Clear Lake kids and a family outing

I wake up in the morning feeling like... P. Diddy?  Haha, okay, well parents left for work and I had no car to go anywhere, so it was a day with the doggies in the backyard!~  My dad's a stickler for temperature control, and our house was actually colder than outside =_='' 

When I walked out, I saw leaves.  EVERYWHERE.  Since when did leaves fall down in Houston?!  And then I realized that our oak tree is ginormously tall now!  I remember when we planted it when it was just a sapling with a diameter smaller than a circle made with my thumb and index finger.  Now I can seriously injure myself running into it when I'm chasing or being chased by Balto.  :)

Anyways, the leaves were all over the place!  So instead of seeing green grass, all I saw were leaves.  I don't remember raking leaves *ever*, but I saw a rake leaning against the wall, so I grabbed it and started raking up piles.  I ended up making one massive pile in the middle!  And every time I was raking up a smaller pile on the side, I would hear some rustling and look up to see Balto and Bacardi sniffing around and rolling around in the big pile of leaves!  Haha, guess I'm not the only one who likes to play around ^^

Making a pile!

*sniff sniff*

I worked up a sweat, and I didn't realize until after when I was admiring the pile that the skin on my right hand peeled off and I was bleeding.  Haha @_@''''   My community requires all the bags for leaves and grass be compostable, so I filled 3 bags and placed them beside the windows.  I could actually see the grass!  A lot of patchy areas, but I'm not sure if it's because the grass couldn't "breathe" from the weight of the leaves or if it was from the drought Texas suffered from this year.  But apparently there's no more drought, since it rained pretty hard that night! :D  

When I stuffed the last of the leaves into the bag, I felt something semi hard and smushy and took a look at the ground.  I saw a gray lizard and screamed really loudly.  I put my face closer for inspection and blew on it, but it didn't move.  So I took a leaf and poked, and it still didn't move.  When I flipped it over, and its legs stuck stiffly into the air, I realized it was dead.  I screamed again and jumped backwards a few times.  AHHHH I hate dead bugs and animals T_______T  My doggies came to comfort me (or were led to believe I was excited to give them a treat, I don't really know), and I ran inside to wash my hands like crazy.

Tuesday night was our get-together!  It was a potluck, so I made a BBQ chicken dish.  Super light-tasting, since my parents said it was perfect.  That means it was super bland, because they have zero salt tolerance, haha!  Oh well~  But a lot of people showed up, and there was a huge feast!

The guys laughed at me when they saw me downing my second plate of food =_=''  Is eating bad?!  Or maybe they just eat super quickly, and two hours later, I'm still eating, so it just seems like I'm a cookie monster.  :3  OM NOM NOMMMM

Raymund and Jeff enjoying victuals

Chris, Lindsey, and Irene

Haha, they are so funny!  And Chris is just like *munch munch*

We had a Secret Santa thing, and I loved watching everyone give their presents, really cool!  Most of the guys got nice clothes, and I thought that was pretty cool :D  I got a mini-donut maker!  (Thanks, Tim!)  I gave the Butt Station and a cereal bowl separated into two parts for cereal and milk, so the cereal never gets soggy, to Jeff.  I hope he likes it!  Haha, so weird, because I actually like my cereal soggy, yummmm~  *watches the cereal pieces drown in milk* ^_^

There was some talking and catching-up, but I went home before 1am with Ting, since my parents were expecting me home early and I had a doctor's appointment the next day.

~*~

So the next morning, both my parents were off!  And we planned to go eat lunch at Chinatown together, so all three of us went to my doctor's appointment, haha :P  I actually don't my car insurance activated until Friday, so someone had to take me ^^''

Parents talking in the super spiffy waiting room

Daddy reading and being smart!

He got a picture of me being not smart and checking my cell phone :P

I have to go again Friday to get a small surgery done, but then I can't swim for a few weeks.  D:  Whyyyyy~  I brought my swimming stuff back too!  But it's all good, the UH natatorium closes on Friday all the way until I go back to school anyways...  So that's why I plan to force my daddy to go swimming with me on his day off Thursday by bribing him with dinner! :D:D:D

  

Oh, where are these two lovely parents?

