The Boy Is A Star

Check out the video when it gets to about 33 or 34 seconds. That's Maureen's hand selecting the brocoli and shortly thereafter, you will see Angry Johnny enjoying his strawberry. He looks a bit perplexed as to why the man had a large camera, but it reminds me of the time I was on the Channel 5 News at Golden Apple in Northridge.

Fun in Beverly Hills

John was in his element walking through the streets of Beverly Hills. As many of you know, he's quite the dandy and likes the finer things in life. At the Farmer's Market this morning, he enjoyed a few samples and even got to hang out with the Pirate's Booty Pirate. How many kids do you know that can say that? I was quite shocked that he went up to the gopher snake and touched it. Normally, he's a bit of a wuss when it comes to certain things, but that made me ever so proud. I thought Nicholas would want to play with the snake, but he shied away. I figure he's like Indiana Jones and hates snakes.

John picked out his berries. He's quite a fan of any type of berry. He helped pick out some flowers for Grammy's birthday, tomorrow. And, he enjoyed sitting on the public benches along the street. This boy is a definite lounger.

Saturday in Filmore

Yesterday, we took a drive out to Filmore to the train station. It was "A Day Out With Thomas" weekend and we thought it would be a nice surprise for John and Nicholas. We didn't know what to expect and were expecting the worst, but it turned out to be quite a pleasant surprise. As we entered Filmore, we could see it was a sleepy little town from a time long gone. There weren't many traffic signals and there was an old time movie house. It's the type of place the Huell Howser would visit and just be amazed by all that he saw. All the fun took place at the train museum. We expected there to be a cost for everything, but it was mostly free. If you wanted a photo with Thomas or Sir Topham Hatt, you had to stand in line and pay, but otherwise, the activities (bouncing house, story time, music, toy area) were free. The whole reason for our trip was to take a ride on a train pulled by everyone's favorite engine, Thomas. John and Nicholas were ever so excited to ride on Thomas. It was a brief 20-minute, if that, ride, and there was a cost associated with it, but it was worth the drive. We also stopped in at a fruit stand in Piru where Maureen was able to buy all sorts of fruits. John even picked out all kinds of things that we decided to buy since he'd laid his grubby little paws on them. To quote Ice Cube, I'd have to say it was a good day!

Classroom Hijinx

John's Latest Kick

Every so often, John asks us to make a smoothie. Usually, we'll have the ingredients and make one, but the other morning, it was to early to use The Magic Bullet. We told him we'd make one for him when we got home later that night. Sure enough, he asked for a smoothie when we got home. He got to enjoy the smoothie and a cookie at his new table in his room. The best thing about the table was the price, $5.99 at Ikea. The corner guards cost more than that table.

A Mariner?

I think John takes after his Grandpa Dick more than we even knew. This afternoon, he talked Maureen into taking him to see the boats much like Grandpa used to do. Actually, Grandpa Dick sailed, but John's a little too young for that.

Daddy didn't fall for his charms, but Maureen took John and Nicholas down to the sea again today. They looked at the boats and John even LOVED walking on the sand. You should hear the way this boy negotiates. He knows what he wants and he usually gets it.

He even called me from the sand to tell me all about it. He, unlike his brother and me, didn't mind getting sand on his toes. As a matter of fact, he asked Maureen if he could walk around without his shoes for the rest of the afternoon. In that respect, he's like his mother. She loves the sand on her feet. I just find it gritty and annoying.

Saturday at the Marina

Maureen had to go into the classroom yesterday to do a couple of things, so the boys and I went along for some fun. After John cried because we weren't going to go to Church, he asked very nicely if we could go have dinner with the boats. Actually, he specifically requested that we go to the "red restaurant with the boats". In John-speak, that mean's El Torito in Marina del Rey. We decided to go to Tony P's since we hadn't been there in quite some time. Plus, the food is much better than at El Torito.

As usual, John was quite entertaining and enthralled by the boats. He was very good and didn't even whine about visiting the boats before our meal. He just dawdled a bit and didn't want to eat at first, but he sure did devour his grilled cheese and fries. He even found time to make a hat for himself out of the paper bag that contains the kids club toys at Tony P's. He quite creative in that way, you know.

Afterward, we did have to go pay a visit to the boats. He'd been so good all afternoon. He loves to go look at the boats. We told him that we'd take him out on the water taxis when they start running in the summer. He loved that last year. As we were moving down the way, he realized the Ritz Carlton was just up the way and asked to go look at the pool. Sadly, it was locked. We told him that we had to stay at the hotel to go see the pool. Now, he wants to stay at the Ritz. he certainly is his mother's son.

The Pool Guy

If anyone is looking, John is willing to offer his services as a pool guy. Apparently, he's looking for some money to buy a basketball. I think this pool cleaning service will go the way of his bottomless lawn mowing service.