So how do you like that Korean food? Brinn called me earlier asking if I’d like to join him at our favorite Korean place in the Phoenix area called Hodori. Katharina said that she wouldn’t mind trying it, so Brinn met with us for the drive to Mesa for lunch. We figured out that the Bibim Bap with tofu might be the most accessible dish for Kat, hopefully, it was okay.

Thanks to Brinn for introducing us to this viral moment where seemingly everyone used FaceApp to age themselves.

I tried convincing Brinn that our niece does NOT like caffeinated drinks and that even a sweetened one with mango and boba would likely be lost on Kat, but he insisted that trying new things was a good thing and bought her one. Two sips and she asked if anyone minded if she threw it away.

This here was Kat’s contribution to the wall of graffiti behind her.

Later in the day, we headed over to the Foothills Recreation and Aquatics Center where the Desert Judo group meets on Mondays and Wednesdays.

Kat didn’t have many opportunities in New Zealand to attend judo practice and so when she found a dojo near Caroline and me she signed herself up to visit.

Note from Kat: They didn’t have a full judo gi for me so I was only wearing a jacket. I’ve never done judo in shorts before.

Turns out that after 10 years of practice Kat is only a belt away from becoming a black belt.

With an invitation to return Wednesday night the very gracious group led by Sensei Russ finished up shortly before 9:00 and the three of us went for dinner. I don’t think the Cheesecake Factory was a favorite of our niece, neither the meal nor the cheesecake, which is not too surprising as Caroline and I don’t think this place is all that exceptional either. We did learn that pineapple upside-down cheesecake is coming back which will likely draw Caroline and me back before it disappears from the menu again.