A Long Cozy Sunday

Looking up Henry asks, "Any last words, Rhys?"

It's really beginning to feel like fall now that we're experiencing some gloominess. The rain from the night before brought a crispness to the air, clearing the smog for a bit and blessing us with some cooler weather. And the cooler weather has brought me a craving for soup.

Whenever I think of soup I always touch upon a memory of Kenny. This incident occurred in the early days of our courtship. Angele had made a delicious batch of soup one day and not long after took a trip somewhere. While his parents were away we happened to be in their kitchen when it struck Kenny that he really wanted some soup.

He then pulled out and began to expertly chop all the vegetables in the refrigerator, after which he threw them into a large pot filled with water and peppered with various seasonings. We then proceeded to sit and wait while it cooked. When the soup looked done, we took a taste and quickly spat it out! What emerged was a pot of boiled tasteless vegetables. From what you might have gathered my interest and knowledge of cooking was small to minuscule; otherwise I would have figured out that he didn't know what the heck he was doing. My only excuse is that I was spoiled by a mother who was an excellent cook; so spoiled that I never took much interest in cooking.

I've been anticipating my soup fix for the past week and so in accordance bought all my ingredients a couple of days ago for one of the very few soups I've taken the time to ask how to prepare, oxtail soup.


This is a very loose recipe I memorized from my mother, and so never bothered to write it down or use the exact same ingredients or measurements. Tonight's version consists of:

oxtail
1 large onion
a handful and a half of small potatoes
1 can of tomatoes
carrots
celery
broth

I chopped all the vegetables into bite sizes. Added olive oil to the pot, threw in the onions and began to brown the oxtail. When the oxtail was finished browning I then added the potatoes and then a can of tomatoes. Broth and vegetables. Cook for 45 minutes on a medium low heat. Ta Da!


Brushes with the culinary side of myself occur randomly and do not usually last long. I often feel panicked when faced with the daunting task of throwing a meal together, as those of you in similar situations with hungry mouths to feed can sympathize. But recently I've been getting immense enjoyment from the site of my high school friend Heather. She started a cooking blog not too long ago called Stories from a California Kitchen and she was nice enough to mention me last week. Thumbs up to Heather for inspiring the chef in all of us!

PS Happy Birthday Auntie May!!

HAPPY No. 7 HENRY!

Finally after waiting an entire year it's Henry's Seventh Birthday! He has been super excited about it. This year's theme is Mars Mission after the new Lego series of toys.


We were a bit worried when we heard the loud distinct pitter patter of rain the night before, as Kenny had devised an elaborate Martian battleground in the backyard. He spent much of last weekend constructing the Martian monsters and bought a vast array of Nerf guns and other weapons in anticipation of the battle.


Fortunately the weather was cooperative and the battle went as planned, and with obvious results. Mars was conquered and is now ready for colonization. The kids were in absolute heaven.

happy birthday to

Me! I'm taking the day off! I wish.

Last night Kenny came home from a boys night out with a bunch of pals, Gus, Mike, Barry, Mike C and James. He brought back goody bags for me, and tales of a fun night which concluded with a session of karaoke!

Thanks everyone near and far for all your wonderful birthday wishes. I woke up this morning to Kenny wishing me a happy birthday. Shortly after getting the boys awake Kenny asked them if they had wished mommy a happy birthday. Rhys mumbled Happy Birthday to me, but it took Henry a half an hour before he did so. I wondered if it was because he was having a hard time getting around the fact that my birthday comes a day before his? He's been soo excited about his birthday and party. He's been counting the days down everyday.


Its getting more difficult for me to acknowledge my birthday. Though my mom and I are a exactly a week apart, there has always been enough time to celebrate without feeling cramped. Having Henry's birthday fall a day before mine makes me forget my own. We're usually so engrossed in the plans and details of his party that I'm often too tired or too excited for his party to do anything. The only person I know who knows exactly what I mean is Angele whose birthday falls a day before Hilary's.


Hilary, Angele,Rhys and I are off to Henry's school with milk and maple bars (birthday boy's special request). We were running a little late because the donut people were not quite ready with our order, so we dashed to the school to set up. Luckily Hilary and Angele were able (and willing to) take the day off.




Rhys was not falling into our plans by staying close and sitting quietly. He had his own plans which included running around the playground with arms extended pretending to be his favorite superhero 'Superman'!


