Friday, May 04, 2007
Day Trip to Dallas
Ryan had to do a day trip to Dallas for work, giving him the chance to grab dinner with Jennifer, David, Melody, and Valerie... and meet little baby Paxon, born on April 14! This was their first big family outing since Paxon was born... I was very lucky to be able to take part and meet our first Newphew.... boy is Eunice jealous :)
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Nara and Tracy's New York Wedding
Congrats to Nara and Tracy! Ryan's fourth and final roommate from his time in New York got hitched last weekend, to a wonderful woman named Tracy in a beautiful ceremony in a downtown photography studio with views over Manhattan. Adam and Rachel were kind enough to host us in their apartment for the weekend (and babysit Spencer!), so we had a fantastic couple of days-- brunch with bay area ex-pats on the patio, and afternoon under cherry blossoms in Central Park, a glamorous evening of dining and dancing, and a mini-Williams reunion in the lower East Side.
Click here for a slideshow...
Click here for a slideshow...
Bongo Drummer Prodigy
While we were in New York, Adam took Spencer on as his musical protege. Spencer shows some serious promise as a bongo drummer.
"Can you feel the rhythm, mon?" (read with a Bob Marley accent)
With a smile like that, how can we resist getting Spencer his own bongo drum...?
The master and the pupil. (Does this guy look like he knows how to play the bongo drums or what?!)
"Can you feel the rhythm, mon?" (read with a Bob Marley accent)
With a smile like that, how can we resist getting Spencer his own bongo drum...?
The master and the pupil. (Does this guy look like he knows how to play the bongo drums or what?!)
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Modeling Naomi's Sweater
Naomi Baskin, an Experience Corps volunteer that Eunice has gotten to know over the years, knit a fantastic sweater and hat for Spencer when he was born. Now he's finally big enough to wear it! Despite Eunice's best efforts to get Spencer to model the entire outfit, he kept insisting on taking the hat off, sometimes with hilarious results...
Doing Laps Around the Coffee Table
Spencer has started "cruising", which means he's started walking around on his own - with the help of a large object to lean on! With a little incentive, he does a few somewhat distracted and mostly successful laps around our coffee table each day. Click on the photo below to see two videos of Spencer in action...
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Central Park with Charlie
After a cloudy weekend, the sun finally came out today! Spencer's friend Charlie (and Charlie's mom Sarah), came over to play.
We got bento box lunches to go and went to Central Park for a picnic. Charlie and Spencer have only hung out a few times but share a lot in common.
What fun to see them interact with each other - babbling, smiling, and even hand holding... :)
We got bento box lunches to go and went to Central Park for a picnic. Charlie and Spencer have only hung out a few times but share a lot in common.
What fun to see them interact with each other - babbling, smiling, and even hand holding... :)
Sunday, April 22, 2007
Bay Area Hiking
With the arrival of spring, we've been going on a lot of hikes around the Bay Area. Here are some photos from recent hikes in Edgewood, Skyline, and Half Moon Bay.
Sunday, April 15, 2007
Spencer Discovers His Tongue!
Spencer has discovered how much fun it is to stick out his tongue - here are some fun candids of Spencer hamming it up in our backyard!
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Spencer's Belly Laugh
Spencer cracks everyone up at a dinner party with his belly laugh as Grace and Eunice speculate whether or not his glee comes from throwing the box of chai on the floor. Turns out the cause of his manaical laughter is Grace's hair flipping down each time she bends over to pick up the box!
Eunice and her mom find yet another source of belly laughs for Spencer: sneezing!
Monday, April 09, 2007
Mamie and Cora's Visit
After getting back from Catalina Island, we had an unexpected visit from Eunice's childhood friend, Mamie, who flew in from Taiwan for a grad school interview, and a much anticipated visit from Eunice's former Boston roommate, Cora. Spencer had a great time getting to know these two Aunties!
Spencer and Mamie show off their cool hats.
Cora, Eunice, and Spencer go on a hike along the coast.
Spencer and Mamie show off their cool hats.
Cora, Eunice, and Spencer go on a hike along the coast.
Friday, March 23, 2007
Catalina Island Getaway
A year ago, Michael won a week-long getaway to Catalina Island (off the coast of Los Angeles) in a silent auction to benefit the Sunset Neighborhood Beacon Center. This March, Michael invited us (and Eunice's mom) to join him for a fantastic week of hiking, exploration, and relaxation on the island.
Terry, Michael, Eunice, Spencer, and Ryan on one of many hikes on Catalina Island.
View of Avalon Bay and the historic Casino building on the road leading to the old Wrigley mansion.
