Merry Christmas (2014)

I know this is more than a few days overdue, but we’ve been insanely behind on everything holiday-related this season. So, sorry! Believe it or not, this was actually the first year in our married life (and my adult life, period!) that Mrs. Yeti and I didn’t send out Christmas cards either! Yikes…such slackers…

Anyway, I guess the good news is that since we already have the Christmas cards purchased, we’ll be able to start working on them that much faster this coming Christmas! Ha! Either way, here’s hoping the holidays were good to you and that the year ahead is even better! Merry belated Christmas, amigos.

As you can see from the pic, Greta wore her Elsa Halloween costume to her visit with Santa. Yep, it was that kind of year. Enjoy!

 

 

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“Star Wars: Rebels”

OK, I tend to be pretty generous where Star Wars is concerned. I worshipped the original trilogy as a kid, I loved the second two prequel films (Revenge of the Sith actually made me cry at the end!) and I thought the various iterations of the animated Clone Wars series were pretty solid with a few moments of true greatness peppered throughout. But, the latest addition to the Star Wars universe, the DisneyXD animated series, Star Wars: Rebels is straight up amazing!

I never thought I would say it, but, selling Star Wars to Disney a few years back just might be the smartest thing George Lucas has done in decades! Rather than water down and Disney-fy the franchise, the influx of new ideas and behind-the-scenes talent like Clone Wars veteran Dave Filoni and Star Wars über fan, director/producer Simon Kinberg has injected new life into what many fans once saw as a creatively bankrupt franchise, at best.

I mean, sure, I've watched just about everything that's been churned out over the past decade, but that doesn't mean it's always been good. But if the rest of the season lives up to Star Wars: Rebels' thrilling, action-packed pilot “movie,” then sign my Jedi ass up!

Seriously, this is top-notch Star Wars storytelling here! Cool, beautifully crafted characters with actual backstories and emotions, awesome action set pieces and best of all, one of the coolest storylines since the original trilogy. Set five years before the events of Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, Rebels follows the adventures of the ragtag crew of the Ghost as they sow the seeds of rebellion in a galaxy that has begun to grow weary of the galactic empire.

I know that sounds impossibly geeky, and it is, but it's also one hell of a ride. Centered around the adventures of the newest member of the Ghost crew, a Force sensitive orphan named Ezra, Rebels really went into overdrive when they revealed that the leader of the Ghost team, Kanan Jarrus, is actually one of the last surviving Jedi knights. Cooler still is the fact that Jarrus offers to train Ezra in the ways of the Force is he joins them. Does it get any cooler than that? Seriously, Greta and I were cheering out loud when Jarrus whipped out his lightsaber for the first time. So rad!

Of course, we're only on the third episode, so, the series could totally fall apart at any minute, but for now, I'm basking in Star Wars perfection. It's been a long time since there was anything this good in the new Star Wars universe and I'm gonna enjoy it!

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Cadbury Screme Eggs!

OK, I know I just gushed poetic about the current crop of pumpkintastic seasonal food offerings at Trader Joe's, but, Greta and I stumbled upon another fun Halloween-ish treat over the weekend that I simply had to share with you. So, please bear with me as I give you Cadbury Screme Eggs!

That's right, amigos, Cadbury eggs aren't just for Easter anymore! And though Greta swears the oozing green filling tastes like melted mint chocolate chip ice cream. I think they taste pretty much the same as the sugary yellow and white Cadbury goodness we've all come to love (or loathe!) over the years. Except for the fact that they're, you know, a sickly green color!

Anyway, Greta was so excited about these tasty treats that she had me film her eating one for the first time on her Planet Greta blog. We even added a little Halloween movie magic to this shoot too, so, enjoy the clip below and happy October!

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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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Picture Day (2014)

After much heated debate, lots of tears and one hysterical meltdown, Mrs. Yeti and I finally got Greta out the front door today in an outfit we both approved of. And it's a good thing, because today was Greta's first picture day at school. Hooray!

I'll try and post a few of the official studio portraits when we get them back, but for now, here is my favorite new picture of my favorite kindergartner in the world. Enjoy!

 

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Second Monday…

Man, just when I thought we were doing so well, good old second Monday rolls around to fudge everything up. And though she was grumpy, tired and downright hostile a few times, Greta's finest moments this morning involved some truly inventive delay tactics.

First, she said she was too sick to go to school. Oldest trick in the book, I know, but, still very effective, especially since she has a very mild cold. But, since that was my go-to excuse growing up, daddy wasn't buying it. Sorry, biscuit.

