"Fire Engine" video

Maya riding the fire engine at the Oakland Zoo...

Oakland Zoo

We decided to change it up a little by going to the Oakland Zoo instead of our usual San Francisco Zoo. Maya was delighted by some of the different animals on exhibit here including the elephants. They also have a large area with rides which meant Maya got to relive the excitement of the 'cars that drive in circles' ride.

Maya is serious about animal observation.

Elephant!

Maya goes in for a closer look.

Maya drivin' the fire engine. The ultimate thrill.

Santa Claus Comes To Town

Maya was so excited about Christmas this year. She was enchanted by the idea of Santa and all the fun of the holiday. On Christmas Eve, we put out cookies and milk for Santa and carrots and celery for the reindeer. The next morning, Maya was delighted that Santa brought us presents and left full stockings in front of our 'fireplace.'

"Celery is for the reindeer," explains Maya while showing off all the treats for Santa.

Christmas morning.

The warming glow of televised yule log. Good thing Santa doesn't mind going through windows or doors when there's no fireplace.

Stockings.

Maya has her best telephone conversation to date with Coco and Nate in Hawaii over breakfast.

Maya with her drums from Coco.

Maya with more presents. What a great day!

Christmas Eve Brunch With Jenny

Maya got to have a little brunch with Jenny, San Francisco babysitter extraordinaire. Now that we've moved, Maya hasn't seen her (except at her b-day party). Maya was happy to eat pancakes with one of her favorite people.

Jenny and Maya.

Kisses.

Merry Christmas Eve!

Madd Max in San Rafael

We were so happy when Sam, Jess, Maddie, and Max (aka Madd Max) came to visit us for a long weekend. The kiddies had a great time together. The parents LOVED having a chance to chill out together for the first time in a while. These pictures show some of the fun, but Sam and Jess's blog has some even better pix of the weekend...click here and here and here.

Maddie, Max, and Maya in her bed.

The three M's sharing the love.

Maya and Maddie learning bird calls.

Ice cream, animal book, tea, and other assorted madness.

Adventuring out in a very rainy San Rafael on the way to Wildcare for some animal fun which included pelicans and a stuffed bear that delights Maya and terrifies Jess and Maddie.

Gettin' Cultural

On Saturday, we decided to get all cultural and stuff. We headed down to San Francisco where we walked around the Civic Center in the morning and saw neat buildings and cool sculptures. We then took a quick train ride to Contemporary Jewish Museum to look at their Curious George exhibit. We followed that with a lunch in the cafe at the SFMoMA. If that sounds ridiculously cultural, we finished off the afternoon with Maya's first trip to the symphony. She loved it.

Maya and Daddy enjoying this recent addition to the Civic Center area.

They agree that Zhang Huan's "Three Heads Six Arms" is quite cultural.

Our view at the San Francisco Orchestra's family concert.

Checking out the instruments.

A couple of last shots before the concert begins.

Do we look cultural yet?

Oh Christmas Tree

This weekend was filled with Christmas fun including pigtails, Christmas trees, and a holiday party for Ma and Pa.

Maya allows for pigtails to go with her pajama tutu outfit.

Maya agrees to get on her street attire to go find the perfect tree. Upon our return, Maya helps unload the Christmas decorations.

Maya supervises the lighting of the tree.

The parents finished the day at the Lucasfilm Holiday Party complete with sexy Brazilian dancers and snakes.

"Dancing With Coco" video

A wonderful day with Santa and Coco merits some interpretive dance...

Aloha Coco

Our visit to Santa was bittersweet as it was the last day that we were going to see Coco before she makes the big move to Hawaii. Both she and Nate have found wonderful jobs in Honolulu and will be living there for the next couple of years. We will miss having her in San Francisco, but we won't mind visiting her!

Coco and Maya.

Sisters.

Ladies day out.

Coco and Nate, we will miss you!

Maya Meets Santa Again

Keeping up our holiday tradition, Coco met us in Union Square for our annual Santa visit. Maya's opinion of Santa is definitely at a new high. She was so happy to see him...

For all of the Santa pictures, click here.

Gingerbread Houses Return

It has now become a Christmas tradition for Nick and Maya to make gingerbread houses together at the Discovery Museum. This year, they sadly realized that their art project consisted of delicious candy which led to serious sugar highs. Maya and Nick were very opinionated about their houses and it shows in the final product...

Construction begins. The everyone looks a bit older than the did last year.

Nick works on his masterpiece.

Maya contemplates where to place her smarty...

...right...there.

Beautiful.

"The Pool" video

Experience the pool with tour guide Maya...

Mexico: Parting Shots

Parting shots of lovely Mexico...

The Pool.

The Maya.

The Momma.

The Dad.

The Pals.

The Life.

Mexico: Skinny dippin'

The weather was beautiful in Mexico, but cooler than usual. This made the unheated pool a bit too cold for frolicking. However, we did warm up the hot tub enough for some swimming excitement.

Hanging by the pool.

"Why...Hello!"

Maya, Santi, and Santi's cousin, Olive.

Fun!