Recap part deux:

Once we got back from Florida, the rest of June passed in a blur. Which was a good thing because I was counting down the days until the 4th of July and the long weekend that came with it. Our friends Kaari and Lance hosted a little backyard bbq.  Kai enjoyed playing with the other kids who were there while Yo and enjoyed the good eats and company of our friends.

My parents have been talking about coming out here to visit us since we moved to our new house in January, but they have had so much going on with work and trying to find a house to buy this summer, that I wasn't sure if a trip would actually happen. So I was pleasantly surprised when my mom called in the beginning of July to say that they had found flights that would work for them.

I wasted no time in putting together an itinerary of things that we could do while they were here. I felt I owed it to them since the last time they came out to visit I was feeling miserable and dealing with a newborn so I was no fun at all.

The day after we arrived my parents and I took Kai to the Monterey Aquarium. Kai loved the fish. He was really good about going to each display and really watching the fish and other sea life. It was so cute.

 

After spending the morning at the aquarium we had all worked up an appetite so we strolled up Cannery Row until we found a place to eat lunch that looked both kid friendly and appetizing. On the way there we stopped to snap this shot of Kai with his grandparents:

Unfortunately the next day I had to go back to work, but I felt so spoiled in the morning when all I had to do was worry about getting myself ready and out the door on time. It shaved about an hour off of my morning routine not having to drop Kai off at daycare. And it was so nice at work knowing, that even though I was missing Kai as usual, he was home with his grandparents having a grand ol' time.

Friday work was slow enough that I was able to sneak out a little bit early to enjoy a sunny afternoon with my parents at Santana Row. After Yo got home from work that night, he and my dad headed out to see a movie while my mom and I stayed at home to watch Kai and hang out.

The next morning it was the men's turn to watch Kai while my mom and I headed down to Gilroy to do some birthday shopping for my mom at the outlet mall. We then met up with the Yo, my dad and Kai and headed over to Gilroy Gardens for the afternoon. I think my mom took a couple of pictures on her camera while we were there so if I get copies I will have to upload them later.

On Sunday my parents joined us at church in the morning and then my mom and I snuck off to a spa for some mother/daughter bonding in the afternoon. That night we had one of my high school friends, Gabby J., and her husband Peter over for dinner. Gabby was not only a friend, but one of my dad's students so it was fun for my parents to get to see her as well. Kai took a liking to Gabby right away and has actually been talking about her ever since.

On Tuesday we took Kai to his second movie, the Winnie the Pooh movie that is currently out. He sat through the whole thing. It's hard to tell how much he is taking in, but during one chase scene that was just a tiny bit intense, Kai started yelling out, "No! No! No!" so I guess he was pretty into it. Funny kid.

Our last big excursion of the trip was on Wednesday when we surprised my dad with tickets to go see the Giants game. I hear the game was a good one, even though the Giants lost, but I truthfully wouldn't know because with Kai there I don't think I watched 30 consecutive seconds of the game. But I did enjoy wandering around the stadium with Kai, watching the boats in the bay.

It ended up being a lot warmer in SF than I expected and so poor Kai Kai was burning up in his jeans and t-shirt. So 15 minutes into the game we went on a hunt to find him some weather appropriate Giants garb. Unfortunately they didn't have any shorts for sale, so Kai had to sport the diaper with a shirt and shoes look which is inherently a little white trashy, but he looked totally adorable from the waist up.

The whole week was a lot of fun, but went by way too quickly. Yo and I absolutely love the Bay Area and could picture living here forever if only it were closer to Florida! We dream of living closer to family some day, but for now we are grateful that we see our families as often as we do. Unfortunately we don't have any visits scheduled for the foreseeable future so, if your reading this and thinking that you would like to escape the heat in the rest of the country, come out to see us in the ever temperate and ever beautiful Bay!

The last few months (as I remember them)

Sorry for my long absence from the blogging world. We have been busy. As if a full time job, an ever-busier toddler, a fairly active social life, church obligations and an unfortunate addiction to certain stupid TV shows hasn't kept me busy enough.... I recently got an iphone. But excuses aside, I will do my best to get you up to speed on the major events of the last few months and to not be absent as long the next time.

In April we enjoyed a week long visit from Yo's parents. As usual when the Andersens come to town, we do a lot of shopping and eat a lot of food. In other words, it's a guaranteed good time. Kai enjoyed staying home from daycare and bonding with his Bestemor and Bestefar. He took to them right away--demanding that they sit with him and read him countless books. Between that and long walks around the block, he was in heaven!

