The Kids with Gramma and Grampa Kendall

I surely haven't updated many pictures on the blog in forever as well.  Need to keep the blog footprint alive.  Look at everyone and their smiling faces.

Back for 2016!

We've been idling a bit on the blog but I promise to come back in 2016 with lots of new random information...

Mary Jane, Jack, and Betsy have wandered their way into the new year.  Only Mary Jane so far has wondered what this whole "New Year" thing is all about.  According to her, the new year starts on December 7 every year.  Well, it is her birthday after all so that at least makes sense.

I gave the girls a treat today and drove them over to "Mama Place" (aka McDonalds) so they could have a Happy Meal as well as some playhouse time.  Unbeknownst to me, the toy right now in the Happy Meals is none other than Shopkins.  Oh dear, not the Shopkins.  Yes, the Shopkins.  I don't even know how to describe them.  Miniature shopping items?  Something like that.

Anyway, Jill has now updated the look so I can go back to the website and not worry about it saying it's 2007 or something.  More tomorrow...

Mary Jane Erb: the Next Vin Scully

Mary Jane and Betsy Jo have both learned the art of announcing.  Here Mary Jane tries her first attempt at hitting off a tee.  Betsy Jo follows with slightly better results.

Relaxing in the Leaves

My hard workers also need to relax as well.  A little play and a little relaxation works well.  They didn't make leaf angels in this video but it is exceptionally cute.

Eye See You!

I also like the crepuscular rays of the sun over parts of her face.  It makes Betsy quite radiant.

A True Family Photo

Now that is a family photo.  We used the letters of our last name -- which are situated high up in the living room -- and allowed our little ones to hold them for a precious birth announcement photos.  Jack was about a month old (maybe younger) for a sequence of photos for his birth announcement.  Betsy has a quiet smile about her and Mary Jane's hair is tossed about like she's her father!

Best photo ever... of course if my last name were Johnson, I might think otherwise.

Mary Jane Leads the Erb Caravan

Mary Jane is slowly mastering her tricycling ability.  In this video, she's working her way down Stanwood, the street adjacent to Dewey.  This was only her second time circumnavigating the block.  Hey now, it takes her almost 30 minutes for the whole trip.

Betsy was sitting in the wagon and was not in this video.  Betsy, at this point, can make the walk around the block but often lingers and wants to pull off flowers.  Oops.  Thus when she gets a little... tired and distracted... I place her in the wagon and off we go.  It's the Erb Caravan.

More Beach Photos

 Nothing says summertime like spending some time on the beach.  Here Betsy looks off toward the ocean and wonders what is up with all that noise.

Here Daddy holds Mary Jane as they look down at the waves.  He reminds her that the waves are dangerous and she needs to be by him at all times.  He will remind her of that until she is at least 21.

Betsy Jo runs about the sand having a good ol' time.  Who cares about having sand in your toes anyway?

Early Summer Fun with Family

A busy Sunday afternoon with Uncle Greg, cousins Ryan and Connor, and Jenna came by to visit the girls.  Mary Jane and Betsy Jo were overjoyed to see Uncle G and their cousins this afternoon.  Any chance to show off their abilities is something they look forward to.  And any chance to play with water as well.

Hey, no breaking the hammock!

Fire Station Open House!

Oddly enough the firemen rarely use this any more.  Most of the firemen at Mar Vista are on the older side and might actually get hurt on the landing.  But it remains as a symbol.

 It's been a double fire truck week for the girls.  On Thursday, Mary Jane and Betsy Jo went to the local fire station in Westchester.  (Some of those pictures must be on Facebook somewhere.)  But that was completely unrelated to the open houses run throughout all of LAFD today.

I was struggling with my Saturday morning run... on my quest to finish the Pasadena half-marathon... when I passed a bunch of fire trucks parked out on a street.  I thought, "Oh, bad fire" or even "Someone was shot!" as it was down by Oakwood.  But no, it was an open house with a pancake breakfast!  Ah, no better way to celebrate a morning than with a pancake breakfast.  Ironically, Mommy and Mary Jane were fixing a pancake breakfast while I was running out and about through the Venice and Mar Vista area (today's run: 7 miles).  We didn't ever make it to the Venice pancake breakfast (maybe next year) but I did take the two girls to the Mar Vista open house.  It's the one over on Venice and Inglewood.  Yes, where the old Break Shot used to be. (Now how would you remember that?)

