spring and summer greatest hits: l.a. edition

weepin' willows! tika and dyl do a little tree huggin' at the huntington library chinese gardens.
 dont' bother us, we're having fun. 

readers of this blog might be asking...what has the crew at dylan mac and cheese been doing? anyone home?  well, we've been busy having fun and exploring the city--our 'salad days' if you will, as dyl's the rose-colored filter for our travails and travels through life. he's also our plus one for the car pool lane on the freeways! thanks dylan, high five!

so this spring we've had visitors, namely cousins and friends, and we like to "hang out," as dylan would say.

beachcombin' with cousin amara looking for anemone and crabs near the pier.  

last one in is a rotten egg! says amara.

anemones at redondo beach

at lacma: that's the biggest balloon animal i've seen, dad. yup. 

a little highbrow: daddy and dylan next to a giant jeff koons egg at lacma. 

lowbrow art: i can paint my tongue to match my shirt, and i can do it all day, says dylan. 

even though the little guy is still very 'green' (see photo above) we've realized dylan has made some big leaps: learning to ride a kids bike with training wheels; bonding with his kitty, deniro; learning with favorite pals at school; browsing exhibits at local museums; meeting cousins for the first time; and as always, learning to say goodbye to cherished friends--all a part of life.

dyl, miss k and mr. t play 'pirates of the caribbean attack the playground in search of treasure' game. arrrgh.
we will miss you miss k!! thanks for being best buds. 

dylan and mr. t get their racing gear on.

ciao, ciao! tika and dylan at the huntington, whoopin' it up in springtime.
tika, see you next year in italy bella! 

cousin gabe gives his best 'it wasn't me, it was dylan' mug for the camera while dylan steals sips from uncle ken's smoothie at gumtree cafe in hermosa.  cousin katherine and dylan audition for 'silly kid' contests before hitting the sand. 

we miss our cousins! 

dylan has these odd habits....if you want to call them that. he likes to tote a toolbox everywhere (like in the photo above); likes to wear rain boots with most outfits; has trouble putting on socks and has us do the job; still loves mac and cheese; and starts every sentence with 'can't even' (ex: i can't even put on my socks! i can't even sing this song right now! i can't even find a tissue for my two boogers, etc.). and loves having cousins and enjoys having extended family all around him.

it's never all fun and games and playtimes, though. sometimes we let friends go, wherever their destinations, and keep them in our hearts.

we miss our friends mars, ina, allan, tika, viviana, chris, kelsey, tatiana and sean and wish them well on their new adventures (good luck in oakland, la bella italia, and the bay area guys!).