Best of 2007

Our fondest memories from 2007...



What better place to start off 2007 than in Kauai with the keikis, hanging out with our best friends and their babies, hiking to deserted beaches, riding helicopters over rugged coastline, and cooking ribs and seafood in a private beach house!

Back at home, Spencer became more and more of a little person every day, whether he was working out in his exersaucer, making friends on the couch, wowing us with his belly laugh, discovering his tongue, doing laps around the coffee table, posing as a flower child, learning to play bongo drums, trying on crazy sweaters, hanging out in central park, watching fireworks, or going for lots of hikes around the Bay Area.

Our next big trip of the year was to San Diego for President's Day Weekend. Jesse and Eileen were stranded by JetBlue, but we got lots of time with friends and family… and Spencer rolled over for the first time!

Ryan got in a few trips of his own—visiting with the other Spencer in Germany, and (much to Eunice’s chagrin), doing a day trip to Dallas to meet our newest nephew… Paxon!

Our summer started with a whirlwind 3 stage trip: First a fantastic long Memorial Day weekend with Jesse and Eileen on the Cape. Then Spencer’s first trip abroad—a 2 week trip to the incredibly kid-friendly town of Heidelberg, Germany (Spencer adjusted to the time zones better than we did!). Finally, on the way home, we stopped at our Williams 10-Year Reunion, a great chance to catch up with old friends and meet everyone’s growing families.

Spencer took his first steps at Bob and Kathy’s place in June, just before his first birthday celebration and 4th of July fireworks in the Marina. (Spencer's day care also threw him a wonderful party).

We had lots of other things to celebrate over the summer: Eunice’s first mother's day, Adam and Rachel's wine country engagement party, music in central park, Phil's birthday bike ride, Theo's 1st Birthday, Henry’s 1^st birthday… and of course Eunice's 32nd Birthday, celebrated at the clothing optional ocean-side spa in Big Sur.

Our next big summer trip was a family reunion in St. Louis and Eunice’s childhood vacation destination of Branson, MO. It was great hanging out by the lake, despite the heat wave!

A highlight of the year was Adam and Rachel's Wedding on a picture perfect day in Rachel’s hometown of Westport, MA. We were kept busy during the beachfront ceremony by our duties officiating (Eunice) and delivering a message (Ryan), but were definitely able to relax over a clambake and fireworks that night. We also spent a wonderful weekend in Sonoma for Matt and Julia’s Wedding.... Spencer is learning to have a good time at these events!

Not all of the action was on the road—over the course of the year we were very lucky to have lots of friends and family out to visit-- Dr. Hem (twice!), Grandpa Fran, Mamie and Cora, Nara, Adam, Fran, Adam, and Rachel , Susan and Jim , Karen and Erin, Josh and Kimberly, and Mimi, Steve and the kids.

Ryan was called for jury duty in the fall, and ended up taking 4 weeks off work to serve as Juror #7 on a murder trial. A once-in-a-lifetime experience, and it has to be said that the work/life balance of a juror isn’t so bad. We had lots of time to play in central park every day, eat our backyard apple harvest, (also every day!), enjoy Spencer's first puddles, try on adult shoes, hang out with the grandparents, and of course go trick-or-treating for the first time…with Spencer dressed as a lion.

We spent Thanksgiving in Vancouver (where it wasn’t Thanksgiving), eating monstrous amounts of food with Eunice’s family. Eunice’s mom came out for a fantastic visit in November, giving Spencer lots of time with all of his grandparents this year. He’d better enjoy the attention while he can, because our big news this fall was learning that we have another bun in the oven! Eunice is due in May, and we had lots of fun sharing our news with friends and family… starting with the New York gang at our Kibbutz LA road trip to Joshua Tree.

We got into the holiday season by finding the perfect Christmas tree to chop down in Half Moon Bay and attending the wild Ideo Children's Christmas Party thanks to Grace. Then we were ready for Christmas Eve Festivities with our community group (+ our traditional get-together at the Hills) and a 12-person crab and filet mignon dinner with family on Christmas Day. Then it was off to Tahoe with the Nichols for Spencer’s introduction to the snow, and more of the same with the Kiwi Hapa gang on Donner Lake for a Tahoe New Years. Eunice finished a great 2007 by going “all-in” on Texas Hold ‘Em… and winning!

