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It’s a Boy! Again…

by on July 1, 2009 in Celebs/Style, Hair, Motherhood Journey, Preschooler, Toddler

When it comes to hair it seems like I know what it feels like to have a girl. Morris was born with an insane head of hair.

By the time he was 1, he had a mushroom hairdo.

By the time he was 2, he was sporting a Kelly McGillis bob.

Now, at age 5, he has a curly ponytail longer than most females I know.

He uses more hair product than I do.

After trying out every brush on the health and beauty aisle, I finally made my life easier and got him a Mason Pearson brush. It was well worth the money. Curly hair looks really pretty, but it is such a pain to maintain.

So, when Bronson was born, I was perplexed that he didn’t have the same mane as morris.

Then i got happy. A boy, with actual low maintanence boy hair.

We took Bronson for his first haircut and I got so excited to see him with his little boy hairdo.

They actually got to use clippers on him as opposed to numerous hair clips, gel, and 2 types of scissors.

It took less than 5 minutes!

He didn’t even cry. He just had this “Whatchu Talkin About Willis?” look on his face the whole time.

So, I am enjoying Bronson’s boy hairstyle. And I can’t help but wonder if it will inspire Morris to cut his locks one day…..

What do you think?

Before the big haircut

AFTER!!! It’s a boy!

The next day

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I'm Down With Santa Barbara

by on June 23, 2009 in Holiday, Toddler

Before I had kids, my favorite local getaway was Bacara. It’s classic Santa Barbara style elegance with a touch of simplicity. The grounds are beautifully landscaped, staff attentive, and spa amazing.

It’s only an hour and a half drive from LA. It’s a fast drive though because you pass the wonderful Camarillo Outlets, the Chik Fil-A in Oxnard, and the Pacific Ocean along the 101. It’s definitely worth the car ride.

Then came Morris. I still loved Santa Barbara, but felt Bacara would not be the perfect choice to tote along my potty mouth toddler. Plan B for local getaway: Four Seasons The Biltmore at Santa Barbara.

Understated elegance, but kid friendly. There were so many other kids at the pool that I didn’t feel the need to “shh” Morris every 5 minutes of Marco Polo. There were loads of Hot Mamas at the pool too. They seemed to enjoy taking vacations and having fun, but didn’t want to leave the kids at home. We were definitely on the same page.

Next comes Bronson, so time to seek out yet another hotel to rest comfortably with 2 kids. Morris’s PreK year culminated with a class trip to Santa Barbara, and the hotel suggested by previous moms was the The Fess Parker Doubletree. I wasn’t sure what to expect because I had never stayed at a Doubletree before. They won me over at check-in with the walnut chocolate chip cookie. The service and accommodations were great. The hotel layout was easy to navigate and they (smartly) scattered Morris’s classmates around the property. The Doubletree boasts the largest outdoor heated pool in Santa Barbara and the kids put in many hours there, and probably set a record for clearing out hotel guests from the pool area.

Santa Barbara is such a great local getaway. There are some really great real estate deals now too. I thumbed the classifieds and was pleased that estates normally going for 30 million, were a steal at 20 million. Hmmmmmm……

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Life’s A Beach

by on June 12, 2009 in Baby/Infant, Motherhood Journey, Toddler

Hooray! Bronson likes the beach.

This may not seem like a big deal, but it is HUGE in my book.

Ever since Morris was a baby he despised water: rain, baths, tears, anything. (Imagine the kid with long curly hair hating to have his hair washed. It’s a far worse nightmare than anything Freddie Krugar could conjure up). Finally, after 36 LONG, DRY months, he conquered his fear of water with an amazing swimming teacher.

Me, I’m a total water girl. I’m a sun worshipper. I could live at the beach.

So, on Bronson’s first trip to the beach I was so happy that he practically jumped out of my arms to nosedive into the ocean waves. Hooray. My water baby.

I am sooooo loving this.

Hey, get me back to the water.

I thought you said there would be hot chicks in Salt Swimwear here.

DUH, mom….of course I like the beach.

Mom, this is kind of embarrassing. Neither one of us is in proper beach attire.

 

 

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Parental Relay

by on June 9, 2009 in Baby/Infant, Food, I'm Cheap, Just rambling, Kindergartner, Motherhood Journey, Toddler

The other night we had dinner with 3 other families. 

We all took our kids.

No nannies. No help.

Mostly boys.

8 adults. 9 kids (6 preschoolers, 3 kids age 2 and under).

We were outnumbered (in many ways).

The bill was over $600 (the restaurant probably charged us 30% gratuity for clean up, crowd control, and incidentals).

I don’t remember what I ordered. I don’t even think I got a chance to eat. I’m not sure I even had an adult conversation.

I sat next to a lovely 5 year old girl, and a handsome 1 year old stud.

The best part of the meal was watching all the moms and dads tag team with the kids while one could eat and the other “entertain”  the kid outside the restaurant (keep the kid from destroying the eating establishment).

It was pretty funny.

Onlookers without kids would only shake their heads.

“Why are these parents running back and forth?”

“Why are they letting their kids crawl around the hotel lobby floor?”

“Why is it so hard for these boys to just sit down in a nice restaurant and eat their Filet Mignon?”

“Why are the boys running around screaming ‘penis! vagina! jerk! at us?”

I’m ordering in next time.


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Party at Menchie's

by on May 27, 2009 in Toddler, Video

Mo just turned 5 and knew exactly where he wanted to have his party at: MENCHIE’S.

Since Bronson’s 1st birthday was just 2 weeks away, I really wanted something low key that didn’t require a lot of planning.

Boy, did I hit the jackpot! Menchie’s is a self-serve frozen yogurt parlor. You choose your yogurt flavor(s)-of course after you generously sample all 10, add your own toppings, and eat.

