Halloween

Today we went to two Halloween events: trick-or-treating at the shoppes and the harvest festival at the church. It was so much fun to see so many kids dressed up in costumes. Of course, Zoya's mommy gets to "play" her for this special occasion.

First, she tried on two different costumes. She's cute in both but little peacock seems more colorful and attractive!

Here's the little piglet! Here's the little peacock from the back. Isn't it sooo cute?! No exception for Brownie. He's a little piggy this year. Little red riding hood with grandma. Trick-or-treating at the Shoppes. Here's Chloe dressed up like a little monkey! When little peacock meets little monkey....

Pumpkin Patch

We took grandma to the pumpkin patch last night. Grandma was excited to see a lot of pumpkins, especially the huge ones. We had fun taking photos here and there. I'm really glad that Grandma is here and we're all able to spend time together. I feel very grateful every time I see grandma. It's truly a blessing to be together with four generations in the family.

Me & GrandmaGrandma, Mom, & Ruth
Zoya, Zoya's mom, Zoya's great-grandma, Zoya's grandma, & Zoya's auntie RuthieGrandma the flower.Grandma the pumpkin.Grandma & MomThe Hsien family.Zoya the little piglet.We then stopped by Krispy Creme for some hot fresh donuts. Grandma loves it; she had two mini donuts and one big glazed original. heehee =)

Grandma is so cute! She puts on the hat and posed for the pictures!

接機

很久沒有很興奮的去接機了

這次的重要人物除了我們家小若雅和她爸爸媽媽之外

就是我們家的阿媽了！！！！

很久很久沒有看過阿媽了

久到要用年來算的

應該說好幾百年沒看到阿媽了

很想念

常常很多小時候的回憶就會湧上心頭

記得小時候阿媽都會幫我綁辮子

跟著阿媽看歌仔戲或八點黨

很興奮ㄟ

我想最高興的應該是媽媽

她們母女可以見面應該是個很感動的畫面

等阿媽來

我想拍ㄧ張照片

就是阿媽和媽媽和姊姊和小若雅

四代同堂

都是家裡的大女兒

好特別喔

等待接機去。。。

Salad Days

We've been eating healthy lately, well, we did for the past four days. Trying to eat more greens and avoid greasy or high-calorie foods. Plus, it's very simple and easy to prepare and clean up. We love it.

Day One

Salad ingredients: greens, red onion, boiled egg, carrots, avocado, ham & crushed almond. We tried our new "Maui Onion Ponzu" dressing from Hawaii.Soup: Tilapia fish loins with sliced cucumber.

Day Two

Salad ingredients: greens, red onion, boiled egg, carrots, ham, diced tomatoes, dried cranberries, crushed almond & cheese.

Had the craving for salmon so I went to the market to get the fresh seasoned salmon. Just put in the oven and bake around 10 minutes each side. Simple and tasty.

Day Three

Salad ingredients: greens, red onion, boiled egg, carrots, avocado, diced tomatoes, ham, cheese, dried cranberries & mandarin oranges.

We tried another new dressing from Dole Plantation, "Hawaiian Honey Lemon." Its flavor is more sour and fruity.

Hubby made the drumsticks! Very yummy, seasoned with black pepper and garlic salt and put it in the 大同電鍋 and it's ready in about 15 minutes.

Soup: Japanese style instant corn soup.

Day Four

Salad ingredients: greens, red onion, boiled egg, diced tomatoes, ham, corn, cheese, dried cranberries & macadamia nuts.

Fish: Baked Tilapia loins. Marinated the fish with seasoned olive oil and sprinkled some garlic salt and black pepper. Bake in the oven for around 20 minutes. Garnish with diced green onion and red onion. This fish actually goes well with the Hawaiian honey lemon dressing.

Soup: Sliced cucumber with fish balls.

