Things I Don't want to Face Right Now

That there are five out of seven days of the week that I kind of wish I didn't have to do.  I think you know which ones I'm talking about.  I have a problem with wishing days away when life is so precious.  We really do need to be grateful for every single one.

Some day I will have to buy another car.  I bought a Honda so I could drive the wheels off and that's what I intend to do.  I've had it for 5 years and it was used when I bought it.  I'd drive it for the rest of my life if I could but even Honda's don't last forever.  I love my cute little car so much and it loves me back.  Good gas mileage, low maintenance and no car payment.  My next car will probably be another Honda so I'll still have one....it's just the whole parting with cash thing that I hate to think about.

My MacBook is dying.  Like Honda's even Mac's don't last forever.  MJ bought it for me in late 2009.  He added new memory, replaced the battery and re installed the operating system (I think that's what he did) but it's still not acting right.  It shuts down randomly when I'm in Firefox, Safari or word.  Most recently I can't upload pics from iPhoto to blogger.  I'm basically a blogger without a laptop right now.  I never use it anymore because it's so annoying.  He's going to try one more last ditch effort to save it but after that.....it might be time to spend some more moolah.    

That my closet is officially stuffed to capacity and there was room to spare when we moved in 4 years ago.  I don't want to face this because it means that I've done a lot of shopping which means I've spent a lot of money which feels really really wasteful.  In retrospect I do feel that a lot of stuff I got was because I needed it.  As much as you need clothes when you already have some anyway.  I need to do a serious closet cleanse and get rid of stuff and keep my shopping to a minimum.  I have a REALLY hard time parting with clothes.  I need help!!!

That my husband wants another house.  He's got this idea in his head that he needs a yard when one of the things that we really liked about our house when we moved in is that it did not have one.  He has changed his mind about that; I have not.  He wants to spend weekends doing yard work.  I do not.  I really, really love our house.  It has everything we need, a few things we don't and it's going to be a tough act to follow.  It's not the biggest house or the fanciest house but I think it will be damn near impossible to find one I like as much with a price tag we can afford.  I also really hate moving.  Three words come to mind.  Expensive.  Stressful. Don't wanna.  Okay that's four.

That I will never be able to do my middle splits again.  I got the left side back with ease, the right side back with some pain, but the middle splits are as elusive as the carefree days of my teenage years right about now.  I will keep stretching and fighting the good fight as long as I'm physically able.

That some day I'm going to be really old and wrinkled all over.  Getting older can be a bummer sometimes but overall I've been okay with it because I honestly feel that my life and my overall mental health has only improved with age.  Plus, I don't look old yet.  At least I don't think so.  When I look in the mirror I still see a youthful face, a body that still mostly fights gravity and only a few grays here and there that I can pull out.  One day that will not be the case and it's kind of scary to think about what that will feel like.  Or maybe it's just so gradual that you don't really notice it all at once and by then you are ready so it's not that hard to accept?  That's what I'm hoping.

That some day I will lose someone I love.  It's only a passing thought once in a blue moon.  I keep it tucked away in a deep dark area of my brain in a place I choose not to access very often.  It's the kind of thing that is always there and yet you can't think about too often. 
 

Two for the Price of One (or Not)

My long weekend was nice and mostly uneventful.  I cleaned house, got my oil changed and exercised.  We did loads and loads of laundry and marathon watched the latest season of Scandal.  We still need to get caught up on The Bates Motel before season 2 of Orange is the New Black comes out.  We also went to the movies to see Neighbors (really good) and ate giant hamburgers at Nicky Rotten's afterwards (also really good).  

At the Drive In

Does anyone still have a drive in movie theater in your city?  Do you ever go?  There are exactly two in all of San Diego county that I know of.  It has been a really, really long time since I went and MJ hasn't been to one since he's lived here.  One of MJ's friends mentioned that he was going on Sunday.  We have an extra day.  Why not?  So we decided to go too.

It was my idea to wear pajamas.  "Everybody does it," I said like the drive in theater expert I am not; but since he's never been to one here he believed me.  To get "dressed" I changed out of the pajamas I'd been wearing all day and into other (warmer) pajamas.  For the low, low price of $8.00 per person we got to see Blended and Godzilla.  They had one other double feature showing behind us.  They do reserve the right to check your trunk so don't even think about trying to smuggle in extra bodies.  You could get caught.

