i like my gym.  even though it’s far away from home, i’m having fun. and my confidence is growing every week.  when i first started this class, i wouldn’t even attempt to climb the rope web.  and then i climbed 2 rungs.  and then i got high enough to reach the bottom of the scarf.  and now i can touch the top of the scarf!  but the main reason why we continue going to airborne is so i can see matthew every week (and mommy and daddy can see auntie audrey and uncle alan).

well, matthew is going to have a little brother pretty soon.  and after his little brother comes, matthew is going to take a break from gym class so that he can stay home and take care of the baby (and so that auntie audrey can recover).  unfortunately, airborne is going to make matthew drop the class and they won’t save his spot.  well, if matthew is going to have to drop, then i’m dropping too. (we’ve been thinking about leaving airborne anyway.)  leaving airborne will be a good opportunity for us to find a new gym closer to home, and it’s a perfect time to find a class for sienna, too.  so we went gym hopping this week.

on monday, sienna went to check out my gym.  no, not airborne, the gym is called “my gym”.  she had a great time.  it’s similar to the little gym.  they sang songs, played with bubbles and balls, tried out the kid-sized apparatuses, and learned a couple of skills.  it’s a lot of “play”, which is fine for little kids like sienna.  sienna loved it.  mommy thought it was okay, but she didn’t love the tiny facility or high-pressured sales pitch.  plus, it doesn’t really seem like that gym would be very good for bigger kids like me.

on friday, sienna and i both went to a trial class at edge gymnastics. we were running a little late so mommy shoved me into the warm up circle with the rest of my class, and then she rushed off to sienna’s parent participation class.  mommy was worried that i’d get upset and want to go with her and sienna, but i was totally fine.

edge is pretty much just like airborne.  it’s a hard core gymnastics training center in a humungous facility.  it took sienna a little while to warm up to the class — maybe because it’s a lot of skills, and not a lot of play.  but she eventually got into it.  i loved my class at edge.  i want to start going there instead of airborne.  there is a friday time slot that has a class for both me and sienna.  the only problem is that it starts at 3:45pm, which is not the most convenient time for any of us.

for now, i’m committed to airborne until the end of the month.  i’ll probably switch to edge after that.  not sure what sienna is going to do.

matthew had his birthday party at airborne, tonight.  this is the 4th saturday in a row that we’ve spent in the south bay for birthday parties or activities.  and we swim in the south bay every sunday, so that means we’re pretty much spending all of our weekends down there.  what the heck?  didn’t we just move away from the area?  and poor daddy has been doing that commute every day.  not just M-F, but every single day.  i think we should start spending more time closer to home.

anyway, we’ve been to several airborne parties before, and they’re always really fun.  but this time was different because it’s now my (and matthew’s) regular gym and our coach was one of the party leaders.  also, sienna is now big enough to really participate in the obstacle course and all of the activities, so she had a great time too.

one of our favorite things about airborne is the tumbling track (which is basically a long trampoline) that finishes with a big slide into a foam pit.  here is a video of me and sienna jumping down the tumbling track.  mommy says this is what two rag dolls would look like on a trampoline after one too many drinks.  i don’t know what she’s talking about.  my trampoline skills are fantastic.  i even showed sienna how to do a seat drop into pike position.

here’s a video of me and sienna sliding into the foam pit.  even though i’ve been down this slide many times, i cautiously roll onto my stomach, slide down feet first, and slow my descent as much as possible with the friction from my hands.  sienna eagerly dives in head first.  she only hesitated because daddy was yelling at her to wait until i got out of her landing zone.  if she could have figured out a way to slide faster, she would have done it. sienna may have slid down faster, but she couldn’t climb out with my help.

this video pretty much illustrates our risk profiles.  sienna is definitely the adrenaline junkie in our family, and she is likely to get herself into situations that she won’t be able to get herself out of.  i, on the other hand, am the more cautious (read: smarter) one.

happy birthday, matthew. we had a great time at your party!

sienna had her 2 year check up today.  she was seeing our new doctor for the first time, so there were a dozen forms to fill out, medical history to review, family history to discuss, and blah blah blah.

first things first.  now that sienna is a big girl, the nurse wanted to measure her height standing against the wall (instead of lying down).  sienna was screaming her head off and wouldn’t stand still.  mommy even got down on her knees and held sienna’s hands.  FAIL.  the nurse also tried to weigh sienna standing on the scale.  sienna refused to step on the scale, even after mommy showed her how it was done.  another FAIL.  sienna was eventually measured lying down and weighed in the bucket scale for babies.

