Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Washington DC, Busy Week

We've been busy this last week, entertaining the grandkids and helping to build and roof the shed. Both have been physically challenging! We need to adapt to the level of activity 2 little ones can generate and building, especially roofing tends to use muscles we ignore too often. We also had the opportunity to have lunch with friends who we met on our Croatia trip who live about 10 miles from here, and had a blast. Tomorrow, we head back home and 'real' life.....more Angel Island and Chinatown trips for Lynn on the schedule.
Today, we watched the kids all day -- more bonding time. We decorated Easter eggs, and in the afternoon, after Davin's nap, we went to a couple nearby parks. 

Davin does not seem so keen on swinging.

Dahlia, on the other hand, just wanted to go higher.

Like many young men, Davin was captivated by the potential for driving.

Dahlia worked on her wall-climbing skills.

Back at home, Davin played with his tow truck (foreground) and trains.
He is also at that age where EVERYTHING has the potential to be tasty.

Jim and Dahlia play a word game. At 3+ she knows her numbers and alphabets and does well with spelling games.
Lynn and Dahlia colored a few Easter eggs....
and when they dried, Dahlia added stickers to make them truly beautiful.

This is the shed we helped build. When we started, Dan and Diane had completed the floor, and the rest was a pile of supplies. Jim and I got 2 walls ready Friday and then we worked in shifts Saturday and Sunday to get the walls and roof framing ready. Monday, Jim and I did most of the roofing (what you see here) and finished 3 more rows of shingles, covering the whole roof, this afternoon when Dan came home and watched the kids.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Washington, D.C, Day 2

Dahlia playing catch with Grampa Jim
It is amazing how much the grandkids have matured in the last 8 months! Such a shame we live far away. When we saw Davin last, he was 5-6 weeks old and screaming (apparently in fatal pain) 80% of the time. I think he smiled twice. Now it is just the reverse -- he is cheery and laughing most of the time. Dahlia's language has greatly improved and she is much more a little girl than a growing baby.
Davin -- he has lost his mohawk hair and gained a great smile.

Davin, wearing potatoes and avocados.

Dahlia trying on Nana's glasses

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Washington DC, Day 1

We flew to DC today to spend a week with Dan and Diane and their 2 kids. Dahlia is now 3.25 and Davin will be 9 months old during our visit. We got here in time for dinner and bedtime -- hard to believe both kids have grown so much since we saw them last summer! Dahlia instructed me on how to put her to bed and her language skills are much improved! Davin practiced standing for us -- he is still a bit shaky, but its pretty clear that walking is not too far away. We are supposed to build a garden shed during our visit, but the weather forecast looks pretty cold and rainy, so who knows how far we'll get. No photos today. I'll try to post some kid pix tomorrow. If you don't already know it, here is the link to the Diane's blog about the kids with lots of photos and updates: dianekadams.blogspot.com.

Sunday, March 13, 2011

Travel Plans

Now that we've been home for a while, it was time to start planning our next trips. SO, we'll visit Dan & Diane & kids in Washington DC in March, possibly visit Kristen in Chicago in late May or early June, and go to Iceland and Greenland in August.

When we get bored here (or I'm not leading Chinatown or Angel Island tours), we'll replace the carpet in the bedroom level with maple hardwood. I've also been challenged to link to our previous trip photos/travel reports, so look for that too. Currently, we have photos from several of our trips already posted on Picasa.  picasaweb.google.com/LynnEichinger