Zoe publishes a book

I was up in Boston last week and popped into Uncle Dick and Auntie Alice's to visit.

Zoe has been working on a book of drawings at school.




Her school is different and kind of new-age-y. They teach the kids the standard fairy tales...






They teach them to rhyme...



And they teach all about fairies and other friendly forest creatures...






But sometimes it seems teachers also just make words and names and stories up as they go, passing them off as classics.

At one point, Zoe looked at me incredulously saying, "You've never heard of Hans and the Cat?"



"Or Sumac and the Serpent?"




Or a "The Old Lady and the Hedley Koo"?




I had not. Have you?

Forest Child Update

So I got to have a yummy sushi dinner with Uncle Dick, Auntie Alice, and Zoe.

Afterwards we went to Whole Foods to shop for groceries.

Zoe was cold so I gave her my shirt.





We got home at 8pm and it was Zoe's bed time.

She did her nightly routine:



Studied her US President flashcards.



And then I left through the scary forest.




Isn't it terrifying?

It really felt like True Blood and that I was going to get eaten by a vampire or scary bull-headed witchwoman with claws.

Visitors!

Sandra, Auntie Alice, Uncle Dick, and ZOE! came to visit this weekend.

We started by watching hilarious little videos Charleen had posted of her son/our new baby nephew Oliver.



Then we eated the China food.

Zoe scribbled on her presidential placemat.



And the hilarious child decided to put Dubya behind bars.



I got a pretty odd pseudo-Engrish fortune:



Zoe got a better one, which I proceeded to steal from her.

Pearls of Wisdom

So I kicked Zoe's little ass in Operation.

You get money for each organ you remove. I removed all of them.



DK: "I'm soooo rich. I can buy anything I want now."
Zoe: "You can't buy Google!..."

XMas in HK

For Christmas, Zoe painted a picture for my dad.




In case you can't read the inscription, it says:

Dear Uncle BOBBY,

I wish you a happy blue sky

with snow

Happy X'Mas Holiday

Love, SOE ("Zoe" with a backwards "Z")





In return my dad gave her "Operation" which she currently lacks the necessary motor skills for and will thus keep her occupied and frustrated for QUITE some time.

Yesssssss.....

Food and Money makes for happy

Awwwwww....

Wittle Zoe is not so happy...



Wittle Zoe is soooo vewwy bored.....



But after some fwee money...



And some delicious Fwied Wice Cakes (like Chinese Gnocchi)...



Zoey is a happy!!!



And then we play Dogopoly.

Zoe!

Heidi and I had lunch with Uncle Dick, Auntie Alice, and Zoe at the Cheesecake Factory.

Nothing to report.

Zoe was feeling shy.

"Hello Giant...I hate you."

My baby cousin Zoe is the most spoiled child in the history of the world.



It must be nice to be born into a family where each of your 57 cousins are at least 15 years older than you and you have 23 uncles/aunts and two sets of rich-ass grandparents and all of the above shower you with gifts and affection whenever possible.

Uncle Dick and Auntie Alice's house is no longer their own. It's Zoe's house. Toys are EVERYWHERE. The only DVDs are cartoons and shows featuring creepy grown men in costumes singing alphabet songs.

My Care Bear contribution was scrutinized, deemed acceptable, and quickly tossed into the heap of assorted plushie toys.



We went out for Chinese food and were waited on by a grouchy old Chinese waitress lady, to whom little Zoe asked, "Why are your eyes so MEAN????" "Mommy, why are her eyes so MEAN????"

This was all followed by uncontrollable laughter, from ourselves and the tables around us.

The waitress...was not amused.



What an adorable little monster.