Daisies for Daddy

Not much more a Daddy could ask for than a beautiful daisy, picked by a beautiful little girl and placed lovingly behind his ear.

Spring Break Road Trip

This is a Dad's Corner Moment; I was on spring break this week and since Meredith is tied up with tax season I decided Sof and I needed to go on a road trip. We went to visit our friends Chris and Andrea in Los Angeles (and deliver a washer and dryer to them, hence the big brown blob in the back of the truck). We had a great time and Sofia even seemed to enjoy the drive.

Upon arrival Sofia settled in with Tucker and Gemma making sure to learn who's bed was who's.

After sorting out the sleep situation, Sofia waited patiently for everyone and then we headed off for dinner.  Yes, that is a strawberry margarita (virgin of course), and yes, she drank the whole thing.

We got to go for a hike in the hills of Tujunga and see the fire line and mud slides from earlier this year.  It is amazing how fast the growth comes back and how close it got to so many homes (we passed behind the house from ET but we did not phone home).

After a nap we headed off to Desconso Gardens.  Sofia did great the whole trip but she was away from Mummy for the first time and was a little on edge, so we had to promise her a trian ride at the gardens to get her into the car...unfortunatly the train doesn't run on Tuesdays so we had to walk on the tracks and pretend to be a train instead.

Back home after the gardens and it was time to earn our keep, off to feed the farm: chickens and rabbits and cats and dogs oh my!

Speaking of rabbits, it was a bunny fest all weekend, we saw some jack rabbits on our hike (couldn't get them on film, they were too fast), we saw this cute little cotton tail at the gardens and the beautiful grey and white Emily was one of our friends brood.

Filling up before the long ride home, Sof already looks tired and she just woke up.  Is that the sign of a good road trip?

Thank you Sofia, you were a fantastic traveller and I had a great time with you.

Easter 2010

We had a lovely, low key Easter day today and even though the weather did not cooperate, we persevered with the special dress that Sofia picked out for herself.

The Easter Bunny delivered although Sofia did not notice the honking huge basket sitting on the end of her bed.  So Mum got her Sunday morning snuggles before Sofia got stuck into her chocolate.

Daddy and Sofia read her Easter book.

This is what an endless supply of chocolate will do to you.

The great egg dye......

.....and the finished result.

The Hunt

This Easter Egg hunting is serious business.

BFF's

I double dare you to find a cuter pair.

The Look

So, I will give her the fact that we were working on very little sleep and on the verge of a meltdown, but if this is the "look" I am getting at 3, heaven help me for the "look" I'm going to get at 13.

Say "Queso"

Sofia has turned three and as such, things have started spewing from her beautiful little mouth that are just cracking me up.  So, I have to start writing them down or I will forget.  I don't expect that this will really be funny to anyone else.  I think you probably would have had to be sitting on the other end of the couch to fully get it, but hope that in ten years time this will remind me of how hysterical this little scenario was in the moment.

So, Sofia's Aunt and Uncle in Alaska, every once in a while, send Sofia a package through the mail.  One such package arrived in November and contained a set of DVD's called ""Kids Love Spanish".  She loves them!  She watches them over and over and over.  I am not sure that she really knows what she is doing because one time when we are watching the animal DVD they say "Tigre".  I am practicing with her and say "Tigre".  Sof says....."NO! TIGER".

Anyway, the funniest by far was the food DVD.  They go through all of the Spanish for all of the different foods.  They repeat the words probably 20 or 30 times, each time by a different person.  Most of them are little kids and so pronounciation can be a little dodgy.  I mean, some of these are tiny little kids.  So, I am sitting on one end of the couch....Sof on the other, and this is how it goes.......

KLS:  Queso
Sofia: Queso
KLS: Queso
Sofia: NO! Queso
KLS: Queso
Sofia: NO! Queso
KLS: Queso
Sofia:  Yeah, yeah that's it.
KLS: Queso
Sofia: NO! Queso

This went on and on and on.  Yes probably 30 times with Sofia correcting the pronounciation of each and every little kid.  I guess Sofia is head of the self proclaimed Cheese Pronounciation Police.

Murder House

Sofia had her first visit to the Murder House this week. She was awesome. Obviously doesn't get her complete and utter non-fear of doctors and dentists from me :-)

She walked in and told the dentist that she had "bugs on her teeth".  I can only assume she got this notion from "Cars".  You know the scene when Lightening McQueen is driving and he smiles and has bugs all through his teeth. 

All news was pretty good. Most importantly, no cavaties.

One small chip in one of her front teeth.  No surprise considering the couple of good faceplants she has done which involved significant amounts of blood gushing from her mouth.  

 Twenty teeth in all. One, or should I say two, fused together.

Parents were advised to start saving for braces.  Apparently the overcrowding in Sofia's mouth now is not a good sign of things to come.

But none of that bothered Sof.  She was happy walking out the door with a new toothbrush and floss, some SpongeBob toothpaste and a two minute timer.

And as she walked out the door she looks at me and says.....

"No more bugs!"

  

A shift.....

Some days, there is a shift.

A very subtle, yet undeniable shift.

And I know it is probably not obvious to anyone else.

 Tonight, there was another one.

Sofia just looks different.

I can't put my finger on it exactly.

You just have to take my word for it. 

All while you try to ignore the devil eyes in my dog.

Dilemma

....which chocolate dipped strawberry to choose?