Thursday, October 28, 2010
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Catherine is 5!
Catherine Elizabeth, the apple of our eye, is 5 years old.
Unbelievable! Where has the time gone?
Here's a little bit about Catherine (Cate):
-She loves to play dress up
-She loves to draw and color
-She loves to play Barbies
-She is growing like a weed
-She is learning freestyle, breaststroke and backstroke at swim lessons.
-She is very loyal and sticks by her friends thru thick or thin
-She prefers to play with only girls ("boys are naughty!")
-She is learning how to stand up for herself
-Her favorite cartoon is Tom & Jerry
-Her favorite food is a tie between mac-n-cheese and Princess soup
-She prefers skim milk over whole
-Her favorite juice is apple
-She has "big ears", and listens to everything!
-She is learning to share with her brother
-She likes to make up silly rhymes
-She is reading 3- and 4-letter words
-She can count to 200
-Her favorite animal is a giraffe
-Her favorite colors are pink and purple
-She likes to cook
-She has an amazing memory and remembers even the smallest details
Happy Birthday, SweetGirl, Jellybean, Ladybug, Pumpkin, Stinker! You may have a lot of nicknames, but one thing is clear: you are our favorite girl in the whole wide world!
We love you to the moon 1,000,000, 7,000, 93, 93, 93, 400, 50, 2 billion times around the world and back. Can you beat that? :)
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Ryan at 16 months
Happy 16-month birthday today, Ryan!
Wow, our little boy has grown! He is NOT a baby anymore.
He is a completely different child since my last post at 12 months. I've been negligent in getting a periodic post up regarding Ryan's progress, but here's a recap:
-started walking on his 14-month birthday- is now running!
-now has 10 teeth, including 2 molars
-favorite snacks are raisins, honey-roasted peanuts and apple juice
-loves his little ride-on car
-is sorting his shape blocks no problem now
-loves to dive into the ball pit
-opens the fridge and gets his own sippy cup (closing it is another matter)
-wants to do anything Catherine is doing
-weighs around 25 lbs now and is in 18 month clothing
-still has dark hair and blue eyes
-is a sweet boy who loves to give sloppy kisses and tight hugs
-taking mommy-n-me swim lessons and loves being in the water
-has a weekly playgroup now and is making friends
-loves to walk on/off the elevator by himself, and rides it standing unsupported
-he's super silly and likes to make himself dizzy
-loves to clap to music
-saying 3 words: Mama, DaDee, and doggy
-also saying BaBoo, but we're not sure if this means Cate, or Lilly (our maid)
-has learned what "HOT!" means
-definately has a mind of his own and is very vocal when not getting his way
Hammin' it up for the camera:
What a sport...already being tortured by his older sister!
Eating: what else is new?
Snuggling with Daddy...aw, so cute!
Big Boy taking on the playground!
Future NBA Star!
Wow, our little boy has grown! He is NOT a baby anymore.
He is a completely different child since my last post at 12 months. I've been negligent in getting a periodic post up regarding Ryan's progress, but here's a recap:
-started walking on his 14-month birthday- is now running!
-now has 10 teeth, including 2 molars
-favorite snacks are raisins, honey-roasted peanuts and apple juice
-loves his little ride-on car
-is sorting his shape blocks no problem now
-loves to dive into the ball pit
-opens the fridge and gets his own sippy cup (closing it is another matter)
-wants to do anything Catherine is doing
-weighs around 25 lbs now and is in 18 month clothing
-still has dark hair and blue eyes
-is a sweet boy who loves to give sloppy kisses and tight hugs
-taking mommy-n-me swim lessons and loves being in the water
-has a weekly playgroup now and is making friends
-loves to walk on/off the elevator by himself, and rides it standing unsupported
-he's super silly and likes to make himself dizzy
-loves to clap to music
-saying 3 words: Mama, DaDee, and doggy
-also saying BaBoo, but we're not sure if this means Cate, or Lilly (our maid)
-has learned what "HOT!" means
-definately has a mind of his own and is very vocal when not getting his way
Hammin' it up for the camera:
What a sport...already being tortured by his older sister!
Eating: what else is new?
Snuggling with Daddy...aw, so cute!
Big Boy taking on the playground!
Future NBA Star!
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
Udaipur
We got outta Dodge for a 3-day weekend, and headed to the city of Udaipur. What a great place!
