Mother’s Day Weekend!!
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| My mom, with Troy and my niece Marissa! |
Today is my first Mother’s Day, and this whole weekend has been just wonderful! Chris, Troy and I spent the day yesterday with my big ol’ family: my mom, dad, older sister Melissa, brother-in-law Dan, their kids Cristian and Marissa, my little sister Kim and my other brother-in-law Eli. We celebrated by enjoying hot links and various salads, and by playing my parents’ favorite board game, Ticket to Ride. The object of the game is to build tracks along the United States from various destinations, while not getting blocked by other players. It can get very competitive, especially when more than one player needs a certain track. 
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| “Ticket To Ride” – a unique and awesome board game!! |
Then today, I woke up to breakfast in bed and my present from Chris and Troy, a book on fashion called “Parisian Chic,” which was exactly what I was hoping for! You see, ever since I began my “French Women Don’t Get Fat” eating plan, I’ve developed an interest in French culture (mostly fashion, food, and wine), and I LOVE the idea behind a lot of french fashion: namely, that less is more. I’ve never been interested in fashion before – in high school and college, my usual ensemble consisted of jeans, t-shirts and sneakers – but as I get older, I’m not as worried that I won’t live up to some silly standard that our culture puts on women, and I’m not afraid of trying to look fashionable (even the sentence sounds silly to me now). One of the pictures from the book is of a haircut that I really want to get. My hair is currently down to my waist, which would be terrific if I had any time to style it, but since I don’t, I always put it up, and it just looks boring.
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| Chris’s mom and Troy |
So after church, we had brunch with Chris’s mom, dad, and Aunt Linda in San Pedro at Rex’s Cafe, where I enjoyed a mimosa and green eggs cabrillo – basically, an eggs benedict with spinach and without hollandaise sauce. It was delicious and light, and the French Woman would have definitely approved.
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| Affogato… mmm…. |
Then, Chris, Troy and I drove to Hermosa Beach, where I had an affogato – espresso and gelato – that warmed my heart and melted my face into a ridiculous smile. We walked along the beach, and found a cute shop where Chris talked me into buying a beach hat with a black bow on the brim. We finished our day with dinner at Umami Burger, where I ordered a delicious ahi tuna burger.
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| Me, Troy, and my awesome hat! |
All in all, it was an amazing weekend, and I feel lucky to have such a wonderful family!
I’m digging the hat … and I totally want that board game now. I’m glad you had a wonderful first Mother’s Day!
-Neill