I Don't Cook
Really at all if I can avoid it. I know how to cook (not gourmet or anything but, you know, I can get something tasty on the table if required) but I hate to cook. I was the family cook for years and years. But then, probably 10 years ago, when our schedules changed and Bobby was getting home from work so much earlier than me, he started cooking. I clean up.

The whole point of this story is that, because I don't cook, I've never really cooked anything with G. We've "made" cookies. You know, the ones that come already made and in little squares and you just have to pop them onto a cookie sheet??? But pretty much that's about it. My mother thinks its a travesty, of course, because she's always been a really great cook and gets great pleasure in making stuff with lots and lots of ingredients and steps and stuff. But, yeah, that's not me ;-)

So the day before July 4th (July 3rd for those who don't want to do the math ;-) G asked me something about how a cake is made. This brought immediate guilt as I realized that the reason she has no idea how a cake is made is because I've never baked one with her. This prompted me to immediately promise that we'd bake a cake the next day. G was super excited! Off to the store I went to buy a cake mix and frosting... you didn't think I was going to do it from scratch did you??

First, G used her constantly improving reading skills to read the directions to me.

This box promised a "super moist" cake. Eh, not so much but that's ok.

She carefully cracked the eggs into the bowl...

Poured in the mix, oil and water...
 
We used the mixer which G thought was AWESOME!!! and then I explained the first rule of baking... all spoons and beaters must be licked before washing! G liked this rule.

Ready for the oven!

Then the hard part, waiting for it to bake. G was not patient with this part at all. She spent a lot of time standing in front of the oven asking if it was done.

Finally, it was done! and cool enough (barely) for frosting. G was really good at that part too and had no trouble remembering the "lick the spoon" rule when we were done with the spatula.

I manaaged to hunt down some sprinkles I had in the cupboard. Sprinkles don't go bad, right??

And then, the very best part... eating! Georgie proclaimed it "the best cake ever" and wolfed it down.

G liked baking so much that we ended up making another cake just a few days later. I must say that cooking with G is lots more fun than just regular old cooking. Maybe I'll try to work it into our schedule every once in awhile.

Of course it was still 4th of July: Swimming and BBQ at home came later. We'd planned to go to a fireworks show. G's never been before because I think they start too late for her. A wee bit more mommy guilt. But because July 4th was on a Wednesday this year and Bobby and I had work and G had school the next day, we skipped it. G was happy enough with the couple dozen poppers and sparklers we picked up for her to enjoy in the backyard.

After that... bed. It was a long day.

Independence Day
We were so fortunate to have beautiful weather this year. Last year it was incredibly hot! This year, lovely blue skies and warm. Nice.

July 4th is a quiet day for us. We decided to go to Claremont and check out the activities they have there. As ususal it was very nice. Live music, political and food booths as well as crafts and other kid activities kept us busy for awhile.

G began by working on her star wand. G is particular so this took quite awhile :-)

Finally complete!

G loves the playground they have at the park there. Truthfully, I do not understand why. The equipment is old and kind of beaten down and they have this old rough sand... maybe because its old and therefore looks different from the parks she's used to around our house??? Anyway, G climbed up onto this dino thing and then requested her photo be taken. G struck a pose

Our commander and chief  was "present" for photos ;-)

We remembered from last time that there was a water slide so we brought G's suit and towel with us in the event she wanted to give it a try. As soon as she saw it she was hooked! Luckily Bobby and I were able to find a spot in the shade to park ourselves for the hour and a half G spent going down the slide over and over and over and over again... climb the stairs...slide, climb the stairs...slide, etc. I think she must have done it 75 times or so before she'd had enough.

Daddy and Mommy (below) with our little star spangled girl.

They had some tweens/teens from a local performing arts school there singing up on stage. G really enjoyed the music. So she could see better, she climbed up onto a chair and began to dance and wave her little flag to the music. It was quite entertaining to watch. I'm pretty sure there were more eyes on her than on the stage but G pays no attention to those around her when she's doing her moves. Dance like no one's watching sweetie :-)

After than we were pooped so we went home and took a nice nap.

Les Mis
Another classic I'd never seen. Les Mis was definitely on my show bucket list. It was being done at the Segerstrom Center in OC. My friend Candy went with me. We decided on a pre show dinner at Mortons. OK, I'm just going to say it, "YUM!" I could easily have made a meal of their bread alone. Its this huge round garlic loaf which is absolutely to die for. After that it was scallops and creamed spinach and, to top it all off, chocolate souffle!

