January 2026 (Covid, shoulder injury, Lucas sports class, Art of Manga, Smallwood Memorial, Isaac's eating)

What? We're actually in the same year now? Hopefully I can do better with catching up again. I've had less free time than expected this summer with different happenings and projects that I can hopefully write about soon. 

The beginning of the year was a Covid recovery blur. After the body aches wore off, I noticed my shoulder was still hurting. That turned out to be a rotator cuff injury for which I'm still doing physical therapy. My cough and fatigue continued for some time, but I was well enough to take Isaac to and from school and take Naomi back to school. Manny and I took her out for hotpot before she returned to school. She had an interview for a job while recovering herself. 

Thankfully once we were back to Lucas's homeschool sports class mid-January, I was well enough to go. We hired a professional coach and trainer (also a homeschooler) to conduct PE exercises and games for the group as a whole. Generally our attendance is now during the winter season, and we also have to switch to a different park because the field at our usual park is off limits. So, we go to an open public track in a different city and use the track and surrounding areas for activities. 

There ended up being two weeks the coach could not come because he had gone on vacation (planned) but was in Mexico and stuck in a cartel firestorm down there (unplanned). Thank God they were able to fly home safely. Another family and I were able to conduct kickball and a race. I brought snacks and drinks and chocolates as prizes for the winners. It was kind of different to me this year that other parents didn't volunteer to bring anything even when the suggestion was thrown out. In general, the dynamics of the homeschool groups seem to have changed over the years in terms of the sharing of meals and lives. I feel that there is a less of a sense of community, but I hope to cultivate that a bit more this coming year, my last, with the group.

Naomi the extrovert was happy to get back to socializing and going out with her friends and classmates. I the introvert went to a Japanese manga museum exhibit at de Young Museum by myself and watched Rev. Richard Smallwood's funeral service online. Smallwood's gospel music has had a huge impact on me over the years. 

Lastly, in January we started with a new treatment program to help Isaac with his eating issues. This was pretty disruptive to his school schedule, but it has been a good program, and he's worked hard for it. At one point I was attending five or six appointments a week for it, including parent-only meetings, but it eased up over time. Isaac was diagnosed last year with a food avoidance disorder, and it's been quite a journey. Every meal, even every snack, is a challenge. I think he'd be happy to never have to eat again, but that is part of what the program addresses. I'm very thankful that we found something that works. He's had so many ailments and maladies, my hope is that addressing this will help him with a health turnaround overall.

Shuffle warmup at the track

Coach sleeping on Pluto

Double the cute

Making my October tart in January instead per request

At Naomi's favorite hotpot place

We opted for the barbecue, too

Manny talked to Naomi about her life

Gachapons (like toy dispenser machines) outside the exhibit

My favorite manga artist is Rumiko Takahashi (Ranma 1/2 and Inuyasha)

The exhibit was impressive, spanning centuries of early manga style scrolls to present day

Manga printing exhibit

Coach J with the kids about to do some cross-training

Total Praise and Center of My Joy are two of my favorite songs of all time.

February 2023 Part 2 (Valentine's, birthdays, movies, visits,

I have been so busy, but once again found this blog so useful recently when searching for some pictures and details of past events, so I'm going to keep trying to catch up with the present! I'm only almost a year behind! Sorry about the typos in the last post--I was just rushing through it, but I've edited it now.

I have a friend from my previous church who is on disability after complications from a surgery to donate part of her liver to save her friend's life. I visit her from time to time, help her a little or take her out. It has been quite a journey for her finally finding a doctor who would believe her and do a more thorough investigation into her constant high pain levels. I have a doctor friend who is amazing and has saved many lives, but she has sometimes been dismissive of people's ailments, including this friend's. Maybe that is bias built from experience. Doctors are only human, even if some of the best.

Speaking of ailments to not be dismissed, Isaac has sensory issues with food and so most holidays are sad for him, watching us enjoy ourselves over food he can't eat. So I continue to let him have Valentine's Day as his holiday where I mostly only get or prepare foods he can eat. For aesthetics I do add some things he doesn't eat, like macarons this year, but it's mostly a good day for him. We don't really eat sweets that often, but it would not seem that way based on Valentine's. Isaac didn't want to get or make valentines for his classmates, so he and a few others who didn't sat around while everyone else passed them out. I think that was his first experience with exchanging valetine's at school.

Manny and I went to a Korean first birthday celebration at a Chinese restaurant. It was nice, but I don't think many people were down with the exotic selections of food unfortunately. I liked it for the most part. We ran into some old friends there on our way out. Also in February I went with some friends to see Jesus Revolution, based on Greg Laurie's autobiography. I thought it was a good movie, though I figured it had theatrical license and was told from just one main perspective. There were many articles that refuted some of what was in the movie, like this interview with Lonnie Frisbee's former wife. I was a little disappointed that no one else came, from my family or the church, but hopefully they'll see it eventually. We did however to go see the latest Ant-Man, which I thought was alright, but I think Marvel is beginning to lose its touch, or at least its popularity. 

In February it also snowed at my in-laws' house! They live in an area that usually doesn't see snow, so that was pretty cool, or cold. Overall, I felt like February 2023 was a good month of growth and healing for me, and I'm as always very grateful for my friends and family.

Church dinner. I think this was for the elders' installation, but I don't remember! I think Manny is asking Isaac if he wants some chips here?

Visiting my friend

Valentine's treats

My friend makes me feijoa chutney made from feijoas she grows.

First birthday for Alice

Looks like she picked music!

Piggy buns

Me and G.

