The Adventures of Nicobert Robolasa

Having fun with the Shirley Temple video

2011-08-02T17:52:00.000-07:00

2 dozen tomatoes

2011-07-31T09:47:00.000-07:00

Comments on the video of tomatoes weren't so great -- right Mary Catherine! So this morning I picked over a couple of dozen and dropped a few getting them to the kitchen counter. There's so many more on the plants, and I have no clue what to do with all of them. Time to make salsa, tomato sauce, tomato paste, tomato soup, tomato salads -- tomato, tomato, tomato. Here's the result of this morning's pickings:

Leona and Fan

2011-07-29T19:32:00.000-07:00

turtle doves

2011-07-29T18:40:00.000-07:00

This is the second set of turtle doves hatched within 15 feet of our back door, so we've seen four newly hatched. The true love in the song gets 22 turtle doves. We've only 6 so far. The male will land within arms length of me. He is trying to teach a young one to sing. He sings, and I have to watch his chest for the air, as it seems he is almost throwing his voice. He's a ventriloquist. Here's a shot of the momma and the new 2.

do full screen -- tomato

2011-07-29T18:28:00.000-07:00

Leona and the snow

2011-07-09T20:09:00.000-07:00

Bert had Thursday and Friday off, so we headed up to Strawberry, CA. This is a tiny little town before you get to Lake Tahoe. Our friends are renting a fabulous house for three months and invited us up. It' takes about 2.5 hours to get there and we are certain that we want to go back. We did a little "hike" to a beautiful lake-- we can't tell you where it is, because only the locals know and we promised not to tell. We parked where the snow blocked the road and walked about 40 minutes up the dirt road, then about 20 minutes down a trail. Our family was truly happy on this day.

The next day we headed up to walk around some more and saw some raging waters. The heavy snows are making the rivers and waterfalls quite spectacular.

Rock Thrower

2011-06-22T17:01:00.000-07:00

Yuba River Girl

2011-06-22T16:52:00.000-07:00

Last weekend Leona dipped her feet into the very cold and very fast Yuba River. After packing up from the Father's Day Bluegrass Festival in Grass Valley, we headed over there and enjoyed watching the girl enjoy herself. She is addicted to water. Ocean, lake, river, backyard hose. Anything.

Returning from Panama

2011-06-06T11:09:00.000-07:00

Wow, the date of the last post cannot be correct, or maybe it can.

Nic and Leona are flying from Panama City to Houston and Houston to San Francisco today.

Leona's trips to Panama are as current as her age.

We need to get some pictures all up in here. Social media or other blogs get the pictures occasionally.

Although it's the coldest and rainiest Spring in years, the strawberries are great, the tomato plants have fruit and flowers for more ( the tomato plants are overgrowing already -- last year they were a mess and we thought they could be contained, moreso, this year, and now we see, maybe not ) .

Little Hiker

2010-08-04T21:13:00.000-07:00

Calaveras Adventure

2010-08-04T20:52:00.000-07:00

Since Leona and I have been home, it's been great to just settle back into home life with Bert and Leona. But the itch got us, and we decided to take a trip out of town for the day. We knew we wanted to take Deyve to make it a complete family day, so we got out the Dog Lover's Guide to California and picked a place not too far away that we have wanted to go for a long time. The book says that while dogs can't go on the main trails at Calaveras Big Trees, there are plenty of fire roads where they can go. It took us less than two hours to get the State Park. After our picnic lunch where Leona chased squirells (the word for which she screached out every time she saw one kind of like how she's calling out "car! car!" at every car she sees in the parking lot at Target) we explored the fire and regular roads with Deyve. We were all pretty tuckered out, but couldn't resist the urge to just run into the non dog trails to see more of the big trees. We put him in the car with the windows down, and went off for more walking. We pretty much did the North Grove Loop twice because we couldn't get enough.
It was spectacular! I have no words to describe those giant sequoias and how it feels to walk amongst them. These pictures can't capture it, either. Bert, you can chime in. You are far more poetic than I am. And fix my spelling while you are at it, please, honey.

New England

2010-07-29T13:34:00.000-07:00

Leona and her mom spent three weeks in New Hampshire in July. Can't even begin to describe what a wonderful time was had! Here are some pictures taken by our friend Diane.

2010-07-06T23:37:00.000-07:00

I was picking the one on the left when the one in the middle fell off the vine.
Home grown tomatoes!
We have two tomato plants this summer.
These two are from the eastern plant. I've picked a couple prior to today when these two beckoned. I expect some on the western plant will have fruit turning soon.
I wonder how they'll turn out -- east vs. west.
Noteworthy: Like Nic, the tomato was born in Peru.
Laurie Colwin quote:
A world without tomatoes is like a string quartet without violins.

2010-07-03T23:39:00.000-07:00

Out on a Friday night date -- we check out Kai playing with a combo over at UOP's jazz camp.

jazz.

soccer.

mather.

sweet.

