miss my old job? nah:

This is so funny, except at 5:10 or so, there is a slightly vulgar display. This is great for me to introduce you to my old world, where 7 years of my life went. Yeah, I don't miss it too much...and I do like Dilbert. I didn't work at Intel (well, I did for 3 weeks and the cafeteria food isn't too bad relatively), but this is exactly what the work environment was like for me minus what Conan introduced, like Hungry Hungry Hippos (which would've been cool / why didn't I think of that).

Video: Conan visits Intel

Manny and me in the cleanroom for more lolz:

photo time:

Carlsbad / San Diego It took too much time to rearrange and combine our photos with Dolly's so some are out of order. A lot of photos!

Naomi's Birthday Parties Some cute ones in there, if you're willing to sit through it.

May 2007

dance man:

Okay, on a lighter note, here is Dance Man.

passing away:

Just a note about the last post--I definitely don't overlook the news about soldiers dying in the war everyday, nor do I put the death of a celebrity above that. Just like with the VA shootings, it's not so much forgetting about our troops as it is shock. Although the casualties of war are a tragedy, and I pray for the end of that, when soldiers are deployed, there is a fair chance they may not return alive. When you go to class at a university or to a hospital for treatment, you don't often think of the chances of not returning (unless you think a lot about death as I do). Certainly physical death will come to us all one way or another, and some will joyfully go to be with God in eternity. It's still a time of grief for those left behind. Every single life is precious. I didn't want to misrepresent that.

goodbye:

Wow, Izumi Sakai passed away...ZARD was one of my (and Rommel's) favorite JPop acts. Very sad.

weekend:

Remembering those who sacrificed their lives on Memorial Day.

And since we live in a time where a lot of holidays are more about the tradition than the history...well, we can have both, I guess.


Our supper of babyback ribs, green beans, garlic toast, and salad. Naomi only wanted the green beans and carrots.


Naomi joining the drumline. I never showed her how to drum--I think kids are natural drummers. Haha.


Chris and Manny priming the dining room.

I always look forward to 3-day weekends for the extra day with Manny. We didn't go out of town this weekend. Chris stayed with us for a couple days, much to Naomi's delight. He helped Manny with the weekend project--removing popcorn and repainting the dining room. It's looking nice and bright in there now, just in time for summer.

When we were at a restaurant, she just climbed into a neighboring booth and joined their family's meal. Oops. I had to occupy Naomi, but I really don't think she minded going out so much. :) We also bumped into Katie & Ed and the girls while we were out, too. Likewise, Naomi tried to follow them away. I wish she'd follow me sometimes. Right now parking lots are the worst, so I might have to put her back on the teddy bear leash again.

Last night we started re-training Naomi to sleep. At midnight she still showed no signs of slowing down. I think we are going to start having her drop her nap, except for every few days. She cried till 1:45 a.m. and finally went down for the night, woke up at 6, went back down, got up pretty happy a little before 10. She's short 2 hours from her own normal sleep amount, which is 4-6 hours less total sleep than most kids her age. She needs less sleep than us, it seems!

I haven't done any medical transcription studies or practices after I received a bad grade back last Thursday. This after a string of A's. :( The doctor had an accent and mumbled, and no matter how much I slowed it down or sped it up, I just couldn't figure out what he was saying. I think I could've eventually made better guesses on the terminology, but I also couldn't spend another few days on it because I lost a week during our vacation. Hopefully now I can take a breather and not rush so much next time. :)

in the news:

Stanford impostor I guess there's no surprise she's Asian. This was a sad reminder about a friend of mine who did the same thing at UCLA and eventually took his own life. (please don't ask or tell who it was)

Rice to return to Stanford I thought she might be our commencement speaker, but it was Ted Koppel. I don't think I listened to his speech as much as I should have. I was busy thinking about Manny. Haha.

My old manager, who also went to UCLA and Stanford, said he was at a football game once where Condy (then Stanford provost) was standing in his way, so he told her to sit down. Who knew he'd be able to say he told the Sec. of State to get out of his way?

