pretzels piggies and pie

fricking fracking loving
chocolate covered m&m pretzel sticks... a little too much, i MUST STOP making them! but it's so cool dipping the sticks into melted chocolate and then rolling them in mini m&ms (i must have an alice from united states of tara alter too:)

desperately seeking
a little teacup piggie ... a roadtrip to Texas to bring home the bacon is in order:)

hopelessly excited
about the new ubisoft game for wii where you get to sing and dance with MICHAEL JACKSON!! it's on my list to Santa Claus already (but i want it the DAY it comes out, the very DAY it comes out, as in be at target at 8am and waiting impatiently for it to start playing at 8:15am:)

speaking of MJ...
i got my brand new moo cards today and was soooo happy to find some adorable MJ pictures tucked between the familiar faces :) i keep a few favorite right-clicked MJ pictures on my flickr and made them into moo cards in a moment of obsessive fanaticism - i am sure it's illegal to 'borrow' pictures like that, but they're so cute:)

i had no clue
that reheating leftover rice can cause food poisoning :| i do it all the time!!!

i also had no clue
you can make toffee by boiling cans of condensed milk and keep them indefinitely until the urge to make banoffee pie strikes :) who knew!!

euro kids, pillow pals and unknown comics

these adorable pillow pals were in the IKEA as-is (which i always think says A5 15) section! isn't that tragic??! they look just like Friday and Mr Bumps!


IKEA also had a very curious "kitten starter pack" which was a cloth cooler(??) containing cat toys/treats... a cooler for a cat...? is it a swedish thing i wonder? it wasn't a cat carrier because it had no windows... they also had tents for cats, going like hot cakes, they were ;)

this step stool really freaks me out - we have one in our closet and whenever i open the door, i come face to face with the unknown comic, in midget form :|

they don't call it smailand for nothing :)

our semi british neighbors :)

aborted missions, smailand and reject toys

the bad news :
alas it was not to be - our final stab in the dark at finding a non-wood-paneled, uncreepy-with-eyes-in-the-ceiling-that-follow-you vacation rental home has failed and we are forced to spend our entire miserable long hot summer break stuck in the hell that is sunny Southern California... oh woe is me :(

the good news:
yesterday i made huuuge chocolate and m&m covered pretzel sticks and they are sooo delicious!!! i stole the idea from Marceline, the fictitious lady at Disneyland who makes lovely, but ridiculously overpriced, chocolate wares that everytime i buy i swear i could make myself. anyway yesterday i did and they are SO GOOD (they are all gone already they are soooo good!)

today something absolutely amazing happened - i was able to leave a small child (actually several small children!) at the smailand play place in IKEA - and walk away - not just walk away but get to the top of the escalator and still not have my pager go off... and actually walk around the entire store without it going off so much as once - at which point i had to check it was still working... and peek inside smailand to make sure the children had not hatched a plan and escaped together :) it was completely awesome!!!!!!! we even all had FREE lunch courtesy of those boneheads at IKEA that i have been getting even with, ever since they once tried to rip me off by not letting me return a side table that clearly didn't match the rest of the room. (oh they took it back - you'd better believe it) ha!! take that you swindling swedes!!! and i'll be back tomorrow for MORE free babysitting and MORE free lunches!!!

ps free kid meals everyday till 5 july, no purchase necessary! i intend to force them into bankruptcy by going for lunch every single day with every child i can find along the way :|

i feel SO SOOOOO SAD for all these poor sad reject toys at Oriental Trading Co :( so sad i might even consider buying all the unusually small leprechaun hats that are not actually big enough to wear and the halloween masks that leave ink all over your face :)

maybe. off to bed via the kitchen for a scoop of icecream (shh don't tell the kids there is icecream!!)

automatic sleeplessness and gloom

listening to
automatic for the people by rem (because it's been that kind of day)

really really disliking
'eh eh' by lady gaga - it is just beyond AWFUL, like tragically ace of base awful :)

suffering from
major major insomnia, awake all night and asleep all day (i wish i was exaggerating...)

wondering
whhhhhhat i was thinking drinking coffee at bedtime...? that wasn't smart, must take a swig of nyquil and a handful of unisom on the way to bed for sure tonight :|

really hoping
that this Mill Valley house will magically be available for Sam's birthday, because i've entirely given up on the central coast (until half term at least:)

pretty sure
i couldn't handle a houseboat... right? i get seasick riding in an American car :| and houseboats are full of clutter because they're so teeny... no it just wouldn't work...