My girls first carousel ride.

Noteworthy: The Diablo Range's Altamont Pass elevation is 1009 feet.
I can make a mountain out of a molehill, but I can't get a foot out of my mouth.

June at the Pool

2010-07-01T12:43:00.000-07:00

We have discovered, only after being here two years, how amazing it is to live so close to the Pacific Pool. t's free, and perfect. We head over there, take a dip, and walk home-- sometimes in just 30 minutes. Walking home wet is glorious in this hot summer and it really is so close to home. Last night, for example, the 20 minutes we spent at the pool after work with Leona was just enough, and we still had time to hang out and play, make a nice dinner, have bath time, and read plenty of books before bed. We had to farm out Deyve's walk to Lara, my student who seems happy enough to pick him up and take him along with her for a walk. In fact, we think Deyve prefers to get some spice in his life through these walks, as there are other dogs that participate.
Back to Leona, she is a little water nymph. She squeals and sputters and laughs with gusto.

San Diego

2010-06-30T15:13:00.000-07:00

Pics of Nic. Resemblance?

2010-06-28T15:46:00.000-07:00

Discovery of the Pacific Pool and Our Day.

2010-06-27T12:39:00.001-07:00

She is loving the pool! The Pacific pool is an 8 minute walk away from our house and while I was at the IDRS conference, the two of them started going there.

Andy, Paul, Kai and Lucia are here watching the the Mexico Argentina game before Kai gets dropped off at the Jazz Camp. Bert made a delicious brunch. Yum.

saturday (easter) bath

2010-04-03T22:08:00.000-07:00

Our family on Leona's first birthday

2010-03-13T16:37:00.000-08:00

To see more pictures from her first birthday weekend, go here: http://picasaweb.google.com/nicolasa.kuster/March72010?feat=directlink

Happy BIrthday Leona!

2010-03-13T16:34:00.000-08:00

Little Walker

2010-03-13T16:16:00.000-08:00

Leona started walking at 9.5 months, which was really exciting. Here is a video from about a month ago-- she was about 11 months old at the time. Just trucking along....

LJ and her spoon

2010-03-13T15:49:00.000-08:00

Last night Lilly and Mary babysat LJ in SF and when I got back to pick her up, Lilly let me know with excitement that Leona handles her own spoon now. I decided it warranted a video.

Will you be my Valentine?

2010-02-15T19:15:00.000-08:00

More pictures from this day at: http://picasaweb.google.com/nicolasa.kuster/Feb2010?feat=directlink

2010-01-10T16:32:00.000-08:00

Outside of a dog, a book is man's best friend. Inside of a dog, it's too dark to read.

a few firsts 2010

2010-01-02T16:07:00.001-08:00

Action shot of Leona's first backpack experience

Nic and Laura

The NicoLeBertRobonalasa Adventure Crew

Many thanks to the Kuster Jue family.
Kudos to Mary for her photography work.
Editor's note: Nic will post her photos soon ( he hopes ).

Merry Christmas

2009-12-25T17:29:00.000-08:00

Leona adds a little percussion/drum part and likes it.

Leona and Deyve

2009-12-05T18:57:00.000-08:00

It's been a long time since we've posted anything! Leona is now 9 months old! Here is a video from a couple of weeks ago. November went by in a blur. Grandma Helga and Grandpa Ted were here. Videos by Grandpa Ted have already been posted. It has been a busy busy time of many concerts and busy busy things. When break comes along in mid December I pledge to post more on this blog!

Leona is 8 months old today!

2009-11-05T23:11:00.000-08:00

More new videos from Grandpa Ted.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ztCC3k1JRsE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZyqAdSCbI2c

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Iy1JQKGGkHU

New videos

2009-10-26T09:56:00.000-07:00

We have been busy moving to a new place. It's near to school and much quieter. Grandma Helga and Grandpa Ted are helping us so much. Here are videos Grandpa Ted took.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6M7Q43eMQDk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G66E_0fEfzM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WizInSkcnTw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7vyqJZDIL3Q

a standing explanation

2009-10-15T22:36:00.000-07:00

Nic tries to explain to Leona why Elmo ( little furry guy with the dark eyes to
Nic's right and Leona's left) can't stand. Muscle and bones, ligaments and balance,
stance even. All of these are in the explanation.

Leona can stand for maybe 20 seconds now, and she needs explanations. Or at least they are being given before she can walk off.

The green catepillar can't stand. Elmo can't. Leona can.

Last weekend Nic performed with a North State Symphony Quintet in Redding on Saturday and in Chico on Sunday.

We stayed in Chico with Jan and Russell. On Saturday, Finnley, their grandson, came to visit for a while.

Leona and Finnley were instant friends. They had fun looking through the door and standing at the table. The table photo won in the posting contest:

Our next adventure is moving. We're not ready. Well, Leona is, but we're not. Come visit us in the new to us rental soon.

