Hammin’ it up before his Spring Program
Gettin’ a bit big for pink pony rides!
Best Buddies
You always win with Orange!
New gymkhana event.
Ah, modern childhood (waiting for the Ojai 4th of July parade)
Guarding the all American blanket fort.
Yes, at our second home again!
My Padawan facing Darth Wolf.
County Fair fun!
Minecraft party for the big 6!
My cousins Ben and Sandra visited from the Netherlands toward the end of Summer so we took them on a tour around LA and environs. A view from the Griffith Observatory (which of course was closed – sigh!)
We also went to Universal Studios where Alexei showed off his stylish side.
He really loved Sandra and Ben (especially Sandra, heh.) He still bugs me to go see them!
Only in Vegas!
Hanging out at the hotel pool complex in Vegas. Love that lazy river…
Mandalay Bay aquarium.
Hangin’ with Daddy after a final Vegas meal.
A common sight in our house – Alexei and his girl.
Just hangin’ upside down, as you do…
A little equal time for our other cat, Bordeaux.
Very scary!
“Hey, there’s a cat here!”
First day of school!
My future Cast Member
Probably our last ride on the train in its current configuration. Sigh!
A final hug goodbye for the Dutch cousins.
He’s a little ham!
All dressed up for picture day.
Even though we were going to WDW in a couple weeks, we decided to meet some friends during their big trip to Disneyland. We’d just upgraded to our Premier passes so we got photo passes for free! Too bad Alexei generally hates waiting in line for photo ops. Did talk him into this one.
I love Dumbo but he’s starting to outgrow it. Sigh!
Playing with one of his little friends from school at the VMS picnic!
His current best friend at the VMS, during the pumpkin patch trip.
And here’s his depiction of the hay ride! (And can I tell you how much I love how he colors all his family and friends brown?)
Catching the ferry over to Magic Kingdom!
Nah, he’s not excited.
He indulged me in a few photos ops.
Riding the big boat in Magic Kingdom (don’t remember the name. Too lazy to Google.)
We like the carousel at Disneyland better. 😉
Captain Jake is ready for Mickey’s Not So Scary Halloween Party
Typhoon Lagoon!
He really loved this place. Next time, we’ll do a longer day here.
Photo Op at Animal Kingdom
I’ve waited for ages to see this tree in person!
Lunch at Rain Forest Cafe in AK.
The frog cup was a hit. The fake rain storms, not so much.
Plane tickets: $500. Premier passe upgrades $900. Watching your kid play on the playground in AK: Priceless
After a little too much drama finding the car, he was pretty done in!
Hammin’ it up at Epcot
I am a statue!
Alexei is a statue!
Yup, even in Orlando.
Morocco
Italy
Chinese lunch in China!
My terracotta warrior.
Caught up with these miscreants at last!
These shenanigans brought to you by Bob!
Night show at Epcot (Mama’s night out!)
G’night Castle!
Got to have lunch at Be Our Guest! It was an early lunch but I didn’t care. The place is awesome!
Defending the fort! (Tom Sawyer’s Island)
This is such a Southern thing (rocking chairs on the dock of Tom Sawyer’s Island)
Alexei got to be Chip in the Beauty and the Beast show
He loved Belle!
Sooooo excited for Hollywood Studios!
Yeah, the queues here are pretty cool!
I wish we had this Toy Story queue!
Obligatory playground visit.
Say g’night Hollywood Studios! And bid farewell to Walt Disney World!
Got his toes done for Halloween.
Trick or Treating with the A Team (and bonus big brother C) at the local outdoor mall.
Getting ready for the real Halloween night
He was such a gentleman with Princess Tiana
Saying goodbye to the goats. (sniff!)
Misc. cute stuff
His school pics came out pretty nice.
We switched to the Y for swimming lessons and this seems to have been a very good choice.
We had a really hot fall…
We were happy to get the cooler weather at last!
Goofing off with some buds from school. (I love my Montessori family!)
Decent if impromptu pic of Darren by our boy
He still loves the sliding hill at the SB Zoo. He’s actually quite skilled. Hee.
Expressing his opinion of the wait for the Dino show
Welcome additions to the play area at the zoo
All dressed up for the Winter Program
Jo-jo and his latest roommate. Hopefully this one’s not going anywhere any time soon!
Goofin’ off before Solstice ritual with his buddies.
More reasons to love Montessori.
More random cuteness.
Helping wrap presents on Xmas Eve. He was such a good wrapper! And soooo excited about Christmas.
The first present of the evening was a big hit! Thanks Auntie Boo!
This was the Big (and Favorite) Present. Lego train set FTW!
Building his train on Christmas morning. I helped with the engine and some other fiddly bits but he did the majority of the 6 books of instructions and 8 bags of blocks (plus various larger separate pieces) by himself.
Best buddies forever!
Our 2015 Holiday card. I apologize to anyone on my normal card list who didn’t get one this year. It wasn’t deliberate, I just seriously underestimate my order this year!
Wishing you and yours the happiest of New Years and many bright blessings and much love in 2016!
Janice, Darren and Alexei
