Picnic, Carnival, and Theatre

Hello friends and family,

Daddy won a Galaxy Tab 2 at the church celebration picnic.  If there were ever a doubt my geekiness knows a boundary, let me assure you I get an unbelievable amount of satisfaction from learning and playing with a new gadget.  The past few days have been devoid of free time so I decided sleep was optional.  Not a good long term plan, but I didn't want to wait for the weekend to unwrap my new toy.  It's basically an overs-sized iphone without the phone capability.  It's just an "i".

Meanwhile, back in beautiful downtown Burbank...   Life keeps flying by.  Layla is already determined to be a good mother.  She's feeding baby Grace and using all of her baby furniture like the high chair, stroller, and crib.  She' practically ready to babysit!

We went for a hike on South Mountain with our friend Chris.  I had high hopes of a hike with no injuries, but we had no such luck.  the trail we hike is just too steep for their coordination level.  I accept that and we will work this winter to move from flat to slightly inclined.  During this hike I carried Easton for about 10 minutes as he cried and complained about the scratches on his knees and hands.  Other than those 10 minutes worth of agony we had an outstanding time while hiking to the third peak (furthest we've ever hiked)!

The church celebration picnic is my favorite church event of the year even before I won the Galaxy Tablet.  Tam, the face painting lady, gave Easton a bat and Layla a crown.  Imagine that!  Morgan is considered one of the Webb kids now so this picture is one of the few showing all three of our kids together.

Layla spent most of her time in the bounce house waving at me outside.  Her needs for attention, affection, and approval are most obvious when she's waving and shouting, "look at me, Daddy!" while bouncing around.  This is a self-portrait from my poor point-n-shoot camera, but I'm really happy with how it turned out.  Daddy takes about 5,000 pictures per year, but I'm only the subject in a handful of them.

Easton did what most boys like to do:  get dirty and grassy while dumping bubble juice everywhere.  The yellow wand in his hands made enormous, long bubbles that burst when he slopped them over the nearest child.

The twins were worn out from the crazy atmosphere of 300+ church people at the park.  You'd think they would be ready for a nap or an hour of quiet time, right?  Nope, it turned into a marathon day where the crazy high energy overflowed back into the Webb house.  pillow cases are also good for sack racing:

Saturday was virtually a kid-free day for Kendra and an all day Daddy-date for me.  One of the best days in recent memory for me.  The three of us attended a play called, "Peacemaker" by the Phoenix Theatre Cookie Company.  The tickets were free (compliments of my work) and worth every penny.  I don't know that it was worth $15 per ticket face value, but it was well worth our time.  The basic idea behind the play is this:

The Blues and the Reds have lived on either side of the Wall for decades. Interaction is forbidden and both communities live in an atmosphere of fear, suspicion, and mistrust. But when circumstances allow Simp, a curious young Red, to meet Bluey, they learn they have a great deal to offer one another and that their similarities far outweigh their differences. Full of clowning, juggling and physical storytelling this production promotes acceptance, empathy and friendship.

I thought it might turn out to be a gay-rights propaganda inculcation full of diversity mumbo jumbo, but luckily it was focused strictly on not being afraid of a group of people based on what others say about them.  

After the play we walked across the street where the annual city block party was rocking.  The street was blocked off with thousands of people shuffling around.  The event was supposedly free, but the only "free" thing about it was walking down the street.  i couldn't believe how it was really just a maze of "how many ways can I waste my money?"  carnival games, jewelry and art sales, rides, face painting, eating, and many other wallet-sucking poachers lined the street.  I spent the entire day answering Easton's "Why" question of, "why can't we buy that or do this or go there?"

The one place I did pull out my wallet was the carnival swing ride.  Watching them get an adrenaline rush by spinning around in circles was worth $6.  They walked into the swing's perimeter together and the carni-guy helped them into their seats, which were perfectly designed for twin preschoolers.  I walked around the outside to get a better angle in the sun.  As soon as they were settled in their seats their eyes and voices immediately began searching for me.  Easton found me across the way and pointed me out to Layla.

The swing spun around at about 2 miles per hour, but you'd think they were in a G-force simulation trainer by the excitement in their voice.

here's the video of their wild swing ride.  I can't wait for Disneyland!

We are in the final stages of planning for our Disneyland vacation next year.  I came to a crazy realization that Disneyland is a giant people trap operated by a mouse.  Kind of creepy when you think about it that way.  Even so, I'm still ready and willing to shell out a few thousand dollars for the opportunity to be with the twins during their first encounter with the happiest place on Earth.