Star Wars is 30. The movie that ruined movies, according to some. But me still like lots. The themes, the music, the characters, the effects, the nostalgia especially--what's not to like? Of course, some of my friends that didn't grow up here (or in east Asia) have no idea what the appeal is when they watch it.

Left-handed women have shorter life span Old news, but I forgot to post it. It's weird that the article mentions that left-handedness is believed to be an insult suffered in prenatal life--I thought that was an old wives' tale. I did have a few insults in prenatal life but not nearly as much as my brother. I guess I did end up being the only lefty in my immediate and extended family. Well, if women live 7-years longer than men on average, and lefties live a few years shorter than other women on average, it all comes out in the wash for me. :)

plays well with others:

We had a little game night at our church community group last night. Arlene joined us as well, which was superb.

Several years ago Manny and I went to a birthday dinner where the honoree was asked to describe all of his friends in one word. He said kind, warm words, and then he got to Manny and me and said, "Competitive. Hey, I've seen how you guys play video games." Although at first it was probably just funny, Manny and I often talk about how thankful we are for that, because every last ounce of competitiveness in us left after that. It's not what we want to be known for, it's not who we are, at least not anymore.

I know they say friendly competition is fine. I agree there's nothing wrong with being driven, it just all depends on what's driving you. And if we're just in it to beat out others--"I'm in it to win it," I think it really takes away from the important things like just having fun (which can include winning every now and then) and enjoying the company. :) Not that anyone in the group is too competitive, but that eye-opener was a great lesson for Manny and me personally.

There was a fun game we played called Pit that is basically like a Go Fish with a lot of shouting. It's based on the NYSE trading floor, and you trade a certain number of same-commodity cards you have with someone else. The round I played with Manny, I noticed he only made 2 or 3 trades and ended up with 8 out of the 9 cards being the same. That's because unlike us shouting women who kept trading and trading the same cards, he was keeping track of where all the cards were going. I know he has excellent analytical skills, but just being so quiet, I think people think of him as kind of lame. But he kept quiet about what he had while all of us were griping about being so close and "who had my cards" and stuff like that. Way too much estrogen, man. :)

In the beginning, I was bothered by his personality, but now I've really come to understand and appreciate it. He's just so calm in general--it's a great feeling when that rubs off on me, because I have a pretty aggressive personality and worry way too much. And he's strong when it really counts--I could go on and on in this department. Even in the little things like a game night, I have so much to be thankful for, especially the people in the group itself.

At the end of the night, Naomi got to be tossed and flipped by the men. She was just ecstatic. We were all hoping she'd get a good night's rest as a result, but no, she woke up several times throughout the night and got up an hour earlier and slept an hour later...overexcited, I guess. Thanks, James/Greg/Drew for a very fun night!

tv finales:

The best for last...sometimes.

Lost: Whoa. Wow. Wah! (Wah = Chinese for whoa and wow) I won't reveal the spoilers here for you DVD watchers, but now I really like the show again. The show really redeemed itself and cleaned house (and that's saying a lot for someone like me who usually loses interest in shows very quickly). 9 more months--if I weren't so excited about it, I would probably wait till the end and watch the entire thing on DVD. Still might do that... (Edit: I forgot to mention that I had to try hard not to cry towards the end)

Smallville: Much better than expected. Waiting for the big showdown between Clark and Lex, though...

Heroes: A little disappointing given how good some of the preceding eps were. I would've appreciated condensing the first half to make the final fight a bit longer and more eventful. Wouldn't Peter have just regenerated? Claire wasn't in point-blank range, and I doubt she's a super-accurate shooter...so would he have been blown beyond repair? Oh well, they had to get that I-love-you-bro moment in, I guess. I hope that Nathan flew up and then threw Peter aside and got away. Haha. They'll be back.

