Our Money Corner

I'm not a big believer in feng shui, an old chinese philosophy on home design, but i do like some of the 'common sense' approach, like good flow, elements of cleansing water, minimal house stress, ie busy streets, blaring headlights, etc.

but we are fans of 'living with ed', one of the first tv shows on being consciously green before it became a trend. on one of the episodes, rachelle consults a feng sui master to:

'Feng Shui means wind and water; it’s part science, part art and it’s over four thousand years old. Rachelle has Master Yau come over to help get the energy flow of their home at an optimal level to where their prosperity, love life and health are all in good harmony.'

He introduces them to the money corner, the home's financial power spot which is at the most southeast corner of the home. Above is a picture of our new money corner--- holding coins, colors of green and purple and a lucky bamboo plant---to bring in wealth and prosperity.

today, we got excellent news. our rented condo, which has a small ceiling leak (for over 2yrs with numerous fixes and complaints) may be finally done & over! new owners have moved in above and totally gutted the bathroom. good-bye leaky headache!

coincidence? or feng sui at work?

Mid-Summer Vacation

pics fm our OBX vacation, lots lots of beach, pool and lake fun. perfect weather, it rained for only 1/2 day while we were there.

there were bloopers and troopers. eric bruised his heel badly, the diagnosis isnt in yet, but it might be a cracked ankle. it happened on our first full day there---saturday was spent driving down which use to take only 5 1/2 hours now takes 7+ hrs-- gas prices obviously didnt scare the crowds away.
mr.acrobatics dives in for a frisbee on the shallow end in the pool, shallow as in 4ft. no comments please.
fortunately, he was able to borrow eric w.'s crutches, who also had a foot injury from a frisbee accident! CRAZY i know.

moving on to our trooper, lindsey. she went from screaming mad to (dare i say it) liking the water. yeaaaah lindsey!

and thou it was good family fun, vacationing w/kids is far from total r&r. we realized this w/our first trip to bermuda--- it wouldn't be the same, at least not for a few good years.

with eight kids under one roof (six under four yrs), there was a lot of crying, whining and skirmishes.
poor laurel didnt sleep well in her cot, tossing and turning all night and teething with three new buds-- she was a complete miserable mess towards the end of the trip--and made sure we all knew it, esp han & eric who slept direcly underneath us.

kids, the younger, the more unpredictable-- and only those with kids fully understand this. believe me, even w/my own kids, the fighting noise level still drives me bonkers. wouldnt blame the non-kids couples if they opted out next year---we subject ourselves to it because we have to (-:
but it beats sitting at home, twiddling our thumbs -- so it's all worth it.

2 Already!

they've really become little people with their own personalities. every age is something new, and we love and embrace it all. babies are cute, but toddlers are fun!

Vienna is sensitive, but more adventurous and social. Most times, she'll loudly announce herself to anyone 'HI!' She's also demanding and very one-track minded. 'Share low-el' translates to 'give me laurel'. and re-direction almost NEVER works. she wants THAT toy, never mind it's the same toy but just different color. we've start lettin her know, some items belong to laurel exclusively, and she doesnt have to share- such is life.

Laurel isnt as social. she's more or less indifferent around other kids, until they get tiresome, esp if they're in HER house, playing with HER toys. but she's very easy-going, really from the day she was born. nothing really upsets her and she takes it all as a game. which can be frustrating when a stern 'NO' is met with a giggle. but overall, momma can only be grateful she has one easy kid. laurel's still a cuddler tho, so she'll have whiny moments where she just wants to be held. (eric and i think she's gonna be a homebody and be the kid we'll have to marry off :-)

Unfortunately, as they play together more, the fighting has begun full force-- slapping, hair pulling, kicking, blocking, pushing--- where do they learn all this?! we want them to use words (NO, STOP), not just w/each other but in every situation where they need to defend themselves. life with 2 two-year olds---wish us well :-0

Lastly, here are some pics fm their bday party. The theme was elmo goes safari--who btw, they barely acknowledge now they have jojo circus and wonder pets. The reptiles alive show was great, it was very interactive with lots of one-finger touching- so cute! the girls even came up and sat with a snake! how's that for a party highlight.

3rd Annual Parade at Gramma's

Tidbit: after our first time at the parade, the day after, my water broke. the day after that, the girls were born -- independence day celebration has never been the same. Happy 4th!

Fun Classes

the girls finished up their toddler & me swim class. this instructor was much better than their baby & me swim class. we did lots of singing, and clowning around in the water so the girls felt comfortable but also learned techniques like kicking and blowing bubbles. overall, after every class, they've enjoyed the water more & more---and that's a huge accomplishment for vienna!

now it's ballet part deux. eric & i have mixed feelings about the teacher. she's older and must be a true bonde-fide dancer (thou it's obvious she only teaches now); so she tries to keep the class structured and the kids in queue. but for 2-3yr olds, theres only so much direction they can take!