Halloween Party at the Drinan's

The past couple of years Susan & Davie throw a Halloween shindig at their house.  I was really impressed with all the decor - motorized ghosts that flew, mechanical eyeballs in the tree, bats, dry ice...and the hosts were dressed as a witch and dracula.  The early part of the party were all kids (I guess what's in store for us), but later on in the night it went to sambuca and tequila and the kegerator. 

As for our costume, we decided to play on the whole baby bump thing so we went as Juno and Bleaker from the movie Juno.  Of course only the people who saw the movie got it - Todd even had tictacks attached to his headband.

Birds In the Nursery!

the decorating is done!
 again, not much to say, so i'll just skip to the pics. the lovely birds in the trees are wall decals that we ordered online. although not pictured, there's a set of three pictures that my mom took of babe 'n me in 2001 in the corner. i thought it was a nice touch having photos of mom and dad in baby's room, yea? also the first bit of really cool "dad gear" arrived - courtesy of our dear friends Agnes and Gertrude Wong - the Maclaren stroller (the Triumph model to be exact)! Oh man, it is so sweet - it floats, light as an glistening 11 pound aluminum feather, cutting turns to make a flamenco dancer jealous. anyways, on to the "birds in the nursery!"

view of the wall just above the crib

babe next to the crib, and, technically, below the birds

boo-ya, triumph baby, triumph

~ love, dad

Now & Zen & Golden Gate Park

for those of you who don't know, alisa is the big planner - you're shocked, i know - she loves to plan events and "fun stuff for us to do." so my babe treated us to a little bit of sunshine and cultuer at the Radio Alice Now and Zen Concert in Golden Gate park on a beautifly sunny Sunday, October 12, 2008. It was a really cool show and there was lots of good music - but I'm going to skip to some cute photos of my babe cuz hey, that's what really matters to me! Oh, and we ran into two fellow "Buzzles" which is the cute and rediculous name for those of us that work at BuzzLogic, a startup in SOMA (by the way, we pay great ad premiums for top notch content so hit us up if you want high performance blog ads on your blog!).

The Now & Zen crowd and the beautiful day!

Babe L-O-V-E-S ice cream these days (and who doesn't love an It's-It?!?)

And there we are - isn't she cute?

so this photo should tell you a bit about alisa's fortitude, her iron will, her ability to dig down deep for the strength to lug her 29 lb. baby oven, using sore and strained muscles, all the way out there just to make sure that we have a little fun. love that woman...

Under Construction!

After several months of very diligent shopping, Alisa and I finally found Lima's first bed and dresser. Special thanks to Lima's WONDERFUL grandmothers - Mrs. Chan for the crib and Mrs. Berliner for the rocking chair! The bed, of course, is like some huge transformer and will fold all the way out to a toddler bed for Lima. Initially though it cracked me up - I mean look at the size of that mattress! As a matter of fact, the mattress is something like 27" x 50" and assuming Lima will be about 10" x 18" we'll be able to fit 7 and 1/2 Lima's in that crib! You'll notice that babe's not there - she was in the other room doing yet more diligent shopping!

dad's proud of his work! (and, i must say, lookin' hard core with the tattoo ;->)

On a slightly more serious note, it was a really moving experience for me to build this stuff. My dad absolutely loved building things and he also absolutely loved being a dad. So as I worked late into the night, obsessed with finishing, I literally felt the ancestry, the history, anchoring me to my past, to my family, as I lovingly furnished the room for the next generation. I felt good about starting my family, about trying hard to fill the gigantic shoes of my father. For a few hours I felt like him, fevered, with parts stacked in neat rows (never scattered or unorganized!), pouring love into the work that will surround my child, fill our family's home and feed the timeless current of each generation of Berliners loving their children. And that is about the best family tradition I could ever hope to uphold.

Babymoon in Sonoma

So we decided to take a "Babymoon" to Sonoma and Napa a few weeks back - a mini-trip we could take just before Lima arrives. You know, enjoy those few last moments together before we are a family of 3. Although I couldn't taste wine (Todd did that for me), it was a great retreat for 2 foodies like us.   The weather was amazingly hot - 90 degrees!!

