XMAS 2009 HighLights

we also saw a xmas movie with thier cousin and friends, dipped and sprinkled pretzels in choco for their class gifts, read nightly xmas books, made ornaments for their own mini-tree, attended a candle-lit service xmas eve with gramma D.... what a whirl-wind xmas!

at 3yrs old, this was the best xmas yet! they get it all: the magic of Santa, decorating the tree, gift-giving and the story of baby Jesus. Vienna was sad the elf had to go back to Santa and has asked since for xmas back. they love xmas, dont we all!

All in one week...

From this:


To this:


Crazy Weather Week!
Happy Snow Day!

Super Thankful

Hope everyone had a SUPER Thanksgiving! We did!

Ice Party

Pics from the rink-- since poppa doesnt do bday parties, aunt louise came for arm support. The girls had an untimely potty run during the cake & candles, so we didnt get a shot of the bday girl. Plus after cake, Summer was back on the rink (she might be named for the wrong season!) The girls were wiped out, Laurel went down for 2 naps! Happy Big 5 Summer!

My new brother and sister!

we have so much-- way too much-- and so blessed in so many ways. (momma's small confession: woot kids is addictive = toys overload!)

for thanksgiving this year, we wanted the kids to give thanks and to give back. what better way then to sponsor a child. meet their new 3 yr old siblings: Adisu (fm Africa) and Wiloteya (fm Indonesia).
they will grow up together, share stories, learn about each other cultures and maybe one day, joyfully hug!
(another small confession: momma's always wanted to adopt a little black boy-- isnt Adisu super cute?!)

When it's icky out, have....

Never Ending Halloween!

yes, another h-ween parade. each year the children make all their costumes. this year, the girls' class were spiders. ck out the 2yr olds as indians (in paper bag vests)...too cute!




we went to 2 festivals on h-ween . this is the first one at gramma D's neigborhood. do you get our family costume theme?

the night before h-ween, our horse neighbors held a potluck, including a bonfire and hay rides.

the day after h-ween, we hosted a small playdate w/some of their classmates. i wanted the girls to be cowgirls, w/hats, horses and all; but vienna insisted she wanted to be a panda. and since we all loved Kung Fu panda (esp Laurel), and that's how this year's costumes came to be. Happy Halloween!

Hallow Events

We celebrated a bunch of bdays this past Sunday (mine, gramma D and a belated one for Royce). Afterwards, the cousins did their annual mini costume parade.

Another parade in the town of Vienna. Our first time since the girls' bedtime is later at 8:30PM. Neighborly, old-hometown-feel parade. Lots of princesses, fairies, firemen, but only one Kung Fu Panda and Tigress!

Happy Autumn!!!!

Our anniversary trip this year was to Deep Creek Lake, MD. We did some fishing right off the lake behind the motel. No fish, and the girls got bored quick.

We did two nature hikes, one to Swallows Falls and to Frank Lloyd Wright's famous FallingWaters house. Autumn is simply gorgeous there, rolling valleys and hills bursting with vibrant colors. Unfortunately it drizzled all wkend, and Vienna as not up to hiking in the light rain. Her constant whining was killing our relaxing zen. Laurel was the trooper, she stodgily hiked along and only once complained, 'I cant walk anymore'.

To top it off, Laurel got very sick our first night there. She vomited everything she ingested and we seriously considered bringing her into the ER, fearing dehydration (but not H1N1 since she was responding and not feverish).

Thank goodness, she felt much better the next day. Since we were up all night, and didnt think she would be up for the horse ride, so after viewing FallingWaters, we headed home. As always with kids, it was a fun but rough trip!

Birth Tree

the tree we planted when the girls were born. gramma Vu suggested a persimmon tree. it finally has edible fruit! golden, crunchy fruit.

Balance Balance

my camera bit the sands in OBX. eric was not happy and I heard many, 'I told you so'. i've lost count, this may be my 3rd camera in 3yrs? {sigh} it's not deliberate, but i tend to be hard on things (dishwashers, washing machines, vaccums have not survived).

i did get my new camera this wk. it's water-proof, shatter-proof and hopefully terri-proof.

and in time to capture the girls' first try at ice-skating. it was slippery-going at first. but laurel did better than expected. she found her ice legs and was able to walk on the ice, holding our hands. vienna just held on and glided along.

i was disappointed they didnt have the 'metal walkers' to assist the kids. i can barely skate, relying on the penguin walk. eric is much better and the girls enjoyed gliding and looping around the ice with poppa. their classes begin on halloween. it's a mommy/daddy and me class, so wish us luck (esp me!).

Bye Bye Summer

our end-of-summer trip to OBX. it rained 1/2 the time we were there. so we did a few activities we didnt do yrs past, like visit the aquarium, go carts , drive on the beach and jet ski. oh and our numerous (humerous) attempts to fly a kite. too windy, not enough wind, tangled strings-- that kite just didnt want to fly!

love OBX, but this will most likely be our last trip. next summer, we'll spend time again with gramma D at Hilton Head and in lieu of another beach trip, maybe visit a nat'l park or lake tahoe. now that the girls are older, air travel isnt as nerve-racking and it'll be good to mix it up and see the rest of the world. bye bye OBX. bye bye summer.

hello fall.

Highs and Lows

We're gonna be away for a bit. We leave you with this pic:



It's been a tough few last wks. I'm not sure exactly when it started, but the WHINING is at an all time high. WAAAAAH milk WAAAAH my seat WAAAH Ginger WAAAH No WAAAH she pushed me WAAAH WAAAH WAAAH.... ALL.DAY.LONG.
At first they complained about their teeth (molars? cavities?) but that only lasted for a couple of wks. But the crying hasnt stopped! They get sent to their room, to calm down on their own, and mostly so we dont have to hear it. I guess it's another stage/phase we'll have to ride out.

