Preschool Open House

Anna's preschool hosted an open house on Friday. It was so much fun to see Anna at school interacting with her teachers and buddies. Anna made a special friend at school named Maddie that you'll see in the video we attached. Luckily Jason was able to go despite being on call.

Anna with her teachers: Miss Judy, Miss Shari, Miss Kathlean and Miss Sarah

Fun on the teeter totter!

Sorry the video is so dark. It was dusk when we taped it.

These Boots Are Made for Walkin'

It's official, we are going to Minnesota in February! We'll be there 2/3 - 2/9. Anna tried on her snow boots last night and got a kick out of them. They might be too small for her by then but she sure had fun playing around in them.

More cute photos just for fun =)

Benji ready for fall

Pretty little school girl

Little Projects

Sorry we neglected our little family blog for a few days. Anna and I have colds so we have been a little under the weather (me more so than Anna).

Anyhow, we've been staying busy with some projects:

I have almost finished making about 60 placemats for Anna's preschool. Anna thinks it's pretty fun to watch me cut out the fabric and use the sewing machine =). Tonight I made soccer bows for all of the little girls on Olivia's soccer team. I think I'll be taking a break from my crafts for a few days!

Ben's projects consist of practicing his sleeping skills and looking cute which we all thoroughly enjoy ;) .


Anna has been very consistent in her projects lately: making a mess! When I checked on her from her nap today I found her on the floor next to her bed and she had colored everything in sight orange! Thank goodness we have only washable markers in the house.

Besides being tremendously busy with work Jason has been investigating the housing market a lot again. He seems to have fun looking at different real estate web sites on the internet. Hopefully it'll still be a good time to buy when we are finally ready to make that move!

It's OK to fantasize, right?

Dr. Daddy

Anna came home from school Wednesday with a few splinters in her hand. I wasn't able to get them out with my tweezers so I asked Jason to give me a hand. Of course I forgot who I was talking to and he came to Anna's rescue in full surgeon mode =). FYI, Anna is sitting on her potty in case you don't want to see this pic. She is modest though and has covered herself up with her truck =). This is the only place in the house where she will actually sit still for five minutes. Too bad she doesn't use it as a real potty yet!

Future surgeon? She kind of looks like Grandpa Lee in some of his old photos =).

Walking with Daddy

Jason came home from work surprisingly early on Tuesday and we all went on a nice walk and played at the playground. He was back on-call yesterday but was able to come home for a couple of hours in the afternoon. He should be home around 1 PM today .... yeah!!!

After our walk we went home and dressed Anna up as a Dora princess. Her Dora beach towel made a great toga =).

Use Your Manners Please

Lucky for us the kids both love to eat! Ben is now a fan of bread and spent about an hour last night chewing on a big chunk of it. After eating Anna decided to kick back and relax. We promise we are teaching her this is not proper (after taking a quick snapshot =) ).

What Do You Think?

Jason and I are deciding what Benji should be for Halloween. Anna is going to be Minnie Mouse. Jason doesn't think it would be cute if Ben is Mickey Mouse because that may be a little bit cheesy. We found two other costumes we like. What do you think? Jason is partial to yoda =).

Tea for Two

While I am at work I wonder throughout the day what the kids are doing. Lucky for me Jason took some photos of Anna with her special friend Mary yesterday during their little tea party. Ben was napping so he missed out on the party =(.

What more could a girl ask for ... goldfish on the Dora china and milk in a little tea cup =).

I couldn't leave Ben out! Here is our little Benji bear ready to take Anna to school and go to Target with mommy this morning.

Ben's 6 Month Check-Up!

Today Benji had his 6 month "Well Baby" check-up. He weighed in at 18 pounds 4 ounces and is 26 inches long. He's in the 50th percentile for both height and weight. I found out from Ben's pediatrician that the American Academy of Pediatrics changed their guideline on introducing foods gradually to infants and state now that they can pretty much have anything they want when they are interested except for honey, beer and whiskey (from the mouth of his doctor =)). I'm glad to hear this since Jason gave Ben a chocolate muffin last weekend for breakfast. He moved from rice cereal to the good stuff in no time! I guess I'm guilty of letting him taste some Cold Stone Creamery as well =).


This is Anna's third day at school. She really enjoyed her first two days. She was a little teary eyed today when I dropped her off but she didn't resist staying so I'm sure she's fine. We brought snack today to share with the class: pumpkin loaf. I think she'll enjoy eating something from home.

Have a great weekend!

It's Interview Time!

Jason is starting to receive interview opportunities for the fellowships he applied to! Most programs interview candidates in October so this next month will be a busy time for Jason. I will update this post with the interviews Jason is offered as they come in. This is so exciting!

Stanford 10/17
Los Angeles (private practice) TBD
UC Davis TBD
UCLA TBD
Fresno (private practice) already interviewed

Mac N Cheese

Jason was on-call last night so I made homemade mac & cheese for Anna and I. I think Ben is getting bored of his baby food by the way he was watching us eat. We walked around the neighborhood after dinner. Anna put on her best jewels for our walk (Hello Kitty necklace =) ). Ben loves the jog stroller. He pretty much melts after I put him in it. Here's our mac & cheese recipe in case anyone is looking for something yummy and easy to make:

Macaroni and Cheese

6 TB butter
2 TB flour
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 tsp nutmeg
3/4 tsp salt
3 to 4 TB dijon Mustard (grey poupon)
8 oz smoked gouda, grated
8 oz sharp cheddar, grated
16 oz macaroni or shell pasta

Optional:
1/4 cup grated paremsan
1/4 cup bread crumbs

** If you can't find smoked gouda substitute your favorite cheese**


Boil water and cook pasta per instructions.

Meanwhile, in a saucepan melt the butter. Slowly add in the flour and whisk over low heat. Gradually add the milk and whisk until the sauce thickens. Add the nutmeg, salt and pepper, dijon mustard and stir. Add the cheese and mix/whisk until all cheese is melted. Drain the pasta and add sauce to pasta. Serve as is or pour into a 9" x 13" casserole dish, sprinkle with parmesan and bread crumb mixture, and broil for 2 to 3 minutes or until bread crumbs brown.

First Day of School!

Anna started her first day of Montessori today! She clung to me for about five minutes and then ran off to see "Fred" the turtle. Her teacher told me she was the only new child not to cry (she could have cried for a few seconds at least =) ). She was very happy when I picked her up though and went straight to bed when we arrived home. Ben and I had some nice time together while Anna was at school. I actually went for a little run this morning since Ben likes the jog stroller!

Anna running up to the front door.

Good morning Fred!

Saying bye-bye from the "goodbye window" with Miss Judy.

Update:
Anna wasn't actually sleeping when she climbed into her bed. She was rearranging her room=). I didn't hear anything with Ben's white noise machine on in the next room!