OC Family..another place to stalk me

Last month, I was contacted by Suzanne Broughton, from Alive in Wonderland. She was putting together a team of Orange County Moms to blog for OC Family. She was joining them as their lead blogger and wanted some fellow mom bloggers to join the fun. I agreed to join in the blogging fun.

I've already written a few stories, but was a little shy about posting on it here. I finally decided to pull the trigger and post tonight. Especially since I opened their website very early this morning, to see my big ole' mug plastered right on the top of the page. I had to take a a screen shot, cause I'm blogger, and we do stuff like that.

So be sure to check out OC Family's Website, in the center section for my usual antics, sarcasm, drama, and pictures, of course. I'm going to try and make this blog more Orange County related, with some of my randomness in between. I will posting there a few times a week, so be sure to check back often.

And if you want to read/comment and/or stalk the posts I've written so far, well check out Angry Julie Monday on OC Family's Mom Blogs.

Oh, and I keep saying "Mom Blogs", but we can't forget about Adam, our token "Dad Blogger", or as he likes to call himself, "Reluctant Stay-At-Home Dad".

The fabulous picture was taken by JJ (Jen Johnson) of Jen Johnson Photography.

I Was That Mom

With the crowds dying down a little, we've been using our Disneyland Season Passes more lately. Sometimes we've gone two to three times each week. But you can do that, when you live fifteen minutes away.

Last Thursday, my mom and I took Angry Toddler to Disneyland. We got there around 5pm. The park closed at 9pm. When we go to Disneyland, we let Angry Toddler make all of the ride choices. After all, it's his gig, let him pick. We went on The Jungle Cruise, The Haunted Mansion, and It's a Small World. He danced in Tomorrow Land. He got a Buzz Lightyear toy. Gotta love that birthday certificate that he received in May. I still had $20 left on it.

And then...it was time to leave.

We were walking down Main St. We peeked through the store windows as usual. Because there's no way we were going to actually take him in the store. This kid wants anything and everything. But he didn't even beg for a balloon like he usually does. Shocking, because now they even have Mickey-head shaped balloons that light up.

We hit almost the end of Main St. We are right by the Emporium. And then we have the "sit down". As a parent, you should know the sit down, by now. Where out of nowhere, their body goes limp, and they just sit down. The tears start to roll down. They become dead weight. He was fine two minutes ago. So I ask him, "what's wrong?" The tears and sniffles start. He replied, "I want to go on one more ride. I don't want to leave." I point to the crowd storming down Main St. and I nicely tell him, "Disneyland is closing soon. See everyone around us. They are leaving too. It's time to go home. And we are going on one more ride, the tram to the parking lot." He gets up and slowly starts walking. We go over to the Emporium because I wanted to look at the Halloween goodies. I should have known better. He lost it again by the sucker display. And this is what he had to say. "I NEVER get suckers, I NEVER get ANYTHING". Yea ok, I believe you had a churro about 30 minutes ago.

He turned into a limp bowl of jelly again. They my mom tried to pick him up. She even tried the under the armpit carry. My kid is heavy. He's like almost 45 pounds at 4 years old. He doesn't look that big, but the kid is solid. She couldn't get him up. I could see the anxiety starting. We finally made it out of the store and onto the tram. He sat down on the floor and would not sit on the seat. I was trying to fold the stroller and get onto the tram myself. My mom was persuading him to get up. He was not budging. So I then became that mom, at the "Happiest Place on Earth" in front of all the tourists. I screamed, "Sit up, sit up now. You will sit on the seat. The tram is leaving. Do you want it to leave without you? Because it will. Then you will have to walk back to the car." I said a few more words too, don't judge me, we've all been there. He finally got up. Once again, the tears were flowing. We made it to the car. Mr. Cranky was super tired, we get that. Yet the week before, we left Disneyland at 11pm. He was fine.

I got home and posted this as my Facebook Status:


I got (5) likes and 12 comments on that Facebook status. They were some of my favorite comments. Because as a parent, I think we've all BEEN THERE.

Lisa-"I know that look well...from the receiving end, of course."

Ruth-"I was that parent Feb 7, 2007 by the Pirates of Caribbean.. It was so horrible that date is etched in my mind.. I feel for you!"

Robin-"I was that parent last September at Walt Disney World. Food court in Land pavilion- sorry if I scared anyone! Someone decided to pitch a total melt down fit over..........Cheetos. I feel for you Julie!"

Amy-"End of July 2009 at 11:56pm...ALL the way down Main St...but mine was a 10 year old...that looks like she is 15. Good times."

I've had many moments like this as a parent of a four year old. I will have many more. Thankfully, I know that all the other parents out there understand. You've been there, done that, and will do it again!

Kogi BBQ...An Adventure

Last weekend, the Kogi Korean BBQ truck was in Orange County. I just happened to be around when it was here. The truck was scheduled to be at there from 10pm-1am. I think that I actually received my food around 11:15pm-ish. I got the pork sliders and pork burritos. I ate two of the sliders and gave the rest of my food to my co-workers. I'm usually a pretty bland white-bread type of eater. But I went for it this time. The sliders were sooooo good. There were lots of onions in them, but they were so small I overlooked them. There was a huge line when I left and there were cars parked everywhere. If they are in Orange County again, I might have to chase them down.

