GUARDSWORLD: 2008

Wednesday, December 31, 2008

in God's hands

we lost a very dear soul... mrs. mary jane guard (darren's grandmother) passed away peacefully in her sleep yesterday morning. darren's mom was there... messaging her legs and comforting her. we thank God for the time we had with mary jane. He blessed us with moments we will treasure for a lifetime. we find solace in knowing she is now in total peace... looking down on us... and feeding heaven's dogs her finest table scraps.

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

"all i want for christmas..."

"...is my two front teeth."

(...and to get the heck off santa's lap!)

fun was had by all at the good old irvine park... the same park in fact that both the chef and myself frequented as tiny tots... clamoring to witness the glory of old saint nick in person. this time around both the fat man and the mrs. were out in full force... not to mention the legions of little rug-rats in their wake. hot cocoa, kahlua, and vodka... mmm... the perfect pick-me-up in what felt like below zero temps. the chefs' family had come prepared... from a hefty supply of peanut brittle to a spare fur coat for little ol' me... we were armed and ready to battle the long line of snotty nosed chillen' and they're photo-fanatic parents. the night was a grand success! ...we came away with a cold nose, a few flailing gabel shots, and a holly, jolly holiday high!

Friday, November 7, 2008

derivations of Gabriel

the tiny tot goes by many names... one of which is Lambert... "the sheepish lion". how did he come by this name you might ask... well in order to answer that question we have to go aaaall the way back to the very begining.

before little gabriel came into this world he was known as The Great Bambino... (for obvious reasons... none of which have anything to do with the poor behavior of the actual Great Bambino mind you). ...and so he went from The Great Bambino to Bambi... and from Bambi to Bam-Bam... then Bam-Bam to Bams... Bams to Bambert... and finally Bambert to Lambert (not to mention the altered form... Bambertini!) ...and so it was... our litte squirt was known as Lambert for the time being and along with this nickname came the catchy little tune from that classic cartoon that to this day i could never forget. "La-a-a-ambert the sheepish lion... La-a-a-ambert there's no denying..."

check out this most adorable cartoon clip... it'll make you feel like a kid again!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y0FzYSAfOsk

Friday, October 24, 2008

future pad

our palatial pad... shining in all its glory beneath the mid-day sun... the pool beckoning us to wade, cocktail in hand... the scrub oak towering above, showering us with spots of casted shadows. we are transported to another place... another time... far from reality... the place where dreams are made... the place where dreams come true.

http://circlepix.com/home2/1W4NBQ

[click: virtual images]

Monday, October 13, 2008

old pad - new pad

from santa ana to santa paula... we've made our move folks, all four of us. (5 if you include our aquired addition: Jonas The Jerusalem Cricket. sure we released him back into the-wild-front-yard but he'll remain a family member in our memories & our hearts forever.) many thanks for their moving efforts to bill, warren, moose, kam, and muscle-man russi. (...

who by the way can bench press everyone in italy i think it was.) all is well... and after settling into the new digs we've begun to explore our new hood. it's been decided... life is pretty groovy up north. so don't waste another minute... plan your trip to the fantastic ventura area now! (that was my pitch... not all that fancy i know... but you can take it or leave it.) (...on 2nd thought please please take it! pretty please!)

we're assimilating... and loving every second... attending cruise night (a hot-rod show on main street) with the locals, grubbing on thee worlds most bomb street tacos, and takin' strolls through our bussling parks and school grounds where one and all come out to play soccer after 5pm. the close knit community vibe is easily appearent and easily intoxicating. people work hard here and devote the rest of their time to their families. you can sense the strong dedication to "the family" that this town has been built on. never before have i witnessed the warmth of an entire town quite like this. the people are amazing.

...one more eye opening experience for us... transitioning from The O.C. to the great beyond. (...and somehow it brings comfort knowing the botox wonders of this world are just a drive away.)

Thursday, September 4, 2008

the gable-skiver!

well it came as no surprise that the little man of the house would obtain more than just a few nicknames but i assure you, i never saw this one coming. with the aid of his witty english teaching aunts he was deemed The Gable-skiver... after some whacky danish donut known as the aebleskiver. (the derivations of the name"gabriel" are limitless.) never having heard of an aebleskiver i was more than amused by gabriel's evolving name... not to mention the delectable yumminess prepared by his aunts on my very first, very memorable mother's day.

Monday, August 25, 2008

blackmail bath

at three weeks 'young' little gabriel~guard received his very first bath thanks to grandma-goose's expertise. undoubtably this set of un-postable nudey shots will one day mortify young teenage-gabriel... but to us they'll always be "bare booty, cutey ba-tooty, smoochy-smoochy, lovey-bum-bum-liscious" shots!

Saturday, August 23, 2008

it's a man's world

surrounded by male- guards i'm left to wonder if i'll be the only one in the family who hussles out the door carrying 2 (alright sometimes 3) pairs of shoes and who's always running late due to a lousy wardrobe malfunction. will little gabriel be rallying the male troops in opposition to my female frenzy? i have to wonder. will i then turn into the slob that ops to go foundationless, wearing worn sneakers on a daily basis? the thought!