Easter Hams

Simon's first Easter, and Grandma Ning wanted to make sure he was dressed for it. Several weeks ago she asked for a couple of measurements, and whipped up this great looking linen suit. His Uncle Cary wanted to check out his new Spring duds so we brought him over for some pictures. The lighting was bad, but I couldn't resist showing how happy he was to get his pictures taken.
Easter morning, the Easter bunny left Simon a box with 5 plastic eggs, each with a single dark chocolate M&M. We taught him how to shake and open them to find the chocolate surprise. He had a couple other toys, but his latest trick is now making an echo sound in anything he can put his mouth into.

Palo Alto, 94303

So, we did the move. Thanks to all the boxes and the painful process of downsizing, we have discouraged several people from wanting to move. Yes, we also successfully moved the project car out of the garage before the Benton's moved in. :)

Based on our address, the church group we would be attending is the Palo Alto 2nd Ward. Susie and I joke around and call Oregon Expressway the dividing line between the Billionaires, and the Millionaires. We've enjoyed it so far, and the church members have been so warm and inviting. we still dearly miss our friends in San Francisco.

Simon is enjoying the backyard (Yes, we have a backyard) and he is learning how to play in the dirt. His latest trick is the crab-walk. He is so close to walking. He can stand-up on his own, and prefers to hold to your finger with his right hand while you escort him wherever he wants to go.

As you can see, Simon has also learned to eat dirt.

We hope to enjoy this area as much as we did San Francisco. Things have changed since the last time I lived here; Susie found the Dairy Queen accidentally and now all is right with the world. Hopefully all will be in place in the next couple of weeks.

For those looking for a new address, let me know, and we'll send it out to you.

The Nings leave San Francisco

Well, we did it! We found a place closer to Kelvin's work (15 min door-to-door). We've moving back to Palo Alto on March 8th. For several months we've been looking for something that would allow Kelvin more time with Simon. He ends up leaving for work 15 minutes after Simon wakes up, and coming home 15 minutes before he sleeps.

We'll be paying more for a smaller rental house, but it has 3 bedrooms, 1 bath, and a big back yard. I'm trying to get my project car ('74 Triumph Spitfire/GT6 project) back on wheels so that I can at least tow it with me.

It has been a long struggle since we have so many great friends in San Francisco. The Sunset Ward has been the closest we've felt to a ward since growing up in our respective homes.

Even though we're really not that far away, we've decided to make a list of things we'll miss up here. For those who also left their hearts in San Francisco, please feel free to add to the list:
- Food (Indian, Mexican, Japanese, Thai Crab house, within walking distance)
- Friends
- Ferry Building, Farmer's Market
- Golden Gate Park (2 blocks away)
- Ocean Beach (7 blocks away)
- Shopping
- Telling people about the weird cold summers
- The Sunset Ward (Bishop Curtis et al.)
- Church Basketball on Tuesdays (Kelvin still may come up to play)
- Irving Street Food
- Union Square

30 seconds unattended

Since we've "baby-proofed" the house, we've been letting Simon roam around the house and pretty much own the place. Since we're usually in the living room when this happens, the only things we watch out for are the computer cables, Rosa's litter box (which he stuck his hand into a couple of days ago).

Yesterday he crawled into the bathroom. He usually beats on the seat like a drum. He was quiet for 30 seconds and we found him pulling out all the tissue out of the box.

He does the same thing with the wipies...he just pulls them out one at a time.

The Dan Tyminski Band

Last weekend we went to see the Dan Tyminski Band. They're a blue-grass band with a lot of talent. Kelvin was especially tired, but Susie absolutely loved it.

Probably the most entertaining was the dancing. The venue changed due to the weather to "The Independent" on Van Ness. Needless to say, there was a lot of people really loving the music. It reminded me of this video clip that I have...especially the "Whitey Hop"

Simon's First Christmas

Well, here's Simon. We have a little chair that attaches to the table. Here he sits patiently (rarely) waiting for food to come. We took this chair with us as we traveled to Pasadena and Phoenix for Christmas this year.














Below is what we really ended up doing most of the time in Pasadena. Susie read a book. I watched a bunch of movies with my brother and he ended up surfing the web as much as he could.
Simon wants a piece of the action. Gnawing on things is his favorite. It's the best.


We discovered that Simon really likes the swing. There was a park around the corner and we stopped by as often as we could. Grandma Ning tried to "Shanghai" the boy out to the park before he had his lunch.
With driving and work schedules, we ended up doing Christmas at the Ning home on Christmas Eve. Simon, of course, had no idea what was going on. But he loved the toys and especially his bath ducks.



















We then headed to Phoenix. We drove straight thru and it seemed quicker. Probably because there were a lot of mini-cities along the way. Susie started to get nostalgic and remember trips she would take with her family across the same highways.

Marco and Polo tried to take advantage of as much sun as they could. It was quite cold...and they tried to keep their bellies warm.

Simon pretty much knows when the camera's pointing at him. He either sits and smiles, or he charges. This time he charged. He has a little bit of rug-fuzz on his chin.

The Robinson Tree was large and incharge.

With every passing day, the angel on top of the tree would learn just a bit further forward.











Santa gave us a Dyson Hand vacuum for Christmas. Davis loves cleaning so here he is vacuuming up the fake snow from the floor.

I didn't think I was this bad

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