Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Feb 10, 2012, 12:02 am
When I did that Christmas post in early January, I had no idea that would be my last post on this blog.  I knew I couldn't keep it up forever... but I also knew I wanted to be able to share pictures with friends and family, and I wanted to be able to create books with those photos. I finally fini...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Jan 2, 2012, 12:19 pm
Christmas Eve was a day filled with anticipation. We baked chocolate chip cookies to leave out for Santa, and we set out some reindeer food, too. Vita wanted to put a sign out to make sure everyone knew the food was for Santa's reindeer. After all, we didn't want the regular neighborhood reindeer to...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Dec 22, 2011, 12:28 pm
These days we're keeping very busy as we prepare for the upcoming holidays.  We've had cold but incredibly sunny weather for several weeks, and we realized we haven't been to our favorite park since Anabelle has been a proficient walker.  It's so much fun to walk hand in hand. Anabelle climbed al...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Dec 8, 2011, 3:12 pm
This year for her fourth birthday, Vita had a Pirate Party!  Ernie and Grandma Victoria got there early to set up.  Here's Ernie guarding the park. As guests arrived, each got a pirate hat, patch, and inflatable sword.  Then, Vita would escort them to the ship.  (The park actually has a pirate ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Nov 26, 2011, 12:43 am
We have all been sick, on and off, since last Sunday night. We were so disappointed to have to cancel our Thanksgiving trip to Los Angeles at the last minute, but we had no choice... as many of us have been fighting some sort of flu with high fevers, body aches, and coughs. Instead, we have been s...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Nov 20, 2011, 12:51 am
The next six weeks will bring Thanksgiving, Vita's birthday, Christmas and New Years... but it has been nice to have some downtime between the excitement of Anabelle's birthday and Halloween two weeks ago, and the upcoming holiday season. Last weekend I used a "groupon" to get a really good deal on...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Nov 1, 2011, 12:07 am
We had a fun Halloween today.  The day started off with a preschool parade.  It was fun to see all the kids dressed up, but trying to keep them organized was like herding cats.  I especially loved all the kids holding hands as they walked down the block.  Vita dressed up like a black cat. There...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Oct 29, 2011, 11:55 pm
Anabelle turned ONE today! On Friday, the day before Anabelle's birthday, I took the day off work to have a day to spend alone with Anabelle, on her last day as a baby.  We had so much fun, and in between games of chase, and catch and peek-a-boo we played with balloons and started to put up some ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Oct 22, 2011, 1:20 pm
I'm going to attempt to make up for posting so infrequently with a huge post with lots of pictures... There's no stopping us now, we're on the move.  For months, Anabelle would "walk" around the house with this walker toy for balance.  She loved the mobility, and was so happy to be able to get ar...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Oct 22, 2011, 12:03 pm
Ernie takes lots of pictures on his phone, and sometimes they get forgotten about.  Today, Ernie finally got all of his phone pictures into our shared computer where I could see them... and just look at these lost treasures I found.   Here's Vita getting ready for a camp out in the backyard with d...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Oct 2, 2011, 10:32 pm
Around here, the County Fair officially marks the end of summer and the beginning of fall.  It just happened to also be a beautiful sunny day. The merry-go-round is still Vita's favorite ride. But her favorite part of the Fair this year was either the bouncy house... Or perhaps riding a pony for...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Sep 11, 2011, 11:00 pm
Summer is coming to an end, and we are trying to make the most of any good weather we get.  On Labor Day weekend we went to the Bay Area Children's Discovery Museum and had a lot of fun. Anabelle wasn't sure what to make of it, but she was a really good sport the whole time. The best part was the...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Aug 28, 2011, 10:59 pm
The week started off well enough. Anabelle has been happy and sweet, enjoying exploring the world all day, and sleeping well at night. Vita was really excited to have her fingernails painted for the first time. And she also was invited to a pool party, which she loved. Here's Vita on her way to ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Aug 14, 2011, 11:34 pm
These girls add so much color to our lives.  While this statement works really well as a metaphor for all of the joy and chaos of raising kids, I actually mean COLOR in a very literal sense.  Look at the outfit Vita picked out for herself today, complete with bracelet, anklet, scarf and hat. Here...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Jul 31, 2011, 11:51 pm
The girls have been very focused these days, demonstrating levels of concentration that surprise me.  Vita has been very focused on her artwork.  She loves coloring pretty pictures in a coloring book, cutting things out with scissors, and gluing things (cotton balls, googly eyes, plastic jewels,...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Jul 28, 2011, 12:14 am
Sisters... playing together. Life is good. Here are a few other scenes from our day to day life.
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Jul 11, 2011, 1:02 am
I realize I'm a bit late to post these, but many of the following photos were all taken last weekend on the 4th of July. We started the day like so many others... with a nice bath. The girls LOVE taking baths together. Vita washes Anabelle's back, and Anabelle splashes her little heart out, grinning...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Jun 29, 2011, 3:03 pm
The weather has been beautiful.  Look at the scene that greeted me when I got home from work on Monday at 5pm.  I'm so glad it's summer, and I'm hoping for many more lovely summer evenings just like this one. Once we were back inside, Vita started drawing. Vita drew a picture of a squirrel, and ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Jun 27, 2011, 12:11 am
Anabelle is strong. Really strong. Ok Anabelle, drop and give me twenty!
