Ursula from 6.6 months to 8 months- enjoy!
To return to Ursula's current pictures click on the bear.

Let Ursula be your tour guide on the Batona Trail.

Update, May 20th., We've lived here for three years and only now discovered this jewel of a hiking area - the NJ Pinelands are only a half hour away. The Batona Trail winds for 50 miles through a bright forest of pitch pine since the understory is so clear of brush. That ground cover looked like alot of cranberry and blueberry bushes and the soil is white sand covered with red needles ... gorgeous. Luckily we didn't come across the Jersey Devil.

Touching a new texture


Resting after our hike ... and fighting over the water bottle.

You'd think this was some fancy microbrew the way Ursula was enjoying this water.

Her current favorite book has very few words. But she loves it when we add the animal sounds. When we try to set it aside she'll lunge after it, hoping we'll read it again.

There's no point in spending money on expensive toys when plastic bottles make her so happy. We know, we know, as soon as she's crawling cardboard boxes will be a big hit.

"Must have bag of wipes"

Update, May 19th., Ursula is getting excited to see her Gramma Kay next week! Mobile Ursa is lurching forward ending up on top of her toys. From this position she always reaches for the diaper wipes. We've no idea why there's this fascination? Freud would have something funny to say about this. No tooth yet, not crawling yet either.


"I love my kitty"


Found an older picture from the Golden Gate Park in SF. 100+ rings on this downed Cedar


We came across this billboard the other day("6+6+06 you have been warned") . How nice that someone took the time to remind us that our second wedding anniversary is coming up! Drop us a line if you know the backstory on the sweet folks who were thoughtful enough to do this. (update: lame music CD ad)

May 14th., Now that Ursula is saying "dada," mom's thinking of changing her name to "bob" - which is apparently easier to say and certainly more popular than "momma." We're still signing plenty of words to Ursula, but so far she only seems interested in "milk" and "water." In fact she confuses the two a little - when we offer water at mealtime she'll get excited, jumping up and down signing for milk. "Eschatology" and "brain surgery" still seem to be just a little too difficult, *sigh*... (curious? you can see the signs here). Ursula's lower front gums are now sporting a slit from which we expect to see something pearly emerge at any moment. On family outings we continue to get feedback on our perplexing cross-dressing of Ursula. Despite her pink hats and pink socks we have failed to include pink pants, pink onesies, and pink bows in every outfit, so every stranger still thinks she's a boy. We apologize for the confusion.

We've stopped lugging the pacifier everywhere since we tend to lose it half the time anyway. But Ursula, desparate for a nap, decided this would do the trick. She took a half hour nap with Mrs. Asterisk hanging out of her mouth, even rythmically squeezing it (... squeak ... squeak ...squeak ...) like it was, uh, something else she's used to.

We've started calling her our Little Godzilla since she just can't let us build or stack anything without knocking it over. Note the chic "coconut" hairdo.

Getting over a 24 hour flu, Ursula and Mom had a sick day and made each other feel better

Update, May 11th.,This morning was cute. She woke up in a pile of night back sweat from being sick over the last 24 hours- and like nothing happened, she giggled, cuddled and smiled. To top it off she learned the word "dadda" and repeated the word like a robot all morning. Dad melted with the attention. She is also really close to "mamma" but always mouths the word and hasn't yet said it aloud. If you stick out your hand, you'll get a high five everytime.


Inspector Cinco De Mayo looks around the unbelievably clean apartment


A colleague of Mom's knitted this cute Hershey's Kiss hat

May 5th., She has begun to get up on her knees and rock. Every once in a while she lurches forward with optimism and faceplants. We have tried to limit her attempts with lots of pillows around her. This also means Mom and Dad have to baby proof the place ASAP.


"Whatever! I can't believe my parents are such yuppy dorks- they think I need germ protection?!"

May 3rd., We tentatively have a new apartment on July 1st. Ursula will finally get her own bedroom (her crib has been in our dining room) and while we are being generous why don't we throw into the deal her own private bathroom. So, we will be living near the Sutro Tower in the Twin Peaks neighborhood. We'll have a cool view of downtown and the Bay Bridge. Also, there are a couple of cute parks nearby.




Looking into the universe of a two cent plastic cup


Reminding us that she turned 32 weeks, 224 days or 7.25 months old today

April 30th., Omg time flies. We have submitted again to the TV and let Ursula watch snippets of her Baby Einstein DVD's. She has an incredible collection. Anyhow, she becomes the cutest little zombie while taking in the classical music and cartoons that seem like they are more suitable for adults. We are now exploring thse world of carrots and oat cereal (organic cherrio things) today. Baby books say that you are supposed to cut the cereal into fourths, but after all that choking hazard prevention you get left with a crumb pile that is pretty pointless. With language, Ursula has quietly learned to use the 'm' consonant- however it is being used when she is getting upset...maaaa. Poor mom will have to wait for the affectionate 'mama.' And lastly, Ursula has become quite the little kisser- fully grabbing the side of your face and slobbering an open mouther on you!


