Category — Photos

Grammy is visiting us this week.  Everyone loves having her around, especially Callum.  Here are some pictures:

Grammy, Mommy and Callum

Around here we call this a good hair day.

Callum tries on some new shades.

We ride the historic streetcar along the embarcadero.  This particular car came from Birmingham Alabama.

Tiffany Grammy and Callum (in the stroller) pause for a photo in front of Alcatraz at fisherman’s wharf.

Daddy and Callum play.

I’ve learned that babies get sick.  Especially when 20 of them spend weekdays together sucking on the same toys.  Daycare rules dictate that when Callum gets a fever we have to keep him home until his temperature has been below 100 degrees for 24 hours.  This means that usually after a day home with a happy sick Callum we have a day home with a happy healthy Callum.  

Today we are staying home with Callum not because he is sick or because he was sick yesterday.   Grammy is visiting us from Florida so we are taking a vacation day.

Here are some pictures from recent sick days and healthy days.

Happy Sick baby.

Playing with blocks on a sick day.

Staging a parade of toys on a sick day.

Callum addresses the parliment on the day after a sick day.

Callum chairs important parliamentary deliberations regarding planned events for the not sick day.

Callum plays hardball with the parliament.

In San Francisco today was the Annual Bay to Breakers 12K race.  The race starts at the bay and goes to the beach, and for most participants is essentially a 12K  long party.  The already lax open container, public drunkenness and indecent exposure laws are apparently fully ignored during the race.  Most participants don elaborate costumes, some don nothing at all.

It’s been exactly one year since we arrived in San Francisco.  I can say this with certainty because we woke up early our first morning in San Francisco to find the streets outside our apartment building filled with costumed crazies toting cases of beer.  We had no idea what was going on, but the spectacle  made quite an unusual introduction to our new city of residence.  I was a bit embarrassed the following week when I walked out wearing a costume and carrying beer – I should have known it wasn’t an EVERY sunday thing.

This year we took part in the race with tiffany’s mothers group.  We entered in the “wheeled objects” division because of our strollers (what race has a division for wheeled objects?).  We found ourselves walking alongside what can only be described as parade floats, each pushed by a group of people, stocked with large tanks of booze.  Most notably was a hospital gurney surrounded by a dozen of doctors and nurses carrying I.V. bags of fruit punch and a life guard stand with dozens of “life guards” in baywatch attire. 

There are, of course, some serious runners but they finish long before the real fun happens.  We had a good time, made it nearly half of the 12k, calling it quits when race route took us within a few blocks of our apartment.  Maybe next year we’ll make it to the beach.

A “doctor” stands on a gurney being pushed by other while holding an IV bag filled with beverage.

Callum and Jayden are ready to go while we adults apply sun cream.

A DJ set up on the roof of a building along the route.

The race route filled with “racers”

The life guard booth is pushed along the route with a green man dancing inside.

Callum and Alexandre pause for a sip.

Callum shows of his handsome race shirt.

Today is tiffany’s first mother’s day.  You might wonder how that is possible given that Callum is over a year old.  Mother’s day is celebrated at different times in different countries.  In england the ‘mothering sunday’ celebration is a quasi-christian holiday occurring on the fourth sunday of lent, three weeks before easter.  Mother’s day in the US is a more modern secular holiday, celebrated on the second sunday in May.  Last year Callum was born in England four weeks after mothering sunday and we moved to San Francisco on May 15th, six days after American mother’s day.

You might argue that since we are American should have celebrated American mothers day even though we were in the UK.  The fact is that without television commercials, or mother’s day flower roadside stands nobody would know mother’s day is approaching.  In the absence of typical cultural cues how were we to know?  Plus you have to factor in the fact that we were busy taking care of a 5 week old infant AND preparing to move all belongings to another continent.  We didn’t have time to notice that 3000 miles away it was mother’s day. 

So here are some pictures from Tiffany’s first mother’s day with her 13 month old baby:

Her mothers day present.

Callum helped to “prepare” the present.

Callum has recently learned to give kisses.  It’s really sweet except when he has a runny nose and drooly chin, then it’s kinda gross.

Breakfast phase one, yogurt strawberries and granola.

A present to tiffany from Grandma.

Hi everybody – here are some pictures from last month. . . not including the birthday.  Our pictures weren’t too great, so I’m going to get some from the grandparents to post up here. . . 

In the mean time. . . 

Story time with mommy – can’t remember why he was shirtless. . . 

Callum feeds himself most of the time now, which can be VERRRRY messy.  This is cereal which Callum ate with his right hand while  clutching his spoon tightly with his left hand.

The overhead view shows some of the damage to Callum’s clothes and the floor.

The cats taking a nap with Andy.

Callum & Tiffany at Alexandre’s birthday party.

Callum and his birthday buddy, Jayden, on a fun toy!

Jayden giving Callum a ride.

Boys on the alligator. . . it may have been even harder than last time!

Callum climbed into the shower with Tiffany one day.  He cried at first (he was surprised to land in there after so much effort), but then he LOVED it.  He has tried to get in every day since then.

Bed head.

It turns out that having a challenging full-time job AND a spouse with a challenging full-time job AND an 11-month-old baby and some cats and oh I don’t know some semblance of a dinner and washed dishes and clothes. . . is pretty darn time consuming (to our pregnant friends . . . uh. . . ignore this bit – babies are awesome.  fact).  PLUS, there’s all that time Andy has to spend discovering one-octave songs to play on Callum’s new xylophone.  Apparently it’s all in the wrist.  Anyway, we want to show you folks some pictures.

Callum likes to help us pay the bills.

See?!

We went to visit Chris & Crystal in Phoenix, and Callum went on his first bike ride!  He liked going fast, and he kept playing with Andy’s back while they were cycling along.

Andy and Callum hanging out while we were on a break from our bike ride.

A nice picture of some of our favorite friends.  I like it because it somehow conveys what’s wonderful about them.  

The C-man is getting better and better at standing up while he’s holding on to something.  He likes to stand and watch the bath fill up.  Sometimes – when the floor’s too cold – he stands on one leg like a flamingo.

Callum needs a LITTLE more practice with the spoon.  Unless the goal is to fling it at the wall.  Yes, on second thought, he may be an EXPERT with the spoon!

So that’s it for this month, but we’re nearing in on the big birthday, and we’re planning a fun trip to Florida for the occasion!  We’re so excited to see our families there and to spend some time in the sunshine and warmth.  AND to take a couple days off from those crazy jobs I mentioned.  Callum has TWO bathing suits to try out. . .

We’re a week late, but that’s not so bad.  We had a busy month, and last weekend (when I should have been posting pictures), we decided to rent a car.  On Saturday, we drove up to Sonoma and beyond to check out the town and do a little bit of wine tasting.  We couldn’t return the car until Monday, so we took advantage of the opportunity on Sunday to drive to Target and stock up on baby supplies.  It was a very expensive trip, but it was all on things we needed anyway, and it will save us LOTS of carrying big bulky things back from the grocery store.

This week, I’m going on a business trip, so Andy has to be a single dad for a few days – what an adventure for the boys!

Close up!!

Callum & Andy on Tank Hill – you can see GG bridge if you squint.

How did all of those donuts get down there?

Jayden’s mom took this photo of our playdate in Golden Gate Park. C was showing his CTC pride!

Callum likes wine-tasting.  

Playing on the grass at a winery.

The grass was a little spikey, but Callum didn’t mind.

Callum & Andy at Hop Kiln winery.

C enjoying wine-tasting number 2.