Zoe, as mentioned many times before, is a bit of a chatterbox – and she has adopted several favorite phrases over the past few months. Aside from “so cute” (as discussed below), here are a few of her “frequently uttered phrases.”

“Me get it!” (said when she wants to do something herself)
“Got it” (said after accomplishing something)
“I see that” (usually said when looking inside someone’s mouth)
“Good job, Mommy/Daddy!” (said in praise of something she sees us do)
“Much better!” (said after we fix something for her)

-M

As mentioned below, we’re converting our guest room into a new bedroom for Zoe – and last night, we put up some new drapes. Zoe, who was has been carefully monitoring the remodeling process, took one look at the curtains and said, “Oh my gosh – so cute. So gorgeous.” Gorgeous came out sounding like “gor-jish,” and Q and I couldn’t help but laugh. Glad she’s on board with our decorating so far!

-M

Hot temperatures are not the norm in San Francisco, so we like to take advantage of the toasty weather when it does strike. Yesterday morning, Q and Zoe enjoyed the warmth by doing some gardening and pulling of flowers in the backyard, and Zoe was excited to bring inside a large bunch of calla lillies. The flowers towered over her, and we just had to snap a pic.

-M

It was sunny and warm yesterday, and I asked Zoe in the afternoon if she wanted to go for a walk. “No,” she said, shaking her head and turning her attention back to Panda. “I’m busy right now.”

She’s two – how busy could she have been?! (But, yes, she did eventually consent to going on a walk.)

-M

I had a rough morning yesterday (I blame work-related stress and pregnancy hormones), and I was a little grumpy as Zoe and I headed out for Elena’s. We were walking down to the garage when Zoe suddenly stopped, smiled and said, “Flowers!” I wasn’t sure what she was referring to, but then she pointed and said, “Your shoes are pretty, Mommy!” Sure enough, I was wearing a new pair of shoes (with a floral theme) – and the fact that Zoe noticed and liked them really brightened my morning!

-M

When Zoe heard that Safta was having a birthday today (she turns the big 3-0 for those asking) she was very excited. We couldn’t help but capture the moment in video…

Happy Birthday!

Jon Q

When Zoe left for Elena’s yesterday, the walls in our computer/guest-room were an orangish yellow; when she arrived home, they were two lovely shades of pink. (We hired a painter to do two of our rooms, and he started the project in the morning.) I couldn’t wait to show Zoe the room, which will soon become hers – and I was happy when she took a look around and said, “I like it.” Her one concern, though, was with the daybed; she pointed to it with a frown and said, “But the bed is brown, not pink.” Once I explained to her that we would soon move her (white and pink) bed into the room, she said, “Oh, okay!” and seemed much happier. Even at her young age, she gets the importance of matching!
-M

We got home last night; as mentioned below, our trip to Washington was very fun – and very busy! Aside from celebrating Passover, Zoe did lots of shopping, eating (chremslach and kosher-for-Passover bagels emerged as fave snacks), and hanging out with family, like Cousin Lexi below. (She was also particularly attached to Uncle Dan, constantly chasing after him and asking him to play.) She also experienced a few firsts on the trip: she visited the National Zoo to see the giant pandas for the first time, and then went to a Build-a-Bear Workshop for the first time, where she created her own panda. (I’m not sure who was more excited about the latter event: Zoe, her Safta, or her dad!)

I know Zoe had a great time, and it’s pretty clear that we wore her out with all the fun and travel… As I type this at 7:15 AM our time, she’s still sleeping – and has been for 13 hours!

-M

As Michelle mentioned below, we made it to DC with little troubles. We have also made it through two nights of Passover Seder. Here’s a quick picture of the festivities from last night. More to come…

Jon Q

So, we made it to Washington and have been busy (with Seder dinners and family time) ever since. I wondered below how Zoe would do on the plane, and she wound up being a real trouper. Other than one broken glass, an occasional outburst or two, and an unfortunate (but not catastropic) drawing-on-pants-with-blue-crayon incident, it was really quite a good flight!

We’ll post some pics soon.

-M

So, we’re off this morning to Washington DC. (Time to celebrate Passover with Pop Pop, Safta and the rest of the family.) This will be the first time Zoe has flown since Christmas-time, and I’m curious how she’ll handle the air travel. On the plus-side, her attention-span is longer than ever before (she’s now able to, for example, sit through a full-length movie) and you can usually talk reason to her. On the negative-side, she’s also more prone to throwing tantrums than she was just a few months ago – so there’s a chance our fellow travelers will hear a loud “No way!” at some point.

Traveling with Zoe was an absolute breeze for the first year-plus of her life, and my personal theory (based on observation and friends’ anecdotes) is that the toughest time to travel with kids is the 1.5-3-year stage. It may be wishful thinking, of course, but perhaps by the time Poppy hits her difficult-to-travel-with stage, Zoe will be a breeze to fly with once again. I’ll have to report back in a year or two…

-M

On our way home from Santa Cruz yesterday, we made a quick pitstop at Lemos Farm in Half Moon Bay. We were last there to celebrate Zoe’s birthday; this time around we treated her to a pony ride. We’re pretty sure Zoe enjoyed herself: she kept telling Q how much fun she was having, and when it was over she bent down to thank her “horsie” for the ride!

-M

In need of a little get-away, the three of us headed to Santa Cruz for the weekend. The beach town has emerged as one of our favorite places to visit – it’s an easy trip and there’s a lot to do there (and in neighboring towns like Capitola, where we spent much of Saturday). The temperature didn’t rise much past 70, but it felt much warmer when sitting in the toasty sand, soaking in the hottub, and running around. Here are a few fave pics from our adventures.

-M

It’s started. After going 26+ months without really using the (dreaded) word, Zoe has begun asking “why.” A lot. When I picked her up from Elena’s last night, she asked me a series of “why” questions – and her use of the word continued on today. A sample conversation:

Z, in the car: “Mommy, I need help.”
Me: “Okay, in a little bit. Mommy can’t help right now because she’s driving.”
Z: “Why?”
Me: “I’m taking us home.”
Z: “Why?”
Me: “Because we’re done shopping.”
Z: “Why?”
Me: “It’s just time to go home.”
Z: “Why?” (and so on…)

I know it’s normal for toddlers to ask lots of questions – but what took me by surprise was how she adopted the word out of the blue. I’m not exactly sure where she picked it up (maybe she got it from one of the other kids at Elena’s, or maybe it’s just instinct for toddlers to start saying it), but I have a feeling we have a lot more “why?s” in our future.

-M

Zoe got a present this morning from Mommy and didn’t want to take it off (even though it will be in the mid-60s today.) Here’s another new phone picture of Zoe on her way to Elena’s this morning…

Jon Q