Latest on the bathroom...

So, Stace has grouted the tile on the walls and floor of the spare bathroom.

Here, you see Cora helping clean the toilet, which is now in use. Getting the toilet installed before Sue and Gord arrived was a big goal of ours, and we were happy it worked out.

For now they are using our shower and sink. Hopefully that will change over the next few days... fingers crossed!

Nanny and Pop are here!

It's been great showing them our house, since this is their first trip since last August, when they helped us pack up to move out of our condo. They arrived Thursday night and Cora had fun taking them to the park Friday morning, and the pool Friday evening.

I enjoyed going to Stroller Strides sans stroller Friday - "enjoyed," since Cora was at her worst during Thursday's class, spending much of the time crying and screaming. Uggh.

It's been a rough week with her - I'm afraid we're hitting that 2 1/2 thing I hear about, after she's been relatively pleasant and happy the last six months.

On the bright side, she is generally easygoing at home, and plays really well by herself. So, as long as we don't go into public, I should hopefully avoid future tantrums and screaming fits.

Friends and family, feel free to visit me. At my house. During naptime, when Cora won't be out to scream at you.

Anyway, prior to Nanny and Pop's arrival, we visited our friend Melanie on Tuesday and went to IKEA. Cora had fun checking out the little kids' furniture - she kept referring to the bedroom set here as "hers."
And, after we got home and she woke up in her crib from her nap, she said the following to me: "Mummy, look (motioning to the bars). I can't get out of this crib by myself. Maybe we go to ... to .. that mall and buy a new bed, and say, 'Bye bye, crib' (waving at the bars). Maybe we get Cora one of those beds."
UH OH.
She hasn't mentioned it since. But I can see a new bedroom set being a nice reward for Cora once she's potty trained.

Speaking of that, not much to report - still naked at home, with Cora using her potty most of the time. (Most being the operative word.) The other night she asked to wear panties on a short trip to the drugstore, and I thought it would be a good test, especially as I already needed to wash her car seat cover after a juice spill that morning. Thankfully, I was prepared with a diaper and skirt, as she wet herself on the 5-minute drive from home (and then insisted she hadn't).

The photo of the coke can is an object lesson in how hot it's been the last few weeks, with temps above 100, and even 105, for many days. That can of soda had been in my car as my emergency drink. The good news is, a $50 wash and shampoo at Valencia Car Wash did absolute wonders for my entire interior, even the spills up front that I can't blame on Cora. Should have done it years ago!

Thankfully, it's cooled off a bit, and is only reaching the low 90s at the moment.

And the final photo is from Cora relaxing after church Sunday, while I cleaned up and Stace worked on the tiling. Doesn't she look cozy while she watches her Thomas DVD?

Wet and Wild

It's been hot, hot, hot, and we are so very thankful for our community pool!!!

My friend down the street Genia and I hosted a MOPS pool date last week, and on Monday we had our friends Lylia and Kelsie come over to cool off.

And, in and around working his bum off in the bathroom, Stace has played with Cora in the pool several evenings lately.

The final photos are from our trip to the SClarita Aquatic Center on Friday. Cora had a ball, and enjoyed doing this funny belly flop thing in the shallow water. She then would stand up and clap, naturally.

On Monday evening, after we spent much of the morning at our pool with Kelsie, my sister played with Cora for a couple of hours while Stace and I went to buy the cabinet, counter, sink and storage cabinet for the bathroom.

When Melanie got here, Cora asked her to take her to the pool. Mel replied that she hadn't brought her bathing suit. Cora said, "Maybe you can borrow one of mine."

All work and no play.....

......makes Stacey a dull boy.
So on Tuesday night I took the evening off from working in the bathroom and Lisa, Chris and I went to the Pasadena Rose Bowl to watch Chelsea take on Inter Milan in the World Football (Americans read "soccer") Challenge.
It was a beautiful evening as we, along with 81,200 other footy fans, sat down in one of Los Angeles many famous landmarks to enjoy a match up between Chelsea and the team now managed by "the special one", Chelsea ex-manager Jose Mourinho.
This competition is part of a pre-season tour of the States and Chelsea have bought their entire squad. We were very pleased to see Carlo Ancelotti, the Blues new manager, field his strongest side at the start of the match.
Right from the start Chelsea dominated the game, much of which centered around an outstanding display of football from the Chelsea midfield. Frank Lampard dominated and created chances from the whistle, and this continued for most of the game. Inter, who didn't play all that well, were well beaten in all positions and hardly had a shot on target. The game ended with a comfortable 2-0 victory for the mighty Blues.
This was my first time to the Rose Bowl and I was thoroughly impressed with this outstanding stadium. There doesn't seem to be a bad seat in the house. Getting out of the place, however, is another story. We were directed to park on the neighbouring golf course and it took nearly an hour before we actually got the car back onto the road for our 45-minute drive home.

