Thanksgiving

Here we are having Thanksgiving with Nancy's family (I'm behind the camera of course). It was a pretty tasty dinner. We had turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberries, creamed spinach (minus the E.coli), creamed corn, some rice noodle thing, and an impromptu bean casserole by me. Nancy and her oldest sister Katherine. Katherine has a rockin recipe from Lawry's for creamed spinach and creamed corn.Nancy and her older sister Annabelle.

It's weird how when I was a kid I didn't get sick of turkey till at least the second week in a row of some kind of turkey concoction, but as an adult I get burnt out before the actual holiday. Fortunately, the food was good and the company was enjoyable. As long as Nancy is happy it's all good in the hood. The sooner a man learns that a happy wife means a higher probable happier man...notice higher probable...because we also know that sometimes us men can't make our woman happy no matter what we do because everyday is a new day. What might have worked today might not necessarily work tomorrow. Play the player...not the cards.

Brother For Life

One of my favorite things to see is Justin taking on the role of Big Brother. As he becomes a more competent human being he tries to comfort his younger brother when he seems under duress or entertain him or just hold him because he wants to feel responsible for his younger sibling. Of course this doesn't mean he succeeds in these endeavors...as you can see he has not quite perfected the holding of the brother...it generally looks more like "I'm about to drop my brother", but effort goes a long way in my book. There is also "I'm trying to hug my brother", but in reality "I'm crushing my brother"It's wonderful to see his love grow and whether Dylan feels the same is unknown till he talks...I personally think Dylan loves every moment. I feel joy for my boys knowing that they have each other. Here is Dylan and Nancy just posing. I wish all of you could witness the power of Dylan giving you a smile and cooing at you. It's so dang cute...all you women would just melt. When he wears that blue jacket with his hoodie...he looks like that blue bear at the Morning Glory stores.
Watch out ladies because Dylan of 90020 is on the prowl.

Picture Day

People thought it was amazing that I took Justin and Dylan to Disneyland by myself. Actually, that was nothing. Taking them to have their pictures taken was a much more difficult and stressful project. Today I took them to the mall to have their picture taken. Before going into the studio, I had imagined all these pretty poses of big brother hugging little brother like the ones you see on magazines. Well, it didn't quite turn out like that. At first the photographer had Justin sitting down while holding Dylan. That didn't work. Because how well do you think a 3 years old can hold a baby? Dylan kept on falling off Justin's arms and almost onto the ground. Poor Dylan started to cry and wouldn't stop. I tried to calm Dylan by feeding him, burping him and then rocking him which took about an hour. Just when we thought Dylan was ready Justin grew impatient and started jumping around and wouldn't cooperate. I tried to bribe him by promising him candy and toys but he said he wanted them now. So we left the picture place and went to a toy store in the mall. He got a box of Legos and some candies. We went back to the studio and by that time all I wanted was one picture of them, I didn't care about the poses, the smile, just one picture would do. This picture is the product of 4 hours of work, the same amount of time I spent at Disneyland with them but more than twice the work.

New Song Christmas Party

We recently attended a early Christmas party for our church small group and participated in a gift exchange. Justin loves the concept of getting a present.The funny thing is when it was his turn to pick a present he wanted to pick the present that we brought. When we told him he had to pick a different one he began to cry and wondered why he couldn't pick the one he wanted. You had to be there. His innocence was endearing, but his tantrum was embarrassing. He was so frustrated...I was finally able to explain to him the reason and he agreed to pick another one begrudgingly. He ended up pretty happy with his pick. Here is Nancy and Dylan...Nancy can't get enough of Dylan.

Dylan is starting to be pretty responsive to us. If you look carefully you can see Dylan smiling at me while I am trying to play with him. He is also cooing. It's pretty darn cute. Check out his cute little feet also. You can't help, but want to nibble on those tootsies.

I have to constantly tell myself to cherish these moments. These moments are irreplaceable. We should always take the time to just hug, kiss, and just convey to our loved ones that they are special and we love them. Touch is such an important and innate necessity that we as humans need. The more we give physical affection...the more we grow and flourish...adults and children alike. As this Thanksgiving holiday comes around...really remember the things we have to be thankful for and honor and respect the ones who we owe them to. I personally want to say thank you to you all for filling our lives with your love and prayers. All of you...our friends and family...have made us that much better.

The Magic Kingdom

Nancy had a free admission ticket to Disneyland and today was the last day to use it...so she took the boys to the Magic Kingdom. This is Justin's 2nd time and Dylan's 1st. I think Justin got a lot more out of it this time and of course Dylans slept through the whole experience.

Nancy said that he was in total awe and it was wonderful to see Disneyland from his perspective. Seeing things with children is like having Lasik...you get to see everything in a totally new and fresh perspective. Our eyes and hearts have become jaded, cynical, and bored, but how awsome is it to see the world with wonderment again.

Can you remember the last time you looked at an Icee like that?Prince Justin riding his trusty steed.

It's A Small World ride was looking pretty big and amazing to Justin. I have to give it up to Nancy for taking two kids to Disneyland by herself. I'm sure it was worth it to her because Justin had The Best Day Ever.

