A tale of two cities

In the days following Thanksgiving, Olivia and I were having a wonderful time with my family in New York while Brian and Joe were enjoying time with his family back home in Ohio.  Liv LOVES when we go to New York and has so much with her cousins, Aunt Jen, Uncle Dave and Uncle Mark.  This time around, she had the excitement of getting to spend some time with Uncle Dave's family too.  It was a whirlwind trip and she handled everything so well.  She is an amazing little person and we are so blessed with her.

Here are some highlights of her stint as a flower girl - and hanging out with her cousins:

Liv and Josh - brother of the bride

Liv and Uncle Mark, the Sneakin' Deacon

Liv and the ring bearer Owen had a great time together

Me and my nephew Greg

Liv and Zach

Liv and Kim

Cuddling up with Uncle Dave

 Joe had a good time hanging out with his cousins, too.  Here he is with Fiona and Noah:

By the time I got back, Joe was a pro at clapping (especially on cue) and says "Gop, gop, gop" as he claps.  He is too cute!!

Thankful

Happy Thanksgiving!  This year, as we thank God for all He has given us, we have an extra special blessing: Joseph Sung Min Switalski.  We thank God every day for bringing Joe into our lives.  His joy is contagious and it is so much fun to experience things through the eyes of a small child, in addition to those of our exuberant and earnest 5 1/2 year old.  We are truly blessed and thankful for what we have.

Our first Thanksgiving as a family of four was more than a little unusual.  Brian and Liv had spent the night at his mom's house to visit with his sister and her family who came in from Brooklyn.  Joe and I went over to Grandma and Grandpa's house first thing in the morning for breakfast and to take some family pictures before Liv and I flew to Albany, NY.  She is going to be the flower girl in her cousin's wedding on Saturday so we are heading out to spend a little extra time with my family.  She was a little disappointed to not be able to spend too much time with Fiona (almost 3) and Noah (1) - but luckily the excitement of our trip (and her flower girl duties) made it a lot easier.

Grandpa was able to get some great pictures of each of the families and everyone all together.  We will definitely treasure these for years to come:

Our little family of 4

The families Fuehrer, Hobbs and Switalski

After a quick visit with family and a delicious breakfast, Liv and I were off to the airport to start our adventure.  We sailed through security, picked up some snacks and before long it was time to get on the plane.  Someone was *very* excited.

Liv and Emily checking out the view from 20,000 feet

My excited traveling companion

Meanwhile, back at Grandma and Grandpa's house, Brian and Grandma were hard at work on Thanksgiving dinner, Brian making the turkey and cornbread and Grandma taking care of the rest of the side dishes.  Mmmm.

Brian and Joe checking out the delicious looking turkey

Joe Sung Min made himself right at home with his Aunt Alison, Uncle Peter and cousins Fiona and Noah.  Joe was especially interested in Noah since they are the same age.  Brian told me that during dinner, Joe grabbed some food off Noah's tray - and Noah tried feeding Joe a green bean.  Neither went over very well, but it was cute to watch!

Party time!

Now that Joe Sung Min has been home for almost 3 months and is quite settled in, we thought it was time to celebrate his 1st birthday.  We held it over at Grandma and Grandpa's house and all of Joe's great-aunts and uncles enjoyed seeing and getting to know him.  For many, it was their first time - and he did not disappoint.  It got noisy at times - but besides crying when I changed him into his hanbok - or when I took away his (nearly empty) bottle - there were no tears.

Liv and Joe looked SO cute in their hanboks and Olivia lived up to her "Best Sister Ever" t-shirt and was also quite the little hostess.

The first video shows Brian's family's Polish tradition of the child choosing items from the table in front of them to show what type of life they will lead in the future; much like the Korean doljabee ceremony.   (see the post from 8/27) .  Here is what happened in Ohio:

We have to include singing Happy Birthday to the little man!

 

First US haircut

This afternoon, I took Joe to get his first hair cut since he's been home.  His hair had been getting so long and was sticking up in all directions.  With his first birthday party and Thanksgiving coming up, we figured it was time to bite the bullet and get his hair cut.  We took him to a local place and they did a great job.  He did a GREAT job (as did the stylist who had to deal with him craning his neck to see what was going on when others walked by) and I only needed to break out Pororo on my iPhone when the clippers came out.  He looks so handsome.  See for yourself!

So handsome!

Even his sad/scared face is adorable!