National Pancake Day (2015)

Yesterday was National Pancake Day at IHOP and like all good pancake-loving Americans, Greta and I celebrated the event in high style. For those of you who missed the freebie memo, National Pancake Day was launched in 2006 to support the Chilcren’s Miracle Network Hospitals and a host of local charities. Now in it’s tenth year, IHOP gives out free short stacks very March 3rd in the hopes that patrons will donate to the cause.

So, just like we did last year, Greta and I grabbed some friends, braved the lines of crazy teenagers just getting out of school and got our free pancake on. And as you can see from the pics, it was awesome! Thanks, IHOP!

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The Sticker Ninja

Yesterday was my first day as a classroom volunteer at Greta's school and though my inner child was kinda wigging out at the prospect of returning to the classroom after twenty-plus years away, I gotta tell ya, it was awesome!

I helped the kids with a craft project, Clorox wiped the tables after play time, and organized next week's math homework, but the highlight of the day was playing Sticker Ninja during quiet reading time. While the kids “read” books at their tables, my job was to walk around the room and place stickers on the hands of those that were being the most quiet. It was adorable! Even the pushy kids that kept thrusting their hands at me, silently pleading for stickers, were cute. They didn't get as many stickers as the kids who were actually quietly enjoying their books, but, trust me, everyone had stickers to spare by the time my “shift” ended.

I'm hoping to make the Thursday volunteer gig a regular thing, and in the meantime, I've also helped pass out donunts and bagels (at 7:45AM!) for a Breakfast with Buddies event and helped the kids work on a cool ocean mural on the back wall of the auditorium. It's been a lot of work but the parents, teachers and kids I've met along the way have all been awesome and Greta and I have been having a lot of fun. Even if we do collapse the minute we get home every day!

Speaking of things that exhaust me, one mom who I've seen at almost every event jokingly asked me when I was running for PTA president. Ha! Probably not in this lifetime, but, then again, President Yeti does have kind of a nice ring to it…

 

 

 

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Princess Book Party

Speaking of Halloween costumes, Greta got to test drive her Queen Elsa costume over the weekend at the Friends of the Burbank Library's very cool Princess Book Party. Held at the Burbank Library's central branch on Glenoaks, the event featured Princess trivia, bingo, crafts, cookies, gift bags and even a visit from everyone's favorite Disney Princess/Queen du jour, Queen Elsa from Frozen! Hooray!

As you can see, Greta had an awesome time. And despite the fact that there are already piles of library books scattered all over her bedroom, we came home with another big old batch of new ones as well. Now if I could just remember when they're all due back at the library, all would be right with the world. Either way, enjoy the pics!

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The Final Countdown…

With Greta’s kindergarten starting next Monday, today marks the official beginning of our last full week together before “big girl” school starts. And while I’m very proud of the impossibly sweet, funny, intelligent young lady Greta has become over the past five years, part of me is dreading the many changes to come. I know we’ll always have plenty of time together but I also know that things change when kids go to school. I guess I’m just kinda bummed that the first great chapter of our wild and crazy time together is coming to an end.

With a few notable exceptions, I’ve been by Greta’s side almost every day since she was born and I wouldn’t trade the experience for anything in the world. I know it sounds corny, but, she’s been my favorite “production” of all. She has also been, quite literally, my life for the past five years.

And though I’m sad and happy and kind of terrified (especially of getting up early every day to get her to school on time! Yikes!) by the strange and winding road ahead of us, I’m looking forward to it as well. Every day with Greta is an adventure and no school schedule is gonna change that!

So, here’s to our last week of total freedom together, sweetie! Let’s get busy!

 

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“It’s oh so nice to go traveling…”

One of the best things about taking a nice, long road trip every summer to Grants Pass, Oregon (by way of Santa Cruz, CA) is that being away from Los Angeles for any extended period of time always reminds me of just why I love L.A. so much in the first place. Yes, I admit it, I love L.A., probably more than anyplace I've ever lived.

In fact, having been down here for over twenty-two years now, Mrs. Yeti and I have officially lived in L.A./Burbank longer than we've ever lived anywhere else. And though we love to get away, something about this crazy, sprawling urban jungle just makes us feel excited and alive. Maybe it's because we were both born down here, who knows? But for us, L.A. is home, and as we drove over the Grapevine on Sunday night and caught our first glimpse of the shimmering lights of the San Fernando Valley in the distance, I'm not embarrassed to admit that we both got more than a little choked up.

I'm not sure if that was because we were relieved that some of the more dramatic episodes from our trip were behind us, or the simple fact that we were just happy to be home. But for whatever reason, we practically kissed the ground when we arrived!

And today, as Greta and I grabbed lunch at a totally 80's Taco Bell on Ventura Boulevard — which is one of my two favorite thoroughfares in L.A., BTW, Wilshire Boulevard being the other — I spotted a dude with the long grey hair and tight, studded jeans of a faded rock star enjoying a Meximelt while a crazy-eyed trannie demanded the key to the restroom at the register, and I just smiled from ear to ear. Oh, L.A., how I've missed you. It really is good to be home!

 

 

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Greta’s Ballet Recital (2014)

Greta’s third ballet recital was a couple of weeks ago and, as you can see from the pics below, it was another smashing success. This year Greta’s class danced to “Octopus’s Garden” by The Beatles and though some of the kids struggled a bit with the choreography, Greta was spot on the entire performance. I know I’m supposed to say stuff like that, but, I really mean it…she was awesome!