• height:  34 inches (50 %ile)
• weight:  23 pounds, 12 ounces (6 %ile)

sienna was whiny and fussy while waiting for the doctor.  she eventually calmed down after mommy gave her some of the forms to “help” fill out.  since it was her first appointment, the doctor talked to mommy for a long time about sienna’s medical history as well as the health of mommy, daddy, and all our grandparents.  mommy had two takeaways from that discussion:

1. sienna might be able to find a pediatric dermatologist who has seen palmoplantar keratoderma (her peeling hands and feet issue) at UCSF
2. mommy should see a cardiologist because po-po (her mom) had a quad bypass when she was in her 40’s.  apparently, heart disease in someone that young points more to genetics than age/lifestyle.

after all of that talking, it was time for sienna’s shots.  she only needed one vaccine, so she got stabbed in the leg.  she didn’t cry, whimper, or protest in any way.  (really?  a scale makes her cry, but a big needle… nothing.  weird kid.)

our doctor’s office also has flu vaccines available for this season.  sienna got to have her flu vaccine administered in a nasal spray instead of a shot.  i’m not sure if that’s because she has an egg allergy or if it’s just because our new doctor is AWESOME.  i guess i’ll find out when i go for my check up in a couple of months.  maybe i should start faking an egg allergy now, just in case.

i have been riding my run bike for a little over a year. i have gotten pretty good at balancing and lifting my feet and gliding, so we decided that it’s time for me to get a big boy bike.  mommy and daddy wanted to get it this summer so that i could ride it for a couple of months before the weather starts getting cold and rainy.  so we did some research.  if you’re about my size and you’re in the market for a bike, pay attention.

standard kids bike sizes are 12″, 16″, 20″ and so on. those in-between sizes (like 14″) are only sold in department stores, and those stores typically only carry novelty bikes (like the incredible hulk bike or the pink fairy bike). i test drove both types of bikes, and mommy and i both liked the standard bikes over the novelty ones. we decided on a specialized hotrock coaster.

the 12″ was just the right size for me, but i would probably outgrow it by next summer.  the 16″ was a little bit big, but i could grow into it and definitely ride it next summer.  so we got the 16″.  it seemed like the obvious choice at the time.  but once we got it home, mommy immediately realized that it was a big mistake.  i’ve spent the past year learning to balance and glide on my run bike, so the transition to a big boy bike was supposed to be easy.  but when the bike is too big for your feet to touch the ground, it shakes your confidence.  a lot.

i tried to ride it one time without the training wheels, but after that, i insisted that the training wheels go back on.  and now, i’ll only ride it with training wheels.  mommy is so mad at herself for getting me an oversized bike, which quickly caused me to become dependent on training wheels, which quickly undid my year of two-wheel “training” on my run bike.

now that i have a pedal bike, sienna inherited my run bike.  she loves riding it, and was sooo proud of herself, but she is so slow.  i asked mommy why sienna is so slow.  mommy showed me the video from when i had a “slow bike”.  i just laughed. 😛  here is a video of sienna’s first ride.  it looks pretty much the same as mine, huh?

i love my new bike because it has pedals and a bell.  mommy loves it because of its high-quality construction of lightweight aluminum.  but she is seriously considering going back to our local bike shop and picking up the 12″.  don’t tell daddy.  he is already rolling his eyes at her for buying me bike that’s nicer than his.

today, sienna’s friend malia had her 2nd birthday party.  it was a picnic in the park with lots of food and… a jumpy house!  sienna and i spent pretty much the entire afternoon with kai-kai — eating, then bouncing, then eating, then bouncing some more.  it was a perfect day at the park hanging out with friends.