Michael made a stop in Montery Park for lunch to meet Eunice's grandparents.
Spencer is fascinated by Great Grandpa's nose.
Terry, Michael, Eunice, Spencer, and Ryan on one of many hikes on Catalina Island.
View of Avalon Bay and the historic Casino building on the road leading to the old Wrigley mansion.
Michael made a stop in Montery Park for lunch to meet Eunice's grandparents.
Spencer is fascinated by Great Grandpa's nose.
Sunday, March 18, 2007
Spencer at 8 months
At 8 months, Spencer continues to love playing, being outside, or just going for a stroll around the neighborhood with Nani...
Going for a stroll around the neighborhood with Nani.
Playing with his favorite blocks...
Daddy's little flower child!
Going for a stroll around the neighborhood with Nani.
Playing with his favorite blocks...
Daddy's little flower child!
Saturday, March 03, 2007
Hanging with Nara, Swinging with Spencer
The sun finally came out this weekend- perfect for hanging out with Nara (visiting from New York) and spending plenty of time in our own version of "Central Park."
Saturday, February 17, 2007
President's Day Weekend in San Diego
The trip we'd planned to San Diego was intended to be a wedding present to Jesse and Eileen, but they were stranded in JFK by Jet Blue! We made the best of it by spending the weekend with friends and family, but sure did miss you, Jesse and Eileen!
Highlights from the weekend include a wonderful day in La Jolla, fantastic dinners with Susan and Jim, a couple of "big nights out" while they babysat Spencer, a great hike / sunset on the beach at Torrey Pines, hanging out in Laguna Beach with our friends Jon and Alison, checking in with great-grandma Pinky in Rancho Bernardo, and seeing Spencer roll over the for the first time with his cousins 'Bella and 'Enzo at Grandpa Fran's place.
Brunch at Cody's, an outdoor cafe by the cove in La Jolla, near where we were supposed to stay with Jesse and Eileen. We found someone else to rent the cute cottage we'd found and stayed with Susan instead.
The minivan we'd rented still came in handy-- here we are with Susan and Jim on our way to take a hike at Torrey Pines State Park
We hiked the cliffs of Torrey Pines, saw migrating whales and dolphins off shore, and watched the sunset from the beach. Not a bad way to spend the day, huh Spencer? This guy is going to grow up to be a California kid for sure...
We spent a great day in Laguna Beach with our friends Jon and Alison, down from LA. We had burgers at a cafe overlooking the boardwalk and then walked along the beach, looking at the tidepools. The most exciting part was how the minutes kept ticking down on Jon's parking meter... it was just like the real-time TV show "24", but with meter maids instead of terrorists!
It was also neat to stop by and say hello to Great Grandma Pinky in Rancho Bernardo. Spencer's changed just a little since you saw him last, hasn't he Pinky?
We spent our last night hanging out with cousins 'Enzo and 'Bella at Grandpa Fran's place... hanging out with his two active cousins finally inspired Spencer to roll over for the very first time! Click here to see the video...
What a trip... hard to beleive that all of this came together at the last minute. And Jesse and Eileen... this was just a warm-up for the REAL trip sometime down the line!
Highlights from the weekend include a wonderful day in La Jolla, fantastic dinners with Susan and Jim, a couple of "big nights out" while they babysat Spencer, a great hike / sunset on the beach at Torrey Pines, hanging out in Laguna Beach with our friends Jon and Alison, checking in with great-grandma Pinky in Rancho Bernardo, and seeing Spencer roll over the for the first time with his cousins 'Bella and 'Enzo at Grandpa Fran's place.
Brunch at Cody's, an outdoor cafe by the cove in La Jolla, near where we were supposed to stay with Jesse and Eileen. We found someone else to rent the cute cottage we'd found and stayed with Susan instead.
The minivan we'd rented still came in handy-- here we are with Susan and Jim on our way to take a hike at Torrey Pines State Park
We hiked the cliffs of Torrey Pines, saw migrating whales and dolphins off shore, and watched the sunset from the beach. Not a bad way to spend the day, huh Spencer? This guy is going to grow up to be a California kid for sure...
We spent a great day in Laguna Beach with our friends Jon and Alison, down from LA. We had burgers at a cafe overlooking the boardwalk and then walked along the beach, looking at the tidepools. The most exciting part was how the minutes kept ticking down on Jon's parking meter... it was just like the real-time TV show "24", but with meter maids instead of terrorists!
It was also neat to stop by and say hello to Great Grandma Pinky in Rancho Bernardo. Spencer's changed just a little since you saw him last, hasn't he Pinky?
