HUGE news!!!

Guess what? I have a huge announcement! Mama and Daddy are planning a trip to Grand Cayman in May! And guess what else? My cousins Abygale and Sophia will be there too, along with aunts and uncles, and even Grandma and Gramps! We are all going to go and spend a week in this huge house right on the beach.

Oh I can't wait! And guess what else? Mama said I could take snorkeling lessons before we leave, so I will know exactly what I'm doing as soon as I get there.

Here are some photos of the house we will be staying in. Notice the beach, that is where you will find me!

Snow fort!

Last weekend was so fun, I got to go down to the farmhouse with my two cousins Sophia and Abygael. It was a really nice day on Sunday and not even very cold. Because the deep deep Utah snow was melting it was very good for snowballs and snow forts, which meant of course we HAD to build a sweet fort for our toys.

I was the main engineer, and decided to make a snow fort with a roof, but Sofia had a great idea about using icicles as the drawbridge, and then we found a HUGE icicle and used it as the tallest tower.

Can you tell we had fun? Here are a few photos:

I look around for the perfect spot for the snow fort, and of course North joins me.

Once finding the perfect location, Blabbins and I start building the walls.

Then Sophia and I secure the HUGE icicle.

All done! Do you see all our animals inside? Can you see the icicle draw bridge?

Be my Valentine

Valentines is the day of love, so I want to list a few people that I love:
Mama, Daddy, Jess, Inky, Lei Mei, Kirsten, Kailey, Kit, Sophia, Abygael, and my three fat kitties!
Mama and Daddy got me something special for Valentines this year, something I have been wishing for since Christmas! What is it, you ask?
Playmobil! And the castle set! Yea!!!!
Setting up Playmobil is so fun, but playing for endless hours is the best. Did you know this castle has a secret room AND a trap door? I can't wait to play Harry Potter and Castle in the Attic!

新年好- Happy Chinese New Year!

Lei Mei is so awesome, just the other day she asked me if I'd like to attend a New Years Feast for the Chinese New Year! She also told me it is 鼠的年 (the year of the rat). I was so excited to go to a traditional Chinese New Years Party, and Lei Mei's cousins are so funny! Plus, I got to dress in a beautiful Chinese dress and I got red envelopes with money inside! We made lots of noise and said "Gung Hay Fat Choy" lots of times, which means "Happy New Year!" Also we had to say a special prayer to Lei Mei's ancestors, which is traditional.

Lei Mei's English is really getting good, she is learning so much. And my Chinese is about as good as Lei Mei's one year old cousin, which means I only know 15 words! But I'm working on it, Lei Mei is a very good teacher.

Do you want to see some photos from our New Years party?

I am home, and it is COLD!

Ok, I forgot how cold it is in Utah. January in Maui is the only way to spend winter. But, I am home. The first thing I did when I got home was to take a nice, long, hot bath. Mama helped me wash my hair and gave me a thick towel to dry off with.
Once I was all dry I changed into some warm clothes (nice thick socks, new ice skating sweater and PJ pants) and realized I had a big gift in my bedroom! Rock on! It was a birthday present from Inky that didn't quite arrive before I left for Hawaii.

So what did she get me? Only the neatest things ever! I got the cutest knit hat that is purple, and looks perfect with my cozy outfit, and I got a little Cheburashka with an orange in his hands, I love him. And last, but not least, the coolest photo album with photos of Inky and I together in Ukraine. Thank you Inky!!

Here are some photos of my goodies:

Hula lessons in Hawaii

Josefina has been such a wonderful host and teacher. She has really become a wonderful friend. I will miss her so much.

A few days ago she taught me the art of the Hula. I love learning it so much! We even had some music to practice to, and you could hear the waves lapping the beach in the background. Very "authentic" Josefina told me.

Look at what fun we had:

Josefina showing me how it is done.

I'm trying it out for the first time with a pro!

Now it is my turn for the grass skirt and lei, don't I look like a Hawaiian girl?

Up country for lunch!

Josefina and I are still having SO MUCH FUN!!! You can not believe how pretty it is here, I love it. The last few days Josefina and I have been really busy. First we went to Up Country (on the west side of the island) to a town called Makawao, which is an hour drive.

Maui is in the top 5 wettest places in the world (they claim #2). So most of the time these mountains are covered in clouds, but today it wasn't raining! Josefina said it is rare to see the mountain tops. Once we got to Makawao we visited a famous glass blowing shop and the yummiest restaurant on the island, Mama's Fish House. After posing for this photo we went in and Josefina said we could order anything on the menu! I got a kid's fish plate and it was so good. There was this spicy yummy sauce to dip the fried fish in that tasted like mangoes or something.
After lunch we went across the street to this awesome beach and found a really neat sea canoe right there on the beach. Josefina and I pretended to sail out to the sea, and discover a new island of our own! We could build a tree house and live like princesses forever more!
The west side of the island is often windy, even on the nicest of days. The beach is so beautiful, and Josefina and I were feeling a little wind blown. But I could stay here all day and watch the big waves.

Hawaii is ten times from awesome!

Oh my gosh, it is so awesome here! I'm here in Maui Hawaii with Josefina, and we are having SO MUCH FUN! Josefina says the weather is not so good because it is windy and rainy, and I told her this weather is fantastic! Who ever heard of going to the beach in January? Today is 73 degrees and just perfect! I'm wearing shorts and a tank top! Because there is some wind I've had a chance to watch the waves, and they are so awesome. I love Hawaii.

I can't write a very long blog post today because Josefina is telling me she wants to go look for geckos right now, there are a lot near here!

Anyway, I wanted to post a map so you know where I am, and I also wanted to post some of the most awesome photos from yesterday!

Aloha! (that means hello and goodbye!)

Check out those awesome waves!

This is where I am, Lahaina, Maui.

Josefina and I love this weather! I will return with a suntan!

A fun game I was playing

Guess what? I'm in Hawaii and I've been having such a great time!!! I don't want to post yet about what I've been doing, because I don't have any of the photos on the computer yet, but I think all girls should be allowed to go to Hawaii for a month in the winter, nice and warm! ;)

Anyway, before I left I was playing the best game! I've been reading Golden Compass (listening to it on my iPod actually) and I'm loving it. Lyra is so brave and funny, and I really like Iorek Byrnison (the polar bear). The other day I was playing Golden Compass in my bedroom and it was so fun. Kaya was pretending to be Lyra, and North (my new polar bear toy) was playing Iorek. I also had all my other toys playing too. We sledded across my bedroom in a box and helped Lyra search for her father.

Here are some photos of my game:

Today I turn 11!

What a splendid birthday so far! I love birthdays! Yesterday I had my some of my friends over for a birthday party, and we had so much fun! I wore a new violet colored party dress, it is so pretty. Plus, everyone got to meet Lei Mei, and they all thought she was so nice.

Lei Mei is a new girl that lives around the block from me, she is only eight years old, but I really like her. She is shy and is just learning English. We have fun together, because I'm helping her with her English, and she is giving me Chinese lessons! I love learning Chinese, but it is really hard, even harder than Russian.

Guess what I got for my birthday? An American Girl doll! They are the neatest dolls, I chose Kaya, she is a Native American, and she is so pretty and she is my favorite. Today it is cold and snowy outside, and since it is my birthday I haven't had to do any jobs! Instead I'm packing for my trip to Hawaii (I leave tomorrow!) and playing with my toys. Did you know Kaya told me she is also an Eskimo, and that is why she likes my polar bear toy so much?

Anyway, here is an album Mama put together from my party, and here are a few photos.

Here I am with Kaya, isn't she perfect?

And here Lei Mei shows me how to do calligraphy.