reporting from menlo park

we moved to the bay area just in time to protest the olympic torch in san francisco today. just kidding, but we really are here and we really are watching protesters on the news - what a perfect way to start life in the bay area. :) anyway, our neighborhood RULES and our apartment is great. cate is a wee bit (well, a lot bit) emotional...we're trying to be patient with her knowing this is a major transition, but it's been challenging. she does like our new "house" a lot and shows a lot of enthusiasm about making new friends. anna is blissfully unaware of the craziness surrounding her and is sleeping oodles of hours at night. we are so lucky.

nate started work on monday and that is going well. it stunk having him go to work on monday - our house is still in shambles, but i am SO CLOSE to getting everything unpacked. we had so much storage space at UCSD housing it's getting a little tight here in the closets, even after throwing out even MORE stuff. all we've seen so far are parts of menlo park and palo alto, so i am DYING to get out there and explore the area. already i can tell that there is going to be more to do than we can ever hope to cover. it's going to be a very fun place to live.

we miss our san diego friends dearly. again, i just felt so blessed our last weeks in san diego...i can't believe how much love and support so many of our friends showed. it was amazing. thank you everyone! :)

once the house is cleaned up and i find my camera cord, I'll post some pictures!

packing, packing, packing!!!!

we're almost ready to go. crazy! we're hopping in our moving truck tomorrow night and taking off. sorry I've been neglecting the blog...I have SO MANY PICTURES and things to write about - the PhD defense, visiting family, anna's blessing, easter, good-bye parties, etc, etc, etc...but it's just been crazy. anyway, just thought I'd post so you know we're still alive and well...so sad to leave san diego, but excited for our new adventure!!

we are amazingly blessed to have such great friends here in SD...I honestly don't know what we would have done without them the last few weeks...packing, babysitting, box gathering...seriously, I am feeling so grateful right now.

good night. :)

Comparing the Cousins

When Abby was 3 weeks old, I took Cate up to Utah so they could meet. Cate was about 4 months old here. The difference in size was astounding...not just because of their age difference, but also because Cate was possibly one of the chubbiest babies ever seen.


Abby's little brother, Colby, is about 3 months older than Anna...and this time around the Hansen baby is the bruiser and our baby is the little one. Colby came to visit last week - that guy is chub, chub, chub. SO STINKIN' CUTE. So, we did a little re-creation of the Cate & Abby picture. Anna was much happier with the photo shoot than Abby was 3 years ago... :)

Colby & Anna Meet!

Nate's sister Jessica came to visit for the defense and brought along Colby. It was so fun to finally meet the little guy. You should see how many pictures I took of Anna & Colby together. It's ridiculous. Here are just a few...





For one of their "photo shoots" they were holding hands...it was SO CUTE. And Colby kept looking over at Anna. So sweet.


Look at that face!

Cate at the Aquarium

My good friend Jen invited us to the Birch Aquarium last week. Cate LOVED it and I'm so happy we were able to go there one last time before we move. Thanks Jen!

Like Sister, Like Sister

Looks like we have another thumbsucker on our hands! Last Saturday Anna really got a hold of her thumb...luckily Nate got some pictures. She's still not a professional, but she's working on it. Cate has been very influential in Anna's life already... :)

T-1 Week to Doctorhood!

Anna's Birth Announcement!

Anna is now officially announced! :)

I was bound and determined to make sure Anna got an announcement AND a baby book, so far so good. If I emailed you the announcement, hopefully the colors came through okay - if not, I'm posting it here so you can see what it's supposed to look like! :) (and if you're family and wondering why I didn't email you the announcement, it's because you'll get one in the mail...it's not because I don't like our family :) )

delicious (or not) dinner

last night i made a new chicken recipe. cate takes the first bite and says, "oh - my - gosh! how did you make this, mommy?" it was very grown up and sweet. so maybe we have a winner and cate will actually eat her dinner? nice try...next comment: "I don't yike artichokes. they make me choke."

anna loves cate. cate makes her smile and it is so sweet. I left them on the bed just now and as I walked away, I smiled at anna and said, "hi beautiful!" then i hear cate: "hi, beaufiful!" yes, it's beaufiful. so so cute.

we're staying afloat...barely!

I have so many cute pictures to post, but it's just been so busy. Nate is defending his PhD thesis 1 week from tomorrow!!! From that point on you must refer to him as Dr. Nate. :) I've been searching for a place to live up in Palo Alto/Menlo Park (all from my desk in San Diego)...and I think tomorrow we should know for sure where we'll be. Cate and Anna are doing great despite the fact Nate is working all the time and I'm just trying to hold it all together. I told Nate I can't wait for April...at that point we will be moved, the PhD done, the whirlwind behind us. At the same time, I'm starting to get pretty sad when I think about leaving San Diego. Plus, I can't complain, the next few weeks sure will be fun and exciting, with family visiting and celebrating the big finish! A CRAZY month for sure!!! Anyway, I'm going to try to get a few pictures up here this week. Promise.