Wildflower Triathlon

The Wildflower Triathlon is a triathlon (swim-bike-run race) held at Lake San Antonio in Central California since 1983. It is held the first weekend in May each year.

The original course was expanded to the standardized half-Ironman distance (1.2 mi / 56 mi / 13.1 mi) in the late 1980s, and is often referred to as simply the long course. 

Known for a particularly hilly and grueling course, it is one of the largest triathlon events in the world, with 7,500 athletes and 30,000 spectators attending each year. Bransby, along with our good friend Winston (who flew out from Texas to participate) finished the Wildflower long course in his personal best of 6:31 this year. Great job, guys!!

Winston and Bransby completed the triathlon with 1 minute of each other. Awesome!

Run Seal Beach

Bransby ran in the annual Run Seal Beach 10K which took place on April 21 this year, along with friends Ajoy, Oneil, and Shaloni.

Little Smiles

Last week was Samantha's first trip to the Dentist - that she will actually remember. (Her first dental office visit was October 2009)

 She chose Bubble Gum flavor and let the hygienist clean her teeth with the polisher along with rinsing with water and suction too.

The dentist gave her a clean bill of health and we will be going back in 6 months for another routine visit.

Samantha and Henry

Samantha and Henry have been friends since before birth!

Here they are enjoying their first cone in Singapore (Summer 2010)

Henry and Samantha 2 years later in Los Angeles (Spring 2012)

Today we had our last play date with Henry and Hannah before they move overseas again. We wish them the best of luck on their new adventures!

Mammoth Trip Feb 2012

First time down the bunny slope - an intro to skiing

Chair lift with friends Mika and Klaus

Video of Samantha skiing down the mountain - Chair lift Day 1

After she got off the chair lift on the second day, Sam decided she wanted to ski on her own. Bransby attached the strap to the backpack harness and she happily made her way down the mountain.

Riding in the neighborhood

This awesome tricycle is a hand-me-down from Lauren C - Sam is finally big enough to ride it - thanks Lauren!

Typical street in our neighborhood where kids play and ride bikes in the street; when there's a car, one of the moms yells "CAR!!!" and everyone goes to the side and freezes until the car passes. Then it's back to playing again!

Our neighborhood friends Sarah and Beckett riding their bikes with Samantha

The dogs join in on the fun too!

Legoland

Samantha was invited to Billy's 4th birthday party at Legoland and she had a blast!

Here are some photos of the day:

everything was made up of millions of lego pieces

make your own lego car and race it down a track- she loved it

giving hi-5 to a lego pirate

Soccer

Samantha is playing soccer now!

There are 2 coaches for her team: Coach Amy and Coach Shannon

Starting position

Learning how to dribble the ball

2011 Holiday Update

Cowabunga Dude!

That big change I was so anxious about last year ended up being an easy-breezy walk in the park! I love California and have quickly adapted to the laid back OC lifestyle. Our new home has led to a big promotion in my responsibilities: I now carry the title Head of Security. While this major life change has been wonderful in so many different ways, we certainly miss life in balmy Southeast Asia.

Our 2011 adventure started in early January when we packed up all of our belongings and boarded the long flight to Los Angeles. Along the journey, we moved house, re-acquainted with friends (and met new ones), hosted visitors from around the world and started pre-school.

Our new digs are great! We live in a wonderful family-oriented neighborhood with lots of other dogs that I can taunt and harass. There are also gaggles of kids everywhere, which makes for lots of fun for Sam and me. In fact, my new Bestie lives next door and regularly visits with treats on his way to play with Samantha. Bransby and Jessica love it here too. They have already made a number of close friends and enjoy taking Sam and me for walks to all of the playgrounds scattered throughout the neighborhood. As well, they look forward to Sam being able to walk to school in a few years.

