Welcome To Our 'Ool

So, um, issssHOTTTTTTTT up in soCal.

I know some of you are enjoying autumn, enjoying the crisp change in weather, enjoying the cooler nights. Not I. Oh, not I.

Back in July and August when it was hot everywhere but here, my neighbors were complaining about the cold. I was not. Not only was I not uncomfortable, but I knew our inferno was coming. And oh, has it ever. In spades and buckets and dumptrucks.

Right now, at 3:18 pm, it is approximately 104 degrees Fahrenheit outside. And there is NO breeze. None.  And inside? It's 89. (edited to add that it got up to 95 in Mookie's bedroom later on in the afternoon).

We don't have central air conditioning in our house, nor do we have a window unit. Most of the time, we don't need it! But when the winds shift, and Mother Nature decides to have mercy on the rest of the nation at our expense, we get our comeuppance. And we are instantly shellacked with sweat. It's like living inside an oven.

This afternoon I thought of putting Mookie in a cooler bath just to help her cool down, but then I thought "Why should she have all the fun?" So I inflated our little pool, and filled it up. With nice, cold hose water. In the garage. A bit unorthadox in the inflatable pool realm, but the garage was much cooler than outside! And much shadier.

And it was goooooood.  I invited Kelly and her girls down, and I think it's safe to say that we were all cooler when it was over. Mookie dumping buckets full of cold water on our legs might have had something to do with that, but it sure was a welcome shocker! :o)

Tomorrow the high is only supposed to be 87...but I'm keeping our "indoor pool" up just in case we need an afternoon cool-off.

It Ain't What It Used To Be



We went to the county fair. Sprout conked out. Look how pretty my fingernails are! I guess I need a haircut, though, huh? Looks like I've got a tree growing out of my head!

No, in all seriousness, folks. It wasn't the county fair of my youth. Of course, I didn't grow up in Los Angeles county, either, but there just weren't enough goats and pigs and cows and smelly farm animals. Like, for real. At the fair, you're supposed to be able to smell the animals, NOT the food vendors!!  It was just too commercialized. There were 2 gigantic shopping plaza buildings, in addition to all the vendors in their tents!  I didn't see a single quilt or jar of pickles or half-eaten apple pie with a blue ribbon on it anywhere. I'm sure they were there... somewhere...but they were obscured by all the overt attempts to take our money in exchange for a good memory. It was absolutely a wonderful experience to have had, but it's not something I would have season tickets for.

With that said, though, Mookie rode a pony, and she did REALLY well (until the very end). And I hope you'll forgive for showing you all of these, but I think they're funny, in a sick-mama kind of way...

CHEESE

Okay, I'm over it.

Mommy come get me?

I must be seeing things. I'm still on this dang pony!

Wait a second. Who are YOU??

Mama? Mama come get me?

Maaaammmaaa. Why you stay over there?

And she petted some goats.

(she looks thrilled, no?)

And she threw up on herself before the pink elephant ride got started, so I don't have a picture of that. :o)

And she sobbed and sobbed all through the carosel ride.

(clearly traumatized by her earlier pony ride)

(So Dave found a little teacup to ride in. She wasn't having any of that.)

I'm thinking she'll have great memories of this day!! :o) I'm sure she'll forget the fact that she didn't nap and we left the fairgrounds approximately 3 hours after  her normal bed time.  Can you say overtired?!  Poor kid.

In other news, I got to try a Pink's chili cheese dog without the horribly long line at their LA restaurant. It's nothing to write home about. Grandma makes better chili, and they put (I cringe at typing this) processed "cheese" on it. Glad I had one. One is enough.

And in ENTIRELY other news, the doggie went home on Friday evening. His owner found a sign and called, and I knew as I was driving down his street that we were near his home because he got all whiney and animated. :o) The owner was very happy, and promised to get tags and a microchip this weekend. Maybe tomorrow I'll tell you how I knew it was his rightful owner... :o)

The Trump "Beach"

I'll be honest. If I were Donald Trump, and I built a gazillion dollar golf course in Rancho Palos Verdes, California, where the land value is about $1000 per square inch, I wouldn't spend any money on a "public" beach, either!

