Dragon Float

Dragon Float
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Our family had our first ever behind-the-scenes view of the Rose Bowl Parade. Hundreds of volunteers painstakingly placing flowers and seeds on color-coded sections of huge floats. This dragon float was being done by Cal Poly. We had a flower vial dedicated to our Ru Girls, so as it floats by on New Years Day, we will smile knowing about our teeny-tiny tribute.

Humpty Dumpty x2

Humpty Dumpty x2
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Fun in Pasadena -- many activities related the Rose Bowl Parade. Mostly it was an opportunity for the girls to run around outside and continue to enjoy each other's company. I have never seen Helen so tired. each day ends with her completely exhausted. It's wonderfully hard work keeping up with her high-energy friends.

Ru's First Hanukah

Ru's First Hanukah
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Erik & Kirsten hosted a beautiful Hanukah party for the extended Ru families. (We thought we knew how to throw a party until we watched these guys in action!)

The girls are wearing matching ponchos from Kirsten -- minus Kai who makes very discerning choices about her attire!

I got so tired I had to sleep in the swing...

I got so tired I had to sleep in the swing...
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

and I slept for an hour!

Jumpolene!

Jumpolene!
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

I see a Jumplene in our future... The girls put this Hanukah gift to good use, spending much of the day jumping, rolling, and bouncing. Ellie the dog even took a turn and was very happy to move on to other activities.

Countertop Cuties

Countertop Cuties
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

It's hard to resist babes in footie pajamas! Olivia, Maxine & Helen line up for their milk before bed. After a long day of playing, and a Hannukah candle-lighting, everyone slept well.

Hubei Girls Celebrate Mae's Birthday

Hubei Girls Celebrate Mae's Birthday
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Ever tried to take a group photo with several almost-2-year-olds? Picture constant movement! Here they are -- so much more grown up from our visit this summer.

Our Ru-Girls: Mae, Kai, Maxine & Helen

Piano Portrait

Piano Portrait
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

The girls had so much fun playing with each other. If you look close at this photo you will see Maxine's feet underneath the curtains where she is hiding from Helen.

Happy Birthday Mae!

Smith Green Sibs
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Mae is the first of our Hubei girls to have her 2nd Birthday. There will be many more through the month of February. Mae charmed everyone with her long locks, pink french cuffs, beautiful smile, and rough and tumble play.

Guitar Girls

Guitar Girls
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Back to Camp Press for a Ru-Reunion. Helen & Maxine pick up right where the left off in August. It is such a treat to be in close contact with the families that we travelled with to China.

Christmas Day

Christmas Day
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Our holiday was intimate, and one of the treats was going to the Christmas Day service in Redway. Helen enjoyed the music and the singing talents of the Demant family.

The Bag is Most Interesting

The Bag is Most Interesting
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Helen definitely knows what to do now when she sees a wrapped gift. Although her attention span was sporadic, she got the hang of this whole Christmas thing.

Baby Doll From Santa

Baby Doll From Santa
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Santa was good to Helen -- a new baby doll, and countless other gifts that it will take all year to enjoy.

Santa Hat

Santa Hat
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

A parting Christmas image -- Helen in a Santa hat!

First Visit with Santa

First Visit with Santa
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

I think the first visit with Santa goes much better when you're not forced to sit on his lap -- it takes time to figure out whether you want to share that kind of space with a big guy wearing red velvet.

We've been slowly introducing the idea of "Santa", but it will probably be another year before the concept becomes real.

The Birds

The Birds
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Helen had a Hitcock moment with a flock of pidgeons who swarmed the plaza looking for handouts. A couple of times there was clowd of feathers as they took flight sending Helen's hair and dress billowing in their wake. She was startled, but remained calm and took in the experience.

Gifts with Great Grandma

Gifts with Great Grandma
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Helen has taken over as gift distributor this year -- a job that I've had for about 37 years! She was a great elf and enjoyed her visit with Great Grandma Kline. Since her last visit to Eureka 6 months ago, the changes were dramatic -- no more walking with the walker -- it was all about tumbling off the couch and exploring every corner of her environment.

