2026 Summer Adventure Gallery: June 28–July 4

I attended the "Beauty and wonder of birds", a guided event at Ardenwood farm. The park rangers gave me binoculars and pointed us to: Anna's Hummingbird, Brown Creeper, Baby Bluebird, Eagle's nest, Robin, Black phoebe, California Towhee, Hens and, Woodpecker. I could see so clearly through the binoculars. I also saw through other people's spot-scopes. It was so much fun to attend this program to see all these birds.

This drawing captures my happiness with bright and beautiful colors.

I made a fluffy sheep using a paper plate, cotton balls, and paper. It was a fun craft!

I created cherry tree.

I started reading The Library of Flowers by LC Chu. It is an Asian Canadian, intergenerational, women centric story about a 33 year old woman who is struggling with her identity and relationship with her mother and with her familial responsibility. The fun part is that the women in the Hua family pass down a special power to each eldest daughter born. The power is to change mood/feeling through perfume that is their family’s craft. I have enjoyed reading this book and parts of me gets really frustrated as the main character navigates feelings of wanting to be independent versus feelings of filial piety. It has reminded me of my own values and shone a light on what is important to me within my own identity and culture. It’s also a comfy cozy read which I love!

Avyan made sheep, chick and rangoli design using small cut papers

I reread Watership Down, a classic novel about rabbits and an allegory for our society. I enjoyed rereading it and diving deeper into the meanings of the actions of certain characters such as Hazel and what the author is trying to say about the way our society and government is run.

We visited the Alameda County Fair and saw one of my favorite insects, the bee. It was fun to learn that you don't have to have acres of land to keep bees. It is possible to keep them in an urban setting, even apartments, so long as you have permission and a safe space for the bees and people to be undisturbed. I love these little creatures for the lessons they've imparted on me around connection, teamwork, and impact on us human beings. I am eagerly awaiting for my flowers to bloom to help them out in my own little way.

I read a book in nature with my mom and sister.

Made a canvas board by myself and did an oil pastel drawing on it . And made a rain bow oil pastel drawing

This summer, I started practicing meditation using The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching as my guide. Before reading this book, I believed that meditation required setting aside dedicated free time to sit in a perfectly quiet place. I didn't realize that I don't actually need open blocks of time to practice. Now, whether I am working, doing chores, eating, or walking, I can simply focus on my breath. These daily exercises help me stay grounded in the present moment, making me feel much calmer and far less overwhelmed. I plan to keep building on this practice and look forward to finishing the book.

I went to Yosemite with my family. We took the YARTS shuttle to get to Yosemite from Mariposa. And from the visitor center we hopped on the Yosemite valley shuttle and we saw Half Dome, Mirror Lake, El Capitan and Yosemite Falls. It was so much fun!

Meet Cooper! Part of a baseball loving family, Cooper was named after “Cooperstown”, a place that we’d like to one day visit. He was adopted at 7 months old, so we missed part of the cute puppy phase, nevertheless we love him all the same. He will turn 1 year old in a few weeks and hopefully he’s done growing soon because he is one big boy! Weighing around 80 lbs with a nose that comes up to about counter height, he is a tall, long-legged goofball. He loves playing with other dogs and likes meeting new people. He is learning to be a good sideline doggie and joins us at my son’s baseball games to cheer on the team. When the team is having a tough game, he’ll stroll along the dugout to offer moral support to the kids. His favorite toy is anything with a squeaker but one of his favorite pastimes is laying in the sun and chomping on sticks. Cooper has taught us to live in the moment and enjoy the little things -- he literally stops to smell the roses on his walks!

Mila Gonzalez is a 5-year-old Border Collie born in July 2020. She is my unemployed herding dog and court jester. Border Collies were (and still are) bred to work on farms herding cattle. They are known as the smartest and most trainable dog breeds. However, Mila is a lady of leisure. She enjoys taking naps, playing with her ball, a Weiner dog stuffed toy, and playing with babies. When she's not doing those things, she's outside trying to make friends with the squirrels and neighborhood cats. We are currently working on her befriending approach. Mila helps me slow down, relax, and enjoy the little things in life, such as chasing squirrels. We are also working on figuring out how to make her immortal.

This summer, I found a nest of birds. Unfortunately, 2 of the baby birds had fallen out of the bush and a group of cats usually liked to come into our backyard around this time (afternoon), so we found a cardboard box and carried them safely home. Panicked, the parent birds and children started crying out for each other, chirping very loudly while the parents searched for ways to get in to reach their babies. We knew that the cats would probably smell our scent if we put them back right away, so I suggested trying to find out what the baby birds liked to eat and how often. Eventually, after they had calmed down and enough time had passed to be sure that the cats wouldn't come back for the day, I carefully placed the two of them back into the nest. Holding the innocent lives and looking into their eyes, I knew immediately that this was going to be one of my most memorable days this summer.

I read for 30 minutes every day and made different animal popsicles and pig art.

I made vanilla chocolate butter cookies with my mom, we made lots of cookies, to share with our family.