Hat's off to you, baby!

A (largely unplanned) week in Boise

In Boise, Iris finally got to meet her Oma and Gramps (Oma is German for grandmother), and they got some extra, unanticipated time together because our car died an untimely death on our way out of town. We ended up buying another car in Boise, and our old car is now in my brother's driveway, with the engine in a box in the trunk. Oma and Gramps came through like champs with impromptu babysitting, and as a result Iris got a year's supply of hugs and rocking and playing with her grandparents. With all the attention she made some great progress in walking and in using utensils at mealtime (though you wouldn't guess it from the photo).

Iris also got to meet her Uncle Joe and Aunt Tami, and cousins Maddie and Abby. Abby is one month older than Iris, and showed Iris a thing or two about walking and running ... but Iris could probably best her in a wrestling match. Their house was a virtual toy store, and everyone had a great time.

Happy Year of the Pig!

Iris participated in TWO Lunar New Year events in February. The first was in Richland, WA, with her Uncle Jim and Aunt Susie. The event was so well-attended, that they ran out of Chinese food and so we ate pizza and chicken. Ironically, the most abundant fast-food restaurants in China were Pizza Hut and KFC, so it was sort of like eating Chinese food. The weather was great that weekend, and so Iris got to test her outdoor walking skills, and we got to field-test a new jogging stroller.

The second event was in Boise, sponsored by Idaho Families with Children from Asia. Iris liked meeting the older girls, and grew especially fond of Jenny, who lives next door to Deb's parents.