See, there's the Trump Golf Course near us. And the developers were kind enough to leave access to the ocean for public use. They were less-than-kind, however, in the accessibility of the access. See, in order to get to the public "beach", one must hold onto a runaway stroller walk down a long, windy, narrow, rocky path. And when you get to the "beach", you see there isn't much sand. But rather, large rocks.

And tiny, little tide pools filled with various forms of miniature sea life.

Mookie was less interested in the sea life than in the sea "wotts". Oh, how she loved the rocks. Picking them up, dropping them in the knee-high water, picking more up, eating them, showing them to Mama, etc.

Something tells me I've created more of a geologist than a biologist. Dangit.

It really is beautiful down there, and I'm ashamed that this is the first time we've been. I will say, however, that we'll be going back. And maybe next time, we'll pay attention to the tides, and have a bit more luck finding starfish and other sea life in the tide pools like Grant and Kelly seem to find.

And one, sweet rock that I found for my honey...♥...

And, next time, I'll be taking a stroller-pusher with me! The hill coming back up is BRUTAL!!

Banzai!!!

A couple of weeks ago, one of the moms in our Mom's Group invited us all over for a play date. She had an infant-friendly splash pool and lemonade. Need I say more? :o)

It was a warm, California day -- perfect for splashing around in the back yard! Mookie thoroughly enjoyed herself. So much so, that we have now purchased a Bonzai splash pool for our own backyard! And I know Kelly has done the same.

MAAMMAAA!!!!!! This is AWESOME!!!

I can't believe Mama wants me to wear a hat and sunglasses. She's totally over-protective.

Did Emily bring out MORE watermelon? Yummy!

Catch a wave, 'cuz I'm sittin' on top of the world!!

Splish. Splash. Splish. Splash.

This thing is perfect! Mama can we get one?

I wonder if I can get that sparkley ball away from Robbie...

This will be a God-send her come September and October when it actually gets, you know, HOT here! :o)

Birds in the Sun

A couple of weeks ago, on a typical sunny, southern California day, Mookie and I went to the park! I knew they had toddler swings, and thought it was a great day to introduce Mookie to what it feels like to fly through the air like a bird! :o)

She, however, was not very willing to sit in the baby bird seat. Not. One. Bit.

So, Mama sat on the big bird swing and held Mookie as we swinged and we swung and we swang some more. :o) She liked the tandem-swinging. :o)

This is fun, Mama!

Then we went on to wander and play a bit. Here, she's presenting me with a very special discovery. :o)

The Leaf of Golden Goodness.

I love this picture. Mostly the vibrant colors. And her deep concentration. Deep.

What happens when I cover Mama's feet with sand?

I'm not quite sure what happened here, but I do like that it's not a typical shot. :o)

I can't wait till I figure out how to use this shovel the right way.

And, again, not quite sure what happened with the camera here, but I really like this shot! I'm weird, I know.

Proof that she really DOES have hair!

And, lest anyone fears losing sleep about Mookie's unfortunate exposure to the sun, please rest in the knowledge that I slathered her with loads of baby sunscreen. She WON'T. Wear. A. Hat. Mama.

The Red One, The White One, and The Blue One

Classic cars are a common site where we live. There are 3 or 4 car clubs in our little town, and the owners drive their cars around town as though they're nothing special. 

