Home Away from Home

I always look forward to our annual trip away to Monterey, our home away from home, as I refer to Matthew's boss' vacation home.

It's so peaceful and relaxing there.

We first stopped off at a tourist destination, The Mystery Spot in Santa Cruz. We've never been there and decided to check it out.

It was quite interesting...

We couldn't figure out how worked. Matthew being the architect thinks it's all an optical illusion.

Spidey-Matt

But Hannah and I started to not feel good while we were on the Spot so it must be something..

Emily is standing straight. She really is.

We always visit our favorite aquarium,. this time with our Buffet Club President/VP and their girls.

And we hung out at Carmel Beach..

Some of us were very productive...

And some of us were not so much..

But we did eat well with Chef Owen on the grill!

And Phil's didn't hurt either!

Their cioppino is delicious!

This is the biggest and best bowl of clam chowder I have ever seen and tasted!

The vacation wouldn't be complete without dessert!

Sweet 16

Emily turned 16!

I can't believe that 16 years has passed!

2000 and 2016

She celebrated with her closest friends by watching a movie...

Can you believe I taught all these gals 7 years ago?

.. eating dinner...

...and having ice cream for dessert.

She's a very low-key gal.

Of which we are very thankful for since our other daughter wants to go to DisneyWorld!

3 x 50

This year, three out of the six of us turned or will turn 50. So it was time for a girls vacation!

Due to busy schedules, financial constraints, and/or family obligations, we had to pick somewhere local to 'get-away' for a three day weekend. And NAPA was the place.

And what did we do?  Wine tasting..

Sutter Home Winery was one of the free ones. Since none of us are wine drinkers, we didn't want to pay a surcharge for tastings.

And we ate..

Sat in on a cooking demonstration at the Culinary Institute of America

... and ate..

Celadon was delicious!

... and ate..

.. and ate some more.

One of my rare attempts of taking a selfie.

We not only ate throughout this trip, but more importantly we continued to keep the bond we 'sisters from another mister' strong.  It's such a blessing to know that we will all grow old together through the ups and downs of life.

All Alone?

When I saw this picture posted on FB it just broke my heart.

Somewhere in the US on September 28

I could not stop crying for this lone young man. Could you guess where he was? What he was doing? On September 28 probably very early in the morning?

Well, if you have a high schooller in the house, they may know. Ask them.

On Sept 28, it was See You At The Pole, where Christian teens gather annually at their local schools'  flagpole to pray for their school during the early morning before school starts. Started in 1990 as a grass roots movement of 10 students praying  at their school, it is now a global day of student prayer.

This young man pictured above was the only one standing at his school's flagpole praying for his fellow students, school and country. At first he was waiting for someone else to show up but after awhile when he figured out that no one else was going to join him, he prayed that his prayers alone would make a difference to Jesus. And it did. The picture went viral all over the country.

This young man touched my heart so deeply because he took his faith into his own hands and made it a message to the world that He loves Jesus and that our schools so desperately need God so he prayed. 

Last year, Emily joined other students from Youth Alive, a Christian club at her public high school to pray.

Last year, Hannah joined her junior high classmates to pray at the flagpole

And this year, Emily again joined her classmates as the sun was coming up, to pray for her school, teachers and country.

I am thankful that my girls have a spiritual community to be a part of at school.

Being a teenager is so different now as compared to when I was in high school. But one thing has not changed: being a teen is not easy. In fact, it may be one of the hardest times of your life. Balancing academics, extra curriculars, friends, peer pressure, social media, discovering your identity, and planning for a future in which you have no idea what you will be doing much less know what you want to do.

That's a lot for a someone to go through when they aren't even officially an 'adult' yet.

So for a teen to go to God through prayer to ask for help is H-U-G-E!

So was that lone young man all alone when he prayed that early morning on Sept 28?

Nope.

Jesus was with Him.

3 and 2

I am blessed with two daughters and no sons. My sister is blessed with three sons and no daughters.

Zachary (13); Joshua (16); Hannah (almost 13); Emily (almost 16) and Daniel (almost 19) - July 2016

It all evens out. God knew that it would be easier for me to raise a girl than a boy.

I'm an introvert; clean-freak; need constant verbal communication to understand you; and loves shopping. I'm not at all outdoorsy nor enjoy the outdoors; not-athletic; not-active anything; not interested in sports nor computers nor cooking!

I wouldn't know what to do with an active messy hungry smelly boy.

2003

My sister is an extrovert who talks to pretty much anyone that breathes; cooks and bakes up a storm to feed a soccer team; goes out to all the boy's soccer and baseball games and is a big Giants fan.  My sister has no patience in dealing with a crying anxiety-ridden child and she definitely does not have the patience to deal with 'girl drama'.

2006

I can't deal with a boy's computer obsession, smelly heads/bodies, messy rooms and loud voices.

2007

But I love my nephews as if they were my own so God knew what was best. We have the best of both worlds.

Beauty

We were treated to an AMAZING performance of  "Beauty and the Beast" by our local theater company, StarStruck. What made this performance so special is that we know the lead actress, who played Belle.

Kaleea is a former KHAer and started her singing performances there and has blossomed to be an amazing singer. She's a Senior in high school and is passionate about God.

She along with the whole cast was incredible. The performance was like a professional production.

Nothing 'amateur' about it.

They sound like adults but when you get a closer look, they are all kids..

I was definitely Star Struck!

Half A Century

Well, I hit the half century mark last month and I really feel it. I think the only time I was thrilled to say I'm 50 was when I took the Pilates 50+ class. And it wasn't an easier class. I thought they would go easier on us oldies but it just humiliated me more seeing those oldies working harder than me. Being the huge introvert that I am, I didn't want a big bash. I didn't want anything really. Just stay home and read my books were my plans.

But my dear friends didn't agree with those plans. On my actual birthday, while my husband and girls went to an All-Church Work Day, I was treated to a Dry Bar at Santana Row by my dear dear friend, Elaine (or Queen E as I refer to her).

Our little group at the Dry Bar

Elaine, along with my purse-shopping buddy, Teresa and my BFF, Helen went to a Blow Dry Bar where they wash and style your hair fancy-like.

Before and After.. you can't really tell that much but..

I didn't know what to expect but it turned out quite nice and it was perfect because for dinner Matthew was taking me out so I had a good reason to have fancy hair!

..the back is where you can tell the most. I can't get those curls by myself! I'll need 5 hands!

After the Dry Bar we made a quick stop at my favorite donut place, Stan's...

Teresa loves donuts as much as me!

And then to a little Korean hole in the wall for a delicious lunch!

Love taking a newbie to eat Korean food! Teresa loved it!

In the evening, we cleaned up quite well and ate for the first time at Alexander's Steakhouse...

... where the steaks start at $65+

Matthew's T-bone steak was HUGE!

The day after I had lunch with my siblings and parents celebrating at Cheesecake Factory..

My brother ordered a special cake from Pacifica for me!

And then the following weekend I was treated to a day of shopping at Stanford and lunch with my favorite cousin, Cheryl.

Cheryl and I had Thai food on University.

 And this last weekend, my SIL's family took us to Peruvian food on the Peninsula.

It was quite tasty. Thought it would be more Mexican but it wasn't.

Overall this birthday has been the most relaxing, enjoyable, fun and filled with so much love!
It was the perfect way to celebrate the big 5-0.