Zoll Girls

Finally!!

2012-02-29T15:46:00.005-05:00

Finally the snow that the girls have been waiting for has arrived! They did not hesitate to go out and play.

Snow angels!!!

Hello Boston!

2012-02-27T15:14:00.006-05:00

There sure has been a lot going on since our last post! We left Singapore at the end of January. It was hard for the girls (and us) to say goodbye to so many friends.

Our good friends Charles and Yasi from Australia happened to be in Singapore the day before we left. We were so happy that we got to see them.

The girls will really miss their friends!

We cannot wait until we have all of our boxes back!

Here are the girls at Logan Airport. We had just landed. They weren't sure what to think of all of the cold weather gear!

It has been a really mild winter in Boston, but it snowed the day we arrived. The girls were thrilled to throw some snowballs. There hasn't been any snow since!

This is what jet lag looks like:

We have been keeping busy with visiting friends, house hunting, going to the library and Boston museums, and just walking around Boston. We stumbled upon a neighborhood Valentine's Day party, where the girls got their faces painted.

They enjoyed decorating heart-shaped popcorn balls - a Valentine gift from Meme and Baba.

The girls were so happy to reconnect with their buddy Alexandra!

They miss their sundresses so both picked out a winter dress. Ida Jane spent about 20 minutes trying on dresses before choosing this one.

Here's Ida posing with the statue of legendary Celtics coach Red Auerbach!

We have found a house and are very excited about it! Closing is at the end of March. We will post pictures once it is a done deal!

Our finishing photo is from lunch this past weekend. You can take the girl out of Singapore, but you can't take Singapore out of the girl!

Farewell Singapore

2012-01-13T00:52:00.012-05:00

We have been busy preparing for the move, which is taking place in one short week! We have been visiting some of our favorite places in Singapore and experiencing some new things as well. Most of this post will be dedicated to our farewell tour, but we'll start with Christmas. We have very few photos of Christmas because of a virus that attacked our memory card, and we are quite sad to have lost all of our Christmas morning pictures. Here is everything else I could find.

Our one and only photo of decorating the tree. We took quite a few that day but this is the only one we still have. I took some post-Christmas pictures of the girls pointing to their favorite ornaments...

We had a cute picture of the girls in front of a tree for our Christmas card this year. This is one of the photos we took that day that didn't make the card.

Here they are sporting some warm weather gear. This was a gift from our good friend Penny.

Thank goodness we still have our photo of them with the big guy!

Now, let's start our farewell tour of Singapore!

We have been to the Bird Park.

The bird park was one of the first places we visited when we moved to Singapore. This photo was taken that day, two years ago. The girls have changed a lot since then!

Here's daddy and Harper on the tram.

The elephant parade is an exhibit that has been in the city for about a month. Elephant statues can be found all over the city and souvenirs are for sale with proceeds to benefit Asian elephants. We took a walk on Orchard Road to see some of them.

Ida and Harper gave their mom miniature elephants for Christmas that they painted themselves and Ben gave her a nice tote bag and coffee mugs from the elephant shop! Needless to say, Amy loves this exhibit! The elephant statues are being auctioned off - wish we could take one home!

We went to the children's section of the Botanical Gardens.

The sun was quite bright that day, but you can see bananas hanging over their heads in this picture!

We loved the Singapore zoo and visited many times. On our last visit we stumbled across a great exhibit we had never seen before. Fruit bats flew overhead, lemurs walked around freely and sloths hung from trees just inches away. Very cool.

Face to face with a lemur.

Ida Jane was fascinated!

Here are a sloth and fruit bat.

We ran into more elephant statues at the zoo. Here are the girls with Lorena, our household helper, who we will miss greatly.

Goofing around in front of the white tigers.

Harper ran into her good buddy Ruby in the splash park at the zoo.

Mom and Dad snuck away to Bangkok for a few days. This blog is meant to be for pictures of the girls, but I'll sneak in one photo from our trip. :)

The kids will really miss all of their friends. Here they are with Olivia and Sammy, buddies from the condo.

Mom took the girls and Lorena to Universal Studios. We had never been there and had a blast! We took the cable cars over to the park, which was also a big treat!

In front of Fiona's castle.

With Shrek and Fiona.

Flying on a dinosaur in Jurassic Park.

Riding the carousel in Madagascar.

I'm not really sure what these ladies are supposed to be, but the girls loved them.

The girls were very brave on the junior rollercoaster. It went a lot faster than I thought it would, but they loved it!

Ida and I got the front seat!

The next week will be sent saying goodbye to many close friends and packing everything up. It has been an amazing adventure here in Singapore and we will miss it greatly. We look forward to a new adventure in Boston!

October fun

2011-11-06T01:53:00.009-04:00

It has been a fun filled October! We had a week-long break from school and enjoyed it on Bintan Island in Indonesia. The girls participated in many of the activities for kids and mom and dad lounged by the pool or on the beach. Ida Jane even went to circus school, trying the tight rope and the trapeze.

Here is a video of Ida Jane on the trapeze!

Pizza making was one of the fun activities for kids!

We returned on a Friday night and the next day was our big Halloween party! The girls had a blast. Harper was a good witch.

Ida Jane was a pirate.

Mom and Dad even dressed up.

Ida Jane helped daddy gut the pumpkin.

The girls got to dress up for the Indian holiday of Diwali for school.

Here are a few other cute pics from this month.

Ida Jane is 5!

2011-09-14T06:46:00.008-04:00

Things have been super busy here in Singapore, with the beginning of a new school year, soccer, swim lessons, mid-Autumn festival and Ida Jane's big fifth birthday!

The birthday celebrations began with a trip to Hard Rock Cafe, where Ida Jane enjoyed being the center of attention. Everyone sang to her and she even got a hot fudge sundae!

Ida Jane had a blast at her birthday party. Lots of good friends were in attendance and everyone enjoyed the pirate theme.

We cannot believe our little Ida Jane is already 5!!

The girls have been enjoying their swim lessons with Coach Patrick.

Harper sings pretty much all the time...

Ida Jane is loving soccer. She is the only girl, but that doesn't bother her one bit!

Here she is learning how to play goalie!

Both girls are really enjoying school and mom is enjoying having them with her at Overseas Family School. At school, every holiday is celebrated, so the girls dressed up in traditional Hari Raya clothing.

With all of this going on, we still manage to get out and about in Singapore from time to time. Here are the girls dancing at Clarke Quay fountain.

We all enjoyed dinner at a Japanese restaurant. Check out Ida's skills with the chopsticks! Harper is still getting the hang of it...

A few days ago was the Mid-Autumn Festival. The girls loved the lanterns around town and enjoyed attending the celebration put on by our condominium.

Hope everyone is enjoying the beginning of autumn!!

U.S. 2011

2011-07-31T07:56:00.049-04:00

We recently returned from our fabulous trip to the U.S. We got to see lots of family and friends. It was a fun-filled five weeks. We started out and ended at Nana and Papa's farm in Ohio...

It was great to see Great Grandmama and Great Granddad.

Hanging out with Nana was a lot of fun.

The girls really enjoyed the great outdoors!

Junior beekeepers!

Ida Jane loved babysitting for Logan.

Harper liked being silly with Hayley

Next we headed to the lake in Indiana...

We were thrilled to see Great Grandma Gerber.

Fun on the boat with Evan and Hayley.

Relaxing...

Uncle Steve even stopped by for a visit!

Then it was on to Disney World! We spent 3 fantastic days there with Amy's side of the family.
The girls posed for lots of pictures with the characters and their cousins Grayce and Maddy...

We loved the rides!

Big girls at dinner with Grayce and Maddy.