starting to wonder
if i'm just really hard to please...? surely not :|


really really hoping
it's not rainy and 65 again tomorrow... june gloom be off with you already - it's almost july!!!

what we did on our weekend

saturday:

went to superwalmart, a place i love with all my heart. almost bought all the sad looking lavender plants that were on death row but realized i was not the best person to save them. bought every variety of vanilla yogurt they sell that i couldn't hear swishing around (i am absolutely in l-o-v-e with thick vanilla yogurt) and ate all the grapes on the way home :|

went home and watched toddlers and tiaras - i just don't get the facial expressions... i mean they are fascinating at all but do even pedophiles find them attractive? oh gosh and the little boy in the pageant... tragic :|

in a sudden burst of energy we rode our bikes! we had to go around the entire park all over again because i thought i saw a bear's claw while passing some pedestrians and had to investigate - it turned out to be a metal hook :|

went to soulless Costco in Tustin Ranch (nothing ranchy about it) and bought 8 tubs of coffee creamer which should last me at least 2.5 weeks. also refilled my printer ink!! horray no more desperately sad flashing light making me feel like a horrible printer owner! and my printer works again!! i can print Michaels and Joanns coupons!!! and the ink refills were only $8 :) uhuh! oh yeah! uhuh! oh yeah!! to quote several small children who live around here...

onto home depot for concrete to cover dead bodies with (just kidding;) and a beautiful laceleaf japanese maple tree thing that was too pretty to leave behind (i left it behind last time i went and rocked back and forth over it for the past week) also bought vegetable plant thingies to kill at a later date

then to petsmart to look for this mouse cage and Martha Stewart dog collars - i am woefully disappointed in her... doesn't she realize most people have TWO matching dogs and they are color coded for easy identification?? there must be a blue and a red everything in my particular world.... or i just can't buy it :(

went home and planted the plants and vegetables - was all pissed because the tomato plant i bought because it already had tomatoes attached tragically lost all it's tomatoes in transition, forcing me to have a small meltdown and actually consider sticking the tomatoes back on :|

sunday
dog beach!! and i didn't get peed on! but i felt sick and had to sit on a rock. went home sniffing fresh air with head very still to avoid car sickness. had ginger cat cookies and felt better.

went to a magical new place for lunch - John's incredible pizza! and it really is magical!! it is the lovechild of Chuck E Cheese, Dave and Busters AND Hometown Buffet (ok that's impossible... but sounds amazing right??! a big dancing mascot/all you can eat pizza/games!!) they had garlic breadsticks! and rich meaty dipping sauce!! pasta! and fizzy diet coke! and 20 different kinds of pizza, actually hot and yummy! and a latte maker!! and a room that played Tom and Jerry on a neverending loop for transfixed QUIET children! and a hot donut maker! and soft icecream! when we left, they even stamped our hands so we could go back, if we could ever ever ever eat again... it was like a dream, a very very good dream!!!

went home and looked at more beach rentals. found a promising looking one only to find on google maps a big warning flag that the pismo beach dunes are highly unsavory due to them being the only driveable ATV beach in California... good to know BEFORE you book, i suppose ;)

changed focus to buying dog collars. oh my word, why???!!! why do they all come in 13-17 inches or 19-26 when your dogs have 18 inch necks??! and why are they all so ugly?? zebra print....??! why???!

also watched united states of tara and still can't decide if i like it. sure i like the Aidan character and all ;)

awoke
feeling hopelessly sad... the world has been Michael Jacksonless for one entire year :( one year of no eccentric news stories to make me smile and love him a little bit more... i miss him soooooooooo much!!!

