Happy Birthday Melinda!

Congratulations to my girl for making it into the double digits! What a major stepping stone on her quest to make it to adulthood. She is becoming such a little lady!

For Melinda's birthday we went out to dinner at the place of her choosing: Ruby's. Apparently they have the best chicken strips? The hat her brother gave her off his own head just might be her most treasured gift ever.

Melinda also had a small birthday party that Gramps & Tutu, and a friend from church came to. This started off with a cake of her own design: homemade chocolate cake with homemade frosting, decorated with mini M&Ms. Decorating done by the kiddos of course, since they know how to do it right.




The girls could hardly wait do beat up the piñata...they wouldn't wait for proper rope and ideal location, but it didn't really matter since the important thing was getting at the candy inside.



Gifts and swim time followed, with cake and ice cream shortly after.




(One of Melinda's gifts was a keepsake trunk that belonged to her great-great-grandmother Amy. What a treat!)

Happy Birthday my beautiful girl!

Festive Festivities at the Festival

Joshua Fest 2010! May the rain be with you!

Yes, this year's festival was the 7 Year's Storm version. This was the 7th JFest we've done, and it rained THE ENTIRE TIME. But despite people getting flooded out of their tents, they moshed on. In big huge muddy puddles. With big huge smiles on their faces. What a great crowd of people! And what a great, positive, hard working, supportive staff we have. God definitely schooled me about attitude that weekend.

Because my time in the rain (midday Friday through Sunday night--heavy and constant) was spent either sleeping, eating, working the coffee shop (Joe Bean! Yay!) or making mad dashes through the torrents, I mostly have before and after pictures. But that which I have, I give unto you:

Trying to level the RV...we never
did get it to work.

Happy hang-out time before
the rains came down and the floods
came up.

Setting up Joe Bean--let the craziness begin!

Melinda was beyond thrilled to be
able to help and learn in the kitchen
with Sam this year.

15 minute break.  Good times on the golf carts.

Great fun at Camp Jericho--it was dry inside!

So much fun to have family by me
during church service!

Story time.  Is that cute or what?

Really odd bathroom encountered on the drive
home.  (sorry.  the post wouldn't have been
complete without it.)

Exhausted!

Pre-Festival Concert #2

The second concert was a newer favorite: Mumford and Sons.  They have one album out, and every song on it is great (although I suppose I should add the parental language warning about the song Little Lion Man...Do NOT blast this song with kiddos in the house!)  This group hails from London, and the style of music is sort of a bluegrass/Irish/rock concoction.  This concert was at the Hollywood Palladium and was totally sold out and packed.

I'm sorry to say that the openers at this concert were rather dreadful.  In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if I found out that the first opener had been featured on the American Idol rejects.  Not that he had an excruciating voice, just he wrote songs only a mother could love and his whole get-up was simply preposterous.  The second opener was a little better, but still--for a crowd of 4,000 people waiting to see a very talented and popular band, they just weren't up to par.

All was forgiven (though the scars remain) when Mumford and Sons got on stage and said "We hope you enjoyed [the opening bands] as much as we did." [wink, wink]

Anyhow, the performance was great, and it was tons of fun to hear thousands of people singing along to some great songs.  The four guys in the group are all great musicians, playing a variety of instruments: drums, keyboard, guitar, upright bass, accordion, banjo, mandolin.  The song where the lead singer was also drumming, and the bass player was playing while holding the upright bass above his head left me amazed.

Pre-Festival Concert #1: The Weepies

As a pre-cursor to the weekend of concerts coming up (countdown to Joshua Fest 2010!)  we've attended two concerts by some favorite bands.  First was The Weepies.  We were at the first concert they'd done in four years--having taken touring time off in order to start a family.  They have four albums (in order of release): Happiness (2004),   Say I Am You (2006), Hideaway (2008), and Be My Thrill (2010).

We had a great time at the concert--it more than lived up to my hopes.  You know how it is when you really enjoy a musical group?  Seeing them live can prove how great they really are, or it can destroy your view of them altogether.  (Similar, I guess to the book/movie relationship.  The recorded/live contrast can be great.)  Musically it was great, but it was also a lot of fun.  Steve and Deb are from California, and are warm, fun people.  It made for a great night.

When first appearing on stage, Steve was amazed at how packed the El Rey Theatre was.  He said something to the effect of: You don't understand...we've been in our living room for the past four years.  There are a lot less people there.  It was a night to remember; my fan-hood has been solidified.  I loved the background on the song Can't Go Back Now--it was written for their niece when she began to walk.  Here are the lovely lyrics (I was going to link the YouTube video, but the graphics are weird...oh hey, look, I linked them anyhow):

Yesterday when you were young

Everything you needed done was done for you

Now you do it on your own

But you find you're all alone, what can you do?

You and me walk on, walk on, walk on

'Cause you can't go back now

You know there will be days

When you're so tired

That you can't take another step

The night will have no stars 

And you'll think you've gone as far 

As you will ever get

You and me wak on, walk on, walk on

'Cause you can't go back now

And yeah, yeah, you go where you want to go

Yeah, yeah, be what you want to be

If you ever turn around, you'll see me

I can't really say

Why everybody wishes they were somewhere else

But in the end, the only steps that matter

Are the ones you take all by yourself

You and me walk on, walk on, walk on

Yeah, you and me walk on, walk on, walk on

'Cause you can't go back now

Walk on, walk on, walk on

You can't go back now

Here's a little video I took of one of their songs at the concert, (although the quality is a bit sketchy since it was done on my phone).

What Season is it Anyway?

I've proof that the plants are more confused about the weather than I am. From record setting heat to chilly days and nights in less than a week. The trees are convinced they are doing their job: letting their leaves loose right on schedule (thankyouverymuch).



(yes, that's about all the leaves we have. don't make fun of me. So. Cal. never made claim to amazing autumns.) But the bulbs are beyond bewildered. Is it spring already?

Iris and calla lilies in October? What is going on?

Nursery Rhymes With a Twist

Flashback to 1980...where bizarre combinations were all the rage. Let me introduce you to the tiny booklet: My Jesus pocketbook of Nursery Rhymes.




This small treasure includes all kinds of adapted nursery rhymes, but I have just the two best to share with you. The first, Little Miss Muffet, is kind of sweet, really.

Little Miss Muffet

Sat on a tuffet

Eating her curds and whey.

She's afraid of a spider,

She needs Jesus inside her

To take all fear away.

Aww. Right? The next, however, is a little funnier.

Wee Willie Winkie

runs through the town,

Upstairs, downstairs

in his nightgown;

What does he see?

The children don't have

time for Jesus;

They're watching TV.

Ouch! Strong feelings, anyone?

(this great bit of church history generously brought to you via my friend Sarah. Thanks Sarah!)

Living Room Remix

Perhaps the record setting heat yesterday addled my brains, but I could take no more of the sameness and monotony of my home design. The filthy smelly curtains have been ripped down and the furniture rearranged. That, and the fact that the weather calmed itself back down, has me feeling so much calmer. (breathing a sigh of relief)