There’s a brand new Menchie’s that just opened down the street and it has a private party room.

The owners are amazingly friendly and accomodating.

We were the first birthday party at a newly opened location. Morris and his PreK class were more than equipped to break it in.


There’s a huge chalkboard in the party room that the kids had fun drawing on. Good thing they can’t spell potty words yet.

The quiet before the storm….They have NO idea!

Dun, dun, dun-dun-dun-dun-dun (I’m humming the Star Wars theme).


“I wish for a kiss from ALL the girls here (except mommy, YUCK)…….”

The kids were kept busy coloring their own tshirt and getting Menchie’s tattoos (oh yeah, and eating froyo!).

“Can we come back to Menchie’s tomorrow?”




 


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Kid Tricks

by on April 7, 2009 in Hair, Holiday, Motherhood Journey, Toddler, Uncategorized, Video

One of the coolest parts about being a mom is teaching your kid “tricks.”

We all do it, whether it’s getting our kid to sing their ABS’s for other moms on a playdate, have them sing Twinkle Twinkle (and do the hand movements…ooh) for adoring strangers at the grocery store, or watch him bust a move at the family reunion.

Well, when Morris was 2 years old, I taught him The Star Spangled Banner. It’s my favorite song of all time and I would sing it to him while I gave him a bath (because he hated taking a bath). This was my way of helping pass the time. So, enjoy Morris’s rendition.

WHITNEY AIN’T GOT NOTHING ON HIM!

Oh, and excuse the messy kitchen in the background.  Who has time to clean? I’m too busy teaching my kid tricks.

 

What cool tricks have you taught your kid?

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More Ketchup Please

by on April 2, 2009 in Holiday, Preschooler, Toddler, Video

I’m not a Foie Gras or Tuna Tartar kind of girl. I’m more of a salad and fries; smoothie and pizza chic.  I like my food how I like my clothes: simple, but good quality. So, when I heard about The Dolce Group’s LA hotspot, Ketchup, I knew it was worth checking out. They take basic childhood dishes and give them a gourmet twist using fresh, high quality ingredients purchased daily from local markets. They currently have a LA and Huntsville, AL location, with a Washington DC store opening soon.  The dinner menu is pretty cool.  I could have gotten full off the appetizers alone.  

Since I like weird concoctions of food, Ketchup was an obvious choice for dining.  I started with a threesome: garlic parmesan, sweet potato, and cajun fries served with 5 different types of ketchup.  Some of the ketchup tasted a little odd (wasabi ketchup, seriously?), the mango ketchup is clearly the way to go. Then I moved on to the mini Kobe dogs filled with Kobe chili, cheddar, and of course, ketchup.  Next, the mini chicken tacos.  All the usual suspects for the ingredients, but topped with chipotle ketchup.  I’m not one for spicy, so I just wiped it off. But, believe them when they say “mini”, the little tacos looked like something I would give Bronson. I needed something smooth to wash it down, so I was thrilled to see my favorite soup, Lobster Bisque on the menu. The lobster was pretty plentiful (a lot of places are really stingy) but the broth was a little weird.  I like thick creamy bisque, but theirs was more of a clear liquid topped with fried onions.  It was somewhat reminiscent of french onion soup, with lobster chunks thrown in.  It was not what I was expecting, but it was decent. I would get it again. Being from the South, I am a mac n’ cheese connoisseur. And in true Ketchup style, theirs was made with truffle and dungeness crab. It was such a delight to my taste buds and very cheesy.  A must try for crab lovers. The truffle and crab really give it a pleasant twist (my friend kept saying it was good, but tasted a little fishy).

There was a roving cart that came to our table offering Martini samples using Tang, Kool-Aid, and Yoo Hoo. I passed and move on to dessert: Strawberry Shortcake. It was perfect.  Just enough strawberries and ice cream. 

I was surprised I liked the stylish, hip atmosphere (I’m more into the laid back California ambiance).  The service was excellent and extremely attentive (but that might be attributed to the servers gawking at my friend Gwendolyn, a 5’11 beauty). Valet was a little pricey at $10 (and I hate Valet parking ever since my sunglasses and lipgloss were stolen) but it’s cheaper than getting a parking ticket at the nearby Sunset Plaza parking lot (ahem). Overall, Ketchup gets a thumbs up from me. Nothing beats a great menu of American classics with a modern twist. More Ketchup please!

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Your mama….needs to find a summer camp

by on March 5, 2009 in Toddler

It seems with kids you’re always on the hunt for something: a new bike, the right school, good kid friendly restaurants. It is never ending! Being a parent is a job within a job. So, now that I’m done checking out the local kindergarten options and private schools, I am realizing that the next order of business is summer camp. Seriously, just like preschool, I had no idea what an ordeal sending Morris to the “right” summer camp is. I mean I know this is LA, but I just started researching and can’t believe some camps start at $100 per DAY! Whoa. And these camps are serious business.  They’re not just sitting around the campfire singing Kumbaya. They have horseback riding, water slides, motorsports, and paintball. All this on the camp grounds. Boy did I get jipped. When I was little, my mom and dad dropped me off at the local Y and my camp highlights were learning to play Spades, listening to endless “your mama” jokes, and sneaking off to Winn Dixie to load up on Jolly Ranchers and Now and Laters. I didn’t turn out so bad, right? Your mama has a glass eye with a fish in it. Your mama’s so stupid they said drinks were on the house, and she went and got a ladder. Your mama has 10 fingers…all on the same hand. See, I learned stuff at summer camp.

So parents, let me know your thoughts on summer camp, and any recommendations for LA camps for a 5 year old. And, I’m not against Morris coming home from camp with a few your mama jokes.

 

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