This afternoon, we celebrated 4 years of Sugar Inc. at the Presidio Log Cabin. It's no secret that Brian loves tacos, but having the taco truck at the event was both a secret and brilliant. Kate brought Olivia and Lucas up to join in the festivities.
We've all come a long way together, yet it feels like we're just getting started.
Good times!
On Sunday, August 15th, Heidi and Arthur invited us over for dinner. This was our first time visiting them in their new home. Although they are still settling in, there is no doubt the grill is working perfectly. There is no superlative adequate to describe the awesomeness of every detail of the house. We hadn't seen Rachel and JOECHANG in a while, and it was our first time meeting Mark, who loves the toy kitchen and stroller as much as Lucas does. Ellie and Todd were also there with Lila. Here's Todd laying into Arthur about how RichRod won't make it to the start of the season (Okay, that's not what they're talking about and Arthur doesn't know RichRod from a tie rod. Okay, Arthur doesn't know what a tie rod is either). Speaking of which, I didn't get a chance to check out the real garage, but we did get a demonstration of the appliance garage, which rises from the island. I'm told its capacity is 3.7 Vespas. The only thing that could make it cooler would be smoke coming out as it rises.
Dinner was delicious, by the way. Meat and meat was served.
Olivia was invited to her first big girl birthday party. Olivia's friend, Cate, from Gazelle, invited her to her birthday party at her parents' lovely home. Although the kids seemed obsessed with the Tooth Fairy, this fairy told stories, did magic and played with the kids. Olivia's friend from school, Timothy, was also there. She had fun playing with him on the jungle gym and in the jumpy. The fairy also painted all the kids' faces. I wasn't sure if Olivia would be into it, but she said she wanted to do it and was really excited about it. She was especially excited to show Grace when we got home.
Cate was like Olivia's big sister at school, but now's she's graduated. We hope we can see her often.
Happy Birthday, Cate!
It's always hard to believe when it's "that time of year" again, because it always seems it was just yesterday. On Sunday, August 8th, we met the Moons out on the Ave. for the Burlingame Art Fair. This year, there were more balloons gathered and lost. Olivia was also old enough for some rides. We ran into the Trammels with their crew. The twins are getting big.
Thankfully, it wasn't too hot - beautiful all weekend (we were out there on Saturday, too).
Dora arranged for a group of Ben's friends to go sailing with him on the bay for his birthday. Jon, Rudy and Ed (Ben's friends from college), and I joined Ben for the trip. Captain Greg stressed he did not intend to teach us to sail, but rather to show us. That said, we all learned several knots, a bit about the boat, and the basics of the physics of sailing. We motored out of South Beach Harbor to the bay and sailed around for about 90 minutes. Most of us were prepared for some pretty unfriendly weather, but it turned out to be a sunny and beautiful day. There wasn't, however, very much wind. When we motored back in, we took a quick spin around McCovey cove behind AT&T Park.
Afterwards, we had a nice lunch at Tres Agaves. Great day.
Happy Birthday, Ben!
On Wednesday morning, we went on a Gazelle field trip to Roaring Camp to ride a real steam train. Clara, Mike and Alex picked up me and Olivia. It was Mike's birthday, which I happened to mention to Teacher Gloria. At lunch, Teacher Jon led the group in a chorus of "Happy Birthday" and all the kids gave him a hug.
It was a beautiful day as was the scenery in the mountains. Afterwards, we continued down to Santa Cruz for a bit. The kids had fun playing in the arcade on the Boardwalk. Great day.
Thanks to the Moons for the ride. Happy birthday, Mike!
After breakfast on Sunday morning, we all packed up and left Hotel Parisi with the Feleses. They were off to catch their flight back to Detroit and we were driving back to San Francisco. They beat us by about 3 hours. We did stop in Los Angeles for lunch with Grace's parents and brother, Dave.
What a great trip. Something I wish we could do every year. Laura and Chris are moving to San Diego soon, so it isn't too early to start planning for next summer... Good times!
On Saturday afternoon, Kristen and Scott hosted a BBQ at their house in La Jolla, and by BBQ, I mean they brought in some authentic Kansas City ribs, chicken and brisket. They overestimated how much Steve and Chris would put away. We had the whole gang there, including Joanne, Andy and their two boys (their daughter had a sleepover), who came down from Irvine. This was the first time this whole group was together since our wedding.
