Surf City USA

Ahhhhhh Southern California. Why would anyone want to live anywhere else? The weather is perfect, the ocean is beautiful, there are flowers everywhere and the people are friendly and courteous (I've had it with the NYers this summer!!). We had a great 4 day escape to Laguna Beach where we attended cousin Anne-Marie's wedding on the beach. Really gorgeous and fun event. and got to see the Serafini's for the first time since our wedding in 2006. Maya got to hang out a whole lot more with cousins Noah, Anna and Nathan who rented the house with us. It was a very fun couple of days albeit a bit short and we wished we could have stayed longer. We got much luckier with flights this time - no delays and an empty seat for Maya to take advantage of. Doesn't get better than that.

Jet Bound

Airplane travel is like the forgotten level of hell that was left out of Dante’s infierno by mistake. What a nightmare it is getting through airport security with a baby (they tested every single liquid in my carry on – jars of baby food, sippy cup, bottle of milk etc…), then hanging out in the terminal because your flight is delayed, then hanging out on the plane on the tarmac because there is too much airplane traffic – and all this before you even go anywhere!! We got home at 10pm on Sunday. Maya was a little delirious and took 3 naps on Monday!

We flew to Chicago this weekend for Brian’s cousin Kristin’s wedding which was a lovely event. They had a sweet touching ceremony on the porch of an old estate in Oak Park outside Chicago and fun casual dinner inside this beautiful home, once a private home, now a historic building.

A really fun part of the trip was staying with Brian’s sister Lauren and her family who also live in Oak Park and Maya got to hang out with her cousins who she hasn’t seen since Thanksgiving. She was fascinated by them, and Noah and Anna always loving kissed and hugged her. Nathan only 5 months her senior had a little competition for his toys but overall they played well together too. We’re getting together again in a little over a week when we all fly to California for wedding #2. Cousin Anne-Marie on the other side of the family is getting married, and we’ve rented a house with the Breits in Laguna Beach. We’re spending the early part of next week in East Hampton before we leave Thursday (again, not looking forward to the airplane trip) – the first vacation time since I came back to work in February. Really looking forward to some chill time on the beach.

Happy Birthday C & C

(Great)Grandma Charlotte Hennessey turned 93 on Tuesday. She seemed to be doing very well, liked the flowers we sent and was getting ready to go our to dinner with Aunt Jan in Berkeley, CA.

My mom, Carmen also celebrated her birthday on Tuesday by going to a Paul McCartney concert at the new Citi Field and had a blast.

And then there was summer...

I almost forgave the weather this weekend when it decided to be sunny and in the 80's for the July 4th long weekend. We jetted out of town late Thursday evening and were caught in the solid line of traffic that was pouring into the Hamptons at about 11pm. The best thing about traveling at this hour is that Maya is solidly asleep. Our little peanut tends to get a little car sick and there are inevitably a few tears shed during any daytime trips. We had a fabulous weekend - went to the beach with Maya in her new bathing suit - which was packed. She also enjoyed some time pool side in the little inflatable kiddie pool we set up in the backyard. We signed up for swim classes at the YMCA if you can really call it that so we plan to spend most weekends out on the East End. The farmers markets were brimming with activity which is always fun, and we grilled and went to the public library and took several stroller walks to town and to the playground swings. Summer it would appear has finally arrived.

Update: Since I started this post a week ago and never actually published it. Maya had a rough week due to teething. Three teeth in one week results in a very cranky baby. Poor thing even had a fever to boot. We seem to have surpassed this short term crises and la petite is now sporting two top teeth and one more bottom tooth. About time actually. She was better towards the middle of the week and had a fabulous weekend in warm sunny long island (thank goodness). We went to swim class with lots of other babies and toddlers which was a total hoot. Maya LOVED the pool. She was thrilled to be splashing around and kicking like a nut. She also got to try out a new red wagon and we walked her around the neighborhood in it - just couldn't resist. And let's not even discuss her bikini, sumo baby belly and all.

June has sprung

NYC hasn't decided what it wants to do with itself. The weather has been just strange. Memorial day weekend in long island we enjoyed 80 degree weather one day and foggy cool haze the next. It was a great weekend and we took full advantage of what the east end had to offer. We took Maya to the beach and she became quickly fascinated by the sand under her feet. We went to the duck pond and did one of their short nature walks, Maya hanging off Dad in her bjorn. We visited the library which is in a charming old building and joined - they have a great children's reading room. We swung by the local theatre which had undergone an extensive renovation and they were hosting an afternoon garden party as part of their reopening, and then crossed the street to see the resident town swans who are parents again this year to 7 little cygnets. We went to have lunch on the strip, the sandy narrow corridor on the way to Montauk (celebrity sighting Liev Schreiber) We took Tuesday off for an extended holiday weekend which was a wonderful break, and the first day I've taken off since returning to work in February. Definitely looking forward to more warm weekends on the east end.

Last weekend we finally got around to getting some professional pictures taken of us. You can view the slideshow here: www.pictage.com/667415 Part botanic garden, part photo studio. Maya held up like a champ and we got some great shots of her. Had a lot of fun.

here we go...

Entering the danger zone.

Shoes, batteries, coins, a screw, paper, dog toys.... just some of the things I have fished out of Maya's mouth in recent days. Yes, we clearly need to do a better job of baby proofing the house, but even then nothing quite makes up for not taking your eyes off of her. Maya doesn't quit. She pulls books off of shelves, splashes in the dog water bowls, plays with the remotes, the phones, gets stuck in places at times and occasionally 'disappears'. I'll put her down in her room and go get something from the kitchen only to return and find her missing as she's crawled her way into the bathroom.

Another significant milestone that just happened - Maya is really trying out her sea legs and pushed her radio flyer walker across the living room. Not far from walking on her own - she's been obsessed with standing for some time and pulls up on everything. She quickly figured out how to take steps as long as we were holding the walker to slow it down - and then voila!! Pulled up on the bar and took several quick steps before I got a chance to get to her! Now she's thrilled and crosses the room like a pro. Not even 9 months. What a terror.