There weren't that many people there that late in the day.  Mostly moms with young children so I fit in quite well with my girls.

Mary Jane and Betsy Jo had fun wandering around and climbing onto and off of the fire trucks.  No hats were worn though.  That's too bad.  

Daddy and the Girls

Having Fun at Music Class

Talking 'bout My Generation!

 Mary Jane and Betsy Jo thoroughly enjoy their Sunday morning music class over on Venice Blvd.  One man, one guitar, nine or ten children, random assortment of parents, noisemakers, scarves, and a tunnel.  What more could you ask?  Mary Jane and Betsy both jump up and down on the trampoline (that's what Baby Natalie is balanced on in the picture below) with aplomb.  Can't say that I've ever used 'aplomb' before in a sentence.

 Two girls with their jeans and Who t-shirts ready to dance!

You mean it's time to go?  Boo hoo!

Cooking in the Kitchen

After Daddy cleaned the back yard kitchen with Mary Jane and Betsy Jo this afternoon, Mary Jane decided to cook her own meal.  Wisely using the microwave, Mary Jane cooked her pretzel with a great deal more efficiently.  After all was completed, she proudly proclaimed, "It's my lunch!"  Yes, it is your lunch... and a good one at that.

The Best Laid Schemes o' Pandas and Giraffes...

Mary Jane and Betsy Jo with their animal backpacks

What, me a British lit teacher?  Never.

Anyway, I had this great idea yesterday to see if I could take a walk around the block with Mary Jane and Betsy Jo wearing their animal packs with the "leashes" that would be tucked on each arm of mine.  I knew it would be difficult: the girls do walk at different speeds, have varying walking interests, and don't necessary listen to commands.  Then again, that could also be my sophomores.

I wore Mary Jane's "leash" with my left hand and Betsy's was on my right.  The first 50 feet worked splendidly.   They both giggled and ran intermittently.  Mary Jane tried to escape the gravitational pull of Daddy but was unable to extend more than the 3-4 feet in front of me.  She'd slow down, wait for my long stride to catch up to her, and then take off again.  That worked well for a few houses.  But that was not the problem.

Alas, poor Betsy, she didn't feel like walking.  She was in her Ferdinand the Bull mode.  Betsy wasn't necessarily smelling the flowers -- well, it is spring so it would be as good of a time as any -- but she did want to see all the sites of Dewey.  Never mind that she had to keep pace with Daddy who trying to slow down Mary Jane.  Being tugged at both ends wasn't too helpful... it did make me think about the gravitational pull of the sun and moon upon the Earth.  Seriously!  It did.  That's what I get for spending too much time covering the Space Race and other extraterrestrial (ouch!) things for AD this fall.

Betsy before the fall

Finally, the flop occurred.  Betsy Jo could take no more and fell down with a thud.  Mary Jane kept trying to tug me forward which would then drag Betsy on the sidewalk.  Not a good idea... so I made my executive decision and turned for home.  Mary Jane was not too happy about it as she wanted to get some bamboo for Paul, her stuffed panda.  He's quite the needy panda.

Of course the drama didn't end yet with these excessively cute animal backpacks.  Mary Jane realized that if she stepped on the "tail" of the backpack, Betsy would... yes... THWACK.  Right on the paved driveway.  I should have seen that coming but then again, I think I was annoyed at my shoe lace becoming untied a few seconds previous.

This anecdote was not to criticize the producer of those animal backpacks.  They seem to serve quite a good purpose.  But one dad, two girls, two arms... as Jesus once said, ain't happenin'.  OK, maybe he didn't say that... but maybe he did.  Once.  In Aramaic.

Jor-El Made the Right Decision

The Erb Women

Oh, how could one not look at Miss Jill, Mary Jane, and Betsy Jo and not love their infinite cuteness.  And they all adamantly remind us all that, yes, Superman was indeed adopted as well.  Jor-El and his wife made the right decision. 

