Lovely in Lavender

Every year for CNY, I take a nice picture of the girls in one of their nice Chinese dresses...Years ago, back when I was organized I'd take a photo, and send out Chinese New Year cards to friends and our travel groups.....unfortunately, I"m lame now, and not organized anymore...

here are some of the highlights from our photo session...

Piggy Jammies

I had to post these jammies I found for the girls the other day...appropriate for the Year of the Pig!

A Jelly Belly Sugar Rush

Our week of school vacation is winding down, so this morning, since it was raining, I took the girls to Fairfield to tour the Jelly Belly Factory. We were accompanied by Meigan's preschool buddy Pascale, her Mom Jean and baby Noemie. We had a very fun time touring the plant, seeing how they are made, smelling the intense lemon scent of the lemon jellybeans, and best of all..was the FREE candy at the end and tasting many of the flavors! I held out hopes for Meigan taking a nap on the way home, but that was foiled, since the sugar rush of a kazillion jellybeans kicked in! Lunch was something, as you'll see from the picture...a jellybean shaped cheese pizza! pretty creative thinking!

Pacsale, Meigan and Catie infront of the giant inflatable jellybean

We got special hats for the tour.........

The girls looking down at the factory where the jellybellys are packaged up...

this is the jellybean shaped pizza...think there is enough cheese on that??? My 2 girls ate all but 2 pieces of this...

and last but not least....

THE LOOT.... I left there with $15 worth of jellybeans...what WAS I thinking???

Words escape me....

Truly, this really is my finest moment as a Mom, I think.....I mean really, what's NOT to be proud of when your 3 1/2 yrs. old daughter says "Mom, look at what I can do"...and you turn around to see this....well, the pride just wells up within! and yes, snot is what's sticking the kleenex to her face.....

A Monterey Weekend

The Lone Cypress..This is one of California's most enduring landmarks and it has been on this rocky perch for over 250 years!!!!

April 9th will mark my 15th year of living in California. While I do miss New Hampshire, I can't imagine living anywhere else! We are so very lucky to live here! The California coastline is truly stunning!

This weekend, we took the girls down to Monterey! We spent Sunday at the Aquarium, and today, driving the beaches, and sightseeing along the incredible, breathtaking and famous 17 Mile Drive, home to some of the finest golf courses and ocean viewing in California, and some of the most amazing homes I've ever laid my eyes on. Where do these people get their $$$$$????? We had a really great family weekend of fun, food and lots and lots of laughter and jumping on hotel beds! (scroll down for those photos)

Here are Catie and Meigan being eaten by a giant clam at the Aquarium...

This giant stuffed sea otter was outside a store right next to the Aquarium...the girls got nice and cozy with him..as it was a chilly, foggy breezy morning..

And when it really comes down to what a great family weekend getaway is all about, I think we can all agree that it is ALL ABOUT jumping on the beds in a hotel!!! This has been our ritual everytime we go to a hotel...the girls "have to" check out the beds first to be sure they're a-ok for jumping on! As you can see, Catie got some good air with her between the beds jump! She prefected this move in just a couple of minutes! I say a definite 10 for form and style!!

Now, you didn't think it was ALL about the kids did ya? heck no...Brian and I found this fabulous brewpub downtown Monterey in the Portola Plaza Hotel.....Peter B's was excellent! really really good beer they brew, and the food was great, and it was very kid friendly...we stumbled upon this place and were really happy with it! I had a fantastic caesar salad, and the kids got grilled panini jack cheese sandwiches and fries, and Brian and a great grilled skirt steak....

Then it was back to the hotel, the girls sharing one queen sized bed, and Brian and in another..

here's the Sunday night scenario..Meig passes out at 8:20pm (had to be first asleep in order to get the ONLY remaining cookie left in the room), Brian snoring by 8:35pm, Catie and I watched a great whale segment on Animal Planet and ate Tootsie Rolls, and then by 9:00pm I sipped wine and watched Desperate Housewives.

....then throughout the night, Meigan was restless and Catie was yelling at Meigan to get her feet out of her face...... nothing like all sharing a room for a peaceful night's sleep...needless to say, we were all up by 6:15am today...

These are from the beaches along 17 Mile Drive...the wind was howling, and whipping cold, and as you can see from these pictures, it wasn't a good hair day for any of us! but we saw a TON of seals in the water, on the shores, etc. and it was such fun! This coastline is just spectacular!

