So Long, Summertime

Wow--my last entry was June. Again, not surprising I suppose. Despite the best of intentions I am still a mother of two boys under 5, and that means I don't often have a chance to sit down for the quiet reflection of journaling. It has been a fun summer, and some of the last days I'll have weekday freedom to take the boys on outings to West LA or downtown. Beginning later this month I'll be tied to Redondo in order to make Liam's pick-up and drop-off times to and from Transitional Kindergarten. 

While that may be the case, we've made the most of our time this summer. With pool parties and lots of visits to museums, the LA Zoo, and Knott's Berry Farm, it's been a summer full of family fun. 

Liam and I also started working through reading lessons. What a struggle that has been! The material challenges him, but I've worked with him enough to know it is not beyond him. His squirminess, defiance, and goofy behavior are honed to push my buttons and--he hopes--convince me to just give it up. My son is stubborn, but where does he think he gets it from? Lessons continue, and we've had victories along the way. The last story he read for his lesson he legitimately read. He is learning reading skills and the time we've invested is going to help him in the classroom. And, by the time we finish Lesson 100 sometime this fall, he will be reading at a second grade level. 

 

It's been a fun and productive summer, but I welcome the coming routine of the school year. Liam is ready for it and will benefit from it. It's time he had another big boy upgrade. Of course it will be bittersweet for me--especially the early mornings--but it's exciting too. Liam's world is going to expand a little bit more this school year, and he's going to begin to find out more about his world. 

A Busy Week

Liam turned eight months old on July 5th.

 The 4th of July weekend came with plenty of California sunshine, chasing the last of the so-called "June gloom" away. Eric, Liam, and I spent the weekend visiting his family in Redondo Beach, enjoying a couple of days off together. In order to cover our child care needs, Eric and I have arranged opposite work schedules, so it is a special treat when we are both off on the same day. Our plans weren't overly ambitious, given Liam's bedtime of 7 p.m. (give or take) and neither of us had any inclination to brave the huge crowds flocking to the beach to see fireworks. A little family time and a little barbecue was just right for our Independence Day holiday this year.

Liam and Daddy getting ready to hit the kiddie pool.

Since the weather was so nice, Liam and his cousins got to spend some playtime in the kiddie pool. On Eric's side of the family, Liam has three cousins: Genevieve (almost 11), Jeffery (almost 3), and Abigail (almost 1 and a half). Since he is the youngest and can't walk yet, Liam's playtime experience with Jeffery and Abigail sometimes resembles that of a hapless chipmunk who has wandered onto a busy freeway. For now, that is. It's only a matter of time before he will be able to hold his own among all of that youthful chaos!

Liam plays around while we wait for the sunscreen
to soak in before hitting the pool.

Liam and Mommy sporting their red, white, and blue
for the 4th of July.

Liam loved the kiddie pool. He's still kind of wobbly, so Daddy got in
with him to make sure a pair of steadying hands were always nearby.

As it turns out, these pictures of toothless smiles will be among the last. These smiles were captured only three days ago, but in that short time Liam's first tooth started to break through. Last night he was particularly restless, and this morning I spotted a definite hint of a pearly white tooth when he smiled. 

Two milestones in a matter of days--it's been a busy week!

Mommy and Daddy are big fans of Liam's toothless, squishy-face smiles.

126 Days to Go

Today marks my twenty-second week of pregnancy. Up to this point things have gone like gangbusters, but I will say that as my belly expands I'm beginning to get a preview of the rougher road ahead. Aside from feeling like an anorexic (yet ever-swelling) version of the Venus of Willendorf, my only trouble has been with my allergies. Thankfully the sinus and respiratory irritations have been minor compared with what they have been in the past, but I will admit that the accompanying sinus headaches can hit me pretty hard and Tylenol just isn't up to the task. Given the woeful inadequacy of pregnancy-friendly solutions, it looks like my only option is to tough it out. Here's hoping the pollen count doesn't skyrocket and wreak real misery and havoc in the next four months!

Venus of Willendorf (22,000-21,000 BCE)

At work things are shifting into summer gear--a welcome change that means the end of school groups for a few months and, this year, the close of the Aztec Pantheon and the Art of Empire exhibition. As interesting and new as it has been to have Aztec art at the Villa, I am delighted to see it go. The public was especially anxious for tours of this exhibition, and that demand has made for a crazy few months. Plus, as much as I love history of all kinds, my true knowledge base lies in the ancient Mediterranean and that background is what allows me to add the nuance and analysis that takes my teaching to the next level.

As things return to normal at work and downshift into summer mode, I'm hoping for a quiet summer at work and the opportunity to exploit what remains of my second trimester before the fall and all it will bring with it arrives. I plan to get out and make the most of summer and the ability to tie my sneakers by myself as long as I can.

August Rush

Aren't these cute? It's beanie Amber and Eric--complete with glasses! Eric's sister, Heather, made them. The general consensus seems to be positive, although some people commented that they rarely see me wear a dress. True enough!

