And somehow we made it to 2017

I think I've said this many times before. But 2016 was just hard. I was looking forward to 2017 until November 8 happened. And now I alternate between being hopeful and devastated. On a local level, our Orange County Bar Association incoming president published his first article where he called out immigrants and refugees and said they were coming to our country not to "assimilate" but to "remake this land into the very kind of oppressive and violent nation that they escaped from in the first place." As you might imagine, working for an organization that regularly assists immigrants, both documented and not, this struck a chord with us. So I spent a good part of my weekend working with our ED (who is on a boat in the Caribbean somewhere) and two Board members to draft a response that will be published in a future publication. I was feeling empowered and grateful for the support of our community. And then Monday and Tuesday happened, and we all realized just how difficult and scary the next four years are going to be. I don't even want to be around for the reaction tomorrow, when it is officially announced that a wall is being built. That wall better be one brick tall.

In any case, enough about politics. I include that mostly to help you understand where I'm coming from these days, and to explain (not that I need to, but I do think context helps sometimes) why I am so fired up about some things these days.

Once we got back from Seattle, it was back to work and school. That first week back was incredibly difficult this year for some reason. I think there is just so much to do, and Dakota has finally hit the age where I really enjoy her, so it was harder to send her back. Plus, she is growing by leaps and bounds, sometimes it seems on a daily basis, and it's hard to miss out on some of that.

Sibling cuddles, among a mess of toys and clothes.

Playing corn hole with the Duke corn hole boards Santa brought us for Christmas.

Wild hair

What it looks like when I ask Dakota to close her eyes:

Jayden taking a picture of this really cool book that counts from 1 to 100. Jayden could already do it, but this book definitely made him more confident. I'm not sure who gave it to us, but if it's one of the 5 people who read this blog, thank you!
We also have the Alpha-Block book. They are beautiful books. I highly recommend them if you need gifts for 2 to 5 year olds.

Shoe-obsessed.
Recognize the shoes, Lizzle?!?

Dakota usually wakes up from her nap before Jayden does, so she and I play on our bed for a little bit. This day we put socks on our ears and took pictures. 

And then we put goggles on. Because, obviously.

And then it was time to cheer on the Seahawks! I love these kids.

Just a pretty picture. She picked these shiny red shoes out herself at Old Navy and wears them all over the house. She shows such joy on her face, it's hard to not feel that same joy when you're with her.

January 12, 2017: 19 months old, and in her shiny red shoes, of course.

Dakota has started swim lessons. Since we now have two kids in swim lessons, Carmen and I switch off who gets in the pool. He gets in one week, I get in the next. I'm not sure what we'll do when one of us can't be there. Hopefully Maxwell's family will be there and will help us out!

At a friend's birthday party at an amusement park. The kids had a blast on the go-karts. 

Zooming around the track.

He rode this dragon boat alone, and then recruited a bunch of friends to ride with him.

Dakota loved the carousel. I think we rode it 15 times. I didn't even need to hold on to her - she was completely comfortable. So different from Jayden, who only started riding the horses this year. Up until recently, when he and I rode the carousel we would sit on the bench.

One of those rides that takes you to the top and then drops you down. The kids loved it. They put their hands up, were screaming, it was awesome.

Four friends smashed into the train. I was sitting in a train car with Dakota behind them. These four friends are great together - rarely any fights, just fun.

Dakota checking out her brother on the go-karts.

Racing games. Jayden actually came in 5th I think on both races. We were pretty impressed considering he has pretty much zero steering skills.

Of course Dakota had to try too.

On MLK Jr Day, we met Maxwell's family for lunch, since we had missed Maxwell's birthday party the day before. We wanted to give him his present and to celebrate with him, at least a little. The poor family, all of them had been sick the previous week, and the parents were still getting over it. But there were little cars where we ate, so the kids played for a few minutes while Jen and I caught up. These two were so cute, and were actually really good at sharing.

Cheering in the kitchen. Because why not.

One night I was overwhelmed, so I went and sat outside on our driveway. Jayden later came out to sit on my lap. And then Dakota joined. So we sat in our driveway, watched the cars go by, looked at stars and played games running around the driveway. It was actually really fun. And Jayden recognized Orion's Belt in the sky. The things that he retains are crazy.

I have started braiding Dakota's hair, because I can usually get the braids to last a few days, and it eliminates the morning struggle of brushing her hair. I am not skilled at it, but I am practicing and getting better.

I did three french braids this time. She currently has two french braids. I also have done a single braid, and a number of braids around her head. Practice, practice, practice!

Snuggles with Mama - this is from a few weeks ago. 

I have more pictures to add, and more stories to tell. But for now this will have to do.