My Dad put it best when he remarked that this year was the first time you could really see a big improvement in Greta’s dancing. “It’s actually kind of cool to see the growth over time.” he said, adding that “If I hadn’t seen all three shows, I don’t know if I would have noticed it. But, I can definitely see it!” Wow. Those of you who know my Dad know that he is not very free wheeling with the compliments, so, if he says that…he means it. So, thanks, Dad, I totally agree!

Enjoy the pics!

 

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Swimming Lessons (2014)

Greta started her third year of swimming lessons this week — hard to believe she's been doing anything for three summers already, but she has — and though I still have some issues with the cleanliness of the pool's locker room and outdoor shower area, so far, things are going great.

Her teacher is very cool, the class size is much smaller than last year (there are six kids in her class versus last year's whopping 12-14!) and best of all, the pool finally got some chairs for parents to sit on. I've noticed that you have to get there kind of early to score a chair, but, hey, if that's what it takes, I'll be there before roll call every day!

Anyway, as you can imagine, I'm taking loads of pics every day (from the comfort of my awesome new deck chair!) but, this one seemed to sum up the unbridled joy of summer swimming lessons better than all of them combined, so…enjoy!

 

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Greta’s Holiday Haircut

Believe it or not, it’s been nine months since Greta last got her hair cut. We were keeping it long for my sister’s wedding in September, and then I guess we just kind of forgot about it when the holiday insanity set in. So, last weekend, we headed to Floyd’s 99 Barber Shop for what has now become Greta’s semi-annual haircut.

And though her favorite hairdresser, Miss Rose, was no longer working there, a very cool gal named Ashley did a bang up job on Greta’s hair. So, everything worked out fine. Unfortunately, I forgot to take a picture of the finished product (except for the last shot below, where it’s mostly hidden by her hood!) but I did get lots of pics of Greta in Ashley’s chair. So, enjoy!

Oh, and if you live in the are and are looking for a cool, inexpensive place to get your kid’s haircut, I highly recommend Floyd’s. They might not have little airplane seats and stuff for the wee ones, but, they have a chill, rock ‘n roll vibe, are super friendly and Greta loves all the music posters and stuff on the walls. Floyd’s has locations all over L.A., so, find one near you and check them out. And in the meantime, enjoy the pics!

Beating The Heat: Play-Doh Style!

Don’t know what the weather’s like where you’re at, but, it’s been a swampy mess down here and Greta and I have been literally melting in the heat. Proclaiming she was too hot to walk the other day, Greta actually crumpled to her knees and made me carry her to the car before ballet class.

The next day, she crawled to the back door to put her shoes on because “her feet stopped working.” and then yesterday it was so hot that it actually rained. Today too. And when I say rain, I’m not talking about deep, cleansing rain that makes the L.A. skyline all super blue. Nope. This was just enough rain to increase the swamp factor in the air and make your car looks like shit. Good times.

So, when the rain started today we decided to stay inside and color until it cooled down. And once it did, we hurried to the store to pick up something new and fun (and most importantly, cheap!) to play with. We only ventured as far as CVS, so, our options were kinda limited, but, today, luck was on our side. And somewhere between the kids crafts and fake Barbie dolls on the toy aisle, I found the perfect inside toy…the Play-Doh Fun Factory!

Longtime Play-Doh aficionados will remember the Fun Factory as the little hand pump machine with the plastic strips with different shaped holes in them. I don’t know if my brother and I ever actually owned one, but, man, did we love that thing when we were kids. Anyway, one of Greta’s friends has a vintage Fun Factory and we’ve been on the hunt for one for for weeks now.

Our only disappointment was that the 2013 edition of the Fun Factory doesn’t come with those cool little plastic scissors, but instead comes with a tiny knife. Weird huh? Other than that, the little pump still cranks out star-shaped snakes and long, curly Play-Doh hair with the best of em. So, hooray for indoor summer fun!

Oh, and in case you were wondering, Greta’s feet did start working again the other day. All I had to do was promise her a Hello Kitty popsicle and she was cured. Strange how that works, huh?

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Location:Burbank, CA

Greta’s Dance Recital Rehearsal Pics (2013)

There’s no video yet (at least not any worth sharing) but, I did take loads of pictures at Greta’s dance recital two weekends ago. But, my favorite pics were actually the ones I took the day before at the dress rehearsal. So, here are just a few of the standouts. Unlike last year, everything went off without a hitch this time around and both the show and the rehearsal were awesome!

Oh, and in case you’re wondering, the cute little blonde boy is Greta’s “husband” Rocco. Yes, she actually calls him that. And, as you can see from the pics, they are adorable together. Seriously, sometimes my teeth hurt from the cuteness!

Anyway, thanks also to everyone who made the schlep to Burbank High School to see the big show this year. And for those of you who couldn’t come, fear not, there is a professional videotape copy coming our way very soon. Once it gets here, we’ll bring it by so you can relive the show with us in the comfort of your own living room. Who knows, if you’re lucky, Greta might just tap out her number for you in person too. Lord knows she’s not shy about dancing in living rooms…or, actually, anywhere for that matter. Enjoy the pics!

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Location:Burbank, CA