A Very Happy Family Friend

Connie was quite happy yesterday.  She was a bit irritated that Miss Jill and Mister John started the UCLA/U$C game two hours late due to sick children they were putting to sleep.  But the game itself was splendid for her.  Lots of touchdowns and lots of sacks by her favorite Bruin, linebacker Anthony Barr.  Everyone else is on the Myles Jack bandwagon.  Not Connie!  At least not until next year when Barr turns pro and Jack is still around sacking, intercepting, and running for short TDs.

Bunnies Not Feeling the Thanksgiving Love

For some unknown reason, the bunnies at the Erb household are not too thankful.  It's that time of year when the humans seem to be thankful for things but the bunnies come off as mildly unappreciative.

The bunnies nailed a seven-point plan on the back door, in much the same manner as Martin Luther did with his 99 Theses so long ago.  Mister John took a look and wasn't sure what to think of it:

The girls are not so happy to swap sleeping locations with the rabbits.

1. Allow more hopping time in the back yard for rabbits.
2. More time inside the house while the little children sleep in the cages.
3. More insulation on the cold winter nights.
4. Satellite TV.
5. Finely engraved carrots.
6. Free towing.
7. More stuffing and mashed potatoes on Thanksgiving Day.

Miss Jill is unsure about some of these (Mister John is perplexed at #6) but maybe compromises are to be had.

Cookie Sue thinking about her demands.

Girls, Guys and Tea

This weekend Mary Jane and Betsy wanted to have some early morning tea.  Along with them were Paul the Panda, Phone Wolf (always known for his love of iced tea), and Lyle the Crocodile.  They all sat there and enjoyed their tea and scones for the morning.  Cheerio!

A True Family Photo

Now that is a family photo.  We used the letters of our last name -- which are situated high up in the living room -- and allowed our little ones to hold them for a precious birth announcement photos.  Jack was about a month old (maybe younger) for a sequence of photos for his birth announcement.  Betsy has a quiet smile about her and Mary Jane's hair is tossed about like she's her father!

Best photo ever... of course if my last name were Johnson, I might think otherwise.

Girls on the Farm

 A few weeks back the girls went to Underwood Farms and had a great time riding on the tractor as well as picking berries and sitting on pumpkins.  Tis the season for pumpkins!!!

 Jack is hidden underneath my sling.

OK, maybe too many berries for Betsy Jo Jo.

Too Cool for School

Nothing says Hollywood quite like Betsy and Mary Jane.

Note: it's been a good season for our rose bushes.  I really do need to take a picture of them as they have blossomed something fierce.  Ah, nothing like the smell of roses in the front yard.

Posing at Two Months Old!

That's our Jack!  Still not quite sleeping through the night.  Almost coming up with a smile.  So close.  But by next month, he'll hit all of those markers and I'll be sleeping much better.

Oops, Took a Month Off

Yeah, well, what are you going to do when you have three children under three?  Something has to give and for me it is blogging.  I think I'll toss in a few pics here just to keep the loyal bloggers happy.

Here in this picture Grampa Kendall helps Betsy climb a tree.  She wasn't sure if she wanted to or not but there she goes.

Operation: Tree Climb seems to be a success.  Never mind that she wanted down about 30 seconds later but she still loved it for the brief time she was up there.

Baby Jack stole the show in Fresno last weekend as everyone came over to look at the new baby boy.  He kept his eyes open and looked at all the family members.  Yes, some day you'll need to memorize the names.

Here Mary Jane is looking at a small dog.  She's not a big dog person -- Betsy has always been the bigger animal lover -- but she didn't run away this time.

Looking at the New Guy!

Here Mary Jane and Betsy Jo are wondering who this Jack guy is.  They've heard all about him but now they get to see him up close and personal for the very first time.

Jack!

Betsy's True Love?

Tonight as I was rocking a twisty-turny Mary Jane in her bedroom one hour after her prospective bedtime, she decided to start singing imaginary songs.  I asked her to sing a "Crocodile Song."  Her response: "Crocodiles have big teeth.  Chomp.  Crocodiles have big teeth.  Chomp.  Chomp."  Impressive.

Then she reversed my typical night time role of asking her which animals make which sounds.  So she asked Daddy, "What lion say?"  GROWL!  After a few other animals, she asked, "What fan say?"  I looked up at the rotating fan and replied, "Vroom vroom vroom" or something sounding like a circling fan.  She laughed so I guess that did the trick.

Finally she asked me, "What does Betsy say?"  Wow, there's a loaded question!  How would I know?  I responded that I didn't know.  "What does she say?" I inquired.  She glibly replied, "I LIKE PIZZA!"

Mary Jane Leads the Erb Caravan

Mary Jane is slowly mastering her tricycling ability.  In this video, she's working her way down Stanwood, the street adjacent to Dewey.  This was only her second time circumnavigating the block.  Hey now, it takes her almost 30 minutes for the whole trip.

Betsy was sitting in the wagon and was not in this video.  Betsy, at this point, can make the walk around the block but often lingers and wants to pull off flowers.  Oops.  Thus when she gets a little... tired and distracted... I place her in the wagon and off we go.  It's the Erb Caravan.

A Few Vacation Pictures...

 Ah, it was a busy ten days or so in Arizona.  Here are just a few of the family photos there.  We'll be catching up with more photos and family news shortly.

I Think My Wife Is Trying to Kill Me!!!

Jill is signing me up for the Flagstaff Extreme Course again.

More Beach Photos

 Nothing says summertime like spending some time on the beach.  Here Betsy looks off toward the ocean and wonders what is up with all that noise.

Here Daddy holds Mary Jane as they look down at the waves.  He reminds her that the waves are dangerous and she needs to be by him at all times.  He will remind her of that until she is at least 21.

Betsy Jo runs about the sand having a good ol' time.  Who cares about having sand in your toes anyway?

Who Needs Sleep Anyway?

Clearly Mary Jane does not.  She crawled out of her crib repeatedly tonight to remind Mommy and Daddy that they should also be going to sleep.  In a span of about ten minutes, she shuttled from Daddy (flopped on the couch playing Sudoko on his Kindle Fire) to Mommy (feigning sleep in the bedroom) kissing them both good night.  This repeated over and over... finally she thought of climbing back into her crib and she did.  For about ten minutes.  Then she came back out to check up on the sleep patterns of her beloved parents.  Finally... after she walked into the master bedroom and saw Mommy and Daddy both "asleep," she climbed on the bed and nearly jumped on Mommy's ribs before Daddy had to place her to sleep.  Now... quietly... peacefully... calmly... Mary Jane sleeps.

I think Mommy is asleep too.

Daddy blogs.  What's up with that?

The Wheels on That Bus Went Up and Down... Too Much

Mary Jane and Betsy Jo took on their very first amusement park today as they went with Mommy and Daddy to Adventure City in Anaheim.  It's geared towards the smaller set.  There was a carousel (Daddy had never ridden one before), a train (a good slow ride), and a crazy bus among other rides.  Mary Jane went on the ride twice... Betsy could only manage it once.  Afterward Mary Jane said, "I don't like bus.  Up and down too much."  Indeed!!!

Overall a thumbs up for the park as it entertained our two girls for the two hours we were there.  Why so short of a time?  Hey now, they're toddlers.  They have nap times to deal with!

Crazy Bus!

Half-Marathon Result

Full Results

John Erb

Los Angeles, CA
Bib #: 1458 | 41M

Time: 2:21:46
Pace: 10:49/M
Division: HALF MARATHON

Overall Place: 858/1791 | 47.9%
Age Group: M 40-44
Age Group Place: 76/126 | 60.3%

For Inquiring Minds... Palisades 10K Result

is is me, post to my social media site >>

Runner Details	Race Results
Bib: 918 Name: John Erb Gender: M Age: 41 Hometown: Los Angeles, CA	Overall: 513 out of 850 Men: 368 out of 540 M 40-44: 57 out of 73 Age/Grade: 47.63% Place: 652 Finish: 1:00:06 Pace: 9:41 Tag Time: 1:00:06 Gun Time: 1:01:55
Split Times
5 Mi: 48:01 Pace: 9:37

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Visiting Grandpa on the Fourth

 After running a 10K for the first time in probably a decade, Mister John rested for a few hours before heading eastward with Miss Jill and the two girls to visit his sister's house.  There Mary Jane and Betsy Jo got to spend some time with cousins Garrett, Trevor, and Manny (the eldest of the whole cousin brood).  There was also an Aunt Jo and Uncle Jose sighting which is good for Mary Jane as she quite the memory and it makes it all the easier for her to look at pictures and point at them with the proper names.

In this picture, it's Aunt Pat, Daddy, Betsy, and Aunt Jo.  Alas, Mary Jane was already in her car seat when this impromptu picture was taken.  Pat and Jo were talking about sibling rivalry and how sisters bicker about certain things... perfect to know before Mary Jane and Betsy Jo get older.  Then again Mommy also had an older sister so she knows all about that.

Modern Art

Betsy Jo and Mary Jane had their weekly art fest in the backyard this afternoon.  If it's Monday, it has to be art day.  With each work I've learned more lessons... no more shirts to be painted upon, mix the paints with water, paint on grass, let them be.  Yes, whisper words of wisdom: let them be, let them be.

While that piece might not look like me to the untrained eye, one can clearly see a red pterodactyl in the upper left hand corner of the work.  I don't think that Salvador Dali could do any better.  OK, maybe he had the really cool mustache but Mary Jane has the artistic pacifier.  Normally I say no pacifiers unless you're sleeping but if it spurs such artistic genius, I will let her use it as her muse.

The girls especially like art day because early bath time follows that (yeah, extra time to wash out all the paint that ends up on their skin... and hair!).

Dare I say I feel like I need to sneak out there the next time the girls have a nap and work on some paints myself.  I have no idea what I would paint but there's always inspiration.  I'm not using a pacifier though.

Vote for Me!

Girls, Garbage Trucks, Good Times

Mondays are quite the fun-days with Mary Jane and Betsy.  You wouldn't believe how much excitement they receive watching trash trucks go down the street.  And the best news: three different trash trucks and they have to go east and west down the street.  Six times to see trash trucks!!!  No greater joy than seeing that arm reach down, grab the receptacle, raise it high into the air, fling it over the top, release the garbage, and then slamming it back down onto the ground.  Try it some time.  It might not awe you but watch it with a toddler.  Now I understand why little kids were so into Bob the Builder and stuff like that.

Of course that would just be six times to see the trash trucks doing their glorious deeds.  To maximize trash-dumping viewings, I pulled out the stroller and followed them down Dewey Street.  Interestingly enough, the trucks eke ahead a little more than the casual stroll a parent would use.  Yes, I could haul it with the Double Bob but I had my sandals on and as Mary Jane knows, I only run with my white shoes.  Sandals?  Maybe a deliberate pace... but never fast.  Regardless we did see lots more trash dumping today.

Happy Independence Day!

Mary Jane and Betsy Jo say happy Fourth of July to all.

Post-Modern Art

 Betsy Jo and Mary Jane have now taken up art.  Or at least coloring anything that moves as is apparent from the picture above.  They were given three colors: red, blue, and yellow.  So one can see all the varieties of dipping they did to get their colors as perfect as they can be.

Of course there is no better canvas that the human face.  At least these paints are water-based so all the paint comes off the face and hair easily enough.  And I already learned from the first outing, no clothes except diapers!  Otherwise everything gets stained...

More masterpieces forthcoming.

Tricycle: the Power Ride

Mary Jane was power riding down Dewey Street this afternoon.  She barely had time to say Hi and Bye to her dear Mommy.  Now that is an exercise ride!

Father's Day in Pictorial Retrospect

 Those crazy Father's Day traditions.  In my family, the dad makes waffles for the family.  So there you go... waffles with bacon (thanks, Mommy) and milk.  Darned delicious if I might say so myself.  Every year I say I need to do this more than once a year.  Maybe I should... but for the third annual Erb Father's Day Breakfast, a full tummy was had all around.  Look at those girls!

 Yum.  Bacon and waffles.  Cold glass of milk.  Much like the hokie pokie, that's what it's all about.

Our girls chilling inside an old abandoned building on the Paramount Ranch.  It's somewhere between Malibu and Calabassas in the hills of the Santa Monica Mountains.