Dippin' Dots

I've seen Dippin' Dots before. Usually there's a cart at the mall, theme park, or the County Fair. I just have never tried them. I'm one of those people reluctant to try new things.

I chat with the owner, Debbie, of the Fountain Valley Dippin' Dots. She rocks!! Not only does she sell dots, but she's a Twitter Freak. You can find her on Twitter @dippindotwoman.

Before I started chatting with Debbie, I never knew that there were actual Dippin' Dot stores. Who knew? She informed that yes, she does catering, but there is a STORE! I've been so busy lately that I didn't get a chance to go to her store. I did get to meet Debbie at the Just Spotted OC Blogger Awards last week. I tried the Rainbow Ice Dots that night and I was hooked.

Well we finally got a chance to go and visit Debbie's store yesterday. We tried the following flavors: cotton candy, cookies n' cream, and banana split. They were all very tasty. Angry Husband, Angry Toddler and I all shared our portions. Usually we will take Angry Toddler for ice cream and he eats one bite. This time he finished his dots.

But what are Dippin' Dots? How are they made? I got this from their corporate site.

So what exactly are Dippin' Dots? Actually, it's fun to watch "first-timers" expressions when they take their first bite. After overcoming the sight of their ice cream beads "pouring" into a cup there's the look of amazement that ice cream can be "tingly and almost crunchy" (their words!). When the smooth, creamy ice cream begins to melt in their mouth...a fan is born! It's truly a treat for kids of all ages. And finally, to answer the question, Dippin' Dots are made from fresh dairy ingredients flavored with fun, fruity, enticing and even exotic flavors. The mixture is frozen almost instantly in liquid nitrogen, a common element in the atmosphere used commercially for flash freezing. After production, Dippin' Dots are packaged and shipped worldwide.

Just Spotted and The OC Blogger Awards

Last night I attended "Just Spotted's" OC Blog Awards Party. This was their first annual awards. I was nominated for "Favorite Local Micro-Blogger" and oh my gosh, I won. I would like to thank all my fans for voting for little ole' me!!!! You rock!!!

I'm so glad that I was able to meet so many people that I've only spoken with through the computer. My favorite person to meet was Debbie from Dippin' Dots. I chatted with Debbie on Twitter for awhile now. And ironically, I've never even tried Dippin' Dots. Well hello, I love me some dots now. I tried the rainbow ice. I'm trying to be dairy free right now. The rainbow ice hit the spot.

I also met awesome people like Hollie from the Anaheim Hilton, Carolyn from @OCRealtress, @sbonnin and some many other people that my ADD keeps me from remembering. So "HI" to everyone!!!

One of the most awesome parts of the night was the photo booth provided by Capital Photo Booths. I wish I would have tried more poses. I took these photos at the beginning and then forgot to go back. When I got to my car later that night, Kristin had left a set of her photos on my car window. I giggled.


I just want to give a HUGE Thank You to Coleen and Kelly for putting on this event. I know that it takes a lot of work to put on an event with this many people. There is hours of hours of time spent behind the scenes, and both of these women have children to raise too. So I thank them!!

And here's a list of all of the winners! Everyone is really a winner just to get nominated though!!!

The 2009 "You've Just Been Spotted" Orange County Blog Awards Reader's Choice goes to...
Most Creative Site: Made
Best Food or Cooking Site: Fast Food Maven
Fabulous Lifestyle & Design Site: Sadie Olive
Great Shopping & Style Site: Boutiquing.com
Site with most Beautiful "Eye Candy": Kamee June
Best "Kid & Family Friendly" Site: Tiny Oranges
Favorite Local Blog: Alive in Wonderland
Top "Local News": Seal Beach Daily
Favorite Local Micro-Blogger: AngryJulie
The Runner's Up (otherwise known as Editor's Choice) are...
Most Creative Site: This Mama Makes Stuff
Best Food or Cooking Site: Picky Palate
Fabulous Lifestyle & Design Site: Peace, Love and Momminess
Great Shopping & Style Site: Popshopology
Site with most Beautiful "Eye Candy": Tara Whitney
Best "Kid & Family Friendly" Site: Double the Adventure
Favorite Local Blog: Twenty Four at Heart
Top "Local News": Daily Pilot
Favorite Local Micro-Blogger: YelpOC

Bruised But Not Broken

On Monday, I blogged about my upcoming mountain bike ride with Carrie and Elise. I was excited and apprehensive about the adventure.

It had been a few years since I went mountain biking. We started off our trek last night in a place that was familiar to me. I had been mountain biking before at Irvine Regional Park, which is the lower portion of the ride. It all came back to me and I was able to navigate the trail. I never realized that this was really the beginning of the trail ride experience. The real experience, or epic adventure as we dubbed it, was up top in Santiago Oaks, or aka as The 3B's (Three Bitches).

