Happy 4th of July

DIM SUM ANYONE? photos finally

Yesterday we met up with friends from the Bucks County FCC group!  We went to the Imperial Inn for Dim Sum in Phila.  The food was great, as usual.  It's been so long since I had really, really good Chinese food and this was perfect!  

It was wonderful to see all the girls dressed up in their traditional Chinese outfits.  They were soooooooooo adorable and I could tell they were having fun with sweet sounds of laughter and chatting!  I am surprised we didn't get thrown out of there since the tiny Hunan princess ran around to each table and then around the entire restaurant till she was almost in the kitchen.  It was beautiful outside with the temperature in the 50's here.  

Afterwards, we decided to not stay for the parade due to the loud firecrackers they set off.  Kira was already freaked by Sponge Bob the night before, so I thought it best to wait till she's older to understand about the meaning of the Dragon Parade.  

I made sure I got my "red envelopes" with the Year of the Ox on them and a then a sheet of the Lunar New Year postage stamps 2009 as little momentos for Kira's scrapbook.   I have been saving the stamps during the wait for our referral and it's become a little tradition of mine since.  

Then we were off to my brothers' house so I could help my niece study for her nursing exams. Poor thing, she was yawning the entire time:)), maybe it was my big mouth again, or she was just plain tired.  Anyway, I do hope she remembers some of the stuff.  There's just so much to learn, I wonder how I did it back then.  Then again, I remember...there was someone who helped me when I needed it.  How strange that this time of year I get nostalgic for the past.  I don't know why, but it happens.  Fortunately they are very good memories that I'll hold dear to me.  I think a lot has to do with the fact that my brother lives where we all grew up as young children.  So I drive past my old house, high school, roads and byways I used to walk, places I used to play and homes of friends I adored.  Guess this should be a separate post, but hey this is my blog, I can write what I want!  Plus I have a few minutes to myself for a change!  

Anyway, Dim Sum was great, meeting my new friends always makes me smile and happy and, yes, taking a walk down memory lane, 20 plus something years of it, also warms my heart, in a big way!  

I'LL HAVE ONE OF EVERYTHING PLEASE!
OH THIS IS SUCH A GREAT PHOTO!
KIRA MAKING MIA LAUGH!

I JUST LOVE THE FACES OF THESE LITTLE GIRLS, SO LOVED AND SO BEAUTIFUL. WHAT I ENJOY IS WATCHING THE INTERACTION OF THE GIRLS WITH THEIR PARENTS.  THE AFTERNOON SHOULD HAVE BEEN "GIRL FUN" VERSUS DIM SUM...HERE ARE SOME SWEETIES THAT DIDN'T MIND HAVING A PIC TAKEN, JUST LOOK AT THE SMILES!  

HERE IS THE POSTAGE STAMP FOR THE LUNAR NEW YEAR 2009 PRETTY STAMP

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009

I'm so excited that the photos of the baby and I were taken in full manual mode. Yippee (and I set them myself without the manual) Pardon the big nose shots, yucko...at least the babe looks good!

HERE'S PROOF SHE DISLIKES THE NEW CAMERA...BABY STOP PULLING YOUR HAIR OUT!

I simply can't believe it's a BRAND NEW YEAR!   Whew did this year fly by!  I keep saying that, but after going through a years worth of photos in the wee hours of the morning, I realized I missed too much this year and don't want a repeat in 2009.  I think I just have to sloooow down.  Guess always working at mach speed (on a professional level,  I never took the time to just relax and enjoy.  Or could it be when I said "I do, I didn't mean, EVERYTHING" 

Well I have a beautiful daughter now and I want to enjoy every day with her, now more than ever.  In less than a week we'll be celebrating a year home with Kira and I'm sure I'll be bawling my eyes out once again (what's up with all the crying these days) as we remember the amazing journey of my lifetime.  

So I thought that instead of resolutions (which I never keep anyway) I would make more time to do the things that make me (us) happy and reflect on how precious the gift of child rearing really is.

I would like to spend more: 

• Time to reflect on the wonderful memories of 2008
  
• Yes, more time with Kira and Dani
• Time to remember to keep those resolutions (did I really say that)!
• Time to hope for a wonderful future for our children.
• Time to be thankful for what we have and not what we want.
• Time to sit back and read a mindless book (not the Biography of A. Einstein).
• Find time, somewhere, and on some exercise device, to work my butt off (mopping floors doesn't count as caloric expenditure).
• Time doing good deeds for others, which includes local animal shelters.
• Time learning, observing and creating beautiful photos.
• More time to spend with family.
• Time to nurture friendships.
• More time to add to this list!

WE WISH EVERYONE A SAFE AND HAPPY NEW YEAR 2009