Catch Up

OK, I have been slacking on this blog! "Mamma's Meal's" (http://www.mammasmeals.blogspot.com/) has been getting all of my attention lately. For those of you who haven't seen it yet, it is my newest time waster. I needed to find an organized way to keep track of our meals without wasting paper and printing them all out. This is how my new blog was born.

In random order, here is the catching up I have to do:

I got to see an old college friend of mine, Stephanie, and met her sweet sister in law on Sunday for breakfast. We had a nice time eating at the Breakwater and walking along the harbor afterwards. No matter how long it's been between visits, Steph is one of those people that makes it easy and comfortable to just pick up where left off, as if we just saw each other yesterday. Everybody should have a friend like that : )

I spent Sunday afternoon in the garden planting my winter vegetables and herbs. I added cauliflower, broccoli, brussel sprouts, rhubarb, cilantro, and parsley. I finally pulled our dying tomatoes to make room for the new sprouts. It's looking good! Let's hope those gophers stay away!Here is Owen asking for more peaches after finishing a whole giant peach already. If you click on the photo you can see the evidence on his chin : )Yesterday we got to hang out at Alice Keck park and play with the ducks, turtles and fish. It was beautiful out, a good day to be outside!Looking up to Pappy, his buddy.Mom invited us over for dinner the other night and these are the mojitos she made from the mint in her garden. They were deeeelish! (and very pretty I might add)Owen is becoming a champion tooth brusher lately! His reward: floss! I can brush his teeth thoroughly for at least a minute or two, and all he wants afterwards is a piece of mint flavored floss! It doesn't get any better than that!

Before work today, we took our bikes down to Goleta beach and hung out for a while before I had to start work. Nice way to start our day.Checking out the surf from the cliffs.

To end our great day, we got to see Andrew, Suzanne and Keira for some appetizers, wine and good company in their beautiful backyard. We got to take home a tired little boy who played hard, some home grown Japanese eggplant, lemons from their tree and some gorgeous summer squash from their awesome garden! Thanks guys!! I will be posting recipes with all of it this week!!

Bike Ride

Adam took Owen out for a long mountain bike ride to the beach tonight so I could get dinner made peacefully while sipping my glass of wine : ) So nice. Owen came home to a warm dinner with a huge smile on his face from a fun ride with his Daddy.

Natural History Museum

After breakfast, we rallied to get to the Natural History museum to see "Twinkle Twinkle for Little Stars" (a planetarium show for kids). The freeway was closed for some reason, so it took us much longer to get there...and we missed the show! BUT, we did hang out with the butterflies for a while. It was warm out today so all the butterflies were fluttering about. There were tons of them! Owen was of course more interested in the rocks that were in the fountains.

We had to leave the butterflies after one too many requests for a snack. Just outside the exhibit, we sat at a nice table outside overlooking a dry creek bed with lots of plants and shade. After a bag of veggie chips, cheese and whole grain crackers, a granola bar and a full cup of apple juice, we were ready to move on. We headed to a sand pit of dinosaur bones he got to uncover, but not before he started begging a stranger for more snacks! He managed to get two Ritz crackers and some raisins out of these people, just on his good looks and puppy dog eyes. He's like a seagull, I swear!

Lately, Owen has been an eating machine! The kid does not stop. The second he leaves his high chair he is begging for snacks. He wants snacks after his snacks. He wakes up talking about food every morning and from every nap! He is definitely my child! If you want to see for yourself, here are some pics my mom took today of the "mouse" in her pantry! http://picasaweb.google.com/1LynnShively2Lewis/OwenInNanaSPantry?authkey=Gv1sRgCLDrraaW_dbB2gE#

After he was done scavenging for more food, we checked out the bird exhibit, made animal sounds at the large stuffed animals, and then....for the highlight of the day.....someone discovered a WATER FOUNTAIN!

Out with the old, in with the new!

We finally had to put our 1998 Nissan Pathfinder to sleep today : ( She was a good car for a long time, but it was time to say goodbye. In 2004 Adam and I had been dating for 10 months and we decided to go out on a limb and move to Colorado together. We sold our cars and bought a used, but in mint condition, Pathfinder together. A HUGE STEP for both of us! We packed her up with as much stuff as we could fit....And some things that we didn't need, like the huge sub-woofer Adam felt was a necessity. I didn't know he had packed this monstrosity until we got to Breckenridge. Little did I know, I had to leave shoes and bath towels behind because of this speaker that we never used ONCE, I might add.