wished
incurable diseases upon one particularly aggressive "lady" driver who risked life and limb to get on the freeway before all the nice patient people waiting in line this morning. my wishes always come true - so i sure hope she has good health insurance ;)

spent
the cloudy morning playing under the pier at seal beach - our car is soooo sandy after 4 beach days within the past week :)

wondered
why the lifeguard's eyes weren't more preoccupied scanning the ocean for vicious sharks and drowning people, instead of noticing Danny posing for the below picture, climbing down from his little watchtower thingie, and coming over and tell him to get down because it's very dangerous :| drowning is dangerous - as is being eaten alive by a shark. possible splinters and falling 3 feet onto soft sand - not so much ;)

watched
little miss perfect at lunchtime... i don't get why people on that show say 'a' to rhyme with 'hay' before a word that starts with a consonant... i can't thoroughly enjoy the show for noticing it and cringing slightly :(

trying to decide whether to go to huntington beach pier or crystal cove for this morning's beach outing.... hmmmmm. crystal cove is by trader joe's - i'm all out of ginger cat cookies and fresh flowers, but huntington beach is closer to home. oh gosh - i am going to have to flip a coin i think :|

i have been subscribing to Sunset magazine for a little while but, naturally, never actually read it :| but it's actually quite interesting! it's full of places in California with icecream stores and beautiful beaches and flea markets! who knew! though i must admit to feeling a little seething rage towards the Ohio couple on page 61 who claim they never drive above 20 mph on highway 1 to Big Sur. oh my gosh, i would sooooooo have to pit maneuver them over the edge :|

also today i am hellbent on finding/buying duck eggs :| they claim the yellow part is much tastier and i have been dreaming of having a dippy duck egg and toast soldiers for dinner :)

back later xoxo








south coast plaza

we spend hoooours in this store (i only wish i was exaggerating...)

MJ... Cambria... and the Waitress

listening to a whooole lot of MJ tonight :) i miss the idea of him being in the world (and Elvis... and Princess Diana too...)

recovering from eating a very, very oversized tillamook mudslide icecream cone that was ohhhh sooooooo good but ohhhh soooooo bad too :)

in the midst of photoshopping hell making an eight feet long, three feet tall wall collage of my favoritest brightest summeriest pictures that must all complement one another, and look cool side by side (i have a headache)

wondering why the only available Cambria summer rental is advertised as a 'sexy and intimate' lover's cottage :| oh and no children allowed either ;)

really really really wanting friday to be a get-out-of-town day - the road to Neverland would be perfect (but probably crowded and un-fun on that specific day...)

hoping i am not wide awake again at 1am, wondering why i always dream of driving on the left side of the road - and why that dream should keep me awake till 5:30am :|

wanting to go to bed early and watch the Waitress... even though i have the dvd and never ever watch it ;)

back to the collage - how much longer can it possibly take, right? xoxoxo

i'm not the kind of mum who...

• enjoys meeting a bunch of other moms at the park (except if they're really sweet and they like taking pictures and it's golden hour :)

• ever thinks to pack fresh fruit in little containers in a little cooler with an ice pack

• is adept enough to talk/text on the phone when the kids are around/in the car

• is in a moms' group of any kind :)
  

• signs my kids up for tons of classes and camps

• refers to other moms as 'mama' :|

• can handle ER visits/shots without crying like a sap :|

• could ever cope with having more children than i have hands
  

• is good about wiping hands and faces

• believes in spending more than $3 on an icecream cone for a child when there's a thrifty or mcdonalds around the corner :)
  

• likes going to theme parks and childrens' museums and zoos

• brags that my kids can speak spanish fluently, when they can say a handful of words ;)

• could ever ever ever home school - like ever :|

• insists my kids don't do anything that could possibly result in a stain on their clothes, no matter how fun it is

• freaks out about my kids jumping in puddles (i do not understand this irrational phobia of water that seemingly all OC mothers have...)

• stresses about feet on the couch and jumping on the bed and splashing in the bath

• instills fear in my kids of ever touching the toilet door or flusher thingie with their hands (they always wash their hands and they have approximately one sick day per school year)
  

• takes my kids out after 7pm to a grown-up restaurant because i can't bear to be around cranky/needy children

however..... i am the kind of mum who:

• believes in being underscheduled and only having one place to be each day

• lets my kids get their own drinks and snacks even if they make a mess

• buys far too many adorable, starry, coordinating items from mini boden :)
  

• loves having a school drive-thru drop-off and being able to park in the garage and carry my groceries 10 feet to the kitchen

• believes all clothes should be comfortable, non-scratchy, stretchy, soft play clothes

• after living in an apartment for all of seven months in 1996, still appreciates - every single day - having a washer and dryer for alllllllll the many many many clothes
  

• loves having a big backyard full of secret hiding places, a pool, a swing set, bubbles, chalk, bikes and plasma cars, buckets of plastic dinosaurs and caterpillar trucks, and sprinklers to jump in on the hottest of days

• proudly owns her very own pink cotton candy maker (commercial grade :)

• is happy for an extra week of furlough days off next school year (we get all of thanksgiving week!)

