I think I need a DVR.

I haven’t been this hooked on TV shows since I was 10 years old and my brother and I used to highlight the TV Guide with the shows we would be watching all week.  We were SO hooked on tv.  When we weren’t watching TV, we were playing Nintendo.  Typical American childhood, right?  My LOVE for TV continued through high school (My So Called Life!), then I stopped watching so much.  I think my work scheduled got in the way of the television schedule.  That is, until this Fall when I started circumventing the scheduled by watching shows online.  I know, I know, a little late on the ride, right?  I just didn’t think watching a show on the computer would be as satisfying as watching it on my TV.  Uh, WRONG!  I’m SO hooked on the following shows.  I mean, HOOKED.

 

Ringer, Revenge, Amazing Race, ANTM, Louis, American Horror Story, Modern Family, Once Upon a Time

 

The BEST part is that I can even watch shows that would normally NOT be accessible to me because I don’t have cable.

 

Yes, I just blogged about television.  It’s my blog and I’ll post what I want to.  

Monday

On Monday, I took advantage of the night off and spent the whole day with my Bear.  I volunteered at her school and ate lunch with her.  We played with her friends during recess.  We picked leaves and ran around…it was THE BEST. 

 

 

We got home and were surprised by an AMAZING package from a friend that works at DreamWorks.  Thank you, MARK!  He said he was going to send her some Puss in Boots toys…he went overboard, I think. 

 

Awwww! 

More on this weekend…

Stephen and I had a Date Night this past Saturday.  It had been awhile and we were SO looking forward to it.  We had dinner at Off Vine, then made our way to Theatre Asylum for a play that combined two of my favorite things:  Pulp Fiction and Shakespeare.  It was HILARIOUS and Pulp Fiction fans should check it out. 

 

 

 

 

 

Unrelated, we rented Tree of Life this weekend and….WOW.  I must not be smart enough for it.  Because, we only made it through 50 percent before we took that movie straight back to the Redbox.  Once the dinosaurs showed up, I had enough.  No amount of Brad Pitt could fix that existential mess.  We also saw The Godfather for the 1st time and I give it two thumbs up.  I like gangster movies and the horse head was NO joke.  Also, Al Pacino was very handsome as a young man.  And, I prefer Diane Keaton as Annie Hall.

 

I try to take photos of Lara as often as possible.  Example:  Stephen went to pick us up some Baskin Robbins while we stayed in the car and read some library books.  I whipped out the camera and Lara complained.  Oh no!  Is she finally tired of our constant fawning over her?  She better not be…there’s lots more where that came from. 

 

 

SO, I turned the camera on myself, which is NEVER a problem, because I’m a ham.  I wanted to document the matching braids Stephen made for Lara and me.  I seldom put my hair up and feel most comfortable with my hair down (preferably in my face) but, after I saw him work his braiding magic on Lara, I wanted to copy.

 

I put my hair down later that night when I went to dinner with my BFFs.  I couldn’t take it anymore!

 

We did our annual Christmas Gift Exchange name choosing and I can’t wait to shower my person with gifts!  Yes, I DO want to tell you whose name I picked out of the box.  But, I won’t.   YET.

Happy Monday!

 

This is what we did this weekend.  Not ALL weekend, just on Sunday.  This gives us TWO full months of a beautiful Christmas tree in our home.  <3! 

My Christmas list is written out, Naughty AND Nice, gift exchanges have been set up….OH, I’m ready. 

 

This Sunday was the release of Gwen Stefani’s ”cheap” (not REALLY cheap, just cheap for Gwen) Harajuku Mini line at Target.  I managed to stay right within budget with 5 pieces.  A dress, two long sleeve tees, an ADORABLE sleeveless sweater vest with a white short sleeve shirt and tie attached and black leggings with fur leg warmer attachments.  LOVE!  The quality is surprisingly high and Lara was pleased with my choices (except for the tie shirt, because she’s not a boy).  I woke up SO early to ge t 1st dibs on this stuff and it was totally worth it.

 

 

 

Hope ya’ll had a nice weekend and have a nice week! 

Happy Veteran’s Day!

I hope everyone is enjoying their day off (if you have the day off, because I never have holidays off and that makes me resent people who DO have holidays.  But, I do have this holiday off).  Veteran’s Day reminds me of Papa and his sacrifice during the Korean War.  Don’t forget how much our veterans give up for us. 

