Summer TV

It used to be that the end of school also signified the end of good TV for the summer. I am pleased to say that this is no longer a reality. In addition to one of my favorite shows So You Think You Can Dance (I know, how gay do I sound right now), I have discovered a new pearl of summer television, Wipeout. As I write this, I am sitting in my living room, alone at 11:00pm laughing out loud as I watch normal people like you and me get the crap kicked out of them by an inflatable obstacle course. It helps that the show is narrated by John Anderson of Sportscenter and John Henson the former host of Talk Soup. I can't promise you will like it, my taste is often suspect, but I am thoroughly enjoying watching people get pounded.

NO!

So, I don't really know how early to start teaching your kids what "no" means. In our ignorance, we've figured the earlier the better. Our house is pretty baby-proof so we don't have too many instances where we have to say no to Audrey. The only thing we really don't want her to do is take trash out of the trashcan. What does she want to do every time she get into the kitchen? You guessed it. Here are a few pictures of "the mischievous one" at work. What you can't see is her looking at you, nodding her head from side to side, and then proceeding to open the trashcan lid. So what do you think readers, is it too early at 11.5 months to begin to teach her "no?"

June 21st is...

...one of my favorite days of the year- aside from being Summer Solstice (the day which has the longest day light of the year), it is our anniversary, and my best friend, Lidia's birthday. What a great day! In addition to being my best friend, Lidia was my maid of honor. We appreciated her willingness to share her special day with us. To show our appreciation, we had a birthday cake for my dear friend at the reception.

Here are a few pictures from our special day for those of you who were not there.This year Eric and I celebrated our 5th Wedding Anniversary. It is hard to believe it has already been five years. We missed our annual trip last year because I was too pregnant to travel far and especially to places with high elevation. To celebrate this year, we headed to Julian, California, a quaint mountain town east of San Diego. We stayed at a highly recommended bed and breakfast, Orchard Hill. Friday evening, we enjoyed complementary wine and hors d'oeuvres, walked around Julian and enjoyed an elegant dinner. Then we took a short hike to a mine, lounged in a hammock, read, and played cribbage. Saturday morning we set our alarm clock so as not to miss the breakfast part of the bed and breakfast (we usually have a crying alarm). We read all morning, walked around town, ate lunch and headed home. It may sound like a short trip, but it was so relaxing that we were satisfied. It was our first night away from Audrey (and long over-due). My mom was gracious enough to keep her. It seemed that my mom had just as much fun as Audrey and it was a little humbling to come home and discover we were not missed. Here are a few pictures of the B&B and town.

Saturday evening, we went to Lidia's birthday party. Thanks again for sharing your day with us!

Family Reunion '08

Last week we headed to Angels Camp, California to stay at a timeshare. (generously provided by Eric's Mom and Step-Dad.) Yes, this year’s “family camping” turned into “family resorting.” After two babies joined the family, we thought it would be best. We had a lot of fun.
During the drive Audrey entertained herself by stealing her “Dollie's” pacifier, then got disappointed after discovering that it did not satisfy.
We borrowed my mom’s mini van and left Friday with a full van of stuff. We stopped at the Modesto Costco and brought two of the heaviest carts I ever pushed full of food. We bought so much food I even got nauseated and could not eat dinner. We used three coolers and filled up an already very full van to the brim.
Audrey was barely hanging on after the long drive and 2 hour Costco visit. Thanks to her new farm animal book (which is almost as big as she is), “Noisy Farm”, we were able to drive another hour on Highway 4 to Angel’s Camp.
After checking into two, two bedroom suits, we went to the local grocery store to buy another cart full of food. We spent a few hours putting the food away in two refrigerators and raided one suite of it’s table, chairs, dishes and pots and pans to accommodate five couples and two babies in the main suite.

After the hard work, we got to relax and spend a week with the family. The family consisted of Eric’s: Mom (Cedulie), Step-dad (Luis), Dad (John), Step-mom (Mary Ann), sister (Stefanie), brother-in-law (George), niece (Sophia), Step-sister (Susan), Susan’s boyfriend (Tom), and the the three of us Lapointes. In addition, my Mom (Suzie), sister (Rahime), and brother-in-law (‘Chung) came for a couple of days. Amongst other things, we played phase 10, Skip-Bo, Cranium, Trivial Pursuit (from 1981), Croquet, Bocce Ball, Extreme Bocce, Volleyball, Golf, and Domino's. Needless to say, there was an abundance of fun, games, and food. We also got a chance to visit an 1800's gold mining tent town re-enactment, seeing as Angel's Camp is gold country.
The highlight was getting to spend time with our beautiful niece, Sofia.
We confirmed that Audrey and her cousin are the exact opposite. Sofia is an introvert and is very chill. Audrey loves people and is always on the go.
While we were up there, both babies experienced their first time in a pool. It took Audrey a few times to get used to the pool but Sofia loved it from the get go. She even already knows how to kick. In helping her get used to the water, I think Eric taught Audrey that she has to constantly make a motor sound to “swim”.
All in all, the week was an A+. It was really great to spend an uninterrupted week with family. We really appreciate that family are the people who love you, not always the people related to you. We look forward to next year's Family Reunion.

Like Father Like Daughter

From the day we brought Audrey home, people have told us that she looks a lot like me. For those of you who disagree, here is a picture of Audrey alongside a picture of me at about the same "age".
Obviously, I think that's fantastic. Anyway, when I walked into her room the other night, I found another paternal resemblance. My parents tell me that when I slept on my stomach (that was how you were supposed to do it back then) I had a habit of pulling my knees up to my chest. I did this so often in fact, that I ended up bow-legged and my parents had to put my legs in a brace. I think they're still traumatized by how much I cried. Below is the sight I beheld when I walked into her room a few nights ago.


Needless to say, I pulled (and keep pulling because she sleeps like that a lot) her legs out but she just tucks them back up. I must say however, I think it's awfully cute.

Peachick

For those of you who care, I just wanted to up-date you on the peahen who laid her 11 eggs in front of our house. To my disappointment, only one chick hatched and other 10 eggs were unfertilized and eaten by farm critters in the night. Here is a picture of the peahen and her peachick. In other peachick news, there are several more chicks that are around the farm. I am hoping Peyton (our cat) stays out of their way.

Lunch After Church

I love going to lunch after church. It may just be me but it doesn't seem right to just go home and have leftovers or a sandwich after a worship celebration. However, coordinating lunch after church can be tricky. First there's the question of whether or not anyone is going to lunch. Am I going to get invited? Should I initiate? What if I initiate and we are the only ones who show up? Should I invite myself if I find out other people are going to lunch? I know...I'm awkward. Once you finally get a group together you need to figure out where to go. Sometimes someone really has a a craving for Chipotle and the decision is made, but other times, you stand around for 15 minutes advocating for where you really want to eat, trying not to offend anyone as they advocate for where they want to eat.

So...that brings me to yesterday. A group of us decided to go to lunch at SuperMex in Lakewood. I haven't been much but I remember that they do have some fantastic mexican food, hence the name super mex. There were 10 adults and 4.5 kids (including Dominic Alberico). We were told there would be a 30minute wait which, though daunting with hungry kids, seemed acceptable. About 45 minutes later (upon seeing our intended table broken up to appease an angry customer) we reluctantly decided to cut our losses and find somewhere else to eat. I will say that it was the first time I heard a hostess say into the microphone to everyone waiting in the lobby, "Our take-out window is open." Wow! We decided to take our unruly brood across the parking lot to Souplantation only to be told emphatically that we would not be able to sit together, not to mention the 30 people in line in front of us. This is also a good time to let you know that it was now about 1:30 in the afternoon and 96 degrees outside. Desperate, we ran our ragtag bunch of misfits across traffic to the haven known as Baja Fresh. We were greeted with a nearly empty, air-conditioned lobby. Not surprisingly, my food tasted exceptionally good. Was it 2.5 hours good, I don't know?

Needless to say, yesterday's adventures further proved to me that the institution known as lunch after church is indeed complicated. Nevertheless, I will continue participating in this weekly tradition. So friends, if you see me skulking around the Revolution patio after the 11:00 service, you'll know what I'm looking for.

Here is a picture of us walking from Souplantation to Baja Fresh. I especially like Esther's expression.