Here’s another first…

Tonight we went to watch a movie in the park at Cambrian Community Center. They showed “How To Train a Dragon.” We met the Bradley’s there and had a picnic before the movie. There was free popcorn and the kids shared a bag of cotton candy. When the movie started we got cozy with our blankets to stay warm. The movie was good!

We went hiking for the first time on Saturday with the Bradley’s at Castle Rock State Park. The hike to Castle Rock was only 0.3 miles so it was not bad for the kids. They got to climb rocks, and some were really steep. Auntie Kathy packed us some sandwiches and we brought some snacks and had a picnic near the rock. The weather was perfect! Afterwards we stopped at Jamba Juice for some refreshments. It was free Jamba Juice day for kids – which was nice!

The kids stayed with Po Po and Gong Gong for 3 weeks starting the week of July 4th. For 3 weeks I didn’t cook, didn’t have to leave work early to meet a schedule, didn’t have to rush home for lessons of some sort, didn’t have to pack lunches, just didn’t! Although David and I didn’t really go anywhere, it felt like a vacation.

Natalie was sad to be away from us for so long and Tyler didn’t miss us at all. They both had a good time in LA though. The uncles and aunty took them out to eat, bowling, and made a trip to the toy store. Gong Gong took them swimming regularly and cousin Jay was in town for the last week and they kept each other company. With today’s technologies like FaceTime and texting, we were able to stay in touch daily, which was nice.

Summer is going by quick. We only have 3 more weeks before school starts again!

Natalie and David made this watermelon basket for a 4th of July party last week. Nat had fun using the melon baller to scoop out the balls.

The kids were excited for 4th of July to come. They’ve been wanting to light fireworks, especially sparklers. In the afternoon we went to Uncle Preeda’s house the swim. While in the pool, Preeda splashed what he thought was a dead bee onto Tyler and it stung him on his back! We pulled the stinger out with some tweezers and poor Tyler cried. After swimming, we stopped at Jiang Yi Po’s house to visit before going to Grandma’s for dinner and fireworks.

The kids had a lot of fun in the sun today. We headed to beach to beat the heat and then after dinner went to Uncle Preeda’s house for a nice evening swim. Looking forward to cooler weather as the week progresses.

This morning I had to drop the kids off at summer day camp because David had to get to the office early. David usually does morning drop offs and I pick up the kids after work. On the way to Y camp, I asked the kids if I could just drop them off and go.

Natalie: No, first you park. Then you sign us in and help us with our bracelets. And then… (she catches her breath and Tyler jumps in)
Tyler: you give us a hug and a kiss and say good-bye. 🙂

David started building this house back in March for the kids and finished it just in time for Nat’s birthday party. Well, it’s semi-finished. There are two openings left for possibly a rock wall and a rope climb. For now, the kids have started “moving in.”

Natalie had a pool party yesterday and invited some of her friends from school and a few of her cousins. She’s been waiting for this day for the past few months! She said she had trouble sleeping the night before because she was so excited.

The kids had fun playing in the pool, doing a fashion show, getting tattoos, and playing games.

Snack time

Snacks

Theresa helped the girls with their glitter tattoos

Fashion show

Hayden & Mason came too!

Cake!

We had a hula hoop contest

Cake time

Then and now. Time really goes by quick!

This morning after breakfast, Nat put on this outfit complete with earrings and headband. I asked her why she got so dressed up because we weren’t going anywhere. Her answer “Cause it’s my birthday!”

I let her choose any restaurant for dinner and to no surprise, she picked The Cheesecake Factory.