Here are a few pictures from the evening's entertainment.

Nearly finished tiling

You can see the top of the tub here, and the small ledge just above the bottom tile. Stace completely engineered the two corner shelves. He just needs to attach the facing tiles to the three shelves and they'll be finished.
Here is the left side, where the shower head, tub faucet and handle will be. Stace has nearly finished putting up the bullnose tiles along the edge, the rounded-edge tiles that finish off the job.
And the right side. The decorative tile in the center has natural-colored tumbled stone, and translucent glass tiles, in a beige and super-light-sage color.
You can see here that Stace has tiled all the way to the ceiling.

This and That

We start with some photos from a recent harvesting session.

It is so much fun having a garden! At least, this part is fun... Our tomatoes are yummy and the zucchini are good, too. Hopefully we'll soon be harvesting fruit from our tree out front.

These pictures remind me to post an update on our potty-training progress. Cora's been using the potty occasionally for months now, but after the fire, it kind of went by the wayside. The only working bathroom in our house is through our master bedroom, and that's quite a trek from the playroom, where Cora spends much of her time. When we'd ask her if she'd like to try, she would say no, sometimes quite emphatically. (Unless she was already in bed for the night - we had several nights with her demanding to use the toilet after she was in bed, just so she could get up.)

But, then she got a red rash on her bum, on a Friday night, so on Saturday (just over a week ago) we let her go bare-bummed around the house. We put her potty out in the living room, on the tile floor, and reminded her often to use it. She did great, and used it lots of times.

That evening, we were out in the backyard, grilling zucchini and eating just-picked tomatoes with our dinner. Cora ate lots of tomatoes. And, we pretty much watched her bare bum turn bright red again. Poor kid. We've been telling her for months that when she uses the potty regularly, she can eat more tomatoes, oranges and strawberries, figuring that the rash they brought on had to do with wearing diapers. Now, it appears she just has an allergy to those acidic fruits she loves.

Still, the upside is that the rash gave us a reason to bring the potty back out, and she is happy to use it during the day when we are at home. We still put her in diapers for naps and bedtime, and when we're out of the house. So, we'll see! I'd love to think we're on our way to putting away the diapers before too long.

A few stories:
First, the difference between boys and girls - and no, not that difference. When Harvey came over, Stace was reading Harvey's bedtime books to both kids, one on either side of him. The book was about trucks, and we were impressed with Harvey's ability to name all these different types of trucks. He ran over to get his dump truck, and spent the rest of the reading time driving it up and down Stace's arm and head, while making the appropriate (loud) noise. Stace started laughing, and noted how this was how boys are different from girls, as Cora was sitting quietly on his other side.
Too true: on the other side of the equation, more than once lately, Cora has come up to me with a sad face. When I ask what's wrong, she simply says mournfully, "I'm just not really happy right now." And if I pursue the issue further, that's the only answer I get. Training for wifehood, I hear some of you saying.

Also, Cora is growing more aware of the boy/girl thing. She will say to me, "You're a girl. Cora's a girl. Daddy is a boy. Harvey is a boy."

Though she loves Harvey, I think Cora's favorite boy is still Thomas. Thomas the Tank Engine, that is.
Nanny and Pop sent Cora some Thomas DVDs. She was asking to watch it one night, but was turned down since it was too close to bedtime. So, she got on her little phone and started chatting. "Hello? Hello, Thomas? Yes? OK. Bye." She turned to us - "Thomas said I can watch choo choo train."

A day or so later, Cora was in her high chair, head down, hands together, talking softly.
"Are you talking to God?" I asked her.
"No, Minnie Mouse."
But of course!
She then looked down again and said, "Dear God, thank you for Thomas, and James, and Gordon, and Percy."
The girl has her priorities!
(Those are all engines in the series.)

Over the weekend, Stace made great progress on the bathroom, and we were rewarded with a fun Saturday night out at our first Dodger game of the year. The Boys in Blue continue to have the best record in all of baseball, and it was fun to finally root for them in person.

And on Sunday, Cora and I got to watch Melanie's role in the local Shakespeare in the Park. It was an enjoyable evening, as it's always fun for me to cheer for my sister on stage.

Santa Barbara Zoo

Elissa and I took our two to the Santa Barbara Zoo today, and it was a fantastic time. When we've had so many consecutive hot-as-Hades days, nothing feels better than the cool of the beach, and this zoo is just perfect: a manageable size, with plenty of shaded tables, grass and play areas, along with the collection of animals.
We started the day off with the kids in the stroller, but that didn't last long. They held hands off and on all day, which we moms joked was a date, especially when Cora wore Harvey's hoodie.

