Browse Month: January 2009

It was a happy Friday.

Happy Chevy's

At work, our Happy Hours are usually on the East Bay but this time it was going to be across the bridge in my neck of the woods.  It’s been a while since we’ve had a Happy Hour so we were happy all day long in anticipation of $3 margaritas. With a quick drive through the carpool lane, we were extra happy at Chevy’s by 5:30.  They’re special margarita was pineapple coconut this time around and it was tasty.

Here are the photos.

Taylor's

Afterward, I met up with Jes down the street and we had dinner at Taylor’s Automatic Refresher.  I snacked on the chili cheese fries while Jes inhaled his bacon cheeseburger.  Doesn’t it look tasty?

Eatin’, Walkin’, and Almost Talkin’

jack_toys

It was date night for Jack’s parents so I went over to hang out with him.  Now that he can walk and understands so much more, he’s getting easier to babysit.  He played with his toys and even did a big “Ta Da!” for me from behind the curtains (sorry the photo is so blurry).

Ta Da!

We went through the usual going-to-bed routine but he put up a little bit of fight today.  He was obviously pooped out but seemed to need a little company too.  Plan A is to leave the room and allow him to fall asleep on his own so that’s what I did.  After about 15 minutes of whining and eventually screaming, I decided to go back in his room for Plan B.  I laid him back down (he was standing in the crib), patted his back for a couple seconds, and stood over the crib as he settled down.  Every couple minutes he would look up to make sure I was still standing there and then turn back over to sleep.  It was quite cute.  It didn’t take long for him to finally fall asleep and I was able to leave the room without a peep out of him.  What a funny little dude.  It’ll be interesting once he starts talking.

38 Days to Go!

Brother and Joy are getting married in just over a month. Things are getting finalized and we’re all excited about going to Hawaii as one big happy family. Here’s their wedding blog: thaiddown.com. Get it?! Ha!

Oxtail for the Year of the Ox

vyl_cny09

It’s the Year of the Ox, which brings us a hard-working year and will require diligence and patience.  I guess it’s appropriate considering the crappy economy and that Vyl spent these past two days preparing a Chinese New Year feast for us.  Ryan counted nine dishes today: braised oxtail, roasted duck, turnip cake, lotus root salad, Chinese broccoli, steamed fish, Chinese sticky rice, pork-stuffed bittermelon, and chive boxes.  They were all so yummy and Vyl really outdid herself this year.  Michelle also made a mochi cake with red bean so we all went home totally stuffed.

jack2

jack

Jack is walking around independently now and had a great time at the dinner table too.  I think he ate about 4 or 5 lotus root slices! So, Happy New Year and I hope all the hard work this year pays off!!  :)  And thanks for cooking, Vyl!!

Here are photos from our dinner.

Sprouty Update: Day 22

sprout_22_closeup
Check it!  I gots me 2 mo’ sprouts!  Woot!

greenhouse jar

My greenhouse jar has done wonders for the little egg giving it just the right amount of humidity and moisture in the soil.  I knew I had other uses for all the spaghetti sauce jars that I refuse to throw away.  Reduce Reuse Recycle!!!

23 Futures in my Hands

We make decisions all day and everyday.  What am I going to eat for dinner today?  Do I take BART or drive to work?  The ginger cookie or chocolate chip with nuts?  Well, this morning I woke up early and participated in a round of interviews for prospective students for my graduate program.  Initially, it was a little weird being on the other side of the table but I got the hang of it and it made me really appreciate the process and importance of school interviews.  When we were all done with the morning, we had chosen 9 out of the 23 candidates for the program with recommendations for some of the “maybes” to come back next year.  It’s interesting to see how lower GPAs can be off-set by life experience and the interview and how you can’t judge a person solely by just one component.  It’s already an awesome experience to influence a student as a teacher but it’s an unfamiliar feeling that I have about determining whether or not someone can start a new careeer in the fall.  Is this what parenting is like?