Yesterday, Norah told me she needed to go to the potty (happens fairly often), so we went to her little plastic potty and sat her down. For the first time ever, she actually used it!
Sunday, July 30, 2017
Ready for potty training?
Yesterday, Norah told me she needed to go to the potty (happens fairly often), so we went to her little plastic potty and sat her down. For the first time ever, she actually used it!
Thursday, July 27, 2017
Tuesday, July 25, 2017
Northpark Fun
With temperatures in triple digits, we headed to Northpark Mall for some ice cream and...planter climbing!?
 |
| Success! Jackson can reach the rim of the planter (he's been trying for 2 years) |
 |
| Up he goes! |
 |
| A happy climber |
 |
| Norah is training on the junior planter |
 |
| Another happy climber |
Jackson's first trip to the movie
On Sunday, Jackson and I went to the movies to celebrate his 4th birthday. We were planning it for his actual birthday, but we feared that our chosen film, Cars 3, would be gone from theaters by then.
Jackson loved it and did great in the theater.
Jackson loved it and did great in the theater.
 |
| Find our seats |
 |
| Daddy, PAY ATTENTION (15 min prior to the start of the previews...) |
 |
| Intensely focused...on the pre-movie advertisements. Can you imagine when the movie started? |
Saturday, July 22, 2017
A happy trolley birthday party
Jackson's 4th birthday party is on a trolley!
We got the idea of trolley birthday party from riding on the uptown trolley in the past. We all loved the idea but this birthday party is probably the most stressful event I ever planned. I reserved the trolley more than 6 months back. Since the seating limit is 35, I stressed over getting replies and finalizing head counts. Then I worried about activities for kids and weather limitations. And the list goes on like what to put in a goodie bag for a trolley theme, is it easy to park, how to eat food on a moving car, how to make a stop at Klyde-Warren....
Of all the worries above, nothing beats that at 11am, our trolley didn't show up. The 10:45am trolley had already left. I started to suspect the one left was our trolley since it has balloons and happy birthday banner on it. And the office told me before that there is normally only one birthday party on one particular day. Will's App also shows there is no trolley nearby. There was a moment of panic as we have 35 people under the Texas summer sun and our party venue was still not here.
I was frantically calling the trolley office that doesn't open on weekends. And both of us started to think about plan B for a large group of people. Miraculously one trolley popped up at the App map and it was just 10 minutes late. What a relief! I told Will this definitely beats our own wedding planning since our wedding venue at least won't move!
The rest of the party went much smoother than the beginning. All the kids are excited to ride the trolley and the food I chose was easy to eat on the move too. We made a stop at Klyde-Warren park. It is an awesome park for kids but we didn't realize the water features were fully on. Naturally most kids got soaking wet. Luckily lots of parents brought change of clothes for the little ones. This park is worth going back in the summer when we are not under the pressure of organizing a big party.
Our driver picked us up 45 minutes later and we were en route back to Uptown Station. Will and I felt we had a monumental achievement in event planning and stress managing. And we both decided that we won't plan this kind of birthday party ever again. :-)
 |
| Trolley coming to the station! |
 |
| We got Green Dragon, Jackson's favorite Trolley. |
 |
| Birthday boy in seat |
 |
| So much excitement on the trolley |
 |
| A full trolley load! |
 |
| Where is my balloon? |
 |
| Blue Monster truck cake! |
 |
| Happy boys |
 |
| Norah (and everybody else) loved Klyde-Warren park's playground |
 |
| Cake time! |
 |
| Jackson's treasure |
Of all the worries above, nothing beats that at 11am, our trolley didn't show up. The 10:45am trolley had already left. I started to suspect the one left was our trolley since it has balloons and happy birthday banner on it. And the office told me before that there is normally only one birthday party on one particular day. Will's App also shows there is no trolley nearby. There was a moment of panic as we have 35 people under the Texas summer sun and our party venue was still not here.
I was frantically calling the trolley office that doesn't open on weekends. And both of us started to think about plan B for a large group of people. Miraculously one trolley popped up at the App map and it was just 10 minutes late. What a relief! I told Will this definitely beats our own wedding planning since our wedding venue at least won't move!
The rest of the party went much smoother than the beginning. All the kids are excited to ride the trolley and the food I chose was easy to eat on the move too. We made a stop at Klyde-Warren park. It is an awesome park for kids but we didn't realize the water features were fully on. Naturally most kids got soaking wet. Luckily lots of parents brought change of clothes for the little ones. This park is worth going back in the summer when we are not under the pressure of organizing a big party.
Our driver picked us up 45 minutes later and we were en route back to Uptown Station. Will and I felt we had a monumental achievement in event planning and stress managing. And we both decided that we won't plan this kind of birthday party ever again. :-)
Sunday, July 9, 2017
July 4th weekend at Knoxville
We had a great time this July 4th weekend in Knoxville with Jenny, Bill and the Long family. Three of us went to Tennessee the first time and what a treat! Thanks again, Bill and Jenny!
 |
| We started our vacation with some delicious ice-cream. We also participated in finding Waldo in downtown Knoxville. Jenny and Bill shared with us their favorite shops and we loved every stops along the way. |
 |
| Next day we went to Smoky Mountains to hike to a waterfall. |
 |
| Norah hitching a ride |
 |
| She is posing for Bill. Such a natural! |
 |
| Happy hiker |
 |
| Jenny, Bill, Anna, Jake and Campbell, Mclain celebrated Jackson's birthday early |
 |
| Campbell and Mclain shared their riding toys with Norah and Jackson |
 |
| July 3rd we went to Knoxville zoo, had loads of fun! |
 |
| Love this shot. Thanks Bill! |
 |
| Jackson focused on watching the elephants |
 |
| Outdoor dinner at Bill's country club house, Daddy went to Martin's wedding in Nashville |
 |
| July 4th we went to Ijames nature center to take a river hike. For both hikes the first day and this time, Jackson wanted to be the first one leading the way. Bill tried very hard to get a picture in the front. |
 |
| We stopped by a beautiful spot near the Tennessee river to have snacks and picture time |
 |
| Beautiful sunflower field in Ijames center |
 |
| At the July 4th event in downtown Knoxville, Norah loved fire trucks and didn't want to leave. |
 |
| Jackson held a hammer that bomb-squad truck crew uses to break walls |
 |
| Brother and sister on a Humvee |
Tuesday, June 27, 2017
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)