Peg’s Journal

Our lives of late has been such a whirlwind of activity and escapade (I took lots of photos for your viewing pleasure). *happy clicking*

In the last 12 days:

- my mom, Sis, and Marisa came to visit. With Sis living in Texas and Mom and Marisa in NorCal, it was such a treat having part of the family here (minus Wil and Dad, who are on their second father/daughter trip braving the safaris of Africa). Shopping fests by day, slumber parties by night! It was such a blast!

- we hit up “the Happiest Place on Earth” not once, or twice…but three times! Yeah, we’re putting much mileage on our annual pass. Woo-hoo!

- we attended two weddings; Jennifer & Vu’s and Kevin & Tracy’s. It was Ashlyn’s sixth time as flowergirl (for Jennifer and Vu’s wedding)….she’s building quite a resume. I caught myself being a bit stagemom-ish when I motioned for her to smile and not fidget up at the alter. I should just be happy that she didn’t freak out or cry. hehehe

- we hung out with friends and family a lot.

- we went on our first family outing to Sea World. Spent the day with our friends catching shows, touching starfish, feeding sea lions, and generally having a grand time. With 18 of us in total, I thought we did a pretty decent job covering/exploring the park. My forehead, cheeks, nose, arms, shoulders, and back are now beet-red, tender, and sensitive to the touch compliments of the sun.

I’m tired and physically drained. I spent today laying on the couch….and damn, it felt good.

My kids have been so spoiled by all the recreation. After leaving Sea World last night:

Ashlyn: “what are we doing tomorrow?”
Peg: “you’re going to school.”
Ashlyn: “no, I mean after school.”
Peg: “nothing…stay home.”
Ashlyn: *disappointed* “AWWWW!”

Spoiled, I tell ya! Spoiled!

Whoa! I can’t believe we’re already into June! Last month flew by so quickly…and the last few weeks have been incredibly busy for us.

Our NorCal trip was great…it’s always good to be back to the place that feels like “home” and to be reunited with those I miss and love. Every day kept me busy…whether it be running errands, partaking in wedding rehersal/dinner, or driving the bride-to-be around.

After what felt like ages of meticulous planning and preparing, culminated to one very special day last last Saturday - my best friend’s wedding!
It was such a momentous occassion for so many. I cherished, reflected, laughed, cried, celebrated, and cried some more.
The entire day (beginning at 7am) the groom and his groomsmen treated us bridesmaids like princesses, and Bett like a Queen. With all the spoiling and pampering, I almost felt like it was my wedding. I believe everyone felt the same way. Bett and Chew had a breathtaking ceremony and reception that was intimate, beautiful, and catered to each and every guest. It’s hard for me to put into words how I felt and what it meant to me. Having been a bridesmaid 8 times already, this was my first time being the matron-of-honor….and what an honor it was! I felt extremely proud and overjoyed to stand alongside Bett on her wedding day. For months I fretted over my speech…not wanting to be too sappy, or too casual, or too long-winded. Not to mention, I am terrified and horrible at public speaking. But with Sarah’s help, my speech was accompanied by a fun slideshow to help convey my sentiments.

Ashlyn also did a wonderful job as flowergirl. At her tender age of 4, she’s got 5 weddings under her belt! This was the first wedding, however, that she stood up at the alter throughout the entire ceremony (20 minutes). Although I did feel her flower-wand poking my butt….twice! HAHAHA!

Again, CONGRATS to the happy couple!

With 2 big weddings (Patrick & Karen’s and Bett & Chew’s) over with, I thought we would revert back to our quite days, but I was wrong.
After returning from our NorCal trip, my days have been busy (hence the delay in updates). We celebrated Ed’s Birthday, went to an Angels game, dinners with friends and family, attended Ashlyn’s Kindergarten Welcome, enjoyed a hot summer night at Disneyland, Nicholas’ Birthday party, and Wey & Gina’s LA reception.

I’m still neck deep in laundry and the house is a blown-up mess, but I finally finished uploading over 1,500 pictures (my camera and Aric’s combined). *whew!*
Hopefully this week will be more relaxing.

