Finally some sun

The summer is finally here and we are happy to be enjoying the sunshine on most days. We've been keeping busy going to the zoo, the pool and the beach among other things. And we're always hanging out with friends and family.

Zachary is turning into more of a big boy each day. He cracks us up all the time with the things he says. He talks non-stop. And asks a lot of questions. We have not gotten to the "why" stage yet but I'm sure it's coming. Some common things he says...

*"What's Mommy (Daddy, Sophie, Reba, etc) doing?"

*"Where are we going?"

*"What's that song (or house, or boy, or truck, etc) about?"

*"Daddy (or Mommy) be so proud of me."

*"What's that?"

*"Want a drink (or a snack, or some food, or a show)"

*"Watch this Alyssa..." Followed by some kind of trick like running fast or jumping or spinning. He heard the kids I took care of say the same thing, which is why he calls me Alyssa when he says it :)

I've taught him to say "Good morning, Mommy" when he wakes up in the morning. As soon as I would step into his room, he would say "Want sumpin to eat." Now, he's much more polite. Although, that request comes quickly after our good mornings.

Recently, he said the funniest thing when I went to get him out of his crib. His police car was on the shelf next to his crib. He said..."Why'd Daddy take my police car away. That's Zachary Chien's police car!" He said it with such a little attitude and his little hands on his hips. I laughed a lot. It's the funniest thing he's ever said. I assume he had been thinking about it for a while because he said it as soon as I walked in. I guess Chad took the police car away before putting Zach into his crib the night before. How dare him! After he said it, he did say "Good morning Mommy" so, that was good :)

We are off to the Cape for all of next week. We are renting a house with Lisa, Shaun and Quan. And Zach's Aunt Sarah and Uncle Adam will be in the next town over, so that will be fun! I am hoping for good weather!

Here are some recent pictures of the fun we've been having...

At the beach with friends... Swimming with Aunt Sarah at the pool... Swimming with Uncle Adam at the pool...Looking cute...Riding on a train at the zoo with Mimi...Playing with bubbles with Grumpa...Smiling for the camera at the zoo with Quan...Looking at the big bear with Quan...Zach and the jaguar...On a train ride all alone like a big boy...

Eating some lunch with Quan...

"No anuvum rainy day, pease."

Translation...No another rainy day, please.


It's been raining off and on (mostly on) here for weeks. It's getting old. We've been trying to keep busy doing fun things inside but we are running out of options. We are ready to go to the pool everyday. We are ready for the summer heat. Today, Zachary was looking out the sliding door, watching the rain. That's when he said: "No anuvum rainy day, pease." Although we've been keeping busy inside, clearly he is also sick of the rain.

Ways to keep busy in the rain...

Bake cookies...

Help mommy with the dishes...Climb, jump, slide at a super fun indoor play place...Play outside in the pool in the rain. You get wet anyway, right...

Play at another, equally as fun, indoor play place...Finger paint...Read books in the tent...Play in the puddles...

We love the warmer weather!

Now that the weather is warm, we can get back into the habit of doing fun things outside. Aside from playing in our backyard, Zachary and I love spending time at parks, farms and the pool. This weekend was our first trip to the pool together. Chad took him a couple of weeks ago but this was the first time I went this season. Zach had a great time playing in the little pool. He was not interested in going in the big pool which is fine with me right now. The water is way too cold for me, and I would have to hold him in the big pool. Last year, he only wanted to play in the big pool. Now, older and wiser, he is afraid. We will work on it when I am brave enough to go in myself. But for now, the little pool works for both of us! Today, we went to a great farm. Zach enjoyed playing on the playground, feeding the goats and strawberry picking! Zach probably ate more strawberries than he picked. I let it slide. He is only two :)





Happy to be back at the pool...Playing with some toys...
Fun in the water...Giving a high five to a friend...Swinging on a rope swing at the farm...Holding on tight...Feeding the goat..."He licked my finger!"Ready to pick...Taking a break...Yummy..

Our new house

Our summer is starting off on a great note. We are all moved into our new house and finally settled. Zach loves it here, as do we! We were lucky to not have to sell our last house. It's a two family house and we are now renting both apartments. We've always been fortunate with the tenants we've had in our first floor apartment while we lived upstairs. Now, we found great tenants for upstairs, too. Our first few weeks of being landlords while not living in the house have gone well. Let's hope it continues.

Our new house is a simple ranch style house with a giant backyard and it's in a GREAT neighborhood. We were not sure how we would feel about living in a ranch style home but so far we are loving it. Everything is so accessible, including our small child. Zach can never get too far in this house. Our backyard is wonderful. It's complete with a swing set, toys, sandbox, table and chairs and a grill. Zach would spend all day out there if he could. As would Sophie and Reba! I've become a big fan of grilling and we've even had a few cookouts with friends and family. I see many more cookouts in our future this summer!