The school celebration went off without a hitch. The maple bars were a hit, except for the one or two kids who said "no thank you" and quickly tore into the party favors. This year the teacher had all the students in the class write a brief sentence or two on what they wished for Henry on his birthday. It is so sweet! It also included illustrations.


After we finished up at the school we made a stop at home before leaving to do more last minute preparations for Saturday's party. Angele left soon afterwards to pick Muni up at the airport from a brief visit to Napa. Hilary, the boys and I made a detour to Islands where she treated me to a birthday lunch. YUM!


We ran around like mad. Got home to relax a bit and regroup. Stuffed more party favors and then Angele back over to chit chat with us until Kenny got home. We had a brief meeting with a contractor before Kenny whisked me off to a birthday dinner at Truxton's!

Don't Laugh Its Paid For

Picture of the day.

I was running around this morning finishing last minute errands off my to do list for Henry's party when I found myself a stone's throw from the corner of Airport and Manchester. It was then that I remembered the mayor was expected to flip the switch on the new left turn signal on that very corner at 10a this morning. Perfect timing for a photo op.

Tea Time

Woke up extra early this morning to make sure we made it to a 7:20a(!) parent teacher conference with Henry's teacher. We left the house a little before 7:00a so that we could swing by for a little breakfast. Donuts. Um, yum? I abstained because I was anticipating a little tea party I would host in a couple of hours. Henry knew exactly what he wanted as did Kenny, Rhys on the other hand claimed he wanted sprinkles, but when presented with it he only held it in his hands like a grand prize. Kenny ended up devouring it.


We arrived at school with five minutes to spare. Our meeting with his teacher was very pleasant. Other than some issues with focusing he is doing very well. His teacher has informed us that Henry is quite the social butterfly and loves to engage with his friends. I've witnessed this myself first hand when I went to collect him from Karate class earlier this week.

On Monday Rhys and I walked in to pick Henry up and we see him seated with the rest of the class on the floor. Only he is completely engrossed in conversation with another boy. So engrossed that you got the impression that the class was just interfering with their important discussion! I called out "Henry" to get his attention and to get him to stop talking. He looks up, then gets up and walks over to me as if the class was over. I tell him to get back over to his spot, and to please pay attention to the teacher as class was NOT over yet.


After our meeting with the teacher we walked Henry to the playground for the morning assembly and then it was off to Rhys' school, before finally heading home. I had a half hour to spare before I expected the ladies to arrive. Caroline sadly was unable to make it, leaving me an email and a voice message. Her services as a substitute were requested early this morning. Oh well duty calls. Mary and Isabelle were the first to arrive and then Sharon along with these beautiful hydrangeas straight from her garden. Aren't they lovely?

We had fun at our little tea party as talk was varied and non stop. Unfortunately I had to disperse the group to pick Rhys up. Hopefully we will be able to meet again next week, or perhaps the week after at Marys! Happy Wednesday.

Cosmic Misalignment & the Big Bad C

Yesterday morning, after dropping Henry and Rhys off at school I went directly home to find Kenny perusing the scopes. I often tease him about what I consider an awful habit. He tells me that we are all in for a doozy tomorrow. I say in disbelief "Are all the stars aligning to have it in for us tomorrow?"

I now see it as a foreshadowing of things to come. Over the course of the day I would think much on that exchange. Over the weekend we learned from my Aunt May that our Uncle Dean (who's body is his temple. He eats super well and exercises!) is in the hospital, and has been for the last few days. They are both only several years older than Kenny and I, and also have two little ones close in age to both our little ones, so this is hitting home in the most awful way. Last evening mom calls to tell me that she heard it through the family vine (from Aunt Louise who spoke with Aunt Alison who got it directly from Aunt May) that the biopsy came back and it was the Big Bad C. Later in the evening mom called back to say that they were going into surgery in the morning.

We can all breathe a sigh. After brief emails and a phone call from Dad we can confirm that Dean sailed through surgery! They took out the tumor and it looks like they caught it before anything could spread. YEAH! Our thoughts and prayers are with you Dean for a full and speedy recovery.

Super Saturday TWOfer!

