Star Studded Monterey Weekend

When Arthur was a senior in high school, he was awarded with the Frank H. Buck Scholarship. I won't go into detail on the scholarship, but let's just say that Mr. Buck has been very generous with us. Last weekend, all "scholars" were invited to attend a retreat at the Asilomar Conference Grounds near Monterey, CA.

Asilomar is located right on the beach at the end of a forest.

The keynote speaker for the first night was Yul Kwon, the winner of Survivor Cook Islands. Yul, who is from the Bay Area, is also a Buck Scholarship winner. We thought we would have time before dinner to pick up our camera, but ended up not getting a chance. So, I don't have pictures of Yul so I am adding this random shot I found.

Arthur got to talk to him quite a bit. We even sat at his table at dinner, so we are basically best friends with a Survivor winner now!

The next day, I was feeling a bit under the weather, so Arthur and Tyler went on a whale-watching excursion. He has requested to fill you in on all the details. I am sure you will be quite entertained.

The last day, we went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium which was a huge hit for all of us.

Even though Tyler is pretty good at being toilet-trained, we still have to remind him to use the bathroom fairly often. Before we left Monterey for the long drive home, Arthur and I begged Tyler to use the bathroom. He would have nothing to do with it. We stopped for gas, and once again, he refused to go. We dropped by the store and he just shook his head "no". We knew we wouldn't get far without having to stop for him. Sure enough, about 1 1/2 hours into the drive home, a shrieking voice from the back yells, "Mommy, I go pee-pee!". This means we have about 3.5 minutes to get him to the nearest toilet.

We pulled over at a random rest stop on the San Luis Dam. When we walked in, the place was swarming with police officers, sheriffs, and other "government-looking" workers. We didn't know what all the fuss was about until we walked outside and someone clued us in. We couldn't leave without waiting it out and sure enough, look who made an appearance.... (click on the pictures to zoom in)

Although we were only about 10 feet from him, we didn't get a chance to formally meet him. I know he made eye-contact with me at least twice, though. So, we are basically best friends with the "Governator", too.

Oh and here is a fairly nice family portrait in front of the reservoir:

Dear Dylan (Part II),

Ever since you've gotten better, I've been reminiscing about your sick days. The cold really knocked you off balance the past four days, but now you are well.

I miss your sleeping half the day, allowing me to play my new Xbox 360.

I miss your throwing up, distracting Mommy with the carpet cleaner so she doesn't notice when I leave my mess around the house.

I miss how easy it is to shampoo your head when you're a limp fish.

I miss being able to change your poopy diaper without you kicking your legs until it hits its poop target.

I miss being able to find my cellphone and keys where I left them instead of running around trying to find them a minute before I have to leave for work.

I miss sitting in church without having your Cheerios and slobber mixture encrusting my dress pants because you're at home zonked out.

I miss being able to use your fever as an excuse to leave the air conditioning on long after Mommy wants it off.

Please get sick again soon. Ouch, why is Mommy smacking me in the head?

Love,

Dad

Dear Dylan,

Ever since you have been sick, I have been reminiscent about your healthier days. This cold has really knocked you off balance for the past week, and I can hardly wait till you feel completely better.

I miss your 20 minute naps. Now that you want to sleep all day (especially on my shoulder), I am starting to miss those moments when I am rushing to get everything done while you sleep.

I miss you crawling into the bathroom with that mischievous smile because you know I don't like you to be in the bathroom.

I miss finding you in the closet sucking on my shoes.

I miss being fearful that the stair gate is going to fall off while you shake it.

I miss finding all the magnetic letters all over the kitchen floor.

I miss spoon feeding you as fast as possible to ensure that you don't get mad at having to take more than 1 breath in between bites.

I miss having to save your life while Tyler plays with you.

I miss cleaning your slobber off the windows.

I miss having you help me with the laundry by pulling all the clean clothes out of the dryer and onto the dirty kitchen floor.

I miss finding the toilet paper roll completely unraveled.

The house is cleaner than most days, I have been able to get a little rest, and I am not nearly as happy. Please get better soon.

Love,

Mom

New Template

The pink template has been making me nauseous for quite some time, but I haven't had the motivation to change it out. I am going to try this one for a bit.

Random Fun

We have been having a lot of fun the past couple of weeks. With playgroup on hiatus for the summer, I have had to improvise to keep Tyler entertained. Thank goodness that we live in LA and have access to so many kid-friendly activities! We have been swimming, relaxed with a picnic at the Rose Bowl, explored the Science Museum, fed peacocks at the Arboretum, and built sandcastles at a few parks. I am trying to teach Tyler the difference between lower and uppercase letters, but he just doesn't seem too interested. Isn't he too young to know about Summer Brain Drain?

I don't have many pictures, but I do have a small video clip showing some random stuff. Don't be surprised that most of the scenes take place during meal-times. That seems to be the only time I can get both kids to sit still while I record.

A few highlights to watch for in the video:

1. Tyler singing I am a Child of God
2. Arthur's bizarre sound effects
3. cheerios toss
4. baby prison
5. sprinkler shock
6. munching on seaweed
7. Dylan waving goodbye