IT is fascinating to write blogs in such retrospect; it is January 24 and we are just writing the November blog; to be fair we have been sick and work has been stressful. To write blogs so far past we rely on any notes, if any that we took on Erin’s Google Docs, and Google Photos for the daily description. We we miss though are all the funny things that the girls say each day, the real reason for these blogs, to capture those things because you will forget even by the next day.
Curie continues to develop and grow, she has lost her front teeth and will need orthodontic work, but she is a trooper and her smile is relentless regardless of having her front teeth or not. Sometimes she smiles with her mouth closed, self-conscious, but invariably life lets her laugh and smile all the same. Of course all kids go through this, but when it is your child it is an important reminder that we must let the joy rise.
Last year was the first year we went to take pictures for Photos for EMA, and we had not realized what a good experience it would be. We take a lot of pictures and tend not to buy the school pictures, but the photo shoot gave her a lot of pride and she was on the school poster. We did it again this year with Elia, and in the shoot we saw Curie being the older sister, showing her technique in her photos. We would love to have the pictures without a back ground, but the kids love to pick their own background and the results, which we got at the end of the month are pretty impressive.
Early in the month we decided to get hotpot in Rockville at Urban Hotpot, but after arriving we found out that the wait was an hour and too long. So we Yelped hotpot places nearby and went to Hot Pot City, one of Urban Hotpot’s competitors. It was also conveyor belt and was easily as good as Urban Hotpot (Erin still likes Little Sheep more). We then went shopping – Lands end where the girls got robes for baths, and then to a little Asian gift shop where the girls each picked out something. Curie picked a doll set, Erin got and cat eye mask, and Elia, torn on what to buy eventually bought a set of Frixion markers. Three months later, we still use the Frixion markers, but don’t really play with the doll set; Erin’s eye mask was too small. Later that night we went to MOD and the girls drew the restaurant. Right when we were going to leave though, they wanted to give the picture to the restaurant (many restaurants have pictures they put up). The manager was so happy and went to put it up in her office.
We bought Ring Fit and though the game is big for the girls, they really love to play it. Curie in particular is eager to get ahead in the game and likes the idea of fighting dragons and having adventure. The kids are generally exhausted, but they have fun. In fact, the girls could play many of the games we have, Mario Kart being their favorite. In games where dexterity is critical, the girls would rather watch others play.
Curie did not want to got to Malee’s (a friend of Elia’s) party so Albert and Curie went shopping and did some errands while Erin and Elia went to the party. Curie and Albert went to Five and Below to get Malee’s present, and bought Daisy (from Marvel’s Secret Warriors) for her and Elia. We met up with the Hoaglands to have ramen at Gaijin Ramen and somewhere along the way lost one of the Daisy doll’s hands.
Albert had not gone to Sky Zone when Etta had her party, so we decided to go again since Elia wanted her birthday party there. Skyzone is definitely different than Flight (in fact we have not gone back to Flight since, and a third trampoline park is about to open soon), and Curie was Albert’s buddy for this trip. They did Wipeout together, Curie did the warped wall, and then Curie wanted to do this crazy climbing thing where you are harnessed and crawl up pillars higher and higher. She was so brave and worked to overcome her fears. She only got part way, but it was amazing.
On the home front, Curie continues to want to cook. One dinner, Albert and Eila made ribs while Erin and Curie made Oreo bark. We had peppermint Oreo-like cookies from Trader Joe’s so they became peppermint Oreo bark. This was from Curie’s dessert camp at Congo camp in a previous summer. Dinner was great.
We went to Frozen 2 with Julie and her friend, and Garrett, and Andrew’s family. We will leave details for Elia’s blog, but the girls loved the movie and have learned to sing the songs even before he parents have. We did not take Curie to the first Frozen because she was too small and we were anti-Disney princesses at the time, and Elia was not born yet, so this was an anticipated event for us, and we would go on to see it two more times, matching our Beauty and the Beast record. The fact that it is about two sisters is important and it resonates with our girls.
Natalie and Chloe remain two of Curie’s best friends and we spent some time at a park with Natalie right before Thanksgiving. For Thanksgiving we flew to Atlanta, and the girls were finally old enough to engage with the cousins some. They did not seem to feel left out and had a great time learning to play pool and foosball. Suephy and Ed did a great job planning our events so that we all had a good time. The only mishaps were in a scavenger hunt and when Papa got locked out of the movie when we saw Frozen 2 the second time with Albert’s family.
So Curie needs to work on whining, not being scared of little things, writing, and her math, but what that means is she needs to grow as a normal child and learn control, deal with life with bravery and courage, and assert herself as she applies herself at school. She remains sensitive and kind, plays with her sister, takes care of the family and works to be a great person. She laughs and hugs, and helps, she is wonderful and growing up to be just as wonderful.