On Saturday, we lost power at our house. After about 3 minutes, the power came back
on, then dimmed way down (to about 30%) and stayed that way. It was enough
juice to have dimmed light bulbs, but not enough to power our TV or DVD player. We
had lots of candles and decided to have a picnic. I went to Vons deli and got some
fried chicken and potato salad. Walking to Vons, I noticed that our side of the street
was dark, but the opposite side was not. The street lights on Linden were out, but
the Vons sign (and the interior) were lit up. Inside Vons, the registers were working,
but the freezers were not running.

This freaked me out, so I unplugged all of our electronic equipment. I didn’t want
anything being fried when the power came back on.

Toby called the power company and although the recorded message said to use the new
automated system, it never gave instructions on how to get to the new automated system.
So Toby waited on hold for about 15 minutes before giving up. What is the point of
having a phone number to call when there is an outage if it is extremely inconvenient
to use? I know that we probably won’t bother to call again.

About 4 am, the power came back for good, and we all lived happily ever after.

After Eloise’s
dedication, everybody came back to our house for some good eating. Toby had got Cavalli’s to
supply stuffed chicken breasts and rice for the main eats, Toby made a spinach salad,
and the Weinbenders brought over rolls. Although we did run out of raspberry iced
tea, there was plenty of food. And a gorgeous Trifle, compliments of Toby, for dessert.
Camille had spent a lot of time and effort to really decorate our house in a Valentine’s
Day theme. Everyone was very impressed. Thank you everyone who helped us celebrate
Weezy’s special day. Decorations Dessert.
Yum, Yum.

On Sunday, 13 Feb 2005, Eloise Mae Theule was dedicated during the 4pm service of Santa
Barbara Community Church. Earlier that weekend, when I told a friend what we were
doing at church, she had asked if it was like a baptism. I told her it was sort of
like a baptism but not as formal and without water. Basically, in our church a baby
dedication is more of a simple introduction of the baby to the congregation. The parents
commit to rearing the baby in a Godly way, and the congregation commits to supporting
the parents and the children. During the dedication, the parents generally pick out
a passage of scripture; sort of a life verse. We were ‘encouraged’ to pick just one
verse. Apparently, some parents choose multiple chapters or whole books. 🙂 Toby and
I chose a mishmosh of verses from the end of Proverbs
31 that we felt were appropriate for the occasion.

She opens her
hand to the poor, and reaches out her hands to the needy Strength and dignity are
her clothing And she laughs at the time to come She opens her mouth with wisdom, and
the teaching of kindness is on her tongue Charm is deceitful, beauty is vain But a
woman who fears the Lord is to be praised

We were well represented.
When Reed
Jolley asked for any family members in the audience to stand up, we had over 2 full rows of people rise to their feet. The rest of the congregation was very impressed.

Saturday, 12 Feb 2005, was a craft day at LGPCW.
Max, Weezy and I went for the morning, even though Max told me he didn’t want to do
crafts. Well, he was true to his word. He painted one heart only after his friend
Mac started painting. Then it was off to play in the dirt. It was a beautiful day,
and I got some great pictures. Weezy enjoyed playing in the sand, but Mom was upset
that she got her shoes dirty. Ready to roll!

No crafts for these boys! Having
fun. Weezy
enjoying the sun

Here are some pictures that I wanted to post before, but didn’t get it done on time.
Big
Smile

Chumash Canoe at the SB Natural History Museum

Ready for bed