Halloween with Cora

This October, Eunice's former housemate from Boston, Cora, came out to meet Tyler and help us celebrate Halloween in style. After four days with the Nichols boys, we're pretty sure Cora left feeling the need to take a vacation from her "vacation"! Click here for a slideshow of Cora's visit and our Halloween festivities.


The days were jam-packed, starting bright and early at 7am with Spencer thumping across the house in his pajamas yelling, "Where Cora go?" We filled our days with pumpkin hunting in Half Moon Bay, monarch butterfly sightings at Natural Bridges State Park in Santa Cruz, lots of book reading - especially "Crash-Smash!" (a new favorite from Cora), coloring, dimsum eating, shopping, and an occasional much-needed nap. Evenings were packed with pumpkin carving, bath and bedtime for the boys, whipping up dinner, and catching up on each others' lives. And just when Cora thought she could sit back and relax, we put her to work creating our Halloween costumes...from scratch! All told, she helped us hem Spencer's fireman pants, created an adorable dalmatian dog hoodie for Tyler, and sewed three "flame shirts" for the adults - definitely our best Halloween costumes to date.


On Halloween, we stopped by Spencer and Tyler's daycare for a costume party before going trick-or-treating with the Wangs and Canadas on Costa Rica Street, which was lined with palatial homes with over-the-top decorations. One of our favorite houses was Batman-themed, complete with adults dressed up as every major character from the Batman movies, a giant screen playing "Batman Begins," and a life-size replica of the Bat-mobile parked in the driveway. Spencer was a bit overwhelmed by the mayhem, but ended up having a great time being pulled in a wagon with his buddies Theo (Waldo) and Gaby (a butterfly). We had a fantastic time and have already booked Cora's services for next year. Whether she'll want to come back is another matter entirely. :)

Click here for a slideshow and videos.

Give Me Five!

Spencer loves goofing around with Ryan. Their latest game is "Give me five, on the side, up high, down low..."


But Spencer's favorite part is yelling, "You're too slow!!!"

Retreat in Santa Cruz

We spent the weekend at a retreat at Mount Herman Conference Center in the mountains of Santa Cruz, escaping from the hectic pace of every day life. We holed up in a fantastic one-bedroom cabin with a deck overlooking a stream and steep ravine, dropped the boys off at the retreat center's fantastic nursery, listened to inspiring talks, engaged in enlightening conversations, made some new friends, sang songs around a campfire, and hiked throughout the redwood forests.


Ryan, Tyler, and Spencer crossing a suspension bridge with Corey, Madison, and Kaitlyn.


Ryan and Spencer explore a cool tree house. All in all, a fun, relaxing, rejuvenating weekend - in fact, we might just have to make this family retreat an annual tradition...

David's Visit

We had a surprise visit from Eunice's brother-in-law, David, who came to the Bay Area to officiate a wedding. He was able to spend a few days with us, connecting with his two nephews.


Each morning, Spencer would wake up and say, "I want to see David," and then run across the house to our guest room. No wonder he has such affection for Uncle David who would read him countless books, push him in the swing, help him ride his bicycle, play all sorts of games, chase after garbage trucks with him, and make him laugh! Click here for a slideshow and videos of David's visit.

Hanging out at Home

On the days when I have both boys at home with me, we have a lot of fun hanging out, goofing off, laughing, and making silly videos. Here's a sampling from our activities today...


Spencer shows off his new winter hat... which actually fits Tyler pretty well, too. Guess big heads run in the family. :)


I've taken the boys to visit their dad at the Appirio office several times for pizza parties and foosball, which has given Spencer the mistaken impression that this is what Daddy does at the office every day. Most recently, he has decided that he would like to go to work every day, too, so he has started to call daycare "Spencer's office."


Nobody gets Tyler to crack up quite the way Spencer does. We love it that both of our boys have such hearty belly laughs...

Hudson's 2nd Birthday Party

Today, we headed over to the Gates' house for an impromptu birthday party to celebrate Hudson's 2nd birthday. Click here for a slide show of the party.


Spencer spent the evening "cooking" french fries with Hudson and Gaby on a toy stove, jumping on an exercise ball, playing house, and forming a jam band. Tyler spent the whole time in the arms of some wonderful women, including Po Po, Madison, and Mariana. After a pizza dinner and chocolate cake, Hudson opened up his gifts, the kids played some more, and we finally dragged a protesting Spencer out of the house to head home for bed. Another fun evening at the Gates'!

