I don't have a lot of time tonight so here's a short clip of Brighton at the Fish's house - and their new baby gate for him. I love it! Any takers?
A CLOSE CALL...
What are the chances? The epicenter of the earthquake that hit L.A. yesterday was in CHINO HILLS! That is where we lived for three years while Brian was in school. That's crazy! The town is pretty small and tucked away about 30 miles East of L.A. The most we had to endure was a 4.5 earthquake. And that was bad enough. Even more crazy is the article below about where the brunt of the earthquake was - Pomona?! That is where Brian went to school and I worked! The photo shown in the article is taken from a building on 2nd street - the SAME street the school is on. Wow. We called our friends there and everyone seems to be okay, minus some structural damage. The experts call this earthquake the drill to "the big one" expected within the next 30 years. Brian and I were just talking the other day about how if it wasn't for the earthquakes we'd live in L.A. in a heartbeat! Well, I guess that just solidifies it for us.
WHO NEEDS TOYS?!
Most of you already know about Brighton's active lifestyle, but what you don't know, is his love, or rather obsession, for buttons. Not shirt buttons, but stuff like elevator buttons, cell phone buttons, computer keyboard buttons, car buttons, radio buttons - you name it. And it doesn't stop there. To Brighton, light switches, drawer handles, door knobs, AC vents, the computer mouse, and (especially) the laptop - are like dangling meat in front of a dog. This kid cannot resist! His toys are still in the toy box, but my cell phone, calculator, Brian's PDA, my keyboard and the baby monitor are somehow scattered all over the house - compliments of Hurricane Brighton! Well, I remembered a while back that my brother made this thingamajig from way back when my nephew Brendan was born. It's basically a box with all sorts of switches and buttons that make sounds. Whoa! Buttons AND sounds?! How can you go wrong? After some heavy coercing, Brendan finally decided to let his cousin play with it. We got it in the mail a few days ago and he is hooked! Thanks cousin Brendan!
TOP O' THE MORNIN' TO YA!
This past weekend we headed downtown for the city's annual Celtic Festival. We figured that little B needed to represent his culture. And having said that we also knew that anyone that saw him would not believe for a second that he had any Irish in him. You would never guess that my dad's family is in fact, from Ireland.
So, Brian and I went expecting a huge college frat party, but it wasn't that at all. Surprisingly, it was very family-oriented and included all the usual suspects at any fair - lots of fattening food, overpriced/tacky merchandise, port-a-potties, etc. The fun thing about this one was the Irish dancing and singing - those people love to belt out their traditional, limerick, pub-like songs. The highlight of the day was eating fried pickles. Yes, fried. And don't knock it until you've tried it. It was actually good. Of course, I probably have a clogged artery now, but hey, it's just part of the experience, right?
ANOTHER OHIO DISCOVERY - PATRIOTISM
This post is a little backdated - but important to our memories, nonetheless.
Our friends Downi and Boyce invited us to go to the 4th of July parade in town. We heard that the parade was a huge deal here - but we really weren't expecting much. To our surprise - they weren't kidding. Seriously, two days before the parade - people line up their lawn chairs along the streets. And it's completely safe -no worries about stealing or anything. You don't see that everyday.
Well, the day of the parade - we saw for ourselves just how big this event is to the community. First of all - it was raining the entire day. I thought surely the parade would be cancelled. Nope. You should have seen the street - people were lined up for miles despite the cold and soggy day! I wish I could have gotten an ariel shot to show the size of the crowd. And not only did they "go on with the show" but it was the longest parade I have ever seen in my life! It lasted about an hour and a half - maybe a little longer.
Brian and I were commenting on how huge the 4th of July celebration is here. Nothing like we have ever seen. Along with the parade and the usual festivities - there was a huge block party, the streets, the people and their houses were decorated in red, white and blue and most business were closed for the day. I was telling my dad about the day and about how people here are very into the holiday - and he pretty much summed it up. It's not because it's a small town with nothing to do - as someone might assume. But it's because the folks here are community-oriented, centered in traditions and history, very patriotic and very much proud to be American.
Please excuse the photo quality. My trusty little camera was almost out of batteries. I got what I could - isn't that what counts?
