2nd Christmas for Iris

Christmas Eve day started with a long bike ride with Dada and Uncle Justin. Mom was at home baking pies with cousin Grace. In the evening, we had a brisk walk to church to see the Living Nativity scene. With all the animals-donkey, lamb, and cow; she liked looking at the angel on top of the shed. Then, we all attended a Christmas eve service.

The next morning, Iris had the pleasure of waking her cousin up. Then, she pulled the covers over herself to pretend sleep. She really likes her jie-jie Grace. :) Take a look at those smiles!

After A-ma and A-gong arrived with Aunts Ruth and Lai Chan, Iris got to unwrap presents. Yeah!
Iris did very well and likes her new pink hat that is soft and warm. She looked pretty dazed as she watched everyone else open their presents. In the end, I am overwhelmed by God's blessings of love, family, and generous giving. The love of family surrounded Iris this Christmas, and God-willing, this will be the norm for all her formative years.

The traditional turkey dinner was great with plenty of leftovers. Yum-yum! Iris didn't care for much of the food, with the exception of the banana (sweet) bread. The drama happened while several of us were on a walk around the neighborhood. The garbage disposal had a clog, and as Dada tried to unclog it, the pipe under the sink came loose and buckets of yucky water flowed out. Uncle Justin came to help, but what a mess! Note: no picture.

The day after Christmas (a.k.a. Boxing Day) meant Iris actually got to play with some of her Christmas gifts. Once three adults figured out how to assemble it, Iris had fun playing in her toddler size house, tent and tunnels. Aunt Ruth managed to fit inside with her at one point.

Stay tuned for more family photos as we welcome the new year in Pebble Beach, CA!

Visiting Mom's relatives

Iris and Mama spent a week in WA with 2nd cousins and many aunts, uncles, a few grandaunts and granduncles. First, she was greeted enthusiastically by Colin T., whom she called "Ge-ge."
In fact, she had several ge-ge s, jie-jie s, and it soon became apparent that Iris was the
mei-mei.

Iris thoroughly enjoyed her time running around the house, going up and down stairs and playing with different toys alongside the three Thompson children. Yes, and there was a bit of video watching, too, that Iris was attentive, too. The three two-year olds are here with "ai-yi" (Betty). Please note the lovely pink high heels that the girls liked to wear; gifts from her 2nd cousins, Angie and Ellie (different family). In all, Iris met 9 second cousins, 8 aunts, 5 uncles, 3 grandaunts, 2 granduncles, and a gentle 8-year-old black lab.
The occasion was the wedding of the oldest son of one of mom's cousins (Susan). A-ma and A-gong were there as well to help feed and play with Iris at times. Most of the get-togethers centered around food, and we even managed to have pizza a couple of times that week. Yum-yum!

It was a great visit to see how the "children" have grown and for Mom (Cindy) to talk with cousins in person. We were most thankful that Betty and Dean opened up their home and allowed Iris to share all the diaper/potty stuff, so we didn't have to pack it up. Still, I managed to pack a large suitcase that was near the limit of 50 lbs. Oops!

Here's a glimpse of the active chaos that happened when the three two-year-olds got together:

Now, onto Christmas at the homestead.

T-Day in Phoenix

Thanksgiving Day was travel day for us... and Iris was a real trooper! We flew to AZ where several cousins and Aunts were waiting to see her again. The traditional turkey dinner was made possible thanks to Aunt Diane and Grandma Avenell. Yum-yum! The weather was great, and just a tad bit warmer than home. The fun part for everyone was seeing Iris open her birthday gifts one-a-day. Toys were very entertaining, especially the talking teapot with a British accent asking,"Would you like a spot of tea?" Iris WAS the entertainment for all the adults and older cousins, too. They are all so grown up; just look at them!














Some fun activities was decorating the gingerbread house, having red toenails (cousin Shelby was responsible for that!), and sharing a birthday cake with Aunt Lynn, who turned the big 4-oh! One evening was spent walking around the Phoenix Zoo for an annual show called "Zoo Lights." Iris's eyes were glazed over by all the color, different sounds, and all the relatives wanting to hold her. The show was amazing!

Of course, once Thanksgiving and November birthdays were acknowledged, it was onto Christmas. One fun Christmas "ornament" at Aunt Diane and Uncle Craig's house were the dancing and singing snowmen. Click on the video to see:

Next stop: Bellevue, WA in December