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NEWS
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All the news that's fit to print about what we've been up to!
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Fall/Winter 2007
Goodbye, 2007... Well, we did it: We successfully turned the corner into 2008. We had a great and low-key Christmas holiday; CC's mom, Dorit ("Namo" to the kids), came out for a two-week visit and got a chance to get to know her granddaughter a little better while continuing to enjoy spending time with Jackson. Jackson, Namo and CC took in most of a matinee performance of the Oakland Ballet's Nutcracker, and Namo surprised Jackson with a nutcracker of his own to bring home. (Yes, he promptly shoved peanuts into its mouth to see it work, and I'm happy to say that the nutcracker performed up to snuff.) We celebrated Christmas with Namo, Maria, and Jorge; the latter two conspired to give Alexa the biggest stuffed teddy bear we've ever seen -- it's actually bigger than Jackson even when it's sitting down! Alexa loves lounging around on the bear. Jackson scored a plethora of gifts, including a late favorite -- a jungle adventure play set -- from Uncle Miki and his Boston cousins.
Happy Thanksgiving! We spent the day at Dave's sister Kathy's house with the extended Holland clan and used the occasion to give Alexa her first taste of real food -- sweet potatoes. She took to it like the proverbial duck to water, albeit a bit more messily. If you want to witness history in the making, click here for the video.
Our remodel is done -- again. Looks like our second round of bathroom renovation work -- to fix the problems with the electrical work done as part of the first round -- are substantially complete. A little more touch-up paint and it'll be almost as good as new. Still...annoying!
Aloha and mahalo! Our Big Trip to Hawaii was a resounding success! We had a fabulous 10 days in Oahu, during which we managed to find even more great discoveries to add to our ever-growing repertoire of things to do. Inclement weather introduced us to the Children's Discovery Center adjacent to Ala Moana Park; it was a fantastic find for rainy-day fun. Our Lonely Planet guidebook (purchased for Maria's benefit but surprisingly useful, even to us repeat Oahu visitors) turned us on to Kailua and Lanikai -- great beaches for kids and kayaking. And Jackson even got to ride his first horse at Kualoa Ranch, a 4,000-acre working ranch that offers horseback and ATV tours and serves as the shoot location for the TV series "Lost" (and, in the past, for films such as Jurassic Park). Thanks to an airplane seatmate's recommendation, we visited Ko' Olina, a fancy schmancy resort with four man-made lagoons open to the public, and our tennis pro at home sent us to Diamond Head Tennis Center for some good pickup tennis opportunities.
Of course, we did the tried and true things as well...hiking up Diamond Head (with Alexa and Jackson in carriers -- oy! Hard work!), heading to Duke's for sunset drinks, crab wonton appetizers and hula pie, and getting loco moco for breakfast at Keoni's. We also spent a good amount of time in our hotel, the Waikiki Beach Tower, which was a slice of heaven -- a two-bedroom condo in a tower across from the beach, perfect for four adults, two kids, and lots of varying itineraries. It'll definitely be our new home away from home in Hawaii.
Okay, we almost have a new bathroom: Bad news on the bathroom remodel front -- it turns out that the lion's share of the electrical work was not done up to code! How, you ask, did this happen? Well, let's just say I let the general contractor convince me to do things unpermitted, and he then demonstrated his lack of knowledge about current code by allowing an electrician to basically wing it on the wiring. We discovered the problems after a kitchen outlet started acting up and I called our original electrical contractor. In short order he discovered that the reason the outlet was getting hinky was that it was on a circuit that ran to the downstairs bathroom...and in the remodel process, the new electrician had added everything (new lights, whirlpool tub, washer and dryer, tankless water heater) to that existing circuit! Multiple code violations, plus major overload issues. And did I mention they installed recessed lights above the tub that didn't have shower trim -- meaning water/steam could easily get in? Or that someone in the tub who for some reason might touch the light could be electrocuted? Yikes. Anyway, I insisted the contractor come back as soon as we return from vacation -- which, by the way, will be Hawaii! -- this time with a state-licensed electrical contractor, and get things fixed. It means more holes in the walls and ceilings (damn!) but better safe than electrocuted.