After Disney, we headed down to Meme and Baba's house in Naples. The beach was one of our favorite places...

The girls got a golf lesson from Uncle Tim and got to ride in the golf cart with Baba.

The Fourth of July parade was a lot of fun.

We were sad to say goodbye to Meme and Baba.

Near the end of our trip we spent some time with some good friends in upstate New York. The girls had a blast with Alexandra and Emily and mommy was happy to spend her big 40th birthday with Lora and Christene.

After five weeks of fun we headed home. We were ready to be airplane free for awhile!

We are getting back into our Singapore groove. Ida Jane loves Olivia!

Harper has been developing her own style. She insists on a braid on one side and a ponytail on the other. She says she likes it because it is different and very special.

What a great summer! It's back to school next week!

School celebrations

2011-05-29T08:16:00.009-04:00

It's hard to believe the end of the school year is here! Harper finished Friday and Ida Jane has 2 weeks to go. Ida's school has had several celebrations, starting with the Global Picnic. There were lots of rides and food from the 74 countries represented by the student body. Ida Jane loved the mini train.

Harper didn't participate in any special celebrations, but she has been having a lot of fun playing dress-up!

The next big event was Ida Jane's school concert. The theme was "A World Full of Music." Ida's class did a dance representing Israel. The kids did a great job!

The next morning was a performance from Ida Jane's dance class. Ida and Harper were both excited for the recital.

Just before showtime:

Dance!

Uncle Jeff was there to see the performance! He was in town for the whole weekend and we all had a blast.

Catch up

2011-05-10T06:58:00.004-04:00

Where does the time go? It's been a while since we've updated, before Easter.

Got some great Easter presents from the Grandparents, including these hilarious masks.

Check out the new wheels - Harper's getting better every day at riding around, and Ida Jane enjoys getting her hair to "fly" behind her.

Here's Ida Jane hamming it up at the Botanic Gardens with the public art, when she accompanied Uncle Ben, Auntie Christene and Mommy for a tour.

For Mother's Day, we took a trip down to Clarke Quay for dinner and ice cream.

The "Turkish Ice Cream" vendor is always good for a laugh.

The wait and tricks were worth it!

March madness

2011-03-25T23:48:00.006-04:00

It's been a crazy month of March for us here in Singapore, with birthdays, friends coming and going, and more.

One of the highlights is, of course, Harper's 3rd birthday. We celebrated a few weeks early as we had some good friends moving back to Australia and Japan.

Harper always loves her cake:

Great seeing our friend Charli

Here's dad trying to referee the present opening.

Harper also decided that this would be the month where she made the big push for potty training, and we're pleased to say that she's been successful! The reward was a trip to Build a Bear, where she created Beatrice Bear:

Of course, it wouldn't be March if we didn't include a basketball pic. Unfortunately, the Huskies bowed out earlier than we hoped for. Don't worry, Dad was the only one who stayed up until 230 AM to watch the game.

Now with the Bucks out, we don't really have a team to root for. Butler or VCU, I guess.

There was a farewell party for our good friends Yasi and Charles (and PT and Janet). While Dad was away, the girls were able to bid farewell to their good friends. We hope to see them down under sometime.

Harper got all dolled up in her school uni for a field trip. She's getting so big!

If she takes after dad, she'll never really grow up, of course.

Here's mom with our little birthday bug. Happy Birthday, Harper!

Chinese New Year and other fun

2011-02-22T06:49:00.018-05:00

We've been busy with Chinese New Year celebrations and special events at school lately. The girls have been thoroughly enjoying the Singapore winter.

Ida Jane loved sports day at school.

Harper loves eating the local food and hanging out with her sister.

Chinese New Year brought multiple lion dance viewings. Ida Jane was particularly excited about the school celebration.

Look at that smile!

The lion dance at our condo was fun too.

We all participated in Singapore's Chinese New Year tradition of lo hei - friends and family gather to toss the ingredients of a Chinese salad into the air. Here are Ida Jane and daddy taking part in the fun.

The girls with their good friend Charles. Notice Harper's adoring look!

Ida Jane got to dress up as her favorite book character for book week at school. She even got to march in a parade! Meet Fancy Nancy!

Our cat Herman was sick in the hospital for awhile but is doing much better. We were thrilled to welcome him back home.

Christmas and Bali

2011-01-09T06:44:00.021-05:00

Happy New Year to all! We've had a busy holiday season. The girls were so excited about Christmas this year and were quite pleased to find that Santa had come on Christmas morning. Before the big man came, we made cookies to leave for him. The girls are decked out in their new princess gowns, courtesy of Meme and Baba.

Here they are, enjoying the loot on Christmas morning in their princess pajamas from Nana and Papa. Notice daddy in the background, enjoying his Christmas ipad. :)

Alas, we didn't take very many pictures on Christmas as we were excitedly packing for our trip to Bali!

We had a blast. Ida and Harper were quite interested in all of the things to see at this temple to Vishnu we visited outside Ubud. You'll notice Mom and Dad in their sarongs - required temple wear, but also pretty hip.

After visiting the temple, we ate lunch by some rice paddies.

The sacred monkey forest in Ubud was definitely one of our favorite places in Bali. Here are the girls at a temple within the forest.

Some of the monkeys we encountered:

We spent a lot of time relaxing at the pool.

The girls built sand volcanoes at the beach:

Ida Jane even got her hair braided on the beach and then pulled out the beads 2 hours later. You can kind of see it here.

The highlight of the trip for Harper was the traditional Ramayana dance performance we attended.

After all the excitement, it's always good to come home again. :)

Tree time

2010-12-12T06:29:00.008-05:00

It's Christmas time in Singapore, again! Hard to believe we passed the one-year mark earlier last week.

Our little Singaporean girls could be on a postcard for the botanical gardens:

These are pictures from our photo shoot a while back, we promised to put more up, so here they are!

So, Christmas in Singapore. The weather has been really nice lately, a bit cooler and breezier (so, high 80s instead of low 90s, and yes, you can tell). Perfect weather to get our tree up.

Yes, Harper, it will "grow."

Harper provided a tour of the work:

While it has been a year, we didn't have this stuff last year, as it was sitting on a container in the South Pacific. The girls are enjoying their stockings and decorations. "Deck them halls" and all that stuff!

Halloween Fun

2010-11-10T07:43:00.014-05:00

We had a fun Halloween here in Singapore! The girls had a party at school and one at home.
It all started with a fun sticker activity sent by Aunt Barb and Uncle Jim.
Next Ida Jane and Harper got to show off their costumes on the walk to school.
Jessie the Cowgirl:

Cinderella:

Ida and her best friend Charli:
Trick-or-treating isn't really done in Singapore so we held a Halloween party for the girls and their friends. The whole family dressed up for the fun.

Most of the kids had never celebrated Halloween before. Everyone had a blast as you can see from the pile of bodies in the playroom.
We even had trick-or-treating from door to door within the house, which was a huge hit with all of the kids.
Halloween was followed by Diwali. Ida Jane got a henna tattoo at school.

Hope everyone had a happy Halloween! We will be missing family at Thanksgiving. Stay tuned for pictures from the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

Mid-Autumn Festival

2010-10-10T02:37:00.016-04:00

The girls took part in celebrating mid-Autumn festival last month. First, there was a celebration at their pre-school. Here they are, ready to go with their lanterns.

Both of their classes did a little performance.

Harper was relieved when that was over with.

The girls played with their classmates, feasted on mooncakes, and then got to light their lanterns when it got dark.

A few days later, there was another celebration at our condominium complex. The girls waited excitedly for balloons.

The flower and butterfly were worth the wait.

