San Diego Trip 2008

We went to San Diego this past week (4/12-4/19) and had a blast!! We got back late Sat night and on Sunday, we celebrated Desmond's baptism. So we have been pretty busy. We decided to take advantage of Dada's conference in San Diego and turn it into a family vacation. Appachen, Amamma, and Aunt Sil came along on the trip as well. We rented a house in beautiful La Jolla, CA that was situated within a few blocks walking distance to the beach. And as usual, San Diego weather was beautiful.

Sat April 12, 2008

Our flight to San Diego got delayed several times, so we didn't get to our house in La Jolla until 10:30 PM local time. Needless to say we were all worn out but the kids were troopers and did marvelously the entire trip. This night marked a milestone for Stella in that she went to sleep by herself in a "big girl" (as opposed to a crib) bed for the first time and slept in it all night long without a problem. She was happy to share her room with Aunt Sil. Desmond also went to bed without a fuss and only woke up once at 4:30 AM for a feed and went back to sleep again until 7:30 AM.

Sun April 13, 2008

Sunday, we took it pretty easy, still recovering from the previous day's travels and jet lag. Dada went to his conference early morning and the rest of us slept in as much as the kids allowed us to. We then took a walk to the nearby restaurants for lunch followed by naps, playing in the yard and enjoying the beautiful weather. Stella thought the orange tree in our neighbor's backyard was pretty cool. When Dada returned, we had dinner in the Gas Lamp district of downtown San Diego. Unfortunately, we were too jet lagged to remember to take any pics on Sunday.

Mon, April 14, 2008

Monday, Dada went to his conference once again early morning and Stella, Aunt Sil, Appachen, and Mama walked to the beach while Amamma stayed behind to keep an eye on the napping Gup.

Stella saw and felt the Pacific Ocean for the first time and was instantly in love. She loved the beach so much that she didn't want to go back. Mama had to bribe her with a lollipop to get her back in the stroller.

A few weeks before our trip, we gave in and purchased a double stroller and here is a shot of it. We really like the double stroller and it came in very handy during this trip.

Monday night, we had a picnic dinner on Sunset Cliffs and watched the sunset. It gets pretty chilly once the sun starts going down but a good time was had by all.

That same night, the Gup got a bath in his brand new inflatable tub that we had purchased just for this trip (it folds away very compactly) and he had fun splashing the water with his hands and his feet. This was the first time we had seen him splash during his bath (b/c his reclining bath seat at home doesn't fill up with as much water like this one), but he was very serious about it and splashed the water like it was his job.

Tues, April 15, 2008

We went to the San Diego Zoo Tues morning. Stella had a blast looking at all of the animals (flamingos, monkeys, elephants, lions, meerkats, birds, hippos, etc).

One of her favorite spots was the petting zoo. Stella has not met an animal that she doesn't like and proceeded to pet all of the goats and sheep in the petting zoo.

When Desmond wasn't napping in the stroller, he was enjoying the sights at the zoo in the Baby Bjorn.

When we later asked Stella, she said her favorite animal she saw at the zoo was the Panda bear and her cub. The panda bear figurine is what she picked out for herself at the gift store.

The Gup was also very curiously observing the Panda bear.

We rounded out our day at the zoo with rides on the skyfari (the aerial sky ride). Stella, Mama, and Aunt Sil were in cart #19...

...and Dada and Des were right behind us taking pictures of us and themselves.

Wed, April 16, 2008

On Wed, we had a leisurely lunch in La Jolla village at a restaurant with magnificent views of La Jolla Cove. Afterwards, we took a walk to the nearby park where Stella was able to run free and the rest of us just enjoyed the sunshine and beautiful scenery. There is a reason why La Jolla means "The Jewel" in spanish...it is absolutely beautiful!!

Desmond got his daily dose of sunshine...


...as well as some lovin'.


Here's the Gup enjoying some lap time with Aunt Sil...


...as well as some tummy time


...and some cereal alfresco.


Mama just loves the following picture showing the brown highlights in Desmond's hair...evidence of Dada's blond hair genes trying to surface through =;)

Once again, Stella found an animal to play with and pet at the park...a cute little white dog who was just as thrilled to play with Stella.

