Glimpse of the Future?

The other night all three kids were playing on the sectional. It really seemed like Mathis was trying to interact with Maile and Beck. He was especially fascinated by Hansel's phone, which Beck was playing with.

Random July Photos

We've been slowly packing for our move to Palo Alto. In the process, we have found some pretty random things, like the below masks. Of course, the kids had fun with them.


Mathis has been enjoying the Exersaucer. He especially likes licking and chewing on parts of it.

Maile has been taking swim lessons for a while now. She can swim to an extent without floaties or fins. Below is an underwater shot.

Once a week we try to take a family photo. The below are two from this month.

3rd of July

Since Hansel had the Friday before the 4th of July off, we decided to take the kids to Gilroy Gardens, where we have season passes. Beck had a trial sports skills class at the Little Gym that morning, so we didn't head out until 10:30a (the park opens at 10). We got there around 11:15, but it wasn't crazy crowded.

I thought we should head to the right first where the cars like the Disney Autopia cars are. They aren't right up front, so of course Maile and Beck got distracted by other rides on the way. Since we had been to Gilroy Gardens before and we have season passes, we didn't feel pressured to go on a ton of rides.

Below are the only photos I took. They are not the Autopia-type cars but another car ride that Beck likes.

Got My Foot

Toward the end of June, Mathis started grabbing his foot. I've only noticed him grab his right foot. Does that mean he's right-handed?

Summer Break in Anaheim - Knott's Berry Farm

The last park we went to was Knott's Berry Farm. It was perfect for Beck. It's a good park for either preschool kids or junior high and older kids. We went first to Camp Snoopy since it's geared toward young kids. When you first walk into Camp Snoopy, there's this roller coaster where the cars spin. I don't think this is meant to be a kid's ride. But since Maile likes roller coasters to an extent, Hansel took Maile on that ride while the rest of us took Beck around Camp Snoopy. Beck went on three attractions and one of them several times before Maile and Hansel finished theirs.

The above ride was called Huff N Puff. Beck went on this one 3 times in a row. It's nice when there's no line.

The above photo was taken before the ride started. The below photo was taken after.

For lunch we met up with an old college roommate of Hansel's mom. She was very nice and fascinating. After that we were re-energized to go back into the park.

We mostly walked around, went on a couple more rides, and watched a couple of shows. Beck fell asleep right before we were going to watch a stunt show, so my MIL stayed with him. He stayed asleep until some kids who were climbing around the bench we were on bumped into his stroller. Luckily, Beck just dipped forward versus on his back.

We also saw a Peanuts show on ice. It was done in a regular stage theatre versus an arena. The stage wasn't a very big area for ice, but the skaters managed to not fly off of it.

We had dinner right outside the park entrance at TGIFriday's. While my MIL and I were finishing up our dinners and waiting for the bill, Hansel took Maile and Beck back into the park. They rode the Huff N Puff over and over and over. When our bill came, I offered to calculate the tip for my MIL. I found that they had already added a 18% tip. The way it was listed it wasn't even obvious that it was the gratuity. We could have easily added another tip. Lesson learned: always check your bill.

Summer Break in Anaheim - The Disney Parks

The week of 6/22 Maile and Beck did not have school, so we planned to hit the Anaheim theme parks that week. Hansel's mom flew in Monday and thank God for that. We would not have survived the trip without her. My mother-in-law and this Ride Max app we used made the whole Disney experience pleasurable.

The first time we went to Disney Beck was a baby. We went on a Friday I believe. It was super crowded, we didn't know about the Fast Pass, and the lines were really long. It was not that fun, and I was not interested in going back any time soon. This time around Hansel had found a third-party application (Ride Max) that helps plan yours days at the Disney parks. You select all the rides, and it returns a schedule that minimizes your wait times. It even tells you when to go and get a fast pass. It also helped that we got to Disneyland before 9:30. We didn't follow the Ride Max schedule to the letter, but it definitely helped us plan our time.

The only glitch in our schedule was when we got in line for the Small World ride. Hansel went to get in line while I took Maile and Beck on Casey Jr Circus Train. When we joined Hansel, he said the line was going quickly for Small World, so he decided to get out of line and wait for us. When we got in line, it was going fairly quickly until we got about 6 boats out. Then the line halted. Basically, they were having trouble getting a wheelchair-bound grandmother on a boat. She was very embarrassed. They actually stopped both boat lines. I suppose to be fair and to allow people who had finished the ride to get out of their boats. The ride didn't get going again until a repair guy came out of the bowels of the park to fix the problem.

We pulled out a stroller for the trip that we hadn't used since we lived in SF. It's a huge stroller, but it can face forward or back and can recline completely flat. So when you have it facing back and fully reclined, it's like a carriage. We used it with Mathis so he could sleep on his tummy while we pushed him around the parks. It worked great and saved my back from having to carry him in a carrier.

Beck didn't want to go on the Dumbo ride, but at least I got him to pose with Dumbo.

