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Grapes
07.16.11 | Permalink | | Comments Off on Grapes“Today I had half a vine of grapes.”
Translation: I had half a bunch of grapes.
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A Very Merry Unbirthday!
07.12.11 | Permalink | | Comments Off on A Very Merry Unbirthday!
Bradley has a dreaded December birthday. Most people assume that Christmas is a pretty bad day, and it is, I have a brother with a Christmas birthday. But Bradley’s birthday falls on December 29th, between Christmas and New Years, when nobody wants to party or shop! When we got together he made a request that for our family, just the LJ crew, would celebrate his birthday in the summer. Preferably while at Disneyland. So for the past eight years or so that is just what we’ve done. However, bringing excess things on a trip (aka birthday presents) is silly, so this year we decided to have a surprise birthday dinner for our dear daddio!
Of course, when the kids get involved in a surprise, the surprise goes right out the window. So Bradley invented tasks to keep busy with while he attempted not to see or hear the balloons, the crepe paper, the delicious food, the children yelling, “Don’t tell Daddy about his SURPRISE PARTY!!!” and other subtle clues. They were so excited, so helpful, and the entire party was planned by our dear daughter (I helped with the menu: grilled veggies, grilled corn, grilled french bread, grilled veggie steak, and un-grilled desserts).
To his credit, Bradley did a magnificent job of feigning surprise when he finally happened to walk onto the patio. “Surprise, Daddy!” the kids hollered! He smiled, admired and thanked just like a good birthday guest should, and he was rewarded with a big hug from Gigi.
And what’s a birthday without presents? My man is always so practical. He is choosing to get some new pairs of glasses for his birthday. But we also had to shower him with a few mementos of our love, so he got a few books made by kids, a short story collection from me and a few new bathing suits.
And then, it was time for dessert. We were already stuffed, but the kids had eaten their veggies with the understanding that treats would follow. So we broke out the candles and Bradley made his wish.
Afterwards there was swimsuit modeling (we”ll save those pictures for ourselves, thankyouverymuch) and sprinklers and toys and laughing. It was one of the best surprise parties I’ve had the honor to attend.
And at the end, we were all tired, happy, and apparently ready to sleep anywhere…
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Spicy Times
07.11.11 | Permalink | | Comments Off on Spicy TimesMy bottom feels spicy.
(A bottom cream night…)
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Hot Tub Barbie Party
07.11.11 | Permalink | | Comments Off on Hot Tub Barbie Party
Lately when the kids are in the hot tub so are the Barbies. The Barbies (and, of course their pet dolphins) splash, cavort and play. Everything was going along swimmingly until I was watering patio plants and tidying and came upon this sordid scene:
GASP!!! Apparently the summer sun got a little too hot for Ken and Barbie and a wicked romance began to bloom. As soon as this picture was snapped, Gigi realized what I had done and swiped Ken and Barbie from their make-out perch to join their friends who were swirling/drowning elsewhere in the pool.
Ahhh, summer romance…
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Musee’ de Littlejohnesque Frigidaire
07.10.11 | Permalink | | Comments Off on Musee’ de Littlejohnesque FrigidaireOur kids are artists. Both of them spend hours and hours sitting at the kitchen table with reams of paper, crayons, markers, pens and pencils. Of course this pleases the Papa Bear, who had the same drive as a child to create, draw and imagine. He still has not lost that, and has passed that same drive onto our children. Oftentimes our kids are so passionate about their current project that we even tuck them into bed with a pad of paper and a pencil or some other drawing implement that they are welcome to use until sleep overtakes them and they fall asleep and drop the marker. Yes, marker does sometimes stain sheets, especially the dark green…
Anyhow, a few weeks ago Gigi was learning all about dinosaurs at school and was creating some pretty awesome pictures of her dino friends:
While we were admiring Gigi’s drawing, unbeknownst to us, Jude was at the table furiously finishing his own dinosaur drawing:
He was quite obviously inspired by his sister’s drawing. We were impressed at that three year old’s ability to include so many details.
Now for the past few weeks this is the art that has been on display at Musee’ de Littlejohnesque Frigidaire. The rest of the collection can be surveyed here. Please feel free to make an appointment to come see the pieces in person. Happy drawing!