The girls enjoyed the puppet show. Ida Jane sat with her buddy Charles and paid close attention to the story.

Harper thought the show was hilarious.

The pre-school recently held a "funfair" where Ida Jane was quite pleased to become her favorite superhero.

Ida Jane and Harper are looking forward to the next celebration: Halloween!

Four!

2010-09-07T08:19:00.014-04:00

Ida Jane turned four on Sunday! She had a really fun party on Saturday and Sunday was spent playing with her new toys. The whole family really enjoyed all of the festivities.

Ida Jane proved that she was more mature this year when her cake came out. Last year she screamed and cried when we sang happy birthday. This year she was very serious, but kept her composure.

It has been quite a while since we have posted so here are a few other things that have been going on here in Singapore. We had a really fun excursion to the Singapore Botanical Gardens. The girls loved the flowers and trees.

Ida Jane has really been into legos lately.

Harper likes to pretend to be an animal doctor.

Ida prefers to be a baby doctor.

Finally, Ida Jane has started taking taekwondo classes. She really loves it!

Hong Kong and U.S.

2010-07-20T21:18:00.019-04:00

We recently returned from a busy trip back to the United States. It was really wonderful to see so many family members and friends.
We started our journey in Hong Kong, where we got to see cousin Sonya. Ida Jane and Sonya became good friends, especially after Sonya introduced Ida to the chocolate fountain.

We all enjoyed the Hong Kong skyline and light show.

The highlight for the girls was Hong Kong Disneyland, where they got to meet some of their favorite characters. Harper lit up when she met the princesses and Ida Jane was thrilled to meet Buzz Lightyear.

Mickey and Minnie were also favorites, along with the Small World ride. Harper sings "It's a Small World" all the time now. We all had a blast.

After Hong Kong fun we headed to the U.S. First stop, the lake with the Zolls, where the girls and their cousins Evan and Hayley were treated to a boat ride to the donut shop.

We enjoyed seeing all of the Gerbers at Kevin and Sadie's wedding. What a beautiful day it was.

The Zoll crew came for a fourth of July celebration.

Then we were off on a road trip to see friends and some of Amy's family. We stopped by Lora, Tim, and Alexandra's house first, where the 3 girls dressed like fairies and had lots of fun playing together.

Ida Jane and Harper loved seeing Daddy's alma mater and visiting with his professors.

The rest of our road trip took us to see Howard and then Christene and Ben. We then spent some time at Aunt Kris and Uncle Jeff's house. Meme was there too! We were so busy socializing with everyone that the only picture we took is of Ida Jane enjoying the lobster feast we had our first night there.

Ida Jane and Harper spent another fun night there while Ben and Amy enjoyed a quick getaway to Block Island for Sean and Emily's wedding. It was a beautiful day and we had a blast.
Next we headed back toward the midwest, stopping first to see Jason and Jess and their lovely girls.
Finally, we were back in Indiana for a couple of days of relaxation before the long journey home to Singapore.
The girls went for a swim with Nana.

We were all happy to arrive back in Singapore. Ida Jane and Harper were particularly pleased to see their animal friends.

Catch up

2010-06-07T09:14:00.009-04:00

It's been a bit crazy here in Singapore the past few weeks (months), so we're sorry about the delay in posting. Let's do a bit of catch up on old and new pics.

First, here are some shots from Harper's birthday party.

It was great having so many friends over.

During our Bintan trip, we did get to meet some "Princes and Princesses," the local Sumatran dancers.

Another favorite haunt around here is the big fountain at Clarke Quay.

The girls often end up getting their pictures taken by locals and tourists, too!

Including this bride-to-be (aka Princess, according to Harper), getting wedding pictures done.

One big news item: Ida Jane is riding a "big girl" bike now. Check out her skills!

Of course, there's always time for Ukulele practice.

Here's Harper and mom, hanging out on the couch.

Who would believe Ida Jane was bald until she was 2!

Finally, Dad turned 33 recently. We celebrated with some Mexican food!

Videos from the equator

2010-05-02T06:39:00.003-04:00

Just before leaving for Bintan, Indonesia, Dad picked up a new toy, an HD video camera. So, for a bit of a change from the usual picture-fest, here are three videos from our trip. If you want to see them in HD, make sure to change up the settings or visit the youtube page for each video by clicking on it.

Here's a good look at a spectacular beach - we had it to ourselves most of the time, if you can believe it.

We went to an evening performance of traditional Indonesian dance. Of course, the girls couldn't listen to that music and hold still.

Finally, we did a little bowling. Or, what passes for bowling with these two crazies.

It was a great trip, I'll be getting some pictures from Indonesia and Thailand together over the next week for another blog entry.

Birthday & Special Guests

2010-04-04T07:23:00.005-04:00

Harper celebrated her two-year birthday in style. She got a special cake, decorated with a princess.

It was delicious!

She got a load of great gifts.

This book was a hit with both of them.

Ida Jane got a few gifts as well.

Bitty Baby from Baba and Meme is a new best friend.

And this fishing game from Great Granddad and Great Grandmama is a lot of fun.

Then it was time for our special guests: Nana and Papa! Nana got here a few days before Papa, and the girls were thrilled to see her.

We had a great week, even going out for pizza!

Another special guest, the Easter Bunny, brought the girls some great presents - Ida Jane got a ukelele and Harper got a keyboard.

Papa was another special Easter gift for the girls. We all went down to see the iconic Merlion statue.

Then we went on a little boat tour of the Singapore river.

Papa and Harper strolling by Clarke Quay.

And a delicious lunch on the riverside.

It's been a great visit so far, and we have the rest of the week to go!

School Days

2010-03-17T07:46:00.007-04:00

Ida and Harper have started up going to school these past few weeks. Dad's been busy with traveling and Mom's been busy with her new teaching job, so we'll keep the narrative short.

Both girls get full-time Mandarin in their classes. According to Ida's teacher, Shang Laoshi, Ida Jane (Zhou Yi, as she is known in Chinese) has been doing very well following instructions in Chinese, and, when she does talk, she speaks with good tones and pronunciation. Hao Nu'er!

Harper (Zhou Hui) has also been following instructions well in Chinese and thriving with her peers. Both girls have been snacking well, also.

Lions and Tigers and Monkeys and Dragons.

2010-02-14T06:54:00.004-05:00

Excitement has been the order of the day for Chinese New Years. First, with some news. Our girls will be starting up a twice-weekly preschool, Preschool By The Park, down the street from our place. Amy has her new job starting up the first week of March at Stamford American. Ben is still busy, off to Jakarta this week for a few days. And we have a new helper living here in our apartment, Lorena, who is working out really well.

And, today, we were really pleased to see a family of macaques walking by our place:

We took our two little monkeys out to a real Chinese New Year's family gathering last night, which they got all dressed up for.

They had a great time playing games and meeting friends.

And today, to top it all off, we got to see a lion and dragon dance, just down the block!

Harper was curious to see how these puppet heads were going to turn into lions.

And then, there they were!

By the time the dragon showed up, the girls were feeling brave.

Needless to say, it was an early bed time tonight. Happy New Year of the Tiger, everyone!

Orangutan Breakfast

2010-02-07T02:07:00.006-05:00

After the first snowfall in DC, we were nostalgic for cold weather. After Snowpocalypse two, not so much.

This is what Ida Jane puts together as a winter outfit:

This is how Harper stays warm:

And fixing the scooter is the equivalent of putting on snow tires.

Yesterday, we got geared up for Chinese new year, checking out Chinatown and getting some new outfits for the girls.