The Office: Yay! But how come Pam never gives Karen much consideration or respect? Shouldn't she have had the courtesy to say, "Is Karen okay with that?" But I still liked the end there. I guess we're not supposed to sympathize with Karen so much.

Dancing with the Stars: Good for Apolo (my mother-in-law put in a vote for me--yeah!). All 3 finalists were deserving, but I was rooting for him and Julianne (sp?). And he won on his 25th birthday--nice bonus.

Didn't watch any other series this season.

happy birthday:

happy birthday, robb_n_randi. i'm thankful to have "met" you.

"mimi", 2 years 1 month.

Communicating: Naomi calls herself Mimi, and sometimes insists that I do the same. :) It's kind of cute. Her single-word vocabulary development seems to have slowed down considerably, but she speaks in broken sentences now, so she says things like, "Mouse eats cheese" and "Mimi is Mami's baby." Then I tell her she's a big girl now, not a baby anymore, and she gets upset and says, "No. [pointing to self] Mimi baby!" That's been one of the setbacks to potty training, so it's on hold for a couple months.

Frustration: The other obstacle to potty training has been her frustration. Her most common sentence right now is, "Don't help, Mami," or "Don't Mami help." If I even offer to help, she screams and cries in frustration. She wants to be independent, but then sometimes she can't get something right. Then she screams and cries in frustration. At least brushing her teeth is easier, now that she can rinse her mouth on her own. With that amount of autonomy, sometimes she can be persuaded to let us brush her teeth without putting up such a fight. I tell her about trying again and letting others help, but it's a struggle for her. Of course when I had lunch with my old coworkers yesterday, they said she was just like me in that way (stubborn about not asking for help). *sigh* But sometimes she surprises me. She did a 9-piece jigsaw puzzle on her own a few weeks ago. I can understand it's not as satisfying if I help her.

Family: She's renamed Grandma Hernandez "Chuy's Mami." :) She's really into identifiying everything as either the father, mother, or baby right now.

Food: She's a real fruits and veggies gal, which is good, but I guess I just don't like seeing her little ribs and concave tummy. She refuses any kind of milk, but she will drink Pediasure once in a while which at least relieves some of my stress. She does eat a lot of eggs and tofu in spurts, so that is good. And she finally ate some bread yesterday (it's been months). We decided to introduce peanut butter to her when she turned 2, to which she said, "No! Poo-Poo!" I guess I can see the association there. Fine by me, we'll just wait again. She does love to try new foods and flavors in general, though, so I wouldn't really call her picky. She just doesn't/can't eat very much in one sitting.

Fears: She has this fear/fascination thing going on with owls and snails. She begs me to draw them for her, then shakes and cries out in fright. She clenches us whenever she hears the owl outside, then begs to see it. She was afraid of bugs for a while (probably just copied from my fear), but then she saw me kill one, and now she slaps her hands together hard whenever she sees one.

She also is afraid to make mistakes and seems to get embarrassed easily. So she won't let me near her if she's making a BM (another potty obstacle, and she's been like that since she was crawling). At a playdate today, she stepped on a book. When we told her "uh-oh, don't step on books," she went into another room to cry. It's really sad. We're not hard on her for accidents or mistakes, but she's very tough on herself. Now I just have to teach her to channel it to something positive...


Finishing her first jigsaw puzzle on her own.


Cute pinstripe overall dress from Diane.

love in action:

After the shower on Sunday, a friend told me that she appreciated how honoring I was towards Manny, and she mentioned Proverbs 12:4. I don't think I've ever heard that from anyone before, but I really appreciated her thoughtfulness in telling me. My initial reaction was just that Manny has a lot of great qualities and he's a great father and husband. He's so quiet, so maybe I just want people to know him better? But as I dug deeper, I think I really got to the core of what makes me respect him so much. I think it's his gentle correction that I appreciate the most.

