Happy Father's Day!

Happy to report that a fun time was had by all the Dads at our place yesterday! Riley made ginger snaps for all of them and Hannah made a very cute book at preschool for Rob. Papa Walt grilled up some mean BBQ chicken and Rob got stung in the *** by a bee providing a wonderful comedic moment for all to treasure. Riley lost a tooth in the midst of it all. The Sciclunas joined in the fun and I must say it was a really great time!

Happy Mother's Day!

Hey!  My girls impressed me with some handmade presents(including my new necklace made by Hannah in preschool - see photo) and breakfast in bed all without the help of Daddy who's in Boston teching a show.  Then, Riley, Grandma and I went to see "The Miracle Worker" and had a good cry followed by dinner at the Japanese hibachi joint.   The flowers in front of Hannah in the picture were sent to me by my very thoughtful godson, Alexander.  A very fine Mother's Day.  I'm a lucky Mom.

Belated photos

Found my camera! Happy Easter, Birthday, Spring everyone. Enjoy the pix!

Hannah's 1st day of school!

Well, I was a nervous wreck, but Hannah did very well!  No potty accidents and Miss Sally said that she was focused for most of the 3 hour stretch.  (The last 45 minutes she was ready for Mommy).  We're so proud of her and she really liked her new preschool and teachers!  Hooray for Hannah!

Happy Birthday Riley and Happy Easter Everybody!

So, it finally happened to coincide - the Easter Bunny arrived on the morning of Riley's 8th Birthday!  We had ALL the relatives over to celebrate and had a fantastic time.  Egg Hunts, presents, lots of candy and desserts, it was fun.  I have foolishly lost my camera in all the hubbub but I did borrow my wonderful friend Lisa's camera to get some shots of Riley's party with her friends yesterday.  Her new zip line courtesy of her grandparents was a big hit and we could not have asked for more beautiful weather.  We love the new house even more now that we can eat and relax on the deck outside!  In other big news, Hannah will be starting preschool this Tuesday!!! I think that she is going to love it - she seemed very happy to be there when we visited and we're starting off slow with just 2 mornings a week.  I cannot believe that BOTH my girls will be in school in a couple of days!  How did that happen so fast?

A milestone for Hannah

So, this is kind of a strange thing to keep track of, but today marks the first official day that Hannah has been with us longer than she has been in her orphanage.  It makes us so happy to know that her time spent with her family now is longer than her time without us.  It's been a glorious 19 months and as bizarre as it sounds, I really think that she has really blossomed into herself in the past few weeks!  She is a true chatterbox, she has ditched the diapers and she shows so much unbridled affection that she fills my heart with love for her every day.  We are so lucky to have her in our lives.  We love you so much, Hannah En Ming.

Hallelujah, we have big girl underwear!!!

I have waited a verrrry long time to post this but after a whole week with only one accident, I can now officially declare my Hannah "potty-trained" and somewhat ready for preschool!  Whew, that is a load off my mind.  I can make no claim toward this achievement as Hannah made a sudden decision in the midst of a DOUBLE ear infection last week.  Now, if it were me, I think I'd be a little more prone to wetting my pants if both of my ears were infected and I felt really cruddy but my Hannah continues to surprise and amaze!  I do think that I will hold off on dropping her at school until summer but I am looking forward to some precious free time in 3 more months.  We're all very impatient for warmer weather now that April is almost here but the gals had a blast hunting for eggs at Riley's friend Olivia's house yesterday even in the chilly rain.  I am very excited for spring to arrive with our first Easter in the new house, soccer and playtime at the Tots Park!  Oh - in other big news - Riley is getting orthodontic work done to prepare her upper jaw for future braces.  She's taking it well considering the ban on gum, taffy and all sticky candy right before Easter.  The best part is that it's all happening on the roof of her mouth, so her smile will look the same for now.  Riley also got a no cavities report from the dentist today and an amazingly wonderful report card on Wednesday!  Her teacher tells us that she's reading at a mid-third grade level and is doing so well that she's practically ready for 4th grade!!  We are beyond proud of our kids this week.  Life is good.

