Warning! It's a little mushy!

So this weekend Bryant and I celebrated our 7th anniversary!  Time has flown by so quickly.  Life has taken us half way across the world and we have been blessed with 3 wonderful children!  I feel completely fortunate to have snagged Bryant when I did!  We are so different but he is my PERFECT match!  He is so patient with me, he understands me and he makes me a better person!  He is the greatest Dad in the whole world!  Our children adore him!  What more could I ask for out of life!  Not much!  With that said I feel like the luckiest women in the world! So to Bryant (who doesn't really even read our blog)....Thanks for being that prince charming that every little girl dreams of! I Love You!

Happy Halloween!

Peyton's first Halloween!  She was the cutest bumblebee in town if you ask me!  She was on her best behavior all night!  She didn't try to take off her headband once!  Good girl!  She was a complete hit in the neighborhood as well!  There are strangers everywhere with a picture of Peyton in their cell phone!

The "girls" heading out for our night of fun!

Have you ever seen such a cute "Ballerina Witch"?  Brooklynn insisted on being a ballerina for Halloween this year!  For those of you that know Brooklynn you are aware of the fact that Brooklynn wears her ballerina outfit EVERYDAY..........but Brooklynn does what Brooklynn wants so a ballerina she was.  She did however decide about 5 seconds before walking out the door that she would be a "ballerina witch" so.........we went with it!  We love our Brooklynn! 

 

We had a few friends over so here we are trying to gather the troops before we headed out to get our "American candy"!  I will admit it...I stoled from my children Halloween night! I just couldn't resist the Mound bars, and Peanut Butter Cups! They are hot commodities in China! And remember Kathleen.....5 year olds don't need Peanut Butter Cups!  

Dad took a quick picture before leaving the house!  He would have been in the picture but he refused to dress up so our "Power Ranger" gave him the boot!!!  J/K

Brooklynn and her handsome pengyou, Ethan!  This picture was taken at their Chinese school Halloween party!!!!  I don't know who had more fun at the party the kids or the parents!  Nothing like celebrating an American holiday with your Chinese friends.......comic relief is a given!

Overall, Halloween was a success!  It is always a good excuse to eat too many calories, stay up late, and party with your friends!  Can't wait until next year!

Never Visit Pet Shops for Fun!

This is what happens when you visit a pet shop for fun!  You end up with a three month old Yorkie that weighs 1.5 lbs, name him Oliver and try to convince your 6 year old Yorkie (other wise known as George) that you still love him just the same!!!  How could you resist that face!!!!

 Whenever I look at him he looks back at me with that little tongue sticking out!  He is so adorable and the kids can't seem to get enough of him!  We really could not resist the urge to get him. Once George gets over the initial shock of a new dog in the house I am confident he will love the constant playmate!

 

It is important that I mention that Austin payed for Oliver with his own money!  He gets money for feeding George every morning and he used that money to buy Oliver!  He took his wallet to the store and gave the money to "the man"  He was so proud!  I am not quite sure that the Chinese man behind the counter completely got what was going on but it was a fun moment for Bryant and I.  We are constantly amazed at how quickly Austin is growing up.

Did I mention never visit Pet Shops for fun!!!!

Channeling Our Energy!

Go Austin Go!  Here is Austin about to score a goal at his soccer game!  He has made so much progress this year! Last year he wasn't so convinced soccer was for him.  Somewhere between then and now his competitive spirit has erupted!  His father is thrilled!!! 

This is Brooklynn in her gymnastics leotard.  She loves flipping around and we are so excited about the fact that she now has a mat under her (at least for one hour a week)!  The rest of the week we just cross our fingers and hope for the best!  

Our Sweet Little Peyton!

With all of the fun adventures our family seems to embark on it is very easy for little miss Peyton to be overlooked as far as blogging is concerned.  So this Post is all about our little bundle of joy.  Peyton, other wise know as "worm"  is growing very quickly!  She has begun to talk and loves nothing more than to carry on a conversation.  She love's attention and is a lot like her father that way! (wink wink!) She is finally beginning to accept the fact that the world will not come to an end if she is on her belly for a few minutes.  She still love's her swing and I am beginning to think I should just give away the crib!  Peyton and I hang out all of the time!  I drag her all over Shanghai and she always seems to be on her best behavior when we are out! She is a real trooper!  I have enjoyed the privilege of watching her develop.  I could spend hours watching her discover her hands and feet!  Austin and Brooklynn love their little sister.  They come into our room every morning asking where she is!  She is an amazing little girl and we feel so lucky to have her as part of our family!

Austin's First Day of School!

With five minutes to spare we managed to get a few pictures in before Austin headed off to his first day of school.  He will be attending Dulwich College Shanghai.  It is a British school so as far as they are concerned he is starting "Year 1." This is his casual uniform with the mandatory school backpack that is almost as big as he is!  He doesn't seem to mind, it must be because the cool watch he is wearing! :)  They grow up way to fast!  Since when did my child need a watch??

 

So Austin's first day of school was a complete success!  Let's just hope we can say the same for the rest of the year!  

Clean Air!

This is Bryant on a business trip to Switzerland.  Let's just say you know you live in China when the first thing you notice in a picture is the blue sky!  I can only imagine how clean that air was! Too bad he couldn't bring some of that back with him!