we took a break from the action to sing happy birthday to malia and eat some cake.  auntie alisa made cupcakes and a regular sheet cake.  mommy asked me which one i wanted.  they were the same flavor, but i wanted the big cake.  duh.  it’s bigger.  but you should have seen the tiny little sliver that i got — i definitely got gypped.

after cake, we took another few bounces through the jumpy house, and then it was time to go.  sienna gave malia a birthday hug and kiss, but she was not impressed.

after malia’s party, we went straight to uncle ritchie’s house in san ramon for his birthday party.  there was so much food, and it all looked so yummy.  so even though we had just eaten lunch, we ate some more as soon as we arrived.  and then we headed straight for the pool.  even though the pool heater was on all day and the water was a comfortable 80 degrees, that’s still 9 degrees colder than my usual pool temp.  it took some coaxing to get me into the “cold” water (instead of the 90+ degree water in the jacuzzi) but once i was there, i had a blast.  i swam with uncle henry and uncle jim and had SO MUCH FUN because i got to swim with a noodle for the first time, and i was armed with a water gun.  i swam all afternoon long.  sienna eventually joined me (along with mommy, daddy, and some other families).  i wanted to stay in the water all evening, but i eventually agreed to get out of the pool when i heard there was cake. 😀  after cake, uncle ritchie grilled up some more food and we ate dinner.  and then it was time to go home and go to bed.

that was our busy day of birthdays.  happy birthday to malia and uncle ritchie!  i can’t wait to tell all my friends at school about our super fun day.

we’ve been at our new school for 2 weeks now.  and guess what… we love it!  everyone always comments about how cute sienna is and how much they love her.  i think it’s because she’s so chatty and she has a cute little voice.  auntie victoria (kai-kai’s mommy) thinks it’s because sienna is always smiling and laughing.  i guess i can see that, but she isn’t always smiling when she gets dropped off!  my teachers tell me that i am a chatterbox.  but i corrected them and told them that i am not a chatterbox — i am a smartypants!

sienna’s first couple of days were great.  no crying.  but on her 3rd day, she start crying at drop off.  she only cries for a minute or two, but it still makes us sad.  i always tell her not to worry because mommy and daddy always come back. 🙂

anyway, our new school is pretty awesome. for this summer session, we are “visiting” different countries every week.  we learn about the country, find it on the globe, learn words from its native language, make art projects from that country’s culture, and all kinds of other fun things.  last week we visited the south pole.  this week, it’s africa.  as part of africa week, we invited some friends to visit us.  we hoped for elephants — they live in africa, right?  well, there were no elephants, so we settled for a giant african millipede, a tenrec, a chinchilla, and a bearded dragon.  those last two animals are not from africa, but still cool!  my favorite animal was the bearded dragon because it has a beard.  how silly!  i don’t know what sienna’s favorite animal was because she gives a different answer every time i ask her.  mommy’s favorite was the chinchilla because it was so soft and cute.  she said it looked like stitch, the disney alien.

animals are not my only friends at school.  i became fast friends with some of my classmates, and i even have two girlfriends:  keya and addie.  sometimes, the girls fight over who gets to sit next to me, and one of them ends up in tears.  no need to fight, girls.  there is plenty of me to go around.

koda turned 5 today.  and like usual, he planned to celebrate with his sister, kiara.

when mommy picked me and sienna up from school, we headed straight home to make some special treats for the dogs.  i told mommy that koda was so excited.  i didn’t really know that he was excited, but how can you not be when it’s your birthday?

the birthday treats that mommy made for the dogs were made from mostly organic ingredients because that’s what we happened to have on hand.  i even got to try some.  they were pretty tasty.  uncle henry brought over some fancy cookies for the dogs and zachary’s pizza for us!

koda really liked his treat.  i wasn’t sure if kiara liked hers as much because she didn’t gobble it up as fast as koda did.  but sienna and i sure loved our pizza!

mommy says that koda and kiara are now middle-aged, but still act like crazy puppies.  i think mommy is confused.  they are not middle-aged, they are only 5.  happy birthday, dogs!

