.: October 2016

Thursday, October 20, 2016

Flying home..to a NEW CAR!!!!

Flying home with all four kids was a task but add in no checked bags and that the flight was 6 in the morning made it less than ideal...but the kids were great and my mom's bag of treats and home cooked green onion pancakes made leaving tolerable!!

Eric had court in the morning that he couldn't get out of...so, Carli & Chuck picked us up at the airport (with two cars!). Afterwards we went to Cracker Barrel. I was so excited as it was my first time and Eric and I recently watched a documentary on a man who traveled to different cracker Barrels as his life's work. Baby D sure loved it!

We were three adults and 6 kids...those are not the best of odds!

LIa loves her silly cross eyed face!

Max and James loved the large checker board game outside of the restaurant.

Cali & Chuck took us all to Costco and Eric picked us up there...and drove us to see the new temple...oh, man, I could not have asked for a better day...

Except he picked us up in our BRAND NEW ~~CAR~~ Honda Odyssey MINIVAN!!!!! Life is good and we have wanted one for a while! Eric surprised me with it while we were in California...so, yes, the travel home was not ideal...but the homecoming sure was!!! Best. Husband. Ever!

Wednesday, October 19, 2016

Dim Sum, Clam Chowder in Boudin Bread Bowls & The Jelly Belly Factory

I just really liked this picture of Lia relaxed at home...holding her baby (that she just delivered with NO shots from her shirt bottom)

A happy picture of my dad with all of the kiddos

Kiri and Lia are really into making this silly cross-eyed face...Kiri with Li Yue-xi (my uncle)

Lia with my dad

He loves baby D and Baby D loves him!!!

Speaking on love fests...these cousins wouldn't stop playing and huddling in a group hug...

it definitely warms the heart!

Eating clam chowder in bread bowls at Boudin Sourdough bakery & restaurant...LOVE their sourdough bread..

the kids loved it, too...but they still had their hearts on these sourdough animal loaves they had on display...Max wanted the turtle and the girls got greedy and wanted crazy things like lion loaves and a fairy princess loaf...

Baby D was just happy with...BUTTER...he really is a little Jim Phillips!

After lunch we decided to go to Fairfield to the Jelly Belly factory...surprisingly in all my years at UC Davis, I never visited the factory.

the signage in front of the building...

The front entry way...

In Line for the tour...everyone had to wear their hats!

...Even baby D...I'm sure all moms think the best of their children, often glossing over their short comings...but, I have to say, Baby D makes it hard to not want more kids...he is always happy and bright and full of excitement...we should have named him Isaac for all the joy he brings to our family, of course each of my kids could be named Isaac...maybe I could do what George Foreman did and name them all the same name (except he named them all George Foreman)!

The tour

Lia getting Bean Boozled!

Kiri getting Bean Boozled!

Max getting Bean Boozled!

Ronald Reagan, whose love of jelly Belly's first gave Jelly Belly's their start to fame (his favorite was Black Licorice...one of my favorites as president...not in flavor choices!)

The last picture before we parted ways...always so fun to see cousins!!!

We eat thistles for our breakfast...Piedmont high school 20 year reunion

This July marked the 20th year since I graduated high school...in some ways it seems to have gone by in flash...but in others it has seemed like a lifetime...

Ii would be lying if I said that I didn't get my hair done and worked out for months preceding my reunion...

I'm grateful for the reunion for several reasons...it brought me to Crossfit and it has been a very reflective year because of it...it was surreal seeing this handful of people whom you have known since you were in 3rd grade...Max will be in 3rd grade next year...although I haven't seen most of these people either since high school, or the 10 year reunion, it was amazing how comfortable it felt...easy like Sunday morning...which only happens when you have known someone since before puberty and all the way through it until young adulthood. My only regret is that I was so busy catching up that I only took two or three photos before hand...

Here is the picture of the rec center where my brother and I swam and life guarded

Our School crest and of course, our school fight song which we sang as cheerleaders before every game:

We are the Piedmont’s fighting clansmen,
Bold and bonny bunch!
We eat thistles for our breakfast,
Granite for our lunch,
Munch, munch, munch …

We are Piedmont’s fighting clansmen,
Come from Highlands brown …
So fight, Piedmont,
Fight till every foe is down!

Monday, October 17, 2016

Lagoon with the Eldredges

Summer and Lagoon are synonymous in our house! Jim getting soaked was a highlight for the kids!!!

Eric with the kids on the tea cup!

Kiri and I having a blast on the rides

She loved all of the rides!

Lia looking very apprehensive... later I would go with her on the Lady Bop drop...to which you could hear her blood curdling cries to stop the rise...athletic, she is, a fan of amusement park rides, she is NOT!

A beautiful Peacock I took a picture of...

Cute baby glo!

An ugly selfie on a ride!

Happiest baby D in the world!!

Max, Julia and I on the cannibal!!!

Max and Julia almost being eaten by a GiANt bLAcK sPIdEr!!!!

First official day of summer and the reptile show in Greenriver

This picture was taken the first official day of summer where we stayed at home and relaxed!!! The girls showing off their new mermaid tail blankets!

Baby D posing with the, 'I could get used to summer,' pose...though really, isn't his life summer? He decided to tackle crawling all the way up the stairs and conquered it on his first attempt!