We first stopped of at Bouchon in Yountville for a nice lunch, a Thomas Keller Restaurant.  It was a bustling Bistro, with traditional French fare.  Freshly baked bread awaited at the table from their next door bakery.  Todd had the Boudin Noir, while I had the Roasted Chicken with puff pastry and ratatoille.  We were stuffed silly, but I still had room for a chocolate elcair at the bakery next door.

Since we were so stuffed and delirious from the hot weather and the food, we checked into the Inn at Sonoma, a sweet boutique inn.  It was very country, shabby chic with a fireplace in our room and a resident teddy bear.  They served morning breakfast as well as an afternoon wine tasting for their guests.    For dinner, there were so many restaurants to choose from but we stumbled upon one in downtown Sonoma that was outstanding - The Eldorado Kitchen. I know what your thinking, the name alone would turn off anyone but the food was so delicious.  Everything we ate there was really good, including the rosemary pistachios they gave us to munch on.  So fragrant and savory.  They specialize in using fresh seasonal produce and the vibe was country casual meets contemporary chic.  The Chef was formerly at the French Laundry.   I couldn't resist ordering the truffle fries, but for the main course we had Corn Agnolotti, a  mushroom, corn and truffle pasta, and the pan roastested salmon in tomato water vierge.  The surprising thing was Todd didn't even like tomatos but the way they served this dish was so refreshing.  Of course we topped it off with dessert, a medly of sorbet, cake and everything delicious.

The next day we did some cheese tasting at Vella Cheese.   They know something about cheese there, been making it since 1931!  We took home some greyere and some rosemary jack cheese.   Olive tasting was next at Olive Press and picked up a couple of bottles to bring home and savor.  We went to a couple of wineries, but no wine for me.  I just got to smell the glass- boo hoo.  Another spot we checked out was the Copia Wine and Food Museum.  Never been to a museum that's all about food and wine.  They had some exhibits and of course wine tasting where you buy a card you fill up with money and go to a bunch of machines that automatically pours wine for you.    Our last few stops were at Taylor's for some good old burgers and then a stop at the Napa Factory outlet.  There were some great deals there!    All in all a fun getaway before the big arrival.

Vancouver Baby Shower

It's been awhile since our last post - 1 month already and I feel much larger now.  It's the home stretch - last trimester which I've heard is a pretty uncomfortable period.  I noticed my stomach is bigger, and the Lima doesn't have as much to move around as he used to so I feel him squirm alot.  I especially like it when he gives me a good kick to the bladder or the ribs - reminds me that s/her is there with me.

So catching up on what we've been up to, the weekend of Sept 6th I was up in Vancouver to attend my baby shower that Virginia and my mom threw for me.  I was very impressed with all the color coordination, green was the theme, so the house was decorated in green, along with the hosts and I showed up in a green dress (coincidence).  It was the first time I saw a diaper cake, very cool, and the actual cake they got me was a baby carriage one (it not only looked really nice, but tasted great).  We played a bunch of games - Virginia was great in getting everyone involved.  At one point it got really competitive.  Then we did the presents - thank you for all the cute little outfits and accessories.   



I also got to meet Madison Emma Dong, Juliet & Cameron's newborn daughter when I was in Vancouver. She was only a few days old and was so precious and sweet.  She was basically snoozing the whole time.

The Berliners go to the beach...

babe, Lima and I "headed west" to the beach in half moon bay and then up Cabrillo Highway to El Granada. Drive was nice and although we only stepped out onto Miramar beach for like 4 minutes (typical Berliner style of "doing the outdoor thing"), we did snap a few cute shots. further excitement ensued when I spotted a sign for "NBC's Top 5 Sandwich - Lobster Roll" at a place called Sam's Chowderhouse. Had the lobster roll, it rocked. Felt bad cuz Alisa couldn't eat it though...

babe at the beach...

 

babe and Lima at the beach...

babe, Lima (not quite in view) and me at the beach...

 

 random tree: looked thoughtful

hope you liked your first trip to the beach Lima!!