April Part 2 (Downtown Disney)

For those who hate Disney or feel that Disney promotes evil more than other companies, this is a trigger warning for the next several posts. I use my discretion with my kids, but I do not feel that way about Disney in general. If it is a dealbreaker for a friendship, I don't know what to say.  

After we landed, I got an Uber to our hotel. It wasn't anything super fancy, but it's where we usually stay. It had a separate space and sofa bed for Naomi and was located just across the street from Disneyland. We were going to get around on foot the rest of the week, so that was a major plus. And that turned out a lot more tiring than I'd anticipated. As the teens settled in, I took Isaac for a short swim in the hotel pool.

I booked us for a character dining experience at Goofy's Kitchen at the Disneyland Hotel to celebrate Naomi's birthday, and also we made sure to get her the pickled corn dog with peanut butter that he wanted. I can't believe she ate that whole thing. Just like old times. The rest of the time we did this egg hunt where we looked for hidden eggs (like large egg statues) throughout Downtown Disney and I also gave Naomi a chance to shop. She got a Mei red panda from Turning Red, probably the softest plush I've ever seen at the World of Disney store. Others must have felt that way as well, because it helped getting snatched up every time they restocked. I ended up just standing there till they restocked and got it for Naomi as a present. Turns out my friend who was down there got one for her teen as well.

Here I mentioned mostly Naomi, because the boys pretty much just tagged along this first night. They don't like shopping, they're not into the characters, and definitely not a big fan of walking around in crowds. Lucas did sort of like the egg hunt thing, and he was good at it. I also got him a lollipop, which he will probably just save and never eat. 

This was kind of a last Disney hoorah for me. It wasn't likely we'd ever return with all three kids as kids again, with Isaac just young enough for a child's ticket and experiencing Disneyland for the first time. Manny couldn't get time off for the spring break, and it was Naomi's birthday. I just decided, with Manny's blessing, to go ahead and do this. But I think I bit off more than I can chew (more on that later). 

The Goofy's Kitchen buffet food was really good, though expensive, but it again felt like this will be a last-time-ever sort of experience. I do miss when Naomi and Lucas were young and into hugging characters and getting their autographs (now of course they don't really do that anymore). I was happy for Naomi that they had smoked salmon and creme brulee, two foods she really likes. Isaac despite having food issues was able to eat quite a bit. Lucas just ate a ton of food per usual. He usually gives us our money's worth haha.

The characters came around at regular increments, in between which we got up to get more food.

Isaac was over the characters. 😅

I thought the characters did a great job visiting the different tables and posing for photos mid-dance.

Celebrating Naomi's 17th birthday. They made some noise and presented her with a cool orange cupcake. I won't post the video here for her sake. I accidentally said she was turning 16. 😁

Isaac got this special Pluto drink that looks like his head and collar.

They had everything from standard to fancy food. All very good.

Dinner at Goofy's Kitchen

Waiting for our reservation time outside. Isaac got a Baby Marie kitten plushie.

Manny and I had our wedding reception at the Disneyland Hotel in 2000. So much has changed.

This sign is made of pictures that are all made of food.

Isaac spotting one of the hidden eggs. We foudn them all!

Lego dragon (I assume Maleficent in dragon form) above World of Disney.

Naomi's pickle corn dog and peanut butter. Yummy and gigantic!

Here we are in April of 2022!

Had to get Isaac in the pool at least once.

December Part 5 (Visit with Brother, Santa Monica and Monterey Park, Downtown Disney, Cabazon Outlets, UCI, Catching Up with Friends)

Finally, I have reached the end of 2021! Will I ever catch up to the current month? I think/hope so. December was just such a doozy with finally seeing so many family and friends after two years of the pandemic. And I was super busy at the start of the school year. It's starting to mellow out a little, and I want to get back to blogging, which is right now just recording life. Maybe someday I'll write more about what I actually ponder.

While we were at Grandma's, we also went to visit my brother and take him out for a day. If you didn't know, my brother lives in a mental health facility. Manny had to do a ton of driving that day. because my father is no longer physically able to. His back is twisted and crooked now. I think we were on the road for eight hours, and sometimes in the rain. We had to pick my parents up, drive back to pick my brother up, go to lunch, then to Santa Monica Pier (so thankful the skies cleared up while we were there), take him back, go back to the Chinese store, and then drop my parents off.  The kids endured many hours in the car that week but were troopers. They had to sit in the car for over an hour as well while my parents shopped at the Chinese store. My parents don't get to go out there too often, and they really only eat Chinese food for the most part. They also have to go somewhere that takes food stamps. I don't know if it's because I dyed my hair or what, but at the store I tried to help my mom with some stuff, and she accepted my help with a large bag of rice but then kept walking away and finally asked me in Mandarin, "Do you work here?" I was like, "Mom, I'm your daughter!" And she said oh I was wondering why you were following me around. Haha. Pretty much sums up how I often felt as a kid.

My parents struggle financially. They didn't really save up for retirement and are getting by with government aid. Usually they buy us food from discount stores with their food stamps as Christmas gifts. Something they gave us, however, had a bunch of fruit flies (I think the packaged caramel apples), so we had to endure the flies all the way home in the car till we figured out where they were coming from. My mom also wrapped some empty cookie tins to give us. I was a little surprised to open the tins and find nothing left inside. haha The kids are always thankful and don't expect much from them. If they buy anything besides food, I worry what they sacrificed something they shouldn't have. 

