Sharing our life - all our adventures and bumpy rides. Family of four with two young boys - moved back home to allow them the similar experiences and opportunities we had living in North Carolina. Come explore with us!
Brent traveled to Beijing and Shanghai, China for business and I think he had a positive experience! After a 12 hour flight to Beijing, starting Friday 2pm Pacific time and arriving Saturday 7pm Beijing time, they rested up for a group tour on Sunday.
The tour started at the Forbidden City, touring the huge square in front of the Palace. Brent explained that it was even larger than the pictures do it justice - Tiananmen Square is the fourth largest in the world.
Brent said it was hot that day. Temperatures soared in to the upper 90's. He cooled off in the car ride out to the country for the climb up the Great Wall (only to sweat all over again).
Between stops they stopped at a local eatery the guide suggested. This was a common theme - Brent said all the meals he had there were amazing.
After a 45 minute drive, they reached the Great Wall.
Guide and co-worker across the Wall
Brent is in pretty good shape and he even commented the steps were steep and difficult. They are all irregular - so one step could be 4 inches high and the next 6 inches and the next a completely different measurement. This is also the renovated section - there is a section that you are "not supposed" to walk that continues beyond where the tour stops (but this is not America so no one is stopping you).
Obviously the point of this trip was for him to work with Amazon China and get their payroll set up.... But he definitely made time for some more nice dinners.
Sesame Chicken - the real stuff.
Peking Duck
At the end of the first week, the crew traveled to Shanghai for two days to do some business there. Brent stayed at a pretty swanky hotel - The Grand Hyatt.
This was his room on the 61st floor! All windows! And right outside the hotel he watched the cranes work on Shanghai Tower, expected to be open 2015 at a height of 2,073 feet (121 stories). Brent shared that Shanghai was a very wealthy city (definitely a city of haves and have nots) as walking the city he would constantly spot Lamborghini's, Porshe's and Ferrari's driving around.
View across the river at Shanghai's cityscape
Brent may have done a bit of shopping while he was there.....
Besides the Peking Duck, his favorite dish was the Beijing apples. He explained they are similar to candy apples, but without the red candy shell. You have to eat them within a few minutes of their arrival to the table otherwise they get too hard.
Final comments by Brent: I left on Thursday at 4pm Beijing time and arrived in Seattle on Thursday at 12:30pm PT, 5530 miles later. It was the first time I have ever been able to complete a true act of time travel. Next stop could be Tokyo.
Brock & Zoe playing on a hippo at the Woodland Park Zoo
We are so happy to report Brock has made his very first friend! There could be a little coercion involved as I have made a new friend too (the Mom of said friend).... but we're going with it! :)
Zoe is about 4 months older than Brock and has 4 months more experience climbing on things, talking, and giving big bear hugs that end up with Brock on the ground. I think it's working out perfectly fine since Brock is a little bigger for his age and can handle it.... or knows how to run away. Zoe is such a sweetheart - she doesn't smile for just anyone, so when she does it to you, you know she means it.
Exploring a wolves' den
Brock and I were flying solo this past week, so we had fun planning playdates around town. We traveled up to the Woodland Park Zoo on Wednesday. Brock and Zoe both loved the giraffes and the monkeys. There's a baby giraffe who turns 1 in August!
On Thursday, we met up at a fun splash park in Auburn (south of Renton). Unfortunately they weren't exactly feeling the splash part after a few mishaps of looking in to the pipes when the water was off, then getting sprayed in the face and head when the water suddenly was turned on!
After a snack break, it was time to head back out there.....
And play on the playground/dry part!! This park was pretty cool - multiple-person swings, in-the-ground merry-go-round, four-person see saws, a very large sand area and a faux river where you can control the pools (probably their favorite).
On Saturday night Brock and I were invited for a dinner playdate! We had so much fun! We had some yummy food and played with some new toys, including a very awesome sandbox.
They are adorable together. They were finally, actually playing together and it was the sweetest thing. Zoe tried to grab Brock's hand and bring him to a new toy, but mostly Brock was not interested in holding hands. Besides screaming back and forth to each other at the dinner table ("talking" - for "fun"), the highlight of their playing was chasing each other all around the backyard!
When Brent returns from China, we will happily reciprocate a dinner playdate at our home!
