I tried really hard to be selective in these pictures, but it was just so hard! I think I did a decent job considering that I took 2,597 pictures in this two week period :) Happy 14th birthday, Regan! I'm glad my friend took this picture for us. I love it!
Her theme was taekwondo (surprise surprise) So the kids decorated little taekwondo sugar cookies.
Regan and her coach (We lovingly refer to her as Saturday girl coach at the house, but her real name is Zhu Jiaolian)
Regan and two of her classmates. I'm so glad these girls were able to make it to the party!
Benjamin said he was trying to make himself on the cookie. We all think that it looked a bit like Elvis.
Regan got a 12mm kicking board for a present. A couple people tried to break it and hurt their hands. We were beginning to think maybe it was too thick/not what we thought...
Then Regan did one of her punches and it snapped right in half. I don't think I want to try!
I wasn't real sure how to do a TKD cake this time. I decided to do a red velvet cake with cream cheese icing. It was almost a disaster because the icing turned pink! You can't have a pink uniform! So, this cake got an extra layer of icing! It was rich! (The characters on the small cake say Jun De, which is the name of the center that she takes classes from)
That's good looking bunch of kids!
Only her coach could get such an awesome pose ;)
I love when we have a full house. It's so fun!
One of her birthday presents
Regan always makes the party sign (even for her own). She has cute ideas.
Ayi made her a special birthday dinner.
"I'm a taekwondo girl, just a normal girl, except much cooler." :)
Her party was actually after her real birthday, so I made her a fruit pizza on her real b-day.
I think she was a little happy....or maybe my flash blinded her, I'm not sure ;)
It's been a happy 16 years with this guy right here! I love that he humors me and tries on silly things like this. I think he should have bought it...haha!
We took the entire day just for the two of us! We got lunch AND dinner! Who knew! And finally a chance to Christmas shop with no kids! This seems to be our anniversary tradition...shopping for Christmas together. I'm glad he likes to shop! :)
Dinner was amazing!!! This has got to be one of the best restaurants in town! I love authentic Indian food!
I LOVE this one! These girls are such good friends.
The puppies love this field. They love to play here (and Katherine loves to run with them)
We were so blessed this year with Christmas gifts from family and friends! Thank you so much for loving on us! There are pictures sprinkled throughout! Benjamin got this vest/bullets.
Scout getting a little snuggle time with Hudson.
The girls playing with their dolls.
I found this cute artwork on Katherine's chalkboard.
Ayi got several gifts this year as well! She was so happy. She smiled and told my phone "sank you" so many times. I guess she thought I was taking video.
Lauren's dance gave them a gift...two apples. One box said 圣诞节快乐 (correct) and the other said Messy Chriismas (not quite, but nice try) :)
Our neighbors invited us over for hot pot. It was good. We had so much food, we finally had to not cook the last two dishes. We were too full.
This was a first for me. Spinach wrapped jiaozi. They were excellent!
So sweet.
Not so sweet. Poor birdies (and bunnies) being sold on the street for someone's dinner :(
Christmas party at their class...well, at least a Christmas photo.
Random. Really?
This is the look you get when you get caught trying to get a really cute picture. oh well. Still cute :)
We celebrated Jonathan's birthday!
We went ice skating at a new rink in the city next to ours!
The kids all did great!
Jonathan reenacting his fall (It was a bit like Superman flying through the air...the landing was not so soft though)
Jonathan went to work and The kids and I went with Xiao Jun to pick up the girls from school. Winter came running out of her class and bear hugged us!
After that it got a bit chaotic because the kids went nuts at the school because we were there and followed us screaming to the 4th floor. We kindly got kicked out of the school so that they could regain control. Oops. Who knew.
Katherine worked on her cross stitch outside the school until the girls came out. They dismiss by grade so we had to wait for Yoyo to get out.
Love
We went out to eat dinner together. This made me smile. Hamburger just doesn't have the same meaning.
Kelly, Xiao Jun, Hua Quan
These girls were so excited about this meat!!
Hudson was so proud that he could climb a tree. I promise...the dogs did not chase him up there. haha!
painting his new car
The kids all helped make tons of Christmas cookies. Chocolate chip cookies
And made some fudge....the kids have decided that they really like fudge :)
Butterscotch oatmeal cookies
The "main guy" said that when he sees these three walk in the door he gets so happy, like seeing family. I'm glad they can spread a little light wherever they go!
The dogs decided to sleep in her lap.
Even the puppies got a gift! They love their new dog toys!!
Benjamin got a cool shirt!
calendars
baking toys
That look...perfect for that shirt :)
puzzles
We even met a new family in our city that also homeschools!!! The kids are about the same age and they had a good time together. They live on the other side of the city so it takes about an hour to get there, but glad to have them nearby!
Just a little Christmas fun at the house.
Benjamin was such a good sport and entertained his mom for a few pictures.
Friends over for a Christmas party.
Yum.
Well, it look like it will start getting cooler, but Christmas day was a balmy 74 degrees! :)
I'm so impressed by this! This is a handwritten Christmas note from Regan to each of her coaches!
perfect
soap!
Apple gift card!
more soap!
chocolate covered raisins!
Christmas morning!! They had the best smiles all day long!! I love seeing the excitement!
She's been wanting to read the next book in the series, but it didn't come out until November. She was surprised Santa found a way to leave it under the tree!
Look at that face! She was so excited because she THOUGHT she knew what it was! I'm glad she was right! That could have gone south quickly. She said it just had to be a ballet barre. Her dream come true!
A watch! Just what he wanted!
A new jacket and a basketball!
An apron to help cook in!
Little House on the Prairie!
Santa left a very important note on this gift for Hudson...
The look on his face when he realized what it was!
He's been saying for months that he wished he had a pet that he could call his very own. He now has his own fish...and the tank is self cleaning! Win Win.
Braves outfit for her Build-A-Bear
Her very own Fighting Gear!
Some cool sunglasses!
The look when they all realize that she got popcorn for Christmas!
New bikes!
I'm so glad that she has gear that actually fits her right now.
Katherine said, "Yeah! Now I can punch you!" haha!
These were the looks that we got often on Christmas day....The look of disbelief when they see candy that you can only get in America in their stocking!
I love it!
Santa even left the puppies some treats.
Thanks to the Nowlin's SS class for some extra special surprises!
A new ball cap!
PJ pants just like his brother!
A jacket and stuff!
A new shirt!
Paint/Art supplies!
Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal!!
The kids then went outside to play for awhile...
Until they ran into Ayi...they were so glad to see her!
Check out Hudson's old bike (orange) vs his new bike (white). I think it was time for a new one :)
Her first batch of popcorn! Delicious!
Regan posing for a picture with all the different TKD stuff she got (or earned) for Christmas and birthday.
pistachios
Here we have it. The girls' dream come true. A big mirror and a dance barre in their room! Now they can dance and do taekwondo all day long (after they get their school done) :) Merry Christmas everyone!!!