Mary Jane and Betsy Jo will be Supergirls... our Supergirls.  Will they bend steel, fly faster than a speeding bullet, or leap tall buildings in a single bound?  Maybe.  But we don't need them to  in order to be our daughters.  They will love us as parents and we will love them as children.  And I'll do everything in my power to prevent whatever metaphorical Kryptonite there is out there from harming them.  Now if for some reason, they pick up a few supervillains along the way... that's on them.  I can only give advice.  (I think I'll cut the Superman conceit here as you and I both know Clark Kent's adopted father doesn't make it much past the first act.)

At some point there should be a musical score from John Williams backing this post.  OK, maybe not but that's how I feel.

Mommy Playing with Our Girls

Amidst all the bunny comments, Bruin basketball, and Academic Decathlon triumphs... sometimes I just need to step back and admit how much I love my women.  They are strong.  They are funny.  They are the best.

Teamwork

Nothing quite like Mary Jane and Betsy Jo both taking turns on their wagon ride around the block.  It's about a 1/3 of a walk but they sometimes rotate the riding and pulling.  Or even the pulling and pushing as seen here.  Usually it's Daddy pulling, Betsy Jo riding, and Mary Jane tagging along.

Do note in this video, Mary Jane has some extra old bamboo leaves for Paul the Panda upon their return.  He's been quite happy with her bamboo collections as of late.  The DudeManBro has been singing a lot more recently and not knocking over supermarket carts.  But more on that later...

Typical Lunch with the Girls

Messy-Faced Betsy

Just your typical afternoon but nothing quite like checking in with Betsy Jo and Mary Jane to see how well they liked their lunch.  Betsy, as you can clearly see, thoroughly enjoyed her smoothie. Meanwhile Mary Jane and Betsy have discussions over lunch while the Pengoon sits in the background and waits for leftovers.  Sorry, Pengoon, no fish for lunch this week.  Then again if it's Lent, you never know.

Lunching with the Pengoon

Shifting into Park

Mary Jane and Betsy Jo had a great time a few weekends ago in a Westwood park (the area just outside of UCLA, fight fight fight).  They ran about and played for quite a while and tried out all the different apparatus that they could.

Watch out, here come the furiously furry feet of Mary Jane.

 Betsy Jo has an interesting way of going down slides.  She climbs on her belly and slides down backwards.  No reason to lie on her back and ease down the slide. This way she can keep an eye on the  camera-holding parent, in this case Mommy.

Betsy was not so keen on the large banana swing.  She kept begging to go into it but then wanted out as soon as she started swinging.  Oh well, that happens.  You can't always get what you want, Betsy.  But if you try sometimes, you just might find, you get what you need.

Mary Jane in the Tunnel

Tunnel!!!  Mary Jane starts her way through with the help of Daddy at the far end and Mommy with the camera on the near end.

Happy baby!

Betsy rocks back and forth and is in her own happy land. Seeing pictures like this puts Mommy and Daddy in a happy land too.

Honoring the Pope's Namesake

Chilling with St. Francis

Betsy Jo and Mary Jane wander to the back yard to pay homage to St. Francis.  While they may not yet realize he is the patron saint of animals (and thus reminds the four rabbits in the back yard to keep an eye on Betsy Jo and Mary Jane), they do realize he has a water dish.  Ooh, free water!  Splash!

Maybe Mr. John will put a papal hat on St. Francis.  OK, maybe not.

Our Girls Love Pizza

 Who cares if it's Little Caesar's and it's $5 pizza you can just pick up at the counter.  It's got tangy sauce the girls love and they wear... er, eat it all up!

Mary Jane truly loves her pizza.  Look at that face.

A Brief Afternoon at the Santa Ana Zoo

Charlie's Cake

Daddy in Charge of the Kids' Table

The Girls and Their Cupcakes

Wagon Time with Baby Charlie

Mary Jane, Betsy Jo, and Daddy went to the Santa Ana Zoo today for Baby Charlie's first birthday party.  Mommy was actually in Atlanta for an adoption conference so she was not there.  That gave Daddy a chance to show his mad skeelz as a Dad.  Well, the girls didn't open up any cages and let the animals out.

They did have some snack food which was not in their typical diet.  They might have both had a cookie each, a small box of chocolate milk (Betsy never really could figure that one out), and the cupcakes (seen in the photo).  Betsy loved the frosting; Mary Jane preferred the cake itself.

At the end of the day, everyone went on a train ride around the park.  Fun was had by all and the girls came home tired and a bit cranky.  That happens after festive days.