Cooking with Sophie Lu (Theme Song)!

What can I say, Sophie Lu is just a girl- yes, just a girl... born in China, being raised in America, speaking English, learning Spanish, going to Guatemala, and cooking... ITALIAN!

Sophie has always loved to watch and help Mommy cook, and she also enjoys watching our favorite chef, Giada De Laurentiis on her show "Everyday Italian". Sophie Lu also loves to watch a little Guatemalan boy's show called "Cooking with Luis" on Noggin; so I decided that she needed her very own cooking show! Since Italian food is her favorite, Sophie will be sharing all her favorite kid-friendly Italian recipes. Just as I am excited about sharing my love for cooking with Sophie Lu, she is excited to share her love for cooking with all of her little friends out there! So, I bought her a chef's hat and a Learning Tower so she could safely stand at the counter; and the rest is history! I have video footage from the first couple episodes, but haven't had the time to edit them yet- but here is the (rough draft) opening & theme song to her show... Enjoy!

La Lechuza Lullaby (Part 2: The Sweetest Thing)

Because of this lullaby- Sophie Lu loves owls, and whenever she sees one, she screams, "Look, Mama! La lechuza!"

Recently, while watching video footage of Oliver (he was crying), Sophie Lu said this:

"Mama... Ollie Baby crying... oh, nooo!"

When I asked her what she could do to help Oliver when he cries, she responded:

"Baby Ollie... rock him, blanket, bottle... and La Lechuza him!"

Then, she started singing "La Lechuza" all by herself! I just about cried- it was SO sweet! And, of course, I ran to get my camera... (review the lyrics in the post below-and notice how Sophie improvises!) Be sure to watch until the end because SL tells me again how she will care for her crying baby brother:

La Lechuza Lullaby (Part 1)

"La Lechuza" is the lullaby that I have been singing to Sophie Lu since we brought her home from China. La lechuza is spanish for "owl"... and I learned this lullaby on Dora of all places! The very first episode of Dora I ever saw featured this lullaby sung by a little blue owl... Here are the lyrics (to the tune of Frere Jacques):

La Lechuza
La Lechuza
Hace Shhhhh...
Hace Shhhhh...

Hagamos silencio
Hagamos silencio

Por Favor
Por Favor

Basically, the owl is asking pretty please for silence- but the lullaby stuck with me, and I sing it to Sophie Lu every night and whenever she needs comfort. Here is the clip from Dora (you will hear SL singing along in the background)! To be continued...

Sweet Pumpkin Kitty

What can I say, Sophie Lu loves this cat, and he is so patient and affectionate with her- it's really quite amazing. Poor Pumpkin... he is still so scrawny and scruffy. We've been feeding him, loving him, and we gave him some flea medication- so I'm hoping that helps. We are really in a quandry, though, because we recently found out that he belongs to one of our neighbors; although I think she just brought him home from the shelter so he could catch mice on her property, because she is obviously not taking good care of him (he's not even fixed- which, IMO, is a crime). Also, how he gets along with Pookie and Alex remains to be determined. So, we are trying to come up with a plan, but in the meantime, we will just keep loving him and hope that he gets better.

Sophie's First Pony-Ride!

Here is Sophie Lu on her very first pony ride! She was a little unsure at first...
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But then Daddy assured her he'd be right there the whole time. Sophie named her pony "CoCo", and then she gave him a nice pat.
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Soon, she was enjoying the ride so much that she started clapping! Giddy-up, Coco!
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.............................I was so proud of her!
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Here she is whipping her imaginary lasso around and yelling, "Yee-Haw!!!"
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But the highlight of her ride was when the horse across the ring from her had to go peepee... NONE of the kids could believe it! :)

Sophie Lu & Grace (GLQ)

We recently spent a wonderful afternoon at Griffith Park with our dear friends & China travel mates- Mary Frances, Chris, and their beautiful daughter Grace. We took a Choo Choo Train-ride, a Pony Cart ride, and Sophie Lu enjoyed her first pony ride (photos later)! After all the fun at the park, we went to a nearby restaurant where the girls enjoyed hugs....
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..........................................and kisses...
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and making funny lip-gloss faces! Sophie Lu loves you, GLQ!

Queen Sophie Lu!

Our Beautiful Bumblebee!

Sophie & Jenna: Then and Now

Though the miles keep them apart, Jenna and Sophie will always share a special connection. Jenna's mommy (Nicole) and I became friends during our wait, and then our families traveled together to be united with our daughters. Here they are... our beautiful little bumblebees! Sophie loves you, sweet Jenna! xoxo

..................................Guangzhou, July of 2005

What was Sophie Lu for Halloween?

Was she a queen?

Nooooooo.....
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Was she a bee?

Noooo....... a

vvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvvShe was a Queen Bee!!!!
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This is the beautiful view Daddy came home to~ He was so surprised, and she was so proud!

Sophie waited oh so patiently for Holden and Grace to come over.

..................................Yay!!! They are finally here!

......Grace, Sophie Lu, & Holden- ready to go trick-or-treating!

Sophie was a bit timid at the first door, but she quickly became an expert! After a few houses, she had her script memorized: "Trick-or-treat! Thank you! Happy Ween! Bye-bye!"
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Here we are in front of one of the scariest houses in our neighborhood. Sophie got a little scared and made Daddy carry her for the rest of the evening!
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But as soon as we got home, she wanted down so she could examine (and eat) her loot! Happy Ween, little Queen Bee!!!

Problems uploading photos?

Anyone else having problems uploading photos? I've tried IE and Firefox- and only one photo at a time, but nothing works! It's so frustrating because I want to post Halloween photos!!! Anyone have any solutions? :)