Monday Funday

On Monday, I went to the nail spa with Jia and Joy and got a long-overdue pedicure.  With my growing tummy it’s getting harder to reach my feet.  In addition to a little clean-up of my toes, the lady gave me a nice massage to my calves and ankles.  Aaaah.

For lunch, we went to Din Tai Fung for some tasty soupy dumplings.  We met up with a couple of Johnny’s friends and Jes and Jason also joined us.  We got the juicy pork dumplings, pork fried rice, and the chicken soup.  It was all so yummy and we had to be rolled out the door.

Afterward, Brother and Joy took me to Brian’s Shave Ice in West LA.  I got a kiddie-sized shave ice with Dole Whip underneath and passion fruit + coconut syrup on top.  It was perfectly refreshing.

Christmas Weekend

On Christmas Eve, we left SF around 7:30 am and arrived in Cerritos just around 2:30 pm.  Koa enjoyed the car ride and we found ourselves in 75-degree weather once we got to The Magical House.

Brother and Joy were already there and they were in charge of dinner that evening.  We exchanged gifts that afternoon before dinner and Koa got a new friend.  It’s a pretty funny-looking monkey that squeaks and we got a good laugh while he chewed on Crazy Eyes’ head. We got some stuff from Thailand and the highlight gift was Jes’ new beerlao t-shirt.

Dinner consisted of pot roast with gravy and mashed potato, kimchee fried rice, kalbi, and a bunch of pan-chan.  It was a bizarre combination but that’s what my parents had requested and it was all tasty.

On Christmas morning, we went to church with Jason and Jia.  Pops was giving the message that day so that was cool.  We were greeted by old friends of the family and they were all congratulating us on our expected Kumquat.  They all said to us, “Your father is very excited to have a granddaughter.”

After church, we stopped at The Magical House to pick up my favorite treat, Sakoo Sai Moo.  I ate them up so fast that I didn’t even have the chance to take a photo this time so I’m posting an old photo.  It was THAT good.  The rest of the afternoon/evening was spent hanging out in Buena Park while the 27-lb standing rib roast cooked in the oven.

The family came over and we stuffed ourselves with prime rib, yorkshire pudding, salad, creamed corn, and Jes’ mom’s sticky rice.  I was so full and tired by the end of the night that I went to bed early before everyone had left.  I know that comes as a real shocker.

It was a fun Christmas weekend.  It’s always nice to spend time with family and eat lots and lots of food.

My Christmas Story

Back in November, Jes managed to convince me that it was a good idea for him to buy an overpriced jacket from Superdry.  Fortunately, he LOVES this jacket and wears it every chance he gets.  I admit, it’s a pretty cool jacket and saw how much he liked it, so I quickly got over the price.  A couple weeks ago, Ryan commented to Michelle that it was a cool jacket.  He NEVER comments on clothes so she thought it would make a good birthday gift for him.  So, now they’re twinsies and it drives Jesse a little nuts to think that someone else has his coolio jacket and has been threatening to buy a new jacket.  So this afternoon I got a photo texted to me of him in a new jacket and a message that said he was going to model it for me tonight. This is VERY typical of him…a guy who never waits for anything and thrives off of instant gratification.  During the whole ride across the bridge, I kept thinking how this was going to be how he was going to make us poor.

When I picked him up from work this evening, he was carrying a big box that held his new jacket.  I was SO annoyed that he went ahead and bought ANOTHER jacket that costed even more than the first one!  During the short drive home, I threw a minor hissy fit and vowed to go shopping for myself this weekend and to forget about trying to save money by buying $20 Target bags instead of the fancy Kate Spade that I saw in the window. In his usual fashion when he gets in trouble, he just laughed it off while I practically had smoke coming out of my ears.

Once we got home, I was about to make him put on his new jacket to walk the dog for me until he finally admitted that it was actually a gift for me.  I thought he was lying to get out of walking the dog but it was true.  I opened the box and it turned out to be a fancy Michael Kors Hamilton Tote!  I didn’t know whether to punch him in the face or give him a big hug.  Lucky for him, he got a big hug and I felt really embarrassed while he had a smug look on his face.  He doesn’t surprise me very often and this was certainly his best “Bazinga” yet.  I got a memorable gift and he got a really good laugh.  Apparently, I fell right into his trap and everything went exactly as he had planned all day long.

Here’s a photo of the my Christmas present.  Isn’t it lovely?  I have the best (and worst) husband ever!!!  Love you!

 

Last Sunday Supper…

…of 2011.

Haha.  Yep, we had an impromptu Sunday Whitey Supper last night and it was a fun way to finish the weekend. Jes served braised short ribs with veggies and wild rice and it was DELICIOUS.  Michelle also brought her yummy lemon chess pie.

The kids were off the hook last night and it’s fun to have so much energy in the house.  There was a bipolar eating match between the two Sokol-Jun kids.  One one side, you had Reese chowing down on hummus and tomatoes with the hummus going up her nose and in her hair.

On the other side, you had Jack doing everything BUT eating.  With the threat of missing out on the scrumptious dessert, he finally plowed through his dinner while on the verge of tears.

We were also entertained by Rowan and his new raspberry trick.  He’s very musical and proud of it too!

Oh and Jack also gave me a new ornament for my Christmas tree!  I love it!!!  (Thanks Michelle!)

Here are a few more photos.

4 more months to go!

Today I’m officially 5 months pregnant and entering Week 23.  In four months, I’ll be experiencing the worst pain and hopefully the best joy of my life.  Until then, I’m just trying to stay healthy and strong.

Yesterday, I did a little Christmas shopping and found myself in the maternity section at Gap once again for their 40%-off-everything sale.  I picked up four more tops for all ranging from $7-9 each.  Woot!  Also, while I was in the dressing room, I got a long hard look at myself in the mirror.  We don’t have a full-length mirror at home so this was pretty eye-opening for me.  I think in the past 2 weeks, I’ve felt more preggo than ever and the mirror confirmed it.  No wonder I’m having a hard time zipping up my jackets lately.  *sigh*

Not only has my mid-section changed but my joints are feeling really loose.  I get the occasional hip pain at work but just the other day at work, I was trying to get up from a bench when my hip flexor went into a super spasm.  I couldn’t move and it left me in tears until it was able to relax.  Luckily I’m surrounded by a great group of therapists who knew how to help me get through it.

Today I spent the morning purging some of my stuff.  I feel most proud of was getting rid of 3 years worth of magazines.  Next job will be to purge some of my clothes.  It’s all to make room for Kumquat and her stuff.  Once it’s all cleared out, the nesting can begin!

Tasty Saturday

Last night Jes and I fell asleep really early so we were both up by 6 am.  Since we skipped dinner last night, we were more than ready for breakfast.  Got to Plow when the doors opened at 8 and I had the yummiest donut holes filled with lemon curd.  Breakfast was tasty and I ate enough to last me until about 2 pm.

For dinner, Jes made me a Post-Thanksgiving/Pre-Christmas turkey dinner.  Since I haven’t been allowed to eat deli meat, I couldn’t get enough of the Thanksgiving turkey.  When it was all gone, I was pretty sad so Jes decided to make me another one this weekend.  It was so delicious and I can’t wait for my turkey sammich lunch tomorrow.