Hong Kong! (part 2)

All of these next pictures are from our trip to Victoria's Peak, one of the highest mountains in the area.

The group minus Si Sok Allen, who took the picture. Me, Bill, Gary, Kassen, Travis, Sifu Dave, and Shane. This is at the shopping area at the top of the peak.

Bwa ha. This picture never fails to make me laugh. They're poking fun at one of the guys that was there to train but really sucks at kung fu and is a big jerk. :)

A view of the city from the peak. Isn't it COOL?

Another cool view. I LOVED it up there. Very peaceful and gorgeous!

Sifu Dave found a random broom among the foliage and decided he needed a picture with it. :)

A cool picture of the tropical-ness of the area. :)

Here we are again! The idea was to get the cool city view in the background, but my camera just isn't that great for shots like that.

The escalators at the shopping complex. I just love this picture.

Stay tuned! More Hong Kong on the way.

Hong Kong! (part 1)

I'm back from the most incredible experience of my life! Well, actually I've been back for about a week, but between jet lag and (finally!) getting my computer fixed, I haven't had a chance to get posting. I hope you guys are ready for a ridiculous amount of pictures because I took over 800 and I plan to post them ALL! Okay, just kidding about posting all of them, but I DO have over 800 pictures. If you really want to see all of them, come on over and I'll show you. :)

The view of the harbor from our hotel room. Let me tell you, you would not want to swim in that water. It kind of disturbs me that people eat fish out of there, actually. It was a cool view, though.

Our home away from home. These beds were so comfy! Me and Sifu would always turn on the TV at bedtime and then fall asleep and leave it on. There was just no staying awake once tucked into one of these!

My first meal in Hong Kong! This one was actually really good. Just some fried noodles with vegetables. And yes, I totally ate with chopsticks the whole time. After all, it was China.

They don't have floors 4, 13, or 14. Unlucky numbers!

Me and Sifu on a cool chair at the hotel. Seriously, that hotel was dang awesome.

Inside the subway in a rare, uncrowded moment.

Ah, the smell of dried fish on the open market . . . wait, what? What do they even DO with dried fish skins? There was weird stuff in the street markets, let me tell you.

Racks and racks of un-refridgorated meat. Yum.

Pig foot!

Langham Place. A huge mall just accross the street from the Mong Kok station. It's a pretty big landmark, so we used it often as a meeting place. It also housed a McDonald's which we ate at when we could no longer stand weird Chinese food.

Speaking of weird Chinese food, this is pigeon. I thought I was ordering chicken but . . . Anyway, it looks pretty good, but it was NOT. Besides the fact that it had all the bones included, it was still bleeding in places. Yeah. The rice was good though.

Class at Grandmaster Ip Ching's school! The guys in red are all from Germany. We had quite the collection of nationalities there to learn from Grandmaster.

A bit of Hong Kong traffic.

Instructions painted on the street so you don't get run over. And the buses and taxis will run you over. Plus, they drive on the wrong side over there, so I kept looking the wrong way and not seeing oncoming traffic. Yikes.

Okay, that's all for the moment. Rest assured, there will be several more posts!

Neily's Mission Call!

And he's going to . . . . . . .
































Birmingham, Alabama! He's leaving on December 16th! Here's the video:

My Feelings About the Current Month

So, as many of you know by now, I am NOT a big fan of Halloween, and really, the entire month of October. I don't like scary stuff, I don't like how it starts to get really cold, and I also feel that "October" is an ugly-looking word. "Anyway, I'm sorry. But that just happens to be how I feel about it. What do you think?" (You get a billion points if you know what that quote is from.)

Okay, moving on. The fact is, there are a few things I like about Fall, and even Halloween.

Like this really gorgeous, fall-colored vine randomly growing in a pine tree/bush. My friend Melissa pointed it out when we were coming home from church. Fall colors are pretty!

Closer . . .

Closest!
Isn't it cool?

My cousin Britney and her cousin Kayla invited me over to carve pumpkins! I actually enjoy this part of Halloween. You will notice that none of them are remotely scary. Mine is on the far left! I named him Otis in case you care.

The other good things about this time of year include: new seasons of TV shows, the way in which Tyann decorates her house, Jarrett and my Dad's birthdays, seeing cute little kids in costumes, and candy. Um . . . yeah, that's pretty much it.

