You've got to be kiddinng me!

So Aimee's friend Jen has been temping at work. Gabbing, I noticed that we both were doing Ancestry.com and she mentioned how she was surprised her brother was born in San Bernardino. So I had to ask...''San Bernardino? Did you live there?''

''Yeah.''

''Me, too.''

''What school did you go to?'' she asks.

''Cajon.''

Now this is where she's suppose to look at me curiously and/or say ''Oh, I went to San G.'' or something like that. No what actually happened...''So did I!''

What?!

''What year did you go?'' she continued.

''I graduated in 88.''

''87''

Holy Crap!

So I go and check out my yearbook later that night. Not only were we in the same school at the same time but we were both on the Mock Trial team!

There I am, third from the left. And there's Jen, all the way on the right. Is that weird or what? Unfortunately, I still can't place her. Jen can't place me, either. But I would think that's to be expected. My family just moved there that year so my ties there were pretty fresh...and then I was gone.

All in all, though, pretty weird, huh?

Kwik E Mart Stop

The Simpsons invade Burbank!

With the release of The Simpsons Movie, several 7-11s were converted to Kwik E Marts, including one close to work. My co-worker Larry was so excited that he swept Marge off her feet and gave her a quick kiss.

We had to wait in line to get in, which, unforturnatly, built up expectations. Once inside you were directed down the aisle of merchandise but aside from that there wasn't much in the line of Simpsonizing. You could buy Buzz cola (I got a couple a cans), a Squishee (yes, I got one...I was thirsty), and very Homer-style donuts (I got a dozen. Hey! A girl's got to eat.) but that was about it. There wasn't even any Duff Beer...go figure. Oh well. Despite the down points, I'm glad we went.

Dream Job or Nightmare

Well, usually I let Thommy write about this stuff but since he's been lagging on the blog front I guess I should note this milestone. We had an opportunity to make a major pitch today. And even though he's not writing about it, I'm sure he's pinching himself to make sure he's not dreaming. It was pretty exciting and if things go forward it would be a dream come true for him as it would be writing for one of his favorite horror franchises. And me? Well, any writing job would be awesome.

But here's my question...are there any superstition connected with seeing a rat prior to an important meeting? It was really weird but sitting outside just before the meeting, a rat came around the corner alongside the building. Then later he cut across the courtyard and startled a bunch of people before darting back across and getting away. I mean, we were in the middle of Beverly Hills. You don't expect to see that kind of thing. But, on the bright side, he didn't look like an evil rat...like the ones in Willard. No, he was more like Ben (who I guess was actually a mouse but you now what I mean). Anyway, it was weird.

On the good omen side of things, the pitch happened to be on the birthday of Thommy's favorite scream queen so maybe that cancels any bad mojo the rat may have brought.

And how did the pitch go? It's hard to tell. I'm a bit unsure, however Thommy was happy with the meeting. I'd just like to ask that you keep your fingers crossed for now...just in case.

Maisy Art Sense

As Parker grins wildly while he plays with one his favorite toys -- the Maisy pop-up play house -- I could not help but notice that Maisy's taste in art is eerily quite similar to Chris'. It's the truth.

See? Only Maisy discretely hangs her boat art in the bathroom over the shower. Chris' boat art -- after a heated discussion -- is hung in our living room.

Nap Time

Nap Time,
originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

Is this classic or what? You know he's tired when he falls asleep in the middle of his lunch...right on top if his PB&J.

4th of July

Well, it's that time of the year again…4th of July. And Parker can't wait for the local parade to start. We've parked ourselves in the same spot we found last year -- near the end of the parade route on the shady corner near Acton Market. And this year, Thommy and Geoffrey will be joining us.

And there's no better way to start off the parade than to honor the guys who protect us…and we got all of them -- military, police, fire, etc. Too bad Chris couldn't join us because the Fire Deparment brought along one of the giant dozers that they use to put out brush fires. Talk about a big truck.

The theme for this year's parade was Wild West and what better way to celebrate the wild west than to round up a posse and hunt down people. And look, they caught somone one. I guess that will show people not to mess with Acton.

Frankie does his best to keep his best paw forward; however, the gun shots (how can you have a posse without shooting a few guns…right?) gave my poor pup the shakes. But he didn't run like a coward. He bravely stood by our sides, shaking like a leaf. But a few minutes (of tummy scratching and gentling cooing) later, he was back to his old self...ready to celebrate with the best of them.

Over all, it was another fun parade and next year we won't be overly suspicious of the people handing out the little purple books. (What we originally thought were new testaments or other religious material turned out to be the Declaration of Independence...PHEW!)

Happy Birthday Chris!

