MinaG: June 2007

Las Vegas Part 2

The Venetian has a number of swimming pools, in the evening we took a dip in one of the smaller ones, which was nice because most of the time no one else was there, another high-roller moment where we had luxury in privacy.

That evening Sam really wanted to order room-service, but we all conked out before we could even read the menu.

The next morning the kids enjoyed the view from the room. I guess enjoying a room with a view is pretty universal, no matter where you are or what age you are.

Here's the one photo of me, kind of dark but overlooking the indoor "river" where the gondolas sail.

Here we are waiting for our car, even the valet area is fancy, with real flowers decorating the planters, they sure must need a lot of water.

Ok, off to pack for Walnut Creek!

Las Vegas Part 1

It's hard to ignore a Venetian hotel special in your email inbox. While Sammy and Daddy would be perfectly content at home, Mommy and Anna like fancy hotels and traveling to exotic locales every so often (in our dreams) so on Sunday we went for a one-nighter to Las Vegas.

Anna was dancing in the hallways on our way to our room.

Sam was so giddy at the first sight of the two fancy queen beds that he got dibs on one...

... and didn't want to leave it.

Anna claimed the other bed. So where were Mom and Dad to sleep? (Actually girls slept in one bed, boys slept in the other.)

Even though Sam does not use the word "fancy" as often as Anna did at 2 1/2 years old, he did enjoy the fancy decor!

Anna's favorite spot was the window seat, overlooking some hotels and the monorails that travel to various city stops.

Dad is wiped out after the drive. (By the way, the kids did well in the car, thanks to songs, stories, and videos.)

While Sam took his afternoon nap, Anna and I toured the hotel, she was very intrigued by this living statue.

Santa Ana Zoo

After Lily went home with her family on Saturday, Anna was feeling sad and wanted to know what exciting thing we'd do later that day. We went to the Santa Ana Zoo for a quick excursion.

Sam really enjoyed the presentation of various animals including a millipede, a striped snake and this huge toad, sorry I cannot remember the more complicated names of them.

Future posts will include our quick one-nighter in Las Vegas, another quick outing to the aquarium and our upcoming trip to Walnut Creek!

Watermelon Smiles

I've heard it takes more facial muscles to frown...

...than to smile!

A Day at the Beach

We spent this afternoon at HB, we were there for about 3 hours and could have stayed longer... it was the perfect day, sunny with a slight breeze. Enjoy!

Blog Catch-Up, working our way back

This morning with Lily after a sleepover, awake at 6:30 a.m.... yes, we're feeding her healthy food!

Last night, doing silly faces...

Wednesday, last day of school, flowers from a student...

Father's Day Sunday, sausages in beer dinner...

Last week, at Huntington Beach, Sammy wants to be with photographer Daddy...

Enjoying the waves at HB on the same day...

A couple of weeks ago, at Via Lido.

FV 50th Anniversary Pt. 2

Such excitement prior to the fireworks! Steve spotted a vendor who was selling these crazy light-up wand toys. Rob adjusted the exposure setting to my camera to get some great shots. Wow!

Sam swung the toy around and occasionally hit his head with it but recovered quickly.

There was some line dancing going on in the fields!

Another photo of Sam enjoying his toy.

Everyone enjoying the fireworks, a beautiful display. Anna was a little tired by then after a full day, but can you see Sam's lovely expression, as well as everyone else's? It was a special day.

FV 50th Anniversary Pt. 1

On Saturday we had delicious dinner at my parents' house prior to walking over to Mile Square to enjoy some fireworks to celebrate the city's 50th anniversary. A very young city, read a brief history of the city here.

Here's some photos of the gang.

Love, Anna

"Mom is a great mom
The other moms are different
I love you mom"

Finding Nemo Ride

Anna couldn't wait to go on the new Finding Nemo ride, which opens next week...

Yumi scored some sneak preview passes to ride on it yesterday at noon. Sam was not in the mood to board a submarine, so Anna and Yumi went on.

Nice bright yellow...

Each passenger gets to sit on a movie theater-type seat (how Anna described it) unlike the round stool of the earlier version of the ride... and of course each person gets to sit in front of a lovely window to view the scenery.

Ooh...

Aah...

Anna could not stop talking about it, how beautiful it was and how real it seemed. I figure I'll get a chance to go on it in the fall when it's less crowded, it's sure to be a huge hit.