Saturday, I had a relaxing morning while Ted dealt with the kids. I headed out as they were eating breakfast and went to the gym. Mckayla had her ballet class and Marcus had his soccer practice. During her ballet drop off, Ted found out Miss Claire also taught at Mckayla’s school all this time and we didn’t know about it until they ran into each other on Friday. Mckayla had mentioned seeing Miss Claire at school, but I thought she was just being silly and talking nonsense. After I showered, I met up with them at the soccer field. Class was just starting and I spent time with Mckayla while Ted and Marcus went to practice. He did really well in class and had a great time. We said hi briefly when they took a water break. After practice ended, they got to played on the structures for a bit before we went to lunch. Marcus has an obsession with my car recently and requested to ride with me. We met up at downtown for quick Mexican food. Mckayla enjoyed the black beans we got for her while Marcus ate everything we ordered between the three of us (dish taco, black beans, salad, hominy soup). After lunch, Ted took them for for nap while I went to get my nails done. I went home afterwards to nap but wasn’t successful. I was in bed for nearly three hours but couldn’t sleep. Ted had gotten dinner ready on the table by the time I woke up. We got the kids fed and in bed by seven. I had completely finished lacking by the so decide to try napping again. Still couldn’t sleep after two hours, so I got up to shower and get ready for the night. We scooped the kids out of their bed into the car by ten thirty. Both woke up by the time we got them belted in the seats. We got to the airport, parked the car then went into the checking counters. Luckily, we checked in on line was able to bypass the long line. Ted hung out with us for a while before we had to go through security. When it was time to say bye, Marcus had his meltdown not wanting to leave without Ted. We walked through security while he screamed for “baba”. All the agents were very helpful, getting my strollers and carry-ons on the belt while trying yogi distract Marcus. He calmed down shortly after we got through the security screening. We stopped to purchase some water and headed straight to the gates. The benefit of traveling with kids is priority boarding. We didnt have to wait in line at all. After we were seated, kids were exicited. I put Mckayla by the window, Marcus in the middle, and I block them in at the aisle. Plane didn’t Off until two in the morning. Then, they served “dinner” first with refreshments. They brought out Msrcus’ meal first. I let the kids eat the fresh fruits, then both were not interested in the rest of the food. We declined the meals for Mckayla and myself. After eating some crackers from my bag, they finally turned off the lights. I told Mckayla to sleep which she did after some brief whining. Marcus had a hard time. It was already four in the morning by then. He cried and screamed for Ted again. He calmed down after I got up and rocked him in the aisle for a bit. Then, he finally fell asleep. Mckayla was laying flat down with seatbelt across the seats, she took more than two seats now since she is much taller than before. I held Marcus while we all slept. Marcus didn’t sleep long and woke up three hours later, then waking up Mckayla. They were energized again to play. They were kept bust with the in flight entertainments, the coloring books, and toys fir the most time. I didn’t have to bust out their iPods until later. Finally, we had three hours left and they served our breakfast. Kids ate their yogurts and fruits. Neither kid was interested in the pancake. Marcus ate my porridge and drank some milk. He was really tired by then and I was able to get him down to sleep. Mckayla didn’t sleep but stayed in her seat as told. Marcus napped briefly for an hour and woke up again. I had ran out of energy by then myself. I passed them their iPods and tried to get some rear myself. Then, we were all excited when the captain announced our descend. For the most part, they did well on the flight except not sleeping long enough. We had to make synchronized restroom visits several times. It was not easy cramming all three of us in the tiny stall together. After landing, we went through immigration and got our luggage quickly. Then, met up with my dad’s driver outside. Kids remember him and were very excited to see him, they were chatty and playful in the car while Mckayla kept asking him if we were there yet. After another dirty five minutes of drive, we finally arrived. Mckayla ran in the house screaming for grandma. After saying hi to grandma and grandpa, I quickly gave them a shower before then went to wake up Jackie. Mckayla couldn’t stop smiling and giggling. Marcus was a bit shy in the beginning. But happily gave great grandma a hug and kiss when they saw each other. We had a quick breakfast before it was time for Jackie to leave for work. Mckayla was very sad and kept asking her not to go to work. They were all very tired. We all went to sleep by ten in the morning to get some needed rest.
10 May
Naughty, naughty
Marcus has been quite naughty these days. Last week, we caught him jumping off the back off the couch. Earlier tonight, he piled up the pillows and blankets on the floor, then dove off the ottoman onto the pillows. Then, this is what I caught on my phone. He said he was making a bridge and told Mckayla to crawl under the bridge.
