Belated Shout Out to .... me!

Sorry I have been so slow on blog posts and updates. My 17 month old DS has discovered dirt, snails and rocks so we have been spending most of our time outdoors. My idea of giving his dry skin a bath every other day doesn't seem so wise now.

I celebrated my Birthday on Monday. When I have more time to blog I promise to share two wonderful new restaurants, my new camera toys and other delightful gifts worth sharing.

I hope everyone is doing well and enjoying their summer. I thank you again for those of you that continue to check in to hear The Life and Times of Just the Sous Chef!!! I am getting a make-over in late July and I hope it is that push to get me back into blogging on a more regular basis (nope, not a personal make-over, although I need one of those too, but a "blogger" make-over ... I am having my Blogspot custom designed so it can better match and represent my personality ... so, yes, you can expect to see pink).




Self portrait, a peek at the girl behind the lens & a look at my other companion, my Nikon D80!

Jesus Loves Me

DS loves this song. It is the one song he will sit still long enough to listen to for it's entirety. I think his DG (Dear Grammy) started singing this to him first. She always sings to him before his nap or bed time when she is with him. Maybe that is why he loves it so much ... he thinks he is about to get two Mr. Brown Bears, remember this blog post?! :) He smiles at her with complete adoration while she sings (I can't say he does the same for my tone-deaf sounds).

Regardless of the reason, I love that he enjoys this song as much as I do. It definitely is my favorite children's Christian song. I finally decided to look up the "official" lyrics today. My DH will be happy to know that once again I was making up my own lyrics to a well known song. It now is starting to even entertain me ... really, where the heck do I come up with these lyrics?!

Anyway, here are the "official" lyrics (makes me feel at peace just reading them):

Jesus Loves Me

Jesus loves me! this I know,
For the Bible tells me so.
Little ones to Him belong;
they are weak but He is strong.

Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
The Bible tells me so.

Jesus loves me! loves me still,
'tho I'm very weak and ill,
that I might from sin be free,
bled and died upon the tree.

Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
The Bible tells me so.

Jesus loves me! He who died
heaven's gate to open wide;
He will wash away my sin,
let His little child come in.

Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
The Bible tells me so.

Jesus loves me! He will stay
close beside me all the way.
Thou hast bled and died for me,
I will henceforth live for Thee.

Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
Yes, Jesus loves me!
The Bible tells me so.

Oh, and if you must know, I was singing in the first verse:
"Little ones come near and far
For they are weak and He is strong"

Please tell me I am not the only one that sings the wrong lyrics with out knowing until someone (like your DH) says "what did you just say" followed by a giggle????

Legoland here we come!!!

A BIG thank you to all of you that voted for my DS and DH in the OC Register Father Son Look-alike contest. We were one of the 10 winners and their picture was featured on the cover of the LIFE section of the OC Register newspaper yesterday.

I have a sneaking suspicion that the biggest thanks should be going to DS's Grammy and Nina .... so, thanks Mom and sis for all your votes. I certainly enjoyed seeing my two favorite boys in the newspaper and we are looking forward to Legoland soon.

This is a poor scanned copy of the newspaper by yours truly. The picture of my handsome boys was taken by the ever so sweet and talented Nancy Thompson Photography.

Lions, panthers and gorillas, oh my!

Yesterday was our first family excursion to a theme park. We took DS to The Wild Animal Park in Escondido, CA.

The Wild Animal Park (WAP) is 2,100 acres of land where you can view animals in surroundings most similar to their natural home-land and habitat. You can get up closely, see them freely with out cages and feed them. There are many exhibits. A few are: The Heart of Africa, Lion Camp, and Hidden Jungle.

Helpful Hints: wear comfortable shoes, wear sunscreen, dress for the heat and pack your own lunch. If you remember all those helpful hints you will surely enjoy this rare experience with the animals. DS's favorite was the giraffes. DH's favorite was the gorillas. My favorite, the rhinos ... what can I say, they made me feel skinny and svelte!!!

(picture of feeding time with the giraffes by yours truly)

Last chance

Today is the last day to vote in the Orange County Register's Father's Day contest.

If you have a chance, please stop by to cast your vote here.

We are thinking of going to Disneyland on Father's Day but maybe we will be going to Legoland instead!

Birthday Shout Outs!

May 21st ... Happy Birthday all the way to AZ to Miss SRM!!!

Today, June 4th ... Happy 10th Birthday to my niece MA!!! We had fun celebrating with her yesterday. Enjoy another piece of chocolate banana cake for your Uncle R!!!

Lexicon of love

I asked my DH what he was going to do with all his free time after his test? (He typically studied every evening after work and all day on weekends).

His answer in exact order:

1. Clean out the garage
2. Re-paint the entry way & up the stairs
3. Buy flower boxes and plant flowers for our patio

Do I even have to say, "I love this man more and more every day!". I didn't even once ask for any of these but they are all definitely on my "please, honey-do" list!!!

Now of course, I am sure this is after he takes a night off to enjoy a glass of The Bottler's 21 year old scotch and a nice cold Fischer beer .... oh and must not forget his over-indulgence on the box of Sees dark chocolates from the G Family for Good Luck!!! And of course he should, he has earned it.

Life is grand, I am with my life-long partner who I adore.

And to think, The Love Calculator gave us a 68% chance. Want to find out Doctor Love's prediction for your relationship? Click here and please tell the results! It is fun and only takes 3 seconds!

The picture below of my DH and I was taken last weekend at our next door neighbor's wedding, we had a great time.

Do you remember your Mother's advice?

With my new found interest in photography comes my new found interest in "photo contests". You might be wondering where I hear about these contests? 99% of the time from YOU and I really appreciate it. I not only am flatered that you think my photography is worthy of these contests but that you also think my son is as adorable as I do!

I typically do not like the "popularity" photo contests where voting decides the winner, especially when you have to "rank" the photo. But occasionally one comes along that I can't resist. This one is one of them! My sweet dear friend KC told me about this one. It is sponsored by our local paper, The Orange County Register, and the winner receives 4 tickets to Legoland in San Diego, CA. Since I often hear how much my DS looks like my DH I decided to enter them in the Father Son Look-alike Contest in honor of Father's Day.

Now apparently, not everyone remembers the advice their Mother was sure to give them when they were a teenager ... the one that goes like this, "if you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all!" How do I know not everyone knows this? Well, it has been brought to my attention from several people that after they vote for my DS and DH someone goes in soon after and gives them a 1 to lower their score (because, really, who gives 1's?! I can understand a low score, but a 1, come on, you are just trying to be mean). Shame on them. They ruin the fun for all of us. Isn't this just for fun? I had a blast looking through the pics and picking out my favorites. If you have the time, browse the entries, many of them look like they could be brothers!

By the way, if you do think my sweet DS and wonderful DH deserve a 10 please vote here and if you don't think so, please remember your Mom's advice, "if you have nothing nice to say, don't say anything at all!"

Did I also mention that you can vote as often as you like until June 5th?! *wink wink*

Eat!

My DS's new word this week. This should not be a surprise since DH and I are both "foodies" too! He has decided that he now not only has an opinion about what he wants to eat but that he also wants crackers with every meal.

DS's favorite foods in no particular order:

White rice
Goldfish crackers
Apple sauce
Mexican seasoned chicken
Pizza

... did I already say, goldfish crackers?! :) I think we need to buy stock in those Pepperidge Farm treats. This opinionated toddler prefers the "Goldfish Colors".

Did you know there is a "Goldfish Central Club" for kids? Check it out. There are games and even "card carrying" privileges. Apparently my son is not the only goldfish junkie. So, is it safe to assume this obsession will carry in to adulthood? I did catch my DH chowing down on a handful the other day.