Today was super super busy! Spent the entire morning gift wrapping gifts and getting ready to attend not one, but two birthday parties! The first is for a boy in Rhys' class. It's the very first party he's been invited to by a friend of his own. The original plan was for us all to go together, but Kenny got caught up in his role as art director for Henry's party. And since Henry and Rhys spent much of the morning fighting I decided to take Rhys on my own.


We arrived a little late, but just as all the other little kids from their class arrived. There was a jumper and the theme of the party was Thomas the Tank engine. They had a blast. I ended up chatting with all the other moms and I have to admit I had a great time as well. The family was lovely and it was a really great opportunity to get to know the other parents.


After a couple of hours we said our goodbyes and then it was off to Dominic's party. This year they held it at a place called Wild Kingdom. The party took place in several rooms, each with a bunch of activities. The kids had a ball! I got to meet Jamie's new nephew Jakob. Such a cutie pie! Seriously makes you want to consider another:) The first room had these giant jumpers and you got to spend about 45 minutes in there before they led you into the next room for another 45 minutes, before ending up in a room furnished with tables and chairs for food and cake!


Since we were so close to all these great restaurants Aunt May talked us into going for a little snack, in other words an early dinner. She piqued our interest when she began to describe something she reffered to as Chinese waffles. Apparently they are a favorite of Eva's and I, for the life of me have no recollection as to what it is, although I am told I've had it before. Anyhow we end up going to a restaurant to have it... only we don't find the restaurant because, sadly it's been shut down. So we opted for a different restaurant, one specializing in the cuisine of the northern climbs. After a so-so meal I've decided that as a general rule I prefer southern style cuisine from any region in the Northern Hemisphere. Have you ever noticed that northern cuisine from any culture farthest from the equator tends to be rather heavy?

"Mommy, these girls..." -and so it begins

Photo of Henry in Sante Fe, New Mexico. January 2003.

Last week as I'm pulling away from school, right after picking Henry up, he tells me that there were some girls trying to kiss him and another boy in his class named Charlie. This reminds me of some other Henry kissing episodes which occurred earlier in his life and if I remember correctly pre-Rhys. The first episode happened while waiting for the train on Main Street in Disneyland. We were standing along the platform with another group which included a cute little girl who looked to be a bit older. We noticed that they were playing with each other, and the very next minute we glanced over at them -they are kissing! The other incident I recall was at one of those indoor play areas, and this scene unfolded very much like the first and with the same result. Only this time the parents did not stand next to us giggling about it; instead the mother of the girl pulled her away in mortification.

Henry in Sante Fe, New Mexico. January 2003.

This morning as we are walking out the door Henry says "Mommy, these girls at school like me." Amused I ask him "so, they think you're cute?". Embarrassed he gives me a funny look and walks out the door.
In the car I continue with the grill. "Henry, what are these girls' names?"
"I don't remember." Henry is bad with names.
"You know it's nothing to be embarrassed about. It's really not a bad thing."
I turn around to see what effect my words have on him.
"Mommy, can we just do the drop off?" he replies with a tortured pained look on his face. Once we reach the drop off he peers out the window and says "oh, those girls are at school today."


After dropping Henry off Kenny, Rhys and I leave for our teeth cleaning appointment. On the way I spot someone who looks amazingly like Donald Sutherland crossing the intersection between Beverly Glen and Santa Monica Bl. Kenny says no it's not Donald Sutherland. This coming from the guy who swears to this day he saw Rob Fukuzaki at the Westside Pavilion with 2 kids. It was NOT Rob Fukuzaki!


I kept Rhys entertained as best I could while Kenny went first. Luckily there was a TV, but even that was not a good enough draw. Rhys insisted on checking up on Daddy every 5 minutes, so we went from the break room where the TV was located to Kenny and back again. Oh, and we made a detour to the stairway where a large whale is partially lodged into the wall.


Once it was my turn the dental hygienist and I got into a discussion about teeth whitening and clutter control. I asked her about whitening strips which I've been wanting to try but have been too chicken to for fear of it hurting. She suggested using Rembrandt whitening toothpaste because she too found a lot of these whitening chemicals too much on her sensitive teeth. She told me that some of her patients do nothing but use this toothpaste and they have the most amazing results, but she stressed that you had consistently use it and for the prescribed two minutes.


