naomi's graduation party:

The first time we threw a birthday party for Naomi here, for her second birthday, it rained at the park.  So from there on out, I held her birthday parties indoors.  Of course, the weather's been beautiful every year.  She's always wanted to have a picnic/park party, and she really wanted a party where she could invite all her school friends.  She couldn't invite them all to her birthday because we didn't have the room.  We agreed to do the party as long as I didn't have to do too much for it.  It's not just for my sake, but also that Naomi says sometimes I go all out with the parties and work too much and then am grumpy and exhausted afterward.  So, we agreed she'd do most of the planning and a lot of the prepping and running of the party.  I still had a lot to do and was still feeling under the weather, but it was definitely one of the easiest and least expensive parties we've had.  Manny saw another dad he knew there, so he at least got some male interaction in.  

Naomi's parties tend to have a good turnout, but she still worries sometimes that no one will show up, because it's happened to a couple of her friends.  We ended up with only one no-show, so eight girls came.  Naomi had some games planned, and they just found games of their own or climbed some trees.  It was hot, but there is a lot of shade where we were.  Some of the girls had an event right after, so they didn't want to get wet, and Naomi was very considerate about that.  I did bring a water spray fan, so the others could cool off if they wanted.  

In typical mom fashion, I originally wanted to give out sunscreen as favors, but that drew some ridicule.  Naomi made the favors bags herself with what she could find--scratch-and-sniff stickers, pearlee gumballs, and organic honey sticks.  She used treat bags and some Christmas ribbon.  I thought they turned out wonderfully.

The biggest job for me was making the fruit kabobs.  Originally I was going to make a Nutella star by request, but one of Naomi's friends is severely allergic to nuts, plus the weather was so hot, I think it worked out better this way.  

Isaac ate about five of them himself.  He didn't really eat anything for three days at the peak of his mumps.

We also provided some veggies, chips, lemonade, and otter pops.  Naomi's friends brought some snacks as well to share.  I almost never procrastinate with parties, but all the grad party supplies went on sale recently, so that was to our advantage.

First guests arrive.  There was only one non-Asian there, which wasn't intentional.  Naomi says I sound racist when I point out their races, but since I'm Asian myself, it's hard not to notice.

The girls love to climb.

And two of them even more so--I had to stop them from going even higher to fit them in the photo.

 Some of the girls, including Naomi, were a little distracted and didn't finish their food.  I saw a couple of them scarfing down their food right before their moms came to pick them up.  I failed to take a picture of Manny and Lucas lying on the picnic blanket together, but they were really cute.  I disturbed their tranquility at one point by kicking them off the blanket, thinking the girls wanted to have both blankets, but nope, they just wanted to squeeze onto one.

Trash bag race!  Some of the girls were too tall for the bags, it seemed.

Jump rope games.

Naomi had them make flags to play capture the flag, but they decided not to play it and just kept together and hung out.  It was really sweet to see Naomi throw a party for her friends, all of whom have been good influences on each other thus far.

I also didn't get a chance to take a picture of Isaac chasing the girls or telling me to go away so he could sit with them or play with them.  He was loving all the attention.  The doctor said he wouldn't be contagious anymore, but I could tell he was still lower on energy than usual (which wasn't entirely a bad thing that day).  He's still having waves of pain in his salivary gland, but they're becoming less frequent and he is getting his appetite back.

We missed Manny's side of the family's pool party on the same day.  It's become more challenging for us to get time off or make the drive down.  But the kids are counting down the days till Grandma and Grandpa are here, so we'll at least get to see them this summer.

unexpected illness, father's day:

I took Isaac to the doctor today after three days of increasing pain in his cheek.  He was diagnosed with viral parotitis, a viral infection of the parotid gland, or basically mumps.  He is vaccinated, but she said sometimes other strains can still cause similar symptoms.  Usually mumps don't occur until children are older, and usually until much older, if at all, if they've had the MMR vaccine.  Unfortunately, Isaac has to be the exception to the rule again.  

I'm also still weak, likely due to being up every few hours with Isaac when the pain medicine wears off again, but I also felt like this bout was the worst one I had in recent memory.  I had asthma attacks, which I haven't had in years, and I still have frequent shortness of breath.

