After an extended trip in California to see family for Thanksgiving, we're now back in beautiful Omaha, a little bit colder, a little bit fatter, and a little bit closer to Christmas! Here was our trip:
Monday: Fly out to California
Tuesday: Visit the Long Beach Aquarium with the entire family and enjoy dinner at my parent's place
Wednesday: Have a November Birthday Party for Jonah, my dad, and my niece, with another tasty dinner at home.
Thursday: Play football in the morning with friends and family over for a Thanksgiving feast in the evening.
Friday: Go to my brother's house to watch USA vs. England, then dinner at the Grand Central Market in Los Angeles
Saturday: Hit the beach and bum around my parent's place with the entire family before going out to dinner with my parents and younger siblings
Sunday: Megan and I visited my old church, then had a lunch date with dinner out with Megan's uncle and family
Monday: We went to the Science Center in the morning, the older kids went to the beach with my mom while Megan and I ran errands, and we looked at the lights and had dinner at my younger sister's house
Tuesday: Flew home
Things I ate:
- Tommy's (the best chili burger in all the land)
- In-N-Out (a classic)
- Mandarin Noodle House (my jam!)
- Canaan (it's nice to eat some proper Chinese food)
- Kaju (Soon du bu; Megan's favorite meal of the trip)
- Korean BBQ (home cooked and delicious)
- Jook (my family may or may not have finished 2 pots of it)
- Various baked goods (is it just me, or do the donuts in Orange County just taste better?)
- LOTS of boba (the secret ingredient is real red bean)
- A Thanksgiving feast (the homemade cranberry sauce was a hit!)
Things I didn't eat this time:
- Dim sum (oops!)
- Del Taco and Jack in the Box (probably for the best...)
I really loved my time in California. The kids had a great time playing with their cousins. It's always good to see my siblings and my parents. The weather was perfect. It was a long trip but it was a trip well worth it. Even the kids did well on the planes (shout out to OPS for the free iPads!).
There was one moment that really stuck out to me from the trip. It was a small thing but a significant thing: There's a park not too far from my parent's place and we spent a fair number of mornings walking over there to play. There's a playground and a big field next to it where folk can run around or play soccer or something. My brother in law and I took Ezra and his son (same age) to the park on Friday to play. The boys were trying to figure out what game they wanted to play and my BIL and I decided to shag balls. It wasn't anything special. He would hit the ball, I would chase it down and throw it back, and we'd repeat the process. We didn't play for more than 5-7 minutes before the boys came over and we started doing something else.
Friends, those 5-7 minutes were the most exhilarating of the entire trip for me. I'd forgotten how much I missed playing baseball. Chasing down a fly ball. Making a stab at a liner. Getting into position to field a grounder. Throwing a rope back to do it all over again. It's been years since I'd held a baseball that wasn't being used as a personal fidget spinner or a teaching tool for the kids' T-ball. I love watching soccer (got to see US vs. Iran on the flight home!) and I love curling (currently undefeated in our league) but baseball will always be my first love.
This trip was an absolute blessing on all levels. I have a conference in Southern California in February and we have weddings in April and September of next year, so I'll get a few more chances to be out there. Still, there's nothing quite like Thanksgiving in Garden Grove. I love it!
Have an excellent day!
~Adam
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