Wandering Browns

We spent a significant portion of our time in California getting over jet lag and doing all of the things that we miss when we're traveling- baking, cooking, eating awesome American and Mexican food, and spending tons of time with family. I am so happy that we were able to introduce Landon to some of my favorite family traditions. Landon and I made lemony sugar cookies with different colors of buttercream frosting. Landon helped by taking way too many tastes and manning the decoration/sprinkles station.  Our time in California flew by and was filled with tons of activities! Turns out my parents are pretty busy even with just one kid at home. Austin and I celebrated our anniversary with dinner at McClintock's in Pismo Beach- a cowboy-type steak house overlooking the ocean, and outdoor mineral springs hot tub. It was a very relaxing date! We attended Claire's piano recital (with my piano teacher from high school!) and band concert. We did some temple work for my ma...

When we arrived in Vietnam, we anticipated being there for quite a long time- at least until early 2017. When we were released to return to the United States in early December, we decided to surprise my family in California for an early Christmas. The last time we Skyped with my family from Vietnam, we had to keep the secret that we were leaving soon. Landon did a great job, and even hushed me up a few times when he felt like I was going to give it away. They had mentioned they didn't have a Christmas tree yet, and I was so hoping that they would still not have one when we arrived, so Landon could help pick it out. Well, my wish came true! My mom was going to break tradition and buy a tree from the grocery store, but since we appeared, we went to the Christmas tree lot that we have gone to every year since I was a little girl! I love Landon's California winter outfit here- shorts and a sweatshirt Our hunt for the perfect Christmas tree was a little more tricky this...