Emma taking a swing at the pinata. Last year, she was only five months and didn't really get into it. This year, she had things a little more figured out!

oops! As one of my brothers not in this pic pointed out: there are only 7 of us present and three of my brothers are not there. Sorry Dale! ;o) Anyway - here is the correct caption for this pic:
This is my grandma, dad, and all of my siblings and their families that made it to the reunion minus three brothers. It was so much fun to see and spend time with my siblings that I hadn't seen in at least a year. One of my sisters had just returned from 4 years in Tiawan!

This is my grandmother with all of her great-grandchildren, plus Emma's stuffed leopard! She really isn't attached to it, but it was either the leopard or mommy! Actually, I am still holding her, but hiding behind the other kids.

Emma did get in the water, but I think that she thought it was too cold. She prefered playing in the sand.

On the second day of the reunion we went to the lake. Emma loved floating around in the many floaties that were there.

Give this girl a hose and she is intertained for hours! It took a few weeks for me to finally realize that it was easier if I just stripped her down naked and gave her the hose - no muddy wet clothes and one happy baby!

We got to Sarah's place in time to help her plant a late garden. Emma loved helping. Ok, I think she actually just loved being outside. It was always too hot in Ok to be outside for long. She was almost constantly outside when we first arrived.

When Tuan got a cell phone, Emma fell in love with it. She even made up her own sign for phone before I could give her one. Here she is talking on her own toy phone.

While we were staying with my sister, the Vietnam Memorial Moving Wall came through town. So we went to see it.

This is Emma riding one of my sister's 3 horses. Actually, much to my chagrin, (because I love horses) Emma prefered riding on their 4-wheeler with her daddy!

Emma never got a chance to ride in a fancy shopping cart like this in Oklahoma - our town didn't have any. So this was her first ride! She loves the ones with beeping horns the best.

We spent lots of time helping fix up my sister's old bunkhouse - the original homestead on their property. Emma helped bunches too!

Ok, this picture doesn't really cronical any part of our trip, but I thought it was adorable just the same. No, I'm not nervous at all for the arrival of #2! (cough, cough!)

When we first arrived, Emma ran squealing from my sisters dogs. It didn't take long though for her to warm up to them. This is Emma and her cousin Hannah 'riding' Pichinde. (I can't say enough good things about this dog. She is wonderfully calm and adores kids!)

My sister and I went to a Scandi Dawg Festival. There Emma had her first ice-cream cone. I think she liked it!

When we first got to Idaho, we stayed with my sister and her family. This is Emma and Tuan kicked back and sharing pretzels.

We also got a new (different) car right before we moved. It is a toyota rav 4 and we all like it very much. The benefits are that Emma is not as far away from me, so I can reach back and touch her legs and it is higher off the ground - meaning I don't have to lean over and down to get her in and out! She slept a lot on the way out, but it was still a pretty crazy trip. She actually cut all four of her 1-year-molars while we traveled - this girl just couldn't catch a break!

On our drive from Oklahoma to Idaho, we stopped in a Bass Pro Shops for a quick bite to eat - yes, they actually have a McDonalds in the store! - but mostly so that Emma could get out, stretch and play with wild animals. Ok, so they were stuffed!

Just before we moved (notice the mess of boxes in the background!) Emma started eating bananas. Lots of bananas! It was the first time she ate any fruit.

Welcome back!!

Whew! I know it has been just ages since my last post. That is due mostly in part to a very big change taking place in our lives. Tuan and I have just completed our move from Oklahoma to Idaho. We are now settled in Twin Falls, Id. So here is a picture crash course of our last 4 months - enjoy!