Memorial Day Weekend

By MAGGIE WANG

Here's a cute picture of my baby girl, lying on our bed. She is so sweet and fun.

Here's the power of TV: Sedona was watching "Max and Ruby." Ruby was making s'mores, so Sedona decided she needed some. She told me exactly how to make them from watching Ruby. (I sent this camera-phone pic to show Kevin, who was in Phoenix.)

The girls played on the beach at Raychel and Charlotte's combo birthday party. Sedona and Maven are playing together much more, interacting with Maven asking Sedona questions. It's super cute to watch.

Maven still loves to copy Sedona. So when Sedona put on a frilly dance dress, so did Maven ... and they put on a little performance for Kevin's camera. Sedona is requesting ballet classes.

Cuddling after the dancing with my baby girls. They are growing up way too fast.

For Kevin's birthday, I bought him a new desk chair -- and I thought of the idea that the big box could double for a playhouse for the girls! Score!

Happy 39th Birthday, Kevin. We love you.

The summer has unofficially come in the form of ... Fiesta Hermosa!!

It takes place every Memorial Day weekend. Maven is just old enough now to get on the rides. She was so happy.

She wasn't quite tall enough for this one that Sedona did, though.

Sedona's Debut vs. Moving Softball

Sedona at the Bat

Family Saturday

By MAGGIE WANG

We had a fun family day Saturday. Those are hard to come by during the Lakers' playoffs!

Maven and Austin's 2nd birthday presents to each other were getting together and watching "Sesame Street Live" on touring stage in Long Beach. Then the whole Kev and Mag families had a yummy lunch at California Pizza Kitchen.

From there, it was a drive northeast to Monterey Park to get me a haircut and our nails done before ...

Dinner with another Ding clan: Karisa (Kevin's first cousin), Brian, Timmy and Naya were in town. The kids sat at their own table for the first time ever. With Kevin's sister's family, we presented Kevin's parents with a planned 70th birthday gift to take a cruise together later in the summer.

Maven is wearing an adorable "Little Maven" dress (that's the actual name of the label put out by Tori Spelling), gifted from Auntie Kristen.

If you look closely, those aren't food particles on Maven's face. She scuffed up her nose and lip by showing Nanny Linda how she could (momentarily) run outside with her hands in her pockets. She loves to play with pockets, so hopefully she learned her lesson.

Maven on the Basepaths

Spring Flinging

By MAGGIE WANG

Kevin and I went away for an awesome trip to Cancun for Sara Olson and Mike Neustadt's wedding. The bride and wedding were beautiful. We had a great time spending quality time with Julie & Tim (Julie and Sara are my pals from Texas A&M), enjoying the fabulous all-inclusive Royal resort. We would totally recommend it to anyone and would love to go again.

This is the view from our room, which had a balcony with chairs and table -- plus a bonus hammock. I lived out there in that hammock! I want to put one in our house now.  There was a two-seat hot tub in the room facing the ocean, an always re-stocked fridge, 24-hour room service with really great food (all the food at all the restaurants was really beyond our expectations it was so good), along with an amazing rain shower.

We missed Mag's 40th birthday party back home (and Kevin missed two Lakers playoff games in Utah) while we were in Cancun. But we got the pleasure of seeing Mag's clan the day after we got back. It's adorable: Maven and Austin are really starting to interact. Here they are giving good-bye hugs.

Sedona and Maven did great staying with Kevin's parents while we were gone. Maven, in particular, seems to be more attached to me since we returned. Here she is munching down on a cheeseburger in the car ...

Here are the girls taking turns feeding each other. It's so cute to see them interact. 

My parents (who have been taking care of my Yorkie Inu at their house since Sedona's birth) are out of town and seeing Jennie Lin's parents, so we are taking care of Inu again for a couple weeks. Sedona and Maven are enjoying it, particularly Sedona. She loves holding him and being his big sister -- and they sleep together every night. It makes me smile.

I don't know if Inu is making the girls want a brother, but they both have said things about wanting a brother when they used to want it to be all girls except Daddy. Recently, we (separately) asked Sedona if she wanted more siblings, and she had the same answer: She wants seven ... two brothers and one sister to go with the four of us. "Seven!" she says.

Sedona's Manhattan Montessori School had its Spring Fling carnival, and we attended with Simona's girls, Isabel and Sabrina. Isabel will hopefully be in Sedona's class -- and Sabrina in Maven's class -- next year.  The girls' birthdates are days apart from each other.