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Too long since last post!

Ok...it's been about 3 years since I posted. That's right--3 years!  Not possible to catch up so we are just going to start from here and try to do a little better in the future.  I guess anything would be better!  We are at the end of a 3 week family vacation in Asia.  We went to see Jeff's family in Vietnam and made a little stop in China on the way---just so we could say we climbed the Great Wall!  We have had quite an amazing experience and I have the pictures to prove it....and a stomach ache too!

What an amazing trip!

Summer 2009...is it really over?!

It is definitely over.

I am sad and I am dissappointed we didn't do more, but we did do so much that I haven't even mentioned...who has time to blog in the summer?!?!

Summer is my favorite time of year. I love that there is not a schedule and we can sleep late and not go anywhere if we don't want to (although this summer Chloe did a summer school enrichment program that made it feel a lot less like summer, so I am feeling a little cheated!), and we can go to the pool with friends and eat lots of ice cream...I can't say enough how much I love summer....I love being hot and I love the smell of sunscreen and I love seeing my kids play outside and I love the sound of the ice cream truck driving through the neighborhood! Wow--Have I made my point? I love summer!

And now it's over. Sad but true so I guess I need to move on, but before I do...

here are The Trinh Family's top 10 greatest things about Summer 2009 (...I hope I can get it down to 10):

1. VBS... it rocked! Everyone loved it especially the kids (and that's what it's all about--I mean that and the awesome decorations!!!

2. Cousins...you know in the summer you can spend so much more time playing with cousins either a long weekend or a birthday bash...whatever. I love that my kids get to spend time with and grow up loving their cousins.

3. Popsicles--no explanation needed. Although I will add that my personal favorite is the fudgesicle. yum! The kids like blue--but I think that is just because it turns their tounges blue.

4. Fruit...blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, peaches, watermelon, mmmmm....I love it all so much!!! And you can't leave out the watermelon seed spitting contest...great and cheap and delicious all packed into one fun fantastic family activity! You can't beat it!!! Jeff won this year's contest--no surprise there,
(next summer..look out jeff--it's on!!!)

5. Slip-n slide--I know this is probably a major hazard (right mandy!?) but the kids love it and it is so much fun to watch someone slip-n-slide...it's even funner to do (unless you fall and get a concusion...)

6. Traveling...goodness knows we do a lot of that! This summer we went to Tennesee, Alabama, Maine, South Carolina...is that all? oh yeah---New York! We saw grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, friends, you name it! We haven't actually been to the beach yet, but we are about to go-- so let's just add that to the list as well. Traveling is an awesome part of summer and I am so glad that I married a man who likes to go places as much as I do! We make a great team!

7. Going to the public library with the kids.. We don't do the public library in the school year because they get to check out books at the school library and there's book fairs and scholastic orders...but in the summer we go to the public library and check out books and spend lots of time reading. It's so much fun to see what they choose. I like to make suggestions, but usually those get shot down really quick! But this summer we--no, actually I found a book called Pyrates--The Lost City written by Chris Archer. It is a chapter book with no pictures so I was just looking for a book we would all enjoy that we could read together as a family...JACKPOT! The story is so great---they can't wait for me to read it to them each night (unfortunately we don't get to do it every night)---they like it better than tv...no joke!!! Since I am reading it aloud I can sensor out big kid words like "stupid" and such, but really I haven't had to do too much of that at all. It is a series so we are looking forward to finishing book #1 and moving on to #2!

8. Baseball...oh my goodness...did I actually type that? I never thought I would see the day that I would love little league! But Eliott loves it so much. And you can't love him with out seeing that...and watching him play is so much fun! And now I can see that you can't have summer without baseball.

Eliott played up this season--coach pitch with 7 and 8 year olds and he was the man!!! (In my completely unbiased opinion) :) He totally has his daddy's atheletic abilities (goodness knows he didn't get any of that from me!!!) and I am so happy for Jeff to have that bond with his only son. They have such a special relationship in that they are sooo much alike and have so much fun together. I know he will always love to play sports just like Jeff, and who knows maybe it will pay his way through college like daddy too! one can hope!

9. back yard art parties. Everybody knows that I love art. And I love that my kids also love art. Summer is a great time to go outside and paint little masterpieces!

10. I love summer, absolutely and completely! But at the end of the summer, when I am tired and worn out and the house it a disaster (we're tripping over every kind of ball, pool toys, art supplies, the tv is on...agian, and the red chair is piled high with laundry) and believe it or not the kids are even bored...I love that it is time for school to start. A fresh new start... I love it and I hate it...ya know what I mean?

