Connor was so looking forward to his birthday since the beginning of July, and he was counting down to the day. When his birthday finally arrived he shared the exciting news to almost everyone he encountered including the summer camp staff.  For days before, Connor told us how he would like to celebrate his birthday, i.e. going to Chuck E Cheese and having cupcakes.  He made double sure that we would not tell Chucky about his birthday though so Chucky would not come out for a visit.  Connor also reminded us that we should decorate the house, and he asked if he would get six presents since he was turning 6.  By Sunday, he got even more excited.  He asked if we should check the mailbox in case there were any mailings for him.  He also asked if he should help us decorate.  At bedtime, he told Stuart that he did not think he would get any presents because he did not see any when he looked around the house. 

    On Monday 7/25 morning, Connor came to our bed with a big smile.  When he and I went downstairs for breakfast, he was very happy to see the easel board with a birthday message and all the balloons we had prepared the night before.  He was almost too excited that he wanted to stay home for the day instead of going to camp, but he understood when we told him we had to work.

    In the afternoon, Stuart picked the boys up from the camp earlier and headed to Chuck E Cheese to play.  I joined them as soon as I got out from work too.  Both Connor and Logan had fun playing their favorite games from the last time we were there.  They both wanted to challenge me with a few of the games.  Logan was still quite good with the barrel of monkeys game; he was not as hooked this time and did not end up winning the jackpot.  Then we took a break to eat our pizza dinner.  We played some more, and at the end, we gathered all of our tickets to get toys.  Connor was happy to exchange tickets for a dinosaur and a ball, and got a rubber duck for Logan as well.

 
    We came home and the boys knew the drill.  They stayed in Connor’s room for us to quickly get everything ready.  When it was time, Connor rushed down and was happy to see the chocolate cupcakes that he asked for.  He enjoyed the attention and also became a bit embarrassed while we sang to him.  After we enjoyed the cake, he remembered that it was present time.  He opened each present and the cards carefully, and studied everything.  Highlights were a Golf Club set from Grandma & Grandpa, costume/card game/dinosaur from us, and a foursquare ball from Logan, in addition to cards/gifts from Aunties and Uncles and PoiPoi, and Plants vs Zombies board game from the Kaos.  Connor was fully satisfied with the day of events and all the presents and wishes he received.  Now he is our big 6 year old boy!

     We attended the company picnic with my new work family this past Sunday.  It was a potluck swimming party.  We arrived at this nearby community swimming pool and quite a few people were already there.  I introduced Stuart and the boys to everyone and I met the families of my coworkers too.  We brought a picnic blanket and Stuart found a nice shady patch of grass for us to set our things down.  Theresa and Martin set up their tent next to us.  The boys were hungry and wanted to check out the spread of food being displaced.  They were picky though, only wanted a few things, mainly liked the spam masubi I brought and some plain bread.  After they filled up with food, they did not care to go swim, but instead they chose to battle each other with the Yu Gi Oh cards that they brought.  They were nicely playing that allowed Stuart and I to eat and chat with others.  The boys also received compliments how calm they were.  During our conversation with others, one of the topics, the new Pokemon Go phone app, caught the boys’ attention.  Since there were a few youngsters there who were into it, the boys had the opportunity to watch and even hold the phone to play for a little bit too.  Everyone hung out for awhile and took some group pictures before some people started saying goodbyes.  The boys ended up not going into the water at all but still had a good time.  It was great for me to introduce my family to my coworkers and get to know everyone better as well.

    The boys returned for another round of YMCA basketball camp last week, but unfortunately it was another hot week.  The staff did a good job reminding the kids to apply sunscreen a few times a day.  As a result, the boys were so filthy with layers of sunscreen and dirt from playing outside all day.  They were dark by the time we picked them up at end of the day.  Stuart and I were so happy when we found out that the children were being bused to a youth center indoor gym on Thursday and Friday for tournaments.  They finally got a break for the sun and heat.  The boys again told us that they had a good time at this camp.  One thing I learned from Connor that Logan always helped spray sunscreen on him, then Connor would rub it in himself.  It is good that they watched out for each other.

    Our project of making the little patch of grass into a sitting area was finally completed with the delivery of the furniture yesterday.  We tested it out tonight in a cool evening of a hot day.  It was quite comfortable sitting out there in our backyard.

BEFORE:

DURING:

AFTER:

     We have a great news!  Connor’s headache is gone.  Connor usually mentioned his headache to Stuart every night at bedtime, but Stuart noticed that Connor did not for a couple of days.  So I asked Connor about it, then he had an expression that he had been reminded of something.  Then he said to us “My headache is gone.”  We were ecstatic with this incredible news, and we almost could not believe the headache he had for 3 months was finally gone.  A couple of months ago, Connor and I had talked about how we would celebrate if the headache disappeared, he said he wanted to have pizza for breakfast, pizza for lunch and pizza for dinner.  This time, I asked Connor the same question; he thought about it and said he wanted to have ice cream.  So I took the boys to have Connor’s well deserved bowl of frozen ice cream on Sunday.  We are so happy to have our healthy child back!

    Stuart went to help Scott out at the annual Obon yesterday.  After Stuart left home in the morning, I took the boys to Ikea to buy something I needed.  They had fun checking out the model rooms, but they got tired by the time we went through the first floor.  At the end, we also stood in the worst checkout line and it felt like forever before we paid for the few items.  With this long delay, I got tired of waiting and changed our plan to take a break at home first.  The boys had a good sleep in the car; we then had a quick lunch and some game time before we headed out again.  We arrived at downtown San Jose and we finally found a parking spot.  We walked a few blocks and made it in time to watch the afternoon Taiko show at the Obon Festival.  It seemed to be a lot more crowded this year, and the boys managed to get a spot to watch between the gaps among people.  The show was definitely more fun to watch if you could see the drummers better, but the boys enjoyed watching and later tried to imitate the rhythm on my tummy.  After the show, we headed into the food court to find Stuart.  We said hi to a few people and the boys were shared some beef teriyaki skewers to enjoy.  Afterward we headed over to the child booth area.  The boys had fun playing some arcade games and they especially liked the “Grab Bag” booth when they could finally win some little toys.  Stuart was exhausted and was filthy with BBQ smoke, so after we walked back to the cars, he headed home while I took the boys for some frozen yogurt.