August 27th

Lucy is 19 months old today! The time is zipping by...

Here was our day:

Fullerton Train Station, just for the heck of it. Lucy's really into Thomas the train, so I thought she might like seeing a real train. I love the Fullerton station... it's mission style with a hint of Italian villa.

Here comes the choo-choo! I made a little book for Lucy with the pictures from this morning, and she can't stop talking about it. "Train! Choo-Choo! Woo-woo! Chugga-chugga! Peoples off. Peoples on. Tracks!"
A succulent from my container garden, stuck in a bowl in my windowsill.

The Biola Years

I'm inspired by Ry-Bear to recount some of my college years. I can't say there were many crazy capers or exciting shananigans, and many great moments are shadowed by unfortunate alliances, but there are still some really fun moments there. Some of the things I remember about my years at Biola are colored by it just being the 90's, and about the changes I've seen in the school and the area since then.

Among many things, I simply just loved that I went to college during the grunge years. Wake up, put on flannel and ripped jeans, go to class. Or huge sweatshirt. Or huge t-shirt. With the sleeves rolled up. =) I loved the turn music was taking, and how raw but interesting some of the grunge stuff was. "Coffee houses" were new, and I remember going a few times to listen to some acoustic stuff in the night air with a mocha. I felt so cool.

My favorite moments, however often took place away from Biola. I was in Chorale, which was my little family. Two of my four Biola years began with a retreat up in Yosemite for a weekend. Gorgeous, gorgeous Yosemite with all your friends--priceless! Then there were the tours! Seattle, San Fransisco and Napa, The Eastern Seaboard. One day we drove from Providence, Rhode Island all the way down to Deleware, and it was like watching Spring arrive in a time-lapse video. Chorale always did "Celebrate the Son," which was this amazing, quiet church service of "Lessons and Carols." Worshippers entered quietly to the readings of the Old Testament prophecies, and the concert began with a single soprano quietly singing "Once in Royal David's City" a capella, while the Chorale joined in with more strength verse by verse. It was the most in awe I've ever been of the incarnation of Christ.

I think I will only say a few short words about one of the most important times of my college years: my semester in Washington, D.C. I made two dear friends there who have continued to be important in my life (well, one was already a friend, but you know...) I lived a mile away from the Capitol Building during a time when you could just walk in at will. I worked in view of that building and watched the Christmas tree being put up on the lawn in front. I learned two of the most important lessons of my life there: 1.) You must be free in any relationship to walk away from it, or it is not a real relationship, and 2.) When your circumstances are unfavorable, you have the most control over your own reaction to it.

Okay, this is probably way more interesting to me than it would be to anyone else, so I'll give it a rest!

Oh, and the sweater was FIVE squares! I swear, I did complete my math requirements in college.

News and Notes

Well, we're back from a week at Grammie and Grandpa's with my sister and the cousins. It was a wonderful but exhausting week. Lucy is just a bundle of curious energy, and when not in her own environment needs a great deal of looking after. But it was great for her to enjoy her cousins, her aunt and uncle, and her grandparents. Here are a few of the shots...

Yes, this is the cat's bed... and wouldn't you know it, as soon as we washed it, she wouldn't sit in it anymore.

Crayon nibbles, thanks to this blog. My sister provided the old crayons, and we had fun melting them in the muffin tins. Lucy liked to stack them, sink her teeth into them, and throw them, so not much coloring yet.
Out at Chinese food. Bean sprouts in her hair after using a huge spoon to shovel chow mein from Grammie's plate into her mouth...
Ice Cream sandwiches... Wouldn't I LOVE to show this to the "What to Expect" people? (They maintain you should only ever give your child food sweetened with fruit juice, and that only once a month.)
And this is what Stevador was doing while we were gone. I'm very happy with my new windows!!
Before I get too far, I need to correct the impression that my sweaters were hard! Trust me... we're talking 4 squares just sewn together. Totally easy or I would never have done them. =)

A big "hang-in-there" goes out to my dear friend K, who will have a baby any day now!

