Welcome To The Ciabattari's

MONKEY SEE...MONKEY DO!!!

2011-02-15T20:10:00.000-08:00

Nathan does EVERYTHING Olivia does and she LOVES it! I was finally able to record one of their lessons that did not include the words "POOP", "DooDOO", or "TOOT".

Halloween Superheroes!

2010-11-09T10:05:00.000-08:00

We had a great time celebrating Halloween with THREE different Trick-or-Treat sessions. Friday the kids went to daddy's work, Saturday we got MORE candy at all the retail stores up here on the Ridge, then of course, Sunday we finished up Trick-or-Treating in the neighborhood. The sugar high is going to last for awhile...

Nathan XTREME!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-09-23T11:24:00.000-07:00

Olivia starts Kindergarten!

2010-09-04T09:10:00.000-07:00

Olivia started Kindergarten this year! Can you believe our little girl is going to school? She picked out her own outfit and wouldn't let me exchange her HUMONGOUS backpack. The thing is bigger than she is! It was hilarious to watch her try to shove it into her little cubby...

HELLO HOUSE! HELLOOOOOOO UNPACKING!!!!!!!

2010-08-29T22:05:00.000-07:00

We closed on our new house July13, and moved in on the 14TH. We've been soooo busy, hopefully we'll be unpacked soon! The kids love their new house and Olivia has informed us that she never wants to move EVER AGAIN. Hopefully, I'll have more time to get more posts on this blog....

GOOD-BYE HOUSE!!! You've been a great house. We'll miss you!

2010-06-16T18:02:00.000-07:00

Some Videos to Share!

2010-05-23T11:23:00.000-07:00

We are having so much fun with the kids. They are constantly cracking us up with their antics. We can see Olivia on a stage somewhere, and Nathan is having so much fun trying to do EVERYTHING his older sister does. Here are some special moments of our lives from the last month...

Singing Miley Cyrus' "The Climb"

Olivia is a HUGE Avatar fan. Here, she's speaking "Nav'i"

Olivia sings "Hot and Cold" (Chipmunk Version)

CATCH UP!!!

2010-05-16T02:06:00.000-07:00

OK, so I guess it's time to update my poor neglected blog...Let's do a quick recap of what has happened in the Ciabattari household since November 2009!

Nathan turned one! He had his B-day party in Spokane over Thanksgiving weekend.
We decided to put our house on the market. (It was quite a project de-cluttering)
Olivia turned FIVE and chose "Avatar" as the theme for her party at the Seattle Children's Museum.
We surprised the kids and our niece Emily with a trip to Disneyland.
The kids continue to entertain and annoy each other. (Sometimes at the same time!)
Mary turned 34.
Andre turned 39!
The kids are growing up fast!!

What? You want pictures too??? OK... here they are:

Nathan's first birthday! He had fun with the cake!

We got some good pictures in December!

The House Project! We NEVER want to do this again!

Before....

After!

Wow! We got a long way to go!

A few sleepless nights later.

New paint, and moving just about everything we owned into a storage unit...

...results in a pretty spacious looking living room!

Happy 60th dad!!

Happy Birthday to our FIVE YEAR OLD!!

Zip a dee do da! Nathan happily runs along Main Street Disney! Cousins love being "goofy". Princess Dinner!!

We celebrated TET 2010 at Mary's cousin's house. Time to start another year!OOhhh, blackmail picture of Nathan and Morrigan!

Ready for the Daddy Daughter Dance!Olivia wanted nothing to do with the Easter Bunny, but Nathan walked right up to him.

Happy 39th Birthday Andre!!Olivia performs at her Mother Daughter Tea!

Nathan Walks!!!!!

2009-11-19T01:17:00.000-08:00

Our friend David was commenting on how well Nathan stands by himself. He was surprised when I told him he had never stood that long alone before. Elizabeth told me to take a video, which I almost didn't do because I was convinced he would sit down before I could get the camera on. That's when I caught Nathan taking his first steps! He walked right into our friend Alan's arms. Boy, Andre was jealous!

Olivia's Glasses

2009-10-26T09:26:00.000-07:00

Olivia has taken to wearing glasses. No, they're not prescription. These particular ones are from her Build-a-Bear "Clark Kent". She decided she couldn't see without them and had to borrow the pair from her trusty bear. She will walk around squinting and telling us she can't see without her glasses. She'll breathe a sigh of relief when she puts them on and "can see". We found a different pair for her at Claire's. They have pink wire frames and she wears them EVERYWHERE. Can you believe they sell fake glasses for little girls? They're called "attitude glasses". Who knew!

Olivia sings onstage in B-ham 9-27-09 (try to ignore her Uncle Truong's goofy laughter in the background)

2009-10-14T14:46:00.000-07:00

Little Man!

2009-10-01T22:39:00.000-07:00

Can you believe Nathan is ten months old already? Our little baby boy is growing up FAST!

He can pull himself up now!

Our two handsome fellas!

Olivia's debut concert!