auntie barbara came to visit us this morning.  it’s a tuesday.  since she is in town for just a couple of days, mommy let me and sienna play hooky from school so we could hang out with auntie.  and since today is auntie barbara’s birthday, we decided to have an impromptu little party for her.  actually, it was just our excuse to pull out the jumpy house that she gave to sienna for her birthday.

we had such a fun time hanging out with auntie barbara, and we wish she lived closer so we could see her all the time.  happy birthday auntie barbara.  come visit us more often!

so who wants to come play with us in my — i mean, sienna’s — jumpy house?  when you have your very own jumpy house (and slide), it’s always a party. 🙂

p.s.  shhh, don’t tell daddy that we played hooky from school to jump… jump… jump around!

auntie liner started a non-profit organization to give back to the cancer community.  as a fundraising event, they organized a sports day that included an obstacle course race for kids.  it was supposed to be for ages 4-12,  so i had to get special permission to participate since i’m only 3.  they had a committee meeting about me and decided that since i had completed a triathlon a couple of months ago (auntie liner saw me there because she was volunteering) that i must be athletic enough to finish an obstacle course.  the one condition was that mommy would have to run the course with me.  no problem.

after my registration was approved, i recruited some of my other 3 year old buddies to join me.  matthew and logan had no problem signing up.  i guess i had paved the way for them. 😉  mommy had planned to volunteer on the obstacle course, and she recruited auntie judy and auntie mimi to help out too.

on the morning of the race, we dropped mommy and auntie mimi off at the sports day event.  daddy took me and sienna to meet up with matthew and logan at an open house event at matthew’s school.  look who we met there — our favorite curious monkey!  there was story time, games, and face painting at the event.  we hung out there for about an hour, and then we headed over to the park.

the sports day events were cycling, volleyball, and the obstacle course.  we didn’t really see the cyclists because they were out on the course.  mommy and daddy knew some people playing volleyball, but not nearly as many as they used to know back when they used to play in these grass tournaments.  the funny thing is that a lot of mommy’s friends who used to play volleyball were there watching their kids run the obstacle course. 😛

my friend maddie was participating in the event too.  maddie, matthew, logan, and i (and all the other kids that i didn’t know) had a great time on the course.  there were tires, an army crawl, balance beam, horse jumps, up & overs, string trap, bungee trap, soccer dribbling, water ball transfers, and a big giant inflatable slide!  my favorite part was the jamba juice that we got at the end. 🙂

check out the photos that auntie mimi took of me.  thanks auntie mimi!  wait a minute…  if she took these photos, who was manning the obstacle that she was supposed to be volunteering at?

sienna and i started at our new school today.  it’s called the goddard school.  i am in the owl class, and sienna is in the parrot class.  when we arrived, we each had our very own cubbies already set up with our names on them!

one of the greatest things about this school is that there is a biometric hand scanner at the entrance.  that’s even cooler than the keypad at my old school that we had to enter the secret code on.

our first day went pretty well.  at drop off, sienna got a little sad and wanted to go with mommy and daddy, but she didn’t cry.  i shed one tear, and then i was fine.

when mommy came to pick us up, she got a report from each of our teachers that stated what we did that day, what we ate (and didn’t eat) from our lunch, and a personal memorable moment from the day.  and since sienna isn’t potty trained yet, her daily report even lists all the times they check her diaper, whether it was wet, dry, or dirty, and what times she used the potty.

mommy picked up sienna first.  when sienna saw mommy through the classroom window, she yelled “mommy!”.  and when mommy entered the classroom, sienna ran to her and sang “grown ups come back”, just like the song that daniel tiger sings.

when mommy and sienna came to pick me up, my class was in outside time.  my teacher talked with mommy about what a great day that i had, and then she asked if i knew keya from before.  nope.  mommy started to ask who keya was, but once she spotted me, it became pretty clear.  keya and i were huddled together in a corner under the play structure.  mommy and sienna hung out for about 10 minutes so that i could continue to play with my new friends.  when i got up and climbed onto the play structure, keya followed me.  when i went down the slide, keya was right behind me.  when i ran over to the water fountain, keya was right there.  i think she likes me. 😀

it was a great first day.  but remember that my first day at my Y school was great too.  the tears didn’t start until around day 3.  i’ll keep you posted on how the rest of the week goes.