August has been a pretty busy month, filled with work and visits and birthdays. I can't believe that September is nearly here. The summer break from school groups at the museum ends all too quickly. Right now is the time for the annual Villa theater production. Each year we put on a different ancient play--this year is Aristophanes' "Peace," a rather ribald comedy. Last week I stepped outside of the office for a moment and discovered what appeared to be a huge pile of trash. This very un-Getty display of slovenliness was shocking at first, until I remembered the play and realized it must be a set prop of some sort.

Un-Getty display of trash

Both Eric and I celebrated our birthdays this month. My birthday was pretty low-key. My present from Eric was tickets to go see Reba in Nevada, but the concert isn't until next month. Plus, I worked all day--but I made Eric play MarioKart Wii with me that evening. MarioKart has been one of my favorite video games since it first came out when I was a kid. I find it's a great stress-reliever, racing virtually around the track like mad, flinging shells and banana peels and bob-ombs at the other drivers to knock them off the track. I have as much fun with it now as I ever did, so I guess in some ways I haven't changed much in the last fifteen years or so!

This month also saw the premiere of my friend Kara's new special series, "Out of Egypt" on the Discovery Channel. The show does a bit of comparative archaeology, each episode starting with a cultural phenomenon we see in ancient Egyptian culture and then looking at similar practices in other cultures around the world. You could certainly argue that I am biased, but I think it's great to see a legitimate scholar produce a program for a popular audience. To learn more about it, check out her website. If you missed it on Discovery, you can download the first two episodes of the series now at iTunes. The last time I checked, the first episode ("Flesh and Bone") was free. There are four more episodes to come, but air dates are yet to be determined.

I feel like this month was over as soon as it began. I can hardly believe September begins next week--it's almost as if someone hit the fast-forward button through the summer. Clearly the Romans were on to something when they said tempus fugit.

As Summer Was Just Beginning

I know I have been delinquent with my blog updates the past few weeks, but in my defense, I have been rather uninspired and there is not much going on at the moment. By this time, of course, summer has officially begun. Eric just began teaching his course on ancient Egyptian religion at UCLA and I will be wrapping up school group lessons tomorrow. (I have declared it an official day of celebration.) The summer months will still be busy, just with different kinds of distractions. Beginning next week I will have no teaching assignments on Wednesdays, which will give me the luxury of one day a week to research and prepare for upcoming projects. For example, I am preparing a course comparing nudity in the ancient Near East, Egypt, and Greece. Also, two special exhibitions are opening at the Villa this summer: The Golden Graves of Ancient Vani (July 16–October 5, 2009) and The Chimaera of Arezzo (July 16, 2009–February 8, 2010). I have about a month or so to study up on both of those exhibitions so I can be ready to present them to the public by the time they open. I am very much looking forward to both of these shows. They will both have an archaeological bent to them compared to other special exhibitions I have taught here, which will make them particularly fun for me.

In other news, we are now a two car family again. You will recall some months ago I reported that the engine of Eric's old beater overheated and seized, leaving him stranded on the 405 freeway. Since then he and I have been negotiating the use of our one remaining car as best as we could--and not doing half bad, all things considered. Anyhow, last week a friend of his bought a new car and very kindly sold his old one to Eric for a price he could afford. So we now have two cars again, and what a luxury it is! I will enjoy very much not making grocery trips on my day off with my little push cart and waiting on the bus in order to get around and get errands done.

With all that in mind, you could say things are going pretty well right now. We have no extraordinary plans for summer since we usually take our vacation in September, after Eric is done with his summer teaching. What we will be doing is taking advantage of the awesome SoCal summer weather, enjoying time with friends and family, and going to lots of summer movies. I have learned to make the most of my unusual work schedule and have got myself into the habit of seeing movies on Mondays, when everyone else is at work. It is a lot of fun to kick back with your soda and popcorn and see a movie in an almost deserted theater. Once you know how great it is without the crowds, it is almost disappointing to see a movie any other way. Also, at the end of the summer I plan on escaping the city for a visit home.

But, for now, there are miles to go so I had better get to it. Time to get busy learning the stories revealed by the golden graves of Vani.

Summertime in the Villa's Herb Garden

In the Gardens

Is it the end of the school year yet? I am very much looking forward to the summer break from school groups. They are, in many ways, one of the most exhausting aspects of my job. Any kind of public speaking can be draining, but if you add the element of disciplining your audience (because the chaperones hardly ever do) and yelling at the top of your lungs (because the marble galleries here are an acoustic nightmare) it wears you down. The summer is a much needed recovery period and I am eagerly awaiting the end of June.

Earlier this week we had a guest speaker from the Huntington Library in San Marino visit the museum to talk about ancient varieties roses and some of the other plants in our gardens here. The Huntington has some lovely gardens itself, and so has the accompanying horticultural experts on staff. It was a very interesting stroll through the gardens, and inspired me to take the pictures I have added to this post. May is really one of the best times to wander the gardens here. Most everything is in bloom by this time of year, and everything looks new, colorful, and fresh.

For the most part these past weeks have been very uneventful and ordinary. Eric and I spend most of our time working these days. The steady pace is a reminder of how much a vacation is needed every once in awhile in order to recharge ourselves. Hopefully this summer will offer a couple of opportunities to relax and have some fun. In the meantime, I'll have to settle for quiet afternoon walks in the gardens here.