Grandma and Grandpa Hodges Visit

Aurora was very busy this past weekend...

Reading with Grandma Hodges...


Helping Grandpa Hodges open his birthday present...


Eating her eggs with both hands as fast as she can...


And just having a great time with Grandma and Grandpa!


Coming tomorrow...photos of our trip to the tide pools.

Ring stacking

Yesterday Aurora learned a new skill - how to put rings on the stacker. Putting on the smaller rings still requires a lot of concentration (notice the tongue - always a sign of intense concentration). Each time she puts one on there is a big smile and claps all around.









Aurora is embracing her namesake and getting up routinely with the dawn. As we've still got a month to go of earlier and earlier sunrises it may be time to put up darker shades. On the other hand a 5:15 AM wake-up call gives me time to post more photos...

11 Months Old!

Monday was Aurora's 11 month birthday. It's hard to believe that she is almost 1 years old! She continues to grow and learn new things everyday. On Sunday we gave her a new sippy cup, she immediately grabbed the handles and had it figured out. For speed, nothing beats the bottle however.







Aurora also loves to play games with people. Classics like "pass the block back and forth", "you stack, I knock down" and "how far out can YOU stick out your tongue?"

Sea lions and hippo riding

Grandma Hodges is here for a visit this week. This Saturday we took a trip to Pier 39 to see the sea lions.





Aurora continues to get more and more agile. Here she is riding her hippo:



She can actually push with her feet and make the hippo move backwards and forwards.

Her favorite activity is still moving blocks from one container to another and back again. More updates soon. :)

Young reader

Grandma Hodges arrived tonight for a 2 week visit. Stay tuned for more news and photos! :)

A southpaw?

It looks like Aurora may be left handed. She uses both hands for things but in eating especially she has a strong preference for using her left hand. We'll see...

Yesterday was a big day, first we went for a hike in Round Valley Regional Preserve on the Hardy Canyon and Miwok trails. This 4 mile hike has about 900' elevation gain and from the top there is a gorgeous view of the area and Mount Diablo (in the background).



Aurora is turning out to be an enthusiastic hiker, well, backpack rider.



After our hike we went over to Jess and Matt's for dinner, games and to visit new baby Benjamin (7 weeks old)! Here is Aurora sharing the leaves and sticks she picked up off the ground with Ben.



Once she saw how much fun the bouncy seat was she wanted to get in and try it out for herself.



This morning we got up early (okay, we get up early every day) and went into Golden Gate park to watch the Bay to Breakers race. Watching the elite runners go by followed by the rest of the runners, many in costumes, was a treat. I think Aurora's favorite part of the race was the large floating tube of toothpaste that went by, that or the man running dressed as a banana...

Peak-A-Boo!

Early computer user

One of my main purposes behind this blog is to provide a steady stream of new Aurora photos and activity updates for the grandparents, aunts, friends, etc who want to see what our little girl is up to here in San Francisco.

Aurora's most recent item of facination is the computer keyboard, which now has a new home higher up on the desk.

Mother's Day Photos of Aurora

Aurora taking a nap yesterday



Aurora is really starting to enjoy putting objects into containers, here are a few pictures (click on image to see a full-size version):

Mother's Day (First Steps)

Today marks my first Mother's Day as a mom and the past 10 1/2 months with Aurora have been absolutely amazing. As Aaron and I figure out how to be parents I want to take this opportunity to thank our moms (and dads) for all of their love, support and advice.

Aurora is experimenting with her first 'real' steps. Although she has been cruising around furniture for a few months it was only last Sunday (5/1!) that she took her first 2 steps (well, more of a controlled fall). She thinks the game is more about falling and catching than walking. Today though she has actually shown signs of wanting to walk by letting go of things and taking a step or two before falling forward (I haven't missed a catch yet!)

Our attempts for a Mother's Day walk in the park have been stymied by the near constant rain, I'm still hoping that it will clear up later.

Here's a picture of Aaron and Aurora from our ski trip to Kirkwood last weekend:

We skied opening day (Oct 23rd) and closing day (5/1) this year.

Welcome!

Welcome to the Sarver Family blog!

This blog is help keep you updated on what's going on with Aaron, Auroa and I. I will be experimenting with different ways of posting photos, movies (?), etc so please send me your comments.

Here are a couple of photos I took of Aurora and I on 4/21/05 to get things started:



Aurora hanging loose