The best thing about watching ET with the kiddos was definitely Lucas' comments and observations. At 3y3m I think he was the one enjoying the movie the most. The boys, as usual, were running around and hiding from the intense scenes. Naomi was super sleepy and somewhat (un)interested. So, the highlight comments were:
- Is that a turtle (upon seeing ET for the first time)
- Is ET evil? (me: I don't think so. Why?) - Because he looks like Dark Vader
- Does ET have a belly?
Definitely need to watch the old movies together...

2012 year in review

Of course this is late, as we are well into the second week the first month of 2013, but for those who know me, even posting this is an accomplishment.

So, here are our top family moments of 2012 (in no particular order). Praise the Lord for all the blessings in our life!

•  Went to North Carolina for my brother in law Graduation in May. Kids had a great time with the cousins, uncles, aunts, great uncles/aunts and grandparents. They even got to ice skate in the summer!

• Got an iPad: Our family is slowly going to the dark (apple) side. I have to say, it's pretty addicting (couldn't find a picture, but imagine their mesmerized faces)

• Visited carsland at Disneyland: The boys loved it of course, even though it was one of the hottest days of the year!

• Had a bunny and a puppy for a weekend: The bunny was from the boys' preschool and the puppy from one of Josue's co-workers. It was fun, but a big part of it was knowing I could return them in a few days. 

• Welcomed baby Lucas. That for sure, was the top family moment of the year. We were blessed with our 7lbs4oz baby boy.  Praise the Lord!

• Watched a Clippers game with the whole family at Staples Center. The game was a blowout (apparently now the Clippers are back to their non-winning phase)

• Camped in the balcony for Labor Day

• Naomi’s teddy bear picnic. Our little girl turned 2! Because she's so attached to her Winnie the Pooh, we decided to make a picnic at the park. They had tons of fun!

• Saw a high school football game at Angel Stadium (November) 

• Watched an Air Show in San Diego. It was loud! We got to see the Blue Angels

• Boys’ bouncing party. Big celebration for their 5th birthday with school friends and their favorite aunties! 

Kids' update

Matthew and Nathan: They are growing up fast. If they could they would play the whole day, with each other mostly. They are loud and fast and love driving their plasma cars. To each other they are "brother" and "Buzz". Often times I watch them play and talk and that's already entertainment for me! It must be awesome to be a twin! Their biggest thing in 2012 was learning to read! "Oh, the places they'll go..." 

Naomi: She's our independent, spirited, wild girly princess. This little bundle of energy grows leaps and bounds in all aspects. At 2 years of age, she can swim by herself, opens the door (with the key), chooses her own clothes and shoes, wants to boss us all and has an attitude. Can't wait for those teenage years!

 

Lucas:  He is the happiest, chubbiest baby of all. Sleeps a lot, drinks lots of milk, loves watching his siblings play, and is pretty content most of the time. He had a small dimple on his cheek, but that disappeared with the increase of the baby fat. So far he's a very chill baby, we'll see what happens next! 

We are looking forward to 2013 and what the Lord has planned for us!

sesame street

Nathan: Mamãe, eu quero ir no Sesame Street
Eu: Como que vai lá?
Nate: Vc pega a 405, daí a 5 south, 5 north, 55, 57, 60, daí chega lá

Oatmeal

Outro dia o Matthew viu uma veia em mim e perguntou:
Mamãe, vc tem dodói?
Eu: "Não, isso é a minha veia"
Matt: "É o seu oatmeal?"

Grandma stuff

No final do ano passado a Avó passou bastante tempo conosco e os meninos, claro aprenderam muitas coisas com ela. Depois de quase 3 meses que ela voltou pro Brasil, eles ainda repetem muita coisa.

Árvores pequenas: Quando vamos pra escola, pegando a 22-E, eles sempre falam: "Árvores pequenas". Eu acho (pq não estava junto) que a avó sempre falava isso quando ela os levava.