10 May
Mother’s Day Celebration at school
Mckayla had a busy week at school. Well, it’s more like I had a busy week because of her school’s activities This week is teacher’s appreciation week. Everyday this week involves some kinds of special activity for them. Monday was hug day, Tuesday was flower for the teacher, Wednesday was thank you card (homemade), today’s the mother’s day celebration/surprise for teachers, and Friday’s garden day. These activities have kept me busy since last weekend, making cards with her for the teachers, getting vegetable plants for the garden day, and getting flowers for the teachers. This morning, I dropped Mckayla off shortly after eight and headed to work for an hour and half before I went back to her school. They had pottery painting activities set up for the kids and they all enjoyed it. The teachers also made breakfast for the moms (scrambled eggs, waffles, sausages, and fruits). The kids were enjoying themselves coloring the mugs while the moms got to chat and enjoy breakfast. Then, they sang two songs for us, both in Chinese. After they finished, I said bye to Mckayla to head back to work. She wasn’t happy about it since I was one of the first ones to leave, but was fine as soon as her friends called her over to join them in the play structure. I said thank you and bye to the teachers and drove back to work. It was an early and long lunch break for me, but I was happy to be there with her for the celebration. Just hoping the kids would cooperate with me on the plane on the real Mother’s Day.
10 May
Ready for Taiwan
I’ve finally finished packing 90% for the upcoming trip, just need to pack the carry-on’s tomorrow or Saturday. Mckayla’s been counting down to our departure day. She knows we’re leaving on Saturday night and told me that we have two more days. She’s been telling me about how excited she is to see everyone in Taiwan and that she can’t wait to play with Jackie and LJ. On top of that, she also told me the food she wants to eat in Taiwan: Taiwanese sausage, pork chop rice, dumplings, pot stickers, xiao long bao, on choy, rice ball, pork floss bread, and watermelon. She added watermelon after I told her there isn’t any strawberry in Taiwan.
9 May
Surprise
Earlier tonight, while Marcus was having his nightly meltdown before bedtime, Mckayla told me she got surprise for us in our bed. I sent her to her room to pick out her books then wait for me until I get Marcus down for the night. After getting both kids down and cleaning up the kitchen, Ted finally came home. Then, I finally went to our room and found these on our bed. What a sweet girl!
9 May
KiKi, Oops
Mckayla loves her baby doll KiKi. She sleeps with her every night and told me yesterday that she’s going to miss KiKi when we’re in Taiwan. She asks us to whisper in the morning because KiKi is still sleeping. And in the morning, she moves KiKi from her bed back to the toy crib in her room before she goes to school. This morning, she brougtht KiKi to our room while I was getting ready.
Last night, I was alone with both kids. Unfortunately, we hit traffic on 280 on the way home and didn’t get back until after six. I had called nanny on our way to inform her our delay. When we got back, Marcus was already eating the mushroom and chicken that I had prepared. Nanny said he was hungry. She insisted to stay and finish feeding him so I could get dinner ready. It was nice to have extra help since I was crunch for time. I got dinner ready on the table and we said bye to nanny. Marcus continued to eat the vegetables that I gave him. He was proudly showing off his training chopsticks skill picking up the vegetable (on choy). Both kids ate well, finished their vegetables, then moved on to the pasta. Mckayla even cleaned up the meat on her plate without being asked to. While they were eating their strawberry, I kept asking Marcus if he had to pee but he repeatedly said no. I think he was too busy playing with Mckayla. Then, as they were finishing up, I heard “oops”. Then, I saw Marcus’ sad face as he started telling that he had peed in his pants. I took him out of the high chair and sent both kids to the bathroom while I grabbed their pajamas. I came back and heard Marcus reciting the “Blue Hat, Green Hat” book in Chinese. They both couldn’t stop giggling when they got to “oops”. At the end, Mckayla changed up the words and said “white toilet, pink toilet, oops”.
