Browse Author: beakatude

Take me to the ZoOoOoO!!

I’ve been on the Pediatric Rehab service for over a year now and we finally had the perfect group of kids for a trip to the Oakland Zoo.  In fact, the last time any group that had gone to the zoo was over 3 years ago so this was indeed the “Perfect Storm” of kids, staff, and weather.  The group photo above is really cute in real life but I’m not allowed to post recognizable photos of the kiddies.

Last Friday, we packed up our outing bags, slathered sunscreen on all their faces, and piled 4 kids all in wheelchairs and 5 adults in the Adventure Van.  Just the week before, we had a big car wash with the same four kids so the van was squeaky clean and ready for the outing.

The weather was perfect and all the kids (and grown-ups) were giddy with excitement.  Lots of the kids propelled their own wheelchairs but there were a few steep hills that really got our hearts pumping.  We headed over to the African savanna area and saw elephants and giraffes right away.  One of my kids is hard of hearing and has been learning all the different signs for the animals.  He brought pictures of the animals and each time he spotted one, he would point to the corresponding picture and we’d all make the sign for that animal.  It was like animal sign language bingo all day long.

The Oakland Zoo is such a great place to visit and I would have loved to stay longer to see everything.  We had to cut out some of the park so that we could take the long-awaited train ride around the secret exhibit filled with emus and wallabies.  By 2:30, we had to get everyone back in the van and head back to the hospital.   Our cheeks were all pink from the sun and we were exhausted but it was such a worthwhile trip when you have the right group of kids.

Team Building Pho

April is OT Month and every year we usually have a team building activity in the afternoon and go out for dinner as a group to celebrate our achievements of the past year.  This year we did something a little different…we took a cooking class!  It was held by a non-profit that partners with a restaurant who offers up their space and time for a mere $25 and donates the proceeds to charity.

We learned how to make spring rolls, mixed up our own sauces, and had some pho.  The activity was a little less hands-on than I was hoping for and the food was dumbed down a bit but it was still fun tasting everyone’s concoctions.  We also got complimentary wine so that also made it more interesting.

Here’s the pho that I prepared.  All I had to do was scoop the broth that was pre-made and plop in a bunch of noodles, meat, and veggies.  Phew, that was hard!

Oh noooooo!

I came home this evening and found this massacre in my livingroom.  I guess there won’t be any more honking in the house tonight.  Poor Moo.  He’s scheduled for reconstructive surgery on Saturday morning.  I’d better go to the store to buy some more dental floss.

Look who’s 6 today!!

8 weeks old

6 years old

It’s the same dog on the same couch 6 years later.  He’s much bigger now but it’s funny that his expression hasn’t changed over the years.  Maka Koa is officially 6 (that’s 42 in dog years) today.

This afternoon we walked to the store to pick out a treat and a new toy. He got to carry his treat home in his mouth and got busy chewing away at it once he stepped paw in the door.

He also got to play with his new friend Moo. According to the tag, he’s a cow but I think he looks more like a yak. Regardless, they were pals from the start and the honking from the squeaker went on for a good 20 minutes.

Happy Birthday, Koa. You’re a good dog.

Monday off

Yesterday I had the day off to off-set the upcoming 7-day work week.  With Jes in NYC for the next two weeks, I guess it was good timing for me to have a 2-day course over the coming weekend.  Anyway, I managed to be very productive on my day off.  Stopped at work to turn in my parking application and brought Koa along to take him to the dog park nearby.  Unfortunately, it turned out to be a rather ghetto fenced-off area with asphalt and dirt. I suppose it’s a good use to dead space under the freeway.

Koa was a little confused and didn’t know where to poo but eventually gave in and took care of business.  Once that was done, he was able to run around and sniff the two other dogs that were already in there.

Later that day, I cleaned the house, did 3 loads of laundry, and went to Trader Joe’s to buy groceries for the week.  With Jes gone, it was time for me to detox and experiment with new products.  I bought a box of red quinoa, a jar of sundried tomatoes, whole wheat flatbread, and a jar of green olive tapenade.  I made the quinoa in the rice cooker and it came out perfect!  Then I added a tablespoon of olive oil, halved cherry tomatoes, chopped sundried tomato, and a pinch of salt.  Added to a bed of arugula and accompanied with a soft and chewy flatbread plus a small scoop of tapenade, it was a tasty but fiberlicious lunch for me.

Crazy Race Day

On Saturday, it looked like it was going to be an awesome day on the water.  Jes crewed for a captain in an another ocean race and it turned out to be a wild and crazy ride.  While in mid-race, there were 8-foot swells and it caused the boom of their sailboat to break and the boat tipped onto its side with Jes pinned up against the rail and completely in the water.  He had a quick near-death experience but luckily he was on the inner side of the boat and was able to scramble towards the high side.  He certainly got a big scare with a side of adrenaline rush.  To make matters worse, the rudder also broke and had to take a 4-hour trip back to the harbor with a puny motor and super waves that looked like a wall of water that would then sploosh onto the bow of the sailboat.  Jes has some pretty strong sea legs but these swells made him oh so sick.

When I got home from my tournament that evening, I found a trail of wet clothes and shoes leading to the bathroom and Jes fast asleep in bed.  He was exhausted.  When I asked him if he was done with ocean racing, he just shrugged it off and was excited for the next one.  *sigh*