We HEART Key West

Key West holds a special place in our heart...it is where we got married. That weekend back in February of 2006 was incredible. We had close to 30 people from Holland and then about 30 folks from Miami. It was a small wedding, but the perfect way for our Dutch and Cuban-American families to merge and meet for the first time. The weather was perfect and it was three of days of non-stop celebration. 

Well, on our recent trip to Miami we were able to escape for a day trip with JJ's parents, that were visiting. It was so great to be back and this time with our boys. In the picture above you can see us on the same altar we said "I do" and this time with Sam & Luka. Luka was particularly excited to see where mommy walked down the aisle.

Here are some other highlights from our day trip...

Of course we had to bike the entire day. My Dutch family wouldn't have it any other way.

The boys loved their little bike cart. They laughed, napped and enjoyed the sites from their VIP seats.

We stopped for a Key West cocktail at the Flying Monkeys. Luka's was virgin of course.

Oh, no...bad mommy. Is that me drinking a cocktail with Sam sleeping in the sling? Well, I was in Key West....just this once, right?

Oh, all that drinking I was doing must have woken up Sammy. He is up and ready snapping photos with Mommy's new camera. Be careful Sam!

As we stood in a very long time to take a photo at the iconic "Southernmost Point" the boys were having fun playing with the crashing waves that were coming over the side. 

Lunch time...JJ looked on TripAdvidsor and we decided to try the top rated spots in Key West. I had never been to Garbo's Grill, but they are quite famous for their fish tacos. They were delicious. 

It is basically a food truck on side street of Duval (the main drag in Key West). No tables...just some benches and coolers to sit on. The tacos were worth it. Here the boys are waiting for lunch. 

TripAdvisor also advised us that the best desserts were at Old Town Bakery. Off we went!

JJ had a hard time deciding what to get. We settled on the brownie, which was GIGANTIC and more a molten chocolate cake than a brownie. Good thing were where sharing. 

Those were some of the highlights from the day. They boys I think love Key West now as much as we do. I think another wedding at 10 years might be in our future....

More Miami Moments..

Man, do we have a lot of photos from our recent trip to Miami! It has taken me forever to even look at all of them. I want to get them ready to create the photo book...but unless I want this photo book to be 1,000 pages I better start deleting.

As I was looking at the photos tonight I wanted to post some of my favorites. These bunch were taken from the folder "Hanging Out with Oma & Opa." Yes, JJ's dad and step mom spent two weeks with us in Miami. What a treat to have abuela/abuela & oma/opa in one city. This was the first time we all spent some time together since our wedding seven years ago.

We started their visit with a trip to Versailles. What better way to see the Cuban side of Miami? This cordatito looks delicious no?

And by far the best croquetas in the world are from Versailles...ay, que rico! 

Luka thought it was very cool to eat at the counter. Does he realize how much history this counter has? 

We also took them to the Biltmore in Coral Gables. That hotel is beautiful and Luka looks pretty cute in this photo too.

Here we all are hanging out on the grounds at the hotel. 

Desert anyone? We went for a little snack at the BIG PINK on South Beach. Damn, that red velvet cheesecake was exquisite. Everyone loved it. 

The waitress gave Luka an interesting toy and we are able to make these funky glasses. 

Taking a stroll in Downtown Miami. This mini-beach is new. 

Luka's first Broadway show. We went to see WICKED at the Broward Theater of the Performing Arts. What an experience! Luka was in heaven and I am a total Broadway nerd. I love any musical.

These are my tickets!!!! Lets get this show started.

Luka and Evan being silly at ROBERT is HERE. I wonder what they are doing? ha ha ha

We also took Oma & Opa to the Everglades Alligator Farm. This place is pretty touristy, but I totally recommend it during a visit to Miami and especially if you have little ones. My kids LOVE it. Luka has gone three times and enjoys it every time....look at his face...pure joy.

They let the kids, well everyone, hold the baby alligators after the show.

Everyone loved the air boat ride. Okay, it might not be the longest or most adventurous, but it is perfect for the little ones and those getting their first taste of the everglades. It is about 15 minutes. My sister tells me there are more authentic, swampy and longer air boat rides to take (3 hours+) but this is perfect for us. 

Sammy got to spend some quality time on the beach with Opa. 

What is it with kids and public transportation...they LOVE it! 

My Song to Luka & Sam

I have heard this song and verse a thousand times, but I am not sure how I came across it printed...but when I read it I thought...man, this is the perfect song from me to the boys. It captures exactly what I was feeling when I met Luka for the first time and the day Sam was born. Motherhood is amazing. So just something to think about the next time you hear this song.

A Carrie Milestone...