We memorialized the visit with a mini family photo session. Kai was (surprise! surprise!) not in a cooperative mood so we didn't get a lot of good shots, but there were a few keepers:

 

The end of their trip came too soon, but we are hoping to squeeze a trip to Norway in this fall before Kai turns 2 and we have to pay for an extra seat. 

Inspired by the Andersen's trip, I decided to take Kai to see my own family in the beginning of June. For the time leading up to June we kept busy working and playing. Kai continues to be in a truck phase. Yo bought him some cool construction trucks that are toddler-tough and Kai loves playing with them.

 

He also loves jumping on his trampoline... especially when he has an audience to appreciate his bouncing skills. Just look how pleased he is with himself:

Kai is also still obsessed with his tent. Now that he is speaking more he often grabs me by the hand and demands, "Mommy go in tent," as he drags me toward the playroom. Once we are crammed inside the tent he then whispers, "Shh, Pappa," as in, don't tell Pappa we're hiding in the tent. 

Our trip to Florida fell together nicely. Kai and I flew into Jacksonville where we stayed at my sisters house and got to see my parents for a few days who drove up from Miami to meet us. We spent a lot of time during the first few days just hanging around the house, catching up, and entertaining Kai. I didn't take as many pictures as I should have, but I snapped a few gems of Kai with my mom:

 

On the last night that my parents were in town we all went to see Kung Fu Panda 2. It was Kai's very first movie so I wasn't sure how he would do, but I didn't want to miss out on the fun so decided it was worth taking him even if I ended up pacing the lobby with him half way through the movie. I was pleasantly surprised at how well he did. He watched the first 30 or so minutes of the movie only squawking a couple of times when the fighting scenes got particularly loud. He then fell asleep for the next 30 minutes or so and then woke up in time to watch the last bit of the movie and dance along to the closing credit song. 

The next day Kai and I drove down to Tampa to meet up with one of my best friend's from college, Kristin. She had just had a baby girl a couple of months prior so I was dying to see Kris and meet her sweet baby, Elise. It was also the first time that Kris was meeting Kai since the last time I saw her I was about 6 months pregnant. We had a lot of fun catching up and talking about our experiences as new moms. Baby Elise was about the sweetest thing that I have ever laid eyes on. I could not get over how little she seemed next to Kai. Unfortunately I was a slacker and did not take any pictures of this portion of my trip. If only I could afford a photographer to follow me around and capture all of life's priceless moments....

After spending the night at Kris's house, Kai and I headed out pretty early the next day to meet up with some more college friends, my favorite twins and college roommates, Ashley and Amy. I had not seen the two of these girls, who were practically like sisters to me, together since Amy's wedding 7 years before. 

We decided to meet up at Islands of Adventure for the day because Ashley had a friend who got us in for free. Of course it was like 120 degrees that day and the park was totally packed, but Kai was in a good mood long enough to go on a couple of kiddie rides and I at least got to see Harry Potter Land even if I never actually made it on a ride. 

The highlight of my day was when Kai FINALLY conked out in his stroller and the twins and I got enjoy a nice cold fountain drink while sitting in the shade and catching up. Oh how I have missed those girls.

After our day at the theme park, we met up with Ashley's boyfriend, Jay, for dinner. He is a great guy and I totally approve (even if he is a Seminole). Kai seemed to approve, too:

I had planned on spending the night at Ashley's place that night, and we did make it halfway through, but around 3 AM, Kai woke up with a fever and I could not get him to go back to sleep. So I figured if I were awake, I might as well be awake and driving, so we packed up our stuff said our quick goodbyes and headed back to my sister's place in Jacksonville.

My sister was nice enough to take some time off of work while we were there, so we took advantage and went shopping at a cute little outdoor mall. The best part about shopping in Florida in the summer is that jackets and sweaters are dirt cheap. The deals were too good to pass up so I bought more than I should especially considering the fact that my luggage was just under the weight limit on the way out. Let's just say that my carry-on was a whole lot heavier on the way back. 

One of the reasons I decided to go out to Florida when I did, was because one of my good friends from college, who also happened to be my little sister in my sorority (Go Chi O!) was getting married. And not only was she getting married, she was getting married to her college sweetheart. So I felt like I was a part of their love story and it was only fitting that I be there when they tied the knot. 

Dara and Kyle

In addition to getting to see the new happy couple, I also got to see a lot of my old sorority friends. It was great catching up with them and getting to meet all of their spouses. Hanging out with all of them and tearing up the dance floor, it really felt like old times.

Anne and Anthony

Allison and Kyle
 

Anthony, Dara, and Min

Me and my old roomie, Anne

Min and Anne

Anthony and Min (and Shelley looking a little possessed in the background)

Chi Os

The end of my trip came too soon, but I feel really lucky that we packed in as much as we did and got to see so many friends and family members along the way.