Helen and the Birthday Boy

Helen and the Birthday Boy
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Dad is one of those special people (along with our friend Edith) who has a birthday on the eve of Christmas eve. For the occasion, Helen practiced singing the Birthday song all day long. It goes something like this -- "Abbo-bowdy TOOO-UUUU". Dad says that this was the best rendition of he's ever heard.

Lights, Camera, Smile!

Lights, Camera, Smile!
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

The tree finally did get decorated. We kept waiting for the right night to do it as a family, and then realized it wasn't going to happen that way! Chris and I did the job one evening, and then Helen had the experience of waking up and seeing the tree transformed. It was fun to see her wide-eyed reaction to it!

Today marks our 9 month family anniversary. Going through this Christmas season together is surreal, and amazing. Tomorrow we leave for the Redwoods where Grandma & Grandpa are waiting for us to begin the season of celebration.

O Tannenbaum

O Tannenbaum
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Getting ready for Christmas feels like a whole new ballgame this year. Our tree is usually up right after Thanksgiving, but this year we barely made it to the tree lot by December 10th! We might get it decorated by the end of the week. However, our east coast gifts have been shipped, and a few other loose ends are coming together, and we might just be able to relax and enjoy!

Twin for a Day

Twin for a Day
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Here is Helen after ousting Griff from his seat next to Lindy. (Notice that the girls are holding hands!)

We met up with Jim and Hannah and Kip and Anne and our respective brood for a morning at Happy Hollow on Sunday. On a cool but sunny December morning we pretty much had the place to ourselves.

Poh Poh Story Time

Poh Poh Story Time
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Tis the season for Christmas parties, so Grandma Poh Poh came to town to babysit Helen last Friday. It ended up being quite momentous because Helen decided that it was time to start using her potty chair for real, and she's been consisently requesting to use it since then. We still have a long way to go in this process, but we are amazed at how soon the process started. This weekend Helen also started to negotiate -- something I didn't expect for a while. When requesting Altoids (what little kid likes Altoids?) she will bargain for "just 1"... and if she's really desperate, she will resort to saying "peeez".

Rockin' in the Free World

Rockin' in the Free World
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

In our Christmas shopping frenzy, we stopped by The Guitar Center (to take care of a certain nephew...) While Chris made the required purchases and chatted up the helpful staff, Helen and I did a few test drives with an electric guitar. We actually sat with this red guitar during the entire visit. She seemed to like how it felt in her hands, and she carefully ran her fingers across the strings.

2005 Holiday Parade

2005 Holiday Parade
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

We saw it all... from Mariachis to Marching Bands, from Falun Gong Practioners to the King-Kong sized inflatable Hello Kitty.

Helen was completely entertained for almost two hours which is much longer than she will normally sit still (by almost two hours).

Two Months Until Two

Two Months Until Two
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Twenty-Two Months on 12/2. Mark this as the day when Helen finally smiled for the camera on cue, and even repeated the word "smile" which she pronounces as "mile". Today she also impressed us by identifying "Dora" (as in the explorer) on her bandaid... She's never seen the show, but pop culture invades early. Bandaids by the way have become like stickers, a sort of fashion statement. She says the word bandaid perfectly.

"Up" Baby!

"Up" Baby!
Originally uploaded by Chris & Kelly.

Kyle, Kristi & Baby Owen came over for dinner last night. It was Helen's first long interaction with a small baby. She couldn't figure out why Owen wasn't more rambunctious. She kept commanding him "UP!" and he would just lie there. Then she laid herself down next to him and tried to sing her twinkle song, and he refused to participate with the proper hand motions. It was all very frustrating for Miss Helen. She finally walked off in a huff as if to say, "Gee, this one is really a dud!" (From an adult perspective, Owen is a total cutie, even more so in his immobility. Ah, those were the days!)