Itsy Bitsy Spider.

Sing A Long:  Itsy Bitsy Spider

@ 2yrs 8months.
Loves singing in the car!

Dawn. (Part 1)

Hapa Lab went on a short break.

Zozie's grandparents are celebrating their 60th & 70th birthdays.

This called for a family cruise aboard the Norwegian DAWN.

Zo: "Our Smiling Ship"

 

Dawn took us on a 5 day tour in Western Caribbean.

Cruise ships nowadays boast around 300 - 400 kids aboard each trip.

This was our first cruise with Zo.

He's currently two & a half.

Kid & family friendly?

You betcha.

Happy to land in Miami

Grandma & grandpa....REALLY happy to land in Miami.

at the terminal with his cousin.

Bon Voyage!

the Original Foursome.

off & RUNNING...

long corridors are great toddler-energy-burners...

or for practicing cat walks?

alas...our home on the sea.

first things first...

found the dining/living area...

and the gifts for the birthday boy & girl...

2.5... Really?

found the bath tub.

and the shampoo...

don't mind if we DO!!!

me too.

the balcony...AAAhhhhhhh.
*Note the glass barrier with narrow seams...perfectly safe for little ones*

then food started...

and kept going....

and going...

"chocoholic buffet"... their words, not mine.

A different "towel creation" greeted us each evening for bedtime.

(kids, what animal we are getting tonight?  they loved it.)

the kid's nest.

 "Kids Crew", an on-board camp with counselors, 

provided plenty of fun family activities.

The youngest group is ages 2 - 5, led by "Ms. Kiwi".

Zo called it his "Boat School".

Check em' in.

Take the pager.

Come back when ready.

DONE.

*Also, the "Dino Pool" was the best*

First Day...."Aliens"

 

Followed by "Family Legos" in the Lounge...

i heart LEGOS.

Second Day...."Pizzaria"

make & eat their own masterpiece.

Third Day...."Pirates"

aarrrrrr.............

"Papa Nash", our AWESOME server.

"Das", our AWESOME butler.

Room service for 8?  Too much???

Never!  The "inner Caterer" kicks in.

So back to the crazy skyline...

(this was non-stop)

Our final sunrise...

with mama.

with daddy.

bye, Dawn.

It was wonderful to see the ship & ocean through Zo's eyes.

Such vastness and endlessness.

Indescribable.

Far from his usual home school, a 6x10 feet space.

This was simply amazing.

Before booking the Cruise:

1)  Will my kid fall over the edge?

2)  Are there any kid/family activities?

3)  Is there anything the kids can eat?

4)  Will they remember it?

After the Cruise:

1)  Tall glass everywhere, really no way to grab and flip.

(the look of the waves alone will scare them enough to stay away.)

2) Non-stop action.

3)  Are you kidding me?

4)  He still talks about it.

Look for "Part 2" of the Dawn post:  Ports of Call

Grand Cayman & Cozumel

Baby Jars

Want to know how to make nifty kids crafts at home....on the cheap?
Leah, a mommy friend of mine, started a craft blog featuring her 2 adorable kids as the stars!

Still have extra baby food jars laying around the house?  We gave her a bunch and she's doing great with em'.
http://andrewandisabella.com/2010/11/baby-food-jars/

Holiday ornaments?  Paper crafts?  Fun fun blog..., and don't forget her "Andrew Says" section. 
Priceless.

Gobble Gobble.

 A recipe for Happy

1)  a few sheets of paper

2)  a couple of staples

3)  a pair of googlie-eyes (mis-matched)

4)  a tracing of hands, cut out, attach as "wings"

voila.

Funny...how a funny paper hat is the COOLEST thing to a 2 year old.

Grateful for the simple things in life.

We give Thanks this year.

From our own Native Turkey Whisperer...

Pom Poms!

Presentation:  Pom Pom Sorting

These fuzzy-wuzzy-furry Pom-Poms are awesome...

They remind me of the unbelievably stylish bobby socks I had in 5th grade.  White Keds and matching colored scrunchies in my hair.  Add a Bongo skirt and a Guess canvas tote and I was ALL SET.
I'm totally dating myself, but, like... whateves...

This is a variation on the original "Scooping Pom Pom" tool.
Zozie use to have a bowl of various colored pom poms which he scooped into an ice cube tray one at a time, using a plastic spoon.  This easy tool can be created with an egg carton, an ice cube tray, or any other compartmental container.  Now that he's over 2, I wanted to add levels to the original Pom Pom tool and expand on the basic skill of using a tong to pick objects up. 

