The golden egg

Happy Easter! This year, we got to go to two egg hunts!

The first one was at Greyson's neighborhood.  In addition to auntie Char, he also has a block mom who plans activities for the kids and families on their street.  Her name is Ms. Luann.  In the summer, she coordinates a block BBQ / potluck. She also organizes caroling at Christmas time and trick-or-treating at Halloween.  Grey lives in a super fun neighborhood.

We were each allowed to find a total of 12 eggs. Us little kids (5 and under) got a head start over all the big kids. And to make sure we had fighting chance, there was a special area for us little kids age.  So, Mason, Grey and I didn't get trampled on or have to fight the big kids for eggs.  I even found the special golden egg (all on my own) that I got to show Ms. Luann for a special prize.  It was an Easter basket filled with more candy and a chick that lights up when you throw it on the ground.

After the egg hunt, we hung out and snacked on the huge spread of breakfast foods and treats. And we got to meet some puppies that Ms. Luann was fostering. Mama thought they were adorable. I did a good job being very gentle with them. Thanks for the invite, Grey! So glad we got to crash the party!

The morning egg hunt was good warm-up for the egg hunt at grandma and grandpa's house in the afternoon. Before the egg hunt, Ethan, Kimora and I got to decorate eggs. We each got to decorate 4 eggs. I made blue, orange-red, yellow and green eggs. Mason and Kyle are still too little to decorate eggs. They just hung out and played with toys.

After the egg decorating, it was time to hunt for eggs. While I was putting on my shoes, I had the following conversation with mama:

Mama: Try to get as many eggs as you can in your bucket.
Me: Should I be really quick, Mama?
Mama: Yes, that's a good idea.
Me: Okay, I'll be quick.

And I was! I ran all around grandma and grandpa's backyard collecting as many eggs as I could. I had so much fun that I emptied my bucket so I could fill it again. Except Kimora, Ethan and the other kids came over to take my eggs and put it in their buckets. I have a sneaky suspicion that even if I did have the most eggs, the eggs would've been evenly divided between all of us. After the egg hunt, we played with grandpa's trains and ate a yummy dinner.

Happy Easter, everyone!

Pumping it up

Today is not my birthday, but we had a party for my birthday. It's all very confusing. I don't know mind, as long as it means I get to run around with my friends and eat cake.

Mama planned a party for me at Pump It Up Jr.  I've been there once before when I was about 21 months old. It was okay then. Now that I'm older and enjoy slides and bounce houses, mama thought this would a good place for my party.

When she told me where the party was, I asked he why we had to go there and how come we're having the party there. Then I said I didn't want to have my party there. Mama insisted that we have the party there and assured me that I would have a great time, just like at Caylie's party.

Well she was right (again)! I had a fantastic time and so did all my friends (and their parents). First I got crowned with a hot pink crown.  Yes, I chose the color.  Blue and pink are my favorite colors and they ran out of blue crowns.  Then everyone sang to me and we flew (airplane arms) into the play area.

It was awesome because we had the play area all to ourselves. We ran around, rode the Cozy Coupes, slid down the different inflatable slides, jumped in the bounce houses and ran through the obstacle course. Even some of the mommies and daddies got in on the slide and obstacle course action. All us kids had so much fun that most of us were sweaty when our time in the play area was over.

Before heading into the party room, we managed to get a group photo with all my friends. Everyone cooperated, except me. Who wants to take a picture when there's cake in the next room!

The party room had a huge celebration chair that I got to sit in while everyone sang happy birthday. I blew out all three of the candles on my cake, which was amazing. Not only did it look amazing, but it also tasted yummy. Thanks Auntie Char for making such fantastic cake!

Thanks everyone for coming out to celebrate my birthday with me! I hope you had as much fun as I did.

A bicycle built for me

For my birthday, grandma and grandpa gave me a bicycle.  It's different than my motorcycle because it has pedals, real tires and training wheels.  And most important, it has a nifty bell.

