Santa Monica 4th of July Parade

We went down to Main Street in Santa Monica for breakfast, and stumbled onto the Santa Monica 4th of July parade. A lady was passing out American flags and gave us 3 for the baby. We couldn't help but notice the bold "Made in China" label on the red, white and blue flags.

Happy 4th of July 2007!

Morning with Papa at Kwik-E-Mart

My husband is a huge Simpsons fan, and so when I asked him to pick up a bottle contact lens solution for me Monday night, he was all to happy to drive out to the newly converted Kwik-E-Mart in Los Angeles, on Venice/Sepulveda. (We're staying at a house nearby.) It's one of twelve 7-Eleven convenience stores converted into a Kwik-E-Mart for the next month to promote the upcoming Simpsons movie.

There was a line out the door and around the block, so rather than wait in line, he went back early this morning with Astrid to check out the inside of the store. (See pics below.)

The Simpsons inspired products/merchandise for sale include: KrustyO's cereal, Squishee cups, bright pink donuts, Buzz cola, collectible slurpee cups, magnetic straws, and Radioactive Man comic books.

My husband got the last box of KrustyO's cereal (not for eating - but to display in his office at work), and a crazy straw with a Homer magnet for Astrid. To his disappointment there was no Duff beer. Boo hoo.

Early in the morning there wasn't a line (there are perks to being parents of a toddler), but when we drove by in the afternoon the crowds were back. It's such a kooky, fun promotional idea that it was bound to draw tons of people. 7-Eleven has even hired security guards to handle the crowds.

Locate a Kwik-E-Mart near you -

There are 12 locations:

Burbank, CA
Chicago, IL
Dallas, TX
Denver, CO
Lake Buena Vista, FL/Orlando, FL
Las Vegas, NV/Henderson, NV
Los Angeles, CA
New York City, NY
San Francisco, CA/Mountain View, CA
Seattle, WA
Vancouver, BC/Coquitlam, BC
Washington, DC/Bladensburg, MD

Summer fun in the baby pool castle

I took this part of the baby pool castle with me (the castle and wading pool) and left the 2nd half (baby pool and slide) at my parents' house. (You can see pics of the entire contraption here.) Since we now go and visit my dad and spend an entire day with him once a week, it just made sense to keep the pool there rather than lugging it back and forth.


The canopy already has a tear in it, so I couldn't blow it up completely. It didn't matter though because Astrid still had a great time playing in it and as always she wanted a "shovel" (a ladle) to scoop the water.

Napping in a big girl bed

Astrid's pack n' play was all setup in the guest room of the house we're staying at, but Astrid wanted to sleep in the bed instead. We've been discussing when would be a good time to switch from the crib to a real bed for Astrid lately, so I thought I'd try it as a sort of experiment for today's nap, to see if she was ready. Less than a minute after I closed the bedroom door, Astrid got out of bed and opened the door.I told her that either she stayed in the bed, or she'd have to take a nap in her crib. I tucked her back into the bed, and closed the bedroom door once again.This time she got out of bed, and quietly cracked open the door to look out. So we had a repeat performance of me tucking her back in and telling her that she had to stay in her bed and go to sleep or I'd have to put her in her crib.The third time, she got out of bed but didn't open the door. She stood by the door and just cried. So I put her in the pack n' play crib and after many protests she finally laid down and took a nap.

She definitely likes the idea of sleeping in a bed, but she's not ready for it. Or at least I'm not. I don't like the idea of having to repeatedly put her back to bed. The crib is just so much easier. I know she's safe in there and she can play and fall asleep on her own. Eventually we'll have to go through the sleeping in the bed stage, but I'm not looking forward to it. I've heard stories of parents getting woken up in the wee morning hours, out of a sound sleep, with their kids standing over them - scaring them half to death. Eeek.

Astrid requests a magazine

We get a ton of magazines sent to our house every month, since my husband and I have a lot of interests and we're avid readers. So we always have a nice stack of magazines and other literature next to the toilet. Astrid has grown up with this, so when she needs to do her "business" she'll go over and grab a magazine from the basket. I chuckled a few times when I saw her flipping through a magazine while on the potty, but like her parents she loves to read and she's a born multi-tasker. Nothing unusual about that.

But today, there are no magazines in the bathroom of the house we're staying at. Astrid tried and tried to go to the bathroom, but it was taking a long time. So she called out to me, "Mommy...magazine please!" Thank goodness there were some magazines on the coffee table. What would we do without magazines? =)

My view from the rear view mirror

Here's what I see everyday when I'm driving in the car. I have a view of Astrid sitting behind me. I love watching her sing in her car seat, "read" her books out loud, play with her dolls, and look at the world outside.

I know her dad also loves looking back at her, because he'll forget to adjust the rear view mirror back into the proper position.

(Note: these were taking when I was at a complete stop.)

Visiting Papa at his office

On an typical day, my husband leaves for the office at the crack of dawn to avoid the rush hour traffic in LA, but it still takes him over an hour to get to work. This week we're house-sitting at a home near my husband's office, which has been a nice treat for him - it's a 10 minute commute and he doesn't even have to take a single freeway.

So today, Astrid and I went to visit him at work. It was nice to see him during the day in his stomping grounds. Of course he was the proud Papa and showed Astrid to everyone in his office.

House-sitting at the "Doggie House"

We're house-sitting for a friend in Culver City. Astrid calls it the "Doggie House" because of the two dogs - Maxine and Bo Jo. This is our first morning here. Astrid is drinking her milk out of a cappuccino cup.All smiles.She's gotten a lot better at drinking out of a cup now.Milk mustache.Hanging out with the doggies.Right after this sweet photo Maxine snapped at Astrid (twice). Astrid was giving her a hug. I don't know if she just doesn't like to be touched around the neck, or if she just wanted to be left alone. Either way, after that I was leery about letting Astrid play with the dogs.

The only dog I trust around Astrid is our dog. (Pictured here on the rug in front of the door.) She can pull her tail, put her fingers in her mouth, and all sorts of stuff that would drive a dog batty - but our dog either lets her or walks away. With all her neuroses & problems (our dog is from the pound and has lots of issues) this is her saving grace - she's a sweet dog and good around children. Bo Jo & Maxine sharing the love seat.Both dogs chillin' on their doggie beds in the office.

Also wanted to note that Astrid is not afraid of the dogs (even after the snapping incident). When she walks into the room and sees them, she gets excited and says, "Hi Guys!". As a sign of endearment she also gives them hugs and kisses.

Drinking out of a cup

Astrid's getting a lot better at drinking out of cups now. I still have her drink out of a sippy cup which is more convenient if we're traveling, but if we're at home, I let her drink out of a cup and just remind her to use two hands to hold it.

Below she's drinking out of an Aristocat's cup that her cousin left behind at her grandparents' house.
My dad called this one. He saw her getting a mouth full of water and he said, "She's going to spit in the pool."

That's the first time I've ever seen her do that. She kept coming back for more water, only to spit it out in the pool. After the glass was empty, that was it.

Recently my husband said we should teach Astrid how to spit when she brushes her teeth. But I guess she already knew how. =P