MON | Dec. 6 – #AMonthofFaves Moments of 2021. What were some of the moments this year that you are grateful for?

Ah I’m so glad that A Month of Faves is back. It’s a fun way to look back at the year.

Moments I’m grateful for:

School campuses opening again!

The 2021-2022 school year started with the boys going back to their school after a year and more on remote learning. Zoom classes are hard, you guys! The teachers try their very best but it’s so difficult for kids to sit and stare at a talking head on a screen. I had to keep an eye on my two kids as they sat at the kitchen table, headphones on, making sure that they were actually on Zoom and not half-watching some YouTube video or playing some online game (“but it’s an educational game!”).

They’re also so much happier being back in school themselves, being with their friends again. Masks on of course. But it’s better than Zoom school!

Los Angeles trip and BTS concert!

I’ve been a fan of BTS since September 2020, when I first watched their Tiny Desk Concert on NPR and thought, oh these guys can sing. And fell down the rabbit hole with their many albums and singles, online concerts, their own variety show called Run BTS which is the funniest thing ever, and all the very many things they have on social media (it’s hard to keep up).

When they announced the concert in LA (4 days!), I panicked and thought, I need to see this, but can I even get tickets? And yes, I did manage to get pretty good seats in the 200s section facing the stage. I went with a friend from the Bay Area. SoFi Stadium in LA is huge and I think each day they had 50,000+ people. It was just so much fun to be among the crowd, singing along, screaming, yelling, dancing, waving my lightstick (ARMY bomb). It was the best moment of 2021 for me.

The husband and kids also went to LA, so we wanted to do something a bit different. Our last trip (pre-covid) we did Universal Studios. This time we went to the California Science Center too see the retired space shuttle Endeavour. And also to the Petersens Automotive Museum for all the three car fans. I thought that was quite interesting too, we got to see the electric Harleys that Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman (or at least one of them) rode on Long Way Up from the southern tip of South America to Los Angeles. And there was a exhibit of lots of different vehicles used in the James Bond films.

And not to forget all the good food that LA has to offer. Japanese breakfast (grilled mackerel) is the kind of breakfast I’d like to have more often! It just seems like too much work in the kitchen for mornings though!

Trip to Mammoth Lakes

We had initially planned a summer trip to Singapore. But the quarantine period increased from two weeks to three. And three weeks in a hotel room with 2 kids? Not sure we could do that…so we had to cancel that.

Instead, we took a short trip to Mammoth Lakes via Yosemite. It was a first time to Mammoth Lakes for us. What a beautiful place! It’s famous for skiing and mountain biking, and of course, it’s different lakes. You can read more about my trip here.

Vaccinations and boosters

I was so thrilled when they announced that children could get vaccinated and as soon as possible, got appointments for the boys. And they got their second shots last week! The husband and I also got our boosters last month, so I’m just thankful and relieved.