Beach Day

This week Huntington Beach hosted the US Open of Surf and this morning we went to go check out the action. We've been in the past, but always on Saturdays, and it's always been so crowded. Lucky for us, this year we got to go on a Friday (since Paul has Fridays off) and we got front row seats on the beach to watch the surfers. Also lucky for us, we got to see Kelly Slater surf and Paul and Parker got their picture taken with Rob Machado.

Afterward, we went back to our apartment to meet up with our friends Nate and Brittany and then went to Surfside Beach where Nate and Paul caught some waves of their own while Brittany, Parker and I played on the beach.

OC Fair

The moms in our ward have dubbed Wednesdays as the "Boredom Buster" day. It was apparently started at the beginning of the summer for older children who are on summer break and each week one mom hosts a field trip. Some of the activities are beyond Parker's appreciation, but last Wednesday we joined the group at a park with a splash pad and yesterday we went to the OC Fair. I'm not sure how it worked with the older kids, but for the younger ones, we all just showed up after naptime. Unfortunately we didn't see any other kids from the ward... or maybe we just didn't recognize them- we're still getting to know people, but it was still lots of fun! Kids under 5 are free and I got in free with some clothes donations. All we had to pay for was parking. Score!

We started at the petting zoo. You could buy food to feed the animals for $5, which we opted not to do... obviously. I'm not spending five bucks on a handful of stinky little hay pellets. Plus, Parker wouldn't know what to do with them anyway. Well, when a little old grandma offered some to Parker, I was sure he'd eat them himself or just throw them on the ground. I was so surprised to see that after he watched some other little kids feeding the animals, Parker knew what to do with those pellets. Granted, he was too scared to actually open up his little hand and we left without the food being eaten, but it was cute nonetheless.

We then made our way to the other animals- camels, birds, goats and Clydesdales. Then we stumbled upon the arts and crafts tent and next the food competition tent. It was so awesome! We saw everything from quilts and paintings to cookies and cakes. We were there about two hours and Parker was so good! No crying and he didn't even get antsy from being in his stroller for such a long time.

Parker Likes Dogs

Our neighbor has two little yappy dogs and several other people in the complex have small dogs too. Whenever Parker hears them he gets so excited and starts either woofing at them or talking to them in a high pitched voice. It's so cute to see and I've always sworn that I'd never get a dog, or any pet for that matter, but seeing how much Parker loves them might someday make me change my mind. The other day we showed Parker a YouTube video of a dog to see how he'd react...

#PlacesParkerGetsKickedOutOf

Getting a library card was one of the things at the top of my list when we moved to Tustin. I have lots of little projects I want to get started on, like planting an herb garden, sewing curtains, etc., and wanted to check out some books on those subjects before I dove in. Before we moved I checked to see if they have a toddler story time (they do!), which we loved going to at our library in LA.

Anyway, as you can see, that first trip to the library was filled with so much excitement and anticipation! I realize that sounds nerdy, but I really was so excited. I guess Parker wasn't as pleased to be there as I was; he was screaming to get out of his stroller and when I let him walk around he started pulling books off shelves, so I ended up just carrying him, which he also hated and vocalized... loudly. I think that Parker has the loudest, shrillest scream I've ever heard and it leaves your ears ringing. Those of you that have been around Parker, can I get an amen?

As I was talking to a woman at the information desk to help me find a book, another library employee came up to me and said that she's had several complaints about my son's screaming, and can I please get him to stop? I think my first thought was, "Really? It's possible to get kids to stop screaming?" Then I was embarrassed. I told her I'd make him stop if I could, but it's beyond me. I could tell she was trying to be nice about it, and she even offered to help if she could. I could feel myself getting flustered and starting to blush and I told her that we'd be leaving soon, then she said, "Ok, but if he screams again like that, please step outside." I was already upset and embarrassed, but I guess that comment pushed me over the edge. I started crying, which is very out of character for me, put the books down that I was going to check out, and bee-lined it to the exit. I know that we were being loud in the library, but haven't any of these people had kids before? I guess just not as loud as Parker.

That was last week and I'm over it now, but it took some time. We've since been back to the library, but this time I let Parker play with our GPS in his stroller to distract him and I knew exactly what books I wanted to check out and I knew where they were located.

We've Moved!

To beautiful Tustin, California! Paul accepted a job here as an associate dentist at AA Family Dental Group and is loving it. I am loving Orange County for many reasons, but particularly because there is a Target and a Trader Joe's nearby. I also LOVE our TWO bedroom apartment! That's right, no more sleeping in a closet for Parker. Our apartment also has a washer and dryer, built in dishwasher and a small patio that is one of Parker's favorite spots. The complex has several pools, hot tubs and a playground. But really, all of that seems measly compared to the fact that there is light- beautiful, warm, natural light that illuminates the whole apartment. Seriously, could a girl have it any better?? I feel like I've died and gone to heaven!
We just got our internet service hooked up a couple days ago and I've been dying to share this little gem. Even after watching it 20 times it still makes me smile.