Ida Jane got a good view of the craziness, and had her picture taken a ton. Everyone loved the red haired girl swinging her newly purchased stuffed tiger around (the coming year is the year of the tiger).

And today, we had a great trip to the zoo. The girls had fun riding a crocodile while dad got the tickets. Little did they know they would be interacting with much more active animals in a very short time.

Then we had the fabled Singapore Zoo Orangutan breakfast. Despite the name, you get more than Orangutans. You get to feed the elephants, which everyone enjoyed.

There was also a boa constrictor, which Harper loved (future herpetologist?). Of course, the show did belong to our primate friends, the Orangs. They climb down from the tree tops to grab some free fruit and get their pictures taken.

I guess the zoo has about 15 or so Orangs, and whoever feels like showing up for the breakfast just swings on by. It was pretty awesome. Hope these pictures bring a little warmth to family and friends in colder climes!

Hitting our groove

2010-01-16T22:07:00.004-05:00

Our little water bugs have been getting quite the workout at the pool and beach lately.

East Coast Park is about 20 minutes by cab from our house.

Of course, Ida Jane and Harper made friends in less time than that.

The boat traffic on the Straits was impressive. You could believe that half the world's container ships go through or past Singapore.

Watermelon juice for lunch is always a hit.

We got some new suits

So we hit a new pool at the American Club. It was a blast!

The girls don't mind wearing summer dresses every day.

And trying out new games, like tennis:

We were really happy to finally welcome our cats, Molly and Herman, back home.

We're starting to really hit our groove in Singapore!

Singapore Christmas

2010-01-02T00:04:00.008-05:00

Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, and Happy New Year to all of our family and friends.

Before the actual holiday, we took a family trip to Jurong Bird Park. It was a lot of fun. Check out the macaws hanging out behind the girls!

And the lovely pink "famingos."

Of course, the monorail was the best part.

Always a little safer when there's a mom involved.

Mom and Dad's Christmas wish - our furniture - was not filled until the 28th, but we made the best of it. There was more room to practice on Ida's new scooter:

And plenty of space for the new lego castle.

Or the dwarf tea house.

Of course, one of the best parts about Singapore - you can ride your new scooter outside, right away!

Leaving the boys in the dust already.

And the new spinning chairs provided a new fun place to sit. Thanks, Nana and Papa!

Then it was off for a new spin around the block. Mom finally saw the Merlion, so she feels like she's truly arrived in Singapore now:

Dad and Ida Jane had fun at the Asian Civilizations Museum:

A nice picture by an old truss bridge (second oldest in Singapore):

Then our furniture finally arrived, including our Christmas presents from Baba and Meme. Harper loves her new rocking chair:

And Ida Jane still uses hers all the time. Here we are having some Wii fun:

And here's the playroom, all cleaned up. We took a picture because it won't look like this again for a long time, I'm sure.

First Singapore post

2009-12-15T07:12:00.006-05:00

Hello from Singapore! So we've got our internet up now, although there is still no furniture, but we can at least do a blog entry. There are a thousand great pictures from our time in Ohio and Indiana, but I'll need a little more rest before I can tackle that big post.

In the meantime, here are some images from our trip to, and first week in, Singapore. Of course, the whole adventure started in London. Big Ben was acclaimed as the favorite.

Westminster Abby, we kind of ran through, as the kids were threatening to break down. But still, breathtaking even at 60 mph pushing a stroller.

We did get to see the Christmas Tree lighting at Trafalgar Square. The tree is an annual gift from Oslo to London to commemorate British help in WWII.

When we arrived in Singapore, we were met with a "snowfall" outside the hotel - a mall had set up a winter wonderland where it snowed bubbles.

The kids didn't know what to think--bubbles are always a positive, no matter if you just spent 13 hours on a plane.

Here's our empty apartment. When pool toys count as furniture, you know it's empty.

Our container is scheduled to arrive early next week. To get by in the meantime, we did do a quick Ikea run (as quick as that can be) and got this little dining set for our munchkins. The Christmas tree is kind of an abomination that Dad would prefer not to talk about - let's just say that it glows purple and yellow when you plug it in. Of course the kids love it.

Here's Ida Jane and her dad atop a bridge at Clarke Quay. Most outings have had one or no pictures because of jet lag tantrums. And sometimes the kids have been cranky, too. :)

We do have a kickin' pool that the girls love to visit. We're in almost every day, don't blame me if the kids come back with webbed toes.

There's also a nice hawker center down the street where you can get beaucoup food for pennies on the dollar.

This delicious plate of rice and veggies (Ida Jane's favorite thing to eat) cost all of $2.50 Singapore, about $1.75 US.

Today Mom took the girls to Dad's office in the morning for a quick tour, and then to visit the Children's Garden at the Botanic Gardens. They had a blast in the ultra-big sandbox.

The floating wetlands pier was a hit with Harper.

As were the giant, jungle-sized leaves.

And who doesn't love a good candy cane?

That's about it for now - Dad's got his first business trip tomorrow (a day trip to Kuala Lumpur) and Mom just had a job interview with an American school that went really well. Keep your fingers crossed!

History, Part III: Goodbye, Rockville

2009-11-20T17:07:00.006-05:00

This should be the last of the History entries, getting us through our last few weeks in the fair town of Rockville, Maryland.

We went to the Silver Diner on Rockville Pike, where Ida Jane turned into a red cat.

The girls getting some quality coloring done.

Harper enjoying a ride on the pony before he got on the boat to Singapore.

And here's Olivia, being patient as always, after the girls built her a "nest."

Halloween was a big hit with the girls. Harper went as a very huggable Minnie Mouse.

Getting ready for the Rockville Halloween Parade and trick or treating! Ida Jane went as a unicorn rider. In case you were wondering, that's a "cowgirl hat."

We had a great time in the parade, and ran into some of our good neighborhoods friends, the Ashtons. Andrew had an excellent Bumblebee costume (the transformer) and managed to keep the whole ensemble on for the entire parade. Ida Jane, leading the way for the parade.

Trick or treating was epic.

Look what I got!

Of course, we will sorely miss Fia and the Smiths. Here she is, over for one more play session.

Let the Wild Rumpus begin!

Finally, it was time to camp out on air mattresses for our last night in 820 1st street.

So long, house! You were a great home for 5 years.

A Brief History of the Zoll Family, Part II

2009-11-15T09:47:00.004-05:00

Continuing the epic saga of the past two months, while Dad was overseas in Singapore, our good friend Alexandra came to visit the girls. They had fun hanging out in the hammock together.

And just wrestling in general.

We're glad that we'll be able to see Alexandra and her mom and dad one more time before we leave for Singapore after Thanksgiving.

Finally, Dad came back from overseas, and we went to visit Nana and Papa in Ohio. We had a great visit to the zoo, riding on the train.

It was a bit cold outside, but still lots of fun.

It was great seeing family again. Here's Ben with his Granddad:

And here's Nana with Hayley and Harper.

When we arrived back in Rockville, it was time to start getting ready for Halloween! Shopping for pumpkins:

And decorating:

Halloween and much more coming up in the next update.

A Brief History of the Zoll Family, Part I

2009-11-13T17:10:00.006-05:00

OK, so clearly I have been delinquent in posting. This has been a hectic time for our family, with multiple trips, a month for Dad in Singapore, and the sale of our house in Rockville. So to make up for lost time, I'm going to do several posts over the next few days to catch up.

The first post takes us on our trip to Florida. We all flew down to Naples for Labor Day weekend to visit our Sunshine State family.

It was great getting back in the pool with Meme.

And hanging out on the beach with Baba.

We went to a really nice waterpark with our cousins Grayce and Maddy.