I ended up canceling some plans I had, but I kept with Lucas' therapy and classes, Naomi's youth group activities, and even Isaac's class.  Isaac was actually completely fine that day--this was just before the pain and swelling began.  Also, I had to work on Naomi's party all week.  She helped a lot, so that lowered the stress.  It's also going to be at a park, and we asked the kids to bring their own lunches while we supplied the sides, so it was less work for me.  The doctor said Isaac should no longer be contagious, but I still kept him away from the prepared food today, because she's going on an average timeline.  

Our church had a fundraiser for the team going to Nicaragua to work on getting some areas clean water and help in other ways.  I got a tri-tip family meal, and it was delicious.  I got to visit with a few people after feeling MIA for a little while with the illness.  I also appreciated not having to cook dinner so I could finish off some fruit kabobs while taking care of Isaac.  

And just so I don't forget, Father's Day was one of the days I had to cancel plans.  Naomi and Isaac were very helpful and made the chocolate-covered strawberries for me.  I could not get my photo collage or any project together and could barely move for most of the day.  Manny took the older kids to church and lunch and helped me with the dishes.  He usually doesn't help me with chores, and I'll do them even when I'm sick and in pain, but this time I had to ask, and I was very thankful for all he did (on Father's Day of all days).  I got Manny a couple of scotchmallow bars from See's (not fair trade chocolate, but I don't know who else makes those), and I did the best I could with dinner.  I did not feel well at all.  I constantly cleaned my hands and all surfaces, though, and Isaac is good about covering his mouth now--we rarely see anything hit more than one or two of us, thankfully.  But it's still hard when it's mom and/or baby.

Naomi covered the strawberries we picked with chocolate.  Isaac was doing a batch, too, while I was taking this picture.  His were extra loaded with chocolate, it seemed.  :)

'cause I'm going to...strawberry fields:

Last Friday, I thought I was feeling better, so I took the kids strawberry picking at Gizdich Ranch.  Isaac had been asking for a long time, and there wasn't really another good day this month to go.  Naomi's friend and mom were originally going to join us, but sadly they had to attend a funeral.  

Lucas did not want to go at first, but once he got started, he really went to town on those strawberries.  Isaac, on the other hand, came with a giant bucket and quickly became worn out in the heat.  Once we were in the shade having our lunch, he was fine.  I brought some lunch from home and then we  got some fresh apple juice and dessert from their pie shop.  

It was a long, gnarly drive, and we still had a full afternoon/evening afterward.  It's probably why I got so much sicker that night.  It's too bad we can't go to the place where Naomi went as a toddler.  They closed some time ago.  Many places we went to when she was little have succumbed to the cost of living, the takeover of open land by businesses and apartment construction, the drought, or other factors.  But it's not like there's a shortage of things to do or see, and the boys are excited just going around the block.   

Lucas pulled his cap down to block the sun.  This was around 11 a.m.

Isaac getting to work.

Found a good one!

View of the fields.  We were only allowed to pick the berries in a designated area.

It was tough to get all three to pose for a photo.

Lucas proud of his haul.

Isaac was done.  We collected about 4 lbs at $1.80/lb.  

Enjoying our rainier cherries.

Naomi showing the boys the budding apples in the tree.

Apple pie for Naomi and ice cream for the boys before we head home.

pool parties:

Isaac and I are sick, possibly due to our prolonged visits to the pool on relatively cooler days, and also starting his preschool gym class (germ city).  I haven't been sick in ages, and it's likely the flu, or at least I have the gamut of flu symptoms.

We had three pool parties in a week.  Last Saturday we went to Manny's old coworker/friend P's new house for a barbecue/pool party.  I hadn't seen many of his coworkers since before Isaac was born, although I spent more time talking to the wives.  One person remembered the last time he saw me was 15 years ago when I worked at the company.  It's nice he recognized me right away--I know I've aged a lot since then.  His wife gave birth to their son days after we welcomed Isaac at the same hospital.  It was a nice time and the food was great.  We stayed after the party, and Isaac somehow managed to lock himself in one of the rooms.  P had to take apart his new door to get him out, but hopefully he learned his lesson.

