seems like it happened overnight (or is it just me?) but lauren’s decided that she’s a big girl now and has left her baby days behind.  : ( she’s now a lean, mean, walkin’ machine, full of her own opinions and independence.  she smiles proudly and nods when i ask if she’s a big girl.  and she will let you know LOUDLY if she thinks you’re treating her like a baby or otherwise withholding something from her that the big kids (her older brother and sister) are getting. and here are the pictures that prove my point: no longer will she accept bites off our food, she now requires her…

here’s a bit of the conversation phil and i had last night… me:  what does good skin tone mean? phil:  uh, not swarthy? me:  huh?  what’s swarthy mean? phil:  having bad skin tone. heh.  that guy has a such a way of clearing stuff right up for me!  😛 ******** and a bit of conversation i overheard between the kids as they were watching the rose parade: mikey:  i like all the parade people, even the pink princesses on the horses. allie [wearing a pink dress and flowery crown]:  i’m a pink princess, do you like me? mikey [trying to be diplomatic]:  well…  i like your strings. allie:  mikey!  they’re…

on saturday, we had opportunity to have lunch with some of phil’s college friends.  it was a great time– really fun to catch up with old friends and meet their little ones. all of us at buca di beppo: the soon-to-be lees, the rhees, the chois, and the tsais.  🙂 all of us (well, except for me) again outside. the fellas– phil, thomas, marcelo, and james. the next day, we headed over to pasadena after church for the post-parade float viewing.  i’ve grown up watching the rose parade every new year’s day and was really excited to be able to see the floats in person.  they certainly didn’t disappoint as…

alright, after five and a half years of blogging on xanga, i’ve decided to start the new year with a fresh new blog. not really a big fan of change, i had to mull over this decision for an undisclosed number of months. but the troubles i’ve lately encountered with xanga’s photo uploader has finally pushed me over the edge. so here i am, a little unsure of how this will turn out, but excited nonetheless! and i come armed with pictures, as always. and, as always, i have a bit of catching up to do. funny how living life often gets in the way of trying to keep up with…