Happy Birthday Chris!,
originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

Hope you enjoyed the cupcakes that were especially decorated for
you. Can you believe how neat these guys are?! I love it!

BTW, as with most parties, things are so hectic that I forget to take pictures so no money shot of Chris blowing out the candles. Trust me, though. He did it without getting much spit on the cakes. Pretty good for an old guy. :o)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CHRIS!

Who's Incredible?!

Ken and Jasmine stayed the night on the weekend of Chris' 40th birthday. Luckily, I had another set of Incredibles PJ pals in Jasmine's size so we could have an incredible sleepover and, the next morning, an incredible breakfast.

Yuck

Yuck,
originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

With the implant removed, the aliens will have to come up with another way to control this human.

Actually, a few months ago this lump sprouted on the back of my neck. Well, actually, the lump has a been a tiny cyst that's been there for years...minding it's own business. No big whoop. Then it decides to grow and, I don't know, make a bigger presence on my neck and, well, it just had to go.

I've never had surgery before, let alone be given anesthesia. What a weird experience. I remember them carting me into the operating room, climbing on to the table, getting comfortable -- which was a bit hard because I had to lie on the table face down -- then I remember waking up and wondering...should I be awake now? Seriously, it was a weird loss of time. I was expecting them to do what they do in the movies...count backward from 100, etc. Nope. Nothing. Just waking up.

And, you ask, was I suppose to be awake yet? Well, I sputtered out the question to which they responded...she's talking. Not the answer I wanted so I repeated the question with a little more strength. Should I be awake now? To which, I got the answer I wanted to hear...yes, the operation's over.

Okay, now the second question...should my arm be hurting like this? Yeah, for just having someone cut into my neck, my arm was hurting like hell. Hmmmm....should I be worried about that? Well, apparently, the IV slipped and instead of depositing whatever's in that bag into my veins the went into my muscle. Painful.

Luckily, 30 minutes and a warm compress helped resolve that situation. And while I was waiting I got to get a look at the diamond chunk of skin (which was connected to the cyst) that was removed from my neck. I looked like a piece of fatty steak in jar. Too bad Chris wasn't there. He would have really wanted to see that.

Well, now I'm left with the stitches -- cyst free -- with, soon, only a crease on the back of my neck to remind me of my lumpy pal who had been a part of me for so many years but unfortunately had to be offed when he made a play for more territory.

On a side note, the operation wasn't the last I heard of that cyst. They did tests on it. In the end, it was not malignant nor was it an implant. Just a nuisance.

Run For Your Lives

Run For Your Lives,
originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

Mutant Mr. Potatohead terrorizes local village.

The military is helpless against such a formidable foe. Luckily, young Parker Trillo, clad in his lucky cap, comes to the rescue and saves the day.

All's well now, little girl. You don't have to hide behind that windmill anymore. Life is once again safe again.

Company Picnic

So the family headed over to the company picnic for a little co-worker bonding and family fun. Right off the bat, we caught up with the mouse. And right off the bat, Parker became upset. But don't feel bad Mickey. Parker just had a shorter than normal nap. He's just a bit cranky.

Well, what should a couple of responsible parents do at a family function with a cranky baby…play bingo of course. N32! BINGO!

At bingo we met up with Aimee and her mom. None of us won, but there was a ton of free food so really, what more could one want? Okay, maybe I need to see Aimee but a move on this hammer thing. DING!

There was this cool thing where they sprayed foam all over the place. I looked like a winter wonderland…in the middle of June. Of course, Parker wasn't buying it and refused to leave Chris' shoulders, even with Aimee's sudsy coaxing. Oh well, maybe next year.

Next year? Yeah, even with a testy Parker, we all seemed to have a pretty good time. So, if I'm still with the company (you never know!), I guess you can count the Trillo's in for next year. Unless we have other plans, of course. (Sorry Mickey. Parker's got a bigger name on the other line.)

Mr. Incredible

Mr. Incredible,
originally uploaded by Car2nGrl.

So, why is Parker so happy? I think it's because he pee'd in the potty for the first time. That's what I like to think.

Okay, maybe that's why Mommy's smiling. Parker is probably smiling because he's wearing his Incredibles PJ pal.

By the way, should I be weirded out? As I do with most of my photos, I uploaded this shot to my flickr account with no tags but I did have "pee" and "potty" mentioned in the caption. Normally my images get a handful of view. But this one...27 so far. I can't help but feel a bit creeped out just a bit.

Susie's Shower

On Saturday, Parker and I headed north to attend a baby shower for my sister Susie, who's due in mid-June. This was Parker's first plane and likely to prove to be an interesting experience, especially with the current packing limitations.

