Disneyland - Who Needs It?

We really needed to get out of here this weekend, but where to go? The mall - no, shopping wasn't the answer. We needed someplace where the kids could move around and get some energy out there. So we look on the Internet; Legoland was about $45 per adult; Knotts Berry Farm, around the same. Disneyland was going to cost over $300 just to walk in the gate. Not a good option at this point.

Actually, is it a good idea at any point? I've always loved Disneyland and it's never been cheap. But we justified spending the money once or twice a year. And we've had passes when they were about $150; three visits more than paid for it and there was a time when I really needed a place to take the kids when Dad was working out of town. But today's prices are ridiculous. It really bothers me that we'll have to make major plans and save as if we're going on vacation to pay for our family to go again. In these times, how are families managing to do it?

Anyway, we go online to find out about the Santa Ana Zoo. We spent less than $100 for six of us to have lunch out, pay for entrance to the zoo, ride the train and the carousel, and buy souveniers. And as you can see in the pictures, a good time was had by all.

Valentine's Day - A Retrospective

Valentine's Day has never been a huge event at our house (Jim may not entirely agree with that). Mostly, we can take it or leave it, especially in recent years. This year we spent the day with the kids at the zoo and had a pretty good day. But today if felt important that we make it a special day because of what happened two years ago on February 14th.

On this day in 2007 Jim and I were in Dublin, I think on the third day of our trip. Our day started with a tour of St. Patrick's Cathedral and then we visited Marsh's Library. We walked to the Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church where the remains of St. Valentine are enshrined. We hunted down Burdock's Fish and Chips, said to be the best in Dublin and unbeknownst to us, right around the corner from our hotel. After lunch was Merrion Square and the Natural History Museum. At dinner we ate real boxty for the first time, then finished with music and drinks at the Brazen Head Pub (which Mike and Scott both HAVE to experience).

It wasn't until two days later that we found out that while we enjoying our last day in Dublin, our daughter and her children were being thrown out of her house in Nebraska, and friends and family here at home were frantically trying to get them to California. I'm not going to bore you with the details. The reason I couldn't stop thinking about this today is that there is a cold lump of hatred in my heart that bursts into flame every time that man or that day is mentioned or even flits across my mind. I've never felt this for someone before, and it's not a feeling I'm proud of. But I'm not letting it go, either. No one deserves to be treated the way they were.

So spending today with family in the sunshine and having a good time was a positive thing. There was plenty of love going on there.

Sorry for the rant.

Crazy Night

Well, I think we're all officially down for the count, finally. I've left Christian sound asleep in bed and Jim downstairs getting ready to watch Battlestar Galactica. The day's just been really stressful. Jim and I both have colds - mine hit me about the time I started bragging about having nine days off in a row (which doesn't turn out to be the truth - I'm working Sunday) and Jim's is just starting. Rosanne's had sinus headaches accompanied by the requisite amount of complaining. And the kids are bouncing off the ceiling, for no particular reason. Probably because everyone just wants it quiet. My plan was to watch "Nights In Rodanthe" from Netflix and make it an entire grown up evening, but it made more sense to put in "Mary Poppins" and hope the little guys wanted to watch it. Of course we also had to deal with the cat trying to open the dog food bag, kids wanting snacks, kids wanting juice, a cat knocking over the open bin of dog food trying to get to the new bag of dog food. It was just chaos central, but they're finally asleep. Boring post, I know, but part of the point is to get the tension out there, right?

Do you ever watch that show "Jon & Kate Plus Eight"? I've only watched it once, and they had a family tv night where they all sat down to watch a nature video. Only problem was, Mom kept naming the animals on the show after her kids, so when the lion came out and ate the monkey, all hell broke loose in the tv room. Should have known better.

Chicken Fried Steak

I officially give up. Mike and Scott, you must be right; the perfect chicken fried steak is a figment of my imagination, a deceitful memory from our childhood . I have ruined my last piece of round steak; when recipes with enticing photos such as this one appear on the Internet or in cookbooks, I will recognize them for Photoshopped illusions they are.

But I don't let go of this dream easily. I will probably still be tempted by menus in Midwest diners - after all, they have better meat, right? Don't disillusion me.

