Sorry there hasn't been a post up in a few weeks, but trust me, it's for a good reason. GIRLS- WE ARE BUYING OUR FIRST HOME. Who knows, it could be the ONLY home we ever own, but it's going to be ours! I'll upload a few photos here so that we can all look back and see just what it looked like before we bought it, and hopefully you'll see a pretty big change as you grow older and as we begin to make our life long family memories there.
Here it is in all it's BROWN-Ness.
sorry- gotta go- pics to come later:)
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Vivi's 2nd Birthday
As you can already see by the glimpse of photos below, we decided to make Vivi's second birthday one to remember by taking everyone to Disneyland to celebrate. Unfortunately, Lolo and Lola are in the Philipines on business, but they were greatly missed by us all. I made up t-shirts for everyone sporting the "Happy 2nd Birthday Vivi" wordage and a fun photo image of Vivi smack dab in the middle. The shirts worked out better than I could have imagined. Everyone, including cast members AND random guests at the park, continuously gave Vivi birthday wishes throughout the day. Half the time she gave them the funniest look of shock as we could tell she was wondering "Hey... Wait a minute... How do YOU know it's my Birthday???"
Lynn did a WONDERFUL thing by making a special ONE-OF-A-KIND heart shaped birthday cake with lots-o-chocolate. As you can see below- it hit just the right cord with Vivi.
We were lucky to have Auntie Claring and Auntie Aning come along with us, so it made the day just that much more wonderful.
Below are a few photos to share the day... enjoy:)
Bella, Ninang Grace, and Mama waitin' for the tram
Ninang Grace, Ninang Janet holdin' the Vieves, and uncle Kristian ridin to happiest place on earth.
Ahh... da Vieves
Group shot!
CUUUUUUUUUUUuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuute!
"You can fly, you can fly, you can Flyyyyyyyyyy"
Toontown posse, yo!
Bella's tall enough for her 1st rollercoaster, YAY!
Mama's special cake just for the Vieves!
Dini givin' tons of Kisses!
Lynn did a WONDERFUL thing by making a special ONE-OF-A-KIND heart shaped birthday cake with lots-o-chocolate. As you can see below- it hit just the right cord with Vivi.
We were lucky to have Auntie Claring and Auntie Aning come along with us, so it made the day just that much more wonderful.
Below are a few photos to share the day... enjoy:)
Bella, Ninang Grace, and Mama waitin' for the tram
Ninang Grace, Ninang Janet holdin' the Vieves, and uncle Kristian ridin to happiest place on earth.
Ahh... da Vieves
Group shot!
CUUUUUUUUUUUuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuute!
"You can fly, you can fly, you can Flyyyyyyyyyy"
Toontown posse, yo!
Bella's tall enough for her 1st rollercoaster, YAY!
Mama's special cake just for the Vieves!
Dini givin' tons of Kisses!
A Great Day...
Hi all - it's Charlene. I wanted to chime in and take a second to record a great day I had with Vivi today. I'm going through a bit of a hiatus right now, so I'm trying to spend as much time as possible with my girls as I possibly can before the storm of another job hits me. Today was my one on one day with Vivi. Bella was in preschool till 3, so I had most of the day alone with my Vieves. I try and really enjoy all the time I spend with my girls, but I won't lie and say that having the two of them together can drive me crazy. I almost go into survival mode where I'm just trying to stop another fight over a toy or take care of one while the other needs me for something else... the last thing I'm doing is 'enjoying' them, if you know what I mean. So today was awesome. We started out at our favorite mom and pop donut shop, 'Donut Prince' where Vivi picked out a chocolate glaze and proceeded to ONLY eat the chocolate glaze off the top. Then we went to Auntie Aning & Claring's house (my mom's sisters) where we visited for a while. Then we visited Auntie Grace at her work where Vivi then picked out and ate 3 Easter chocolates from her Auntie's desk (did I mention that Vivi was a sugar fiend?). We came home, napped for an hour and a half and then picked up Bella. Overall, it was just a really great day. I was reminded of all the cool, funny, adorable little quirks Vivi has because it was just she and I. I kind of fell in love all over again with being a mother ... I can't wait to be able to spend my 'day' with Bella!
BTW - this pic was from Vivi's 2nd birthday on March 2nd - a homemade CHOCOLATE cake just for my Vieves!
BTW - this pic was from Vivi's 2nd birthday on March 2nd - a homemade CHOCOLATE cake just for my Vieves!
Saturday, March 8, 2008
See- Bella loves you!
Ok- This is one of those pre-emtive "See VIVI, I TOLD YOU - Your sister loves you!"
This was one of those cute moments that we had to share in the "history" of these girls.
One night, when it got really quiet back in their room, we got worried (as any parent would when the kids get too quiet for too long) so we went back to "spy" on them. What a wonderful surprise when we turned the corner to see Bella tucking Vivi into "bed" and then began reading her a nighttime story. Not only was this sweet to see Bella taking care of her little sister, but it was nice to see that our kindness and parenting was rubbing off... Enjoy the pics.