I have very much enjoyed all of the friends and family that have come to see us this year. Besides lots of visits from Grandparents, Great-Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles and Cousins, we had close friends visit us from Munich, Singapore, Denver, San Francisco, Camarillo, San Diego, Seattle, Houston, Chicago and Portland. Some highlights were Utah trip with the Whitton Clan, The Getty Museum with the Ruffs, Ariel’s Grotto Princess Breakfast with Cousin Bean, Disneyland with the Hallmarks, Pageant of the Masters with the Gentry and Pohly families, Happy Hallow with Great-Grandparents, Phwa Phwa and Po Po, Catalina with Grandpa, South Coast Plaza with Vanessa and lots of summer barbeques.

Like me, Samy has also adjusted quickly and is quite the SoCal American Girl. She loves going to swimming lessons, wearing flip-flops, playing soccer in the backyard, getting mani/pedis from the two big girls next door, running wild with the three neighbor boys, eating soup dumplings with old friends from Singapore, watching Dr. Seuss on Jessica’s iPad and riding the red bike at school. She is a super happy kid who never misses a beat.

Jessica and Bransby are also doing great. They both have had a very active year. Jessica has been focused on settling into our new life and being a super mom to Sam and me. Bransby has settled into his new role at work and is also plugged into a workout group that meets every morning at 5:30. He did not compete in many noteworthy events this year (except the Santa Barbara Triathlon with Winston), but is planning on a number of good challenges for 2012. While they miss their old life in Singapore, I can tell they both love being back home in California.

We will be spending my and Samantha’s first American Christmas at home this year with Jessica’s family and will most likely be with Bransby’s family to ring in the New Year. I am so happy that I did not get left behind (like last year when they went off on holiday) and will get to join all of the merry festivities.

Tail wags and puppy kisses,

Boomer

PS: There is a lot of excitement in the air as Sam and I are going to have a new brother or sister come July 2012. We can’t wait!

Message from Santa

Samantha got a greeting from Santa! Watch it by clicking HERE

Happy Holidays

First Movie

In order to nail down the potty training that we have been loosely working on for the last few months, we promised Samantha a trip to the movie theater to see the Muppets after a week of using the potty, which she happily obliged. This morning, before heading to the movies, she got a pack of big-girl underwear with all of her favorite Disney princesses on them. Cinderella is her favorite:

Buying tickets at the box office! Sam was very excited

Popcorn too! Hurray!

Going to the Movies is a big girl activity.

We all enjoyed the Muppets movie and she sat through the entire show, even the 20 minutes of previews beforehand. Now that she's wearing underwear, she doesn't want to put on diapers anymore.

Samantha is looking forward to her next trip to the movies

...and she's gotta use the potty again- hurry!

Happy Thanksgiving

Samantha Rose on her first Thanksgiving in the US! We have a lot to be thankful for!

Catalina Island

We recently went over to Catalina Island for a quick getaway. Santa Catalina Island, often called Catalina Island, or just Catalina, is a rocky island off the coast of California. The island is 22 miles (35 km) long and 8 miles (13 km) across at its greatest width. The island is located about 22 miles (35 km) south-southwest of Los Angeles, California. The highest point on the island is 2,097 feet (639 m) Mt. Orizaba, at 33°22′29.7″N 118°25′11.6″W.

One of the Channel Islands of California archipelago, Catalina lies within Los Angeles County. Most of the island is administered by the Catalina Island Conservancy.

The total population as of the 2000 census was 3,696 persons, almost 85 percent of whom live in the island's only incorporated city, Avalon (pop. 3,127, with another 195 south of town, outside of the city limits). The second center of population is the unincorporated village of Two Harbors, in the north, with a population of 298. Development occurs also at the smaller settlements of Rancho Escondido and Middle Ranch. The remaining population is scattered over the island between the two population centers. The island has an overall population density of 49.29/mi² (19.03/km²).

Town of Avalon

We went on the Yellow Submarine on an underwater tour

The brightly colored orange fish is the Garibaldi or Garibaldi damselfish (Hypsypops rubicundus) of the damselfish family that is native to the North-Eastern subtropical parts of the Pacific Ocean, ranging from Monterey Bay, California, to Guadalupe Island, Baja California. The common name is a reference to the Italian military and political figure Giuseppe Garibaldi who wore a trademark red shirt. This is the official marine state fish of California and is protected in California coastal waters.

Having fun on the ferry ride home