There was a great cupcake cake for Ida Jane's birthday:

And Dad got one more trip to the beach before he left for Singapore.

Uncle Tim gave Ida Jane a golf lesson, which has her asking for her own clubs already.

Nice swing!

The girls put on a fashion show before heading back north.

Meme was nice enough to come back north with Amy and the girls, where they went apple picking:

Finally, a train ride around the Rio.

Stay tuned as we keep catching up over the weekend!

Two birthday parties, and one big move

2009-09-02T20:54:00.010-04:00

August was a month to be remembered here in Rockville. The biggest news is that the Zoll Family will be relocating - to Singapore! It's quite a move for everyone, and it's happening very fast as well. The NGO that I work for, Conservation International (CI), has asked me to serve as the Director of Corporate Relations at the new CI Singapore office. Amy and I got the news while on a 5-year anniversary trip to New York.

Here I am, relaying the news to Aunt Sarah from Central Park:

And here Amy and I are, relaxing after a long day of walking about, digesting the news (Columbus Circle).

Ida Jane has been very enthusiastic about the move, although some toys and furniture have suddenly departed. The move has allowed her to be, shall we say, adventurous.

When we came back from New York, we had the first of the aforementioned two birthday parties with Nana and Papa. Unfortunately, Ida Jane is on a "Happy Birthday To You" strike right now, so no movies of that song.

There are pictures of cake eating, of course, but from the less-tearful member of the family. Harper will never cry when cake is involved.

Ida Jane did love the beautiful umbrella that she got from Nana and Papa, which will come very much in handy in the tropics.

Later that week we had a tearful farewell to Ms. Addison and Brandon, our day-care providers who treated Ida Jane and Harper like their own kids. We will definitely miss them.

I did say two birthday parties, didn't I? The second birthday party a week later, for Ida Jane's friends. It was a nice turnout! There was Leo, Annie, Quincy, June, and Rocket:

The diner was hopping - Samuel, Fia, and Avery were enjoying themselves.

Fia was resplendent in a Princess outfit that Harper loved, including "Rella" shoes (Harper is obsessed with all things Cinderella at the moment).

Harper does love our next-door neighbors very much, and we will be lucky if we have any who are half as nice as the Smiths in Singapore.

And we also love Auntie Becca. Read to us!

Finally, Ida Jane was pleased as punch when her potty progress finally landed her at "Build-A-Bear" today. She was very proud of Mia. Can you tell?

Wish us luck as we pack our bags! More to come before we go, of course (departure date is looking to be end of October/early November). And, if you know of anyone looking for a house in the DC area, you can point them our way. :)

Strikes and smiles

2009-08-02T20:30:00.006-04:00

Can it be August already? We've had a busy few weeks here in Rockville. Harper has reached that critical developmental stage when you learn to say "Cheese" and pictures are never the same again.

I didn't say they weren't good!

Ida Jane is onto bigger talents - like medicine. Quoth the doctor: "What I can do for you?"

A lot of special events have happened here lately, too. Uncle Steve came through on his way from Florida to Iceland (DC is a natural stopover for this journey). Harper was a big fan of Uncle Steve's narrative skills.

And our best friend Fia celebrated her birthday. Here's a picture of the girls before the "big day"

Ida Jane and Fia at "party central" aka Fia's playhouse.

Scarfing down some birthday pizza:

Uncle Jeff, Aunt Kris, and Cousins Ryan and Katie came down to Baltimore, and we spent a great day with them at Chad, Jen and cousin Sami's house. Here's the brother and sister family shot. Yes, our kids are the ones making raspberries.

Here's Ida Jane with her Uncle and Auntie. It'd been way too long since we'd seen them both!

The girls were hanging off of Auntie Kris all afternoon. Here's Sami and Ida Jane sitting with Kris.

We've also been exploring the multiple offerings of Rockville. Here are the girls cutting a rug to the point of exhaustion at a town square kids' night.

And getting cool in the kid's pool:

Finally, this morning we went bowling for the first time. Harper was a bit too small to do anything other than run around and say "cheese".

But Ida Jane loved rolling the ball.

Strike!

To the lake and back

2009-07-20T21:26:00.009-04:00

The girls had quite an adventure going up to Lake James in Indiana to visit their Nana, Papa, and lots of family.

Let's tee this one up with a popsicle shot:

This was Harper's first trip up there as a walker, and she didn't do much walking. It was more along the lines of running:

swinging:

and, of course, reading:

Ida Jane and Harper both enjoyed the new toys like intertubes and rowboats.

And our cousins Evan and Hayley were there as well!

Here's Ida Jane and Evan decorating the patio for a party.

And what would a trip to the lake be without a morning boat trip to the donut shop?

It's a great place to relax.

Of course, Olivia was with us, and she was chasing tennis balls for the kids pretty much every day. She's still sleeping that week off.

Then it was party time. The Zolls came up one day, and the girls had a blast. Here's Papa and Granddad with "The Hs" - Harper and Hayley.

Hayley was really cute, and a very good girl the whole time we were there.

Fortunately for her, she was the only kid who wasn't hit by a terrible stomach bug that knocked Ida Jane and Harper out for the second half of their trip. No pictures from that! (And no pictures from the Gerber day, either, which I have no excuse for. But I found out today that Nana forgot to break out her camera as well on that day, so I'm not the only one!)

After some much needed rest, the girls are settling back home in Rockville well. Mom took them to a garden play area at Brookside gardens, where they got to get in the dirt.

And, of course, there's the fountain at City Center, a great place for scampering and splashing:

On Sunday we went into the district for a morning trip which included a lovely sunny walk on the mall. Can you believe some tourists asked to get pictures of the girls as they trooped around on the grass? I bet you can!

Summer vacation

2009-06-29T22:44:00.004-04:00

Summer vacation began with a NICU reunion picnic, put on by Holy Cross hospital at a local park. It was a really great time, it was wonderful meeting other families who went through some of the same stuff we did (many had more days in there than us) but all the kids were happy and running around, which was the best treat.

There was putt putt

And pick up soccer.

But the girls really loved the hula hoops.

There have been lots of other fun projects that Mom has arranged. Like our own Bayeau tapestry:

And a 7 foot puzzle that someone was very, very proud to finish.

Of course, some projects are not planned. Like building a "Dog Nest."

One thing is for sure, at the end of the day, it's good to chill out!

Last day of spring

2009-06-20T21:47:00.003-04:00

It's been a long spring - with about 14 inches of rain since the first of May, if you can believe it. But now we're coming into summer, which means two months of Mama with her girls. On their first day, she had a great art project - "Driveway Painting." We have a concrete driveway here, and all you need to paint it is a bucket of water. The girls loved it.

Ida Jane also recently graduated from soccer. Here she is getting her diploma.

And here she is, scoring a goal. She's got skills!

Stepping into summer

2009-06-07T21:22:00.003-04:00

Welcome to Washington. When it's not raining, it can be fun!

Here's Ida Jane hanging around in Cabin John Park. She's getting to be quite the daredevil.

On this trip, we went with bff Fia.

Here's two good looking ladies!

We tried something new the other weekend as well - a theme park! We went to "Dutch Wonderland" - a park designed for kids, and the girls loved it. Dad was able to take a couple of pictures before he dropped the camera at the waterpark. Fortunately, it's working again.

Here's Ida Jane and Mama on the tilt-a-turtle. Fun!

Could this next picture be titled anything other than "The Wrecking Crew?"

Harper enjoyed her first ball game, too. We watched the Orioles and the Tigers. Fortunately, (because the O's couldn't get a hit), we were able to stay through the seventh innning!

Let's go O's!

Someone's clowning it up, while the other one grabs a snack - same schedule, new venue.