Crafty, crafty

I am enjoying the gift my mother-in-law gave me a few years ago... she taught me to crochet. My hands have always ached to have some kind of creative work to do, especially something portable. I tried cross-stitch once, and hated it. But then I learned crochet, and since have adored all the little projects that have come from my own two hands. They are all modest, nothing skillful or fancy, but something just feels right about creating. My mother is teaching me to knit, too, so I will likely have more projects in my head than I can ever catch up with.

Here are a few of the little things I am making. In addition, I'll add a picture of one of the two tarts I've made recently. Apologies on the photos... it's "Photobooth" again.

Here's the blueberry tart from Kristen's shower.

This is a sweater I made for my best friend from high school, whose baby girl is due to arrive in November.

Blocks for my sister-in-law's baby, due in October.

Sweater for the new niece, too. It needs a flower and a button still. It looks a little more grey in this picture, and a bit hard to see the ruffled edge I added, but it's essentially a stone/taupe color.

I made this, too. =)

Favorite Dinner this week

One of my favorites! Someone brought this to us when Lucy was born, and we love it!

Linguini Marvini

3 Tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup butter, cut in small pieces
1 Tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon kosher salt or ¾ tsp regular
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
6 Tablespoons grated parmesan
Several sprigs fresh basil (about 14 leaves)
1 pound linguine
1 pound(ish) chicken cooked and cut in bite size pieces

*Start water boiling for linguine. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat.
*Add the garlic and saute until golden brown, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to low and stir in the butter, lemon juice, salt, pepper, and 3 tablespoons of the Parmesan.
*Remove from heat. Add all but one sprig of the basil. Cover and let stand.
*Meanwhile, cook the linguine according to package. Just before linguine is cooked, add chicken to Marvini sauce. Toss linguine with chicken and sauce (if you add the chicken sooner, it seems to absorb the sauce and then there's not enough to toss. Sprinkle with the remaining parmesan and garnish with the basil.

Flutters and tingles

While you all know I am not friends with summer, I just put on some tunes that reminded me of a very good summer. It reminded me of the week I met Steve, which would've been right around this week 8 years ago. I was reveling in my independence, my job (which was new and still fun), my new office (a 22 year old at Biola with a WINDOW office??), and the whole discovering myself part of life. I remember driving home with the window down listening to these tunes, and putting them on makes my heart skip a beat. There were just possibilities all over the place! Fun to be had! Places to go! People to meet! Things to read! After a really dark time in my life, it was one of the best times of my life. And then it got better.

I met Steve when my office moved to a new location. We had all kinds of telecomm and computer issues we needed help with. The former were taken care of by a friend of Steve's (now friend of ours), and the latter by Steve. Come to find out later the telecomm friend sent Steve to meet the nice, single blonde out at McNally. I wasn't at all looking to date someone, as I was so content in my life. But every time I talked to Steve, I felt like I could've talked until the end of the day. I'll spare you the details, but that guy got under my skin, and thankfully some mutual friends gave him a kick in the butt and he asked me out.

So while I'm generally no friend of summer, there was indeed a summer not so very long ago that was the instigator of the very best of my life. I seem to be happier with Steve every year that passes.

It's getting warm out, but I put some water on the stove with fresh snipped lavender and a few splashes of vanilla and it smells lovely in here! We are having an antipasto platter for dinner, which means no cooking for me... what a nice day!!

Thank goodness

I'm so grateful that none of my friends ever treated me the way this person treats her friends with kids. I'm also thankful that none of my friends who had kids first ever treated me with the infuriating "you'll understand when you're older" air. You must read this well-worded response to a woman wanting to be told that her friends with kids are just kicking back all the time.
See it here.

Lunchtime: A Quadriptych

These are done with "Photobooth" on my computer, which I believe is sort of a nod to the Poloroid genre. The guy who took our wedding photos took some phenomenal Poloroids (not of our wedding). They were gogeous--definitely Art! But I digress.

Notice the apple is nearly the size of Lucy's head...


Let's hear it for the mighty apple!

I understand these will keep Dr. Cheng away... I've got a needle prick on my thigh that indicates otherwise...

Poster-girl for eating healthy!

On Holiday

Shaver was just what it ought to be: the Sierras. The So. Cal mountains always made me sad because I felt like they were missing something. They seem... fake or something. I realized this weekend that it was the indescribableness of the Sierras they are missing. The house we were in was perfect. Big enough for all of us, and soundproof! We had a great time!