Weekend in Kansas

2009-09-23T10:49:00.000-07:00

Weekend in Kansas

2009-09-23T10:43:00.001-07:00

Leona is SIX months old!!!

2009-09-05T20:41:00.001-07:00

Leona ate her first rice cereal meal about two and a half weeks ago. We were holding out until the 6 month recommendation, but gave in. She seemed to really want it-- she loves breakfast time. Now that she is 6 months, we are going to start other foods.

Now that school has started, our morning routine involves Mami going to school to work, and Papi hanging out with her, feeding her breakfast, and then taking her to Penny's by around noon.

No time to post more.

Strong arms

2009-09-05T20:20:00.000-07:00

All Leona wants to do these days is pull herself up to standing.

Maracas! L Jo

2009-08-20T22:06:00.000-07:00

shaking and clicking

Leona really scoots at 23 weeks

2009-08-14T20:24:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday to Bert!!!!

2009-08-14T14:51:00.000-07:00

Leona almost crawls

2009-08-12T19:57:00.000-07:00

Nic writes:

My sister in law Mary and her two daughters, Laura and Lilly, came with me to Jacksonville, OR last week. I was hired to play with the Britt Festival. So we rented a behemoth of an SUV to cart all the stuff we wanted to take, booked a room with an kitchenette, and had a great week.

Leona was doted on by her cousins and Auntie, and got a lot of work done on learning to crawl.

When I get some time I will upload some pictures of the trip. For now, I am experimenting with posting videos. I got this one and two other up at You Tube. I did manage to get a bunch of pictures of the week up on Facebook. Resistance is futile, those of you with no Facebook life. Did you also hold out on getting an answering machine? Were you a hold out for the cell phone?

leona on the quilt: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sak6ZwNilR0

She's wearing the same shirt that April and Bart sent from Vermont in both videos! I just noticed that.

And the third video is called Leona Reads with Lilly: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mIyr8DSN28

Simple is

2009-07-29T20:56:00.000-07:00

random ordering of some simple stuff that makes us happy around here:

pulling a tomato off the vine and eating it.

lj planking.

sisters talking on the telephone.

hummingbirds.

May 17th. 2009

June 30th. -- Latte and Bear Box -- Evergreen.

Visitors! Hugging watermelon, riding watermelon, and Let's Read!!

2009-07-27T10:01:00.000-07:00

Leyla and Michael stopped by on their way to Oregon from San Diego, and Dan stopped by on his way to Sacramento airport from his family farm in Modesto. Didn't get a picture of Dan with the baby! Anyway, we walked, grilled, hung out, read and Leona did not go to bed until very late. She just wouldn't let go. A lot of excitement in the air!

We fixed the doll that Jo gave Nic when she was a little girl

2009-07-27T09:48:00.000-07:00

Leona Johanna helped with this project. First she checks to see if the color of thread is right. Yes, it is. We then opened an old pillow to steal the fluffy stuff. You can see how the neck of the doll was all afloo-fla. The doll is awake or asleep, depending on how you flip the skirt. Viola!

To update

2009-07-22T21:53:00.001-07:00

Well, I (Nic) just finished posting a bunch of stuff in a flurry. That's how it goes: when Leona falls asleep, I grab at something that I want to do and I attack it. There are many great photos to upload. Later. I am pooped.

The big news on this end is that we found a Day Care provider. After much searching and interviewing, we found Penny. She's amazing. It's about a 7 minute drive to get there, and our routine is evolving into the following: Bert takes her at 11:30am, Nic gets her at 5. There is a little drama around having enough milk produced, but we are working on it. Thankfully, I have a personal lactation consultant in my sister, Andy. Phew. Taking her to Penny's allows me to begin practicing again and to get some work done for the upcoming school year.

The important thing is that Leona seems to love it. She gets a lot of stimulation and enjoys watching and learning from the handful of other little kids. She naps and poops and does all the things she is supposed to do there. She is all smiles when she comes home.

We have started jogging with the fancy Bob jogger we got. Deyve the dog loves this new (old) activity. We have had so many good years of running together, and he is glad we are back to it.

What else? Oh, developmental updates?

She is doing the plank constantly, major pushups, sitting, and pretty much all the the things that are listed in 5 and 6 months. CRAZY. But is she sleeping through the night?

I HATE THAT QUESTION!

Yes, she sleeps from about 7:30/9pm to about 8/9 in the morning. She wakes up several times during that time. Sometimes we get a 4 hour stretch, but often it's every 2 hours. What we are focusing on is that she is a happy, healthy, and fun to be around baby. She's meeting and surpassing her developmental milestones.... but she's not sleeping like a grown up yet. And that is fine! I keep hearing from friends with babies that are "sleeping through the night." Oh well. Not Leona.

Mary's pics from San Francisco

2009-07-22T21:25:00.000-07:00

San Francisco

2009-07-22T21:23:00.000-07:00

FIRST SWIM EXPERIENCE!

