Southern California suffered a bit of an identity crisis the last few weeks.� The month of May decided to forgo its usual blast of heat, and the June gloom lingered longer than usual.� Those of us used to triple digit weather marveled at this new, temperate golden state.� We may have said once or twice the summers don’t seem as hot as I remember.
Oh, dear.
Things changed last week. (It’s been hot.)� I sit under the blazing mid-morning sun every day for swim lessons out of spite.� I just refuse to admit the air crackles around me like a campfire, taking with it my will to live.� The rest of the parents line the perimeter of the pool, vying like wild animals for even a sliver of shade.� I sit on the bleachers, a Filipino grandmother with an umbrella my usual companion, and pretend to read a book. I move only to wipe the sweat before it hits my eyes; I don’t have energy for much more.
I almost cried tears of gratitude when my mom asked to celebrate her birthday with brunch and a day by the pool.� Of course, my parents’ pool is ours whenever we want to use it.� It’s just that, as weekends go, there is always something else to do.� An errand to run.� A project to finish.� A fan to direct on your bloated, prostrate body splayed across your sharpie stained sofa.� What I’m saying is, we never make the time to drive less than five minutes.
We made the long drive today, cake in hand. My mom loves cheesecake, so that’s what I made. Unlike that other cheesecake, this one came together easily.
My mom doesn’t go for any of those fruit compotes you usually see atop cheesecakes. Well, she loves cheesecake so really she’ll eat anything so long as it’s creamy and has a graham cracker crust. Still, her favorite is a sour cream topping (mine, too!) so I made sure to give her a generous one.
Then, it was time for the pool.� Two hours of rolling around like otters in what felt like bath water thanks to those triple digits.
Mikey is just getting the hang of swimming. He needs to work on lifting his head to take a breath, but the swim lessons seem to be helping, thank goodness.
Nico, not so much. He’s timid and clings to his instructor like a little Koala bear. But, today he was in the pool so long that he eventually loosened up and ventured out into the deep end. Not without clutching every possible floaty device first, of course.
Gabby was napping while we were in the pool. My brother decided it was time to make the drive back to LA when she woke up, but we didn’t have the heart to deny her a little fun in the water with her cousins. In she went, diaper and onesie, not a swimsuit in sight. My brother had to turn around and dress her all over again for the car ride home, but that’s they way it goes. Aunt’s prerogative. (And uncle, and cousins, and grandparents, too.)
It was a great day.� My core body temperature hasn’t been this close to normal in almost a week.� Happy birthday, Mom.� I hope you loved it as much as we did.
Yay for Gabby, too!
Looks like a fabulous party!
wow, that pool looks like it feels good! I think we have had a much more hot summer than usual!
Two notes, that cheesecake reminds me of the fast and easy one my dad used to make. Whipped cream cheese, confectioners sugar and I’m sure lemon and vanilla and other stuff. I don’t like cheesecake so I don’t make it, but that ones reminds me of my dad (sniff!).
When my middle guy was younger he would take self-preservation in the pool to heart. He once pied on every tube and floaty up and down his body (think real life Michelin man) and jumped off the dive board at a friends house. I don’t think he even touched the water and may have just bounced off. I was cry tears of laughter so I couldn’t tell.
Now of course he is seal-like and we can’t pry him away from the water. Not a float in sight : )
Happy birthday to your Mom!
I feel your pain! Heat advisories here all week. I went to the pool yesterday and had to leave because it was too hot even in the pool. That’s when you know you have reached a whole new level of hot that I’m pretty sure is close to the fires of hell! At least you had cheesecake though. That makes everything better in my book.
It looks seriously fun, I hope your mom had a happy birthday.
It has so unbearably hot here and we don’t have AC in the house and the AC decided to break in my car last week. Outdoor pools are unheard of in Colorado, so we sit on our deck (when it is in the shade) and melt, melt melt in the ghetto pool.
We will be in California the 2-8th and it better be cool, dammit.
JJ–Yes! Yay Gabby. She seems to be doing really, really well!
Amy–It was for us! Hope my mom had fun, too. :)
Kelly–I have been reading your blog and cringing the last few weeks. To be as pregnant as you are with all that heat and humidity sounds so ridiculously unbearable!
Becky–plus 175 points. I’m still chuckling over the visual. (I dont’ love cheesecake, either.)
Toi–We didn’t even get into the pool yesterday until 4:30. Like you, it was just too hot to even go outside!
Zak–What part of CA? If it’s anywhere near me (Disneyland), no dice. August-September is the hottest time of the year.
It has been wicked hot here in the midwest for close to 2 weeks now and then the last two days have been stormier (80 mph winds) than I would like. Of course, I’d prefer tornadoes to snow.
I like your new “About” box.
Did you know that Apatasaurus used to be known as Brontosaurus?
Kathy–yup! :)
and thanks for the compliment on my About box. I’m slowly, slowly, slowly changing things around the site.
Oh yes, the weather has been insane! I can only imagine how hot it’s been in your neck of the woods. Gabby is getting so big! My goodness wasn’t she just a twinkle in your brother’s eye?
According to my brother, it’s been the same. More miserable in LA because the building trap and reflect all that heat.
As much as I hate snow…I’d take a few flurries right about now. I’m so tired of being hot. We can’t afford to keep the house cool really, just bearable.
Is this recipe any different than the previous one? It looks yummy!
Totally different! This one has a graham cracker crust, a sour cream topping, and no chocolate. I’m not thrilled with the crust, though. It was soft, and I like it crunchy/crumbly.
I’m intrigued by the sour cream, you are right crunchy is the way to go!! Maybe one of these days you may want to share the recipe.
Karina–I would love to share the recipe! But, since I adapted it from another website and I didn’t love it, I don’t want to link to her and kind of sort of criticize the recipe. Only the crust was yucky, but only because I like mine crunchy. If you like, I can always email you (or anyone else) the link.
The heat has been killing me. I’m 32 weeks pregnant and your description of laying on the sharpie stained sofa cracked me up. That is my life right now. And I too can’t quite seem to make it to my own mother’s house, which is 5 minutes away, where there is a real pool and not just the little kiddie pool, like in my backyard, to relieve myself from this heat. Thank goodness it is cooling down.
The cheesecake looks fabulously yummy!
I thought of you a few nights ago when I followed a link to shitmykidsruined.com .
Crude name, but oh so amusing!