I broke it in the day I got it. The pedals were a little strange. I wasn't used to pushing with my feet at first. Grandma was helping me out, while dada carried Mason and grandpa walked Tachi. Eventually, mama and po-po caught up to us, and mama took over for grandma.

It didn't take very long, but I eventually got the hang of it. 



Watch out world! Pretty soon I'll be able to go mountain biking with dada and uncle Edric or road riding with mama and auntie Michelle!

I am 3 years old!

Happy 3rd birthday to me!

Yesterday, grandma, grandpa and po-po came over to celebrate my birthday a day early.  We opened presents after I woke up from my nap.  I got lots of stuff from the great aunties and uncles.  Thanks for the presents!  Grandma and grandpa gave me a bell with Lightening McQueen on it.  It was really neat. The best part was that the bell had to get attached to my other present -- a brand new bicycle! More on that in a separate post.

This morning I woke up and found 2 more presents by my door.  They were gifts from Mason.  He gave me a Cars toy camera and a Cars doodle pad. I took some pictures of mama making breakfast this morning. I even shared my camera with Mason. It's the least I could do since he gave it to me.

To celebrate my birthday, I went to Gia's (she's one of my preschool friends) princess-themed birthday party a Jungle Island. I liked the ball pits and the slides, but I cried inside the crawling tunnel. Rapunzel made a guest appearance, but the boys (me, Henry and Soham) weren't very interested. We just hung out and kept eating, while all the girls crowded around her. My birthday party is next Saturday. I'm quite confused on why my party isn't on the same day as my birthday. But if it means that I get to eat cake twice, then I'm all for it!

Anyways, here's a run-down on the things I like, things I'm good at and things I'm working on.

Things I like

• Mama. She's my favorite. I want to do everything with her.
• Mochi. When we go to Pinkberry, I always get mochi with my froyo, and I eat it first before my froyo or the fruit
• Listening to the same Gigglebellies CD over and over again anytime we go anywhere in the grey car. I listen to it so much that know all the songs and what order they're in. When mama sings along with the songs, I say, "Mama, stop singing. I can't hear." or "Mama, stop singing. You're supposed to listen to me sing." It's the nicest way for me to let her know that she's not a good singer.
• Talking about my day before going to bed
• Watching TV. That's right mama and dada let me watch TV - occasionally. I get to pick from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse or Curious George. 
• Reading books
• Playing at the playground at the park
• Trains

Things I'm good at

• Going potty by myself. I can do everything by myself, including washing my hands. But when I go poop, I need help wiping. I've stopped wearing a diaper or pull-up during naps, but I still wear one at night. Every now and then I have an accident because I forget or don't make it to the potty in time.
• Spelling and recognizing my name. I knew the presents yesterday were for me because they had my name on them: L-O-G-A-N. When mama asks me what starts with the letter "L," I say, "I do!"
• Brushing my teeth. I can pretty much do it all by myself. I've started using toothpaste with fluoride. I like to open and squeeze the toothpaste onto my toothbrush, but I still need help with that part.
• Recognizing letters. I'll point out the letters on signs or mama's shirts. I can also tell you some words that start with that letter.
• Remembering random things. For example, I can remember how we get to places or the cities that people live in.

Things I'm working on

• Swimming or doing anything by myself.  I want mama and dada to be with me always. When mama told me that as I get older I'll do more and more things by myself, I said, "I don't want to have any more birthdays."
• Sharing. Sometimes I push Mason and grab toys away from him. Mama and dada don't like it when I do that.
• Keeping my hands to myself. When I don't get what I want, I tend to hit mama or dada. It's because I'm frustrated, mad or disappointed. Mama says it's okay for me to stomp my feet when I feel that way, but hitting is not okay.
• Listening to mama and dada. I was a pretty good kid when I was 2. But now I'm really testing my limits. Sometimes I purposely do the opposite of what mama and dada are asking me to do. And I'll say, "No!" when they ask me to do something.
• Liking daddy.