We spent our last night hanging out with cousins 'Enzo and 'Bella at Grandpa Fran's place... hanging out with his two active cousins finally inspired Spencer to roll over for the very first time! Click here to see the video...
What a trip... hard to beleive that all of this came together at the last minute. And Jesse and Eileen... this was just a warm-up for the REAL trip sometime down the line!
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Spencer's Playmates
Spencer is getting more and more interactive each day. It's been particularly fun watching him around other kids... Click here for the full slideshow
Gardner, Theo, and Spencer chill on the couch.
Gardner, Theo, and Spencer chill on the couch.
Spencer's Exersaucer Workout
At first it was the Swing. Then the Jumperoo. Now the Exersaucer! Fun for Spencer. Freedom for Mom. Yet another win-win in the Nichols household.
Click here for a short video clip of Spencer's morning workout routine.
Click here for a short video clip of Spencer's morning workout routine.
The Other Spencer in Germany
The bad news is that Ryan's work required a 1 1/2 week trip to Germany, the longest he's had to be away from Eunice and Spencer since the little guy arrived. The good news is that he was able to meet up over the weekend with the other Spencer, his Deerfield high school buddy from Australia, now doing a post-doc at Cambridge (he collaborates with a scientist in Heidelberg.... what a small world!).
We just got the great news that he and Marnie will be coming to Palo Alto for Spencer to start at Stanford GSB this fall... it will be fantastic to have them so close, and there was a lot of swapping-of-notes for him and Ryan to take care of in Germany!
We decided to swing by the medieval city of Freiburg... perfect for a walk to this lookout point overlooking the black forest.
The rest of the weekend was in Heidelberg. More sausage and beer for dinner and an evening out along the Hauptstrasse on Saturday, and a healthy walk up Philosophenweg on Sunday. Still sinking in that these guys will be in the Bay Area soon!
On this trip Ryan also decided that it was ridiculous to have flown into Frankfurt over a dozen times without ever having seen the city itself. So he spent the night before flying out up in the city... it doesn't have the reputation of being very exciting but I thought it was a nice city... interesting juxtaposition of the modern banking center Frankfurt is today with some ancient remnants of its past.
Still... I was happy to say Auf Wiedersehen, at least for now!
We just got the great news that he and Marnie will be coming to Palo Alto for Spencer to start at Stanford GSB this fall... it will be fantastic to have them so close, and there was a lot of swapping-of-notes for him and Ryan to take care of in Germany!
We decided to swing by the medieval city of Freiburg... perfect for a walk to this lookout point overlooking the black forest.
The rest of the weekend was in Heidelberg. More sausage and beer for dinner and an evening out along the Hauptstrasse on Saturday, and a healthy walk up Philosophenweg on Sunday. Still sinking in that these guys will be in the Bay Area soon!
On this trip Ryan also decided that it was ridiculous to have flown into Frankfurt over a dozen times without ever having seen the city itself. So he spent the night before flying out up in the city... it doesn't have the reputation of being very exciting but I thought it was a nice city... interesting juxtaposition of the modern banking center Frankfurt is today with some ancient remnants of its past.
Still... I was happy to say Auf Wiedersehen, at least for now!
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Fran's Visit
What a treat! Fran came out for a weekend visit up from San Diego, and as usual we put him to work on a variety of home improvement projects. The big one this time was installing ceiling fans, a gift from Susan and Pinky after we sweated through the heat wave last summer without AC.
The fans went up without (much) of a hitch, and we are well prepared for the seasons to change. Thanks Fran! Thanks Susan and Pinky!
The fans went up without (much) of a hitch, and we are well prepared for the seasons to change. Thanks Fran! Thanks Susan and Pinky!
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Visit from Dr. Hem
Eunice's college roommate, now Dr. Kristin Hem, came out to visit and meet Spencer for the very first time.
We drove straight from the airport to Ano Nuevo State Reserve to take a late afternoon walking tour of the elephant seal breeding grounds. (Can you see Spencer's foot in the photo?)
Beach full of elephant seals weighing between 1,000 - 2,000 pounds each!
Sunset in Half Moon Bay... not a bad way to welcome someone from Indiana to California!
We rounded out Kristin's visit with a trip to Berkely to hang out with our other college roommate, Faith. We took a fun tour of the Scharffen Berger Chocolate Factory where we sampled chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate. Thanks for coming out to visit, Kristin!
We drove straight from the airport to Ano Nuevo State Reserve to take a late afternoon walking tour of the elephant seal breeding grounds. (Can you see Spencer's foot in the photo?)
