Tales of the Flowers: Happy Birthday Surprise Weekend to me! Wrapping things up in Los Angeles

It's been an amazing time in Los Angeles with a lot of surprises and a bunch of fun memories. It's time to wrap things up here before we move on to the next trip of the summer!

After an exciting morning visiting with Adam Kontras and seeing a Delorean, plus a special visit from Mayor Goldie Wilson himself, it was time to head back to the hotel and get something to eat. We haven't had food from one of our favorite Pakistani places in a long time and it was time to treat everyone.

The Chicken Tikka Masala is always so amazing.

We ordered way way too much food, and people were turning down extras. But it's so good.

Enjoying the warm California sunshine and loving the pool.

With the rest of the family hanging out at the hotel and relaxing, Pop Pop and I took the kids to a nearby Chuck E Cheese to play a few games before dinner time.

Still got it on the milk jug toss.

Ian is getting pretty good too!

And Alli is starting to put up some higher scores on 2 minute drill too! Great job Alli! You're a little athlete!

Chuck E Cheese coming around for a visit, this time he's not trying to mess Ian up with his game.

After CEC, we headed to meet the family at one of our favorite restaurants in the area. Ooh, next door there's a really beautiful and colorful mural!

What's our favorite restaurant here? Why it's the Old Time Noodle House of course! Korean food is the best!

And owner Lisa is here too! So many of her recipes are our favorite! I love the spicy pork. Ian loves the wontons. Alli really likes the dongchimi.

It's always a treat to get to come back here.

Told you she loved the dongchimi.

I mentioned that all the family came out to surprise me for my birthday and that we were really excited to be able to bring them all here. Everyone was still a little full from lunch, but we still all ordered entrees. But hearing it was my birthday, Lisa kept bringing out even more special dishes for the table.

Including a celebratory birthday melon for everyone.

So good to see you again!

Making some new friends.

And sending us away with a few treats too! Love it!

It's been a long long day. We sat outside in the pleasant night air and chatted about our favorite things we did while we were here together. Tomorrow everyone is headed back to their respective homes.

Then finished the night by watching Back to the Future together in the hotel.

6/29/2025

It's Sunday morning! I was invited to come play beach volleyball with a friend! Megan and I hopped in the car and headed towards the sand. She's going to spend the morning in her happy place walking along the water and drinking coffee while I play volleyball.

I asked if she could get a few pictures of my playing since I don't often take them.

Then she started wandering.

Beach volleyball is so fun. I need to find a group in Florida.

The kids were busy while I was gone doing a taste test with Airhead Sours.

Then for lunch, we all packed into the car and drove to Hermosa Beach.

Eating at Hennessey's Tavern before going to explore the pier.

Getting in one last look of the ocean before heading off to the airport.

It's been super fun to have you here! Thanks for coming out to celebrate!

Monday 6/30/2025

Alli and I were up in time for breakfast. We spent the day hanging out at the hotel while Theresa worked.

Then stopped by Chuck E Cheese for some games.

For dinner, we're back to the Old Time Noodle House with my good friend Alysa and her partner. We used to work together and she took over the beach volleyball group after I left. It was great to hang out and chat when we were on the beach.

Wow! In 2 days we've got a brand new mural! The artist was just putting the finishing touches on it while we were there. I chatted with him for a few minutes, impressed by his work. He's normally a tattoo artist, specializing in tattoos that look like patches, but he gets commissioned every once in a while to do these big murals on buildings. You can find more from Rask Opticon here.