Kristen and Scott's backyard is full of fun activities for the kids. We took advantage of the cooler weather and their new fire pit to make some smores. Before we left, the girls broke into the costumes, which made it difficult to pry "Princess Olivia" from the action. Princess - uh oh...
Thanks to Kristen and Scott for hosting all of us.
On Saturday, July 17th, we had a late start before heading out to explore La Jolla Cove. We took a quick lap and then spent some time in town while the kids napped/rested.
On Friday evening, we arranged for a sitter to come to the hotel to stay with Sebastian, Eve, Lucas and Olivia in the Feles' suite. We drove over to Kristen and Scott's house and from there the six of us went down to the condo Laura and Chris rented downtown. After drinks, we walked down to Blue Point in the Gaslamp district. Dinner was excellent (and surprisingly quiet).
Afterwards, we went over to Vickie and Steve's condo at Petco park. This isn't the first property they've owned near the park, but it is the first one inside the park. Steve described the elaborate method he used to determine the optimal unit to purchase with the best views while the development was only a hole in the ground (balloons and long string were employed). They use it mostly to entertain and also donate their space to many local charities throughout the season. It seems to keep them very busy. Their philanthropy is admirable.
Everyone enjoyed an adults-only night on the town. When we got back, we determined that the best way to transfer Lucas back to our room was to wheel him away in his pack-n-play. He never stirred.
A haiku:
we went to the beach
kids and dads played in the sand
moms guarded our stuff
And another:
sand was very hot
forgot my flip flops
ouch! run to water
Oh, why not...
sebastian asleep
stroller stuck in sand
does not roll - pick up
The purpose of our trip to Southern California was to meet up with our friends from West Bloomfield. On Thursday night after the zoo, all the families got together for dinner at Sammy's Woodfired Pizza in La Jolla. Chris arranged a private room for our group.
We all started Doherty Elementary Kindergarten together in 1975 - 35 years of friendship! I know Chris and Nick were in AM Kindergarten with me and I'm pretty sure Steve and Scott were in PM Kindergarten. How far we've all come. To prove the point, Chris gave a beautiful toast, in contrast to the infamous 6th grade "Lincoln speech" we all recalled.
Steve and Vickie capped off the occasion with Alan Trammell autographed baseballs for all of us. Very cool.
We ended the evening by taking over a local yogurt shop down the street. All of the kids and adults had a wonderful evening together.
On Thursday, we met up with Laura, Chris and Cooper at the San Diego Zoo. It was hot. Lucas might have sweated out half his body weight in his stroller - poor guy. He called someone to complain. We were hoping the polar bear exhibit was cool, but it wasn't. Olivia and Grace rode the cable car with Eve and Nick across the zoo to the exit. Melanie and I strollered the little guys back. There were a couple escalators to make the trek easier, but Mel's double stroller wouldn't fit. The hike up the hill was my exercise for the year.
All of us had seen enough, except Olivia, who insisted we see tigers and toucans. We went back in search of both and after barely seeing the tiger, we ended up on the other end of the zoo again. We convinced her that some other large-beaked bird was a toucan. This time we did take advantage of the escalators, but it was still a hike.
On the way out, Olivia reminded us that we did not see any giraffes. She was right. We continued to hear about it all the way back to the car, and even a little bit the next day. Now we have a reason to go back.
Seriously, impressive zoo (though Nick said the Detroit Zoo's polar bear exhibit kicked this zoo's exhibit's ass).
We stayed at the apartments at the Parisi Hotel in La Jolla the last time we visited, so reserved one again for this trip. Unfortunately, we booked the last one, so Mel and Nick and Laura and Chris didn't have one. Laura and Chris decided to rent a condo downtown instead. Melanie worked her magic and secured the penthouse suite, which was ridiculously big and nice. We all piled in there a lot of the time. Eve even shared her bed with Olivia for pretend nap time.
We all settled in after LEGOLAND and ordered in some food. Every morning we had breakfast together at the hotel. It worked out great.
