LA for the weekend // Summer kickoff party with the family

I spent this past weekend in Los Angeles to celebrate the June birthdays in my family and mine, my sister's and my cousin's graduations. Recently, it's been difficult to make it down to Los Angeles from San Francisco and even harder for my three sisters and I to be in the same place at the same time, so this weekend saw some much needed family time. I have a huge extended family in LA of titas (aunts), titos (uncles) and cousins, and when we all get together we throw the best parties in the Valley.

Our annual summer party was on Saturday, and as usual there was obscene amounts of food, plenty of boos and a lot of loved ones at my mom's house. Anyone familiar with Filipino food knows we love bold, satly flavors. The highlights of the dinner: letchon (roasted pig), lumpias (deep fried spring rolls), and spider crabs, which were repurposed into amazing crab bisque by my mama at around 1am (major drool). All of the amazing food available in San Francisco can't compare to the food I eat at home. So until next time LA, I will make due with spinach salads and frozen chicken cutlets from Trader Joes.

PS. Besides my mom and my pup Charlee (plenty of photos of her to come), my little cousins are probably the most excited to see me when I come home. I only get to see them every few months, so when I do they seem to age years at a time. The last time I spent more than a weekend in LA was about six months ago, and this little girl on the left still had chubby cheeks and baby fat. I picked her up from school on Friday to find a young lady waiting for me.