fire on the poop deck!

Photos Courtesy Paul Clark & Dustin Long

Malibu Bluffs fire contained

Jaimie Franklin
Assistant News Editor

Firefighters are now cleaning up what remains of a fire that began in Bluffs Park Monday that attracted a large crowd in Alumni Park where flames were visible.

“The neighborhood looks like a war zone,” County Fire Chief Michael Freeman said.

“Anything that was down there that could burn, did burn.”

Fueled by Santa Ana winds of up to 25 mph, investigators say the fire began in Bluffs Park at around 5 p.m., jumped across Malibu Rd. and then destroyed four ocean-front mansions and one guest house. The fire was fully contained and Pacific Coast Hwy. was reopened by 9:30 p.m.

“It was moving really fast,” student Rico Tucker said.

Officials initially reported that 10 structures were destroyed but the number was later reduced once a better assessment was possible, according to Inspector Ron Haralson of L.A. County Fire.

An unidentified individual was hospitalized for smoke inhalation and released and there were no reported injuries among firefighters. A dog sustained leg injuries but has been treated.

The Los Angeles County Arson Unit is still investigating the cause of the fire.

A red flag warning will remain in effect for the Southland until Tuesday afternoon according to the Los Angeles County Fire Dept.

Submitted 01-09-2007

PS- Just to let you all know, we're fine. We're about five miles away from it and up the canyon. Around 5:30 pm Brad called me from school and said, "I'm not going to be able to make it to the store, because it looks like its on fire..." So he got to see the coastline in flames from a balcony on campus. Pepperdine is about a mile from where it happened, and on the other side of the PCH, so they were safe too. But it was crazy to see it on the news and of course we were worried. Our first family beach trip here happened to be on Malibu Road! Weirdness. We are so grateful to be safe and that it wasn't worse than it was. But those who were affected remain in our thoughts and prayers.

not a gosh dang rerun!

This was sparked by a comment made by dear Amanda: "Although, I'm surprised it didn't list Reese Witherspoon for you. I've always thought you look similar." And I realized that they actually had mentioned it before, but I was having problems saving and loading, and re-saving and re-loading... So I uploaded the same picture, but just my face. And I ended up with similar results, but a few more faces appeared. Voila!

http://www.myheritage.com

I did say that I would try this again... and I must admit, this is mostly for my enjoyment and you must all just suffer through it. Soon I'll be posting normal stuff again. Patience is a virtue my dears (and I'm a hypocrite, so no comments on how I should have been patient).

ps- remember how Brad and I shared a common male look-alike? Turns out we share a common female one, based on this updated version: Demi Moore. Just goes to show, that we really are made for each other. Aaaawww....

the kind of face a mother would love (and then some)!

I think it's a safe bet that Will might not grow up to look like any of these people! A safer bet would be this, mixed with a little bit of that (aka. his parents). But I do like how he was matched with mostly classics- not to mention Uma Therman, twice! I disagree whole-heartedly! And hence, she was not selected for his collage...

Oh, by the way and sadly enough, Will never made it to the babyGap semifinals... I'd be tempted not to buy their clothes anymore; good thing Nana does! :)

my name is b-rad.

"Not Robbie van Winkle. I like my [steamers] non-fat and don't fo-get the sprinkle." - Brad Gluckman

Actually, that cute kid Ricky Ullman showed up under my face look-alikes! Looks like Brad and I really do match, eh? Oh, and they also said I looked a lot like Matt Damon. If you gotta look like a male, those two aren't half bad!

nah, i'm from the 'bu, yo!

Hey, look at me and all the different, famous variations of myself!

"Try additional photos later on to see which celebrities appear more than once!" Hmm, maybe I'll have to try this again...

Don't be hatin'! Wannabees click here.

a tribute

To my baby's hair. *sniff*

When he was born he had lots of hair-fuzz and then quickly lost it. However, he was, still is and always will be beautiful to his mother, regardless his hairstyle.