Ir pro Brasil: A avó disse que quando eles fizessem 4 anos poderiam ir pro Brasil, qualquer pessoa que pergunta pra eles, o Matthew diz: When I am 4 years old, I go to Brazil. O outro dia o colega deles, Andrei, fez 4 anos e ele falou pra mim: Agora o Andrei pode ir pro Brasil

Dinheiro Caro: Estávamos indo pro 99Ranch e eles perguntaram se eu ia comprar Asian Pear. Eu disse que não, pq era muito caro.
Meninos: "vc não tem dinheiro caro?"
Eu: "Não".
Nathan: "Eu sei quem tem dinheiro caro. A avó" (pq eles ganharam muitos presentes de Natal). pausa... "Só velhos tem dinheiro caro?" (pq a A-ma deu Asian pear pra gente)
Eu: "Aham!".:)

Big Lolipop: Voltando a Disney com a Raquel e a Susan um dia, elas compraram pirulitos pra eles. Eu acho que eles viram alguma avó dar um pirulito grande pra uma criança, pq eles sempre me perguntam: "Só avó que pode dar lolipop grande?". Eu digo que sim, claro!

Milestones

A Naomi virou pela primeira vez ontem e hoje começaram a sair os dentes de baixo. Ela não parece muito fã de virar, já que a posição preferida dela é de bruços. Tá tentando se arrastar tb

Toy story dilemma

Os meninos estão sempre brincando de "pretend". Por causa do Toy Story 3 (pois é, não escapamos da Disney) o Matthyew é o Buzz e o Nathan é o Woody. Conversa entre eles":
M:"Woddy, are you a cowboy?"
N:"Yep"
M:"So, Bullseye is a cow"?
N:"No, he is not a cow, he is a horse"
M:"Why?"
N:"hmmm, because he is brown"
M:"So you are a horseboy?"
N:"No, I am a cowboy."
pausa...
M:"That's crazy!"

It sure is

kid's update

Since mommy is an engineer, here are some quick updates, in bullet points

Boys @ 3 yrs, 2 months
- Can ride the scooter pretty well
- Are learning to roller skate
- Know all the letter and numbers - we are starting to teach them to read
- Know how to navigate the internet and know that we can watch movie on demand on Netflix
- Matthew says he wants to be a fireman, Nathan a swimmer guy. They say Naomi will be a princess
- Favorite cartoons are Wonder Pets, Little Einsteins, Bob the Builder.
- Are almost 100% potty trained. Some accidents at night, only
- Love to go to school

Naomi @ 4 months
- Prefers to be on her tummy (can't roll over yet), but screams if you leave her on her back
- Loves watching her brothers play
- Tasted rice cereal for the fist time - wasn't very excited about it
- Can sleep 7+ hours straight (mommy says thanks!!)
- Yells and complains if you want to play with her and she is tired
- Apparently knows how to talk to her grandparents in the computer
- Is very ticklish!
- Takes a bath with her brothers (has been doing it since she was 3 months)

low maintenance kids

I love how low-maintenance the boys can be when they are playing. They are easily entertained with so little. A few days ago they spent the entire morning looking at the Lego website, featuring Toy Story toys. All they need is a picture to come up with stories and adventures. Some other precious moments :)

Using my tupperware as fish tanks for their playdough fish



Family of measuring cups

Things 3 year olds say nowadays

Tenho que registrar algumas frases que os meninos dizem que não tinhamos idéia na mesma idade.

"On demand" - quando querem assistir algum desenho
"I want to do my communication" - quando estão usando computador
"Quem mandou email pra vc?"
"There, the Eifel tower. You don't see it? It is on the Google Maps?"

laughing out loud

Hoje a Naomi começou a dar risada. Ela começou a sorrir um pouco depois de um mês (dia 16 de novembro), mas hoje foi uma gargalhada mesmo. Quem conseguiu com que ela risse foi no Nathan. Depois tentamos fazer ela repetir mas não deu. Ela é fã dos irmãos mesmo.

google translator

Hoje voltando pra casa os meninos estavam falando. Mamãe, a Mrs Schroeder é a lao-shr da escola dela, né? Eu: sim. Lao-shr em português é professora, e em inglês é teacher.
Eles: e em taiwanês?
Eu: Eu não sei,, porque eu não sei falar taiwanês
Eles: Só o papai?
Eu: Sim
Nathan: Mamãe, vc tem que procurar no Google

Será que eles já sabem usar o Google translator? hehe

Dancing

The boys definitely can tell there is a party - and a dance floor

Starbucks

Hoje eu dei um pouquinho do meu café (descafeinado) com leite sem açúcar pro Nathan porque ele queria experimentar. Sabia que ele não ia gostar. O diálogo:
Eu: Gostou Nathan?
Nate: Não... Mamãe, se eu tomar café do Starbucks eu vou gostar?
Muito espertinho pro meu gosto esse cara! haha

Children or Adult?

