Last Blast of Summer

Yesterday we decided to take one last trip to the beach, and it was a great way to wrap up the Summer of 2008!
o
Derek and the kids searched for buried treasure using Deacon's homemade treasure map!

o
GOLD!

o
Deacon LOVES the beach.

o
Havin' fun!

o
Mommy and Maren stay warm on a windy, overcast day.

o
Pelicans!

o
Maren

o
This is the life.

o
Where'd she go?

o
The only evidence of Maren.

o
I thought she'd fallen asleep, but it wasn't the case.

o
Deacon washes up with the tide...

o
Next week, first grade. But for now, hanging out on the beach with Daddy will have to do!

Cooking with Maren

Maren is VERY excited to introduce her new culinary creation...
j
Fishy cracker soup!
k
j
j
j
Rather than keeping the recipe secret, we thought the world should know how to make this delectable entree.
k
So here's the recipe the world is waiting for:

FISHY CRACKER SOUP

2/3 cup Lime Gatorade

5 or 6 Goldfish Crackers (Colors)

Pour Gatorade in a bowl. Add fishy crackers. Enjoy.

k


Bon Appétit!

Technical Difficulties

UPDATE 7:33 p.m. 8/26/08
Our I.T. department has successfully restored our connectivity. Unfortunately, the marginal quality of our content will remain the same.

The AFB I.T. Department

Our esteemed I.T. department is working feverishly to fix some computer issues that have prevented more frequent posting... rest assured that updates will be coming soon! Thank you for your patience!

Art Showcase: "Me In The Beginning of the Garden," by Maren

Me In The Beginning of the Garden by Maren, 8/22/08

Maren says she is wearing red earrings and dancing when she sees the first flower in the garden.

"Joke" of the Day

Well, Maren desperately wanted to make up a joke for the blog, too. She even wrote it out (with help on spelling) and drew a picture.
f
So here's the joke:
f
Q:

What did the cow say when he was chewing gum?

f
A:

Bogo
d
The AFB will be forever grateful to anyone who can find a way for that to make sense!

(Not sure why the cow in the picture has 17 legs. When I asked her, she said, "because I drawed it that way.")

Joke of the Day

Not much going on in these last days of summer. Sorry about the lack of updates! I turned to Deacon for some new material, and he didn't let me down. His latest original joke:

Q: What do you call a commercial about a car?

A: A CAR-mercial!
h

f
The accompanying drawing features Uglydolls, of course: according to Deacon, "Wedgehead and OX are driving somewhere to build a door."

This Day In History: August 15, 2004

Maren and Daddy on August 15, 2004

Back in Burbank!

Burbank is a much better place today because Susie and Molly are BACK!

We celebrated their return last night at Acapulco.
d
d
d

In true L.A. style, Maren welcomed them back wearing pink sunglasses, inside, at night.

d
These were the HAPPIEST PEOPLE IN BURBANK last night!

d
Being at opposite ends of the table didn't keep Molly and Miss Roberta from getting caught up.

d
Molly is adjusting well to the life of a Southern California teen!

d
Susie helps Maren hone her text messaging skills.

d
Art aficionado Deacon admired this painting of a watermelon!

d
Best buds Molly and Alana

Art Showcase: "Babo and Babo's Bird" by Deacon

Babo and Babo's Bird, by Deacon

You may not be familiar with Uglydolls, but they're all the rage in our house. In this picture, Babo walks away from Babo's Bird, who is singing an unpleasant song.

Back to the Beach!

Grandma and Grandpa are in town this weekend, so we decided to go to Zuma beach!
f
f
f
f
f
Daddy and Deacon went boogie boarding! Daddy rode some waves, but Deacon mainly flung the board around wildly.

f

Maren and Grandma in the surf

f

Grandpa keeps cool.

f

Digging for sand crabs!

f

Maren and Grandpa

f

Digging a deep hole

f

Buried in sand!

k

f

They eventually escaped from the sand and joined us for the ride home to Burbank!

This Day In History: August 4, 2006

Maren on August 4, 2006

Seaweed Boy & Aqua Girl

Deacon just completed a week of camp at his school. On Thursday, they went on a field trip to Zuma Beach in Malibu!

Mommy and Maren couldn't let Deacon have all the fun, so we decided to crash the party!
f
f

Deacon and Maren in the surf

f

f
We need to get this kid a surf board PRONTO.

f
Our camera's odometer, or "phodometer," counts to 9999 pics and then goes back to 0001. This picture is significant because it marks the 4th time the camera has rolled over, making it pic # 40,000 in our archives!

d

After a big wave surprised her on the shore and she took in a mouthful of saltwater, Maren decided to play a bit farther inland.

f

Deacon shows off his biggest seaweed catch yet!

d

Another treasure... he started to make a pile to bring home, so I had to inform him that the seaweed would be staying at the beach.

f

Playing in the sand...

f

One last dig before heading home.