• will drive up to 30 miles collecting coveted McDonalds happy meals toys :)

• doesn't mind sand, spills and cookie crumbs in the car

• thinks a little Michael Jackson in the car can make everything alright

• always has wipes, band aids and cool drinks for everyone

• and spare clothes/towels/baby powder/sunblock/sand toys/quarters in case we ever are passing a pretty looking beach :)

• plays in the sand pit too, if someone is looking lonely

• believes a houseful of animals makes for gentle, responsible, allergy-free children

• insists on good manners, always

• never leaves home without a camera and a wide angle lens

• has more iphone apps for kids than for me

• is just grateful to be able to put good food on the table, and is not so hung up on the organic-ness of it

• believes that a trip to the pet store is just as good as going to Long Beach aquarium :)

bluberry picking, rat children and sensor bars

ate
sooooooo many huge sun-warmed blueberries this morning that my tummy hurts now (but in a good way:)

encountered
the world's most obnoxious child in McDonalds. imagine a boy version of Darla, the terrifying girl who shakes the goldfish till it's dead in Finding Nemo and you have this child, braces and all :| while i was ordering happy meals at the counter, talking to a grown-up, he was tugging on my shirt (i know!! i wanted to smack his hands right there and then - but they weren't mine to smack...) telling me Danny had just called him 'dumb face' :| his lameass mother stood behind him, wringing her hands, apologizing profusely for her obnoxious tattletale child 'thing'. i didn't know what to say- so i contined to order my side salad - and also dressing and a fork with which to eat it, because heaven forbid those items should be included automatically. i asked Danny what happened and he said the child thing cornered him inside the tubes and told him to say the rudest curse word he knew, and that was the nicest one he could say out loud :) luckily Danny's explanation was loud enough for the child thing's mom to hear and i swear the building shook with shame :)

made
rice a roni - i love rice a roni but i don't quite understand why it's the San Francisco treat....

worked
on a huuuuuge wall collage for the den. the stress is palpable - i am going to have to repaint the wall to accommodate this collage and it's all very scary and expensive....

baked
blueberry muffins. i am trying to only eat two... but they are SO GOOD and full of blueberries bigger than the muffins themselves :)

bought
some wii sensor bar thingie that i have been resisting buying, because i hate drinking more of the koolaid and being part of any kind of mind controlling cult. but we kind of need it because the den is too big and if you want to play guitar on the couch, well you just need it ;) anyway it rang up as $4 when i got to the checkout :) take that, cult!!

hoping
someone somewhere hears my desperate plea for a new 'just dance' with lady gaga and michael jackson. i am SO SICK of dancing to 'acceptable in the 80s' :|

disliking
the Lego David Bowie in Lego Rock Band - he is far too stubby and short and not at all as lovely as the real thing :(

off to ponder something huge and puzzling and difficult to compute - back tomorrow xoxxo

monday snippets

oh gawd quizzes with 50 questions are about 45 questions too long for me :|

i dreamed of icky stained deck chairs last night - whhhhhat does it mean??!

i still have my vegas sore throat and chapped lips - i love the smell of fierce air conditioning but it takes days to recover...

i wish 'strawberry fields forever' for rock band was downloadable (it's not and it's my favorite)

i hate passive aggressive bullshittiness :|

i need to go to costco - i always forget kitty litter and i need to try their ink cartridge fill-up service. and i want to print some pictures and make a 15 feet wide color collage for the wall of favorite pictures!!!

father's day at the beach

Danny is all into remembering and celebrating Michael Jackson this week :) maybe we will finally go to Neverland this week! i have the address on a post-it in my purse :)

because Misti did it :)

1. What color is your toothbrush?
i have no clue - i change it so often that i don't keep track anymore (freaking fracking plaque/bent bristles phobia...)

