Pizza! Pizza?

So there is this dude in my office who is bound and determined to find the best NY Style pizza here in the LA area. SO he blogs about it. He has made this commitment to eat pizza everyday, or at least 5 days a week, to find that perfect slice. You can read his blog HERE.

Our office has grown quite fond of his many adventures in Pizza LAnd... We all try to help out in any way we can. So we, as an office, thought it would be funny to make him a cake for his birthday... Pizza Style. A few people approached me, knowing that I am the baker in the group, and asked if I could make him a cake.
So I did.

and this is how it turned out:

the recipe:
*a white cake batter made from scratch for the "crust"
(thanks to my loverly sister... the Mrs. Baker that taught me everything from how to mix it all together, to not opening the the oven door consistently.)

* red & green fruit roll ups for the pepperoni and "basil" (as everyone called it).

* vanilla icing w/ red dye for the "sauce"

* white chocolate grated on top for the "cheese"

* and most of all... a pizza box to deliver the cake in.
(which was a Papa John's box b/c his name is... well... John.)

It was a hit and super delish!! Everyone raved over it. And it made me super happy, I had so much fun making it. I'm thinking I might be in the wrong business... hmmm...

Baby KIWI.

Many of you may not know this, but I'm sure most of you do...
My sister is preggers, and I'm gonna be an AUNT!
They call the baby KIWI.
uh huh.



We're not sure what exactly this "KIWI" is yet, but what I do know it's gonna be a pretty awesome kid. I don't think this whole being an "Aunt" thing had kicked in yet until I saw my sister the other night. She's got a basketball hanging out in her belly now. It's crazy... Last time I saw her she barely had a speed bump... Now it's just hanging out saying, "Look at Me!! Look at Me!!" I have to say I was pretty excited. I'm glad I can be here to experience these very surreal, special moments w/ my sister and her hubby. I can't imagine having some kind of alien of a thing, that apparently is a human, growing inside of me. I've heard crazy stories... and I sometimes wonder what it will be like, but at other times, I think I'd be better off just not knowing... I know women were built to carry such things inside for 9 months, there's a unique bond there that grows between a mother and a child, I don't fully get it, but seeing my sister talk to her KIWI all the time, makes me think she's a little nuts sometimes, but it's just that bonding moment they go through... And seeing that, makes me think twice about really wanting that desire to become a mommy myself one day. I can't wait to meet baby KIWI.
I'd really like to know what it is so we can call it something other than a fuzzy fruit.

Hurry up KIWI.... We wanna know what you are!!!

If We Couldn't Laugh We Would All Go Insane.

Jimmy Buffet is known for making that so, very true statement. I'd have to agree with him completely on that. I can't explain to all of you how much I've needed a good laugh or 2 recently, I got more than I bargained for this past weekend.

I had one of the best trips since moving out here to California. I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard, let alone so much. Our joke was we laughed off our tummy flab all weekend. We don't need Hip Hop Abs by any means! Just laugh it off! I still can't figure out if I'm sore from all of the activities we did, or just laughing too much, but it was indeed the best, most memorable weekends I've had in a very, very long time!

I took a little trip down south to see my cousins again, this time it was to El Centro. It's hot, it's in the desert, and it's around 20minutes to the boarder of Mexico I believe. Anywho, you find that white folk around there is now the minority. It's a neat town though. I probably would've never thought to go look in a place like that, let alone visit, but it is probably one of the coolest places I've seen so far, besides being out of the US.

I got on the road about 6pm on Friday night. I was worried about running into a bunch of LA traffic on the way out, but surprisingly I didn't hit a whole lot.

The first laugh out loud moment began on my own and in my car. Something unusual caught my eye, maybe it was the fact there were these bodies cut off and tied to the back of a truck. Much to my relief, they were only manikins. Whew. I couldn't resist taking a picture.



I arrived to Mel and David's house and ate some yummy brisket and hashbrown casserole! It's a common favorite in our family, maybe because it's easy and oh so yummy! They had a friend from San Diego come down as well, his name is Daniel. What a character. He kept scaring Ben with these lights... Rather funny if you ask me.



The whole purpose of this trip was to go caving by moonlight. Which, didn't completely make a whole lot of sense considering we still needed flashlights to walk through the caves... duh. But the moon was full and it was still about 98 degrees outside... And that was a nice evening for them from what they said... woo.

Now. Picture this- taking fun pictures by moonlight, sitting in the desert by the caves, enjoying the lukewarm weather with a slight breeze, listening to Band of Horses... ahh... simple as that. It feels like you're in the scene of a movie.
Magnificent.




