Miami Dreaming

Well, we made it back from Miami in one piece.

The weekend began with a smooth plane ride. You know how people look at you when you walk on board a plane with a small child? Everyone gives you the evil eye. They are hoping your child falls fast asleep for the whole plane ride. Zahra impressed everyone on those two flights. She slept and was pretty calm throughout. We arrived to my mom's house and surprised the living daylights out of my grandma. We had her crying tears of joy. My grandfather didn't look so good though. He was tired and bed ridden. He managed to talk to us a little and seemed pleased that we were there, but I am not looking forward to the next few months of his health hovering above alive. But for the time being, he and my grandma were proud and happy. We got to visit with my dad and mom and some other folks. We didn't get to see Uncle Ted or Pachy much because they are working crazy hours. We did get to see a lot of friends, including Marc and Sophia at the beach and Fred, Ruben, Jason and James. And although we stayed in Hialeah pretty much the entire time, it felt like we were always moving around. We saw other family folks as well. On Sunday, we got to go meet with Grandpa Richard and Karen. We had a tasty brunch with them at the historic Biltmore Hotel. We got to hang out with my dad a little bit and saw My great aunt Marta and cousin Rosy. So many things, yet so little time!

The best part of the trip for Shan and I was our wonderful date at Kevin and Lilly's wedding. It was a gorgeous scene. The locale was the Barnacle, a state park that preserved some of old Miami's lush and tropical feel. The weather was fantastic and the event went off without a hitch. It's always nice to see a couple have a sweet moment shared with family and friends. Shan and I also got our groove on on the dance floor. We had never danced like that together.

Of course the trip wasn't perfect. There was the annoying position of the bilingual dope in the middle played by yours truly. In one ear was the wife who wanted to stick to the schedule and in the other was the grandma who wanted to do things her way. In all honesty, I was going a little bonkers. As long as Z was having a good time, who cares about schedules? I'm just glad that is over for now.

Leaving Miami is always a little tough on me. Shan was excited to get back. Z was just Z, enjoying every minute of where she was, including running around in the airport with daddy chasing her. Now we are back in Asheville and enjoying the spring weather. I look forward to another trip down south, hopefully one that is not quite as short.

Our Baby's Not a Baby No More

It's amazing the strides Z has taken the last few weeks since she has been walking all on her own. She is so much more of a little kid now than ever. Today I sat at my computer to do a little work. As I began to type, I heard the pitter patter of little feet charging down our hallway towards the office. All of a sudden, I had Z frantically patting my leg and giving me one of her million dollar smiles. She was excited and wanted me to chase her down the hall. Amazing! Just incredible the feeling of having this little person in our lives.

Zahra has also really become a great conversationalist. She completely gets it when you are speaking to her and can engage and communicate so well with her sign language and sounds. Shan and I need to get ready to remember she can listen to us and start understanding what's going on.

I am so proud of our little lady. And I can't wait to unleash her on Hialeah and all of her adoring fans. We'll report back after our excursion to the MIA.

Spring Break Part 2

We finished up the break with some major hanging out. The weather was gorgeous up here in the mountains this past weekend. We hit the lake Sunday with friends. Saturday we built some outdoor patio furniture. Shannon and I celebrated five years together that day as well.

As for Z, well, she continues to amaze us every day. She is so outgoing and friendly with other little ones. It's like she gravitates towards them. And with the walking, it's even crazier because now she can dictate where she wants to go. Picture me running after her while she makes dashes towards the street and other naughty places.

We are gearing up for our big trip. It's about time to take Z down to see the Cuban side of the family. Get ready Hialeah, here come the Seijezzalis!

Spring Break Part 1

It's been a restful first half of spring break. I have been working out in the mornings and hanging with Shan and Z all day after that. We've been hiking in the woods with friends, exploring the Nature Center and it's creatures, been out back hanging at the pool (Zahra's little inflatable kiddie pool) and taking in walks and tons of play time. It's been peaceful for most of the time, maddeningly tiring at others but all good. The rest of the the week has us out and about as we have three nights of dinners with friends and a certain five year first meeting anniversary to partake in. April 10th marks five years to the day that Shan and I first officially met. Hard to believe we have come so far, done so much and made a family in that time. Enjoy the shots and I'll check in for part two later this weekend.

Happy Egg Day!

Today is that magical day when a fantastical rabbit hides plastic eggs from children and loads them up with sugar. Well, we avoided that route today. Instead, we spent this pretty Sunday as a family, albeit a tired one. I'm still recovering from my DC trip and Shan seemed pretty tired today as well. But we managed to put together a nice day of hanging outside.

We started the day in the yard. Shan discovered an adorable turtle in our backyard, freshly hatched from the size of him. It's cool to know our little section of green can support such a diversity of life. We set him free in a safer place (we hope). After that, we hung out until Z took a nap. After some much needed Mommy Daddy Time, we went for a walk in the neighborhood. We took in some West End Bakery action. Then we chit chatted it up with some neighbors, had a scrumptious strawberry with Oreo cookies milkshake from Two Spoons Ice Cream Shop, bought some more garden stuff at Jesse Israel's Nursery and basked in some more sun in the yard. Zahra has a new sand and water box courtesy of her grandma Lanie. She really loves it. All in all, a nice relaxed day.

It is great to be back with my family. I missed my girls. Z has grown so much and is really getting to be a great little walker. She loves going up and down ramps. She must have done that at least 50 times at the nursery. She also has quite the temper when she doesn't get what she wants. And boy is she social. At the bakery, she just had to play with this little boy who was about three or four. She had no fear, just walked up to him and started playing. She also was not bashful around some six year olds at the ice cream shop. I wonder where she got that from? Shan is doing well herself. She has her garden ready to roll and I can't wait to see how it turns out. All in all, everything is fantastic. Now I get to enjoy a great week at home for my spring break. There should be plenty of posts coming as I will have time and I plan on going on several adventures with Z and Mommy over the course of this week.