Friday 9/4 - we started our Labor Day Weekend with a fun filled evening of babysitting Emily. We went over around 4 pm and it was still pretty hot, so we took her to the pool. it was so nice to cool off and she is just the cutest little water baby!! she was loving it - splashing and playing with her toys, she also liked for us to hold her as we went around the shallow end.
here is a picture after swim time:
What a cutie!!
Saturday 9/5 - typical saturday... cleaning and laundry. Saturday night, we went to Chili's (which was lovely) and we had some scratchers that they gave us. we won $5 off and a free dessert. we were hoping for the grand prize of $50k... After dinner we went shopping and i got 2 new pairs of shoes at DSW. I've never paid much attention to that store before, but now i'm kind of in love with it. they had a great selection, even in the clearance, and i was surprised at the variety of size 10 they had (because most stores pretty much only carry one style in that size and it's usually ugly!) I haven't purchased shoes in over a year (save only flip flops and wedding shoes) so it's kind of a big deal that i got TWO pairs and that they weren't purchased at Target or Payless. i got beautiful shoes - Kenneth Cole wedges for $20, Steve Madden pumps for $14 - total steal!!
Sunday 9/6 - we went to San Pedro to visit mama Linda (gabe's mom). She was in a car accident a couple weeks ago and it messed up her neck/back. She's doing better now and it was nice to visit her. we also went to Mission Viejo to see Judy and visit her 3-legged cat.
Monday 9/7 - We spend LAbor Day in LA! We went to the La Brea Tar Pits (aka the "The Tar" Tar Pits). It was so much fun! i vaguely remember going as a small child, but what i mostly remember is my family complaining about how lame it was. (in fact, upon hearing that gabe and i had visited the tar pits, my mother and my brother laughed and asked if it was lame!) Gabe and I did not find it lame. we enjoyed it. here are some pictures:
oh no! stuck in the tar!!
roar!!!
not all animals there are dead!
after the tar pits, we went to lunch at Roscoe's. mmmmm. Carol C. Special.
after lunch we drove around beverly hills/bel air, admiring the homes of the filthy rich and celebrity hunting. our hunt was unsuccessful.
when we came back to anaheim, we went grocery shopping and picked up some food for a nice picnic in the park. we watched the sunset and enjoyed the cool breeze. it was the perfect end to our labor day fun!
Tuesday 9/8 - after work, i went over to my parent's house to make cards for the RailPros birthdays and Baby Shower. below is the baby shower card i made...
they're having a boy...
Wednesday 9/9 - We had RailPros Angel's Night and gabe and i went to our first ball game this year! the last two years we went to much more baseball games, but with the wedding/honeymoon/moving/etc, we hadn't gone yet. we were glad RailPros gave us an excuse to go! wish we had been invited to RP Dodger Night though...
We had a great time and the Angels won.
Hope everyone enjoyed their holiday!!
#1 - the CRUNCH factor. The last time I was at Mike and Janica's, we played with Emily out front. The big tree had cast off many shriveled, dead leaves, causing every footstep to make a fun *CRUNCH!* 
#2 - monday night FOOTBALL. We finally get to push aside baseball ("America's Passtime") for FOOTBALL (America's Obsession)!
#3 - the SUN(set). the SUN is already going down way earlier than it was in August. I first noticed this when we had our Labor Day Picnic. Having the SUN go down earlier brings another fall-time feeling... one which I'm not sure I can properly explain. See, the way the afternoon SUN looks in fall is very distinct to me. It shines differently. And the tone of the light always makes me think of Halloween. I keep thinking - "it looks very Halloween-y outside."
#4 - a glorious COOL BREEZE. now is the time we enjoy the COOL BREEZE, because it's a sweet reprieve from unholy heat. this BREEZE is delicious and refreshing. for a time, I will be safe from the dangers of overheating. that is, of course, until the dreaded Santa Ana's arrive...
#5 - the transformation of my HAIR. every year around this time, I get the itch to darken my HAIR. Low-lights usually quench my thirst for darker locks, but there is always a possibility I dye it brown. Never, EVER black though, that I can promise you. 