I used to go with my parents when I was a kid.  The one we went to had several more screens and has long since closed but many, many years later nothing had changed.  Well, one thing has.  Back in the day they didn't have the technology (or whatever it is that makes this happen) to broadcast the movie sound over your AM radio station airwaves in your car.  Each car had to pull up near a metal pole that has these heavy squarish metal speakers hanging from it.  Each speaker was attached to the pole with a wire and had a hook on it that allowed you to hang it from your car window so you could hear the movie sound.  Even as I'm writing this it sounds so incredibly antiquated and is coming from such a deep part of my memory that I almost feel like I'm making it up.   It sounds almost as ridiculous as two tin cans and yarn, but it's all real.  I'm just old.  Anyway, aside from that there is still the drive up booth where you pay, the crunch of gravel under your tires as you claim your spot, dark shadowy figures roaming around in pajamas, bathrooms with really long lines in between movies and the snack bar building with presumably overpriced yet comparatively cheaper then actual movie theater popcorn, candy and hot dogs.  I don't know for sure because we brought our own snacks.  I'm not sure what the policy is on alcohol.  I didn't bother to look that up, but we brought a bottle of wine, popcorn and candy.

There is something so old school about the whole drive in experience.  It's a shame most of them have shut down over the years.  I guess that's partly why. Maybe it's a little too old school for some people but we had fun.

Keeping it classy in Joe Boxer

Another thing that hasn't changed is my inability to stay up for the 2nd movie.  The first movie can't start until after dark  Blended started at 8:30pm.  There were only 3 previews which is a huge improvement from movie theaters but between that and intermission the 2nd movie didn't start until around 10:45pm.  I tried even though I knew I wouldn't make it.  Maybe 1/4 of the way through it was a wrap.  I laid  my head down on the pillow I'd shoved between the seats on top of the center console and there it stayed until I felt are car moving again when it was time to go home.

Which is really too bad because I wanted to see Godzilla more then I wanted to see Blended and it's not really two for the price of one if you only saw one.

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Mommy for Hire

Remember that photo shoot I did last year for a company that makes baby products?  With modeling I've found that the pics usually pop up after you finally start checking back for the pics and forget that you ever did the shoot in the first place.  MJ mentioned it to me the other day so I went to the website to check and what do you know.  Here they are.

Photos are property of Tiny Love

These pictures look so carefree and easy but getting them was anything but.  This baby was maybe 15-20 lbs.  Not heavy at all but after holding and bouncing him for hours my arms were shaking with fatigue.  The picture below wasn't easy either.  I was on a blanket on a really hard concrete floor.  Laying on my side for a long period of time got uncomfortable and they had to re adjust our clothes every few minutes.  Meanwhile, baby isn't always doing what they wanted.  I was so worried that they wasted their money on me, all the pictures were crap and they weren't going to use any so I was thrilled to see these.

via Tiny Love

I am not a mom.  I just get paid to look like one sometimes. 

Our Water is Cold

I love my state and I love my city. It's beautiful.  Every year people come from all over to vacation here and I consider myself lucky to be able to call it home.  There are so many things to see and do here.  Sometimes I forget that when I'm hoarding time off from work to use for getting myself out of town.  We had family here, so I released my death grip on two vacation days and we had ourselves a staycation. 

View of the San Diego Skyline from Coronado

Our first outing was the San Diego Zoo and then we spent two nights on Coronado Island.  MJ caught this amazing pic on night #1.   The moon was brighter then I've ever seen it.

We could not have asked for better beach weather.  It warmed up every single day until it got into the 100's by the coast just in time for our beach day.  I like my beach days hot because no matter how warm it gets Southern California water stays cold.  I usually barely dip my feet in but since it was so hot I wanted to do more then that.  The first 5 minutes or so is kind of painful as your feet gets used to the ice cold water.  The first time it hits your girly parts is a shock too but after that it feels really good to be out there.  I had a lot of fun splashing in the waves until my feet went numb.  It started to feel like I was walking on stumps so I had to get out for a while and then went back in.

