House House Yogurt Yogurt

Can it already be May? Here are a few photos of my weekend of eating and building.

Yesterday, I went to visit my friend Helen for breakfast and hanging out. First, we found ourselves at Marie et Cie in Valley Village - looking for a bite of fruit. Unfortunately, they were out of fruit so we ended up getting pastries that contained little bits of fruit (that's on the food pyramid, no?)

Shortly thereafter, I found myself lying down in the back of a car...feeling every single bump on the streets of the valley. You know how every experience is a "learning" experience? - well, in this one I learned how a kidnap victim or Soprano's associate feels. Helen bought a 10 x 10 gazebo-canopy-outdoor house thingy at Home Depot and after two orange-vest clad employees shoved it into the car, there was no room for me. Thus, the floor of the car.

Before the building began, we zipped off to Menchie's for some frozen yogurt. Now, I'm a simple librarian with simple tastes. And I've loved the frozen yogurt since the beginning of time. (I also have an intense love for the noodle, the apricot, and the octopus, but that is a different post). I remember the first Penguin's opening as a girl and learning what love was. Then, Pinkberry came along and removed the oversweet sensation that I only knew...and my love only escalated into pure addiction. I love Pinkberry but feel I always get too much yogurt (I get the medium with three fruit toppings), so when Jennifer from work mentioned a new place that had yogurt by the ounce, I was so excited that such a place was born!

Menchie's Yogurt in Valley Village! Yogurt by the pound. I got a non-dairy berry sorbet (delicious!), Captain Crunch, Strawberries and mochi pieces.

Speaking of addictions, I'm completely hooked on the TV show House. I don't know how this show passed me all these years. I think it was because I don't watch Fox much and there was a time when I wouldn't commit to another episodic TV show (I was much younger then and didn't have a DVR). So, I caught up...by watching all three seasons in about 2 weeks. Dear god. I love Hugh Laurie, but this spiraled into an addiction...with the bad skin and puffy eyes to prove it. I borrowed them all from the library (of course!) and was watching one epi in the morning and way too many at night. Luckily, there are only three seasons - or I would have ended up on another favorite show, Intervention, about my addiction to a show about a doctor with an addiction.

Back to the other house...here we are assembling this bugger. Yes, three woman no taller than 5'5" putting this together in the sun (damn, those nuts and bolts get hot when you lay them in direct sunlight!), using those really sturdy plastic chairs! It went up like a piece of Ikea furniture and puffy tent.

The completed house will be great in the hot San Fernando sun! It's next to their pool.

Today, I volunteered at the Japanese American National Museum (coming in June - Chado Tea House!!!) and went to another yogurt place with my friend Cris and her adorable son, Lukas. Yogurtland just opened and I had to try it. I find their layout of toppings much easier to reach and cleaner than Menchie's...however, as the name implies, they are all yogurt. I found Menchie's choice of one non-dairy (and kosher!) sorbet flavor refreshing when you don't want dairy.

Like my pool to see when gas hits $4.00, I'm wondering which yogurt shop in Little Tokyo is going down first. They have a Pinkberry, CeFiore and now Yogurtland...all within a two block area.

Yogurtland in Little Tokyo. I had mango and blueberry yogurt, topped with strawberries, mango, blackberries, granola and little mochi pieces!

Is Lukas the cutest kid ever? Here he is eating Pasta in Little Tokyo. He eats pasta everyday...and perhaps every meal. Lukas is monster tall - he is only 3 years old!

Friends this weekend! Jun and Socrates rode their bikes to the Museum on Sunday. We ate at the Curry House in Little Tokyo. Photos of the food didn't turn out - but the Teppan Hamburger with Garlic Sauce is great!

Rosie and Helen at Menchie's Yogurt. We made a good assembly team. I promised Rosie I would help her assemble her Ikea furniture when she goes to college!