Carnival Fun!

Today, we went to a church-sponsored carnival. It was open to the community and was completely free. I have to say that I was really impressed. When we arrived, the church parking lot was full of bouncy slides, pony rides, a snow-cone machine, popcorn stand, dunk tank, face painting booths, and a huge tent which housed a wonderful barbecue dinner.

The kids loved getting their faces painted. Maya chose flowers and Kai chose balloons. Maya was so fascinated that she just watched and watched the people paint faces, even after her face was painted.

The big slide was also a hit. Maya was initially frightened to go up the slide by herself, but after one successful run, we couldn't get her off of it. She would proudly slide down into a huge pit of balls, jump out, and shout "more" as she ran to the back of the line for another turn. Kai also went up and down the slide multiple times with no fear.

We all left having had a whole lot of fun and a bit too much sugar.

Nanny Time!

Nanny arrived yesterday afternoon just in time to watch the kids so Dom and I could go to a wedding. Maya and Kai are very excited to have her in town for four days.

Today, we decided to share our Saturday morning ritual which consists of visiting the Eruopean market, getting a fresh fruit smoothie, and sitting in the park just playing and visiting with friends. Nanny had a great time watching the kids collect sticks and run laps around the flower gardens.

Happy Birthday Didi!

Today we celebrated Didi's birthday. The kids made cinnamon cupcakes and decorated them with frosting and sprinkles. We took them to Didi and Papa's house for an afternoon snack and celebration. We later all had dinner at a great mexican restaurant in town.

Happy Birthday Didi!

Trying Out the New Cast!

Today, Maya rode her bike and Kai rode his toy car to our local park (just 100 yards down the bike trail). Our neighbor Tab and her two kids Kyle and Kaitlyn joined us for some great afternoon fun .

Kai is already a pro at using his right arm again. He is now eating with his right arm, brushing his teeth with righty, and playing well with both hands.

Above are some pics of the park and of Kai brushing his teeth with his newly casted arm.

"I'm Waterproof"

After calling numerous orthopedic specialists, I was finally able to find a doctor who specialized in waterproof casting...and we only had to drive one hour to get to him.

Now Kai has a bright blue cast and it's completely WATERPROOF! He is so proud of his new cast and didn't cry a tear as the nurse was putting it on. He actually smiled and babbled through most of the fitting.

When we got home, Maya and DiDi were waiting for us with dilly bars from Daily Queen. Kai and Maya were of course wearing most of the ice cream by the end of snack time. Kai even bent down to the grass and picked up a large clump of ice cream with his newly casted arm. Ugggg! ice cream all over his cast. Afterwards, he washed both hands and believe it or not, the cast was dry within minutes. It really works!

His only restriction at this point is no sand! I guess that means no beach trips for us in the next 4 weeks. We'll also be covering our sand box for the time being.

We'll take no sand over no water anyday!

The pics above are of Kai sporting his cast at the doctor's office.

My New July 4th Outfit!

If there's one thing that Maya has always been interested in, it's clothes. She also loves to assessorize by adding a matching hat, necklace, headband, shoes, etc. ...and she's very good at it.

She often times puts together better outfits than I would have chosen. (which I guess isn't saying much for all of you who know my fashion sense).

Today, she really wanted to go to the "outside mall" to pick an outfit for July 4th. When she saw this dress in the store, she got so excited and began jumping up and down (thank goodness there was one more dress in her size on the rack). It was icing on the cake when she found the hat to match. She of course had to put on the ensemble when we got home.

I had to bribe her with ice cream to take her picture in her new dress. I don't often use food as a means of bribery, but I have to say that it was worth it this time for the cute pics.

More Fun at the Cottage!

1. A view of the lake

2. Maya and Kai playing their new bean bag toss game (hand-made by Papa)

3. Didi and Maya on the peer with the dogs

4. Didi, Kai, and Hunter enjoying the views on the pontoon boat

The Morning After!

I called our pediatrician first thing this morning (Friday). He said that the best thing for Kai would be to stay in the temp cast over the weekend and see an orthopedic specialist early next week.

Since there was no need to rush home, we decided to let the kids have at least a couple of hours of fun before heading home earlier than expected. We wanted to be in the comfort of our own home and town just in case there were any issues with Kai's arm needing any further medical care.

Before we left, we all went on the pontoon boat. The kids loved driving the boat with Papa. They also played a new bean bag toss game and relaxed on the covered swing. They really had a great time.

Our "Righty" is Now a "Lefty"!

We experienced our first ER visit last night. The kids and I decided to go with my parents to their cottage for a couple of nights in Michigan. As the kids were getting ready for bed, they were having a great time exploring the cottage, playing with the toys, and just hanging out.

As my dad was setting up the pull out sofa bed, Maya was on the bed and Kai wanted to join her. He tried to climb up from the corner and must have mis-stepped. He tumbled feet first a whopping 1 and a half feet and must have landed just perfectly on his right arm to break his distal radius. He cried more than usual and grabbed his right wrist with his left hand. It's odd because it didn't hurt him to touch his arm. He even brushed his teeth with his right arm not too long after. I had a bad gut feeling when even 30 minutes after the fall, he would still place his left hand over his right wrist. It was so unlike him to be fussy for that long. So it was off to the ER.

