Wow -- there's no describing the feeling of logging into one's blogging account only to find one is two weeks into a new year and new decade without having posted a single thing yet. Let's just say Yours Truly is a bit embarrassed and leave it at that, okay...? Okay!
I hope everyone's new year holiday was festive and fun and filled with good times and good friends... and that anyone who passed the time alone did so purely by choice. Here's wishing one and all a happy, healthy, and prosperous new year! (And yeah, I know some purists insist it's not a new decade until 2021 but I'm sticking to zero as the beginning.)
Aside from planning and then totally forgetting a new year/year in review post, it's also been brought to my attention that I never actually finished catching up on 2018, much less keeping up with 2019. (Now
that is embarrassing.) So, since I promised it, I'll make a quick series of posts for each moth that I missed... But first, let's take a quick look back at what was happening with the family a decade ago during the Pipsquek's "Gotcha year"...
Here in the DMV, we were still dealing with Snowmageddon -- although we were soon to learn Old Man Winter was just yanking on our chains, giving us a light dusting or three of snow while quietly gathering his strength for the next big event. The best part of having to constantly worry about shoveling snow off the sidewalks and clearing our cars before going anywhere was that it took our minds off the fact that AJ's LID (the Log In Date, when China officially records receipt of adoption papers) was years in the past and that the process was still moving at a snail's pace, with a slowly-growing backlog on the Chinese end of things. Meanwhile, on the other side of the globe, the Pipsqueak was slowly growing and (as we were later told) becoming a favorite of the SWI's director.
Now let's fast-forward most of the way back up to the present and pick up the unfinished review of events from 2018... starting right now with July of 2018, picking up shortly after our annual pilgrimage to Lot 1 of UMCP for the Independence Day fireworks.
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| Miri started off the month by proving she is by far the most physically fit member of the family... who somehow still manages to walk into walls and trip over her own feet when not undertaking acts requiring grace, balance and skill! |
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| Later on the 8th we had a party with the MIT families to celebrate the Pipsqueak's birthday -- two weeks after the date because it was the only time everyone could make it! Things started with arts & crafts... |
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| ...and then moved on to a rollicking, no-holds-barred, water balloon war in the backyard! The grownups didn't participate (but did receive a little bit of accidental "shrapnel" a few times) but -- despite much yelling of, "OW! That hurt!" the kids all had a great time. |
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| Despite all the noise, people of all sizes all over the back yard, noise, flying water balloons, noise, splashing water, and noise, this lil' fella invited himself to the festivities and stayed for quite a while. |
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| The kids finished some of their art projects while drying off.... |
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| ...and then after rousing renditions of "Happy Birthday" in both English and Mandarin, demolished the cake. Nobody went home unhappy, and nobody went home hungry. All in all, a fun day! |
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| Things were generally quiet, and then Miri participated in the DEVIATE intensive dance camp held at SBA (the studio where she takes regular classes). The year's last session closed out on the 27th with a performance of all the different routines & dance styles attended by all the dancers' families. |
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| A got a happy surprise at the post-performance DEVIATE awards ceremony -- Miri received recognition for showing the most advancement as a dancer since the previous year's sessions! |
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| We closed out the day with a celebratory smoothie and set our sights on August. |
So there you have them, the incredibly long-overdue highlights of July 2018. August is coming soon (really!) -- so I'll see y'all then...
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