We recently added a new niece to the already existing crew of nieces/nephews with the arrival of Mollie, daughter of Lisa and JB. Mollie is named after our beloved grandmother, who passed away in late 2004 just shy of her 93rd birthday. She is incredibly cute, if I may say so myself and I was happy that I had a quick window to hit NY for a couple of days to meet her and see my other nieces and nephews.
A few words about Grandma Mollie. She was everything that you would expect a grandmother to be. She spoiled us, gave us lots of ice cream, laughed with us, cheered us on at our soccer and baseball games, and let us have fun sleepovers
at her house. I could go on and on, but to have a Mollie namesake is pretty special. Unfortunately my grandfather, Poppy, passed away when I was very young, although the stories about him are pretty legendary.
Anyway it was really great to see the family, even for only a brief period of time, and spend time with Lisa so soon after she had Mollie. She and JB are doing really well, and lil' JB is embracing the big brother role. It was actually kind of cute how much his friends loved looking at Mollie when we came to pick him up at camp. Harrison, Blake and Ariella, who are Glenn and Gwen's kids, are also doing really well and keeping their parents VERY busy. And of course, Puff Daddy and Sunny D are very happy to have another grandkid to fuss over.
My flight back to Seattle was delayed a bit, which made things challenging as I was flying with Marc the next day to San Francisco for the weekend. After unpacking and repacking, plus an 8 mile run and Crossfit workout, we boarded our flight to SF to spend some time with the California Cousins.
My cousins, Chris and RS, snagged a table at Benu and we did the 18-course menu. Yes, you read that right. 18 courses. And we did the beverage pairings too. They ranged from beer to dry sherry to sake to Burgundy. The portions were actually very small so you didn't feel full nearly as much as you think you would. Some of the beverage pairings were hit and miss, but overall, it was a fun evening with the cousins. Marc and I tried dishes that we wouldn't normally try so that is always a bonus.
The next day, we played nine holes of golf with Cousins Claire and Arnie on their home course, and the only thing I will say is that I did get better as the round progressed. Guess I need a couple of holes to warm up, eh? The weather was looking great, which I was excited about, because Marc & I invited the cousins to the SF Giants game at AT&T Park. I had never been to a game there before, and it's really a ballpark that looks so majestic on TV, especially when the sun is shining.
Marc & I decided to do a late lunch at a place called 'The Slanted Door'. I have been there a few times but it had been awhile since I had been there and Marc has never been. Let's just say that it was even better than I remembered. It was probably the best tailgating meal I have ever had, and the bottle of Chateauneuf-du-Pape probably didn't hurt either. Our table overlooked the water and we just started seeing the hoards of Giants fans getting off ferries and heading to the ballpark.
We got to the park a couple of hours before gametime and scored some wacky black and orange socks as a gameday promotion. The opponent was the NY Mets and given the amount of NY'ers who live in SF, I expected to see a decent amount of royal blue and orange. I was surprised that more Mets fans weren't in the crowd but that's a testament to the loyal fans of the Giants. The stadium was sold out and it was absolutely awesome baseball atmosphere. I was loving it.
I didn't really have a team that I was rooting for. I know Tim Lincecum is a dominating pitcher so I was hoping to see him at his best. It was really a pitching duel because after the 1st inning, no one gave up a run until the 7th inning. The score ended up being 3-1 with the Giants coming out on top. Most fans stayed until the end, and I left thinking that I was glad we made the trip to check out a game at AT&T Park. It should be on your list of stadiums to check out, unlike the Oakland Mausoleum (oops, I meant Coliseum).
We headed back to Seattle today, which normally wouldn't be noteworthy except for the fact that the US Women's Soccer team was playing Brazil in the quarterfinals of the World Cup. Both teams were considered favorites to win the tourney, so this was a very big test for the US gals.
This game had everything - US losing a player due to a questionable red card, Brazil scoring a goal against themselves, inconsistent rules enforcement, play acting by the Brazilians to gain sympathy from the refs, etc. The game went into overtime at 1-1, and Brazil scored again early on. Somehow the US kept their composure (keep in mind, they were playing with one person less than Brazil for around 60 MINUTES!) and got a goal to tie it up again in the last minute of overtime.
I was so bummed that I couldn't watch this live as we were going to the airport at the time. Then it went to PKs (penalty kicks). I monitored the game on Twitter once we got in the car and just as I got to the TSA checkpoint, the game was won by the Stars and Stripes! Wow! I told Marc that I would stay up to watch the replay, which I never do. Watching sports when you know the outcome can be boring, but this was an exception.
It brought back memories of a day exactly 12 years ago with my sister when we watched the US beat China in the Women's World Cup final. We both played soccer growing up and she came in to watch the game with me at a sports bar. It was definitely a special afternoon watching that game together, and today's game and epic finish just made me smile as I thought back to that day with Lisa. The texts between us back and forth are illustrative of what a fantastic day that was for us.
Crazy week for sure, but all for good things. I am one lucky gal.
A few words about Grandma Mollie. She was everything that you would expect a grandmother to be. She spoiled us, gave us lots of ice cream, laughed with us, cheered us on at our soccer and baseball games, and let us have fun sleepovers
at her house. I could go on and on, but to have a Mollie namesake is pretty special. Unfortunately my grandfather, Poppy, passed away when I was very young, although the stories about him are pretty legendary.Anyway it was really great to see the family, even for only a brief period of time, and spend time with Lisa so soon after she had Mollie. She and JB are doing really well, and lil' JB is embracing the big brother role. It was actually kind of cute how much his friends loved looking at Mollie when we came to pick him up at camp. Harrison, Blake and Ariella, who are Glenn and Gwen's kids, are also doing really well and keeping their parents VERY busy. And of course, Puff Daddy and Sunny D are very happy to have another grandkid to fuss over.
My flight back to Seattle was delayed a bit, which made things challenging as I was flying with Marc the next day to San Francisco for the weekend. After unpacking and repacking, plus an 8 mile run and Crossfit workout, we boarded our flight to SF to spend some time with the California Cousins.
My cousins, Chris and RS, snagged a table at Benu and we did the 18-course menu. Yes, you read that right. 18 courses. And we did the beverage pairings too. They ranged from beer to dry sherry to sake to Burgundy. The portions were actually very small so you didn't feel full nearly as much as you think you would. Some of the beverage pairings were hit and miss, but overall, it was a fun evening with the cousins. Marc and I tried dishes that we wouldn't normally try so that is always a bonus.
The next day, we played nine holes of golf with Cousins Claire and Arnie on their home course, and the only thing I will say is that I did get better as the round progressed. Guess I need a couple of holes to warm up, eh? The weather was looking great, which I was excited about, because Marc & I invited the cousins to the SF Giants game at AT&T Park. I had never been to a game there before, and it's really a ballpark that looks so majestic on TV, especially when the sun is shining.
Marc & I decided to do a late lunch at a place called 'The Slanted Door'. I have been there a few times but it had been awhile since I had been there and Marc has never been. Let's just say that it was even better than I remembered. It was probably the best tailgating meal I have ever had, and the bottle of Chateauneuf-du-Pape probably didn't hurt either. Our table overlooked the water and we just started seeing the hoards of Giants fans getting off ferries and heading to the ballpark.
We got to the park a couple of hours before gametime and scored some wacky black and orange socks as a gameday promotion. The opponent was the NY Mets and given the amount of NY'ers who live in SF, I expected to see a decent amount of royal blue and orange. I was surprised that more Mets fans weren't in the crowd but that's a testament to the loyal fans of the Giants. The stadium was sold out and it was absolutely awesome baseball atmosphere. I was loving it.
I didn't really have a team that I was rooting for. I know Tim Lincecum is a dominating pitcher so I was hoping to see him at his best. It was really a pitching duel because after the 1st inning, no one gave up a run until the 7th inning. The score ended up being 3-1 with the Giants coming out on top. Most fans stayed until the end, and I left thinking that I was glad we made the trip to check out a game at AT&T Park. It should be on your list of stadiums to check out, unlike the Oakland Mausoleum (oops, I meant Coliseum).
We headed back to Seattle today, which normally wouldn't be noteworthy except for the fact that the US Women's Soccer team was playing Brazil in the quarterfinals of the World Cup. Both teams were considered favorites to win the tourney, so this was a very big test for the US gals.
This game had everything - US losing a player due to a questionable red card, Brazil scoring a goal against themselves, inconsistent rules enforcement, play acting by the Brazilians to gain sympathy from the refs, etc. The game went into overtime at 1-1, and Brazil scored again early on. Somehow the US kept their composure (keep in mind, they were playing with one person less than Brazil for around 60 MINUTES!) and got a goal to tie it up again in the last minute of overtime.
I was so bummed that I couldn't watch this live as we were going to the airport at the time. Then it went to PKs (penalty kicks). I monitored the game on Twitter once we got in the car and just as I got to the TSA checkpoint, the game was won by the Stars and Stripes! Wow! I told Marc that I would stay up to watch the replay, which I never do. Watching sports when you know the outcome can be boring, but this was an exception.
It brought back memories of a day exactly 12 years ago with my sister when we watched the US beat China in the Women's World Cup final. We both played soccer growing up and she came in to watch the game with me at a sports bar. It was definitely a special afternoon watching that game together, and today's game and epic finish just made me smile as I thought back to that day with Lisa. The texts between us back and forth are illustrative of what a fantastic day that was for us.
Crazy week for sure, but all for good things. I am one lucky gal.