We then moved onto the topic of clutter control. She gave me the name of a website that she swears has changed her life. I'm always interested in any kind of organizational tools. I'm a bit obsessive about wanting to have everything organized, and it's been one of my biggest challenges since I live in a house with 3 boys! Can't wait to check it out.


We capped off the morning with refreshments from Clementine!


Made a stop at Kenny's office to pick up a bunch of materials he's planning on using to make the decor for Henry's party next weekend. On the way out I spotted Danny Bonaduce, I later learned from Kenny works on an E! show. Had some time for a couple of errands and before I knew it, it was time top pick Henry up.


Today is Mom's birthday (Happy Birthday Mom!) and it's also Vel and Gus' anniversary. We were so honored when they asked us to spend the day with them. Vel made reservations for the Getty and there was some talk about having dinner at the Inn of the Seventh Ray (site of our wedding). But that idea was nixed by me, since I did not relish being banned from that place due to some unforeseen but not unanticipated incident due to Rhys. Unfortunately Kenny could not take the day off, especially since he called in on Monday because of his foot.


We had a great time at the Getty Villa. None of us had the chance to check it out since the major remodel. It is as beautiful as I remembered, but now it's much grander. We were all hungry so our first stop was to grab a bite at the cafe. Then it was off exploring. It wasn't too bad.


I say this even as security dogged us mainly due to Rhys' reaction when we reached the main pool. We came down the stairs and it being pretty warm his first impulse was to try to take his shirt off for a little dip. I said no we were not going into the pool, so instead he found the perimeter of the pool and began to run laps around it. That's when I believe we first came under the surveillance of security. But I could be wrong... it may have been when Rhys picked up some rocks and threw them into one of the many fountains? Or it could have been when he ran down the stairs and started walking back up on the wrong side of the glass banister?


Despite this we had a lot of fun. Nicolette is an absolute angel and Henry was pretty good when he wasn't egging Rhys on! At the end of the day Auntie Vel and Uncle Gus treated the boys to some awesome colored pencils and magnet as souvenirs from the gift shop. The drive home was long (Friday rush hour) and pleasant as both boys were knocked out from their exertions at the villa!

breakfast club

We had a lovely impromptu breakfast this morning as a belated birthday gathering for Caroline. This is the first time in a long while Mary, Caroline and I have been able to tear ourselves from a busy kid filled schedule to get together. And it was FABULOUS! We're hoping to make it a weekly thing.

In the meantime I can finally show my latest piece! Click on the image to read the poem. Unfortunately I was unable to locate the poet, thus was unable to give credit. By the way this photo is crap. I was not able to get a shot of it in good lighting before I gave it to Caroline. Caroline told me that when she got it home she had a hard time getting it back from Lily who wanted to have it hung in her room!


This is a picture I took yesterday of my little monkey. Isn't he the biggest ham?! I was telling Caroline the story of the other Rhys, and her response was that it was because he knew I love him unconditionally that he behaves the way he does. When he is away from home amongst strangers he know he needs to behave in order to earn it.

Saved! revisited

I'm still on my Dave Matthews Band high so as an update to yesterday's post, I'd like to bring a few things to light. One of which is how shocked I am at the sale of the Hollywood Bowl posters. Two, John Mayer made an appearance during last night's concert. Three, apparently a short clip of Dave checking into the Peninsula Hotel in BH is making it's way all over the net. And lastly, our man apparently made his way across the street for some cake at Sprinkles! YUMMY.



I think I successfully uploaded videos!

Saved!

We got back from last night's gospel revival meeting, I mean Dave Matthews Band concert a wee bit past midnight. I wish I could successfully post some of the footage I captured but since I can't, I can at least share photos here. Thanks again to Grammie-Jammie for babysitting the kiddies! Woke up this morning tired but exhilarated and with Cornbread in my head! Comparing notes, Kenny had Too Much in his head.


Last night was just stellar. We left the house around 6:30p, and traffic was horrendous per usual, but made much worse because everyone was on their way to the Bowl. We couldn't take the slow snail pace we were making up Highland, so and we ended up pulling into a parking lot across from the Kodak Theatre. Walking up the long blocks leading to Pat Moore Way, I felt terrible for Kenny and his foot. Limping along as he was, Kenny reminded me of Hugh Laurie, so I took to addressing him as Dr. House.


