Peg’s Journal

Another fun weekend came to an end. We got to hang out with lots of friends, accomplished errands and laundry, ate lots of yummy food, hung out with the in-laws, and relaxed at home with the kiddies:

Friday night we had dinner with Kimi, Aaron, and the boys at Go Roma (my new favorite eatery - kid friendly, fast and delicious food at great prices) at The District. Our friends lived over on the next street in our community, but moved to NorCal over the summer for Aaron’s work. They kept the house here and come back often, but we have not had the chance to meet up with them in almost a years time. It was great catching up. Kimi misses SoCal as much as I miss NorCal….how wonderful it would be if we could switch places. After dinner, we walked around and grabbed some sweet treats at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory.

Saturday night I went out with friends to celebrate Grace’s belated birthday. We went to Zov’s Bistro in Tustin, and had an amazing meal. It was an evening of leisure and abundant dining, wine and cocktails, shared stories, lots of laughs, and good times.

After leaving Zov’s, and unable to find a place to go for coffee/tea (aside from Denny’s or IHOP), we found ourselves at Honda-Ya for Round Two. HAHAHAHA! We were not quite ready to call it a night and just wanted a place to sit and have some hot tea….but we ended up ordering seafood salad, spicy tuna rolls, and yakitori skewers (shitake, beef, spicy wing, bacon wrapped okra, and meatball).
We finally went home around midnight. Yeah, it was pretty awesome!

Sunday was relaxing. We slept in, had a late lunch, went grocery shopping, hit up Home Depot, hung out with the in-laws, watched TV, had dinner, and geeked out in front of the laptop, and watched more TV. hehehe

Tags: birthday party, friends, weekend, yummy food

I’m recuperating from a glorious long weekend of feasting with family. I had only one meal today (dinner), because I’m seriously still full from the weekend. If I had lost any weight prior to Thanksgiving, I’ve already gained it back (and then some).

Right before our drive up to Norcal last Wednesday night, we had a pre-Thanksgiving celebration with Aric’s side of the family at Pat and Karen’s place. We enjoyed the traditional Thanksgiving fare (a huge turkey, mashed potatoes, cornbread, candied yams, stuffing, and cranberries) along with several chinese dishes (homemade and restaurant bought), and FIVE different desserts! Click for pics.

Thursday was spent sleeping in (since Aric, the kiddies, and I finally arrived at my parents’ house at 5am), hanging with my parents, sisters, nieces, cousin, and cousin’s boyfriend, last minute grocery runs, goofing off, overindulging in food and drinks, and feeling the love. It’s always awesome to have everyone under one roof again. Click for more pics.

Friday and Saturday was similar to Thursday…quality time with family, eating, braving the crowds at the mall for some shopping, eating, visits with friends, and more eating. Aric, the kiddies, and I left shortly after dinner on Saturday night to avoid Sunday traffic. We got in close to 3am Sunday. Click for pics.

We slept in Sunday, had lunch and met up with friends at the Spectrum, drove to my in-laws’ for dinner and to pick up Cookie, then back home in time to put the kiddies to bed.

This year Aric and I did not participate in Black Friday shopping. Last year’s experience scarred me. HAHAHA

I don’t need Thanksgiving to remind me of what I am thankful for: my incredible family (parents, sisters, cousins, nieces, in-laws), my amazing friends, my hubby and kids whom I love more than anything. *sigh*

We had such a great long weekend…hope you did too!

Tags: family, friends, NorCal, pictures, weekend, yummy food

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

I left Aric and the kiddies over the weekend for a short trip up North to visit my BFF and her new bundle of joy.
I got in late Friday, grabbed a late night nosh of KFC with Wing and Em, and hung out with my parents for a bit. My folks had just flown in from Taiwan a couple of hours before me, so needless to say, they were pretty tired.

Saturday was QT with Bett and baby Cooper. OMG, he is sooooo precious!…sooooo tiny!….sooooo perfect! I just couldn’t stop hogging and gobbling and staring at the baby. As always, it was awesome hanging with Bett. Our one-on-one times have come far and few over the years, so I really cherished my time with her. We even got to sneak away for a few hours (thanks, Chew!) and relive our younger days by sharing snacks at Hot Dog on a Stick, trying on clothes that no longer fit our body type (:lol:), and hanging/shopping at the mall. HAHAHA!
We had dinner with some of Chew’s friends at Sushi Maru (a place I missed a lot)…and hung out until 1am. I would have stayed longer….but knowing that it would cut into Bett’s sleep and throw off her pumping/feeding schedule, I really had to force myself to leave.

yummylicious baby burrito

After returning to my parents’ place, I discovered my mom waiting up for me. It felt a little strange since it’s been ages since she’s done that. Very touching. I knew she had a long day (honoring esteemed Asians at an awards event earlier that day) and fighting jet-lag, and I felt bad for not calling (I assumed she had just gone to bed). But Mom just wanted to catch up a bit before my flight the next morning.

I flew out Sunday at noon….and went straight to Grace and James’ from the airport for a SuperBowl party. So that was pretty much my weekend… very eventful and very fun.
A BIG THANKS to Aric for….well, everything! You are amazing!

Misc pictures from the weekend.

Tags: baby, family, my BFF, NorCal, pictures, weekend, yummy food