Carrie and Elise are pro mountain bikers compared to me. As we went up the first B, Angry Julie got off her bike and walked up. My legs were not trained for that incline, especially my calves. I could have turned around and gone to the bottom of the hill, but I sucked it up and carried forward. The girls patiently waited for me at the top of the mountain. We chatted, drank water, took pictures, and moved forward. I trekked up the rest of the ride slightly walking/riding my bike. Mostly walking though. We made it to the very top when we noticed that ooops, it was starting to get dark. We were not prepared for this. No bike lights, no head lamps, nada.

We attempted to go down the mountain. It was very sandy and rocky on the way down. We inched our way down, one step at a time. I hit some rough spots where my bike almost slid from underneath me, not good. I caught myself, and let the bike drop. We finally made it down to the very bottom of the mountainous area when we realized, oh no!! Why? Because it was dark outside, like after 8pm dark! My eyesight is not very good at night, plus we could barely see in front of us. Think {trees, bushes, things covering the trail, creatures}. Carrie entertained us with singing. I tried to make noises (mostly screaming caw caw caw). Carrie said, "Noooo you sound like a small animal. We need to be loud to scare off the mountain lions." I then screamed, "Grrrrr". I don't think it helped much.

We finally made it out onto the roadway at Irvine Park. It was about 8:40pm. We started our adventure at 6. I think secretly we were all somewhat relieved that we made our way out. We got back to our cars and stripped off our gear. I started to nurse my wounds. I walked away with a tiny blister on my ankle, and some scratches on my elbows and knees. I hopped into Angry Husband's truck and made my way home.

Within an hour, I was surprised with some wonderful pictures from Carrie. She rocks! Carrie and Elise were so awesome and patient with me. They are pretty terrific mountain bikers too.

I can't wait for the next ride, and where I will be way more prepared!

P.S. All the photos were taken by Carrie. She was brave enough to carry her SLR with her!

Mountain Biking & Text Messages

(click photo to make larger)

I met some very cool people last week, when I attended the Orange County Startup Princess event. One of the women was Carrie from This Mama Makes Stuff. I got a message from Carrie on Twitter yesterday. She asked me if I wanted to go mountain biking with the girl's on Wednesday night. I replied with yes, and that I would most likely be there, in a matter of words.

Oh, and the trail we are riding, "Three Bitches".

I'm a little apprehensive and cautious about this whole "trail ride". A few years ago, ok more than five, I had a mountain biking accident. I was riding the Whiting Ranch Trail with Angry Husband. I was coming down from a hill. I was going at a medium pace, and must have hit a rock or something. All I know is that all of the sudden I went over the handle bars of my bike and landed with the bike on top of me. It was a few minutes before Angry Husband discovered me at the bottom of the hill. He had taken a different route.

I could barely walk and thought that I broke my hip or something. I was scraped up, bruised, and in pain. I had him take me to the ER for tons of x-rays. Luckily, my hip was not broken and I would survive. My bike on the other hand, had a cracked fork, and bent pedals. My helmet was also cracked down the middle. I took my bike to REI for service. They had never seen a fork so damaged. I think it was a manufacturer's defect in reality, and not the accident. Maybe my fork caused the accident, I don't know.

I never really got on my bike after that. About six months ago, I thought maybe, I would start training for triathlons. I got my bike serviced and inspected. And there it sat, or actually hung in my garage rafters.

After tweeting Carrie, I had this texting conversation with Angry Husband. I was at work, hence the texting.

ME: Ok..I got invited to go mtn. biking wed night at 6. Am I ready?

AH: physically or psychologically?

ME: Both?

AH: lol, well your bike works fine..well it did 6 months ago when you had it tuned up. i will pull it down tonight or tomorrow and see if anything needs fixed..as for the mental aspect you are on your own..

ME: Yea, I prob need some new shorts as well.

AH: you should go for a test ride tomorrow day to get refreshed on the bike, so you don't look like a total dumbass out there and fall on your face.

Well I went into the garage this morning. Angry Husband had not checked out my mountain bike. Fail. I wrangled it down and inspected it. Sigh. Both of my tires were flat. I could not locate the pump. So I walked with the bike about a mile to the gas station.

I then went on my ride. I did about 3-4 miles around my local area. My body was not used to riding a bicycle at all. I didn't realize how bad my knees were from running. I'm a mess. I really need to stretch more. After riding, I worked on stretched out my legs/knees/body. I was also not used to the shifting.

Also, I will have to drive Angry Husband's "angry truck" to the trail site. I don't have a bike rack on my Tahoe. Sigh. My old car, I had a sweet rack.

Carrie said we would take breaks. I hope they have sympathy on me. I will have to strap my cellphone onto the front of the bike for "emergency purposes" aka "HELP!".

Wish me luck tomorrow night!

Project Playhouse

Every year they set-up "Project Playhouse" at Fashion Island. Before we even had Angry Toddler we would go and check out the playhouses. Each year builders and designers come up with new and different ideas for these playhouses. They are out for display for six weeks and then they are auctioned off.

This year Project Playhouse is at the Irvine Spectrum, just north of Nordstrom. It opened up last weekend and will be there until September 12th.

Per their website:

"Project Playhouse debuted in 1992 and has become HomeAid Orange County's signature fundraiser. In 18 years, the event has raised more than $5 million to help the organization fulfill its mission to build and maintain dignified housing where homeless families and individuals can rebuild their lives."

