Apple Hill

Apple Hill, a place in the foothills near El Dorado Hills.  Ten years ago before we moved to El Dorado Hills one of Tim's co-workers advised us to go see this place called Apple Hills.  We all made our own preconceived picture of the place.  It took us many years before we finally convinced ourselves to go to Apple Hill.  The place did not come close to that mental image I created - I imagined a green hill that is lined with apple trees and there around that hill is green grass where people can watch the apples on the hill. 

Apple Hill is a community and an association of growers.  The association probably started with apple growers only but now you'll find wineries, pumpkin fields, and Christmas tree farms featured in the area.  It is a seasonal place of attraction as they open only late in the year when the apples reached a certain level of maturity, when the pumpkins are ready for picking, and until the Christmas trees are ready to be cut and all sold out.  It is a fun place to spend a day with family.  Some of our friends go to Apple Hill every year to find and cut their own Christmas tree. 

Of the many things that you can do in Apple Hill, our family has chosen two activities as our favorites:
First of all we like buying apples in bushels.  They are very freshly harvested and inexpensive (much cheaper than Costco apples).  We were there last Saturday and got half a bushel (30 lbs) of extra large Fuji apples for $12.00.  Maybe we will go back later to get Granny Smith apples for pies, apple sauce, and apple crisps.  Secondly, we like eating BBQ-ribs with the apples laden-with-fruits for the view.  We enjoy clumping together on a picnic bench as we eat delicious Apple Hill ribs.  This year however, in keeping with the economic-crisis (frugality) theme, we decided to cook our own ribs and packed it carefully so that it was still warm when it was time for us to eat them.  Tim made them so tender, you could tear the ribs apart with your fingers. Not only did we bring ribs, we also brought our  Lewis-version of garlic bread.  To complete our calorie consumption, Tim ordered a dozen of apple donuts.  Everything was delicious.  And most of all, we had fun! 

Apple Hill - Just another reason to get together.

Family Together

When distance separates families, every opportunity to get together is always considered a blessing.  This weekend we got to spend some time with Paul and Pam.  We laughed, ate, talked, walked, and my children got the priviledge to play music with Paul.   As I watched them play, a part of me- the selfish part, wished that we lived closer. 

                           

"The greatest gift, however, was just being family together.  Praise God!"  

- Pam

                        

Paul and Pam wore these flowers at a wedding.

                       

Tim at 41

Some of these pictures were taken yesterday (Sept 23), and some were taken today (Sept 24).

Loving

Focussed

Puzzle Solver

Deep

Funny

Care-free

Optimistic

Happy Birthday, my dear.  I love you more than ever.

New Instruments

Brahms and his new bass

My children are discovering new instruments this year.   Brahms although still taking private lessons for clarinet he is also learning to play bass.  The excitement in his face was hard to describe when he saw his burgundy-red instrument.  He hopes to be able to play for the youth band eventually.

Miriam has been learning to play the drums from a private teacher.  This year she is in band for the first time where she plays percussion instruments.  She owns a bell and a snare drum for  band although she also plays other percussion instruments provided by the school.  Her drum set occupies about a third of her bedroom. 

For the first time today, Shannon went to her piano lessons.  She has a teacher who seems to be "fresh" and full of ideas.  We'll see how everything goes.   She's been playing flute since she was in the elementary grades and still does.  However, her curiosity for other instruments has been awakened.  She's also been very interested in learning the guitar on her own. 

I find it good for children to push themselves to learn something new from time to time.  This improves their self confidence and appreciation of discovery.

"Seize the moment of excited curiosity on any subject to solve your doubts; for if you let it pass, the desire may never return, and you may remain in ignorance."    -William Wirt

Evacuation Day

September 18th was a very interesting day in El Dorado Hills.  Three schools: Oak Ridge High School; Rolling Hills Middle School; and Silva Valley Elementary School with a total of four thousand students were evacuated due to some "atmospheric pollution".  The chemical that was being used to reseal the Oak Ridge track was so odorous that students who were sensitive were having trouble breathing. 

The different schools were evacuated to different places.  Immediately after the students called their parents and before the schools notified the parents,  roads going to these three destinations were getting clogged with traffic.  As a result the school buses transporting the students from the schools were taking taking a lot more time.  It must have taken about two hours to transport all of Oak Ridge HS students to the church on Green Valley.  Normally it would take only five minutes to travel between the two points.  With the heavy traffic the travel time must have increased to 20 minutes each way.

Shannon and Brahms made good use of their unexpected free time by playing their new PS3 game called Mini Ninjas.  I was glad that Miriam's school was not near Oak Ridge HS.  My would have been more complicated.  My friend Sue and I did not have to cancel our lunch date even with our children home early.   We went to have lunch at Mimi's Cafe and had a good time catching up with each other.

An exciting day it was.

Brahms Turns 14

                                    

Brahms and his sisters who love him.

My son, Brahms, is fourteen today.  With this milestone, come some changes not just in him but also in our family. There are things that he cannot do anymore and things that he now can do.  My son is no longer a little boy but a little man.  What a blessing to have him.  God has been gracious to give us such a good son.  We pray that he will grow up to be a wise man and win God's favor all his life.

                                    

Brahms and his big sister, Shannon

 

Lunch Dates on Mondays

"Would you like to go out to lunch with me?".   As long as he is working at home,  at around ten on Monday mornings, Tim would always ask me this question.  That means that whatever I'm doing that morning I have to make sure to be ready by 11:30am.  This is one of the many blessing we get through the job that God has given Tim.  He works for Phoenix Technologies which is based in Milpitas but he gets to work from home, most of the time.  I can never thank God enough for allowing him this priviledge.  It is something that we as a family have all learned to enjoy and hope that we will never take for granted.

Top Ten Places To Eat Lunch: 
(Ranked according to the number of times that we've chosen to go to the place)

1. The Emperor's Garden
2. Chantara Thai Cuisine
3. Strings Italian Cafe
4. Costco Food Court
5. Mimi's Cafe
6. La Fiesta Taqueria
7. Pueblo Chico
8. Kusina ni Lewis
9. Opa Greek Restaurant
10. Baja Fresh (now closed)
After lunch we would stop by Vanelli's to get my Vietnamese coffee, or if we're eating in Folsom then another stop before we end our date would be "It's A Grind" to get some coffee.  It's really a simple date but we get to face the other person or sometime sit next to each other and talk about the things that are spinning in our heads.