Now remember, we're in a very small town in Michigan...the kind of town that has one pizza place, one ice cream place, one restaurant, and a local grocery store that also houses the video store. My mom and I carried a screaming Kai to the car to head to the ER while my dad stayed back at the cottage with a screaming Maya. It was about 10:00p.m. as my mom navigated our minivan through dark, curving, country roads to the nearest facility.

After arriving at a very small hospital, we then waited almost 2 hours before we were lead to x-ray. Kai was so brave as they pulled at his poor little arm to take 4-5 pictures. I knew it was bad news when the x-ray technician lead us to our room that had an entire wall lined with casting materials. My worries were confirmed when the doctor showed us his x-rays. A complete and fortunately "clean" break at his distal radius. The doctor said that this is a very common break for young children since their bones are still so soft. She also said that it will heal quickly and with no long lasting effects.

The cast tech was great with Kai. She let him feel the cotton and casting materials before putting them on his arm. They made him a temporary cast to allow for swelling and to keep him immobilized until we can see an orthopedic specialist this week. She mentioned that they now make water-proof casts. Hooray!!!

I am now on a mission to find an orthopedic specialist in our area who works with this new casting material. We want Kai to have a fun-filled summer. He absolutely LOVES water. We can't imagine restricting his water play for the next 6 weeks.

Here's a couple of pics of his temporary cast. It's big and very heavy. He's already learning to eat with his left hand but is very messy as you can see.

He's been so brave and continues to amaze us with his smile and good spirits through this whole ordeal.

Happy Father's Day!

We have been wanting to get back into camping and thought we'd use Father's Day as the perfect time to buy our new family tent. Prior to having kids, Dom and I used a small 2-3 man backpackers tent which was crowded with just us and our dog Benson. We decided that if we're going to camp again, our tent has to be "big" to accomodate the kids and both dogs.

We found a great tent. It's 14 feet by 14 feet and has the option of being divided into 3 rooms. It's so easy to set up (I set it up by myself within 10 minutes so the kids could surprise Daddy for Father's Day) and the kids absolutely love it.

Maya and Kai played in the tent all afternoon (with the dogs of course) and are now begging to go camping.

My parents came over at dinner time for a great Indian food feast to celebrate the day.

Happy Father's Day!!

Thirsty for some Sprinklers!

Maya and Kai love the sprinkler, but it's not enough anymore to run through the water. The new thing is to try to take a drink from the moving arms of the sprinkler. They must have done this for almost an hour this afternoon and had an absolute blast!

President Maya!

Tonight, we went to Applebee's for dinner. Maya was so excited that she dressed up in a fancy shirt, high heel sparkle flipflops, and asked me to put her hair in a bun.

When we arrived at the restaurant, she insisted that she bring her very large purse with her. We had no idea of the purse's contents, but of course gave her the thumbs up to bring it to dinner.

When we were seated at the table, Maya immediately opened her purse and said "OK Shao Shao, don't worry, I brought lots of toys to keep you busy while we wait for our food". She then proceeded to hand him his favorite toy camera, toy phone, and keys. She even packed books for herself. So who is the mommy at our table?

When the waiter came to take our drink order, she said "I'll have 2 chololate milks...one for me and one for Shao Shao". When it was time to order food, she told the waiter "I'll have the cheeseburgers and Shao Shao will have grilled cheese...and we're going to share, OK?" The waiter was so taken back by her confidence and independence that he bagan to call her "president " for the remainder of our stay. He would only address the president. "So how is the food President? Is everything O.K?" To which Maya gave him an affirmative "Yes!"

Is Maya really 3 or is she going to be 12 on her next birthday?

A Biking We Will Go!

Believe it or not, Kai has already learned to ride a 2 wheel bike with training wheels. He wants to be just like Maya, so today when he saw Maya riding her bike, he went into the garage, put a helmet on his head, and tried his hardest to mount Maya's old bike.

With help to get on the seat, he just started peddaling and steering as though he has always known how to ride. Even though his feet still don't quite touch the pedals at the lowest position, he somehow manages to propel the bike completely independently.

Maya's such a great teacher and supporter. She yelled "Wow Shao Shao, I can't believe it...you're riding the big bike all by yourself...yes you are!"

Morning at the Park!

Today, the kids were so well behaved while I ran my regular errands to the bank and post office. When we finished, we went to our small downtown so the kids could pick a special treat from our local bakery. With our treats in hand, we strolled to the nearby park equipped with a fountain and gazebo. The kids ate their yummy treats as they watched the fountain. They then spent the next half hour dancing and running around the gazebo while singing at the top of their lungs. Good thing we were the only ones at the park this morning. What a fun memorable day just doing plain old stuff.

Summer's Finally Here!

Aside from a few nice days in April and May, it seems like we went straight from winter to summer this year. What a relief to finally have warm sunny weather for multiple days in a row.

Today, we took full advantage of our 85 degree sunny day. After the butterfly park and some quiet time, we sat outside to eat ice cream cones. We then went to our neighbors house for some great summer fun. The kids loved the pool, the sprinkler, and the water table.

Hooray for summer!!!