Here's a video about me talking about my birthday

Airborne Birthday Party

Edison, my BFF (birthday friend forever) had a birthday party this evening at Airborne Gymnastics. I got to run around with all my friends like Matthew, Kyden, Greyson and Abby. I had a blast!

Airborne Gymnastics is a real gymnastics gym, not a gym like the one we go to.  First of all, it's huge! It was a warehouse that was converted into a gym.  Second, when we got there all the kids in there were girls wearing leotards and sweatpants like the gymnasts you see in the Olympics.  Last, they have lots of real gym equipment like a balance beams, uneven bars, a vault, rings and trampolines - loads of trampolines.

First we got to play for a while on trampolines and a foam pit.  Then we did a group activities. The first one involved a giant, colorful parachute. We shook it, making big bubbles and took turns running on top of it while other people made bubbles. We made a giant tent and went under the parachute.


The next activity was a long trampoline track that we jumped or ran down.  The best part was that at the end of the trampoline track there was huge foam pit that we slid into!  I loved sliding into the foam pit so much that I decided to go head first. 


The last group activity was an obstacle course. At the very end of the course, we got to swing on the rings.

Mason didn't really participate in the group activities.  He played on his own for most of the time.  He found the preschool area of the gym where he climbed the rock climbing wall and slid down the other side.  He's not too good at the climbing wall yet because he fell off a couple times.  But he got right back up and tried again. 

We worked up quite an appetite with all this activity. So I was really happy when it was time to food and cake! We ate pizza and sang happy birthday to Edison, who had a nifty train cake/cupcake. 

Happy Birthday Edison! Thanks for inviting me to your awesome Airborne party. 

The Library

Now that I'm swimming on Tuesday nights instead of Saturday mornings, mama thought it would be a good idea to introduce me to the library. 

When she was a kid, she used to love going to the library on Saturday morning with Po-Po and uncle Eddie.  And she and uncle Eddie would participate in the summer reading programs that the library would sponsor.  (What nerds!)  When daddy was a kid, he only went to the library if he had to do a book report.  Guess that's why daddy can't read.

So this morning, I went to the library with mama while Mason went swimming with dada.  I loved it! There were so many different books. There was even a corner that had some toys and legos to play with. Who knew the library could be so fun!

Mama and I read (and re-read) several books together at the library. And we picked out some to borrow (using mama's library card). I don't quite get the concept of borrowing books yet. I think they're mine, like when we buy stuff at the store. Mama's not quite sure what'll happen when it's time to return our library books.  Guess we'll find out on our next trip to the library!

Swimming on My Own

Since I'm going to be turning three soon, all kinds of things are changing.  First there was preschool. (I still cry every morning when my daddy drops me off because I miss him.)  And now there's a new swim class - beginner 1.  No more baby swim class for me.

It all started a few weeks ago when Ms. Lisa, my baby swim class teacher, talked to dada and told him that I'm ready to move to the next level.  So, she started to look for a class for me. Ideally, mama and dada would've had me in beginner 1 class that she taught.  But she only teaches beginner 1 classes during the weekday.  Boo!

Well, she found a class for me on Tuesday nights at 6:45 pm. When mama and dada told me about the new class, I was not happy. I did not want to go. I did not want to swim on my own. I did not want new teachers. I did not want a different day of the week. But they didn't listen to me. (They never do.)

Ms. Lisa told mama and dada that my swim friend, Pete, was also going to be in the same class.  Pete started baby swim classes around the same time as me. They probably thought it wouldn't be as bad if Pete was in the same class as me. You'd think they'd have figured out that having friends when I transition doesn't help.