I was mostly inspired by the wooden tray I got during our Group Yard Sale.  The tray is a Melissa & Doug wood block sorter.  A few pieces were missing, so I only kept the tray.  It's square, with 4 shapes (Triangle, Square, Rectangle, Circle) punched in.  Something good came out of that crazy sale!  Actually, quite a few things...this being one of them.


The Goal
Counting, color & shape sorting, pincher skill.

The Set Up
1)  A tray with compartments (egg crate, ice tray..)
2)  Handful of colored pom poms
3)  A small basket or box
4)  Tweezers or tongs

The Presentation
1)  Demo the basic clamping motion of using a tweezer
2)  Pinch a Pom-Pom, drop deliberately into a compartment.
3)  Repeat until all Pom Poms are placed, go from left to right.
4)  Reverse presentation, place all Pom-Poms back into basket.
5)  Invite child to try.
6)  Since my tray had shapes, I have cards that show each shape with a corresponding Pom-Pom color, so Zozie can read the card and know which color to place into which shape.

Practical Use for this tool?
Zo LOVES to serve his own plate or ours during meal time.
He also loves his little blue or yellow "compartmental" plate...like his mama's love of in-flight airplane meals.

Check out the work session...

Silver Spoon

Presentation:  Spoon Scoop

\

These little baby figurines came from Zozie's baby shower...

Nearly 3 years ago.

Tiny seemingly "Asian" baby boys...some in diapers...some in pajamas...were sprinkled all over tables in Conference room #6 at our architectural firm.  Having a lunch break baby shower in a sterile corporate environment seemed like wearing white socks with black leather loafers...in pants that are hemmed just a smidge too high.  

 

 A dear friend, design mentor, was already planning a more traditional shower with close friends and family.  But on this work shower day, most of the attendees were single, or single married couples (no children), and not planning any, atleast not any time soon.  I was also in that boat for many years.  I know that world blissfully well.   

We had Zo in our 8th year of marriage.

Seemed like the next branch we would naturally grow in our Couple-hood, inviting a 3rd person to join our marriage...so we can be a Triple-hood.

The commute was approx 2 hrs each way to work in West LA.  

Sometimes shorter, often times longer.  

And when I became pregnant, that's alot of time to think.  About everything.

Especially about where I can pull off to go pee in my 3rd trimester.  

Man, that was alot of driving.

Other than planning my next potty break, I reflected on myself growing a life, and yet, what was I doing with my own?  Things that were so important to me, suddenly seemed like a whole lotta busy work.  But I like busy.  I guess.

I installed my last design project on a Friday.  

5 Days after my Big Belly Bash.

A new hotel lobby for the Century Plaza Hotel in LA.  

Pushing the couches around with a basketball in my belly. 

Our team.

Zozie came that following Weds.
5 Days after my last installation.
Rolled from one job description into the next...

Zozie kinda looked like one of these little plastic babies...with less hair.

Seemed like ages ago when my only pressure was client presentations & deadlines.  And now I brainstorm over homeschool presentations & baby milestones.  Still busy work?  But, I like this busy.  I guess.
 
I knew I had to use these babies in a tool for Zozie.  In a way, they were the bridge of my past with my present.  Weird I know.  Anyways, Zozie was given an actual Silver Spoon at the shower.  Today, pairing the babies with a small Silver Spoon from a Cabbage Patch Doll...
We came up with one.

 The Goal
Precision in scooping a single object, sorting, tuning visual differentiation.

The Set Up
1)  3 Small Glass Bowls
2)  1 Small Spoon
3)  Handful of small objects (2 different kinds)
*You can use beans, beads, marbles, anything easy to scoop, one at a time.

The Presentation
1)  Pick up the spoon slowly and go to Bowl #1 filled with all the babies.
2)  Scoop a baby (with diaper) out and place it into Bowl #2
3)  Scoop another baby (one with pajamas) and place it into Bowl #3
4)  Continue to do this, always hovering over Bowl #2, then Bowl #3, make a decision, then drop the baby into the appropriate bowl.
5)  Continue until the bowl is finished.
6)  Reverse presentation, invite the child to try.

As you'll see in the video clip, it's really tempting for the child to use his hands to assist.  You'll also see Zo pouring the bowls, which is a spill over from his Pouring Tool (which we'll feature in a future post).  So, a few more things to work out for him, but overall, he really enjoys this.



As for my previous work life...
That's to be continued. 
Stay tuned.