We've been here and there for the past few weeks and have lots to catch up on! For Christmas, we had a little Christmas Eve celebration with friends, and that night, Sofie put out the cookies she decorated and milk for Santa… We managed to find a [cheap, felt] Santa Costume for Su-Ting to don, and he played the part well: we woke Sofie up and had her peek into the family room in the dark, just in time to see "Santa" sneaking out the balcony door, having left behind lots of presents and the crumbs from a cookie-devouring, milk-chugging session. Sofie was totally speechless (stunned?), but when it all sunk in, a huge grin spread across her face and she commented how Santa Claus was hungry and made a mess. Santa left Sofie a scooter and a diva microphone & stand, as well as lots of books; Sasha got lots of stuffed things. Now that she can finally sit up (kind of), she's enjoying her toys a lot more.
The day after Christmas, we embarked on the marathon journey back to the States – our first long trip with 2 kids, but we also were lucky to have Su-Ting's parents with us so that we had 4 adults to pass the kids among. A day and a half of trains-planes-and-automobiles later, we all arrived at Stefanie's parents place in Naples, FL and the Hsu family finally got to meet Sasha! We had a week of jetlagged and sun-soaked fun - think Guitar Hero World Tour with the entire family, fishing on the beach, and indulging ourselves in American fast food. Su-Ting got the chance to restock his Taco Bell Fire Sauce stash, and Stefanie got to go to Target (4 times). The big family meals were filled with lots of wine and endless toasts, and we got to experience the bounty of The Kevin Evans' BBQ. We were very sad that Nancy & John weren't able to join us down there, but at least we got a chance to hang out with John's family, and Sofie had a blast with her "cousin" Ciera.
We then had to bid farewell to the Hsu grandparents and spent another week in the Bahamas at Atlantis on Paradise Island. It was definitely a relaxed vacation, and we took it day by day, enjoying the pools, beach and lots of family time. The guys took full advantage of the many water slides, despite the cold, and Sofie was a bit more brave and even managed a few of the baby water slides. Sasha seems to love the water too... so far.
Sofie with the "artifacts" at The Dig - she insisted on taking a picture with the pots...
A "condensed" version of the 750 photos we took while there:
