Saturday, April 30, 2011

London (Ontario)

After a good night's rest Calvin was much happier and ready to play with the cousins. Phil had his hands full with 4 kids to play with and entertain. Here he is with Mikaylin in one arm and Calvin in the other. Now he just needs two more for Draydon and Camilyn.


Mikaylin is only 4, but apparently she LOVES babies. She was very good at holding Calvin, and he got lots of hugs and kisses.


But he didn't seem to mind ^__^



A couple of my Aunts and Uncles came over to have lunch together with us. Meanwhile Calvin was surrounded by a little fan club of girls - full belly, lots of attention, what more could he ask for?


In the afternoon Calvin got to spend lots of time with Camilyn. Here is sporting his "I Love Taiwan" hat that he got from my Aunt and Uncle in Taiwan.





He was much more willing to play in the exer-saucer than he was the night before, now that he was well rested.



While Calvin was playing, so was Phil. He was trying to beat Draydon and one of the neighborhood kids at hockey. I think the kids ended up winning.



It was a long day - poor Mikaylin was so tired. That's her daddy (my cousin Michael). I can't imagine Calvin being that big and having to carry him around when he's sleepy...



While Mikaylin thought about sleep the rest of us sat down for dinner.



We had some left overs from lunch that my Aunt Jane had made, plus some grilled chicken that my cousin's wife, Mimi made. It was delicious! I wish I knew how to cook like that. (-__-)

Friday, April 29, 2011

To Canada! - Calvin Goes International

The weekend after we got back from Cleveland we took another road trip to Ontario, Canada to visit some of my relatives. I know, two 8+ hour road trips back to back like that was probably not the best idea, but it just kind of worked out that way with the scheduling. Calvin was a real trooper for the entire 9 1/2 hour drive to Canada. We made a stop along the way at an Applebee's, which was kind of in the middle of farm country. I ordered pasta, and the bowl I got was huge! You could probably fit Calvin in that bowl.




By the time we arrived at my cousin's house it was late and Calvin was tired. My cousin had three kids, and they were all excited to meet Calvin and play with him, but he was cranky from being sleepy and stuck in the car all day. He was not a happy camper... The good thing about my cousin having three kids though is that they had tons of kids stuff, plenty to keep Calvin entertained while we were there.

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Ohio Road Trip Day 4 - Going Home

Before leaving Cleveland to head home we stopped by Bob Evans for breakfast. Phil looks forward to Bob Evans every single time we come to Cleveland because they only really have them in the midwest.


We met up with May, Anthony and Su-Kyi again.



Like other breakfast places they give you lots of food. It's like an IHOP, although Phil would argue the food is better.




And these are the infamous biscuits and gravy - Phil's favorite.



Calvin got to say goodbye to everyone before we headed out.


For more pictures from our trip check out Ohio Diary!



Unrelated to our Cleveland trip, the day we arrived home was Easter Sunday. Mandy stopped by with my niece, Maddy, after we got back, so we got to see her in her cute Easter outfit. So adorable!

Saturday, April 23, 2011

Ohio Road Trip Day 3

On our last day we decided to head out to Chagrin Falls. First we started with lunch at Steve and Rebecca's with Rebecca's famous pasta with mushroom and spinach sauce. It was delicious! ^__^


Our first stop in Chagrin Falls was a new ice cream place that opened recently called Jeni's. Steve and Rebecca highly recommended it, and with such a long line the ice cream must be good!



Luckily it was a nice day out, so we didn't mind waiting outside.



Phil got the lemon and Buckeye (chocolate and peanut butter), an odd combination, but whatever floats your boat. I got the Poached Resling Pear and the Vanilla Bean. The ice cream was really good - definitely worth the wait.



Poor Calvin isn't allowed to have cow's milk yet, so he could only watch daddy eat the ice cream...


After ice cream we took a walk around to look at the falls.




Calvin was enjoying his seat on top of daddy's shoulders, but I guess he got a little excited and gripped a little too tight on the handle bars (aka Phil's ears).



Calvin was looking out at the water at all the ducks. He fits right in with the scenery with his fisherman's hat.

Rebecca and Steve got some good baby practice time with Calvin in preparation for their own little bundle of joy.

Rebecca was a natural! ^__^

For dinner we were planning on meeting up with a couple of our friends, Jaime and Naomi, at a restaurant called Melt, but the wait was almost 2 hours! So instead we went down the street to a restaurant bar called Pacer's.


Calvin didn't seem to mind though. He was kept entertained by all of the TVs they had. At least it kept him a little occupied while we ate.


Phil ordered the steak and shrimp, which he said was not that good.



I ordered the burger, which they served on garlic bread. It was surprisingly delicious. It's the first place in a very long time where the burger was cooked just right.



Steve's birthday passed a couple days ago, so we surprised him with a little song and cake from the restaurant waiters. Nothing like a little public embarrassment on your birthday! ^__^





For more pictures from our trip check out Ohio Diary!

Friday, April 22, 2011

Ohio Road Trip Day 2

On our second full day in Cleveland we headed out for some Cleveland eating. First we got Calvin all dressed and ready to go - our little Charlie Brown.


Our first stop was a hot dog place called Tucky's for lunch.


Their menu had sandwiches and milk shakes too, but we focused on the hot dogs. They had half a dozen different hot dogs named after different cities.



Phil and Steve got to ordering. I think Phil was a little too excited about the hot dogs when he was ordering - orange juice with hot dogs, really?



That's a lot of hot dogs! Steve and I stuck with 2 each, but Phil managed to finish 3. I think he's making up for the hot dog eating contest he lost a couple years back. From top to bottom, left to right, we have the Detroit Coney Island (minus the mustard), the Dog Biscuit, the Cleveland (minus the mustard), another Cleveland, another Detroit Coney Island, the Kansas City and the Chicago. They were delicious.




Even after all of the hot dogs we still made a stop for dessert. For dessert we went to East Coast Custard. Phil had been craving it ever since we decided to make the trip to Cleveland.



For dinner we met up with May, Anthony and Su-Kyi again at a Thai restaurant called Map of Thailand. The restaurant used to be a Chinese restaurant when Phil and I were still living in Cleveland. The decor was definitely nicer - a lot more modern looking, especially with the pretty hanging lights.




Steve and Rebecca, the happy parents-to-be.


When we first got to the restaurant Calvin was still sleeping so we put his car seat on an upside down high chair, hoping that he would stay asleep through dinner, but no such luck.


I think he could smell the food and decided he'd rather be awake.


I had ordered a Thai Iced Tea. It even came decorated with a little flower made from the straw wrapper - how cute! ^__^




We ordered family style for the table so everyone could try a little of each dish. For appetizers we had the chicken and beef skewers. They had the standard peanut sauce, which was good, but I'm not sure what that other sauce in the middle or the pieces of toast were for...




We also ordered a green curry with bamboo shoots, which was spicy without being too spicy.


Of course we had to try the Pad Thai - it's a good test for any Thai restaurant I think. And I thought the Pad Thai was pretty good here.



Duck.



Flat noodles with seafood.



And the pineapple fried rice, which oddly enough had the Chinese dried shredded pork on it. An odd addition, but I thought it actually tasted really good.



Su-Kyi spent most of dinner playing keep away with Phil using napkin rings.



Overall the dinner was really good. I'd go back again the next time we're in town.