Millie's birthday August 26th 2009

How is it even possible that my baby girl has just turned 4!?!? I know time flies...I've heard it before...but does it really have to travel at light speed!?
Millie is just the sweetest, most precious bundle of bouncy, sassy silliness! There that's what she is! She is the perfect one to complete our family of five. She is so much fun-- and I laugh so much because of Millie. I am so blessed to have my precious little silly Millie!
Kiki made Millie a fabulous cake on her actual birthday, August 26th--it was awesome! We had a little celebration with Bekah, Lukie, and Wyatt as soon as Chloe and Eliott got off the bus. It was hard to wait that long because the cake looked soooo good! And it was delicious! :)

The weekend after Millie's birthday we had her birthday party. It was a cupcake party--so easy and so fun--lots of cupcakes, frosting and sprinkles...good times!! We decorated cupcakes and spent a little time coloring and playing. Everyone went home with their own decorated cupcake and a hello kitty coloring book. Millie got lots of baby stuff--which she loves! She likes to be "the momma" and take care of her babies. She is always changing their diapers and feeding them bottles and giving them baths...she is going to be a great mommy one day!
I just can't believe how fast she is growing up. It makes me a little sad, but I love the little person she is becoming. She is just as goofy as can be. I think we have a special bond--- she actually looks like me, she's creative, silly, stuborn, not remotely shy, she has an imaginary friend (lily)...just like I did at her age, and she loves to laugh--but don't cross her or she'll push you down and tell you to shut your mouth....I just don't know who she got that from...can't be me!
And she sure is good at making other's laugh! She certainly makes me laugh all day long.

Millie, I am so very thankful for the day you were born. This family has not been the same since...we have been better. You add such a special quality of fun and pure joy to our lives and I am so grateful for you. I love you! Mommy

First Day of School 2009-2110-- Kindergarten and third grade too!

Chloe and Eliott went back to school today. They were both so excited. Mom was a little bit sad....and a little bit excited too!
Chloe started 3rd grade with hesitation...she heard there was lots of homework in 3rd grade! She left saying "I don't want to go to 3rd grade!" and came home saying "I love 3rd grade!" She is such a drama queen. She really does love it and I am so glad---even the homework.

Eliott was so excited to go to kindergarten. The was absolutely NO hesitation...he was so ready! I did get a little teary...is my sweet little boy really old enough to go to school?! How does it happen so fast? I am going to miss having him home with me. He is such a sweet boy. I know it won't be long before he has lots of new friends to talk about. And now I will have some special one on one time with Millie before she leaves me for preschool next week. But today she really missed her big sister and brother.

They were both excited about riding the bus and I was glad that they will be picked up at our drive way! Yay! No more walking up the hill to the bus stop! We rode to school today so we could walk Eliott to class his first day, but they rode the bus home.


I love the beginning of the school year and I am so glad Chloe and Eliott love school and look forward to the first day as much as I do.

Summer Vacation 2009

This summer we decided to take a road trip up the east coast to see Uncle Brent, Aunt Sue, Billie Jo and Natalie in Portland, Maine. The last time we made a trip to Maine was after Natalie was born...she's 7 now! So we were long overdue for a trip. We decided to drive because it was cheaper than flying 5 people (go figure! we chose the cheaper option?!?!) Not to mention, that's how we traveled when we were children and it was such a fantastic bonding experience for the whole family! (I am lying...it was just cheaper!)

The weather was great--I was a little worried that it would be chilly, but honestly it was hot! What a shock! We did go to the beach and the kids felt like little human ice cubes when they got out---no way did I even touch that water!






We ate lobster...more than one...Jeff decided he was going to be sick of lobster by the time he left Maine and I think he was successful!
Here's Eliott with his very first lobster!
and here's Jeff polishing his off...I don't think he's had enough yet!

Uncle Brent has apparently had too much lobster!


And Aunt Sue apparently had a little too much of something else... HA HA!! :)

We visited several light houses along the coast of Maine. It was really beautiful!




We picked blueberries...just like Sal!


We went to a native American Indian Festival--- kids got to do a little Indian dance and then it rained a little later...apparently they were doing an Indian rain dance!
One night Brent and Sue whipped up some amazing sushi...it was awesome!!!



And we also cooked a lobster dinner one night...here are the kids with their lobsters. Millie wouldn't touch hers without a napkin!