(Brooklyn & Lucy)
(Brooklyn & Tanner with Aunty Shanny)
(Lucy up to her neck in the lake... loved walking around in the water.)

Until....
Poor Steve really hurt his back pretty badly being pulled behind the boat, so since then we have slowed considerably. He is on the mend now, but it was a very painful and almost immobile few days. Lucy has had a tough week. Naps have been elusive, and she has just been full of trouble. Being in a not totally babyproofed environment and with Steve on the injury list, it made for a few busy days
for me.

However, we've really enjoyed being away from home. There is Harry Potter to read and see, cable television, other reading material, crocheting, and baking. We chuckled that people pay big money to go to Palm Springs, but we get our own little resort right here in Selma, complete with babysitting and good company.

Today was a British comedy following Lucy around--catching things just before disaster, and then not catching the things she moved on to as I was replacing the first averted disasters-- and I admit I am beat. We head home tomorrow, and I will be both sorry to go and glad to get home.

98 degrees

No, nothing to do with the band. Rather with Selma. It is a cookin' here! We made the best time we've made in ages on the road, even with traffic. Had a great evening with my folks, and of course they think that heaven itself will be something like grandparenting. Here's Lucy playing with pretend plates and cups.


We head up to the mountains this morning... can't wait to get out of the smoggy Valley air.

Off we go!

After the shower today, we head up to Shaver Lake to be with the Earle family. It brings back lots of memories from those mountains, as my family used to have a cabin up there. We'll all pack into this great place here and enjoy several days of boating, swimming, and hiking. Then for a few days in Selma with the Sorensen family. Why is it we go to places like Nebraska and Selma for our vacations in July? I'll never know, but somehow it keeps happening.

Bud will hold down the fort for us here, and while we're gone, the little buggers around the house will meet their chemically induced end. Ah, the satisfaction of it all.

Time for a shower... for the shower...

Today

Sam's Club. Albertson's. Crackers. Lunchmeat. The floor. The monitor. Flying books. The car. The crib. The monitor. The floor. Broken plexiglass. The car. Puffy taco. Hiccups.

Basically, that translated is, what a hell of a day. It involved much screaming and gnashing of teeth on both sides. But rough days don't last, and with a toddler it can turn on a dime sometimes, so we had a nice end to a crappy day. And I got to buy a swimsuit coverup. Doesn't that make up for it?

For your viewing pleasure, here's what I was doing 18 years ago around this time... Do you like my bowl cut? Or my little brother's "mini-gentleman" pose?
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Lemon Cashew Chicken

Tonight I made lemon cashew chicken, and I believe I can say it was a success. A few tweaks next time (don't parboil the broccoli, blast it, stir fry!). I generally fail miserably with Asian food, so was glad for something yummy.

Today Lucy and I babysat a 2 month old. So did it make me want another baby right away? Not a bit! It made me want to enjoy having an only child for as long as possible. We enjoyed little baby Kate, though, and since Lucy was only allowed to touch her toes, she insisted that we do the piggies. (This little piggy went to... "Mah-KET," etc.) She was tiny and sweet and fun to visit with, but we were fine being on our own again after she went home.


Finishing up packing and getting a few things done for the shower. Tired today... Lucy was a handful most of the day. I'll be glad for a vacation with lots of extra adults and cousins to entertain!

Nothing in particular

I am so delighted with the recipes you all sent! I can't wait to try them! We had taco salad last night, Kristen. It is a favorite, but I hadn't made it in a long time. Super yum! I tried it with chopped olives instead of sliced, and it was really quite yummy.

Yesterday I was swinging between totally lazy and wanting to be super creative, which could also include organizing something. So I picked up and went to Office Max and bought file folders and a cute sticky pad. Excellent compromise if you asked me.

It will be hot here today, so I am counting on my dreams of autumn to get me through. Roasted veggies in the oven, a roast beef or chicken in there, too, candles around the house, long sleeves... oh, it does sounds so yummy! But best of all, football! Need I say more?

Busy weekend... park date today, VBS tonight, and a ton of errands in between. This weekend I clean the toys in the toddler room, too. Then I am working on getting ready for a baby shower as well as getting my family ready to leave the same day for vacation. I'm enjoying the bustle, and will enjoy the vacation even more. I love being with Steve 24/7. I am always sad when he goes back to work after vacation. But maybe if he were home all the time, I'd get annoyed. =)

Need:

Light, healthy, affordable recipes for summer. Particularly interested in non-oven recipes.

Thankfully this week I only have to cook twice! Yay!!

Happy 5th of July

We had a lovely 3rd and 4th of July. I took some more patriotic Lucy pictures, and posted them here. Hope you enjoyed celebrating our departure from those crafty Redcoats and King George. Damn your tea taxes! After my coffee, maybe I'll have some Earl(e) Gray...

New Favorite Words

Watching a vocabulary develop is a fascinating process. I don't know why God decided it should be cute... probably to keep it from being annoying. But it is a joy and a privilege to participate in. We've decided Lucy is a Cajun Canadian. "Out" sounds like "Oat," "Cow" is "Coh" (like in Coal), and "Chicken" is "Chick-KON."

Everthing is preceeded by "nah" these days, too. It's some kind of precursor to articles, I suppose. "Nah PEE-cy" means "A Piece," which means, "Hey, I want somma that!"

Some favorite words of mine are:
"Weee-bee!" It means fan, and I think she picked it up when we said, "Whee! Whee!" when we spun the blades around for her to see.
"No-goo" = Yogurt
"Bubbo" = Bud/Eric
"Chi-woh" = Cheerios
"Hoogy" = Hug
"Cup-POO" = Cup
"Bah-nay" = Bath
"Nah Poot" = Pool
"Wah-nay" = Water
"Oh NIH-NEE!" = Ninny = Pacifier
"Mickee" = Monkey
"Eee-wah" = Olivia / Ava (neighbor/cousin)
"Ta-cah" = Grandpa

I'd better keep my blog stored somewhere... this stuff's the sort of thing that's supposed to be in a baby book!

July: the Real American Melting Pot

I am not a fan of summer. It has little to offer me now that I am done with school. I feel that you spend your days couped up in rooms with air conditioning that just takes the edge off the heat, or else feels so processed you get claustrophobic. The fans are on all the time, and the tiny little hairs around your face that didn't make it into the ponytail you put up to cool your neck off constantly tickle your face like little gnats. Every day the house must be opened up and fans turned on while the morning is still cool, so that the air can get sucked into the house. This is really but a vain hope, and a 15 minute delay of the inevitable. In the mid-day when the war of the thermometor begins to be lost, we button everything up and give in to the air conditioning... the spinning meter whirring in the back of my mind all the while. You'd think that childhood in Fresno would have conditioned me for this, but someone else was paying for air then, and really, it's not a great deal better here in the summer during the day. I've decided in my dream life to own a second home up by my sister in Shoreline, Washington, and spend the summer there.

Oh, certainly there are good things. We have a pool, and it is indeed lovely. I do not have a body well-suited to the pool, however, so I'm back to griping.

And we lose the war until the end of October.

So. To counteract my bitterness of spirit, here are some of the lovely things about my summer.

Grammie came for a visit. She heard Lucy was starting to repeat the alphabet with us, and had to rush down for an emergency Grandparenting. It was lovely to have her here!
It gives me great, great joy that my daughter loves to read. She must have the right idea... this is a book about Christmas.

Car washing is always a fun passtime in the heat. Lucy has learned how to help! That running board was never so clean!
Apprentice to a former professional.

If I reeeeeeach just a little bit further, maybe I can get to the bottom of this thing!

The Invitation

My recent project has been finishing a baby shower invitation for my dear, dear friend, Kristen. We decided to hilight antique toys, so I decided to take a photo in sepia and turn it into the invite. Here are some of my attempts, then the final invite (information removed, so it takes away a bit of the effect, but you get the idea). It was really fun to see it come together!

The Back Yard

Lucy loooves being "ah-sigh!" (Outside.) Recently Steve picked up some sidewalk chalk, and we've been having loads of fun with it. Since Lucy knows most of the basic animals and what they say, Steve's been drawing these huge pictures of animals and telling Lucy, "Okay, go find the pig! Go find the chicken!" Such fun!



