My Birthday Weekend!

I had a wonderful birthday, and a great birthday weekend! Mr. Mustard surprised me on Friday (my birthday) with a delivery of flowers- three dozen roses- a dozen for each decade! He came home from work early, and we took Paprika to the indoor playground in our neighborhood. Mr. Mustard had never been there before, so I wanted him to get the chance to see it. Mr. Mustard had a great time playing with Paprika at the playground- he took her in the bouncy and pushed her around in her favorite toy car.

Then we headed up to Santa Barbara for the weekend. Mr. Mustard's mom made us dinner, and we spent the evening relaxing before putting Paprika to bed. Paprika did not want to go to bed (she only likes to fall asleep in her bed at home), so we were up until after 2 a.m. trying to get her to go to sleep. After two rides in the car, we finally got her to sleep. Even so, she didn't sleep long and was awake for the day by 7:30 a.m.

Around 11 a.m., I put Paprika down for a nap, and Mr. Mustard and I snuck off to go for a hike by the ocean while Mr. Mustard's mom babysat. We had such a wonderful time hiking up to the cliffs overlooking the ocean. By the time we got back, Paprika was awake and ready to play!

Saturday night, Mr. Mustard and I went to a wonderful dinner at the Sage & Onion restaurant in downtown Santa Barbara while Mr. Mustard's mom babysat her granddaughter. It was so relaxing to have a nice dinner out as a couple. Afterwards we went to see the movie 3:10 to Yuma.

The next day we just relaxed and enjoyed being outdoors. Paprika loved crawling on the back patio and on the grass in the backyard. She had a lot of fun throwing the ball to Hauser. While Paprika was asleep in the morning, Mr. Mustard and I snuck off to the beach and went for a walk. Then, later when Paprika was awake, we took her to the beach with us. She loved seeing the surfers, smelling the sea air, and feeling the cool breeze on her face. That night we went to our favorite hamburger stand, The Habit, for old time's sake!

It was a lot of fun. Oh, and for my birthday, Mr. Mustard surprised me with a new camera! I am so excited to learn all about it and take even MORE pictures! :-)

Last Day I'll Ever...

Today is the last day I'll ever be in my 20s! I am excited to say goodbye to this decade- I feel like I've accomplished so much and am so ready to move onto the excitement that my 30s is going to hold. It may sound strange to say, but each new step in life comes with its own rewards. I feel more confident than I ever have, and am so excited to see what the future will bring to my already amazing life!

I spent the last day of my 20s playing with Paprika at our favorite, amazing indoor playground. We had so much fun together. I cannot imagine my life without her- she is my greatest joy and the most profound blessing.

I leave my 20s with no regrets- and am happier now than I was 10 years ago. I can only hope that in 10 years, when I'm leaving my 30s, I will be able to say the same. With each new year, there is the possibility of new adventures, new friendships, and the chance to grow wiser. I like the person I am now better than I ever have. Wisdom is the gift that age gives- I feel so much more at peace with my life, who I am, and where I'm headed than I have at any point. I don't wish to be younger- I've lived those years, and am happy to say that life is really good right where I stand now!

So, here's to my last day in my 20s and to the beginning of a whole new decade, full of promise and possibility, waiting for me!

One Year Doc Visit

Today Paprika had her 1 year well-baby doctor's appointment. She weighs 24.2 pounds, and is in the 90th percentile for weight. She is 30 inches and is in the 75th percentile for height. She has grown 10 inches in the past year and has gained about 15 1/2 pounds! She is about triple her birth weight now. Amazing!

Everyone at the doctor's office commented on how healthy and smart she is. She was cracking everyone up with her non-stop jibber jabber.

Yesterday I took Paprika back to the indoor, air-conditioned playground in our neighborhood. She got so excited when we walked in the door- she really wanted to play! She has a favorite toy there- a cool, red convertible- that she LOVES to drive.

She loved honking the horn, playing with the stick-shift, and moving the car Fred-Flinstone-style by moving her feet really fast! There were lots of other babies about Paprika's age at the playground, and she loved interacting with them. The only time she got upset was when it was time to leave!

I Like To Put Things On My Head!

Paprika has a new trick- putting anything and everything over her head. Here she is with one of her shirts over her head. She puts things on her head, and then doesn't want to take them off- ever. She loves sifting through the laundry, fresh out of the dryer, and sticking the warm clothes over her head. Then she insists on wearing her new headresses and necklaces out in public for the whole world to see! Even if she gets a few crazy looks, she doesn't seem to mind!

Labor Day Weekend

So far we're having a very wonderful, very relaxing Labor Day weekend. Mr. Mustard was in Chicago for most of last week, and finally got home late Friday night. Paprika was SO happy to see Mr. Mustard on Saturday. She squealed "dadadadada" when she saw him. We have been relaxing this weekend, and doing a bit of window shopping for our townhouse.

Paprika and I met up with my new friend and her daughter on Friday morning- and we hit it off so well! It's fantastic to have met them- and they live so close- only a few blocks from us. We had a wonderful time at the playground, and then had drinks at Starbucks. The mom and I share a lot of the same parenting philosophies, which is absolutely refreshing.

I bought Paprika some new, pink curtains on Friday afternoon and installed them. The curtains turned out to be a disaster, though, because instead of blocking light, I found that they actually amplified the sunlight. So, Saturday morning at sunrise, Paprika started screaming from being woken up by the sun. She is not an early-riser. I had to take down the new curtains, install the old ones, and then put her back down to sleep--and then she slept til after 11am. From this experience, I found out that she does NOT like being woken up before her time.

Yesterday (Saturday), we went window shopping at Ikea. We actually found some things we wanted to buy (including a bed frame for our Queen bed), but when we got down to the warehouse to purchase the bed, we discovered that the warehouse was unairconditioned. It was probably over 100 degrees inside the store. None of us appreciate the heat, and Paprika started getting really upset, so we left. Later, we went to Crate and Barrel to window shop, and again, we found out that the airconditioning was broken in the store. Again, it was probably about 100 degrees in the store. At that point, we gave up trying to shop, and decided to go to dinner instead. We had an awesome sushi dinner. Paprika had her first bit of sushi. We fed her some Inari (bean curd), which she absolutely loved. She was the belle of the restaurant.

Today we had brunch with Jessica and Matt- it's always so great seeing them. Paprika kept herself busy showing us how non-babyproofed their apartment is.

Paprika also had a big milestone today- she learned how to kiss! Now when we tell her to give us a kiss, she plants her face directly on ours. It's so precious!