2009-07-22T21:10:00.000-07:00

We headed up to our friends in Sacramento (Hailey, Graham, Craig) on one of Bert's evenings off. Met up with Stephanie and Chris. LJ LOVED THE POOL!

Visitor from the windy city

2009-07-22T20:59:00.000-07:00

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Nic's Aunt/Cousin Barbara stayed with us a few days as part of a larger California adventure. We bbq'd in the back patio with friends and family. It was fantastic that the Livermore cousins could make it! Mmm. Gorgonzola on the burgers. Mmmm.

Leona at 4 months (two weeks ago!)

2009-07-22T20:57:00.000-07:00

Paul's Pictures from Yosemite

2009-07-12T12:43:00.001-07:00

These feature some good ones of Leona and Harper!
http://www.pelicancafe.net/family/galleries/gallery_2009-07-CampMather

Back from Yosemite

2009-07-02T15:45:00.001-07:00

Wow. Yosemite.

More pictures from our Wichita trip

2009-06-23T19:30:00.000-07:00

We were able to spend some time with Bert's family, but we wished we could have spent more! The first weekend we headed out to El Dorado, had lunch with everyone, and then spent the afternoon hanging out. The first two pictures are from that day.
1. Bert's mom, Mima, a wonderful grandmother.

2. I'm exhausted from all the attention!

3. Leona with Fletcher, son of Phil and Lori Jo.

4. Susan, expert baby-sitter while Nic was at rehearsals.

5. Hug me more, Suzanne!

We are back from our trip to Wichita!

2009-06-23T19:15:00.000-07:00

We are back from our epic journey to Wichita, the town from whence we came. Don't have a lot of time to post the gazillion pictures that were taken of Leona being adored by many, many fans yet. If you are on Facebook, many are already posted there in the album, Adventures of Leona II.
1. Our friend LeighAnn and her kids-- look how long LJ is!

2. Grandpa Bottorff holds Leona.

3. Logan shows us her garden. We stayed at Logan and Leventes for part of our visit.

4. Tia Tanya giving LJ a little workout at Watermark Books and Cafe. That was LJ's favorite blanket until her mom lost it somewhere.

Our family on May 18th, 2009

2009-05-30T13:09:00.000-07:00

Leona at TWELVE weeks!

2009-05-30T10:13:00.000-07:00

Leona is rolling over, holding her head up strong, and pushing herself up to study things at every possible opportunity. In these photos you can see her studying the elements that Chloe sewed onto the baby quilt she made. Leona can look at different parts of this quilt for long stretches. She is also fascinated by the Circ de Soleil rattle Alaska Matt/Mary/Alex gave her. The cloth blocks from Melina are also a big hit.

She likes hanging out in her Pack-n-Play in the back yard, listening to all the traffic sounds from the nearby corner--the sounds that drive her parents crazy.

People are asking how she sleeps. Hmm. Yes, she sleeps. When? How long? Well, it's all over the place. Whenever it seems like she might have a routine going, it changes. Lately, though, she's been falling asleep somewhere between 8:30 and 9:30 pm, and staying asleep till about 1 am. She gets fed, and then sleeps to about 4 - 6 am, gets fed again, and then sleeps again for a few hours. Often she just hangsout awake at night, not fussing, just hanging out, working out her limbs and figuring out what she can and can't do.

Since Bert works to 10pm and goes to sleep around 1am, Nic gets out of bed to do stuff in the morning and Papi and LJ stay in there together for morning snuggle time. During the day Leona may or may not take a longish nap, but she's pretty much up all day now. You can't count on her naps, but when a long one occurs, you can be assured that her mom and dad are running around doing a million things.

Leona has quite a set of cheeks on her, and is chubbing up quite well. Her mom's milk is often fortified by eggs she gets from her friends, Graham and Hailey, who also gave her the Farmer's Market onesie that finally fits! Oh yeah, she is OUT of the 0-3 month clothes FOR SURE.

The family is eagerly anticipating a trip to Wichita to see friends and family. Other upcoming adventures include a visit from Harper, Leona's big bro. Otherwise, our life continues in it's routine. Long walks with Deyve the dog, drives to SF, explorations of our new town, visits from out of towners... it's going fast!

Leona on Leona's quilt

2009-05-17T19:05:00.000-07:00

My Aunt Ruthann, Leona's great aunt, sent this CUTE quilt that she thinks Oma made!!!!

Mother's Day

2009-05-15T22:15:00.001-07:00

Tia Tanya and the Tow Truck

2009-05-15T22:05:00.000-07:00

Bert is going to post the story of how our day went. We drove in to spend some time with Tanya, who was out from Kansas with a Belly Dance troup. It was quite the adventure....

She's getting cuter and cuter!!!

2009-05-15T22:02:00.000-07:00

Nic: 1972 **Bert: A little before '72

2009-05-07T17:50:00.000-07:00

Trying to figure out who Leona looks like. Here's Nic in 1972.