2009-09-25T21:46:00.001-07:00

We were at Andre's work for an event and they had ROCKAROAKE where you can sing with a live band and back-up singers. Olivia thought it was time for her to make her stage debut, so she signed up to sing Taylor Swift's "Picture to Burn". She had so much fun! The quality of the video isn't the best because we used our phone. What do you think? Do we have a future diva on our hands?

Olivia starts her second year at Preschool!

2009-09-16T23:57:00.001-07:00

So on 09-09-09, Olivia started her second year of Preschool. She was so excited!She struck this pose all by herself!

Out on the front porch on a beautiful September day.Daddy, this is going to be the best day EVER!Olivia is in the house and ready to learn!

Summer Recap!

2009-09-16T10:19:00.001-07:00

Yet another summer has flown by and we can't believe it's September already! We know we haven't posted anything since July 4th, so for everyone who keeps reminding us to update our blog, here's a quick summary of our summer adventures:

It was hot, we drove a lot, we had lots of
fun!

Well, what do you expect? We've been busy! Between Olivia's second ballet recital, Andre's 20 year high school reunion in Kennewick, a great week in Montana, a quick drive up to Whistler for Crankworx, and some Spokane trips squeezed in here and there, it's a wonder we had time to listen to Olivia sing all her favorite Taylor Swift songs word for word, notice Nathan's three new teeth and realize he weighs more at nine months than Olivia did at two years, enjoy watching Olivia put "princess" crowns on her little brother and exclaim "AWW! BABY GIRL!" to him, and have the whole family crack up when Nathan belly laughs at Olivia's antics!

We've posted pictures of Summer 2009 in the "Our Recent Pictures" link!

4TH of July Pics

2009-07-10T09:50:00.001-07:00

We had a fantastic Fourth of July. We went to the celebration at the park behind our house, then just hung out at home and set off fireworks with our friends and neighbor. Here are two pictures from that day. Nathan had so much fun celebrating his first July 4TH! Nathan's first 4TH of July
Olivia at the park

Olivia's Dance Recital June 20Th 2009

2009-06-24T00:56:00.001-07:00

Olivia had her dance recital last Saturday. Here are some pictures! I haven't had a chance to check if the video turned out yet, but I will post it if it turned out ok. She had so much fun and LOVES the stage. She did a tap number to "Stepping out with my baby". Strike a pose!
Waiting to go onstage.

Tap, tap, TAP!

I hope I'm doing this right...

Dancing her little heart away...Isn't she adorable?

She was so excited that Daddy got her flowers!

With mommy.

Happy Father's Day Daddy!

2009-06-22T01:11:00.000-07:00

Nathan's six month doc appt.

2009-06-12T13:55:00.001-07:00

Nathan had his six month appt and is growing like a weed and healthy. He weighs in at 20lbs 8 3/4 oz (90th percentile) and is 28 1/4" long (97th percentile). Olivia at 6 mos was 15lbs 10 1/2oz (50th percentile) and was 27" long (97th percentile).

Olivia at 6 Months Nathan at 6 months

Some pictures to share...

2009-05-14T22:34:00.001-07:00

Here's some highlights from the last few weeks. The rest aren't online yet. We'll do that soon. Enjoy! Happy Birthday daddy! Andre gets his two favorite desserts: Carrot Cake (thanks Chi Thuy!) and Rice Krispy Treats (thanks Angela!)
Olivia's preschool went on another field trip to a farm close to the school. She got to pet a yak!

Olivia thought the cheese room smelled "Stinky".

Brunch on Mother's Day!

Baby boy! He's sitting pretty good by himself!

Mary was holding Nathan on her lap as she chatted on the phone. He was facing away from her and Olivia kept running up to him and touching his face. Here is Nathan at the end of the call.

New countertops, sink, and faucet!!

2009-05-14T22:15:00.000-07:00

We love, love, LOVE our new countertops, sink, and faucet! (Ok, Mary is more excited than Andre is...) Here are some before and after pictures. Old sink: White, double, top mount, polished chrome faucet.
Demolition! (We saved about $400 by tearing off the countertops ourselves)
New sink: Stainless steel, banjo style, undermount, with Moen brushed nickel/pull down faucet. (Andre is becoming quite the handyman. He saved us around $300 by taking care of the plumbing himself.)

Old island: Dark grey laminate.

We had to chip away the laminate and hunt for the screws holding the countertop in place, but we did it!

New Island: Sensa granite in Caledonia from Lowes/Precision Countertops.

Old contertop by the stove.

The first piece to go...

New countertop with backsplash.

Impromptu trip to B-ham!

2009-04-27T01:30:00.001-07:00

It was anther sunny day today! We decided to get Olivia up to see the tulips now that they are in full bloom. We were so close to Bellingham, we couldn't resist driving just a tiny bit more and see Mary's brother Truong. What a fun day! Olivia oooohed and aaaahed over the huge field of flowers, then we went to a seafood chowder cook off. Here are two pictures from our day. The rest are in Our Recent Pictures. Olivia in the tulip fields
At the chowder cook off: Andre, Truong, Nathan, Mary, & Olivia

A garden for Olivia

2009-04-25T22:35:00.000-07:00

This month, Olivia is learning about growing things at preschool and we decided it would be fun to have a garden. The dirt in our yard is like concrete with big rocks mixed in, so we decided to do a raised garden bed. Andre did a terrific job building the box out of untreated cedar and filling it with topsoil and compost. Olivia was so excited to start planting! We can't wait to see things grow!

