I am planning a family trip to Dalat next year, and here are some of the hotels that have made my favorite list. We would be traveling with a baby and a 3-year old, so generally I look for: a quiet location, a larger room with two beds, an on-site restaurant, and a garden, Read More
My sister is coming to visit us in Vietnam in June, and we decided to spend 1 week traveling with the kids: a 4-month-old baby and my 3-year-old “Ninja Turtle” / very active son. I agonized over the itinerary for a few months, as there is so much we could do in Vietnam and, Read More
After 3 visits to the Ministry of Justice in Ho Chi Minh City and 2 visits to the US Consulate, we have finally received Arianne’s first passport. We also received her official Consular Report of Birth Abroad. It was a relief to get it, as we struggled to get the Vietnamese birth certificate and, Read More
The other day I was showing Gabriel his baby photos from he was 2 and 3 weeks old. When he looked at the photos, he said, “No. That not Gabriel. That Arianne baby!” He insisted those photos were not of him. Then I showed him his 5 month baby photos, and he recognized those, Read More
This is my 5th year teaching overseas, and for the first time a family member came to visit! I knew in the back of my mind that if grandbaby #2 would be born in Vietnam that might entice my mom to endure the 30+ hours of travel. She arrived 5 days before Arianne’s c-section, Read More
On Saturday we did a three-hour newborn and family photo session with Michelle Seltzer from Green Gate Photography. Michelle was well-prepared with a big box of cute baby accessories, blankets and swaddle cloths of different colors and textures, and a comfortable setup on a bean bag for baby to take her ‘glamour’ shots. The, Read More
Gabriel turned 3 years old on January 31st. He seemed to understand a baby was in Mama’s belly and was coming to our house soon, as he started making representations of our family with 4 people: Papa, Gabriel, Mama, Baby. Before Arianne was born, he liked to feel her moving and to give her, Read More
Name: Arianne Elisabeth Weight: 7.04 lbs Length: 18 inches Born via c-section at Hanh Phuc Hospital. Her first name, Arianne, is French and means “most holy.” D and I wanted a name that sounded nice in both English & Portuguese. The Portuguese version is Ariana. The middle name, Elisabeth, we picked because we like, Read More
Eight days before Gabriel’s sister was born, my husband and I managed to pull off a backyard birthday party for him at our rented house in Saigon. Our house has a great yard next to the river, and I’d been wanting to have a BBQ or party back there since we moved in last, Read More