Today the fun continued for Tatiana's 14th birthday celebration which has turned into a 14th birthday weekend. We picked up Tat from the sleepover at Alyssa's and then went to Marissa's house to pick her up so Tat and Marissa could celebrate! We went to the Mall (of course) had lunch, shopped a bit, then came back to the house and the girls played Monopoly, messed around on the computer and then went to the park. Dinner to follow......Happy 14th again and again!!!
Our art teacher just got back from a trip across the U.S. in her motor home. Along the way she went to a 76,000 square foot antique show in Ohio. Wow, that is a lot of antiques! We are now painting a still life of a coffee pot, cup, grinder, coffee can, and scoop that she picked up at the show. We will be finishing this painting in class next week so I have a lot of homework! Here is the very beginning of the painting. I think I will hang this in the kitchen when I am done! I just keep finding wall space. =) (Click on the pic above to get a better view of what we are painting.)
Last month Ruth, her hubby Jeff and their PRECIOUS baby Serena visited San Diego from Northern Cal. We met up with them in Old Town and spent the day catching up, eating, and being tourists in our town. It was sooooo great to see them! We just love Jeff....funny, funny man! Serena is quite possibly the cutest baby ever!! Ruth and I have known each other FOREVER (since 5th grade) and now she has a baby and I have a high schooler! Hilarious! Thanks for the pics Ruth! Love you guys! P.S. Jeff how come you aren't in any of the pictures!? Oh wait your reflection is in the last pic!=) Gotcha!
I know I said I had planned to paint all Summer...best laid plans and all....not so much. I didn't paint at all. Not in the mood, too busy, too tired, doing other things, who knows. However art class is back in session as of today and I am totally motivated again. The paint brushes are dusted off and I am ready to roll! Today was filled with lots of hugs and laughter after not seeing everyone for a month. Art class is inspirational! I finally finished the dahlia. I found a frame here at home that is perfect for the painting. The frame itself is too dark so I am going to paint it. Nothing like recycling old frames and using up old paint. =) I can't wait to dig in to our new painting. More to come on that one next week.....lovin' art!
No matter who you are voting for in November, today is such a historical day for everyone! On the anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr's "I Have a Dream" speech, the first black presidential nominee is giving his speech. That my friends is incredible! As a white woman married to a black man, who during the year Dr. King gave his speech would not have been able to legally marry the person I love, this is an incredible day. As the Mother of a daughter who is half black and half white this day is something she can take with her for the rest of her life. She too could run for President one day and by then it won't even be unusual. So today whether you are a Democrat or a Republican I hope we all realize how special this moment is. Maybe one day it won't even be a conversation, it will just be.
Yesterday was our 15th anniversary! I can't believe it has been 15 years! It seems like not long ago we were standing in the Rose Garden at Balboa Park getting married. What a wild ride it has been. We have had lots of ups and lots of downs and through the years we just keep getting stronger. That's what marriage is truly about. This year has been the true test of our strength and our marriage. Who knew that when we took our vows 15 years ago and said for better or worse the worse would include finding out that the building our business was in was hooked up to sewer water instead of drinking water. We are now dealing with the loss of our business due to all of the negative publicity, health issues, financial issues, emotional issues, lawsuits, and everything else that goes along with this mess we are in, but as everything else around us is falling apart our marriage just keeps getting stronger. They say that opposites attract and what doesn't kill you will make you stronger...well we have both those bases covered so we are good to go for the long haul. =) If we can make it through this we can make it through anything! Here's to marriage, with more ups than downs, never-ending faith, and true everlasting love. 
She also just started her new dance schedule which is going to keep her very busy. She is taking hip hop, tap, jazz, lyrical, two ballet classes, and is student assistant for one of the little kids classes. She has found her passion that is for sure. We always tell her to follow her passion, and live her dreams and so far she is doing it! =) I will get some pictures from the studio when she is not looking, this is just her messing around in the backyard. Miss flexible.
