Monday, November 10, 2014

A 10 lb bag of rice…

versus a 2 ft tall Hello Kitty plush (which is from Costco if you’re interested)…

Who wins this contest?

Sunday, November 9, 2014

Before heading back home from South Lake Tahoe, we did some activities with the kids to tire them out so hopefully they would nap a bit on the car ride home. Our hotel offers some kid activities in the “Cub Room” so we did a fuse beads class. Simon really enjoyed it and was very concentrated during the entire activity. Basically you put these beads on a template in any color combination you would like then it gets ironed to heat it and melt it together. It “fuses” into the shape you created.

Simon was very happy with the cat he created.

Aterwards we went back to the room to pack up and check out. Iris slept in really late as she hasn’t been sleeping soundly plus got a lot of exercise yesterday. But she was all energetic as we left. She loves walking by herself down the hall and patiently waits for the elevator door to open then goes right in.

We went to the Tahoe Tot Spot for the kids to play until we had lunch. They had open play for $10 per child, siblings only $5. Both kids enjoyed the ball pit.

And the “drama” or “pretend play” area where they had a grocery, kitchen, dress-up, and train table.

We ended up the “gym” area where there are things like a tot sized roller coaster, pop up tents, hula hoops, balance beams, etc.

A well spent $15 for almost 2 hours of fun. Including a good lunch suggestion at Sprouts Cafe. Everything is very healthy and refreshing. But it’s not the place to go if you’re looking for pork, chicken, or beef. From what I can tell on the menu, their only “meat” are tuna and turkey. I had the tuna salad Niçoise which was enough for me. Iris ate my entire boiled egg and tried an olive (probably thinking it was a grape) and chewed on it for a few seconds before spitting it directly into her hand and handing the chewed up olive pieces to me…

Both kids had a good long nap on the way back home.

It’s nice to get away for a few days. We are looking forward to going back when there is snow!

Saturday, November 8, 2014

Morning breakfast. I love these silly faces.

Iris is adventurous, always trying to climb on top of things and explore. Always got to keep an eye on this one.

Also always trying to drink my drinks. Here she steals my (empty) coffee cup.

Since there wasn’t much snow anywhere yet, we decided to go for a trail walk. We figured we would visit the creek where we saw salmon on a previous visit. It’s a nice and easy path so great for kids and strollers.

It was a beautiful day.

We made it to the creek and saw lots of ducks out and about.

Her smile is so fun. (We will have to start working on her “gentle” smile eventually.)

Ron and Simon got up close and personal with the creek and the few salmon and ducks.

Iris just loved walking and checking out the cool carved benches.

After our walk and lunch, we headed back to the hotel and decided to take an afternoon dip in the pool. The kids usually have swim lessons on Saturday morning so we thought we’d keep the routine. The pools are heated plus they have hot tubs. Both were excited.

Iris finally got to use her Hello Kitty floating car that Grandma Tam brought all the way from Hong Kong.

Both kids loved splashing their Mommy and Daddy.

Simon got some good swim practice of his breathing, strokes, and kicking.

Iris even got some practice floating on her back like we learned last week in swim class.

We also practice blowing bubbles. She was not hesitant about putting her mouth in the water, I’m glad she’s not scared.

After about 8 months of lessons, Simon’s confidence level with swimming has increased a lot and seems like he’s paying more attention and eager to learn.

After a while, Simon, Iris, and I ended up in the hot tub to warm up while Ron stayed in the other pool.

Iris and I went back a bit early while Ron and Simon did more swimming. After showering and a change of clothes, we went out for a walk and a snack at Starbucks. Coffee for the parents and cookies for the kids.

Strike a pose! (copying Daddy’s “hands behind the back” walk)

So ends a good day in South Lake Tahoe.

Friday, November 7, 2014

Trying out her winter boots.

We are going on a short getaway to South Lake Tahoe. We left after Simon finished school (he had a 1/2 day today) so arrived in SLT around dinnertime. We Yelped for a place to eat and decided upon Sonney’s BBQ Shack. Ron had all the pictures on his phone so will have to upload them later. Meats were tasty although the sauce a bit too spicy after a while.

Kids enjoyed their waters and Simon also had lemonade.

After dinner we checked into our room at the Marriott Grand Residence. We usually stay at the Marriott Timber Lodge which is on the other side of the gondola so were interested to see how this place differs. We were greeted with freshly baked Otis Spunkmeyer cookies. The kids were easily won over.

The living room of our unit. There is an adjoining bedroom with an additional bathroom. This room also had a dining room, kitchen, and bathroom. There are two sleeping areas underneath the windows plus one of the sofas is a pull-out. Wish we had known sooner then we could have invited people to come up with us.

We might have a problem when this little girl becomes a teenager…

Saturday, November 1, 2014

This morning, Iris had her first swim class at the YMCA. She’s in the “Shrimp” class which is an introduction for babies to water. She was a little concerned at the beginning of the class but eventually got into blowing bubbles in the water and kicking her little feet. It’s quite a feat to shower and change clothes after class though so we are a little haggard looking after class.

We went for a snack at the Downtown Berkeley Farmer’s Market while we waited for Simon to finish his swim class. This session he has moved up to be a “Ray” (previously he was an “Eel”) and is in the deeper pool.

In the afternoon, we went to a birthday party at Cedar Rose park.

All the “kids” had fun playing on the swings.

And relaxing on the lawn chairs while having snacks.

There was also a pretty funny entertainer that did juggling, jokes, unicycle riding, playing with fire, etc.

When did my baby become a little girl?!

Today also happens to be Hello Kitty’s 40th birthday! I wish I could be at Hello Kitty Con in Los Angeles but kiddos are my first priority these days. Maybe one day they will come with me. They are already familiar with my love for Hello Kitty so I think they would enjoy spending the weekend with me seeing all things Hello Kitty. This is my treat to myself that I’ve been wanting to get, a dancing Hello Kitty doll. It dances when you play music (or sing songs) or dances to it’s own songs. Love it!