Udaipur is located in the state of Rajastan (think turbans, camels, dessert). It's a very unique city- located on hilly land around famous Lake Pichhola. The Indians have dubbed it "The Venice of the East". Needless to say, we were dubious. But lots of friends gave it good reviews. While not quite Venice, it definitely has personality! The architecture was fantastic, and the old part of town is built up onto the sides of mountains/hills, so it's very clustered and crowded, but a real adventure. The city was founded in 1568 and was built by generations of kings.
Day 1 consisted of our late-morning flight, arrival to the hotel, a nap, then a Thali dinner at a local watering hole. Total bill: 160 roupees. That's about $4. Mike and I really enjoyed our food- it's basically lots of little bowls filled with different sauces, sopped up with rice and chappati (basically like a wheatflour tortilla). It's eaten with fingers and gets very messy. FUN!
Day 2 consisted of a trip to the City Palace, a boat ride across Lake Pichhola, a visit to the Jag Mandir Island, another nap, a bit of poolside lounging and dinner at the hotel restaurant.
Day 3 consisted of a trip to Monsoon Palace way up on the mountain, another nap, and a trip to the old part of the city to wander the tiny hilly streets. We got back to Mumbai before nightfall feeling refeshed.
All in all, it was so great to get away, see a unique part of India, enjoy the country's history and just be together. I'm genuinely starting to like this country!
Udaipur is located in the state of Rajastan (think turbans, camels, dessert). It's a very unique city- located on hilly land around famous Lake Pichhola. The Indians have dubbed it "The Venice of the East". Needless to say, we were dubious. But lots of friends gave it good reviews. While not quite Venice, it definitely has personality! The architecture was fantastic, and the old part of town is built up onto the sides of mountains/hills, so it's very clustered and crowded, but a real adventure. The city was founded in 1568 and was built by generations of kings.
Day 1 consisted of our late-morning flight, arrival to the hotel, a nap, then a Thali dinner at a local watering hole. Total bill: 160 roupees. That's about $4. Mike and I really enjoyed our food- it's basically lots of little bowls filled with different sauces, sopped up with rice and chappati (basically like a wheatflour tortilla). It's eaten with fingers and gets very messy. FUN!
Day 2 consisted of a trip to the City Palace, a boat ride across Lake Pichhola, a visit to the Jag Mandir Island, another nap, a bit of poolside lounging and dinner at the hotel restaurant.
Day 3 consisted of a trip to Monsoon Palace way up on the mountain, another nap, and a trip to the old part of the city to wander the tiny hilly streets. We got back to Mumbai before nightfall feeling refeshed.
All in all, it was so great to get away, see a unique part of India, enjoy the country's history and just be together. I'm genuinely starting to like this country!
Sunday, October 3, 2010
News
Over the summer, rumor had it that we'd be returning to Houston in December. We were in limbo for several months, and I tried to stay very calm.
On Oct 1st, Mike had a long conversation with his boss and we have been asked by Mustang Engineering to stay here in Mumbai till June 2011. We are very happy!
Where we'll go then still remains to be seen....
On Oct 1st, Mike had a long conversation with his boss and we have been asked by Mustang Engineering to stay here in Mumbai till June 2011. We are very happy!
Where we'll go then still remains to be seen....
Kerala is Paradise!
We took a 4-day trip to the southern state of Kerala in mid-Sept. It was lovely! Kerala is known for many things- spice plantations, wildlife sanctuaries, silk, lush greenery and amazing backwaters.
We flew into the capital, Cochin and drove 2 hours to a small town called Kumarakom, which is on the shore of the 2nd-largest lake in India, Lake Vembanad. We stayed at an awesome hotel, the Taj Garden Retreat, which has only 28 rooms (cottages and villas). We were upgraded to a villa with an outdoor bathroom, so we were thrilled.
Activities included exploring the 15 acres of hotel property, backwater boatride, trip into Kottayam to see 14th-century Christian churches, lots of eating, pottery, napping, evening boat cruises on the lake and relaxing happy hours. It was great to have Mike all to ourselves and be together as a family!
We flew into the capital, Cochin and drove 2 hours to a small town called Kumarakom, which is on the shore of the 2nd-largest lake in India, Lake Vembanad. We stayed at an awesome hotel, the Taj Garden Retreat, which has only 28 rooms (cottages and villas). We were upgraded to a villa with an outdoor bathroom, so we were thrilled.
Activities included exploring the 15 acres of hotel property, backwater boatride, trip into Kottayam to see 14th-century Christian churches, lots of eating, pottery, napping, evening boat cruises on the lake and relaxing happy hours. It was great to have Mike all to ourselves and be together as a family!
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