Halloween Fever

Well, Parker ended his day at daycare today with a fever so not only will there not be any trick-or-treating but he'll be spending the day with Daddy tomorrow at home.

Let's Make a Deal

Let's Make a Deal
Originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

Later that day, I caught Parker and Frankie in deep discussions. I think they somehow involved Mickey Mouse but I can't be sure. Neither will spill the beans to me.

Maisy Time

Maisy Time
Originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

Here's Parker watching his favorite show -- Maisy -- in his favorite position -- the back bend. Should I be worried?

Me and My Shadow

Me and My Shadow
Originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

A stop at the market got us home a bit later than usual. So as we played fetch with Frankie in the dark, I thought I'd capture our shadows. Guess which one is Parker.

Yoga Master

Yoga Master
Originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

Parker shows "Other Eric" a complex yoga move...or they're having another air guitar competition.

Patient Monkey

Patient Monkey
Originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

Yes, he tolerates mommy and the crazy clothes she dresses him in.

Monkey

Monkey
Originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

This weekend we had a trial run of Parker's Halloween costume. It's a little warm but cute nonetheless.

Yoda is who I'm most like

So I took the "Which Fantasy/SciFi Character Are You?" quiz and found out I'm "a venerated sage with vast power and knowledge, you gently guide forces around you while serving as a champion of the light." Yes...that's Yoda.

"Judge me by my size, do you? And well you should not - for my ally is the Force. And a powerful ally it is. Life greets it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us, and binds us. Luminescent beings are we, not this crude matter! You must feel the Force around you, everywhere."

I guess that's better than the "cyborg" label that Thommy always gives me.

Day Care Anectode

"Parker rolled to his side and discovered Patrick (the starfish) next to him. He vocalized out loud as he explored Patrick's face."

Auto Update

Well, the good news is that nothing major was damaged in my car. However, there's mud everywhere, including places where it shouldn't -- like my fuel injectors, oil, transmission -- plus my cooling fan was totaled. So, aside from replacing the fan (which is the big ticket item at $400+), my car will get a cleaning (inside 'n' out), leaving my wallet almost (but not quite) $700 lighter. **sigh** Well, at least I won't have to worry about changing the oil for another 3000 miles.

Good News

Well, when I called Saturn to let them know my car wasn't going to be delivered today by AAA, they reminded me that I had an extended warrenty which includes roadside assistance.

Long story short, my car is now at Saturn, **gulp** awaiting the initial diagnosis. Keep your fingers crossed for more good news.

AAAbsolutely SSSucks

Well, if you ever need to be towed but you're not on a prestine piece of asphalt under sunny (but not too hot) skies...don't count on AAA to be there. Got the final call from AAA. They won't come out today. However, they will tomorrow, when the weather's better.

Let's say, I'm a bit disappointed. Luckily, I'm not stranded...just inconvenienced.

Of course...

Now that my car's paid for, I've gone and put it out of commission. If you're out here in Southern California, you're aware that it's raining. If you've been to my house, you're familiar with my dirt road. Rain + dirt road = river that covers rocks in the road which hit the undercarriage of your car and break things. Luckily, I wasn't far from home because I had to put on the raincoat and boots that I store in my trunk and hike the rest of the way.

Interesting note, I discovered this morning that you can request AAA through the internet. Pretty cool and the dispatch is issued pretty quickly because soon after that my mother-in-law (who, trapped at my house, is conveniently available to watch Parker) received a call from High Desert Towing (I think that's their name) saying that they we're going refuse the call. **sigh** Hopefully, AAA will find another taker, otherwise I'll have to sick Chris "Irate Customer" Trillo after them.

Under the Weather

Under the Weather
Originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

So I got a call from Parker's day care yesterday. His croupy cough was back. So I left work early and took him to the pediatrician. His lungs were clear. He probably was just suffering from a cold. But he still had an ear infection. So this weekend will be one of antibiotics (for the ear infection), humidifiers (for the cough), and if things get worse -- the croupy cough that just won't stop -- I have a back-up prescription of steroids. But that's only in case of an emergency. Hopefully, it won't get to that. In the meantime, I'm just going to try to get the little guy to get plenty of sleep.

Victim of Love

Victim of Love
Originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

This is what happens when I arrive home too late to play ball with Frankie. Unfortunately, for Blue Monkey, that engergy has to go somewhere.

Usually, I'm able to catch Frankie before he absolutely guts Parker's toys (case in point...the plush Mickey rattle from Geoffrey, which in the end only lost one ear). However, I think this happened while I was watching Alias and scraping something edible together during commercial breaks.

Looks like I'll have to make a trip into town to visit Freehand and purchase another monkey as it's one of Parker's favorites.

Mani Pedi Daddy

Mani Pedi Daddy
Originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

As you can see, Chris finds it very important to educate lil' P about the mani/pedi.

We actually started the day with an eye appointment for me where they hooked Parker up with a free exam since we had extra time in the appointment. After a series of tests that involved lights, lenses and finger puppets, it was determined that Parker's eyes were in working order.

Afterwards we headed for Larry's where Chris and I got manicures and pedicures. Aaaaaaah. Larry is the best and I highly recommend him, especially if you're in the Santa Monica/Venice area.

We rounded off the evening with dinner and a movie at Thommy and Geoffrey's.

Day Care Anecdote

Got another day care anecdote:
"Shelley offered the barn activity center to Parker as he was playig on his tummy. Parker discovered the gears and pushed the handle, causing them to spin."

Did someone say "gears"? Hmmm, sounds like something I should get Chris.

Clap Happy

Parker's now clapping! He initially showed off his moves to Chris but later he felt confident enough applaud mommy. Check him out!

Bark in the Park

Bark in the Park
Originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

Frankie got a treat today. Lancaster had their annual Bark in the Park and we (Frankie, Parker, and I) wen to check it out. There were dogs everywhere! Booth featuring all kinds of dog supplies, treats, and organizations. Plus there were a few activity booths. My favorite was "Race the Wind" where they use a radar gun to measure how fast your dog runs. Frankie -- 33 mph, and that was without a warm-up! Plus, in the 12-2pm heat, he was the fastest large dog, which earned us a t-shirt. I think Frankie's favorite booth, though, was "Finders Keepers" where your dog goes into a pen and gets the keep the first thing he finds. The incentive for the human is that a few of the items have numbers which are linked to prizes. While we didn't earn a "human prize", we did get a tennis ball which Frankie obsessed over for the rest of the outing. (Unfortunately, since he had to be on a leash at the event, his chances for a game of fetch were pretty close to none.)