Trying to Beat the Heat in Claremont

After all of the action yesterday, we decided to have a less packed schedule today. We spent the morning working on vocabulary and reading comprehension, and Karen and Michelle did some writing for their blogs. When we were finished with morning studies, we walked up to the Von's shopping center to get additional items for lunch and to check out a few of the other stores nearby. No visit to Claremont would be complete without a stop at the world-famous Pixie Donut, run by a donut maven - or so we are told...

The donuts only slightly helped mitigate the scorching temperatures - we trudged back home and were relieved to return to the air conditioning. The girls prepared a tasty lunch that included prosciutto and mozzarella cheese.

Our post-lunch activity was a guided tour of Harvey Mudd College, from our very own Prof Dodds. We visited Zach's lab and saw the 3D modeling project he and his students are working on. We also got to see lots of demos from students working on projects at the college this summer. We spent time in the outdoor classrooms and roof gardens of the Shanahan Building, just opened this past September. We wrapped up our college visit with a trip to the bookstore. I wanted to find some items to get for Michelle's family, who will be returning to Shanghai early next week.

 

After a delicious dinner of salmon, rice, and quinoa salad that we enjoyed on the patio, we played Candyland, Charades, and Apples to Apples. Karen was the big winner in Candyland and Apples to Apples. It was especially entertaining to see Zach acting out the word "bikini" for his team to guess.

Fashion Island & Crystal Cove

In true southern California style, we began our trip to Newport Beach with an hour-long traffic jam on 57 South, just minutes after our 10:30 a.m. departure. Little did I know that a one hour wait doesn't even begin to faze our girls from Shanghai. Michelle told me later that once she had sat in a five-hour traffic jam on the freeway. But no traffic delay was going to ruin our plans of visiting Fashion Island and Crystal Cove State Beach.

We arrived at Fashion Island just in time for lunch, with extra time for walking around. While Ashley and Lica had lunch with Nancy, I went with Winona, Michelle, and Karen to window shop and check out the many different and interesting fountains situated throughout the outdoor mall. Our favorite stop was at the high end pet store, where we saw fancy breeds of puppies and cats, and we were able to pet the mini-bunnies. Super cute.

Winona ordered the Doritos nacho cheese taco from Taco Bell, along with a churro and some icy, bright green beverage. I'm sorry to say that Michelle and Karen ordered and ate the same exact thing (don't worry, moms and dads - I fed them a healthy dinner when we got home!).

 

We made it to Crystal Cove State Beach by 1:30 - thankfully, it's only a 10 minute drive from the mall. Everyone was excited to get to the beach and play in the ocean. Even though there is a steep hill down to the beach from the parking lot, the effort is worth it. We found a good spot, and Nancy and I enjoyed the cool ocean breezes while the kids frolicked in the ocean, played paddle ball, and built sand castles.

Life is a beach... (right, Karen?)

We left - reluctantly - after 6 p.m., and enjoyed a mostly traffic-free ride home. Needless to say, everyone is happily worn out - the girls have showered, worked on their blogs, and are now going to sleep.

Exploring Claremont Village - Old & New - AND - Authentic Pho in Pomona

Michelle, Karen, and I took a comprehensive tour of Claremont this morning before the temperatures settled in on the day. Before 10:00 a.m., the Village is quiet - most of the stores don't open until later. We loosely followed the Claremont Heritage Self-Guided Tour http://www.claremontheritage.org/villagetour.html (great resource!), which took us to about a dozen sites, including Village West and the Packing House. We started at the train station on First (picture below), then walked north to see City Hall, the Claremont Post Office, and the Claremont Public Library.

It was fun for me to see the town through Karen and Michelle's eyes. They were particularly taken with an eclectic house on Third Street (I believe) replete with cat, American flag, and seashell wind chimes - everything nestled into a postage stamp-sized lot. Even though I've passed the house dozens of times in my years living here - I never actually looked at it closely until today.

 

The Packing House west of Indian Hill is always a treat - I love the way the floors gleam in the morning sunlight that streams through the skylights. There are always interesting things to see inside and out at the Packing House.

 

  

After the big loop around town, we revisited the library, which had been closed on our first trip through. I promised to take the girls there one afternoon to hang out and read. We ended the Village trip with a stop at Boone Companion - my once-favorite toy store, now under new ownership - not bad, just different. I bought Clue and Life - more games to play with Karen and Michelle.

Back home, I met with Karen and Michelle separately to discuss their writing on yesterday's blog. We also reviewed some of the vocabulary and reading comprehension homework.

We followed our lessons with lunch and a break, then Karen, Michelle, and Winona played several Wii games together. All of us played Apples to Apples, a fun game that builds vocabulary.

The girls and I met again in the afternoon for further English instruction. For dinner, we all went to Zach's and my favorite Vietnamese restaurant - Pho Ha - in Pomona. Karen and Michelle ended up choosing chicken fried rice, and tried the spring rolls and jicama rolls, as well as Zach's pho.

We had grand plans of playing charades when we got home, but after five minutes we found Karen and Michelle fast asleep, exhausted from another full day of English immersion - in the classroom and in the world.

so many choices... my head hurts...

English - In the Classroom & In the World

After a good night's sleep and a hearty breakfast of eggs and cereal, Michelle and Karen met with me to begin English lessons. We selected novels to read, as well as vocabulary books of the appropriate level.  Upon completing one-on-one sessions, Michelle, Karen, Winona and I went out into the world to do some errands at Target and Sprouts.

By the time we got going today, the temperature was already pretty high - close to 90 degrees Fahrenheit. Michelle and Karen are still a bit worn out from the big trip here from Shanghai - as well as their full day at Universal Studios yesterday. Still, they were troopers - taking in the sights, sounds, and smells of the stores we visited.

We stocked up on waffles and breakfast cereal at Target, then made our way to Sprouts to load up on fresh fruits and veggies.

Back at home, we all enjoyed a delicious lunch of sandwiches, fruit, and snacks, then spent a little bit of time relaxing before resuming more studies later in the afternoon.

Michelle's family stopped by later in the afternoon - they had been doing their own errands around town. When they said goodbye, I met with each girl separately to begin the novel selected earlier in the morning. Karen and Michelle both got a good start on their reading.

After a dinner of pasta with marinara sauce, Zach and I walked with Karen and Michelle to Starbucks. We met friends on the way and were able to introduce the girls to them and their kids. We knew that Michelle and Karen were tired, but we wanted them to try staying up a bit longer, in order to get back on a regular schedule.

The last order of business for the day has been creating blogs - Karen, Michelle, and Winona each started a blog this evening, including a few photos taken today, along with captions that describe them.

I hope Karen and Michelle get another restful night of sleep. I'm excited about visiting Claremont Village tomorrow - and we will leave early for that trip and save the studying portion of the day for the afternoon :)

Week 1 - Getting to Know Claremont

Karen and Michelle will be here very soon. We've had a good time today fixing up their room and attending to details around our house, hoping that the girls will be comfortable during their stay with us.

This week we will discuss, design, and begin working on a customized curriculum that will meet each girl's English language learning needs. Each day we will spend classroom time on reading and writing, with an emphasis on comprehension, grammar, and vocabulary development.

Each day we will also explore Claremont and the surrounding area, using English in context as we visit stores, walk around the Claremont Village, and see the beautiful Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden. As a special treat, we will spend one day at the water park - Raging Waters, in neighboring San Dimas.

Welcome to Claremont, Michelle and Karen - and welcome to our home!

Excited About Welcoming Michelle and Karen!

We are all excited about meeting our new friends from China - Michelle and Karen. They will be staying with our family in Southern California for the month of July. We will study English and take lots of trips to museums, beaches, and gardens in and around Los Angeles. Karen and Michelle will live with us to experience what life is really like in one American home. Together we will share meals, play games, and improve our communication skills.

Maintaining a blog will help Karen and Michelle practice their writing every day of their home stay. By posting photos and writing in-depth captions, the girls will also compile a wonderful keepsake of their American adventure.

I can't wait to meet Michelle and Karen in person tomorrow evening!

Here is Zach - aka Prof Dodds - in front of our newly painted house last month.