julie's birthday bonfire

this post could also be titled

"reasons for coming to california, part one"

this is julie.  usually we are both wearing glasses and usually she is taller than me, but i found a patch of sand that made me look ever so slightly taller and now it is on film which means in the future, everyone will think i was always taller than her.  and that we had perfect eyesight.

julie is my right arm.  she's been around longer than everyone except my sister.  people to this day think that we are sisters.  from the beginning, lilah wasn't able to differentiate (in photos) pictures of her Mama and of Julie (Mama), so julie became mama #2.  which is not surprising.  and it makes me feel safe knowing that when lilah hits those teenage years, i will be able to rest assured that she is safe in the home of Mama Julie.

so anyway, on July 5, julie turned 33!  she had a wonderful celebration on Ocean Beach in San Francisco (one of our favourite spots).  our clan came along and partied till lilah officially wore out 4 of the adults (independently), and then we took her back to julie's for a good night's sleep.

this is stacy and lilah on the beach collecting stones and washing hands.  stacy became known as snail because she was slow, and lilah was cheetah (guess why).  stacy is julie's other bff.  we love stacy and want to have sleepovers with her.  true fact: anytime you are with stacy, you will probably end up laughing so hard you pee yourself a little because of something she has said.

this is julie's real life sister, suzanne.  and wrapped in blue is her oldest, lukash.  suzanne has just received her PhD from Stanford and now has a professorship at the University of Tennessee... which is great except for the fact that now they are moving to Tennessee.  suzanne is amazing and shocking and knows all about the Medici family and also loves PJ Harvey.  i don't know if lukash loves pj harvey.  i know he loves pasta and blueberries.

lilah's first s'more...

she's a fan.

(Scots:  to make a s'more, you roast one marshmallow over the fire, then, when it is nice and hot, you put it on dark chocolate, and sandwich it between two pieces of graham crackers.  eat one and you will definitely want s'more.)