7 May
Conversation with Marcus, Sunday
After Mckayla’s ballet performance today, we went home to let Marcus nap. Mckayla and Ted took off right after she changed to Taylor’s birthday party. I cleaned and sorted through Mckayla’s closet while Marcus napped. He took a nice long one and I didn’t hear a peep until two hours later. I went to his room to check on him and took some convincing to get him out of his crib. He kept his diaper dry during nap. I complimented him, then he told me that he only pees in the toilet standing up. We went to the nursery to pick up some vegetables for our garden. While we were browsing around, he spotted orange colored tomatoes and told me to get them. He told me orange is his favorite color. We also bought green bean, edamame, and another cherry tomato plants. While I was looking at the tomato cages, Marcus asked me they were. I told him they are like houses for tomatoes. He asked me to get the orange and pink ones. Then, he said, “pink is jiejie’s favorite color”. Funny thing is he says everything in Chinese except the word “favorite”. We paid for the purchase and I got him in the car. The sun was in his face. He told me, “the sun is too bright, I needed my glasses”. I told him I couldn’t reach for them because I was driving. Then, he responded, “I wear my hat in the car so sun cannot get in my eyes”. We continued our drive, the he asked for this particular Chuggington book. He calls it “the broken one”. I didn’t know what he was talking about until Ted explained to me later that he was referring to “Zephie” because he comes apart. I told Marcus I couldn’t grab the book until the car is stopped. He complained a bit until I told him that I told him that there’s no book at all if he continues. The first stop light we hit, he immediately said, “the car stopped, you can grab me the book now”. I got the book for him and he was happy. He flipped through the page and asked me for the name of this particular “broken” train. I told him that I didn’t know. He responded, “then I will ask baba when we get home”. He was happy to see Ted as we pulled in the garage. He got his answer as Ted helped him out the car. I went to wake up Mckayla who fell asleep on their drive home. She was happy to see me and wanted to show me the balloon she got from the party. We got both kids inside for a quick potty then took off again for dinner. Mckayla requested for pasta again for dinner. Since we had a Kate breakfast this morning and skipped lunch again today because of the show, they were both starving. They both had some snack in the afternoon (Mckayla got some veggie chips at the party but skipped the cake and Marcus had string cheese and applesauce on the way to the nursery). They polished odd the bread before the food arrived and eating their own plate of kid’s pasta. Marcus even ate some of my pesto pasta and enjoyed it. We are happy that he pretty much eats everything and is willing to try everything. Ted wanted some chocolate for dessert but the shop was closed. So, we ended up getting a slice of cake to share. Neither kid was too interested in the cake despite getting very excited over it as we were ordering. They took two small bites and declared they were done. It was still warm and we walked around for a bit before heading home. After we got back, we went straight to the backyard to plant the vegetables. I helped them harvest our first batch of sugar snap peas. They were excited and couldn’t wait to try them. Ted rinsed them off and handed them back to the kids. I’m sure the peas were good as they polished off everything before Ted or I even get to taste them. As we Mckayla and I continued to work on thr garden, Marcus declared he had to poo. Ted took him inside first then I sent Mckayla in shortly after so he could bathe them as I finish up outside.
5 May
First Ballet Performance, Dinner with the Browns
I was woken up by Mckayla opening our door at six thirty this morning. She was checking to see if we were awake then left. Ted had gone out to ride with Dave early this morning. I tried to go back to sleep then got woken up by text from Ted. His bike broke. And thank goodness for Dave, he rode home to get his car to pick up Ted and his broken bike. I got up shortly to shower and get ready. Then, I went to check on Mckayla. She was playing with her baby doll KiKi. They were laying together on the ground with her old baby blanket and pretending to sleep. I sent her to bathroom to clean up herself then went to check on Marcus. He had woken up already and just hanging out in his crib as usual. He greeted me good morning and told me that he had to pee. I rushed him to the bathroom, then sent Mckayla to his room to get underwear and socks for him. When she came back, he was done and ready for his breakfast. Kids got to watch cartoon this morning with breakfast since it’s the weekend. They enjoyed the Chinese bread that Ted had picked up for them with their milk and a bowl of strawberries. Ted came back shortly after we were finishing up. Then, he left with Marcus to run a few errands and drop off his bike for repair. Mckayla and I work on the birthday card for tomorrow and thank you cards for her teachers. Then, it was time to get ready. It took a while because the requirements for make-up. We finally got ready when Ted and Marcus came back. Kids were whiny during the drive, fighting over the Chugginton book. After we arrived at the convention center, I took Mckayla to the dressing room. I was quite surprised how other girls were fully made up. Mckayla complained that I didn’t put any “red color” on her cheeks like the other girls. I told her I forgot and would do that tomorrow. She was fine with it and I left her with her classmates and teachers. They got to watch a movie and color before and after the show. I went outside to meet up with Ted and Marcus who were waiting in line. Marcus was getting a bit tired and restless. I took him to the stairs and escalators on the other side and kept him busy going up and down the stairs. He successfully tired him out and he was happy to sit down after we entered the theatre. The show started promptly and Mckayla’s class was the first