Nic's dress is black and white. Here's a photo of, uh, Robbie, in black and white.

Bert appears to be about the same height as Nic. O, wait, we're trying to determine who L looks like . . . height, looks like . . . sounds almost the same.

Tia Jo in Town

2009-04-29T17:50:00.000-07:00

George brougt Leona Johanna a onesie. Go George! Go Oberlin!

George is featured earlier in the blog, see March, with photo, during his trip to Stockton and University of the Pacific to teach Master Classes.

Above: Tia Jo with Leona in front of Faye Spanos Concert Hall on the campus of the University of the Pacific. The Hall opened in 1927 -- it was Jo and Leona Jo's first visit.

Another first was the temperature the April day they visited the Hall -- 97 degrees.

It was cooler back on the couch. Plus, there was a good book to read.

Recent weekend in SF

2009-04-29T17:47:00.000-07:00

Sunday, April 19, 2009 -- Lucia performs card tricks.

Sunday, April 19, 2009, Golden Gate Park: Lilly, Mary, LJ, Lucia, Andy, Jo

Golden Gate Park -- Lucia and Leona Johanna

Lucia readies the stroller with Lilly to walk from Stanley, Laura, and Leo's house to Golden Gate Park.

2009-04-20T11:01:00.000-07:00

Punta De Los Lobos, Carmel, CA

April 18, 2009

A Brief History

Carmelo Formations behind Nic -- sedimentary rock conglomerates estimated to be at least 55,000,000 years old. I hope I'm getting that right for the geologists, et al.

Leona Johanna is 6 weeks old.

2009-04-12T23:59:00.000-07:00

Easter sunday we went out for a walk. LJ decided on an apple outfit, so she wouldn't be mistaken for an egg. Find the egg it the above picture!

See the left hand? LJ just a little beyond 5 weeks now.

Watch how these pictures keep getting better:

I know, you're checking out the hat; yes, it's got a flower on it. It keeps the sun off my head. The hat does. The flower is just for decoration. You probably already knew that . . . .

Nic and LJ.

See LJ's cheeks? She's getting cheeks.

Deyve looks bored in the background.

He had to pose with LJ in some earlier photo opportunities. Maybe someone will post those later.

Okay, on with the walk.

Nic ought to post a bunch of pictures she took today.

Happy One Month!

2009-04-05T20:05:00.000-07:00

With Grandpa's tomato plant.

Weighing in at the one month apointment.

Bigger than a bassoon bell.

Is Deyve looking at her or the pizza?

This last picture was from before her one month birthday. It is included because two friends complained today that there were no pictures of baby and her mom. Here is one of cousin Laura holding LJ, while I try to make some reeds.... standing up in the kitchen....

Notice the tube socks her dad put on her.

I can sleep, sometimes, but I don't sleep for long

2009-03-29T17:28:00.000-07:00

Friday, March 20, was the last night my mom's parents were here (and I miss everyone that comes and goes), and at about 9 pm, my mom, my mom's mom, and my mom's dad sat on the couch to watch a TV program named "numb3rs," at least that's the show we thought we'd watch, but "numb3rs" wasn't on, so it turned out we watched something else, but I wasn't so interested in the substitute show, so I took the opportunity to cat nap in Grandma Helga's lap.

even though my eyes are closed, my dad thinks that this is a pretty good photo of me. how old am i here . . . o, i was 15 days old. i guess i look ok, and as long as Jay Lichtmann doesn't kiddingly say anything about the photo I think my dad will remain happy with it. I think it looks okay. I know Jay is just silly. Jay and my mom are like a couple of old, long time, girl friends. Jay does the old part well and has done it for a long time, and my mom does the girl part and they both do the friends part. It's nice for Jay to say stuff cause everyone is shocked and laughs.

my mom thinks my dad should post on here -- and my dad likes pictures of me and that's what he wants to post, a picture of me, so here I am!!

Leona and Lucia

2009-03-28T21:58:00.000-07:00

Dad

2009-03-28T21:50:00.000-07:00

Bert, it is your turn to post something up here!!! What about that picture you took with your phone yesterday while I was in the grocery store and you were outside waiting with Deyve and LJ? I love that picture!

Well, in the meantime, here you are with your daughter.....

Visitors: Bassoon Grandpa

2009-03-28T21:42:00.000-07:00

George Sakakeeny has been my sub at school. He had already flown out here from Oberlin twice, and will visit again before my leave is up. The first time he flew out was before Leona was here, so we hung out and he gave us all sorts of advice on how to get the baby to come. Mainly, really commit to the name and the baby will finally know it's time. Hmm.... I do tend to take GS's advice, as he was my teacher and will always be my teacher.... but Bert and I were still not sure about the name until after she arrived, so we don't think he was right.

The second time he was able to meet her. George was a name I would have considered for a boy if my last name weren't KUSTER.