On Wednesday, July 14th, we started to head down south from LA. We left Grace's parents' house in the morning and stopped in Huntington Beach, where Grace had to meet a colleague. Her daughter, Sarah, helped entertain Lucas and Olivia at their neighborhood park while we waited. After lunch together at ... wait for it ... McDonald's, we were off to LEGOLAND to meet Melanie, Nick, Sebastian and Eve, who had come to our reunion from Michigan.
We went a little "backwards" around the park (i.e., counter-clockwise). The last time Olivia was at the park in November, she barely passed the 34" mark, which is generally the minimum height for many of the rides. For the medium rides, the minimum was 36", which both she and Eve exceeded, thankfully. The first ride was a fairly subdued safari car adventure.
We popped out and the next ride was a roller-coaster and without hesitation, all of us were in line. It was a first for both Eve and Olivia and they both had a thrilling ride. My camera was confiscated before we departed, so I had to rely on the iPhone camera, which I almost lost on the first drop. There was some screaming. Eve and Olivia made some noise, too. I thought we may have peaked the second ride in, but the kids had fun all the way around the park.
The best part was that Eve and Olivia were able to go on some rides by themselves. Can't wait to bring Sebastian and Lucas back when they can ride some stuff, too. Next year???
Grace was working again on Tuesday. I felt guilty leaving Lucas at home all day on Monday, so I decided I would try to entertain both kids all day. First, I needed to get some coffee and snacks for them. I thought I would try to find something civilized on or around Montana in Santa Monica. By the time I rolled up to Caffe Luxxe, Lucas had fallen asleep. I parked in front and Olivia and I scouted it out. It didn't really look stroller-friendly, so we left. I drove a round a bit, contemplating Starbucks when I realized the only practical option was drive-thru. I searched for the nearest McDonald's, feeling defeated.
I headed over to the only park to which I've been in LA, which is near where Mallika and Sumant (used to) live. On the way over I gave her a call and found out they had moved a month prior. We still went to the park for a bit and afterwards, we went over to Mallika and Sumant's new home in Santa Monica. It's stunning. Sumant's parents had just arrived from India, so the whole family was home and Mallika was kind enough to invite us for lunch. Lucas made fast friends with Yoda, their new dog, and both Olivia and Lucas had a great time playing with Tara and Leela. It was great to catch up with my old friends.
Afterwards, I went back to the same park to meet up with a friend from home, Joanne, and her beautiful daughter, Evy. We determined that we were in 2nd grade together, so we go way back. It was amazing to catch up on the 20+ years since high school. We're determined to get both families together next time!
Oh, I forgot to mention that I needed more snacks for the kids, so of course I went back to the same McDonald's drive-thru. Am I out of the running for parent-of-the-year?
After Freg Segal, we went over to The Grove to meet Laura, Chris & Cooper who were staying in Santa Monica and heading out to explore LA. We had intentions of joining them in Hollywood, but Olivia was too excited about her Hello Kitty watercolors and wanted to go home to paint immediately. We missed Lucas so were happy to go home and see him.
On Monday, July 12, Grace was working in her LA office. Grandma and Grandpa stayed home with Lucas and I decided to take Olivia out for the day. I had high hopes of taking her somewhere interesting for breakfast, but I couldn't really find anything in Santa Monica. Sadly, we ended up at some place on 3rd Street Promenade (so touristy), but the good news is she ate like a champ, which is a victory in itself.
Afterwards, we stopped by PopSugar Studios on 10th St. in Santa Monica. It was my first time visiting our LA office and I also got to meet several people to whom I've only spoken on the phone. Great office space!
O and I then went over to Fred Segal where we got some refreshments. O also scored a Hello Kitty watercolor paint set and book. We got Lucas a stylish Sesame Street t-shirt.
On Sunday, July 11th, we drove down to Southern California for a week of visiting family and friends. We made it down to LA in about 6 hours, with one short stop for lunch. Our first destination was dinner at Houston's in Santa Monica with Ann, Jeremy and Emmy, newlyweds, Bianca and Joon, and brother, Dave.
On Saturday, July 10th, Leslie and Jai invited us over for a pork feast. This was our first time visiting their home and meeting baby Sidney. It was great to see the rest of the Burlingame crew, too. The food was amazing - thanks!
