<singing> You got to move-it move-it!

AWESOME, my friend Candace called us at the last minute yesterday because her dad had three extra tickets to the Angels game in the Wells Fargo Suite (which Jon says is good karma because we just opened a bank account there last week :)

As mentioned, it was AWESOME

and when it got a little too loud and a little too late, kiddo went in the suite and watched cartoons so we could keep watching the game!

 

I don’t know how to explain to Russell that his life is rad, going to Disneyland one day and going to an Angels game the next is pretty alright, and Alice got to spend the evening with her cousin Paige (who Russell calls ‘Pretty-Pretty Paige’). My life is pretty rad, too :)

hey hey hey! i just figured out video’s! this is loud and blurry (oops) but it’s still 30 seconds of pure magic :)

CANDACE and company! Thanks again :)

Bestest

and by that I mean very best! I got 30 beautiful flowers (oh, and if anyone would like to have a visit from alice she fits perfectly in the flower box for easy shipping!! that’s why they have dads because mothers would never think of these things), some fab new jewelry and even a jewelry dish to hold it all then I got these pictures as well, random at the park (LOVE this) and this one, during which Russell said “I drive the horse and I drive the wagon and I take Alllice and lock her in the tower” (yes three “l’s” and, no, i didn’t know you could exaggerate an “l” either until I met Russelllll)I am just waiting for Russell to start school again so the teacher can call to tell me how he keeps threatening to lock everyone in the tower. I have no idea how to respond to this!

I’m speechless

well, almost. I am not ashamed to admit that ditching the kiddos to go on Space Mountain feels a lot less like turning 30 and a little more like turning 15 because that is exactly what I did. Best. Ride. Ever.

So Jon was not sure how to give me my present because he said it was nothing fancy. He presented me with a simple manila folder and informed me he just spent some time at the library doing research, making some calls and scouring the internet to put it together. I tell you now it might be the best present ever and he kept the files after he printed them so I could share them on my blog. Enjoy. (if you click on them they will open again bigger in another screen)

No, YOU’RE the best!

Thanks lady, I LOVE it :)

Okay part TWO was a pretty good day (again thanks almost entirely in part to the heroics of my MOMMY who was at my house with my wee babes keeping track of their busy bodies, their orifices and their shining personalities!)

But, not unlike a day with Russell, this day was also full of the strange and unusual (my favorite! :) After sleeping in and enjoying green eggs and ham, we spent the day in Old Town San Diego: which if you come to visit me, is better than Disneyland… and free, except for all the fab knick knacks you may buy, including but not limited to thousands of teeny tiny nativity sets in little hanging gourds, a shiny Jesus egg several hundred different kinds of hot sauce (“satan’s blood” anyone?) (I’m serious!), jewelry, rugs, cigars, tin mirrors/boxes/earrings/headbands/frames/light switch covers, rifles, pottery, oh yeah, and then I MADE my own birthday candles!!the candle/soap store smelled exactly like my childhood. it’s true.

And don’t forget our FREE SPEECH TACOS! There was a group of people protesting the new management of a restaurant that disbanded the union when they took over. Here’s the thing, the people in the restaurant serving the free speech tacos were the same people who had worked there before, and the people protesting were HIRED nobody’s who were being paid to march even though they had never worked there. So we got our taco’s and an officer on scene asked Jon if he would citizen arrest the drummer and take him down to the station, but we were busy SHOPPING for treasures so we declined, but I was torn because I would have liked to have seen it :) and BLOG about it, hahaha (andrea, you know what I’m saying) 

(oh, did I mention my fab friend candace gave me BANGS?! I haven’t had bangs since I was twelve and I love it!  This picture was taken after a long day so be kind, but I am totally rocking the bangs! that’s all :)

Shamusies! No, not my pet name for Jon on this trip, but one of the original names of one of the many kinds of marbles in the two story cigar shop I was entertained by these but declined to buy any for Russell since Alice (ok, and Russell) would eat them, to which the store owner replied, “that’s okay, they just come right back out! They wouldn’t be the first ones to try it!” nice

and true, but STILL, sheesh

Finally after behaving like a couple of goofy tourists a little more we found ourselves in one of the most haunted locations in America Now you might mock me (right along with Jon) but I did not enjoy this quite as much as I though I would. It has a fascinating history with lots of tragedy and executions and general death stuff that I won’t bore you with, but I will say I felt kind of nauseous in a couple places in the house. And every time I entered the hallway or the stairwell I actually felt sick and sort of stressed out. Jon is rolling his eyes as he reads this so I am moving on now :P

We ended the day eating on the covered porch of a fantastic Creole Cafe and had the best  sausage gumbo Mac and Cheese EVER. I mention this, because getting to eat a meal in peace, while it’s hot, and sharing because you want to is a big part of the thrill of this vacation for us :)

After that we went to the movies, walked on the beach, and had McDonalds on the balcony :) it was really a fun trip and I would like to thank the planets for aligning, jon for being jon, and my mom for being grandma for two whole nights of blissful sleep.

