Love Long Weekends

We had a perfect Memorial Day weekend.  The heat had finally arrived and we spent plemty of time outside.  Lots of beach time, graduation parties and cookouts.   Some highlights below.

Family Day

Three years ago today we became a family.

Then

Now

Dance Recital

Grace had her first dance recital this past weekend.  It was all quite a spectacle.  Grace had two performances, tap and ballet.  I have to admit I was disturbed to see my three year old with makeup on.  But Jen assures me that she did it as a kid and it is just so they don't get washed out by the lights.  We brought our families along to the performance and everyone had a great time, especially Grace.  We weren't allowed to take pictures during the recital so we we did a quick photo shoot today (sans makeup).

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all of the moms out there.  We celebrated the day with lunch in Newburyport and a romp around the yard for some photo opportunities.  Mommy and her baby below....

Grace's New Ride - Adams Trail-A-Bike

We really wanted to get Grace a bike for the spring as she has outgrown the Kangaroo seat that we have been using for the past couple years.  We debated getting her a bike of her own but decided to look into trailer bike so we can take longer family rides together.

We found the Adams Trail-a-Bike while researching bikes online and it  was really well reviewed so we gave it a shot.  It came while we were on vacation so we were really excited to give it a try when we got home this past weekend.

Adams sells a couple options on these bikes, we chose the compact folding model which is recommended for ages three to five.  I am pretty sure Grace will be able to use it past 5 though.  They have a tandem model as well as larger bikes for kids up to 10 years old.  The bike also has an optional seat back with a seat belt that I thought we were going to need to get but based on Grace's comfort level on our first quick test ride I don't think we will need it.

The one drawback is that the bike is pretty heavy.  It weights 23 pounds, add to that a 30 pound kid an that is a lot of extra weight to drag around.   So I don't think we will be taking many 25 mile trips.  I also got a little nervous on our first ride as I can't see her back there while I am riding so I picked up a mirror so I can keep an eye on her. 

Looking forward to getting out on the bike trails next weekend for a longer ride of the weather cooperates.  A quick video below of Grace's first ride.



Disney!!!

We spent the better part of last week in Disney World.  It was my first time going to Disney (Jen has been a couple times) so it was great being able to experience everything for the first time with Grace.  What can I say about Disney....It was really hot and really crowded but we had a blast.   

Grace is really into pricesses right now and her favorite princess is Snow White so it was pretty cool that she was waiting for us under the Magnolia tree as soon as we entered the Magic Kingdom.

Our first day was spent at the Magic Kingdom and Grace proved to us once again that she is fearless.  She went on every ride that she was able to and was begging for more.  Some of the rides have a 40 inch height requiremet and Grace was a little too short so we will definitely have some new experiences the next time we go.  More pics of our week below.

 Riding Dumbo with Mommy

 Cinderella and her castle

 Animal Kingdom with Mommy

 Re-enacting a scene from Snow White

 Swiss Family Tree House with Daddy

Lunch with Minnie

Happy Easter 2011

Lots of blogging to catch up on.  Especially our trip to Disney this past week.  More to come.....

Spring, Wonderful Spring

Spring finally made an appearance here this weekend.  We had temperatures in the mid 60s and the snow is finally melted in our yard.  Grace was so excited she was jumping around the back yard yelling, "It's Summer, It's Summer!!!"  We spent a lot of time outside this weekend sucking up the warmth--including the maiden voyage of our new kayak.  Now we can get the whole family our for kayak trips and I won't have to paddle solo anymore.

Almost Spring Photoshoot

The weather this weekend broke 50 degrees so we took the opportunity for a little walk to a local park for a photo shoot.  There is still a bit of snow on the ground but it was nice to get outside for a change.  Spring can't get here soon enough.

Critters

We attended a birthday party this weekend and they had a woman with a bunch of little critters come to entertain the kids.  Grace loves animals but she was not a fan of the reptiles.   Some pics below

 No like the little alligator

 Big Bunny

 Not so sure about the armadillo

 Only willing to touch daddy's hand while he touches the snake

Grace and the chinchilla

Ice Skating

We took Grace ice skating for the first time this weekend.  Let's just say that I don't think we have the next olympian on our hands.  We all had a blast though and that's what counts.  Pics below...

Gung Hay Fat Choy

Yes, it is that time again (Chinese New Year).  We celebrated this year by attending the CAWLI party.  It was night to catch up with a couple of our travel mates as well as meet a few of our blog readers.  Grace has a great time this year, as she gets older she is really showing her independence and it is nice to see her just jump in to the crowd and have fun.

First Manicure

Dancin'

Grace and Mommy

We rounded out our weekend with a trip to see the Disney Princeses on Ice.  We went to the show last year and Grace loved it so we surprised Grace again this year.

Grace and Tiana

Pricesses are serious stuff

Snow, snow and more snow

It started snowing here in early January and it seems like it hasn't stopped.We have close to 4 feet on the ground and 2 of those feet came in the last couple weeks.  It's getting so there is no place to put it, but we live in New England so this is what we deal with.  For Grace it is all great fun as it should be.  Heading out to the CAWLI Chinese New Year party this Saturday, hope to see some of you there.  Some pics from our most recent storm below.