"Arggh, this doesn't taste like sourdough"

April 26th., Ursula has decided. After asking if there would be good sourdough bread, sea otters, redwoods and fog, we said yes to San Francisco. Yes, the prospect of moving cross-country is intimidating...On the other hand we are eager to explore the region's amenities and natural wonders including: redwoods so enormous you can drive through them, Point Reyes National Seashore, mission style burritos, Marine World, sand dunes, surfing lessons, the Shoreline Highway, wine tasting, Mount Shasta, Redwood National Park, Lassen Volcanic National Park, Yosemite, snow boarding at Lake Tahoe, and Joshua Tree National Park (known for rock climbing). Too bad the Museum of Creation and Earth History will be so far away in Southern California. And that's just off the top of our heads! Sound interesting? Maybe you should plan a trip to see us there ;)

She really really wanted what Daddy was eating...after crying she got her chance to lick the apple- which she did for about ten minutes, enjoying herself with adult food. Ursula is sitting up like a real pro- except when she gets a raspberry on her neck (she is fine after this fall)

Packing up the belongings

April 23rd., Ursula has learned how to yelp when we walk away or if she drops a toy...not a fun thing. With new dexterity, she suddenly learned how to clap her hands. And with other language skills she now has B's, V's and some R's in her consonant vocab. No D's or M's yet...hence, no Mama or Dada. ;(


Always happy to have a book read to her


"Yay, a new toy!"


"choke, choke" - Chrissy Breen


Mom made a cool nursing necklace to occupy Ursula from other not so pleasant feeding habits


"I don't like green beans" - Pee Wee Herman

April 20th., Ursula decided where we are moving and she isn't telling anyone. Well, not really, but it makes for good drama. With gasoline hitting $3 and the climate getting all warm, sticky and uncommonly humid, we are 100% excited to leave New Jersey. We moved on to green beans and got a chilly response. We have learned that she likes everything after a few days.


Lounging around in the love boat with Mr. BlaBla Elfie Elf


The dorkiness came from Dad's side of the family

April 17th., Ok, crunch time is approaching. Where should we move to? Will Ursula love us or hate us in 16 years? Who knows what is best for a seven month baby. We took her swimming during a recent hotel stay where Ursula kept trying to lick the water. Ew.


We get that glazed look too after listening to Suze Orman talk about real estate (or, the truth is, we were letting her watch TV for a moment just because she looks so darling when sedentary and glassy-eyed).


"Mom, I vote for this hotel, I could live here"


Kodak moment looking at the Kodak building



Happy Easter!


"Thanks for the dress Mimi!"


Hangin' out at the mall...what a big bunny and what a bad camera they have. If you only knew how awful the back of this costume looked.


"Gramma Kay sent me this cool raft- I am going to see the Niagra Falls up close!" (no, we wouldn't send her down the river in this)


Ursula attempting to hide after learning that she is going on another road trip this weekend

April 11th., Her food arsenal now includes: bananas, avocados, sweet potatoes and now applesauce and oatmeal. Mom grinds up the old Irish oatmeal and makes a lovely paste that is quite bland- hence the applesauce to liven it up. One more month of daycare and Dad has the whole summer to play, read books and take walks with the little bear.


Pacific ocean! The first time for Ursula and Dad

April 7th., Her six month check revealed that our scale at home is woefully wrong. Ursula actually weighs in at 15.5 pounds and not 18 like we thought. Her other vitals are 'above average'...have you ever met a doctor that told you that your baby wasn't perfect? We finally caught Ursula on tape singing the theme to Tarzan- here is a cute clip

April 6th., Finally (!) Ursula today rolled from back to front - and then quickly back of course - giving us a look of "what's the big deal?" to our cheering. She started scooting backward while at Aunt Nancy's house. We're not sure, but we could swear she's signing for "milk" too! We could faint! Best emergency toy to weasel a steak knife away from her: a paper cup.

Ursula gazes down at the little people on our way to San Francisco.

No, that's not really our plane. This is the work of Sebastapol artist's Brigitte Laurent and Patrick Amiot that we enjoyed out in Sebastapol, CA.

San Francisco has pretty architecture. We stayed at a hotel near Haight-Ashbury for a couple days and took lots of walks.

Ursula gropes Great Aunt Nancy at the SF MOMA cafe.

Great Uncle Bob joined us sporting a bionic hip. Motorcycles may not be in Ursula's future ...

Yes, there may be great art at SF MOMA, but it's the box of diaper wipes that's the real attraction.

Grampa Jerry takes us for a walk in the redwoods near his inn in Sonoma. We found some pretty old trees.

Grampa Jerry on our guided tour of the redwoods.


Finally, a place where tree hugging is encouraged

Batman, by the Sebastapol sculptor(s)

Too cute!

Nana Tina notes the bear in the California state flag ...

Kickin' back at the Inn at Occidental.

Ursula practices flying on Aunt Erin's lap.

Where's the sunshine and warm weather? Getting ready for some hilly climbs through 'frisco'

Did you miss the last couple weeks of pictures?