Beach full of elephant seals weighing between 1,000 - 2,000 pounds each!
Sunset in Half Moon Bay... not a bad way to welcome someone from Indiana to California!
We rounded out Kristin's visit with a trip to Berkely to hang out with our other college roommate, Faith. We took a fun tour of the Scharffen Berger Chocolate Factory where we sampled chocolate, chocolate, and more chocolate. Thanks for coming out to visit, Kristin!
Monday, January 01, 2007
Kauai with the Keikis
We started off 2007 with our first big trip with Spencer, an adventure on the garden island of Kauai, one of the Hawaiian islands.
We traveled with our good friends Grace and Alonzo (+ their 3 month old son Theo) and Phil and Nikki (+ their 1 year old daughter Gaby). 3 couples, 3 hapa babies .... this certainly was a new type of adventure travel for us! See below for slideshows of our motley crew of travelers, our adventures across the island, and our dramatic open-air helicopter tour.
Our home base was a fantastic beachfront house we rented in the south-shore beach town of Poipu, perfect for breakfasts on the deck overlooking the waves, strolls with the babies down to "children's beach" to see the sea turtles, sunset drinks at the local resorts, and card games and conversation by the sound of the surf after putting the kids to bed.
Click here for a slideshow of photos of life with the keikis in Kauai.
Poipu was a great launchpad for adventures all over the island. We loaded the babies (+ enormous amounts of gear) into our trusty SUV for all sorts of excursions. Highlights include finding a sheltered cove on the dramatic coastline of Mahu'ulepu Beach for Spencer's first dip in the ocean, hiking to the top of Waipo'o falls at the edge of Waimea Canyon, eating fish tacos and snorkling at 'Anini Beach, getting caught in a dramatic rainstorm at Secret Beach, hiking the first few muddy miles of the Na Pali coast trail, and getting pounded by the surf at Queen's Bath.
Click here for a slideshow of our island adventures.
The biggest adventure of all was an open-air helicopter ride across the island... nothing between us and the dramatic landscape but hundreds of feet of space. We zooomed up the "grand canyon of the pacific," discovered hidden beaches under the cliffs of Na Pali, hoovered in a lush crater laced with dozens of waterfalls, and even made a landing for lunch at a completely isolated waterfall of our own.
Click here for a slideshow of our helicopter tour.
So how was our first big trip with Spencer? Well, we think that this is a pretty adventurous kid: He didn't wail (much) on the plane, loved going on long hikes carried by his dad, and laughed at the noise of the rain when we got caught out in tropical storms. Hard to ask for much more (except for more sleep at night!). Look out, adventure travel... we're back!
We traveled with our good friends Grace and Alonzo (+ their 3 month old son Theo) and Phil and Nikki (+ their 1 year old daughter Gaby). 3 couples, 3 hapa babies .... this certainly was a new type of adventure travel for us! See below for slideshows of our motley crew of travelers, our adventures across the island, and our dramatic open-air helicopter tour.
Our home base was a fantastic beachfront house we rented in the south-shore beach town of Poipu, perfect for breakfasts on the deck overlooking the waves, strolls with the babies down to "children's beach" to see the sea turtles, sunset drinks at the local resorts, and card games and conversation by the sound of the surf after putting the kids to bed.
Click here for a slideshow of photos of life with the keikis in Kauai.
Poipu was a great launchpad for adventures all over the island. We loaded the babies (+ enormous amounts of gear) into our trusty SUV for all sorts of excursions. Highlights include finding a sheltered cove on the dramatic coastline of Mahu'ulepu Beach for Spencer's first dip in the ocean, hiking to the top of Waipo'o falls at the edge of Waimea Canyon, eating fish tacos and snorkling at 'Anini Beach, getting caught in a dramatic rainstorm at Secret Beach, hiking the first few muddy miles of the Na Pali coast trail, and getting pounded by the surf at Queen's Bath.
Click here for a slideshow of our island adventures.
The biggest adventure of all was an open-air helicopter ride across the island... nothing between us and the dramatic landscape but hundreds of feet of space. We zooomed up the "grand canyon of the pacific," discovered hidden beaches under the cliffs of Na Pali, hoovered in a lush crater laced with dozens of waterfalls, and even made a landing for lunch at a completely isolated waterfall of our own.
Click here for a slideshow of our helicopter tour.
So how was our first big trip with Spencer? Well, we think that this is a pretty adventurous kid: He didn't wail (much) on the plane, loved going on long hikes carried by his dad, and laughed at the noise of the rain when we got caught out in tropical storms. Hard to ask for much more (except for more sleep at night!). Look out, adventure travel... we're back!
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