MJ, his mom and cousin Rai had a lot of fun body boarding.  This is totally out of the question for me since I can't swim but they had a good old time disappearing under the waves.

You can't spend all day at the beach without some sort of shade.  At least I can't.  Baking in the sun like a rotisserie chicken for hours on end is not my style.  Shade AND sun screen is a must.  We were able to stay out there way longer then we would have without it.  

MJ's cousin Rai and her little boy

MJ and his nephew

We spent most of the day at the beach then transitioned to the pool for a few hours which is really the best way to do it.  Sand is a beast.  It gets EVERYWHERE and there is no escaping it!!  After dealing with sand all day the pool feels so fresh and clean.  We rinsed off and enjoyed more water fun before heading back to the beach house. 

Me getting dumped on

This water feature was so much fun.  You can't see it in the picture but there are about 6 buckets at the top that swing back and forth as they fill up with water that squirts into each one.  Once they fill up they randomly tip over dumping a bucket load of water on your head.  I have a hard time easing myself into pool water.  It's always too cold for me so I forced myself to get dumped on there and then getting in was really easy.  I loved it at least as much as the kids did.  The little one couldn't get enough of splashing in the mini fountains that circled the edge.   

MJ and his mom

Santa Monica Pier

On Saturday we went to LA.  The main purpose was to go to Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles but since we couldn't spend almost two hours driving there only to eat and turn around we stopped at the Santa Monica Pier first.  We walked around and MJ's nephew rode a few of the rides.  We had to lead him out of there crying because four rides is never enough.  Something tells me that 10 rides would not have been enough either.  
 
1.  Coronado Beach is my favorite beach.  The part we go to is only accessible via Naval Air Station North Island so there is very little traffic and way less people then you find at public access beaches. 
2.  The Beach Cottage was so cute with 2 bedrooms, 1 bathroom and a full kitchen.  There is the hotel and there are beach cottages.  You have to reserve a cottage at least 6 months in advance in order to get one because there aren't that many.  They are staggered so that everyone has a beach view.  This was another one of MJ's great ideas and I think we should make it a yearly thing.  
3.  Can I just stay here forever and never go back to work?  Pretty please. 
4.  We ordered pizza the first night and MJ grilled Carne Asada Tacos for dinner the 2nd night.  Perfectly paired with a pale ale beer he brought back from Germany.  Usually "his" beers are way too heavy for me but I liked this one.
5.  We stopped at In & Out for breakfast on the way home from Coronado.  When you are on vacation you can do things like that.  I haven't had In & Out since I was a kid.  It was on my not allowed to eat list (along with too many other things) for a long time.  I've been missing out.
6.  The iconic meal from Roscoe's Chicken & Waffles.  This is not my plate.  Trust me to go there and not order chicken and waffles but everyone else did.  People love the combo but I'm not sure it's my thing.  I ordered a chicken sandwich-which was one of the best I've ever had, with fries.    

I will say that the kids were a little bit much to handle for 10 days.  Sunday morning I came downstairs and the 3 year old was buzzing.  Literally buzzing.  Like bzzzzz, bzzzzzz, bzzzzzzz and he would not stop.  All I could think was make it stop!!  There was an obnoxious sounding cartoon on TV and I'm a little Tea Cup on repeat coming from a toy tablet.   It was an is this really my house twilight zone moment.  The upside is that I HAD to get out of the house so I went to the gym for the first time since January and burned 650 calories.  I can pretend that I would have gone anyways but I'm not so sure!  They want to come back again without the kids and I'm totally okay with that. 

I'm an introvert.  The prospect of having that much company all day every day was really overwhelming for me.  I like my routines and I have a general fear of having them interrupted.  I like to watch House Hunters while I eat breakfast.  I enjoy silence and need alone time to recharge.  Throw kids in the mix and I was more then a little freaked out.  I like my house clean and tidy.  Kids are anything but.  Of course I worried for nothing.  I mean, that's what I do; even when I know it's going to be okay.  Once they got here I was glad to see them.  It was a perfect excuse for a staycation which felt less like a staycation and more like a vacation.  We had such a nice time that drool on the couch from a teething baby is really just water under the bridge.  