On Thursday morning, Gazelle went on their annual field trip to the Burlingame Fire Station, which has merged with the Hillsborough to be come the Central County Fire Station. We carpooled with Clara and Alex from the school to the station. Firemen Gus, Pat and Paul led us on our tour for the day.
Some things we learned and saw:
I may have had the most fun on the field trip. Can't wait to do it again next year!
Lisa and Brian have been renting houses in and around Healdsburg over 4th of July for the past several years. They invited us up to spend the day with the rest of the gang. The house compound was spectacular in every way. Jamie and Dylan were in from London with their new baby Devon. Alex, Jen and Lauren just moved back from NYC to the Bay Area. This was the first time we met Heidi and Arthur's new daughter, Sophia. Sadie is growing up fast. It was fun spending time with Krista and Aaron's new baby, Nate. Ellie (from WB!), Todd and their cutie, Lila and Molly, Kjell and their cutie, Oliver were also there.
We spent pretty much all afternoon in the pool. Olivia and I practiced blowing bubbles and holding her breath. She got pretty confident in her floatie. The lessons came in handy when we were all in the pool chatting away when Grace noticed that Olivia was inverted. Arthur righted her immediately and Olivia popped up a bit stunned. Grace was more affected by the incident than Olivia, but she did talk about it quite a bit throughout the evening. It was a teachable moment for all of us. All good, thankfully.
We switched gears to dinner. It turned out to be an Iron Chef battle between Arthur and Grace (chicken). Both were supremely delicious.
Thanks to Juliet, Katie, Lisa, Brian, Jack and Lucy and the rest of the gang for all of their hospitality. Olivia was really looking forward to fireworks this year, so luckily was saw a bunch on the drive home. What a great day!
Happy Independence Day, everyone!
On Saturday night, we went over to Sharon and Joe's lovely new home. It was also the first time meeting their new baby, Ellie, who is just over 2 weeks old. She's amazing and so are Sharon, Joe and Samantha for having us over with so much going on.
Bobby was coming to town for a wedding, and was planning to fly all day and get in during the afternoon. I told him to get on an earlier flight so we could play some golf. He successfully got on a 7am flight from NY. I dropped Olivia off at school in the morning and ran into Alex and his dad, Mike. I then convinced Mike that he, too, needed to take the day off for some golf.
We headed out to Half Moon Bay (2nd time this week). It was a little overcast in when we started, but by the middle of the round it all burned off and turned out to be a glorious day by the ocean. I duck-hooked my last drive, which ended up by one of the practice greens. I like to play the Old Course because of the beautiful finish, but one thing that adds some pressure is the "gallery" of hotel guests at the 18th green. No one wants to see me chip - trust me - so I hit a 5-iron pure from the rough to about 10 feet. Between taking pictures, I left my birdie put 4 feet short, but thankfully finished with par. Good times...
Grace and I could not believe the Burlingame Criterium was this weekend because it seems like it was just a few months ago. This past year really has flown by. We were excited nonetheless to take the kids downtown to check it out. We had the best seats on Burlingame Avenue on the sidewalk at Crepevine. Several years ago we were sitting in the same spot and I saw a pretty bad wreck. Thankfully we witnessed no spills today. It was an unbelievably gorgeous day out for the event. Next year we're going to make sure Olivia gets on the course for the kids event, which the announcer described as the largest anywhere in the country.
The kids were really not into the race and decided the park was more their speed. We ran into our old friend Meg and her family at the park and also had a chance to meet her husband, Stu. Although we knew they had lived nearby for several years, we never ran into them before. Several months ago, Grace and I took Lucas for a checkup while Kate took Olivia to a playdate at a friend's house. They had been going over there for a year but we never met them. We were dropping Lucas off at the playdate before heading to work. Kate called us to tell us Olivia had a pretty severe nosebleed, so I went inside to check her out while Grace was calling the doctor. When I got to the door, I expected to see Kate or their friends' nanny, but instead was greeted by ... Meg! What a small world. All this time they had been playing together but we never made the connection. We hope to see them again, soon.
Latest Comments