On Tuesday, the last day of March, my parents and I took the girls out for an outing to Meadowlark Botanical Gardens, as the weather is finally starting to warm up! It’s my Dad’s favorite local garden/park to go to, so it’s become a sort of annual tradition to visit a few times a year! He took a lot of photos, so I thought I’d share some here on the blog.
Grumpy-faced Mirei
Mio by the water.
Obaachan feeding Mirei snacks
Mio looking out at the geese from the interactive children’s garden
The girls with their grandparents
A video of the girls at the Interactive Children’s Garden area:
Look at those towering plants!
Mio loves this park too, and she was happily skipping and running all over the place!
Mio running ahead of my parents
Some videos from when we got to the gazebo:
The girls sitting in the gazebo. I love the plaque that reads, “We are all meant to shine.”
Such sweethearts.
Mio giving Mirei a hug! So adorable.
Sisters, but they look so different.
No more nice sister! Mio yanking the water bottle away from Mirei.
Taking a rest before heading back to the car.
I love this photo of a couple sitting by the pond, watching the geese. The gardens will be even more beautiful when all the flowers come into bloom!
With the holiday season comes so much joy and laughter, and this month was definitely full of funny and sweet moments brought to us by our little girls! Here are some moments that brought smiles (and at times, uncontainable laughter) to our faces!
Mio making “alphabet soup” with her fridge magnets
Mirei creeping up from behind… Mirei LOVES playing with the mixing bowls and strainers.
Mio making funny voices, trying to imitate Minnie Mouse:
Look at Mirei’s ecstatic smile! They are so happy that Daddy’s home from work.
Group hug! So sweet… TGIF for the Daddy’s girls.
The girls listening to the talking Mother Goose doll sent to them from their grandparents in California:
Mio’s preschool had a pajama day, for when Santa came to visit them.Â
Mirei climbed into a cardboard box, we turned it into a makeshift bed… and it did not end well.
Mirei leaning against and hugging her Ojiichan. ♥ So sweet!
Mio on her last day of school of 2014. She came back with lots of Christmas-themed crafts, along with little treats and gifts from her teachers and classmates!
Mio randomly said this repeatedly one night…
Who is “John”?! We actually don’t know any Johns…?
Mio is excited to try Snocream! (Taiwanese shaved ice served out of a bus! Love the ice cube seats.)
A multitasking Daddy!
Mio discovered her purple velour tracksuit twinsie at the grocery store!
…before she fell asleep in the cart. Narcolepsy strikes again!
Mio reading the library book we had borrowed for Mirei. She still loves baby books, and she’s still my baby. ♥
We hope these silly and heartwarming moments bring you some holiday cheer! Can’t believe it’s already Christmas tomorrow!
Mio and I arrived in Virginia early Thursday morning, exhausted. Mio cried inconsolably for about fifteen minutes towards the beginning of the overnight flight, and although it was only fifteen minutes, it was the longest fifteen minutes of my life. I’m still uncertain about what was wrong with her, since I made sure to nurse her during takeoff and landing to make sure she didn’t get ear pressure problems. She slept for the last three hours of the flight, though, but I couldn’t sleep because I was afraid she’d slide off of my lap. The cabin of the plane was really hot, too, which made for a very uncomfortable five hours. Boy, was I relieved when we finally landed at Dulles Airport…. When we got to my parents’ house in Vienna, we just slept for several hours through the morning.
Mio got to meet some new members of Mommy’s family this time — my father, sister Miwa, and brother Kosei were all seeing her for the first time.
Mio met Auntie Miwa for the first time. She is already alarmed by her crazy aunt....
Meeting ojiichan for the first time.
Happy grandparents with their first grandchild.
My mom reunited with Mio. She was surprised by how much she'd grown!
Getting some love from Auntie Miwa.
My Dad holding Mio again. A proud ojiichan!
rMio wide awake from the excitement of meeting everyone!
I’m really happy to be back home in Virginia and am looking forward to the next two weeks that we’ll be spending here. We hope to spend a lot of time with family and friends, and just relax and enjoy our time here. It’s definitely summer here — hot and humid! I actually kind of missed the humidity of the Mid-Atlantic region, since this is the type of summer weather I grew up with!