Our Christmas Holidays
We were blessed to spend
cherished visits with family and friends in
Houston and
Austin. In
Houston, many of the Gee family gathered to celebrate our
Savior's birth and again to visit with Brian's cousin Simone and her
family. It was nice that Kendall
could finally meet her cousin Paige. We also met our friends'
children Jackson, Victoria and Katia for the first time. Last,
but not least - thanks to John & Donna for hosting a "reunion"
for us while we were in town! |
Las Noches de las
Luminarias &
Chihuly glass sculptures
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We helped shower
Byron & Je with love as they prepared for the arrival of
Baby Chong. |
 Giving
Thanks with Family
Thanks to
Jennifer's family for traveling to spend Thanksgiving with us
again this year. We enjoyed our time together playing games,
eating (of course!) and starting new holiday traditions. We also
celebrated the season with the families of Jennifer's bible
study group. |
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We enjoyed a visit from Jennifer's
Dad & Amanda
in October.
Brian "caught" our first snake
(and hopefully last) living here in the desert. The 19" Rattler
didn't stand a chance! |
We love fall!
Kendall and Jacob picked out their very own pumpkins at a
pumpkin
patch this year.
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Trick or
Treat?
Kendall went on her
first trick-or-treating night out and quickly got the routine
down. |
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Labor Day in L.A.
A big thank you to our
friend, John, for one final chance to travel to L.A. with ExpressJet
airlines. Kendall had a great time at the outdoor children's museum
Kidspace, railroad park Travel Town and L.A. Zoo. We all enjoyed
hanging out with our friend, Paul, in Malibu and the summertime
tradition of a pre-concert picnic at the Hollywood Bowl. Thanks
for another great visit Amanda! |
August turned out to be a
full month with two family visits!
Amanda & Ming
made a post-graduation road trip to see us and Brian's
Mom & Dad flew
in for an end of summer visit.
We celebrated Jacob's
2nd
birthday and Kendall's 1st day at
school!
Our little girl is growing up so fast. Also, we welcome the
arrival of Jackson Connor born to proud parents Doris & Hsin-Lei
on August 11th. |
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This summer,
Tiffany and Jennifer's Mom were able to meet some of Brian's
relatives on the Alabastro side. It was a rare treat for our two
families to
meet on the other side of the world.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Welcome to the world
Caleb born to Steve, Pat and big sisters Candace, and Callie on
July 14th! We were happy to meet him his first day
home from the hospital.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Congratulations to Ming on
graduating from law school! |
Tour de Texas
In July, Jennifer & Kendall
were able to visit with family & friends all over the state. Jennifer was
honored to help welcome
Baby Liu at a shower for Doris and with her grandparents, Kendall
enjoyed "The Greatest Show on Earth" at her first circus!
Austin
Fort Worth & Dallas
Houston
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With our Summer in full swing, we took a
camping
trip with our friends Brent, Leslie & Sean at a nearby state park. Our
children enjoyed the
wide open spaces, fresh air and new experiences. Then, we spent
Memorial Day Weekend at our first crawfish boil in the
desert
with friends from Brian's office. Our friends Doris and Hsin-Lei
visited from Texas before Baby Liu arrives in August and Kendall and Jacob shared their
first bath ;) |
Mom's
Sweet "Sixteen"
Beach Trip to Puerto Penasco, Mexico
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Peggy & Jacob
came for a fun playdate weekend in June and then we spent the
Fourth of July weekend at their home. Our sister Amanda was
in town for work, so it was a real treat that she was able to
spend the week with us. |
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Brian's work brought him to
Texas this April, so we all enjoyed spending time with our
families and friends back in our home state. With the bluebonnets in
bloom, we visited Brenham to see the colorful fields on display
and enjoyed some homemade Blue Bell Ice Cream fresh from the
creamery.
Happy Birthdays to James and Je!
Congratulations to our
friends Rini & Albert who welcomed two precious baby girls,
Alyssa & Rebecca, into their family on March 6th. We
were honored to meet the twins shortly after their arrival home
from the hospital. We also welcome Lucas Tai Ran born to our
friends Will, Joyce & Rebecca on
March 18th and Alyssa Yonglin born to our friends
Edmond, Ling & Kailey on March 14th. |
Tea for TWO We can't believe our little
girl has turned TWO! This past year has flown by even faster
than the first. She continues to enchant us everyday with her
smiles, laughter and spirit. We love her so much and thank God
for her each day. We all had a fantastic time at a
Tea Party in
the Park for Kendall's 2nd Birthday in Houston. The
weather was gorgeous with sunny skies and a cool breeze --
perfect for a game of croquet! Thanks
to all our family and friends who came to help celebrate our
daughter's special day.
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Our biggest family vacation (and first overseas trip) of the
year brought us to China in March. The trip was extra special
because we traveled with everyone on Jennifer's side of the
family. Dad did an amazing
job of planning our itinerary, lining up hotels and
transportation and ordering a great variety of delicious food.
Thanks so much, Dad! We saw many faces of southern China
including urban and rural, refined and rustic, new and old. From
the moment we landed to our departure flight we ate and ate and
ate.
And after touring nine different cities in the Guangdong
province by plane, boat, ferry, taxi,
shuttle bus, van, train and metro you can see how we ended up
with SO many photos.
Album 1 includes photos of Guangzhou, Zhong Shan, Zhuhui and Macau.
Album 2 includes the mountainous landscapes of Guilin and
the iconic Yangshuo river.
Album 3 includes the cities of Shenzhen, Hong Kong/Kowloon, Dong Guan and
Guangzhou. All albums include lots of photos of tasty food! Warning: Do not view
albums on an empty stomach. |
Whoops! We forgot the
update, but have finally posted our
Balloon Fiesta photos from last October. The experience was
incredible and we would love to go again one day. |
We were blessed with two
family visits this spring.
Jennifer's
Mom was able to come for a visit in February and Brian's
parents visited for
Spring Break.
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Our friends in
New York, Char & Sherman, welcomed son Jacob Alexander into
their family on February 4th. So we braved the
cold to visit several friends in the Northeast including another
newcomer Cailyn Isabelle and her parents Alan & Vanessa in
Vermont. There was more than enough snow to make families of
snowmen on every street corner! Passing through Massachusetts,
we explored the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art - a great
place to stretch our legs and imaginations.
Manhattan was our final stop where we caught up with our
friend Jean, introduced Kendall to Gee cousins Melanie and Lisa
and saw sights with Amanda and Ming. An extra special experience
was the
Madeline
Tea Party we enjoyed alongside Kendall who loved the live
entertainment and sweet treats! |
January brought us
opportunities to travel and visit with our sisters,
Amanda and
Tiffany. While in L.A., we visited with old friends and new
places like
the Getty Villa, Reagan Presidential Library and Griffith
Observatory. Thanks for hosting us Amanda and coming out to
visit, Tiff! We celebrated our 5th wedding
anniversary in January with a gourmet breakfast by Brian. |
We
took another trip to say goodbye to 2007 and ring in the New Year with friends.
Who knew
Vegas could be so much fun family-style? |
