monarch butterfly grove

every year hundreds of thousands of butterflies migrate for the winter, and a few thousand of those choose this grove of eucalyptus trees to call home.

we saw these two flutter to the ground in an amorous embrace.

after we ambled through the grove, sully found a little creek and discovered that he LOVES throwing things into water. meredith and i were entertained for bit, but after ten minutes or so, we decided to head home. sullivan went into full blown temper tantrum meltdown. as a carried him to the car, a sweet lady came up to us and said, "i thought he was a peacock!' before we got to the car we heard another man say, 'he sounds just like a raven.' he made quite a spectacle in the peaceful calm of the grove. :)

oso flaco

our outing this day was to oso flaco, a nature preserve in nipomo. we were going to meet eric and the crew there, but sully's nap went insanely long, so we got there very late. we did see them there though, as they were headed back from the beach, so i'm glad we didn't miss them entirely.

oso flaco is a great take to place toddlers because you can use the stroller! the trail to the beach is a boardwalk and it is perfect for a beautiful, leisurely walk.

grandma and pappy arrive and visit the village

grandma and pappy arrived and instantly fell back into step with sullivan. for this outing, we went to andreini's, the local coffee shop, and after we went to the swinging bridge.

arroyo grande has its own resident roosters. this one his my favorite--i just love his feather pants!

always mugging for the camera. :)

sully's new favorite perch is on anyone's willing shoulders.

day at the pier

January 5th:

Meredith is heeeeere!! i couldn't be happier or more relieved. We took a walk on the pier which turned into a crazy game of 'keeping-sully-out-of-trouble.' between bird poo, splinters and painted rails which were impossible for sully to resist chewing, we had our hands full. but it was a beautiful day and sullivan certainly got his exercise.

Sully loved looking at the surfers. Already interested in his future sport.... :)

a sample of sully blabber

i took this video on the way home from the park. He is making new sounds everyday, and so far these are my favorite. Since this was taken, which was maybe last week, he is making different noises that meredith and I have been trying to imitate to no avail. I'll get video of that next. :)

made especially for ryan, who is working hard in new york.

we love you! come home soon. :)

the grandparents react

my parents reaction to hearing that they will be grandparents for a SECOND time in june. they thought i was taking a picture so dad is posing very sweetly throughout.