We have a new bathroom! Hallelujuah: After about six weeks of hell and chaos, give or take, we finally have our new bathroom completed. We basically took an adjacent half-bath and laundry room, tore down the wall between them, and created a big bathroom space with room for a whirlpool tub, shower enclosure, and full-sized vanity cabinet. It looks great! We also managed to move the washer and dryer into a storage space under the stairs, giving us a new de-facto laundry room. Maria is thrilled -- she has the nicest bathroom in the house! And our future overnight guests will also be very happy, I suspect.
Tennis pilgrimage: At the end of September, we went to tennis camp! Dave and I schlepped the whole family, including Maria, out to St. George, Utah for the Vic Braden Tennis College, a three-day crash course taught by one of the top gurus in tennis. Dave's dad participated and Dave's mom came along to help babysit. We spent an exhausting but very rewarding long weekend on the courts, breaking down our old games and learning new, biomechanically sound and efficient strokes and strategies. CC's pal Laura, with whom she attended the same camp last year, was also on hand, and the two of them ruled the clinic as returning heroes. Lots of fun! The high point, at least for us parents: Vic watched Jackson running around and hitting balls and told us he reminded him very much of a young Agassi. Wow! Will our kid be a tennis star -- or just wear really bad clothes? Only time will tell.
The lights are on! Alexa is just over three months old now and is definitely moving out of "cute lump" stage. She has a fondness for pacifiers, a belly laugh that makes everyone else crack up, and a wide-eyed adoration of her big brother. Jackson has been fantastic with her, gentle and accommodating; we'll see how that holds up once he starts taking her toys. But for now, it's all good!
Knights of the realm: We are definitely total geeks, but we took Jackson to the San Francisco Renaissance Festival in late August, along with the Beyer-Friedman clan and Jackson's best friend, Noah. I convinced Rachel to buy knight costumes for the boys with me, and then found "magic" wands at a toystore (they go "Whoosh!" and light up when you press a button) in lieu of swords, and our magic knights ended up being the hit of the festival. It was hilarious to see these hard-core Ren people, who clearly had spent WAY too much money on their authentic costumes and trappings, oohing and aahing over our little pseudo-knights in their $15 costumes. The boys couldn't have been more excited, though; they got to see real jousting (yes, there was a tournament!), dragons, performers, and all manner of knights and lords.
Getting her groove back: CC stepped back into playing tennis around the six-week mark, in mid-July, and is starting to work with a few clients on a limited basis. Meanwhile, we're also making plans to undertake a bathroom remodel (turning a half-bath into a full one) and thinking about a big vacation near the end of the year. Candidates right now are Hawaii, Southern California, Tahoe, or Las Vegas.
Decadence, baby style At the end of June we packed up the whole kit and kaboodle (and kids) and headed to Sacramento for a week, to house-sit while David's parents were traveling. My mom joined us for the week, while my brother and his family made a quick stopover en route to Disneyland. Our friends Jonathan and Signy and their little girl, Beckett, also spent a couple of days with us. We had a good time splashing in the pool, and Jackson reaffirmed his credentials as Most Fearless Preschooler by jumping into the deep end repeatedly, playing bucking bronco with Daddy on the float toys, and hanging out in the hot tub as much as possible. In some ways it was relaxing; but in some ways, with Alexa on board and mom and baby still figuring things out, it was tough. I think we were all happy to be back home at the end!
Textbook baby? Alexa is doing really well and is shocking us with her easygoing, complacent demeanor. We had battened down the mental hatches in preparation of a repeat of Jackson's babyhood -- a fair amount of fussiness in the early weeks, horrendous sleep deprivation due to multiple wakings, refusal to be put down, lots of spit-up -- but have been stunned by how different Alexa is, in a good way. No, in a great way! Within three weeks she amazed us by sleeping "through the night," which parents know isn't REALLY the whole night but more like seven hours...but still! The ability to sleep more than two-hour stretches has been heavenly for me. She's eating fantastically well, and most surprising of all to us, rarely if ever cries! She makes polite little grunting noises when she's hungry, and whimpers when she's tired or gassy, but that's about it. Unbelievable! Who knew that #2 would be Textbook Baby?