Angry Toddler was being crazy on Saturday afternoon so I suggested to my mom that we take him over to Project Playhouse. It's a $5 fee to enter the playhouse area, but it's for charity. Angry Toddler loved all the playhouses and wanted to go in and play.

I would love for Angry Toddler to have a playhouse like these. Unfortunately, we have nowhere to even put one. Our backyard is tiny. In reality, my house is only a tad larger than these playhouses. We also bought some raffle tickets to win one of the houses. I have no idea where we would put the house if we "win" it. I told my mom she would have to buy a new house just to accommodate the playhouse.

But seriously, I think this is a great idea and I loved touring all the playhouses. There are such great unique ideas. I wish I would have had something like this to play in when I was little.

An Overall View of The Playhouses

Interior Views of the Playhouses

I've added more photos of the Playhouses to my Flickr account. Check them out here!

You've Just Been Spotted-Orange County Blog Awards

I just found out that I was nominated for "Favorite Local Micro-Blogger" in the "You've Just Been Spotted, Orange County Blog Awards". These awards are sponsored by the lovely women from Just Spotted, a fabulous Orange County website.

I'm thankful for the nomination. I guess all of my rambling pays off somewhere.

So go to their site, click on the button above, and vote for me!!!

(P.S. check out all the other fabulous people nominated too, while you are there, but VOTE for ME.)

Oh, and speaking of micro-blogging, you can find me on Twitter here.

Observations at Swim Lessons

Angry Toddler has been taking swimming lessons since the start of the summer. We are doing the lessons through the City's Parks & Recs program.

After the first day of lessons, Angry Husband called to warn me. He took the kid the first day. He said that there are lots of bitchy mothers who are complaining that they do not like the instructors and want their kids switched. I just rolled my eyes, while listening to him on the phone.

The second day, I sat down and began with my people watching. I'm new to this youth sports thing. I like to watch the parents as much as the children. When I observe the kids, I like to see how Angry Toddler is interacting with them. Are they acting like him? Is he doing well developmentally? YES, these are the things that go through my head.

And then there's the parents. They are very cliquey. The normal "sports cliques" really don't apply here. They actually break themselves into "race cliques" here. The "crackers" my white folk, were left sitting alone. We had no cliques, just ourselves. I actually watched my kid, mostly, since I wasn't busy gossiping in foreign tongues.

The outfits on the kids crack me up. Even Angry Husband shakes his head at these. Angry Toddler's swim lessons are usually in the early evening, think 5 o'clock. This is in Orange County at a high school pool. I can't tell you how many kids that I've seen in full wetsuits (long sleeves), rash guards, normal clothes, and bathing suits that look like they are 5 sizes to small. These poor kids, I just don't get it. A wetsuit to take lessons in a 3 ft deep pool? I guess Angry Toddler is boring, wearing just swim trunks and some goggles from the grocery store.

We've done 4 sessions of lessons so far. Angry Toddler has "decided" that he would like to play water polo in the future (random for a 4 yr old). I told him that he needs to learn how to swim really good. Hence, why we are at swim lessons, almost every day of the week.

The last session of swim lessons was my favorite by far for the people watching. While they have the group swim lessons for older kids (3 and up), they also have the parent and child for the smaller kiddos. There was this dad, just walking around in his Speedo and t-shirt. He was fit, but not ripped. He always got there early. Dude, I really don't want to see your junk that close. He kept chasing his toddler around. I wanted to say, please put some damn pants on.

Then my most favorite story. There was this woman that walked in with an infant in a stroller system thing. I guess she had an older kid in lessons. All of the sudden this young girl walks up to her. The mom says something and walks away. I then see her go running. These swim lessons are 25 minutes, not hours long. The girl looked lost with all the other "parents" sitting there. I finally figured out that she was the nanny.

The next day, I saw the mom again, with the dad. They had the baby with them, and the nanny. The nanny was sitting on a folding chair, and the dad pretty much kicked her out of it. She ended up sitting on the floor. The dad kept asking her weird questions, like was she wearing a new shirt, what book was she reading, etc. It totally creeped me out. I would never want to nanny for a family like that. I was texting the entire situation to Angry Husband while I was there. His response was "ewwwwww".

Angry Toddler started another new session this week of swim lessons. They are broken up into two week increments. I hope I can get some good stories from this session. Angry Toddler is doing quite well. I guess he's working on his goal of being a water polo player. He does amaze me though. He knows all of the kid's names in his class and all of the instructor's names. He's 4, how does he do that?

I don't know if I could ever be a soccer or baseball mom. It's probably that I don't fit in. I like to sit on the sidelines and stare at everyone. I'm such the people watcher. I CAN NOT help it. At least I keep entertained with the people watching, and maybe even Tweet while there.

P.S. I'm including this picture of Angry Husband and Angry Toddler. Don't they look angry? Angry Husband hates his picture being taken. I will know if he's stalking/reading the blog because he will say something like, "umm, why did you put that crappy picture of me on your blog post."

