It is what it is

Happy to be home and not unhappy to be teaching again today.  It was such a wonderful trip and visit, that it was hard to come home.  I had wonderful Southwest flights!  They are so great.  I will never understand flight even though I have taken flight school!  From the pilots to the attendants they are wonderful. Celebrated Otto's birthday yesterday, made rice stuffed cornish hens with twice baked potatoes and chocolate cake (that I can't eat due to lent) Lucy was so glad to see me and would not stop following me around. We are expecting rain/sleet/snow tomorrow night and Wed. morning.  Hoping for a snow day!!  I just heard Texas has 17 inches and still snowing.  Since we had no days last year, we are due days this year!  It is what it is.  Snow Day Snow Day Snow Day.  Wearing my snowman vest to school tomorrow for good luck.  Also have to take a spoon, white crayon and penny to bed! Almost back on Eastern time.

So, Wednesday we started the day driving to the Walt Disney Concert Hall in LA.  We chucked the tour and just walked around and took photos in and around the grounds, including the upper floor outdoor gardens and area fountains.  Parking for about an hour was $14.00!  Next was Olvera Street which was the original part of LA in the 1800's.  Spent time walking around, shopping in the street booths, ate lunch at Mr. Churros and took a zillion pictures.  Using GPS we found all three Modern Family houses, took photos and headed home.  An hour later in LA traffic to go a few miles, we were back.  After a quick dinner we headed up the hills to Griffin Observatory for a chilly view of the most beautiful city I have ever seen by night.  It was awesome!  LA is magnificent.  So much to see and do but so $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$!  It Is What It Is!

Wow!  What a day!  We started our day walking to Panera for cinnamon bagels...yum.  Then on to the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences....Emmy Park.  We had Warner Bros. Tour tickets for 11:45 which was so much fun and so much information it was mind boggling!  After a lunch at Subway, we took the subway to Universal City Walk.  After a walk around and photos, it was time to take the tram back down to the subway.  Once home we needed to do some laundry while Amanda is doing the big changeover from Valentine's Day to St. Patrick's Day decorations, I have to pack and off to B'dubs to meet Brian's sister Adriana, her boyfriend Manny and cousin Grisele.  What a wonderful whirlwind week.  If we could have packed any more adventures in (and we could afford any more adventures), we would have done even more.  It Is What It Is!

On Tuesday after our trip to Coronado, Amanda and I took off in the clouds for the Hollywood sign.  We hiked up as close as we could go only to be caught in the rain coming back down.  But, we got some great photos and saw some gorgeous homes.  The view was something else.  After drying out, we drove to Hollywood Blvd., parked and walked around.  We souvenir hunted since Hooray for Hollywood is my theme for table next December.  The construction crews are everywhere and Hollywood Blvd. is closed off getting ready for the Oscars next Sunday.  So is the Kodak theatre :(.  We ate at Mel's Diner (a platter of yummy fried samplings), stopped at the Hollywood Museum to take our tour and found it closed on Tuesdays!   ARGH!  We managed to fill the day somehow!  We walked around some more, found Ed O'Neil's star (that I wanted to find because I watched the ceremony when he got it), founds dozens of others and decided to find Paramount Studi...

Saturday morning started about 3 AM.  Arrived at Metro around 6ish for a 7 ish flight.  Very smooth to Denver, changed planes, flew to Oakland, over San Francisco, the Bay Bridge, the Golden Gate and downtown.  Only left on plane for flight to Burbank but the pilot came out and told me I could get off for a break.  Boarded first, had choice seating and he told me we would fly over the bridges again so I sat by the window in row 2.  What a view!  I never watch takeoff and don't do windows if I have a choice.  It was a short flight but awesome.  We flew over the coast all the way to Burbank.  I saw whales from 30,000 feet in the ocean.  It was the most glorious day.  I went from 17 degrees to nearly 80.  What smooth sailing we had all day.  It was a long day and I was barely able to make it to 9:00.  So fun to be with Bryce and Amanda.  Early day Sunday and drove to Coronado Island to spend Sunday and Monday with B...

Do you think it will ever stop?   Spring seems eternally away.  Started again tonight.  I love Tuesday nights.  I don't have to go ANYWHERE once I am home.  Classes were better today but I threatened to call ALL their parents.  C'mon, what 7th grader doesn't love graphing calculators????  Had to stop at Costco for 65.00 worth of batteries and figured a rotisserie chicken would take care of dinner. Could not figure why I hurt today and then I remembered.  When I came in from bringing  Lucy in, I took off my flats  (flashback word) and was in my nylons (another flashback word) and hit a small puddle on my ceramic tile floor where Lucy had dripped water after a drink.  I had a cup of her food in my hand and down I went.  I wasn't hurt.....(humiliated in front of a dog?) but it took her an hour to find her food that spilled all over, including down the stairs...(glad it was the food and not me!) Watched Downton last night...so ...