In addition to seeing family and getting a break from cooking and cleaning, I was thankful for the chance to connect with friends and to take Naomi out to see a university. One of my friends from junior high and high school now lives near my in-laws, so we were able to meet up at a Starbucks and catch up. I also hadn't seen my closest friend in years. We had a chance to go to Downtown Disney without the kids, sort of back to our roots as she put it. It was so much fun. We went to a Korean barbecue buffet and did not waste any food. We bought each other a present from Disney stores. I'm so thankful that Manny and his sister helped me with figuring out the FastTrak option for the freeways down there or I would have really been stuck in traffic. It was put to good use again when I drove with Naomi down to UCI and then met up with two of my college friends. Naomi and I walked around the campus and then went to the campus village across the street to have some boba and do a little shopping. I went to UCI one summer to get ahead in my classes. Took college math (Vector Analysis) and got an A+. I loved the environment and the professor. I sometimes wonder if I should have gone there for grad school. I did get in, but also got into Stanford, so I went with more prestige.

My friends came and met up with us at a plaza a few minutes away for ramen and shaved ice desserts. I think it was a little weird for Naomi not knowing them at all and then having to hear us reminisce about college and relationships, but I think it's also good for her to see I am not just Mom but a human being, just like her. I really enjoyed all our bonding time that day. We have had some difficult times, especially during the pandemic, but I believe in moving forward and that it's never too late to get better. The break was really good for my mental health as well.

Naomi's painting of koi for her grandparents. She also made a painting of red roses for Grandma.

Mochi shave ice with my friends

Having ramen with my friends J and D from college. My sweater was structurally like a balloon.

Naomi looking out at the UCI campus park

Pink Pig boba

Sanrio! We had to wait 15-20 minutes in line to get in due to Covid restrictions.

Fun to see all these characters from over the years. I don't really love Aggretsuko or Gudetama, but they have some funny cartoons.

Still wearing masks due to the surge. 

Heading into the center of campus

The original Carl's Jr. restaurant. It was raining, so this is all I got.

How many Christmas trees have we taken a picture in front of over the years? Maybe a couple dozen by now.

Neither of us had seen Moana in its entirety, so we didn't recognize Pua, but it was a really cute plushy.

Minnie Mouse caramel apples

"You ain't never had a friend like me!" - Genie

It was so hard to take this photo

Us in front of a Christmas tree again

We were laughing the whole time trying to take these photos

We both showed up in gray sweaters and dark jeans with red umbrellas we borrowed from parents. Even though we are so different in style, we've had a lifetime of unintentional matching.

Korean barbecue was so good. Glad we ended up there as there were no reservations open in Downtown Disney when we checked.

My other friend since junior high, M. Treated me to breakfast, gave us Kind bars for the road (yay), and told us about Sanrio.

From my mom's camera. Isaac with his cube lol.

Shopping with Auntie! Aunt Dolly got Naomi a pair of Doc Martens boots, which she's always wanted.

Spumoni ice cream, a family favorite

Old Spaghetti Factory, an annual family tradition

My mom's festive display, including a swordfish, a Transformer knock-off. She's so quirky.

Mom whipped up a delicious meal, including her homemade man tou (rice flour bread) which is so good and something I never learned to make.

Santa Monica Pier

Never been on that ferris wheel

Watching the magic show, which was pretty fun

Family photo

With my brother at lunch

We were stuffed!

Pluto was so relieved to see us and be home again.

Oreo gingerbread house that Isaac decorated

Having lunch at Sonic on the road was a treat.

date / rise of skywalker:

The Monday before Christmas, Manny and I went to have breakfast and then watch (possibly) the final Star Wars movie.  The week before Manny was looking at possible theaters, and tickets were already selling out.  Very thankful he took care of all the logistics, including finding an awesome breakfast place.

It was a Mediterranean place (Mediterranean being one of my favorite types of cuisine) called Panini Kabob Grill.  The steak and eggs meant steak kabob and eggs.  Delicious.  We also had a bread pudding french toast.  Yum.  We split them between us, so I got a taste of everything.  Naomi says french toast is something you either get right or you don't, and this place got it right.  It was a nice way to start a day, a great way to end a difficult year.

Star Wars has been part of my entire life.  My brother was a huge fan as a kid, and this was my connection to him.  I think Manny and I have seen all of the prequel and sequel trilogies together in the theater plus Rogue One.  We saw the original trilogy of course as kids and together at home.  We only didn't see Solo together.  I guess you can say we saw it...solo, ba-dum-bum.  Last Christmas we didn't go on a date.  I remember thinking it would be sad if we didn't get to see this last episode together.  So thankful we did.  Chris joined us for the movie.  He's also a big fan.

The Rise of Skywalker was pretty satisfying (I won't spoil it).  I'm sad Carrie Fisher was not alive to see this last one made.  In the previous film The Last Jedi, the director seemed to break from the other films and tried to create a new story.  Many fans did not like it (we were fine with something different), so they brought back the previous director to give us a movie that would satisfy the fans who had seen these films over a lifetime.  And I think the film achieved that, bringing a very familiar Star Wars feel and storyline with many touching cameos (though I would have liked to see others, but won't spoil who was there and who wasn't).   These films aren't ever going to be considered cinematic masterpieces, but the first Star Wars was a gamechanger.  My brother saw it in Taiwan in the theater, and I was still a baby, so I don't know if I was there.  I saw the second and third ones in the theater with my dad and brother, and I still have some memory of those times.  In the Star Wars world, there is good and there is evil.  Those lines are more often blurred in today's films, even the superhero ones, but it's fun to go back to that idea.

The boys were at Grandma's I think with Grandpa because Grandma had to help set up the Christmas Eve party.  After our date, Manny headed out with Chris while I headed out with my friend Monica for dinner.