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Jun 20, 2011, 12:04 am
Every day is an adventure around here. Sometimes, the adventure is discovering a new book... like Where the Sidewalk Ends. Some days, we play and play and play... until we literally crash. Even Vita crashes out from time to time. Every once in a while when we think she's old enough to skip her a...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - May 25, 2011, 3:08 pm
The day finally arrived.  DISNEYLAND! I have to start out with a story.  Everything was going smoothly.  Vita had gotten a good night sleep the night before and ate a good breakfast.  We left early and got a great parking space.  The diaper bag was packed with extra changes of clothes, snacks, ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - May 25, 2011, 1:33 pm
It's hard to travel far with a baby, so our summer vacation was a drive down to LA to visit Grandma Marianne, Grandpa Vito and Uncle Pat and to go to Disneyland. Vita has been very excited about all of this, and you can see her in the picture below getting ready to meet princesses. Once we got to ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - May 25, 2011, 1:07 pm
I believe it's time for few updates about Anabelle and her rapidly developing skills and personality.  Anabelle is getting more mobile every day, and is practically (but not quite) crawling.  She rolls and pivots and pulls and drags herself across the floor with the palms of her hands... whateve...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - May 16, 2011, 12:02 am
These days, as Anabelle gets bigger, knows how to sit up, rolls all over the place, and is almost crawling, she is much less fragile and Vita gets to play and interact with her more.  They hug and play and laugh all the time. Anabelle looks so cute in Vita's old hand me downs.  These pajamas brin...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - May 2, 2011, 12:30 am
It was a warm spring weekend here in Santa Cruz, so Ernie and Vita decided to have a camp out in the backyard on Friday night.  Here they are setting up. Ernie and Vita built a campfire, toasted s'mores, and had a great time.  However, it wasn't quite warm enough for Anabelle, so Anabelle and I s...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - May 2, 2011, 12:12 am
Anabelle is six months old! I can't believe how quickly these months have passed, and something tells me it's not about to slow down any time soon. Do you notice anything different about Anabelle? That's right, she's sitting up! We've been having so much fun with Anabelle.  We always did, but the ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - May 1, 2011, 11:59 pm
Now that Anabelle has begun to go to daycare full time, Ernie and I took the opportunity to each take a special "ditch day" with Vita.  On Monday, while Anabelle and I went to work, Ernie and Vita headed out to Dennis the Menace Park in Monterey.  It's a great park with a real train, a hedge maze,...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Apr 24, 2011, 10:57 pm
We started out the Easter weekend by coloring some eggs.  Next year, we'll hard-boil the eggs first... but never mind about that.  We had a great time dying the eggs, and applying glitter, and they turned out beautifully. Next, we went to an Easter Egg Hunt and Vita got to meet the Easter Bunny...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Apr 18, 2011, 12:22 am
Now that Anabelle is almost six months old, she has started solid food.  It's been fun having her at the dinner table with us, and she seem to like food... especially banana. We're making the most of the sunny weather, and checking out new local parks.  These pictures were taken at our new favori...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Apr 4, 2011, 12:07 am
Spring is finally here and the weather has been wonderful! Here's a happy picture of Vita and some of her friends at school. Vita picks the most interesting outfits to help her dad with the yard work. This one is very Devo. Don't you think? Our neighbor snuck up and took this cute shot of Vita and...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Mar 27, 2011, 11:43 pm
This weekend Grandma Marianne and Grandpa Vito came for a visit. Anabelle showed off her monkey suit. Here are the girls with Grandma Marianne and Grandpa Vito. And more happy pictures below. Grandpa Vito sang to Anabelle, and she was completely mesmerized. It was very sweet. Then, Grandpa ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Mar 27, 2011, 11:18 pm
Anabelle has been quite busy lately.  As you know, Anabelle comes with me to work, as employees in my office can bring their babies until the babies are six months old.  Here's Anabelle with her "work buddies" Kourtney and Jahir.  Yes, none of them are smiling, but just getting three babies to lo...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Mar 19, 2011, 11:11 pm
It must be birthday party season.  Vita had a birthday party to attend last weekend, and two birthday parties to attend this weekend.  Two of the three birthday parties have been held in a local gymnastics studio.  The kids get a "tumbling" lesson, and basically get to play on all of the fun equ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Feb 27, 2011, 10:59 pm
This weekend we had a Pajama Party.  Grandma Victoria came over for dinner... and after dinner we changed into our pajamas and ate popcorn and cookies while watching Mary Poppins. Meanwhile, Anabelle keeps growing.  Although she is only 4 months old, she is wearing 9 month old clothes. Look ho...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Feb 21, 2011, 11:34 pm