Thurs, April 17, 2008

On Thurs, Dada and Stella went to the beach in the morning and Stella went into the cold, cold ocean all the way in until the water was at her chest level. She did not care how cold the water was and had a blast just splashing around. That is the one thing about kids...they are unaffected by climate and weather as long as they are having fun.

Here she is showing off her Minnie Mouse bathing suit and sunglasses...Stella is a huge Mickey Mouse Clubhouse fan!

In the afternoon, the whole family headed to Balboa Park and walked around the beautiful grounds and enjoyed their science museum. Stella absolutely loved the science museum...running around and wreaking havoc. Her favorite was playing the xylophone in the sound/music room.

Stella, Mama, Aunt Sil, Amamma, and Appachen watched a movie about dolphins at the Imax theater while Dada stayed in the science center with a napping Desmond. Stella enjoyed the first 15 min of the program where dolphins would dive out of the ocean seemingly into your lap, but lost interest when the educational part of the show started. But she was a good little girl and amused herself by singing and clapping for the duration of the 40 minute movie. Here she is in the Imax theater sitting with Mama waiting for the show to begin.

Desmond took a long nap in the science center but woke up in time to enjoy our walk outside in beautiful Balboa park.

Fri, April 18, 2008

Our last day started with Dada, Mama, and Stella heading off to the beach in the morning for one last romp in the ocean for Stella. Once again, Stella had a blast and kept venturing further and further out into the ocean despite the chilly water temperature.

We knew it was time to leave when Stella's lips turned purple, but she was absolutely heartbroken to leave...

Her lips stayed purple for awhile even after we got her home and got her warmed up. Mama was getting concerned, but luckily, Stella's lips returned to their normal color after about an hour or so.

Sat, April 19, 2008

No one wanted to leave beautiful San Diego, but our vacation had come to an end and we sadly headed off to the airport to return home. The Gup was still in a good mood, but then again, life is one big vacation for him as a baby. He especially enjoyed sitting in his sister's carseat at the airport like a big boy. Aunt Sil was making him laugh hysterically while in the carseat and we hope to post that video in another post.

Despite the long hours, the kids did great again on the return trip. We had a fabulous time in San Diego and we hope to return for another visit soon.

Desmond's Baptism

Today was Desmond's baptism. Ommy, Amamma, Appachen, and Aunt Sil were here to help us celebrate this important milestone in Desmond's life. Desmond did great throughout the service, but he objected to the actual placing of water on his head by whining a little bit. But after that he was fine. Stella was a good little girl during the church service as well. Here are some pics from Desmond's baptism.

P.S.The red mark on Des's nose is the scratch he gave himself in San Diego.

Desmond Flips Over

Desmond flippped over onto his belly yesterday for the first time. Mama was out shopping so, sadly, she was not there to witness it, but Dada saw it. Come to think of it, Dada was the first to see Stella flip onto her belly for the first time as well. Dada said that Des grabbed both of his feet and flipped to his left side. He had this look of utter surprise on his face when he landed on his belly. He got three fourths of the way to flipping over several more times but would stop himself because he didn't want to do it again.

Our 4 Year Wedding Anniversary Weekend!

March 28, 2008

Today is our 4 year wedding anniversary. Sometimes it feels like "wow, has it been that long?" But most of the times, after 2 kids, countless dirty diapers, and many sleepless nights, we say to ourselves "really, has it only been 4 years since we got married?"

Well, to help us celebrate and give us a much needed break from our daily routines, Ommy came over to watch Stella and Desmond for the weekend. In the evening, we went to Morton's Steakhouse for dinner and to a movie afterwards...we hadn't been to a movie in about a year!!! It was a fun and relaxing evening. To top off the night, Ommy took care of Desmond's 4 AM feeding while Mama and Dada had a night of uninterrupted sleep...so nice!

March 29, 2008
We slept in a little bit, went out to breakfast by ourselves, came back, packed up our stuff and headed down to DC in the afternoon. We went to the National Museum of Art (we wanted to go to the Spy Museum but it was sold out) and afterwards, headed to our hotel in Georgetown. We got ready at a leisurely pace and went to dinner at CityZen in the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in DC. CityZen is rated as the #2 very best restaurant in the DC metro area by Washingtonian Magazine and we couldn't agree more. Our dining experience was a culinary masterpiece and the service was absolutely impeccable. We capped off the night by a visit to the Kennedy Center and took in magnificent views of the city from its famed rooftop. And then we just headed back to our hotel and crawled into our comfy bed and slept in until 9:30 AM...woo hoo!!!