My baby has lost his curls. *sniff (a reprise)* It was getting so long! But it added to his sweetness. He was like our very own little angel...

and then...

it was viciously hacked off by none other than Ashley Roberts-Hansen! Actually, she's a sweetheart, a dear friend from high-school and she did a fantastic job. Thanks Ash! And thank you mom for being there and for all your support through it all!

So there you have it. Will has not only lost his angelic air (it was so beautiful! Why?!?!?! *sniff-redundant, I know*), but has also seemingly lost his angelical ways. Don't get me wrong, he is still super sweet and we are just now getting use(d) to his new look. Yet it feels like we've lost our baby's innocence and it feels like he's getting more mischevious by the minute (and I'll soon have pics to prove it)!

Will's head-o'-hair would have made lovely, golden locks fit for a girl if we had left it to its growing... you better believe I have those curls saved!

by the way...

Just now, in the past minute, I changed my comment settings. So family and friends, members and non-members alike will be able to comment on my blog. But a warning to all you bots and dirty rotten scoundrels out there: I have also enabled comment moderation.

So please, feel free to comment here and there when you choose to! And above all, I hope everyone has enjoyed and will continue to enjoy this site as much as I do creating it!

drum roll please

Here they are: my blocks!

Oh sorry son; I meant to say, "Here they are: Will's blocks!"

These pictures aren't the best of the best and don't show off the blocks as ideally as I would have liked. However, I couldn't wait for more "professional" pics so I'm showing them to you now, as is.

First, we have the front of all 26 blocks, each one sporting their respective letter. Don't you just love them! I found a fabulous book of transfers that worked amazingly and surprisingly well on wood. I was so thrilled with my first attempt that I have discovered a new love affair with this crappy technique! Oh, and I purchased these blocks online and was very happy with them. They are 2 inch softwood blocks, that I hand sanded to get the corners and edges rounded just right. And after using mod-podge and acrylic (which I have yet to do...), the softwood wasn't a problem. So, I highly recommend this site for all your crafting needs! Take a gander, I insist.

And here we have the accompanying words. If you can't make out some of the words, go ahead and click on the pic for bigger viewing. I had so much fun picking and choosing what words or phrases I wanted to use. For example, basically for B had to be on there, because basically, that's our family word! Actually, it's Brad's word, and since I married him and Will is his offspring, it has unfortunately rubbed off on all involved...

Last but certainly not least, the adorable paper that adorns these alphabet blocks! Sadly I didn't have the time, patience n'or the printer capabilities to do my original scheme/version, which was pictures sporting the letters in their prime (A as in apple, B as in bear, etc.). I did buy some clear sticker paper for that purpose, but then found the treasury of transfers and was happy enough with what I did that I decided to go a different route. That route was a trip to the scrapbook store where I purchased paper at will, thanks to my mother, and voila! I stacked them so you could see each side within the group of letters. I had to "randomly" pick letters for groups of four so that the cute paper was spread throughout the alphabet. I say randomly, but it took quite a bit of time. Also guilty of time-taking: cutting out the paper just so. I didn't have a punch, so I used a stencil sheet and then had to erase pencil lines and hand-sand each corner to rounded perfection (because scissors just don't cut it! It ends up angular and I wanted pure roundness. Nice punning by the way, eh?).

Definitely a labor of love. But for the most part, I enjoyed every minute of it! And I especially love how they turned out. You don't all have to admire them as I do, but they will be special to me and to my kids. And if Will doesn't destroy them, and they survive the rest of my children, then perhaps they will be an heirloom my progeny will enjoy.

starting with THE basic

I've decided to start off with some unnecessary info. So this is the picture that I will be using to create Will's very first scrapbook page. That may come as a surprise to some/most, that (a) I haven't completed or even started a real scrapbook for Will, and (b) that I have the desire to start one! I've explained this to a few already, but I've decided to become a scrapper. Heck, I decided to blog, so I might as well cross-over wholly to the dark-side, right? But I'm only going to have completely decked out title pages, with journaling on the back, and then the rest of the corresponding photos will be placed in normal photo album sheets. So it will be organized much like a baseball cards collection, with each team having a fancy page introducing them with all their pics to follow. Make sense? I'm holding on to some of my resistance (don't want to detract too much from my precious photographs)!