Keeping a healthy eating style is a long term goal. Add oil! =)

Unbelievable

I don't like to wake up early but I have to, for work. I usually set my alarm a little before 7AM and it takes me about an hour to take shower and get ready to leave the house. This morning, same as usual, I was getting ready for work. Surprisingly my hubby got up and washed up.....guess what! He is going to the gym!! Unbelievable. We left the house together and he went to the gym to shoot some baskets. WOW. Good job hon. =)

RA Sushi

Many shops and restaurants are now open at theshoppes near our place. We'd gone to Yard House, Choptle, CPK, P.F. Chang's, Panera Bread, and Pacific Fish Grill. We decided to try the new RA sushi this time. It was a Friday and as we got seated, the lady told us that we had five minutes before the happy hour ended. As we took a look of the menu, we just wanted to take order ASAP. we wanted to order those half-priced happy hour items before the clock hit seven.

The ambiance is very modern with red lanterns hanging all over. It was very dark inside and couldn't take pictures without the flash.

Sushi (Tuna + Salmon + yellowtail + Shrimp)

Very fresh sashimi, love all of them!

Blue Claw Crab Cakes. One of our favorites.

Crunchy Shrimp Roll + California Roll

Crunchy shrimp roll tasted just like the regular california roll. Won't recommend it.

Viva Las Vegas Roll

Very fancy sushi roll with spicy tuna, very well decorated. =) Love it.

Vegetable Tempura. Not bad.

Pineapple Chicken

Big NO NO! It's just like something you can have from Panda Express.

Scallop Dynamite

We finished it, not bad, but won't order it next time. heehee

We added this order later on so this was on regular price.

Whoever wants to try this place, go during their happy hours, that's Monday thru Saturday from 3-7pm. It'll save you some money. =)

宅男+宅女

We stayed at home the entire day, didn't step out of the apartment at all. Hubby worked from home and I had a day off. That's why I called ourselves 宅男宅女(home boy/home girl). Actually I like to stay at home like this, wearing my pj and glasses, with hair in a ponytail and a hair band, and no need to wash up and take shower. Well, sounds a little gross but very relaxing and laid-back.

宅男宅女當然要靠自己做宅食. Instead of eating out, everything is homemade/homestyle.

Lunch Asparagus + Carrots
Stir-fry the garlic first, then add asparagus and carrots, continue to stir-fry. Add some water and simmer for a little bit. Add salt and chicken powder.

Tomatoes + Eggs

Stir-fry garlic first and then add tomatoes, then pour eggs on top of the tomatoes. Add ketchup and sugar. The ratio for tomatoes and eggs is 2:3.

Chicken + Onion

Use skinless and boneless chicken thigh and cut into small pieces. Marinate the meat with soy sauce, black pepper, and sesame oil. First, stir-fry the garlic and then add the chicken. Add onion slices at last after chicken is fully cooked.

Dinner

Homemade Salad + Pineapple Dressing

Romaine Salad + boiled egg + diced tomatoes

Pineapple dressing is the souvenir we bought at Dole Plantation in Hawaii. Both of us like the flavor of the dressing. I think we'll eat more salad just for the dressing! heehee =)

Pot Roast with gravy over angel hair pasta + mushroom with onion + steamed asparagus and carrots

We got this Pot Roast from Costco and it's super easy to prepare it. Just thaw the meat and put the bag in boiling water for 25 minutes then it's ready to go. The meat is tender, we like it.For the mushroom and onion, sautee with olive oil and add some salt and pepper. We love angel hair pasta, only take about 4-5 minutes to cook.

Yum...we love to EAT!

Play Day

Today is like our "play day." We went to the happiest place on earth. I really like the cheerful atmosphere at Disneyland, especially the sweet smell of cotton candy and waffle cones. The weather was perfect and it was just great to enjoy the California sunshine as we stepped into the season of fall. Halloween celebration. The candy corn is huge!

It was our first time back to Disney after the renewal of our annual passes and we couldn't wait to get to the newest ride, "Toy Story Midway Mania," at California Adventure. The wait was about 45 minutes but it was worth it. We had a blast! It's a really cool 4-D ride. If you like the Buzzlightyear ride and if you're very competitive, you'll definitely love it!

Hubby's poker face. The game is on!

Here's our scoreboard.

After just one ride, yup, just one and only ride, we walked around and called it the day. We then drove down to Irvine to 85 degree cafe for some afternoon coffee/tea. This place is always packed every time we visit. Will likes their iced coffee and I tried their tapioca milk tea this time and I think it's just ok. But their bread is really good and their cakes are even better I think. We'll try it next time.

Yay~Play Day, a happy day!