No More Vacations This Year

Erik and I just got back from the Ojai Film Festival, where we were able to actually have an adult weekend together. His mom watched the kids, and, of course, I was fearful every minute that something would go wrong. She's really great at taking care of the kids, I think I'm just so paranoid in general that it doesn't matter who takes care of them.

Friday night, we had dinner with Laszlo Kovacs (cinematographer who shot "Easy Rider") and his wife, and Malcolm McDowall joined us for dinner. He was presenting the award to Laszlo the next night. He had a lot of great stories to tell, and we had dinner at Suzanne's Restaurant, which was so good. Then, we had a chance to spend Saturday golfing, which we have been able to do so rarely. On Saturday evening, it was the awards, and Bill Paxton showed up to support the filmmakers. They had dinner set up at an estate, and it looked almost like a wedding party. Then, back to the hotel for a much needed 10 hours of sleep! How wonderful that was...

When we got back, Tess was so happy to see me. She couldn't stop smiling at me, just beaming from ear to ear, and I almost wanted to cry. Of course, Owen was more interested in watching the Wiggles. But even so, I never knew Owen to be so happy to see me. Tess gets so upset when I leave, and she is so happy when I come back and smile at her. She had this amazingly beautiful smile, and her eyes just crinkle up when she uses it. There is a part of me that knows that Tess is so much more present, more than Owen was. Owen was, and probably still is, a little bit in his own world. Things just don't catch his attention like they catch hers. In a way, it's good, I guess, because maybe that's why children with Down Syndrome are so happy. Their world is a little more fuzzy, a little more rose-colored.

It's nice to be home, though, and to settle in. Our house is in escrow, so the plans to move into the next house are in motion. I can't believe we are going to leave our little house in the Hollywood Hills soon. I have loved this house so much, and we have made so many good memories here. But, it is time to move on. We really need to space, and the area and the schools, and how great will it be to be able to walk to the park, and the store and the library?