HOLIDAY IN HOI AN

Hit the pool first thing after arriving 

Pooltime with Papai 

Exploring Old Town Hoi An 

More exploring 

Impromptu date while both kiddos napped

Peekaboo in the pool 

Tae explaining to Elea where we are going on his "paper" 

Our little traveler 

Wandering around our resort 

The water was not super warm, Tae tested it out on me by splashing

We had a great holiday over Chinese New Year.  We went to Hoi An, Vietnam. It is only an hour and a half flight from Hong Kong so it was nice and convenient.  We stayed at the Hoi An Silk Village and I highly recommend it, especially if you have kids and want a little separation from the bustling city.  It is a 5 minute ride outside of the town, it's a beautiful village with a silk "factory" on the premises. There was tons to explore on our walks and it even had a spa less than 100 steps from our villas. We had two villas right in front of the pool and the restaurant, a perfect place for us.  We were able to play at the pool while Elea napped and enjoyed the wonderful Vietnamese food. 

We went into town a few times, but mostly enjoyed the pool and beach. Jess got a tailored made suit and a few shirts, and I got some dresses and linen pants made. We walked the streets taking in ALL THE PEOPLE and ate ALL THE FOOD.  The kids were very popular, everyone wanted to hold them or came up to them. Tae was outgoing and talked with lots of them, Elea stuck right on my hip, not happy with a stranger.

We head back into work with full bellies, hearts, and lots of memories.

A LETTER TO MEI MEI ON YOUR 1ST BIRTHDAY

Dear Elea, 

It’s hard to know where to start, but I’ll start with thanking you. Thank you for completing us as a family and letting me enjoy your first year by soaking up every second. With you I knew in advance just how fast this first year would fly by and because of that I savored every laugh, smile, cry, babble, stumble, and clap. Everything about you is a joy to our lives. 

You are such a mix of quiet contentment and feisty desire. Your personality is always evolving, just like your ability to do new things. You mastered walking in what seems no time at all, which shouldn’t surprise me considering you understand Mandarin and English.  You are such a smiley baby, particularly at people. You laugh so hard and scrunch up your little nose and show your toothy grin to anyone who will watch.  

Elea, you doubled my heart in size, it sounds cliche but before you I didn’t know if I could love a child as much as I love your brother.  But from the moment Dr. Barini placed you on my chest I was in love all over again. Your full head of hair, your newborn cry, and your squishy face melted me from the inside. My love for you has grown with each passing moment I spend with you. I can’t help but wonder how you are going to change the world.

You have humbled me greatly this year, just when I thought I had everything figured out because it worked with your brother I realized I was so wrong. You like things differently than he did, and that is awesome because you retaught me how we are all different. It’s great you are different than Tae, I always want you to be true to yourself.  God created you, Elea Holbrook, and there is no one else on this entire Earth that is like you.  If I can teach you one thing in life it would be to see and value your worth. The world and people in it shouldn’t be where your value comes from, but rather your Creator. I struggled still struggle with this and I want you to learn it early. 

Motherhood is not for the faint of heart, but you my love make it easy. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do to see you smile, hear that laugh, or to have you stumble into my arms. Thank you for being patient with me, your daddy, and Tae as we all figured out our new roles in our little family. I can’t wait to see what the next year holds, we love you Mei Mei. 

I love you desperately, 

Mama 

Elea and Mama February 12, 2017

Elea and Mama February 10, 2018 

ELEA HOLBROOK 1 YEAR OLD

Elea Holbrook

12 Months 

Likes: 

• Walking
• Biting fingers (to get a toy she wants) 
• Giving noggin (headbutts) 
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• Still Likes...
• Clapping, Pointing  
• Furniture cruising 
• Still standing in danegrgous places (ie high chair and bath) 
• Playing with Tae 
• Amei 
• Bathtime
• Peekaboo

Dislikes: 

• When you take a toy or food away from her
• Getting out of the bath 
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Sleep

• Sleeps through the night, about 12 hours
• Takes 2 naps a day, morning and afternoon

Eating: 

• Loves to eat, pretty much eats anything 
• Even better at picking up her food with her fingers 
• Tries to use a fork.
• Loves rice, dumplings, pancakes, pizza, whole apples, spinach, bok choi...pretty much anything
• Drinking whole cow's milk mixed with her formula
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Favorite Moments: 

• Taking her first steps 
• Watching her new trick with Amei (headbutt) 
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Firsts: 

• Steps! She just took them one night when Jess was giving Tae a bath, cruised on over to the toy bin like it was nothing.  I didn't even get it on camera because it was so out of the blue. 
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Mommy Thoughts: 

Where did the year go? I remember waking up a year ago Sunday with contractions and waiting for as long as I could to go to the hospital. Our little sweetie graced us with her presence 2 weeks early and we were thrilled. Maybe it's the mom guilt, or maybe it's true, but I feel like she is just easier and is always just along for the ride.  We don't fret over the little things with her and Elea seems okay with that. She is sweet and spicy, the perfect fit for our family. One of my favorite things this year has been watching Tae and her relationship evolve. She loves her big brother and wants to do anything he does, and he loves his Mei Mei and protects her fiercely. Her little scrunched up nose, toothy smile is a favorite part of each day. I remember holding her in my arms and staring into her eyes wondering how we were going to survive with 2 kids, so today I am feeling a bit accomplished that we've done it for one year--and moved countries in the mix of all of it.  We love you Elea and can't wait to cheer you on as you change the world. 

ELEA'S FIRST BIRTHDAY SHINDIG

We had a little get together for Elea at a restaurant. It was super low key and easy (my favorite kind).  We dumped a bunch of toys in the middle of the place and let the kiddos fend for themselves. :) We had pancakes, pizza, fries, and dumplings for the kids and grilled kebab's, dumplings, and chicken wings for the adults.  Of course, we had cake and cupcakes.  Elea dove right in (she is my child!) and loved the cupcake.  Tae was in heaven because we let him have a few cupcakes. Overall a nice time and celebration of our sweet, feisty girl.