Wordless Wednesday: The OC Fair 2009

Sunday Traditions

The Angry Family likes to eat out, which does not work with my “Angry Julie on a Budget” philosophy. We’ve been doing very well with eating at home. Although we do like going out for Sunday morning breakfast.


We always talk about going somewhere different, yet we end up at the same places. One of our favorite places to go is Ruby’s Diner. There are several Ruby’s in Orange County.

Angry Toddler loves their menus which are usually some kind of vehicle, that you have to assemble. If I’m by myself with Angry Toddler, it takes me at least 10-15 minutes to put these vehicle/menus together. Angry Husband can put them together in less than a minute. He’s such a show off.

I especially love going to Ruby’s lately. They are serving fresh strawberries with their meals. I splurge a little and get the “Cinnamon Roll Fresh Toast” with strawberries, while Angry Toddler gets the “Silver Dollar Pancakes” with strawberries. Angry Toddler always asks for a spoon so that he can eat the whip cream off the top.



Last Sunday, we had a special treat when we went to Ruby’s. There was a woman from Whatta Balloon making balloon animals there. She approached the table and asked Angry Toddler what kind of animal that he would like her to make. He couldn’t make up his mind. Probably because she couldn’t make a Transformer. I suggested a spider and he agreed. He actually stated that he wanted a “yellow banana spider”. Yea, ok, whatever.

She was fantastic. I couldn't tell you how many balloons that she used to make the spider, but there were a lot. When it was said and done, the spider balloon creation was fabulous. So fabulous that I asked for her information, just in case that anyone in Orange County is looking for someone that does balloon animals.

We always leave Ruby’s Diner full. I totally indulged by eating that “Cinnamon Roll French Toast with Strawberries” , but you only live once.

Right before we were leaving the restaurant, Angry Toddler had a complete fit. Because he decided that he wanted a “black spider balloon animal”. But of course he did. This is always changing his mind. He said, “I want a black widow spider balloon, because I like black widows and black is my favorite color”. And people wonder why he gives me anxiety.

Do you have Sunday traditions, weekly food traditions, or something special that you do with your family once a week? Let me know. I love to hear about what everyone else does, especially in different regions.

P.S. This post was sponsored by my credit card, my lack of bad budgeting, love for good food and yellow balloon spiders.

OC Mud Run-Race Recap

On Saturday morning, I participated in the Inaugural OC Mud Run. This was the race of 2009 for me. I had been anticipating it for a few months, every since I heard about it on Twitter. I was competing in this race as an individual rather than a team, even though there were four of us doing it together.

We arrived in the parking of the venue, approximately one hour before the race began. We knew that we had to pick up our race t-shirts and check in our bags. What we experienced was absolute chaos. We hiked our way in, trying to find the t-shirt line. We found our places and were handed our t-shirts. Yea, my shirt is extremely small, and it's an adult large. I'm not a huge person, but I weigh a little more than 100 lbs.

We then went to check-in our bags. This was somewhat organized. We wrote down the last 4 numbers of our social security number on a tag, attached the tag to our bag, and then handed the bag to the attendant. This is where I got lost from my friends. I turned around and they were gone. The start line was another hike from the bag check-in. I just decided to find the start line and wait for my friends there. I barely made it to the start line before the race started. While I was waiting at the start line, I was able to check out everyone costumes and outfits. I finally got caught up with my peeps and the race started. The race start was very anti-climatic.

We went from a dirt trail up the hill to the asphalt parking lot. There was an obstacle that everyone was supposed to go over. The line backed up. I ran around the obstacle because, I really did not want to eat it and fall on the asphalt. That would have been very bad. I did see some people fall when I turned around to look back. After running around the parking lot (what the heck?), we headed back down to the dirt trail. We finally got to experience some mud, but really not a lot. I think this was the most mud I saw that entire race and it last like 5 minutes.

I'm going to do a short re-cap of the rest of the race, because this blog post could go on for hours and days. There were some mini obstacles along the way, nothing worthwhile. There were also some hairpin turns which could be considered somewhat "dangerous". I think I heard "be careful, watch yourself, this is dangerous" at least ten times, and this was from race volunteers. Umm ya, a race is not supposed to be dangerous.



At one point in the race, at the almost end, we hit a standstill. There was a wall of people and we were not moving. I couldn't see ahead of me, because I'm a troll (5'4" and short legs don't help). What were we waiting for? Well the line finally moved. We were about to cross the lagoon/inner tubes of "stench", "duck shit pond", "the sewage pond", etc etc etc. There were inner tubes and an open water area to cross. I think we did this at least three times. I chose to go through the open water, because there was a huge line for the inner tube area. What the hell was I thinking? As I was wading through this, I keep tripping on unknown things? Seriously, I really did not want to know what was in that water. It smelled nasty, like sewage nasty. We went through some more mini obstacles and made it to the finish line.



There were two choices at the finish line: a slip and slide mud area or the timed finish. Really, I don't think that they wanted you to do the timed finish. I climbed through the mud pit at the finish and did not do the slip and slide. Why? Because the plastic was DRY, no WATER. How can you slip and slide on dry water?