The box is built and getting filled with dirt

Andre is turing into such a handyman!
Thanks daddy! You're the best!
Ready for the seeds! We are planting peas, carrots, beets, some flowers and tomatoes.

Put the peas right here...

Hey look! It's the crazy antics of the Ciabattari's!

2009-04-23T22:22:00.000-07:00

Here's some pictures from the last few weeks. Some are goofy, some are serious. Can you tell which ones are which? Just two seconds earlier, Olivia was singing and eating chicken nuggets. It suddenly got quiet and I turned around and saw her like this. Notice she is still holding the chicken nugget in her hand! (and no, I did NOT take this picture going 70 on the freeway...I waited until I was going 25 on a residential street...)
Little man! When will you start crawling?
Sitting like a big boy!

EH?

Enjoying his free prime rib from The Keg for his B-day!

Is this the "good" picture, or the "goofy" picture?

We're not being silly!

Olivia, PUH-LEASE smile pretty for the camera?

Yes, the two hour wait to see Dora was totally worth it to see the excitement on Olivia's face when she FINALLY got to her. (No, I'm serious. Not being sarcastic at all. Would totally do it again. Would wait THREE hours if we had to...yes, it IS the REAL Dora the Explorer herself!)

Dolphin face painting!

Decked out for the 'DA BEARS!

Nathan told daddy what to wear so they would match for Easter

Ready to hit the slopes!

Don't EVEN mess with me right now...

Disneyland!

2009-04-03T20:50:00.000-07:00

We finally finished unpacking from Disneyland today and I posted all the pics under "Our Recent Pictures" if you want to see them all. We flew into LAX on Saturday afternoon (3/21) and stayed at the house of an old college roommate of Andre's (Thanks Bill!). On Sunday we visited with another one of Andre's college buddies Rick, his wife Kim, and met their little daughter Brooke. Monday morning we left Corona and headed down to San Diego where Olivia got to feed some seals and see Shamu at Seaworld. We stopped at Mission Beach on our way out and Olivia and Andre ran around in the sand for awhile. We got to Disneyland a little after noon on Tuesday and closed the place down with Tony, who Andre's known since elementary school, his wife Christy and two kids Joey and Anna. Wednesday was spent at California adventures. We were really happy to hang out in the California sun before leaving Thursday afternoon and returning to winter conditions in good old Snoqualmie. The highlights of the trip included catching up with old friends, eating In and Out Burger at least once a day, and seeing Olivia's face light up when she saw something particularly exciting. Nathan of course was the PERFECT little traveler, and we can't wait to go to Disneyland again when he is older!

Olivia feeds the seals at Seaworld.Group photo at Disneyland! California Adventures

Nathan Four Month Appt.

2009-04-02T09:45:00.000-07:00

Nathan had his four month doctor's appointment yesterday. He weighs 17 lbs. 13 oz. which puts him the ninety-fifth percentile, and is 27" long (ninety-seventh percentile). Just for reference, at Olivia's four month, she weighed 13.7 lbs, and was 24" long... Our little man!

Picture of the week...

2009-03-31T10:09:00.000-07:00

Olivia and Nathan had their first photo shoot together mid-March and I HAD to post at least one! There were so many good ones, I had to buy them all! We are finally back after all our travels and will post more about our trips along with pictures soon!

Home from Mexico!

2009-03-09T23:53:00.000-07:00

We just got back from our annual Puerto Vallarta, MX trip. We met Andre's parents down there, along with some of his aunts and uncles and a cousin. This year, Andre's brother, fiancee, and niece joined us too! Olivia had so much fun and Nathan was such a good boy. We didn't know how he would do on the plane with an ear infection, but he did great. The trip started out on Sat. March 7 as we loaded up the kids (Wow, kids plural!), two suitcases (46lbs, and 43lbs respectively), one carry-on, four "personal items", and boarded our plane for the four hour flight. As we waited for take-off, Olivia exclaimed, "MEXICO, HERE WE COME!" and it only took another thirty minutes or so before we heard the first "Are we there yet?". When we de-planed, she stopped to tell the pilot "Thanks for flying me to Mexico". Her Spanish is coming along nicely and she got a few chuckles whenever she greeted someone with an "Hola" or thanked them with a "Gracias". When we showed her the coconuts on the trees, she was quite impressed and stated " I just don't believe it! It's coconut season!"

We stayed at the Grand Mayan in Nuevo Vallarta. We had stayed there last year and Olivia still remembered the pool on our balcony which she calls "Olivia's pool". She couldn't wait to swim and she LOVED the warm weather. We got to eat at all our favorite places: Fajita Republic, La Dolce Vita, Pipi's, Brasil barbecue, Porta Bella's, tacos from a corner stand, and a coconut from Coco Loco's. We hung out at the pool, played in the wave pool, and splashed around in the lazy river. Olivia went on a catamaran with Mema and Papa for a day, and got to swim with the dolphins later in the week. Nathan got to relax and nap in a poolside cabana. He also got his toes sucked on by a complete stranger (you'll have to ask Andre to tell you the story about that).

The week flew by and we got to leave the poolside cabana (85 degrees in the shade) and venture home where we were greeted by temperatures in the mid thirties, snow flurries, and about two inches of snow on the ground. Is it time to go to Mexico again yet?

I uploaded pictures from our trip to our Picasa site. Click on "Our Recent Pictures" to check them out!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY OLIVIA!

2009-02-27T09:28:00.001-08:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY OLIVIA! Can you believe our baby girl turns four today? Here is a little trip down memory lane... Present Day
Three Years Old
Turning Two
Obligatory first birthday cake mess shot
February 27, 2005

Nathan Speaks His Mind

2009-02-20T19:17:00.001-08:00

A Lesson In Anatomy...

2009-02-12T21:59:00.000-08:00

Well, Olivia is almost four years old and is rather curious about Nathan's "privates" every time he gets his diaper changed. We decided it is time to teach her the proper names of the human body. Here is the lesson in Olivia's own words:

"Boys have peanuts and tentacles,
and girls have a pachina"

...and there you have it folks. If you ever need Olivia to pass on this valuable information to your little ones, let us know. She is available for tutoring most Mondays and Fridays, and on a limited basis on weekends.

One of Olivia's first comments about her new baby brother was: "He has a little thing just like baby Noah!"

A Story By Olivia Ciabattari

2009-02-10T23:30:00.001-08:00

Olivia's backpack was full of her schoolwork when she came home from preschool today! One of the assignments was a story she had told. We thought we would share it with everyone!

"Untitled"

I want to be Sahara the horse. She has white fur and she was a bad horse. She got the guys off her that were trying to ride her and she kicked them off. She just kicked them in the mud. Then she ran away. Now she is good. She keeped her eye on the prize. She runs to Aikeem when he calls to her.

By,

Olivia Ciabattari

Olivia skiing at Crystal Mt.

2009-02-09T01:31:00.000-08:00

From January 24, 2009:
Here is a video of Olivia skiing at Crystal Mountain! It was her third time wearing skiis. I think she did pretty good! Thanks Bill for taking the video!

Pictures of the week...

2009-02-08T21:32:00.000-08:00

Look at our happy boy! (Notice he's wearing Bears colors? No, that's not an accident...)
Olivia and daddy get ready to go to the annual Snoqualmie Ridge Father Daughter dance.

Olivia vs Nathan: Two Month Stats

2009-02-08T21:21:00.001-08:00

So here are some pictures of Olivia and Nathan both at two months old. Overall stats: Olivia weighed 11lbs 1oz (55th percentile) and was 23" long (75th percentile). Nathan weighed 14lbs 9oz (97th percentile) and was 24" long (90th percentile).

Cool Fashions For Winter!

2009-01-29T16:28:00.001-08:00

Guess who dressed herself today? Yes, that is the top half of a swimsuit, a princess dress-up skirt, and a crown!

Picture of the week...

2009-01-27T12:09:00.000-08:00

I think we got another swimmer on our hands! Nathan decided to jump into the bath with Olivia and LOVED it!

Picture of the week...

2009-01-18T18:47:00.001-08:00

Nathan Seven Weeks

Olivia hits the slopes!

2009-01-18T18:43:00.001-08:00

Olivia had alot of fun with Daddy yesterday when she went skiing at Snoqualmie Pass for the first time! Dad took her up to the magic carpet (a little area with a tiny hill and a conveyer belt like thing that the kids stand on to take them up). She skied a little, then rolled around in the snow for a bit before heading into the lodge for some pizza. It was a great first day!

Our Little World Traveler

2009-01-14T21:14:00.000-08:00

So we just got Nathan's passport in the mail. It wasn't easy, but we managed to get ONE "good" official passport photo with him facing forward and eyes open. He is actually laying down and the camera is over him. He is now ready for Mexico. We can't wait! Here is a direct quote straight from Nathan: "HOLA SUCKAS! Nathan is crossing the border and is ready to PAAARRTTAAAAAY!" What do you think of his passport photo that he will have for the next FIVE years? Nathan Vuong Ciabattari Official Passport Photo. Taken at FOUR WEEKS OLD.

Whew! Is it 2009 already?

2009-01-07T22:52:00.000-08:00

We can't believe 2009 is here already. We've had a busy few weeks! We were able to make it over to Spokane and be with family for Christmas. The weather was a bit uncooperative and the pass was a little hairy, but we just took it slow and was able to make the drive in 7 hours (it usually takes us 4-41/2 hours). Nathan was perfect the entire trip and slept most of the way. We came back the Sunday after Christmas and have been unpacking ever since! (BTW, if anyone happens to find Mary's keys or bluetooth please let us know)

Nathan continues to grow and weighed in at 12lbs 4oz last week at the doctor's office. He had all his clothes on, AND a wet diaper so we don't know how accurate that figure is... Olivia continues to give Nathan lots of love. The first thing she does when she wakes up is run into our room and look for her baby brother. Here are a few highlights from the last few weeks. We have lots more in "Our Recent Pictures".

Nathan in his Baptism suit

Nathan's first meeting with Santa (Who suspiciously sounds ALOT like Papa...) WOW! Santa brought him a Bears outfit!

Olivia gets her Santa gift

Andre and Olivia in their coordinating outfits

Daddy Takes Olivia Skiing

2008-12-19T19:46:00.000-08:00

Here is the video of Olivia skiing in front of our house. There are pictures on Our Recent Pictures too!

SNOW!!!!!!!!!!!!

2008-12-18T16:23:00.000-08:00

It's a blustery 28 degrees at our house today and the snow hasn't let up since morning. Olivia was so excited to look out the window and see the whole neighborhood covered in snow. Daddy came home from work and took her and her skiis out for the first time today. Olivia gets ready to hit the slopes! (Ok, hit the sidewalk in front of our house)

Tuckered OUT!

2008-12-13T19:53:00.000-08:00

It's been a long day and Andre and Olivia decided to unwind and watch The Nightmare Before Christmas before heading off to bed. Nathan must've tired them out today because here they are a quarter of the way into the movie:

The last couple of weeks.

2008-12-13T10:56:00.000-08:00

Well, Nathan is two weeks old tomorrow and we can't believe how time is flying by! He is growing like a weed and is so good. Olivia LOVES holding him. He had his first doctor's appointment yesterday and here are his stats: weight- 8lbs 13 and 3/4 oz. (75th percentile), length- 22 and 1/4 inches (97th percentile). I am posting more pictures on Our Recent Pictures, so check it out! Here are some hightlights: One of the first pictures of Nathan at home. (He's got a burst blood vessel in his eye from delivery, but it is almost gone now)

Olivia LOVES her baby brother!

For some reason Andre REALLY likes this picture.

Wearing a hat with Bears colors made by Mary's mom (BA).

This year we caved and put up Christmas decorations.

Ready to go to the doctor.

Olivia wearing Ba's glasses.

Olivia helping Ba peel eggs. What a great helper!

SMILE!

I am a great helper!

Chicken Legs!!

2008-12-13T10:51:00.000-08:00

Well, we all know Olivia has chicken legs. Guess what? So does Nathan!

Olivia and Nathan

2008-12-05T10:28:00.001-08:00

Olivia LOVES her new baby brother! She was on her way to preschool and so excited to tell everyone her baby brother had arrived. She had to be reminded his name is Nathan. But then she decided she would just tell everyone his name was Little Superman Ciabattari. Check out our Recent Pictures link for more pictures! More were added today....

Welcome Baby BOY!!!!

2008-12-03T00:25:00.000-08:00

He's here! Nathan Vuong Ciabattari was born November 30, 2008 at 1:20 PM. He weighed 7lbs, 9oz and was 21" long. Check out our recent pictures link for pics! Olivia is very excited and is calling him Little Superman Ciabattari now.

Who wouldn't want to wake up to this?

2008-11-22T22:12:00.000-08:00

I couldn't resist sharing this picture. One of the cutest things is when Olivia wanders downstairs with her bedhead. On this particular morning, she had fallen the night before and insisted she get a bandaid on her forehead. It was still there in the morning. Don't you just want to kiss her to death?

Off with Daddy!

2008-11-15T13:05:00.000-08:00

Today I am going to have a daddy and me day. We are going to hang out together and have some fun! I don't know what he has planned, but I am very excited! I picked out my outfit and get to wear my new black boots, and my new necklace. (Thanks cousin Sheila!) I hope you all have a great day!

Love,

Olivia

Olivia's First Class Photo

2008-11-04T12:07:00.000-08:00

Here is Olivia's first official school photo! Let me know if you want a hard copy. We sprung for the digital image this time, so we can print out as many as we want!Olivia Preschool Photo October 2008

Halloween!

2008-11-02T12:05:00.000-08:00

We hope everyone had a fantastic Halloween! We had lots of fun! Olivia couldn't wait to get her costume on and go trick-or-treating. She practiced yelling "Trick-or-Treat!" all day long. We did what we've done for the last few years and went to Andre's work for their Halloween event. They have trick-or-treating at the cubicles, a costume contest, dinner and snacks, arts and crafts, a haunted house, and other stuff. Andre's sister's family met us and Olivia got to trick-or-treat with her cousin Ellie who came as Fancy Nancy. Here are just a few pics of the night. Go to the Recent Pictures link on the right of this page to see them all!Megara and Hercules troll the halls of Microsoft and score big with lots of candy! Megara, Hercules, and Fancy Nancy

Ellie and Olivia

Olivia and Mama (who, as Olivia informed everyone, came dressed as a "Mommy" for Halloween)

Olivia and Dada head out for her Preschool Harvest Party!

2008-10-30T09:54:00.000-07:00

Olivia and Dada Headed out this morning for her first ever Preschool Special Guy Harvest Party. They got to dress up in their Halloween costumes, and Dada gets to go with Olivia to Preschool as her "Special Guy". Olivia is Megara and Dada is Hercules from the Disney Movie Hercules. She was so excited when she woke up this morning and couldn't wait to get her costume on. Stay tuned! We're going trick-or-treating tomorrow and I'll have more pictures then!

Overheard Today....

2008-10-22T16:30:00.001-07:00

Here is a little rhyme recited today by Olivia that just HAD to make it onto the blog...

Eeeny Meeny Miney Mo,
Catch a tiger by his toe,
if he hollers you need to roar,
then scare him away, then chop him up, then eat him
Mama: Who taught you that rhyme, Olivia?
Olivia: The fish.
Mama: The fish?
Olivia: Yea, the fish! Listen! (walks over to the fish tank)
Olivia: (In a high squeaky voice) Olivia! If you catch a tiger, you have to roar, then chop him up, and then eat him.

Olivia loves to sing.

2008-10-22T12:57:00.000-07:00

Check out Olivia playing Rockband. She can sing two songs by herself and complete them with between 55% and 69% accuracy. The songs are "Maps" by Yeah, Yeah, Yeah and "Brass in Pockets" by The Pretenders. In this video, she starts singing, but then has an urgent matter she has to take care of, so she leaves the stage. Check it out!

Olivia's First Field Trip!

2008-10-17T21:31:00.001-07:00

Olivia's preschool had their first field trip of the year. They went to Blue Dog Farms in Carnation. It was nice to see how Olivia interacts with her teachers and classmates. At one point during the trip, all the kids got to sit around on benches and talk to the farmer. Olivia was very eager to participate:

Farmer: "So who has a question for me?"

Olivia: (raising her hand) "Me, Me!

Farmer: (calls on Olivia)

Olivia: "Ummm....Ummm...."

(pause)

"Do you know that I really hate story time?"

A little while later...

Farmer: "Who knows what the hardest working animal on the farm is?"

Olivia: (raising her hand) "Me! Me!"

Farmer: (calls on Olivia)

Olivia: "Ummmmm...Ummmmmmm..."

(pause)

"Beavers have a long flat tail and long teeth!"

Emily and Olivia at the Farm.
Olivia got to pet a turkey!
Morrigan and Mary (Emily took this picture!).
Olivia feeding a cow.
Olivia sitting with her classmates.

Busy Week...

2008-10-17T20:52:00.000-07:00

We had a busy week, that's for sure! Mary's brother's family came into town last Friday and left with his wife that night for a week long trip to NYC. We got to take care of Emily and Morrigan this week. Emily is almost eight and Morrigan is almost nine months. We got to experience a week in the life of a family of five! Well, kind of... Mary's mom came with them and helped us. She was here almost the whole time. We had them all by ourselves on Wednesday day/night, Thursday during the day, and Friday day/night. Their parents get back tomorrow afternoon. Having three kids is a little different from having one, that's for sure! We ventured out a few evenings and Mary got some looks (carrying a nine month old baby around and being eight months pregnant!). Here are a few pictures of the week. Again, if you want to see ALL the pictures, click on the "Recent Pictures" link on the right of this blog. Thanks to EVERYONE who came to Mary's shower, especially those who came in from out of town. It was great to see you all! An extra special THANK YOU to An (Mary's sister), and Jen (Mary's friend) for all the work they did at the shower! We didn't get very many pictures of the Baby Shower, so if anyone has any good ones, can you send them to us? Thanks!

Nadia, Emily, Toan and Morrigan before they left for the airport.

Baby Shower
Mary and our nephew Noah

Picture Day Preview

2008-10-09T08:52:00.000-07:00

So, Andre and Olivia just left for Olivia's first ever picture day at school. She is decked out head to toe in purple. Don't worry though, she still likes pink too! She was so excited this morning! She woke up extra early (8:00 AM!), packed up her Dinosaur "Chomp" for show and tell, and helped Mama pack the snacks for the day. Here are some pictures of her this morning in her new "Picture Outfit".

Olivia's Antics

2008-10-06T14:56:00.001-07:00

With Fall here, we are buckling down and getting some housecleaning done. The Nursery is officially ready for the new baby who Olivia still refers to affectionately as King Leonidas. (Although the other day, she informed us "Mama, Dada, if you want to you may call the baby Conner"). She still loves preschool and learned about the human body last month. If you are lucky, she will point out to you where can find your "patella" and "phalanges". This month, the topic is the Fall and she will go to a farm for her first field trip. She has picture day on Thursday, and that is also her day to bring something from home to "share". Here is a video of her singing "Stacy's Mom". The words are "Stacy's mom, has got it goin' on! She's all I want, and I've waited for so long. Stacy can't you see, you're just not the girl for me. I know I might be wrong but I'm in love with Stacy's mom!" She dressed herself that morning and put Andre's rubber band from physical therapy around her head as a headband. (You can't be a rock star without a headband...)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1hV4hsZBH4

Time flies....

2008-09-28T01:25:00.000-07:00

We can't believe it's Fall already!! Olivia is keeping very busy with her full schedule. She now has preschool on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 9:00 to 11:30 , ballet on Wednesdays at 3:00, swimming on Thursdays at 1:15 PM, and Gymboree on Fridays at 1:15. She is loving preschool and can't wait to go on school mornings. She is learning about the human body this month and cracks us up with all the information she likes to share. Some notable quotes from preschool include:

"My skull is under my head, and my brain is under my skull!"

"I have bones, but you can't see them because they are under my skin."

"All my bones are called a skeleton!"

"Bon apetit! You may eat!"

"I have friends, but sometimes they hit me, so I hit them back and that's not nice!"

Here are a few pictures from last few weeks. Ong, Ba, and Cau Truong came to visit for a week and we had fun hanging out with them.

Olivia is exhausted and falls asleep on Ong, with her Halloween costume on.

Cau Truong playing RockBand in his ridiculous hat!

Olivia was helping Mama make a cake for Ong and Ba's birthdays. She had to take a break and pretend she was a pirate!

Helping to blow out the candles...

Olivia put together this outfit all by herself. She calls it her Hercules outfit. Why? We have no idea....

Olivia goes to SCHOOL!

2008-09-09T16:54:00.001-07:00

Today Olivia started Preschool! They had an open house on Friday to meet the teachers and let the kids get to know the classroom. Olivia didn't want to go home that day! So today she was very excited. She got a new backpack (which Andre says is bigger than her), and did her homework yesterday. Here are some of her answers to her homework questions:

What is your favorite animal?- Frogs

What is your favorite game? - Animals Fighting (what the heck is that?)

What is your favorite food? - Chicken Nuggets

What are the names of the people in your family?- Olivia, Mama, and Dada. But some people call them Andre and Mary.

What are you going to do at school? - Play with Gak (silly puddy), play tag, and run around in circles.

Olivia with Dada before school!
Look at how excited Olivia is!
Olivia is telling us she is three years old and going to school today.
In the parking lot.
Why would Andre think her backpack was too big?

She was so excited she just took off ahead of us. (We're loading her pack with bricks next time...)

With teacher Mandi. Olivia picked her name out of a stack of name cards!

She didn't even say good-bye! She just took off into the classroom. We are experiencing "empty nest" syndrome...

WHEW! What a month!

2008-08-27T19:32:00.001-07:00

Well, August is almost over and we are home!! (Well... we're home for two days, then off to Spokane for the Labor Day Weekend) We had a great August and played a TON! Overall, Andre will work 10 days this month and Mary and Olivia will log a total of seven days at home. We've had our share of weather fluctuations with going from 60's and raining at home, to high 80's in Vantage for our first camping trip in August. Whistler gave us a few cool rainy days, but two days of sunshine and temperatures in the 70's. Then it was off to Sun Lakes where the sun beat down on us and provided us with hot 100 degree temperatures. On the drive home from Sun Lakes, Snoqualmie Pass hit us with a high of 68 and driving rain. Andre was happy he didn't have to water the grass the two days we were home between Sun Lakes and Sacramento! Then it was back to high 90's and lower 100's in Sacramento. What will Spokane bring this weekend? Who knows?

We had a lot of fun in Sacramento on our trip to visit Mary's brother Tri. We got to see his house, meet his girlfriend Lisa, and play a lot! We met Mary's mom and dad there, along with her brother Truong, her cousin Linh, and her niece Emily. The first night we were there we went to the California State Fair where we ate some funnel cakes, saw some Chinese acrobats, and walked by the Air Supply concert. On Friday we all went to the pool (we later found out we had gone to the one located in "the ghetto"). On Saturday went to the Sacramento Zoo and Fairytale land, then pigged out at Tri's favorite restaurant of all time....Bucca di Beppo. Sunday was a full day. We took a road trip to San Francisco. We woke up early and our first stop was Fairfield, CA home of one of the JELLY BELLY FACTORIES!!!! It was great getting there right when they opened because the sample station was all ours. Nothing like Jelly Beans in all different flavors for breakfast! We then stopped at the Budweiser factory across the way, but found out it was closed on Sundays :( We arrived in San Francisco just in time to go to Fisherman's Wharf and chow down on some clam chowder. Tri and Lisa took Emily and Olivia to the aquarium and we walked around and took in the sights. We then headed off to see the Golden Gate Bridge. On the way to dinner we stopped at the Japanese Tea Garden. Dinner was Bubba Gumps Restaurant where our old stand by the Shrimpin Dippin Broth was a little too spicy this time for most of us. We got home at around 11:30 PM. (We had left at 8:30 AM). On Monday, Tri went to get eye surgery (Something different than Lasik, he explained it to me, but I wasn't really listening...) and we headed off to see Old Sacramento. Then it was off to the pool again to cool off. Tuesday we headed home and now we are unpacking yet again.

