The Isaksonian: June 2008

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Trip to CA

We had a very fun family trip to California. Well, driving there and back wasn't so fun. Otherwise, it was great! We visited with Great G-ma and G-pa Allen, spent some days in Carlsbad at the beach with the fam, hung out with friends, and went to Disneyland. Here are some photos (warning: there are a ton of 'em)

.............Miles had fun visiting his great grandparents in Arizona

....................and hugging cousin Brooke.

.... The sand was much more enticing than the super cold water.

. .............................All the cousins at Disneyland

.....................Our squeaky little mouse

I think Otis cared more about showing off his Beatles shirt than the fact that we were at Disneyland. He did, though, seem to enjoy the ride on the carousel.

................Miles and Kelly watching construction on the beach.

No trip to California is complete without eating a Pinks' hot dog--we went with Joy and Suzanne.

..........................Shannon meeting the baby.

......................Otis got to meet Uncle Ryan and Christina.

....................Grandma and Grandpa with all their grandkiddies...

.......................with #6 on the way in Aunt Ginger's tummy!

.................We also got to meet Mike and Tricia's 1-week-old baby, Wyatt.

..........................Terrie and Andrew came up to Carlsbad to visit us and meet Otis, too.

Brian and Miles' camping trip

Brian and Miles went on the Fathers and Sons camping trip with our church the other weekend and had lots of fun. How could it not be fun for a bunch of guys to get together in the wilderness with no ladies around giving them stink eye for farting and burping and having potty mouths?! Kelli

I'll add that Miles played his first baseball game and he got injured on his very first swing of the bat (see picture). I was trying to help him hit the ball but I swung too hard and the end of the bat hit him on the head. He wanted to quit but there was not way I was going to have him develop a fear of baseball so I made him hit again later. That time we bunted and he was able to get on base and score a run. He loves camping, sleeping in the tent and hanging out with the boys and I only lost him for a few minutes!

Brian

Friday, June 6, 2008

Musings on the Chinese sweet tooth...

A friend just gave us a killer looking cake roll. Coconut. Butter. Green, possibly-lime-flavored cake (if I could be polyandrous, I'd marry lime). I couldn't wait for Brian to leave on his boy scout trip. But then I saw the wrap had Chinese on it and I prepared myself for disappointment. Actually, it was better than other Chinese treats I've had. But it made me contemplate the Chinese concept of sweetness and pretty treats. When I lived in Hong Kong, someone told me that Sees Candies lasted a few months there then had to close shop because they weren't getting enough business. What the?!

Here are some puzzle pieces that I am trying to put together. Please let me know if you have any to add.

1) Cakes from Chinese bakeries look to die for, but often taste like styrofoam. Don't you want to just rip into this rich looking puppy?! (The faux-fondant is probably wax.)

2) I admit that moon cakes have a cool history and they look neat. But some Chinese just can't get enough of them. And I can see why: how could anyone resist a puck-esque oily treat filled with often-unidentifiable sweet paste and whole salted duck egg yolks?

3) One of the few cakes that I had a crush on in Hong Kong (much to the chagrin of my bod) was Ma Lai Gou, this super yummy, moist cake...that looks like sea sponge.

So, the hypothesis thus far: looks rad, tastes nasty; looks nasty, ain't too shabby.