manny birthday weekend, minions and droids:

Every year I make something lemon-y for Manny's birthday.  I've done this since we were engaged.  He requested Despicable Me minion cupcakes this year.  They were a lot of work, and I had to rush through them while managing the kids and feeling queasy from the day before, but they turned out well.  I made the cupcakes from a box mix, but they turned out moist and fluffy.  I just copied what I saw online--the heads were made of Twinkies, candy eyes, icing gel, and chocolate sprinkles.  I wanted to do blue frosting, but settled on blue sprinkles so they were less artificial.  I made enchiladas and salad as well.  

About the queasiness--the day before I'd been vomiting.  It was probably from the coffee a friend got me for fixing her computer and printer.  I got everything working, and I didn't realize how much of the coffee I had drunk.  I can usually handle a little caffeine, but just as with most other drugs, I get violently ill from ingesting what would be a normal amount to others.  After fixing her computer, I had to pick up the kids from class and drop a baby shower gift off.  On the way home, I felt like fainting and almost pulled over.  But thankfully we weren't too far from home.  I remained queasy all weekend and decided to take a pregnancy test (which was negative--whew!).

We went to the Tech M.useum the next day (Saturday).  Chris came, and both he and Manny are Star Wars fans, so we went to the special exhibit as well.  I'm a fan, too, at least of Episodes IV, V, and VI.  I was not a fan of the fact we had to pay extra for the exhibit, even with the member discount.  Our kids were far less interested than we were, but they have to bear with our interests sometimes!  CGI capabilities have come so far, there is less innovation and imagination needed for films.  That magic I felt watching sci-fi films as a kid is somewhat lost on kids today now that high-tech scenes are a dime a dozen.  I've said it before--I'm sad our kids aren't as fascinated with stars as I was and am.  I've tried many ways to get them excited about it, to no avail.  They think the moon is pretty cool, though, so all is not lost!  They were much happier back at the main museum.

We had a nice old-fashioned lunch at Johnny R.ockets, which will always remind me of college, and then headed back to watch Stanford's shocking loss to USC.  I only caught the end since I like to take advantage of the times Chris comes over and get some things done around the house.  We didn't go out for dinner since Manny was still full from our late lunch.  The next day, I still wasn't feeling well and needed to stay home from church.  Thanks to technology, our church streams its services online, so we were able to watch it that way.  Manny and Chris brought back some pan de dulce from the Mexican store, and we had one last celebration lunch at Outback, which is not really a lunch place and was pretty empty.  I don't remember what we did for dinner.  I think we watched Master Chef Junior that night, which was fun and inspiring.  I was a little stressed out because I had so much to do for that week still, and we were keeping the kids up later than I wanted, but birthdays only happen once a year!

Happy birthday to Manny.  We are close to 40 now, growing old together.  I'm thankful for every day I get to have with him, even the hard times.  Each day is truly a day worth celebrating.

Cupcakes were hard to do with our crazy week, but they turned out well!

Huh?

The kids made cards for Manny.  This is the nicest Lucas has ever written his name, just for Papi.  

Naomi made the minion with the big eye at the top.  She also wrote the minion version of "Happy Birthday" for us to sing, but Lucas really didn't want to sing it differently.

Yay!

Laugh it up, fuzzball!

Cool Millennium Falcon.  Reminds me of how I used my brother's little one as a bath toy when I was a kid.  Don't think I was supposed to do that.

Isaac was mesmerized by the hovercraft.

Back in the main museum, Naomi uses the jetpack simulator to lock in targets.

Lucas went in Manny's lap.

Isaac taking it all in.  He is a curious baby.

Naomi used the robot to write, "Happy birthday, Dad."

Warm bodies.  You can probably tell who's who.

Lucas likes mazes.  This is a large digital ball maze.

The fun robot shook hands on command and sung happy birthday to Manny.  After a while, I realized it remotely operated.  Actually, I realized it when I told him to run people over to see what he'd do, and he replied, "That's not nice."  Good robot.

Naomi building a roller coaster.  The program analyzes your creation's physics and only allows a safe and operable ride to pass.

Naomi and Lucas "riding" her roller coaster.

Naomi (in the window) manning the Mars rover.

Lunch at J.ohnny Rockets.

isaac, 7 months:

Isaac is actually almost 8 months old!  I haven't been able to sit down for more than a few minutes at a time lately, but I'd better write a few things down before I forget!

Isaac has really taken to solids and started feeding himself finger foods, so he's gained a little weight but is still small.  Our older two didn't really put things in their mouths constantly like most babies, but Isaac does it all the time.  He seems a lot more interested in food overall, particularly stick foods (veggie sticks, toast crust, hard bread sticks, etc.).  He also seems to like iceberg lettuce quite a bit--the one food I don't eat very much.  So, good, he can have my iceberg lettuce and Lucas' toast crust.