Haha, doesn't it look so random?  We planned to eat lunch with Connie at noon, and so while we were waiting for her to leave her place in Downtown, we explored the back of some buildings in Chinatown.  While they were looking at what businesses were located in this little square, I took a creeper photo of them.  Cute, right? ;)

Then I was walking on the edges of the sandbar, balancing on the little line of cement.  My mom followed me for a brief moment and stepped off.  I told both of them that as people get older, they lose their sense of balance, so they should try to walk on the strip with me a couple times to exercise their balance a bit!  And they did, tee hee!  Super cute ^__^  

But no, I wasn't making stuff to make them walk with me, haha~  My friend accidentally ran a bike into me when I was in 10th grade.  It wasn't even at full speed or anything, just a little bump, but the angle and way I fell messed up my knee, so I had to get physical therapy (and since then couldn't beat my best time in the 100yd breaststroke T__T *saddened for life*).  When I was getting treated there, the physician told me to try balancing on one foot.  Another older patient had to do the same thing and fumbled a bit, and the physician told me that it's easier for younger people.  Yep yep, random story!

Keep your balance!

Haha, my dad's such a stud.

It was time to meet up at the Jang Guem Tofu and BBQ House, and 15 minutes after the set time and a no-show from Connie, my parents decided to order.  They ate a light breakfast, so they must had been super hungry, since my mom looked so happy to receive her tiny salad!

Haha, so happy~

I was excited for side dishes, delish!!

My dad ordered "Rice with Assorted Vegetables" (bimbimbop), and I ordered "Rice with Kimchi and Assorted Vegetables."  My thinking was that it's bimbimbop, plus kimchi.  Sounds right, doesn't it?  :P  But when it came out, I was a wee disappointed.  It was kimchi on top of ice berg lettuce on rice.  Who eats ice berg lettuce on rice?!

The other dish came out in its colorful glory, so pretty!  I took a picture of both, saying "Omg, this is so pretty" to myself when I took a picture of Daddy's dish.  My parents switched the bowls, giving me the bimbimbop and refused to switch them back when I half-heartedly said I liked kimchi and lettuce.  I am so spoiled :'o 

Rice with Kimchi and Assorted Vegetables

Rice with Assorted Vegetables (So pretty!!~ ^^)

*That* is why I can't fully enjoy myself at UCity Grill at school.  For around 40 cents more, the food I get in Houston is so much prettier!  And I definitely eat with my eyes as well as my tongue ^^  I loooooved the vegetables here: watercress, mushrooms, beansprouts, red cabbage, carrots, and daikon.  They were all slightly sauteed, seasoned, and placed neatly around minced meat and an egg yolk.  Delicious!~  ^_^

My mom ordered a seafood tofu soup with a side of mackerel.  It was really yummy!~  Connie came when my parents were pretty much finishing their food (probably an hour later) and I was less than half done with my dish.  She also ordered seafood tofu soup!  Hmm, sometimes I think she is more like Mommy than anyone realizes.. ^^

Grilled Mackerel

Jang Guem Tofu and BBQ House

9896 Bellaire Blvd

Houston, TX 77036

Later Connie and I went to The Teahouse to buy something to drink.  It was my first time at this location, and I was super surprised at the layout.  It was a lot smaller than I thought it was!  I was actually deciding between taro, red bean, and green bean, but I realized that I should try things I usually don't order.  I took so long that my sister was making jokes about how she can never go eat with me ever because I take a million years to decide what I want.  Then I ended up ordering Taro Coconut Cream Slush!  

Connie at The Teahouse!

Taro coconut cream slush ^^b

Connie got freshly squeezed orange juice, but I still wonder why she and Mommy like to order that.  I mean, yes, it's freshly squeezed, but can't you squeeze oranges at home for less than what it costs to buy it?  And The Teahouse was actually super pricey too-- two drinks cost $8.12 for the both of us!  @_@  Star Snow Ice sells each drink for $2.75-ish!~  But it was good to try this place at least once!

I was really happy with the taro coconut slush ^_^  Super delicious, even if it was a bit sweet!~  I haven't ordered any slushie/drinks since forever, so it really hit the spot!  Also, I was surprised that the drink lasted me about 10 or 15 minutes.  Usually it's gone before we hit the highway (5 minutes).  I have become a slower drinker!! @_@

Drinks waiting to be inhaled

Teahouse Tapioca and Tea

9198 Bellaire Blvd
Houston, TX 77036

I gave Connie her Christmas present which was a Nintendo DS game called "9 Hours, 9 Peoples, 9 Doors," a white and shiny Hello Kitty watch, and a Clif and Luna bar.  The present's theme was "time!"  haha, not sure if she got it.  But she never eats a good lunch, because she's always in a rush to go somewhere, so that's what the bars are for.  Then the watch is because it's fashionable and popular now, but also because she doesn't have a watch (uses her iPhone), and also since she is always late, late, late *annoyed*. =_=''  But she's getting better.  I mean, she actually shows up for things instead of just forgetting completely!  And the game is because she likes mystery and violent games.

So that's my first weekend back!~