We waited in line for the train, passing time by banging the buttons on the penny machine, dancing, and swinging the chain in the waiting area.
We got to sit in the front! The train takes you around the perimeter of the zoo, so you get to see some of the animals.
Then it was time for a ride on a smaller train. This one was so bouncy I was afraid one of the kids would fall off!
Then, I changed Cora's shorts because she had spilled her juice ... just in time for her to slip down a small muddy hill.
Harvey helped clean Cora's legs and shoes - and then, with the wet wipe dripping from the fountain, he helped clean the back of her shirt, where there wasn't any mud. They both enjoyed cleaning Cora up.
Then, it was time to actually see some animals - imagine photos of giraffes, gorillas, huge birds of prey, meerkats, tortoises, elephants, etc. After all those animals, the kids were thirsty.
And, tired. They were both asleep within minutes of our pulling away. Elissa and I were sad we couldn't head over to the beach - it's literally across the street from the zoo. But, our children were worn out. What a great day!

To Watch, or Not to Watch

On Sunday we walked to the local park with Cora and Harvey to watch this summer's Shakespeare in the Park. Melanie was very excited to land her first role in the production of "Pericles," a great story of love and intrigue.

We brought a picnic dinner, and I got to watch about a third of the show before the kids got a bit too restless to continue to stay quiet. So, we headed over to the play area, where Cora and Harvey played very well together. They're old enough now to both listen well, and stay near each other - it would have been hard to watch two younger toddlers running in different directions!

We hope to go watch it again this weekend, and bring quiet activities for Cora to do so we can try to watch more of the show.

Some tile on the wall!

I'm so proud of my husband! In just a few days, he has made such great progress. Notice the round hole cut for the faucet handle - four tiles had to be cut to form that circle.

Bathroom progress report

Here's Stace's progress in the bathroom over the last week:

The tub was installed on July 2, the day we went off to Ventura. We then were gone, celebrating Independence Day and visiting with my aunt, uncle and cousins.

Still, Stace managed to get the area ready for tiling, which will be the weekend project.

He put in the insulation, black plastic and tile board, and then taped all the seams.

We have three weekends left before Stace's parents come out for a visit, so hopefully all will go well with the project and they will have a functioning bathroom to use. Fingers crossed!
And if not, Gord will certainly be a great help to Stace in finishing things up.

Family help

Stace and Cora and I had such a great time with Uncle Bill, Aunt Patty, Alison and William.

We really appreciated their help yesterday. Will gave Stace a hand in the bathroom, while Patty helped me organize four boxes of Cora's clothing, the clothes professionally cleaned after the fire. My aunt also is a keen gardener, and she helped us in the garden.

Meanwhile, Uncle Bill installed a window air conditioner in the play room. What a wonderful difference! The room lacks insulation and with our summer heat, it was making the rest of the house hot.

They have gone on to visit their other family members elsewhere in SoCal, so we said our good-byes today. I hope we can make it up to visit them next year. I haven't been to their house in two years, when I flew up alone with a tiny Cora.

The last photos show a family reading of the sea life book Aunt Patty bought. Cora didn't want to come over, so Alison got comfortable on her mom's lap. Then Cora came over and helped point out fish. Then, she helped Minnie point to the fish.

Independence Day!

We had a great Fourth of July!

First we went to the parade, our tradition for quite a few years now. Cora waved her flag with the best of them, and danced to the music.

I have to say, the parade wasn't that great this year. I admit we were late getting there, but we saw no marching bands, very few emergency vehicles, and just a couple of horses. If all the good stuff really was in the first 45 minutes, I suggest they spread it out a bit more next year.

Still, an overall-fun experience. Cora's favorite part was playing with the water bottle/fan Grandma brought for her.

After the parade we went to a carnival at the new Bridgeport shopping center. It would have been more fun, if it hadn't been oh-so-hot. We didn't stay long.
In the evening, we had everyone over to our house for a bite to eat and some drinks in the back yard. My family, and Uncle Bill, Aunt Patty, William and Alison, and our friend Christine joined us. The evening was lush, as Stace would say, after it cooled off. We are so pleased to be able to host.

We then watched the fireworks at the mall. We didn't have our camera with us, so I'll have to get the photos off Patty's camera to show Cora's pure joy at watching the show. She loved it, and chattered the whole time. ("Oooh, look at that one! That one was really good! It was red, and blue! I like that one!" etc.)

Then it was back to our house for more drinks! What partiers we are.