PARTY TIME!

The new house has officially been broken in for parties and we certainly started things off with a bang.  Hannah's 3rd Birthday Party was a great success and we hope to have many many more parties in our new home!  All of the kids had a blast and it was really nice to have so much room to entertain for a change.  Rob and I both marveled at how much easier the process was.  Riley had so much fun that she has already sent out invitations for her birthday party in April!  Everyone was beyond generous not only with housewarming gifts and presents for the birthday girl but also with helping to set up and clean up the food!!  We can't thank you all enough!  We've been waiting a long time to be able to throw the kind of party we've always wanted to and it's so satisfying to finally have done it.  Here's to many more!!

Surprise!

Last weekend we drove to Vienna,VA for Aunt Renee's baby shower!  We had a great time and are very excited that our new cousin will soon be here.  Riley and Hannah particularly loved swimming in the hotel pool.  Summer can't come soon enough.  On the drive home, we stopped off in Wilmington,DE to have a reunion with Hannah's friends from China and their parents.  Lily and Bella are getting so big and they all had fun playing and eating together.  I'm so glad that we are able to get together with them every 6 months or so.  Now, we're gearing up for the first big party at our new house this coming Saturday.  Hannah's birthday celebration continues...

Hannah can see!!!

Just as many of us have suspected, Hannah is near sighted like her Mommy.  Yesterday, she received her first pair of eyeglasses and she loves them!  They are Disney Princess "Snow White" glasses and they came with a little pink pocketbook.  Hannah ate it all up.  She can't wait to show Daddy tomorrow when he is finally home from England!  I, for one, am so relieved that she can finally see the world around her and also, that her time in China will truly be a blur.  :)  Yea Hannah!

Happy 3rd Birthday Hannah/Happy Chinese New Year!!

What a very fun day was had today!  Hannah lived it up at her very favorite place to be - Miss Stacey's music class, then on to chores with Mom made much more exciting than usual by the addition of the normally off-limits lollipop at the bank and Hannah's first ever "own cart"(kid sized) at Adam's Market.  She's been yearning for to push that thing for a long while and now that she's 3, look out shoppers' ankles!! Here she comes.  She did run pretty hard into a fur wearing older woman and the old animal activist in me was secretly pleased.  On to pick up Chinese food in honor of the Year of the Ox and then home to see Daddy off to England.  (Rob's working on another Scooby-Doo tour over there).  A quick nap in the car and then some Dora TV time, of course.  To top it all off, Grandma and Grandpa came over to partake in the Chinese food and brought with them the family fave- the Carvel ice cream cake.  A perfect birthday, I'd say.  Enjoy the pix.  Happy birthday cutie banana.

THE NEW HOUSE!!

Wow-

It's been a busy month and a half.  We moved on my 40th birthday (not the day I had in mind but nice to get a big house as a present).  The weather promptly decided to dump snow, snow and more snow on us, so my parents' housewarming gift of a snowblower could not have been more perfect!  We managed to get a Christmas tree in time for the big day and enjoyed our first holiday in our new digs.  We feel like the house is our new full time job (as I'm sure every new homeowner does) and spend every weekend at Home Depot one day/painting,unpacking,putting furniture together the other.  It's great, though.  The extra space seems ridiculously large - I'm loving it.  More than that, the kids can jump, run and be loud without my constant worry that they're disturbing the neighbors.  BIG RELIEF!  We really are blessed to be here.  My very favorite part of this new living space is the view we have out the back of it - it's truly spectacular especially at sunset. Oh and also I could not love the school bus picking Riley up more.  I can ease into my day :)   The time since we've moved in has flown and I cannot believe that Hannah's 3rd birthday is tomorrow! She is now in her "big girl bed"! (She finally realized that she could jump out of that crib).   It is a happy new year.