the chu's sweet home: 2015

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Out and About | Festival of Light at The Mission Inn Hotel

This Christmas season we decided to go for a couple of one-day-trip instead of a big travel plan. We went to The Mission Inn for the Christmas lights and captured some Christmassy photos:

We always want to try something new in terms of paint in each room. For example, we painted the two opposite walls in red for our living room and all blue for the bathroom. This time, we picked another BOLD color. Instead of painting all walls in the same color, we picked the adjacent walls to be the accent walls. Before the color is disclosed, here are some pinterest ideas that inspire our choice:

Source

Charles started the painting process on his winter break. He first got the trim done; and then the ceiling:

Dear Baby Girl - Week 22

Baby Bump with Little en @ Week 20 & Week 24

DIY Advent Calendar

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Turning Twenty Months

恩仔前幾天已經轉21個月了, 回顧這第20個月, 講了好多好多單詞, 也慢慢會把單詞接在一起了, 非常期待可以跟他一起 chit-chat的時候...

手手準備戒除中...

A New Table for Little en

最近看著恩仔坐在地上玩, 時不時會把他的車車開到沙發或是爸媽的工作椅上, 經過外婆提醒, 應該是要給他一張桌子的時候了

在不打算花一毛錢的情況下, 突發奇想跑到車庫裡, 把過去單身買得 IKEA 家具挖出來, 稍微改裝一下, 就成了恩仔的 play table! 自覺很天才, 居然把 TJUSIG系列的鞋架搖身一變成了一張兒童桌!

The Hard Part is Over

I thought little en’s room is going to be a quick renovation since Charles had done those hardcore construction like our living room and bathroom remodel. We are surprised that little en’s room takes a lot longer than we expected. We got the permit in March this year and now it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas... It’s been quite a wait for me. I can’t wait to decorate his room! Anyhow, after all the drywall installing, patching and sanding, the hard part is officially over.

Charles installed all the trim during the Thanksgiving long weekend:

Dear Baby Girl - Week 20

Tuesday, November 24, 2015

Travel | A Weekend in Big Bear Cabin

Get Back to Work

After saying goodbye to grandpa and grandma, E’s bedroom was all the sudden quiet and cold :( Charles started to get back to finish all the details in the room. First: pick a window and door moulding designs:

Turning Nineteen Months

First attempt on the toilet! We don’t want to push it and we only do potty when it's number two, so the successful rate is about 3 out of 10 times, not bad.

Out and About | Children’s Garden at Huntington Library

Last year we got a great deal to purchase 2015 annual membership to Huntington Library for half price. Before it expires, we make time to visit there more often. And a few weeks ago, we invited little en’s cousins to join us!

Repurpose Ikea Spice Racks

這張小小的 Ikea JOKKMOKK dining table 目前是家裡唯一吃飯的地方, 有點小但還過得去...自從恩仔加入餐桌後, 他面前方圓50CM的東西都得收好, 所需用品也越來越多, 於是堆在桌面的東西把整張桌子都填得好滿...

Ikea 便宜又好用的 BEKVAM Spice Rack 又派上用場! 量好位置在櫥櫃側面鑽四個洞

First Time on Dance Floor

September 26, 2015 Claire & Brian’s wedding - Pastel Pink, Gold & Leafy Green

參加婚禮我們習慣把恩仔留給奶奶, 一個月前, 我們第一次帶恩仔出席了一場美麗的婚禮...

Turning Eighteen Months

**Update: attached his 18-month monthly photo**

The Best Birthday Gift from Above

Thursday, October 8, 2015

Travel | Catalina Getaway

2015.10.04 - 2015.10.05 Catalina Island, Avalon, California, United States

My parents have already visited a lot of touristy places around California in the past few years, such as San Francisco, San Diego, and of course Las Vegas. I tried to find a getaway destination that my parents have never been to and little en could also spend less time stuck in traffic. I came up with Catalina Island, so we took a two-day-one-night getaway to this boutique island last weekend.

We got a little wet while we were boarding but it couldn’t stop little en having fun :)

Blocks Fever

There’s no doubt that I’m all obsessive with Lego’s Modular Buildings. There is something else quite similar, when it comes to picking out toys for little en; I find myself searching for wooden blocks all the time. Even though he shows a lot more interests in wheels as opposed to wooden blocks, I still collected a few types of blocks for him...

Here are a few picks that are irresistible to me:

Grimm’s Spiel and Holz Design: Rainbow Blocks

This brand is made-in-Germany. These blocks are coated with beautiful colors and designed with creative shapes. However, they are pretty pricy. Their 6pcs famous rainbow costs $40!

Grimm's Spiel and Holz Design

Halfway Done

Sorry Mom and Dad, we didn’t make it. BUT we promise that you will be moving to the temporary guest room before the coming weekend. Here’s the effort that Charles has accomplished so far:

Weekend September 12-13

All the walls are puttied and sanded for three times!

Weekend September 19-20
The first layer of the primer

Turning Seventeen Months

little en is actually turning 18 months this week. I know I’ve been a lot lazy lately with getting more photos of him. We didn’t plan many outings recently because daddy has been working on little en’ room for almost every single weekend. Mommy needs to get back on the feet to take more photos even if it’s a rainy day at home…

Anyhow, we were invited to a birthday party at Chubby Cheeks Cafe, where Charles got some cute photos of little en :)

Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Guest Room Progress Report - Part II

Weekend August 22-23 ; Fahrenheit 88∘

完成所有玻璃棉填裝:

Weekend August 29-30 ; Fahrenheit 96∘

重新裝過無數 drywalls 的查理斯這一回是第一次挑戰天花板, 原先的天花板是目前被禁用的 popcorn ceiling, 拆牆時請人一併拆除了; 於是如何一個人完成拼裝天花板這項艱鉅的任務是這間房間的大挑戰, 查理斯運用槓桿原理以及木工的手法製作了一個機器, 將石灰板平放木條, 其中一端利用石磚的重量慢慢抬上...