We took a few days with a stop in Vegas, and one stop in Utah before we got to Breck. This was the first test to see if our relationship was going to work. If you can spend 3 days in a cramped car with someone and not fight, it's a good sign! We had a blast and have a lot of funny memories. Like trying to tape garbage bags together to put on top of the roof to keep the soft top from getting wet from the rain/snow. After about an hour of taping and attaching this in strong winds in Vegas, it blew off the car the second we got on the freeway! We ended up buying a tarp at a dollar store that made it the rest of the way!

I learned how to drive in the snow in 4 wheel drive with this car. She took very good care of us, never broke down and always started up in the morning, regardless of the -10 below temperature. After a year and a half of using her in the mountains, it was time to pack up (sub-woofer included) and let her (and me) thaw out in sunny California! We took 10 days to come home. Driving up to Jackson Hole, seeing the Grand Teton Mountains and amazing wildlife, on through Montana, Idaho, Seattle, Washington, Oregon and the beautiful California coast. We saw great friends along the way, and stopped in some amazing little towns that we would have never known existed if we didn't have our little Pathfinder to take us there.

We saw her turn 100,000 miles old on our way back from camping in Big Sur. It was her last hurrah! She had a good life, and has plenty of wrinkles to show for it! Now, with a crooked head light, deteriorating rubber door seals, torn upholstery, a glowing "check engine" light, bruises, and scrapes, it's time to say good bye. It was sad leaving her in the lot with a man holding a huge marker in his hand anxious to write "CLUNKER" on her windshield, but it had to be done. It's amazing how attached I am to this car.

Now, we have a new life to look forward to with a new love! We are welcoming a new 2009 Honda CRV into our family! Her shiny wheels, comfy leather heated seats, sparkling sun roof, and unblemished body are ready to to explore life with the Antons! I have had this car in my possession for less than 4 hours, and have actually been in it for less than 15 minutes, and Owen has already made himself very comfortable. For example, after we got in the car from the park, he insisted on taking off his shoes which were full of sand, and dropping one on the floor below, while tossing the other one into the front seat, leaving a small beach on our new passenger seat. This car has no idea what she is in for! I hope she likes kids! : ) Time to invest in a Dustbuster! I can't believe we have gone two years without one!

Cheese!

Owen loves to have his picture taken (go figure). Lately he has been saying "picture, picture, picture" over and over again. He likes to see them after I take it. However, it sounds like he is saying "pickle, pickle, pickle." It took me two days to finally figure out what he was saying. I don't think he even knows what a pickle is!? When I ask him to smile he usually gives me a big fake smile with a scrunched up nose and he almost looks angry. I stopped asking him to smile.

The video is taking too long to post, so here is the link to clip I took today.

http://picasaweb.google.com/adamanton/MommyAndOwenTime#5371908293771537298

Grandpa Norm and Beverly's visit

We were supposed to go to Tahoe and stay at Norm's cabin this week. When we envisioned 20 hours of driving with a toddler, there and back, we decided to decline the generous offer. Instead, Norm and Beverly came to see us! We had a great time! Owen got to open his birthday present from them early which was his very own Whinny the Pooh computer and a cool shirt. He was pretty psyched to have his own "puter." : ) We video taped it, but no photos....oh well.
We had a nice family dinner at my Mom's house that night and got to open a 20 year old 5 liter bottle of amazing wine that Norm brought down for us to share. It was lovely! Owen went to bed there and we were able to stay up and visit until the old guys needed to get some shut eye! It was a really nice night.

The next day, we were able to show them around the zoo and then hit Brophy's for an awesome lunch. We had a short break to relax at home before we headed to the concert at the park in Goleta. The music was pretty loud, but it was the first time Owen was pretty excited to dance to the music. It was a great past few days. Thanks so much for coming down Dad and Bev! We love you!

Rocks and puzzles

Today we took a short walk outside of our back yard to go exploring. As most of you know he is crazy about picking up rocks. He found a big one in the field that probably weighed close to what Owen weighs!
Tough guy

Ugh, I have to pick up this rock!

Look what I found Mamma!

So proud!

Off to the park for a change of scenery.