Open Door

Earlier this year, we started attending Open Door (an off-shoot of Menlo Park Presbyterian Church), held at Aragon High School, which is walking distance from our house. We love the proximity to our home, the engaging Sunday services, the caring folks who play with Spencer in the nursery, and the drinks from the gourmet coffee cart. :) Best of all, though, we've connected with some great families that we hope will be part of our lives for a very long time.


This Sunday, we had a several folks from our "home group" over for lunch. We had a relaxing afternoon enjoying the sunshine in our backyard and catching up on one another's lives. It has been awesome watching the kids bond over time, despite huge age differences (from 5 months old to high school). At any given moment, there's a game of battleship going on, Mariana is making Tyler giggle, Kaitlyn is playing badminton, Madison is reading books to Spencer, Hudson is running around dragging a baseball bat, and Matthew is running away from all the girls... It's mayhem, yet somehow wonderful.

Click here for a slide show of photos.

Theo's Second Birthday Bash

Theo celebrated his 2nd birthday in Los Gatos at Oak Meadow Park, a sprawling toddler heaven complete with life-size airplane and firetruck play structures on the playground, a carousel, and a real steam-powered train.


Grace and Alonzo grilled up some phenomenal BBQ (we would expect nothing less!) and topped off the afternoon with some delicious cupcakes, courtesy of Sibby's Cupcakery. Mmmm!!! Happy Birthday, Theo! :)

Click here for a slide show of Theo's party.

A Thing of Beauty

This photo might not seem like much, but it is a thing of beauty. Two different room monitors showing...silence.


Tyler started consistently sleeping for an 8-hour stretch between feedings, from 7:30pm until 3:30am. With Spencer down for the count starting at 8pm, it means Eunice can start to reclaim her evenings as her own. Now THAT'S progress!!!

More Firsts for Tyler

This has been quite a week for Tyler. Not only did he eat solids and ride in a swing for the first time, he also graduated to the Jumperoo, sat in an umbrella stroller, and most importantly, rolled over for the first time! :) Click here for more photos and videos.

Tyler Tries out the Swing

Well, this makes it official... Tyler is no longer a "newborn." He's eaten his first solid food and is even able to enjoy the swing in our backyard.


It sure was fun watching Tyler's face light up and then break into laughter as we pushed him in the swing. Lots more to come in the days ahead!

Tyler's First Solid Food!

Tyler started to reject the bottle on our trip East. So, when he weighed in at 20 pounds at his 4-month check-up, his pediatrician said we could start to introduce Tyler to solids to give Eunice a little bit of freedom during the day.


Eunice introduces Tyler to his first taste of solid food: rice cereal!


Mmmm!!!

Click here for more photos.

Getting Some Rest

After being away from home for quite a few days, we sure were glad to be back sleeping in our own bed! In fact, Eunice, Spencer, and Tyler tried to spend as much time as possible lounging around in bed - reading, goofing off, and taking naps. :)





Click here for more photos of our clan of sleepyheads.

Boston-Martha's Vineyard-Cape Cod Adventure

After the Joyce Family Reunion in San Diego, we continued on our adventure, heading east for an epic journy to Boston, Martha's Vineyard, and Cape Cod. The boys didn't always like being on the move for such long periods of time, but we were saved multiple times on the plane and on the road by a borrowed portable DVD player which entertained Spencer with 101 Dalmations and Elmo's World. :) Click here for a slide show of our trip.


In Boston, we stayed with Ryan's old b-school friend Josh and his very pregnant wife, Kimberly. The next morning Eunice' childhood friend Sunru and his wife Anne treated us to a delicious homemade brunch before we high-tailed it to Woods Hole to catch our ferry to Martha's Vineyard. We stayed in the uber-family-friendly Edgartown Commons, complete with a 1-bedroom apartment, playground, swimming pool, and laundry facilities. We had a great time hanging out with Jon and Allison's friends and family at the many wedding festitivies throughout the weekend, which included the groomsman dinner, a special brunch hosted by a family friend, the rehearsal dinner at Jon's family home overlooking the water, the wedding in a beautiful small-town church, and the reception in a fabulous barn. The highlight for us, however, was Jon's toast to Allison during the reception which brought down the house! Unfortunately, our camera battery died right after we got to Martha's Vineyard, so photos of Jon and Allison's wedding will be forthcoming once we track down some shots from various friends and family. We topped off our east coast adventure with a less-than-24 hour trip to the tip of Cape Cod to meet Jesse and Eileen's newborn son, Henry. We had the most relaxing time in Eileen's family home, eating a gourmet dinner prepared by Jesse, sleeping in, and taking a long walk on the pristine beach near the house. The highlight for us, however, was an evening hanging out in the hot tub after Spencer went to bed and Tyler and Henry had been rocked to sleep in their car seats. Almost convinced all of us that parenting is a piece of cake. :)

Click here for a slide show of more photos from our trip.