With our bellies stuffed full of rich food we quickly made the two minute drive to the theater and got into our seats. I was a bit nervous about them actually because, by the time I bought them, the only options were the very front row or way, way back in the balcony. I chose the front row and hoped for the best. I have to say it was really neat being so close to the stage. For once I could really see the detail of the costumes and every single expression on the actors' faces. The only drawback is that we were so close that we could actually see their mike's which had a little speaker thing that dropped onto their foreheads. It was a bit distracting at first but I quickly go used to it and overall it was a fair trade off. Plus, no heads in front of you to block the view!

Most people know the story set in the early 1800s; after being imprisoned for 19 yrs for stealing a loaf of bread to feed his starving nephew, Jean Valjean breaks his parole and then spends the rest of his life seeking to maintain freedom and find peace and redemption.

The acting and singing were fantastic. The man who played Valjean did one particular song so beautifully I almost felt like giving him a standing ovation in the middle of the show. Don't worry. I showed restraint. But what a wonderful performance it was.

I was also impressed by the Segerstrom which is a very nice and modern styled venue. Being in OC it was definitely a different crowd than I'm used to in LA. I was completely tickled that at the souvenier table after the show everyone was lined up single file and waiting patiently to make their purchases. This is not something I've seen at the Pantages, ever. There, everyone just crowds around and pushes their way forward. Standing single file, so cute ;-)

I give the whole evening a 10+!

That enormous thing on the table in front of us is the $19 souffle :-)

Mambo Italiana
Dance recital time!!! Sadly, I have no video. The studio has a rule that you cannot record the recital. I can think of no reason for this rule other than to force you to buy their video. I wouldn't even mind buying the DVD except that last year's only had about 1.5-2 secs of my kid on it. Very frustrating.

At least I have some pretty cute pictures!

Here's G backstage. All dressed up and ready to go...

Ten little girls, ready to dance...

G came off the stage with a HUGE smile on her face and two questions: "Did I do a good job, Mommy?" and "Did Daddy get me flowers?" Yes to both!!! G loved her yellow roses :-)

G with her admirers

Good job Georgie!!! Mommy and Daddy are so proud of our tiny dancer.

Stars and Stripes
How cute is this Harajuki outfit?? I found it in like February at Target. G loved that the skirt was so long which is definitely her style of choice right now. We decided to leave her hair down and curl it which is quite the project. It takes me about 45 mins because her hair is so long. I keep telling her we need to trim it but she doesn't want to. G insists that she wants to let it grow to the floor "like Rapunzel". She's on her way :-) I can't believe how grown up she looks in these shots! I loved them all so much I just got the CD which, thankfully, was free because I had an awesome coupon!

Lots of pix to enjoy this time!

In this pic you can really tell how long her hair is. The giant ribbon hair clip was an end of year gift from her teacher. Cute, huh??

26 years!!
Our anniversary --June 21 --fell in the middle of the week this year so we waited til the weekend to have a little celebration. We had already agreed to no gifts and to keep it low key. Bobby did send me some beautiful flowers at work.... red roses and lilies. So pretty! Then we went to the Magic Lamp for dinner. Bobby thought of it which was sweet. Its where we had our wedding reception. I think we've only been back there one other time in the last 26 years which is kind of funny.

Its hard to believe that we've been married for 26 years. That's a LONG time!! Even after all these years, Bobby is still my best friend. I guess I'll keep him around a bit longer :-)

G and I were both a little tired --we'd been in Hollywood at the Brave movie all that morning but we both managed to rally and enjoy the evening.

This cake was to die for. It was chocolate mud... yum!

I have wedding pix of us in front of this same stained glass window. I'll try to dig them up and scan them if I get a chance.

