Date night

Our date night started at Scopa... we enjoyed our usual Honey Gem Salad, side of squash, and fish.  Then we decided to be responsible adults and to clean out one of our storage areas.  Needless to say, I am very happy that we decided to do this because now I can find everything I need.  When will we clean out the other one???

Happy Halloween

I thought this would be the Halloween where we would no longer dress as a family ensemble, but I was wrong!  The boys wanted to be Ringwraiths so Jawsh and I  eagerly jumped on board as Aragon and Arwin.  Lord of the Rings is cherished by Jawsh and Noah is now reading the series.  What will they want to be next year???

milk

Noah and his friend with a sweetmeat from milk.  When will we come back???

Teen Night at LACMA

Glimpses of the future... Noah in a long line to attend a concert!  Only this time, he was in a long line to attend the LACMA Teen Night.  This is a kid only event with food trucks, DJs, and art!  Jawsh and I ate at the cafe on site and when we picked up Noah and his friend, they weren't ready to leave!  Unfortunately they could not re-enter so we headed to West Hollywood and waited in another line at milk.  Independence for Noah is starting... how will I handle it???

Brothers

Sometimes I catch the boys early in the morning just talking.  I have no idea what they are talking about but I like it.  It's their time to be brothers and to have secrets and share their thoughts.  But I do wonder... what are they talking about???

New do!

Noah and his new do!  No longer does he have long hair in the back but it's clipped and shortened.  He looks older.  No wonder he likes it.  When will the changes stop???

Happy Birthday Liam

Happy 7th Birthday Liam!  We hope you have a wonderful birthday.  Wonder what he wished for???

Lake Arrowhead

My annual girls' trip to Lake Arrowhead did not disappoint.  It was a nice time to hang with my mommy friends, free of kids and husbands, to enjoy our friendship over glasses of wine and laughs.  When will we head back???

Happy Birthday Micah!

Happy 10th birthday Micah!  Today we celebrated his birthday with his closest friends.  We went to our first professional soccer game to watch the Galaxy against the Vancouver Whitecaps.  Since it was our first game we didn't know what to expect and it was so much fun.  There were areas of the stadium that were reserved for fan cheering and they chanted the whole game.  We had great seats so we could see the action up close and there were a few penalty kicks that were awesome to watch.  It was such a fun time that we hope we can go again.  When will we go back???

Happy birthday Micah!

Celebrating Micah's birthday with the cousins is a must!  We found ourselves at John's Incredible Pizza where the kids loved playing games and eating as much pizza as they could!  Happy birthday Micah... wonder what you wished for???

Lauryn Hill

If I had a bucket list, tonight would have been on it for sure!  Jawsh took me to see the Queen...  Lauryn Hill!  What an amazing concert and I loved every second of it!  We had great seats and it was so much fun.  It was worth the one hour drive to get there and the one hour wait trying to get out of the parking lot!  Will I ever experience something like this again???

Happy birthday girls!

Happy birthday to my September nieces!  Kaitlyn turned 12 and Emma turned 9 this week.  I can't believe how fats time is going.  They are definitely pre-teens in the ways they act and speak!  I am grateful that our kids are still close and like to spend time with each other.... when will that start to change???

Carpe diem

Micah has surprised me a lot while he was on his trip to Catalina.  He held a sea urchin because he said he may never have the chance to do it again!  He also said that he would stay in Catalina even longer if he could!  Who is this kid???

Middle school angst

While Micah and Jawsh are in Catalina dissecting squid and eating squid eyes, Noah and I are in his stuffy homeroom listening to his teacher explain something at Back to School Night.  Can you tell by Noah's face that he is super excited that I decided to attend???

Meanwhile...

While Micah and Jawsh are eating cafeteria food and discussing zero waste, Noah and I are enjoying some BBQ for dinner.  It's been fun spending time with Noah... I know that he is experiencing a lot of changes in middle school and I'm thankful that he's still talking to me.  That will change in the near future, right???

Snorkeling

Micah is loving his experience in Catalina.  He loved snorkeling and kayaking.  I miss this kid.  I wonder if he enjoyed snorkeling here or in Maui???

Meanwhile...

Noah requested lasagna so tonight we had a nice dinner at Scopa.  This is where Jawsh and I like to have dinner on our date nights so I was happy to share this experience with Noah.  He loved his Shirley Temple and we had a nice evening together.  When will we do a dinner date again???

