Touring the Bird's Nest

I recently had the opportunity to go to Beijing. Among other exciting things, I got to tour the Bird's Nest (Olympic Stadium) and water cube. Of course, Hunter jokes with me that my favorite thing about the trip was getting a three day break from baby care. You will probably never see so many pictures in a post just featuring me. However, since Hunt and Archie weren't with me, pics of me (with Grace inside, of course) are all you get this time :)



Do you know these guys? I mean the Olympic mascots. It's impossible to live in Asia and not know them by name, but I was talking to some Americans at the Bird's Nest and was shocked to find they had never seen them. Their names are really cute. Bei Bei, Jing Jing, Huang Huang, Ying Ying, Ni Ni. (This means Beijing welcomes you.)


Here's the water cube!

Happy Mother's Day!

Archie made sure my second Mother's Day was a special one. When he whispered to Dad that he wanted to buy me some flowers, Hunt happily took him to the store. Afterward, Daddy took us both out for ice cream. Don't you like their matching clothes?

Baby's first haircut!

If you remember my haircut experience, you may be able to more clearly understand why we delayed until Archie's 19.5 month b'day to introduce him to the world of professional haircuts. (Yes, I have trimmed it a time or two myself with less than desirable results.) We purposely chose one of the only shops in our area that doesn't blare rock 'n' roll from the speakers and is relatively quiet. He did quite well, and the hairdresser assured us he cried less than the last baby she'd seen!

Afterward, he played in the chair by the sink. (You can check out the final haircut product in this pic, too.)
Haircuts are great fun for the whole family!
Dad even got one. (I've been steering clear of haircuts here since my last experience :)

Introducing Grace and funny sayings

We've finally decided on a baby name! Our little girl will be...

Grace Virginia (called Grace)

Since this may not be the most exciting post in the world, I thought I'd share a random, funny Archie saying. He has FINALLY started associating a few (very few) words with meaning. (I am still not sure Mama is one of them.) He is CRAZY about dogs and now hollers the local word every time he sees one. Unfortunately, he thinks dog is a general word to describe all animals and had a lot of trouble understanding why we were calling the little kitty we ran into yesterday cat instead of dog.

Random playtime pictures!

When Archie saw Daddy putting on his running shoes to go out and exercise the other morning, he brought me his shoes so he could go out for an early morning romp, too! While we were out, our neighbors set off to take their son to preschool. Archie totally idolizes his now four-year-old "older brother" and watched from the gate as he disappeared down the road. He really wanted to go to school, too.

I think Archie looks a little like he wants to be a model in this pic. Thanks Memaw and Papa for the cute outfit!
Archie enjoyed a few of the outdoor toys in our garden. Adults use the one below for exercise.


Archie was disappointed when it was time to go in!

Another walk down Center Street

Remember our walk down Center Street last year? Now that Archie is old enough to enjoy it a little more (especially the part by the river), come take another walk with us. This post is a bit out of sequence as the actual date of our walk was April 6. (We had the day off for the Tomb Sweeping holiday, but I think there were more people out playing than sweeping tombs!) You can tell from the pics that the weather had warmed up a lot and parts of the river were even starting to thaw!


I think the highlight of Archie's day was the pink bunny balloon. Although Hunter and I had already decided not to buy Archie any of the toys the peddlers were peddling, we were awfully glad when a nice college student gave this to Archie because it kept him entertained all afternoon and for several days thereafter. (It also served as a nice decoration at our Easter party.) We think we might spring for a balloon next time!

Another highlight was all the kids. Archie found plenty of little playmates while we were out.


This little boy was even nice enough to let Archie have a turn on his riding toy.

The little boy in the white cap below was really funny! Although he was a month younger than Archie and therefore a "little brother" his verbal skills were a little more advanced. When it was time to go and we put Archie in the stroller, he started to cry. The little boy continually comforted him by saying, "Don't cry, don't cry - bie ku, bie ku!"

Archie's preferred mode of transportation down the street - foot!

Most popular activity of the day? Kite flying! Maybe when Archie's older we'll try it, too!

Closet fun!

One of Archie's new favorite games is playing peek-a-boo from our bedroom coat closet. I think he could play this game for hours! This is also a major reason we've had to start start keeping our bedroom door locked. This game definitely requires parental supervision!