lalalanders

For The Grandparents

2009-07-26T22:50:00.000-07:00

I started this blog mainly as a way for The Grandparents to keep track of us. I have been a major slacker! So this one is for you, Grandparents. We love you more than you know.

Something you should know:

2008-11-09T21:20:00.000-08:00

We really can't call ourselves lalalanders anymore, but OClanders just doesn't flow. Yes, we've gone behind the "Orange Curtain" as the Haros would say. So far it has been wonderful living near the beach and not having to commute to work. We don't even have cable anymore--no time for it with a beach and park steps away! The fresh air and beautiful sunsets are amazing, and early in the morning we can hear the waves crashing. When we have a chance to sit and think, there are lonely moments. We miss our Sherman Oaks friends and wish we had some visitors once in a while. Please keep in touch! You always have a futon to crash on when you want a weekend at the beach!
I have tons of photos to share, but we are still on dial up here, AKA I'm not patient enough to wait for them to upload. As soon as we have a minute to get a new provider, we'll have that rectified, and hopefully provide you with a little incentive to come and say hello.

Descanso Gardens

2008-07-30T00:36:00.000-07:00

Any family or friend that comes to visit us knows that Descanso Gardens has become one of our favorite places to hang out. After our move, we won't be able to visit as often, so here's a little tribute to one of our favorite family destinations:

2008-07-30T00:21:00.000-07:00

Goodbye First Grade!

2008-07-29T23:23:00.000-07:00

Golden had a great year in first grade. He made lots of friends, was chased by lots of girls, and was frequently awarded for academics and citizenship. What more could a first grader want?! He takes school very seriously and we are proud of him for that. I was able to spend a lot of time helping in his classroom, and first graders are a treat for sure. At the end of the year I received a sweet book with letters of thanks from Goldens classmates--half the class commented on how good my breath smells. Thanks first graders!! (And for those of you that asked, Extra gum and tic tacs are what I use, but cupcakes smell good, too.) Now that the year is over, we are happy to see he is lightening up for the summer--he spends a fair amount of time lifting 2 lb. weights and talking about his 6 pack. I guess that's balance.

2008-07-29T23:11:00.000-07:00

You go, Girl! Savanna's Culmination

2008-07-29T22:59:00.000-07:00

Savanna "graduated" from the 5th grade in June. Some of you know that Savanna endured a lot of strange new things throughout the year. She impressed her teachers with how she handled herself with dignity and integrity. She was elected to student council and was selected to perform in the talent show. She made some wonderful friendships. I know that she gained a lot of confidence in herself and her ability to defend herself, and we are so proud of her conduct. Congratulations Savanna!!

2008-07-29T22:51:00.000-07:00

2008-07-29T22:28:00.000-07:00

We have had a great summer so far, and as we are beginning our final countdown in Sherman Oaks, I thought you might enjoy some photos of our eventful summer. Savanna celebrated her 11th Birthday, Grandma and Grandpa came for a fun visit, and Savanna bravely endured what she calls her "first and last time playing baseball" as the only girl on a baseball team. It is important to note that she was not only hit several times by pitches, but managed to score some very important runs for her team by doing so.

Our summer so far...

2008-07-29T22:07:00.000-07:00

12 YEARS!

2008-04-18T13:03:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary to us. On Sunday we celebrated 12 years of wedded bliss by going to church, and then running home to change into swimsuits and enjoy our favorite Santa Barbara Beach. We even went to our faaaavorite pizza place--Dino's Pizza, where we bought enough pizza to last a week. (well, it should have, put it only lasted 2 days.)
Savanna and Golden made us cards and fans (economical choice), and they almost let us enjoy some peace and quiet on the beach. Uncle Sam ruined our plans to go to Hawaii this weekend, but this was certainly the next best thing. I love you, Hubs! Look at the cute pictures taken by those little rascals we created!

Happy Holidays!

