A Kid in Los Angeles

It’s going to be 107 again today.  In an attempt to stay cool we have been hanging out at Ralphs, but we’ve run out of things to buy look at so we’re back to watching TV. – – – – – – – – – – Me:  Hayden, did you know that I used...
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Today Mommy cried because there was lots of fussing.  She is always telling me the same thing, and I don’t like that.  This morning she told me no running or jumping or water play at school because of my bobos, and I didn’t like that so I had tears. Mommy made me the kind...
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When I was sixteen years old everyone went to the REM concert.  Everyone but me because I went to Disneyland with my family.  Did I mention that I was sixteen? Disneyland with parents, a four year old, and an eleven year old was just that.  NOT COOL.  Although, admittedly, that trip made for some...
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Mommy, can we go to Frye’s again someday? Yes, someday. Can we go to Frye’s today? No, we don’t need anything from Frye’s. They have snacks there, too. Yes, they have snacks for when we get desperate. We got Goldfish there. And I got to eat Goldfish the whole way home. Yes, I remember....
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As usual, public education is in the news.  We complain about it, worry about, propose solutions to improve it, but the story is still a sad one. LA Unified has proposed yet another set of budget cuts.  This one would remove all art programs from elementary schools.  Sigh. The district is so bad off...
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Hello? Anybody here? I guess not, and that’s good because I’m not here, either.  I am over at Moms LA today, talking a little bit about my lionhearted, angel-faced boy and a lot about what makes him so.  If you are halfway interested in kids’ sports, activities for kids in LA, or the Three...
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Everywhere I look they are restless. Throwing caramel corn on the floor.  Running around, wild-eyed and over-tired.  Fussing because they are hungry and tired.  Crying because it is 48º and nearing bedtime. We wait in line for what seems like an eternity.  We are holding hands, beacons of stillness amongst the chaos. This was...
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I have enrolled Hayden, breaker of all crayons, in art camp.  Creative Arts Camp, to be specific.  Which, by the tuition, you’d think included a new violin for each kid. Because I certainly cannot play with tiny Legos for the entire month of August while he is on vacation from school, especially when I...
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I’m back!  And right before I have to leave again, too.  BlogHer11 is just four days away! I haven’t been writing this week because I just didn’t have it in me.  On top of preparing for my new life as a pirate (a transition that will take place in just a few short weeks),...
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I think we just bought a house. That costs a lot of money (well, a lot to us). There might be spiders in the garage. There might be wall to wall turquoise carpet. There might be a stained-glass pirate ship feature.  And galley lights. There might be a diner booth built into the kitchen....
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We are a very musical family.  Scott and I met, and fell in love, playing music together.  We still play when Hayden will tolerate it, and we love to crank it up in the car when we’re on dates. One or more of us is always humming or jazz handsing around the house (okay,...
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We packed our bag carefully, overfilling it with supplies.  Diapers, pacis, bottles, bibs, and blankets. I tied up the Moby before we got in the car so that I wouldn’t have to be fiddling with it once we arrived. We parked, grabbed our gear and our baby, and went inside. After a little shifting...
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I arrive ten minutes early and take the last space in the front lot. Score! I walk though the glass doors of the front office and find the reception desk is still hidden behind one of those roll-up window-closer thingies, sort of like a mini garage door for reception areas.  I am the only...
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For those of you who don’t already know, I have lived in Los Angeles for eight years.  I have lived in the same apartment for all eight of those years.  And for those who are not already familiar with the housing scene in LA, I’ll fill you in quickly.  It sucks. When the almost-hubs...
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