Browse Category: outings

Parenting Dilemma

DSC_3680-2We went to Reese’s 3rd birthday party today and Kumquat and I had a little drama.  Kumquat’s favorite toy of the day was this shopping cart. She had such a good time pushing and pulling it back and forth in the front yard.  That was until an older girl came by and tried to take it from her.  They struggled for a bit and Janie really held her own but eventually the older girl won and Janie was left in tears.  I tried my best to mediate but the girl won because 1) The older girl is bigger and stronger, 2) I didn’t want to cause any drama with Michelle and Ryan’s new friends and 3) I don’t really know what the rules of sharing are anymore.  Kumquat was playing with it for a while so is this one of those situations when she’s supposed to let others play with it too?  All I know is that I now had a distraught little girl in my lap because someone had interrupted a perfectly good activity that she was thoroughly enjoying.  Honestly, I wanted to cry too.

DSC_3687Well, of course the girl played with it for only a few minutes and abandoned it in the play room.  Kumquat found it again and was so happy to have it back.  Not even a minute later, the same girl came by and took it from her again!!!!  Kumquat cried and I didn’t know what I should have done.  Do I yell at the girl to stop bullying a much younger girl who has no idea what “sharing” means?  Do I stand by and watch the bullying happen?  Do I allow Kumquat to fend for herself with the risk of someone getting physically hurt?  I could see the fight in Kumquat’s face and she was ready to throw down!  Alas, I wimped out and allowed the girl to take the shopping cart once again as I consoled my daughter with a red guitar, which seemed to help distract her for the moment.  I just kept telling her (and myself) that they would be going home soon and then Janie would have the shopping cart all to herself for the rest of the evening.  I was also putting on my mental to-do list to go online tonight to order Janie her very own shopping cart from Amazon.

IMG_5783So, as I had promised, the girl finally went home and Janie had the shopping cart all to herself and went about her merry way.  She had her balloon, fairy wings, and the shopping cart for hours to pushing, pulling, and playing without the threat of a bully taking it all away from her again.

Birthday Weekend

IMG_8624 I had a pretty good birthday.  Turning a year older is so much easier when you’re surrounded by the people who love you.IMG_8628The celebration started on Friday, my birthday eve, with a dinner at La Briciola with Jason and Jia.

IMG_5323On the morning of my birthday, we woke up early to catch a flight to LAX.  The flight was full but we got to LA in one piece.  My mom picked up my favorite treat and I was so happy.

After the baby shower, we went back to the Magical House to rest.  Then it was dinnertime!!!  IMG_8639IMG_8645

IMG_8648We went to Lawry’s for our favorite prime rib meal and it did not disappoint.  IMG_2336The last time Brother and I celebrated our birthdays there was in 2010 and it was good to be back.

Even Stevens

IMG_5199On Sunday we went to watch the America’s Cup Finals again.  Oracle Team USA started out with a 2-point penalty and was getting their butts kicked early on.  At one point, it seemed pretty pathetic and that the Kiwis would take it all very easily.

IMG_5200On Sunday, the score was 8 to 3 with New Zealand favored to win it that day.  They only need to get to 9 to win the cup and there were two races scheduled that day.

IMG_5201Once again, I ran to the park with Kumquat in the stroller and we got a good spot on the lawn again with a giant beanbag and all.  We had plenty of time to do a little shopping in the stores and grabbed lunch from the truck parked inside before the races began.

IMG_5232We had empanadas, garlic fries, and shared the water bottle of wine that we brought from home.

IMG_8484Well, the two races were actually pretty exciting to watch and USA won both races!  Amazing.

There was a race yesterday (Monday) and two today (Tuesday).  USA won all three and now their tied at 8 to 8!  Who would have thought this would go on for so long?!  Everyone expected there would be a winner by the end of summer but it’s fall now and we still don’t have a winner.  If the conditions cooperate, there is one more race scheduled for tomorrow.  Too bad I have to go to work because it would have been fun to go watch it.  I honestly don’t care who wins.  It’s just been a fun event to mark the summer of 2013 for us.

Update 9/25/13: They won the America’s Cup today!  Wow, unbelievable.

finally upgraded

IMG_5175The new iPhone 5s came out yesterday and it was sold out everywhere as expected.  On a chance, we actually got up early and headed out to the Apple Store on Stockton to see what they received overnight.  There was a short line outside before the store opened at 8am and I got my hands on a voucher for the 32GB space gray iPhone 5s.  I originally wanted the silver one but realized that it doesn’t really matter.  All I really wanted was a new phone with greater than 16GB and I got it.  I’ve had the iPhone 4 for over 2 years and had gone through water damage and two cracked front screens so this is an upgrade regardless.  I waited through 2 upgrades and now I have a better camera and I met Siri for the first time today.  I also realized that this is the first retina display in our entire household of Apple products.

IMG_5191It’s so pretty…

IMG_0001 1I also got myself a pretty good case.  It apparently has an Impact Mesh that is supposed to be better at withstanding a drop or two.  Let’s hope it does because I’m tired of looking at a cracked screen and this little munchkin has made my poor phone more at risk for damage by at least 10-fold.

Run, Sun, and Sailing

IMG_8428Sometimes I feel so lucky to live where we live.  On Sunday morning, we packed up the stroller and headed out for an action-packed day.  It started with a good run all the way to America’s Cup Park.

IMG_8432At the lawn, all the beanbags were claimed so Kumquat and I found an open spot and set-up camp.  A few minutes later, I looked over and saw an empty giant pillow AND a beanbag chair!!  Yes!  After looking around to make sure I wasn’t stealing it, I dragged it over to our campsite and it was ours for the rest of the day!! Woohoo!

IMG_5113For lunch, I went over to the food trucks parked nearby and grabbed a bacon-y feast of a fried chicken sandwich, bahn mi, and chili cheese fries.  The food truck was called Bacon Bacon so EVERYTHING had bacon in it.  There goes my low-cholesterol diet right out the door!!  It went perfectly with the water bottle full of wine that we brought from home.  That saved us about $22!

IMG_5112They also had these nifty water stations for refilling your water bottle (with actual water).

IMG_8450We got an awesome view of the race from the big screen and they have cool visual tracking technology to help us see how fast they’re going and where the start and finish lines are on the water.

IMG_5124The lawn got packed quickly as the first race was about to start and as people were practically sitting on top of each other, we had a luxo spot on the pillow with Kumquat’s stroller folded flat on the floor.

IMG_8451I managed to buckle Kumquat into the half-stroller and pulled the shade over her.  It was PERFECT!  She actually slept almost two hours and woke up right after the second race finished.  That was some pretty ideal timing.

IMG_8453Both races were close and really fun to watch.  Who thought sailing could be so exciting!?!  By the end of the afternoon, Jes was sunburned, Kumquat had a runny nose, and I was exhausted.

IMG_8455We had a great time and got a good dose of Vitamin D too!

Lobstah Dinnah

IMG_5100On Saturday evening, we met up with Jason and Jia at New England Lobster Market & Eatery.  It’s in Burlingame and just south of the airport.  I had heard about it and then saw it featured in Sunset Magazine, which made me want it even more.  IMG_5097We ordered the dressed lobster roll, lobster and corn chowdah, and crab nachos (made with potato chips instead of tortilla chips!).  IMG_5101All were pretty tasty but the chowdah was my favorite.  They have lots of seating inside and outside and you can buy seafood to take home and cook yourself.  There’s also a “Tank House” in the back where they have all their live lobster, crab, and bivalves.  It’s a cool place and worth a visit.