After a walk, the park and then dinner, we sat down and put together a 24 piece puzzle (at least 5 times). He LOVES this thing. Nanna gave it to him about a month ago. We kept it in the cellophane it came in because I thought the pieces would be all over the house in no time. He didn't quite know what a puzzle was all about, so he just loved to carry it around and look at it. It's a bunch of colorful pictures of animals. Well, today we decided to open it up and learn what a puzzle really means. This is definitely his new favorite quiet game (mommy likes this one : )

"More Gape"

Lately, my little boy is obsessed with grapes! From the first thing he says in the morning, to his mantra all day long, we hear "more gape, more gape, more gape." He is relentless. He will not stop until we leave the house, or he gets his grapes.
Today we went to farmers market to pick up some produce (grapes included!) and grab a coffee. Adam bought Owen a balloon hat with a tiger on it that he loved! He wore it proudly through the market as he searched for samples and tried snagging any grape or berry he could get his little hands on! It was pretty funny.

Day at the Park

After Adam left for work tonight I was getting bored and was craving some serious Vitamin D. Owen and I took a short walk to the park and had a great time! He got to swing on the swings, throw a ball for a huge dog, ride a big boy bike with training wheels, go down the slide and build mud pies to share with his neighborhood friend Sam. I will let the pictures do the rest of the talking....

Sam was very generous and let Owen borrow his bike and wear his helmet. He had to "help" Owen by pushing the handle bar the whole time. : )Owen is showing his thanks with a nice mud pie he made for Sam.

Uncle Rob and Braelyn's visit.

This week Adam's brother Rob (Uncle Rob) and his girlfriend Braelyn came to visit from Rhode Island. We had SO much fun while they were here. Owen bonded with them both instantly! He would not stop saying "Uncle Rob" the entire time he was awake! On Monday night we barbecued goat cheese, sundried tomatoes and basil stuffed chicken, corn and roasted some nice apricots for dessert that sat on top of vanilla bean ice cream! We stayed up talking and laughing until 1 AM. Owen of course woke up early the next day excited to see his new friends in the living room!

Fresh local veggies from our farmer's market with homemade basil hummus. I am doing my best to remind Rob and Braelyn how nice it is to live in CA. We get the best veggies year round, and you never have to shovel your driveway. We would love to have them as neighbors!! Wink wink..

Owen was having so much fun playing with his uncle. Tuesday we went wine tasting. We couldn't find a babysitter for Owen, so we crossed our fingers he would nap on the way up there. He fell asleep about 5 minutes before we pulled into the first winery (Sunstone). It wasn't crowded, so we parked in the shade, unrolled all the windows and could see him sleep while we tasted outside on a beautiful day! He slept for about an hour! So nice! He was rested, and we got to have our fun without having to chase him around all day. We were just about done when he woke up. We let him play with the owner's dog (Shelby...so cute) and run around outside for a bit before heading to the next winery.

Here is Owen "tasting" water out out of a wine glass : )

Owen picked some flowers for me (three times) and was so excited to hand them to me. Melts my heart. They were jasmine too....smelled sooo good : )

We finished our long afternoon of wine tasting at the Los Olivos Cafe for a late lunch of artisan pizzas and salad. Next, we drove into Santa Barbara (which Braelyn had yet to see), to hit up the Tuesday Farmer's Market downtown. We picked up some sprouts, cucumbers and avocado so we could go home and make sushi rolls. We barely made it to the harbor to pick up some fresh ahi, yellowtail and salmon before heading home. We put Owen to bed and rolled away! With full bellies we sat around the kitchen table and played a game of Balderdash which lasted again, until 1AM. We laughed so hard that night, it's a great game.

On their last day here, they went to breakfast at the Boathouse on the beach while I went to work : ( By the time I got home, it was nap time for the whole house. It was a good little break to prepare for the long night ahead of us! We hung out at "Nanna's" house for a bit to visit, (she had been gone all week) drink some wine and drop off Owen for the night so we could show Rob and Braelyn a bit more of SB's night life. After spending way too much time in each place drinking, it was time for the ladies (Braelyn and I) to round up our boys and take them home. Once again, it was well after 1 AM when we got home and had to get up before 8AM to take them to the airport in LA. We were all pretty pooped by then, but it was so worth it!

Rob's new shadow is a bit smaller than him.

We can't wait to come and see them again in September!! Only about 3 more weeks to go! We stayed up so late each night and drank way too much (some of us more than others...Adam), we need a good three weeks to recover before we do it all over again in Rhode Island! : )