Another matt and nate conversation

Nathan: This is not for you, it's for adults, you are children
Matthew: I am adult because I am wearing underwear!
Nathan: You are children because you with diaper
Matthew: I am with underwear

potty training

Na semana passada (23 de agosto) começamos "oficialmente" o esperado potty training. Em vez de usar os pull ups que tentamos antes, partimos pra cueca direto. Os primeiros dias foram estressantes - xixi no chão, no tapete, nos brinquedos.... ugh! O prêmio final para quem não usasse mais fralda era uma scooter. Na sexta feira o Matthew só teve um acidente, e como eu tinha visto uma scooter no craigslist, fomos procurar no sábado. Saímos sem fralda - ai que nervoso! Conseguimos comprar a scooter e ficamos quase 3 horas fora, sem acidentes!! O Nathan foi até no banheiro do restaurante e do Wal-mart. Impressive!
E aí veio o domingo... O dia inteiro longe de casa. Saimos as 9 da manhã e só voltamos as 9:30 da noite! Bom, teve um super acidente (o número 2 fez número 2), mas em geral, a good day!! Vamos ver se a gente consegue ficar assim, porque as aulas começam na semana que vem!!

Soccer

Called the boys - "Brazil is playing"
Nathan shouted "yaaaay"- he was really excited, no kidding. I think all the World Cup and cheering really affected them.

While watching the game: Nathan "I want to go there"
me: "It's in New York, too far for us to go"
Nate: "Like the meat?"
Hmmmm... yeah, like the New York steak :). Another phrase to record!

matt and nate conversations

The boys are really into talking to each other and really mimic whatever we say:

Matt crying because he is hurt
Nate: Matthew, don't cry, I am "mo-mo" you (means patting in chinese)

Nathan to Matthew when we are walking outside: Matthew, give me your hand. Do you want other people to get you (that's what I tell them)

Matthew after going to the potty: Can I have my scooter now? (that's the ultimate potty training prize)

Other random conversations

At Sunday school with daddy...

Teacher: "King Salomon was going to build a temple"
Boy (don't know which - need to ask daddy): "Why, was it broken?"
Then all the kids started asking, why was it broken... :)

After the Bella Terra concert, I decided to ask them what do they want to be when they grow up. I didn't explain anything, so after a while Nathan said "a driver" and Matthew agreed and said "A school bus driver and there won't be a jaguar there" =0. It's probably because I told them that only grown ups can drive (they always try). No idea where the jaguar part came from.

VBS

Nessa última semana os meninos foram pela primeira vez para VBS, de uma igreja aqui perto de casa. Foi meio por acaso. Estávamos visitando a pré escola daquela igreja e como tinha uma EBF, resolvi levar os meninos.

Eu fiquei com eles nos dois primeiros dias, mas depois dei uma saída pra ver se eles conseguiam ficar sem mim. Fui fazer grocery shopping, e disse pra eles quando a gente estava indo pra VBS. Apesar de eles falarem "mamãe, não vai!" eu fui mesmo assim. Quando eu voltei, eles falaram. Eu nem chorei! :)

O que mais eles fizeram lá foi brincar. A história assistiram mais ou menos, mas aprenderam as músicas. Na hora do louvor o Nathan ia lá na frente e ficava dançando, na maior cara de pau! Eles gostaram bastante e começaram a participar mais ao passar da semana.

Pérola do Nathan: Na história, a professora disse: "Then Jesus died". Nathan: "Mamãe, por que Jesus mergulhou?" :D

Pictures of them playing: