Sporty Saturday

Yesterday morning we went to the University of MN to watch my cousin Stephenie dive (she did a terrific job!), and the girls enjoyed watching the 1-meter competition. Things got more interesting for Ruby, however, once the diving was over and my cousin Kari decided to take Ruby on a field trip to the top of the diving tower. Some of you might remember that Kari has done this before with Cecilia (I think she was under 3 at the time), so it was only fair that Ruby got a turn up at the top. I took some video of this, but until I can figure out how to get the video off of my phone an onto the internet, you'll have to be satisfied with this:


It's hard to see her at first, but she's up there at the very top of the 10-meter being held up by Cousin Kari. They proceeded to walk out to the very end of the board, lay down on their tummies, and poke their heads over the edge to look down at the water below. If you're not sure what the 10-meter is, think back to the last summer Olympics you watched when they showed the diving from the tallest platform and it seems like the divers are falling for an eternity. That's the 10-meter. According to Ruby it wasn't the least bit scary, but according to me it was a near-death experience. My girls both aspire to be divers some day, but if they get on anything other than a 3-meter we're going to have problems.

After the diving meet we had to rush over to Cecilia's basketball game, and I'm sorry to report they suffered yet another loss. The upside is that Cici is improving by leaps and bounds and still loves every second of the game, even the ones that end in defeat. Here is a blurry shot of her making TWO OF TWO free throws after she was fouled while taking a shot.

The ear-to-ear grin she wore after making both free throws was the absolute highlight of the game.

And speaking of sports, we need to get things together so we can go to a Superbowl party and root for the Steelers...

G&T (Not the Drink.)

Today we received a letter from the school district informing us that Ruby has been identified as "gifted and talented" just like her big sister. This means that she will have the opportunity to attend the G&T magnet school with Cecilia provided she makes it through the lottery system (they do not have sibling preference). We very much hope they can be at the same school next year.

We knew when the test was administered back in December, and I have to admit it's caused me some anxiety in the time between then and now. Because we see so much of ourselves in the children - Cecilia being a clone of her father and Ruby like me in so many ways - I was worried about Ruby's test score and what it said about her mother. Of course Cecilia was going to be a smarty-marty because she's just like her dad. But what about Rubes...?

Nothing to worry about, it seems. Smart as a whip! Too bad she had to ruin our excitement over the letter by getting sick and barfing a few times before bed.

The Year of the Rabbit

The blog has been a little quiet lately, so for those of you interested in the goings-on of our girls, I apologize. The holidays were a blur of family gatherings, visits with friends, and a wedding of which we all played an integral role (best man, bridesmaid, and two flower girls if anyone is keeping score). It was a fun and crazy season which has segued into a cold and busy January. In fact, yesterday looked a little something like this:

8AM: Run around gathering items, clothing, etc. for the day's activities
9AM: Dadam starts running the Winter Carnival Half Marathon
9:30: Me and the girls head out to cheer him on
10AM: Dadam runs past and we cheer wildly
10:20: Quick run to the grocery store
11AM: Cecilia's basketball game
11:30 Dadam meets us at the game post-run
12:30: Run to pick up new contacts
1:30: Run to pick up items for birthday party
3PM: Drop girls off at birthday party
4PM: Shoe shopping
5PM: Make dessert for Chinese New Year party
6PM: Pick up girls from birthday party
6:45: Dadam leaves for piping gig
7PM: Me and girls leave for Chinese New Year party
9PM: Arrive back home, put girls to bed
10PM: Dadam arrives back home, stuffs face with dumplings lovingly brought home from party by his children
1o:30: Rehash the day together before falling into comas on the couch

And while yesterday was particularly crazy, I'm sorry to say it's not really an anomaly. So there will be occasions when the blog goes a little quiet and we promise to do our best to keep things updated.

Finally, a little item: Last night there were Chinese students (all girls) at the Chinese New Year party (imagine that), a party we've attended for the last few years at the home of some lovely friends. These students have been in the country less than a week and, for some reason, took an interest in the girls, going on and on about how cute they are. They had Cici and Ruby posing for photograph after photograph, and the girls played along like real diplomats. After the students had all posed with the girls in various combinations (the dog was also included), our friend and host David came up to me to explain that this was the students' first real interaction with American children. The students were just really excited to meet and interact with little American kids. I thought it was hysterical -- sometime in the future they will return to China and have all these pictures of my children to show off to their friends and family.

But really, who better to represent American youth than Cecilia and Ruby?

Just Because Photos

You can't quite see it here, but Ruby is spazzing out because Cici gave her a rainbow assortment of dry erase markers for Christmas. She uses these markers to play school (note: If you walk in on this game you will be assigned the role of principal -- do not fight it.).

Cecilia hugging the crap out of her sister in appreciation of receiving Diary of a Wimpy Kid.


This is a picture of the girls on Christmas Eve in their new pajamas. I love this picture.

We had such a marvelous Christmas, I'm having a hard time believing it was already a few weeks ago...

Recent Rubyisms.

1. "I would eat it but I don't like anacavo." [avocado]

2. "Today in Mr. Sam's class we learned about primary colors and secretary colors."

3. "Is that a picture of Martin Luther King, Jr.?" [upon seeing the Uncle Ben's rice logo on TV]

Flower Girls

Cecilia hamming it up with her dad at the rehearsal dinner.

I just realized we didn't post any pictures of the wedding! The girls both loved their flower girl experience, and we're fairly certain that walking down the aisle as the center of attention in a fancy dress was the highlight of Ruby's life (so far). It was a terrific day and we all felt lucky to be involved in such a happy celebration for two people we love so much!

The Bride and Ruby on the morning of the wedding.

Posing flower girls.

Momlissa and Dadam, having a little fun of their own.

Congratulations Auntie Landi & Uncle Bill!

Tough Questions.

I'm in charge of putting the girls to bed every night, and while they have become pretty self-sufficient in that area I do approach the task with the expectation that my knees will have gotten a good stretching by the end of it. ("Dad! Bring water!" "Dad! Come turn the light off!," etc.) The requests are usually of the same type and never too difficult to satisfy.

So I was completely prepared the other night to march up the stairs and fill the water cup when I heard the inevitable "Dad!" from Ruby. "What is it, honey?" I called, getting up.

There was a pause, and then she spoke again: "Is God real?"

Oh boy. Melissa reminds me that I posted about this same issue when Cecilia was littler, and out of respect for Ruby's privacy (and my own), I won't relate exactly what we discussed when I went up and sat down on her bed. Her question came from thinking about her Grandpa Martinez (Melissa's grandfather), who died before she was born, and wondering whether she'd ever meet him. Needless to say, although Ruby did not seem totally persuaded one way or the other after our talk, she did feel much better and was able to lie down and fall asleep pretty quickly.

We are not a religious family, as most of you who read this blog know. But as someone who was raised in one, I understand the value of religion, especially in its ability to put color and magic in the world - and to answer children's difficult questions about the universe. We went to church on Christmas Eve for the first time in a while, which was nice. And I think Ruby and I both agree that it's nice to think of a reunion with Grandpa Martinez and all our the other beloved relatives she never got to meet, in a beautiful place, someday.