Unc's Visit

My favorite uncle (who also happens to be my ninong - both at my baptism and at our wedding) stayed with us for a whole week. It was really great seeing Uncle Wash (better known as "Unc") and hanging out with him, as well as my Aunt Pizza and my cousin, Notsky.

Ever since we were much younger, "Unc" was always the uncle you could count on to provide us with fun things to do (from sports programs at Polo Club, to major fireworks every New Year's eve, lavish parties at his home, mini-golf games at Par 42 and 44, movies at Louie's Cinema and in his home theater, and even motorcycle rides on his bike). Of course, he was also the uncle who teased us mercilessly and who always demanded we give him back massages in exchange for what was then below minimum wage! =) He is always so full of energy - that it is pretty infectious to be around him!

I'm so glad to see that although he has mellowed somewhat - he is still the same old Unc that we can count on to be there for us. Of course, now he's also the uncle who sends us a thousand emails a week and gives us countless tips and a lot of advice on our careers, finances, and life in general.

Here are some pictures of their stay with us:

As with all our visiting guests, we had to have the prerequisite backyard barbecue. Here are Jules, Jojo and I with "Unc" and A. Pizza. We decided to grill burgers that night. The burgers were thick and juicy and were grilled to perfection by my hubby - the "Grill Master"! Our theme that night was "California Burgers" and so for toppings we had 4 kinds of cheese (cheddar, Jack, Havarti and Provolone), beefsteak tomatoes, dill pickles and avocados. Yum!


Here we are with my cousin Notsky who just graduated magna cum laude with a double major from Menlo College. Congrats, Nots! We are so proud of you. It's so great seeing Nots again (he was here about 2 years ago). We are hoping he'll fly over and join us this Xmas.


This was taken after a really good Italian lunch at Cafe Bizou in Pasadena. The other folks in the picture are Unc's friends (and their families) from way back in high school. One thing I forgot to mention about Unc is that he is the most sociable guy I have ever met - he literally has friends everywhere and believe me when I say, everyone knows him!


This was our dinner at one of my favorite restaurants in L.A. I've blogged about it before - the place is called Lu Din Gee in San Gabriel. It's a small but quite elegant Taiwanese restaurant and usually packed. And although it is quite a drive and a long wait to get in - it is so worth it in my book! We had to call ahead to order their specialty, Peking Duck. The dinner was my brother, Jules', treat to welcome Unc to L.A.

We've had many other good times while Unc was here - our Southern BBQ dinner at Lucilles, our crab dinner at Redondo Pier, picking lemons in our backyard, and just hanging out watching the Military and History Channel on tv. By now, Unc and A. Pizza are back in Manila while Notsky is back in Menlo finishing up his last month of school. Hopefully we can have them over again soon.