Visitors

2009-03-28T21:32:00.001-07:00

Chris from Massachusetts was in town for a whirlwind visit. So amazing that he managed to rent a car and get out here.

meeting the babies

2009-03-24T16:00:00.000-07:00

Bradley families! We got together on Sunday with the other people from class.

Meeting new relatives

2009-03-20T12:03:00.001-07:00

A couple of days ago, my mom and I took Leona over to Livermore to meet some relatives I had never met. Teal and Perri are sisters. Their grandfather Lars is brother to my grandmother Olivia, making us second cousins. Their grandmother's sister wrote a very cool book, Alaska's Daughter: An Eskimo Memoir of the Early Twentieth Century.

First Pedriatrician visit, Day 11

2009-03-17T11:42:00.000-07:00

LJ sporting her pretty cool onesie--and her first baby gift--from her bassoon auntie, Stephanie. "I heart my bassoon mama."

This little girl, on day 11, had grown two inches, and went from her birth weight of 8lbs 10oz to 9lbs, 2oz. Her head also got bigger, but I forgot the measurement already....

More cute Leona pics

2009-03-17T11:38:00.001-07:00

Leona and Lucia.

Here's a picture of Leona and a picture of baby Lucia.

Leona Jo's first day in San Francisco with the cousins

2009-03-17T11:28:00.001-07:00

Andy made a delicious Arroz con Pollo, and the cousins doted on the new born. Nic felt alive on the habitual walk to the park, enjoying the contrast to the huffing and puffing of walking while pregnant. We left Grandma and Grandpa in SF and they took the train back to Stockton the next day.

Grandpa Ted and Grandma Helga

2009-03-17T11:22:00.001-07:00

Grandpa Ted got here on Friday, after driving long hours from Minneapolis. Saturday morning .

First bath at home, Day 7

2009-03-17T11:18:00.000-07:00

The haze and bliss of it all!

2009-03-10T18:22:00.001-07:00

Well, between things, we have finally managed to post some pics up here. Out of order, but here. It's been an amazing time. What's missing is a picture of grandma and baby, so I will go chase one of those down... stay tuned!

Day three... totally out of order... sorry!

2009-03-10T18:12:00.000-07:00

On day three, my brother and his family came out to celebrate (and to make us delicious meals)-- here are some good ones from that day. Laura brought a bassoon!!!

Leona Johanna's first day

2009-03-10T16:31:00.001-07:00

We went to the hospital the eveing of the 4th for induction. The morning and early afternoon of the 5th was spent in the company of Grandma Helga, Bert, Tia Andy, and cousin Lucia. After her 11:01pm arrival, we spent 24 hours at the Birthing Center.

Here are pictures from the first day. Stay tuned. After this nap I am about to take, I will get to posting some great ones from the day when Ted, Mary, Laura and Lilly came out to visit. See, Bert and my mom just left on a walk with the little one, and I am supposed to nap while they are gone. They are going to be upset if I spend the whole time on the computer! Five minutes is all....

LJ's Birthday, March 5 2009

2009-03-10T16:27:00.001-07:00

Day 5

2009-03-10T15:11:00.001-07:00

Leona Johanna Bottorff-Kuster is doing great! Day five is here, and things are settling in. Bert has discovered the sling, and here are pictures from today. The world looks bright and beautiful to us.

Will continue to post as we get moments.

2009-03-07T23:25:00.000-08:00

Leona Johanna Bottorff-Kuster
Born: March 5, 2009
Time: 2301
Weight: 8lbs10ozs
Length: 19 1/2 in

Nic & Bert are working on a special announcement, but Deyve the dog asked for just a short short piece on his newest master, just in case you're looking.

Still No Baby! But more adventures....

2009-03-02T17:16:00.000-08:00

Every time we drive in to the city, we see Coit Tower and I say to Bert, "I want to go there with you!" I have a great memory of going there with Paul and Kai when Kai was super small.

We finally had our Coit Tower adventure. It was a weekend where I knew I wanted to see family, I knew I needed to move around, Ai was in town, and I guess it was Paul that suggested we all meet up there. It was astounding that it really worked: three groups of people all meeting, finding parking, coordinating quite gracefully.

Notice the street sign: FilBERT street.

Great views from the top, and great murals downstairs.

No Baby Yet!!!!!

2009-03-02T16:53:00.001-08:00

We keep getting calls and emails and Facebook Wall posts with the question: is he/she here? NOPE!!!! All along we both thought I would be late, but now that I am late, I am feeling some let down. I really want to get this show on the road!

I might at well post some pictures of some recent Nicobert adventures.

A few weeks ago we had a visit from Matt and Alex. I have known Matt since the first week of college, and Bert and I had a great time enjoying his little son. Alex was in the stage of just learning to take off running, and we hung out for a long time in the park down the street enjoying this stage. We were all joined that evening by our friends in Sacramento, Hailey and Graham. We made pizza and Graham and I dashed off to perform with the Stockton Symphony.

