summertime would be perfect

we're rounding the corner... babe slipped on his first pair of "swimmers"... there are 18 hot dogs in the freezing awaiting their 4th of july debut... and billboards for the county fair are stirring up excitement. we're ready summer... "hit me with your best shot, fire awaaaaaay"!

it's my party...

well world... we have and announcement to make: we have a one year old toddling amongst us! you heard me right. mr. gabriel guard's 1st grandiose birthday was a grandiose success! ...with football, competitive rounds of volleyball, pin the tail on the very adorable donkey from a shop called B on Main, bobbing for apples, pony rides galore, a tent, lounge chairs, grandma goldie's potato salad and heavenly baked beans, thee world's finest 1st cake made by thee world's finest cake decorator grandpa goldie, giant hot dogs, corn on the amazing cob, chicky sandwiches, margaritas flowing a'plenty, pacificos (specifically pacificos), and obnoxious amounts of fun. many gracious thank you's to all who made it possible and to those who attended.

it's a bird, it's a plane...

...it's duke?

a million thank yous to you Lord. i was seconds away from a serious heart attack today as duke jumped off a ten foot wall... and crumbled in a heap clear across the street. your angels were definitely on duty and i am more than grateful. images of the emergency clinic and a crippled dog flashed in my mind as he soared literally over my head. i am forever in awe of your mercy. we will not take his companionship for granted. a clear reminder has set me on task to look after him with more dedication than ever before... and rather than constantly pushing him aside to attend to the babe, and skipping days at the park on behalf of an exhausted-me, i vow to find walking trails and include and appreciate him daily.

(thanks for the wake up call, but next time can you just

leave me a note or something.)

tai chi in the park

when the feeling moves you... you're wearing your sweats anyhow... and you're imagining your "happy place" there's only one thing to do...

tai chi in the park.

Happy 5th anniversary !

he is risen!

...and so naturally on the day of our Lord's Resurrection we go about meticulously hunting for hard boiled eggs hidden about. ...and this year was no exception. babe took to hunting like a fish to water. he simply would not be out done by his cousins... not on this Resurrection day or any other! his total egg count: 10! and after his diligent efforts he hunkered down for a good old egg licking and egg chucking. later that day we made it to the pacific amphitheater for rock harbors easter service. it was a glorious sun shining day... a baptism invitation was offered and kiana went forward and was baptized. what an amazing moment in time! thank you Lord for all you are doing in all who were baptized. you are so awesome!

big, fat birthdays

didn't seem to capture the elusive chef in these shots.

what's up with that?

well i suppose i oughta announce the astonishing fact that i turned a spry 26 and the chef turned a youthful 31. uncanny, i know. we rallied at kam's marina del rey pad where hummus and red wine rocked our world. kam cooked up a fierce stew, (thanks kook) ,we chatted the night away and hustled to a disco-teca shortly before closing time. was it sava-couture-legit... not exactly... try chicken-head-city... (unfamiliar with the term "chicken-head"? please refer to "hoodrat") but be that as it may we had a splendid time! thank you impart to those who were present and kamela our host. the memories of march will not soon be forgotten.

huston we have lift off

[a compilation of crawler to walker clips]

You Don't Mess With The Gabel

this nutty picture came about one fine day at grandma goose's following a wacky series of events. the gabel was doin' his usual... toolin' around colliding with any and everything in his general vicinity and eventually he bonked his forehead. i can't recall just how he managed to do this since this is a daily occurrence and the bonks begin to blend together. goose decided rather certainly that she was going to put a quarter on his ever growing lump. she applied the quarter to his lump and wouldn't you know it the gabel would not under any circumstances hold still. so naturally she strapped that quarter to his head with a rather flamboyant bandanna and off he went once more. he stumbled (quite literally) upon a set of ping pong paddles and with more than enough gusto produced this handsome shot! what more can i say?

breaking news!

can you see the resemblance?

...sure they can both give a pretty decent 'stank-eye'... but the real similarity worth mentioning is that they both go by the name "Walker"! that's right folks! we have a walker on our hands!!!

GABRIEL CHADWICK GUARD is a committed biped! proof is on the way!

stay tuned for video footage.

"burnin' down the house"

the santa paula fire department had a rutine practice run the other day and they invited the public to hang out downtown and watch. there was a definite chill in the air... we huddled in a ray of sunlight and mowed on ensalada de camarones con aguacate y limon... mmm... that downtown taco shop will not soon be forgotten. after a million photos, a snooze on gabel's part, and lots of thorough sniffs by duke of chocolate-bar-selling-girls, the house was set ablaze and our front row seats became rather toasty. the firemen went to work and a million more photos were snapped. [the one posted is one of my favorites; a local woman passing through the frame and a car in motion.]

a job well done! here's to you... the brave firemen and women around the world!

bath time for baba

can it get any better than an inflatable tub with a life size winnie the pooh sitting upright at the opposite end? you might think so... but little gabel is smitten for the pooh... and bath time is now perfection thanks to grandma's purchase. the experience is further hightened by 99 cent bath toys... his favorite, some stackable cups... and to finish, drying off with a game of peek-a-boo in his towel. life only gets better... with bath time!

cuttin' loose

a night out on the town... we're missing you gabriel... i promise. so the night included bowling with my bro and his whacky posse, then cocktails and a good ol' rug cuttin' on huntington's main street. my legs felt like jelly... man, has it been that long. the chef seemed to have a pretty good time too; he schooled us all in bowling so the guy can't complain.

well here's to your 48th birthday rob!

thanks for the good times.

down to monkey business

[diggin' the Flock of Seagulls doo...]

look ma... no hands!

[except dad's down below.]

i'd like to

report a monkey on the monkey bars...

and then...

we wiped out at the bottom...

huntington in january