We took a lot of pictures of our trip to the Sac. You can check them out by clicking on the "Our Recent Pictures" link on the right of this page.

August 15-18 Sun Lakes, WA

2008-08-19T20:31:00.000-07:00

We just got back from Sun Lakes, WA where the sun was shining, the temperatures were soaring, and the fish were biting! Olivia is officially addicted to fishing now. We checked into our cabin at around 4:00 on Friday and cranked the AC full blast. We think the temperatures were in the low 100's all weekend. Olivia caught her limit in trout, and spent tons of time in the pool. She got to hang out with her Papa and Mema, as well as her Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins on Andre's side. She was happy to get home on Monday to her "princess room" and "princess bed", but keeps asking when she can go back to the "hotel" and catch some more fish! Unfortunately, we forgot our camera, but here are a few shots taken with the camera we borrowed from Mema.

Olivia manages to snag a decent sized trout on her two-foot-long Barbie fishing Pole. (Thanks for the pole Uncle Mike!)

Cousin Nicholas and Olivia ready to hit the lake.

"Get the big one DADA!"

"Thanks for showing me how to fish, Papa!"

Some more pics from Whistler!

2008-08-13T01:57:00.001-07:00

We had a great time in Whistler, but are happy to be home. Here are some more random pictures to share with everyone!

I have to make sure Daddy wears his helmet everywhere he goes...

Olivia (yes, that's her in her knight's outfit) playing Prince and Princess with her friend Jessica.

Riding side saddle with Dada.

Olivia's favorite place in Whistler Village was the toy store with the big plastic guy in front.

I love my Dad!

Ready for snowmobiling anyone?

Sitting pretty at lunch with a flower in my hair...

Dinner with Dada.

Check me out going EXTREME!

Helloo from Canada, EH!

2008-08-10T21:30:00.000-07:00

Hello From Whistler, Canada- home of the 2010 Winter Olympics! Here's Olivia on the podium accepting her first of many gold medals! We're here for Crankworx, a downhill mountain biking festival. Andre has gotten some good riding in, and Olivia and Mary are having fun wandering around the village and taking in the sites. It's been a little rainy, but the weather is supposed to get sunny tomorrow. We're here for two more days. See you when we get home!

Olivia tells Dada to have a good time and to "BE CAREFUL!" before he heads out for a ride.

Olivia and Mama in the condo.

Hanging out in Whistler Village after lunch.

Olivia likes extreme riding too!

Olympic Bobsledding!

Hello BIG bear!

Ok, you caught us! It is the big stuffed bear outside the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory!

The Elsers: Brenda and Bill

Hey Bren, the drinking age IS lower in Canada, but next time...PLEASE no more Kokanee for Olivia!

Bill and Andre enjoy a cold brew after some runs.

August begins with camping!

2008-08-07T22:14:00.000-07:00

This last weekend we went camping with our friends the Gleasons. Friday started out a little hectic since we didn't have reservations anywhere, but we decided to wing it and just drive east to see what we could find. We were going to go to Lake Easton, but that plan changed when the resort we were going to stay at became fully booked at the last minute. Turns out that was a good thing since the forecast for Easton turned into high 60's with showers all weekend. We ended up in Vantage, WA where the weather was in the mid to high 80's. We had lots of fun eating, swimming in the river, hanging out, eating some more, and watching tents get blown over when the evening winds kicked up (luckily, we didn't have that problem). Next trip... Whistler, Canada!

The whole gang! Andre, Olivia, Mary, Jen, Ashley, Ashley's friend Ashly, and Jon.

Mary and Jen complete with baby boys in utero!

Jon and Andre enjoying a refreshing beverage by the campfire. (Do I smell Jagermeister?)

By the campfire.

The Gleasons

Olivia in the tent wearing nothing but the laundry bag.

She is having so much fun in the tent!

She REALLY enjoyed being one with nature.

Hanging out with the big girls. She kept referring to them as "The Ashleys" all weekend.

Boys cooking.

Olivia and Dada giving Brutus loves.

Welcome to our BLOG!

2008-07-28T17:25:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I decided I'm feeling a little left out with everyone blogging.... So here is our Blog!

What's been going on? Let's see....

Baby Boy Ciabattari is due sometime between December 4 and December 12, and NO we DO NOT have a name picked out yet. Olivia's newest suggestion? Prince Phillip (from Sleeping Beauty). Before that it was Baby Noah (so she could have what her cousin Nicholas has), Prince Eric (from The Little Mermaid), and Tarzan.

We just got back from Olivia's second camping trip. Some friends of ours invited us to their annual Pig/Luau party and Olivia got to sleep in a tent, catch sand crabs, see a big dead pig "turn into pork" (in her own words), and have lots of fun!

Next month is VERY BUSY!!! We are home a total of 13 days in August. We'll keep you posted on pictures of our various adventures. On the agenda? Camping, Whistler for Crankworx (a mountain biking festival), Sun Lakes for the annual Ciabattari camp out, and Sacramento to visit Tri (Mary's brother) in his new house. Stay tuned!