Chillin' in Monterey

It has been two weeks since my last post. The primary reason is that we spent most of the past week in Monterey, California. I was on Navy orders at the Human Resources Center of Excellence (HRCOE) located at the Naval Postgraduate School from July 17th through July 23rd. The nice thing was that I was able to take Haize and Mia along this time. Although I spent the majority of the time working from 7:30 a.m. until 6:30 p.m. each day, we had a really good time together. The biggest surprise for us was how chilly it was. I don't think it got above 65 degrees the whole time we were there. A jacket or sweatshirt was pretty much mandatory in the morning and evening. It was a nice break from the 100+ degree temperatures of Utah, but it was tough for Mia to understand why the beach wasn't warm enough to play at.

On the trip Haize and I experienced acupuncture for the first time. My direct supervisor at the HRCOE, LCDR (Sel) Phoebe Kim's (congrats to her for recently being selected for promotion) husband is an acupuncturist. At lunch on our first day there, Haize mentioned that her wrist was bothering her. Phoebe offered to bring her husband to our room the next day for a treatment. She had one needle placed in her foot and two in her knee. Within a very short period of time, the pain had all but gone away! It was at that point that I mentioned my softball leg injury. He put a needle in my cheek and another in my knee. I was amazed at how much better if felt afterwards. I think there really might be something to oriental medicine. I wouldn't hesitate for a second to go back to him again.

On my one free afternoon, we were able to visit Point Lobos State Reserve. What an amazing place! We almost felt like we had been transported to a completely different world. The views were absolutely breathtaking.

Point Lobos - Mike and Haize at China Cove

Point Lobos - Mike and Mia at Hidden Beach

Point Lobos - Haize and Mia at Sand Hill Cove

I have more pictures from the trip that I will post on Facebook.

We have been so blessed by Haize's job at jetBlue during the past nine months. It has allowed us to do and see some awesome things as a family. We have created some unforgettable memories. I remember reading that, "Life is a rough biography. Memories smooth out the edges." And also that, "We do not remember days; we remember moments." I want to publicly thank my dear wife for her hard work and efforts to help make our family's memories.