Kayaking

Micah really enjoyed kayaking with his friends in Catalina.  I know that there takes a lot of control, so I wasn't surprised when I heard he crashed into something!  Will Micah want to kayak again???

Off to Catalina

Goodbye to half my family!  I am so grateful that Jawsh got to experience Catalina with Noah and now with Micah.  I hope they have a wonderful time and I already miss them!  What will Micah enjoy the most???

Congrats Bryan and Yojin

Congratulations to my cousin, Yojin!  She is almost ready to give birth and we are so excited to meet the newest member of our family.  What will she name him???

Happy birthday E!

The tradition continues...  Micah spent the day with his preschool friend E.  We went to the Grammy Museum to see a free screening of a movie and then we headed to Duff's to decorate a cake!  They did a great job manipulating the fondant to make a fox.  They worked really well together.  Will Micah want to come back and make another cake???

Blue Jets

Micah made it to a competitive soccer team through AYSO which requires us to travel and to participate in extra tournaments.  He is loving his experience and they are a talented team!  They came in first place in the Irvine Classic.  Will they keep up the winning streak???

Escape the Titanic

We love hanging with the V and K family!  Tonight we went to dinner and then to the Titanic Escape Room.  Not to fear, we made it out on time!  What will be our next escape room???

King Tut

These three...  they have been together for years and now N and P are at one school and J is at another.  I love that we make time to hang out because they have a special friendship.  We went to see the King Tut exhibit at the California Science Center and it was amazing to see real artifacts from Egypt!  I don't think the boys were that into it, but it was still an enriching experience.  What museum will we go to next???

Kona

We are in love.  Kona is the newest member of the Min household.  Is it possible to keep falling in love again and again???

DTLA Tour

A walking tour through DTLA with my girlfriends was quite an experience... we had such a nice time!  We went through so many buildings and learned a lot of the history of the architects who made DTLA!  I wonder how I will celebrate the next big milestone???

Birthday brunch

40.  Celebrating my big one with my friends at brunch at Hock and Hoof.  I was so happy because the atmosphere was eclectic, the food delicious, and the drinks were pretty.  I feel so grateful to have so many wonderful friends throughout different ages in my life.  I wonder what this year will bring???

Best date

If it's not Scopa then we usually find ourselves at Father's Office. We enjoy the special of the day and beet salad, plus's nice that it's for adults only so we can enjoy the peace.  I love spending time with Jawsh.  When will we go out next???

40

40... it's here.  I can't believe that I am 40.  I thought that I would "feel" something but it just felt like a normal day with the exception of the beautiful flowers, card, and thoughtful gift!  What will this year bring???

6th grade!

Noah is off to Palms Middle School in the Gifted Magnet Program.  This is the first year that he will be on campus with me in many years!  I am so grateful that I could be around during his elementary career as a room mom in Kindergarten and then working at his school from 3rd to 5th grade, but now he is off.  I hope makes good friends, feels safe, and tries his best.  What will this year bring for him???

5th grade!

This is Micah's last year with me at school.  He is the big man on campus now and I am thankful that he has many good friends.  He is going to have a successful year and I am going to cherish my morning commute with him because next year he will be at a new school and I will be driving to work by myself!  What will this year bring for Micah???

MoPop

We had the best time at Seattle's MoPop Museum because they had a special DC Exhibit.  The average time in the exhibit is about half an hour but of course my boys exceeded that time and spent almost two hours going through each room!  They had a blast.  I love that my boys are comic geeks...  will they want to write their own origin stories???

Congrats Isaac!

Congrats to Isaac and Kelly.  We are so excited to be in Seattle celebrating their nuptials!  They had an eclectic, rustic, farm house wedding theme and it was so personalized to their personalities!  Noah and Micah had a great time running through the property and playing with the animals.  When will we visit again???

Gum wall

The infamous Gum Wall...  it smelled sweet even before we got there and to my surprise there were a lot of bees!  We had to make our contribution to the wall and Micah was really excited to do this since he has not chewed gum in a year due to his expanders!  Will we even visit this place again???

Chihuly Gardens

This will go down as one of my favorite places to visit... the Chihuly Gardens was so beautiful!  I can't believe all the sculptures that he made!  It was fun to go to room to room thinking there was nothing that could top what we just saw, to be amazed all over again!  The boys had a great time too and Noah loved taking pictures.  It was also nice to spend this time with the family!  When will we go back???

