~monaloca~

I haven’t been updating the blog much lately because we’ve been busy – even moreso than usual. Besides being in escrow for a new house (story and photos to come at a later date), we’ve had two weddings in two weekends. The most recent was Brian and Jen’s, and since it was on the coast in Half Moon Bay we decided to use the occasion for a small getaway with the girls.

Melina was thrilled at the idea of spending an evening with princesses and immediately latched onto our friend Cassandra, the “purple princess” (yes, dressed in lovely, shiny purple). She also liked the “white princess” (bride Jen), her first Shirley Temple, a plate full of french fries and fried chicken (the food was Peruvian), the fire pit outside, and most of all, the series of cakes shaped like gifts wrapped in white with blue bows.

Nalani enjoyed the fire pit and new faces for about 40 minutes then took a really long snooze strapped to me in the Baby Bjorn. She also liked staring out at the ocean, as did Melina. Before the wedding party we walked along the coast looking for mermaids. I was half joking about it, and didn’t realize until our way back to the hotel that Melina really thought we’d see one. She was pretty bummed that we hadn’t, and at age three didn’t seem to care when I told her they’re even more elusive than whales.

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Last week we headed to Capitola for our annual Weiss family beach vacation, a tradition we started when Melina was Nalani’s age. Highlights included daily sand play (Kai), a mosaic mermaid on our walk to the beach (Melina), Grandpa/Grandma/Auntie Stacie holding time (Nalani), daily ice cream, a trip to the candy store, and of course plenty of cousin play with Lucas and Noah.

We also celebrated baby Nalani with a “sprinkle” hosted by the Hindmarshes and a reunion of our two families. It was great fun to see Jess and her family for the first time in two years (yikes!). Then on Tuesday evening we headed to the boardwalk for 1907 night: all rides, hot dogs, and cotton candy just $1 a piece.

Melina had been looking forward to her first taste of cotton candy all afternoon, but was heartbroken when the pink fluff melted to near nothing in her hands before getting to her mouth, and was absolutely traumatized when I plopped a fresh piece right in and she discovered it didn’t taste anything like what she’d hoped. At least that’s what her cries told me she felt.

Lowlights included the two older kids and me fighting a cold the entire time, and Joey’s insane bout of sciatica. It was so bad one morning that Nalani and I had to take him to the ER in Santa Cruz while Kai and Melina held down the fort, so to speak, with their cousins.

Joey felt ridiculous walking through the door with a cup of coffee in his hand, and was more than disappointed when the only treatment given was a terse “you need to stretch and excercise through the pain” from the doc. “Can’t you give me a shot?” Nope. Luckily the doc was right and stretching is helping, just not as quickly as Joey would like.

Needless to say, traveling with three young kids was not exactly a vacation in the relaxing sense of the word. But the kids had a blast, I loved hanging out with my “whole family” as Melina would say, and we all got a kick out of a change of scenery for five days. I’m sure our tradition will become more relaxing as the kids get older… right?

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Last month we had another family photo shoot, this one to highlight our newest family member. By the end Kai made it very clear that he wouldn’t be interested in doing another shoot anytime in the near future, but he and Melina were both good enough sports to get some great shots.

For her part, Nalani went through a fairly normal infant cycle during the two hours Myron was with us. She started off a little fussy, hot, and hungry, then after I nursed her she fell asleep. By the end she was wide awake and all smiles. You can see the progression in the photos.

Of course we’re now three weeks out from the photo shoot and Nalani has woken up more completely to the world. She has full neck control and long spurts of awake time. Her favorite activity is to look at people’s faces, and we like to think she prefers mama and dada’s.

Kai has discovered the joy of reading with the “Captain Underpants” series and the Berkeley public library’s summer reading challenge. Whatever it takes to get him reading, I’ll take it! Melina is getting ready to move to the transition room at preschool, where potty-trained 3-year-olds get ready for a wee bit more learning structure.

She’s also starting to get a stronger grasp of her family structure, taking it at face value that sometimes Kai’s with us and sometimes he’s with Jen. The other day she got super excited when she found out “all our family” was going to be together after school. Then she said “But Jen won’t have all of her family.” True… but we’re still a complete family in our own way even when Kai’s not with us. Strange concept to take in for an adult let alone a three-year-old, but it’s important to feel complete no matter who’s physically in what house on any given night.