2. Name one person who made you smile today
Sam (he's watching a documentary about Las Vegas:)

3. What were you doing at 8 am this morning?
well since it's 7:08am i will probably be still eating ginger cat cookies and sipping frothy coffee

4. What were you doing 45 minutes ago?
playing igames in bed :)

5. Favorite candy bar?
solid cadbury's dairy milk. or galaxy. of the american 'chocolate' bars: almond joy can almost pass as bounty in drag :)

6. Have you ever been to a strip club?
nuh uh

7. What is the last thing you said aloud?
this is cool

8. What is your favorite ice cream?
tillamook mudslide - to quote some sleazeball on kitchen nightmares once.... "sex on a plate" - (ewwww!!!!) technically it would be "sex in a polkadotty bowl"

9. What was the last thing you had to drink?
frothy coffee with three scoops of fat free creamer

10. Do you like your wallet?
i do but it's all beat up and the pennies all fall out at the most inopportune moments :(

11. What was the last thing you ate?
ginger cat cookies (stale, must get more :)

12. Have you bought any new clothing items this week?
a brown teeshirt

13. The last sporting event you watched?
Danny's soccer game - it was full of those moms and i hid behind my 70-200mm

14, What is your favorite flavor of popcorn?
honey - disneyland don't sell it no more, because it's like the happiest place on earth and everything ;)

15, Who is the last person you sent a text message to?
Evan's Mommy (swapping pictures:)

16, Ever go camping?
definitely NOT

17. Do you take vitamins daily?
yes, prenatals for obvious reasons ;)

18. Do you go to church every Sunday?
ummmm... well i did a couple of times in 1980 because the nuns gave chocolate to anyone who knew the lesson ;)

19. Do you have a tan?
i have a pink hue that i am hoping turns browner and less painful ;)

20. Do you prefer Chinese food over pizza?
hell NO!!!!

21. Do you drink your soda with a straw?
in my attempt to save the planet, no

22. What did your last text message say?
"awwwww cuuuuute!"

23. What are you doing tomorrow?
going to the summer free movie festival thingie!!

25. Look to your left, what do you see?
mickey mouse mug and a black and white cat

26. What color is your watch?
i have a stopwatch that is red that i never wear because it beeps and makes me jump and i don't know why

27. What do you think of when you hear Australia?
i wonder if their target is more targetto or tarjay :)

29. Do you go in at a fast food place or just hit the drive thru?
it depends how comfy home sounds compared to the play place :)

30. What is your favorite number?
643 and 432

31. Who’s the last person you talked to on the phone?
Aaron

32. Any plans today?
blueberry picking

33. How many states have you lived in?
1

34. Biggest annoyance right now?
my coffee being almost gone :(

35 Last song listened to?
'in my life' by the beatles (new rock band download:)

36. Can you say the alphabet backwards?
i could but i don't see the point....

37. Do you have a maid service clean your house?
nope... i am too embarrassed of how dirty the house is ;)

38, Favorite pair of shoes you wear all the time?
brown mary janes

39, Are you jealous of anyone?
wildly jealous of people who live in beach houses on my favorite beaches

40.Is anyone jealous of you?

i hope not - i can't even fix the spacing i messed up here :(

41, Do you love anyone?
i like a lot of people, i only love a handful :)

42. Do any of your friends have children?
all of them :)

43. What do you usually do during the day?
playdates and shopping :)

44. Do you hate anyone that you know right now?
of course!!! people with wide set eyes especially :|

45. Do you use the word ‘hello’ daily?
i say "hi" i think hello is too sing songy and lame

46. What color is your car?
silver

47. Do you like cats?
i love them

48. Are you thinking about someone right now?
the boys not wanting to pick blueberries, i have to remember i am the boss... i am sooo not a boss kind of person though....

49. Have you ever been to Six Flags?
we used to be passholders at magic mountain!! we were just talking about taking the boys... but it's far... and full of steep hills... and the rides are kind of intense for little kids... we are so old, huh??

50. How did you get your worst scar?
i have one behind my knee and i don't know why :| i should ask, right??!

graceland vegas and cambria-ish....

i have a bee in my bonnet to go to Graceland. it's only 12 hours to Albuquerque, New Mexico... then another 14 to Little Rock, Arkansas, which checks another thing off my wishlist - the Bill Clinton presidential library... then ONLY 2 more hours to Graceland! we could be there by Wednesday! and be seeing the USA in our Odyssay on the way... we should totally go. i'm not signing up for swim classes just in case we decide to go :)

i have a wonderful new invention - a hotel for dogs in Las Vegas! each room would have an enclosed patio area so you could leave your pet for the day and there would be a doggy gym and doggy daycare center and even a doggy pool and a doggy play area with misting system! cafes where dogs could eat free at their owners' table! a portrait studio with cute props and costumes for dressing up! a place where you can make pet clothes and collars! a cirque du soleil show of dogs doing fabulous tricks! ok maybe not a show... but the rest of it sounds soooo cool and i'd totally stay there :)

off to research MORE beach houses... honestly, like i am that hard to please???? all i want is a white A frame 60s house with a beachfront wooden deck and an enclosed rear yard, on a shiny quiet beach with permanently low tide, with at least 3 bedrooms, washer/dryer (can't live without) an open living area (must have microwave and in an ideal world, a 1960s waffle maker), close to great mom and pop pizza joints and diners, and a grocery store that isn't Ralphs or Vons, less than 4 hours drive from Orange County, but definitely NOT in Orange/San Diego/LA counties. oh and less than $75 cleaning fee ;) i type in all my requirements and my results come back zero :|

back later - we are going to our favorite taco place for dinner and then maybe a movie ;)

ps this place is very perplexing... how can a hotel have 41 pools???

what i did today:

• woke up at 6:56am sharp and had a cup of coffee in bed (thanks hun:)
• watched real housewives of new york part 3 (kelly is a n.u.t.t.e.r)
• went to dog beach
• picked up poop
• begged dogs to please stop urinating all over my very sad lands end tote :|
• drove home via microcenter for nunchuks (i hate that word... it even sounds like it has stale breath and ingrown hairs)
• washed tote in very hot water :)
  
• ate a boston cream pie yogurt
• fell in love with pictures of this beach
  
• made 100 different moo cards
  
• looked for a movie at the redbox.. i finally found one, then accidentally pressed 'go back' and when i went to look for it again, it had disappeared without a trace :| suddenly a huge foot-tapping line formed behind me and i had to give up my search :(
  
• attempted to fall asleep in the sun but got my arm twisted into being a sea lion trainer to Dante, my son...
• made roast chicken and chips for tea (most awesome 'fancy' dinner ever:)
• overbaked the french bread - it looked like a log and no-one would eat it :(
• dined al fresco with a large dog sitting between us, drooling over the chicken :)
• was again begged to play animal shelter, this time to adopt Dando, my son, from the pound (and 3 white mice and 2 large rats :)
• got the cirque du soleil documentary about Beatles 'Love' from netflix! horray!! it's supposed to suck but i really really want to see it!
• went shopping for a pergola - we didn't find one :(
  
• stopped at Hans' for icecream but it really wasn't that yummy compared to tillamook mudslide (which nothing compares to....)
  
• came home and switched the mice from their Luxor pyramid cage back to the safety of their little tract home... they seemed all psycho and 'kelly bersimon' in the Luxor for some reason
• off to bed to snuggle and watch circus documentaries with my baby daddy :) happy father's day eve xoxo
  

the beach was full of huge shells today, i have no idea why... but the boys collected a big bag of them :)

vegas pics

we made it to Vegas in just over 3 hours (the wind was behind us :) and arrived in time for breakfast

the coolest pet store ever - with the coolest store cats who were friends to the various monkeys, gerbils, ferrets, rats, bunnies and possums :) yes you can buy possums and gerbils and ferrets in Vegas! to quote Sam: "everything's legal in Nevada" :)

we spent an hour at the pool and it was really really fun :)

i bought one thing on this list... but which one is a secret for now :)

B.D.E.

= best day ever!!!

we spent the morning at Disneyland shopping for dinosaurs, posing in "bunny ears", treating ourselves to our favorite peanut butter graham cracker chocolate sandwiches at Marceline's and then onto the lego store for a red fire truck... then to the fabric store M&L, which has a horrid customer service reputation on yelp, but those 'mean ladies' in babooshkas gave Danny lollipops and all kinds of sweet smiles :) we bought oilcloth to make an outdoor tablecloth then went to the drive-in Ruby's diner. a lady on roller skates brought us our lunch and we dined from little trays while watching 'i love lucy' :)

when we got home, Daddy had time to play with lego and then the doorbell rang - and it was Mr UPS with....... BAKUGAN TRAP LEGIONOID IN SILVER!!!! horray!!!

