Say Cheese!!

I used to get so frustrated because Cora had this beautiful little smile and I could never catch it on camera. She would be smiling all over her precious little face and as soon as I pulled the camera out she would stop smiling and start studying me and what I was doing. Now I have a whole new problem!! Meet Miss Cheese Face....

Every time I point the camera at her she has to strike a cheese face! There is no such thing as a candid shot with this girl. She's gone from one extreme to the other... oh well. :)

On another note, she has been playing with her shapes the past few days. She has a star shaped pig, a circle-bear, heart-cow, triangle-mouse, and square-chicken and she's been working on getting them in their appropriately shaped holes. She's a pro after only three days! The heart still gives her a little trouble and she gets mad at it and slams it down when she can't get it to go in the heart shaped hole. We are trying to teach her that its ok to get frustrated but she doesn't need to slam things around, haha. It's so cute though and hard not to laugh!

PBS Kids

Ok so, if you are ever bored and looking to be creeped out, check out PBSkids's Jay Jay The Jet Plane. I happened to catch this show today and I am still, hours later, feeling a bit "off" from it. I can't quite put my finger on why it gives me the heeby jeebies, but it does. It could be the Chester Chester face on "Big Jake" or the tweaky girl that just doesn't "belong" in TarryTown, any way it goes, I'm not a fan.  

Word World though, now THAT'S a show. We record them for Cora (she loves Dog) but in reality, I probably watch it more then she does. So again, if you're bored, check out PBSkids, its got a little somethin' for everyone...

That's all I got.  So, peace be with you (and also with you).... I'm out. 

Her First Hair Cut

Yesterday was a big day for the Turner fam. We took Miss Cora into Pigtails & Crewcuts for her very first hair cut!! It was an event, lemme tell ya. She LOVED the store. She loved her little airplane seat. She loves all the toys and bright colors around her. But as soon as that strange woman put that strange thingy on her and she couldn't lift her arms she got P.O.'d!! She screamed and fought through her whole cut. Needless to say, it wasn't a great hair cut, at all. But it served its purpose, her hair is no longer hanging in her eyes like a shaggy dog!

Besides all that, we are doing great! Mel only has 11 total days left until he is off the Oly for good, yayayayaya!! He will have 45 days off and we have some great family outings planned that we are really excited about!! Cora is standing alone all the time now. You can set her down in the middle of the room and she'll just stand there and watch cartoons or whatever, no problem. She is still being resistant to walking by herself though. If she has one of your fingers she can run all over the the house, she's just scared to try it solo I think. Anyway, that's it for now. Stay tuned...

An Interesting Milestone

She is her father's daughter! Last night at bathtime Cora decided it was funny to lean forward and dunk her face under water. My first instinct was to scoop up my poor drowning baby, but when she lifted her head, smiled, giggled, and did it again, I realized (scared on oh so many levels) that my baby was really growing up!! Is it normal for an 11 month old to want to dunk her head in the water?? Anyway, Mel and I were cracking up at her, she thought it was the coolest thing ever and my cheeks hurt from smiling by the end of her bath (I'll amend this entry later with a couple pictures from her bathroom escapades this evening. Maybe I can catch the nutjob in action.)

Father's Day

Father's Day was a lot of fun for everyone.  I faked a headache in the morning so Melvin would take Cora down for breakfast by himself... she and I had a mini scavenger hunt set up for him (thanks Jenn).  It was really cute (all rhymey and such) written from Cora's perspective. The hunt ended in our car, where his new Garmin GPS system was waiting for him in the driver's seat. It was cute, I shoulda taken pictures of the two of them going on the hunt.  After presents, we got baby Cora dressed and went out to breakfast.  Later in the day (after morning nap) we went to the Waikiki Aquarium. Little Miss liked the jelly fish tanks, the BIG fish, and the Monk Seals the most. Parts of the aquarium seemed to scare her a bit though.  I think it was probably because it was dark inside. She wouldn't let us put her down and she didn't want to touch the glass. We will definitely go back again however, with a camera (which I had forgotten... again.)  Later in the evening we went to La Mariana's Sailing Club for dinner.  They are the oldest tiki bar on the island and one of Oahu's best kept secrets. We loved it and will definitely be going back (and bringing you all when you come to the island.)  They've got great food, great live entertainment every night, great atmosphere, and really low key and quiet feel.... couldn't ask for more on Father's Day.  Mel had a great day with his baby girl which is all that really matters.  I hope everyone enjoyed their Father's Day as well!

ZOO DAYS

We took Cora to the zoo today!!  It was her first visit.  She LOVED the turtles.. and the monkeys. Really, who am I kidding, she loved everything!!  The Keiki Zoo (aka Petting Zoo) was a lot of fun for her. She got to pet goats and see chickens and ponies, llamas, and duckies, guinea pigs, and hogs (she wouldn't touch the hogs though!) She is so cautious; even with the goats she would just pinch their little ears, and pat them lightly (with a death grip on dad's arm so he couldn't get too far away!)  She wouldn't get too close.  She's very interested and observant, but cautious. Adorable. Really, what else can I say, each and every moment with her is priceless. 

Things have been going really well, Mel's new chief seems to be an ok guy, that's good... it will make this last month on board a little easier. Yay for that!  Uhmm, what else? We found out a great friend of ours is expecting, she's wanted a baby for a long time so we are happy for them. Uh, what else?  Father's Day is tomorrow, Mel's first.  Yay. We have a fun day planned.  Don't tell him though, its a surprise.  Cora bought him a cute little gift that I think he will like... I'll keep ya posted.

Anyway, that's all I got for now... 

Nightnight

A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

Pumpkin (the cat) isn't supposed to scratch at the screens of our windows.  We know this... Pumpkin knows this... and apparently Cora knows this and decided to take it upon herself to take care of it for me.  I can't help but wonder, is that what I look like when I yell at the cat??? Poor kitty.

Sleepless Nights

"If people were meant to POP out of bed, we'd all sleep in toasters."  

I'm exhausted.  Cora didn't sleep at all last night. My poor baby (who normally sleeps peacefully through the night) had me up on three or four occasions. She wasn't feeling well at all, and this morning she had a 101 temperature. She's been really restless and uncomfortable all day.  I hate when she doesn't feel good (and I loathe all-nighters) I was so worried about her, even when she was asleep I was wide-eyed, waiting for the next cry.  And of course, Mel had duty so I had no help.... Murphey's Law at its finest.

I just put her down for the night. Let us all hope and pray, for her sake (and mine), that tonight is better and she kicks this little virus' ass while she rests.

So anyway, we reserved the room for Cora's Birthday!  I can't hang anything on the walls with tape or nails or staples or glue (damn them for covering their bases)... this could make decor a small problem. I will overcome though! It will be cute. Only one month away... can you believe it. She's almost A YEAR. Where does it go? Everyone tells you how fast it flies by, but wow... like the blink of an eye.

Foogo... where are you??

Isn't she just the sweetest?  

Today was a day.  Sometimes this island can be so frustrating.  We are so isolated. All I want is a freakin' Foogo Straw Sippy Thermos, how hard should that be to attain??  We looked everywhere today, aaand the search continues.  You mainlanders take things like this for granted, fyi.  I bet I'm gonna have to order it online and pay a ridiculously inflated shipping rate... ugh.