University Village

University Village is an outdoor shopping mall in Seattle, and it tends to assume a certain snootiness that comes with its yuppy clientele. We used to dislike this place a lot, but now as parents, we see it a bit differently. It's quite a spectacle for Sophie.

Since Vân wanted to buy some clothes for work from Banana Republic (BR), we made a shopping extravaganza out of it. Sophie loved the frogs and turtles squirting water feature. She got her clothes and shoes all wet.

Then Sophie and I tried on all kinds of accessories for men and women at BR while Vân was trying on some clothes. But she found dancing around the store to be the most entertaining.

Finally, we took Sophie next door to Blue C Sushi for dinner. It's not a great sushi place, but it's fun. She loved watching the food coming around on a convey belt.

The best part was that Sophie came home dead tired. She passed out on the couch!

Which one is my prince?

Too beige?

I need a nap!

Look, I'm using chopsticks

Sleeping away!

  "I want cupcake"

BR dancer

Bike Riding

Thanks to ông bà ngoại, Sophie got a new bike and helmet. At first, she only wanted to walk the bike around the house. After a few weeks, she wanted to sit on it. But it only took one try for her to ride her bike around the wading pool at Green Lake. It was a special moment.

Brown Bear Carwash

The car was really dirty from our camping trip -- and two years worth of dirt prior to that. I decided to get a car wash at Brown Bear because I knew it would be an adventure for Sophie. Just watch her face in the video: curiosity, excitement, fright and relief. All in one minute. And it only cost $13 dollars.

Monte Cristo, Clear Water, and Boulder River Falls

Summer is normally my downtime, but Vân is extremely busy running her summer camp. So we go camping for Vân to get away from it all -- no cellphone reception.

Our camping season began in late July this year. We decided to take it easy for the first trip: stay for one night and visit somewhere close.

Vân picked the Clear Water campsite on the East side, about 2 hours away, so that we could hike to Monte Cristo. In the 1890s, the gold rush in the Pacific Northwest brought thousands of people to the town. But there was no gold to be found. By 1907, people began to leave. And Monte Cristo is a ghost town today.

On the way there, we had to make a stop at the Ranger Station. I was completely lost even with directions. After pointing us to the right way, the Ranger told us not to go to Monte Cristo. She said it was dangerous because recent floods washed away parts of the trail and we would have to walk on a log to cross the river. I'm glad we didn't listen to her.

Monte Cristo was a special place. We hiked four miles to get to the town. We walked on a huge log to cross a river. We saw railroads, once buried deep in the earth exhumed by floods, sticking out like skeletons of a long forgotten past; boarded-up houses etching against the blue sky a faint outline of how life might have been; and most importantly our own sense of mortality -- and physical limit. I could only carry Sophie on my back for six miles.

Yet the next morning, we hit the trail again for another hike to Boulder River Falls. A much shorter hike this time -- 3 miles total. The waterfall was amazing. But seeing Sophie descending a 30 foot cliff then climbing back up all on her own topped everything. We were very proud of her.

Monte Cristo Peak

Welcome to ghost town!

Fell asleep in carrier

A boarded-up house in Monte Cristo

Another house - what a view!

Throwing rocks into river

Log bridge

Next morning

Breakfast

Can you find Sophie?

Boulder River Falls

Cheesy picture

Clay facial

Climbing up the cliff

 Singing Dora for Daddy

 Throwing rocks into river

 Crossing river on a log

 Stoking fire

Throwing more rocks into river

Creative Dance

Sophie got some new dance moves -- which were probably inspired by her creative dance class. I honestly don't know what to call them. You just have to watch to find out.