The making of xmas card 09

The making of xmas card 09

So, mommy has the idea of dressing the boys up in matching PJ's again for Christmas card. The photo session proved to be quite challenging. Noah has developed an aversion to camera in his face. Joel has the opposite issue in that he has too much affinity for the camera. Most of the time, he grabs the camera before a picture can be taken. Hope that you all will appreciate the end result when you get it in the mail. There's always next year!

First blizzard 2009

First blizzard 2009

Snow Day! It was a special treat to have a day to spend together as everything was shut down, school and even work! The area was greeted by 12-18 inches of blowing snow overnight. Noah really enjoys being outside this year. Joel was fine until the snow blew into his face. Daddy also got quite a use on his new snow blower. All-in-all, it did look quite beautiful, all white and peaceful. The only sounds outside that day was the wind, neighborhood kids and snow-plow trucks. "It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas..."

Early Winter 2009

Winter 2009

We are enjoying the change in season here in Madtown.
Early on we were greeted by a few very nice days that were unseasonably warm. We even had a picnic on the Capitol lawn, after enjoying outdoor Farmer's market for the last time this year. This year Thanksgiving we spent in Herrin, visiting Kun Ta and Kun Yai. Nah Nit and Uncle Trip came as well as Nah Orm. Noah and Joel loved all the attention. Mommy and Daddy even left the boys for a night with the grandparents! Don't think we were missed much at all. It's great to see how Joel and Noah are able to interact more and more. We even have some tender moments between all the shouting and "MINE" or "ME"!

SoCal visit Oct 09

SoCal Oct 09

We took a little trip to visit Cousin Nolan this Fall.
It was a treat for Noah for his birthday to be able to spend with his cousin and all the family.
Nolan was a great host and took Noah to many places: Mother's beach, Orange County Zoo, Irvine Railroad park and Sea World! The two cousins love to play and sometimes will let Joel play with them, too. Keeping up with Noah and Nolan was a great motivation for Joel to finally walk! The trip came to the end much too soon. It was hard to have to leave for everyone.

Halloween 09

Happy Halloween 09

Noah and Joel picked out a perfectly big pumpkin this year and turned it into Jack-O-Lantern the last minute. Noah dressed up as Spiderman. In contrast to last year, when he was very reluctant about costume, this year he loves to dress up. It's almost Thanksgiving, and Noah will still be found in his favoriet superhero costume. Joel was a bumble bee, just like his cousin was a few years ago. He discovered lollipops and loved to pass out (throw) candies to all the neighborhood kids.

Autumn in Wisconsin 09

October 09

Seasonal change is part of Wisconsin living. Noah has learned about the weather and season in school. The cool crisp air reminds us of fast approaching winter. Cold temperature but lots of warmth in our hearts since it's almost time that the familiy will all get together. October tradition for us: Fire Station Open House, Farm visit, watching the leaves change color and of course, Halloween. It also happens to be when Noah gets another year older.

Boy and Monkey

Boy and Monkey

Joel has quite a social skill and imagination.
He loves to play with his monkey friend.
He also has the stubborn streak that seems to show more each day.
Which side of the family is the stubborn trait?

Eppelgarden

TOW Eppelgarden

Noah's first field trip was to pick apples at Eppelgarden.
Joel and Mommy went along, too.
Noah was quite excited to ride on the real school bus.

Wisconsin Dells first visit

Wisconsin Dells first visit

We got tickets to Noah's ark, but ended up not going.
Noah was quite content at the little water park at the hotel.
Noah also got to have a little adventure at the equivalent of Vegas for tots-Arcade!
Wisconsin Dells did turn out to be a nice short trip that we'll probably repeat soon.
Not a bad spot for outlet shopping either.

Summer 09 part 3

Summer 2009 part 3

This is one of the milder Wisconsin summer.
We still manage to do a lot of things outdoor. Summer concert, playing outside, going to the parks and taking a long road trip to southern Illinois. Noah and Cousin Nolan really got along great and were sad to part at the end of the trip. Joel tried his best to hang out with the boys, too. Of course, the boys both now declared Nah Nit and Uncle Trip as their favorites. (Please see our cousin Nolan's blog for nice photos from the Labor Day trip, our Mommy went shopping and didn't take pictures!)