We met Mike and Maria a little past our predetermined time of 7:30p. Said our hellos and began to make the crazy trek to our seats. I was on the look out for this year's poster commemorating their two night stint at the Hollywood Bowl. I found it, but because they were selling like hot cakes, it took me going to 3 kiosks before being able to purchase one. It looks like the work of Methane Studios, though there is no indication that it is, so it very well might not be since all the other ones that I've seen by MS include their logo. Signs displayed next to the posters state there is a limited edition of 800 and they are numbered and signed. Mine is No. 653. At forty bucks a pop the powers that be have limited the number of posters a person may purchase to 10. Standing in line I overheard a couple discussing purchasing some to put up for auction on ebay!


Shortly thereafter we separated. Mike and Maria going to grab a bite while Kenny and I slowly made our way to our seats. We were nearing our section when Kenny and Jana spotted each other. Funny thing about me and Jana is that we used to work together at MTV (she's still there) and her husband and Kenny both work at Family Guy! AND we bumped into each other at Target Saturday afternoon! Anyway we stopped to say hi, and promised that yes indeed we were stalking them! By the time we finally made our way to our seats, great ones by the way (Section E Row 5! Thanks again to Jacki and Tom), we had a few minutes wait before the band came on!


Mike and Maria arrived about 10 minutes into the show arms heavy with dinner and wine. The crowd of people around us, no make that practically everyone in the amphitheatre were quite boisterous. The atmosphere was filled with excited anticipation and a pleasant herbal aroma much akin to patchouli (wink wink). Kenny made a comment towards the end of the evening about how he keeps smelling it in sporadic wafts, but couldn't locate the culprits. I suggested that maybe the band had it piped in for atmosphere?


The concert was made much more compelling this year with the inclusion of the new backdrop. It's this amazing screen that they assembled in layers, it looks like long diaphanous cloth, and when turned on it can throw images live from the stage in amazing technicolor (or not!). It can also project prerecorded images much like any projector from a computer. The whiz behind that is a genius. Throughout the concert I found myself staring at the screens trying to decipher the images (and possible meanings behind the images) that they chose to accompany the set list.

Monday Oct 1 2007
Hollywood Bowl

One Sweet World *
Pantala Naga Pampa *
Rapunzel *
Dream Girl *
#27 *
Everyday *
Ants Marching *
The Stone *+
Satellite *+
Corn Bread *+
Eh Hee *+
Bartender *+
Louisiana Bayou *
Jimi Thing *
Stand Up [For It] *~
So Much To Say *
Anyone Seen The Bridge *
Too Much *
_________________
Grace Is Gone *
(Black Water) *
Tripping Billies *

Show Notes:
* Rashawn Ross
+ Danny Barnes
~ Joe Lawlor
(song name) indicates a partial song
indicates a segue into next song
Set list taken from the davematthewsband website.


I don't usually enjoy listening to jams much less watching them, but to watch Dave and friends jamming onstage is mesmerizing. I find a strange vicarious joy watching them because I realize that they are having so much fun up there. They are the perfect example of how following your bliss will lead you to rewards far beyond fame and fortune.


After the show we exited left and were rewarded with images of people milling about the backstage area above us. Even more exciting were the array of tour buses parked on that side. (I know. I know. I am a total GEEK! But what can I say? It doesn't take much to impress me). All of the buses were so clean and sparkling it would have made Monk proud! There were more interesting ones further down the drive. These we could tell were like movie trailers fit to be lived in. They looked very comfortable and very luxe. Each bus was discreetly tagged with a silver decal of the fire dancer on the front window. Many of the vehicles were modern and the majority were white and silver with touches of crimson; then there were older buses that had a fifties flair, and they too were gorgeous and sparkling from a lot of wax and love. Kenny urged me to take photos for the blog but I was way too embarrassed. We were all walking en masse with crowds of people leaving the show and I just felt too conspicuous. Of course I'm regretting it now. I did manage to snap this one when I first spotted them.


On our long walk back down to our cars we chatted about this and that, making plans for a dinner at their place and for a movie opening in December in support of one of Mike's projects. Sounds like fun! Count me in.

At breakfast this morning Henry asked, "So how was the Dave Matthews concert, Mommy?" I told him that we had a great time and that we had wished that he and Rhys could have come along. Especially after we saw a little boy about 10 or 11 sitting behind us dancing and singing along with his parents at the show last night!