Summer in the States, Part I

We are lucky creatures to be able to jet between two continents to visit family and friends and actually feel the sun on our skin and wear summer dresses (well, shorts for Rob). Both Maya and Ella enjoyed spending time with their grandparents in South Dakota, along with an evening in NYC (I wonder, Jen, did you enjoy that evening?? :) There was lots of lake swimming, boating, canoeing, and general summer fun. Kelly, we love the lake house! Thank you for being such amazing hosts!

Maya at the time was just a little baby (she seems big now, at nearly six months!) - but already proved to be a good traveler, making sure to sleep the entire flight across the pond. Ella was just excited, as always, no sleeep, as always.

Guess Who???

We both look alike - although one of us is a few weeks older in this shot...

Spring 2010

Hi everyone -

We've been busy growing! We've also been getting out of London a bunch - first to the see our aunt, uncle and cousins in Warsaw for Mathew's first communion, then to Wales to do a bit of hiking for the long weekend (where the weather was chilly and windy!). Grandma and Grandpa also came to visit and we went to Cambridge for a day...

Maya is growing quickly and Ella is getting more adjusted to having a little sister. It's been crazy - and probably will get more crazy soon when we start getting on planes more, but this keeps everyone on their toes!

Spring in London and around!

We've been having fun! April has brought amazing weather, and lots of visitors. We celebrated Easter with Grandma Smith...we prepared the eggs for blessing at the church and Ella got to hunt for them the next morning. We also have been taking some fun trips around London to spend time playing with friends, visiting Greenwich and enjoying the weather....Ella even saw a lamb being born and forever now we hear - 'Baby lamb, take it OUT!'...Meanwhile, Maya is now over two months old - she's been smiling a lot, but still keeping us up during the night.

Ella turns 2!!!!

We can't believe that it's been two years since she's joined our family, but little Ella is now...well, not so little anymore! We had a tiny birthday party to help her celebrate amongst all the chaos going on with little Maya around and she loved the presents and of course, the cake!

Maya - almost 4 weeks old!

She's growing fast! Still having fun keeping her parents up at night, but everyone seems to be thrilled anyway...

And then there were four

Maya Agnieszka Smith was born on Monday, March 1, 2010, weighing just under 7.5 lbs. After two days in the hospital we came home to enjoy two weeks of family time getting to know each other and settling into our new life. Ella has been a great big sister and Dad has learned all about children's songs by taking Ella to her classes each week. So far Maya has been blissfully sleeping - we know that things will get more challenging once she wakes up, but for now, it's great being home and relaxing with all of us. Ella has learned how to help with diaper changes and rock the baby. Sometimes, she wishes that she was a baby too, but she reminds us every day that she's a big girl!

Dancin' Machine

Now that I'm almost two years old, just like J-Lo, I've decided to move from my movie career to a dancing and music career. I've heard there is a show called American Idol, and I'm going to submit my latest work. I hope you enjoy it! As always, turn your volume up!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wgEVP7zfq8I

Christmas 2010

Warm and sunny California...and cold and snowy South Dakota! I got to touch snow for the first time...and Santa came three times!!! Once in London, once in California and finally in SD! And I loved the plane, I did not even fall asleep once during the 11-hour flight to California..mom and dad especially loved that.

Here are some pics - I got to visit a farm and a zoo...and play lots and lots with grandmas and grandpa!

Fall in London

Before we left for the States - we took some more pictures around the house :)

Fall pics

Hey everyone,

I know it's been a little late. We're already to Christmas and I'm going on holiday in a few days, but I wanted to share some of my experiences from the fall. Also, I had mom take a few glamour shots of me in the bath and through those in.

I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season!

Chubster

As many of you know, I'm a bit of a chubster. What can I say, I love food! I've also figured out how to use a spoon so I don't have to wait for daddy to get his act together and feed me. I can stuff my face as fast as anybody, so I asked dad to get it on tape. Someone call Guinness! Oh, and don't forget to turn your volume up!

Ella

Croatia and Slovenia

We had so much fun the first time around, that we decided back, this time for two weeks!

Mom and dad got to spend some time relaxing...

And we also had some fun at the beach, hiking, and sightseeing. We ran into a bit of trouble and all fell really ill during our second week, but recovered after a few days of intensive care (for Ella). In any case, always bound to happen when traveling, but regardless, we had a great time, particularly in Slovenia where the hiking in the Alps was spectacular.

The Cotswolds

It's been one of those places - so close to London, but we've never actually been there. We had great weather, did a ton of hiking and relaxing...we were fortunate to stay at a beautiful hotel. Ella enjoyed running around, as usual, and logging in more backpack hours. But she did get to play with some animals at a farm which seemed like too much fun!

the British coast

It's way too cold even in the middle of the summer - so unless you're crazy, swimming is out of the question. But hiking is beautiful and the views stunning...and it's not too far from London to see the blue water...

Ella's Learning to Read Program - Get Your Copy Today!

I've convinced my dad that I really should be earning my keep around the house and so I've developed my first instructional video. Dad wasn't sure that we could really make much money off of this, but with such a low cost base (I work for free), any sales is straight profit. So, give us a call if you want your copy. I think it's a real winner!

Norway Video

Adding to my portfolio, I've convinced daddy to make another video of me from the clips from Norway. I really think this shows my range and my skills as an actress. Notice the different emotions I display and how I play the role. The background of the country is really nice, but we know who the star of the show is....Remember to turn up your volume!

Ella's Croatia video

Ok, so my dad is really lazy and just got around to putting this on the web. It's my second music video (although I don't remember the first but I guess I was pretty young then). I'm trying to build my portfolio so I can make the big time so hopefully dad will keep on it!

Summer in London

So we're halfway through - but it definitely seems like fall. We did have summer for about 3 weeks...it was marvelous - we even used the 'water feature' during one of the bbqs! It ended with a rain that really has not stopped sinnce. But we've enjoyed it anyway - it's been great having so many visitors this summer (and still more to come!) - enjoying playing with Ella and spending time with family and friends.

The Fjords - spectacular Norway

So Ella got a little taste of the mountains before our big trip later this summer...we hiked and hiked and hiked, but to be honest, it was Rob doing most of the work. At the end of the day after comfortably sitting and enjoying the views Ella would come out energized as we sat there watching her exhausted. Ella loved it!



The views were some of the most amazing we've seen - it was unfortunate that we had to leave after 4 days - although our bodies were definitely thankful!