WE SALUTE YOU

summer is in full swing... the 4th has come and gone but our celebration of independence continues. we enjoyed an airshow at the oxnard airport... world war II vets relayed their war stories and old war planes growled through the air. one teary eye later i was silently commemorating our current brave troops over seas.

Iraq War Facts, Results & Statistics at Sept 1, 2009 (according to: Axis of Logic)

*Troops in Iraq - Total 130,000 U.S. troops, and 500 troops from the UK. Troops from all other nations have been withdrawn.

*U.S. Troop Casualties - 4,325 US troops

*US Troops Wounded - 31,430, 20% of which are serious brain or spinal injuries (total excludes psychological injuries)

*Private Contractors in Iraq, Working in Support of US Army Troops - More than 180,000 in August 2007

*Journalists killed - 139, 93 by murder and 46 by acts of war

Citizens of iraq should not be forgotten but commemorated as well:

*Iraqi Police and Soldiers Killed - 9,126

*Iraqi Civilians Killed, Estimated -50,000 to over 100,000, but may be much higher. Some informed estimates place Iraqi civilian casualities at over 600,000.

*Non-U.S. Troop Casualties - Total 316

more facts and stats can be found at: http://axisoflogic.com/artman/publish/Article_56722.shtml

(this information does not include casualties of war in surrounding countries.)

we have to pray daily for our troops, their families and those caught in the crossfire. may God bring peace to the middle east, directing the path of all world leaders, and may His will be done. let's not waste a second of our privileged freedom...

let's live meaningful lives... & let's make a difference!

the water boy

and so one sun shining day upon arriving home from big bear the chef set out to blow up the gabel's very first pool. ...and he blew and blew and blew... until he was blue... and the babe had ridiculous amounts of fun in his first pool. he attempted to empty it with tiny cups and then naturally sought to fill it with the hose... and so on and so forth... and so went the day... with a rita in hand and the sun overhead. clearly all is right... in the summertime.

the big bear... the 4th.

...as the moose chalk board in the kitchen read, " relax, laugh..." (and something that was changed to "hunt")... and relax and laugh we did. with billiards, foosball, wii games, hot tubing, movie watching, boggle battles, poker until the wee hours, and scrabble tourneys we went right to work doing which ever we pleased and polishing that off with a bunch of nothing but wine drinking & white russian sipping. you wanna talk grub... what a spread!!! you'd think we were on a forest cruise... though big bear's food blows any cruise ships food right out'a the water! melt in your mouth barbecued chicken with rick's hit from last year artichokes, chef's heavenly slow cooked brisket and baked beans, and of course hamburgers and dogs on the 4th. we had homemade sandie-cookies coming out our ears... and vanilla floats with chocolate syrup made by the soda fountain expert himself! our stomachs were on a vacation of their own. there were hills to be conquered and hikes to be had. kayaking was in order for some... books to be read by others. ...naps to be snoozed, and dogs to be pottied. ...and who could forget our skit in honor of the 4th of july? not i. no not i. and to those who wish they could... just smile, thank God for back lighting, and chalk it up to the vino! cheers!

... and to bill and sandra, thanks for an amazing time!

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!