Play ball!

1,000 pictures

2009-05-17T10:42:00.008-04:00

OK, so, a last-minute trip to Singapore+allergy attacks from the kids and Mom+dad laid up by a sinus infection=a pretty decent excuse for not putting pictures up for a while.

That said, I know I have been derelict in my duties as a father in the internet age, so I'm going to revert to the classic "here's a 1,000 pictures of my cute kids" technique.

The following shots were all taken by my good friend Janna, who is also a professional photographer in the DC area. We spent a very fun hour and a half at Brookside Garden park in Silver Spring, which Ida Jane and Harper both loved. Any DC-area peeps, if you're looking for a good (and reasonably-priced!) alternative to sitting in an over-heated JC Penny photography studio and getting pressed into making split-second decisions about which pictures to keep, the Zoll family endorses Janna's work, as evidenced below. If you're interested in contacting Janna to schedule a session, drop me an email and I'll send her contact info along.

Anyway, without further ado, and with no narration necessary, here are the pictures!

Harper goes mobile

2009-04-12T22:19:00.005-04:00

It was only a matter of time before Harper got her wheels.

At long last, Ida Jane's reign of bipedal dominance is at an end. Now the fun really begins!

It's been a very busy couple of weeks here, as usual. In a move inspired by a since-passed spate of warm weather, (and Harper's birthday take, thank you everyone!) Dad went off to Toys 'R Us and got a new play house. It's a hit.

This thing even has a phone!

Some of our other fun activities have included gardening. In news that will surprise no one, Ida Jane loved getting her hands dirty.

We also visited a great kid's museum in Baltimore. This is one of the few times someone was able to take a picture - Ida Jane up on a "horse" learning to be a cowgirl.

Even though the weather has been pretty lousy, Ida Jane still enjoys her rain coat.

But you can only play in the rain so much, so we also got a crazy play tunnel. As an introduction to this video, I'll warn you that Ida calls Harper "little whale." We're not sure where these nicknames come from, but one of the cutest things lately is Ida Jane's million different pet names for Harper. Little Whale is, admittedly, probably the least flattering, but still cute.

Today, although it was on the cold side, we did have the opportunity to take a few quick Easter shots.

And we went next door to Fia's house for a great egg hunt.

Fun!

After all that, the best thing to do is to have a good bath.

Put on matching pajamas, and then it's off to bed.

Goodnight!

Birthday girl!

2009-03-22T20:03:00.004-04:00

Harper is turning one on Wednesday, and we had a celebration this weekend with her Nana and Papa. It was fun!

We had party favors.

Hats.

Lots of fun presents.

And there was cake.

Delicious, delicious cake.

Of course, with Nana and Papa there, it was hard not to have fun.

Laundry baskets are always a good time.

Harper learned to say Nana's name very fast!

And Papa got to come to Soccer school, where he participated in fun games like "kick the cones."

A few days before, we celebrated St. Patrick's day, and the County Kerry blood that runs in our family (Dada celebrates in spirit).

What better way to celebrate than to read a book, the girls' favorite activity. Here's Ida Jane reading Harper her favorite book about colors.

Catching up

2009-03-15T20:07:00.005-04:00

Sorry for the long delay in posting. As you may know, I was in China for a few weeks. I'll load this entry up with lots of pictures and movies. Because lots has been happening around here.

While I was gone, Ida Jane and Harper welcomed their good friend Alexandra to visit with them, along with Auntie Lora and Auntie Christene. It was a screaming good time.

Here they are, in a quieter moment, with Auntie Christene, getting a morning story:

Here they are catching a breather at the park - one of the few times a camera can be safely deployed.

While I was gone the girls also visited a neat indoor playground that had a big sandbox.

And a big gym to crawl around in. Fun!

When Dad returned, he was greeted by a big snowstorm. Ida Jane was thrilled to get one more good play in the snow.

Harper has learned a lot of new skills. She's taking some baby steps, but we haven't managed to get that on film yet - mostly because whenever she sees the camera she immediately wants to look at pictures of her sister on it. But we did get this nice video of a peekaboo game.

And while she's not reading per se, she is definitely interested in her big sister's favorite pastime.

This next video is one taken by our daycare provider, Ms. Addison. Ida Jane is showing off her color and drawing abilities.

Ida Jane is also developing some new skills - soccer! She went to her first soccer practice on Saturday, and had a blast. Here she is, warming up.

A week ago today we had great weather and took a family trip to the zoo. The girls loved it.

The National Zoo has an "O Line" - where you can watch the Orangs travel from enclosure to enclosure via a cable bridge.

Here's a zoom in!

Here we are, rolling into the picnic area.

It was tough being in China and away from the girls for so long. But I knew they'd be fine - they have a great mama!

Valentines celebration

2009-02-14T21:09:00.008-05:00

It's been fun times in Rockville the last few weeks.

We had some snow to start the month. Snow angels require some serious concentration.

As always, Ida Jane and Harper have a great time with their friend, Fia. Sometimes, Harper and Fia are left a bit confused by the antics of their peer.

Under the bed is a new game, too.

For Valentine's, Ida Jane has learned the unfortunate art of saying "Cheese."

Fortunately, Harper hasn't learned that particular skill yet.

Happy Valentine's day, everyone!

Wintery mix

2009-01-25T21:14:00.004-05:00

Long time, no post! It's been busy in Washington DC these past few days. You might have heard that there's a new President, for example. Pictures of that (sort of) to come.

In the meantime, Ida Jane and Harper are still learning to play with each other. For every tear or push, there's a thousand of these moments:

We haven't had much in the way of snow, although it's been cold as all get out (for here). Here's a fleeting flurry, which Ida Jane enjoyed despite the lack of accumulation. She's trying to catch a flake on her tongue.

While Harper is unable to participate in snow catching, she does enjoy watching from the window:

Harper is also trying to learn how to drink from a sippy. Currently, it's just kind of a glorified rattle. But fun.

She's definitely developing her sister's mischievous streak.

And we have no idea where that came from.

Yes, so, there was this inauguration thing. We had tickets to the parade. Unfortunately, the inaugural committee, it all of the wisdom that government committees can have, decided to not have a separate entrance for ticketed and non-ticketed parade goers. So there was this line.

It doesn't look so bad until you realize that we were part of the group on the right, waiting to go up the street and then back down in the main part of this line. So, when President Obama was giving his inaugural address, we heard it here:

On that tiny boombox under the tree. Hey, regardless, it was fun to be a part of it. And sorry to our cousin Anne and her friend Megan, that we couldn't get you any closer. At least the subway ride was surprisingly smooth.

Lesson? When two million people are descending on your city, you're probably best off doing something like this:

A quick new year update

2009-01-03T15:22:00.002-05:00

Just a quick update to share a movie of Harper and a picture of Ida Jane getting her hair cut for the first time. Ida Jane is 28 months on Monday, and this was her very first haircut. This is Ida Jane one year ago, when a haircut was a very distant concept.

And here she is getting her hair trimmed. You can see it was a solemn occasion - but she was very good through the whole process.

In the meantime, Harper is all over the house these days, it's hard keeping up with her. Of course, a year ago we were just hoping she'd stay put until her due date. And now here she is, pushing chairs around the house and (almost) saying "Dada." :)

Happy New Year, everyone!

My go to Christmas

2008-12-28T22:11:00.004-05:00

Yesterday, Ida Jane grabbed all of her purses and backpacks, and said she was going. "Where are you going?" we asked her. "My go to Christmas."

So yeah, we had a lot of fun on Christmas. She misses it already.

Here we are, reading "The Night Before Christmas" on the night before...

