Cromwell and Beatrice

Happy (belated) Birthday, Beatrice!

Apartment Therapy wished Beatrice a happy belated birthday.

Party Inspiration

I'm happy to see I inspired another baby's birthday party! (B's party is mentioned in the caption below.)

Summer Sunday

Today followed our typical routine for a Sunday in the summer. First we got up and took the dogs for a walk before it got too hot (temperatures here have been in the 105-108F range this week). Then we took Beatrice to the farmer's market in Montrose (a neighborhood about five miles northeast of our house).

The farmer's market basically combines all of Beatrice's favorite things in one place: live music, a petting zoo, free fruit samples, and plenty of dogs. But today things got even more exciting when she went on her first ever pony ride. Needless to say, she LOVED it. Like, really, really loved it.

The rides are designated for children one year and older and Beatrice is now 13.5 months, but the pony-keeper (is that what they're called?) was still amused by how tiny Beatrice looked on the pony, as well as by how brave and strong and fierce she was.

Then she listened to some live Dixieland jazz and gorged herself on free fruit samples.

After the farmer's market we take Beatrice to her swimming lessons at the Pasadena Rose Bowl Aquatic Center.

Beatrice loves the swimming teacher, who also seems particularly fond of Beatrice.

Usually after swimming Dev and I look at houses for sale in our part of town, but today it was just too hot so instead we drove to Santa Monica while Beatrice slept in the car, had lunch with Veronika, and then bought Beatrice a new, bigger bathing suit at Baby GAP on the Santa Monica Promenade (where it was about 20 degrees cooler than Glendale).

Lots more adorable baby swimming and pony pictures are available on Facebook.

Summer To-Do List

What is Summer up to these days, you're almost surely thinking? Answer: A lot!

This has been a very busy, very productive summer so far. Here are a few things I've been doing:

1. Writing up a lesson plan for a workshop on parody-writing that I'm teaching this fall.

2. Finding a home for my new short play

3. Editing the novel

4. Relaunching The Foghorn with an all-new site design and a big launch party

5. Helping to produce future Literary Death Match events in Los Angeles

6. Producing a new regular reading series in L.A. at the Echo Park Film Center

7. Finishing my screenplay

8. Expanding and improving Swink, where I'm the Fiction Editor

9. Writing a weekly column for PANK

10. Finishing two new short stories to add to a chapbook manuscript

11. Mentoring several young writers and fellow U. of C. grads

12. Volunteering at 826 L.A.

Plus a few more secret in-the-works things that I don't want to jinx yet...

Happy birthday Miller!

And thank you Amy and Evan for a great party!

Beatrice and Jack

Wonderful photos courtesy of Summer St. Pierre!