Oh, but special they are. I love classic cars. I've always loved and respected a beautifully restored, shiny, old car. My uncle used to restore Model As and Model Ts, and still to this day, seeing a classic car is a special moment for me. My deeper, more personal love started about, 9 years ago, I think.  That Christmas I was really proud of myself. I found THE PERFECT gift for my dad, a Denver Broncos fan to the core. I found him a pair of warm-enough, long-enough Denver Broncos sweatpants. They even had POCKETS. Man, I knew I had done it this time. I think I even wrapped them 3 times to heighten the suspence and make the gift that much more exciting!  Serious props for my gift giving abilities that year. Yet, lo and behold, my brother found a better gift. Always has to show off. Always has to be the one-upper. Rob bought Dad a 1941 Chevy truck that year for Christmas. Like, full-size. With wheels, and it worked, and it was gorgeous. So, quick recap...I bought Dad sweatpants and Rob got Dad a truck.  A TRUCK. Nice.  I would like to say, for the record, that I was a teacher, and a newlywed, and Rob was a single, successful stock broker or money-handler, of some sort. He'll tell you that he always knew things could change at any time. His words were, "I could be driving a bread truck tomorrow."  So, he wanted to share his good fortune, and, dadgummit, he sure blessed our dad with his good fortune. :o)

Dad loved that truck. Named it Dewey after his father. Said it reminded him of being a kid on the farm, and how Grandpa would get cattle into the back of the truck to...I don't know...take them to where cows go. (Auction, I guess? The butcher?)   :o)  So, Dad went about the business of restoring Dewey to its previous state of glory. He had the chrome redone. Had the wood panels in the truck bed redone. Had it painted. Shined it every time the wind blew even a wee blade of grass onto it. :o)

 Dad entered it into classic car shows, and won many a trophy. Many a trophy. Big ones, too. Not like the ones we got as kids at the end of the soccer season. Real trophies to honor a really stunning truck. :o)

He was right to be proud of his truck.

Then, Hurricane Katrina came, and changed SO MANY lives, including Dad and Jen's. The truck survived (Dad had stored it in a warehouse with some other classic cars), but there was damage to the house, and there was significant damage to the place my dad worked. And even though they kept him on the payroll for a while during the clean-up, things were just never the same. Fast-forward a couple of years, and Dad and Jen decided that what once was a blessing had now become a burden, so they looked for a buyer. :-( 

After a bit of time, they found one. Oddly, in Germany. The buyer was willing to pay a good price for the truck, as well as all shipping costs to get it from Mississippi to Germany! He said it reminded him of the days after WWII when the American GIs were there, and there was hope, and there was laughter, and there were Chevy trucks.  So, Dad and Jen bid Dewey Auf Wiedersehen. But they still go to the car shows, and are still friends with the classic car owners.

And I still have a love for classic cars, and I still crane my neck whenever I hear the rumble that only a classic car can make. And I still play the game in my head where I try to figure out what model it is as quick as I see it. And I'm still right more often than I'm wrong, thankyouverymuch. :o)

Which is all to say, (whew, who's longwinded tonight???) that there was a big car show in our little town July 4th weekend, and there were quite a few really LAHVELEY cars. 

I thought it was just going to be cars in a parking lot like I usually see, but this was BIG. There were representatives from pretty much every era of (US) automobile history. There were overpriced hot dogs being sold by firemen, and long lines for the beer stand and the port-a-potties. :o)  There were live bands on two different stages. There was even a show by the LA Fire Department Fire Boat. (Pretty impressive!!)  The news crews were out...as well as pretty much everyone else in LA County, I think! It was bu-zizzy!  We only stayed a couple of hours because of one sweet little girlie who needed to go to bed to catch up on her Sweetness Rest. :o)  

It was crowded and the sun wasn't 100% cooperative, but I took a few fun pictures to remember the day.

1960, Cherry Red Corvette. Mmm, sweet.

The hood of a white Chevy Truck, not as nice as Dewey, though.

I admit, I've got a thing for Thunderbirds.

The Fireboat in all it's glory.

