Banyan Tree House

Kendrick organized a family vacation to a beautiful resort nearby called Banyan Tree (1.5 hour away).  What a treat!!   We had a little villa on the beach and it was really really good.  The only downside was the car ride to and from the resort.  Little Maya can't stand the car seat and she made sure we knew it.  She cried more than she did when she was born.

On the way to the resort, we were surprised to discover that we had to take a 5 minute ride on a jetty.

Maya is not too sure about something.. the boat ride?  The head gear?

Magnus: Maya looks like a gate! 

Magnus was a little nervous, but after the boat ride he asked to go back on the boat:

Maya's perking up here:

Checking out our new digs:

Ummm, not too shabby ;)

 

An evening swim...

… plus show.  Magnus is a spectator behind the camera:

The view of the grounds at night:

This was supposed to look cool, but actually turned out to be a little horror-movie creepy:

Good morning sunshine!

Last swim before leaving.  Kendrick is coaxing Magnus into the pool:

Success!

Maya relaxes inside with Grandma!

There was a British couple who were admiring her legs when we checked out:

All our meals were at the resort restaurant, which was consistently delicious.  Magnus loved it so much because he got to drink a lot of juice, eat french fries, and have ice cream after every meal (except breakfast).

Magnus: <to a passing waiter> I want to order chocolate ice cream please!
Gina: Magnus, we already asked for ice cream, you don't have to ask again.


He did this several times, no matter how many times I explained that the ice cream was coming.  However, he asked very sweetly and the staff really liked him.  Our waitress was thoroughly charmed when he thanked her for making his lunch.

He even behaved well when I took away his ice cream.  I told him that he had eaten enough, and that he would not get any more ice cream.  I put the bowl on my side.  He asked, very nicely, if I could move the bowl back in front of him.  I said ok, but not to expect to eat any more.  He very calmly and quietly reached out and stirred the remaining ice cream a little.  He then turned to look at me.  And he kept looking at me.  I finally had to look back and what I saw was a surprisingly adult-like gaze of reproach through his puppy dog eyes.  I broke out laughing and said sorry, no more ice cream!  A little later, I told him it was time to leave the table to wash his hands, and although you could tell he was reluctant, he finally said in a muted voice, "OK Mommy".  At this point I couldn't resist giving him one last spoonful of ice cream before taking him down.   One happy little boy, and one table of amused adults.

Daddy's Little Girl

Maya is getting stronger, chubbier, cuter, and more fun day by day.  She's also starting to feed more regularly which gives me a little more freedom.  About once a week she actually sleeps for a six hour stretch (yes!)  but unfortunately it usually coincides with one of Magnus' night time wakings… oh well you can't win 'em all!

Maya had a very Kendrick-like look on her face the other day:

This is very Maya:

This is sooooo Maya:

She's wearing a 9-12 month onesie, by the way.  It's a little big on her, but not by a lot!

She still fits in this 0-3 month old dress, but only if she wears a skirt underneath hahahaha:

I hear all the sales happen in the summer here in Dubai, so I'm hoping to get some good deals on baby dresses.  There are so many and they are all SO CUTE.  I probably would have bought a lot more by now if I didn't have a natural deterrent tagging along every time I go to the mall.

Gina: (fingering a $20 dress) Magnus, don't you think Maya would love this cute polka dot dress?
Magnus: We have polka dots at home, mommy!

Pizza Making Field Trip

Magnus' school organized a pizza making field trip today; a parent-child event!  We went to a local Pizza restaurant and they gave each child a little pan of pizza dough, some tomato sauce, and a bunch of toppings.  Most of Magnus' classmates went, and there was a lot more crying than I expected, but thankfully nooooo crying from Magnus!

(Just to let you know, yesterday Magnus asked me to take him to Ms. Alison and for me to go to work.  Sweet, sweet, victory.  If only the school was open, I would haven taken him there in a heartbeat hehehe)

Here are a couple of pictures of the day.  If you are interested (and I know Grandma is), I've posted all 85 pictures in my picasa album.

Getting ready to catch a cab - it's humid!!

Arrival at "The Walk" at JBR:

"Sigh, can we go now?"

Relaxing on the balcony at the Pizza Restaurant:

Chef Magnus:

Don't let my t-shirt fool you, I run a clean kitchen!

No matter how many times I tried to lift up his hat, he kept squashing it on down further on his head...

Protection from tomato saucing

I though this was for us, but actually it wasn't:

Magnus watches his classmate have a go at the dough:

Magnus and Mommy spread out the dough together:

Ready for the oven with all of Magnus' favourite toppings: mushrooms, ham, and cheese

A little ham snuck in on the side:

Cooking team

Ta-da!  But Magnus is more interested in his cars:

Being a bit of a jerk:

Sloppy form with the pencil crayon:

Still more interested in cars than his pizza:

In fact, Magnus ate very little of his pizza.  And to top it off, when we got home, he declared, "it's time for lunch!".

His dad and the housekeeper ate the remaining two slices, and they both liked it.  Which just goes to show how ridiculously simple it is to make pizza. :)

What Magnus Said...

Doesn't want to take a shower:

Gina: And now it's time to....

Magnus: Run away!!  <runs away>

Watching claymation video of rocket blasting off

Magnus: Mm mm mm.. popcorn!

Learning from Sesame Street… sort of:

Elmo: (singing) J - j - j - j … JACKET!

Magnus: (singing) D - d - d - d … DACKET!

Doing a voiceover on Pingu:

Penguin Doctor: (opens her doctor bag)

Magnus: Aaaaaaaaaaaaannnnnnd...

Penguin Doctor: (Puts on her stethescope)

Magnus: Be a doctor!

Kendrick the line-crossing daddy:

Kendrick: Hi Magis!

Magnus: It not Magis, it Magnut!

Kendrick: Magnoos?  Magit?  Magis? (etc)

Magnus: No!  No!  No! (etc)

Kendrick: Are you sure it's not Maaaaaggnooooooos?

Magnus: (loses it) NO!  IT NOT MAGNOOS IT MAGNUT!

Mother's day card:

Gina: (points to the red heart on the card) What's that Magnus?

Magnus: A heart!  Just like Angry Birds!

(Angry birds seasons)

After singing BINGO:

Gina: If you had a doggie what would you name him?

Magnus: Maya!

Gina: Really?  Wouldn't Bingo be a better name for a dog?

Magnus: No, Maya!

(Possibly he thought I was asking him to choose between Maya and a dog… let's give him the benefit of the doubt!)

A conversation that happens dozens of times each day:

Magnus: 'scuse Me!

Gina: What happened?

Magnus: Farted!

Day of Portraits

Magnus' school asked me to bring him in today for a school portrait.  When I get the pictures I'll upload them here.  Magnus was not very smiley during the photo shoot, but he did learn a new pose.  He did it for me later that morning before we hit the pool:

Today is also a big day for Maya, who turns 3 months old.  Here she is with her usual sunny disposition:

Here's a really great smile, although unfortunately you can see my camera strap!

The picture taking continued into the afternoon, as we needed a new passport picture for Magnus' Emirates ID card.  I stuck my fingers in my ears and said nah-nah-nah-nah-naah-naaaah to get this smile out of him:

It's in reference to the "Office Jerk" app which he plays with his Daddy:

When we came back from the mall, I found Maya wearing this adorable bib (another hand-me-down from Magnus, and a gift from Auntie Goldie): 

Magnus got jealous of Maya's photo shoot, and demanded I capture a few more of his poses: