Finally caught up on the family photos, sort of...

So I've finally loaded up a ton of photos on our family photo site http://pgobiren.shutterfly.com/!

Keep in mind, that it is quite a feat to get a non-blurry photo of Flash Gordan!  Seriously, I'm lucky if most of him is in focus.  I hope you enjoy!  :)

Team BeachBody April Photo Challenge- Day 18- Giving Back

Divine Design 2011

My favorite charity here in L.A. is Project Angel Food.  In the late 1980s, Project Angel Food was founded in the Los Angeles area as a part of the Los Angeles Center for Living, which helps people with life-threatening illnesses.  The program prepared lunches for drop-in clients, but began delivering food once it became obvious that it was difficult for many of the patients to leave their homes.  In the 1990s, with the dramatic increase in AIDS cases, the program began to focus on the AIDS affected community.  Throughout the history of Project Angel Food, the program has worked diligently to not discriminate based on race or sexuality.  Into the 2000s, the program’s mission was expanded to include other illnesses.

I was introduced to Project Angel Food through a volunteering event organized by the Duke Southern California Alumni Club.  From there I started volunteering at the annual fundraiser, Divine Design.  When my Sorority's Alumni Chapter (Pi Zeta of Latinas Promoviendo Communidad, Lambda Pi Chi Sorority, Inc) needed a community service project, my fellow Hermanas jumped on the chance to work with such a great charity.  Divine Design is now on our annual calendar.  It's a great event.  It's a great organization.  I invite you to check them out!

Visiting the Gardena Willows

Earlier this month we went to visit one of L.A.'s oases. A small hidden nugget in the middle of the city.  This month we went to the Gardena Willows.  They are only open one day a month for a few hours.  It makes sense, since it is a nature preserve.  They are trying to preserve it.  I did make the mistake of keeping the little goober in his stroller.  We were able to bounce around on the trailers but next time I will definitely be taking the carrier instead.

We got some great photos:  http://pgobiren.shutterfly.com/1917.  ENJOY!

Even More Photos from Mama's Phone

I've uploaded additional photos to the collection I've called "From Mama's Phone 2011" especially now that 2011 is now over.  He's definitely more active in the most recent pictures.  If you slideshow the photos from start to finish, it's incredible how much he has changed in just these first few months.

You can check out all of the photos at http://pgobiren.shutterfly.com/1742.  Enjoy!

Max's First Christmas

Max's First Christmas

In the middle of Max's first Hanukkah, we got to celebrate his very first Christmas.  I had lots of fun opening up all of his presents for him.  I don't think he minded as long as he got to drool on all of the presents once I had them out of the wrapping.  He was an absolute hit at Christmas mass in his Christmas outfit, provided by Nona (thanks, Nona!) All of the singing put him to sleep - a major bonus considering mass lasted about two hours.  After church, we headed out to his great-grandmother's for Christmas early dinner catered by Canter's Deli.  To be fair the Christians were outnumbered by Jewish folk so it makes sense that it would be catered by the nearby Jewish deli :). TONS of food later, we finally took our little guy home to cap off the night with the lighting of the menorah.  We are truly getting this Chrismukkah (or Hanumas) down!

We took a whole bunch of pictures throughout this Chrismukkah.  You can find the photographs here: http://pgobiren.shutterfly.com/1820.  Enjoy!

Maxwell's First Night of Chanukkah

So, Christmakkah has officially started!  We have our Menorah set up in front of our Christmas tree.  Steve is in charge of the actual prayers sung at the lighting but maybe someday I will figure out what he's saying (if only he would slow down a little bit).  Max seems to be enjoying the ceremony, mostly because I think he just likes looking at the flickering candles.  At the very least, he's enthralled by the lights long enough to actually allow us to eat dinner.  Hey, I'll take it.

So we hope everyone is having a great holiday season!  It's just a few more days until Christmas!  My mom has already sent over a Christmas outfit so Max will be all decked out for church!  Yeah!  I love the holidays!

Max likes to just stare at the Menorah.  :)

Our Charlie Brown Christmas Tree

Max is chilling with the tree. 

So our Christmas tree was delivered last week by the the Living Christmas Company last week.  We got a call the night before confirming our delivery.  I was really impressed.  Two big burly guys in their santa hats came by and dropped of our tree right on time.  They were super nice and I was super happy with our little Christmas tree.  It was definitely a bit taller than I though it would be but that worked out great.  Now I just have to make sure to keep the tree watered and with daily light.  I do get an email every few days reminding me to water the tree.  It's actually helpful since I want to make sure not to underwater or overwater the tree.

So the poor tree sat alone in the corner for about a week before we were finally able to get the lights onto the tree.  A few days after that, we finally got the ornaments on.  We have a few picture frame ornaments that still need pictures.  We're working on it.  Slowly but surely our little Charlie Brown Christmas tree is coming together.

Long Man Walking

Lone Man Walking

I love taking photos.  That is pretty obvious.  I tend to take lots of photos of my guys.  That is also pretty obvious.  Although I've been photographing Max for about 2 months now, I have been photographing Steve for  years now.  Those of us who know Steve know that he sometimes like to quietly wander off on his own to explore.  This drove my Tia Nelly a bit bonky when we were in Bogotá and Steve would wander off on his own.  He was easy to spot in the crowd and at this point, I'm pretty used to it.  :)

From this habit of Steve's was born my idea for a series of photographs that I've been calling "Lone Man Walking".  Much like "From Mama's Phone" it is an ongoing series that is constantly growing.  Pictures include those from our honeymoon, road trips, and even random day trips we take.  You can find the album here: http://pgobiren.shutterfly.com/1475.  ENJOY!