Other days, our green monsters still make us smile.

ISR Graduation

a couple of ppl have asked about the girls' swimming lesson. they graduated after 5 wks of lessons. they did fantastic.
it was alot of driving in traffic, rushing after school and beacoup costly, but in the end, very worth it. they can swim!

Is it a bird, No it's...

My Big Girls!

Since 2 1/2yrs, it's been, 'I do it'. They dress themselves (most of the time, backwards, until we told them 'the sticker' goes in the back), climb in the car; brushing was an old hat, but now they can spit. Vienna likes to gargle, Laurel doesnt.

They love discovering new but simple things, pockets and band aids are a still hit.

They carry conversations, and if one is Max, the other is Ruby or Boots or Dora. For awhile, everyone (including stuff animals) was baby Ella (their baby cousin).
Driving, they have their own game, any spotted yellow or orange car, comes an exclamation from the back: 'Yellow like your Pooh bear! or 'Orange like Tigger on your side'. And 'more ding-ding song please!'

They have no problems communicating their needs, 'I'm hungry' or 'I'm tired' or 'Momma, I'm not Ginger, dont tell me to leave it'. [Sheesh]. It's so nice not to hear a crying baby that cant say what's up!

They love to draw. Vienna will draw shapes (very caterpillar-ish) and deem them her family or pets (the cat is hers, the dog is Laurels, the fishes divided). Laurel has started coloring in between the lines. She enjoys her workbooks, learning to match her colors, shapes and tracing.

They have very distinct, different personalities. Vienna makes friends easily, where Laurel will play quietly on her own. But Laurel is more agressive btwn the two of them. Not sure if it's 'sibling rival', but she CANT be left out. The fastest I've seen her move is when she thinks Vienna is getting there first!

Laurel is more helpful, esp when smiley faces = candy reward. Vienna isnt particular (unless it's her 'poncho' pj pants), thus we always let Laurel pick first (of course, she'll pick the poncho pants- oy!).

There's been many changes when they turned 3. After our trip from Hilton Head, we let the nanny go and now they go to school full time (9- 4:30). They learned to nap in cots at school, which lead the way to big girl beds at home. Momma was dreading the move, but the transition went very smoothly. They picked out their beds and bedding and were super excited. They have yet to sneak out of bed and are still great sleepers. They sleep from 8:30 to 7:15 with about an hour nap. If Vienna sleeps past 7:15, she wont nap and will get cranky (no melt downs) tired by 7PM. So they still need their nap, but I wouldnt be too surprised if they dropped the nap before 4yrs.

And thou they adored Maria (she NEVER said no to them), only a couple of times have they mentioned her--- another smooth transition.

After school, they started ISR (infant swim resource). Its basically swimming boot camp for kids. It lasts for 4-6wks, 4-5 days a wk. The classes fm the rec center were mostly singing and splashing with no real swimming drills. By the time they've completed ISR, they would be dunked over a 1000 times.

But once they get it, they get it. Vienna got the hang of it quicker and now she loves to dive under water or back float in the jacuzzi tub. Here's a video of my big girls in action:

for your viewing enjoyment

party video highlights, hope everyone enjoyed the show. i know i heard grandpa bill & uncle patrick laughing; and not at the magic (-:

very long magic show video, here's the breakdown for skipping:
1) starts with lotus & rope trick
2) 26:90 - vienna, laurel, anna, lindsey & sorena with flag trick
3) 2:46:02 - timothy and katie with sword trick
4) 8:56:10 - joshua and paper trick
5) 10:10:42 - mia and ball trick
6) 10:27:22 - noah & newspaper trick



magic finale and birthday cake video:



just in case you have extra free time, the big bugs hunt video(w.director commentary,uncut version):

Bugs 3rd Bday Party!

video to come...

Beachy Good Time

we visited gramma and aunt alice in hilton head for a week. it was HOT, 100' HOT. lots of beach and pool time, it rained maybe once in the afternoon. the water was warm & clear (not as clear as OBX). there was the extra bonus of large pools of trapped water which became the girls' wading area. laurel called the ocean, the 'waterfalls'.
the (2/12 hr) plane ride was a breeze, we didnt even have to resort to the dvd player. overall, it was a wonderfully, relaxing trip. lazy summer days are best at the beach!

i've been to HH once before and it hasnt changed much. it's a lush and tropical island --- looks more like hawaii than a casual beach town.

we also spent 1 1/2 days in savannah (only 1/2hr drive away). the city is much smaller than i expected and not was grand as i envisioned. but the spanish-moss oak trees are amazing.

Spring Concert

the girls had a spring festival at their school, featuring a concert by students. the good, they made it onto the stage w/out a melt down (cant say the same for all their classmates). the bad, they barely sang a word-- maybe one EIEO from Vienna.
but we know they know the words, cause they belt out the song on the way home in the car. must have been stage fright.

Nightly Rituals

Our evening walks before dinner, for momma's waistline and to stimulate the kids appetite--- it's a decent work-out. The trail is right across the street from us. It takes us up and down hills, bamboo-lined arches, tadpole-lily ponds, a rock-throwing creek and friendly horses.

Before bedtime is playtime with ginger. The girls have started going to bed, alittle later at 8ish. More time to wear themselves out w/their new best bud.