Matt...

So I got a hair cut for the first time in two and a half years... Here are the before and after photos.

And yes, I did try to make myself look terrible for my 'before' shot. I just may have tried too hard. Feel free to make fun of me in the comments section below.

The 'after' shot.

It was only days later that Heather got bored and decided to change her hair too. Her changes were also pretty dramatic.

with love,

the petersons

Isaac John's Photo Blog

I know that Isaac was born seven weeks ago, but these are pictures I wasn't able to post till now. Enjoy!

"Just before heading off to the hospital to meet little Isaac John. It would be a while before this smile would return."

"Fast forward through the whole birthing process and here are proud mom and dad with their new treasure."

"I know what you're thinking "Hey you slipped in a photo from your trip to the medieval torture device museum " not so friends, not so. This is the bed where Heather gave birth."

"Sydney and brother."

"Princess Lily and new brother Isaac."

"Peterson boys chillin out."

"Caleb and Isaac"

"I love this photo!"

"The Myth, The Man, The Legend. Isaac John"

"The furious five."

"Isaac and Uncle Dan."

I will be posting more pictures from life over the past couple months in the future. I hope each of you are doing well. Thanks for stopping by and reading!

much love,

the petersons

Sydney Loses A Tooth

So last week I didn’t get to mention some little news from our big girl Sydney. She lost her first tooth! I would say it was a few weeks ago that Sydney first started to complain about “something” behind her front bottom tooth. I told her it was probably food or something and to not worry about it. Later when Sydney complained again about “something” behind her tooth, Heather (the loving and caring parent of our duo), discovered that Sydney had a new tooth coming in with the baby one still in there. That’s when we discovered as well that the tooth was quite loose.

When we were on our little getaway near the mountains a friend of ours, Sarah, told Sydney to pull the baby tooth out. Sydney reached in and pulled it out! She was pretty excited!

A few days later she went to bed with the tooth under her pillow and the Chinese tooth fairy (like the American tooth fairy, but speaks only in Chinese) showed up and left a stack of one Yuans under Sydney’s pillow (13 of them to be exact).

It was a fun memory for all of us.

much love,

the petersons

P.S. A couple days ago I sent out our email to those who asked to join it. If you didn’t get it, make sure to check your spam folder. If you want me to add you to our ‘talking to Father’ list, please let me know.

Nails and Blazers

If you missed it the other day I shared an update on our family. But this is what people really want, pictures. I hope that you enjoy them!

"I left to run some errands when I got home the girls ran to me to show me how mommy had painted them." 

"Showing attitude and painted nails." 

"Everyone was very excited." 

"Now that Caleb is more mobile and can talk more we've encouraged him to find a job. He has an interview with Mr. Wang who runs Mr. Wang's Chicken. We'll see how it goes."

"Lily playing in a basket." 

"Ellie also showing some attitude. It reminds me of some of her other looks." 

"Caleb + Blazer - Shirt = Stud." 

"Seriously I hope Mr. Wang sees how amazing our little boy is and gives him a job."

Which one is your favorite?

much love,

the petersons

A Look Back At Our Easter

I know it was Easter last week, but I forgot to post pictures. We had a fun Easter egg hunt in front of our apartment building with a couple other families. (Quite different than last year's Easter hunt.) Then we had a birthday party for our friend's daughter, Olivia. It was a lot of fun and great to get out as a family and make some memories. Here are some photos from our time. Enjoy!

"Ellie looking pretty on Easter." 

"Does this not look like a man on a mission to find some Easter eggs?" 

"One of our kids loaded up there plastic bag." 

"Notice Caleb's face is covered in paint as he tried to eat one of the eggs. I hope that paint is lead-free." 

"Bubble time!" 

"The boys eating some cake and ice cream." 

"Because you can never be too safe."

(This was another day.)

Which one is your favorite?

much love,

the petersons

Grocery Shopping In China

So when I go grocery shopping I either ride my motorcycle (electric motorcycle to everyone not named Matt Peterson) or I take the double stroller.This is the same stroller that made people probably think I was crazy. Anyways, after coming home the other week I thought it would be nice to show you a little taste of life in China.

More pictures of China are here.

much love,
the petersons

Pictures From Our Time At Aquarium in Xian China

The other day our family went to the aquarium here in Xian, China. We left Ellie and Sammie with a babysitter so we could go, because there's no way we could have all gone (Also, we heard that there a lot of stairs and that strollers weren't very convenient.) I was surprised at how nice the aquarium was. If you live in Xian you should check it out. Enjoy!

"The morning before we left. I love Sammie's Spiderman pj's."

"Fake smile or real?"

"In my opinion this is one of the best pictures of Lily."

"Heather looking annoyed."

"The sisters also looking annoyed. We were in the hot sun waiting to get in... with a lot of people crowding around us."

"Sydney next to a fish tank."

"Creepy."

"The kids getting a closer look at a fish tank."

"Crocodiles."

"Ramp Please Speak. Of course."

"The tallest glass tank in China (A.K.A. the pride of Xian) Beijing eat your heart out."

"Between 3 to 4 hundred people took our kid's picture without asking us. It gets old. When this guy came up, I just walked up in his face and started taking his photo. I think he got the point I was trying to make."

"The seal show with a million Chinese people watching."

"And finally the dolphin show."

Which one was your favorite?

much love,

the petersons

Happy Birthday Ellie and Sammie!

Hi everyone! Ellie and Sammie's birthday was on the 3rd. When Ellie and Sammie were found, they were found together. So it was assumed that they were twins, however, it's pretty clear that Ellie is older. So even though their birthdays are on the same day, we said Ellie was turning 3 and Sammie was turning 2. Not that it's up to us, but this seems pretty close to their ages. Enjoy!

"Sammie gets what every boy needs, fake crocs. He loves them!" 

"Ellie got a coloring book. I like this picture because it looks like the coloring book is the size of a movie poster." 

 "Sammie got a firetruck. He loves it and so does everyone else. Of course, it sings some gosh-awful song."

"Ellie ecstatic about her new Dora doll and a new head band." 

"Sammie checking to make sure the firetruck is up to code. He seemed pleased." 

"Ellie's Birthday card!" 

"Sammie's Birthday card." 

"There we go Ellie! We've told Ellie ever since she moved here that Dora was her (they kinda look alike.)" 

"And of course the wall of birthday signs." 

"A little song and a little cake." 

"Another tradition in our home, tea candles instead of birthday candles. This is China."
(Heather wants me to make sure and say that she's not mad in this photo nor is she forcing Sammie's face into the cake. But the photo shows otherwise.)

"Ellie showing me how old she is." 

"Sammie called Caleb to confirm his inspection. Both of them love playing with this toy."

Thanks Grandma for sending presents! This post reminds me of what I said on this list, there's always a birthday!

much love,

the petersons