Good Times

Uncle Jim flew in from Pittsburgh last week and came down to spend the weekend with us. After about a half an hour in the house Grace warmed up to Uncle Jim and from then on she wanted nobody but Uncle Jim.

We packed the weekend full of fun activities. Friday night we went out to dinner. Saturday morning we went to gym class. Uncle Jim got to come with us and participate. After gym we went to the old train in Poway. After taking a ride on the train we walked across the street to the park and let Grace run wild. Later that evening I had mom's night out with two mom's from our adoption playgroup. We went out to dinner then came back to our house to work on our scrapbooks. I have finally finished Grace's 1st year and I have started on her 2nd year.

On Sunday we spent the afternoon at Balboa Park. It was such a beautiful day. We walked through the park to the International Houses and we were excited to find that they were having a food fair that day. We sampled food from so many different countries. Grace really loved the noodles and Lumpia from the Philippines. After the food fair we walked through the botanical gardens and Spanish Village to the train. Grace and Uncle Jim rode the train then we walked (Grace ran) over to the carousel. It was such a fun and relaxing day. Later the evening Gramma and papa came down to spend the night.

On memorial day we had a BBQ here at our house. Kelly, Chris and the kids came down and so did Uncle Sean. Our daycare lady Lora also came and we all just hung out and ate tons of food. It was a really warm afternoon so we broke out Grace's kiddy pool and we let the kids spash around. At one point we were adding more water and Tristan was holding the hose and squirting Hailey and Grace so Tim shut off the hose and he said, "Tristan, what happened? Look in the hose and figure out what's wrong." So Tristan looked in the hose and Tim turned it on really quick, Tristan jumped a mile. It was so funny I almost wet myself.

It was such a fun and busy weekend, I loved it!

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Great Weekend

This weekend was soooooo much FUN! My best friend Amy flew out from Colorado to visit for the weekend. This year is 20 years since we met, I can't believe it! Amy is the first friend I made when we moved to California from Pittsburgh. I miss her so much, I wished she here again.

Friday morning I picked Amy up from the airport at 8:30 am. We stopped for breakfast, it was great to sit and talk get caught up with each others lives. After breakfast we picked Grace up from daycare and headed home. I had been teaching Grace to say Amy all week, but it came out like "Mamy", it was cute!

Kelly brought Tristan and Hailey down and we all piled into the van and headed to the beach. We went to Mission Beach and we decided to eat before going out on the beach. Finally out on the beach the kids had a blast. Hailey went bonsai right for the water, she couldn't get enough, she was such a happy girl. Trisan totally fell in the water and got soaked. Grace was being a bit of a chicken and attached herself to my leg. All in all it was a great time.

Saturday, Amy and I took Grace to her little gym class. She did so great this week. She tried every skill that the instructor taught, she landed on her feet everytime she let go of the bars (usually she drops on her butt), and she side stpped across the bean with hardly any help from me. I can't believe how great her balance is.

Later in the day Amy and I headed to the spa for some relaxation. We got there an hour before our facial appointments and took full advantage of relaxing in the jacuzzi. It was so nice!

Gramma Karen came down to babysit so we could all go out for a night on the town. Grace has finally mastered the word GRAMMA, my mom is so happy. It is so special to see Grace's and my mom's face light up when they see each other. My heart feels like it might burst with happiness in those moments. That evening we headed downtown for some fun!

Sunday Amy and I took Grace to the San Diego Zoo. We had a fun time. Grace always loves the petting zoo and the monkeys. After the zoo we went home and BBQed and then took Amy to the airport :( This weekend went TOO fast, I am sad to see Amy go. I am excited to see her again in a month though, her and her family are renting a beach house at Newport Beach at then end of June. I am looking forward to seeing her and her boys then.

Happy Mother's Day!

I hope all of the mother's out there had a wonderful day! Mine was great. We went out to breakfast and then took a drive up to the little mountain town of Julian. Julian is known for their apple pies, so of course we brought one back with us. It was a beautiful day, it was so relaxing. We strolled the town and looked in all of the little shops. On the way home Grace was really cranky. As we drove the winding road back home Grace kind of caoughed and gagged and puked all over herself!!! GROSS! I think she must have gotten carsick!

Last week we had our Adopted Friends Playgroup. This time we met at Grace's favorite park ... Santee Lakes. When we got there I pulled into the parking lot next to the big play area that Grace loves and realized that they had it closed for construction! I was so bummed. Up ahead was a smaller play area so we met there. The day ended up being really great even though it didn't go as planned. All of the mommies sat in the shade on the bank of the lake and watched the kids play on the play structure or feed the ducks. We had two new babies join the group. I love hearing their adoption stories and reminiscing about our own adoption journey. This group means so much to me. I love seeing all of the kids grow up right before our eyes. Several of the families are starting the process for their second adoption. At playgroup Grace and Benjamin always seem to gravitate toward each other. At first Cindy and I would talk about how Grace and Ben are going to be best friends and part of me thought, "nah, we just want to think that Grace and Ben are such good friends because cindy and I have become good friends." Really though ... Grace and Ben play together more then any of the other kids. It's like they are in their own little world, talking their own little language, and chasing after one another all over the place. It is so cute!




This weekend Grace said soooooo many new words. All of them were so clear. She said Grammama, bubbles, bell, cow, moo, oink, water, and yellow. I think she is going to start talking like crazy now. I can't believe how fast she is growing up!

All Better

Two weeks ago Grace had a runny nose when we dropped her off at daycare. Her runny nose was clear and she was biting on her fingers so we thought her last tooth was finally coming in. By the time I picked her up from daycare at the end of the day she had developed a cough and her nose was icky green. We broke out all of the cold remedies that night, you know, the humidifier, the saline nose spray, the nose sucky thing, and we raised one end of her crib so she could breathe easier. She had a pretty restless night and the next morning woke up with a fever of 105!!! We immediately got her in a cool tub and gave her motrin and called the doctor. They were able to take us right away. The outcome ... pnemonia! Our poor baby! After two weeks of some super antibiotics she is all better and back to normal, but last sunday I came down with her cold. I am all better now, hopefully Tim won't come down with it.

Last Saturday was a pretty warm day and Uncle Sean was here visiting us so we decided to take a late afternoon stroll at the beach. It was fun. Grace had a great time running up to the water's edge and running away real fast when a wave rolled in.

Mom and Dad are almost ready to move. We have spent the last couple of weekends helping them pack and get stuff into storage. Last Sunday they decided to take a little break from the packing and come down and spend the day with us. While my dad and Tim tried to change out our bathroom sink, me and mom took Grace to Victoria Gardens to pick strawberries. Grace got the hang of it right away. She was having a great time until she tried picking one that was a little too ripe and her thumb squished right through it. She stuck her had up to Gramma and said YUCK! Then she didn't want to pick anymore. After that she wanted to ride the pony. She was cracking us up, she went right with the guy and let him put her up on the pony. As the pony went around in circles she rode like she has done it a million times before. She was swaying with the rythem of the hooves and everything. It was so funny!



Well, until next time ... God Bless!































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