Christmas 2010 in Woodland Park, CO

For Christmas we went to Uncle Roy and Aunt Jeanne's house. It was the first time they had met Siena and we had a really nice visit. We were able to take the Cog Railway up Pike's Peak (14,000 feet) on Christmas Eve and we had a spectacularly clear day. It wasn't even that cold at the top (approx. 20F) and just a little windy. We took a few photos and then went inside to have some of their infamous (and greasy) donuts.

During our visit Siena fell in love with Nora and Nick and kept them busy chasing them around.

Christmas Day Uncle Roy engineered a pulley system to drop the turkey in the deep fryer. It was amusing but worked out well and tasted great. Siena had a few friends to play with and by the end of the evening was literally crying that she wanted to go home with them. It was quite a funny site.

We left the day after Christmas and were lucky enough to actually get home due to a blizzard. Our original flight on Southwest was cancelled but we scored 3 seats on JetBlue and were one of the last flights into Boston that evening. We had a REALLY nice trip but it was great to be home and see Abbey and Finley who we missed very much.

Beaver Creek, CO

For the Christmas holiday we went to Colorado to do some skiing in Beaver Creek and then headed to Woodland Park to see Aunt Jeanne and Uncle Roy.

We had a blast in Beaver Creek. There was a ton of snow and the conditions were great. We packed a lot in in 3 days. Siena went skiing for the first time, we went ice skating (back breaker for Justin, knee killer for me), poked around the village, tried to go tubing but Siena wimped out and of course we ate very well.

It was a nice and relaxing adventure.

Kiana Turns 3!

Kiana's birthday party was today. She had a great party and Siena had a nice time seeing her friend.

Thanksgiving 2010

We enjoyed a Thanksgiving feast at the Leland's house. The whole gang was there and we had a great holiday. Siena of course loved spending time with her cousins!

We also got all dressed up and went to see the Radio City Music Hall Christmas Spectacular with Lara, Jed, Luke and Jackson. Siena literally sat on the edge of her seat for 2 hours clapping and bopping to the music and Rockettes. It was a great show. Santa was outside the theatre when we arrived and Siena was not too interested in saying hello to him. On the way out though she discovered that he had candy canes and soon he was her new "best friend"!

Adoption Finalization

We headed to Worcester Probate and Family Court this morning to participate in Siena's Adoption Finalization Hearing. We met with the Hon. Gregory Roach who asked us a few questions, talked with Siena, gave her a stuffed bunny and then signed our paperwork.

The Judge and the Clerk were super nice and allowed us to take a few photos to commemorate the occasion.

The three of us then went out for breakfast to celebrate. It was a very nice morning and great way to start the holiday season.

Siena Turns 3!

Siena turned 3 on November 3rd. We enjoyed a quiet evening together the evening of her actual birthday. We had a party for her that following weekend that despite all the, "Hello Kitty" hexes was a lot of fun. We are convinced that Hello Kitty is bad luck.

The day of the party at 7:30a.m. we got a call from BJ's where we had ordered the Hello Kitty cake 6 weeks earlier. They were calling to tell us that they didn't have any Hello Kitty cakes. What??? So we picked up a cake and put a Hello Kitty candle on top. No big deal.

At 3p.m. the day of the party, Justin went to pick up our food for the 20+ people that were in our kitchen and hungry. The caterer didn't have ANY recollection of our order. They finally did find it in their email but at that point they hadn't prepared our order. We ended up with a BBQ feast instead of the Chicken and Eggplant Parmesan. People seemed happy with the food.

The 3rd strike for Hello Kitty is we had contracted with a local kids musician to come and play for the kids. He never showed up!

The moral of the story is don't plan things 6+ weeks in advance because everyone just forgets about you. I need to make a better effort of being a last minute Nelly....but it drives me crazy!

Siena had a great time at her party and was spoiled rotten by all of her friends and family. Hello Kitty couldn't curse us completely!

Lot's of Fall Fun

We have been having a really nice Fall. We went apple picking at Tougas Farms with Melanie, Geno and Kiana and lucked out with a beautiful day. We spent Columbus Day weekend in RI and went to the zoo and carousal.

