Highlights from the weekend

It was really good to fly down for Sharon's birthday (08/08/08). At first I hesitated, considering instead offering to put the $100 plus towards her flight to see me sometime this upcoming year. (Of course, I told her that would only cover one-way, so if she didn't have any money, she would just have to stay!) But I'm glad I went. Highlights from the weekend, in somewhat chronological order:

1. The VBS concert. (Sharon the PK was a teacher this last week.) It was so fun to watch the little kids sing about God; it was such a good reminder of simple faith. "He's got the whole world in His hands." A timely reminder for me.

1b. And the jumphouse on Sunday was great. Absolutely splendid.

2. Tea for Sharon's birthday (technically we went Saturday). Sandwiches, scones, seeing Dorothy and Kristen. Loved it all. Except for the heavy door. I'm wearing a dress. Please, I can't do that and open a heavy door at the same time.

3. Hanging out at the Fuller bookstore for a few hours. For starters, we were all dressed up from tea, so I'm curious how many people there thought we were SDAs (it was Saturday; see number 2 above). There was a note on the coffee table by the comfy chairs to remind patrons you're welcome to browse, but please don't use our books for research, that's what the library is for. We pretty much made a game out of skimming as many books as possible and trying to bypass the guy at the register while heading to the bathroom. (More like, Lisa did the former, Sharon the latter.)

4. Watching the Olympics with Sharon's narration. Every time an Asian person was psyching themselves up before their performance, she would say (for them) "This is for my family."

5. Getting to see lots of people: Jnak, Sufey, Mark Kuroda's dad.

6. On that note, surprising David at In-N-Out. (More like, crashing Laura's surprise.) My favorite part was walking in, spotting the family, seeing his dad give us a weird face, ducking at the door, all within the period of a few seconds. Later, hanging with the Looses (DEB, reminds me of Hang Loose), going to Din Tai Fung and devouring 60 xiao long baos amongst the four of us, watching Juno, and more. Good times.

Overall, a really good time. I appreciated the balance in how we did a lot without it feeling rushed. I couldn't have asked for more. Happy Birthday, Sharon!