Saturday, December 25, 2010
Saturday, November 20, 2010
Lots and lots of rain
Remember that day last week when it rained 16 inches in 12 hours? Here's Gavin living it up the next morning in our yard.
Right after this picture I took him to the tub and scrubbed him down - it might be our yard, but it's still South Asia, after all.
Right after this picture I took him to the tub and scrubbed him down - it might be our yard, but it's still South Asia, after all.
Friday, November 19, 2010
Halloween 2010
Sina has decided that since it's very much an American holiday, we should do our best to celebrate Halloween to the fullest. Ruby has latched right onto the costume part of Halloween. Here is costume #1 - Dora and Diego.
But why should a girl stop at just one costume? Here's costume #2.
Costume #3 was an Indian princess - as in India Indian. By the time she put that one on we were well into the church Halloween party we had at our house, and she was moving too fast to get a photo.
Meanwhile Gavin had moved on to his Superman outfit. Superman, by the way, must be some sort of eternal, universal truth. Gavin had never seen the guy before we found him this costume at one of the random clothing outlet stores here in Colombo. He LOVED it the second we put it on him, and he somehow knew it meant he could now fly, and he spent the next hour flying around the house.
But why should a girl stop at just one costume? Here's costume #2.
Costume #3 was an Indian princess - as in India Indian. By the time she put that one on we were well into the church Halloween party we had at our house, and she was moving too fast to get a photo.
Meanwhile Gavin had moved on to his Superman outfit. Superman, by the way, must be some sort of eternal, universal truth. Gavin had never seen the guy before we found him this costume at one of the random clothing outlet stores here in Colombo. He LOVED it the second we put it on him, and he somehow knew it meant he could now fly, and he spent the next hour flying around the house.
The Ruby and Lindi Show
Just before Ruby's best friend Lindi moved to Australia, she came over for a big day full of fun, complete with princess costumes...
...a picnic in the yard with a campfire...
...and swimming suits and sprinklers!
...a picnic in the yard with a campfire...
...and swimming suits and sprinklers!
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
A few photos...
A few of my favorite photos of Sina's, from a Muslim town on the west coast of Sri Lanka.
Happy Birthday Marines
Sina's very patriotic and all, so I know she likes going to the annual Marine Corps Ball to celebrate their birthday, but it's a toss-up on whether that beats out that she gets to wear a sari.
All in a day's work...
Ok, so most days our jobs have us sitting behind desks. Well mine does at least. Sina's is a little more dynamic on a regular basis. But once in awhile things get interesting. Don't tell my mom, but everyone should visit a real live minefield at least once, right??
Here's me outside of Kilinochchi, a town that served as the Tigers' capital for quite awhile. Yes, that cool suit protects all the important parts. Laugh all you want, but I'm already a man down - I'm not about to lose the other one!!
And here's Sina, at a minefield outside of Jaffna. She's channeling Princess Diana, of course.
Pretty close, don't you think??
Yes, this really is how they remove mines most of the time. Very...slowly...
Here's me outside of Kilinochchi, a town that served as the Tigers' capital for quite awhile. Yes, that cool suit protects all the important parts. Laugh all you want, but I'm already a man down - I'm not about to lose the other one!!
And here's Sina, at a minefield outside of Jaffna. She's channeling Princess Diana, of course.
Pretty close, don't you think??
Yes, this really is how they remove mines most of the time. Very...slowly...
Monday, November 15, 2010
Pirates and Mermaids Everywhere!!!
The culmination of weeks - no, months of planning, re-planning, mind-changing, theme consideration, costume selection, and invitation planning - all by Ruby herself. The beautiful cake was courtesy of our staff who bought it as a present for her.
Here's the result of all the decorating:
Here's Nate engaged in an epic pirate battle - he only barely escaped.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Downloading 101
When you buy a new digital camera, you should check to make sure it is compatible with your computer so it's not a nine-step process to download photos.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
Gavin's First Day of Pre School
I have started back at work full time and decided to send Gavin to preschool with Ruby. They are loving it! Here are shots of him on his way to the car the very first day. He had been begging for months for me to leave him there and of course, the day I finally do he totally lost it. But, he loves it now and brought home a great painting of a rocket today.
Sunday, January 24, 2010
Sunday, January 10, 2010
Thursday, January 7, 2010
Nate the Dad
Hauling the good sand across the beach to make sandcastles in the shade.
Teaching his 18 month old how to drive in a typhoon's aftermath. What else are you going to do when it takes 5.5 hours to drive the distance between Logan and Salt Lake City?
Sticking out like a sore thumb (and not because of the carrier- Gavin may be the only red head in the entire country). The plus side of the carrier is that it keeps his face out of reach from the locals who just can't resist those cheeks. When I married Nate I think I saw him exactly like this in my mind when I imagined our future together: kid on the back in some exotic foreign locale.
As a side note: do notice Ruby's shoes. She has recently announced that red is her favorite color (a departure from pink). She is very insistent on this fact. She wore the shoes, knowing they would give her a blister (do we really start putting ourselves through pain for cute shoes this early on??). Once the blister appeared, she asked for Gavin's sock so it would feel better.
