Bon Voyage, Daddy!

Erick left today for Tanzania (Boston to London, to Nairobi, to Dar Es Salaam, to Ifakara - quite a trip), where he'll spend the next month doing research with a team from UC Berkeley. It's really good work -- they're looking at methods of bringing down the rate of HIV/AIDS -- so we're very proud of him. But Fiona and I will miss him a ton. Fiona even attempted to stow away in his luggage. She thought the better of it when we reminded her which parent she relies upon for food.

Cousins Galore, and More Ocean Romps

Fiona has met quite a few of her East Coast cousins over the past week. Since I don't have any siblings, these cousins are actually her second cousins or cousins once removed or something like that -- I can't quite keep those distinctions straight. Anyway, here she is with her cousin Chris (actually my cousin) and his girlfriend Laura. We discovered that Fiona looks quite a bit like Chris did when he was a baby, so for a preview of what Fiona may look like in 25 years, imagine Chris as a girl.
Yesterday, Fiona hit the cousin jackpot when three little cousins (in reality, the daughters of my cousin Liz) joined us at the beach. Here she is with Ainsley (4 years) and Maren (2 years). Fallon (2 months) is not pictured. It was shocking to see a baby who is actually smaller than Fiona -- meeting Fallon was our first experience with this. (We've met other babies who are YOUNGER than Fiona, but they're usually still larger!).

In other news, Fiona returned to the beach with Nana and Boom, and continues to enjoy the crash of the surf. She also went to work building a big sand pie with Nana. We were really excited about this. "Oh look!" we exclaimed, "She's actually helping to build, as opposed to shoving the sand in her mouth. Perhaps she's over her sand-eating phase!" At precisely this moment, Fiona executed a massive face-plant into her sand pie.

Happy Birthday, Boom! Happy Anniversary, Wes & Kristin!

Today is a special day on both sides of Fiona's family. It is both her Grandpa Boom's birthday, and the wedding anniversary of her Uncle Wesley and Auntie Kristin. Fiona made Boom a card, which she was very anxious to share with him this morning. Clutching it in her little fists, she beat him about the head and shoulders with her card until he opened it. Then she proceeded to chew on it. Very generous.
Uncle Wesley and Aunt Kristin are across the country in Orange County, CA, but Fiona wishes them well from a distance. They are her only true Auntie and Uncle, and are also her godparents, so they're very special people. Also, they live within spitting distance of Disneyland -- a fact that Fiona will come to appreciate in time. The photo above was taken during Christmas, when Fiona was much, much smaller (5 lbs, if I recall correctly).

Fiona Meets the Atlantic

We are now all up in the coastal town of Ogunquit, Maine, for a week of true vacation. It's very special to be back in Ogunquit; we were last here in July of 2007, when I was about 5 months pregnant with Fiona. During her first 48 hours in Maine, Fiona met members of her Grandmother's family (Great-Aunt Carolyn, Great-Uncle Craig, Kate and Zane). She also met the Atlantic Ocean. Although in California we live practically within view of the Pacific (in the form of the San Francisco Bay), the Atlantic is the first ocean that Fiona has actually experienced. Fiona was undaunted by the massive ocean. The water here in Maine is frigid, but Fiona loved dipping her toes in and jumping the waves. Perhaps this is not surprising -- apart from eating green beans and being outside in humidity, we have yet to find any experience that Fiona seems to dislike.

The excitement of her first ocean did take a toll, however. Fiona was wiped out and had to have an early bedtime.

Fiona Explores the History of Transportation

On July 4th, Fiona explored several modes of transport. During a trip to the Rockingham Park Mall, she enjoyed a ride on the food court carousel with her grandparents. Later, she took a turn behind the wheel of the toy car rides on the Mall's lower level. We were a bit dismayed to find that Fiona seemed to enjoy the cars MUCH more than the horses -- and from the look of things, has the makings of a speed demon. There go our plans to buy her a horse and buggy when she turns 16.
Once we returned to her great-grandma's house, Fiona felt confident enough to attempt to drive the Massive Vacation Van. This van is our new ride, since we turned in the Batmobile upon meeting up with Fiona's granparents in New Hampshire. Fiona, who apparently fears nothing, felt right at home behind the wheel of the MVV.Here is another view, to give you an idea of the scale:

Fiona Wishes You a Happy 4th!

Today, Fiona (decked out in her special 4th of July suit, courtesy of her grandparents) celebrated her first Independence Day at a barbeque given by her Great-Uncle Raymond and Great-Aunt Debbie. Fiona loves her country. Where else can one experience balloons, watermelon, and dogs in one morning?

Four Generations Converge

Earlier today we arrived in Salem, NH, where most of Fiona's maternal grandfather's (aka. Boom's) family lives. Fiona met her Great-Aunt Joyce.

Then she met her Great-Grandma Caroline. This was a very special moment. Fiona's middle name is Caroline, after this Great-Grandma. Great-Grandma Caroline is amazing, and we hope Fiona will grow up to have many of her traits. For example, she just turned 90 years old, but still lives independently and even volunteers weekly at the local soup kitchen. When we arrived, being a proper Italian grandma, she went to work cooking up a huge feast of chicken cacciatore. Fiona and Great-Grandma Caroline seem to have already begun a nice relationship.Of course, Fiona's grandparents were thrilled to see her as well, having been separated from her for a whopping 5 days. Boom treated Fiona to her first shoulder ride. We suspect that she enjoyed it, after she recovered from the shock of suddenly being the tallest in the room.