Apartment Tour

Here's a tour of our apartment in Los Angeles so we'll never forget how awesome it was.



What will I miss (or not) about this apartment?
* Our neighbor, Fred, who refers to Parker as "fat boy."
* Free rent because Paul was the on-call manager. Meaning, he locked the laundry room at night and opened doors for people who locked themselves out of their apartment. I think he worked about 20 minutes a week.
* Discounted utilities.
* The tiny, erratic oven.
* Enormous closets.
* Enormous bathroom.
* Cement walls- absolutely priceless when we've had to let Parker cry it out.
* Being downtown and close to all the action, also to the library, grocery store, bank, post office and park- all within walking distance.
* The chubby old guy, Jimmy, walking around in shorts and an open bath robe.
* The awesome view and lack of natural sunlight.
* The Mexican ladies that tell Parker how cute he is in Spanish.
* The cement floors topped with industrial carpet.
* Being really close to school.
* Being really close to the institute (where we meet for church).
* Our neighbor, Mako, who brings us his extra groceries. A lot of the time it's tofu (yuck), but sometimes we hit the jackpot- last time it was strawberries and spinach.
* The long hallways that Parker never tires of walking up and down.
* The alarm that goes off in our apartment if someone has fallen and can't get up.

HAWAII

For years Paul and I have been wanting to take a vacation after graduation, so when Paul found an awesome deal on round trip tickets to Hawaii we jumped at the opportunity. We went to Oahu for five days and were busy, busy, busy the whole time and got to do everything we had set out to do. Actually, what we really wanted was just to spend time together, relax, and celebrate Paul finishing dental school- everything else was just the icing on top.

We arrived Sunday afternoon and found ourselves on the second floor of our hotel in a room with two beds. I guess that's what you get when you book on Priceline. Paul asked if they had any rooms with just one bed and they moved us into a suite on the 10th floor for the same price. Sweet! For dinner we went over to Paul's BYU roommate's (Nate) house. His wife Miho made an AMAZING meal. It was so good, probably the best food we had while we were in Hawaii. We had chicken katsu, fried spring rolls, purple sweet potatoes, salad, and haupia (coconut custard) pie.


MONDAY:
Breakfast at Boots and Kimos-- (I think Paul had Spam every day we were in Hawaii. I got the pancakes with macadamia nut sauce. Num num num.)
Hiked Diamond Head. Here's the view from the top looking onto Waikiki. One of my very favorite things about Hawaii is the color of the water- it's turquiose and teal and clear and so beautiful!
We had dinner again with Nate and his family, this time at a local joint call Rainbow. I think Paul had more Spam, this time with gravy??? We got some malasadas (deep-fried-while-you-wait donuts filled with custard) for dessert. Nata and Miho's daughter, Yumi, is so adorable. She's two months older than Parker and knows sign language, English, and Japanese. We're still waiting on Parker to say anything more than nigh-nigh or wow. For the first picture I said, "Smile Yumi!" My bad, I should've said it in Japanese. For the second picture I said, "Nico, Nico!" Excellent head tilt!

TUESDAY:
We went to the Dole pineapple plantation, went stand-up paddleboarding (where we saw sea turtles and wild peacocks), pretended to be a surfer getting barreled at Waimea Bay, walked the temple grounds, and went to the Polynesian Cultural Center where we got VIP treatment thanks to Paul's uncle who works at the PCC. Speaking of VIPs, Grant Hill was getting the same treatment just a few feet from us!




WEDNESDAY:
Went to the swap meet and had coconut juice straight from the coconut!

Went snorkeling at Hanauma Bay. We swam with beautifully-colored fish and big turtles.
THURSDAY:
Had breakfast at the Hula Grill, which is right on the ocean. It was sprinkling when we got to the restaurant and we could see a rainbow over the water as we ate.

Went hiking at Maunawili Falls. It was awesome walking through the lush rainforest. When we got to the waterfall, there was a swimming hole you could jump into from the falls. I opted to watch while Paul took the plunge.
Went snorkling at Lanikai beach. The sand there was so soft it felt like we were walking on powdered sugar.

There weren't many waves while we were there, but Paul was determined to go surfing. He rented a long board and caught a few waves as the sun went down and before we had to head to the airport for our red eye flight back to LA.

Here's a movie that Paul made...

Hawaii Movie from John Fjeldsted on Vimeo.

To sum up, we loved our trip!!!

Parker wasn't invited to our vacation, but he had one of his own with Grandpa John and Grandma Trudy. Paul and I were glad to have just-the-two-of-us time, but we were so excited to see Parker again after six days of being away and he was so happy to see us too when we picked him up.