What I mean is that he doesn't just try to tolerate me (which is just external, as our pastor preached this Sunday), nor turn a blind eye, nor ignore me, and nor simply write me off, which would be easier to do. Instead, when we talk he tells me lovingly when I might have rubbed someone the wrong way or made an unwise decision. He is a fantastic listener because he actually processes all my rambling and helps me with conclusions. He truly "washes me with the word." It's a clear distinction between just his opinion and what is in the bible. Also, he doesn't wait until we are arguing to bring up my shortcomings (and contrary to some people's beliefs, we do actually argue sometimes). It's helped me tremendously, even as a model for my teaching Naomi. I know this will sound strange, but just as Naomi seems to want limits and boundaries to feel secure, I think I like someone there to hold me accountable for my actions in ways that others do not or cannot.

For example, I never realized before how much I talked about disasters and dangers whenever people told me they were traveling somewhere. "Oh, you're going there? Wasn't there a tornado/fire/riot/etc. there recently?" I never realized how much I would try to please people, and then take the blame if something went wrong, even when it really was not my fault (false humility). I still had teenage angst toward my parents, and I felt justified in that. You would think people should know better, but sometimes I won't know unless someone tells me. God worked on me through Manny, and now I really appreciate having the perspective of someone who is both an insider and an outsider.

As I learn to support and encourage Manny more, he continues to guide me more, and our marriage perpetually grows. In the beginning, I really disliked Manny's admonishment. I didn't want a solution; I just wanted to complain about people and have someone to sympathize with me and understand me. He did listen, but he offered me the ability to grow out of it. For this I am so grateful now. Manny tells me that it's my openness in communication that helps him help me. I have a long way to go, but it's really incredible to even come to these realizations now. We are truly blessed.

naomi's first hike:

Naomi tracking a lizard.


Camoflauged.


Papi!

Saturday we had a baby shower for Annette. It was a sweet time, and I personally got a lot from the advice that everyone gave her. I tried this French Cream Fruit Dip, which was pretty good and tasted like a lemon cheesecake. I think I'm more of a lighter dip person, though, so I probably will go with a yogurt dip next time.

But Manny got the camera because Naomi was going to go on her first hike! Manny, Jesse, Mike, and Drew from our community group went to Rancho San Antonio. Then Manny, Jesse, and Mike went to dinner. When we got home, I asked her what she did and what she ate and she said, "Jesse helped Mimi [what she calls herself] eat" and "Mike helped eat." I love her little sentences. And I know she loved the attention from the men. She's always seemed to prefer the guys. I'm glad she had some more Papi and me time. She was drawing that night, and Manny asked her what she was drawing. She replied, "mmm...Papi and Mimi." :)

family:

Don't want to leave out the importance of family. Naomi will never have a shortage of love and attention.


Having fun with Grandpa.


Telling Grandma about her boo-boo.


One of the best feelings in the world--random hugs from your niece.

neighbors:

In this day and age, many of us come home, disappear into our garages, and seldom visit with our neighbors. I'm completely guilty of that. I can have trust issues. But kids...they somehow befriend each other in passing, and can be a great icebreaker topic. Yesterday, the kids came to our door to ask Naomi to come out and play. I know Naomi was thrilled. Although she started to cry the saddest cry because she didn't have a little bike to ride like the others...so they broke out the mini-Hummer for her!

friends:

I wish friendships lasted forever, but they often don't. Especially when you're too young to remember these times, the majority of your friends are male, and there's always the possibility you might have to move away. But it's nice to cherish these moments while they last (now wouldn't it be funny if she married one of them?). Here is Naomi with Josiah and with Damien & Janean's kids.


Josiah and Naomi playing house.


With Joan on the teeter-totter (or is it see-saw?)


Now with Joel.


At Dorothy's birthday party. Naomi may look like the most ethnic, but everyone else here is only half-Caucasian.


Happy 3rd birthday, Dorothy!

naomi goes to the dentist / other stuff:

Yes, it's a little early, but I had to get Naomi's teeth checked for the line across her upper incisors. She did so well, even with them pulling her lips every which way. :) She's been asking to see the dentist ("doctor--ahhh, mouth") since last week, when I told her about it to prepare her. When she got there, she just ran in and sat down on the chair.

