Bocce Court

We have a little mulch spot next to the house that wasn't much to look at and decided why not turn it into a fun spot we can spend some evenings playing one of our favorite games, Bocce, the italian leisure sport. Over Thanksgiving weekend, we had the wood and gravel delivered and with the help of our friends Joe Tocci, Travis Jones, Dave Goreau, we cleared the mulch, leveled the dirt and built a court frame to dump the gravel. Astrid was eager to help as well, scooping little piles of mulch and leaves into a bucket we gave her. The "boys" assembled the frame and nailed it down with rebar with the help of some heavy hitters, Joe and Dave, who hit heavy things for a living (blacksmith and carpenter). After the frame was built, we shoveled gravel for days and rented a compactor to smooth it out. Another layer of deconstructed granite atop the gravel and then a layer of oyster shell flour for the finishing touch. It's an extremely short court by Bocce standards, but it's still a challenge and going to be kiddie friendly for years to come. 

The Before

Astrid hard at work

Frame assembly

Our driveway was a gravel and granite pile for a few days. Astrid loved making little piles in the corners one scoop at a time.

The deconstructed granite after compacting

The final court of play

Jen treated us to a fantastic steak and potatoes lunch for our hard work.

Friendsgiving 2017

What has become a yearly tradition for Julie & Michelle and recently for myself, our "Friendsgiving" is one that includes the friends that feel like family. We have Alaine & Ian with their two wonderful daughters who are Zoe & Athena's age, fabulous Miss Jeffrie who is like a sister to Michelle, David Chris' brother from Los Angeles, two new additions in Travis & Joe who are good friends of mine who spent part of the summer with us in Paros, Greece.

Then there are the usual suspects of Chris & Julie and their three wonderful kids, Michelle, Jen and I with the latest additions to the family, Astrid & Stella. Toss in a couple of dogs, boxes of wine and more food than counter space, it all adds up to a fabulous long weekend of games, laughs and celebrations.

Recreating a Thanksgiving pic 9 years later

Julie barely put Stella down

Astrid rolling with the big kids

Kickball in the nearby park

Lots of big kid sitters in the house

Astrid was willing to do whatever the big kids wanted. Eager to impress

There was the hide in the closet game and some scenester pouting.

Breaking in the new car with so much room for more kids!

David getting a little baby training

Halloween 2017

Quite possibly my favorite holiday of all time. Halloween is a youthful celebration of festivities, costumes, and family. It's a chance to let your inner creativity shine and have tons of fun in the process. I couldn't wait to get Astrid involved and celebrate with the family. While she wanted to wear just about everything in the costume aisle, we settled on a daddy/daughter costume of Monkey & Banana. Astrid has always been our little "monkey" and we found the perfect costume for her.

We helped decorate Julie's house with cobwebs, a friendly door guest =, pumpkins and lots of floating ghouls.

She was giddy with excitement chasing her big cousins around Elk Grove trick or treating at all the houses until she was exhausted from the walking. I would carry her in the stretches between houses, but she was determined to collect her candy herself with the guidance of Athena, Zoe and Jack. The look on her face as she got each piece of candy was magical. Earlier in the week, we participated in a walk with her daycare to the local transportation office that passed candy out between cubicles, the perfect walking distance for little legs. Astrid loved opening her bag and receiving goodies from all the kind strangers.

Apple Hill Orchards

With the fall season upon us, the Sacramento family ventured out of our little boroughs into a much hyped area north of Sacramento, Apple Hill. There we could do a number of outdoor activities from apple picking, hay rides, pumpkin patches and phenomenal picnic areas serving a number of delightful goodies.

Astrid and the girls had an amazing time rolling down the hill together, checking out the corn maze, basking in the October sun. We brought a fantastic spread and sipped on wine while oohing and ahhing at all the serene nature around us. It was a perfect family retreat and we're sure to be back next year, if not sooner!

Little Big Sister

Astrid has been our family star for close to two years now. She gets spoiled by Mom and Dad with affection and our entire attention and is our near constant companion. We weren't sure how she would respond with the arrival of little Stella, but we prepared for the worst and hoped she would tolerate the new addition. We did our best to tell her who was coming and the role of Big Sister she would soon occupy. We got the big sister themed books, the game of kiss the belly and a present for her when she met her little lifelong friend. Now 5 weeks into Stella's arrival, she's exceeded our greatest expectations and has impressed us with her willingness to care for and love her little sister.

When Stella needs a diaper change, Astrid fetches us a fresh one and disposes of the dirty one. When Stella doesn't have a blanket on her, she grabs any available square like item from a tissue, a burp cloth or her actual blanket and drapes it delicately over her. When Stella cries from the other room, Astrid usually runs into the room to see what's the matter. When Mom or Dad are holding Stella, she usually snuggles up close by and gently pats Stella's head (or sometimes whacks in her the back as whether she needs to burp or not. And last, but not all, just before bedtime, Astrid gives a little kiss to her forehead, a gentle stroke of the head and in her own little language tells Stella that she'll be alright and big sister is looking out for her.

Every now and then, while Jen is usually breastfeeding, Astrid will cry at the thought of having to share attention from Mom, a normal toddler streak of jealousy, but that has subsided quite a bit in recent weeks. All in all, Astrid has been far and away more mature, kind and loving than we thought possible.

It's truly beautiful to see the lifelong sisterly bond form new connections every day into the love that will carry with them the rest of their lives. We can only hope the trend continues as Stella learns to crawl into Astrid's toy bins, closet, diary and so much more in the years to come.