That night was my last Stockton Symphony concert before my leave. It was tough to breath, but I did it, and got to perform Sheherezade, always a lot of fun. I am lucky to play with a great bassoonist, Erin Irvine. She makes me sound good. Even if I was gasping for air.

We had another fun visitor: Ai Tanno, bassoonist from Japan. She was out auditioning for Pacific, and we enjoyed her company for a few days. I met her in Prague several years ago. We took a trip in to the city and on the way, stopped at Charlie, Katernina, and Melina's house. Charlie is our Stephanie's dad, and he got in touch with us offering to pass along some baby things. Here Bert and Ai are posing with Stephanie's little sister. We picked up a bunch of baby goodies, and had a nice time hanging out.

We were headed in to the city to meet everyone at Coit Tower, but I will start a new post about that. Getting worried that this post isn't going to work.... so stay tuned.

Coolest Baby Blanket Ever, by Chloe

2009-02-01T16:56:00.000-08:00

Chloe from Kansas made this for our baby. It's amazing. Note the detail of the German Shorthaired Pointer head and the bassoon reed. Also the paw prints on the back. The textures are really, really cool.

Catching up-- January is GONE

2009-01-30T19:18:00.000-08:00

How did we let January go without any blog posts, Bert?
So many adventures had.....
1. Susan came out to visit and you got your picture of the palm tree and the Christmas tree lights you had wanted. Susan, we love that you drove out!!!!

2. We took an amazing drive to the country out of the blue one day and discovered this river.... and other things... and what was the name of the river? We didn't have a destination, or a schedule, but we got to celebrate that we live in a cool place. 3. Leyla came to visit-- she flew up to come to the baby shower, but had to leave before it started. You got to meet yet another old friend. We want you to come back, Leyla!

4. Before she went back to San Diego with the grooviest of groovy red bags (we shopped till we dropped) my family drove in from Albuquerque and San Francisco. Karen and Al and all the kids weren't going to miss a chance to see Nic pregnant. We were moved that they would drive all that way.

5. Suddenly, our house was full of people celebrating the impending arrival of the baby.

6. After the SF folks went back home, the Albuquerque sister's family stayed. You got to know the kids, who adore "Uncle Burp."

7. Then school started, life got busy again. But the adventures of Nicobert Robolasa continued.

We shopped for a car seat and got that taken care of. We finished our Bradley classes. We made our first chili from scratch together. We had Susan and Chloe from Kansas in our home as Chloe auditioned for the bassoon studio at Pacific. You shared my sadness as I mourned the one year anniversary of Robin the dog dying. We cooked Indian from scratch. We watched a lot of House MD.

We are settling in and getting ready for our lives to change in just a few short weeks.

It's fun. It's a rollercoaster.

Thanks, AndyPaulKaiLucia and TedMaryLauraLilly, and KarenAlJackLanaFrankieRick for throwing us such a great party!

2009-01-01T23:56:00.000-08:00

On the first day of this new year we visited the sacred Wat Dharmararam Buddihist Temple south of Stockton. Nic's brother, Ted, Ted's wife, Mary, and their girls, Laura and Lilly, accompanied us on our first visit to this Wat.
Our new year started today, but we'll have to wait till April 13th or 14th to celebrate with these monks their new year.
Only speaking for myself, I was overwhelmed. I don't read Devnagari, Khmer or Cambodian, if that's what you call it, I don't know, because I'm ignorant; however, some research has indicated these giant sculptures are depicting scenes from the life of Siddhartha Gautama on his journey to become Buddha. The first statue erected here, which I didn't measure, but estimate it to be a 50 to 100 foot long, is Buddha on his death bed -- its production may have started six years or so ago. The picture below gives an idea of how enormous the statue is :

The temple is on the list of things to see in Stockton, and photos don't quite tell the story. The informational placards may be informative, but, again, I'm ignorant because I don't read Devnagari well or, for that matter, at all. So the information may have told the story of the statue, or possibly who the donors for the project were, or possibly conveyed a blessing.

Unbeknown to us, we lined up with heaven's king of angels and his 7 daughters ( each having a name of one of the days of the week ) for a photo opportunity. Lilly is standing next to Sunday. Laura is standing next to Saturday. Wednesday is hidden by the king of angels. The devotional safe next to the green incense holder is not as conspicuous as Wednesday.

Other statues of the sisters, the angels, show each angel and her protectorate. The statues convey, I should understand, that each angel protects something -- the earth, the sky, the oceans.

If any of us achieve moska, I'm sure we'll enjoy our passionless nama-roopa.

Maybe this year it'll happen.

There certainly seems to be something on the wire. The vibrations are strong here.

But I'm not sure if I'm ready to fast.