Dr. Mike, the pediatric dentist, says that most of the staining is just cosmetic, probably damage that occurred during the formation of the teeth, and although fluorosis is a possibility, there still are a few tiny points of decay that even the hygenist didn't detect. He said it probably is not worth repairing unless I am really bothered by the staining, but he'd have to put Naomi under. Nope. So they said her teeth shouldn't worsen as long as I keep brushing and flossing her teeth. It's hard because she screams almost every time, but it has to be done. I've tried all the tricks, songs, and games, but unfortunately it usually comes down to physical force.

There is someone belting out karaoke outside right now really loud. It's a song by Genesis (forgot the title), and he's going "doo doo doo doo" for the words he forgot. Haha! I would love it, except Naomi's trying to nap, and I need to finish up some medical transcription work. I'm on Genitourinary right now. :/ It says in one of my pharmaceutical texts that testes/testicles comes from the same root as testify and testimony. Apparently in the ancient days, men grabbed and swore on their manhood. My text does not list the source of the information. I told this to my friend, and she said that the footnotes of her bible notes this as the meaning behind the possible euphemism "under Abraham's thigh" (Gen 24:9 and Gen 47:29). I guess it's known as the Yarek oath. I know it's not really going to affect my view of God, but I do wonder about the true historical explanation.

tech support:

Email, cell phones, digital cameras--who needs them, right? Well, it would've been nice to have them a couple weekends ago. On the day I decide not to check my email and forget my cell phone at home, I miss the email and call to tell us the baby shower has been cancelled because the mom-to-be went into labor! Would have saved us quite a commute with a less-than-happy toddler, but I'm really happy for A & A anyway. Twin boys!

So feeling a little unfulfilled, we make a trek over to the amusement park. I forget my camera and fail to record Naomi's first ride on her own. It was so cute! I strapped her in and got in next to her, only to be told I wasn't supposed to be on the ride with her. Haha! But I fit (I have no hips)! I leave red-faced, and Naomi becomes increasingly confused as I walk away. I warn the operator that she might not last. Manny and I tell Naomi to hang on, the ride starts, and this look of amazement comes over her. She raises her arms, pumps her fists, and says, "Yayyyy!" as the ride goes up and down and around. So there it was--her first little ride on her own. And she couldn't be more happy to be big enough to go by herself.

4 free tickets:

(I have a lot of posts coming because I am completing all these short drafts from this month). I went to a Mommy-and-Me event at Santana Row the other day. I'm going to invite some mommy friends next time. Naomi had a blast with the painting, balloons, stage performances, and jewelry-making (all FREE!), but it was blazing hot. After lunch, I told her we'd spin the wheel at the Monterey Bay Aquarium booth and then we had to go. She spun it and won us 4 free tickets to the Aquarium! Yay! The guy behind me was really shocked and probably realized the odds of him winning just significantly decreased. :/


Monterey Bay booth (the poor guy behind us was a little disappointed with stickers).


The lady from Pink Stripes made Naomi this bracelet.


Naomi's masterpiece.


Naomi playing in the fountain.

mami's day:

Manny told Naomi to say Happy Mother's Day to me. So she said, "Ba-bai ji-jew Mami" (how she sings Happy Birthday to You) and gave me her balloon. :) The presents behind her are for two other moms, not me.