performance. She did pretty well and did pause a little bit staring at the full audience. After her performance, we still had to stay and watch the rest of the show which was a bit over an hour. Marcus did well the first half and enjoyed the dancing and music. But he got restless and had to be kept occupied with my phone. After the show ended, all the kids were released back their parents. It was already passed one by then and kids were tired and hungry. We fed them a granola bar in the car during the drive home and stopping over at the bike shop to pick up Ted’s bike. After we got home, we sent both kids to bed. Mckayla went to sleep easily but Marcus was up for a while. I was busy in the kitchen cooking and didn’t realize he was still up until Ted came back after dropping off his bike at another shop. He had been in room for an hour, just having fun and playing with his stuffed dogs. I went in to check on him and he knew I was upset. I asked him why I was mad. He told me because he didn’t sleep. I picked him up and he fell asleep within minutes on my shoulder. I laid him back down on the big bed and left. After he fell asleep, the door bell rang. Their old nanny was stopping by to see the kids. We went to check on Mckayla first who was just waking up and was very happy to see her popo. They played together for a while until I went to wake up Marcus from his nap. He had slept for almost an hour by then and but still tired. He was a bit shy in the beginning but quickly warmed up to popo. They had fun making bead necklaces together, then Marcus showed her his Chuggington trains. The Browns arrived later and nanny left. Mckayla was so happy to see the Browns, especially Logan. They played inside for a bit then went outside to ride the bikes. I stayed inside to clean up the seafood that Bonnie picked up. The kids didn’t last long outside and made their way back inside the house shortly after I joined them outside. We got dinner ready and sat down to eat. We had cioppino and also some pasta and vegetables for the kids. Marcus ate the vegetables but didn’t want to eat the pasta. He enjoyed the mussels instead and ate a bunch. They went back to playing again after they finished their food while the adults continued to eat afterwards. After we finished and started cleaning up, Logan came back to request for the ice cream. Logan and Connor were seated first and ready for their desserts, then Mckayla and Marcus joined them. They all got to eat the drumstick while we had the fudge Bonnie made. All the kids ate up their ice cream quickly except for Connor. He ate too slow and his drumstick was taken away. He was not happy about it and started crying. Kids were energized again with the post dinner sugar high and started playing again. It was already passed eight and passed bedtime for all the kids. On their way out, Logan announced that he was coming back again tomorrow. Ted joked with him and told him that there won’t be any ice cream tomorrow and only strawberries for desserts. After the Browns left, we quickly got the kids showered and ready for bed. I went back to the kitchen to mop the floor while Ted got the kids in bed. We need them to rest up again for tomorrow since Mckayla’s got another long day, day 2 performance followed by a birthday party.
5 May
Phew!
I had a long day. Plus being sick, the day seems being longer. I think Robyn and I Infected each other through sharing a phone at work. My day started a bit later than usual on a Friday since I skilled gym this morning. I got to sleep in until six forty five. Got up, showered, and greeted Mckayla in the kitchen at seven twenty. She had already finished breakfast and working on her numbers (connect the dots). I finished eating and got her ready. We went to get Marcus around seven forty five. He was happy to see us, then told me he had to pee. I rushed him to the bathroom and he dud his business quickly. Nanny had arrived by then and we said bye to Marc’s then headed out the door. I dropped Mckayla at school then headed over to the farmers market. After I finished shopping, it was already time to head back to her school. We left shortly after ten to drive it a local high school. I got Charlotte with me this time again. The girls chatted while I drove. We talked a bit about the show we were going ti watch (Jack and the Bean Stalk). The show started around eleven and both girls did really well. They sat in their seats for ninety nine percent if the show and enjoyed it. I was happy that they both cooperated since other kids got restless during the second half. I took the girls to the potty right after the show before we drove back to school. Then, helped the teacher getting their lunch ready before I took off. Mckayla was happy to be back to school, and told me I should go after I got her food ready. I ran a few errands and got my nails done then headed back to school top who hours later. Theists B had started waking her up since I had told the teacher about the early pick up. She was very groggy but verb happy to see me. We gathered ll her belongings and drove to the convention center. We hit a bit traffic and didn’t get there until ten minutes after the scheduled rehearsal. I barely got her on stage with just her ballet shoes. She stood there and didn’t participate. After the first run, she to,d me she couldn’t dance because she wasn’t dressed in her ballet outfit. I quickly changed her during the rest of the rehearsal, and she did very well during the second run, she was very happy o dance in front of the audience as we expected. After rehearsal, Miss Suzanne announced the winners fir the coloring contest. Mckayla got third place! She happily ran up the stage when her name was called and received a little prize for her artwork. Afterwards, we drove her to meet up with Ted and Marcus. Then, we headed out for dinner. We went to downtown for some Greek food. Then, walked around for the flower scavenger hunt. Kids shared a piece of cookie that got for their prize (Ted and I shared the other piece). We got home and got the kids showered and in bed twenty minutes later than usual. Hopefully they would sleep in a bit dunce it’s Saturday tomorrow!
