Enjoying My Time

While my baby girlie swings away, blissfully conked out in her battery powered Graco baby swing, I've finally been able to enjoy some time dinkin' around online... although I probably should have showered over an hour ago, or better yet, I should have taken this chance to take a much, much needed nap, as my left eye's been twitching all morning long. I keep thinking though that she'll wake any minute... She'll make some cute lil' noise and stir a bit, and I'll brace myself for more coo-ey noises to be made, followed by some cute grunting and then a sharp lil' squawk that translates into "COME N' GET ME RIGHT NOW, MOMMIE!", signaling my online time must come to an end, but she's been out now for over 2 hours. She's made a couple deep contented breathy sighs since I began writing this lil' blurb of a post... but she's still not yet awake. Should I stop now and dash upstairs for a quick 5 minute shower?

A couple days ago --actually, it was the very night before we were to leave town in the morning for a family wedding in L.A. at Griffith Park-- I had stalled and stalled, thinking I didn't have enough time to shower before our baby girlie would wake and want to be fed before her final bedtime. I finally made a go of it though, and I hopped in the shower. Not only did I have to cut my shower short, I wound up with only one leg shaved (and I hadn't shaved in over a week), and no, I did not get the chance to remedy that before the wedding that following day. Thank goodness the dress I'd chosen to wear was long and lengthy!

Since my baby sweet potato girl's arrival, time has become a most precious commodity - not that it wasn't precious before... but never before now had time truly flown like it now does. And I'd thought the time was soaring past me while I was pregnant? That was nuthin'! I mean time REALLY flies by freakin' fast now, like lightning speed flashes! The day begins and before I know it, it's after three in the afternoon and I have only 3 or 4 hours or so until my honey-man is to return home from work.

I can't believe my baby is nearly 8 weeks old already? I'LL have only a month of maternity leave left... ['SHOUTING-AT-TOP-OF-MY-LUNGS' NOTE TO SELF: STOP THAT RIGHT NOW! THIS VERY INSTANT! DO NOT THINK ABOUT THAT RIGHT NOW OR YOU'LL TOTALLY FREAK OUT AND BURST INTO TEARS. AH!-AH! NOOO! NO!!! STAAHHP THAT!] Um, so yeah, she'll be 8 wks old tomorrow, and I had her weighed just yesterday, as I'd already noted. I look through the pictures we took those first days in the hospital, and it's utterly unbelievable how quickly she grows and how much she's changed and developed since we brought her home.

Oh and she's sooooo cute! She cooes, she smiles, she squawks and squeals... And she's seems to be such a pensive little girl already. She'll stare at us and all our fantastical efforts to coax a smile, and then she'll tilt her head to the side while staring some more... then she'll slowly bring her chin downward without breaking eye contact and then she'll suddently throw her chin upward and throw us the cutest lil' toothless smile I've ever laid eyes on!

The days just meld one into the other and I wish with all my heart that time would slow down, please, so I could enjoy this time a little longer, please.

Self-Portrait Day, um, a day early ~ I Voted!

And yes, I'm trying to keep my eyes open in this shot...

Self-Portrait Day!

Today's my 'Friday' - - I should be in L.A. sometime late tomorrow. But today? I'm scrambling to get as much stuff done as I can before I leave town... I call this look my 'squirrely' face.
And see!? I DO have eyes!

Self-Portrait Day! Security Camera Style

Self-Portrait Day ~ with a Frown

Do you think I look a lil' grumpy here?
If you do think so, you'd be abso-freakin'-lutely right.

Self-Portrait Day!

Trying to be happy, while stuck in traffic...
*Update* CLARIFICATIONS: 1) the car was completely stationary, 2) I only take pics in the car when I'm NOT moving, 3) Yes, this a very FORCED smile, 4) I was NOT happy

Self-Portrait Day!

Another SPD brought to you from our time spent over the New Year in Keystone, CO!

Self-Portrait Day!

See me in my little 6' 6" tall brother's ski goggles?

I took this pic last week just for today!

Self-Portrait Day!

These absolutely crazy shades belong to my friend, Daly (pronounced like "Dolly" - NOT "Daily" - she came to the U.S. from Thailand when she was 5 yrs old). Daly looks great in 'em, but I think that I only look like a bug to be squashed!!! I couldn't look at myself in the visor mirror without losin' it - gotta admit, looks pretty funny, eh?

Self-Portrait Day

SPD - Mah "new to me" Matrix

Meet my new car - "Stay Puft II"
Now, it's not brand, brand new, yet it's new for me! woo-hoo!

I refuse to buy a brand new car - been there, done that = bad deal. Why buy something that INSTANTLY depreciates by a couple $ grand once you've simply driven it off the lot?!? Tell me how it makes sense to owe more on something than it's worth the very same day it becomes yours? Unless you have a righteous cash flow, so be it, but not me!

Anyhwhoo, mah "new" Matrix is a 2003, blue book value $14,300. I bought it for $12K. I'm good, I tell ya. Good. It's not a fancy pants model - no moonroof or alloy wheels. No foglights. It has keyless entry, automatic w/ cruise control (which should save me an average of $160/year in speeding tickets), power locks and windows (although I favor manual windows) and the gas mileage is a decent 36 mpg on the highway - not great, but not bad. What do I love most about the Matrix? THE HATCHBACK! I love hatchbacks. LOVE 'EM.