So, then she got really creative and staged a “sit in” on the toilet for like five minutes. When I told her we had to leave, Greta said she was waiting for her poo to come out and that she wasn't going to school until it did. Good times! Needles to say, the poo never came and many tears were shed as we made our way to the kitchen to put on her shoes.

There again, she pulled out the big guns claiming that her shoes had tiny sticks in them that I couldn't see but that hurt her feet. After much stick searching and more tears, we switched to another pair and hurried to the car, where she staged perhaps her finest trick of the morning: pretending to fall asleep on the drive to school!

I don't remember trying that one as a kid, but, wow, if they gave out gold stars for morning delay tactics Greta would be top of her class! Simply put, she was good, but I was better. And since I've grown accustomed to half-dragging her ass to school lately, I just pretended not to notice that she was “asleep” and kept right on dragging.

And despite all the tears and recriminations — not to mention the fact that she would not say “goodbye” to me when we parted — we still somehow managed to make it to school on time, but something tells me we're in for another long-ass week…

 

 

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Kindergarten Week One: The New World Order

Yesterday marked the end of the first full week of kindergarten and let me tell ya, whoever said I’d have more time on my hands once Greta started school is full of shit. I haven’t felt this frazzled and out-of-my-element since those first few days after we brought Greta home from the hospital. Seriously, it’s been non-stop since Monday morning.

One of my new mom friends equated this week with starting a new job, and she’s not far off. I was anxious, way too concerned with my hair and what I was wearing, tired as fuck (sorry, but my usual F-word substitute, “fudge,” just didn’t seem to express how truly exhausting this week has been) and completely overwhelmed with paperwork. Insanity!

And though there have been definite highlights and I’ve made fast friends with several very chill moms and dads of students in Greta’s class, I think all three of us are a little overwhelmed by the sweeping sea change washing over us right now.

So far, Greta has been loving school but it’s the getting up in the morning and going there that kills her. However, aside from Wednesday morning, which was just horrific — at one point I was literally dragging her to class! — she really loves her teacher and each new day was better than the last. So, that’s progress in my book.

Personally, I found myself finally getting into the groove around Thursday, which is great because it ended up being one of the longest days of my life. I got up at 7:15 (which, believe it or not, has been my start time all week!), got Greta ready, dropped her off at school at 8:25 and then headed to my first PTA meeting at 8:30. Luckily for me, I managed to squeeze in some breakfast, because it turned out to be a three hour meeting! Yikes…who knew?

Fortunately, the meeting got out a little early (at around 11:00) so I had time to run to Costco and Trader Joe’s before heading back to school to pick up Greta at 1:30. We then headed to the park for a mini reunion with some of our old friends from Greta’s pre-school days, and then headed from there straight to ballet class, where we shared an emotional goodbye with Greta’s beloved ballet teacher who started her maternity leave today.

After ballet, we ran home to change and pick up Mrs. Yeti and then hurried back to Greta’s school for a massive “Back-to-School” picnic. They had food trucks, music, a farmer’s market selling produce grown at the school’s onsite garden (!) and again, many chances to meet new parent friends. Simply put, it was awesome. If all the parents at Stevenson are as hip, artsy and totally diverse as the ones we met this week, this new world order might not be so bad after all!

Now, if we could just get a handle on the constant flow of paperwork coming our way, I think we might be ready to face week two. Wish us luck!

 

 

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Greta’s First Day of School

Yesterday was Greta’s first day of kindergarten and though it was a long, trying day for us as parents, Greta’s biggest complaint was that she only made one new friend and could not remember her name. Ha! And though I’m usually bad with names as well, Mrs. Yeti and I managed to make a few friends at the Parent Mixer held in the lunch area right after school started as well. And better yet, all of the parents we met (and liked!) have kids in Greta’s class. So, here’s to new friends for everyone!

We’re all still getting used to this new schedule — lemme tell ya, getting up early after a lifetime spent staying up to the wee hours sucks ass, man! — but, day two was already much easier than Monday, so, progress is definitely being made.

Now, if I could just stop yawning all the damn time…all would be right with the world.

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Throwback Thursday

I’ve never really partaken in the whole Throwback Thursday thing on Facebook, but with Father’s Day right around the corner, I figured today would be as good a day as any to start. And rather than bore my FB friends with more cute pictures of Greta…I’ll do it here instead! So, sit back, relax and enjoy a few of my favorite pics of my goofy girl over the years…

 

 

 

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