More Photos from Mama's Phone

Understanding that I do spend a lot of time with my wee one, I have uploaded new photos to the collection I've called "From Mama's Phone 2011".  You'll notice that most of the pictures are of him in his high chair/ car seat/ or play mat.  That's the easiest way to make sure my hand or arm aren't in the picture.  I'm sure the photos will diversify once he can hold himself up.  :) You can check out all of the photos at http://pgobiren.shutterfly.com/1742.  Enjoy!

Gorgeous Morning at the Farmer's Market

Yummy Yummy Asian Pears

It's easy to be lazy on a Saturday morning.  It was such a gorgeous day though, it was hard not to take advantage of the Farmer's Market.  The sun was shining.  The recent super windy nights made sure that the sky was clear.  It was a perfect day for the Torrance Farmer's Market.  I would definitely recommend the market for those of you in the South Bay.  Steve generally is in charge of picking out our fruits and veggies, so I took advantage to take some quick photos.

From Mama's Phone

From Mama's Phone 2011

What did we do before our cell phones?  Personally, I actually knew folks' phone numbers.  Regardless, I have been taking advantage of the camera feature of my phone.  I have put together a series of photos that I've been calling "From Mama's Phone", mostly to feed my sister's need to have a constantly growing collection of pictures of her nephew :).  Who am I to deny to needs of my sissy?  I'm hoping that the series will continue to grow as I keep snapping pictures of Maxwell from my phone.  You can catch the growing series at http://pgobiren.shutterfly.com/1742. ENJOY!

The 1 Year Mark

So Steve and I made it to our first anniversary!  yeah! We decided to head up to Big Sur for a long weekend (yes, I know, my voicemail said Big Bear but we were in Big Sur). Of course, we took HUNDREDS of pictures on the drive up, while hiking around, while gorging ourselves on anniversary cake, and all the rest.  I was good and picked just my top 108 photos :)  and posted them on our Shutterfly Page.

We started off the weekend by driving up the 1 to the Big Sur Riverside Campground & Cabins.  We treated ourselves to a cabin for our trip.  We had a great time and I would definitely recommend it. There are amazing drives and gorgeous hikes throughout the area.  We even stopped by Monterrey to go to the Aquarium.  The jellies and the sea otters were my absolute favorites!  They were hard to photograph but we tried our best.

I would definitely recommend the trip up to Big Sur if you need to recharge with some greenery and quiet.  We treated ourselves to a great weekend and a pretty big cake!

Visiting L.A. on the weekends

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="The Getty Villa"][/caption]

So Steve and I have been working on getting to know L.A. on the weekends.  On the Saturday before Valentine's Day we visited the Getty Villa (seen above).  True to Getty-style, the entrance is free (you just have to get a "ticket" online) and you just pay for parking.  It has gardens and beautiful museum with painting and sculptures.  Definitely a nice way to spend a sunny afternoon.  For more pictures on our visit you can go to http://pgobiren.shutterfly.com/993 .

This afternoon,  Steve and I decided to check out the Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden at CSULB. It is also free to get into the Garden, you pay for parking (meter) or if you go on Sundays -- the parking is gratis as well.  They garden has a beautiful coy pond.  You can buy the food to feed the fish from what looks like a gumball dispenser.  We watched lots of kids feeding the fish throughout our visit.  The garden also has a nice sand/pebble garden and lots of great statues and flowers.  It's a small garden but a nice little getaway for the afternoon.  We have some photos from the visit at http://pgobiren.shutterfly.com/1017

[caption id="" align="aligncenter" width="400" caption="Earl Burns Miller Japanese Garden"][/caption]

Madrona Marsh

In the middle of Torrance, actually right by the Del Amo Mall is located the Madrona Marsh in my new hometown of Torrance.  It's a little oasis in the middle of the City.  You can always hear the din of the cars on the surrounding roads but you catch moments of calm and real beauty.  We ended up watching a gopher cleaning out his hole for a few minutes (very entertaining).  It's a great little place.  There is a Nature Center right across the street with lots of great activities and information.  I would definitely recommend it if you need to get away for an afternoon but want to stay close to home.  You can check out the photos we took at http://pgobiren.shutterfly.com/295.  ENJOY!

The Watts Towers

About a year ago, Steve and I were driving down the 105 and Steve saw a sign on the side of the road that showed the exit for the Watts Towers.  I didn't know what they were but when it comes to exploring L.A. I'm pretty much game.  So, this Saturday, with the sun finally shining, we figured we would check it out.  If you are in the area, I would definitely visit.  It's a very interesting piece of folk art.  Basically, an Italian man decided that he wanted to make something in his lift and so he started to create these towers in his backyard out of rebar, concrete, glass, ceramic, and whatever the community children would bring him.  The result is amazing, to say the very least.  To see some of the photos from the trip you can visit My Watts Tower Flickr Photos.  The Towers are part of the State Historic Park System.  Some cool information can be found at http://www.wattstowers.us/. ENjOY!