As we were leaving, an elderly couple that had been seated behind us stopped to ask if we were celebrating something special. We explained it was our 26th anniversary to which they offered their congratulations. They then added that they were also celebrating an annivesary that evening... 56 years!!! Yowzah!! I guess that makes us practically newlyweds in their eyes. Twenty-six years down and just 30 more to go :-)

La Cage aux Folles
I've seen The Birdcage movie many times but never the play on which it was based. Our pre-dinner show this time was another of my Groupons (or maybe Living Social I forget) for a 50s diner themed place called Cafe 50's near LA City College. The area was ummmmm, interesting to say the least. Let's just say that I saw all types of people walking down the street as we ate that afternnon but it was all good :-)

My mom was excited by the fact that they made their own shakes and ice cream sodas. For some reason she's constantly trying to relive the sweets of her youth and is, sadly, constantly shocked that the shakes at McD's etc don't live up to her standards. When she found out that they actually "make" the shakes and sodas here she had HIGH hopes. She liked it but had to admit that it still wasn't as good as the ones she had when she was in teens. So funny!

Here's mom mostly enjoying her strawberry ice cream soda

Even though the area is pretty crappy I'd likely return to Cafe 50s for a preshow dinner. The food was good and its nice to find some different spots in LA.


Full of french fries and club sandwiches, we were off to the show! Things started out great. They had a very tall and thin cross dresser in front of the theater yakking with the patrons. "She" called herself Lily McWhiteass and was quite funny. She was such a hoot I wish I would have gotten a pic with her but I didn't think of it at the time. The show itself was pretty good. The lead of "George" (played by Robin Williams in the movie) was played by George Hamilton who I guess is best know for being super tan?? Anyway George Hamilton, who is probably a fine enough actor, is NOT a singer. Not by any stretch of the imagination. It did make a few of the songs a bit painful. On the other hand, the actor who played George's romantic partner Albin (Nathan Lane in the movie) did a great job portraying a sensitive and over the top drag queen. He had a very nice voice too.

Overall I enjoyed dinner (B+) and the show (B-) and especially the evening with my mom (A+)

Brave
The trailer asks, "If you could change your fate, would you?" Fair question. But then, Merida's attempts to change her fate involve her knowingly drugging her mother with a magic cake that turns her into a bear. They make a big point out of Merida being an accomplished archer but Merida is no warrior princess. Merida does not engage in any heroic actions whatsoever. Also, the fight scenes between Merida and her mother are really over the top and much too angry for a children's movie in my opinion. Let's just say I had a lot of issues with the movie and its "message" or lack thereof.

Having said that, its still an enjoyable movie. Lots of action (maybe too much/too scary for many little ones) and the 3d animation is really well done.

I was really looking forward to the film and bought tix to see it at El Capitain. Seeing a movie there always an event. We did breakfast with Merida then met friends for the actual movie which included a 10 minute or so live stage show featuring Goofy, Mickey and Minnie (each in multiple costumes), several princesses and their respective princes, Buzz and Woody doing a salute to America, Scottish dancers and of course Merida. Seriously, the stage show was awesome! It was practically worth the price of admission on its own. After the movie, which G enjoyed tremendously because she's no where as critical as I am, we headed over to Hollywood and Highland and hit the Johnny Rockets for some ice cream. G was in heaven!

You know the great thing about being on Hollywood Blvd at 8:15am??? There's no one there :-) I've always kind of wanted to get a pic of G on these stairs. Every time we go I see the tour groups lining up to snap their pix but its always super, super crowded. Not so at a quarter after the crack of dawn.

We always try to get a picture in front of the El Capitan marquee. Sadly, the building is under construction so this ones not quite as fun as most.  
Breakfast was tasty! They had these really good blueberry cakes/scones. G didn't really like hers so I kind of helped her out ;-)
 
Finally, the big moment... Merida!!! That's a LOT of red hair, just sayin'. She played the part well, very spunky, and spoke with a cute Scottish accent too!
 
How neat is this ribbon sculptured hair clip? I'm not sure it shows in the pic but the string of the bow is made from thread. Very detailed. Seriously, some people are so clever. Thank you etsy! G really liked the set she wore. We got it in a tank so we can reuse at WDW in a few mos. The appliques of Merida and her horse Angus are really well done.

This Mickey thing used to sit out on the sidewalk in front of the soda fountain. A few visits ago, it disappeared. When we asked the manager about it he assured G it would be returning after some planned construction. G was super excited (not exaggerating this point whatsoever by the way) to encounter it in the hallway near the bathrooms so we got or traditional pic. I can't wait til its back out in front where it belongs.  
They had this photo op set up in the lobby. I'm not sure if this is something that's available at other theaters or just something special for El Capitan but its pretty neat!
 
Later at Johnny Rockets with Gracie. They had a good time giggling and playing little games together.

Overall, I'd give the movie a B- but the experience an A+!!