CAtie counted at least 25 seals around this spot...these guys on the shore and a bunch were right in the water.....now, the beach here, is infront of this huge house...I couldn't get a really good picture of it, but it was outrageous..HUGE... serious big bucks around this area....crazy!

Funny Meigan

Here is Meig this morning...gloves on, getting down and dirty helping Daddy outside ripping out this old dog cage...she's happiest when she can help...she rushes to get dressed on the weekends and follow Brian everywhere! she can be heard yelling "Dad, wait for me"...can't leave her out of anything...

and now....the beauty queen.....oh, the love of makeup! This is Meig's new thing....getting into Catie's play lipstick....only, this was her OWN..I'd got her some, so she stops getting into Catie's stuff...

notice the dark circles under eyes.....she's not had a nap in DAYS! she WILL NOT sleep...and she needs to...and i refuse to get in the car and give her a gasoline sedative everytime she needs a nap.....here's hoping Sunday brings a marathon nap.....

this kid is such a crack up....

Caged wild children....

This was the scene last Saturday at the FCC Between the New Years annual festivities....the girls got in the jumphouse...but it was a tad crazy with all the kids...and this was taken before the roof came down on the kids....man, what's with these jumpies coming down on kids? Catie got trapped in one in October at a birthday party, and it fell over, and she hit her head on concrete...it really flipped her out (and scared me too)....so when this one started to come down, Catie, super-smart big sister, grabbed her little sister and dragged her by the arm out of the jumpie, where I was waiting by the entrance...needless to say, that was the last these girls wanted of that jumphouse...

HELP!! ALERT THE FASHION POLICE!!!

This is just brilliant fashion sense...

actually, it was "clashy clothes day" at Catie's school last Friday (yes, I'm a week late in posting this)...and she put this outfit together all by her sweet little self! she wouldn't let me see until she was done, and it was just hilarious! we all had a good laugh! Her entire elementary school had all the kids, including the principal dressed this way...really fun for the kids!

I'm thinkin' she's a shoe-in for Project Runway, don't you agree?? :)

Love that dress-up box

In the midst of us watchin the Pats game (darn Pats LOST)....the girls got right into their dress up box...pretty freakin' cute, I must say....

FINALLY...BACK TO NORMAL...

Is this California or Antarctica??

This was the temp in our backyard this morning at 8:30am......BBBBBRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR....

Reconnecting with old travel friends....

I just had to post this link....
http://mychinatwo.blogspot.com/

from my dearest friend Susan, from our August 2001 trip to Catie...we got disconnected for a few months in 2006...but alas..we're reconnnected!....Susan adopted Delannie same time we adopted Catie...Delannie is from Meizhou, which is Guangdong Province..same as Catie & Meigan's province...Susan, Brian and I had a blast in Beijing in August 2001 before we got the girls, and we continued our amazing trip that August...we've gotten together only 2 times in the past 5 years...they live in Florida, and us in Califorina...but we keep in touch best we can...and I'm so very happy that we have reconnected!!! Susan watched as Catie came to Brian and I on August 13, 2001, and later that night, Brian, Catie and I watched as Delannie met her Mom for the first time...it was magic!

Since August 2001, Susan and her husband have brought Amelia into their family, and Meigan has come into our family.

Susan's 2 girls are just beautiful!!!! and you can check them out at:

Kristin

With a Wink and a Smile.....

As you can see, the girls have a desire to learn how to wink....they've been practicing quite a lot lately....Catie's is especially funny, with her 2 front teeth missing...and Meigan...well, we've been told she looks like Popeye when she tries to wink.......

Happy Birthday to Mommy.........

yep..another year older....it's 2:30pm...I can have this delicious bubbly in the middle of the day because on your birthday there are no rules, dietary or behavioral....

the girls woke up early, banging me on the head with huge smiles and Happy Birthday wishes and kisses and hugs...they're so cute....then Catie and Meig made me breakfast.....

as you will see from the next photos...it was a team effort and delictable delight...

Then the girls and I made a Costco run, and made an 11:25m showing of Charlotte's Web...it was such a nicely done movie..the kids loved it...the 3 of us squixshed into 2 seats with our 3 bags of greasy buttered popcorn (there's that no diet rule again) and a soda...such a treat and a very fun time for me and the girls...