Summer 09 part 2

Summer 2009 part 2

We continue to keep busy with all sort of activities outdoor this summer.
This year, we took the kids to Opera in the Park-an annual Madison tradition. Noah and Joel both seemed to enjoy the crowd. Noah thinks it's Mr. and Miss Noodle singing (for those who are not familiar-they are Sesame street characters). The boys really seem to interact well. Usually if we see Noah, not too far behind will follow Joel. He is quite efficient in crawling. Among Joel's first words, the one he uses most is "NO-NAH" for Noah!

Happy First Birthday, Joel!

Happy First Birthday, Joel

The year has just passed by in a wink. Our little Joel is ONE!
We have a little celebration with the family.
Kun Ta and Kun Yai came to help with the festivity. Thank you so much for all the birthday wishes from everyone. Joel is surrounded by love as he starts his second year. He had a great birthday!

July in Madison

July 2009

Our family has been keeping busy this July. We take advantage of the nice weather and visit our favorite spots around town. Capitol Square, Olbrich Botanical Garden, all the good eats and of course, our backyard. Noah and Joel seem to love being out and about. Joel is adapting quickly to restaurant outing making it much easier for Mommy. Noah has been a good teacher to Joel. It's always a joy to see the boys together. They are growing up fast!

Chicago June 09

June 09 Chicago visit

We took a short roadtrip down to Chicago, so Mommy can see her high school friends.
We also visited Ikey and Ellie, too.
We took the Metra down from Wilmette so Noah gets to ride the train. We even got to ride on Water Taxi to go to Navy Pier. The boys seem to have fun. Noah also discovered that big dog may not be so bad afterall.

Summer 2009 part 1

Summer 2009 part 1

So far, the summer has been quite fun for the boys. Joel always follows Noah around the house.

Noah started at a new school, which he calls "llama school". The summer session is called Summer on the Farm. So far, Noah seems to be adjusting well, while Mommy is trying to adjust to packing lunch for him that he would eat. Joel enjoys more alone time with Mommy with Noah being at school. The weather has been mostly mild, so we actually got to enjoy the outdoor a bit more when Kun Ta and Kun Yai visited, too.

Last vacation days

Last vacation days

It was sad to leave the island, but we made the best of it. After the beach, we went to Lahaina for lunch and then to Noah's favorite spot-Banyan trees. Mommy got to take lots of photos. We ended the day watching the sunset and said our good-byes to the sea. The next morning we got to go on the Sugar Cane train and got to see the scenary from another perspective. We went back and enjoyed the last of time at the Westin pool and then headed to the airport. We knew the flight would be long, but what we didn't anticipate was the delays and missed connection. The kids did great even though the entire trip back took 18 hours. We can now write a book on how survive a day with 2 kids at Minneapolis-St.Paul airport. After that, we were all thrilled to see our house. Home sweet home.

Revisit Baby Beach

Revisit Baby Beach

Our family has 2 days extra after everyone left. We had to go back to one of the favorite spots, Baby Beach. The sun was hot but the water was nice and calm. Noah played in the sand and water to his heart content. Joel did, too. We also saw some creatures from the sea-Ghost crabs and pink snapper that the fisherman caught. It was such a wonderful time.

Part 3: life with kids in Maui

Part 3-life with the kids in Maui

Maui from the kids perspective are entirely different.
The good news is we still made it to some of our favorite eating spots and earlier to make the sunset special discount! We went to Sansei twice! The day-to-day activities are planned according to nap time to keep things smooth. The babies are fairly resilient and sleep on their own schedule. Beach and pool are the favorite activities. The brothers still got some bonding time after the kids are down for the night. Good-bye to fine dining that last into the night hours. Uncle Jonah did manage to wear white and silk shirt and kept clean, though.

Part 2- Exploring the island.

Part 2-Exploring the island.

Being in Maui with kids are quite different, but we did try to venture outside Kaanapali Beach front. We visited Maui Ocean Center. Went to the famous Mama's Fish House and now understand why it is famous. The view is magnificent as well. We explored Lahaina and even ventured out by bus so the kids can take Maui City Bus. Of course, we still spent the majority of time poolside or beachside to keep cool from the 80 degrees heat.

