A Little East Coast/Midwest Trip

While A was gone on another recruiting tour with the Marine Brass Quintet, L decided to visit her close friends Jenny and Carlton in Newport, Rhode Island for a few days. They were super hospitable showing L around parts of Rhode Island, Connecticut, and even a day-trip to New York City! (By the way, both Jenny and L are pregnant with little girls; Jenny in the 8th month and L at 7 1/2 months in these photos).
(Above, L on the rooftop of the Metropolitan Art Museum with Central Park and Manhattan in the background.)

Here are some other photos from the trip:



Jenny and Carlton in Central Park with those cute, little, remote-controlled sailboats in the water behind them.

The Brier Rabbit in a cool sculpture.

The famous Radio City Music Hall near Times Square.

And of course, Times Square itself.


And the lovely backdrop of Connecticut. Thanks, guys, for a wonderful time!


On L's return-trip home, she stopped off in Chicago, Illinois for a few days to visit her sister and brother-in-law. Not only did Leah get to see their new, lovely house in Glen Ellyn, but most importantly, she got to meet her brand-new nephew! This little cutie is about one month old, though he's not so sure about his aunt.

Thanks, guys, for opening up your home!

Life Landmarks

Remember these guys? On August 6th 2004, A and L became Mr. and Mrs. Panos.

Now 2009, we are happily celebrating 5 amazing years of marriage! A lot has changed over the years (especially A's hair, courtesy of the USMC), but we couldn't be happier! Here we are about to head out to downtown San Diego for a steak dinner.

And because only a handful of family/friends read this blog, we know most of you have already heard the news that we are expecting our first baby, who should arrive before mid-December. (Can you tell 's hiding an over 5 1/2 month baby bump under that dress?)
Last month, we got to see the baby through an ultrasound and found out it's a girl!
Here she is kicking her leg up high, already demonstrating martial arts techniques like her parents.

No more ultrasounds are expected, so we are looking forward to meeting her in December!

Summer Highlights... So Far

In random order, here are a bunch of photos from this summer's busy fun.
First off, L had the privilege of being a Matron of Honor in Jenny's wedding, her closest friend from college. Jenny married Carlton, a fellow trombonist from the Navy band in Newport, Rhode Island where they are stationed. Congrats, guys!

Leah's sister, visited from Illinois and was the honored guest at a baby shower held for her. M and her husband B are expecting a baby boy in September! Below, the Meadows sisters are spending time with their MawMaw.

As usual, A has been kept busy by the Marines, not only playing in dozens of weekly performances, but carrying out many other responsibilities within the unit. In addition to his job as a Martial Arts Instructor, Alex also serves as a Fire Team Leader, Section Leader, Police Sergeant, and the Non-Commissioned Officer In Charge (NCOIC) of the Music Library. Here he is playing with the brass quintet at a Change Of Command ceremony at MCRD.

Along with the Marine Band, L got to participate in the annual Independence Day Parade in Coronado with the cast of "The Fantasticks." Most of the cast and musicians from a couple of Lamb's Players Theater productions joined in the patriotic parade, either riding in cars, on bikes, Segways, or walking. Here are some ensemble members riding in a pickup truck to the parade route (L is holding a "baby harp" prop to represent that she was the harpist for the show, of course).

And of course, summer wouldn't be complete without a BBQ at the beach (San Onofre with the Meadows).

And some amusement park fun (thanks to military discounts)! Photos from our overdue trip to Disneyland.

A really likes Mr. Toad.

And Universal Studios in Hollywood (A hadn't been here since 1986 when the "Knight Rider" car and "A-Team" van were the big feature)!
...But we really don't like this freeway.

Still can't beat summertime in Southern California!

"The Fantasticks"

This summer, L is excited to be a part of another excellent musical theater production with Lamb's Players Theater in Coronado, this show being "The Fantasticks!" L will be kept quite busy as the show runs from June 5th - July 26th, with 7 performances a week. While this show has been around for decades, Lamb's Players has done an excellent job with modernizing the look and even updating the music with a more edgy feel. The cast is excellent, and L is having a blast being a part of the band. As there are only 4 musicians for this show (piano, harp, guitar/bass, percussion), the band is quite visible, playing from the backside of the stage.

Below, L actually made it in the background of a promo photo for the show!

Here's more info from the LPT website:
One of the Most Beautiful Musicals Ever Written
THE FANTASTICKS started out a crowd-pleaser and ended up the longest-running musical of all time, with an astonishing 42-year New York run. A girl and boy who live in neighboring houses fall in love despite their parents' feud, until they find that the feud was a trick to bring about their romance. Summer is the perfect season for this sweetly beautiful, broadly theatrical fable about falling in love, growing up, losing childlike innocence, and coming home again wiser. With a gorgeous score filled with beloved songs like "Soon It's Gonna Rain," "I Can See It," and the international chart-topper "Try to Remember," THE FANTASTICKS is a delicious musical confection, a treat for the whole family.

