A  weekend visit to Ken-san, a sculptor in Andes, NY. 

We have been spending a few weeks during summer in upstate New York with the same family friends for the past 4 years. As a mother, it is far from a relaxing vacation. There are always dramas, chaos and hungry kids, but we learn a lot from our conflicts. Nothing can beat the fresh air and the gorgeous land  with fun folks. 

90 degrees Sunshine in Brooklyn.
Lots of meats to grill, and more young ones this year.

Mike Nogami's annual Japanese style New Year's Party,  新年会 (shin nen kai)  was held at Shige's loft in Union Square. The tradition here includes eating Ozoni soup with grilled mochi rice cakes, drinking lots of Sake, 書き初め（kakizome, literally means "first writing" is to write a new year's resolution /personal messages in in calligraphy), かるた (karuta, card game), watching 紅白歌合戦 (Kouhaku, an annual music show on New year's eve, produced by NHK national broadcast), and etc. It's a fun and homey way to start an upcoming year.

A weekend foliage getaway/ pre-halloween rehearsal / double anniversary trip to  mountainside of Vermont. Packed with wigs and boom box, marching up the mountain on freezing late afternoon.  Shots of Corralejo kept us warm.  

Jake and Coda visited NYC for the first time from Connecticut, taken by their master, Matt.
Matt, who is a certified dog trainer, showed the boys how to roll in the city.  
They both behaved like a gentleman.  

An weekend visit to sculptor, Ken Hiratsuka's studio in Andes, New York, about 4 hours north of NYC.  Accompanied with his fellow sculptors, Daisuke Kiyomiya and Akihiro Ito.  Beautiful life style was there.

A casual Friday afternoon beach trip to Robert Moses State park, which is the west end of Fire Island.  
It was almost scary how warm the water was, couldn't stop thinking of the climate change.
Confirmed idea is that we may as well enjoy the ocean while we can.
Wanting to go back one more time to feel that warm wave before it gets cold.