Happy Birthday! At long last, Alexa Christine Holland has made her debut. She was born on May 24, 2007, at 10:44 p.m. Stats: 7 pounds, 3 ounces, 19.6 inches long, and APGAR scores of 9 and 9! (Way to go, Alexa.) She also astounded her pediatrician by regaining her birth weight just 3 days after she was born. Yep, the kid can eat!
While CC's labor wasn't on par with the epic, 37-hour painfest that was Jackson's birth, it had twists all its own. She started having contractions 5 minutes apart on Monday evening the 21st. Around midnight, we headed to the hospital...only to be told that "nothing much was really happening" and that we should go home. Contractions continued like clockwork for the next two days. In the middle of the night on Wednesday/Thursday, she thought her water had broken, and we made another trip to the hospital...only to be sent home yet again (nope, her water hadn't broken and the contractions were mysteriously tapering off). On Thursday, both of us were frustrated and CC was seriously tired of being in "Stage 1 labor." We kept a scheduled afternoon appointment with CC's OB, who assured us that if the baby didn't come for real by Saturday, we'd induce labor. Hooray! Enough was really enough.
Apparently Alexa thought so too, because two hours after we left the OB, the second stage of contractions began. And this time, they didn't send us home! We checked into the hospital at 5 p.m., CC had an epidural at 6 p.m., and about four and a half hours (and only two pushes!) later, Alexa joined the world. She's doing great; so far, she's been an angel, rarely crying and sleeping steadily -- even giving CC some 3-hour blocks of sleep at night. Of course, we've been warned that these are the halcyon days and within a week or two she'll "wake up" and assert her true personality. But after nearly three years of sleep struggles with Jackson, we're crossing our fingers that maybe Alexa is his temperamental opposite in that department.
We're adjusting to our expanded family fairly well. We've had to reassess logistics, of course; getting a preschooler up and dressed and off to school each morning is tougher with a perpetually hungry newborn around. But Maria has been great about helping out wherever needed, and Jackson has been a great big brother so far. The biggest adjustment is for David and CC has been going from zone defense to man-on-man; David's been fabulous about spending quality time with both kids, though, so it's been easier going than it could be otherwise. David's parents spent about a week with us during the long Stage 1 days and after Alexa's birth, tackling all the household duties so we could focus on family; they are so thrilled to finally have a baby girl in the family that we expect to see lots more of them in the near future!
Countdown time: We're heading into the second week of May and Baby #2 is due to make her appearance just about anytime. The official due date is May 28, but we have a strong suspicion she'll be more eager to hit the ground than Jackson (who was one of the 4% actually born on his due date, May 21). Our only hope is that the two siblings don't end up sharing the same birthday -- seems like that would be a rip-off for them! (Who gets the big party? Who gets all the attention?) At any rate, CC is more than ready to be done with pregnancy and its assorted woes. Her maternity leave began last week and she's been busy nesting and wrapping up all the little house projects and loose ends that have been hanging over our heads.
Dave is a tennis god: Dave is captaining the men's 4.0 comp tennis team at the Claremont and is enjoying a double success: The team roared off to a 7-0 start and Dave personally is 5-0 in competition, his best start ever. He's been complaining that the personality conflicts and intrigues on the team rival women's tennis (and I have to admit, he might be right!), but the results are speaking for themselves. If Dave can keep from killing all his teammates before the season is through, they might very well win the league and extend their run to Districts or beyond! Way to go, Dave.