“Lamb's Players Theatre and director Deborah Gilmour Smyth deserve endless credit for turning this fluffball into something more like a fine souffle. It all comes together with imagination and loopy passion!"
-James Hebert, Union-Tribune

“Delightful! Fluid and lively direction with a more edgy, contemporary sound. It’s easy to see why this musical lasted so long!”
-Jennifer Chung Klam, SanDiego.com
For more information, check out:
http://www.lambsplayers.org/lpt06/pages/whats_playing/fantasticks/fantasticks.html

P.S. L can get discounted tickets for anyone interested. :)

Marines On The Road

In the month of April, the Marines kept A pretty busy, as usual. First off, A was selected for a prestigious All-Star Marine Corps Jazz Band that was created for the first time ever this year. From all the 12 Marine Fleet Bands in the world, the top musicians were hand-picked for this one-week showcase. This week included long rehearsals and recording sessions in Parris Island, South Carolina, and a long bus-ride through Georgia to Florida where the Big Band performed in Daytona Beach. A promotional CD will be released from this showcase.

And later in April, A went on another recruiting tour with the Marine Band, this time to Arizona (specifically Tuscon and Phoenix). While A spent most of the time performing at high schools with the Brass Quintet, the full band did play the National Anthem at a Diamondback's baseball game (as pictured on the jumbo screen).

The guys in the Brass Quintet spent lots of time driving all over the state...

... and wearing these hats.

One free afternoon, A did get the opportunity to try horseback-riding for the first time (A on the right). His horse thought that putting him into the bushes was quite funny.

The Three Amigos.

Marine Corps Fun

While A is gone on yet another recruiting tour with the Marine Band (this time, Arizona), his lonely wife thought she'd post some fun photos of A on the job. First off are some photos from the annual rifle qualification week at Camp Pendleton.

A and friend Corporal Silva on the range. Apparently, fellow Marines thought A could pass as a soldier of the Iraqi Army.

They shoot from all angels including the prone position, kneeling, and standing. Did I mention they have to hit targets 500 yards away?!


A received the Rifle Expert Award for the 3rd year in a row, along with Sgt. Holt and Sgt. McAfee, who celebrated with a victory cigar.

The next several photos are from Combat Conditioning exercises that A's unit participate in regularly. Since A is one of the Martial Arts Instructors for the band, he helps lead the exercises and demonstrates the techniques.

Here's A giving a little extra motivation to a fellow Marine.

Someone is way too excited to be demonstrating this ground-fighting technique.

OK, so this photo is a little gross, but here's A showing some compassion for a Marine who got quite sick from the intense workout.

The four MAIs (Martial Arts Instructors) looking tough.

And last but not least, here's A receiving the Navy/Marine Corps Achievement Medal, a very special honor and recognition for his hard work in the band.
Congrats, Sgt. Panos, and Semper Fi!

The Hawaiian Holiday

Aloha! Last week, we were blessed with the opportunity to take a week-long vacation on the Hawaiian Island of Oahu. The first half of the trip, we stayed at the Lodge on the beautiful Marine Corps Base in Kaneohe Bay, and spent the remainder of the trip at the Hale Koa, an exclusive military hotel on the famous Waikiki Beach in Honolulu. The weather was perfect! Above is a nice shot of us in Waikiki with the Diamond Head Crater in the background. Here are a bunch of photos from the trip:

A driving the coolest rental car ever, a Ford Mustang convertible!

Two photos from our hike up Diamond Head (a 1,000 year-old volcano, nice work-out, great view of Waikiki).
A perfectly arched rainbow, as seen from the car window (doesn't really do it justice).

Hanging out at the North Shore (no big waves though).













A on the boat leaving the Arizona Memorial at Pearl Harbor (the Missouri battleship behind).

L "holding" a rainbow, also in Pearl Harbor (there's a ton of these in Hawaii).
At a traditional Hawaiian luau on the beach at sunset.












The scenic road on the east side of the island, heading up to Kaneohe Bay.

Sunset in the hills, as seen from the east-facing Marine Base (did I mention how much we really liked this base?).

An ocean view from our room at the Hale Koa (not bad for a military hotel!).
We hiked a mile through a rainforest to the Maunawili Falls (although not seen in this photo, the trail was dangerously muddy and we had to maneuver over a stream several times; the best shoes for this would have been combat boots...)

More from Waikiki (we eventually got nice tans).

A typical Hawaiian neighborhood, with the coolest, smoky mountains ever.

We still have too many more photos but this could take all night. Overall, it was a fantastic trip, and we wouldn't mind if the Marine Corps ever stationed us there!