And, Dad and Jen, you need to plan your trip out HERE for July 4th next year! :o)

Beach Day

We took Mookie to the beach on Saturday (June 27th). It was a lovely day -- not too hot, not too cold. Perfect for introducing a sweet little girl to The Beach. :o)  Mike was in town, and so we went with Kelly and her family so the boys could play some beach volleyball and the girls could sit. Nice day all around. :o)

Mookie LOVED the sand. LOVED it. Was CRAZY about it. :o)  Hands in it, pouring it from one hand to the other, picking it up and pouring it back on the ground. Sand, sand, sand. We should call her Sandy. LOVED it. Wanted it for lunch, even. :o)

I haven't had the time (nor the patience!) to look at all 258 pictures I took of our afternoon at the beach, but here are 3.

Sand, sand, hands in sand, sand in hands.
Sand, sand, pants in sand, sand in pants.

Here she is standing under the umbrellas (when I could KEEP Her Fair Self in the shade...). I enhanced the color a bit because the umbrellas are so colorful, I hope I didn't make her look like a pumpkin! :o)

And here she is playing with a little shovel. Such a rich, blue sky.

We're so lucky to live here. So lucky.

(There are more beach-day photos, but I have no idea when I'll get to them. I will tell you, however, that she was NOT impressed with the water. Very scary. Poor little girl. She clung to Mama like I was a life-raft!)

Hope you have a great week!

To the Port We Go

I know the weather around the country has left a LOT to be desired, to say the least, but here? It's been gloriously glorious. Dreamily dreamy. Fantabulously fantabulous. You need to catch the first flight to LA. The guest room is ready. I'm not kidding.

We've had family in town this weekend, and have just been soaking up the sun, basically. :o) And eating. Mmmm.  And watching Mookie go and go and go.  Seriously. That child needs to just STOP growing already!

Here's a picture of Mookie and Mama at the Ports of Call at Port Los Angeles.

And here's another visitor to the port that day:

Bicycle (Dec 15)

Sunday while Dave was driving down Hawthorne in Rancho Palos Verdes, and I saw something really kooky. I made him turn around and come back to it so I could take pictures. While he was doing that, he kept asking what he was turning around for. And I couldn't describe it. I could only say, "Aahrt. Eet ees aahrt." (In my best French accent.) (You can tell that, though, can't ya?)

He thought it was an apartment complex.

Oh, no. It was way more complex than that!

Behold. The Red Bicycle of RPV:

I've never been one to claim to know anything about art, so I'm not going to try to interpret this. I just thought it was cool.

And SO southern California.

Hello (Dec 9)

So a few miles from my house, there's this corner. And on this corner, there is the "Hello" Liquor and Clothes Outlet.

I find the fact that one can buy socks with their vodka funny.

And it's a clothes outlet, as though the t-shirts are at close-out prices.

And why is "Hello" in quotes?

Questions that keep me up at night... :o)

Breakfast Pouch? Bunch?

Friday night, Dave and I ate dinner at The Olive Garden. Dave really, really loves that place. Me? I'm lukewarm about it. The food is good, and the service is usually fine, but it just isn't my mostest favoritest restaurant ever. You're wondering what is? Well, that would probably be Mission Bell in Manitou Springs, Colorado...or there was that great Brazilian steak place in Munich. (yes, Brazilian steak in Munich). Oh, and then there's the Melting Pot. Mmmm....dipping food-stuffs in gooey cheese. (tingles on scalp at the thought)  I guess The Olive Garden isn't Dave's mostest favoritest of all time...but it ranks. His favorite is probably something serving lobster. Or pizza.

Anywhoo.......

So, that night, after pigging out at The Olive garden,  as I was putting on my pyjamas, I looked at my bulging belly, and felt like I looked like I did when I was about 19 weeks pregnant! SUCH a "carb belly."

Which got me to thinking...

Have you heard the news that Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck are expecting their second child? Yep. Good for them, right? No, I'm not one to follow celeb news much, but this one caught my attention.  Dunno why, so much, but it did. On Wednesday, when a reporter congratulated her about her pregnancy, she said,

“Oh I’m not pregnant,” she giggled. “I just had a lot of carbs for breakfast. It’s just — what do they call it? A breakfast pouch? Bunch?”