Jeff also managed to make a day trip to Boston with Eliott to see the Boston Red Sox play

and to the patriots training camp

Nice shot of Eliott with the Patriots cheerleaders...I am sure he will appreciate it one day!!!
That was the day Sue and I went shopping at the outlets in Kittery, Me. and Uncle Brent took the girls to Mackworth Island to build fairy houses. That is also the day Millie got a huge wad of bubble gum stuck in her hair and ended up with a great new haircut...alas if only the fairies could have been there to help me get it out maybe I wouldn't have had to use scissors!! :)

We really pack a lot into a vacation!!! Oh wait...we're not done yet!!

Of course we couldn't be that close to NYC and not stop at Aunt Brenda and Uncle Philips place. We spent a couple of nights in New York and did just a few things before we headed back home...went to the children's museum


played on one of the many playgrounds in Central Park,

had a double date (with Philip and Brenda) at a great little restaurant in little Italy and dessert at Cafe Lalo...where they filmed" You've got Mail".

and of course Jeff went back to China town for some roast duck--this man is completely driven by his taste bud!!! Well, almost.
We didn't really have a long list of things we wanted to do this time---we were just there in November and it was such a quick stop. But you know we pack it in...and wouldn't ya know....Jeff would find a way to squeeze in little sporting event! Jeff took Eliott to a Mets game with Uncle Philip and Jonathan while Aunt Brenda, Laura, Chloe, Millie and I all went to have a little "girl time" at Alice's teacup in Manhattan. It really was fun--I know the kids loved having their own little guy/girl time...and mom and dad loved it too!

The vacation was great. Being with family was great. The road trip was...well, it was great at times, and it certainly was great to have a dvd player in the car! But need less to say, after a 10 day road trip with multiple stops, traveling with 3 small children,traffic, a 10 hour drive back and not sleeping in your own bed for too long...coming home was GREAT!!!

I am so grateful to have a brother and a sister living in such fun places to visit! We are so blessed to be able to travel and do so much in such a short amount of time. The kids had a wonderful time--Chloe and Millie's favorite part of the vacation was Mackworth Island, ME. and the tea party in nyc and Eliott's favorite was going to baseball games with daddy...my favorite thing was being able to spend quality time with my family!!!

Grandma and Grandpa's Birthday Bash

Well, it has become quite obvious that I can't keep up...this blogging thang is for (the birds) very organized people out there with orderly and non-chaotic lives---I am just sure of it! So I am not sure what I was thinking! I am about to go on another family vacation and I haven't even mentioned the last one! Either I need to learn to type and upload faster or we (the trinh fam) need to SLOW DOWN!!! I think I know which one...

So even though I am pretty much lousy at this I still do it more than I ever did scrap booking...(which was..umm...Never!) So I may as well keep doing what I am doing--which is better than nothing. Hopefully one day my kids will look back and love all the fabulous things we did together as a family and will overlook the fact that I posted about july after school started in September. :)

The Wooten Family Birthday Bash goes back many years. I can't even remember when we did the first one. I do know that it was before I had Chloe because I remember getting a baby gift when I was pregnant with her...so at least 9 years. The Birthday Bash started because our family is scattered all over the US (and used to be all over the world), and remembering niece, nephew, cousin, grand children's bdays was tough and pretty much impossible to travel to all of them not to mention trying to mail out all those gifts each year! So, my parents have a weekend each summer when we cook out and have a HUGE birthday party for all of the grandchildren--11 in all! (Grandma really didn't want it to end on an odd number but it was up to me to produce grandchild #12 and Jeff was not interested---can you believe that!)

So we have hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, potato salad, cole slaw, tons of dessert, and the occasional congealed salad (be afraid...very afraid...one should never eat something that is called" congealed"--it just sounds bad! just call it jello for crying out loud!) I mean the Wooten family does love to eat!!! And then the kids open presents from grandma and grandpa and all the aunts and uncles. It's great...just like Christmas in July! My kids absolutely love this Wooten family tradition and I am so glad that we get to see everyone usually twice a year--Christmas and Birthday Bash! I love that my parents came up with this tradition--and I am sure when it started that no one knew it was destined to become a "family tradition". But isn't that just what family is all about...finding time to be together, in spite of the distance and difficulty or cost to get there. My kids probably think it's about the presents right now, but I think they are already starting to see that the joy of being with people you love and are connected to is better than any gift they can unwrap. I know they will grow up with wonderful memories of being with family each summer---Thanks Grandma and Grandpa!