On Monday, Naomi's friends came to our pool for a swim.  A friend's mom actually volunteered our pool, but I didn't mind.  The other parents just dropped their kids off, but she stayed, which was helpful.  I usually keep an eye on the kids, but sometimes Isaac needs to use the bathroom or something.  As much as some may think we can put an older child in charge, we shouldn't rely on that (although sometimes the child does a better job than an adult).  The wanted the party at 4:30, which is normal, but at that time, the shallow end becomes shaded, and that is usually where Isaac and I are.  Even though the pool is heated, it's still cold for us.  So I took the boys at 4 to swim early and get out early, but I think Isaac and I still got cold.  Naomi's friend's mom brought Naomi home at 6:30, and then the friend actually came back after dinner and stayed till 9 pm.  

Yesterday, Naomi went to a youth group middle school pool party at a friend's house.  She had fun, but the host said the turnout was smaller than expected, so they ended the party a little earlier.  I was glad to have her home, and she and Isaac made the chocolate covered strawberries for Manny for Father's Day.  I was going to make them, but I'm still too sick.  More on Father's Day later.

Very pretty lagoon pool at P's.

Isaac having some cheesecake.

I'm enjoying my food.  I thought I took a photo of Manny talking to his friends, but I guess I didn't.

Always great to see the kids find something fun to do together.  It can be a challenge when they're so far apart in age.

Uncle P. loves our kids because he loves Manny so much, he says.

I took a quick snack break while Naomi pushed Isaac in the floater (the kids are the three on the right).

With Naomi's friends H, L, and S.

last week of school and celebrations:

Naomi was promoted to the youth group last Sunday.  A leader and a couple of other girls came to get her for breakfast and take her to her first Sunday in the youth group.  I think she'll do well.  She was ready to move on from the elementary class.

Thus began a fun farewell to fifth grade for Naomi.  At school, Monday was Pajama Picnic Day, Tuesday the 5th grade pool party, Wednesday was Crazy Hair/Wacky Wear Day, Thursday was Favorite Sports Team Day, and Friday was a Blue Day (their school color) and graduation for the fifth graders.

I'm thankful that she adapted and persevered.  I'd like to think I prepared her well, but it only happened with God's leading and grace.  We had a lot to talk about this year, but I'm glad to hear she didn't just trust whatever kids at school would say.  She'd ask me right away about it, but you could tell even with me she was processing instead of just accepting it at face value.  Our calendar is pretty full this summer, but I'm so glad to have her home again.  We all missed her so much.

Lucas had an up-and-down last week, but we regrouped and finished strong.  I turned in his paperwork to his PSP.  I've never been a huge fan of paperwork, but it was encouraging to see all his progress over this year.  He'll be a second grader in the fall.  He is still weak in reading and spelling, but progressing well in other areas.

Lucas really enjoyed our last unit study for the year on R.M.S. Titanic.  This is the Titanic book he put together, and inside are our bubble maps of information.

Isaac is learning well organically.  He knows his letters, numbers, shapes, colors, etc.  Here we are doing a ghetto berry-picking excursion outside our townhome.  lol  We'll do the real thing soon.

Naomi hungry for an egg salad sandwich after the pool party.

From Naomi's yearbook--photos from trips to Sacramento, NASA, and Marine Discovery Center, and other events and classroom activities.

Crazy Hair and Wacky Wear!

Naomi's friend spotted me and told her to turn around.  :)

Outstanding Academic Excellence Award "signed" by President Obama.  This is for the top students in the 5th grade class.  They do this again in the 8th and 12th grades.  Proud of her hard work.

I took them to KFC to celebrate.

Manny, on the other hand, took us out to a Japanese buffet!

Congratulations!  Lucas ducked out of the photos, so I don't have him in any.

I think I got our money's worth.

in memory:

It's been a little over a week since Professor Klug was slain in his office.  I'd walked into so many offices in that building to meet with professors.  I can't imagine what happened when his former student walked into his.  Not to make it about me, but it's affected me so much in that it happened in a place that was such a big part of my life and also happened so close to other deaths over which I'm still grieving.