And I am officially ready to say hello to my 30’s because my 20’s were not half bad.

Merry Christmas!

and Happy Birthday!! ok first, i realize everyone else thinks it’s awesome, but I DO NOT think being in a earthquake was fun at all! Well, at first I did when my chair started shaking and i looked over at Jon cooking chicken and he was shaking and the roof was shaking and I thought, WOW this is an earthquake! and then it didn’t stop and i thought WOWOWOW! this is an earthquake!! and my babies are sleeping in this shaking house! and then it stopped and jon says’ “hehe, that was weird” and kept cooking his chicken! a little freaked out, that’s all I’m saying.

so ANYWAY: Merry Christmas! Since my big doomsday 30th birthday is this Thursday, Jon and I finally cashed in on the present my parents gave us for Christmas which was a couple nights of babysitting! People without children, do not underestimate the luxury of eating your food when it’s hot, starting and finishing a conversation on your FIRST try, not having to instruct the people around you when they do in fact need to use the potty, or having to explain to anyone (for the millionth time) why we don't touch other peoples faces with our feet.

So we escaped, and we had mucho fun! We stayed at this great Bed and Breakfast called the Secret Garden in the Orchid room with our own little balcony looking out to the ocean (it was a lovely foggy day, i love the fog, maybe because I miss the seasons?)        All three of the rooms open into this beautiful little courtyard which is connected to the backdoor of the Secret Garden Cafe, where Jon had green eggs and ham for breakfast! (You can try and leave the kids at home…)    We walked down to the beach where we had to cross over the train track (we took lots of pictures for the boy, here are two)   and of course a picture of a coast guard helicopter (it was awesome)     and of course some obligatory tourist shots And let’s just say I feel lucky that Jon is entertained by “Unstable” things and does not feel inclined to ‘stay back’ clear signs or not   And that was just the hotel, wait until you see what we did on Saturday… you’re gonna have to because I’m home now and I just heard a crash, so stay tuned for part 2

I mean it in the nicest way!

because i saw this and i thought of you, and it’s almost your birthday TOMORROW and you’re older than me and I appreciate it :)

Brookie with Mari at Training Table, man I want some cheese fries (stupid diet) and FRY SAUCE <sob>

Brookie with Alice at a PINK party (and Alice looks at her auntie like her mom does, with LOVE and ADORATION :)

 

 

HALLOWEEN!! 2005?

man!! i don’t have pictures of the year we went to the wedding on Halloween and we were characters from Lord of the Rings before it was COOL! (and by cool I mean before it was a movie, because let’s be serious)

ah! august 2nd 2000 right before you were my maid of honor we lived in our funny little apartment and had the BEST Christmas EVER with that Christmas tree in the living room and a mattress as a sofa, and then I got married and ruined it all :)wherever you are this birthday I will be the airhead to your left, squished up against your cheek and wishing you the happiest birthday ever!!  I love you birthday girl :)

oh, and don’t worry that you’re thirty (FIRST hahaha), because no matter how old we are, Jon will always be older (as lorraine says, he knew burger king when he was a prince :)

I was not kidding…

this is one of the reasons i love california. i was trying to explain to erin the other day about my morning news that has a crazy weather girl and a cranky old man.

it goes along with the blue hairs who get in accidents in the Vons parking lot and drive off, the beer they serve at chucky cheese, and the mommy gangs.

it’s true, and i like it :)

Wiser?

  …definitely older! Happy Birthday Andrea :) just remember, I knew you when…

lamenting photoshop

because that is what we are doing since my fahhther learned how to use it. with no further introduction I present

What My Dad Is Doing With His Retirement

although, not the kind to suffer in silence I would like to offer this loving response to a man who apparently is really a big baby and kind of an ass

Party Time Excellent

Alice’s friend Serena turned one year old today! Happy Birthday Serena! Alice wore her new dress and her glittery Converse and I only wish my fat legs were as FAB as these :)

Then Alice who is on the verge of crawling (she gets the legs going, and the arms, but not at the same time quite yet :) rolled herself about 10ft onto Russell’s toy pile… and the baby proofing begins It’s okay, Russell forgave her and after a quick trip around the block we made a doggy pile and had a little nap… and by that I mean I begged jon to take them in the backyard while I slept for an hour, because, I’m TIRED!!! :)