I waited at the finish line to re-group with my friends. I did not see any event staff there. There was no drinks, no water, nothing at the finish line. Seriously people...it was almost 90 degrees and no water! I'm really getting tired of races not having water at the end. We finally all found each other and the complaining began. We were all in agreement about the race. I thought that the SBSD Mud Run was bad last year. The SBSD Mud Run was a vacation compared to this mess.

We got our bags from the bag check and waited in line for the meager showers that they assembled. Some PVC attached to the back of a baseball backstop. We probably waited in line for at least 45-60 minutes. I did not have that much mud on me, because I really did not make an effort during the race. I had a feeling that the showers were going to be sub-par and I did not want to make a mess of my car.

After changing, aka wrapping a towel around ourselves and removing our clothes "surfer style", we left the venue. There were vendors there "selling food and drinks", but nothing was free. Seriously $3 CASH for a water. Umm, I paid $40 for a race, got a crappy t-shirt that will never fit me, and I didn't even get water.

We headed out of there and towards Wahoo's at the Irvine Spectrum for some decent food!

I tweeted with several people on Twitter about the race for a few days after the event. We were all in agreement about how it sucked. Really, I think the people involved just wanted to run away with the money. They had a good idea, but they dropped the ball on this one. There was a ton of promotions and PR done for the event in the early spring months, but then it just seemed to drop off the radar.

One of the people I talk to on Twitter, Reggie, otherwise known as "OakleyOC" was a VIP Entrant at the race. He actually paid extra to have VIP status which included food, swag, beer tickets, a special showering area, places to view the race course, etc. His general opinion about the race was the same as mine though, even though he was VIP. Because really, it's all about the race, not really the perks.

My running pal, Monique, took some pictures during the race with a disposable camera. She hasn't taken it in to be developed yet. I will post the pictures in another post when she gets them back. Luckily, Reggie was soo gracious to let me use some of the pictures that he took. Ok, perhaps I took them from his Facebook page, but I did tell him that I would give him some recognition.

Next year, I'm going to sign up for Camp Pendleton's Mud Run. Everyone says that this is a wonderful event, but it always sells out right away. The OC Mud Run people better get their act together if they want to hold their Second Annual Event next year. But they might be too busy deals with all the "issues" that happened at this race. I saw a lot of negative comments on their Facebook page, which I think they have removed now.

Angry Julie on a Budget-Introduction

Angry Julie is a very frivolous person when it comes to spending her money. She is used to working overtime, when she wants, needs, or desires something. It's how she rolls? Where do you think the Louis Vuitton comes from? Yea, ok, my mom buys that, but anyway...

Angry Julie has taken on several bills throughout her early 30's. They are catching up to her. Pretty teeth ain't cheap, I'm just sayin'. And the latest and greatest? Angry Julie is taking a 5% cut in pay and possibly furloughs at work. Also, the overtime has drastically been cut! YIKES!!

Angry Julie and Angry Husband have had several discussions on how to cut costs, be more frugal, pay our bills, etc.

Here are some things that we have done:

1. Re-Evaluate all of our bills. What can we cut?
*HBO is gone.
*Second DVR is gone.
*Open all the doors and windows. Try not to turn on the air conditioner.
*Got rid of Salt Water fish tank-125 gallons at about $125 a month in electricity.
*Re-evaluate our cellphone plan. Analyze the bill.
*Cancel Netflix.
*Cancel our cleaning lady. Angry Julie will have to scrub toilets.

2. Started eating at home more. We tend to eat out A LOT. We've stocked up at the grocery store and are making easy meals. Well Angry Husband is making the meals. I just sit there and surf the Internet, which is what I do best.

3. Enrolled Angry Toddler in City Parks and Recreation Classes. We knew that we wanted Angry Toddler to take swim lessons this summer. Our options were: private swim place, Homeowner's Association, and City where we live. I had to get on some wait lists, but we went with the city. We are $56 a session. Which is not bad. I know some people who are paying $80-$100 a week for lessons.

4. Looking for deals and coupons at the grocery store. We shop at Ralph's. Mostly because it's like almost across the street. I hate the parking lot, but it's local. We use their Ralph's Club Card. We get points and rewards for our purchases. I try and use newspaper coupons also, when I remember. I've been averaging a savings of at least $30 a week.

5. Use our available resources for entertainment that were under utilized.
*Disney Season Passes
*Homeowner's Association Pool
*My 24-Hour Fitness Membership. I started it years ago. I now only pay $49 a yr.
*Local museums, parks, and beaches.

This is just an introduction post from me. I'm going to try and do something at least once a week on this topic. I'm also going to have some guest posts. I have tons of bookmarks saved about "living frugally" and "being on a budget". So stay tuned!

Are you an expert on one of these topics? Do you want to do a guest post? Let me know!

And for now...here's some sneak peek links!!!


My friend, Shannon, started her blog to provide moms with helpful saving tips. Shannon went from working a full-time job to working part-time. She realized that she had to cut her budget. Her blog, For the Mommas, is a wealth of information. She posts several times a day sometimes too! You will want to bookmark her site!

and


Aracely from Daytripping Mom is a local Orange County Blogger. Her site is dedicated to finding local Southern California fun places to visit for families. She knows that everyone is on a budget right now also. She always posts about the current deal, or specials going on.