We had a great setup - we used our plastic paint drop cloth over both of our umbrellas and Brighton's stroller - so we were the only ones who stayed dry the entire time! I would highly recommend this makeshift tent for rainy day parade watching!
Wow, I knew this was big - but seriously, how do you book Abe Lincoln for a parade?
Whoa! First Abe, now Darth Vador? Am I missing the theme here?
The funny thing about this was that I heard something above us (thinking it was just another plane - which is common around here). And then I see Brian's eyes about the size of meatballs - exclaiming to me "Oh my gosh - check it out! It's the replica of the Wright Brother's flyer!" Seriously, this rare side of Brian is too funny. Did I mention how much he loves airplanes? And yes, this was part of the parade. And obviously Brian's favorite part.
I will definitely be coming back to see this house at Christmas!
Here is little B waiving his flag so proudly. What a great day.
AN OHIO DISCOVERY - SPLASH PARKS
In our explorations of Ohio thus far - the number one find has been the vast amounts of parks and other recreation sites they have for children. Brighton hit the jackpot for sure. One of our favorite places to go to is the splash park next to our house. It's great - especially for his age group. No worries about him falling into the pool. And it's free. Of course he loves it there, not only because of the water features, but if you notice in one of the photos - there's a huge playground there as well. This is his favorite place to go - obviously. We can't even let him see the place if we're driving past it. We hear there are actually quite a few of these nearby and I'm sure we'll be making our rounds. Here are some photos from our last visit:
BEST BUDDIES
Before we left Arizona, our good friends Emily & Jason threw us a little going away party with a group of Brighton's best friends. Basically, we've gotten to know these couples very well because our kiddos (specifically the boys) are exactly three weeks apart and we were always having to walk around with them in the hallways during church.
We were completely surprised when we got there. Not only did she cater the party, but when we walked into the kitchen there were beautiful flower bouquets AND get this - photos of the three of us everywhere! That totally caught us off guard. I kept thinking - where in the world did she get all of our old photos from? And then it dawned on me - she had taken the time to go to our family website and printed her favorite ones. Very sneaky! Em is the most wonderful friend anyone could have.
To give you the background - she and I spent a ton of time together because we'd go walking with the boys every morning. Those two are the best of friends. The boys would eat their snacks and babble the entire way. And obviously so would we. Well, not the eating part. You obviously get to know someone very well, when you see them everyday. There were quite a few moments I can remember doubling over, laughing at one of her stories. She is hilarious. And patient. And super organized. And fun. And caring. And as Em likes to say - "and blah, blah, blah..."
In fact, one day I heard the doorbell ring and Brighton and I rushed downstairs to find this at the doorstep...
What a great friend!
The three boys along with quite a few other kids in the ward are all the same age and became very good friends. We joke and say that we hope we all stay put so that when the kids start school they'll all be in the same class. That would be so much fun.
Here are a few photos from the party as well as some older photos I found of the two boys hanging out. I know Brighton misses his friends! And we miss all of you guys, too. See you soon!
OUR NOT-SO-NEW NEIGHBORS
One of the great things about moving to Ohio is that two of our good friends from school are living next to us! One family is in Cincinnati and the other is literally, about 500 feet from our home. How great is that?! So, we decided to take a drive down to Cincinnati to check out the town and to visit with our friends. We ended up staying the weekend with them and had so much fun reminiscing and hanging out, as we used to in California. A few highlights were visiting this downtown park, which overlooks the river. The cool thing is the fountain that Brian is walking next to (photo below) actually becomes a skating rink in the winter! If that's not an indication of the weather to come - yikes! We took a trip down memory lane and ate lots of good home cooking (thanks M), ate like a billion M&M's (a staple for us), and shopped and ate at Ikea (our hangout), while Brighton played with their two boys - which he absolutely loved. It's nice to have such great friends around.
Uh oh, another Brangelina in the making... I especially like how Brighton looks like he's in deep thought. Hmm...
PART TWO
Great news! I've managed to get some help around the house and things are really "moving" around here. Can't you tell? It's amazing at how hard my new employee works whenever I turn my back. I'm starting to think that by the time we finish unpacking, it'll be time to start packing up again. Sheesh!
TO MARKET, TO MARKET...
And don't worry, we do have shoes for him.
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