And why is it necessary to cut hair in order to become a saint?
And to have to cut hair with a sword ( and that's a real sword amongst the wire, cement and paint ) seems unusually cruel, but I'd guess it works if that's part of becoming a saint.

I think many of us are anticipating a good musical year -- we'll romvong around the sun and play special gigs.

The picture below was the last picture Nic took today. And this statue, which is very close to the temple, seemed to have the most offerings.

We'd like to offer you a blessed new year filled with love, family, friends, music and all that will fulfill you on your journey to Nirvana.

Ah......

2008-12-28T18:56:00.000-08:00

Nic misses running. She misses feeling like running. Picture from April 2008.....

Scenes from our first Christmas afternoon

2008-12-25T20:20:00.000-08:00

Headed in to SF, took only an hour and 20 minutes. Ate amazing food at Andy and Paul's, opened more presents, and many made music while others listened. Lilly took many photos with her new camera, her favorite present. Nic and Bert, very happy today.

Scenes from our first Christmas morning

2008-12-25T20:13:00.001-08:00

We got up early and put in the cinnamon rolls that we made last night. Opened presents and enjoyed the morning. Dressed up Deyve in a Santa hat for the picture, and went on a great walk where he tore around like a mad dog with some big fluffy dogs encountered in the near empty park. Enjoyed seeing the kumquats in beautiful orange outside by our driveway.

Picture request

2008-12-21T10:13:00.001-08:00

Here is what Nic looks like now.

First Bassoon Studio Dinner Party

2008-12-21T10:05:00.000-08:00

Nic brings her tradition to Stockton. The theme of this dinner was Red and Green food.

Appetizers: Chevre Nicolasa (very green and red, a recipe invented by Tanya Tandoc) and roasted garlic
Soup: spicy creamy chicken (chunks of tomato and cilantro created the green and red)-- another Tanya recipe
Course: stuffed shells (spinach added the green)
Side: string beans and a salad
Dessert: Sour Cream cake and various desserts provided by students. Ross Edgar makes a mean lemon meringue and chocolate fudge . So, the red and green theme broke down at the dessert part. That's ok.

After dinner we played a round of White Elephant gift exchange. Fun was had by all.

Andy, Kai, and Lucia come to visit

2008-12-21T10:02:00.000-08:00

Video games, cookies, tacos, museum visit... so much fun having the SF people come out for a Stockton escape.

Adventures, an update

2008-12-21T09:52:00.000-08:00

Nic has been bugging Bert to write about our latest adventures... but he is busy. Really, WHERE is our time going? Here's a list of adventures:

--Hanging out with Dave Brubeck at the UoP President's house, celebrating both Brubeck's 88th birthday (he is SHARP) and his induction into the California Hall of Fame. He was introduced by fellow inductee, Quincy Jones, and he in turn introduced Jack Nicholson. (See other inductees)

--Checking out the Haggin Museum, FINALLY, with Andy and her kids. The Rock and Roll and Jazz portraits exhibit is what finally drew us in.

--Eating our first dinner at our new dinner table.

--buying a KING size bed (getting ready for baby)

--Hosting the first Pacific Bassoon Studio Holiday dinner

--continual trips to the Farmer's Market on Saturday mornings

Holiday Time

2008-12-12T13:47:00.000-08:00

We are having fun. Set up our first tree together, and below you can see Bert putting together our new dining room table!!!! Just in time for upcoming bassoon studio party dinner. The dining room was a great storage space until just a couple of days ago.

Scenes from Thanksgiving dinner

2008-11-29T20:42:00.000-08:00

Walking in the park by Andy and Paul's house

2008-11-29T20:35:00.000-08:00

We rushed in to SF to slow down and walk in the park. Andy and Lucia are training for a 5K and needed to be out, and Deyve loves a chance to visit his cousin Smith. Look in the tree for Lucia.

Making Candied Yams for Thanksgiving

2008-11-29T20:29:00.000-08:00

Ok, I usually don't like the idea of candied yams. Super gringo, if you know what I mean. But Bert suggested them as a part of his Thanksgiving tradition, and I found a recipe that sounded cool enough... and we found most of the ingredients at the Farmer's Market we are addicted to. Ingredients including the most delicious and juicy fresh ginger I have ever sliced into. The recipe received rave reviews at the table, and even the kids ate it! The sauce had orange juice, maple syrup, fresh ginger, cinnamon sticks and orange peel. Yum.

Getting back to Stockton: home

2008-11-28T21:39:00.001-08:00

We were happy to see green foliage and so many flowers when we got back. It's turning into December now, and yet it's a beautiful Fall still.

Our trip to Wichita

2008-11-28T21:28:00.000-08:00

Headed back to Wichita together in mid-November. Nic performed the Mozart concert with with WSO and Bert worked at his Marriott office, and got to spend some time with Harper. We stayed with our great and most amazing friends, Barney and Linda.

Here are some pictures....

For more pictures of the concerto, go to http://www.pacificbassoons.blogspot.com