back later... we have a little time for cherry on top before Sam gets back from legoland, hopefully having had a wonderful day too :)

ps found this Big Sur house that isn't booked up for August... it's called the jewel box in the clouds and i really need to do something illegal to, not just stay there for 2 nights fo $4k... but be able to buy it and stay there forever :) i bet that sink in bathroom 1 is a hard water nightmare - it would have to go ;)




i hem and haw over this apron everytime we shop at the disney store... but i never actually buy it ;)


our skating waitress!!! Danny wants to go back :)

babies, lenses and beach houses

loving
that this is an entirely baby free day. and so is tomorrow. and the day after... and so on and so on and so on. i looooove babies! and i love PB even more!! but i also love having free arms, dry stain-free shoulders, not having to worry about naptime and long leisurely lunches :)

wondering
who would need a 650-1300mm lens....? all the sample pictures are of the MOON! i wonder if it can even focus on planet earth...

wishing
my boys didn't argue all.day.long. i banned trips to vegas till they quit arguing

neeeeeeeeeeeeeeding
to find a beach rental today... they are all getting booked for August already. now i am looking at Santa Cruz even though i have no idea what is there... on the map it is between San Fran and Carmel which are both places i love :)

loving
this gorgeous house in Ojai.... and this adorable little red cabin in Cambria. but that one has no microwave. which could be a dealbreaker, i am honest enough/ashamed to admit ;)

Sam is off to Legoland with his friends and Danny and i are going to the beach - back later xoxoxoxo

dislikes

• the constant crackly static argument between the phone and speakers - SHUT UP SMALL OPINIONATED APPLIANCES!!!!!!!!!!!

• people who ask more than their quota of questions per day - there should be a law against it

• (and ps when my ear buds are in, they're staying in - don't bother me, i'm listening to abbey road. and no i can't lip read. and i'm awful at sign language too)

• the new iphone in white. i would have to have a black one and that's saying something. it looks all cheesy and 1983 :|

• angry birds no, i don't want to upgrade - please children, stop asking me!!!
  

• homemade pizza - i just don't see the point :)
  

• the mean humongous TICK at the park's chicken coop that burrowed into Danny's friend's head and wouldn't let go for nothing. everyone was shrieking and waving their arms around, dashing for iphones and blackberries (maybe blackberrys is plural... hmmm) to call 911. thankfully Mrs Kay was on hand and being Mrs Kay, she knew exactly what to do in the calmest voice ever :| i am still scratching at my all imaginary bites :| Danny busted his knee open too :( this was at the park where Sam once fell and needed stitches and Danny got ringworm - note to self: avoid that park at all costs :|

• pretzel m&ms

• that Freddie Mercury is dead :(

• that BBC America airs Jonathan Woss and not Michael Parkinson :(

before the tick/busted knee incident

who needs summer camp when you have fun new child containing toys like these??


this boy has been bursting into tears all day over one thing or another... he wanted these daisies to cheer him up :)

i like....

• giggly babies (especially really giddy giggly babies who try to play peekaboo with cheerios :)

• Land's End

• reciprocated acts of kindness

• one warm apple strudel from costco shared with my hubbie

• the last day of school buzz cuts

• astringent cleanser at the end of a very busy hot day :)

• constant companions

• Ryan Seacrest

• playdates with Mrs Kay :)

• american flags

• drinking more water

• teeny tiny friendly little white mice with dots on their tails so we know who is who. Pokemon Trainer is the busiest and boldest... MJ is the sweet friendly one... and Spirit is the shy boy who needs a little extra time to come out and play :)
  

• sending text messages and getting one back almost instantly
  

• jo malone nutmeg and ginger

• in-n-out animal fries (it's 8:54 and all i can think about...)