I had a very nice Mother's Day. I'm still not used to people wishing me a happy Mother's Day. :) We went to Wahoo's for lunch (Naomi-friendly) after a quick visit to J&J's to deliver a meal. Since we had to get Naomi up earlier for the PowerPoint setup at church, she was very tired. She threw a major tantrum at Wahoo's, which was fortunately fairly empty at 1:30, because she thought Manny's lemonade was hers, plus she was really exhausted. Eventually she calmed down and sat up to eat. Sometimes there's nothing you can do but let her get over it. Manny got me a stainless-steel cookware set, something I've really been wanting as the teflon stuff is starting to scratch off some of our pots. Yay!

quotes:

On occasion our pastor reads from quotes to elaborate on a point during his sermons. I've really enjoyed his series on Ephesians 4 and living out the gospel in the church (humility, gentleness, patience, forebearance, and unity). I like that our church is so gospel-centered. I would never apologize for that. On a side note, today, I got to have the whole sermon in my lap because all the usual PowerPoint folks were at other services for Mother's Day, so I reluctantly agreed to help. All I really had to do is toggle files and slides on the big screen, but my heart was still racing...God gave me a lot of grace and even more appreciation for behind-the-scenes tech folks. :)

Anyway, here are some of the recent quotes. Thanks, James, for forwarding these.

5/6
Leon Morris-
Christians should always bear in mind that they have been forgiven at great cost and that a most important part of the new life they enjoy in Christ is that they live it in love. And love, as Christians know it, is not an affection for the kind of people we like naturally. It is a response to the love that God has shown us in Christ, a love that dies to redeem the unworthy. Christians love, but not because it has been their good fortune to come across attractive people. They love because of what they have become, not because of the qualities they admire in other people. God loves
the unworthy and so do the people of God. Redeemed in Christ, they have become loving people, and because they are loving people they bear with one another. They know that people are not always as considerate as they should be, but that is not the point. The point is that believers have been died for, and part of their response to that atoning death is love--love for God who saved them, and love for the people whom God loves, trying though they may be at times.

4/29
C.J. Mahaney-
Pride is contending for God's supremacy.

Thomas Watson-
Pride is seeking to ungod God. Every man is a would-be god. An angel is a knowledgeable creature, but take away humility from an angel and what you have is the devil.

C.H. Spurgeon-
The longer I live that I think it is so with most Christians, the more I feel that everything must be of grace from the first to the last if I am to be saved. Grace chose us, grace redeemed us, grace calls us, grace renews us, grace preserves us and grace must perfect us or else nothing will come of all our hope and desires. Our Christianity will all be a flash in the pan, a disappointment at the last and failure forever.

Andrew Murray-
I fear that there are many who have sought to humble themselves by strong expressions of self-condemnation and self-denunciation, and yet have to confess with sorrow that a humble spirit, accompanied by kindness, compassion, meekness, and forbearance, is still as far off as ever. Being occupied with self even amid the deepest self-abhorrence, can never free us from self...It is a revelation of God, not only by the law condemning sin, but by His grace delivering from it, that will make us humble. The law may break the heart with fear. But it is only grace that works that sweet humility which becomes a joy to the soul as its second nature.

Andrew Murray-
The death to self is not your work; it is God's work...But the full manifestation of the power of this death in your disposition and conduct depends on the measure in which the Holy Spirit imparts the power of the death of Christ.

Carl F.H. Henry-
How can you remain arrogant at the foot of the cross?

happy mother's day:

To all of the mothers out there and/or your mothers and grandmothers, Happy Mother's Day on Sunday! It is already such a blessing to be a mother, but I wish you a truly blessed, special day! To all you Proverbs 31 women, may your children rise up and call you blessed, and your husband praise you. And may you remain humble through it. :)

To my dear mother, how my understanding of your sacrifice and love increases each day as I grow and learn as a parent. You may not have always been able to be there, but when you were, you gave all you had.

To my dear mother-in-law, thank you for your constant kindness and care. I guess I'm so blessed, I can't imagine not getting along with my in-laws!

To my daughter and husband, thank you for making my Mother's Day wonderful already by just being who you are.

To my Lord, I pray for greater wisdom (and patience!) as a mother. May my life, and not just my words, be an example to my daughter as I point her towards your glory.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!

trip day 4: still in socal

Ok, so I can't move on without mentioning another major highlight of the trip. We got to see Cecille, my closest friend and Naomi's middle-namesake, while she was in town on vacation. She actually tried to make Naomi's birthday but wasn't able to. Love her.