Last weekend the Matrix and I introduced my honey-man to the wonderful world of "car camping."
"So, you wanna go car camping tonight?" I asked.
The look he gave me was priceless: one of those "okay, I love you, but you're officially nuts" kinds of looks. So, what's car camping? Well, duh - camping in the car - simple as that! After first enjoying a drive around Lake Mead and a lil' tour of Boulder City, we took the Matrix to Saddle Cove back at the lake and parked in a remote spot a mere 20 feet from the water lapping on the lake shore. The back end of the car was facing east, with the hatch open so we could look out over the water and watch the sunrise in the AM. The moon was full that night and we walked around the water's edge without flashlights. It was so quiet and peaceful - so relaxing. The night temperature was perfect - cool, yet not cold. We folded the back seats down, laid out a poofy comforter covered by a fitted sheet (was a perfect fit) and zipped two matching sleeping bags together and laid down to sleep - yeah, heh, heh - no really! We slept with the hatch up all night, and no, our feet weren't hanging out the back - I'm 5'6" and my honey-man's 5'10" tall. And the Sunrise? absolutely picturesque and all we had to do was lay there and look out the back. We also saw two cranes and 2 mildly simmering "boils" of fish feeding on the morning bugs. Speaking of bugs, we were fine despite being so close to the water. It was just grrrreat! We took our time waking up and once we cleaned up "camp," we went to the Las Vegas Marina to have breakfast at their lil' diner. It was so fun.

So what happened to my wonderful Toyota Echo - ?
My honey-man is now driving it ~ a WONDEFUL commuter car with 43 mpg on the highway! His previous car, although equally cute, really considered downright sexy, was unfortunately quite impractical all the same - a 2 seater Miata convertible, black. So no more Miata; he's crusin' in the Stay Puft now. Sure, it's not exactly a manly car, definitely not powerful, but it's a SMART car. Very smart. The angel boy-O loves it too.

This shot is my reflection in one of the Matrix windows. Yay!

Self-Portrait Day!

All the things we pile upon ourselves!?! Sure, I gotta full plate on my hands, but all the OTHER things that run through my head? do I like to cause for myself unnecessary stress?

This is my shoulder - over the past couple weeks, I've been breaking out in hives.
Juhhhst lovely, eh?

Self-Portrait Day!

Another pic from Montreal for SPD!

kinda cute, eh? ya can see mah honey-man, up and behind me...

Self-Portrait Day!

Took these last week while we were in the Metro station, downtown Montreal - which was sooo clean!?! No, really! the station was very clean! - no joking. This "mirror" was really some reflecting mirror-like surface (not glass) on the front of a photo booth...which we tried out together (me, mah honey-man and the angel boy-O).
The first pic was a fluke, but I thought it looked cool ~ the 2nd was to be the "corrected" effort, although still out of focus.

Self-Portrait Day! - Meet "Cousin It"

This one is for my not so lil' brother.

(he's 6 ft. 6" tall, 16 and adorable)

Some background info:

Memorial Day 2004, I went with my immediate family to Disneyland -yes, over the Memorial Day holiday weekend. yes, I thought the idea was certifiably insane... HOWEVER, we had ourselves a strategy for stress-free Disneyland success!

It was JUHHHST fine, really! We went on Friday before the swarms had arrived. Our 2nd day was Sunday, when the swarms were leaving. Plus, we stayed at the California Hotel Resort, just inside the California part of the park; perfect for post-Grizzly River Run drenchings... we'd finish the ride and saunter right over to our hotel for a swim or a quick dress change. Anyhow, our longest wait in line was for Indiana Jones with a "Fast Pass" - about 30 minutes is all. 2nd longest wait time in line was 25 minutes for California Screamin' (by the way, we road that thing over and over and over again, usually only a 10-15 minute wait).

So - - our first "long wait" for Screamin,' my brother (15 at the time) says to me, "Oh, do your Cousin It" - I used to do this when he was a lil' pee-wee toddler and he would laugh loud enough to wake the dead. So, picture it: in the middle of the line, without thinking, I went for it and then, while blinded by my hair, I heard not only my brother laughing, but many unidentified giggles and great laughter errupting from all around me. For some bizarre reason, it hadn't first occured to me that I would have an audience, as I was surrounded by oh, a few hundred people all waiting in the same line?

Self-Portrait Day!

K, I didn't technically take this one, BUT it was taken today...doesn't that work?

Self-Portrait Day!

Haven't participated in SPD for a while... this here, I'm in my car and I'm a tad torked off, if ya can't tell. why am I torked off ?? Try 119 degrees outside and then roasting in an even hotter car interior with the AC blasting what felt like only hot air, finally cooling things off only when it was time to get out of my car, having arrived to my destination. This time of year in Vegas is unbearable. Everyone wanders around pissed off and we all run from one air conditioned location to another...and I actually carry a denim jacket with me because everywhere I go to, it's frickin' freezing inside!!! There is absolutely NO happy medium; bake like a chicken or freeze like an Otter Pop.

Self-Portrait Day!

"Non-mirror Reflection" SPD - purty cool idea I thought...

Used a handy sterling silver plated clock kept at my office desk, given to me when I left my last place of employment ~

Self-Portrait Day!

K, my eyes are much more squinty in real life and my neck ain't that long...and this picture doesn't really look like me at all - but here's my self-drawn self-portrait.

Self-Portrait Day!

Funky perspective, eh?

I'm told this one looks more like me -?