I was hoping to get Parker to drink some juice when we took off to help his ears equalize, but he, of course refused. However, surprisingly, he didn't seem to have any ear issues. I guess that's another benefit of the ear tubes.

During the flight we kept busy with coloring and books -- yes, that's a washable marker so I'd have one less thing to worry about (Excuse me, is that your baby writing on the window?) -- especially with my trusty back of baby wipes at my side.

My mom picked us up at the airport and we headed over to her place to check out her digs that she would soon be leaving (But we just got here!) as she was in the process of buying a different apartment in her complex -- with more light than her current rental plus she's on the top floor.

Plus, being in the same complex, she continues to have access to all the community features -- especially the ones important to Parker -- the playground and the pond that's filled with ducks, geese, and turtles. At first Parker was a bit shy around the ducks. But soon he was tormenting them just like any other kid would.

My mom isn't the only person with leaving on the mind. My sister is moving a couple blocks down the street to this little beauty that's currently in escrow. It's a pretty cool house but what they're really buying is the view. Pretty nice, huh?

That said, the kids made the most out of the old digs -- bouncing around and making a total mess, like kids do. I also got them to help me wrap the gifts I had for Susie's shower (wouldn't that sucked if I had wrapped the gifts in LA only to have them unwrapped at the airport?) plus they helped me craft a cool pop-up card -- the artwork being a Luxi original. (Or maybe Niko did it...hmmm, I can't remember anymore.)

On Sunday, we headed over to the shower -- a quaint little brunch at the home of one of Susie's friends. It was outdoors, which meant the kids could roam free with little concern for breaking things. Susie looked great and she seemed really excited about her little one. Looks like we'll have to plan to visit again really soon when Little Liu arrives.

While in the neighborhood, we also stopped by Fay and David's to visit another little one, Stephen. What a total cutie. (Of course, no so "little" when compared to our little guy Parker. Hey! He's growing, just at his own pace.) Plus, Parker was excited to see a wooden stool that had an inlaid puzzle that he could play with. BONUS!

Monday, we pretty much hung out until it was time for us to catch our flight out of SFO. Joanie had a meeting that morning so Parker and I hung out at a park (I believe it's Yerba Buena). It was a pretty cool place but will no trees on the playground, it was pretty hot. Thank goodness they had a bunch of water features so Parker could kick off his shoes and cool off.

After a quick lunch with Ahmah, we headed for the airport. This Parker another opportunity to check out the airplanes. This time, though, I think he has a better understanding of what was soon going to happen…we were going to hop on one of those babies and take off.

This time, though, we're homeward bound.

As nice as it is to get out of town, the time away from home only makes you appreciate it that much more.

Mother's Day

After Chris made my favorite -- delicious French toast -- we headed up to Tehachapi for Mother's Day, which gave us a chance to hang out with the other Trillos.

The usual suspects where there -- Eric, Amy, & the Girls, Gerry & Esther, Jan & Jim, and even Dana made a brief appearance before he had to head back up north.

Here's Parker and the girls playing nice with the Light Bright. I actually have a mini one that a friend gave me, which I've been keeping out reach because I was afraid that the little pegs would end up in his nose or ear. But maybe...just maybe...I'll bring it out for the little guy...yeah, right.

The Puzzler

So, when Rachael was in town, she brought Parker several things…including this construction vehicle puzzle. Now they're only 4 and 8 piece puzzles but, to be honest, I didn't expect Parker to get too much out of them. I mean, he's only two.

Okay, having such low expections means you kid will totally blow you away when he does stuff like this...putting a puzzle together.

First it wan only the 4 piece puzzle. But he soon got the hang of that and moved on to the 8 piecer.

And the best thing is that he can't get enough of it. You'd think after one or two times he'd be totally over it. (That would be me.) But loves to put the puzzles together and take them apart. Lather. Rinse. Repeat. Also, it doesn't hurt that what he's building are fun vehicles.

Still, it's amazing to realize how fast kids develop.

Easter

What does Easter mean to Parker?

Well, Easter bonnets, of course. And the best ones in his book are balloon bonnets.

And while you've got the balloons going, you can't forget the traditional Easter balloon fight, especially when it's 4 cousins against one uncle.You're going down, Uncle Gerry!

And in honor of the man of the hour...the Easter Bunny...ou've got to hop around, especially if you have a trampoline on hand. Just be careful of unexpected pile-ups, which could leaving you with the giggles.

Now you can't have Easter without flowers. All the cool kids are wearing them. Here take one. There's plenty to go around.

Kites are cool to flying on Easter. But if you ask Frankie, a brisk game of fetch is the most important thing to do on Easter…and the day after that…and the day after that. Actually, Frankie feels it's best to play fetch everyday.

Above all, though, hanging out with family is the thing Parker loves most about Easter.