Teaching his 18 month old how to drive in a typhoon's aftermath. What else are you going to do when it takes 5.5 hours to drive the distance between Logan and Salt Lake City?
Sticking out like a sore thumb (and not because of the carrier- Gavin may be the only red head in the entire country). The plus side of the carrier is that it keeps his face out of reach from the locals who just can't resist those cheeks. When I married Nate I think I saw him exactly like this in my mind when I imagined our future together: kid on the back in some exotic foreign locale.
As a side note: do notice Ruby's shoes. She has recently announced that red is her favorite color (a departure from pink). She is very insistent on this fact. She wore the shoes, knowing they would give her a blister (do we really start putting ourselves through pain for cute shoes this early on??). Once the blister appeared, she asked for Gavin's sock so it would feel better.
Friday, January 1, 2010
More from the Halloween Party
We spent a lot of time preparing for the Halloween party. So I want to make sure to document some of the things we did. We ended up with apx. 60 guests, so my picture taking slacked off once it got really busy.
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
First, we made all of the trick-or-treat bags from scratch. I found black paper, so we folded it, added cardboard to strengthen the bottom, and used raffia for the handles. Then Ruby stamped a white handprint on each one.
We added two googely eyes and a mouth then VOILA! Each child got one to collect their carnival game prizes. this is Tanusha.
Ruby asked her guests to bring a toy to donate to the local cancer hospital for children, in lieu of a birthday present. She collected 35 gifts to donate.
And we had so many carnival games!
There was facepainting
Balloon shooting (notice the body boppers and the bouncer in back)
Bean bag toss (We painted signs for every game, it really made the yard look festive), I was quite pleased with my goal on the bean bag toss, I cut out black paper to make our playroom tunnel look like a monster's head, sadly the scary eyebrows had fallen off by the time we took this picture.
A duck pond, and thanks to my brother-in-law Clay for the tip on how to weight the rubber ducky so it would float upright!
Real door-to-door tick-or-treating!
Photo Booth: which I will make sure to use next year.
One more shot of the cake, just because.
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
First, we made all of the trick-or-treat bags from scratch. I found black paper, so we folded it, added cardboard to strengthen the bottom, and used raffia for the handles. Then Ruby stamped a white handprint on each one.
Ruby asked her guests to bring a toy to donate to the local cancer hospital for children, in lieu of a birthday present. She collected 35 gifts to donate.
There was facepainting
Balloon shooting (notice the body boppers and the bouncer in back)
Bean bag toss (We painted signs for every game, it really made the yard look festive), I was quite pleased with my goal on the bean bag toss, I cut out black paper to make our playroom tunnel look like a monster's head, sadly the scary eyebrows had fallen off by the time we took this picture.
A duck pond, and thanks to my brother-in-law Clay for the tip on how to weight the rubber ducky so it would float upright!
Real door-to-door tick-or-treating!
Photo Booth: which I will make sure to use next year.
One more shot of the cake, just because.
So Saree
I am making good on my New Year's goal. That is right singular-- I have only ONE goal and that is to do those things I always INTEND to do. No more excuses. I always intend on sharing our faraway and foreign life with all those we love. So here, FINALLY, are pictures of the Marine Corps ball. Unfortunately, I didn't take pictures before we started dancing, which really is necessary if you are going to insure your hair and makeup are in optimal condition!
Do you SEE all the sarees in this shop? So very many sarees, so little time. I love them, I want more of them, and I want friends to want to wear them at a Bollywood party when I come back to the States!
You have to have someone else drape you in the saree. It is actually a service provided at all the salons.
Nate had his tux tailor made two days before the event. You don't want to know what it cost. Not because it was expensive, but because it is high end and you probably paid more for a Jos A Banks suit. I think he channels Daniel Craig as James Bond quite nicely.
Rockin' the sarees with my friends Anne and Lisa
Do you SEE all the sarees in this shop? So very many sarees, so little time. I love them, I want more of them, and I want friends to want to wear them at a Bollywood party when I come back to the States!
You have to have someone else drape you in the saree. It is actually a service provided at all the salons.
Nate had his tux tailor made two days before the event. You don't want to know what it cost. Not because it was expensive, but because it is high end and you probably paid more for a Jos A Banks suit. I think he channels Daniel Craig as James Bond quite nicely.
Rockin' the sarees with my friends Anne and Lisa
Gavin's First Haircut
I didn't want to do it, I wanted those curls to stay forever. And I knew once I cut his hair he was officially a toddler-- not a baby anymore. I do not think I am the first mom to mourn that transition and hope to drag it out a little longer than perhaps I should. I scheduled his haircut with Nate who was also in desperate need, lest his hair return to his days impersonating Sampson.
Before: My Baby
During: Yes, I think I might have concentrated on not crying.
After: My Boys
Before: My Baby
During: Yes, I think I might have concentrated on not crying.
After: My Boys
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