Dylan's Red Egg Birthday

We celebrated Dylan's Chinese 1 month Red Egg Birthday. Don't ask me what the red egg means or anything that is Chinese related. That is Nancy's area of expertise. What I do know is that Chinese people celebrate the life of a child at the 1 month mark and it's sorta of a big deal. As you can see Dylan is asleep. He actually slept through the whole day. We didn't let that get in our way of having fun. We later drew on his face and put his hand in warm water. Of course, when he pees it's not as fun since he wears diapers. I am sooooo kidding.

Koreans have something similar, but we celebrate at the 100 day mark. I guess back in the olden days and I mean OLDEN days...like when Korea was actually spelled Corea. Back in the days when infant mortality was a lot higher due to the lack of understanding of SIDS...for you non-parents...Sudden Infant Death Syndrome...lack of good car seats...or shall I say horse seats...and so on and so on...a baby that made it past a 100 days was pretty much in the clear to have a full life...unless plague, barbarian attacks, or something stupid was done that required the king to enforce the death sentence. So, 100 day...1 year...and 60th birthday are the most important birthdays celebrated in the Korean culture. Now you add the American Sweet 16, 18th, and 21st birthday...and BAM...we have a lot of money burning birthdays. Wait...Sweet 16 is a girl thing right?

We have some red eggs...looks pinks...but just go with it...a very nice cake with something written on it...I'm assuming it's Chinese...and some special rice...again I have no idea what these things represent.
On your far left is Nancy's nephew Ben...to the right of Nancy is Katherine, her oldest sister...and to the far right is Katherine's husband William. It was very kind of Katherine, William, and Ben to host us for the day. We had some really good grub. Rib Eye steak, lobster tails, salmon, asparagus, corn, and potatoes. Needless to say, I added more to my Daddy gut.

Blast From The Past

I want to do an homage blog for our son Justin today. I feel that he has not been getting the attention that he's used to receiving. I'm sure he feels the difference in his life since Dylan's birth. I'm proud to say that he seems to be growing into his role as older brother and shows nothing but love for his sibling. So, I am going to share baby pictures of Justin to remind everyone just how cute and small Justin used to be. Next time you see Justin...give him an extra loving hug and let him know that he is special. Encourage him to continue on being a great loving brother. Enjoy the blast from the past.

My Boy...My Son...My Pride.

Pay For Air?

I don't have any pics today, but I have to share my thoughts on something that I find to be really lame. I took Justin today to see Flushed Away and Open Season (3D IMAX)...both are good movies...though I thought Flushed Away was the better of the two, but I do have to admit that the 3D IMAX is pretty darn cool. Anyways, after we finished the movie...I needed to put some air in my tires...so I pulled into a Mobil gas station. I know that gas stations have been charging money for air and water for awhile, but when it took me $1.50 to fill 4 tires...it really hit me how stupid and unfair it is to charge for air. I just needed to publicly denounce the gas stations who charge people for air.

Yawning Baby Tiger/Panda

The yawning baby Tiger/Panda awakes and prepares to feast on the nipple of his mother. Dylan is truly becoming a chuba wuba...he has grown so much in the past couple of month. He will be due for his 100 day birthday next month. Nancy is doing a great job of fattening up our 2nd son. Hopefully, he will stay on track like Justin to be 6'0" or taller.

This is the face of a cherub. Notice his double chin. We are working on a triple chin. Don't worry about obesity...it will all contribute to his growth. It's truly endearing to see Dylan begin to smile.
I have to say that the second time around is easier. Plus, we don't freak out about every little cough, bump, funny noise, and so on and so on. We are both able to enjoy the process a little more. We enjoy more moments because we know to look for them and realize that these times are precious and short. It's no different for Justin...right now he loves his brother...wait till Dylan gets into his stuff and starts knocking down his buildings.
Nancy asks me who I love more...Justin or Dylan? Even though Justin is going through his TERRIBLE 3's...I love them both. I will probably love them differently and yet equally. Justin is my 1st born even though he is such a booger butt...I love the kid to death. Dylan will most likely be different than his brother...especially since I will be handed down the daunting task of raising Dylan starting January. Justin is very much his mother...so there is a good chance that Dylan could be more like me. All I know is that we are blessed and I am truly the proud parent of 2 wonderful boys.

Due To Popular Demand

Okay...due to Nancy's friend's request who I will not name...Kim...I will try to write more blogs more often so that she has something to read in the mornings. I will add some pics that my mother took last month when my family came to visit Dylan for the first time. My parents recently visited this past weekend and I was able to download these pictures. This is a really good pic of Dylan. This is one of the few pics where he looks completely awake. I think he is going to grow up to be a pretty boy.

This is how he normally looks...asleep.

Justin on the other hand will probably be more on the handsome side. I just hope these two guys will get along and cherish each other as brothers.

My Dad loves his grandchildren!!!

My Mom as you can see is really happy about her two grandchildren. This pic makes me sad because you can tell how really fat I am getting. Yes, being an actor has made me vain to a certain a degree. My body looks like Meatloaf in Fight Club...I have man boobs and a gut to match. So sad how 1 year can change a man.Versus last year's Thanksgiving with my niece and family. Justin is so cute here. Well enough of my complaining about my weight today. I'll try to keep new blogs and pics more often for you Kim...okay? Have a nice day.