We continue to work on the interior of the house. My father has been doing all of the work with Chad as his assistant. Chad is getting handier and handier by the day :) My father is a rock star! Things "we've" done so far...put down bamboo flooring, painted every single room and ceiling, painted and installed all new trim, molding and doors, installed new lights and ceiling fans, got all new appliances and toilets...And believe or not, we're not done. My father's next project is to make built-ins for Zach's playroom. And when that's done, we need to conquer the exterior. Yikes! We bought a fixer upper for sure but it looks great and it will only look better.

It's so worth it because of the neighborhood. We've been here a few weeks and have already met about four families with kids who are also two years old. We take walks on most nights and meet new families all the time. There are even a couple potential babysitters! The best thing is that Zach can get out of the car and make his way to the front door without us having to carry him so he does not get hit by a car. Our last house was on a very busy street. This house is on a street with a culdesac where people drive nice and slow! Zach likes this new found independence outside and, of course, tests us all the time. He knows that he is not allowed to go into the street by himself. He walks right to the edge of our driveway and carefully puts his little toes on the line that separates our driveway from the street. All while looking right at us. He is SUCH a two year old these days!

Here are a few pics of the new house...

Our awesome backyard...Giant...Our living room (and Reba)...Our dining room....One of our bathrooms (clean)....The same bathroom after Zachary has been involved...Friends enjoying the yard...Zach and Quan playing in the sandbox...

A couple of fun things...

Zach has had a couple of fun days. First, friends of ours had a birthday party for their Monster Truck loving three year old. As a surprise to all of us, the party was complete with a real Monster Truck. Zach thought it was cool. Our friends kids are really into these trucks. Zach isn't. He likes his cars and trucks but not any specific kind. We'll see what happens as he gets older.

Our second fun day was today. Zach went to see his first movie. We met a bunch of friends to see a Winnie the Pooh show here in Framingham. It was pretty fun. Zach was into it for a good hour, then he started to get side tracked. He passed the time by climbing the stairs over and over again. He would walk all the way to the top of the theater and appear at the other side. It was fine because there were not alot of people and everyone who was there also had small children. He had a great time and has talked about Pooh and popcorn ever since :)

Sitting in the tire of the Moster Truck...

Pretty cool..."I would like one of each, please."

Walking into the theater...Sharing some popcorn with Abby...Happy watching the movie while eating some popcorn...

Long time, no post!

I can't believe it's been so long since I have posted. I am not really cut out for this whole blogging thing. But, I do my best (sort of) so someday Zach can read about what was happening in his life when he was two :)

Zachary is such a two year old now. He talks non-stop, in 4-5 word sentences. He is very polite and tends to use his 'polite words' in context almost every time. He says things like, "Watch 'Go Go' please, No thank you, Excuse me please, Read books please, Wipe boogers please." All very sweet! Zach's new favorite things to play with are cars and trucks. He can play by himself for a long time, lining up his cars, driving them on the floors or tables, or just moving them from couch to couch. Zach is also into his temper tantrums. It's just about the cutest thing you will ever see. They usually have to do with food or watching tv. He'll whine or cry and throw himself on the floor. Very dramatic. They usually only last a few seconds, which is probably why they are still so cute! Zach LOVES to be outside. It doesn't matter if he is at the park or in the backyard, he just wants to spend as much time as possible outside! He really loves the park. He pretty much goes off by himself and climbs, slides, runs and digs in the sand box. Zach is a big sandbox fan. The other day, he found a small pile of sand outside. He sat next to it and drove his car in and out of the sand for at least thirty minutes. It started to rain, so I told him we had to go inside. He said: "Play in sandbox, please." Clearly, the boy needs a sandbox. Zach also still loves to eat. I think he eats more than me on some days. For example, last night for dinner Zach had pasta, ham, avocado and strawberries. He had a frozen fruit pop for dessert. About an hour later, we got take out from a Thai place. For dinner number two Zach ate pad thai, brown rice and chicken. And not just a taste of each, a whole meal. Crazy! AND, he's still the skinniest two year old you'd ever see! Zach also enjoys singing. He usually sings bits of songs here and there. But the other day, he sang a whole song! He sang "Rain Rain Go Away" from start to finish all by himself. It was pretty cute!

Here are some recent-ish pics of our little man...

Hanging with Reba...

Drinking some hot chocolate...

Watching "Pirate Go Go"...

Sitting like a big boy....Climbing up a net in an indoor playplace...He made it...Playing the piano with Quan...Hanging outside...Bubble bath...With his friends from Vietnam...