 

We are going to go to the Ronald Reagan Library.  He’s not my fave prez or anything, it’s just a history lesson type trip. 

Oh, and I want to buy a sofa bed at Ikea.  A cheap one.  And a VERY warm comforter.

Lara at the Korean War Memorial in 2009.

Don’t forget….

Give to uthrs!  <3

 

Lara’s 5 th Birthday Party!

Ughhh, I just now realized that I missed a November post.  Sad.  Maybe I will make up for it by double posting one of these days.  Maybe. 

 

Lara’s 5 th birthday party was in the tradition of the rest of her parties.  Very small and a “location” party.  Thankfully, she’s still digging it and hasn’t complained that we don’t throw her parties like everyone else’s.  Yay for some originality.

 

This year, the location was The Armory Center.  Lara wanted an Aristocats theme so, we did the best we could with some Parisian accents. 

 

 

There was an art instructor that took the kids over and did a craft with them while the adults ate and mingled.

 

 

They doodled before they got a hold of some clay.

 

Quick couple pic courtesy of Stephen’s LOOOONG arm.

 

It’s clay time!

 

As you can see, clay time was a HIT.

 

Then, it was cake time.  Yay!  Marie cake courtesy of Baskin-Robbins.

 

The kids!

 

There were also cupcakes from Violet’s, part of the Armory Center package.

 

We went home and opened gifts afterwards.

 

A necklace from The Castros!

Rapunzel dolly from her cousins!!!

A leather jacket from the Chacons!

 

Thanks, Everyone, for celebrating with us!  October 3, 2006….the day my Best Girl was born! 

#2: What I am Thankful for.

MY HUSBAND!

 

I just stare at my wallpaper ALL night long while I’m at work.  Sigh.  I <3 you. 

The Arm

On Sunday, September 10th, Lara broke her arm.  It was calm and drama-free because that’s the kind of girl Lara is. 

 

We were at a birthday party and she got into the dreaded jumper.  She went down a huge slide and….a boatload of kids went down on top of her.  She cried hysterically and Stephen and I administered some TLC.  After some ice and LOTS of hugs, she was back to her cheerful self and even went BACK INTO THE JUMPER.  We stayed at the party a bit, then went home.  That night, she was restless and talked a bit in her sleep.  The next morning we asked how her arm was doing and she said it hurt a little, but it wasn’t swollen and she moved it just fine.  We decided to take her to the urgent care anyway, just in case.  And…that’s where we found out the grim truth. 

 

She was in a sling  until Tuesday, when it was CAST time.  A 5 week sentence.

 

 

 

She was a perfect patient, obviously.  No crying or fussing.

 

 

My baby’s Greenstick fracture.  Are those not the most beautiful bones you have ever seen? 

 

The only sad time we had with the cast was the removal .  After having her arm stored for so long, she freaked out when she thought her arm “moved by itself” when they took the cast off.  It was SO sad.  She had Stephen hold it for a while until the Doctor assured her it was ok for her to use it.  Thankfully, her arm wasn’t too smelly and yuck, which was surprising given the copious amounts of sand that we found in there.  Damn the sandbox!

 

It has been almost a month that the cast was removed and she still tells me every so often, “I’m so lucky my cast is off”.  Just today she told me that it would itch so much and she couldn’t scratch it.  She said it made her uncomfortable and she couldn’t do her schoolwork without help.  She told me she didn’t fuss because it wasn’t going to help things, she just had to wait until it was over.  I LOVE her rational thinking!

Happy 5th, Bearsie!!!

Lara’s birthday landed on a Monday so, we celebrated her at school.  Gone are the days where we can take a spur of the moment vacation or spend weekdays romping around town.  We are now tied down by the Pasadena Unified School District.  Whoomp Whoomp.

 

Stephen made rainbow cupcakes because everyone loves a RAINBOW!

 

Princess cupcake toppers that Stephen bought for Lara last year and he was finally able to use.

 

 

Waiting for the class to come out…with Starbucks and Facebook, of course!

 

Here she is…..Princess Parra!

 

The kids split up into boy and girl tables.  I don’t appreciate the segregation.

 

See!  Told you, rainbows are FUN!

 

At least it was minimum day and we broke Lara out of there at noon. 

 

We went home and gave her the rest of her gifts: a doll and a Build a Bear closet.  YAY!