We decided to drive since just the thought of bringing all our gear AND the kid’s stuff on the airplane was already stressing us out. It was a long, long drive, but thank god for movies on the go! On the way home, we stopped somewhere off the 5 freeway to stretch our legs a bit and took a few pictures. We found a cool spot and got the boys to model for us…not an easy task! This shot took forever to get because they kept on running around like wild animals!! With Tey holding the flashes and me trying to take the pictures, it was crazy hard to get their attention. But we ended up with some keepers.

Happy Friday!

Lately, we’ve been noticing the increased struggle in juggling time between family and work. It feels pretty overwhelming at times because I feel that there is so much more that we could be doing to improve our photography and our business. But, of course, we are not the only ones who feel this way. I’m sure every small business owner goes through this struggle. But, I do feel bad when we have to leave the kids for extended periods of time. Hopefully, this year, we can find a better balance when dealing with it all especially as the boys are getting older. Looking forward to our upcoming family trip to Hawaii!!

Lucas is now 3 months away from his 5th birthday. Recently, we found out that he had to get eyeglasses. Not a gigantic surprise, since our family has a history of bad eyes, but I didn’t expect it to come this early. It kinda bummed me out. He’s still getting used to wearing it all the time, but, I think he’s doing well under the circumstances. Here he is w/ his new specs:

Nathan is now 2.5 years old and is entering his first week of early pre-school. He’s so excited because I think he’s tired of spending all day with us. Well, I think we are more excited, but you get what I mean :) He will be going to the same school as his big brother for the next few months before Lucas goes off to Kindergarten in the fall. Lucas is super excited to show off his little brother to all his classmates! Here is Nathan during a recent day trip to the zoo w/ Mommy:

And last but not least, I’m all about the iPad these days. I picked one up last week and here is my quick review: You don’t NEED it, but if you get it, you will LOVE it :)

But even more important, the boys get a kick out of playing with it. Enjoy this quick clip. Happy Weekend to all!

• The first photo is from the top of Victoria Peak, one of the main tourist attractions. It was hazy but you could still see a bit of Kowloon across the harbor. Hong Kong Island is right below us.
• There was free WiFi everywhere! Which was pretty awesome. I think Tey is playing Words with Friends on her phone :)

• The food everywhere in Hong Kong is pretty great but it isn’t that cheap. It’s pretty comparable to food in the states, just a tad bit cheaper. Well, this is coming from Thailand, where we bought a big plate of amazing Pad Thai from this lady in street for $1.50! Notice, the non-english menu…we had to find some places w/ pictures. But we had an amazing Peking Duck. Typhoon shelter style spicy crab, seriously great! And some of the best bbq chinese food I’ve had.

• Some more goodies. That round plate is a fast food place called Pepper Lunch…probably one of the best fast food places ever. I hear there is one in NorCal. And that drink is coconut milk with mango and tiny tapioca balls. I had this everyday! So awesome.

• It was definitely not a large place so getting around was super easy thanks to their awesome subway system. It really didn’t matter where you stayed in and around Hong Kong Island or Kowloon (mainland). Everything seemed like it was 15 minutes away by subway, which by the way was fast, super efficient, clean and non-stinky. Try saying that about your local transit system.

• We went to the night markets every night. There’s the usual fake LV and Rolex. But the clothes were tempting since I’m not the biggest guy and everything there fit me perfectly! Didn’t too too much buying…we even ended up bringing a ton of HK Dollars home.

• And last but not least, my favorite road! Nathan Road is the main avenue that goes North/South in Kowloon. It’s a crazy busy street that always made me think of my little dude.

Just wanted to share our Christmas card for this year. Thanks to ProDPI for printing them out so fast! Their smooth matte paper is pretty sweet.

Front:

Back:

Now it’s back to work. Still got lots to do before the new year!

While iPhoto, was importing thousands of these photos from my phone, they were all flashing in front of me in a lightning fast manner. And the light bulb above my head lit up. Let’s do a super fast slideshow of all these crazy little pictures. I pretty much take a photo with my phone everyday, no matter what I’m doing. Most of it is of the kiddos, but never the less, it’s pretty cool to look back at all of them. This two and half minute slideshow is what I saw through my phone in 2008. This year should be fun, too! Check it out:

Today we headed out to lunch with Mommy and spent some time at the mall. Yes, I’m so domesticated!!! Check out my little boss dressed to impress. Happy weekend to all!!!!

OC Fair 2009 from Jan Garcia on Vimeo.

This coming Fall, I was looking forward to going to some great concerts. We got great tickets to Jason Mraz at the Hollywood Bowl, but we ended up booking a last second gig on that Saturday. I was a bit bummed but we ended up getting tickets to some others to ease my sadness ;) So instead we are looking forward to seeing Joshua Radin in October and Bon Iver in September. Can’t wait!! Here’s some good stuff from these two:

And, we just celebrated our 6th wedding anniversary! It seems crazy to think that we’ve already been married that long! Add to that the 7 years we spent together before marriage and Tey and I have been together for 13 years! To celebrate the milestone, we went to the Hollywood Bowl to watch Ray LaMontagne w/ the L.A. Philharmonic. This was our first time at the Bowl and it was awesome to picnic before the concert. We had watched Ray at a smaller venue before and that was sublime. But with an orchestra behind him, it was really breathtaking. The acoustics at the Bowl were amazing considering it’s an open air venue. Can’t wait to go back this October.