This was one of those cute moments that we had to share in the "history" of these girls.
One night, when it got really quiet back in their room, we got worried (as any parent would when the kids get too quiet for too long) so we went back to "spy" on them. What a wonderful surprise when we turned the corner to see Bella tucking Vivi into "bed" and then began reading her a nighttime story. Not only was this sweet to see Bella taking care of her little sister, but it was nice to see that our kindness and parenting was rubbing off... Enjoy the pics.
Ohhhh The Powers...
The Who??? No, not "The Who"... the "Powers". Otherwise known as "Gram and Gramps" or as we also call 'em "Grandma and Grandpa Powers". Still confused? Well, I don't blame ya, but let me fill you in, 'cause they are pretty amazing.
You see, back in the 80's, after my parents (Jack and Beth) had seperated and got divorced, my father remarried to a special girl named Tammy. Now, not only did her parents (the Powers) have to accept this new man into their life, but this new guy came along with 2 teenage kids. But ya know what? They couldn't have been more open and accepting of my brother and I if we had wanted them to and they always tried their best to show that we were accepted and loved as part of their family. From gifts, to showing interest in our passions, to family dinners around the holidays', to an open door with a smile each time we saw them. They lived in a beautiful house in my home town of Montvale along the brook (stream) that ran through part of town, and it was pretty tranquil in that backyard.
Unfortunately, my Father and Tammy divorced. Although my Dad couldn't have found a better mate (Peggy, you're pretty amazing... REALLY!), he really did get lucky with that second set of in-laws. You see, The Powers could have moved on, and left my brother and I alone, and it would have been completely understood. I moved out to California, and they moved down south to North Carolina. Yet, remarkably, they haven't loss touch with me.. and even more amazing, they have embraced my 2 daughters as if they were 2 grandchildren of their own. There has not been a Birthday, or Christmas, or Valentine's day, or even just a random "day" that has gone by without us hearing, or believe it or not, "receiving" a package from them to celebrate the moment. The mail is always filled with little stories from Grams about how she and "Gramps" are doing, or where they've been, or what they've done to their new house, etc. etc. It is always a pleasant surprise each time we receive the package on our front door.
This little Blog is just to acknowledge the love they have for all of us and to share with you how touched we are and how special it is to have people like this in our world. Bella and Vivi, you are surrounded by love from all ends of this continent, and I'm glad to see you both constantly embracing it.
Below is a series of photos (sorry, from at least 1 month ago) from one of the latest packages Gram and Gramps sent.
She had been saving up a bunch of SPECIAL (quite expensive I might add) stuffed animals, and she sent them along for the girls to have at it... and boy did they ever. THANKS GRAM AND GRAMPS- WE'RE SOOO THANKFUL TO HAVE YOU IN OUR LIVES!
You see, back in the 80's, after my parents (Jack and Beth) had seperated and got divorced, my father remarried to a special girl named Tammy. Now, not only did her parents (the Powers) have to accept this new man into their life, but this new guy came along with 2 teenage kids. But ya know what? They couldn't have been more open and accepting of my brother and I if we had wanted them to and they always tried their best to show that we were accepted and loved as part of their family. From gifts, to showing interest in our passions, to family dinners around the holidays', to an open door with a smile each time we saw them. They lived in a beautiful house in my home town of Montvale along the brook (stream) that ran through part of town, and it was pretty tranquil in that backyard.
Unfortunately, my Father and Tammy divorced. Although my Dad couldn't have found a better mate (Peggy, you're pretty amazing... REALLY!), he really did get lucky with that second set of in-laws. You see, The Powers could have moved on, and left my brother and I alone, and it would have been completely understood. I moved out to California, and they moved down south to North Carolina. Yet, remarkably, they haven't loss touch with me.. and even more amazing, they have embraced my 2 daughters as if they were 2 grandchildren of their own. There has not been a Birthday, or Christmas, or Valentine's day, or even just a random "day" that has gone by without us hearing, or believe it or not, "receiving" a package from them to celebrate the moment. The mail is always filled with little stories from Grams about how she and "Gramps" are doing, or where they've been, or what they've done to their new house, etc. etc. It is always a pleasant surprise each time we receive the package on our front door.
This little Blog is just to acknowledge the love they have for all of us and to share with you how touched we are and how special it is to have people like this in our world. Bella and Vivi, you are surrounded by love from all ends of this continent, and I'm glad to see you both constantly embracing it.
Below is a series of photos (sorry, from at least 1 month ago) from one of the latest packages Gram and Gramps sent.
She had been saving up a bunch of SPECIAL (quite expensive I might add) stuffed animals, and she sent them along for the girls to have at it... and boy did they ever. THANKS GRAM AND GRAMPS- WE'RE SOOO THANKFUL TO HAVE YOU IN OUR LIVES!
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