Okay, I am going to let you in on my latest guilty pleasure. If you are a Sex & the City fan you will appreciate it...if not just stop reading now...I won't be offended. Well, my friend and former fabulous roomie Ana turned me on to a new show - The Carrie Diaries. It is the prequel series to my favorite show ever - Sex & the City.

The show is AMAZING and introduces you to Carrie Bradshaw at 16 in the 80's. Carrie's character is adorable, but the fashion of the 80's....man, it took me back and I started to think of all the spandex, flourescents and shoulder pads I had in my closet back in the day. The show is also really funny and almost makes me want to step in a time machine and magically appear back in high school...I said almost. And my high school wasn't in Connecticut (only a train ride away from Manhattan).

Well, the reason for this post. Today as I was watching the show and simultaneously clearing out emails and making my to-do list for today I almost missed it...the moment Carrie received her first pair of Manolo Blahnik shoes...and so the love affair began.

Really, if you still miss your weekly dose of Carrie Bradshaw, like me, and mourn the loss of Sex and the City watch The Carrie Diaries.

Happy Tuesday!

Sam in a Dress?

Sam in drag...well, not really. But that is what Sam thought we he saw this picture. It is actually me in 1976 with my grandmother Angeles at (I think) Kmart for a Family Photo Session. The picture has taken quite a beating, but isn't it great!

And doesn't Sammy look exactly like his mom..ME! I know he looks just like JJ now...but we could have been twins back in 1976 no? 

Which brings me to my next observation..isn't genetics CRAZY? If Sam and I looked exactly the same before and he looks just like JJ now then why don't JJ and I have any baby photos that we look similar in. This is such a mystery, no? And why don't JJ and look alike? Yet we created this gorgeous little boy and he looks like both of us.

I don't have the answer to that question..just curious...maybe some of you do.

Just for fun. Here is a photo of Sam for you to compare.

Sam Takes Us on a Trip Around the World

Last week Sam had his End of the Year Show at his pre-school. It was so much fun! They took us on a trip around the world. One of the teachers was even dressed up at as stewardess and she would signal all of our stops...very creative. Sam was very excited about representing Africa...probably the only one actually born in Africa (specifically Nelspruit, South Africa).

Above you can see him with half of his costume (still missing paint and wig...wait till you see that). And here you can see the three of us before the show started. They had a photographer taking photos of the families outside. Sam was so proud that his big brother was coming to see him and not the other way around.

Okay, so let the traveling begin. Here is Luka waiting for Sam to get on stage...he saw the Africa sign and thought..they are not really from Africa Mom!

Our first stop OCEANIA...love the native dancers! 

Then we were off to Europe...specifically Italy.

Viva Brazil! 

Here we go...our little Africans are about to perform and Sam can't wait. The wigs were hilarious! 

But they did present a problem for some of his classmates...she couldn't see for the entire performance.

Look at our little Sammy. He did a pretty good job with the performing and trying to follow along. 

Performance completed...he likes his prize lollipop. 

"Even Daddy came. I am so happy he was able to leave work." 

Sam we are very proud of you. You did a great job! 

If you want to see the rest of the photos from that day click here.

Sam's Santa

You can see our Family Holiday Card here, but Sam also came home from school with his own version of a Christmas Card. This was the front.

I love Sammy, but is it me or is this Santa a little creepy...looks like he is trying to scare the cardholder. It did make me laugh...did you see that he has two arms and three legs (ha ha ha). Not sure if the hand thing works as well as it does with a turkey for example. But "A" for effort.

Oh, in Spanish Santa says "Jo, Jo, Jo"

Merry Christmas!

Rumor Has It...Luka's Book is DONE

Luka's 2012 Brag Book from Melissa van Herksen on Vimeo.

Before you hit play...yes, I know the song really has nothing to do with a five year old boy BUT Luka loves this song and he discovered Adele this year and fell in love with her. When he first heard her album 21 I think he memorized about three of the songs from it. It is particularly fun to watch him sing Rumor Has It...he tries to make all the percussion sound effects just with his voice and body. I love it. So that is why it is the soundtrack to this year's book. Enjoy!

To see Sam's book click here.

Sam's 2012 Brag Book Video

Sam's 2012 Brag Book Video from Melissa van Herksen on Vimeo.
We have now have a well established tradition in our home of creating these brag books of the kiddos every year at Christmas. Both of our boys came into our lives and were living on a different continent from our immediate families. I wanted to come up with a way to document their growth and milestones for that calendar year to share with grandparents. I wanted it to be portable and something they could whip out of their pocket or purses when they had the urge to brag about their grand kids.