It sounded very much like his performance here on BBC:

The boys started taking swimming lessons again and Lucas is having a blast. He is really paying attention now and it looks like he’s gonna be swimming like a fish pretty soon. Nathan is enjoying his dipping sessions, but he always wants to get out whenever Mommy/Daddy/Grandma comes closer.

Here’s a few pics of the boys from the past week. Happy Friday!!

For his birthday, we got Lucas some in-line skates. I know…I heard it a million times. What’s the hardest thing about rollerblading? But I’ve been skating since I was little and still do so quite often, especially with our dog, Koda. So when Lucas watches me, he keeps on asking if he could do it. So, when his shoe size hit the minimum size for skates, we pulled the trigger. He had his first try last night and wow! I thought teaching Tey how to snowboard was tough! This is gonna take a while and I just don’t want him to be discouraged. He came in the house all sad because he couldn’t stand up on his own. I told him, “When daddy was small like you, it took me a long time to learn. I practiced everyday.” But, of course, I started when I was about 13. hahaha! I’m pretty sure he’ll pick it up…he’s daring like that. Skating videos to come!

Here’s a clip of us at the park! Happy Friday all!!!

We are having a birthday bash for him tomorrow and it should be a fun time at the park. He had his party at pre-school yesterday and he came dressed to impress thanks to Grandma! Happy Birthday Lucas! and Happy 4th of July to everyone. Have a great and safe weekend!

We stayed with Tey’s aunt who lives near UCSF and they have great restaurants just down the street from their apt. It’s just so cool to walk to all these places and take the train to where ever you want to go. Having a car is really just a luxury and not a necessity like it is down here in So Cal. Did an urban hike/tour through Haight-Ashbury, Mission and Castro. Experienced some pretty great eateries… Chow and Park Chow, Pizzaria Delfina, Miette and had a pretty fantastic Smoked Salmon/cream cheese open-face sandwich at the Farmer’s Market. Too bad the Creme Brulee Cart guy was out of town!

Tey also has a giant post of everything we did…check it out.

This is from the top of Dolores Park with spectacular weather.

The boys on the way home. We stopped for some pics somewhere off the 5.

My usual jumping thing.

And Lucas trying to emulate :)

The boys have been loving all the family around and it’s great seeing them interact with the aunties and cousins. Lucas is a pretty funny little dude and says the funniest things. My favorite is probably when my aunt asked him “How old do you think I am?” And Lucas quickly replies with “You are FIFTY HUNDRED years old!” Hilarious! And of course, Nathan is the good boy. Doesn’t care who is taking care of him and will play with anyone. That’s probably the biggest difference between the two boys. Lucas was a picky little guy when it came to people. Nathan just smiles, drools and goes!

Here’s a few pics of the boys. The first one is a shot of Nathan taken by Lucas! Yup, he always wants to shoot with “Daddy’s” camera, now:

This second one is what happens almost everyday. Lucas decides to sneak into our bed. We often don’t realize that he’s there (a plus of a King sized bed!), but he shimmies his way in somehow. Caught you!

Happy weekend!

Bubba Tey

Besides doing everything imaginable under the sun to keep the family going, I’ll highlight one thing. Without Tey, I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing today….something that I enjoy and love. She convinced me that I was good enough to be a photographer even though I was scared of doing so. And for that, I love you.

Nathan with Tey.

Mom, Ms. Veekee

I see my mom almost everyday. When I think about that, I feel blessed. Just like Tey, Mom has always been there for me through the ups and downs. And without my mom helping with the boys, Tey and I would not be able to have the crazy schedule that we do. The unconditional love is always there and she shows the same to our little boys. And for that, I love you.

Mom with Lucas

Some news from Tey. She’s decided to start blogging! Check out her ramblings over at: www.teygarcia.com And I say ramblings in the loving, non-mocking way :) She says she is planning on writing about all types of things that is going on with her including but not limited to family, cooking, quilting, travels, photography, etc. She’s getting back into quilting after buying her new badass sewing machine (Bernina Aurora 430). This brand is supposed to be the Ferrari of sewing machines;I didn’t know these suckers can cost so much! But I’m glad to see her spoil herself for once. I know I partake in the occasional gadget purchase or two :) (As I write, I’m already dreaming of my future guitar…mmmmmmm, Martin)

Here’s a few pics from last week. Nothing more peaceful than a sleeping baby…

Have a great weekend!!

It’s still a love/hate relationship with his big brother. Love for the most part, but the cries come out once in a while when they don’t want to share…what’s new!? He really loves laughing with Lucas and we catch them laughing at each other for no reason at all. It’s cute.

Here are some recent ones our little big boy when he visited me at the office yesterday:

Everyone is sick right now, so it’s been a bit tough for the boys. So clogged and unable to sleep peacefully. I remember when colds lasted a week, now they are going on 4 weeks!! Hopefully the dudes feel better really soon.

Nathan is now eating solid foods, so he wanted to show you what he eats:

Happy Friday!!!