We ended up not getting home until about 4am... We showered and hung out for a while, then went to bed right about the time the sun was coming up. Which was fine, b/c then we wouldn't have to endure the MASSIVE heat. We all woke up and finally got on about our day. D&M wanted to take us to this amazing place called CAMACHOS. ooohhh yum! The best Mexican food around! This isn't just any mexican food you get down the street, this isn't any TexMex... this is the real authentic food. And oh man, it was so good! Check out the sign on the door. I mean, who does that anymore, or at all even?! Crazy!




After a yummy meal and full tummy's we headed on over to David's shop that his grandfather owns. It's been around since 1947. Family owned and operated. David now works there and manages the place. We got to see what exactly he does and what all this gibberish means when he talks about work and what exactly he does. It's rather fascinating. I kept thinking of my dad and brother in law, and how they would find this place very interesting, more like a big boy toy shop if you ask me.





Then we found David's blazer he flipped.... or what's left of it. But of course it still runs! Bet you've never seen someone drive a car like a chariot before! Hah.



D&M were able to get a babysitter for the evening, so us adults could go out for the evening. It's kinda nice being the adults for once. haha... I'm sure Mel was needing a break from the boys too, so I'm glad we were able to go in one car this time. We ventured out towards the Glamis Dunes. This would be my first time seeing them. And I must say, IT WAS SO COOL! aha... But we first detoured to a hot spring in the middle of nowhere. And that indeed, made me feel like I was going to be written about in the next Jimmy Buffet song. No lie. We're driving towards nothing, and in the midst of it all, there is this big, green, bush of a thing. Inside, was the hot spring. Amazing.



After driving through the sunset and towards the Glamis Sand Dunes, Mel and I were getting pampered by mother nature's wind treatment and getting some amazing skin exfoliation, while the boys ran up the sand dunes getting some exercise in their man boots... and maybe some sand in their eyes.
Clear eyes anyone???




Me and Mel laughed for the longest time... Still do... Oh it hurts so good... I've decided, we go good together, and should be America's Next Top Models. :-)




And then we laughed some more...


by far... my favorite group picture of the weekend....

We then went back to the hot spring to go for a dip... It was quite loverly... We then took some more hilarious pictures under the moonlight...






And check out these of M&D!
=)





And so... This ended our time together... It was sad day to leave, the weekend went way too fast, but I am glad to have had this time getting to know my family in a new light. I feel very blessed to have such an awesome family, and the fact we're all so close in unusual ways...
So as my father would always say...
"a good time was had by all..."

Coldplay.

I heart them.
Also Chris Martin's Curly Hair.

I saw them in concert last week with a friend of mine I used to know in Florida. She's the cutest thing ever. She reminds me of a very young Gram C. I think it's her looks and her laughter is what reminds me of her. Hah.


We had such a blast, although, the concert was pretty much in the ghetto of LA. Don't beleive me? We went through Taco Bell before hand, they had this plastic box, pull out thingy that came out to our window... basically barricading us and the workers.
Odd.


Anywho... Coldplay never ceases to amaze me with their talent. This is my second time seeing them in concert. They know how to please an audience and make their music literally jump into your heart and burst with excitement. Every album gets better and better. It's an unexplainable feeling when I listen to them, especially live. You just had to have been there.

Cell phone cameras just don't prove justice.

Here are a few of the things Chris Martin said about the new album. It's something neat and satisfying in these words, I still to this day grow more respect for these guys despite all the controversy people have claimed towards them. They're good guys who have a passion for making music and performing. Nothing more, nothing less. They're just trying to live their lives like NORMAL human beings. They make bold statements, and good for them. Out of the norm is good. Good for them. Keep on Rockin boys. :-}


p.s-
For those who haven't picked up the new album.
Do it.
It's pretty much genius.
This is what it looks like in case you forgot.
;-}


Coldplay's new album is called Viva la Vida. Singer Chris Martin chose this title after seeing the phrase, which means "long live life," on a painting by Mexican artist Frida Kahlo, who endured polio, a broken spine, and chronic pain for decades. "She went through a lot of shit, of course, and then she started a big painting in her house that said 'Viva la Vida,'" says Martin. "I just loved the boldness of it." - From RollingStone.com

"What i really love about that painting, and her in general, is that her colors were always so bright and vibrant and alive, and yet if you look closely, she's really aware of all the darkness." Martin, whose mother is a devout Christian, and who grew up in a church that was preoccupied with heaven and hell, cannot abide dualisms, "all this talk about happiness and sadness and darkness and light. Both things always exist concurrently. I am a happy guy, but I am also a very sad guy. It just happens to be at the same time." - From SPIN Magazine