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Melina got to play hooky from preschool again today, this time to visit Children’s Fairyland with Grandma, Grandpa, Auntie Stacie, and cousins Lucas and Noah. “No daddies except for Grandpa” she reminded me on the way out the door. Everyone had a blast except for possibly Nalani, who would have been more content lying on a blanket and staring at people’s faces all morning. Sorry, little girl!

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We celebrated Melina’s third birthday with a Pink Party in the Park. The night before the big event I asked which of her pink dresses she was going to wear, and she paused briefly before saying, “I think I’ll wear orange.” In the end she chose dark pink – as opposed to what she calls “real pink” or light pink. Her friends and their parents also didn’t disappoint, wearing everything from salmon pink to deep maroon and red.

We ended up with a large crowd and spectacular weather. Melina was a little confused when friends from different parts of her life started to show up. She’s not used to having school friends and playgroup friends and neighborhood friends – not to mention her cousins – all in one spot.

Big hits of the day included the train in the playground, pink cream cheese for bagels and pink and red fruit, a yummy banana cake in the shape of a flower, and of course a pink flower pinata! It took 15 kids and at least five adults taking multiple turns over 20 minutes (and some slits I made in the cardboard the night before), but the pinata finally cracked while still hanging from the tree. Kai was proud to deliver the final blow.

Cousins and grandparents joined us back at the house after the big event, and by the time everyone left Mina was 100% wired and 110% tired. We were able to get her to bed by 7pm, which is unheard of these days. But not before one final attempt on her part to have another cupcake, in the Melina version of uber-polite: “Can may I have a cupcake please?”

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Melina’s first words the day after her birthday were “Is it still my party?” While her pink party in the park isn’t happening til next Sunday, we had a fun-filled, extra long weekend leading up to her day – itself full of special treats. It’s no wonder she thought the fun would continue well into the week.

We started her big day with a walk to our neighborhood cafe with Kendall and her mom, where both girls got pink donuts. Melina barely touched hers but loved the idea of it. We then had a play date at the park with Connor, a nap (which she took with surprising ease), and the thing she’d been looking forward to most: a princess pedicure with Lily.

Melina had been talking about pink toenails for a week, but when we arrived chose orange instead. Lily, whose favorite color is orange, chose sparkle pink. 20 minutes after we left Melina looked at her toes and said “I want sparkles!” Next time, babe. We topped off the day with dinner and ice cream at T-Rex with Lily’s family.

Earlier this weekend we drove down to SJ to visit with my parents and play at Happy Hollow. Melina had a blast on all the kiddie rides and was really bummed she couldn’t ride the roller coaster. (She’s too short.) The day before we took an impromptu visit to Livermore to picnic and visit our favorite winery with friends. Melina and Kanoa enjoyed the bocce ball court, and we adults enjoyed the ease of a family-friendly winery, especially one with wine as yummy as BoaVentura’s!

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We’ve all been enjoying time with our newest family member, now almost two weeks old. I know it’s cliche, but it honestly feels like she’s been with us for so much longer – and in a sense, she has. Melina’s been a champ big sis. (Though she is super sensitive and testing limits more than ever… but it could be worse.) She helps out with real diaper changes by handing over diapers and wipes, and loves to diaper her own baby doll as I feed Nalani. The only downside is that she uses the baby’s real diapers and refuses to reuse them “because they’re poopy, Mommy!”

We still don’t have a fantastic nickname for Nalani, but Daddy’s taken to calling her “Big N.” Melina’s stopped saying “Baby Pink” but can’t quite pronounce her real name. (She drops the “n” and says “Alani” which is equally beautiful!) She might sense she’s a little off, because she usually just calls her “Baby Sister” instead. As in, “Daddy, Mommy, Baby Sister I’m ready to read stories come here!”

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Easter’s been in the air at our house since I pulled out the baskets and plastic eggs a month ago, well before St Paddy’s Day hit. The peek-a-boo spring weather of late March helped with our spring spirit, too, but turned to cold rain by the time Easter Day actually arrived.