We met up at Victoria Gardens in Rancho Cucamonga. Two funny things. We wanted to eat at the Corner Bakery Cafe (I <3 good sandwiches), but when she got there, she thought I meant the Corner Stand, which was basically a hot dog stand with various potato chip bags on display. When she said, "Are you sure?" over the cell phone, I sensed she didn't think it was good enough. I was kind of surprised and thought she'd suddenly upped her tastes a notch. What did the midwest do to her? Anyway, she eventually figured out that wasn't the place since we weren't there.

The other story:
Me: Wow, I'm sweating!
Manny: Then why are you wearing a turtleneck?
Me: I'm not! [looking down] Oh man, my shirt's on backwards!
I did turn it around. I don't think my absent-mindedness has changed much since Cecille and I met (20 years ago!). If anything, it just gets progressively worse.

We got there just in time to ride the cool Thomas train, but it is only cool if you have the right engineer/driver. Our guy was taking us behind buildings, making crazy sharp turns, and making it worth our $2. The person that replaced him basically went around in one slow rectangular loop. That was it. *put put*

It was a very pleasant day. Naomi just ran and ran and ran around the park area. There was a little boy there whom she kept crashing into (on purpose). I was really sad when we had to leave. When we got back to Grandma's, Naomi made a beeline for the backyard. When we found her, she was covered in mud. *shakes head but smiles*


Taking a picture in front of a pretty waterway (which we're blocking).


Who needs a nap? I'm the Energizer bunny!


Another "choo-choo ride"! (She can't say train yet)


Those socks were white.


Playing with the water.

lost again:

Yes, sometimes I don't know why I suffer through this random show...until a jaw-dropping episode like last night's happens (bringing the official count of such episodes this season to 2 for me, Desmond's crazy flashback being the other one). I guess all the episodes, at least the recaps, are important to the story, but it's hard to sit through some of the disappointing ones. I guess the pay-off will come eventually. If you miss one ep, you miss future references (except anything with Nikki and Paolo seemed useless, and there were too many Others flashbacks that dragged). Ok, no spoilers allowed, but I'll say this--no, I don't think he's gone.

trip day 3: san diego

By many accounts San Diego Zoo and Sea World are must-dos when you're in San Diego, but by some other accounts, the zoo is too hilly and expansive (difficult for a group with a stroller and wheelchair), and the exhibits at Sea World are too high for petite ones like Naomi. Plus I think the shows would be hard for her to sit through. I guess weighed against the ticket prices and the possibility of poor weather... So we skipped it this time, but we would definitely like to visit them in the future. Nice long explanation about nothing, huh?

Anyway, our little tour of San Diego included Balboa Park, La Jolla Cove, and Belmont Park in Mission Beach. At Balboa Park, I thoroughly enjoyed the places we visited: the Japanese Friendship Garden, Botanical Building, Ruben H. Fleet Science Center, and the Air & Space Museum. We went back to the Japanese garden for lunch (if you like crab, I thought the California sandwich on potato bread was pretty good). At the Science Center, there were several hands-on discovery activities for Naomi. Kid City is great for toddlers. The newest exhibit was Grossology, and it was pretty gross. I liked the giant Operation game, though. Manny wanted to know how the smell machine worked. I agreed I would smell "feet" but nothing else. He was supposed to push "feet" but pushed "anus" instead. Punk! I thought to myself, "That didn't smell like feet?" Naomi seemed apprehensive at first but by the end of the visit, she was helping herself to the exhibits.

The Air & Space Museum is one of the most unique museums I've ever visited. Naomi again fell asleep at the perfect time so we could tour it without rushing or worrying that she would attempt to climb into one of the planes. :) I really dig historical museums. :)

After the museum, we drove out to La Jolla Cove for a nice afternoon at the park area and along the beach. We don't have too many sandy beaches in our area. I really miss that. La Jolla Cove has a tidepool and cave area and is just very beautiful. When it was time to head out for dinner, we actually went in the opposite direction and randomly ended up at Belmont Park. It's a nice boardwalk and beach. We had dinner at Canes (before it became a nightclub, food was so-so) and then watched the sun set while Naomi ate sand.


