A welcome respite in between Disneyland and Yosemite was a stop in L.A. at my brother's (yes, he's the guy with the stroller!) to visit his sweet little family.
In the summers Andy is lucky to get about a month off and this year he spent it doing "Daddy Daycare" for Maddie while his wife Meg worked.
Right off the bat the girls helped Andy pick lemons in his backyard and went to work squeezing them into lemonade.
More time with Maddie was a huge delight for the girls, and for Maddie.
We took a long walk around the reservoir near his house.
I think at some point I'm going to have to live in a place with more exotic foliage and trees than Oregon offers.
We chilled and we hung out. Their backyard is a beautiful backdrop for BBqing.
We posed with his Emmy.
We drew on his chalkboard wall.
We went to the Griffith Observatory and watched a show in the Planetarium.
Of course there was the requisite shot in front of the Hollywood sign. See that little white thing behind Jooge on the hill?
Andy's high school pal Starelli was in town so we saw him, too. I think Julia had a secret crush on him because when she plays with her princess barbie now she gives the princess's male counterpart his name.
I loved snuggling with Maddie. I will forever have an image of she and Andy emerging from the bedroom with morning face. Ah, it warms my heart to see my brother as a dad, and not just a dad but a great dad.
Meg worked much of the time we were there but it is always great to see her, too. Here she sports her new birthday dress, available at
this Portland-based Etsy shop. (Had to plug it). I have one too and love love love it!
One cool thing: I got to go to a taping of The Bachelorette: Men Tell All because Meg works on the sets for the finale shows. As much as I hate to admit this, I have watched both Bachelor and Bachelorette since they began so a taping like this provided me with seven hours of nonstop entertainment and I loved every minute of it. Ate it up with a spoon. Thanks for getting me in, Meg!
I love my brother and his family so much and time together when we live far apart is golden.
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