The calm before the storm.

Of course, the ribbon is the best part. Ida Jane even generously shared hers.

Yeah, Dad thought this gift was a good idea. Two year-old, marching drum, a match made in heaven. :)

Um, so there's this bear? What am I supposed to do with this thing? And, more importantly, is it going to eat that wrapping paper I was saving for myself?

Of course, when it's all over, playing in the cupboard is still king.

Here we are!

Better rest up for next year.

Cookie party

2008-12-21T19:03:00.004-05:00

Today we had a great time making cookies with our friends.

First we got all dressed up for the occasion in our Christmas gear. Even Olivia got in on the act.

Then it was time to get cooking! Ida Jane helped make the cookies.

And she helped Auntie Becca with the frosting.

Meanwhile, Harper got lots of attention from all her friends. Here she is reading a book with Auntie Leah.

What a great time!

This week, Harper and Ida Jane also got to meet a new friend from China, Ricky, and our cousin Sonya. We didn't get any pictures while they were here, but I wanted to mention it and add that we had a great time.

To all of our friends keeping touch with us, happy Hanukkah, happy Solstice, and a very Merry Christmas! I hope to have another post up later in the week.

Thanksgiving and a tree

2008-12-07T10:19:00.006-05:00

The girls have been having quite the holiday adventures.

First, we flew to visit Nana and Papa for Thanksgiving! It was a great time.

We celebrated Evan's birthday as well with some cake!

Then we went out to the Gerber farm, where Ida Jane got to enjoy a hayride with her parents, Evan, Aunt Sarah, and Nana. Her Uncle Greg was doing the driving.

It was brisk, but very enjoyable.

Then it was off to Fostoria to see her Great Granddad and Grandmama Zoll and their fabulous new place.

The girls really enjoyed seeing all of their family.

Then it was back to Rockville, where we bid Thanksgiving a (somewhat tearful) adieu. Fortunately, we've been able to get them all excited about Christmas!

Ida Jane went shopping with her Dad for the tree. We really liked our pick.

We put some tinsel on:

And a new angel we got, made from a recycled can! Our green angel:

Then we added some ornaments!

What a beautiful tree:

Of course, it wouldn't be a house with little kids if it didn't look a little, well, unfinished...

Last but not least, here is a picture of Harper in action, doing her crawl:

And a movie of the same, narrated by her big sister (who scrambles at the start of the movie to get behind the camera).

Go Bucks!

2008-11-26T17:27:00.004-05:00

We're busy getting ready for our big Thanksgiving trip to the midwest, so here's a very quick entry until we get up.

Dad and the girls rooting for the Buckeyes!

No kidding, Harper's first clap came during this game. Guess she's not a Michigan fan.

In other news, Harper has four teeth coming in up top, and has her two lower teeth in, so these toothless grins are going to be a thing of the past, soon. She's also getting around pretty well as a crawler now, can pull herself up to her knees on an object, and is trying harder than ever to keep up with her big sister.

Have a great holiday, everyone!

Go girls, go!

2008-11-16T10:30:00.005-05:00

Ida Jane and Harper have been having a lot of fun lately.

Ida Jane learned how to help make a pizza with Daddy.

She loves to spend time together with Harper.

Ida Jane even climbed up in Harper's crib before bedtime.

Needless to say, it was some time before they went to sleep!

Halloween fun!

2008-11-02T16:27:00.004-05:00

Cookie Monster and the Dragon (aka Ida Jane and Harper) enjoyed a wonderful Halloween in Rockville.

First, last Saturday, we had to get out of our Ohio State gear:

And into our costumes for the Spooktacular at Amy's school! Ida Jane had picked out costumes this year for both herself and Harper. Why she made her sister a dragon is anyone's guess.

The dancing was, once again, Ida Jane's favorite part.

Then, this Friday, it was the big night for Trick or Treating! We got all dressed up again.

Then, it was off to see the neighbors. Our first stop was Mary, who has given us treats before, most recently cherry tomatoes from her garden.

A bit of shy anxiety about the process of trick or treating quickly became enthusiasm. Cookie Monster paraded proudly through the neighborhood.

Then it was into our Halloween pajamas. Happy Halloween, everyone!

Neapolitans

2008-10-24T11:02:00.005-04:00

The girls (and Mom and Dad) had a great time heading down to Naples for a long weekend. Before we left, Harper played with Olivia one last time.

And then the plane. The girls both did very well on the flight, much to Mom and Dad's relief. Fortunately for us, it's a straight shot from Baltimore to Ft. Myers, where Meme picked us up. And then, it was immediately onto the pool!

Harper enjoyed hanging out with Baba a lot. Here she is, relaxing after her swim (her mohawk courtesy of Dad):

Of course, one of the best parts about Naples is the lovely beach. Baba and Meme rented a cabana for Harper to stretch out in while keeping out of the sun.

Ida Jane was out in the sun, sand, and surf pretty much as much as she could be.

Ida Jane also made Halloween cookies with Meme:

So when cousins Grayce and Madi visited, they would have some to eat. Here's the girls, all posing together:

Before we left, it was one last trip to the beach, where Ida Jane went shell hunting:

Thanks so much for having us, Baba and Meme! We can't wait to visit again.

Fall fun

2008-10-11T10:04:00.005-04:00

Harper and Ida Jane have really had a whiz-bang start to fall - and I'm afraid the blog has lagged a bit because of it!

First, we had a great trip to the zoo. Here's Mom and Ida Jane checking out the elephants, a favorite animal for both:

Harper loved the zoo as well, a long stroller ride with lots of exciting and fun things to see:

Ida Jane has been very excited about cooking and baking lately. Here she is making some pancakes with Mom.

We also had some guests visit us. It was great seeing Aunt Barbara, Uncle Jim, and cousins Michaela, Lexi and Jeff.

Here's Harper with Aunt Barbara:

She helped Aunt Barbara read a book to Ida Jane and Michaela.

And then Michaela and Harper helped Olivia be the center of attention.

Uncle Steve was in town, and we all went to the pumpkin patch.

He showed Ida Jane the turkeys:

Here's Dad with Harper on the hay ride.

Ida Jane enjoyed seeing the big tractor.

This pumpkin looks just right!

Load 'em up, Dad!

Climbing the hay mountain with Mom at the end of our trip.

Big girls and their visitors

2008-09-18T21:01:00.004-04:00

Harper is almost six months, which is hard to believe. Here she is, sitting up on her own and reading a book.

Ever wonder what the world looks like to a six month old who has a big sister and a best friend living next door to entertain you all the time? Pretty sweet:

But things got even sweeter last weekend when Papa and Nana visited the girls! Harper was in heaven. She got to show Nana her book:

And she got to play with Papa.

Nana had a great time with her girls.

We went to Cabin John Park, which is always fun. Even better with grandparents!

They have these magical bells that Ida Jane enjoyed playing for her Nana.

And adventuring with Papa is always a favorite.

Then, we got to ride a train together!

Time to go home for now.

Thanks for visiting, Papa and Nana!

Two much!

2008-09-07T19:10:00.006-04:00

Hard to believe Ida Jane is now two years old. Well, sometimes, it's not hard to believe. Unfortunately, both girls got a sniffly cold late last week, but even that couldn't prevent them from enjoying Ida Jane's big birthday present - a fifties diner!

On the day of her birthday, Ida Jane enjoyed a delicious cupcake.

But the best was yet to come! For the big party, we got all dressed up.

Harper got in on the act as well.

Our friends Andrew and BFFia came over, and, of course, Ida Jane had to serve them at the diner:

Then it was time for some cake!

