Bento Lunch Attempts

Claire's schedule at preschool, full day, everyday, requires lunch and two snacks everyday. We try to do healthy, creative, balanced meals, but we sometimes come up short on all counts. When I have the time and energy, I take inspiration from some blogs (primarily Wendolonia) to create a colorful and fun lunch. Tomorrow's lunch is one such attempt with a heart theme, foods C is known to eat and a special treat. We have a heart shaped pb&j sandwich (bread cutter from Mimi), babybel cheese (tiny heart cookie cutter also from Mimi), little tomatoes, pear and a special treat of a Trader Joe's version of nutella mini sandwich using the excess bread. I get more excited about her lunch on these days than she does.

3/10

"How old are you, Claire?"

"Three tenths."

Making Guacamole

With Auntie Gwen

What Wall?

Day one of true summer for Matt and we have one less wall in the kitchen.

First Day of Preschool

Claire started preschool on this cool, foggy, quintessential San Francisco day.

She expressed some mixed feelings about going for the last day or two. We have been talking about preschool for a while and she has been there three times to visit, so the drop off turned out to be a breeze.

One little boy proclaimed, "Claire's back!" Once Matt and I unloaded all her gear into her cubby and brought her to the main room, she sat right down at the table and started coloring as if she'd been doing that every day for a year. With an "I love you, too" sending us off, Matt and I left, with our own mixed feelings. Relief that she didn't scream and cry, sadness? nostalgia?  that our little girl is growing up and entering a new phase, and so proud of her for making herself at home there. I can't wait for pick up to hear all about her day.

Eating Coffee

Matt snapped this pic of Claire "eating" her pretend coffee with a fork. She has entered a fun stage where she plays pretend. Mostly she pretends to eat. "Drink" is part of "eat" in her world.

Visit from Cousin Gwen and James

Gwen and James are in the Bay Area for a weekend and came by for a visit. Claire enticed Gwen to play with play doh and later they played with bracelets, rings and ponytails. When it came time for them to depart, Claire asked to go with them and went to put on socks and shoes. She is excited to see them in NH!

Saturday morning at the beach

Claire and I hit the beach this morning for "Tot Shabbat at the Beach." Claire was more interested in the sand and waves than in the rabbi and her guitar. She was very excited to go and talked the whole way there about swimming in the water (sorry kid). A summer vacation to the Jersey Shore and Colby Point is in order!

Birthday Party

Some weekend excitement included a birthday party for one of Claire's favorite friends Nas. She was so excited to sing to Nas that she opted out of sleeping during naptime. She and the birthday boy really dug into the cake. Nas was dismayed by the messy state, but Claire decided she'd just wash off the chocolate frosting with some nice dirt.

Picnic in the Park

We met up with some new friends in Golden Gate Park for a leisurely Sunday picnic. Claire loved roaming the open meadow and ran all around. Couldn't get her to wear a warm sweatshirt in the cool, foggy morning, but at least she wore a hat!

Mother's Day 2012

For Mother's Day, we drove north in search of some sun for a family hike. We finally broke out of the fog in Terra Linda and found a state park and hiking trails. Our endpoint came when Claire wanted to walk but instead had more fun squatting at the side of the trail, "feeding" dirt to the plants.

We followed that with lunch at Counter Burger. The day was capped with a (cold! blustery!) trip to a neat playground which boasts tremendous downtown views. It was a fun day! Even better, no skunk incident like on MD 2011!

Camera

"This is my camera I'm taking a picture, Mom."

Morning Smoothie

Starting off this Memorial Day with a spinach/banana/blueberry smoothie. Breakfast of champion (whiners).

Little Plumber

Matt is fixing a leak in the shower with a little help from Claire. They are having a plumber conversation, 4-letter words and all.

My Little Shopper

We snagged one of the kid shopping carts at Trader Joe's last night and Claire took her job very seriously. She would not let me put anything in my basket. She had so much more fun than sitting in the big cart and the only extra item she added to our list was pineapple spears. Good choice, Claire. I only have a few bruises from run-ins and the bananas might have one or two from the great cart rollover in the freezer section. Otherwise a fun trip!

Sunday Evening

It was a beautiful Sunday so after a fun tip to the car wash, we hit a great playground. With Matt's assistance, Claire had the joy of sliding down an advanced slide. She loved it, as you can see. She tends to gravitate to the bigger kid section of playgrounds, thrill seeker that she is.

What Bad Luck?