Having house guests is kind of like the So Cal ocean.  Our water is cold but once I dip my toes in and go for it, I find that it's a lot more fun then I thought it would be when I was staring at it from a distance.

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I'm Not A Mother

Last weekend was full but fun. I found myself wide awake on Monday morning when it was time to get up for work (surprisingly) only to find myself crashing hard by 12pm. It's a short week for me.  I will survive.

The Zoo Crew

MJ's mom and cousin are in town and they brought the kids.  The #1 ranked Zoo in the United States is in our backyard.  MJ has never been, which makes no sense especially since military gets in free.  I haven't been in a million years myself so it was a perfect group outing for Saturday.  We loaded ourselves into the rented mini van and spent the day walking miles and miles all over the world famous San Diego Zoo.  The place is huge.  Just when you think you saw all the animals you wanted to see you realize you missed out on the Kangaroo's and the Rhinoceros's.  These animals are so interesting to look at.  I could probably stare at the Gorilla's for hours.  I love the slow rhythmic way they move.  Not quite upright but also not quite downright as they use their front knuckles to get where they are going.  Their faces are so serious and their eyes so intelligent.  What are they are thinking about-besides why the F are all these people staring at us and what do they want?  Giraffe's have the cutest faces.  They are like a horse gone wrong but not because their long legs and neck transform them in their own unique and beautiful way.  The Rhinoceros walked in circles and the Kangaroo's just laid there.  I was really excited to see pouches but these didn't have them.  MJ has seen ones taller then him roaming around in the motherland of Australia so he probably was not too impressed but they were still cool to see. 

The San Diego zoo is exhausting.  The San Diego Zoo with little ones is REALLY exhausting.  That day alone totally validated our decision not to have any.  At one point the 1 year old and the 3 year old were wailing at the same time.  The little one was kind of cranky all day and the 3 year old hit his face on metal hand rails twice in a row after repeatedly being told not to run off. The weather was not too hot, not too cold; just  perfect for a long day outside.  We covered as much ground as we could but when the kids got too tired it was time to go.

I'm really proud of myself for resisting the urge to take a million animal pics that will only take up space on my hard drive and be really boring to look at later. 

Me and my two mom's (Mom in Law and Mom)

On Sunday we all went up to spend it at my Mom's.  My mom is still on crutches because she had foot surgery a few weeks ago and my Dad is out of town visiting his mom.   She really appreciated us being there and taking care of everything.  We kept it simple.  MJ grilled Hamburgers and Hot Dogs and we got sides from Fresh & Easy.

Both of the kids have the same name.  The bigger T came inside with two flowers from outside and said Happy Mother's day.  He tried to give one of them to me but I said I'm not a mother, and handed it to my mom in law.  I was the only female there that wasn't a mother.  Story of my life; but he didn't understand that.  Not five minutes later he came back inside with one for me and said Happy Mother's Day.  How sweet.  I guess he didn't want me to be left out.  You can't refuse such a sweet gesture so I laughed and took it.  We put them in our hair.

The little T is really sweet too.  He's just as squishy and cuddly as he can be. Kids definitely have their adorable moments but it's still nice to be able to send them home.

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You Either Got It or You Don't

My first thought.  Wow. Just wow. The kid's hair is wild and she's so young that she doesn't even have all of her teeth but if I weren't looking at her I'd think she was a 30-40 something singing in some fancy Jazz club in New York city.  This is a perfect example of someone who is literally born to do something.  I'm not saying that she doesn't have to practice or that she won't have to work hard at it but at that age or any age you don't sound this way unless you were gifted with a talent.

My second thought is why not me?  I love Karaoke but I can't sing to save my life and I'm certain that even if I worked at it 8 hours a day 5 days a week I would never sound even close to this.  I don't have to be a singer, it just  would have been nice to have been born with some natural talent besides being the only one in the room that will notice a spider or maintain muscle tone even if I don't work out.  Seriously.  I thought really hard-those are the only things I could think of and they aren't even talents!!  Am I really jealous of an 8 year old?

You either got it or you don't and Angelina Jordan REALLY has it.  She's adorable.  The rat nest hair could be her signature look, she'll eventually have all of her teeth and hopefully she is off to a great career doing something she is not only uniquely talented at but that she enjoys.  Basically living the dream.