Christmastime 2018 - Dennis is Grown Up

Dennis Remembers Us

We heard nothing from Dennis for two years, but he is alive and well !!!

He emailed us:

Hello Grandpa

I'm Dennis long time no see

My brother got married on February 7th Saturday

I'm so happy 

Are you fine??

Now I'm in 9 grade so I will graduate soon!! Yeayyyyyy!!

And maybe I will go Denver on summer

Have a nice day!! Grandpa!!

Last photo is at Dennis brother's wedding.

2012 Reunion

Nonna and Dennis at Baskin and Robbins

























Dennis is now a head taller than when we met two years ago.

2011 Reunion

Grampa and Dennis at Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream Parlor


Nonna and Dennis at Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream Parlor

Going Home

Dennis wanted to get up at 4am. If he is ever late for anything,
Grampa will be very surprised. He skipped breakfast and did
not want to take the bag of food, but Grampa said if he
didn't take the bag, no packages would be sent.

We got to the school at 5:20am and just like the Disney trip, there
was no one else there.

Dennis waits while the suitcases are loaded. Mr. An
supervises; he has all the passports in that plastic bag!

Dennis is still very sleepy - he was hard to wake up this morning.

Dennis on the bus - good-bye Dennis - we'll miss you!

Last Day - Pot Luck Dinner and Good-Byes

Gianluca slept over and the boys got up around 6:30am.
Dennis had his usual breakfast of scrambled eggs and
cinnamon toast; Gianluca waited for McDonalds for his
breakfast.

Nonna wanted the boys to have ice cream because they
did a good job of cleaning up the family room which
had Legos all over.

After we gave Gianluca back to his mother, we were leaving when
Grampa spotted this very exotic car.

It is a Bugatti Veyron which costs over $1.5 million dollars.

After church we ate at Burger King (Dennis' favorite) and
then we headed for Zuma Beach in Malibu.
On the way there, we showed Dennis a place called
the Rock Store where lots of motorcycles come on the
weekends.

Here is the future President of KIA motors contemplating
the Pacific ocean.

Lots of surfers in the water.

We rolled up Dennis pants, but he decided not to take off
his shoes and get wet.

Here are the details on the conditions at the beach.

Nonna wanted one last picture of Grampa and Dennis.

Here's all the loot Dennis bought at Toys R Us.

Before the potluck dinner, Mr. An introduced Don who gave the blessing.

After eating, there was a talent show.

Here is Helen playing the drums; she is a good friend
and neighbor of Dennis at home.

The very moment we got home from the potluck, Rose's
parents called to ask if Rose could come up to say good-bye
to Dennis; she brought Daisy to say good-bye as well.

Dennis has only a "get-up."
At 4am.
We need to be at the school at 6am.
Good Luck Grampa!

Saturday - Snow Carnival

Just like at school yesterday, some big trucks came
with blocks of ice which they shaved into snow and made
the Snow Carnival. The carnival was at an elementary
school in Oak Park.

Dennis and Gianluca had to decide what to do first.

So they decided to throw snowballs at each other.

They weren't throwing them hard enough to hurt anyone.

When they ran out of snow, they had to go back to the big pile
to get more.

The big pile was actually a small hill with two runs
where kids could slide down on disks or plastic
sleds. There were people at the head of the runs to
tell you when it was your turn.

Eventually, the boys decided to make a snowman.

That purple thing is one of the plastic sleds; if you didn't
have one, you could just use somebody elses.



Here comes Dennis down the run !

Dennis was kind enough to buy a snow cone for his friend Gianluca.

In the afternoon, the boys were riding bicycles and Dennis fell and
bumped his head and got a splinter in his hand.
We put ice on the bump and it got better after a while.
Grampa used a needle to take out the splinter, but there
was a tiny, tiny piece still in there that will come out after time.

After the bicycle accident, the boys watched the video that
Aunt Tracy gave Dennis. That was a good way for Dennis to
rest up while the bump went down; the ice pack helped the
bump to get better.

After Dennis was recovered, Grampa took him to Toys R Us
in nearby Thousand Oaks. Dennis had a strict budget
of how much he could spend and he and Grampa kept
track of the total as they went thru the store.

Just to tease Dennis, Grampa kept holding up Pink, Barbie
Doll things, saying, "How bout this?"
And Dennis would snarl No NO NO !!

When we got home, it was time for dinner and since it was Dennis'
last dinner at Grampa's house we had spaghetti which is
one of Dennis' favorites. Dennis also signed the Guest Book which
has the names of people from all over the world.

In the evening, we called Aunt Yura to tell her that the
shopping trip had gone well. He also had to report to her
how much money was still left in his wallet.

The minute we hung up with Aunt Yura, Dennis Mom called.
The boys had ice cream cones to celebrate the weekend.

Tomorrow we'll take Gianluca to his mother and then go
to church. Dennis is hoping to play with Rose in the afternoon
and then we have a Potluck dinner at Grace Brethren
School with all the other Korean students. Mr. Paul An
is bringing the main course, and everyone else is bringing
a salad and desert.

Dennis has "one and a 'get-up' "