The Flaming Lips

Tonight Jawsh and I went to the OC Fair to see The Flaming Lips.  The show was great and we had a good time... almost felt like we were dating again and had no kids!  Thank you to Bubbe for watching the boys... when will we go to our next concert???

YMCA

Noah is playing basketball at the YMCA in the Rookies program .  He is one of the tallest boys so he gets the ball passed to him a lot but he is also quick to pass the ball to someone who has a better shot... I like to think of him as a little Magic Johnson.  I wonder if he will want to play in this basketball league again???

(Picture to come)

8

We went back to the exact spot we were married (7-24-05).  8 years!  We once thought that we would come back to Shutters on the Beach and re-create the moment... eat the same dinner (or get as close as we could) and spend time at the hotel reminiscing about the wedding.  But in reality, we took the picture and then we walked to the pier for some ice cream at Soda Jerks.  For our anniversary (no kids allowed) dinner, Jawsh and I ate at The Water Grill downtown.  It was not the most romantic spot, but we really loved the oysters!  Where will we go next year???

Swim lessons

The boys are taking swim lessons at the Y.  They are doing a great job considering they are not used to swimming in such a large pool (the last pool was a small training pool).  At the end of each class, the boys jump off the diving board at the deep end!  They have a few more weeks left, will they pass to the next level???

AYSO camp

Noah and Micah are enjoying a week of soccer camp with friends.  All the coaches are from the United Kingdom and love playing football!  Noah is really enjoying his time doing soccer drills and playing 3 on 3 games, whereas, Micah is in the "young group" that likes playing games other than soccer.  Noah wakes up every morning excited to play soccer and Micah wakes up every morning excited to see his friends.  Both boys will be playing soccer in the fall, will their game improve by then???

Puzzle-time

Micah completed his first 100 piece puzzle today.  This was not done in one sitting, though.  This puzzle was something he had to come back and forth to when he felt like he was ready to work on it.  Noah really wanted to help his brother, but I really wanted to see if Micah could do this.  After several attempts at getting him to sit and focus, he did finish and he was very excited.  When will he do his next puzzle???

Dodgers

The first Dodger game for the Smith family.  Pregame we went to Wurstkuche for some delicious sausage and craft beer.  It was a hot day but luckily we went with friends who knew where to sit!  We were in the shade most of the game and had a great time.  The best part of the game was the pickle between first and second base (the Dodgers made the out).  We left during the 7th inning (we were predicting the kids would only last to the 5th).  When will we go back to the game???

Obon Festival

Today we went to the Obon Festival and the boys got their shaved ice fix.  They liked playing the small carnival games and jumping on the bouncer.  It had a nice small town feel and it was nice to see the boys' basketball coaches from the Y at the YMCA game stand.  After watching the traditional Obon dancers we walked home.  Will we come back next year???

Reading with Barbara

Barbara is a reading volunteer who loves little children.  We have a routine... I sit with Noah and work with him while Micah takes every Curious George book off the shelf and walks them over to Barbara.  It's fun listening to her read with her Brooklyn accent.  When will Micah start reading to her???

Cat- 2 ways

We have drawing boards in the car which we use all the time.  While we drive, I ask the boys to write words, do math problems, or draw.  On our way to Hollywood, I asked Noah to teach Micah how to draw a cat step by step.  So interesting to see the final product... can you tell who did what???

Summer Sounds

Summer Sounds at the Hollywood Bowl is back.
We went to a Gypsy music show and the kids loved it.  The stage was set up very cool and the of course the character, Mr. Kay, cracked the children up.  The next show will be Bluegrass... what will they think of that???

Las Vegas- Day 2

Day 2 in Vegas brought more swimming and fun with cousins.  We also celebrated Sophie and Daphne's birthday with water fun on the Slip and Slide, a cupcake pinata, and of course a Baskin Robbins birthday cake.  We can't wait to see them again next summer... will we take a trip to Colorado before then???

Las Vegas

Our annual summer reunion brought family from DC, Texas, Colorado, and NorCal to Vegas.  We stayed at our usual spot, the MGM Signature, and we were all located on the same floor.  It was so nice to walk the boys over across the hall to have breakfast with my sister while I slept in an extra hour (thank goodness she rises early because she is accustomed to east coast time).  We had a lot of fun at the swimming pool and at my Aunt's home.  The boys also got to go to the M&M store which was a real treat!  They got a lot of different types of M&Ms (Noah liked the mint and peanut butter whereas Micah liked the plain chocolate) with my sister and Auntie Sehee.  What will it be like next year???

Summer camp

Micah is enjoying summer camp at the recreation center with his buddies from preschool.  He attends camp every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.  He loves playing in the gym, on the play structure outside, and there are so many great crafts.  The Eco Station came to visit and brought by animals for the kids to touch like a cockatoo, alligator, boa constrictor, and box turtle.  Micah seemed to enjoy petting all the animals, but I think he was a bit intimidated.  Here he is petting an alligator... what do you think???

Happy 4th

We celebrated the 4th in Los Angeles with Grandpa and friends.  We sat in the park, ate dinner, and watched the fireworks show from the country club across the street.  I made patriotic cupcakes and Jawsh helped with face painting.  The boys had such a fun time hanging out with friends and running around with glowsticks... what will we do next year???

Swimming at the club

Just like last summer, we spent the week at the pool with friends at the Beverly Hills Country Club.  The boys are both swimming so they enjoyed going into the 3.5 feet pool and spent less time at the 2 feet pool.  It was really nice seeing the boys swim and enjoy their time with their friends.  Will we return next summer???