hello luvahhhh...

Remember how Carrie Bradshaw felt with a new pair of Manolo Blahnik's? That's me to a tee right now. Want to make a guess as to what I am off to do all day...

wishin'...

...and hopin' for a weekend like this one again.

And I am really tempted...

I got my "new teacher mentor" stipend. I can't find enough reasons not to. My "Pro's" list is way longer than the "Con's". My kids don't mind Top Ramen 7 days a week. I just might.

Uncle Clint

Every family has one. The relative that makes every gathering just a little more exciting and fun. That family member that gives the best hugs. That family member that is the life of the party... Evidence: Uncle Clint was my "show and tell" when I was in the 2nd grade. What did he show...you might wonder? He was a stunt man for the Rams Football cheer squad. He and his partner Tina-Marie came in full shiny blue Rams attire and did cheer stunts on the playground for my class. I put all the trophies, stuffed animals, and other collectible sharing items to shame that year, thanks to Uncle Clint. Uncle Clint is now a Master of Ceremonies and a Wedding Officiant as well as a rockin' D.J. Talk about a guy who knows how to have a good time...Remember when the Bachelorette Trista married Ryan on national T.V.? Uncle Clint was the minister... Tonight you can see Uncle Clint as the officiant on the WB's new reality series called...
"Hitched or Ditched" at 9 p.m. I can't wait to check it out. Don't worry if you miss it, the show will run for 5 more episodes. In addition he will be the officiant for a wedding on KTLA morning news on Friday June 26th. Check out the details here.

4 hours 25 minutes

The 6 a.m. send off... downtown L.A.

The faithful cheering squad: We managed to see him at miles 3, 7, 12, 16, 20, and the finish line.



He only slowed down for a quick high-five...he was a man on a mission.

There he goes...

Lisa, coaching up all the runners. If you have run 6 marathons...you get to say whatever you want....



One of the more colorful runners...yes, he carried that tray with champagne the entire route.



The finish line... The face says it all...he was so glad he did it, and that it was DONE.
Next up: Disneyland 1/2 marathon in September... the two of us.

Memorable...

Davin and the rest of Pack 438 placing flags at Olive Lawn Cemetary in La Mirada.
Take time to remember today.

as ready...

...as he'll ever be.



The Quality of Life Expo at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

taking care of "busy"ness

Thursdays can be tough. It is right at the end of the week. You are on the home stretch...you can almost taste the weekend. Cub Scout meetings are on Thursday and they always seem to rejuvenate me. Particularly tonight's meeting: we headed to The Palm's Retirement Home to speak with some very special people.

We met with a former Navy officer, a gentleman who had been in the Coast Guard, two women who were former Boy Scout Den mothers, and a man who's pride and joy had been his '51 Chevy. The boys got a chance to find out what first grade was like for these sweet residents. We heard all kinds of stories in the short time we visited. The boys ended their visit by presenting yellow friendship roses to everyone that took the time out to talk to us. We were hustled out the door in time for the residents to get to choir practice and BINGO. It was an active place.

And with a full weekend ahead of us, we are very excited...someone in our house has been secretly working really hard to prepare for this BIG event on Monday... and its not me...any guesses?

He would die if he knew I put this picture up of him. But I am proud of what he is about to endure...

It is not child birth, but it is 26.2 miles, a very long way. Pictures to come Monday evening. I wish you a "memorable" weekend.

Calling all Disney Lovers...

If you are in the L.A. area this weekend, you might want to check this out...

For more information on the FREE event, click here:

Disney's A Christmas Carol Train Tour

Kindergarten Testing

Avery has been looking forward to today for a few weeks now. Today was "practice kindergarten" as she took to calling it. Some of the things they had her do during the testing were identify letters and shapes, count as high as she could (they stopped her in the 70's), and draw a self-portrait.

I was in the room and could hear the questions as well as the responses :). At one point, the teacher asked her to identify the parts of a book. After Avery answered, the teacher moved on to another set of questions. Avery stopped the teacher and said, "Wait. Aren't you going to ask me where the spine of the book is?"

Also, when telling the teacher what sounds the letters made, she said, ""A" like in apple, "K" like in kangaroo, "W" like in what's happenin' dude?". Yep, my daughter is a product of the Letter Factory (an educational video that teaches the letters and their sounds). I laughed outloud at that answer. She did great.

Future Scotty Dog...



Waiting patiently for her turn in the new library "Camp Read-a-Lot". She loved the recliner, fire place, and bear-skinned rug.



September will be here before we know it.

Happy Birthday Chicken Facha.

Tonight we celebrated my dad's birthday (one day late). We barbecued, bit our nails while watching the Celtics say good-bye to their season, and took a walk around Old Towne Orange. When I was younger, I used to call him chicken facha (face in Spanish), due to his scratchy 5 o'clock shadow. He used to call me "Duke". Now we have graduated to more mature nicknames for each other like Neenur, Buppy, Loozah, & Neen.



When mom asked Dad what he wanted for his birthday menu he replied with all the things my kids love. He even changed his requests, worrying that the rest of us might not like those same foods. Which is so like my dad, even on his birthday, putting everyone else before him.

Dad loved all the homemade cards. Even Dusan got in the spirit of card-making. He drew this card depicting my dad's office. He is the character on the right...in case you couldn't tell. It looks just like him, except that was his hair-do when he was about 18. We all got a good laugh...





My dad never misses a sporting event. No matter what, he always has something encouraging to say. His energy is endless (unless golf is on T.V. on a Sunday afternoon...zzzzzz). And he has never stopped being a model parent. I love you Dad. Happy Birthday.

Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde

I am never quite sure what I am going to get lately from this lovely lady. Emotions are all over the place. Strong-willed, opinionated, and independent to say the least. Time-out is not really working anymore. Recently I put her in "the corner". She yelled to me, "Mom, but there is a spider in that corner!" "You will sit there for five FULL minutes!", I responded (figuring she was crying wolf). She was hysterical the entire 5 minutes. Once the kitchen timer went off, I walked over to give her the "post-time out talk". Sure enough, at her eye level was a spider. It was black. It had a red diamond on its belly. Yep, black widow. Mother of the Year.





Last night, we had the evening to ourselves. No boys. We made dinner, baked bread, painted nails, and went for a bike ride. It was calm, peaceful, no time-outs necessary. One day at a time.

Wild Thang

One of my favorite books of all times is hitting the big screen... I remember reading the book with caution when I was a kid, feeling apprehensive about the monsters in the story. Ironically, it became Davin's favorite story...we even decorated the boys' bedroom with the book in mind for a time.

October 16, 2009...

I can't wait to see how a well-illustrated children's picture book is stretched out into a full length feature film.

Mother's Day wrap up

A fun day filled with gifts and appreciation. The "school made" gifts are always my favorite. And keeping with "Aleida's challenge" I made sure to take pictures with all 3 kids...multiple times.
From Hunter: (football trophy made by Dusan)


From Davin:




Paul Pierce from the Celtics, of course:

From Avery:



Mom and i got a nice long visit after breakfast... perfect!