Lucky

Today I am thankful for good friends. Yesterday was a hard day for one of my children. The things he is going through made me more appreciative of the support I have from my friends.

For a long distance friend who I can e-mail about anything - and who always makes me laugh and gives great advice.

For 2 friends (who also happen to be my sister in laws) who will help me at the drop of the hat and never complain about it.

For a friend who listens to everything I say and helps me put it into perspective. Who is always on my side and who is a second mom to my oldest son.

For a friend who lets me complain, then goes shopping with me. Who doesn't let me take myself too seriously and who I count on for anything.

And especially for my mom. Who never judges me. Never makes me feel insecure or stupid. And who gives the best advice in the world.

Me Gusta el Padre

Last night we went out to dinner with Nate & Mandie to a little place in Phoenix called La Grande Orange. A few months ago Tiffany and I got gelato at the shop next to LGO. It was the best gelato I've ever had. I think about it all the time...anyway, the place is really cool - it's one long building where there is a market (which sells pastries, sandwiches & sushi) that connects to LGO (the main restaurant) and that connects to the gelato shop.

The menu was small and we all started off with a salad (portions are big enough for 2 to share). We all got the chopped salad, which was o.k. Nothing special. Then we asked our waitress what was good on the menu. And she let us in on a little secret - the best menu item isn't on the menu. It's called "El Padre" and it's a pizza (minus the red sauce) with prosciutto, figs, arugula & fresh ricotta. The waitress described it as "savory". I'll admit when I heard "figs" my gag reflex took over and I thought, "no thanks". But Nate & Mandie are adventurous and they ordered it. Ummm...it was heaven on earth. Soooo good. So much better than you can imagine. And the crust on the pizza was crispy yet chewy with a hint of a sourdough flavor. Yum. I am now a fan of figs.

Because I knew how good the gelato place was I had some before dinner (it was a 45 minute wait). And then I had some more after dinner. And then when Nate noticed that the pistachio flavor cost more than the other flavors because it was specially made I made Ian buy me some of that too. I am drooling thinking about it. I might go back tonight. For the pizza & the gelato.

In other news, Max has a 103 degree fever, Max needs more extensive dental work (apparently he grinds his teeth so hard that he cracked 3), Ben broke his pinkie and Evan LOVES puzzles. But more on that later.

April Fool's & Dinner

The boys are obsessed with April Fool's Day. It all started when Xander saw an episode of Zack & Cody where they pull a really good prank. Xander has been so excited - plotting and planning to pull the prank on his dad on April Fools. This got the other boys into the mood. Max swore up and down he had to have silly string in order for his prank to work. I don't think Max really understands what pranks are, because he thinks a silly string fight would be an excellent prank. Ben is keeping his prank close to the vest, but I plan to break him before April 1st (I don't like surprises).

So I've been thinking...since they are all excited for April Fool's I really should think of something clever to do to them. But nothing comes to mind...Any suggestions?

On a totally unrelated note...Nate, Mandie & company are visiting this week. They came over on Saturday and Nate cooked us a traditional Thai meal. I'm not sure exactly what he made, but dang it was good. I'm thinking about hiring him as my personal chef. But they'd have to move here first...not a bad idea.