I came across these mini photo books on iPhoto and I have been using them ever since. They are about the size of a business card and are VERY portable. I also like the idea of keeping one for Luka and Sam and my wish is on some birthday in the far future...maybe their 18th I can give them a little box with a collection of the mini photo books. Let's see if I really keep it up. I have the slight suspicion that their pre-teen books won't be as cute as these...ha ha ha...but I am confident I can keep it up.

Really with iPhoto, it doesn't have to be iPhoto, they are so easy. It is just photos, no text...except on the first page. The hardest part is picking out the photos. Making the book takes about 15 minutes.

If you are curious you can see previous photo books here, here and here.

So this is Sam's...Luka's is coming soon. This was tonight's project.

PS I must warn you that this year the soundtrack for the video is the boy's favorite song this past year. Sam sang this song for the better half of 2012...so although it is not very child appropriate he did love it.

Happy Holidays from Santiago

Hello Everyone...to all of our friends and family around the globe. We want to wish you a very HAPPY, HEALTHY & MERRY holiday season & 2013. We will be celebrating Christmas in Santiago this year, then heading to Miami for the new year. While mostly everyone reading this post is getting cozy by the fire or playing outside in the snow we are starting to spend our days by the pool and hitting the beach...summer is starting here in Santiago! Still very strange celebrating the holidays in the summer. You think we would be used to it by now...this is our 7th year in the southern hemisphere...but no matter how many years go by with summer in December I still hope to wake up one morning with frosted windows and weather to light up the fire place.

Hey, wait...I am from Miami...so we never really had a white Christmas, but at least there was the possibility of sweater weather and you could always feel the crisp of the holidays in the air!

Now I guess we look forward to bathing suits and building sand castles!

But no matter where you are reading this we hope you are happy and celebrating with those you love. The four of us are very blessed to have wonderful families back in our respective "homes" but you know what...we also have surrogate families in every country we have lived in and we are very lucky to have these extended families in various corners of this beautiful world.

So to our families in Miami, Holland, Maputo, La Paz (and those that have moved to other places) we love you and miss you all very much! Have a great 2013 and I am sure our paths will cross soon.

JJ, Melissa, Luka & Sam

Random Videos

Okay, I know I am really bad about documenting our life with videos. I don't know...it just doesn't come naturally...then I am all thumbs when it comes to editing videos on the computer. It is truly a painful experience for me. But I know that you can't really appreciate how much the boys are growing and some things are just better for video...so I am going to make an effort to keep our Vimeo channel up to date.

There is a link to all of our Vimeo videos on the right hand side of the blog...do you see it? If you don't you can click here and it will take you there. I am warning you..the videos aren't great and they are certainly not meant to be artistic...but more to give you a sneak peak into our everyday and a way to document how much the boys are changing.

Well, here are two random videos for your pleasure.
Sliding with Sammy from Melissa van Herksen on Vimeo.

Yes, enough said...It is pretty funny and I think I squeezed Sam so tight that he will NEVER go down a slide with Mommy again. Our Dutch family knows how much Luka loves big slides. He is obsessed with the slide at Nienoord - a family park in Holland. So he was ecstatic when he saw this one. Sam really wanted to follow in his brother's footsteps and go down the slide too, but he couldn't go alone so I volunteered. You can't tell from this vantage point but the drop at the top is almost vertical...really I was scared.

My Kids Love Pasta from Melissa van Herksen on Vimeo.
Yes, Sam and Luka love pasta. I just think this video was cute. Sam has grown up so fast!!! I can't believe it sometimes. I also think because Sam has lived in three continents in his young 2.5 years of life that it makes me feel like I can't keep up with it...does that make any sense?

Stay tuned for more videos on the Vimeo Channel soon....

Celebrating Our 5 Year Adoption Anniversary

This year was a BIG milestone for our family with your 5 year celebration. Has it really been five years since we took Luka home from the orphanage in Maputo, Mozambique. Five years, three countries later, our family is stronger than ever. I think traveling like nomads from place to place does that.  

And now we have Sammy in this crazy crew of ours. Two little boys...who would have thought? They are both miracle babies in their own right, Luka, well you know his story and Sam...well he was a labor of love that took many tries, shots and a couple of scientists in a lab to create our little Sammy Whammy. Wow, that scientist part makes him sound a little Frankensteinish (it was IVF), but actually the one who turned into something a little scary during this time was Mommy, with all the shots and drugs, but in the end sooooo worth the work and mood swings.

But here we are 5 years and I am not sure what the next 5 years will hold for us, but I do know one thing is that it will be an adventure. This adventure is full of many ordinary and mundane days like everyone else...but once in a while we get to do something fun like climb a mountain, see the snow, take a safari, drive to the beach, learn a new language, ....and we know that every once in a while our adventure will change location and then (at least in the beginning) even the normal things are out of the ordinary when you live in a new country or city. Our life might be chaotic but never boring.

