Peg’s Journal

Goodness…is it November already? It’s crazy how quickly the months fly by now. The past couple of weeks have been busy (and what else is new?!). Aside from work, lots of time spent volunteering at Ashlyn’s school, birthday parties, Halloween festivities, errands, home improvements, and our usual social activities, my days seem like such a blur.

This past weekend was no different. Friday night was spent with our friends at James and Grace’s for dinner and some fun.
Saturday, we drove up to Stevenson Ranch to vist with Brian and Grace, and to meet their new addition – Baby Gradin!

Sunday, we woke up bright and early and participated in a 2K run (aka Dinosaur Dash) for our schools. Afterwards, Aric and I worked on the yard, I painted a large birdhouse (a 1st grade class project for the Fall Fundraiser), had a late lunch with the in-laws, laundry, played with the kids, gave the kiddies and dog a bath (not together), watched “Everyone’s Hero”, and called it a night.

I didn’t think Daylight Savings would have much of an affect on us…but this morning I woke up to find Ashlyn standing next to my bed, already dressed and ready for school at 7am! Then tonight, she fell asleep at the dinner table. Crazy!

Here are some miscellaneous pics from October.

Tags: friends, kiddies, pictures, weekend

I had started writing a post on our weekend, but then stopped after the fires struck. With the fires continuing to rage, I didn’t want to sound insensitive by going on like everything’s back to normal just because we were spared. But frankly, I’m a bit tired of and depressed by the fires. All day long, I watch it on the news and read about it on the web, I don’t know about you, but I need a break from all the fire coverage. So I’ve decided to finish my post and offer something light.

With all our kids in school now, our circle of friends don’t get a chance to get together as often as we used to. We still try to get together once a week….so last Friday, we gathered at Grace and James’ for dinner. Grace served us Chirashi bowl (and udon and shrimp tempura for the kids)….and it was AMAZING! Midway through the meal, I turned and gave her a big hug. She just laughed at me. Seriously though, I believe one way to my heart is through my stomach…and that is why I looooove Grace so. HAHAHA! Grace is a great cook. I’m always in awe of her (and trying to learn from her). I’m not much of a cook. I can make basic dishes, but for the most part, preparing meals is like a big production for me…and I’m always missing an ingredient or two. Grace, on the other hand, on any given day, can always whip up something fresh and yummy and nutritious….and does it so effortlessly. She always seem to have everything on hand, and has enough to fed up to 20 people. Wow. Pictures here (see how much all the kids have grown).

These days, our weekends are filled with one birthday celebration after another. This past weekend, Ashlyn and Summer had three parties to attend.

Saturday, the kiddies went to Evelyn’s party at Little Gym in Huntington Beach. In our haste to get there on time, I had left my camera at home. It was unfortunate, because I missed out on a lot of great photo ops. Ashlyn and Summer had a blast with their friends.

Shelby’s HSM party

Aside from a quick stop at home (to drop off food for my sick hubby), we went from Evelyn’s party to Shelby’s party. Shelby, one of Ashlyn’s best friends, had the most awesomest High School Musical party. The kids played fun games, ate pizza and cake, took turns beating on an impressively large pinata, then settled into the inflatable chair theater for a screening of “High School Musical”. It was so cute watching all the kids sing along during each musical number. Ashlyn and Summer came home with bags of popcorn, licorice, and the inflatable chair they sat in. They both loved it! Needless to say, I was exhausted by the end of the evening.

Sunday, Aric was feeling better, and together we went to Michael’s party at Partyopolis. Partyopolis, though similar, was a nice change from Pump it Up. We just chilled the rest of the evening. It wasn’t until Aric was giving the girls a bath and I was changing the girls’ bed linens did I notice the eerie orange glow peeking over the nearby hills. And you know what happened after that.

Again, I am so thankful that my family and my neighborhood is safe, but I continue to worry for so many others. Thoughts and prayers goes out to those who are still in danger.

Tags: birthday party, friends, weekend, yummy food

THANKS for all your very special birthday wishes! These days, getting older is not a cause for celebration….but everyone made me feel so special and blessed. For that, I celebrate. I am so grateful for everyone’s thoughtfulness and love. That’s why I try to make it a priority to remember people’s birthdays….so I can “pay it forward” (although I didn’t do such a good job this year).

Even though all the attention makes me feel self-concious, it was definitely a great excuse to gather with family and friends!

Thursday – Dinner with my in-laws, Patrick, and Karen (who brought along birthday cupcakes from Sprinkles)! YUM!
Friday – Dinner with my hubby, Sue, and kiddies at my most favorite-ist place – Honda-Ya!
Saturday – Grace, Patti, Sue, Grace, and I had dinner at Cafe Flore in Beverly Hills, followed by dessert at Chaya and Pinkberry! It was pure gluttony!

Thanks again to my hubby and Daddys for giving us a night out! *love & big hugs*

Ashlyn: “Because it’s your birthday, I’m going to listen to you today.”
Peg: *smiling* “Well, that’s the best gift I could ever ask for.”
Ashlyn: *proud and smiling*

Tags: Ashlyn, birthday, friends, pictures, weekend, yummy food

Just sharing an old video (taken December 2006):

Photo Sharing – Video Sharing – Share Photos – Free Video Hosting

Every Wednesday evenings we meet with Ed and Olivia for dinner. Sometimes we’ll catch a movie, but we usually end up going to places where the kids can run buck wild.

Not sure where we’re heading tonight, but it should be fun.

Tags: friends, videoclips

Today was Ashlyn’s first day back to school. While she was on winter vacation, I took a break from my webpage….mainly because we kept busy everyday, and by evening, well….I was just too tired. Although I’m sad her break is over, it’s good to get back to the old routine.

The last two and a half weeks were filled with holiday festivities, joyous celebrations, and LOTS of pictures (10 albums below)!

Christmas up in NorCal trip was a total blast. We spent a lot of quality time with my family and got to see some friends. Our annual Christmas Eve celebration at home was a lot of fun (although we missed Sis, Chris, and Amanda dearly). We had a huge buffet spread across my parents’ kitchen island, caught up with relatives, ate and drank merrily, laughed, hugged, kissed, and opened an insane load of presents. We were all spoiled with soooo many gifts…especially the kiddies.

We rang in the New Year with our close friends (5 other families) at James and Grace’s. We had our traditional prime rib dinner with all the fixings, enjoyed a chocolate fountain and fruit crepes for dessert, played Wii, sang karaoke, exchanged gifts, and had a grand time. The whole evening flew by so quickly.

Somewhere in between Christmas, New Years Eve, and this past weekend, we:
- spent the day with Grace for her birthday.
Imagine lunch at Claim Jumpers…3 adults + 10 kids = crazymessyloud. HAHAHA!
- Wing and Em’s visit
- Nancy and Steve’s wedding
You know Aric’s co-worker thinks you’re old when you get seated at the table with the bosses. HAHAHA!
- playing Wii
Aric’s Christmas gift from himself me. I am sooooooo sore all over from bowling, tennis, baseball, and boxing, but it’s soooooooo much fun!
- Disneyland with Patti, Karis, and Joshua
- Lauren’s birthday party at SkateZone

Okay, so you’re all caught up now.

Tags: birthday party, Disneyland, family, friends, kiddies, NorCal, pictures, Weddings, yummy food