Our week and weekend was very busy and emotional….filled with both sad and happy events. I really want to thank everyone for your heartfelt emails and comments after my post about Nathan. It’s been such a crazy week/weekend, and if you haven’t gotten a response back from me, you will.

Saturday, we took the kiddies shoe shopping and to lunch, then ran some errands before Nathan’s Viewing. We got to see many relatives (who flew in from the East Coast). As well as meet new family members (lil’ Zoe and baby Robert). Afterwards, Aric, the kiddies, and I had a late dinner with the in-laws at The Old Spaghetti Factory in Fullerton.

CONGRATULATIONS to my bro-in-law and his new wife!
Sunday, Patrick and Karen got married. The ceremony and reception was soooooo beautiful and breathtaking. They never followed the traditional route when it came to wedding planning. From the invitation, wedding website, ceremony, reception, and slideshow/movie…everything had a humorous and personal touch. I loved it! And I love them!

For Aric, who rarely talks to his brother (they share an odd brother-relationship), I know it was a very proud and joyous occassion for him.

During the slideshow/movie, we sat at the bar for a better view of the screen. The bartender had some fun with the girls and hooked ‘em up with drinks (soda water)…and Aric got some fun pictures. I had to put them in a separate album because I didn’t want anyone to report me to Social Services. HAHAHA!

Oooh, and I almost forgot…we got to meet Adam Watts! He’s a close friend of Patrick, and a songwriter who does quite a bit of work with the Disney family (Everlife, Aly & AJ, etc…)…and Ashlyn’s favorite - JESSE McCARTNEY!…that’s HUGE!!!

All in all, we’ve been on an emotional roller coaster…high, low, high, low…with me crying all the way. I’m physically and emotionally drained….plus I still have a lingering cold that flares up on certain days. It’s weird. Both kids are runny and coughing, too. *sigh*

I got back late last night from a four-day trip to Dallas. It was my first time visiting the Lone Star State, and aside from missing Aric and the kiddies, I had a really nice time. I don’t think I had ever gone so many days kids-free since Summer was born. At first, the freedom felt oddly foreign, as if I were missing a limb….but as time progressed, I relished the independence and autonomy. It was awesome!

Wil and I rendezvoused at DFW Friday afternoon. We shared a room, spent quality girl-time with Sis, hung out with Joe, toured the city, met family, met a ton of people, overindulged in food and drinks, and partook in Sis’ wedding ceremony.

Introducing:

Sis and my new brother-in-law, Joe
CONGRATULATIONS!

I know some of you might be scratching your head right about now…confused, since Sis was already married. Well, long story short - she was, then she wasn’t, and now she just did. It’s complicated…and I wasn’t even planning on going to her wedding until a couple of weeks ago…but now I’m glad I went. Some things you just have to see to believe.
Anyhow, the wedding was beautiful and I’m finally off the emotional rollercoaster that I’ve been stuck on.

Can I just tell you what a wonderful husband I have? Aric’s amazing in so many ways, but I’m always blown away by the way he steps in and takes over the “mommy” role when I need to step away…and does it like it ain’t no thang. Some people wouldn’t think that that would be a big deal…but it totally is! Heck, there are times when I feel overwhelmed by the kiddies and I’m the “mom”.
Aric not only took care of the kids, but also shuttled Ashlyn to and from school, did laundry, oil-change for my car, cleaned out our home office, and took the kids out to play (Chuck E Cheese, visiting family, and Sue’s birthday party). Damn, that’s way more than what I usually do.
Anyhow, everything I had stressed about was totally unnecessary. I worried more for the lil’ one than the big one. I feared that Summer might cry a lot, be resistent at bedtime, and generally drive Aric nutty (stuff that she usually does to me)….but I was told she didn’t do any of that. *thumbs up*
I also heard that Ashlyn helped Aric out and kept the living room clean. *thumbs way up*:mrgreen: Hmmmm, why do they seem so much “easier” when I’m not around?

Needless to say, our weekend was filled with lots of fun….and celebrations:

HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY to Cin!
HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY to Sue!
And, CONGRATULATIONS to MoujiBoy!