This Family Gets Together and Celebrates

We flew into LAX on Saturday and were picked up by Katherine to head to her and August's place in Redondo Beach. 

The extended family convened for a July 4th lunch.

Kelvin's dad turned 76 on the first and Katherine got him this cake!

She, thoughtfully and unexpectedly, also picked up one for our anniversary!

The kids wore their USA jerseys and we, pretty sleep deprived from being up at 4 a.m., chilled out and watched soccer (August is a big sports fan) and ate Asian food barbequed. 

Family photos

We have been staying at Kenn and Lisa's, the kids enjoying their time playing with the cousin crew and Iver getting in some high-quality pickleball time at some really nice nearby outdoor courts in OC.

low-cost chiropractic care at home :) 

Great Wolf Lodge

Love from Aunties

Cousin snuggles are the best! 

Father's Day 2026

This past Sunday was a pretty low-key day for us! 

We let Kelvin sleep in a bit and then gave him this (Pickleball = Retirement Plan tee shirt).

With Pepper, his fur-child's, plaque in our garden.

I tried to FaceTime my Dad in VA but alas, he seemed busy!

Kelvin got to take his usual weekend nap and we enjoyed dinner (pho) out and Ultimate Yogurt for the evening meal.

Kelvin is a very involved parent-- always trying to attend kids' school and sporting events despite a very demanding schedule. He is more the "out of the house" parent while I hold down parenting duties at home but a great partner and the "preferred" parent in many ways, because he's fun- and excitement-loving.

My own Dad has had almost 45 years of parenting expertise, and has done a great job! We look forward to celebrating and seeing him this summer for a cruise. We'll also get to see Ong Noi (K's dad) in a couple of weeks in Orange County. 

We're hosting a Croatian soccer coach (Tibor) as part of the Challenger Camps system this week and the kids are enjoying summer and lots of celebrating.

Happy (belated) Father's Day to all the fathers, grandfathers, father figures in the world!

Celebrating a Golden Anniversary!

 

I can't believe my parents have been married for FIFTY YEARS! As the card I sent them says, "The first 50 years of marriage are the hardest." Marriage IS hard (Kelvin and I are coming up on fifteen years), but they truly have made it look easy! 

My parents have both (at my "gift" /slash request) written memoirs via the company Storyworth, which helped me get to know their stories a bit better, and to have to re-read for many more years to come. The short version is that my dad grew up on a tiny farm outside of Fisher, in rural northwestern MN, and my mother grew up in South India, coming to the U.S. for college but returning home to Madras (Chennai). They were introduced by mutual friends while my dad was working abroad in India, and their union was unlikely and unusual, but still absolutely right (and the rest is history!).

They've both had demanding and rewarding careers with the U.S. government, raised us two "third-culture" girls, and have traveled the entire world.  They are enjoying exercise, reading, traveling with the company OAT, dog-parenting in their retirement years, and are soon to downsize into a smaller space in this next chapter of their lives.  They are very different people-- by background, temperament, and in many other ways, but they've made a very long marriage work which is truly remarkable and inspirational! 

I shamelessly stole almost all of these archived pictures from my mom, who curated them from their past albums (many of which she's been sorting through as they prepare to move), as I don't have many old photos in digital form.

1976 in India

1985 MN

Arness Family, 1987

~1993 Taj Mahal 

1994 Fox Glacier, New Zealand

1996, Snowpocalypse, at our soon-to-be-sold home in McLean, VA

1997 Glacier NP

2001 Istanbul (25th anniversary cruise to Greece and Turkey) 

2005 Egypt

2006 Vanessa's College Graduation

2006 Mexico

2007 Mayo Medical School Graduation

2011, Kelvin and my wedding  

2014

Dogs they've owned and loved

Toccata (1991- 2001? )

Duncan and Freya (rest in peace)

Remy, who is currently ailing from a mouth tumor

2016 Hawaii

2022 Jamaica

Combined 145 years old (2023)

2025 Mt Vernon

2026 Morocco

We will be seeing them next/ celebrating in person with them on a Baltic family cruise this summer but for now: CONGRATULATIONS on such a remarkable milestone and enduring love.

 CHEERS TO FIFTY YEARS (and, with hope, many more!)!