Halloween Festivities

Halloween was so fun this year! It helped that we got to celebrate it several times. First, we went to the annual BMC Halloween Parade. This year, I dressed up as a cupcake!

Once again, we trick-or-treated down Burlingame Ave. It was good practice for the real thing.

Then, we had a Halloween "parade" at preschool, which basically involved us all walking out at the same time, and then the parents trying to get everyone to stand still for a group picture. It didn't last very long, since we all just wanted to run to the playground.

Back at home, I got to do an art project and decorate one of the pumpkins we got from the pumpkin farm. I also helped Mommy and Daddy carve the jack-o-lanterns.

On the night of Halloween, we went trick or treating with the Chiu's and their friends from school.

This year, we discovered a new section of our neighborhood that had the best trick or treating! All of the houses were decked out, the sidewalks were crawling with kids, and there were crowds and lines at almost every house. Mommy had to make sure that I didn't get trampled on by the bigger kids. In between houses I kept demanding "other house!"

Crazy long line of trick-or-treaters.

We made it through a few blocks, but had to head home when it started raining. On the way home, I just had one thing to say. "Mommy, I want more Halloween."

Pumpkins!

We had a fun day visiting the pumpkin farm in Half Moon Bay. This year, we purposely went to a farm that had nothing but pumpkins. No petting zoo, no hay rides, no bounce house, and therefore, no crowds. I loved it and we had a great time picking them out!

I tried to pick up some pumpkins by myself but most of them were too heavy. I was so excited when I found one that was light enough for me!

One of the best parts of the pumpkin patch was riding in the wheelbarrow!

Daddy-Daughter Day

Daddy here once again, and its been a while since I’ve posted on the blog. Due to a peculiar “holiday” observed by daycare in remembrance of an individual most famous for being a symbol of global imperialism, I took the day off of work to do something I rarely have the chance to do: spend the entire day with Kaitlyn. Alone. For several days leading up to this fateful Monday, I laid the groundwork with K, repeatedly telling her "On Monday, you're going to have an extra special day with Daddy...are you ready for your extra special time?" to which she replied emphatically "YEAH?!"

After sending Amy to work and futzing around the house a bit longer, Kaitlyn and I decided to head down to Burlingame Ave to have a light breakfast at La Boulange Bakery.  As you can see, the potato and ham tart doesn’t last very long on the plate!

I was planning to take Kaitlyn to an indoor play area in San Bruno after breakfast, but I had randomly mentioned going to the car wash in the afternoon. Little did I know how excited she would be at that idea, and she kept saying “Car wash! Car wash!” So we made our way to Millbrae Car Wash, where you ride with your car through the wash, which fascinates K.

Her favorite part is not actually going through the car wash, but afterwards. While the nice man dried the car for us, Kaitlyn asked “snack?” So we hopped next door to the convenience store where I have a habit of buying her string cheese for her to enjoy while we wait.



Diet Mountain Dew is for me, not for her.



Now this is all less than ideal timing, because now we’re off to the city to meet up with Mommy at work for lunch. I walked Kaitlyn around the 10th floor for a bit before we find Amy and go to Specialty’s. Of course after breakfast and a snack, Kaitlyn wasn't really all that hungry but she always has room for fruit and some milk.

On the way home, K fell fast asleep in the car, and I attempted the "seamless transfer" from the carseat to the couch to extend the nap which looked promising at first. 

15 minutes later, she popped up and smiled at me, wondering what else is store for Daddy-Daughter day. So I asked her if she’d like to look at dogs and cats, and we drive to the local SPCA. On this particular day, there seemed to be a lot of large and scary looking pit bulls, and then a lot of smaller dogs who barked a lot whenever we came near

Back in the car again, I thought we’d make a second attempt at going to the indoor play area, but sure enough, fatigue catches up with K and she drops off like a rock in the car. 

Punting on that notion for good, we head back to downtown Burlingame and she slept for another 45 minutes before I woke her with the promise of frozen yogurt and playtime at the park. But it took a while for her to shake the cobwebs and after quietly eating her fro-yo, she made it clear she didn't want to play, and instead preferred to just sit with me and Doggy while watching other kids run around. 

Sometimes, that’s not so bad either. =)

Piano Recital

I had to show off my ABC's, so here is an impromptu concert I put on:

By the way, my "no's" are me telling Poh-poh to stop singing along with me. I'm such a little diva.

Celebration Weekend

We had some special celebrations this weekend.

First, Mommy's birthday! Daddy helped me make this birthday sign for Mommy.

We enjoyed a pizza lunch at Santana Row.

That night, Goong-goong and Poh-poh babysat while Mommy and Daddy enjoyed a twelve course dinner at Manresa in Los Gatos.

The next day, I helped Mommy and Daddy celebrate their five year anniversary!

We had a kid-friendly celebration dinner at The Melting Pot, where I discovered dark chocolate fondue! Yum oh yum. When I wasn't eating something that was dipped in chocolate, I was scraping the chocolate off my plate with my fork. It was very messy and I got chocolate everywhere!

I loved dipping my bread in the cheese too!

We polished off that entire dessert platter.

Napa Weekend

We took a quick getaway to Napa for a little foodie weekend. Mommy and Daddy hope that when I grow up, I will appreciate food as much as they do.

We finally made it to Addendum for their famous fried chicken.

After loading up on almond croissants and macarons from Bouchon Bakery, we spent an afternoon lounging at the hotel pool. I had such a great time that I did not want to get out of the water.

We also visited the Oxbow Public Market, and ate lunch at Michael Chiarello's Bottega.

This is what we ate!

Burrata with heirloom tomatoes and balsamic caviar; Braised pork belly with crispy soft-cooked egg

Bucatini carbonara; Pan-roasted potato gnocchi with summer squash

Custard filled beignets; Sorbetto trio

Yummy! Not surprisingly, my favorite dish was the sorbet.

iPhone pics

I ♥ Instagram! Here are some recent photos I took using my new iPhone 5!

Touchdown! Go Irish!

Mac n' cheese at IKEA

Mmmm...Yogurtland.

I'm totally addicted...