Parting Shots of July

Here are some photos that I didn't get to post in the month of July:


Anna and Sam snuggling up on the couch...


Saying hi to "Bambi" at the fair...


With Kathie at Newport Beach...


Driving around the living room with his precious blanket...


Shopping for birthday gifts at South Coast with Mari. (Yumi's present was in the bag!)

Ratatouille

My mom brings over a home-cooked meal every Sunday, last week she brought over a gourmet version of ratatouille inspired by this movie.
This dish was delicious, not your typical stew, the veggies stayed firm and tasted very fresh. You can find the recipe here.

Sleepover with Tasha

Yea, the day has finally come, a sleepover with Tasha!


After we coordinate our outfits, we'll catch up on all the latest, while listening to tunes at a concert in the park...


We'll play lots of games...


She'll teach me how to eat healthier foods and show me how to finish everything off of my plate...


We'll wake up at 6 a.m. to watch "Lord of the Beans" and have some breakfast...

That went way too fast! It was so much fun!

Whose Smile?

Hmm... whose smile is this? And what's different?


It's Anna's smile! And she lost her first tooth!

This tooth had been loose for the past few weeks, and suddenly, while brushing her teeth Monday night, Anna's tooth fell out! Wow, was she excited!

Anna put her tooth under her pillow, and the next day she found (next to her tooth) the movie "Annie" (which she loved) and some coins from around the world.

OC Fair 2007 Part 3

The OC Fair has no shortage of character cut-outs, and this year Anna and Sam had fun searching for them and trying them out. Ooh, what a cute lemon surfer babe.


Here's a fancy cow trying to serve up some vittles.


Hmmm... you look vaguely familiar... Ms. Tomato Head, or my sister Anna?


Watch out Dad, looks like your face is going to pop!


Australian beer-battered potatoes, anyone?


Lots of fun on our annual trip to the fair, The End!

OC Fair 2007 Part 2

The OC Fairgrounds is quite vast, there are areas for carnival rides and games, food stands, vendors, exhibits, and so on. It was getting quite crowded this day, you can see the perilous skyline ride which Steve took Anna on one year and vowed never to ride again.


Whew! For a minute we thought these kiddies would be the replacement drivers during the OCTA strike...


This merry-go-round was going deceptively fast. While Anna was having a blast, Sam was unsure of it all and Steve was quite hungry at this point.


Steve was able to enjoy a bbq pork sandwich and grilled corn, and Sam sipped from a huge tanker of lemonade.

OC Fair 2007 Part 1

Yesterday we went to the OC Fair, the theme this year is "Cowabunga". When you first enter the fair you are greeted by this enormous sand sculpture of cows surfing in the ocean.


There are lots of vendors selling their wares. Like this double canopy swing, complete with drink holders? It will set you back only $999.


The kids (and Steve) had to say hi to the elephant at the fair.


I was fine being the picture-taker while they had a slightly bumpy, yet fun ride.


The petting zoo included wallabies... unusual, indeed.

A Low-Key Week

On Sunday when I was attempting to run 12 miles (crazy!) I tweaked my knee on mile 10. So I've been taking it easy... here's some photos from before and after the knee-tweaking...


The kids somewhat sitting "seiza" while watching Wow Wow Wubbzy on the tube... eek, I feel a little guilty...


At a beach party, where Anna met up with friend Brookie...


Anna posing with some of my birthday gifts...


Sam choosing somewhat perilous activities when he's not being held, such as running in the street or climbing high planters.


Goofy waving to us while we were watching our favorite Electrical Parade at Disneyland...


Sammy taking it all in...


A photo of me and Anna! Had to get it in there...

Hmm... not so low-key after all.

Friday - Storytime and Ice Cream

Mari came over this morning and we headed to the library for storytime, the kids were mesmerized by Ms. Barbara's animal storytelling.


There are various storytimes at the library, lots of people fill up this auditorium to hear Ms. Barbara tell her tales.


Afterwards we went to Ben and Jerry's for some ice cream, Anna polished hers off in a snap but Sam definitely prefers Dreyer's vanilla.


At the Japanese bookstore Anna found a "what's different in these pictures" book and had Mari keep track of how many things she found... thanks Mari!

And that was our week! Whew!

Thursday - Santa Ana Zoo

Today we met up with my friend Shelley and her two boys Eric and Luke, they are standing in front of a display of animal tiles painted by various people.


Eric, Luke and Anna get along so well, the highlights for them today: checking out the monkeys, looking at a huge eagle's nest, and enjoying snow cones.
We would have stayed longer if my arms weren't giving out from holding Sam most of the time, including during this photo.

Wednesday - Newport Beach

My friend Kathie and I took the kids to Newport Beach, it was deceptively overcast but ended up being a perfect morning, weather and everything. High tide must have just passed, there were lots of shells washed up on the shore.
Here's a short photo montage of my shell-collector.






Sam was so proud of his work.
He's so cute, sometimes I can't believe he's mine... well ok, ours, Steve.

Tuesday - Playdate

We invited classmate Dion and his sister Lucy over for lunch and playtime. We then walked over to the local park for some more fun.


Dion and Anna had fun shooting mini rocket launchers, yes, made of sponge.


Lucy, do you know how to drive?


Sam was never too far from Steve but did surprisingly well around these new playmates of his.


A run on the hills before the playdate was over.

Monday - Disneyland

I'm documenting what we are doing everyday this week, Monday through Friday, so Anna can look back one day and say "That was a fun summer," instead of, "I miss school. I like school better than summer vacation." She actually did say that the other day, and I was quite taken aback. (After all, haven't we been doing a ton of fun things? Hasn't Mommy been doing a good job planning everything?) But seriously, I'm glad she does love her school and she looks forward to going back in the fall...


Leti watched Sam this morning while Anna and I had mommy-daughter time at Disneyland. We started the day with beignets and cereal. (Anna "smiled" this way on purpose, she says it looks cute... pretty hammy...)


Our first ride was the teacups, man, can Anna spin that thing!
We also rode on Alice in Wonderland, the Storybook Boats, Pirates of the Caribbean (Gretchen's favorite ride!) and finished it off with a visit to Pirate's Lair.


Tom Sawyer's Island is currently called Pirate's Lair, to coincide with the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and movie. Lots of mazes, bridges, treasure chests, pirates here and there... Anna probably had the most fun just exploring the area.


We found a large pile of gold, and right near it, "Jack Sparrow"... hmm... I guess a dark wig and eyeliner can make anyone into Johnny Depp. Anna was a little frightened when he told us not to smile...
And that was our Monday morning!