Max the Chef

 Everyone knows that Max is a little foodie and he's been like that for a long time. He critiques food all the time and he's never ordered off the kid's menu because he doesn't think it's good. He's tried it before but said it's just processed food so he's not interested. We definitely have a crazy foodie on our hands, but he's always been that way so we are used to him ordering the adult salmon or the crab legs at dinner. 

He loves to watch the Food Network and his favorite shows are Chopped and Top Chef. He's also been into watching Kids baking shows on YouTube. With that said, he's shown an interest in becoming a chef and so my friend, Kelli, got him a kid's cookbook for his birthday. He was pretty excited about it and immediately picked out what he was going to make first. Of course, it was the sweet and tangy salmon with rice and a side of sauteed green beans. He also made strawberry shortcakes for dessert but he quickly learned that he doesn't like strawberry shortcakes. He also made spaghetti and meatballs for dinner on another night. He has been making it all by himself and we are just assisting with the really hot pans/pots. It's been really cute seeing his excitement as he cooks dinner for the family. Who knows, he could be a Top Chef one day!

I know my posts lately keep showing him just in his underwear, but I swear, I cannot get clothes on this kid. He only wants to wear his underwear when he's home. So, until he gets over this phase there will be quite a few posts of just him in his underwear. 

Tahoe Adventure

 We went to Tahoe for Ryan and Emily's wedding. There was a lot of smoke from the fires in California, but we still had a lot of fun celebrating the happy couple.

On Thursday Andy golfed with the boys so Max and I went to South Tahoe to explore. We took a gondola ride all the way to ALMOST the top of the mountain where we rode a roller coaster, Max mined for rocks and we had lunch together. 

We then took a ski lift to the very top of the mountain. It was cold but very scenic. 

After our time together we headed back to the resort where Max got some swimming in and spend a little time with his grandmas. 

Friday morning we did a ropes course at TreeTop Adventure Park. This place was really cool. They got us strapped in and gave instructions and then set us free to do whatever course we wanted. It was not guided at all and each course was color-coded for height and then again for difficulty. 

We did one course that was the tallest course and Max certainly faced his fear of heights. We were so high up that we could see the lake. It was crazy high to zipline from tree to tree, but it was a lot of fun and I am very proud of Max for making it all the way through without an anxiety attack. 

We had a lot of fun in the woods going from tree to tree, but we had to get back and get ready for the wedding celebration.

We had family pictures taken outside. Shortly before the pictures, the wind shifted and pushed the smoke to North Tahoe and it was so bad you couldn't even see the mountains. I felt bad because Ryan and Emily's pictures do not include the beautiful backdrop of the lake and mountains. It's brown smoke. Either way, it was fun to celebrate the bride and groom and everybody had fun. Max made a friend with Emily's nephew, Andy did an excellent job with his speech, and Max and I got to dance together on the dance floor. He showed off his fancy moves. By the way, Max picked out his own wedding outfit. He was adamant that he wear a tie to the wedding celebration. He looked so handsome in his outfit.

On Saturday the happy couple had a beach party scheduled, but the wind was so bad at the beach that it was moved down the road to a park. There were plenty of games, food, and beverages for everyone. Max and I learned how to play a new game with Mark and Mackenzie.

On Sunday we headed to the airport only to learn that many flights were canceled or delayed many hours due to the smoke in the area. Just like planes can't land in dense fog, they can't land in heavy smoke. By this time it was so bad in the area you couldn't see much from the airport. Andy made the executive decision to rent a car and drive 11.5 miles home to Phoenix. So, that's what we did and we took Mark and Mackenzie with us so they could guarantee they would get home in the morning from Phoenix. 

It was a fantastic wedding celebration and now I know why Ryan and Emily love Tahoe so much. It's very beautiful (despite the haze from the fires) and I look forward to going back in the winter sometime and learn to ski.

Girl's Weekend

 This past weekend I had a girl's weekend in Los Angeles with my best friend Kelli. One of my good friends from many years ago was getting married, but kids were not invited so Andy decided to stay back and have a boy's weekend with Max. Part of their boy's weekend included hitting balls at Top Golf. My friend Kelli, who lives in MN, flew to L.A. to meet me. We had a great time and I definitely needed some Kelli time. 

On Friday we walked all over downtown L.A. and then went to dinner. We picked up a bottle of champagne to share in our room as we spent hours catching up since we don't get to see each other in person very much. It ended up being a late night filled with a lot of laughs and chatter. We also learned that in January we will have been friends for 20 years. That's a long time!

After breakfast on Saturday, we got a ride to Runyon Canyon for a hike and some exercise. It's a very popular trail with the locals as there were a lot of people on it. The views of downtown were great and the hike is in Hollywood Hills so we got to see some pretty cool homes.

Notice all that smog. Gross!




After the hike, we headed back to our hotel and spent some time at the rooftop pool. It was nice to just relax by the pool with some girl time before we headed to the wedding. 

The wedding was less than a block away at The Johnson Club. It was on the rooftop and it was pretty amazing. The details in the wedding planning were unreal. It was absolutely a beautiful wedding and reception. The best part is that EVERYONE danced the whole night. Everyone was on the dance floor, even the groom's grandma. It was a very fun night. 

I am glad I have a friend like Kelli. It's so awesome that we don't get to see each other in person very much but when we do it's like no time has passed. We just pick up where we left off and just laugh and talk non-stop. I am glad Kelli was able to meet me in L.A. for the wedding and have a quick girl's weekend away for an epic wedding.

The Latest Update

 Let's get updated for the last two weeks since school has started. First, we really have not done much. We have been experiencing monsoon season and it's been great. We have really enjoyed the rainy weather, just not the humidity that comes with it. 

Max and I jumped on the trampoline in the rain and played outside. You know you have lived here long enough when you get excited about the rain.

We played the game of life as it rained outside.

It was my birthday and Max and Andy spoiled me like usual. Max got me a pretty necklace that he picked out all by himself and Andy got me a small treadmill that is easy to move when we have house guests. We had a sushi lunch and also celebrated with small bundt cakes that are my favorite. 

Max is still participating in Ninja classes and doing a great job.

Once I got the treadmill up and running Max had an idea that he saw on Kids YouTube. He wanted to build Lego cars and race them on the treadmill. So, we both built our cars and we were ready to go when we learned the treadmill is weight sensitive. It won't go if you are not standing on it. We tried different ways to try and make his idea work, but it just didn't happen. At least we tried.

We also swam a lot this past weekend. 

It's going to be a busy month of August so I am glad we had these last two weekends to chill and not do much while Max also gets back into the routine of school.