He is also crawling now, but when he turned seven months, he was just scooting with his head still on the floor like it was a lead weight.  He had two teeth at the time as well.

He has slept a solid eight hours once in a blue moon, but he is not consistently sleeping through the night yet.  But he's mostly a happy baby, at least in social settings.  But when I take something away from him, he gets pretty mad.

He is starting to notice the world around him.  This also means some more separation anxiety than before.  "Mama" is coming out more often when he cries.  He babbles and does imitate us on occasion, but I don't think there are any real words yet.  When he sees Manny, he tends to mouth words like "hi" and "Papa," but no sound comes out.

He loves to bounce, bounce, and bounce.  He bounces when I'm holding him and walking around.  He bounces in his jumper.  He bounces while sitting.  All our kids bounced and were very, very wiggly babies who didn't settle down.  At least Isaac settles down with a bribe of food.

Seven-month photo.  He likes to chew on pacifiers/soothers as teethers more than he likes to chew on teethers.

He puts his thumb right in to the soother.  He is a nice mix of Lucas and Naomi right now.

Lucas adores his little brother.  Naomi does, too, but Lucas likes to have a photo of just them two sometimes.

full weekend:

"The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord directs his steps"--Proverbs 16:9.  This is true for the big picture of life, but also the details.  I had just one event on the calendar last weekend, a dinner with friends, but that was canceled.  So then I tried to reschedule with other friends, but they had something else, and I didn't want them to have to rush from one thing to the next.  It worked out, though, because I'd promised to treat M. out for her birthday, and there were no Saturdays open till the new year.  It turned out to be great timing for us to meet and talk, so I trust it was all for the best.  Isaac also napped okay for Manny while I was gone.  After lunch, we did some chores and then Chris dropped by that evening, so he joined us for dinner before picking his wife up from the airport.  Isaac started having a cough, so I couldn't put him in the nursery and stayed home from church on Sunday. 

Sunday afternoon, we (and M.) were invited at the last minute to enjoy some fish tacos at a friend's house.  We had a great time.  Isaac finally got to eat with us for the first time and just adored the host who cooked the food.  The kids also found a nice lady with whom to talk.  Looking back now, though, I'm not sure we should have gone, and I forgot to leave some money to help cover the expenses.  We received a late invitation from the host who owned the house and not the one providing the food.  When I went back for seconds, Host B commented he might be short on his freshly-caught fish (so I didn't take any more).  Then Lucas and Isaac were getting too tired, and M. wasn't feeling well, so we left before we could say goodbye to Host B.  At the time, he had gone to the store to buy more fish in case they would run out.  So I felt bad that we contributed to that.  Anyway, I hope to make it up to him.  RSVPs are always so important--I've never understood not responding and just showing up.  So is checking with your co-host about adding guests.  They were gracious of course, but it's still on my mind still.

Japanese comfort food, followed by ice cream, for M's birthday.

Isaac's loving the finger foods!

Chris and Lucas playing some games.

It was an M. weekend!

Host demonstrating how to put our tacos and plates together.

Isaac so stoked to be eating with us.

I love fish and beans!

Cute picture taken by a friend of a friend.

all hallow's eve and all saints' day:

Among my family and circles of friends, I have seen a wide spectrum of Halloween convictions and traditions.  Among the Christians I know, there are some who want absolutely nothing to do with anything Halloween including carving pumpkins.  Others poke fun at the creepy and the macabre, because they believe that if God is with us, how silly it is that these things should instill any type of fear in us.  Still others believe in replacing it with a celebration of Reformation Day.  Many will participate in a Harvest Festival celebrating the fall season or the harvest moon, including the fun of dressing up and receiving treats while avoiding gore and immodesty in costumes.  Some hand out bible tracts with candy, while others retreat into their home and turn off the lights.  I respect all the opinions, and none of it is a dealbreaker for me when it comes to relationships, but it is a very controversial time of year for some, and occasionally I engage in a discussion if it comes up, but I prefer not to.  I myself changed my mind over the years.

Where do I stand?  I think one has to go with his or her conscience, but also keep an open mind toward others.  First off, "hallow" means saint.  The holiday sprung up from European liturgy and not the church of Satan.  Halloween's origins may be even less pagan than Christmas and Easter (which were just pagan holidays the church took over and made its own, which is what some churches try to do on Halloween).  It's not a time for me to forget about God, but an opportunity to get out there and meet people and for the kids to have fun with friends in a safe place (i.e., I wouldn't take them to certain parties).  I do, however, draw the line at gory, racist, tasteless, and immodest costumes.