I walked through those halls and around those convoluted paths between buildings, never thinking someday I'd see photos and videos of armed officers scouring them on the news and social media.  It did bring to light the dangers the engineering students might face (ironically in the engineering buildings), with doors that aren't easily barricaded from within, and paths that would be challenging for law enforcement not familiar with the campus to navigate.  For example, to get from one of my classes to another that was just downstairs, I had to cross a bridge/walkway on an upper level out of the building, go down the stairs to the bottom, and then come back into the building and up the stairs.  I didn't know if any remodeling had been done on the buildings since I was there 20 years ago, but from reports, it appears it hadn't.

I received an email from UCLA Engineering yesterday with information for the support fund set up for his family.  It is so tragic to think of his children, only 7 and 9 (some reported 10).  I know they were a Christian family, and I pray for the children who have to endure this at such a tender age.  Sometimes we ask God why, but we won't know this side of heaven.  May he rest in paradise. 

News travels fast on social media and with hackers and internet sleuths.  People had already correctly guessed the perpetrator within a couple of hours of my hearing the news.  Something not talked about much in the news is how another professor, Professor Lynch, held the door to Professor Klug's office and told the other professors to go back to their offices, risking his life to save others. 

Also not spoken much of is the impact of the shooter's cultural ties.  Indian communities have questioned whether there were issues with Dr. Sarkar taking an American wife in an unapproved, unarranged marriage, and then losing one of his parents in recent years.  We'll probably never know for certain.  So awful that he killed his wife as well.  Just a tremendous tragedy all around.  

house of grace breakfast tea:

Last Saturday, I had the privilege of attending a fundraiser for House of Grace, a residential program for women struggling with abuse, addiction, or homelessness, and their children.  I'd helped with care packages in the past, but never had an opportunity before to hear directly from the program staff and the women themselves.  The locations are undisclosed, and they also did not have signage outside this event, probably for the protection and privacy of individuals in the program.  I got to catch up with a couple of friends as well as meet new people.  I so appreciate Manny watching the kids so I could go, and this time they did pretty well.

The church that hosted the event cooked up a delicious meal for us, and the set-up was very well done.  They played a game of heads or tails which was won by one of the residents of the program.  The auction was surprisingly entertaining as one of the program staff happens to be a licensed auctioneer, we were told.  I could barely keep up with her!

I was very moved by the video testimonial of various women in the program.  Another highlight was when they took the stage and sang a beautiful rendition of Amazing Grace.  I see myself as being just a step away from letting my bad choices and the environment I grew up in take me down a dark path, and now here I am out on the other side, thanks to God's grace.

Our table.

Some photographs sent out by the staff.

It costs about $12,000 a year to put one woman through the program.  They provide housing and childcare for the children as well.

A friend of mine joked to me how so many event photos show me staring at food (this was back in college he said this).  Here is the one event photo with my face, and lo and behold, I'm staring at food.

This is me hugging a friend.  If you notice I'm balding, I've had that bald spot since I was little, due to a little accident.  But I'm also balding.

computer history museum field trip:

Last Friday, the boys and I went with A. and J. and their kids to the Computer History Museum.  I haven't been there since just before they renovated it, and it looks pretty amazing now.  Sure, I miss the quaintness and simplicity (and where did the robotic arms go?), but this is a computer museum in Silicon Valley after all, so changes and upgrades come with the territory.

My friend A. received a Groupon from her friend, so we all got to go for free.  Naomi was in school so couldn't join us.  The visit would count as a field trip for Lucas, but that meant he had to answer a few questions from me when we got home, and we'd document it.  It's interesting, and somewhat vexing, to see how he fills in his blanks.  For example, he thought that computers (integrated circuits, to be more exact) got larger, rather than smaller, over time.  I'd usually go over it with him beforehand or during the trip, but I was pretty distracted with Isaac, and Lucas can't really read the displays himself.  The language in the videos was a little advanced for him, too.  So without my being there to explain things better, I think a lot of what he saw went over his head.  The one thing he did remember was storage--from floppies to CD's.  It's hard to believe how much has changed over my lifetime, even over Lucas' lifetime.

