An official hair cut for V

Violet was surprisingly good sitting on Mommy's lap.  Must be because Daddy's salon is so fancy.

Telescoping

 After our walk...

...it was the perfect night to check out the moon.

Painting fairy houses

The girls are slowly expanding their fairy garden.  They got some new fairy houses for their birthdays and had fun decorating them.

Sunday

A rainy day.  Gymboree (briefly) for Violet.

A break in the rain.

 Dinner out (and by out, we mean no one wanted to actually sit and eat).

 But of course room for cake.

Saturday

Lunch on the patio rocks.

Sporting some new birthday clothes.

 Veggies.  Should last us until Wednesday.

 Hiking Del Valle.

Birthday food

 This little cutie was shuttled off to the park...

...so the big girls could have time to prep a special snack for Stephie's class.

 Speaking of special food, Mommy made a few special meals for the big 8-year-old.

Go West Young Girl! by Grandma Julie

Stephie at Eight

Seven to eight what a crazy year.
Let me tell you, wait till you hear.
I moved to California, headed out west
Though I was scared, I did my best.
What an adventure in store for me.
 

So many beautiful new things to see.

John Muir Woods and the Golden Gate
Alcatraz was really great.
Fisherman’s Wharf and Half Moon Bay
Everyone visiting on Christmas day.
Hannah came first for our childcare.
Ashley’s now our new au pair.

Second-grade in a brand-new school.
Mrs Taugher is really cool.
She makes us dessert and we have a special lunch.
I always get invited because I read a bunch!
After school there is Spanish, science, and art.
And for one monthly project, I learned “Sick” by heart.

On Sunday we usually go on hikes.
This is the thing that my family likes.
Hiking at first was really tough.
When we first did Las Trampas, it was really very rough.
Now we go up Pleasanton ridge and little Yosemite.
When we went up Mission Peak, what a sight to see!

I share a room with Haley now, it’s different than before.
It’s very big, we sleep on bunks, it’s on the third floor.
We have our chairs and table and a very big ledge
where all of our American girls sleep on their beds.
Instead of a back yard we now have a patio.
The summer’s hot, the winter green, and there’s no snow.

Halloween was 80 degrees.
My peacock costume was a sight to see.
And after it got dark we went to trick or treat.
All the lights and spooky sounds were really hard to beat.
And the Christmas lights in Pleasanton
were amazingly great and so much fun.  

And for this St Patrick’s Day I got to do a show
of all the Irish dances that I practiced and I know.
This year brought many changes and I know that I have grown.
With Violet and Haley I never feel alone.
My Mom and Dad are proud of me and I am doing fine.
Just wait and see how much I grow by the time that I turn nine.