Very Veggie

I haven't had a chance to mention Benjamin's latest obsession: VeggieTales. It came on rather suddenly. Essentially, he was (finally!) getting bored with Baby Einstein and needed something new to get him through his daily breathing treatments so on a whim I decided to try one of the VeggieTales videos we had. The rest, as they say, is history. Now we eat, sleep, and breathe VeggieTales. On an average day we listen to each of our four VeggieTales CD's at least once (well, excepting the one that is in the car, which is now the only acceptable soundtrack for any kid-accompanied venture.)

One of Benjamin's favorite characters is Pa Grape. Several weeks ago he began wearing a hat around the house. A few days later he started pulling it down over his eyes. He told me, "Benj has no eyes. Like Pa Grape."












He has also been known to wear this very "Larry Boy" mask.










Finally, after I put the kids down for their afternoon naps and returned to the living room I found this arrangement (of our new VeggieTales books, courtesy of Mima) on my rocking chair:

too...

Benjamin is into the concept of "too" right now.

This morning we were at the office where Talia was fitted for her orthopedic shoes. The doctor(?) was asking Benjamin all kinds of questions like, "what's your name?" and "how old are you?" For some reason, Benjamin was shy about answering. Finally he responded to the question, "are you the big brother?" "Yes," he answered quietly, but proudly. "Well, you are a big boy!" the doctor said with false enthusiasm. Benjamin looked shyly into his lap, but responded clearly, "you are a big boy too!"

Which reminds me of an airplane story I forgot to tell...

Upon landing in Orange County after many long hours of travel I told the kids, "I am so proud of you. You really did a great job today!" Benjamin smiled sweetly at me and, enthusiastically nodding his head, replied, "Mama, I am so proud of you too!"

Seth's new wife :)

I've had a couple of requests for haircut & glasses pix...so here you are...

Snuggle girl

(She was like this with my dad too, although I didn't get any pictures.) So cute!

Happy Birthday, Mamacita

Monday we got to go to the Long Beach Aquarium to celebrate Mamacita's birthday. We had a great time! As a little bonus we were also able to meet my friend Erin there with her little ones (Ella is around Benjamin's age and Judah is just one month old.) Ella and Benjamin had a great time together, playing, watching the animals, and showing off for each other.

Benjamin and Talia were both fascinated by the aquariums full of brightly colored fish. They loved being able to get up close to the glass and just look into the underwater world. Benjamin could identify the clown fish, angel fish, seahorses, sea lions, and a few other creatures.




Talia and Papo had a lot of special "bonding" time as once she was taken out of the stroller Miss Independent did not want to be put back in! The next day Papo told me his arms were feeling the workout of carrying her around. She may look small, but she can get pretty heavy!

The kids, especially Benjamin, loved the touch pools. Benjamin touched a couple of sharks and also a bunch of very friendly rays. When we talked to Seth that afternoon the first thing he said was, "Daddy, I touch a shark!"

Chef

We have not ventured much into the world of cooking with Benjamin. To be honest, it's just too much work to think through all the logistics of separating out an allergen-free work area for him, not to mention trying to figure out what he could help prepare. My foggy brain can't think that hard at 4:30 on most afternoons.

So Benjamin was in for some fun and tasty moments in both grandma's kitchens as they set aside special "cooking" projects for him.

First he helped Mima make some rice krispie treats. At first it took some coaxing to get him to taste one of the mini marshmallows he was measuring into the bowl, but after that he discovered the true joy of cooking (which we all know is tasting, of course). He also loved measuring and dumping the ingredients, stirring, and helping "pat pat" the finished product into the pan.
He was also inducted into Mamacita's "lemonade club," that is, he got to help her make fresh lemonade from the lemons off of their backyard tree. My camera and I missed the beginning of the procedure, but I caught the best part...the first taste! He finished the first serving in one long gulp and promptly held his cup out, smacking his lips, "MORE!"

Favorite CA moments in pictures, part II

Casa de Rodriquez

Talia experimented quite a bit with the backyard. She has not previously been a big fan of grass, but she finally decided to venture out with the help of a push toy. I think I'll have to try that here at home!

She mostly loved, however, all her little "perches." She figured out how to get up and down from this kiddie picnic table all by herself, big girl.
She couldn't quite make it into the chair by herself, but she sweet talked any and everyone into helping her into her favorite throne.

She did crawl around on the patio, which she can not do on our wooden deck at home (we tried it and she got splinters in the tops of her feet...ouch!) She liked the "rocks," which are glued into the crevices. That sure didn't stop her from dislodging a few.

Cousin Katie was a hit with both kids. It was so sweet to watch her "walking" Talia around the yard. I LOVE this picture of the girls.

Benjamin had a great time in the back yard too. The only difference was, I could never catch him in one place long enough to get a picture. He was busy, busy, busy.

One of his few activities that involved standing still was watching the amazing turbo bubble machine. Of course this toy also sparked quite a bit of wild chasing and dancing.
It really struck me how much Benjamin has grown up since last summer when he played in this yard. He's even wearing some of the same clothes, but he looks so different in them--long and tall. Amazing.