Morning Adventures With Bree and Carson

For the past little while, Bree and Carson have been coming over every other morning when Faith goes to work. Let me just tell you, there is never a dull moment with these two around! I thought I would show you some things they like to do:

1. Play in boxes.
Bree looks like she's about to injure her little brother, but she's just making a silly face. I think.

2. Conduct science experiments.

3. Receive cuddles from Unca Neil.
(I love how she's folded in half!)

4. Make the leopard feel better by use of the magic wand. (Seriously, that's what she said she was doing.)
You may also notice the headband malfunction in this picture. Giggle.

5. Talk to the kitty.
He can even say kitty!

6. Look incredibly adorable.
That little curl on top of his head plus the overalls is enough to cause cute overload. Looking at this picture too long may cause seizures. ;)

7. Do tricks.
Note the stuffed dog in her left hand, also standing on its head. That is Skylie Blackandwhite. Last I checked. It tends to change. Oh, and for the record, Bree is still Ralphie.

8. Wrestle Unca Neil.

9. Take a nap! (Yeah right.)
G'night, everybody!

The Neily's Birthday

Neil's birthday was on the 26th of September. The big 19! People keep telling me I should call him my younger brother instead of my little brother, considering he's much taller than me by now, but there's a lot of "baby Neil" still in him. :) I love my little brother!

Neilybob reading his birthday card.

Neilykins opening his present: Beatles Rock Band! It is a ridiculous amount of fun . . .

We went down to Cedar City and Tyann made another one of her INCREDIBLE cakes! This looks EXACTLY like Neil's phone, to which he is a bit attached. Isn't it cool? The Neily loves Tyann's fondant cakes.

Contemplating his wish . . .

A few days later, Neilina had his friend party. Of course, there was much playing of Beatles Rock Band. And pizza. This is Neily and his friends Mike (left) and Spencer (right).

The whole crew.

A heartfelt(?) rendition of "Twist and Shout." One of them said it best: "Only choir kids can sing this bad." Take from that statement what you will.

"Here Comes the Sun," sung by the Chipmunks. Who were on crack at the very least (you know I'm kidding, right?). Note: you have to try really hard to fail the vocals on Beatles Rock Band. These kids have skills.

Anyway, happy birthday, Neilyboy! You are one fantastic kid. :)

Lagoon, and Other Exciting Adventures

Okay, more crazy kid stuff, because . . . well, what else do I have to take pictures of? And besides, sometimes there's just nothing more entertaining than children being children. Ya'll ready? Okey dokey.

Super cute picture of Alison. If I ever take one that's NOT cute, I'll be sure to post it. Otherwise, no one will believe me.

Jarrett making an important call. I love how the "dashboard" is just hanging there while he holds the phone.

"Return of the Jedi Baby"!
This picture never fails to crack me up.

Haha, Bree being hysterical as usual.

Our good friend Becky gave the kids a quilting kit, but we decided to make scarves instead so each kid could have their own, and Grandma too. Thanks, Becky! Everyone loved them, and it kept the little ones busy for a nice long time, not to mention warm and cozy. :)

We had the tent set up in the backyard from when Nicole and I did this. Of course, the kids loved playing in it. Carson, Ronny, and Bree having a grand ol' time.

Ronny looking innocent as he whacks his cousin upside the head. Silly babies!

Ronny being his hilarious little self. And eating, of course.

I bet you were all beginning to wonder where Lagoon was going to come in, right? Well, wonder no more. Actually, I meant to post the Lagoon pictures first, but even though I've posted almost 50 times, I forgot that the pictures load in reverse order. Ahem.

Ali loved this car ride. Doesn't she look awesome in that little tiny car?

Ali and Jarrett on a boat ride. The little kid in the boat behind them screamed bloody murder the whole time. It was . . . annoying.

This picture is a little blurry, but Neil's expression is priceless. Poor Jarrett looks like he's about to cry, but he was fine once he got used to it. Ali is next to him, and Rachel is up by Neil but her arm is in front of her face.

Ali, Ronny, and Rachel in the bumper cars. For some reason, I don't have any pictures of Jarrett in the bumper cars, even though he rode them about a hundred times.

Aaaand . . . let's finish things off with a nice video, shall we?

For more pictures of the Lagoon Adventure (including a couple rare pictures of me) check out Tyann's blog: http://dtpangan.blogspot.com/2009/09/fun-weekend-at-lagoon.html Besides seeing the pictures, her blog will also help you get in the mood for fall. :)