March 30, 2008
We rounded off of our anniversary weekend with a leisurely brunch at Mie N U restaurant in Georgetown.

The break that we got during this anniversary weekend was long overdue and marked a milestone for Smitha since this was the first time that she had spent a night away from either Stella or Desmond. We had such a blast this weekend and came back very refreshed and relaxed. Ommy said that we looked 6 years younger when we returned...did we look that bad before? ;)

This weekend would not have been possible without Ommy and we are so grateful to her for her help and her time. Ommy had a great time with the kids and the kids behaved beautifully for her. Here are some pics of Stella and Des from their weekend with Ommy. Unfortunately Ommy was taking all of the pictures so she isn't in any of them...

The Gup enjoying some time on the mat while Stella ate breakfast.

Stella enjoying the eggs and "waffle fingers" Ommy made her for breakfast.

Des looks on as Stella colors.

Stella and Des playing together. Desmond is a drool monster these days.

Desmond's hair is getting long again...he will be getting his 4th haircut soon!!!

Ommy giving Desmond some tummy time.

Des and Stella on their daily walks with Ommy. Our kids love being outside, just love it, despite their somber expressions in this pic!!!

Stella stopping to smell the roses...in this case, daffodils and azaleas.

The Gup was out cold during the end of one of their walks and he slept for 2 hours on the couch with his hat and coat still on. Here, Ommy was trying to get a shot at his eyelashes.

Thanks again Ommy for watching our kids this weekend!!!!

Desmond is 5 Months Old

Desmond turned 5 months old 3 days ago on Easter Sunday. We can't believe that it has been 5 months since Des was born. Time sure does fly. Desmond is a super happy baby who giggles all of the time. He is very social and wants lots of attention from us. Since this blog is also a way for us to document events and milestones in the lives of our kids, we wanted to list what Desmond's personality is like and all of the things Desmond is able to do right at this moment.

• Desmond is a super happy baby who giggles and laughs all of the time, especially when Mama is around.


• He loves Mama like crazy. He gives her the biggest smiles and giggles and laughs. He especially likes to grab Mama's face and slobber all over or bite down on her chin. We think this is his way of kissing and saying "i love you".


• He is ticklish and laughs when you kiss his belly during diaper changes.


• He loves it when you make kissing noises to him.


• He loves to be outside and look at things and put new things in his computer.


• He is very social and wants lots of attention and lots of people to talk to him.


• He loves cereal and snarfes it down. He watches us eat adult food very intently and longingly and will try to swipe at it if he is within arms reach.


• He swipes at any toy Stella should happen to have in her hands if she is near him.


• He can hold is head up 90 degrees when on his belly and can push up and lift his chest off the floor...but he still doesn't prefer belly time much.


• He is very close to flipping over onto his belly from his back.


• He prefers to sleep and roll to his right side.


• He doesn't cry during his bath anymore...he stopped crying somewhere around 3 months of age.


• His favorite toy is the exersaucer. He can play with all of the toys on it and push all the buttons. But what he really likes to do is eat/chew the plush toys on it like the sun and the pyramid shape and the dragon puppet.


• He can grab both of his feet, but unlike his sister, he doesn't try to eat them.


• He loves to chew on his fingers although, he doesn't suck his thumb.


• He likes his pacifier, especially taking it in and out of his mouth.


• He is a big boy because at 4.5 months, he was already wearing 9 month size clothes and they just fit him perfectly now. So we predict by 6 months of age, he will be wearing 12 month size clothes.
• He has several nicknames and they are: specky boy, gup, guppa, guppa bear, gup-o-matic, guppers, Des, and Desmo.

Happy Easter!

We celebrated Easter weekend by first getting some studio pictures of Stella and Desmond. We were thrilled with the outcome and some of our favorite ones of them individually and together are posted above. This was Desmond's first professional studio shoot and despite a few crying spells, he did pretty well.

Sunday, Stella and Mama went to church. Desmond and Dada met us at church after the service for the church's annual Easter Egg Hunt. Stella had fun collecting her eggs despite the chilly weather. We think she would have collected more eggs had she known ahead of time that there were chocolate candies inside of the eggs.