Top photo is from Flickr.

Discovery Science Center

Last Friday, my BFF and I, took the kiddos to the Discovery Science Center in Santa Ana. It was my first visit to the Discovery Science Center. Angry Husband took Angry Toddler a few years ago, but thought that Angry Toddler was a little young at that time. Stacey also took Stella a few times, years ago too. I think that the kids were the perfect age this time, at four.

We started off our visit at the DSC by entering an approaching the Dynamic Earth Exhibits.

In the Dynamic Earth Gallery, YOU command the forces of nature as you explore ways the Earth changes. Make clouds, climb a mountain wall,walk through a tornado, and more! Most of the time, the changes happen so gradually that they are almost impossible to detect, even over the course of a lifetime. The mountains in our area grow a little every year as the plates in the Earth’s crust force them upwards. At the same time, these mountains are worn down by the effects of rain, wind and other forces. Scientists must use sensitive instruments to record changes like these.

Angry Toddler and Stella stayed in this area for at least 20 minutes. They were fascinated with it all. We then moved on to the Robots and Us Exhibit.

Angry Toddler loved the Robots Exhibit. He's way into electronics, just like Angry Husband. He was fascinated with how everything worked. He made sure to make his way through every station at the Exhibit.



We then headed upstairs to explore The Science of Hockey. Angry Toddler and Stella got to drive the Zamboni, shoot for the goalie virtually, and measure themselves up against some real life hockey uniforms. Angry Toddler really doesn't know much about hockey, so this was all new to him.

Protecting our Earth and its many Ecosystems was another limited edition exhibit.

Join Smokey Bear, Woodsy Owl, the Ranger and their forest friends at Discovery Science Center this summer to learn about protecting our precious Earth and its many ecosystems. Woodland, urban and river settings encourage families to spend time together outdoors and inspire children to discover and care for the natural resources that sustain our world – our home sweet home. Hands-on activities in each of these three areas demonstrate the importance of protecting ecosystems and highlight ways to reduce, reuse and recycle resources.

This was another special limited edition exhibit. Angry Toddler loved this one. It was more play, than science for them. It's a great one for the 4 and under crowd. There were a lot of hands on things for them to play with and explore.



There were soo many more exhibits that I could blog about, but it would take me all day. The kids loved the KidStation which was for the 5 and under crowd, and their huge outdoor exhibit, Dino Quest.

We will definitely visit Discovery Science Center again. Especially since Angry Toddler is way into science.

I found out that they have a membership program, which is pretty much like a season pass.

Plus, they have summer day camps for kids ages 5-13. This is very helpful to know since Angry Toddler will be 5 next year, and I'm already looking for fun things to do next summer.

You can also follow the Discover Science Center on Twitter.

Orange County Peeps: A GIVEAWAY = CUPCAKES

If anyone has read my blog in the past two months, you would know that I have a special love for cupcakes and for my favorite cupcake baker, Kristin. Kristin is the owner, baker, cupcake maker, and cupcake creator at Meringue Bake Shop.

In honor of my TWO YEAR blog anniversary, Kristin has graciously offered her services to me for a GIVEAWAY! That's right, I'm doing a cupcake giveaway. This will only be for my Orange County bloggers, well, and anyone in the surrounding area if you want to come pick them up in Orange County.

Kristin is offering, 1 dozen regular size or 2 dozen mini size cupcakes (1 flavor) decorated with custom fondant or sprinkles. Valued at $30. Must be used by Sept 1, 2009.

I thought I would have a little local giveaway since I've been given a lot of love lately from my local peeps.

Here's the rules!

1. Check out Kristin's site at Meringue Bake Shop, and her blog too!
2. Let me know what you like from her site.
3. Follow Kristin on Twitter!
3. Comment here, obviously!
4. Blog about this giveaway! Let me know here in a comment!
5. Tweet about this giveaway! Let me know here in a comment!
6. Become a follower of my blog! Let me know here in a comment!
7. Follow me on Twitter! Let me know here in a comment!

I will be giving this away at 12 PM PST on Tuesday, June 30, 2009. I will be choosing the winner randomly!

An AD on Craig's List, Here in Orange County...

This is a real ad..one of my Junior League gals e-mailed this out yesterday. The responses we all gave were awesome...

Recently separated O.C. male 32 years in age, in need of a part time confidant and friend for conversation, affection and a shoulder to cry on. Not into the whole process of dating and finding someone. It just gets too tedious & complicated. This is a business arrangement where you will serve as someone to help ease the stress of daily life and brighten my days.


Like I said I am single male out of The OC and part time in North L.A. County & a working professional. YES I work a lot, but like everyone, there comes a time when even I need to be shown a little affection, compassion, kindness, care. You will also be assisting me with domestic duties like pick my dry cleaning, walk the dog and so on and so forth.


