ma day

poolside... this time at the 288 residence... men at work... fun in the sun... and permanently filled champagne glasses.  i could not... perhaps only minimally, complain.  indrani aka mrs mommy dearest on the other hand was in rare form.  barking at her own dog, shouting orders, and demanding more champagne poured by spouse throughout the day.  quite a site.  well at least by the time the male staff served up dinner one and all were well pleased; fresh guac to start, baked potatoes, brisket stew, lentil sauce, rice, garlic bread, grilled salmon, some other fish, and asparagus.  i'm not sure how all of that was supposed to go together, but it did!  to think i started my milk-it day with four types of homemade chef-quiches and ended the day passed out on the couch with snoozing babe.  i refuse to believe it gets any better than that.  so thank you men for all of your brilliant work... you pampered us directly into the lap of luxury!  special thanks impart to the one and only chef.  your efforts will not be a loss i assure you... father's day is rolling around and i'm saving a few tricks up my sleeve.

 

side note: i had time to brush my teeth that glorious day so you see it was a monumental success!

pre ma-day II

round 2...

hyatt is gonna ban us... we dominated the kiddie pools once again... with full contact beach ball/volley ball and taking up residence in a good portion of the lounge chairs.  on the flip side the waitresses must be pleased with our lil' mob... as sloshed as they were.  another amazing day... another blessed, sunshining day.

pre ma-day I

fun... a million times over... fun.  we kicked off mother's day weekend like any so cal fam... at the pool.  ...back for more rays at hyatt regency huntington beach... one seriously good time.  

boyz

pick a peck

though the chef had mapped out this farm and had all intentions of taking us over the last 3 years we finally just stumbled upon it while plant shopping at nurseries in the middle of nowhere... otherwise known as somis.  underwood farms is a sweet little operation... from the quaint lil' roadside market with it's wall of packaged dry nuts, kettle corn, homemade honey and fresh produce to it's feed-friendly farm animals it was quite worth the stop.  upon our 2nd time back (& another plant shopping mission that turned up otherwise fruitless) we set out to do some blueberry picking.  it was a sweltering spring day... the goats were scampering overhead on these narrow ramps, i'll not forget that image & wild baby rabbits & buzzing bees joined us on our berry hunt.  managed to avoid said bees as we realized swarms of them were doing their honey things in those honey harvesting boxes... what we did not manage to avoid was the giant spill.  good lil' gabel insisted on holding our pickings... and yes they spilled far and wide just steps from the car.  we retrieved them... every last one, don't you worry.  good times in the field... scored big in sweet berry department...  added them to what seemed like every meal for a week.  definitely heading back... promised grandma and grandpa we'd take them during their visit this weekend.  can't wait!

the noes does Not know

two trees up on a breathtaking hillside... waving in the breeze as if beckoning us to lay in their shade... to take in the amazing ocean views... views of ventura county and beyond... a welcoming trail... a leisure hike... a sun filled picnic.  ...what could possibly go wong?  well for starters you can lose your dog entirely for the first time in 8 years.  you can painstakingly search the wretched cow pattied mountains for 5 hours with two little tots... scratch that picnic... never make it to Two Trees... cry your eyes out at the prospect of living without the dog you can't seem to coexist with... and then after that you can pray tirelessly, have a faithless meltdown... repeat "i have faith" 100 times, and then realize your mistake and say instead "i Will have faith" 101 times... suddenly see a moving spec-of-a-mirage in the valley below... then sprint through side yards and backyards to get a better view of the little 's' and end up in an avocado grove yelling pitiful requests of aid to a random, suspect criminal in the valley below who tells you off and acquires what you believe is your wayward animal... you can then cry miserably again and call the cops in a frenzy... have them show at about the same time said criminal appears with said 's'-dog.  ...and just in case that's not enough excitement for one day you may be lucky enough to acquire a lovely tick just behind your baby's ear which then has to be excavated by a local doc who can't seem to extract the ol' mandibles... & finally purchase antibiotics.  swell.

He Has Risen

Easter at the Hyatt Huntington Beach was a splashtasitc success... waterslide wipe outs and poolside cocktails... no denying our serious so cal roots; thank God for 70+ degrees, beachy weather in spring!  sure there was the traditional egg hunt... 2 in fact.  1st with cousins at the Hayes residents as usual... with thee most outstanding, yummy pigs in some kinda candied-walnut-syrup ever!  ...and later at the hotel with the masses.  (gabe made out once again gloriously, like a true huntsman... with a candy stash that will take him clear through the year.)  we dabbled in a major brunch taking place at the hotel and ended with an all time spring-in-cali fave, s'mores.  delish day... delightful play.

 

open "air" market

the adventure began with "the terrible awful" underway... there was therefore no avoiding the turbulence in the open "air" market... nevertheless we sought out to obtain our perfect day in the bottom of a fresh popped kettle corn bag.  oh, our sad demise.  dog barking from parked car.  patio-patrons rubbernecking... apply shock collar to barking dog... set out on foot... sample everything in the market because gabel can not resist... take an orange juice bath whilst offering samples to tyke... feel the "air" begin to set it's highfalutin hippie hands upon me like a dark cloud... clamour for the coveted kettle corn... retrieve size: small bag of corn... leave without change...

"the terrible awful"

it was saturday... wide open, just me & the boys, do anything we please... saturday.  sure the stars were aligned in such a way to obscure any and all sense of order but that wouldn't hinder our positive outlook.  we set out... not having driven in 7 months, powered by peady, for... i thought home... perhaps pick up warmer clothes... the weather could change... plus the bank is near the house.  wait.  i think there's a bank downtown, that's next to the farmer's market... yes on second thought... go there.  flip the peady.  forget the clothes.  utter discombobulation from minute one.  probably should have headed straight to the safety of my foxhole home base but in stead i hit the bank.  the open parking stall out front the atm tricked me into thinking stars were aligning in my favor. 

birthday best

yellow streamers and scavenger hunts... gifts from the tot... yummiest stew chicken dinner & brand new converse kix!  For Him: strawberry shortcake morning, pork rib dinner and homemade lemon bars.  sure he got a planter and a front door mat... but really, it's all about the food.

sidenote: homemade carmel popcorn... chef creation!

"ABC it's easy as 1 2 3"

Apple, Bacon, Cheddar as simple, as do re mi...

showers for a shower

white capped waves & lazy ash-colored skies bid us to the shores... smiles & laughter abound inside a warm seaside tent... bungalow views dappled with the heaven's tears of joy... mother to be... aglow... a new story begins... a bright future awaits.

Do you remember December?

a fuzzy bear suit prepared to bundle our bundle... but for now cuddle in the warmth of the indoors, in the arms of those who love you, in a homecooked meal, in the goodness of a cup of steaming hot chocolate... do you remember?  i do.

bar cart mania

what's not to love.  or in my crazy world... what's not to obsess over.  i have found that i adore bar carts.  now when mentioning this to the chef he claimed he adored them first, and he almost has a leg to stand on in that argument since he has had a certain one in mind for a certain place in a certain house ever since the day i met him.  (i was willing to be fair.  i acknowledged his decanter fixation but it wasn't good enough for him.  he clearly wouldn't go down that easily.)  ok so i resigned from the "i loved bar carts 1st" party and i joined the present camp, "but i loved bar carts 1st!"  in any event we are of equal minds and can from this point forward hunt hand in hand for that ever elusive, ever adored carrier of the booze.

note: check out more carts http://elissabraun.com/blog/2011/06/wish-list-bar-cart/ 

rofl