Happy 18 months to you, our little toddler! Oh my goodness is Brock keeping us on our toes these days! He gets in to everything! He has started talking a bit - more imitating what I'm saying - but he understands everything! His favorite toys lately have been Spiderman, the vehicle puzzle from Grandma Debbie and the train puzzle he received from Papa for Christmas - he LOVES sitting there and pulling the wooden dowels in and out. He really spends time figuring out how any toy works and can sit for a long time opening/closing/pressing buttons, etc. Brock loves his water table and playing with his bath toys. He is waving at anyone and everything these days - after lifting him out of the bathtub, he waves goodbye to the water in the tub! He can hear an airplane in the sky before even Diesel or Oscar! We are having a little issue with throwing things - everything! And to Brent's delight, he seems to be favoring his left hand.
Brock and I went to our first Well-Check appointment without Daddy.... only because he's away in China on business. :( Everything looks great and he is a healthy 'little' boy. Brock weighed in at 28.8 pounds (90-95th percentile) and measured 33.25 inches. I think he was doing his head scrunch again here because this time he was only 75-90th percentile.
You'll have to forgive the following pictures - they are scanned copies.
Brock looked like such a big boy riding some of these rides all on his own!
Here's a cute little movie of his horse ride.
And he enjoyed the Carousel! Surprisingly there were no seat belts for the little ones and the horses went up pretty high!
On Friday (Grandma's Birthday!!), Grandma, Brock and I headed to the park early while the other ones took their leisure. It worked out well so Brock could go on a few more little person rides before the "big kids" came. It was hot! Brock brought his bathing-suit so he could play in all the fun water activities!
Soaking wet!
We met for lunch at the Festhaus Hall - very large restaurant offering German food - and enjoyed a little show while we ate. Then it was time for more rides! I can't remember the last time I rode a big person ride.... the last few trips to amusement parks, I've been sidelined due to a certain little someone. ;)
That's us - third row from the back - Brian, Vanessa, & Nancy
My mother made reservations for the afternoon "London Rocks" show and they put on quite a spectacle. Brock wasn't too excited about a lot of the loud "transition" noise and would turn around and bury his head in my chest whenever something scared him (he enjoyed most of the music and dancing).
Fun times goofing off with Uncle Brian.
After the "London Rocks" music show, Brock and Grandma headed out to
have some quiet time at the hotel and the "big kids" got to enjoy more
of the theme park late! The crew stopped in Italy for dinner and it was quite a lot of food as my mother had purchased discounted dinner passes. Three types of cake anyone?
We managed to get in a few roller-coasters before it was time to scurry out of the park before fireworks. After tracking down a grocery store, we surprised my mother with a fabulous Carvel ice cream cake to end her birthday day!
We tried to go to the water park on Saturday, but it ended up being cloudy and the water was cold. Also water + mobile phones = bad.... so no pictures. Poor Brock was exhausted from his time at Busch Gardens.
The family ended up going back to Busch Gardens that evening, but it was really just for dinner.... and watching Brock ride some more rides!
I think we all looked forward to Sunday morning breakfast!
We said our goodbyes and Brian and Nancy headed north while we all headed east to stop in Chesapeake to visit with Caroline and Brett (the girls were with their grandparents in Raleigh). After three more hours in the car, we came home to do laundry and pack for our flight home the following day. It was a really fun trip and it amazes me how much we did in two weeks, but like always - we were glad to be going home to Brent, Diesel and Oscar.
My mother had a big birthday on July 18th - turning 60! Whoohoo! So
we all planned to meet up in Williamsburg, Virginia to celebrate her
birthday.... by going to an amusement park! :)
Brock ready for the car ride north
David,
Brock, my Mom and I arrived a little early on Thursday so we could
explore some Busch Gardens before Brian and Nancy joined us that
evening. It worked out well to be there later Thursday afternoon because
the Sesame Street section of the park was wide open for Brock to
explore and have some special time with a certain yellow bird.
First we went on a few rides - even my mother went on this ride and thought it was a little fast!
Then it was time for Brock to meet a special friend and he was in love!!
He could not take his eyes off of him!
Because we were there at a non-crowded time, there was no one behind us in line so we really spent quite a few minutes with Big Bird in this room. Alas it was time to go around the corner and see the pictures Busch Gardens took (and want you to buy). Brock was a little upset because he still wanted to play!
....so guess who came around the corner to see him!
These pictures are from the hallway. Big Bird got off his stool when he heard Brock whimpering to go back to Big Bird and came to play even longer!
Brock was super excited. He touched his beak, gave him "high five's" and even touched his feet! Brock just loved it!
"Big Bird, you are so tall!"
Of course after that, Elmo was no longer Brock's "go to" when we walked through the gift shop. He went right after a Big Bird stuffed animal. Aww how sweet.