My mother and I made a few trips to the local scrapbook store for some inspiration for my blocks (which are absolutely fabulous, in the eyes of me) and upon our said visit I discovered, and re-discovered, the fantastic paper of nowadays! Let's hear it for Magnolia, Wild Asparagus and above all, Basic Grey! It is because of the latter that I have converted over to scrapping (which I fondly call crapping, which is the result of a late night with my mom and me trying to say crafting and scrapping, all to have the two words scrambled together and come out as the aforementioned word: crapping. It's not so offensive now, eh?).

Dasher Collection

You see, Basic Grey has some lovely Christmas ornament kits and I instantly fell in love, nay, infatuated, with the colors and designs. And lo and behold, we found the rest of the line and therefore lost the rest of our inhibitions! Consequently, I have some new ideas of how my halls will be decked and I'm already planning some crafts (excuse me, craps) for next year when the beloved holiday of Christmas returns! I'll be sure to explain this in even more detail when I post pics of my projects from this year of '06. So beware, this is only just the beginning!

BWAHAHAHAHAHA!

where to begin...

Have you missed me?! It's been so long, I don't even know what to write or what to fill you in on. I mean, of course there was Christmas, and New Year's and all the festivities. And Will got his first hair cut. But where do I start? I'm not entirely sure, and in all reality, I'm feeling a little overwhelmed with it all!

So I'm going to organize my thoughts and my pictures and I'll get back to you!

surprises et al.

It dawned on me that I should probably let y'all know where the heck I've been, and where I am now... ARIZONA! That's right, we came down early. Brad finished his last final of the semester a week ago, and we left right after to surprise my family!

My mom recently had foot surgery, so we were hoping that I could be of some assistance... turns out that it's a little difficult watching a baby, helping your mom and crafting all at the same time! I hope we haven't been more of a burden than a blessing...

Moving right along, Brad is done with his first semester of law school!!! Woohoo! He had a teacher tell him that if he could make it through the last three weeks of the semester, that he would be able to make it through the next three years and graduate. Well, looks like he'll be an attorney after all! It was a rough week on everyone. A few kids from his section alone dropped out before finals, and Brad was studying 12+ hours a day, with a little help from me too. It was a lonely and long two weeks, but we are happy to be done! And I am so proud of Brad! Now we just have to go through that ordeal five more times. And let's not forget the patent AND bar exam, which makes it a total of seven hell-fires!

So we've been pretty busy here. Brad's been studying for the patent exam that he will hopefully take in the next couple of months. And I've been making Will's ABC blocks. They are taking a lot of time and patience, but I am totally loving them! I can't wait to post pics of everything I've been creating this month, just so you can share in on the joy and stress!

Well, I best be going. Merry Christmas to you all!!! Oh, and I'm also working on a family newsletter via email... hopefully that will get to you guys in the near future. No promises!

when it rains, it pours!

I know I've already posted today, multiple times in fact... but this was just too good to pass up! Here we have Willie just waking up from a nap, with some dang crazy hair! Hence, the stoned look and rosy cheeks! And, as you can tell, I tried to get in as many shots as was humanly possible!

o tannenbaum + o wooden blocks = most lovely

Here you go, here's our tree for a night and a day. I ended up taking off all my ornaments from my garland and mini tree at home so that I could graciously donate them to the one we had to show that night. You might be able to pick out my blocks I made, if you have a trained eye! To aid you in your quest, I've included zoomed-in images of three of the blocks. I'll post solitary pics of them later.

