Christmas card photo shoot

We often receive compliments on our annual Christmas photo of the children. We pick the best photo of the lot, but it's generally hard work to get there, and sometimes tears are shed. On a recent sunny weekend we took Charlotte and Alexander to the park to take some shots. Here are a few of the outtakes. We won't be including any of these with our Christmas cards, but will share some of our favorites as a preview.

A Night at Hogwarts

Charlotte and Alexander have been reading the Harry Potter books in the last few months. They were both inspired to dress up like characters from the series for Halloween. Alexander was Harry Potter, and Charlotte was Ginny Weasley. Their friends also dressed up and they had a great time trick-or-treating together.

Charlotte's Ice Bucket Challenge

When we were in Cleveland in September, Charlotte took the Ice Bucket Challenge, and nominated her friend Frida to do it as well.

Tracey in San Francisco

Julian's sister Tracey came to San Francisco to visit us for a few days. It was lovely to see her, and we only wish we would have had more time together. Julian took the week off work, so we were able to hang out around town. Unfortunately the weather wasn't very good, but the company was great!

 TWIN PEAKS

 

 

 

FERRY BUILDING

 

MINIGOLF (or getting ready to play)

SAUSALITO

THE AIRPORT (saying good-bye)

Recital at Blue Bear

Alexander recently had his first recital at the Blue Bear School of Music. 

He played "Looking Through the Clouds" and "Majestic Fanfare," both by Timothy Brown.

Jump, Jive, An' Wail

At the end of another 10-week VAPA (Visual and Performing Arts) session, Alexander's class performed Jump, Jive, An' Wail in December. Unfortunately he was placed in the back row, so he is blocked a lot in the video, but he does finish with his signature smile. Click here for the video.

I only took video at the performance, so I don't have a photo to share. Here's a shot of Alexander and his best friend on their ice skating field trip.

The Best of 2013

We have not been very consistent bloggers this year, so we thought we'd summarize our year by sharing some of our highlights of 2013.

The Best Family Wedding of 2013 was...

Peter and Jeannine Strada

Hartford, Connecticut

February 2, 2013

The Best New Aunt of 2013 was...

Jeannine néni

(Although she has been like an aunt to us since we met her a couple years ago, she officially became our aunt this year.)

The Best First Cousins of 2013 (and of every year since 2009) were...

Hannah and Máté

The Best Free Bike in 2013 was...

 The Chinatown Rotary Essay Contest Prize

 (And the best lesson learned was patience. We walked away from the give-away without a bike, and were rewarded with a much better bike, helmet, and lock than anyone else received.)

The Best Family Photo in 2013 was...

Charlotte's Elementary School Graduation

May 29, 2013

The Best Roadtrip with Najm and Najp in 2013 was...

 Washington, D.C.

June 24-28, 2013

The Best Second-hand Bike of 2013 was...

The Bike that Keresztpapa and Keresztmama Bought at a Garage Sale in Avon Lake

The Best Amusement Park Visit of 2013 was...

The Annual Strada Sibling Day at Cedar Point

July 2, 2013

The Best New Uncle of 2013 was...

 Uncle Louis

(Louis is technically our first cousin once removed, but we called him Uncle and are happy to have met him. Even though he lives in Minnesota, we had to travel all the way to England to get to know him!)

The Best Picnic of 2013 was...

Sculpture Garden

Burghley House, Stamford

August 1, 2013

The Best Palace Visited in 2013 was...

Buckingham Palace

London

August 12, 2013

The Best Kitten of 2013 was...

Einstein

(She may not have earned this distinction with her behaviour - see Auntie Tracey's scratches - but she was certainly our favourite kitten of the year!)

The Best San Francisco Fog Experience was...

Football in the Fog

Fort Winfield Scott, Presidio of San Francisco

October 26, 2013

(Some might call it Soccer in the Fog, but it doesn't sound as good.)

We wish you a very happy New Year. May 2014 bring us all many happy moments!