Happy cows do come from California!
Me: "Can you tell me why the pig has a goatee?"
Steve: "Not by the hair of my chinny-chin-chin."


Steve drew a huge circle, and Lucy just danced and played inside the circle... go figure!

I won't tell you who he was trying to draw here... he admitted it was a failed attempt.

More photo catch-up

Here's my recent-ish sewing project. Lucy desparately needed an additional light-weight sleep sack, so I made another one. Before you pretend to be impressed, let me mention that I forgot to use the zipper foot, so there are two big places where the fabric has pulled away from the zipper. Oops! The other big problem is that the pattern made the neck hole way too big, so I need to cinch it up.


Okay, on to fun stuff. This week I went out to Redondo Beach to see my dear friend Colleen and her son Timothy. We met at a Farmer's Market that was ON THE FLIPPIN' BEACH! It was gorgeous, to say the least. I left with some ridiculously good fresh salmon, asparagus, and the biggest avacado I've ever seen.

Here's Colleen with the guy who sold the fish. She knows a bunch of the vendors there, and got me a good price for the fish. Colleen's in the air force, and can totally hang with the boys, as you see here.

Here's the view!
Here's how the play date went... Timothy sat and soaked up the sun, and Lucy explored the corners of the world.

Steve had a hair appointment that evening in Fullerton, and Lucy indicated she'd had a long day. This is the couryard outside the salon, yes, SALON where Steve gets his hair cut.

Lots of Stuff

Busy week! I have a bunch of pictures to come, but I'll start with these.

Here's the blanket I made for Sarah Twisselmann. I wanted to make it last year, but I finally finished it for her first birthday. =) It matches her pink and burgundy room.

I found this picture when I was up at my parents' house in May. L-R, My brother Eric, cousin Lisa, sister Sari, cousin Kevin, and then me at the bottom. I think we've all got that "come hither" look going pretty well, except Eric, who has drunken bandit going on.

Catching up

Well, since my last post I spent my first weekend away from Lucy, and it was fan-TASTIC! I went to a women's retreat at Lake Arrowhead (some of us like to call it "the Fake Mountains," as we were brought up within reach of the Sierra Nevadas), and had a nice time. I won't say much else about it, except that there were some really down-to-earth people there, and it wasn't over-programmed or over-cutesy. I didn't sleep well, unfortunately, but I did enjoy the jacuzzi tub!! Ah, the bliss...

Then this last weekend Steve and I lay low because we felt like we were getting sick. Lucy's had it for a week now. I particularly LOVE wiping snot off someone else's nose, by the way. But thankfully we were able to kick it before it got bad. We even felt good enough by Sunday evening to do a really nice walk in West Fullerton. Highly recommend the Cayote Hills area!

Last night I saw "The Waitress" with friends Heidi Hubbard and Denise Geringer. Not sure if I recommend it, but I enjoyed it none-the-less. I think the major draw for me were the pictures of those beautiful, beautiful pies she makes. They do this overhead shot of the pie being filled, and each one is completely unique and yummy looking. Things like chocolate berry pie with a crumbly topping... oh my, oh my. Strange, though, that the movie was about an OB-Gyn having an affair with one of his pregnant patients.

So there's my super exciting week. =) Coming up... a day at the beach! A birthday party! Father's Day! And a photo shoot! Sort of.

Weekend

Here you see Lucy lying prostrate to the household deity "Blinky." Her cousins sent her "The Little Mermaid," as they feel it is their moral duty to educate her in the ways of princessdom. She had her first 5 minute lesson and seems to be soaking it all in.

I went to the fabric SUPERSTORE this week BY MYSELF! Dangerous conditions, folks. I got stuff for multiple projects--a sleep sack for Lucy, some decor for Steve's office, loooots of yarn for baby gifts. I've discovered that I love to give washcloths, because I know that they are both useful, and the handmade thing is cool. They had some fun yarn that I hadn't seen, and some specific colors I was looking for to do another project. I'll try to do some shots of what I finish. I'm no craftswoman... I'm a get-it-done, so don't expect too much. =)

Went to the MOL graduation reception last night. It is so fun to go and not have to work. It was great to see the ladies from the office. They're going through some seriously tough times there right now... lots of personnel issues and leadership issues. Not at all ironic in a leadership program. I'm so grateful I left when I did. I didn't have anything left to give, and they would have needed way more than I had. But seeing all the graduates was super fun. I even got some "honorable mentions" which was a nice surprise.