No matter: We had fun coloring Easter eggs with Lily and her mommy last weekend while the two dads poured concrete around the new sump pump in our driveway. Then for the big weekend, Grandma and Grandpa Weiss, and cousins Lucas and Noah joined us for a huge egg hunt at Willard Park. Luckily the rain stayed away til later, and all the kids got tons of candy loot except for Lucas, who was so upset he couldn’t get ALL the yellow eggs that he refused to take even one.

Melina was a little hesitant at first, too, but because of the human-sized bunny leading the eggstravaganza. “I don’t like him! He’s scary” she said over and over…. At least until the bunny shouted “Ready, set, go!” into a loudspeaker for the two-and-under crowd, and I quickly thought to say “Hey Melina, there’s CANDY in those eggs, why don’t you go put some in your basket?” Suddenly she was out of my arms and running across the field with the rest of her friends.

Kai and Melina also got some fun toys from the bunny: tutus (which they’d been asking for), funky sunglasses, and bubbles were the greatest hits. Well, and the candy. I think they would have been almost as pleased with one huge lollipop each, and nothing more. Though Melina continues to carry her basket and loot all over the house, and counts her candy whenever the mood strikes. So far she hasn’t eaten anything that’s wrapped, but I caught her sneaking an M&M yesterday. Too tempting!

This morning Meli woke up saying “Kai told me I could have all his candy.” When did he tell you this? “This morning.” But he’s at his mom’s house. Maybe you dreamed it. “NO, he TOLD me I could have it. Then he was sad.” I bet he was.

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We’re in the one month countdown to official baby time, and possibly less if she arrives early. Ready? I’m ready for maternity leave, but still have almost three weeks of work left. Prepared? More or less. We have the car seat back from friends, and the cover’s washed, it’s just not in the car yet.

We set up the crib, but not yet the Pack ‘n Play in our room where she’ll be sleeping for the first many months. We have gear, we have clothes, and we even have one small pack of newborn diapers. I’m expecting a nine-pound baby, which would mean moving onto the next size pretty soon anyway.

I’m not kidding about the nine-pound baby, either. Melina was over eight, and according to my doc (and anecdotal evidence) second children are usually born larger. She also said there’s some evidence to show that birth weight follows trends of the father’s side.

Joey was over nine pounds, his brother almost ten, and his nephew over ten at birth. I’m also close to five pounds ahead of where I was with Melina in the final month. So part of it is wishful thinking: The more weight that’s baby, the less I’ll have to lose post-partum.

Today, a fellow parent at Melina’s preschool relayed this conversation between the two of them. Parent: Is the baby here yet? Mina: “Yes.” How exciting. Is it a boy or a girl? “Girl.” What’s her name? “Pink.” As the parent pointed out, to Melina being inside my belly probably means the baby is in fact “here,” which only makes me wonder how she’ll react when the baby really is “here” for the rest of us.

What’s funny about the name is that she now knows – and remembers – baby’s real name. Well, she drops the “N” at the beginning but has the rest down. In fact she gave it away to Kai when we hesitated telling him last week (only because Kai has a very hard time keeping a secret). And when I asked her to tell Grandma baby’s “real” name she did. But when anyone else asks her, she says “Pink.” Does the girl really get how to keep a secret?

To celebrate the soon-arrival of our littlest family member, we had a friend of a friend take some belly (and family) photos last week. With a two-year-old in the mix, Myron pretty much just followed us around the house and yard for an hour, though did try to pose a few shots here and there. We couldn’t be happier with the results, and can’t wait for Baby N to make her screaming, squirmy debut.

She’s kicking up a storm inside my belly and Joey keeps saying “Stay inside a little longer!” But I predict she’ll follow the path of her big sis and arrive a day or two late. We’ll know in a month!

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Happy new year from the Rapozas! Our friend Roy took some holiday photos of our family at the Berkeley Rose Garden, just before sunset, last November. If you look closely at Melina’s hands, she’s holding two small lollipops used to reward the kids for cooperating during the shoot.

Melina still wasn’t too keen on smiling for the camera, but at least she did better than with her school pictures. She was really excited about those until she saw the photographer and the whole setup. She even watched a bunch of her classmates laughing as the camera snapped, but refused to to participate until a teacher sat with her. We ended up with a single pose: A big frown. I had to purchase one small sheet for comic value alone!

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