2007-12-06T17:10:00.000-08:00

We are thankful that we have a few caring friends and familly that ask us why we haven't updated our blog. It's great to be somewhat interesting! My best excuse is that we go to bed so early now, and it seems every minute of the day is tied up doing something. But here's a quick review of the past few months:
We had a wonderful Halloween with Grandma and Grandpa from Oregon. Grandma is a Halloween baby, so as well as trick or treating around the neighborhood, we had a birthday party! The kids were delighted to have family visiting to see them in their costumes. Thanks Grandmapa!
We celebrated Kevin's 35th Birthday with a fun party. It was the first visit to our new apartment for most of the guests. We had California pizza kitchen, cupcakes, brownies, and all kinds of little nibblers. The wonderful Haros gave Kevin a new stereo system and Shelby brought champaigne for the guests that really like to party. Kevin said it was "the best party I've ever had" which made me very happy until I realized it was the only party we've ever had. (Besides the children's birthday parties of course.)
We spent Thanksgiving in Iowa with Kevin's family. We had a great time seeing everyone and getting acquainted with Granny's new home. It's just so much fun to watch the cousins enjoy eachother. Vance and Leslie have a little baby that looks exactly like Kevin. Jamie kicked and punched me, and that girl really knows how to kick butt. Will and I talked palpitations. Jason is a rockstar guitar player! Kim is amazing--Jay is the Bishop and she still has all her wits.
Golden has just turned 7 and his birthday party will be this weekend. He has invited his 1st grade class. When I asked him what kind of party he wanted to have, he said "pin the tail on the donkey and twister!" I wish he could be more specific. :) So we are having the basic birthday games and Santa will be showing up as well. I was kind of wishing for one last Chuckie Cheese party so I wouldn't have to clean the house.
My parents and brother have been without power since the monster storm hit the coast of Oregon last weekend. Keep them in your prayers. Dad is getting stir crazy and he needs to keep his head as Mayor of one disaster area. He's already been hung up on by a radio host. Let's hope the power comes back on before he decides to call in again.
The kids are doing well at school. I get to help out in their classrooms every week which has been fun and educational.
Kevin is making a great impression at his school. They love him and what he is doing for their music department. Hopefully that will translate to more $$ for him next year.
For any of you that are wondering how the progress on my book is going, wonder no more: I'm still on the first page. Savanna and Golden keep asking when they can read it. Not for a looooong time, kids. But we are sort of moved in to our new apartment, so that's progress of some sort. :)
Well, wish me luck for Golden's party tomorrow. As always, I am way behind with preparations. But it's 9:00 which is past my bedtime, so we'll see what magic happens tomorrow....Good night and we love you people!

Hubs

2007-09-20T06:54:00.000-07:00

So-- Kevin landed a great new job teaching music at a private school. I won't say the name of the school, but he does get a lot of time off for Jewish holidays and also happens to be across the street from the Newport Beach Temple. Lovely area. The only catch is the commute is unpleasant. Yesterday the poor guy spent more than 4 hours in the car. The first photo is of Kevin when he arrived home at 7:30 pm. The last one is Kevin at 5 am getting ready for the day. (yes, they are out of order, a little problem with the blogger.) I had a photo of him leaving at 6 am, but I was asked nicely not to post it.
Kevin's day consists of teaching a "garage band" and an "orchestra" as well as assisting with keyboard and library and even lunch. He earns every penny and works hard, and we love him for it. You may wonder why we haven't moved there...well, since my job provides an apartment, and housing isn't cheap, we are kind of stuck right now. Baby steps to the next Jewish Holiday...

A Day in the Life of Kevin

2007-09-20T06:38:00.000-07:00

2007-09-05T22:35:00.000-07:00

First Day of School

2007-09-05T21:55:00.000-07:00

After a year of homeschooling, Mother and Children went their seperate ways, for 6 hours and 19 minutes anyway. The morning started at 5:30 am when a nervous Savanna joined me in bed sobbing nervously over 5th grade math. Dad gave Savanna and Golden blessings at 6:00 am, headed out the door to Irvine, and Savanna and Golden dressed in their new school fashions, feasted on fresh raspberries and bagels with cream cheese, and had back-packs on by 7 am. I finally asked them to wait outside. Golden was letting out horrific squeals all the way.
We decided to drive for the first day. Although we were quite early, we had to park a block from the school. This gave us time to relax and gather our wits before entering the play area with the masses of children and teachers holding signs with room numbers. I sent Savanna on her apprehensive way, and walked Golden to his classroom. He was a little nervous and started to cry, but gathered himself impressively quickly. I introduced him to the boys and told them he was a little nervous because it was his first day. One of the boys helpfully suggested that if it was his first day, he should go to Kindergarten first, and another admitted he was a little nervous as well. After hugs and goodbye kisses, I couldn't resist peeking through the window of Savanna's class to make sure she didn't look too uncomfortable. She appeared to be smiling! And she was raising her hand!
I drove home, and as I entered the front door, the silence ripped my heart. I couldn't help but count-down to the end of their day. But their wonderful stories on the walk home and their cheerful voices reminded me that we were going to do just fine.