LA Car Chase

Last night we turned on the 11:00 news to get an update on the weather. Every news channel was showing the exact same footage - a white Bentley involved in a slow-speed chase. No one knew who was in the car, but everyone was watching this car being pursued by police cars; the chase went on for about three hours, the telecast ended when the car came to a stop and was surrounded by police officers with their guns pulled.

We gave up on the weather and went to sleep. This morning, nothing in the news about what happened. It was important last night, but apparently not this morning. Then I looked the story up on the Internet. The poor man committed suicide, according to the news report because he was losing his business. And of course that isn't newsworthy.

I'm appalled that I was caught up, however unintentionally, in a man's tragedy, really only valued as entertainment. I will never allow myself to watch such a spectacle again. That poor man, dealing with his fear and misery under the watchful eyes of probably tens of thousands of people.

Irish Skies

It has to be said that one of my favorite things about Ireland is the weather. We've enjoyed many sunny days there, but my mind's eye always see Ireland under gray, cloudy skies. And when I wake up at home to clouds and rain, I'm immediately more content with my world. Rainy days hold the promise of great accomplishments and quiet activities; glowing fires and numerous cups of tea; puddles and the sound of the wind in the trees.

We never let the weather stop us when we're in Ireland; during one trip we spent a day driving in gale force winds just because it didn't occur to us to stop. I always look damp and windswept in our vacation pictures - and it isn't always just because I have crazy hair. Why worry about getting damp when there's sure to be a cozy tea room or pub to warm up in. You can always find a spot by a warm fire and usually someone to chat with. And rainy weather has brought us many glorious rainbows in Ireland. Once we were at the top of a small hill in the West of Ireland and suddenly found ourselves fully encircled by a rainbow. All we could do was to stop the car, get out and revel in the experience. One of our truly magical moments.

As we feared, it rained yesterday, and the guys were in danger of missing their drag races. But the sun was out long enough for them to hold some of the races and they had a good time. We played indoors with the little kids, ate home-made potato soup, then went in quest of rain boots, which we did not find. But we found some online and we'll be better prepared for the next rainy day.

Rainy Night

There hasn't been a bloggable thought in my head for the last few days. Went to work. Did some reading, although not anything worth reporting. Started my second sock four times and almost gave up altogether. Have nearly finished the sleeves on a sweater I started last summer.

Tonight we're listening to the rain that's been promised in the last few days. I always love rain, but I'm afraid this rain means Jim won't be able to go to the drag races tomorrow. Nevertheless, the lawns and the plants are getting a good soaking. My lilac and forsythia bushes are starting to bud and there are new leaves on the apple tree. Maybe the rain will bypass Pomona and they'll be able to go after all.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Happy birthday to me, and I wouldn't be sorry if they stopped now. It's definitely time to stop counting!!

And I finished a sock! And it fits! Since I don't have my camera, I'll take a picture when they're both done!

To My Grandmother

This morning we had bacon and aebleskiver for breakfast. My aebleskiver pan was inherited from my father's mother, Serena. I don't remember that she ever used it, but it was lurking in the back of one of her cupboards, just begging to be set free. I scrubbed it, used it once a long time ago, and then put it in the dark recesses of one of my own cupboards. Why I was inspired to use it today I can't say, but it was certainly worth the effort. Even the little guys ate those pancake puffs like they were ambrosia.

I have not always been fair to my grandmother. She has been gone some years now, so maybe memory has softened some of the rough edges. She was a determined lady and was pretty good at getting people to do what she wanted them to do. Unlike my mother's mother, she wasn't good at giving hugs and generally making a child feel loved. But she did love us, and now I can see the ways in which she expressed it. The signs were there but being kids, we didn't always recognize them. Like most people, I suppose she was shaped by her dreams and desires, and as the oldest of eight children, she probably had to make those things happen for herself. She was a fighter. She put herself through school to become an RN. In a time when diabetes was a killing disease, she managed to live well into old age. When her only child died as a young man, she dealt with her grief and didn't let it rule her. She lived on her own until the very end of her life and stayed active with her church, family and friends.

Many things were important to her. Her family. Her Norwegian heritage. Her faith. And although we didn't always appreciate the way she shared these things with us, her sharing was a way of showing her love. And today I felt love as I celebrated my Norwegian family ties with as much joy as I do my Irish ties. I think I'll be making aebleskiver more often.