top 10 of 2009

For a someone who takes literally tons of pictures, this was a more than difficult task. But, here are my top 10 picture picks for 2009.

#1 -- The Little Wickies.

I love how they play together now, and how they have become inseparable. I hope everyday they will always be the very best of friends.

#2 -- My cowgirl with her lasso.

This little human being has so much imagination and presence and she is merely four. She simply amazes me.

#3 -- Maddie at the beach.

Maddie had a lot of firsts this year, including her first birthday. This was her first real beach day (it was January). By mid-year she was a true beach bunny.

#4 -- Mo in polka dots.

I loved these bubble outfits on her. She lived in them when the weather was warm. Mo's personality has bloomed this year. She is so happy, sweet and such a delight.

#5 -- Mama & Katie train adventure.

This year Katie and I started to have regular special outings where just the two of us headed out for fun. From movies to Chinese food, we've had some really great times.

#6 -- Katie the brave.

Fairs, amusement parks and festivals became favorite destinations this year. We learned that she will go on virtually any ride they will let her on.

#7 -- Our knight in shining armor.

Papa is the hero in our family so we treated him like royalty on his birthday with a prince party. Katie wore this Cinderella costume religiously throughout the year. Maddie who developed an expertise in roaring, was a lion for Halloween, and also used her roaring talent as a dragon for the celebration.

#8 -- Katie the fashionista a.k.a. Katie the crazy dresser.

She is my more is better girl and some of the ensembles she put together were just simply put, incredible.

#9 -- Papa's girl.

Katie loves the beach and she loves her Papa. I don't know if she is happier than when she is with him.

#10 -- Me and my Little Wickies.

Sometimes I feel like they are the reason I was put here on this Earth. That may sound extreme for some but with Song and the girls by my side I have gained such an unbelievable sense of satisfaction and contentment it is almost difficult to describe.

Happy New Year to everyone. Wishing you all the very best and more in 2010.

more tales of the city

I miss the City's scenery, but what I miss most are friends and family.

We had an opportunity to spend some really great time with Halmoni when we were up last.

One of the days we went to the Habitot Children's Museum in Berkeley.

Katie really liked the face painting area. She painted both our faces.

Another day we spent with Great Grandma Beth and Grandpa John.

Katie insisted on the matching dresses. They wore these dresses more than once on the trip upon Katie's request.

Lyndsay took me out for my birthday to see The Hard Nut which was fun.

I'm not much of a ballet person, but enjoyed it. Some of the dance scenes were just fantastic.

We also saw our cousins Denise, Dean and their son Shane.

I never thought an 11-year old boy would have any interest in my Little Wickies, but I was so wrong. He was fantastic with them! He played with them, was attentive and just an all around sweetheart.

Shane is seriously going to make someone a awesome boyfriend/husband later in life.


Until next time, I'll be thinking of your gorgeous views and beautiful green-ness San Francisco!

afternoon at the park

After being in the house all morning, we ventured out to the park this afternoon.

We told Katie that it was going to be cold, so she put together yet another unforgettable ensemble...

Maddie played on the slide.

And, conquered new areas of the playground.

Getting the girls to both look at me and smile is a near impossibility these days. We were able to get them to "roar" at the same time though.

You have no idea how many times I tell her, "Kaitlyn! Maddie's feet should NOT be leaving the ground."

crowd pleaser

The Little Wickies were bombarded with gifts from generous family members and friends yesterday.

Of all the fancy, educational and other toys they received, this ones seems to be the current winner...

Yes, it's truly inane, but what can I say, they love it.

(btw - there is also a pink one that Katie received, they link and dance together, but I can't currently locate it.)

feel the christmas love

christmas cookie time

Katie operated both the hand mixer as well as the mixer stand today by herself. She took the job very seriously and did an excellent job.

She told me that in a few years she would be able to bake cookies all by herself.

Ah... dreams of being fed cookies by my daughter while lounging on the couch.

(With no mess to clean up of course.)

yesterday

was a pretty good day to get a year older.

Since we're up in the Bay Area we ventured back to the Discovery Museum which was a big hit again. We explored, climbed, painted and more.

Later we had a date night in the city at one of our favorite restaurants.

I had the gnocchi dish there that I love -- yum.

Thank you to Papa and the Little Wickies for making my birthday a great one!

yes

she's still a thumsucker.

fearing for their life

I thought this might be the year Katie would sit on Santa's lap sans tears.

She had been talking about visiting Santa and telling him what she wanted for Christmas. Then, earlier this week I got my first hint of her balking when she told me, "I think Maddie is going to be scared of Santa, Mama."

We went to an event where Santa was played by their swim teacher. I was hoping the vague familiarity might help.

That would be a negative.

my denzel

Papa has been talking about shaving his head for months now.

"Oh come on, I bet I'll look exactly like Denzel Washington."

Another time he said he would look like Brett Favre. Yet another time he said he'd look like Obama. You get the idea. He's a funny guy.

So tonight...

(checking out his new do in the mirror)

I can not wait to see what Katie says in the morning...

kingdom o' castles

Once again, the --now tattered -- Cinderella dress made a major appearance this weekend at Katie's princess party.

There were princesses...

And, princes...

Castles...

(Katie wanted a big cake... "Like a wedding cake mama." As you can see my cake-making abilities are fairly limited.)

And, more castles...
And, even more castles...
(castle courtesy of some sheets from the thrift store)

And, yes -- another castle. Katie was insistent on having a pinata. I wasn't so sold on the swinging the bat in my backyard idea. So, I was able to talk her into a ribbon-pull pinata.

happy birthday kaitlyn

To my crazy-dressing, tap-dancing, full-of-life, sing-at-the-top-of-your-lungs, more-is-better girl.

Happy Birthday Katie!

Because I just don't know what you are going to do next -- but, can't wait to see.

let it rain

Last weekend the Little Wickies hosted a baby shower for our friend Megan.

I envisioned a white and blue theme -- however, I couldn't find a blue table runner for my life, just red, green and autumn colored ones.

So, the color scheme ended up being white.

It rained white raindrops...

And, in the living room it also rained pictures of Megan sporting her belly.

This was my favorite picture of the day: everyone just checking out baby Fong for themselves.