Category Archives: Smiling

05Jul/11

America’s Birthday

Good Eats, Holiday, Smiling

As we celebrated not only our first July 4th outside of California, we celebrated our first with our little Tiger. Seeing we were still new to the area, we didn’t want to get trapped in the traffic mess that is the Jersey Shore, the Hudson River, or anywhere else that involved a ton of tourists or a ton of driving. Instead, we focused this weekend (a 4-day weekend) on getting to know areas surrounding Parsippany and finding as many good eats we possibly could in a few days.

For the fireworks show, we decided to go Summit, which is the town that I work in. When we arrived at the park (around 6pm-ish), we weren’t sure if we came to the right place, as the place was pretty empty. Besides the millions of bugs (gnats, flying ants, etc.), there were only a few of us claiming our spots on the wet-grassed, park grounds. After a quick run to the local Walgreens to get bug spray (yes, it was that bad), the park filled up considerably and we were entertained by a local oldies band (damn, how old are we?). The rest is in the pictures…

Um, is the festival today, or did it already happen a couple of days ago and nobody updated the flyer?

I’m smiling right now because I don’t feel the bugs yet…~Tiger

Okay, I need more than a hat and a long sleeve shirt to get these bugs from attacking me…Dada, go get me some bug spray! ~Tiger

Now, this is more like it.

Let the show begin!

Are you really watching this dada? ~Tiger

You guys kept me awake for this? A lot of loud noises and some bright lights? I’m still mad about the bugs. ~Tiger

28Jun/11

A Family Affair

Smiling, Traveling

This past Sunday was definitely a day we’ll never forget. More importantly, it’ll be a time where we can look back at pictures and explain to Ryland why he can’t forget as well. Unless you’ve experienced what both Pia and my family has experienced with migrating to the U.S. without any money, not knowing the language, and our parent’s not knowing where we would live, then it’s hard to explain what took place on Sunday.

It’s been roughly 30 years since the first time the Terry family sponsored Pia’s family. Since then, we’ve remained in contact, but it wasn’t until our wedding nearly 2 years ago that Pia exchanged emails with Donna, that a chance to meet again could finally happen. Knowing that we were moving to the East Coast, we knew we needed to meet face-to-face and reconnect with the Terry’s.

It’s a strange feeling knowing that you haven’t seen someone for many years (in my case, never before), but it’s an unbelievable feeling to share stories and memories with those people in a way that seems like there hasn’t been a day that has gone by without one another. I think we’ll all take away a lot from this Sunday and I know we all hope there will be many more Sundays like this in the future.

We had a great time meeting the family and was even able to connect via Facetime with Pia’s mom and dad and Kelly so that they could also see the Terry’s. The reason Ryland will never forget this day is because Pia and I won’t let him forget. We won’t let him forget the families in both Pennsylvania and San Diego that has helped our family when we needed help the most. Because of this, all of our families are intertwined in a way that few could understand, but is remarkable on every front, as we are all one big family.

28Jun/11

Lost and Found

Smiling, Traveling

What do you do when you’re on your way to Connecticut and get lost, Tiger’s crying, and you need to get gas? You pullover at the next exit of course. Lucky for us, we happened to stumble upon a great park in “The Mean Streets” of Greenwich, CT where we were able to stretch out a bit, get some ice cream, and let Tiger play for awhile.

Tiger sure was happy playing on the swing, the slide…well, we’ll have to work on that one a bit more.

24Jun/11

Quite Fair, By Jersey Standards

Good Eats, Laughing, Smiling, Traveling

Nothing beats a Friday, especially on a week where you started work at a new job, and just a week after your family moves cross-country. The NJ State Fair opened today and was advertised as $1 parking, $2 entrance fees, $1 games, and some $1 foods. With that in mind and a weekend to look forward to, we figured the 30-minute drive would be well worth it.

The fair was held near the New Meadowlands Stadium where the NY Jets and the NY Football Giants play there games, so it was cool to see what a new stadium looks like (ahem Qualcomm). Time flew by as we ate sausages, $1 hot dogs, $1 roasted corn with cheese, mayo, and chili powder, and even got a few prizes after Keante played a few games.

I don’t think we’ll ever fully get used to NJ, but this is a good start.

24Jun/11

Not Exactly Santa Monica, But It’ll Do

Good Eats, Smiling, Sports

Our first outing in New Jersey took us to Jenkinsons (Jenks as the locals call it). Not a bad boardwalk if you like games, expensive carnival food, and watching people pretend like they’re on the cast of Jersey Shore.

We did have a great time, although driving there was a bit of a challenge (imagine me doing a few loops around the same roundabout and not knowing which exit to take).

07Jun/11

From One Home to Another

Smiling

This is our last post coming from the Wells St. house in San Gabriel. By the time we post again, we should be well settled in New Jersey. Seeing that I won’t have my computer for about 2 months, it maybe awhile until our next post, but definitely stay tuned!

Once we get to NJ, we’ll be in temporary housing until August, where we’ll finally get to move into our townhome in Parsippany. We’ll make sure to update everyone with our new contact information when we get settled, but you can always get in contact with us via Facebook, Facetime, or by calling our cell phones.

This past weekend, we made a quick visit to San Diego to tie-up some loose ends and to visit our first home. From that home, to the home that Ryland was accustomed to for 7 months, we now move to a new city in an entirely different town.

We’ve been so busy today that we even forgot to wish our little Tiger a proper Happy Birthday. Sorry Tiger, we won’t forget next month…we promise!