San Diego Part II: Joyce Family Reunion

Nancy orchestrated a Joyce family reunion in Mission Beach that brought together nearly 30 people from California, Texas, Virginia, and Massachusetts. Click here for a slideshow, or see highlights from the reunion below:


People-watching from our beachfront house right on the boardwalk and taking long naps in the sun...


Watching Spencer and Nani play together on the beach...


Initiating Tyler into the Pacific Ocean, watching Rachel teach Spencer yoga, cooking up a fantastic Mexican dinner for 30 with Adam and Rachel, playing charades with the entire family, witnessing Mimi (the matriarch of this large clan) do a jello shot, and playing a game of "spoons" so rowdy it got shut down by the local police. Now that's a family reunion to remember!

Click here for a slide show of more photos from the reunion.

San Diego Part I: Visiting Ryan's Family

We headed to San Diego a few days before Nancy's family reunion in Mission Beach to catch up with Ryan's family. We only had a few short days, but as usual, we managed to pack in a lot!


Highlights from our time with Ryan's family included watching Spencer play with Ryan and Adam's childhood toys, which Susan had kept in pristine condition these last 30+ years, making a decadent pecan-caramel French toast casserole with Susan and Jim, introducing Tyler for the first time to great-grandma Pinky, eating a tasty Mexican dinner with Ryan's step-family, and hanging out at Fran's place afterwards putting together an impossibly complicated miniature model Ferrari.

Click here for a slide show of more photos.

New Driveway Gate At Last!

We've been talking about putting up a driveway gate ever since we moved in to our San Mateo home more than two years ago. Now with Spencer fully mobile, and Tyler added to the mix, it was high time we enclosed our courtyard to create a safe space for the boys to play. We hired Stan Paresa, a gate specialist, to work with us on designing and constructing a custom gate that would be functional, but also look good. We couldn't be more pleased with how this project turned out!


View of the new pedestrian gate, driveway gate, and fence from the front of our house.


Our courtyard is now the perfect place for Spencer to run around, fully visible from the kitchen, dining room, and living room.


We also love the fact that we now have a little more privacy - and a real entrance to our home. On to the next project!

Labor Day Weekend in Twain Harte

For Labor Day weekend this year, Bob and Kathy invited Adam, Rachel, Susan, Jim, and our family to join them at their vacation home in Twain Harte, just outside Yosemite.


So, we packed up our trusty Xterra after work on Friday and started on the long drive, strategically timed to coincide with the boys' bedtime. Other than a disastrous midway stop at In-N-Out that resulted in both boys waking up - and staying up - for the last half of the trip, we finally arrived at the Hill's house after midnight and got settled into our fantastic basement pad (which included a bedroom, bathroom, living room, kitchenette, deck, and laundry facilities!). Highlights from the weekend included watching Nai Nai (Susan) and Spencer play in the lake, cooking up a fantastic dinner with Adam, Rachel, and Jim, relaxing out on the house's fantastic deck, and playing group games late into the evening. Thanks to the Hills for introducing us to such a special place - we hope this will turn into an annual tradition. :)

Click here for a slide show of our weekend in Twain Harte.

Spencer gets ready to travel

Spencer is getting excited about our big trip next week.... Nancy's family reunion on Mission Beach in San Diego followed by Jon's wedding in Martha's Vineyard. He points at these places on his map while he eats breakfast, he talks about seeing Nani, Nai Nai, and Uncle Jon, talks all the time about "airplane in the sky," and loves wearing his new crocodile backpack.

Click below for a video of Spencer parading around the living room in his travel gear:


Click here for more photos of the Spencer and Tyler...

Visit from Morgan and Samantha

Ryan's step-brother, Morgan, drove up from San Diego to spend a weekend in the Bay Area. We had a great time meeting his girlfriend Samantha, launghing at Spencer calling out his own food order to our waiter, riding the little train in Central Park, making "cucumber" egg bagel sandwiches (using zucchinis), and hanging out in our backyard.


Spencer had a blast playing with Uncle Morgan in Central Park. The highlight was going for a ride on the little train. Morgan was a good sport, cramming himself into a space meant for toddlers. :)


Thanks for visitng us - we hope you'll come back again soon!!!

Click here for a slideshow....