Who am I looking for? Qualifications? An affectionate, passionate, caring and loving young lady. She must be between the ages of 18-25, be white or hispanic and attractive. If I'm paying someone to do this she may as well be attractive right? LOL.. Be well spoken and able to hold a conversation. Be fit, toned or of average weight. Be at least 5'2"-5'6" in height. I am looking for nothing more than just someone to share some good times with, some who is ready at a moments notice, someone who is willing to listen and lend an ear, someone who knows how to show affection. Someone who can appreciate the "compensation" I can offer. This is a mutually beneficial relationship. You make me Happy and I make you Happy. Why am I advertising in the jobs section, well because I think this would be a perfect job for someone who is attentive, a good listener and someone to act as my partner in everyday life and needs a little extra cash. Picking up dry cleaning, groceries, and driving me to church. All expectations will be presented on the table ahead of time with no questions to what is expected and not expected before your tenure with me begins. Personal transportation is a plus but not a must. Must live within a 15 mile radius of Orange County and have a stable living situation. ABSOLUTELY NO DRUGS.


Hours: Some Days and Mostly Evenings Averaging 10-20 Hours A Week


Compensation: Will Vary Upon Availability and Experience but average pay will be more than McDonald's but way less than JP Morgan

Anyone ready to apply?

A New Sonic for Orange County

Tonight, we dared ourselves to check out the new Sonic Drive-In in Mission Viejo. This is the second Sonic in Orange County, and the closest one to our house. The new Sonic opened last week and I've read and heard how crowded it was. They actually had a staging area for cars in a local Target parking lot.

I first fell in love with Sonic while visiting a friend in Dallas, Texas. I was a Sonic virgin then. In Texas, they are all around like McDonald's here in California. I loved it so much that I made her take me there every day I was visiting.

When I visit a new town or state, I always look to see if they have a Sonic. When I go to Las Vegas, Sonic is one of the first places that I visit. Yes, there's a Sonic in Anaheim too, off of the 91 Freeway, but it's totally inconvenient and the 91 Freeway is not my friend.

Angry Husband knows that I've been wanting to go to this new Sonic, really really bad. He granted my wish tonight. We picked up Angry Toddler from preschool and headed on our way. We went on the southbound 405 Freeway, which was a mess. We wented up exited on Lake Forest. We took Lake Forest to Jeronimo. The Sonic is on Jeronimo and Los Alisos.


We immediately noticed that it was not that crowded, which was nice. This Sonic actually has a drive-thru as opposed to just car hop areas. The drive-thru was very stream lined. The cars were not piling up at all. We choose to part a car in the shopping center parking lot and walked in. We were met with an employee with a hand held electronic order board. He took our order and we went and found a table. Within, ten minutes our order was brought to us by a car hop on roller skates. All of the car hops were wearing roller skates. There were also employees skating around the business, perhaps for practice. I even saw one female car hop lose it and fell pretty hard, luckily she was not carrying an food.


We all enjoyed our food. Angry Husband got his chili cheese tater tots and I got my beloved 44 oz. Cherry Limeade. Angry Toddler got a kid's meal with popcorn chicken and tater tots. We enjoyed our food and went on our way. Angry Toddler wanted to sample my drink on the way home, and he instantly fell in love. He did not want to give my 44 oz. goodness back.

I can't wait for the next time I get to go back there.

And if you are wondering...

The Newest Sonic in Orange County is located at: 25502 Jeronimo Road, Mission Viejo.

Laguna Hills Memorial Day 5K Race Report

On Monday, I did the Laguna Hills Memorial Day 5K with my running pal, Monique. They also had a 1/2 Marathon going on at the same time. I worked the night before, and forgot to put in to leave early. Ooops, epic fail! I was lucky and got to leave at 1:30am, which put me in bed at 2:15ish. I had to wake up at 5:45am which equals good times.

Monique and I parked in the parking structure near the race start. We both got strange looks on our faces. Why? Because the structure was completely empty. We've done this race several years. It is usually a huge race. We gathered ourselves and headed to the starting area. I immediately noticed that there was a very small amount of people there. I immediately told Monique, "LA Marathon". This is the first year that they hosted the LA Marathon on Memorial Day. I know that there was several protests about this change of date for the Marathon.

I wore my Nike Tempo Shorts, a Nike LiveSTRONG dri-FIT tank, a lululemon sports bra, and my pink Asics GT 2130's (discontinued for the GT 2140's) for the race. I'm thinking pink is going to my signature race color. It works for me. Note to self: must buy more PINK!

Had to have the Angry Julie full-body picture..

Our official pre-race photo. We do it every race.

Overall the run went pretty well. My Garmin dropped at 1.75 miles. It lost satellite signal. I was able to track the time but I lost my pace time and my total mileage. At least I got it off the format that it was stuck on for 2 weeks. I also used a new sunscreen. I've used it before during running. I had no problems with it. Of course, at Mile 3, at the very end..I got the pouring down my face, into my eyes, burning sensation. That was good times, standing over the trash can pouring water on my face.

My finish time was not as great as I wanted. Sigh. I did PR by 14 seconds from my last race, earlier in May. I ran this race last year at 35:15, this year my time was 32:01. That's got to be some kind of improvement, right? After the race, we walked around the Expo. They had all kinds of goodies for us to buy. We also had to have some photo opportunities with the Orange County Sheriff's Department.