Like a lot of her little friends, Zoe loves the Muni (streetcar); she often points in excitement and says “choo-choo” when she sees one rolling down the street. And she’s been especially fond of the Muni since seeing Q jump on one a few weeks ago – now she knows it’s something that takes her dad to and from home.

The other evening, while we were playing quietly and waiting for Q to come home for dinner, Zoe looked up at me and said, “Daddy coming?” “In a little while,” I told her. “He’s at work right now.” She thought for a moment and then nodded her head. “Daddy choo-choo,” she said with a knowing smile. I couldn’t help but smile, too.

-M

I’ve mentioned before that Zoe loves company. We saw this again over the weekend, when she was visited by my best friend Angela (in town from Madison for the weekend) and, on Sunday, Dan and Jenny. Zoe was literally bouncing throughout the house as she cried out, “Ahn-gela, Ahn-gela!” nonstop on Sunday morning. (She also spent quite a bit of time getting ready with Ang in the bathroom.) Later, when us girls were out shopping, she was entertained by Dan – and I was told that she was constantly yelling out, “Uncle Dan, come here!” when she wanted him to play.

Dan and Jenny went home last night, and Ang headed out early this morning, so the house must seem pretty quiet to Zoe. I know she’s looking forward to the next visitors/playmates to arrive!

-M

Today was one of the few chilly days we get out here in San Francisco and we decided to light a fire. I think this is the first time we have done this since Zoe began talking. She loved lying around the fire and naming all the colors she saw. We even roasted marshmellows, but she wasn’t up for eating them. I’m sure that will change some day, but for now I was ok with eating them all.

Jon Q

Zoe has hit the age where she repeats everything – something that was made clear the other night. She was asking for something in a very two-year-old way (“I want more, I want more, I want more”), and I was trying to show her a more polite way to make a request. “Zoe,” I said, “can you say, ‘I would like more, please?'” She looked at me and answered, “please.” “That’s good,” I said, “but can you can say it all together?” “Together,” she replied. “No, I mean, can you say it as a whole sentence?” I asked her. “Whole sentence,” she said back to me. I just had to laugh. At least she was trying!

-M

Because Zoe wasn’t feeling well over the weekend, she spent a lot of time lounging around and watching TV. (She doesn’t normally watch tons of television, but we like to bend the rules when she’s not feeling well.) “Go Baby” is still a favorite show of hers, and I grabbed the camera when she started singing along to “Twinkle Twinkle Little Star” during one of the episodes. And I’m glad I caught her post-song “dancing;” even when sick, she can’t stop wiggling around!

-M

Zoe got sick over the weekend: she had a stomach bug on Sat. and a fairly high fever on Sun. (Let’s just say that Sat. night was not a fun one.) When things are normal I tend to forget how disruptive/tough it is to have a sick kid. It leads to less sleep for us, of course – but more importantly, the whole house feels so sad. Seeing your normally bouncy, active child just sort of sit there is kind of depressing – as is hearing her moan in her sleep.

Luckily, Zoe had a better night last night, and she is on the road to recovery today. (“I feel better,” she told me when I scooped her up this morning.) And here’s hoping we don’t have another bout of illness for awhile!

-M

Last weekend, the three of us watched the animated movie Kung Fu Panda. Zoe took an immediate liking to it and talked about “panda” for days afterward. (She even started sleeping with one of her little panda stuffed animals.) Fast forward to the other night, when we were all in the car and Zoe suddenly cried out, “Daddy, look, look, LOOK – panda!!” I turned around to see what she was referring to, and – sure enough – there was a Kung Fu Panda movie poster hanging in a video store window. It was far enough away that I’m not sure how she was able to spot it, but she was really excited… And Q and I are still laughing about it.

-M

Zoe has gotten to the age where she gets really excited about having friends over to play. When Zander and Miles (and others) came over for Thanksgiving, she ran around the house, practically panting with joy – and all we heard was “Zander and Miles” for days afterward. And a few days ago, she had a blast with her friend Jack; as you’ll see below, they did some playing, exploring and (probably the cutest activity) hugging.

-M

So, I bought Zoe a dress in size 4T yesterday… and it fit. Oh, boy.

-M

In an effort to work off our Thanksgiving dinner (and to take advantage of the warm weather), the three of us headed to the zoo on Sat. Zoe did a lot of running around, playing and exploring; here are some of our favorite pics.

-M