Spring is here!

Spring is here!  Normally we see a lot of snow and cold weather in March, but not this year.

It has been in the 70s.  In fact the last 2 trips I've taken to LA for work, the temps in LA were cooler than Denver.  Although I enjoy the warmer weather, I wish there was still good skiing left and it wasn't so dry.

Mason started his Spring soccer.  He scored 2 goals in his second game.  Unfortunately I missed it since it was at the same time as Gavyn's birthday.  More pictures and blogs to come from soccer.

The poor ski resorts aren't getting much snow and snow is melting with the high temps in the mountains.  I took this picture of Vail from the plane this week (lots of brown!)

Here is the picture from a swing at the park in the back of our neighborhood.

Gavyn's Birthday

I took Audrey to Gavyn's 4th birthday at a ranch in Arvada.  Mason and Bill came at the very end because Mason's soccer game was at the same time.  Gavyn's birthday was at the same place last year, but I had forgotten how dusty it was (there was no point to shower before the event).  We went to a hay ride and fed the horses, the kids got to drive the tractor, we walked the kids on ponies, fed the chickens, goats, and other animals...  Although it was fun, I could wait to shower afterwards!  I am not a a cowgirl.

Here is Audrey getting ready to drive the tractor.

She was not as amuzed when I left her inside the fence to feed the animals.  Uncle Jef took care of her, as I watched from the other side of the fence.

Doggie Door

Even if the sliding door to the backyard is open or unlocked, Audrey seeks alternate ways out.

Diana and John's Wedding

Diana is and will always be like a sister to me.  I was honored to be part of her wedding and her matron of honor.  Because we live in different cities, I didn't get to do a lot of dress shopping, fittings and planning with her.  But I was still grateful to be there last week and share in all the festivities. 

We don't know John that well, but what we know is enough.  Diana is happy.  John seems like a really good guy who truly cares for her.  We hope to have the chance to know John better if he comes out to Colorado or goes to Atlanta with us over Memorial weekend.

Diana looked beautiful - her dress, her hair, she was just breathtaking!  She remained calm throughout the hours before the wedding and did get emotional as she saw John down the aisle.  It was a beautiful moment.

The weather on Saturday at Strawberry Farms and Golf couldn't have been better.  Everything went without a hitch.  Congratulations to Diana and John!!

Audrey and Mason got to come to the reception since there were a few last minute cancellations last week.  They enjoyed dancing and playing with their cousin Layla. 

 

Modern Family

I forgot to mention that while at Disneyland, we saw the cast of Modern Family filming in Frontierland.  By coincidence we went to Frontierland for lunch and saw the crowd gathered around the filming.  Modern Family is one of our favorite shows, so Bill acted like a stocker trying to capture the best picture of Cam, Mitchell and Lily.  We can't wait to see this episode air!

Mother of the Bride

On Thursday, I left Bill with the kids and the Soderstroms and joined Diana (the bride) and our friend Joyce (bridesmaid) to pick up the dress, run some errants and get mani/pedis.  We often joke that older Asian people are brutally honest and have no filters in what they will say to love ones, friends, family, or even strangers.  They won't tiptoe around sensitive subjects and will openly tell you if they think you are gaining weight, should hurry up and have kids before your eggs are gone, or they think you are uglier than your sibling (all examples of actual stores!).  We got another example of that at the nail shop on Thursday.

Joyce and Diana sat down for their mani and pedi sitting at opposite sides of the room.  I only needed a mani since I had just done my nails on Sunday. After I was done and my nails were dry, I went to the lady on the counter to pay.  I told her I wanted to pay for Diana and Joyce as well.  She said something in Viatnamese to her coworker, who pointed at Diana.  Diana catching that I wanted to pay, told me that she was going to pay for everyone. I turned to the two ladies and said "You can't let her pay, she is the bride.  She is getting married on Saturday.  I will pay." The lady behind the counter says to me "She is the bride?  Oh, who are you?  Are you her mother?"

WHAT?!?!?!

"Do I look like her mother?"

Silence...

Joyce and Diana were falling over laughing...

This has become the joke of the weekend, as I referred to myself as the mother of the bride.

I hope that was she said was more due to the many years of sniffing nail polish fumes than to honesty.

Here is a picture of us bridesmaids after rehearsal on Friday:
Left to Right - Cindy Bo (who we say looks like Lisa Ling the journalist), me (mother of the bride), Layla (Diana's brother Michael's daughter), Diana (the bride), Helen Lin and Joyce Yang. 

More to come after we organize the pictures from the wedding.

Disneyland

We were in LA/OC last week for my cousin Diana's wedding.  We spent the fisrt part of the trip at Disneyland with our friend Gerry (Bill's bestman), Alison and their son Ben who drove up from San Diego.  Ben is only 6 weeks younger than Mason and they had met once when they were 1.  They were instant friends from the moment they say each other at the Grand Californian Hotel where we had adjacent rooms.

I lived in LA during High School and have been to Disneyland many times.  But I never experienced it with kids and through some of the kid and family friendly rides.  I got to say I had more fun that expected.  Even with all the waiting in line to take picture with princesses and characters, it was worth it.

We waited almost an hour to see Rapunzel.  That was the one princess Audrey wanted to meet.  Once we got there, Rapunzel talked to the kids for a couple of minutes and Flynn wanted in.  Audrey took 3 steps back and didn't want to take a picture with neither one.  She was scared of the live Flynn for some reason.  Oh well.
Because the Soderstrom's live in San Diego, they were able to purchase tickets through a California discount.  2-day tickets for $99.  Not bad at all!  We arrived and went to the part a few hours on Tuesday, and we went for a full day (10-6) on Wednesday.  It just turned out that on Wednesday Feb 29th was the special Leap Yar 24 hours at Disneyland event.  The park was open from 6 AM to 6 AM Thursday.  It was busier during the day, but not bad.  We went back for dinner and to put the kids to bed at 6 PM.  Gerry and Bill went back after that to get in some thrill rides and they said the park was packed!  "Mardi Gras in New Orleans" kind of packed. They got to go on 3 rides in 2 hours due to the special hotel issued fast pass tickets that got them in front of the lines.

There are many more pictures to compile and post, but here are some from my phone.