This year we celebrated our 5 Year Adoption Anniversary in Chile...and we had to celebrate it for two days...of course.

First we celebrated with Luka's class at school. The kids are always asking questions about the color of Luka's skin, when they look at me. Sometimes they ask about where he is from, or what "adoption" means...so this was the perfect opportunity to share our experience with the class. And most importantly a great excuse for cupcakes!

First we read this book - I Wished For You: An Adoption Story. We have a few books on adoption, but this storybook is great. It talks about many of the issues: What did the birth mother think? Why do we have different fur skin color? Etc. It is a great book and I highly recommend it. I usually can't get through the book without crying, but I took deep breaths and I was able to stay cool calm and collected for Luka's class.

The book was followed by a question and answer session. I was really nervous, but it was great and Luka helped me answer the questions. The only bad part was that Luka kept interrupting me and in front of the whole class was asking me if Jake was invited to his adoption party. Would not have been so bad, but I had only invited three of the kids and their families...que pena!!! But the whole class will get an invite to his birthday.

Then came the cupcakes.....YUMMY!

We sang "HAPPY ADOPTION DAY" and he was so proud...just look at his face.

Then there was a whole lot of Gangnam Style dancing and general craziness in the class. Boy, does that kindergarten class like to dance?!?!?!

To see more photos from the party at school click here.

After school we told Luka he could take one friend and his brother any place he wanted. He chose Aventura and Burger King. Aventura is a Chuck E. Cheese style arcade...and you know how much I love those places...but it was his day to pick so the whole family and Emilio went and they actually behaved really good.

Here he is with Emilio...they are such best buds.

One thing that Luka wanted to MAKE SURE we did was ride the little roller coaster. He loves thrill rides...he will ride anything he is tall enough for. Sam, being the little brother, wants to do everything his big brother does...so we convinced the employee at Aventura to let Sam ride with me next to him. Even though he was CLEARLY too small. What was I thinking??? He had a big smile and 30 seconds into the ride I heard a scream of terror and I saw his little face...I think he thought he was going to die. I signaled the guy to stop the ride...poor baby. I really thought since it was a kiddie roller coaster it would be okay. Mommies makes mistakes too...he is ok now and I don't think he is scarred for life. Look how happy and excited he looks in this photo...that joy didn't last...sorry Sammy.

After a good night's sleep it was time for the P-A-R-T-Y! It was such a perfect afternoon. The weather was great. The kids didn't stop playing. There were no fights and everyone, even mommies and daddies, were able to sit down and enjoy themselves.

Here are all of the kiddos...well most of them.

Now I will take you on a little photo tour of the party...

What better way to honor your family than by a beautiful drawing. All the kids were asked to draw a photo of thier family as a way to remind them that we were celebrating our FAMILY DAY. We hung them up on the fence and it was the perfect way to decorate the backyard. When the party was over the families took the drawings home (or they got them with the thank you card if they forgot it).

We started off the party with some appetizers...a mini sandwich bar and come veggies. But I think the BIG hit of the party was the authentic Mexican guacamole that my friend Pamela brought...still dreaming about it.

Lunch was a Burger Bar, where you could build your own burger with tons of toppings and a fresh green salad with my famous Soy/Honey/Maple Dressing...okay not so famous, but really good.

Here are some of the mini-cakes we ordered for dessert. They were beautiful and delicious. 

Look at us...so happy...well except for Sammy that was rudely awakened from his nap with everyone having FUN at the party.

Luka we love you...look at our cake - a stack of pancakes (ripped off this idea and the colors from Sam's 2nd Birthday party, which I think I never posted about...we were leaving Bolivia at the time).

After we sang the kids were able to concoct the yummiest pancake they could with various toppings and things with way too much sugar.

Luka is putting his hand because it was so sunny, not because I always have a camera in his face. Honestly, not sure about that one.  Here they are making their creations.

Okay, the water was FREEZING, but our friends from Alaska never think the water is too cold so Luka decided to join his friend Gaby...this Miami girl was not going anywhere near the water. I have yet to take the plunge in out pool.

Sam needs to come up with a new face when I say "cheese,." But this is his camera face.

After Sam shook off his "I just woke up" bad mood he decided to be a bartender. He loves to pour drinks. I better be careful with that one.

In lieu of gifts for Luka we asked friends to bring items to donate to a local orphanage. We managed to collect 554 diapers and a box full of great clothes for the kids. That is awesome. We were very grateful for the generosity of our friends. THANK YOU!!!

After the party the van Herksens passed out from a very fun packed two day celebration...until next year!

To see all of the photos from the party click here.