Maui Part 1-meeting of cousins, May 09

Maui part 1-meeting of cousins-May 09

After a long wait, the Maui trip has arrived. The suitcases were packed to the weight limit. The flight was long-with 3 different stops by final destination. The boys did pretty well, considering the length of the trip. BUT, ahh, was it wonderful, especially to see the cousins all together. The kids really enjoy each other's company. Both Ella and Noah want to do whatever Eli does. Joel and Ezra seem to be content just looking at each other. We sure used up a lot of sunscreen on the trip.

Back from Thailand!

Kun Ta-Kun Yai are back from Thailand, April 09

Kun Ta and Kun Yai are finally back again.
They are greeted by two very rumbunctious grandsons. As always, Kun Ta catches the cold from the kids. Noah enjoys helping Kun Ta in the yard. Kun Yai grew attached to Baby Joel in a short time since he has gotten quite interactive. Her mission is still to fatten up both kids. Short visit this time, but we managed to celebrate Kun Ta's birthday early, so Noah and Joel both get to help blow out the candle!

The Kims visit April 09

A visit from Ikey and Ellie, April 09

Finally now that the snow is gone, the weather is warmer, the Kims made a trip north to visit us.
This is the first meeting with Joel.
Ikey and Ellie have really grown since we last saw them. Noah really enjoys their company and loves to play with them. Joel wants to as well, but still too little to join most games.

Springtime in Madison 09?

Spring 2009

These past few months went by very quickly. We have gotten to venture out some, but Spring is coming so ever slowly in Madison. Lots of birds singing but no blooming flowers, yet. The boys are starting to enjoy each other more. Joel can creep, crawl, roll and really gets around the house now. He always wants to do whatever Noah is doing. Nai-Nai came to stay a few weeks while Kelly was off on vacation. Everyone got chubbier during her stay. Noah really grew attached to her this time as well. He was quite teary when he woke up the next morning and Nai-Nai was not in her room.

Another trip to St. Louis Feb 09

St. Louis Feb 09

Another roadtrip! This time we all went to Nah Nit and Uncle Trip's wedding reception. Noah and Joel got to meet a lot of new faces. Noah took a liking to Nah Ben and Nah Bee, who came all the way from Thailand! We all spent the morning at the City Museum, which is a playground on steroid, essentially. Lots of running around with Nolan and Hall, Uncle Trip's nephew. Noah also thought a shuttle ride from the wedding reception back to the hotel was quite fun, too.
Congratulation to the wedding couple!

A wedding in Mexico

A wedding in Mexico

February is filled with activities for our family.
We all got to escape Wisconsin weather to a special valentine's celebration in Rivera Maya, Mexico. Joel did pretty well with his first plane trip. DVD came in handy for Noah.
Once in Mexico, the kids really enjoyed themselves. Noah discovered swim-up bar concept and really loves Strawberry Daiquiri (no alcohol, of course). Nah Nit and Uncle Trip was happily married at the beach, sunset ceremony. Lots of happy tears. Mommy and Daddy soaked up the sunshine...although Daddy, may be a bit too much sans sunscreen.

Visit to St.Louis

St. Louis Jan 09

Joel enjoyed his first car trip down south with a trip to St. Louis this past January.
The occasion was Nah Nit's bridal shower.
We all stayed at Nah Oy and Dr. Sawat's house. It was like a 5-star accomodation!
St. Louis actually is quite pretty. We all enjoyed the warm weather as well.
Noah got to meet lots of friends, Dillon, since we stayed with his grandparents and of course, the infamous Will, Hall and little Katy-Uncle Trip's nephews and niece.
We all got back without any major incidents.

Brotherly Love

Brotherly love

The new year is flying right by.
The brothers are getting to be even closer.
Noah really takes on the big brother role of trying to always help taking care of Joel. Kelly says that he is this way at her house, too.
Joel just beems when he sees Noah. Even if it is in the morning, when Noah bounces in the room loudly and wakes Joel. Joel is most curious about his brother's long hair. It's amazing how it's such a natural bond that they have for each other.
Joel is now 6 months and Noah is almost 2 1/2 years old!