Notice how the bottom is a little more bare than the top. I was nervous of having all the little kids around poking and prodding at my prized possessions. We had to leave early from the party, so Brad could study and Will could sleep, so we left everything there. But we gathered them all up and packed them for a safe trip home (about 30 minutes). They are now back on display in my house and everything looks better than before! Just you wait!

in the meantime...

It seems like it's been a while, and it probably has! If it's any consolation, I've been madly updating my "Mess" and it's all done, through Christmas at least (since we'll be gone for the rest of the month, visiting family)! Check it out!

I'm also working on getting some pics of my "finished" ornaments. I still have to seal them with acrylic... And I've got pictures of our tree that we decorated for the Ward Christmas Party, which was adorned with the said ornaments (although I doubt you can see them). What's more, I'll get some pictures up of our little decorated guest house... So stay tuned!

But for now, I wanted to share some silly lists that my clever cuz came up with to help bide some time! Be warned: if you consider yourself weak in the stomach when it comes to nauseating sappiness, then don't read "creepy pickup lines." And if you consider yourself polite and proper, don't read "what to do at wal-mart."

creepy pickup lines

Ok, so one day my cousin and his roommates were watching this weird dating show on TV called "Parental Control." On it, some kid used a really weird line, that went something like this: "You are the beautiful unicorn jumping through the crystal waterfalls of my soul." He was inspired, and when a friend came over they got right to work. So here are some that they came up with. Watch how they get increasingly more sappy as time went on (these are in chronological order).

1. "Your voice is the melodious music that lulls me into my dreams."
2. "Your feet are tip-toeing along the pathways of my heart."
3. "Your soul is like a dove, calling to me from the sunrise of our eternity."
4. "Your eyes are like a lighthouse, glistening in the moonlight to lead me safely home."
5. "Your nostrils are gulfs in the depths of our love."
6. "Your hands are the warm breeze of life bringing me out of the sorrows of reality."
7. "Your lips are the trumpet of love, calling me to the warmth of your embrace."
8. "Your eyebrows are whisks of sensuality drawn on by the paintbrush of Aphrodite."
9. "Your neck is a pillar of sunshine emblazening the emptiness of my life."
10. "Your love is my constant foundation in a world controlled by chaos."
11. "Your laughter is like a chorus of angels which bring me from misery to amazement, from pessimism to gratitude."
12. "Your anguish tears apart my soul, penetratingmy deepest emotions."
13. "Your hair, glistening in the moonbeams of our existence, radiates your loving countenance."
14. "Your companionship makes me, although poor, feel higher than the richest king."
15. "The warmth of your spirit warmed my icy soul."
16. "Your loving embrace makes my soul take flight."
17. "The pleasures of heaven do not compare with the joys of your presence."

what to do at wal-mart

I warned you! Read at your own discretion...

1. Get 24 boxes of condoms OR pregnancy tests and randomly put them in people's carts when they aren't looking (during Mother's Week).
2. Set all the alarm clocks in Housewares to go off at 5-minute intervals.
3. Walk up to an employee and tell him/her in an official tone, " 'Code 3' in housewares".... and see what happens.
4. Go the Service Desk and ask to put a bag of M&M's on lay away.
5. Move a 'CAUTION - WET FLOOR' sign to a carpeted area.
6. Set up a tent in the camping department and tell other shoppers you'll invite them in if they'll bring pillows from the bedding department.
7. When a clerk asks if they can help you, begin to cry and ask 'Why can't you people just leave me alone?'
8. Look right into the security camera; use it as a mirror, and pick your nose.
9. While handling guns in the hunting department, ask the clerk if he knows where the anti- depressants are.
10. Dart around the store suspiciously loudly humming the "Mission Impossible" theme.
11. In the auto department, practice your Madonna look using different sized funnels.
12. Hide in a clothing rack and when people browse through, say "PICK ME!" "PICK ME!"
13. When an announcement comes over the loud speaker, assume the fetal position and scream "NO! NO! It's those voices again!!!!"
14. Go into a fitting room and shut the door and wait a while; then yell, very loudly, "There's no toilet paper in here!"

mock dream home

I've said this many times to many a dear friends; a list of comrades that seem to be growing exponentially. They are friends who are purchasing/placing offers on home or have one in their current possesion. I'm starting to feel a little left out. I know, I know, we're still in school and all that jazz. Yippee for me. Anyway, today, as part of Brad's break after yet another final (in an effort to keep him from going comatose), we meandered through a pleasant neighborhood here in the canyon. Unfortunately, we have fallen in love with California, especially this area. But what's even more unfortunate is that we can never afford to live here! Modest sized homes here are going for 800K to 1 mil! Like I've said before, a bunch of crazies here...

Needless to say, since our foolish side trip, I've found myself slowly spiraling down the roller coaster of pity, induced by debt and jealousy. So I did what any girl in my circumstance would do. Peruse through real estate websites to compare prices and decide where exactly we will have to end up. I'm sad to say that it is not California. On the other hand, Spokane, WA is looking mighty good!

So here's a pic of a current dream home of mine at said location, if I were in the market. As in, this would be a house that I would love to go and check out, because it is darling (aka Victorian) and small/cozy, making it a good transition home between starting work and climbing out of our debt hole- while digging another hole for our children to live in.

3 bedrooms, 2 baths and 1500 sq. feet. And the best part: only a $767.96 monthly payment vs. a $5k monthly payment (and there's nothing better than knowing that you're putting that money toward something, instead of our current situation of paying rent at twice the amount. I'm sorry, did I say "paying?" I meant, throwing away money...)! Woot woot! Don't ask me why having a house is so important to me; it always has been. But make no mistake! No matter where we live, we will always have a home!

PS- Sorry for such a seemingly negative rantable post. In my defense, this is my journal and we are in a high stress situation here people!!! I'll be fine in the morning, most likely. Besides, I'm going Christmas shopping tomorrow, so yay! And I really do mean congratulations to y'all who are buying/placing offers and I am really excited for you! xoxo

my little man

While Brad remains the love of my life, Will is certainly my pride and joy!

happy belated thanksgiving!

I finally got the pictures from our turkey day. Thanks mom! Here's a picture of my family on that fateful day... we're missing a member and I'm sad to say that I don't have a photo of him to share with y'all. But his name is Adam and he is serving in the Kentucky, Louisville mission. He'll be home this summer and I get to talk to him Christmas (hopefully, if all works out)! He's my best friend and I wasn't the only one missing him that day. But regardless, we are all proud of him and we had a great time without him (without sounding harsh).

And here's an early Christmas present to all of you: our family picture! I haven't decided whether or not I'll be sending holiday cards, and if I do, I don't know if they will be accompanied with a picture... so here it is, just in case I fail on both accounts. In fact, this will just count as both for now and you'll just have to let me know if you would like a hard-copy! But I'm not making decorative frames for anyone... (without sounding harsh).

And here are some pics of Nana's babysitting experience. Nevermind the precariously perched baby on a mobile machine! Just kidding mama, I love you and Will does too! What a monkey, he knew exactly what to do! And poor Nana, all alone with a toddler while we were enjoying a long movie at the theater. Thanks again ma!

a little somethin' somethin'

Well, I'm sure I have lots to write about, yet it's not coming to mind... oh well, I'll probably write a novel regardless. We've been busy here, with finals and projects. Brad had his first final yesterday (Tuesday) and has another tomorrow, and then Monday, Wednesday and Friday. And then it's time to study for the Patent Exam, yay... I've been engrossed in making Christmas ornaments. They are soooo cute and I am exceptionally eager to post pics of them, when they are finished. And then you too can bask in their glory! Between that and madly updating my recipe blog, I've been somewhat absent from this online journal/rant page of mine... oh, and Brad's been studying at home, so I can't just hop on the computer and waste gobs of time like usual. It's probably a good thing.

Ooo, I do have something to share that I am also extremely excited about. I just bought this Old MacDonald hand/finger puppet board book. What a mouthful! I already have one, which at first might be confusing as to why I purchased another one. I'll tell you why! I'm going to brutally cut off the fingers, thereby removing the puppets and then I will stuff them with batting, pop a magnet in there, stitch them shut and voila, instant animal fridge magnets! And I'll still have the other one so we can continue taking it to church. I'm excited because even after S&H it was about $6.50! Gotta love Amazon! I had been surfing around on ebay and couldn't find any finger puppets or said book for any cheaper; most were twice as much as what I ended up paying! Who out there can appreciate a good bargain?! I know I'm not the only one!

So, in the future (hopefully near) I will be posting pics of my projects this month: ornaments (take that Anthropologie!), ABC blocks, Nativity soft book (maybe...) and animal magnets. I'm a busy bee- I'll also be making a cover for our trash/recycling area, if I feel like it. Alas, it has to be done at some point or I'll continue to lose my Campbell's Cream of Mushroom Soup (due to Will's new obsession with "putting things away," which in and of itself is a wonderful fixation. But it's all about the application dears).

what fun!

Oh fun-ness of fun! We defrosted one of our refridgerators yesterday! In all actuality, I get all warm and fuzzy when I can actually clean something and see that it's clean. And I believe it was the first time I have defrosted a fridge! Sad, but true. We hadn't gone grocery shopping yet so we took this one out front and let it sit for a bit. And then I went a-hacking at it and the ice fell off in chunks. We then finished up with a hairdryer and some sanitizing wipes... and voila! A clean fridge! We're going to wait to do our other one right before Christmas. Ooh, and we switched the two coolers, too! We now have the white one out in plain site and the black one hidden. It makes nice for a clean slate look in our kitchen area, since the walls and microwave match in hue. Now if only they (machine and kitchen) could match in function: one being well designed vs. poorly designed... But hey, at least we do have a place to cook; that's something to be thankful for. That and my imagination.

blockheads

My blocks, they finally came! Not like I was waiting long... but I was and am excited, nonetheless! We quickly opened them up, examined their softness and geometrics, and upon our approval, stacked them like there was no tomorrow! I think Brad got up to 30 blocks before they tumbled and Will got up to 3 or 5 stacked (he was suppose to be napping, gosh darn it). Anyway, now all I need to do is start decorating/designing them all before Christmas! It should be fun, what with Brad studying and basically non-existent this entire month! Wish us luck!

california crazies

A couple o' days ago, my dear Abs and I went back to Santa Monica to shop. It was fun, as always, to promenade the street of 3rd. We didn't find what we were looking for, but someone sure did find us! We were at Starbucks, getting some hot chocolate/steamers and letting Will jam out to some kidz Christmas tunes at their music bar, when we hear this foreign-tinged voice behind us. Here we are, two "single" women with a baby, approached by a man-of-sorts. Nice guy, really. Persistent though. He tried his best to make some small talk, asking about the baby, our names, our purpose for being there, etc. He asked what we were going to do after guzzling our hot drinks (which you can't quite guzzle, in all reality... but what a fun word...). Oh, you know, we're just shopping. No, we wouldn't like to go on a walk with you. Oh, it was nice meeting you, too. Bye.

After exchaning our polite farewells, we head back out into the "cold." I start struggling with Will, my hot bev and the stroller, all in my efforts to make my boy a bottle. Well he falls out of his vehicle (don't worry, he's fine, he's tough, and I AM a good mother), but our gentleman friend is quickly there to help us... we're not sure if he followed us out the door or not, but there he was. He asked us if we would change our minds about his offer, only to notice that, gasp, we're both married! Yay for wedding rings! Finally, he stops hitting on Abbie (he stopped with me long ago, since finding out I was the mother of the child we possessed... that and Abs initially caught his double-winking eye), and we continue our excursion in peace. Except I spill my drink on me twice! Oh well. Let's hear it for beautiful and covetous California and all those who inhabit it, even if their minds do not!