My First Vacation

The daily grind has been tough over the past year so this vacation is just what I needed.  Off to Mexico it is and here I come Puerto Vallarta!  The 'rents went cheap and didn't get me a seat so I had to sit with Mommy on the way there.  I made her read to me the whole time.  Hemispheres is a pretty boring magazine.

 Our time in the main town was pretty awesome.  We of course started it off with a meal.   Mommy had the ceviche.

I wasn't going to risk Montezuma's revenge so I kept away from the raw fish.  The crackers I found to be a bit dry....

but the tomatoes were so sweet and juicy.

We then walked around town....

and then Mommy had to push me.

We did a little shopping.

She wiped my butt.

It was a good time checking out a new country.

An even better part was our resort.  Waaayyyy better than home.  First off we got into the ocean water and guess what- it isn't cold!!!!  It's even better than the bath!

It has it's own natural jet stream!

 The only downside is all the sand that gets up in your special places.

Later that night Mommy and I caught the sunset on the beach...

then we caught the pinata contest.

They offered to let me take a whack at it but I turned it down.  There were so many kids in line and I didn't want to break it before they got a chance.

Even though I was in Mexico, when it was time for bed I made sure my pajamas got me back to my fobby China roots.

OK- time for the best part of the trip.  At the McDonalds they had this:

Greatest. Thing. EVER!!!!!  Why doesn't everyone come to Puerto Vallarta for this? I made friends here and threw myself down the slide over and over.  See!

What a great trip!  Me and Mommy were pooped on the flight back (well maybe just me)

Oh wait I forgot to mention, my Daddy came too!  Here is a picture of him.  He's in the back.

Thanks for carrying stuff Daddy!

Martin Luther King Weekend

This was the weekend we remember Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  He led the fight for all of us to not be judged by the color of our skin but by the content of our character.  Before that fight, half white half Chinese people like me had to overcome all kinds of barriers like.... well I'm not sure but they'll probably teach me about it in third grade or something. Thanks Dr King!

Saturday I went to Uncle Pete's birthday party and Daddy stayed home with Uncle Jason to watch the 49er's play.  We got home near the end of the game and right at the moment when the other team scored.  Daddy had that look on his face when I have an extra stinky diaper.  Then the 49er's somehow scored to win and Daddy jumped around and screamed like an immature 12 month old.  The rest of the weekend he kept saying with a big grin "Alex Smith?" like it was a question I was supposed to answer.  It looked fun so I'm gonna start watching this football thing.

Next day we decided to have a relaxing day at Crissy Field.   Mommy says to get the ladies I need to be sensitive but strong.  I tried to portray it in this photo.  Waddya think?

Ignore the drool I was busy contemplating.  She also says be fun and playful.  Does this capture it?

I think I'm ready for OK Cupid and might use one of the photos above.  We walked around for a good bit but Mommy and Daddy got tired of chasing me around so Mommy held my hand so we could get places.

This having to hold hands thing really cramps my style since I can't get into everything but these are the compromises to have to make when you are 13 months.   I did get some time to see how beautiful my city is and how lucky I am to live here.

The next day we were off to Tilden Park to play where Daddy played as a kid.  The first stop was the steam trains. Yeah this was fun!  Here's me before the train pulled out:


Then here we are checking out the scene on the right:

And then the left.  It was good times!

Next off to the farm.  Now we went before and there are rumors that I was scared on my first visit.  Let's put that rumor to rest I was not scared.  Tristan isn't afraid of anything (except vacuum cleaners... and the Elmo doll).  I simply had a bad migraine.  Anyway this time we checked out the cows:

And the rabbits,

Then some chickens,

and we fed the sheep.

See- I wasn't scared.  Silly rumors.

Christmas Time!

I could get used to this Christmas thing, but I need to learn how to pace myself a little better.  If you are going to be a party machine you can't break down when there is still partying to be done.  Anyway, this is the first Christmas I actually remember.  Last year I was too young and couldn't even see straight.  Here's a picture of me last year:

I couldn't hold my head up, blabber, or even smile yet.  Just a total mess.

This year was much better.  It started off with a Friday night party with Mommy's friends from when she was my age.  I hit the sack early but stayed long enough for food.  Here's a picture of all of her friends and the husbands they make come too:

Next day and BOOM we were back at it again.  This time it was Gung Gung's brothers and family.  This one had even more people:

Next morning was Christmas and an even bigger BOOM! There were all these presents for me! Basically you rip stuff apart and then you get toys!

Oh the glorious toys! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!

I got my first car too.  It's a good compact for city driving:

We weren't done yet.  Off to Fairfield we went to visit Daddy's family.  There I ate gumbo, prime rib, mac and cheese. and candied yams.  I feel very southern when I visit there.  Here's a picture of all of us:

Yeah that's my half white, half black, french hat wearin' gangsta cousin to my right.  He's so much fun to hang with.  Wow what a long day, right? Well there was still some more partying to do.  Off to Po Po and Gung Gung's house for some more dinner.  Mommy, Daddy and I posed for a pic just with us:

And Christmas was done- but the day after Christmas was still to come.

The next day my friend Bianca came over.  She's very mature at 18 months but I did my best to keep up.  She would only eat one noodle at a time and would clean up after herself.  Oh what a silly girl.  I showed her how you can slam a bunch of noodles in your mouth at one time.  Don't worry about missing and making a mess- Mommies clean that stuff up!

That afternoon guess what?  We went to another party.  This time it was all of the family friends that Mommy has known since she was a baby.  This is where I learned I have to pace myself.  It started with Uncle Aron telling my how great his drink was:

That just meant I had to hook myself up with one.  It was in there somewhere....

I'm not sure exactly what I had but it hit me hard.  I had a bit of a breakdown:

First I couldn't see straight:

And then the room started spinning and I started having visions:

Then apparently I started kissing dudes:

When I started to come down from my trip I could only regret the night:

Next year I'll have this better figured out and be able to party like a pro over the fours days of Christmas.

Thanks to everyone you got me a gift or had me in your thoughts.  I hope your Christmas was as much fun and filled with as much love as mine!