I've only really dressed up and given out candy since becoming a Christian, so I don't see it as any kind of foot in the world or return to an old self for me.  My mom did not let me dress up or go trick-or-treating as a kid.  My memories of Halloween mostly comprise of turning all our lights off and having our dog bark at anyone who came by so they would think twice about the "trick" part.  It's quite different now for our kids who just see it as a time our church is open to the whole neighborhood at night, filled with wholesome fun and treats and even a room for people to pray.  I enjoy dressing up and coming up with DIY costumes.  There's a part of me that wants to be a kid now in ways I missed in my childhood.  One thing I just learned is that being Asian makes it hard for certain people to figure you out.  Last year I was Mary Poppins and someone asked if I was a Japanese tourist (yes, seriously).  This year, all the kids knew I was a minion, but an adult thought I was a doctor!  Others guess miner, which was a little closer.  I admit I haven't even seen Despicable Me 2, but Manny and Naomi did and liked it.  I chose the costume partly for them and partly because it's an easy costume to put together.

The kids did not receive much candy this year, but they only are allowed one or two pieces a day or every few days anyway, so we still have plenty.  They really just wanted the See's candies that Grandma sent.  They prefer the good stuff, I guess!

So we went to our Harvest Festival at church, which unfortunately Manny missed due to late meetings.  I had to work for half of it, but another mom was gracious enough to watch Naomi and Lucas while I had Isaac with me.  Then on Halloween night, we went to a house of a family from the Awana church.  Each year, they turn it into a small replica of an amusement park that closed a few decades ago.  We've gone trick-or-treating (which I often just call "treating" with the kids) in previous years, but we couldn't this year with Manny's late hours.  I'd rather be safe with the kids.  I did avoid Halloween decor and sections at stores, and I prepared the kids regarding gory costumes, though we saw very few.  My dad always thought exposing me to a lot of that gore and horror would desensitize me or make me less scared, but it had the opposite effect on my impressionable young mind, so I don't want to use that philosophy on the kids.  Instead of carving pumpkins, Naomi painted hers pink with a girly face.  I don't really have any problems with pumpkin carving; I just didn't want to deal with the mess and the rotting this year.

We also went to our friends' annual Anniversary/All Saints' party.  It's always good to see people we haven't seen in a while.  Lucas loved the new beanbag toss this year, and Naomi was voted president of whatever game the kids were playing.  Manny unfortunately got called out for work for a while, but I'm just thankful he could make it.  Great food, fellowship, and fun.  I love that these families are gifted in throwing these big parties so we can enjoy a mini-reunion.

Bruin colors!  Wolverine and the Despicable Me minions. The headbands were bottoms of cups (Isaac's was a Dixie cup) cut out and covered in duct tape and then pinned to headbands.  Lucas was the only one who got a store-bought costume this year.  It's also the first year he's actually wanted to dress up.

Naomi used my skirt and tail from when Manny's cousins and I dressed up as cats for a family party.

Harvest Festival!

Halloween at friend's house (transformed into Frontier Village).

We stayed late for friends.  Happy memories!

All Saints' Party.  The host reads a poem he wrote for his wife of 36 years.

Long time no see!

Lucas still tossing those beanbags after an hour.

K, M, me, and Isaac.  Isaac really hung in there.  Didn't get to bed till 11:30 that night.

major catch-up:

October felt like our busiest month this year, both in and outside of school.  Naomi was a little disappointed (but took it in stride) that we couldn't visit different pumpkin patches like we do each year, but we had too much on our plate.  There was the busyness with the church project and missions month, school, some friend and family personal business to tend to, and our regular extracurricular activities.  The kids and I caught a cold, probably from being out, unable to clean our hands as often, and not eating as much nutritious food lately.  The more kids you have, the more the illnesses linger, and that's been an adjustment for me.  Thankfully November is here.  We're done with one of our classes for now, my in-laws will be here for Thanksgiving, and there are fewer birthday parties.  There are so many October birthdays!  I feel like I have to budget for them!  

This is just a random picture, but the kids were playing with some army men Grandma got them back in the spring.  I played with army men as a kid, but Manny didn't.  Naomi plays with them like I did, and Lucas just wants them all to crash and blow up.

Bye, bye tennis.  Will be glad to get those three plus hours back every week, especially for Isaac's nap.  We can always just go and hit a ball around when we want, now that the kids have rackets.

I took Naomi early in the morning to our friend's house, and then they drove her another hour to the beach for a beach clean-up birthday party.  It was a great idea.  So was going out to breakfast with just the boys.  I ate it all (but Lucas ate all my hash browns).

The next day was another party.  More army men!  And his mom made a very cool camouflage cake.  

Took some friends out to celebrate one of their birthdays over gelato.

With my lovely aunt and cousins.

Lucas explaining his work to the ISP coordinator at our conference.  I can't tell you how meaningful this picture is to me.  Lucas has grown by leaps and bounds in the past month.

We went to buy dinner for a new mom.  The kids got fifty-cent churros and free chips (the manager was nice and gave us a discount).

Not just any playground, but a playground in a military base.

Birthday dinner with my good friend O.

Birthday lunch for my cousin.  Even though Lucas has matured, she has always been a "Lucas Whisperer" since he was a baby.