susie's wedding

Congratulations to Susie and Peter! When two psychologists walk into a bar....

One of my most memorable Christmas party memories is from two years ago when Uncle Timothy announced their engagement and popped a bottle of champagne. Uncle Timothy and Aunt Tracy looked so proud on Saturday. I am very happy for their family. Aunt Tracy was a glowing mother of the bride.

My cousin Susie was a stunning bride, and the entire wedding was thoughtful and elegant. New York's crazy June weather held out, and Saturday night was a perfect evening outdoors. The whole night passed much too quickly, and all the cousins barely had time to say hello (there are twelve of us in the States, from as far away as Honolulu and San Francisco). This is our first family wedding with grandkids, and Jordan made a beautiful, very timid flower girl. It was fun to see her, Devin, and Karina running around the dance floor. Hadynn also made an appearance and cut the rug with her mom in the baby bjorn. My personal highlight was when Pete danced with my mom. (!)

The big question asked by my aunts and uncles: "Who's next?"

I love family weddings.


The ceremony and a terrified Jordan.


Mom and dad, Viv and Hadynn.


Pete and me, Geoff and Viv and Jordan and Devin.

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Three generations of the Chen family plus cousin Jesse, the Chen sisters.


Pete and my mom. Three generations of Lee women.


Geoff and Devin, Karina as the wise older cousin.


Uncle Timothy and Susie, Peter and Susie smooching.


The Lin Family, all the single ladies.

extracurricular teaching

Last week, my friend Rich and I (both teachers ) taught our fellow friend Kaity (also a teacher) how to ride a bike. One life goal completed. Her other life goal for the summer is to learn how to tread water. (She was a city kid who grew up without a bike.) Rich did most of the work, but I helped with the initial wobbling. Kaity learned in less than an hour!



This is my mom blogging. I taught her how to blog this weekend, and she learned pretty quickly for somebody who gets flustered by ctrl+c/ctrl+v. She's been bugging me for weeks now to help her create a platform to showcase her orchids and ikebana arrangements. You can see her new blog here. I am very proud. (This did not take less than hour.)

Next up, teaching Pete how to pick up his socks. (Numerous hours already logged.)

beer holder

Might not keep it cold, but hey, it works.

obama date night

Just in case you missed it...

The New York Times wrote a tongue-in-cheek article about the better half's response to the Obamas' date night. $24,000 be damned--it was all worth it:

From longtime marrieds-with-kids, the sounds of romance envy: Groan. Growl. Whimper. Sigh.

...

While some commentators were grousing about the presidential date’s undisclosed cost to the taxpayers, news of the romantic evening prompted many wives to glare across the breakfast table, trying to remember the last time their husbands made a fuss over them.

Elbowed sharply in the side, husbands felt betrayed by the commander in chief. On “The Daily Show,” Jon Stewart reviewed the Obamas’ glamorous foray and screeched, “How do you compete with that?” He warned Mr. Obama, “Take it down a notch, dude!”

...

“And with a mother-in-law in the house?” she said. “Now that’s a real lust-corrector!” The president’s schedule posed unique marital challenges, she noted. Every day Mr. Obama has to weigh competing demands, Ms. Behar said: “Musharraf or Michelle? That’s a tougher thing for him than the average Joe. So it’s really meaningful when you watch them together.” She added, in a tone of wonderment, “He actually looks like he desires her.”

********

And here's the hilarious Daily Show clip:

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	M - Th 11p / 10c
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And Pete's response after watching the Daily Show clip together:
Pete: Hey Kitty, you're the first in my rotation. Desire.