Christmas time in the City

Kevin suggested that we take Hana to Union Square since it was such a pretty night. My first response was 'no' because it seemed like too much activity for a Tuesday night but I agreed because I knew Hana would love it. I am so glad we went! It wasn't that cold out and the sky was clear. Hana was so mesmerized by all the lights. She loved running around Union Square and I loved not having to go into any shops because my Christmas shopping (and wrapping!) has been done for a couple of weeks now. We enjoyed some warm refreshments at a cafe right in Union Square. Hana sat long enough to stick her PB&J into Kevin's coffee and was off to greet the other patrons and explore.
We stopped at the Crowne Plaza to wash Hana's sticky hands. We found this Christmas tree set up outside the ballroom where we had our wedding reception.
Whenever we take Hana on evening excursions, she wears herself out. There is nothing more precious to us than a snoozing Hana. We love peeking in on her while she is sleeping.

We are thankful for....

family, great food and no travel on Thanksgiving! We typically spend Thanksgiving at my grandmother's home in the East Bay. She is 85 and doesn't have the energy to have us over for the holidays any more so we went to spend the day with Hana's grandparents and her uncles who were home from school. It was weird not seeing Grandma but we loved that we could just pack Hana and all our goodies in the wagon and walk over to my parents' home. We had my little brother play photographer and attempted to get a picture of the three of us for our Christmas cards. After many attempts, we gave up.

Below is one of the pictures that did not make the cut.
We didn't think we would see Grandma this Thanksgiving but my brothers surprised us by bringing her here. It has been many years since she's been on our side of the Bay Bridge. We were so excited to see her and she loved being with Hana. Hana loved all of our Thanksgiving feast but her favorites were the homemade kimchee and the cranberry sauce.
After a full day of attention and non-stop eating, we bundled Hana up and headed home to put her to bed. Everyone joined us a bit later for dessert and conversation, without Hana trying to steal the spotlight. We must have had a lot to talk about because it was 12:30 am when we all went to bed!

Girls' Day!

I had the day off today and cannot explain how excited I was about the opportunity to spend some one-on-one time with Hana. We usually get 1/2 to 1 hour alone together every night before Dada gets home but that time is spent in the kitchen making dinner. I am glad she enjoys watching me cook! I had taken some 'self portraits' of us together this morning but Kevin convinced me NOT to include them. Apparently, the sight of me 'looking like I just woke up' was something that Kevin did not want anyone to see (for my sake, he claims!)I will admit that I vainly put on make-up and changed from my 'Mr. Pickles Sandwich Shop' T-shirt to something more fashionable before Hana and I headed to the park.

I had to take the picture above because for once she was not moving! By the way, I must mention that I LOVE the town we live in and don't ever want to leave. It's too bad that the beaches were closed due to the oil spill or that would've been our next stop.
After our trip to the park, I took her to McDonald's for lunch. I almost felt guilty for taking her out for fast food but juice, apple slices, chicken nuggets and the french fry she stole from me can't be too bad. She definitely loves her condiments, just like Mama! She was so well behaved and quietly enjoyed her meal. Why can't she do that when we go out to restaurants?!

It was a wonderful day and the best part is that we get to do it all again tomorrow!

A Rainy Saturday

Because of the rainy weather, we had to cancel our plans to spend the day outdoors. We thought that meant that Dada could watch football, Mama could read a book and Hana would quietly play. Hana decided to throw all the contents of her toybox on the floor and quickly grew bored. We knew that if we didn't go out and do something, Hana would tear our house apart! We decided to go bowling. Kevin and I used to bowl at Sea Bowl weekly when we were engaged. The one time we've taken Hana bowling, she was 11 months and not walking so she sat and watched us. Well, we all had a good time but it was tiring! It was 'Aerobic Bowling' because we would each bowl a frame, switch spots, chase after Hana and bowl the next frame with no rest in between. What a workout! Hana must have ran the length of the bowling alley at least 20 times.
It was nice to get out of the house but we were all tired when we got home and thankfully, Hana did take a nap, whew!
This girl has so much energy and cannot sit still. We've already determined that we can't enjoy a meal out anymore and I think bowling is now added to the list of things we cannot do again until Hana is older. Because it gets dark so soon and the weather is getting worse, our outdoor excursions are also on hold. One thing that we all still enjoy is our trips to our local malls where Hana can roam free and not really disturb anyone. However, I have this thing where I get my Christmas shopping done by the end of Nov. and refuse to go to a mall during the month of December so it looks like Hana needs to ready herself for a lot more time stuck at home!

Too Much Sugar

Hana absolutely loved trick-or-treating! She first stopped at Momma's work to trick-or-treat around the office. She learned how to fill her bag with candy and gave a little Yoda a hug and a kiss. After she left my work, I called Kevin and heard her in the background saying

"Mmmm, that's good!"

We weren't sure about taking her trick-or-treating at night but thought we'd at least go to our neighbors' homes. Well, Hana caught on quick that all she had to do was stand there looking cute while her bag got filled with candy. We ended up taking her around our whole street and her PawPaw and Harmony also showed up to see her in action. They were amazed that Hana was not shy or scared about marching up to everyone's doors! When we got home, we took a moment to see how much candy Hana got. Much, much more than she needed! We let her have a Tootsie roll and a mini Tootsie pop and the rest of the candy has gone into hiding!