"A successful man is someone who has lived well, laughed often, and loved much, who has gained the respect of others and the love of children; who leaves the world better than he found it; who never lacked appreciation of earth's beauty ; who always looked for the best in others and gave the best he had. "
- a variation of "Success" by Ralph Waldo Emerson

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Monday, September 24, 2007

Inner Harbor

It is always nice to visit Inner Harbor but this time is especially nice! Mom's Auntie and Uncle are visiting the states from China and it is the first time Alvin in the harbor seeing the boats!


Do you notice Alvin is always looking away from the Camera?

Too much attractions in the harbor, or my boy doesn't like to be a camera star?

Without the hat, you can see what my Daddy has done to my hair on the last day of summer?!


*** Alvin's Update ***
It is not that much going on lately, except that Alvin has learned another language: Iranian! He understands "Clap Hands" in Iranian (da-shi-da-shi). Try him out next time!

Alvin can walk pretty well right now - without too much arm balance and with shoes on.

Daycare teacher told mom last Friday, "Alvin is weird. He never cries in the center, not even when he fell and got a bump on his forehead."

Monday, September 17, 2007

Firehouse

The Germantown Fire Department had its annual open house last Saturday. It is such wonderful event for kids. It features games, musics, foods, reptile petting zoo display, fire simulation, equipment display, and it is educational! Even Alvin enjoyed it !


Compare to my tricycle at home, this one has more bells and whistles.
Ride on the back of a Firetruck!

What's wrong with my parents? Even I know it is backward!

Woo...this giant thing matches my cloth colors. Must be a new toy mom bought for me.
Oh, no! It is flying away!!! (The helicopter takeoff swept up the dirts and grass and Mom was trying to protect Alvin. But he insisted to watch it off.)

They are eating my melon. Let me get in because I can crawl faster than they do.

Catch me if you can...

Monday, September 10, 2007

Look Out...

What is new? The Fountain Hills community has a new pedestrian! This little determined mind doesn't want to hold his mom's hand and he is up and down the street all by himself. So, watch out for the new traffic!!!


This little brave mind is also not afraid of anything. If he collapses or falls, he just gets up and walks again! He just enjoys his new freedom so much!
Mom read from a toddler book and found this paragraph: "Keeping up with the toddler's whims can drive parents 'up a tree' during this time. Some years ago a noted athlete tried to keep up with the gross-motor actions of a walking toddler. He literally fell apart by midday and gave up following the child about." This is sooooooo true. If I collapse on my butt 10 times a day, I will be totally disable by the end of the day. If I fall down on my knees only once, I am probably disable right then.

Marathon Social Events

Alvin was all booked up last Saturday. He attended 3 different events in a day!!!

Early in the morning, we took him to Imagination Station's Open House. IS is a school for early childhood education thru drama, acting and dancing.

Alvin enjoyed the games and singing in the toddler class.

And, we joined older childeren for a dance party.

Just after a 10 minitues nap in the car, Alvin woke up and found himself in Black Hill park for a BBQ Party. He was quite content in his portable highchair because he was placed just next to the foods.

He insisted to drink from a cup like other kids and he handled it pretty well (if we disregard the fact that the water dripped all over to his clothes).

Yes. Yummy..

The BBQ party exhausted Alvin and he took a long nap in the afternoon and he was all freshed up for Tiffany's Princess Birthday Party in the evening!

Gettysburg

Over the long weekend, we visited the great America history landmark - Gettysburg, PA. The parents claimed that they wanted Alvin to learn a little American history but the real reason behind it is that the town has a new shopping outlet. :)

In fact, we did learn American Civil war history and paid tributes to the soldiers fought for their freedom.

The famous 10 sentences 277 words 2 minitues speech byAbraham Lincoln

"Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate -- we can not consecrate -- we can not hallow -- this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."