Halloween 2007

Another Halloween, and we took the kids out to hit the Victorian home district close to our place. Athena wanted to be an especially frilly princess.


And Zoë went as a ladybug, a costume familiar to many as Athena's costume from Halloween's past.




Here's me helping with the costume.




And off we go...




Divvying up some early spoils.


Athena works the crowds.






Back home, Zoë wonders my Athena gets more junk food .


But we still get them to pose for some pics.

10/29/07 - Playing in bed

We took these pics when Athena and Zoë were doing one of their favorite things, playing in our bed. Ironically, the later it is, the more they enjoy it. I think these photos show how lucky we are to have such good natured girls who can have fun together and show genuine affection toward each other, although we have to be careful that Athena doesn't get carried away and squeeze her sister a little too hard. The last picture, for example, was taken mere moments before we intervened and, in true parent fashion, put a damper on all the fun.

10/20/07 - Disney Visit

As the year drew to an end, so did our year memberships to Disneyland. So here's some pics from our last trip, where we went to California Adventure (the eternal Frank Stallone of theme parks) to avoid the crowds.

Here's Zoë showing that Athena's not the only one who enjoys commandeering Daddy's hat.

Before...


And after...


Zoë's at that special age where she doesn't realize the trash cans are not supposed to be an integral part of the fun of going to Disneyland, on par with any of those rides.

Hey, this trash can doesn't even have a line!


And Athena hasn't yet realized that all the displays of toys can actually be purchased and taken home. (That'll be a fun day.)


Here's some shots from Flik's Flyers. First, amusing Zoë as we wait...


Then me and Athena enjoying the ride.




We spent most of the day at Flik's Fun Fair, the one part of California Adventure aimed at younger kids. The place is a marvel of design, where everything is scaled to make one feel bug-sized. The carriage we're riding in actually looks like a discarded box of Chinese take-0ut.

Finally, here's a closing shot of Athena and Zoë showing sisterly love.

Making Friends at Torung

And after our little jaunt to the Pasadena Mall, we stopped by our fave Mom-and-Pop Thai place, where Athena made a friend enjoying the indoor fountain.

At the Pasadena Mall

I have a confession to make. I'm not very good at shopping. At least, I don't enjoy doing it serious more than once or twice a year. (Excepting bookstores, of course.) Sally, on the other hand, is a season pro. So one reason I'm glad for Athena (and soon, Zoë) is I now have a useful function to perform in the shopping process. Namely, watch the kids. Here's Athena exploring a sculpture at the Pasadena Mall.

At the O.C. County Fair

Here's some pics from our trip to the Orange County County Fair. Although much of the fair has been given over to carnival rides and pushing the boundaries of what foods can be deep fried, there's a still some space dedicated to the traditional raison d'etre of County Fairs, displaying produce and livestock. Here's Athena in front of some prize pumpkins.


And who can resist the kitsch of one of those stick your head into the humorous tableu displays? Not Athena...


Still, there's only so much championship squash Athena can endure before wanting to get on with the overpriced rides. Here's some kindly girl helping Athena through an obstacle course:



And Athena insisted I accompany her on the kiddie bumpers cars, despite the fact that I can't actually fit inside the bumper car.




All in all, it was fun, but expensive. They really lure you in with those cheap ride tickets, where it usually takes 6-8 tickets to get on a ride. All in all, we spent about as much as we would have on a day at Disneyland, but then, no one at Disneylad is deep-frying Krispy Kremes.

Martin's Birthday Party

Among my earliest memories is going to childhood parties given by friends of my parents. It was oddly disorienting bringing a gift to wishing a happy birthday to some kid I barely knew, but thrilling as well, as if I got to sneak into a party, with all its attendant benefits, on a technicality.

So, the tradition continues, as we took Athena and Zoe to the first birthday party of Martin, the second boy of Michael, a friend in my writing group.

Athena and Zoë were thrilled at the prospect of meeting some kids their own age. Here Athena learns that Michael's oldest Morgan shares her love of and fascination with birthday cakes:





Here Zoë makes friends with the birthday boy Martin and even plants a big, wet birthday kiss on his head when he wasn't looking.




Morgan, however, was less than thrilled with having to share the spotlight with yet another one year old.



All too familiar with sibling rivarly, we made sure to get a little something for non-birthday boy Morgan. Here he is enjoying his new toy, a bubble gun, and wherever there are bubbles, Athena is sure to be close by (although not always in a cowboy hat).





Here Athena and Zoë enjoy free access to their hosts' toys:





And Michael was kind enough to introduce Athena to their pet bunny.



And here Zoë displays her natural and (never ending) curiousity. This time in Mommy's drink.

At the Little Gym

Prior to starting school, we had Athena in a movement class at The Little Gym. Athena's favorite part was when they inflated the bounce track.








The teacher was very nice and let Zoë join in as well.