• ruby red mary jane crocs

• ceiling fans over the bed on warm nights

good news!

it's a good hair day :) that's all i have :|

this coupon for Bertuccis would be good news if we lived within 3000 miles of one. but alas we don't :(

the bad news - my cats have awoken absolutely hellbent on driving me insane with their constant scratching in the litter box. oh gawd how i HATE that sound. and yes, i did clean it (duh!!) but it makes them even more possessed about digging in it. i need a littermaid...

i wonder how come the books i want to read are not available on the kindle :( i refuse to buy this book about a parrot and i also refuse to drive to rancho santa marga-freakingmiddleofnowhere-rita to get it from the library. i will just wait. ho hum. anyway the reviews are the reason i hate pretty much everyone in the whole world: people are complaining that the book isn't the memoir of the parrot... it says right in the title it is the memoir of the OWNER not the parrot - seriously, parrots can only repeat what people say, not think it up... and then there are people complaining that the family is too busy taking care of their children to humanize the parrot and give it their undivided attention... oh for gawd's sake people, get a life!!! and a couple of children too - then tell me how much time you have left for a bird that repeats with haunting accuracy how you sound when you're mad :|

today is the last day of school... that's the other good news! horray!! but i think i definitely need to ban getting up before 7am and the simpsons for the summer in a bid to stay sane. why do they get up soooo fricking early???!!! even if they stay up late.... they are wide awake at 6am - every single day :|

off to make chicken noodle soup for the LAST TIME (till 1 september...) it's a beautiful day!!

things i want to write reviews about on yelp/amazon but am too unimaginative to think up a screenname

plus i don't want people saying they found my review 'unhelpful' (because that would be devastating...)

eyefi sd card thing
this card is orange, which is what first caught my eye. it is supposed to transfer pics to your computer when you walk in from a tiresome day at the beach so when you've finally sat down in fresh unsandy clothes, with a can of ice cold diet coke, the pictures are there waiting to be awarded stars - 5 stars for a keeper, 3 stars for a possible headswap and 1 star for pictures that are just awful but as a mommy you just can't delete them ;)
anyway the card is crap and still requires attention each time it detects the camera is within range. then it proceeds to transfer the same pictures over and over again because it never erases them - ever! so it ends up transfering like 2500 before you finally go berserk and just delete them yourself (i only think to format when i'm very very bored) 0 out of 10

the mac
i've had one. for 24 hours. and it sucked! sure, they are pretty and minimalist and white (usually always a good thing as per my previous post) but not when it comes to c-o-m-p-u-t-e-r-s. everything on a mac goes big and small like it does when you have a migraine right before the vomiting stage. the mouse doesn't have a succinct nice call center clickety-ness to it. you can't be alone with your picture in an empty photoshop screen, always in a room full of busy icons going big and small and distractions everywhere. everything is backwards, just because the mac people are trying to be different and cool. and i hate the traffic lights and going on safari too. 0 out of 10

the above should NOT to be confused with the BIG mac
the same the world over. that is - pure joy. at John Wayne airport. in deepest Paris. after a day at magic mountain. just awesome and perfect in every way (without pickles naturally) 10 out of 10 :)

the olive garden
i hate the olive garden. it's the most awful soulless, generic rubbish place in the whole of America. the food is crap, the salad makes me burp and they bring like 3 'unlimited' breadsticks at a time. and did i mention the food is crap..... 0 out of 10

Maggianos
the opposite of Olive Garden. they play Frank Sinatra all the time. it's dark with cozy booths. you can book on opentable.com. the spaghetti with meat sauce is my absolute favorite spaghetti with meat sauce in the world and a to-go order comes with an entire loaf of bread and can feed our entire family for two days :) 10 out of 10 :)

Honda Odyssey
the most awesome car ever - bar none. 'get it and forget it' should be it's little slogan. it's got no attitude, it's hardworking and reliable, it's down to earth and faithful and just goes and goes and goes without ever complaining or getting worn out. it makes roadtrips a breeze, it's perfect for babies/kids/strollers/bikes/canoes and can even convert to carry an entire kitchen in the back. it has sliding doors which mean you can park in tight spaces and still get in and out with ease. it has a table. you can use the back as a little changing room at the beach. it deserves 100000 out of 10 :)

earthquakes
5.9 out of 10 (we just had one....) i think they're fun. but i never really know what to do when one hits apart from maybe hold the tv and go on facebook to ask who felt it :|

pinkberry
worst. place. EVER. the yogurt tastes like paint that the lid was left off, or worse - burnt coffee. the toppings are all total crap too. plus you can't take pictures. and it's like $7 :| MINUS 1,000,000 out of 10

Vons
i hate Vons. it smells like stale bread and the people who work there are really gruff. they don't even have a redbox and i can't remember the phone number i signed up with and the checker always has a huge attitude about it... it's the worst! 0 out of 10

off to bedfordshire xoxox

sunny day