Ida Jane got a little concerned when, upon arrival, the cake appeared to be on fire.

But, crisis over, the kids dug in. Delicious!

Yum.

Fia got a special cupcake. Of course, she always prefers whatever is on Ida Jane's plate!

Harper wasn't able to eat any cake - this year. Of course, she doesn't really NEED any cake, per se.

And, finally, the presents!

What a great time! Thanks for coming over, friends!

Exciting weekend

2008-09-01T20:39:00.007-04:00

As I begin sorting through pictures from this weekend, I realize that we managed to have a guest who didn't get in any of our shots. Ida Jane and Harper both loved having Auntie Amanda visit from Seattle - and we'll make sure to take another picture or two before she leaves so that there's visual evidence of her stay.

We had a great time visiting all the DC hot spots this weekend. Ida Jane was running everywhere - past Abraham Lincoln:

Through the WWII memorial:

Where she finally managed to pause and check her surroundings.

Harper, of course, was happy to be with her sister, as always, and enjoyed her ride in the stroller. Here she is, smiling it up in front of the reflecting pool.

Harper loves Ida Jane so much, it can get a little silly. Watch her in this movie, as she dances her way up to give IJ a "baby hug" - basically just a big lean. Ida Jane finally has to laugh at her sister.

Here's Dada getting in some quality Sunday reading time. Put down that newspaper and pick up that picture book, Dada!

Maybe it's paying off? Imagine our surprise when we saw this! Could it really be a coincidence? :-)

As she works at her blocks and train tracks, Ida Jane likes to sing:

Finally, today we went to a parade in Gaithersburg. The family geared up to support Barack Obama. Here's Mama and Harper sporting their latest.

We ended up joining in the fun, but here are a couple of shots as we wait for the bands to arrive:

Happy Labor Day everyone!

Renaissance Age

2008-08-23T18:49:00.004-04:00

Harper and Ida Jane loved visiting the Renaissance Festival. Ida Jane went last year and had a blast - this year they both got to experience the magic.

Harper got herself a lovely hat:

Ida Jane got a fairy wand, and made some "interesting" friends:

The watermelon was a big hit!

There was a kid's story hour, which featured some more characters. Harper, Mama and I watched as she helped Mother Goose and others make "Peas Porridge." (She's standing behind the pirate!)

The "King" and "Queen" of the Festival!

In other news, Harper is learning to eat solids. Here she is taking her first bite:

And the aftermath!

Sitting up!

2008-08-17T13:19:00.005-04:00

The biggest news from Rockville is Harper's growing success in staying up in a seated position. She can usually last about a half minute before "bailing out." If her sister is sitting nearby, she'll stay up for longer.

The girls went up to Baltimore to visit Pop. Here's Harper in his lap.

Aunt Carol was also there from Hawaii, which was a treat!

This was mom's last week before going back to school (Tuesday). Fortunately, the weather was very nice all week so there was lots of fun things to do outside, including a trip to get ice cream with Sofia!

Thanks to Sofia's Mimi for the matching outfits!

We also took a very exciting trip to the park, where we went on a train ride.

What an amazing week!

OBX part II

2008-08-09T16:27:00.003-04:00

We're back in Rockville after a great trip to the Outer Banks. While we encountered some unpleasantness upon our arrival (our house had been robbed, believe it or not), it won't diminish the great memories we had of our trip.

Here are the Zoll Girls, getting ready for a big day out:

Here's the clan at the beach on a nice morning - including Olivia, who always had her eyes on the girls, herding them away from the ocean when she could.

Harper loved hanging out with her Mama.

And Ida Jane had a great time flying her fish kite!

One of the coolest things Ida Jane experienced was putt putting (Harper is still a few months away from that). Here she is at a Dino course she went to with her mom.

Needless to say, more exploring than putting took place!

Outer Banks!

2008-08-04T20:52:00.005-04:00

We arrived at our vacation cottage safe and sound on Saturday evening. It's been a very busy two full days here.

Here's Mom, Ida Jane, Harper, and Olivia, all taking a walk out on the beach:

Ida Jane loves playing in the sand.

We went to the aquarium, where it was the Year of the Frog, one of Ida Jane's favorite animals. They were giving away free frog masks, so Ida Jane (and Dada) got to hop around like frogs for a while:

Harper got herself a stuffed clownfish, which she really enjoys as well:

At the end of the day, it's nice to talk Olivia for a walk.

More later!

Parties and piggies

2008-07-27T21:05:00.003-04:00

Before we begin, Ida Jane has a few words to share, from her new big girl bed.

Now, the title of the post promises parties and piggies, so let's get to it. We had a great time at Poplar Springs Animal Sanctuary this weekend. Poplar Springs takes in rescued farm and lab animals and provides them with happy, long lives. Ida Jane loves visiting her friends there. Here she is, making friends with a pig (whose name, we later discovered, is Suzie Q).

Other friends we met included goats, sheep, chickens, and a rooster who came up to Ida Jane to holler "cock-a-doodle-do" which was very impressive. She's been saying it ever since.

The other big event this weekend was our best friend Sofia's birthday party. Here's a "pre-game" picture, before we converted Ida Jane's crib into a big girl bed with rails.

Harper is quite the social butterfly, and got all dolled up for the big party:

She wasn't quite sure what to do with her party hat, though:

What a great weekend!

A birthday, and more

2008-07-22T21:36:00.004-04:00

Amy celebrated her birthday last week. What better presents could she ask for than her two girls?

Harper is getting so strong! It's going to be hard to keep up with her once she goes mobile. Here she shows off her head strength:

And here she is, ready to join her sister at a pool party:

Ida Jane, at our neighbors the Smiths, is ready to jump right in!

Did we mention Ida Jane loves doing her hair now? Here she is with pigtails!

Harper likes to participate in all play activity, and, when she gets her own time in her chair, she prefers if Ida Jane comes over to help her learn.

(Daddy is experimenting - slowly - with some HTML changes to the site. It will improve shortly! If you haven't noticed, our blogroll has expanded a bit, and updates to show who's got the latest post).

Fourth fun

2008-07-09T21:24:00.006-04:00

Ida Jane and Harper had a great time in Indiana and Ohio over the Fourth.

Ida Jane got to ride in the grandkid rowboat, custom built by Papa:

Harper got to spend lots of time with, and give lots of smiles to, her Nana:

Ida Jane enjoyed the bigger boats, too. And, yes, she knows she looks fashionable:

It got even better when Papa showed her how to honk the horn:

Harper met her Great-Grandma Gerber for the first time, and got lots of kisses.

What a fun time!

On the farm

2008-06-29T11:56:00.003-04:00

Ida Jane and Harper have had a great time here at Nana and Papa's. There's been a lot to do, and a lot of people to meet.

Ida Jane loves all the flowers and going for walks outside.

She also tried her hand at golf, which was interesting. Hopefully she won't develop her dad's slice.

And, of course, cousin Evan came down for a visit from Michigan, and they had a lovely tea party in Nana and Papa's basement:

Harper, never one to play second fiddle, was also busy socializing. Here she is hanging out with Aunt Jen:

And here she is with her Grandmama Zoll:

It's been a great time so far, and there's more to come!

Summer's almost here

2008-06-18T21:59:00.003-04:00

It's been good, if busy, times in Rockville with the girls growing up so fast. Harper is getting very interactive, and loves to smile at everyone - her sister most of all.

Although, sometimes, Harper's not quite sure what to make of all the attention she gets in return.

Ida Jane has been loving summer - one reason is all the lovely dresses she gets to model.

Ida Jane is also learning to experiment with sound in all sorts of new and interesting ways. Here she is, creating some... "progressive" music.