Minecraft Lego

Noah loves lego sets and right now his new obsession is Minecraft.  For his birthday, Jawsh bought him the Ender Dragon set.  I thought that his birthday party was his present but that is why Noah has two parents... one needs to be there to spoil a bit right?  Noah was super excited and now has his Minecraft lego displayed on his shelf.  Little does he know that Bubbe has something up her sleeve as well.  How will Noah react when he sees what's in store for him???

Gobble gobble

This year we celebrated Thanksgiving at our home.  Just like last year, I followed Barefoot Contessa's menu.  The stuffing, cranberry sauce, green beans and veggies were great but the turkey gave me some trouble this year.  Note to self: next year make sure I brine!  It was a nice time to enjoy our family and to be thankful for one another.  Will we celebrate Thanksgiving at our home again next year???

Happy Born Day Noah

Again, Happy Birthday to the best 8 year old named Noah Min Smith.  He's such a great kid and we love him so much.  You can see by the look on his face that he is going to enjoy his birthday doughnut and milk.  How did time go by so fast???

$avings

The boys opened up savings accounts today at California Credit Union.  They were really excited at first but the wait to  see a representative took over and by the time they opened up their accounts they were less enthused.  But I think they are going to enjoy depositing holiday and birthday money into their accounts... we shall see, right???

Lunch date

It's nice that the kids and I follow the same school schedule because when they are off, so am I. Unfortunately, Jawsh's schedule does not work that way but we always try to make it to Venice to have lunch with Daddy.  We picked up some food and headed out to Daddy's work where we ate near Venice beach.  The kids ate and ran around the structure and Jawsh and I got to hang out mid-day and relax.  It goes by too quickly and before we know it we have to say goodbye... but the boys love it when we have lunch with Daddy.  When will we meet up again???

Min-craft world

Happy Birthday Noah!  Other than the Minecraft world, Noah likes to be in the Min world where there is plenty of running, screaming, and jumping at Halmoni's house.  Here you can see Emma and her cute Pikachu hat, Micah putting his brother in a headlock, Kaitlyn sitting too close to Noah, and Liam actually looking normal and keeping his shirt down.  The kids love to be with one another and we are really blessed that they all get along.  When will we see them again???

8

Happy 8th Birthday to Noah.  We headed to the new Rolling Robots in West LA where Noah had a virtual party with his friends playing Minecraft.  The creative and building aspects of Minecraft allow players to build constructions out of textured cubes in a 3D generated world where they can also explore, gather resources, craft, and combat.  The kids had a great time learning about texture packs and doing different things on the laptops.  Afterwards, we walked across the street and had lunch at Islands.  Noah had a great time.  Can you believe he is already 8????

Camping

I have said this before and I will say it again...  being part of a co-op allows you to develop deep friendships with people who help raise your kids.  We have stayed in touch with a lot of our co-op friends and their kids even though everyone has spread out to different elementary schools throughout LA.  We make an effort to get everyone back together and this time we were at a group site at Leo Carillo Camp Grounds.  It was wonderful meeting up with our old friends, catching up, drinking by the fire, and eating dinner while the kids ran around the mountains wielding foam light sabers and imaginary bow and arrows made from sticks they found on the ground.  It was really a nice time.  When are we going camping again???

Hi Cousin Leo

This weekend our cousins from the Bay came to play in the LA sun.  We had a great dinner at our place last night and today we headed to Beverly Hills to swim with them for a bit.  Here is Leo with his great smile.  When will we see them again???

Happy Halloween

The boys insisted... they had to be Storm Troopers.  I personally did not like the idea of the Dark Side so we compromised.  I told them they could dress up as Storm Troopers if they were really Luke and Han Solo inside the costumes (reference "Star Wars Episode IV A New Hope" Princess Leia rescue scene).  The boys agreed and Jawsh got on board dressed up as Obiwon Kenobi.  The masks stayed on for about 5 minutes and Jawsh and I found ourselves carrying the masks and their bags of candy while they ran down the street Trick or Treating with friends.  Aren't they a little short to be storm troopers???

Pumpkin

The fruit of his labor...  a sad little pumpkin.  These were from seeds from Noah's pumpkin last year and Jawsh tried to plant them this year.  Unfortunately they were over watered so only one made it.  But next year, we will try it again.  What will we plant next???

Boo

Here we are pumpkin carving (Star Wars themed pumpkins) at our neighbor's Halloween party.  We are really fortunate that we live between two great families that we really like.  They have welcomed our family to the neighborhood and are very kind.  The boys like going over to the K House because they have two older boys with reptiles and a shed where they play video games in the backyard.  When will we go over again???

Korean BBQ

It has been a long standing tradition that Korean BBQ is sold at Open School's Fall Family Festival.  This year, Jawsh represented his Korean family by grilling the kalbi and chicken.  He definitely did a great job because we sold out before all the other food booths!  Will he volunteer next year???

Argentina

Noah is on Team Argentina this year and is viewed by his coaches as a team leader.  He enjoys playing hard and you can often see him giving advice to others on his team like, "don't let them score."  Noah is working on his skills but he has improved from last season where he is now able to have contact with others over the ball.  Will he continue to play after this season???

Micah's on Fire!

This is Micah's second season playing soccer.  This year he is on Team Fire with a lot of preschool friends.  He has made a lot of progress from last year and is now a top scorer on his team.  One game, Micah made 6 goals which was the second best record in the league's 20 year history.  Will Micah be the next Messi???

NHM

Today I had the opportunity to chaperone Micah and two of his buddies on their field trip to the Natural History Museum.  They had a great time going through the exhibits and taking pictures.  We ran into their teachers near the entrance and took a cute photo!  I really appreciate the fact that I can chaperone field trips especially since I am not as involved as I used to be...  where will they go next time???

Waterfalls

Maui To Do List, check two.  We knew that we had to take the boys to see a waterfall but little did we know that we would go as a three car caravan to Twin Falls.  There was a steady rain, which was cold and beautiful at the same time.  We walked slowly to the falls and once there we went in to swim.  The water was very cold but it was worth it!  I really hope the boys remember this experience with fond memories.  I know that when I think back to watching the sunrise at the Grand Canyon, I remember being tired, cranky, cold, and wondering why my parents were making us to do this... I hope my boys will appreciate these experiences more than I did when I was their age.  What will be our next adventure???

3 generations

 

3 generations of Min women.  Beautiful. Breath-taking. Strong. What a wonderful occasion to celebrate.  I love these women in this picture.  What's there not to love???

Kodak moment

This is one of my favorite pictures taken in Maui.  I love this little dimple cheeked boy.  He's a fish in water, loves to boogie board and (tries to) surf, and enjoys swimming.  Will he be the next Kelly Slater???

Wedding

What a wonderful day... 10-12-14.  Congratulations to my sister, Kelly, and her husband, Zack.  The boys loved dressing up in tuxedos and being part of the wedding.  This is probably the nicest we have every looked so we had to take a family picture!  What will be the next big celebration???