Space Needle

I was so surprised that the boys were scared to go up to the top of the Space Needle which is 605 feet high.  The look of fear that was on Micah's face when we were in the Loupe that has a rotating glass floor was unforgettable.  He was so scared that he was holding onto a pole!  There was a great view from the top and we could lean back on the glass to take photos.  We will ever go up the Stratosphere in Las Vegas (which is 1149 feet high)???

Maui love

This is our greatest hits trip.  We enjoyed all our favorite things and had new adventures.  Our last night on the island took us to Feast at Lele.  We enjoyed a five epicurean courses from the Pacific island nations of Aotearoa, Tahiti, Samoa, and Hawai'i all while enjoying cultural music and dance from these areas.  There was so much food and all you can drink, so the boys were very happy.  It was an awesome experience and the boys loved the fire dancer at the end. There are so many other places that we would like to travel too so it'll be goodbye to Maui for now... when will we return???

Jet skis

The boys went on key skis for the first time today!  This was such a new experience for them being on the open water of the Pacific Ocean (Micah rode with Jawsh and Noah rode with me).  They were nervous and excited and often times could be heard telling us to "slow down."  The water was definitely choppy and the wind didn't help so I was glad when we finally stopped.  Will they want to ride jet skis again???

Happy 13th Anniversary

To celebrate our 13th anniversary, we dined at one of our favorite restaurants, Mama's Fish House.  We love how the fish is so fresh that it is caught within 24 hours of service and how the fisherman's name is listed on the menu!  We had a lovely dinner and we enjoyed the view.  When will we return????

Maui waters

The boys love the clear warm waters of Maui.  They enjoy swimming, body surfing, and snorkeling so much.  It's fun to watch them while I sip on my Koloa Mai Tai, which I have been bringing to the beach daily.  I love being here with my boys... no wonder they call it paradise.  When will the boys learn how to surf???

Aloha

Aloha!  We made it to Maui.  Our first meal was at Tin Roof and it was absolutely delicious.  We love Chef Sheldon on Top Chef and his food is good!  Then we made it to the Westin Resorts and love our spacious room.  We can't wait to head to the beach and swim in the pool!  What new adventures await???

Piano and ukelele recital

The boys had their piano and ukulele recital at Sunrise Senior Home.  They played a duet, Somewhere Over the Rainbow, which was well received and played to perfection.  I hope the boys can appreciate the gift of music that they have and the time that it takes to prepare.  They did a great job.  When will they perform again???

Apple camp

The boys signed up for Apple siding camp with a couple their friends and Kaitlyn and they learned how to use Sphero.  It was interesting to watch.  The kids did nice job of going through the challenges and coding.  Will anyone end up as a coder???

Noah's art

Here is are Noah's pieces.  We think Noah did a nice job as well.  Will Noah want to continue doing art???

Micah's art

This week the boys participated in art camp.  Here is Micah's piece where he worked on shadow and shading.  He did a nice job wouldn't you say???

LACMA

We love going to LACMA together as a family.  Today we met up with Jay and his boys.  We had a little mishap when Micah swallowed a piece of candy and almost choked in one often exhibits but all in all it was an okay day.  It's great to see Jay and his kids... when will we see them again???

Santa Monica Pier

We love spending time with my partner teacher's children...  we only see each other so much because they attend a different school district and our schedules are so busy... so when we do see each other it's a lot of fun.  This time we ended up at the Santa Monica Pier.  The kids had a great time on the rides and of course, eating Hot Dog on a Stick.  When will we get to see each other again???

M&M world

M&M World is what we will do...  the kids had a fun time eating M&Ms and watching the 3D movie.  They even got to take picture with a character M&M.  It was a short trip for us due to All Star Baseball but we were glad that we got to come for a few days.  When will we see our cousins again???

Las Vegas

We didn't think we could make it this year to the annual Las Vegas trip.  Micah had All Star commitments and they were still playing into early July. Once they lost their game, I decided that we would book a flight to Vegas so within a few hours of losing we were off to see our cousins.  The boys were so excited to see everyone and it finally felt like summer!  What will we do tomorrow???

Summertime games

It's summer time so time to play Monopoly!  I love that the boys can play classic games.  I will enjoy it even more when they stop fighting.  Will they ever play a game of Monopoly without fighting???