Watching Ant-Man together

Lunch with Isaac during February break

Blood test (results were normal)

Out with Naomi during the break

And lunch with Manny, too, at Jersey Mike's

In-n-Out after the movie

Such a portrait pose

Giving the congregational prayer at church

1-on-1 meeting with my church discipleship group leader

Snow at my in-laws' for the first time in forever!

April Part 6 (Going Home to Manny and Pluto, Back to School, Easter, Covid)

The next morning we got up and went to the IHOP next door. I can't remember what Naomi and I were looking forward to getting, but they didn't have it! And Isaac wanted protein pancakes, but theirs weren't that great, so he ate more fries than anything else. But Lucas ate well! He ordered a blueberry French toast, which was very large, and devoured everything.

It was a nice Uber ride to the airport. The driver put on Sade which probably bored the kids, but she's one of my favorite singers. So he and I chatted a lot about what is now old school music. The flight home was delayed, but we made it by dinner time. Manny had been coughing for a couple of days, but he took good care of Pluto. He had gone out to eat a couple of times. Not sure if one of those times was when he got Covid, but he got it.

Despite being indoors for long lines and in packed crowds (but vaccinated and wearing our masks), we didn't get Covid. My friend's family who had gone to Disneyland when we went all came down with it. The night we got back, Manny was coughing openly all night, and I was close at first, but had flipped myself over to the foot of the bed to try to sleep. I suspected Covid. Once Manny tested the next day, he was quick to quarantine. Thankfully our bedroom has an attached bathroom. So I brought him meals at the door and stayed masked, kept the kids away, cleaned often. He tested positive for 11 days, I think, and I think he quarantined for 13 days. It was rough for everyone, but we made it through. Manny was pretty sick the first few days, and the congestion took a very long time to clear. I had to do everything in my power not to get it, because if I went down, too, who would take care of the boys, drive Naomi to school, etc.?  I worked very hard those two weeks, but also made sure not to overdo it so as not to bring down my immunity too much. Thankfully Manny was able to eat, even though he could not smell or taste anything. It seems to me, based on how hard it hit him, that he might have had a Delta variant and not the Omicron that was spreading rapidly at the time. Maybe that is also why I didn't get it despite being near him when  he was contagious. No one he hung out with tested positive, unless he caught it at the supermarket. 

So Easter Sunday was spent without him, even though he was just upstairs. I think we FaceTimed or did Messenger video. Yay for technology! So Naomi went back to school, but lost the week to catch up on some homework and prep for the SAT and the school fashion show. Lucas returned to his online school, also losing time he needed to write an essay. The year before, both of them had wanted to go somewhere for spring break. But not so much this year! Isaac returned to his homeschooling, our home stretch before he went into public school. I'm writing this in August, and he's already started! Gotta catch up a little faster! Time flies when you're so busy!

Lucas enjoying French toast.

Naomi and Lucas across the way this time instead of in front of us.

I think this was Isaac's first time trying Coke!

We were so happy to see him!

Isaac requested a house egg hunt. We didn't have a basket so used his Iron Man mask. 😄

Simple Easter Sunday meal--ham, asparagus, chicken and dumpling soup, roasted and scalloped potatoes.

Taking Pluto for a "walk."

Vegetarian meal for Naomi's AP Environmental Science class

Pluto likes to hug Isaac with his tail.

January 2022 (Visits, Isaac's Hobbies, Dynamic Shifts)

Going to knock out January in one post. Not a whole lot happened, and we stayed home more due to another Covid surge. Naomi was not feeling well on one of those days and I had to take her to get tested, because at-home kits were sold out everywhere here. We were in line for over two hours, or at least I was. I sent her back to the car a few times to not get sicker. Manny's director quit, and all these projects and responsibilities got dumped on him, so he couldn't spend the kind of time he had before with the boys, and there was a lot of tension with them. I don't even think he noticed. 

Isaac and Manny had also been solving the Rubik's cube together for a while, but then Isaac started mastering master algorithms and there wasn't much a contest anymore. He also got into yo-yoing and playing the piano again. He also had been working out quite a bit and could do a lot of full-on pull-ups. It was nice to see, but as with many things with Isaac, once he's out of practice, either from being busy or going on trips, he feels discouraged because he's lost his momentum or progress and has to restart it. So as of late (April now), he isn't really doing much of those hobbies anymore. He really had gotten good enough to compete in cuber competitions. I think his best solve was a little under 8 seconds.

Though I mostly stayed home, I did get to go out twice to eat with friends. And Manny and I went to the hardware store to get some wood so he could create a floor in our attic so we could start storing more things up there. I'm a little concerned about any of it getting mold or water damage, but we need the extra storage space.

One of the best things about January is I started coming out of my seasonal depression, feeling better, and ready to have a fresh start for the new year. It's back to normal in more ways than one!

Out with M. for brunch

New year's meal, traditionally processed meats for us and then later pozole. I made candied bacon and dirty rice. Li'l smokies, meatballs, and sweet potato fries. Wasn't feeling up to making fondue for Naomi.

Manny buying some wooden planks

Pozole with radishes, avocado, cilantro, and lime, made in the pressure cooker

In line to get tested for Covid. It was daylight when we arrived.

Manny's smoked pork butt

Isaac and his best buddy

Pluto must sit in all boxes, even this tiny one which he flattened once he lay down in it.

Isaac teaching himself piano from an app

My friend G. got me a ham & brie croissant and coffee. Love her.

Chicken tortilla soup from the pressure cooker

Chocolate chip oatmeal cookies

Pluto in the window

Pink and blue haze at sunset (no filter)

Isaac's collection of cubes