Really?

A few minutes later, apparently, she caved, admitted the pregnancy, and said "Thank you, we are so excited, obviously."

Really?

So excited are you that you deny the blessing in your womb and claim that it was a double-helping of croissants?

Which brings me to a pet peeve of mine about celebrities. By and large, most celebrities deny their pregnancies for quite a while. (JLo, Brangelina, etc.) Why is that? I don't get it. Don't celebs realize that cheap rag-magazines (and websites) pay people tens of dollars to watch their every move (and measure their every bump) to detect any changes?

Matthew McConahottie and his girlfriend announced their pregnancy when she was 3 months along. To which I say "Good on ya!" 

Why can't they all do that? I understand waiting till you pass the first trimester mark in case you have a miscarriage. I understand waiting to tell family and loved ones before you tell the world. But these people have fans that love them, and are usually stoked when good news are announced, so why, oh why, do they wait to announce? And why, oh why, do they feel obliged to deny the presence of their baby? How is little Cerulean Garner-Affleck going to feel when s/he finds out that Mommy denied his/her existence? Poor kid. S/he'll be ga-orgeous, but will undoubtedly spend time in therapy because of being mistaken for a belly full of bagels.

Okay, that's all I've got. A bit snarky, I know, but this has just bugged me for a while. :o)

Did You Feel That?

That's been the first question out of the mouths of the last 2 callers I've had in the last 10 minutes.

"Did you feel that?"

Turns out at 11:42 am PDT, Mookie and I experienced our first (and hopefully last!?) earthquake! Apparently it measured 5.8 on the Richter scale, and the epicenter was somewhere near Pomona. (I don't know exactly where that is in relation to me, though).

I had just put Mookie on the bed and I was getting onto the bed to lay down next to her to read, and it felt like one of the cats jumped up on the bed and missed...like the bed kinda moved. And I looked around and didn't see her, then I noticed that the little mirror I have leaning on the wall was kinda wiggling, and the blinds on the window were kinda waggling, and the door was wobbling. Then I heard my neighbor outside talking to her kids, and I figured I had just experienced a wee little quake!

Red letter day! :o)

I don't know enough about earthquakes to know if we'll have any more today. I know there are "after" shocks, but are there "pre" shocks? I guess I need to do some reading...

Anyways, just wanted to share! :o)

**Edited to say** -- there were apparently 15 aftershocks, and the epicenter was 29 miles east of LA, but we are south of LA proper, so it would probably be about 40 miles away. Dave called to say that he was standing with other folks, and said that they all felt the quake and then thought that maybe they needed to leave the building.  Also, the US Geograpical Survey (USGS) recently downgraded the earthquake to a 5.4. And as far as I know, there is no damage in my area.

I'll let you know if there is anything more to know about us, but I think (hope? pray?) that there will be nothing to update. :o)

Lest I Forget (TPiR)

...which, considering that within the next 48(ish) hours, I will have given birth, forgetting this is a distinct possibility!

Set your DVR, set your TiVo, set your VCR, or just plain, watch. I now know the air date for The Price is Right Million Dollar Spectacular show (my recap found at preceding link) that I went to in April. Remember, I didn't get called down to Contestant's Row, but we were sitting in the second row, and you should be able to see us! Dave's cousin, Anne, is on the end of the row, on the left, and she's wearing a bright pink t-shirt, then her mom is next, then me in a pink sweater, then Anne's aunt.

Also, the guy directly in front of me proposes to his girlfriend (via his t-shirt). Drew promised him he'd get a good shot of the t-shirt, so...good luck to him!

No one won the million dollars for our show, but I still think it's worth watching. It was fun to be a part of it.

Anyways, take care, and we'll see you on the other side of birth!