One of the exhibits, "Deleted City," covered the preservation of geocities/homestead pages after Yahoo! went and deleted them all (mine included--that was where Manny and my original website was located).  But I want to thank those who painstakingly backed up all the sites--you can still see a piece of our history here with the last photo posted from when Naomi and Lucas were at Carl's Jr playground in 2009 (before they tore that down, too).  There is a Ranma 1/2 panda gif at the bottom which I had since my senior year in college.  I'm not that sentimental, but for some reason I didn't want to abandon it even when animated gifs were becoming obsolete.  

The trip got off to a rough start with Isaac.  We went in to watch the orientation video.  Isaac wanted to be one of the big kids and climb up onto the bench himself.  He looked like he was going to fall, so I put my arm behind him, which set him off, so I took him out.  He let out some blood-curling screams.  A museum worker hurriedly went and got a canister full of candy and stickers for him to choose from, but he refused them.  He just wanted to scream.  So while A. and J. took Lucas ahead, I had to discipline Isaac and calm him down for what felt like 15 or 20 minutes.  He was better after that, but at times I had to keep Lucas and Isaac apart so they wouldn't get into conflict.  I also kept them out of the video game section, or I'd probably have another protest on my hands when we had to leave.  We had lunch with the group, but Lucas didn't make it in time to sit on the stools with the other kids.  Later, he saw the Golden Gate Bridge on the Google maps simulator, and he was like a kid in a candy store, but the minute he got on, some kids pushed into him and into the joystick, so we lost the bridge.  Lucas was disappointed but took it in stride.  My kids don't like to push their way to the front, and I've raised them to not push back, but sometimes it means they miss out or kids cut in front of them often.  But it pays off in relationships--our friends generally don't have me-first mentalities.

J's daughter L. was the first guest in the history of the Computer History Museum to correctly guess how many microprocessors fit in a tiny container!  She didn't win anything, but we gave her a round of applause.

I can no longer understand semiconductor engineering like I used to.  I still get how p-n junctions work and remember many of the technical terms and processes, but I can no longer remember how I'd actually use governing equations to engineer a chip.  I incurred quite a debt to go to Stanford to receive a Masters and worked as an engineer before going into program management, so it's a shame to forget what was once so familiar.  I guess I could brush up on it or take a refresher course for free, but my mental capacity and schedule are so limited, and I'm just not as passionate about it anymore.  But there were a few moments at the museum where I felt like a kid again and remembered how fascinated I was by technology and electronics.  I remembered fixing electronics with my dad, the thrill of using CAD for the first time, literally geeking out with fellow engineers over ethernet cards and laser discs (lol) at UCLA, building my first computer, designing chip packaging with simulation software, and, best of all, all the engineering experiences I had with Manny, from grad school classes to working at the same company.  My other passion in school was history, so really this museum was just up my alley.

Naomi had an unexpected minimum day, so we had to leave early.  I didn't see it on the school calendar.  I only received a call the night before, and there was no reason given.  She and A.'s oldest and J.'s oldest are very close in age, and it's bittersweet to think back to when we were all in the nursing room at church.  Now, A.'s oldest is taller than me (at only 11!), and J.'s oldest is sharing his vast knowledge of technology.  All the children are growing and changing so rapidly, like the technology we saw, and soon they'll be off on their own.  I try to remember to not be in such a hurry to get there, but to make the most of each day I have with them.

Simpler and yet not-so-simple times.

Lucas told me later he didn't know this entire thing was a computer.  I think it was a JOHNNIAC, but I don't remember for sure. 

A rotating model of an early computer company, with an entire floor dedicated to a computer.

The storage exhibit, which I found fascinating.  Isaac and Lucas were more interested in spinning the spinner.

A neat arch display of game-changing software, including Windows, Office, and it probably had Linux, Adobe, and Aldus in there somewhere.

The video game section had Pong, Pac-Man, and other games, but I kept the boys from going in.  I don't know if the kids would be as impressed as I was the first time I played those games, but they were mesmerized by this projected Pac-Man moving as it does in the game.

Sitting in a self-driving car.

Boys watching the mapping simulation.

Lucas fascinated by the simulation of San Francisco on the panels.