aah... summer. I can't believe we're already nearing the end of August- where has it gone? Luckily, we live in a place where it's somewhat of an endless summer. However, I will lament traditional summer when it leaves. We took the boys to Morris' pool today and had a blast while the boys splashed around.

I heart LA

Something has shifted over the past few weeks, or was it the past year? maybe it was when we discovered 'dainties' the fantastic cupcake bakery two blocks from our house, inconspicuously wedged behind Winchell's and Chicken Zankou. Maybe it's that the weather is amazing- 70 degrees most days of the year- crowned with a sky perfected by ocean breezes and unblemished by drizzle. Maybe it's that we started going to the beach more often and Ian's tried his hand (er... legs) at surfing. Or that we live just down the street from the temple, or that I love the jackarannas that burst out in spring on the avenues, like Anne of Green Gable's white way of delight only gorgeous purple. Or maybe it's the sweeet park just a brisk jaunt from our front door with the lovely cool creek perfect for bare little tootsies, or the new H&M that opened last year at the Beverly Center. It's got to be one of those things, because Los Angeles feels like home the way no place has in a very long time.
i know LA's got a bit of a shady past- the city is watered by subterfuge, General Motor's robbed us of a good public transportation system, and housing prices skyrocketed since we got here. Yes, it's not perfect- Los Angeles has too many broke waiter-actors, too many insecure old dudes who feel the need to buy Hummers. People complain LA's got no culture, no architecture, no... soul. But if you should find yourself here, somewhere in the Los Angeles sprawl- somewhere not too far from the gorgeous Union Station, the hallowed old MGM studio lot where Ian works (now Sony Studios), or yummy Pinkberry's on a little leaguers night, let's just say that there is no doubt about this: there are far worse places to wind up.

We've been Simpsonized!!

We recently auditioned for a part in the upcoming movie- the Simpsons. They did a pretty good job with the hair and makeup... check out www.simpsonizeme.com to audition.

Baby Thor

Caleb cannot get enough of his hammer! Everywhere he goes he wants to bring it with him, he crawls with it in one hand, he pounds on the couch or the table with it, he brings it into his crib, the bath, and his high chair. Some kids like to have a security blanket, or one little boy we knew loved his stuffed froggy... I guess Caleb feels secure with a good hammer in his hand.

How Melissa Got Her Bite Back

Brace Yourself:
Photo top: me at 11- heavy metals
Photo middle: at 14- round 2- trying to hide those metal buds behind my smile. Strangely, I don't have a lot of open smiles during this photo period. It was a self-conscious time...
Photo bottom: metaled out mama

I was a cute enough kid, but by around the time I was eight or nine, something funky started happening to my teeth. My grandma said that when I smiled she would find it hard to smile back because my teeth were so crooked it was a little bit disturbing. And some thing strange happened to my bite- my chin sunk back, I couldn't chew without stretching out my face, and my teeth didn't fit together anymore. So, from about the time I was nineish until the time I was eighteen I went through a plethora of orthodontia- braces, brackets, elastics, retainers, headgear, bridges even this really painfully huge hunk of plastic that prevented me from speaking and made me look like the Incredible Hulk. I remember my poor little jaw being so sore- and to no avail! While my teeth got straightened up-- thankfully, so my grandma could smile at me without worrying about my future-- my poor little bite just couldn't get it together. After having braces reapplied for the third (or was it fourth?) time when I was seventeen I said 'enough is enough' and I quit my orthodontist. I never knew you could quit an orthodontist, but I did it. Follow-up care with more seasoned orthodontists gave a dire recommendation: surgery. Jaw surgery. Aargh! Jaw surgery- hadn't I paid my dues? What?! Why?! I decided that maybe if I left it alone it would fix itself. See no evil, hear no evil? I spent several years without seeing an orthodontist, a dentist, or anybody with a reclining chair for that matter.
When Ian and I finally got finished with school and started to be able to go to the dentist again one of the first things I heard was: "you need braces." Also: "You should see an orthodontist." We switched dentists. The next guy said the same thing-totally unsolicited. So, I went. I went to the orthodontist, and lo and behold, it was like an echo from Canada thirteen years earlier: surgery. Shucks. Well, I guess you can run, but you can't hide. Over the next two years I almost got braces put on but I kept chickening out and cancelling my appointments. Braces... braces.... braces are so lame! Finally I took a very deep breath, squinched my eyes together. When I opened them I was a twenty-nine year old braces wearer. My other Grandma started laughing when she saw me in May: "didn't you spend your childhood in braces?' Aargh, yes. Yes Grandma, I did. And, it appears, part of my adulthood.... it's hilarious, I know.
Well, yesterday was a sort of monumentous occasion. After nine months of patient braces-wearing, I had The Surgery. Ohmygoodness, Melissa got her bite back. It was hiding out there for twenty odd years... and now it looks and feels amazing. Just to clarify, I don't look and feel amazing, I'm about as swollen as a blowfish, but my bite feels great. I'm hoping for a speedy recovery. I may not be able to talk on the phone for a few weeks, talking is a little tough (my jaw is elasticized completely shut) and hopefullly this swelling goes down a lot, but I am very grateful for all the people who helped make it possible- mom and dad, Ian for taking amazing care of me, and my orthodontist and maxofacial surgeon. You guys rock. The journey's not over yet, but we're getting there and hopefully, before I'm thirty-one, I'll say good bye to braces forever. I may have to do the retainer thing for awhile, but that's OK. Orthodontia has been such a big part of my past, I guess if it sticks around a little in my future that won't be so bad.
;)

first Camping Trip

So, we were pretty adventerous. We went camping in San Onofre with three other couples who have babies that are close to Julian and Caleb's age. It was pretty crazy- on one site we had four tents, five babies, and one long night. Actually, the kids did really well. We've got Halle- the only girl of the bunch- Josh a bit bigger than the twins, and Beckham- also bigger than the twins but the youngest of the pack. We did some surfing, and some cooking and talking. The Taylors made a pineapple upside down cake over the fire. It was so good! We were all thinking about staying two nights, then on Saturday the 4pm snooze crush hit and everybody decided to bail. One minute we were sitting around the fire chatting about doing some shopping, the next minute after we agreed to go home it was like we couldn't get there quickly enough. Ian and I were literally throwing items into our car right before the rubber hit the road. So was everybody else. Funny ending to a super fun trip.

NICU gettogether

When my kids were in the NICU, I got a lot of strength and support from two other moms who were going through a similar preemie-rollercoaster. Their kids were born at the same time and at the same Gestational Age as Julian and Caleb. We would talk about getting together when our kids were out of the hospital and big and healthy. At the time, it seemed like that was soooo far away. Each day in the NICU was an eternity. But somehow we got through it and today we celebrated Cole's first birthday at Douglas Park in Santa Monica. Our babies had a lot of fun together, Caleb kept grabbing the other kids' bottles and Julian couldn't stop squaking and waving his arms around in delight. Little Abigail is just getting herself around everywhere and Thomas was so sweet, he loved being with his daddy. Ryder was so big and Cole was so cute! I just wanted to scoop them all up and give them the greatest hugs and kisses. They are such hardy little warriors. Thanks for the great gettogether Cole, your first year you overcame tremendous obstacles and came out the conqueror. Way to go little guys!

We moved!

Aye Carumba. Moving into our new place was crazy because we went from a spacious three bedroomer to a smallish 2 bedroom. Somehow we managed to fit everything in... sort of.
The boys just went through an electric cable phase- they would cruise past all of their toys and head straight for the cables that I never even notice. How do they see those and know they want them? We just cleaned off a safe one to let them play with- which they loved. Who am I kidding myself, it's not the safest toy to play with, but hey, I can't argue with something that's going to keep them entertained and not electrocute them. At least they're not playing with anything sharp- unless you count those dull knives we keep lying around... just kidding.