddy's teacher, Ms. Monica, emailed me these pictures of Maddy.  She said that she normally doesn't take pictures of the children while they are working, but Maddy insisted that her picture be taken. 

the princess and the prince

We attended Maddy's parent-teacher conference at Luna's today and they told us that she was doing great.  They informed us that she was easily bored and needed to be constantly challenged in her tasks.  They said that she was very rhythmic; that she loved to dance and sing.  

Oh, and they also said that in the playground, Maddy declares herself the princess and that all of the boys, the princes, are her followers.  And all of the princes play along.  Oh no.  

academy of sciences

It was a beautiful sunny winter day, so we decided to go to San Francisco.  We headed to Golden Gate Park; first the Academy of Sciences, then the playground.  The Academy was unusually not crowded and we caught the last weekend that the reindeer were visiting.  There was even snow inside twice each hour and Maddy had fun trying to catch snowflakes with her tongue.  

silverfish

Although Maddy loves going to swimming lessons, she doesn't behave particularly well when she's there.  From the parents' viewing area above the pool, I can see that she is not following instructions.  She splashes the teacher with water and tosses the educational toys sitting on the side of the pool into the pool.  She is making progress, however, she's been stuck in the silverfish category for a while now.  She advanced pretty quickly to get here, but I don't think she's quite mature enough to move on from this point until she gets her act together.

pancakes and the park

When Maddy woke up this morning, she had two requests: pancakes and the park.  Of course, in order to properly make pancakes, a princess dress must be donned.  

hi-ya!

Maddy was lazy on Saturday morning and she wasn't in the mood to go to kung fu lessons, but I knew she'd have fun once she was there. 

maddy and baxter

Here are a few random pictures taken this week of the two kids.  First, Baxter on his walk.  His front right leg has been shaved for the anesthesia in order to have his teeth cleaned.  They're gleaming white now.  The second picture is of Maddy and Baxter at about 8 in the morning right before leaving for school/work.  She's watching him have his breakfast.  The last picture is of Maddy and daddy playing "restaurant."  Notice how Maddy laid out a table cloth for her two customers, daddy and Baxter.