but I was spending the week with an angel...

Monday: I ran around like crazy, grocery shopping and recycling, doing more laundry than any one person should ever have to do, and then I showered and went to work where I was thankful I had something to occupy my time because I knew Jeff was on a plane flying west and I'd be hugging him in just a few hours. I had to work until 11 that night so the plan was that he would come from the airport to my store and then follow me home. Needless to say, the front end of my store saw MUCH HUGGING somewhere around 11:15 pm. He followed me home, I used my turn signals and everything! We hung out a little, but by then it was already like three a.m. his time and after the mad amount of chores I'd done that morning we all agreed on bed.

Tuesday: We had Apple Jacks with Matty who was all nonchalant, walking into the kitchen and finding a strange man hanging out with his mom. "Oh, hey Jeff." I took a shower, he took a shower, persuaded the children to get dressed. Rich came home for lunch and I managed to lure Tony out of bed with the promise of spaghetti for lunch. We ate, Rich went back to work, and then we piled in the convertible and drove to The Block. First stop: Jamba Juice! Ron Jon's Surfshop, Tilly's, Vans skatepark and a quest for some shoes... apparently Jeff has a very popular foot size because every style he wanted, they didn't have in his size. They closed the pet store, and when I suggested the book store, Annemarie was adament when she declared, "NO!" Instead, we procured a dozen glazed Krispy Kreme donuts and dropped in on Rich to surprise him and give Jeff a tour of the Ice Carving business. Drove home, thankful for a break from the heat in the freezers, and hung out till dinner time. Chicken Enchiladas and rice and seven of us fitting amazingly around a table made for six. I got a slight sunburn in our thirty minutes of top-down travel, and I'm the native... what's that about? Shared some ridiculously yummy frozen yogurt Danielle brought home for us from work! Tenacious D and the Pick of Destiny! I forgot that I promised myself that if I ever sat through that movie again, that I would count how many times they use the word 'f**K', until it was too late.

Wednesday: We headed out about 8:30 a.m. for Encinitas and some family togetherness with his West Coast relatives. We were cruising along, wind in our hair, and then we got closer to the coast and pulled over for food, hot drinks, sweatshirts, and to put the top up. WIMPS! We arrived, there was hugging, a GINORMOUS pumpkin his uncle is growing that weighs more than Jeff currently, along with a vast array of other yummy, edible type things being grown. We met his uncle and cousin in La Jolla for lunch and had sandwiches on the beach before asking some poor, unsuspecting student to forget his homework and take our picture. His aunt drove us around sightseeing and we found out our families have a ridiculous amount in common, small world. We went back to his aunt's house and played with her snazzy Mac, talked his aunt into trading in her mini-van for a ride with the top down and went in search of some crazy-good hot cocoa mix from two different chocolatier's and tasted some amazing gelatto. Cruised home, made some dinner, and pretended we were chilling... except it was hot.

Thursday: We drove to Orange to acquire some bushings and a new VW symbol for Rich's bus, and I stayed in the car to lecture the crazy people in the back seat who took over my children's bodies... Drove on to Corona to a snazzy bike shop where Jeff didn't even buy anything, but I did, go figure. Then on to see Steve and have Jamba Juice, except Annemarie who thinks she is being an individual by having Starbucks instead. We headed for the mall there after Steve had to go back to work, and ate lunch, second attempt at shoe shopping, FAIL! Hung out in the music store instead playing gutars and keyboards and drums and things and then drove home. Rich and Jeff rolled around under his car for a while and got greasy together while I made dinner, and then some more after dinner, test drove the now operational again bus. Jeff cleaned up and we headed to my store to meet Garren and a few other people Jeff hears a lot about on our phone calls during my breaks, and to buy stuff to make salsa for the next day. Played around with Garren a bit, shopped, turned down repeated proposals to clock in and stay and work, and got the hell out of there Came home and made salsa, and spicy fingers. YUMM!

Friday: Jeff and I got up early and went walking, like five or six miles, showed him around town, the kids schools, where I went to high school, etc. Went to another grocery store, and Jamba Juice for Rich who had, up until this point, missed out on all previous Jamba-ing and was pouting, and took one grumpy teenager to Starbucks as a form of bribery and mood lifting. Came home, cooked like crazy, family showed up for Fourth of July. Ate too much, my nephew totally attacked me with a water gun. I had the hose, and I think I still lost... Took the kids and went to the park, and while they played, we played Taboo! Tried to watch a few fireworks from the surrounding amusement parks and headed home.

Saturday: Slept in, cleaned up my kitchen from the disaster that was the day before. Will picked up a hungover Steve at noon and they arrived here about one as expected. We piled into two cars to head for the beach which turned out to be an awful idea as far as beach going, but great for sights. Gave up after two parking lots were closed and went for pizza instead. Came back to my place and changed, went mini golfing, Rich won with Jeff a very close second. I think it was Matty's first time, but he did great! Annemarie was miserable and doing her very best to make everyone else miserable too since we 'murdered some love'. We went bowling, which was fun, sort of cosmic, dark with flashing lights and music, and I actually won! Will was right there behind me... YAY WILL! Then Will drove Steve home and we ate leftovers and talked with Tony while Rich took a turn 'murdering some love' which was interesting since Jeff always hears about all the meltdowns, so he had been waiting to see one, and she delivered.

Sunday: Slept in again! Baked a chocolate birthday cake for a certain birthday boy, and then baked some chocolate-chip toffee cookies for him to take home, went out to some crazy mexican place and had HUGE burritos for lunch, and then to Shoe City for round three of shoe shopping, but we were successful this time. On to Downtown Disney for MORE Jamba Juice and some souvenier shopping for a certain boy. Jeff called some cute emo/punk guy a dummy and a mannequin-American We came back here and I slathered some chocolatey goodness on the previously mentioned cake, and then put some chocolate cake crumbs around the edge before Matty put some sprinkles all over the top. Took a nap, made some dinner, digested under the guise of a showering six year old, lit a LOT of candles and then there was wishing and blowing and singing and all kinds of chocolate lips and laughing and far too much sugar and hamster dancing and then lots of passing out. Jeff packed, I laced new shoes, and forced baked goods into his luggage for J2. We hugged, he slept, I tried, but was only slightly successful.

Monday: Got up at four a.m. to hug him goodbye again and then went back to bed where I tried to sleep some more. Eh... Steve texted to check on me like every morning Jeff just texted to say he landed safely back at home and Rich showed up for lunch and decided I miss Jeff.

Thanks for coming to visit and for EVERYTHING! I love you, Angel!

Viv