The little old lady is in the red. She looks like a queen.

I took this photo with my phone.

We went to Disney the first day. We figured it'd be better to go earlier in the week than later, and it was Hansel's mom's birthday so she got in for free. For her birthday dinner, we went to Joe's Crab Shack. This one has an outdoor play structure right next to the patio seating. 

After we got all the kids to sleep, we took up my MIL's offer to watch the kids, so we could go back to Disney. We had to slowly snake our way around the park because everyone was gathering for a parade. We wanted to go on the Indiana Jones' ride but it was closed for repairs, so we ended up going on Pirates of the Carribean and Haunted Mansion. We got back to our suite around 10:45 and was greeted by a crying Mathis. He apparantly woke up and had been crying for a while. I felt bad for my MIL, but she said she was okay and wasn't worried about him. She knew he wasn't hungry and probably just wanted his mommy. As you probably guessed, we didn't go out the next night.

We planned to go to California Adventure the next day. It doesn't open until 10a. So since we had 2-day park hopper passes, I dropped Hansel, Maile and Beck off at Disney at 9a so they could go on the Finding Nemo submarine ride. After feeding Mathis, my MIL and I left to meet Hansel and the kids by 9:45 outside California Adventure. By the time we got to the resort, we were directed to the overflow parking, which is actually closer to the parks than the main parking.

At California Adventure, I spent a good part of the morning waiting in line for the Toy Story ride. It's a lot like the Disneyland Buzz Lightyear ride. You sit in a moving vehicle while shooting at targets.

 Right before getting on the Toy Story ride

We caught a couple of shows. The Aladdin show, which was like a mini-musical you'd see on Broadway. Good staging, singing, and humor and just the right length for young kids. We also saw an outdoor show on a small stage about animation. Also had good singing but the real highlight is that Maile got to meet Cinderella.

I'll write about Knott's Berry Farm in the next entry.

Happy Father's Day!

We actually celebrated Father's Day twice. I had thought Father's Day was 6/14, so the Friday before Maile, Beck, and I painted and decorated a paper tray for Hansel. We wrapped it up in newspaper and had him unwrap it Sunday morning. Surprise! Hansel enthusiastically said thanks and then pointed out that Father's Day was the following Sunday. I felt a little relieved since I felt our gift alone was insufficient.


The following week I went to two different Macy's to try and find a zip-up hoodie with some kind of graphic for Hansel. He had liked the Wonder Woman one Vicki and Caroline had given me for my birthday. All the ones with some kind of graphic element were either too big or too skater. So, I settled for an Air Jordan zip up. On the actual Father's Day (6/21), Hansel went for a long run that morning, so it gave us time to make a blueberry lemon bread. And after Hansel's shower, the kids surpised him with the sweatshirt. (We ended up returning it, but it's the thought that counts, right?)

Beck Gets Sick

On 6/16 when I went to go wake up the kids, Beck was not happy. He sometimes is a little sleepy when I wake him up, but that morning he was uncomfortable. So, I asked him if he wanted to lie down in Mommy and Daddy's bed. As I laid him down I heard a bubbly burp and thought uh oh. I immediately grabbed the trash can and put it under him just in time. He also ended up having a bit of a fever. After sleeping off and on all morning, he was on the road to recovery. Hansel took a couple of photos of him while he slept. And yes, he still uses a pacifier when he sleeps. We're working on that.

6/13 Telly and Hogene Get Married

On Saturday, 6/13, Telly and Hogene got married. We ended up not attending the ceremony (sorry, guys). Three young kids and a Catholic ceremony don't mix. Then add on top of that the ceremony starting during naptime and a long break between the ceremony and reception, and you have a recipe for disaster.

The reception was fun. Hogene thought of everything. They had a vegetarian and kids buffet station separate from the banquet food. The veggie dishes were some of the best I've ever had. I especially liked the eggplant dish and the tofu dish where the tofu were cut into circular shapes. And they had two balloon artists. The kids and adults were lining up for them from all sides.

Even though the band Buddha Belly started a little late, Maile and Beck wanted to stay and watch. So we hung around for a few songs. When we got in the car, I realized I should feed Mathis. Hansel used the opportunity to head back inside for more music and mayhem while Maile and Beck stayed with me watching a DVD. Hansel managed to get quoie sloshed in 15 minutes, so I ended up driving home.

We didn't take any photos during the reception. Wish I had. Hogene looked beautiful, and I loved her dress.

I curled Maile's hair for the occassion. It took longer to do her hair than it took me to get ready.

We left Beck's blazer at school, so we busted out the Chinese jacket, which fit better for the reception anyway.

Self Portraits

Hansel likes to take self portraits with the kids. Here's one where they're all in the shot.

Photo taken on 6/13

Mathis and His Bath

For a short while (photo taken 6/6) when it was bath time, Mathis would hold onto the faucet handle. There's no way he was going to fall into the tub. Check out his funky bald spot.