FFFRRREEEEEDDDOOOOMMMM!!!!

What a busy weekend ... it pretty much took me until today to recover. Saturday afternoon was little Charlie Duff's baby shower. He isn't out of the hospital yet, but he sure has a lot to come home to. I have never seen so many presents in my life! Something tells me he will have a lot of fun with the jungle theme his parents picked out for him. It was really good to see Shannon as well as a few other old friends. We had a really good time.
Saturday night was the going away party for my dear friend, Tony. He's moving to Orange County to finish his fellowship and I couldn't be more happy for him. I've known him since high school, but we didn't become really good friends until college. He used to have the best house parties. How our lives have changed .... Another good friend came in town for the party, so it was really good to see everybody and spend some time together (thanks JJ). It was an expensive cab ride home, though. I think Mandy picked the only town car in the parking lot.
Sunday night was GEORGE MICHAEL. I have been looking forward to this concert since I bought the tickets, the day they went on sale, and let me tell you, Georgie boy did not disappoint. He hasn't toured North America in seventeen years, and it was probably one of the best concerts I've been to. EVER. Tahnie, Cody and I all sat together, and then we had a few other friends in another section. He sang every song I wanted to hear and he put on a really good show. His voice is amazing and he really is incredibly talented. He writes and produces almost all his music -- it's no wonder he's had such a broad, successful career. I was impressed with all the details from the lighting to what he was wearing; even that fab hairdo he sports still looked good. There were no cameras allowed, but I did take a few pictures and videos with my phone. I just have to figure out how to get them on my computer and I'll be sure to post them. BTW, the person yelling "FREEDOM" in the background is Cody :) If printing doesn't work out for you ..... don't turn to singing.
It seems like this week has gone by really fast. Its already half over. Owen's last swim lesson is on Friday. He'll start again when we get back from our trips, but we're going to miss it. It's become something we both look forward to each week and he's making visible progress.
It's going to be hard to top the events of last weekend, therefore, I don't even plan on trying. The next few days are going to be nice and quiet.
p.s. I had a really good time with Tracey on Saturday night!!

I wish I had a piece of cake

I just finished the New York Times bestseller, I was told there'd be Cake, a collection of essays by Sloane Crosley. I've discovered the difference between essays and short stories is that essays are true. These are actual stories from her life growing up in a middle class family in upstate New York. The essays range from her childhood memories at summer camp to silly adventures in her blossoming adulthood. They definitely take on a lighter tone and don't delve too deeply into any serious subject matter. My favorite essay is called 'You on a Stick' and is about her experience with an old friend from high school. She has not seen this friend in over ten years, but one day she gets a phone call, out of the blue, and the old friend asks her to be a bridesmaid in her upcoming wedding. The results are funny and her narrative voice is original. I've never laughed out loud while reading a book before this one. I enjoyed it and it was a quick, light summer read. Perfect while laying by the pool.
www.sloanecrosley.com

I found a really good deal online for a used 2008 4runner with 1800 miles and I went to talk to our friend Mohamed at Camelback Toyota about it on Friday. The only problem was they had sold it three days before and hadn't been able to take it off the website yet. So, of course, I get talked into buying a brand new car. And then I talked my mom into buying a new car too!! Ruben said she's not allowed to come with me anymore when I go in to "talk" about trading my car in. I don't think that will be a problem, because JJ told me I have to drive this car for the rest of my life. I was so excited when I brought it home that I cleaned out the garage and took a bunch of stuff to goodwill so nothing will be in the way of my brand new car.
The next day I was getting ready to go grocery shopping and I left Owen in his room to play while I got dressed. I must have been gone for no more than two minutes and when I came around the corner I found that he had unrolled an entire roll of toilet paper from JJ's bathroom. He was so cute it was impossible for me to be mad at him. The other day I caught him sneaking back underneath the shelves in the laundry room playing with the backstock paper towels and toilet paper. I'm not sure what his obsession with paper products is, but I'll keep my eye on it.
We had a really nice Father's Day. Everyone went golfing in the morning and then came back to our house to BBQ and swim. We also had to watch the US Open all afternoon which I guess wasn't so bad since it was a pretty historic match up and subsequent playoff. I was rooting for the underdog. In other words, I was hoping anyone but Tiger Woods would win.
It is getting so hot outside I'm not sure what to do with myself. And having a son who enjoys playing in the backyard is becoming increasingly difficult. I think he's getting bored with me and building forts. Suggestions?

Bryn's Book Review

I just finished reading Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. I bought this book a while ago and started reading it once before but I just couldn't get into it. Not too long ago I needed a book to read so I picked it up to give it another try. This time I couldn't put it down. It tells the story of the Stephanides family and their move to America from Greece. The time frame of the story is fragmented. Parts take place in the present as well as the early 1930's and into the 70's. The story covers three generations of this Greek-American family and the narrator is the young granddaughter, Calliope. I can't go into great detail about the story without giving too much away, so I'll spare the specifics. In short, the book was worth reading and entertaining. As I said before, I couldn't put it down. But, it did begin to loose its luster towards the end. It's divided into four "books" and by the fourth book, I was beginning to feel disappointed. I thought there were some very important questions that remained unanswered, as well as some points that were hastily resolved. It was kind of long ... 530 pages, but it went by pretty fast. Overall, though, the book was incredibly imaginative and the subject matter was impressive. Also by Jeffrey Eugenides: The Virgin Suicides

JJ read an entire book in one day

We had a very busy weekend. Lunch with Paka and Auntie Brooke on Saturday and Brody Taylor's first birthday party on Sunday. Owen played with his best friend Sammy at the party and he ate more junk food than I think he's ever had in his short life. Ice cream, cake and his favorite ..... cheese puffs. I don't think we'll ever be able to have those in our house again because he'll definitely never forget them.
JJ had a really good time in Seattle. I think he enjoyed playing golf with his brother and father, and while his driving was really good, his short game was lacking considerably. So, in order to improve on his putting, he read an entire 164 page golf book in one day. For those of you who are not familiar with my husband, he has read one book since we've been together so this is quite an accomplishment and very much worth mentioning in such a public forum. Let's just hope he learned something.
Another busy week awaits us!! We have make up swim lessons and errands to run. I'm getting together with some old friends for dinner and drinks this week and I'm really looking forward to it.

High Pitch Yelling

Sometimes when I'm at work, I hear these babies in the dressing room with their mothers and they are just screaming .... they don't want to be in their strollers, and they don't want to be shopping or watching whomever try clothes on. So they scream at the top of their lungs and no amount of coaxing or shushing calms or quiets them down.
This is what my son has turned into.

Last week I had lunch with Malia, Grammie, and Sally at Brooke's restaurant and this woman was seated next to us who kept talking to herself. It was the strangest thing ... and I did double check to make sure she didn't have a bluetooth in her ear. Anyway, at one point she was having a full on argument with herself and she was looking across from her like there was someone really there!! She was yelling at her imaginary friend telling him/her that she has "been to San Francisco" and that she knows what she's talking about.
Yesterday I was pulling out of the parking lot at Safeway and I saw a guy, maybe in his early twenties, and he was talking to himself too!! This time I didn't get the details of what he was saying, but still, he was mumbling to nobody in particular.
What's with all the solo conversations?

Owen doesn't like female doctors

We found that out the hard way when he woke up this morning at about 4a.m. with a temperature of 103. We went straight to the emergency room where they looked at everything from his ears to the persistent rash that's been on his leg for a little over a week now. We were a little concerned when we walked in and saw a sign in the waiting room that said "If your child has a fever, rash, and vomiting please let us know immediately". We were thinking ... check, check, and check .... what does that mean?
To make a long story short, he had to have some blood taken and some antibiotics given intravenously. I thought watching your kid throw up was bad, but that's a cake walk compared to him being poked and prodded (right Debbie?). He was not a happy camper. But, he is doing better now that we're home. They told us to expect him to continue having fevers for the next few days so I guess we're not going to swim lessons or having our play date with Marigold. I have some pictures to post, but I'm having some trouble with my camera so I'll put those up as soon as I can.

Sickness .....

Owen has the stomach flu. It all started yesterday around dinner time. He was awfully cranky and he didn't eat much all day long which is unusual on both accounts because normally he has a really good appetite and we all know he was born with a naturally sunny disposition. In any case, he threw up several times last night. I don't know if any of you have ever seen a baby throw up, but it's a heartbreaking experience, to say the least. He made it through 13 months of his life without ever being sick a single day. Now, he's been sick twice in the past month. I'm not sure if it's from the swim lessons or the other day when we let him run wild at the play area at the mall. He had so much fun and we disinfected his hands immediately afterward, but apparently that wasn't good enough. As of right now, he's keeping his liquids down and he was able to eat a little bit of banana, as well as some cheerios, so I'd like to think we're over the hump. Let's just all take a moment and knock on wood or cross our fingers that the rest of us don't get sick. I've been washing my hands like crazy!!

First Blog Post

JJ and I have family and friends spread out all over the place. Some of our favorite people have yet to meet our son! In order to keep everyone up to date, I've decided to start this blog. With JJ's parents moving to Germany later this year, they will definitely be wondering what's going on with their number one grandson. I will try to keep the pictures and the stories current!