Photostory Friday: Dining Express

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

So, with MetaGirl rolling everywhere, putting everything in her mouth, and generally taking all sorts of liberties with MetaBoy's toys, MetaBoy's trains are often banned from the living room. I feel bad, but those little magnets are like some tasty little treats to her...how do you say no to a tempted infant? You don't. Eliminate the temptation.

Poor MetaBoy :-(

But he found the fix. The trains, tracks, and all related paraphernalia, are now dining room accessories.

Oh bother.

PhotoStory Friday: Disney Daze

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

So, we went to Disneyland as a family for the first time. It was fun, but honestly, we didn't get as much out of it as if the kids were a bit older. That said, kids under three are free and we (MetaDaddy and I) had tickets for free admission, so it was a fun experiment.

It turns out that MetaBoy is still not past his "people in suits freak me out" stage. Santa, for example, is not a welcoming figure for our little lad. Dude, can you blame him?

Anyway, here's our story.

******************************************************
"Holy Crap? Seriously? There's a bear behind me? Shouldn't we be running?"





















"Dude!! You scared me. I thought it was a bear! That's some dork in a costume. Whew!"





















"In fact, take a picture, mom. A picture of me with a bear. Ha ha."



















"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"





















[Pant, pant, pant, pant...]
"Ya, I know it's leaving, but is it coming back? That wasn't cool. He was behind me, then next to me. Those things move FAST!! Can I have a pain au chocolate? You know, you settle my nerves. Peeeeeeeeezzz?!?"

PhotoStory Friday: Expanding Family

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

MetaBoy has an announcement to make.

Drrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrumroll, please.



MetaBoy has a brand spanking new baby sister, MetaGirl, for whom he has vowed to look after and protect as much as any two year old can. He's promised to try to be "gentle" and "quiet"...within reason. And seems to even empathize with her pain, as he's been known to cry if he hears her crying.

MetaGirl, for her part, does what she can to keep herself pacified.



She's found and lost her thumb several times. When not seeking out such comforts, she's either nursing, sleeping, hiccuping, or intensely staring at one of her new family member.

All in all, we're all happy, if a little tired...

PhotoStory Friday: You Call Those Toys?!?

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

So as MetaToddler's birthday approaches, I'm sure he'll get some gifts. Since I'm debating birthday party ideas, and I'm hoping to follow through with a party of some sort (cross your fingers for us), that's all the more reason to expect gifts. We just have to time it right so that he gets a party, preferably before M2 arrives. Eep!!

With gifts on my mind, I'm reminded of my prior inclination against an abundance of cheap, plastic toys. I've mentioned reasons why here and here, and a few alternate gift ideas here.

As time goes by, I'm only more and more convinced that he doesn't need the big, plastic, fancy, flashing, noise-makers. Why do I say that? Here are a couple of his favorite toys these days.


A red plastic box that his Lego-like bricks came in. The box is usually empty, so he climbs on it, wears it like a hat to play peek-a-boo (usually resulting in walking into walls, as in the photo), rides it like a fire truck, etc. Other times, he fills it with toys, empties it, fills it, empties it, and so on.


And his other favorite? Empty cardboard containers that he wears on his head like a crown. At those times, we refer to him as King MetaToddler.

PhotoStory Friday: OCD in the Making

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

I've probably mentioned a few little OCD habits I have. I chalk it up to being a Virgo, but others chalk it up to my being slightly anal. Eh, whatever. So I love my label maker. And I live and die by my lists. We all have our quirks :-)

But is it innate or learned?

MetaToddler was in his class, and with all the toys out to play, guess what he chose to do?



Yes, he lined those up...all by himself.

PhotoStory Friday: Santa Monica Parade

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

We don't get some things here in Santa Monica. Parades are one of those things. I guess someone figured that we needed to partake in parade season. So for the second year in a row, the Annual Santa Monica Fourth of July Parade. MetaDaddy led the way with MetaToddler, and we got lost in the fray, so I didn't get to see the wee little reactions. But I know they were probably entertaining. I mean, the kid goes nuts when he sees a mee maw (i.e., fire truck) driving quietly down the street. Nevermind when the sirens are blaring.

On that note, our humble little parade.


That Santa Monica tractor being put to good use again.


And the requisite Prius for all Santa Monica events. Sometimes, I think there are more Priuses than residents in Santa Monica.


And of course, no parade is complete without a "mee maw."

Hope you all had a great July 4th!

PhotoStory Friday: Tractors in Los Angeles

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

City girl that I am, I've never seen certain things.

I've seen cows, sheep, donkeys, etc. up close, but not until I was well past 20.

Although I vaguely remember seeing goats, chickens, ducks, etc. at a petting zoo when I was 8, they freaked me out.

Tractors, ploughs, combine harvesters (which make their way into many toddler picture books, btw) were as rare in my world as the Loch Ness monster. Mythological creatures, if you will.

This past week, I saw my first tractor in action. No, we didn't visit a tractor showroom. Nor did we visit Iowa. We just went down to the beach. Unfortunately, the photo was taken with my phone, so the tractor is teeny tiny. But it's there, I promise!!



On that note, more sand tractors, or proof thereof:

Someone else's sand tractor

One of the cuter sand tractors

Sand tractor tracks

PhotoStory Friday: Smart Cars

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek
When we were in Europe a few years back (my, how time flies), we saw a lot of cool things. Old building, castles, towers. Had great food, met nice people, traveled the various metros. All good stuff. But it's the little things that really make you say "OMG, can you believe that?"

I kept seeing the Smart car. I've been hearing about it a lot more lately, and seen my fair share here in Santa Monica. There's even a dealership in Venice, just down the road. It's a small car, hence it gets great gas mileage. That said, it's a small car, so I'm hardly interested in driving Los Angeles freeways in it. When there's an accident, it's a doozy.

But I digress. It's not the miles per gallon, fun colors, lack of trunk space, or comedic size that caught my eye. It's the fact that it can be parked in non-existent parking spaces. Abso-lutely Awesome!!!

PhotoStory Friday: Debating Monks

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek
Joining my ol' buddy MamaGeek in PhotoStory Friday. Ah, Friday mayhem :-)

We traveled to Lhasa, Tibet in 2004. There were many things to be said about the city, but one of the most intriguing to me were the monks. They were everywhere! It was such an interesting feeling. I don't know many (any) monks, but I always held them in a sort of reverence because they were so disconnected from the city life I know. It turns out they wear sneakers, use cell phones, and wander all over the city...just like real people. They were part of every day life.

Here's one exciting thing they do in Tibet. They debate. They gather in groups and debate religious issues, ending their point with a powerful *stomp* or *clap* to vanquish the evil perspectives. They were done with joy and excitement, not in a tedious or dire way. They enjoyed it so much, you'd hardly wonder if they were serious about their arguments at all! We consider ourselves truly fortunate to have been there to watch a few such exhibitions

I don't know how much has changed since we were there. I'm assuming a lot, but I'm hoping that it hasn't.