Summer passed by all too quickly this year, and I have been really awful at keeping this space updated in the past several weeks. I thought I’d do a little compilation post of photos and videos here of some of our favorite cute/humorous moments captured on camera to share… better late than never, right?
…and thus follows the photo dump of all photo dumps.
Pooltime on the porch.
“Pool boy! Another margarita, please.”
“Just kidding!” 😉
Mio’s been obsessed with TMNT lately (or as she calls them, “masked turtles”). Today she’s Raphael and Mirei’s been anointed as Leonardo. (To me, they look more matsuri-ready…)
Mio patiently waiting for lunch at Santini’s. One of those moments where she still looks like a baby to me.
Lunch out with Daddy… one of her favorite moments.
Gelato and bingsoo at Sweetberry
Sticker-happy after a visit to Trader Joes.
All it takes is a blanket to keep them giggling non-stop!
Mio in her new bed!
Mio lined up these little animal dolls around Mirei as she slept on the Boppy.
Mirei’s first playdate with Lily. Mirei’s always tagging along to playdates for big sister, so it was nice to have a playdate for Mirei for once!
Mio pretending to kick Mirei… tsk tsk. Sisters…
Not sure what is going on here, but it looks like Mio is attempting to lick Mirei’s back?!
Mirei carrying big sister’s Minion backpack… which is almost the same size as her.
Such a funny sight!
Sisters both napping, in similar positions but in different places. (Mio fell asleep where she was playing, as usual…)
Mirei making an interesting fashion statement… (she can thank Auntie Miwa)
Crawling everywhere!
Sweet Mio
Our little angel ♥
She loves to roll herself up in her blankets.
Silly girl ♥
Mirei pulling herself up to stand by the cooler.
Mio playing frisbee with Daddy and Auntie in the backyard.
Mio coming down the slide at Meadow Lane Park
Sleeping giant at the park.
Mio riding the roundabout at the park:
Mirei being held by Obaachan
7 month old Mirei
Mio painting on the porch
Caught red-handed, getting into the diapers and making a mess!
Looking a lot like Daddy!
Going to the Lee District spray park again on Labor Day.Â
with my sweet M&Ms.
Mirei with Daddy
Mio is very much into making faces in selfies lately. She looks very fierce here!
Kissy-face selfie.
Mio likes to be in a “towel burrito,” as she calls it, after bathtime.
M&M in the window.
Standing in the crib already!
Our first time going to Japanese Storytime – wish I’d known about it sooner! Mirei was actually quite the social butterfly, constantly crawling away to other babies, making new friends. Mio preferred keeping to herself and exploring all the books there.
An ecstatic Mio with her mango popsicle.
Our resident flappy-bird…
Mirei playing with a taiko toy at a birthday party.
Spending a Sunday at the park
Stay forever Sunday.
Mirei will pull herself up to standing position every opportunity she gets!
Stats: At your last doctor’s visit almost a month ago, you weighed 21 lbs 6oz, so we’re guessing that by now you are over 22 lbs! It’s hard to hold you for too long because you are so heavy, and our wrists and arms have started to hurt because of how heavy you are.
Things You’re Doing Now: You’re a pro at crawling now! You’ve gotten really fast at making your way from one end of the hall to another, moving from room to room at an alarming speed! You’ve also started pulling yourself up to a standing position with chairs, couches, shelves, anything you can get your hands on! We’ve even witnessed you attempt to cruise a little as you try to maintain your standing position as you shift your feet along. Your bottom two teeth have now fully emerged, and you have been eating your solids every day for about a month now! So far, you’ve tried baby oatmeal, butternut squash, avocado, zucchini, carrots, pears, and bananas! (Your favorite so far has interestingly been zucchini.) Your naps tend to be for shorter periods of time now (half an hour to an hour), so you’re awake for much of the day and have been keeping us busy! You love watching and chasing after your big sister, and often reach for and grab her toys, much to Mio’s chagrin. You’re constantly grabbing things you find and sticking them in your mouth, so we have to keep a close watch for any choking hazards you may get a hold of! You’re full of expression, raising your voice very loudly to express both frustration and joy, and it’s a wonder to watch you grow. We have a feeling you’ll be quite the outgoing little girl, with how much you love flashing your smile at everyone you meet and how vocal you already are!
There’s a beaded necklace my father brought back from one of his business trips to New Mexico, that Mirei likes to wear like a crossbody bag. It looks so funny, and we joke that she looks as if she is little world traveler ready to go on a vision quest.
We checked out the Lee District RECenter the other weekend, which includes Chessie’s Big Backyard and Our Special Harbor Spray Park in Alexandria. Admission is free and Mio had a blast splashing around at the spray park and then running around at the adjacent playground afterwards. Although it is a bit of a drive for us, we’ll definitely be back!
Mio at Our Special Harbor Spray Park in Alexandria.
Having fun splashing around
Mirei and I didn’t go into the spray area, but we had fun watching from the tented areas on the sidelines.
Mio on the pirate ship at Chessie’s Big Backyard
Mirei doing her signature expression, tucking her lips in.
An extra shot from the weekend, when we went to lunch at Pazzo Pomodoro the day before. Mio and Mirei are in matching shirts!
We had a busy weekend, attending a couple birthday parties on Saturday and then BrickFair LEGO Convention on Sunday with friends! See all the weekend fun below…
Dan holding Mirei at Clara’s birthday party.
Mio wading in one of the pools that were set out in the front yard.
The kids having fun with the water balloons.
The theme of the party was Frozen, and Mio loved all the Frozen-themed snacks!
Mio was having so much fun, but we had to leave Clara’s birthday party a little early so that we could also attend Augustine’s first birthday party, which was held at Westwood Country Club in Vienna.
The beautiful spread for Augustine’s first birthday! I had the honor of designing the backdrop.
Look at those amazing cake pops and cupcakes!
Mio getting her face painted.
Hello Kitty!
Mio smiling at herself in my phone camera.
There were cute props at every table!
Guest’s wishes for Augustine hanging on a tree. Such a beautiful idea!
Xiaolu meets Mirei
Doljanchi tradition… Auggie picked the ball! Future athlete!
Auggie with his parents and grandparents!
Mio was so excited that the balloon twister made her a ninja turtle balloon!
The birthday party had so much detail and thought put into it, and was extravagant like a wedding! Ploi did such an amazing job of throwing a birthday party to remember!
My brother stopped by the house while Mio was eating Pop Rocks for the first time (they were in a goody bag), in this pose. He asked, “What are you doing, Mio?” to which she deadpanned, “I’m popping.” lol
On Sunday, we got to go to the BrickFair LEGO Convention at the Dulles Expo Center because our friends had extra tickets! It was the largest gathering of LEGO enthusiasts in the area and there were quite a lot of impressive LEGO creations to see!
Mio and Kosei with a minion made out of LEGOs
LEGO Egyptian civilization
LEGO castle and soldiers
I particularly liked this theme park made out of moving LEGOs!
Mirei getting lots of hugs from Kosei. He’s got the big brother thing down!
Special thanks to the Smith family for inviting us along to BrickFair! It was a lot of fun for the whole family! 🙂
