Fun in Maryland

Last week David and I spent a few days visiting our good friends, the Ontiveros, in Maryland. It was a great time to just relax, hang out, and catch up. Their new home is so roomy and in such a nice neighborhood, walking distance to a lake. Jen and I went for a few walks, minus the kids, and on the 4th we all went for a stroll. After the kids were in bed they had a pretty spectacular fireworks show over the lake, which we could actually enjoy from their parking lot. It was nice to see the kids play together. Anneliese is walking around everywhere and David was trying to crawl to keep up. He was especially excited anytime Danny would walk into the room, he really enjoys watching older kids. Danny was very helpful with David, when I asked Danny to keep an eye on him for me, he took it literally. I sneaked a peek to see what he was doing, he wasn't even watching TV, he was watching David and giving him toys and hugging him, it was so adorable, he took it literally.

On the move!

In the past couple weeks David has just taken off. He is finally crawling. I was in the kitchen and he just showed up with a huge smile. He still does his belly crawl when he is a bit tired and he still has some coordination issues, but he sure loves to get around. He just crawled to me and pulled up on the chair to say hi. David is also more vocal, he loves to squeal, especially when Daddy comes home. His latest saying is "awa, awa", either for agua or for what :) Here are a couple of little videos of him on the go.

Daniel's Graduation and Party

On June 17th it was our youngest brother, Daniel's graduation from UC Irvine. It was very exciting and we are all very proud of him. The whole family gathered together and worked hard to get a party together at Anthony and Awnie's new home. It is the perfect party home, pool and all. It was great to see everyone enjoying and celebrating Daniel's special accomplishments. Along with Daniel's graduation, it also happened to be Father's Day, our friend Edie's birthday, and Keith and Mary's anniversary, so much to celebrate!

the birthday girl hiding behind two Davids

the Valenzuela Family

the Valenzuela clan

Yeah, Tio Daniel, the grad!

Checking out the pool

Marissa with the anniversary couple

Marissa posing with the grad

Yazmin and Tio Jose made the trek from Mexico

David stealing Don Howe's hat
lots of yummy food
Marissa spent so much time in the pool, we though she was a mermaid :)
Even Anthony enjoyed time in the pool

David's Birthday - CA edition

We celebrated David's first birthday with a big bash in California. It was great to see so many of you. It was a little rough for David, he needed a nap but we made it. In the end he got the "sillys", otherwise known as the "Marissas", giggling and smiling a lot. Here are a few of the pictures.

cozy with my cousin
thanks Tia for helping with my party
my Tia Lisa
playing with Grandma Mary
So fun
I can eat this Mickey!

I've had it!

more fun with Marissa

Hanging out in CA

We returned last week from spending some time with our family and friends in California. It was a great visit, very busy with parties and graduations. Baby David did well on the flight over and it only took 4 days of waking up at 5am with him to get him adjusted to the west coast time. It was a bit exhausting for me as he wanted to only be held by me at first and in every "new" situation, but eventually he warmed up and enjoyed the arms of the rest of the family. Some of the best times were spent just hanging out at home. Anytime David was a little fussy, Marissa knew how to cheer him up. I guess she has that affect on most people :)



Storytime with Marissa



dancing to "El Raton Vaquero"

Strolling thru Fashion Island

checking out Bebsy kitty

playing at the park with Hailey

playing with Daddy in Hailey's backyard

Birthday Party - New Hampshire edition

On June 3rd we celebrated our Baby David's 1st birthday. It's amazing to think he joined the family a year ago! He brings so much joy to us, everyday doing something new. About two weeks before he turned one, David started pulling up and wanting to be walked through the house. At first he could only make it to his room, but soon he was going all over the house. He enjoys it so much, he doesn't want to stop. When I try to take a break, as this is very uncomfortable for your back, he makes himself stiff so that you can't sit him down. He really had a great time at his first birthday party. We had a few of our friends' over for food, drinks and even some Dodgers. It was nice to have people over our place, it was a bit chilly, but at least it didn't rain and we were able to play outside for a bit. David devoured his birthday cake as we were all entertained by his antics.

David at Daddy's work

After the Obama rally, David and I walked Andrew to his office and hung out for awhile. They have a "robot pen" with toys where their robots do some of their learning. David thought it was a perfect play area for him.

Obama rally

Last Monday, we went to see another presidential candidate, Barack Obama. He was on campus at Dartmouth and he drew quite the crowd. There were about 10 times more people there than at the Jon Edwards event. We came a little late, we let David take as long a nap as possible, but heard most of what he had to say. David was on his best behavior, but it was way too crowded to get close. I did see him kiss a baby, too bad ours is way to heavy to hold out for him, he chilled in the stroller with Daddy most of the time. It's such a great experience to be in New Hampshire during a primary year, hopefully this will motivate me to get more involved and help make a difference.

Jen and Annelise visit

This week, we had a wonderful time with our visitors. Jen and Anneliese made the trek up north to hang out with us. It was really great to see our little ones interact and play together. David was so excited to have a real live baby in the house, he would squeal out with excitement just to get her attention. We tried to keep both babies happy and well rested and still managed to do some sight seeing and eating in town, cheese and maple sugar tasting in Vermont, and we even went to see John Edwards speak in the next town over. Although it was nice to have a playmate for David in the house, the best part was having Jen around to talk to, watch TV with and just hang out. We miss you guys, can't wait to see you again.

at the John Edwards rally

Sugarbush farm

a little video of them playing

I love my swing!

The weather has been nicer and we have been out more often. One of my pet peeves here is the lack of playgrounds, so we bought David an early birthday gift, his own swing. He absolutely loved it, I promise this video is much less traumatic.

First Haircut

Last weekend we took David in for his first haircut. His hair was getting scraggly in the back and around his ears and some people even thought he was a girl, strange, but ok I guess, since he usually is wearing navy blue or other boyish colors. Anyways, the whole experience was pretty traumatic, but it all worked out. The people were really nice and one lady entertained him while someone else helped me hold him while the girls cut what she could. Andrew was able to get some of the action before they started his cut, here he is with his big puppy dog tears.

big tears

Daddy knows how to make it all better

Mother's Day

This weekend we traveled south to Massachusetts. Along the way, as we entered civilization we stopped at a Costco, Target and Toys r us. David was such a trooper. When we got to the hotel, he took a nap and we were off to the mall. The next day we planned on exploring Boston, but instead went to Concord, MA and spent the day at Minuteman National Park. We walked across the bridge where the American Revolution first started and listened to a man dressed up with a musket and full garb. After teaching about our nation's history, it was amazing to be at a place like this. The weather was wonderful and Andrew and David were on their best behavior. I really couldn't ask for a better Mother's Day.

the bridge were it all began

they look so much alike!

Happy Mother's Day!

Face plant

I was trying to make a video of David and all of his movement. He goes to all fours from a sitting position, pretty exciting. But like I said, he freezes up whenever the camera comes out. He also gets really excited and blabs a lot. In this clip he starts up, but then takes a little spill :(

Funny face

Lately, I've been trying to take some pictures of David for his birthday invite. It has been quite difficult. Unfortunately he takes after me, David's eyes are closed or looking down or away. When he doesn't do that, he squints his eyes as if he's anticipating the flash. He even does this whenever he sees the camera. It really is a silly face. Here's a few of the mishaps:

cheezy smile

anticipated squinting

great shot, but looking down

silly boy!