At Balboa Park.


The little scientist. It's fun to see how independent she's become.


Her favorite exhibit--a ball vacuum tube-pipe thing (is there a name for it?).


A bone to pick.


Lunch at Japanese Friendship Garden.


The giant Operation table.


I really liked the Air & Space Museum.


Thanks, Dolly for the beach photos.


Grandparents at La Jolla Cove.


Family at La Jolla Cove.


Naomi loved getting wet at the beach.


The sun! (At Belmont Park in Mission Beach)


Naomi being a clown as usual.


Waving bye to the sun.

And I just wanted to say welcome to Baby Cassidy! Congrats to J & J!

naomi at the beach:

I was actually trying to catch Naomi doing this "King of the World" stance on the mound of sand, but this pretty much captures her disposition as well. This was taken at Belmont Park in San Diego while we watched the sunset.



San Diego post is next, and hopefully we'll be back in May again. I have some fun stories from this month to share...

trip day 2: legoland

Whoa! Really sweet! (She had some of Grandma's Apple Fries)


Saying hi to Auntie.


At the kids play area. Love her hair flying back.


Saying hi from her favorite ride, the train.


Fell asleep on Grandma when we arrived at Miniland U.S.A. which allowed us a peaceful stroll.


Manny and Dolly about to drop.


A different boat ride.


"Surprise!" (That's what she and Grandma call lollipops). Dream on, kiddo.

We took a risk going to Legoland on Monday, because the forecast said rain, and the park is currently closed on Tues and Wed. Yet God granted us a gorgeous day.

Our discounted tix were $40/person (reg. $57). Naomi gets in free until she's 3. As a toddler she could fill up all her time playing at the (very cool) playground, stacking Legos, and riding the train, but we had to move on to make the most of our trip. We got shot at by water guns on this pirate ride--I think that's one of the few times you'll ever hear me scream like a girl. Manny pointed out to me that even on roller coasters, I often just say, "Whoa. Wow. Whoa..." I don't know why. I'm the queen of monotony. The throughput is a bit low on a few of the rides, so I imagine there can be long, long waits on days when it's crowded. A number of the ride designs were pretty innovative. I think we'll be back. :)

Overall, I think it's a great place for 4-8 year-olds and adults who find Lego structures fascinating (I do). At Disneyland, there were many more rides Naomi could get on, even at 1 year of age. Here, she was just a 1/2 inch shy of the minimum height for a lot of the rides, and we didn't want to cheat. At least she doesn't know what she's missing, plus she didn't mind going on the train ride three times in a row! She was pumping her fist, going "Choo choo!" and thanking our operator the whole time.

The other minor disappointment is that there weren't more tricked-out souvenirs in the main store, at least not that many that you wouldn't find in any Lego store. I don't know why I was picturing robotic light-up Lego transformers and affordable ones at that--wishful thinking, I guess. But Naomi did score a cool Lego monkey T-shirt from Grandma and a matching sweatshirt and caricature drawing from Auntie. Wow, not spoiled, huh?

Miniland U.S.A. was pretty amazing. Now we can say we went to New York, D.C., San Francisco, New Orleans, etc. on our vacation (well, their reproductions anyway). I was pleasantly surprised by all the moving vehicles and sounds. You can even race cars at their mini-Daytona track.

We ate dinner at Tip Top Meats, which kind of looked like a dive, but you can't beat the value for the quality of meat. It's a sort of diner attached to a German deli/butcher shop, so you get it straight from the butcher to your plate. It's a unique favorite of the locals, we hear.

Dolly took some great Lego structure photos; I couldn't decide which to include, so you'll have to wait till we post the slideshow, sorry.