A new family member: In late March we welcomed a new family member: au pair extraordinaire Maria, who joins us for a year to help out with Jackson and the new baby. Maria is from the Andalusia region of Spain near Cordoba and has integrated just about seamlessly into our lives. She's teaching us (especially Jackson) Spanish and we're returning the favor with English; thus far, Jackson has learned a wide variety of colors, letters, and phrases ("Ayude me!", shrieked in gales of laughter, is a big favorite for when Maria plays Tickle Monster with him), while CC is working on how to say "I'm sick of being pregnant" with the proper inflection. Maria's social life has already eclipsed ours, and her weekends are jam-packed with twentysomething pursuits like concerts, movies, bar hopping, and shopping. She's a complete sweetheart and Jackson is madly in love -- as are we. It's going to be a great year!
Drugs are good: For our dog, that is. After rekindled episodes of separation anxiety and on-leash aggression, we decided to have Lucky evaluated for a thyroid imbalance. The tests came back borderline, but our vet suggested we try a thryoid supplement to see if it would make a difference -- and sure enough, it did, both physically (she's shedding less and is more lively and playful) and in temperament. She seems calmer and more like her old self. That's not to say she's cured; we might be helping the nature part, but the nurture (e.g., early experiences) portion of her separation anxiety is less simple to eradicate. But it's a step in the right direction. We've also resumed having her go out on off-leash, group trail walks/runs with her favorite dog walker, so we're hoping the extra energy burn will also help.
Road trip!: In late February, we loaded up the Honda Pilot and hit the road for a Southern California vacation. Jackson did really well on the drive down, aided no doubt by the new portable DVD player we bought expressly for the trip; he watched "The Land Before Time" through multiple viewings and didn't seem to notice he was trapped in his car seat for 7 hours. We hit Pea Soup Anderson's on the way down, and CC was disappointed to find it didn't match her fond memories of eating there en route to volleyball tournaments. We started our trip with a stay at Dave's brother Todd's house in Los Angeles, visited friend Bryan and Darlene (who first introduced CC and Dave!), then headed down to San Clemente and Dave's uncle's beach house. While Mom Sandorfi enjoyed the coastal life, CC, Dave, and Jackson visited Disneyland for two days and had a great time. Jackson conquered a variety of rides, including Pirates of the Caribbean, which he inexplicably loved! (We thought it'd be too intense for him -- shows how well we know our own kid.) Dave's cousin Rod, his wife Suze, and their two girls (Emma and Kate) met us for a day of Disney fun, and we also explored California Adventure, the adjacent theme park. We rounded out our visit with a return to San Clemente with Rod, Suze, and the girls, plus a side trip to SeaWorld, where Jackson fed his first dolphin, touched his first stingray, and fell in love with orcas. Mom Sandorfi extended her stay with a trip to see friends in La Jolla, while CC, Dave, and Jackson drove back north. All in all, a fun adventure!
Playing pregnant: In a desperate attempt to remain in denial about her pregnancy, CC and her friend Laura competed in a women's 4.0 doubles tennis tournament in early February (at almost 7 months gone). It was a bit of a letdown because in the end, just three teams registered...but the gals played extremely well anyway and finished second, losing to a very experienced and talented team that competed successfully at the 4.5 level as well. And hey, neither of THEM were knocked up!
Super Bowl and babies: CC's beloved Patriots fell just short this year, but the Super Bowl was still a memorable event: We hosted the first annual Super Bowl and Babies Bash. A dozen or so families descended on us for food, fun, and football; we hired two babysitters for the afternoon who wrangled the toddlers and kept them amused while the grown-ups socialized (or attempted to do so, given that many were also tending young babies). It was also the first official unveiling of our new house, which has kept us busy with repairs and upgrades for the past eight months. "Controlled chaos" would be the best description of the festivities, but we all had a blast and we're planning on making it an annual event.
Mom moves in: CC's mom, Dorit, arrived for an extended visit just before New Year's and will be with us until late March. She's fleeing the cold weather in Boston and helping out a bit with Jackson and the household; she'll also use Oakland as a jumping-off place for travel to Mexico with her sister and to visit friends on the West Coast. Happily, our psuedo in-law quarters -- our downstairs bedroom, sitting room, and bathroom -- should make for an easy household integration.
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