So, today was my first beginner 1 class where I got in the water without mama or dada. How did I do? I cried...a lot. I wanted mama. I kept looking at the glass window where she watched me swim, pointing and crying. Mama said she could hear my crying on the other side of the glass. My new teachers, Sean and a girl who's name mama didn't get, were very patient and attentive. They carried me around the pool and showed me lots of toys. The swim center director even came over to see what was going on.

Eventually, I started doing some of the things I know how to do like monkey walk along the wall, and float on my back. But I'd still cry when I sat on the stairs or stood on the island. When class was finally over, I saw mama and the tears started all over again. But mama said that I did a great job and she was very proud of me and she would buy me froyo with mochi. That made me feel better and the tears suddenly stopped.

I love swimming by myself (froyo).  Sucker!

Super Franks is Super Cool!

We celebrated cousin Caylie's first birthday this evening.  She had a small family party at Super Franks in Pleasanton.  We've never been there before. And when mama told me it was time to go to Caylie's party, I protested.

Me: "I don't want go. I want to stay home and play."
Mama: "I think you'll have much more fun at Caylie's party."
Me: "No, I want to play at home."
Mama: "You don't even know where the party is. Once you see where Caylie's party is, I'm pretty sure you'll have a blast and not want to go home."

Well, she was right.  Super Franks is super cool! It's like Chuck E. Cheese, but nicer. There're lots of different theme'd rooms with slides, toys and things to ride on. There's also an arcade.  I had a blast on the inflatable slides and the non-inflatable slides. 

I also got to help Caylie blow out her birthday candle. I had to wait for her to eat her smash cake before I could have my cake. She seemed pretty excited about the cake because she clapped and drooled.  I think she did a pretty good job on her smash cake too. What do you think?

Happy First Birthday Caylie! I had a super time at your party.

Preschool - the First Week

So, I finished my first official week of preschool.  I cried a lot during drop-off.  In fact, one day I cried as soon as it was time to say good bye to mama at home.  I cried all the way to school and during drop-off.  I kept saying, "I want mama."

I'm not the only one who's having a hard time. One day, I consoled Henry.  He was really sad. While he was crying on the floor, I went over to him and patted him on the back. I told him, "It's okay. Don't be sad, Henry." My teachers made me walk away because they didn't want me to get hurt (Henry was kicking too).  We just miss our old routine and teachers. 

Preschool's not all bad. After I collect myself, I have fun and participate in group activities. I made a "Cat in the Hat" hat on Monday because it was Dr. Seuss week. I ran into the house and showed it off to mama.  On another day, one of my teachers helped me make a Shoe-asuarus! 

Checkin' out the Oakland Zoo

We checked out the Oakland Zoo today!  I've never been, but lots of my friends have been before. They all have good things to say about it. So when one of Mama's deal sites had a special offer for the Oakland Zoo, she took advantage of it.

We invited Greyson and Ethan to join us at the zoo. Uncle Edric is an Oakland Zoo expert. He went every week last summer for his art class.  We saw all kinds of animals: flamingos, tigers, monkeys, tortoises, pigs, a millipede and ants. After the bugs, we took a break and found a nice spot for a picnic lunch. Mama and auntie Char packed tons of food for everyone, including homemade chocolate chip cookies. Yum! They must've thought they were feeding an army because there was so much food.

After lunch, we checked out the petting zoo. We all had a good time brushing the goats. Then it was off to see more animals including: fruit bats, turtles, frogs, snakes, lizards, lions, giraffes, eland, elephants and camels.  I liked watching the fruit bats hang upside down and eat fruit. Maybe I can try that sometime. When we were hanging out with the giraffes, they kept licking the trees. Mama thought it was really weird. Does anyone know why they do that?

I wanted to ride the train around the zoo, but the line was ridiculously long.  So, the only ride that I rode was they SkyTram with grandma and grandpa. I liked that ride. I got to see camels from the ride.

I had such a great time at the Oakland Zoo. I can't wait to go back and check it out. Who wants to come with me?