Tahoe New Years

We met up with the Canadas and Wangs in Tahoe for yet another fun vacation together - this time to bring in 2008 in style!
Click here for a full slideshow.


Alonzo's aunt and uncle, yet again, graciously let us use their fantastic cabin, located right on Donner Lake. Highlights of our time together included skiing and sledding with the kids at Sugar Bowl, hiking around Donner Lake, late-night games of poker and speed scrabble, lots of delicious home-cooked dinners, celebrating Gaby's 2nd birthday, and watching the kids play with one another around the cabin.


Looking forward to more Canada-Nichols-Wang adventures in 2008!

Tahoe with the Nichols

After Christmas, we headed up to Tahoe to spend a few days in the snow with Michael, Terese, Abby, Adam, and Rachel. Click here for a full slideshow.


This was Spencer's first time in the snow. After a tentative start, he ended up having a great time putting on his cool new snow gear, sliding down hills with Abby, and going cross country skiing (dragged in a sled by Ryan!).

Tahoe with the Nichols

After Christmas, we headed up to Tahoe to spend a few days in the snow with Michael, Terese, Abby, Adam, and Rachel. Click here for a full slideshow.


This was Spencer's first time in the snow. After a tentative start, he finally got the hang of it and had a great time putting on his cool new snow gear, going cross country skiing while being pulled in a sled by dad, and sliding down snow-covered hills with Abby.

Spencer's First Haircut

We could no longer deny that our boy was in desperate need of a haircut. We made a trip to Burlingame's “Just Kids Cuts” to make sure we could find somebody who would take good care of Spencer's precious curls. Click here for a full slideshow.

BEFORE...


AFTER...

Family Christmas

We hosted Christmas at our place this year and invited Ryan's family from all over to join us in the festivities! Click here for a full slideshow.


We started off the morning with freshly baked coffee cake, bloody mary's, and a gift exchange with Susan, Jim, Adam, and Rachel. Once Michael, Nancy, and the Barrons arrived later that afternoon, our party moved into full swing, complete with great appetizers, gift exchanges, a rowdy game of "Table Topics," a dinner that included a massive 7-pound fillet of beef and 12 fresh crabs from Fisherman's Wharf, and desserts galore. All in all, a crazy, jam-packed, fun-filled and memorable Christmas day.

Community Group Christmas Eve Festivities

On Christmas Eve, we hosted brunch and a gift exchange with our community group members.
Click here for a full slideshow.


In addition to wooden blocks, bathtub crayons, puzzles, and books galore for the kids, one of the highlights of the morning was helping them try out their brand new snow boots - just in time for our new year's trip up to Tahoe! Gifts for adults included scrabble-themed jewelry and cuff links (a nod to our epic speed scrabble tournaments), a cool sled, fun party games, wine-themed gifts, and the unveiling of a beautiful homemade scarf (in the making for over a year!)


Final photo: mommies and their babies.

Gourmet Lamb Dinner

Michael Brown and his girlfriend Amber came over to our house for dinner - and brought all of the fixings for an incredible gourmet lamb dish.


Here, Mike and Ryan determine the best way to prepare such a large slab of lamb. After slathering it with an olive tapenade, fresh rosemary, and feta, they rolled the lamb up, tied it with twine, and roasted it to perfection.


Meanwhile, Amber made a fantastic salad and baked some delicious butternut squash. Mmmm... You guys can come over any time!!!

Ideo Children's Christmas Party

Now an annual tradition, Grace invited us yet again to join her at Ideo's fun-filled children's holiday party. This year, the theme was “rainforest” complete with a tropical bird show, though the highlight for Spencer was playing in a make-shift Eurovan-turned-cubicle in the middle of the office! Click here for a full slideshow.

Christmas Tree Chopping in Half Moon Bay

The first weekend in December, we headed out on a beautiful day with Big Spencer and Little Spencer to Half Moon Bay to look for a Christmas Tree. Click here for a full slideshow.


We started things off with a yummy lunch at Chez Shea on Main Street, then took a walk on a beach in Half Moon Bay, before heading to Santa's Tree Farm where we traipsed up and down a tree-covered hill to find our very own Christmas tree, chop it down, load it on top of the trusty Xterra, and get it set up in our living room. To end the day, we had some friends over for mulled wine, dinner, and a cut-throat speed scrabble tournament. Let the holiday festivities begin!