Nothing special this weekend... just loving that my boys will be home. Won't quite be warm enough to swim, which is fine by me. Stave off the heat as long as possible.

Spoooooooky!

I just scheduled a service call for our refrigerator. When it came to the "describe the problem" I refrained from what I really wanted to say ("Our fridge is impersonating a ghost: WhoooOOOOOOOooooo! WhoooooooOOOOOOOOooooooo!"), in favor of "High-pitched, whining/sighing noises." The funny thing is, one night when I yelled at the fridge, "You don't scare me, spooky fridge!" I realized that, actually, he wins! A fridge has great power to scare! But we will come back at you with the sword of the extended warranty. HA! Take that, you fiend!

Moon!

Lucy is excited about the moon. Lots of books with moons in them, the real moon... she shouts, "Moon!" with a little chutspa behind her tone. She thinks the ABC logo is the moon, which, consequently, she loves to point out when we watch "Dan-SEEEEN!" (Dancing with the Stars). This morning she pointed at the round birthmark on my chest and shouted, "Moon!" Well. Then.

Wee Toes and Noggins

You MUST check out this cute little website. I went to college with Wendy and her husband, and she makes the cutest little booties. They're hand-made, and are really professional and creative.

I think these are my favorites...
I'm just bummed that Lucy is too big for them now! Such a cute idea for a baby shower. Anyway, if you're needing a shower gift, these are just too much fun.

Quiet on the So Cal Front

I spent a week in Selma with my parents--a glorious time of self-indulgence and grandchild worship. Lucy learned to say "Guh-MEEE!" and "Guh-PAAA," and fun was had by all. I came home with literally about 20 pounds of fruit. When you're from the Central Valley, the addage "You don't know what you're missing until it's gone" is definitely true.

I'm thinking my blogging is slowing down. I'm fairly certain my readership has dwindled, and now that my mom's computer is down, I think it might just be me that reads this anyway. I am finding that it's harder to write when I'm not sure who is reading.
But occasionally I'll include something going on in my life, just for fun. So here's for fun:

Lucy's latest capers have surrounded my faithful viewership of "Dancing with the Stars." She loves to spin in circles when she sees it, and she'll point at the computer or TV and say "Dan-SEEENG!" When they hold up the paddles, she says, "Nine!!" I got her to say "Bruno" and "Shimmy," too. It's hilarious! She's also big into body parts, and it's so funny to see her run across the room with her hands on her head, shouting, "Head! Head!" My favorite, of course is, "Hiney!"

This morning we averted a disaster. I was putting applesauce into a bowl when I realized I'd put the yogurt too close to the edge of the counter. Oops. I got to it before she had completely rolled in it, and the only casualties were her hands. She calls it "no-gu." Not exactly a descriptive term.

Well, off to put her down for a nap and grab one myself... unfortunately it was a 4:45 call time this morning.

May Day

Is it really May already? It opened with the typical May Gray, which I actually love. Everyone here complains if it's anything but 75 and sunny. I love cold (L.A. cold) and cool weather, especially before the heat begins to build its fury and dominance. It's like my last little friendly cloud before I feel like I'm in a tanning booth for 5 months.

My little fireball niece turned 4 today. She is the cutest little punkin' and about as sneaky as they get. =) Happy birthday, cutie pants!

Tonight I experimented with some close-up photography. I know next to nothing about photography, and would have loved to have a pro with me for ideas, but it was fun to play around. My back is killing me because the focal points were so delicate, but it was fun to see what is possible. The subject? Ah, but that would spoil it now wouldn't it?

Off to my parents' house next week. I find it funny that I go to Selma to relax, but it really is
relaxing to hang out with my folks, have people to play with Lucy, and visit old friends. I'm going to visit my old piano teacher who has metastatic lung cancer. She was the first teacher that really got me and really talked me into playing good stuff. I don't think I really understand that she's sick. I have a great coach for talking to sick people... my Dad is so experienced. I do look forward to seeing her again, as she was such a special person to me.

Well, signing off for tonight.