The past week has been full of fun and exciting events. Last week, our friends Susan, Brad, and Dax, welcomed their second son/brother into the world. Rand was born via c-section on Thursday, the 17th. I went to visit Susan in the hospital that evening. She looked amazing, especially considering she had surgery that morning. Alanna and I went to visit them at home today, and they're all doing great. Congratulations to the Smith Family!

On Saturday night, Alanna slept in her "big girl" bed for the first time. We were thrilled that the transition went so smoothly. She has been sleeping through the night all week. Unfortunately, naps have been rocky, but I'm assuming that they will improve with time.

On Sunday, I met my friend Kirsten for lunch and shopping in San Mateo. It was great spending time with her. On Monday after our art class, another Davis friend, Jamie came down to have lunch with Alanna and me. Jamie is expecting her first daughter in April. I was happy to share some of the clothes and shoes that Alanna has outgrown with her, especially since they'll be too feminine for our little guy.

Tonight I'm taking the red-eye to NY to visit Grandma Sylvia. She hasn't been doing well for the past few months (dementia), so I'd like to spend some time with her. It's going to be a quick trip, I'm flying back on Sunday morning. I'll definitely be anxious to see Justin and Alanna.

We have had such beautiful weather here the past few days. We definitely took advantage of it over the weekend. On Saturday morning, we went for a walk on the Campbell trail and played at the park. We went out for lunch and then spent the afternoon playing outside in our complex. Alanna took her new trike for a spin (well, actually Justin pushed her around). In the evening, I headed over to our friend Teresa's house for a girl's night in. We watched the Shark's game (Teresa is a huge hockey fan), ate a yummy dinner, and played Guitar Hero. What a fun game, I can see how it becomes addicting.

Sunday morning, we headed over to Rancho San Antonio park, in Los Altos and walked the trail to Deer Hollow Farm. Alanna really enjoyed looking at the animals (she's definitely related to her Mommy!).



We had fun calling to the pigs, "Sooie, pig, pig, pig."



This week, we began our winter classes (we do an activity every quarter). Yesterday, Alanna and I attended our Rhythms in Art class, at The Art Beat in Campbell. We had a great time making a collage, playing with play dough, and drawing in shaving cream. This morning we went to My Gym. I think the ball pit and trampoline were A's favorite activities.

Have a great rest of the week!

Happy Friday! We've been quite busy lately. Alanna and I went to visit Grandma El and Grandpa Barry in Santa Cruz last Thursday, and ended up staying the night, due to the bad storm that hit Northern California. We arrived home safely on Friday, although it took us TWO hours to get back (normally a 30 minute drive). Highway 17 had horrible delays in the morning and then was closed due to down power lines. We drove home via 129, and then encountered flooding in Morgan Hill, it was crazy!

It rained on Saturday as well, so we stuck to indoor activities. The three of us took a trip to the pet store in the morning and then went out for Mexican that night. Alanna is a huge fan of rice and beans. On Sunday, Grandma Sherry and Grandpa John drove down to visit. We had a nice lunch at home, spent time playing with Alanna's new easel (a holiday gift), and chatted.

This week we have had a couple of play dates, walked the Campbell trail, and visited a prospective nursery school, San Jose Parents Nursery School. Alanna and I liked the school, but will visit a few more in the weeks to come, for comparison. Justin and I are pretty certain that we would like to join a cooperative school (parent participation). Fortunately, there are many local schools to choose from. It is hard to believe our little girl will be going to school next year!

Unfortunately, it looks like Alanna is battling yet another cold (it's that time of year), but she is very chipper, despite the congestion. Kids are real troopers!

Have a wonderful weekend.

Happy New Year!!!

The end of last week was pretty mellow, because Alanna caught a nasty cold. She was pretty congested Wednesday through Saturday. We spent a lot of time indoors, trying to get her to rest, ha ha. Unfortunately we had to miss the annual Samuel Family holiday party at Bob and Peg's on Saturday.

We were finally able to go out and play again on Sunday. We went to Santana Row, where Alanna had fun throwing pennies in the fountain and running around. In the afternoon, Bryan and Carol came down for dinner. They brought delicious Indian food with them. We really had a great time eating and chatting together.

On Monday morning, Justin and I went to my ultrasound and doctor's appointment. I am happy to report that everything looks good. We found out that Baby Magers #2 is going to be a boy! It's pretty cool that we are going to experience raising one of each. I think Alanna will enjoy having a little bro. We're starting to think about names, but will wait until the big day to share it. Here's a picture of the little guy:


After the appointment, we went out for dim sum with Mom and Dad in Milpitas. It was Alanna's first time eating dim sum, she really seemed to like it. I am so glad that she is an adventurous eater! She also loves to share pearl tea drinks with us.

We rang in 2008 at Susan and Brad's house, the Jensen's joined us too. We had a delicious dinner and spent a lot of time laughing together. Celebrating with good friends is always special. We didn't get to sleep in yesterday, after our late night out, but we did have a nice relaxing day. We took Alanna to the park in the morning, watched some football, and went to look at Christmas lights for the last time this season.

Isabella and Alanna saying "cheers!" on New Year's Eve: