Okay ... I figure these pictures aren't going to post themselves. And HOW SILLY, that I have them practically posted but haven't done it. So, here goes. I'll get a couple posts up here tonight, then a couple tomorrow ... and voila!
Did I happen to mention - we had a GREAT time in California recently! My family's good friend, Aaron Werber, was getting married ... and we wouldn't have missed that for the world. But, it did take a bit of planning to get us there. Fortunately, I have great in-laws, who took time out of their schedules to travel down to Florida and take care of our children while the entire Carricato family headed out west (only my second return trip since my family moved away in 1989). THANK YOU Martha and Bill!
We actually were pretty prepared, but a last-minute miscommunication about our departure (for the airport) time made Dennis whip out his grumpy face at the beginning of the trip...
That's actually his "I'm not really mad anymore, but we could have missed our flight, you drive me crazy ... and now you're making me smile for the camera" look! Don't worry, it soon turned into a full-fledged smile, as we headed cross country. The flight was great (Dennis beat me at cards!) and we were excited to land on time. But unfortunately we hit a snag when our one checked piece of luggage did NOT make it to LAX with us! We didn't think we were getting it back ... but more about that in a minute. Onto our next roadblock: waiting in the rental car line! We reluctantly left the airport without our bag (all of my clothes and shoes, etc.) and waited about 30 minutes for a rental car shuttle, only to wait about 50 MORE minutes at Dollar to get our pre-reserved rental car. Needless to say, we did NOT make it to the
Big Brother live show we had tickets for!
Fortunately, we ended up with a convertible, which made up for much of the frustration.
We had a great time winding our way through LA, where they have some VERY interesting signage. Why on earth would I want to purchase smog for $29.95? That's actually for a smog check, but if you weren't from the place, you just might wonder!
And we eventually found our way into Beverly Hills ...
... mostly courtesy of the handy, dandy GPS we rented (back in Tallahassee, Martha and Bill were also enjoying the wonders of GPS as they shuttled our kids to and from camp and more!)
We ended up on Sunset Blvd. in West Hollywood, having dinner at a cute little restaurant. That's me, sitting there on the phone, still trying to learn the whereabouts of my baggage!
Ooooo! How cool is it that we saw Nigel Lythgoe's parking spot in the same garage where we parked! He's the executive producer of "So You Think You Can Dance" and one of the creators of "American Idol."
Finally, we made our way to an awesome hotel Dad had set us up with.
Yes, I'm on the phone AGAIN with Delta!
Sure, I had no clothing (including the dresses I was to wear to Aaron W.'s wedding and rehearsal dinner), shoes or toiletries, but the hotel
was great! And we jammed to Katy Perry the next morning as we used the Delta SkyTeam's complimentary offerings, a.k.a. the "we screwed up and lost your luggage, but here's a lousy t-shirt and cheap deoderant, razor, etc." package.
That wasn't the only thing interesting on TV Friday morning though. Check out the record-making waves recorded at the coast! Dennis and Aaron (who we just learned had missed his direct flight to LAX that morning because Delta rescheduled it and didn't tell him!) were reconsidering their plans to surf!
And then, when we had given up hope, and were about to spend the day shopping, we got a call (around 11:00 a.m. PST) that our bag was at LAX. Hurray! I changed in the airport bathroom, because I was sick to death of my travel clothes.
Off to sightsee before we had to come back to LAX at 2:00 p.m. to pick up poor Aaron, who eventually arrived in LA after lunching in Detroit! So much for the direct flight!
I'm happy to report that Abby had a GREAT first day of school yesterday! I know she talked to some of you on the phone, answering each time, "Abby T. Schnittker: First Grader!" (one of her favorites is the "Junie B. Jones: First Grader" book series). Highlights of the day? She was Helper #1 - which was pretty lucky, but mostly has to do with her name and the fact that it begins "Ab." I don't know for sure, but I'm thinking only an "Aaron" would beat her out for first place in alphabetical order ... and we don't have one of those in class this year. Yesterday, as part of her Helper #1 responsibilities, she led the line and fed/cared for the hermit crabs. The class also has a pet corn snake, "Oakster," whom they all got to touch yesterday afternoon! How's that for a first day?
Abby was SO excited to start first grade ... as you can see in this photo above. I couldn't get her to stop grinning when we took the traditional first-day photos outside.
But when we got to the school, she instantly went into her little shy shell ... I guess it was all a bit overwhelming. Fortunately, her friend, Nya, from last year is with her in Mrs. McGrane's class. 
Here's Abby's class website in case any of you ever want to catch up with what they are doing. I believe Mrs. Grane (who is a sorority sister from Theta at FSU ... she's a few years ahead of me) keeps the newsletter/announcments section pretty updated. Abby looks so grown up sitting at her table here. My favorite line of the day yesterday was after school. She told me she kept looking at one of her classmates' nametags and reading the words "first grade" over and over. She said, "I just can't believe I'm so grown up!"
Yesterday morning, before the first day of school, Abby and Tyler (who doesn't actually start school until Wednesday) awoke to backpacks/schoolbags full of treats from "The Backpack Fairy." Books, new colored pencils and new BrainQuest cards started their morning off right. 
And I had to get my morning jumpstarted as well ... with a bit of coffee! There's a lot to do on school mornings, but I ALWAYS make time to write a note. I love these lunchnotes I purchased from my friend Kim, The Polka Dot Press, last year. Unfortunately, I'm getting low. Will have to buy some more!
Off to the second day of school, and Tyler's orientation. With us, we'll be taking his teachers a little vase of flowers, like the ones Abby took for Mrs. McGrane yesterday. 
It's SO simple, just a soup can (but the above one with the crayons was a can of sweetened condensed milk). I used a piece of double stick tape to hold the crayons/pencils in place, and supported them with a rubber band, which I covered with a piece of tied ribbon. That way the teacher can remove the rubber band and use the pencils or crayons in class. 
Don't give me credit though. I found the idea on one of my favorite blogs ... let's just say I "borrowed" it. I've had it bookmarked for awhile. The following idea is also from that blogger. Abby took a book for Mrs. McGrane, and wrote a note about the upcoming school year. She chose a book about monkeys that get into lots of trouble. Today, we'll go choose a book for Tyler to give his class. 
Who knew Back to School was such fun ... and that it had so many fun craft ideas?!?
Yea! Aaron made it in from Detroit (a slight jog from his original point of departure ... Tampa!)
But I couldn't see MUCH, because I was getting whipped all around in the backseat of the car. What I really needed was one of those head scarves ... but I wouldn't have wanted to have been mistaken for a Hollywood starlet!
It was SO nice to be back in this beautiful area ... with the beaches, the mountains, and our great friends - the Werbers! I can't believe little A.W. (that's Aaron, the groom, the tall one in the picture below) was getting married. But he found a wonderful bride, Aishia, whom we were so excited to get to know. 
As you can see, Kathy was delighted to be celebrating this joyful moment in Aaron's life. We all just wished Aaron's dad (Elliot) and brother (Matt) could have been there too. In this picture, Uncle Mel (Elliot's brother) is standing in for the much loved and very much missed members of the Werber family. Kathy threw a great rehearsal dinner, which even included a letters game. Imagine that - a schoolteacher with props! Mom and Dad got letter "I", but Dad had gotten sick and his voice was all but gone, so Mom did all the talking. She did great, but doesn't she look like a dwarf standing between those two Aaron brothers!?!
At first it was just catching up, but then the dance floor got crowded. What a fun night!
The next morning, Dennis and I enjoyed (HA!) a California-intensity workout at the local Gold's Gym (gee ... I'm SO glad we got those travel passes!) Then, we showed Dennis around our neighborhood. 
Things have really grown up in the Westlake Village/Thousand Oaks area, but 3190 West Adirondack Court still looks the same. And many of our same neighbors still live there, which makes it feel like home. I even got to take Dennis down "our greenbelt" to the park where Aaron and I spent half our life, it seems! 
Off to get ready for the wedding!
It was so interesting to see how people were gathered around Michael Jackson's star. Everyone wanted to get their picture taken with it.
Meanwhile, MY husband would rather have his picture taken with the huge sign featuring Katy Perry (did I mention he has a bit of crush on her!?!)
The Marilyn Monroe impersonator, standing along the walk of fame, was actually the best of the bunch. The rest were pretty weak. But, as you can see, Marilyn is very popular with the men. The older gentleman in the kahki shirt behind her, just kept watching and smiling as the air from the grate blew her dress up over and over. I was tickled just watching HIM!
We're 10 kinds of crazy here today! For the last couple weeks of summer, we're having a fun day when have time ... and today we did. We started off by having lunch food (PB&J, chips and Danimals) for breakfast, and tonight the kids and Dennis are going out to enjoy breakfast food for dinner! But, it's not WHAT we ate for breakfast that was really wacky ... it's HOW we ate it: UNDER the table, instead of on top! So silly ... 
Then, I risked odd looks at the kids' dentist appointments, by letting them dress "backwards!" Abby's hair was shooting out at all angles (but we still wore bows ... I mean people, seriously!), her shoes were mismatched, and all of the clothes were backwards. But interestingly enough, today the underwear was not! That happens on a semi-regular basis anyway. :) 
No real craziness planned for tomorrow, but I think we have some fun in store on Thursday. And, do stay tuned for pictures from California. I have them all posted in draft form, just need to add some sparkling (HA!) commentary!
What a fun way to end Abby's first Art Camp experience!