My mother and sister often get together for a "mother daughter daughter" day. Now that I have two daughters of my own, I think we need a new name because "mother daughter daughter, daughter daughter" doesn't exactly roll off the tongue. Its the beginning of a long weekend, and Vita and Anabelle hap...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Feb 21, 2011, 11:34 pm
It's a classic story that I'm sure every parent knows. As a reward for good behavior (perhaps you noticed the Chart of Greatness in a previous post) we wanted to get Vita a small gift.  Vita wanted a kitty, but we thought a goldfish would be better as a first pet.  We thought we'd simply get a gol...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Feb 21, 2011, 11:33 pm
Anabelle has been doing GREAT in the office with me since I returned to work.  She has been so happy and easy going and she naps better in my office than anywhere else.  She sleeps over 4 hours in an 8 hour work day.  She also has made lots of friends.  Honestly I feel so lucky every day.  How ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Feb 15, 2011, 11:30 pm
Blogspot simply isn't happy if you include more than about 10 photos in a post, and my last post had over 40 photos... which is why I couldn't format it or even add text. I just spent the past hour trying to fix it but it only gets worse. That simply won't do, so I might have to start posting more r...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Feb 5, 2011, 11:35 pm
NOTE: BLOGSPOT IS EXPERIENCING TECHNICAL DIFFICULTIES, AND I AM UNABLE TO FINISH FORMATTING THE LAYOUT AND WRITING THE TEXT. HOWEVER, YOU MAY STILL TAKE A LOOK AT THE PICTURES THAT WILL BE IN THE JANUARY POST. NEXT WEEKEND (OR MAYBE SOONER) I WILL TRY AGAIN TO FINISH WRITING THIS POST AND FIX THE...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Dec 29, 2010, 2:53 pm
After Vita's birthday weekend, we started to get really into preparing for Christmas. Here we all are doing our best to pose for some Christmas pictures, but most of them didn't come out because we are all very squirmy and at least one of us was blinking or jumping or moving or crying in just about...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Dec 8, 2010, 5:21 pm
Last weekend, Vita turned THREE years old. I can hardly believe it. When Vita arrived at school on Friday, there was a big Happy Birthday banner just for her. We also brought mini cupcakes for Vita's friends to share. Back at home, Vita spent some time reading Christmas books while waiting for ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Dec 8, 2010, 11:40 am
As November began I had just gotten home from the hospital with Anabelle. As luck would have it, Vita got a flu right away and Ernie spent the entire three weeks of his paternity leave sick... and found out he had pneumonia the day he returned to work. So most of the month of November was spent li...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Nov 2, 2010, 1:03 pm
We spent the month of October having lots of fun getting ready... getting ready for Halloween and for a new baby. Every day at school, Vita was engaged in Halloween books, art projects, songs, and sometimes she'd come home from school painted up like a pumpkin, a ghost, or a bat. This was the first ...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Oct 3, 2010, 10:48 pm
I know that it is inexcusable that I haven't posted in two months, but I'm still going to use the old "pregnant and tired" excuse anyway. Happily, I won't be able to use that excuse much longer. Also, I really do expect you'll get a very good post for October with Halloween pictures of Vita... and...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Aug 15, 2010, 10:56 pm
I know... I'm really late posting about July. To make up for it, here's a really long post with lots of pictures. :)July was a fantastic month. It all started out with Ernie's birthday, and Vita had a blast at her dad's party. Her favorite part was leading the group in singing the Happy Birthday...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Jul 3, 2010, 12:44 am
June has been a lot of fun over here in Santa Cruz. As you can see, Vita continues to help dad with his many projects. We've been having lots of summertime fun in the backyard. And Vita is enjoying making castles and "dragon houses" out of boxes and couch cushions and blankets and other available...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - May 31, 2010, 10:49 pm
According to the memory stick in my camera, nothing happened in the month of May. Not a single picture was taken. Inexcusable, I know! Thankfully, I was able to pull a few shots off of Ernie's phone. As it turns out, quite a bit happened in the month of May. Most notably, Vita's Grandma Victoria m...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - May 4, 2010, 11:07 pm
Yesterday Vita had her very first trip to the happiest place on earth... and it was everything we hoped it would be. We went on about 10 or 12 rides, which was more than we expected. Most of the lines were very short (5-10 minutes) and some of the rides that we thought Vita might be too little for...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - May 4, 2010, 10:13 pm
April was a really fun and really busy month. It started with a visit from the Easter bunny, and a basket of treats! Easter turned out to be a rainy day (so no egg hunt) but we made the best of it and had fun anyway. Here's Vita taking her first bite of sour candy. She made a funny face, but she...
Comment - Like

Jenny P. posted an article on Bella Vita - Apr 3, 2010, 11:34 pm
Vita managed to have a great month this March (despite the fact that her mom has been tired, and nauseous, and grumpy through the first trimester of pregnancy). We had a wonderful visit with Grandpa Bob and Mema Joan. Just look at these great big smiles! We had adventures in the park, up the coas...
Comment - Like