Tonight, Brian and I will go out to dinner at a really nice restaurant in our town, have some really good wine, and enjoy ourselves....

Can't ask for anything better on my birthday!

Cousins Cousins Everywhere!!!

Here are Catie and Meigan with their little cousin Ella. This incredibly adorable little peanut is the daugher of my youngest brother Ryan and my sister-in-law Nicole who live down in Eagle Rock, CA (just next to Pasadena)...Ella is about to be 7months old and we got to see her over the weekend! Catie and Meig LOVE their baby cousin Ella...Meig didn't stop smiling the entire time they were here...infact, she didn't even speak for a long time, she just kept smiling her huge smile and hugging her Uncle Ryan and Aunty Cole...the girls are so good to Ella, so gentle and loving and just cute!!! I of course, got my baby fix....oh, and yes of course it was great to see Ryan and Nicole...almost forgot they were here too :)




While in New Hampshire over the holidays, we got to spend much time with my brother Kevin who is a year younger than me, and my sister-in-law Jen, and my nephews Dylan and James. Dylan will turn 13 this July, which blows my mind...13!!! and James..that sweet baby James! He is by far the happiest little guy I have ever laid eyes on! he just smiles, claps his hands and is nothing short of adorable! He belly laughs so hard he almost falls over when his big brother does some tricks....and Dylan, well he does what any 12 1/2 year. old does, torments his little cousins, and hides their stuffed animals....he had Catie distraught over her stuffed penguin that Santa brought her....it was a fun visit that turned my parents' house into a crazy place for 10 days!



This photo is just missing Ella...they couldn't make it from LA this time for Christmas...hopefully next year we'll get all 5 cousins together....

Happy 2007

How is it another year is upon us being the parents of these 2 amazing girls!

Catie is now 6 1/2...how that happned I'm not quite sure...she's so self assured, then so lacking in self confidence in the next breath....so independent one minute, then wanting us to do everything for her the next second...so many changes she is going through right now coming into the age of 7...so many...(for those of you not yet there, look out...this is a very challenging age).....you think the 2's or 3's are tough...nope, no way...the fun is just starting right now for us...god help us when she's a teenager...but she's a love, through a through and a sensitive, bright and just amazing kid...and she still takes my breath away when I look at her...

and Meigan....3 1/2 now...and still as much a ball of fire as she was the first day she came to us...she's transformed into this happy happy happy kid...smiling pretty much all of the time (and for those of you who knew her when first home...that was NOT the way she was for almost a year...and a LONG year that was).....Meig is funny...really funny...so affectionate, stubborn, naughty and compassionate...she can share better than any big kid and hold her ground as well as any big kid...she wakes up every morning with a grin on her face that makes you smile no matter what time of the morning it is....she's a big Daddy's girl...she is his shadow...follows him everywhere...

we're blessed beyond anything we could ever imagine with these 2 healthy amazing girls. so very lucky are we!

Wishing everyone a healthy and happy 2007!!

Christmas Day..examining the "loot"

"MY OWN LIP GLOSS" exlaims Meigan....everything she took out of her stocking she yelled out "MY OWN"..geesh, she sounds so deprived.......

by 7:01am, Catie and Meigan had discovered toys and stockings by Nana and Grampa's tree, and had dumped the contents of their stockings on the floor...

T'was the Night Before Christmas

and these girls were all ready in their new christmas jammies from Nana! The girls left Santa a letter, some cookies, milk and carrots for the reindeer...all very exciting!

Airplane pics

Over the USA and the Mississippi River to New Hampshire we go...

We're here...after one LONG day yesterday...in chilly and I mean chilly Dover, NH...at Nana 7 Grampa's house..where the girls are in HEAVEN! they have a HUGe tree, and are just giving the girls nothing but their undivided attention (which is FINE with me)...at this very second, nobody is bugging me, whining, fighting....pure heaven...

the trip was easy, just long...extremely full flight full of kids, my 2 again, are just champs at traveling..so easy they are...thank god! they watch movies, eat, color...they did great!

Catie lost her other front tooth on the flight..pretty exciting stuff that was..of course the tooth fairy came last night (good thing she packed some tooth fairy gifts in her suitcase, just in case)..

here are a few pics of the journey!

Kristin