The past few weekends we have stayed in MA and just enjoyed being home. We hit the Circus last weekend which was at first overwhelming and too loud for Siena but she started to warm up after about 15 minutes and then really got into it. When we asked her what her favorite animals were at the circus she said, "the elephants, horses and cows!" Cows??? There weren't any cows but she apparently saw something that we didn't.

We are getting ready for Halloween. We carved a jack-o-lantern, got the ghost and goblins down from the attic and have Siena's costume all ready to go for next weekend. She is going to be a hippie!

China Family Reunion

This weekend we traveled to the Streicher's home to visit with our China families. It was a really nice time with all the girls. We had a delicious dinner and a brunch and then headed back home. Siena was so exhausted she took a 2 hour nap in the car.

Shay's 3rd Birthday and Bolton Fair

We had another nice weekend. We spent Saturday afternoon celebrating Shay's 3rd birthday. She had a bouncy house, sprinkler and "duckie" pool. All of which Siena loved especially the bouncy house. It was a beautiful afternoon and it was great to see Shay, Quin, Kiana and Ivy.

Today we hit the Bolton Fair. The fair is a little hokey but Siena had fun. She went on a pony ride, saw a pig race, pet the cows and goats and the highlight was the Frisbee catching dog show. They were pretty cool.

Siena and Finley

Siena and Finley are becoming best buddies. She loves to snuggle him and give him kisses. When he is calm he is more than happy to sit still and get hugs from her. Here are some photos of the two of them on our front porch having fun together.

Finley graduated from Puppy Kindergarten last week. We are enrolling in some additional classes over the next few weeks to keep up the training and discipline. He has been doing very well and plays nicely with the other puppies.

Nice Summer

So we haven't blogged in awhile but we have been having a really nice and relaxing summer. Siena is doing well and is outgrowing her little baby belly and becoming a full grown toddler. As a matter of fact, we were told today that she is ready to move into pre-school, yikes! Siena is fully potty trained, talking a mile a minute, loves going swimming and on the boat and for the most part loves our puppy Finley.

Finley is also doing really well. He is now 29 lbs. (same as Siena) and will graduate on Monday from puppy Kindergarten (at least we hope so). We have been giving him nice runs in the morning which has helped keep his energy in check. He is also getting all his adult teeth which has helped with all of the chewing. He really is great and his mannerisms remind me so much of Asa.

Last Friday we played hooky and went to Canobie Lake Park. Siena had a blast. We then spent the rest of the weekend in RI. Robyn joined us for the weekend and we went to an outdoor concert where we had dinner and listened to the music. It was a fun weekend.

We are looking forward to seeing Mario, Cora, Amy and Aunt Kate this weekend!

Photo Shoot

We had a fun photo shoot for Siena. Colleagues of mine at PSC took some portraits of Siena and did a beautiful job. Here is their website if you want to see more of Mike and Andrea's work: http://www.athousandwords.me/portrait/

They worked very well with Siena and had a ton of patience which you need with a 2 1/2 year old on a very hot day.

Happy Father's Day

We had a nice and relaxing weekend. We spent the weekend in RI. We did some biking, hit the local farmer's market, went to the beach and then Justin, Jed, Lara and I went out to Persimmon in Bristol. We all ordered the tasting menu and tasting wines and had a really great time together. It was quite a feast!

We celebrated Justin's 2nd Father's Day by just hanging out and enjoying a nice day together along with the pups.

One Year Celebration

We got together with our China families this weekend to celebrate our one year anniversaries as families. All the girls are doing really well and enjoyed seeing one another. We will always have a special bond with this group of folks and enjoy their company very much.

On Saturday we went to NARA Park in Acton which was having a Chinese festival and then headed to Shay and Quin's house for dinner. Today we hosted a BBQ and the gang came over. Despite the rain we had a great time.

One Year Ago Today

One year ago today we were in China and becoming a family of three. We can't believe that a whole year has gone by and how much Siena has grown. She has blossomed and it feels like she has been with us forever in many ways and yet it seems like just yesterday we were meeting her for the first time. Here is a picture of our first night with her. She was so exhausted from the events of the day that she just passed out.

Happy family day Siena, we LOVE you! XOXOXOXO

Finley and Memorial Day Weekend

We are having a great holiday weekend. We LOVE our new pup, Finley, and he is adjusting well. We got Siena on the boat for her maiden voyage and she had a blast. Fun, fun!