Bye-Bye Vida

Monday, January 28, 2008

Today, I told Vida that we are moving to LA. It was so sad to break the news. She has been the best daycare provider for Isabella ever!!! I wish I could take her with me. Her whole family has been family to Isabella. I know she will truly miss Vida and all the kids she plays with daily.

I remember the first interview I did with a daycare provider, I cried when I got home. Granted I was a bit hormonal, it still didn't feel right. When I met Vida I knew instantly. She is warm, friendly and has a nurturing way about her.

But now I'm desperately looking for a nanny to take care of the most precious person in our lives. If you have any connections with reliable, patient, fun, and happy nannies who love what they do in the LA area or are willing to live-in, please let me know! The process is excruciating. I have received so many responses, but I don't know if any are right for us. Please help me!

San Clemente Home for Rent

We are currently trying to rent our house. We have placed ads on Craigslist and signed up with Top Dog Leasing. We are looking for long-term renters who will treat our house like a home. We spent time and money upgrading it in every way possible. If you know of anyone, please forward them my email (lyd6070@yahoo.com).

We are on the southwest side of San Clemente about 7 blocks from the beach (Riviera Beach). It is in the ideal neighborhood about 1.5 miles south from downtown San Clemente.

It is a quaint 3 bedroom/2.5 bath home with formal office, living room, family room, spacious foyer, and loft.

Hollywood Hills House Pictures

We went to the house on Saturday for the appraisal. I took a few pictures, but they didn't turn out so well. But I found a few nice picture from a real estate website. Seeing the house for the second time was interesting. I wouldn't say that I had buyers remorse, but just saw past the initial glory and realized the work (minor as it may be...paint, some day a kitchen remodel, more paint) that will need to be done to make the home feel like my home.

The drive up was even prettier than I had imagined. We will soon live in the original Hollywoodland, established in 1923.




What was unimpressive was how messy the current owner left the house for the appraisal. The layout of the house is quite interesting. It is a reverse plan that begins on the top floor and proceeds downwards.

Let the tour begin:
On the top floor is the kitchen, dining room, living room, bedroom 1, and bedroom 2

Kitchen

Dining Room

Living Room

BTW, the boars head is not staying.

Bedroom 1 (Isabella's bedroom)

Bedroom 2 (guest bedroom)

These stairs lead down through three flights of stairs to the very bottom of the house.

The middle floor is the master suite. On this floor is the master bedroom, suite (family room), and gym.

Master bedroom

This long corridor passes the entrance of the master bath (which leads to the master bedroom) or takes you directly to the suite/family room and gym.


Suite/Family Room


Gym

From the middle floor it splits on two sides of the house. On the south side of the master suite are stairs that lead to the recreation room. On the north side of the master suite is another guest bedroom and apartment both with private entrances.

South stairway to the recreation room.

North stairway to the lower guest bedroom and apartment.

Bedroom 4, the nanny's quarters.
It's on a separate floor with a private entrance.
It's quite spacious. Much bigger than the master bedroom.


The apartment can only be accessed outside of the house. It has direct outlet to the balcony that leads to the front of the house. Not sure how we'd use this room yet. It's a small space with a private bathroom.


There are so many balconies off several rooms.


All north facing rooms have the beautiful Hollywood sign.

End of tour.
I can't wait to move in and start painting.

Where in the World...Part Two

Monday, January 14, 2008

The second part of the craziness is the big changes in both Ed and my professional careers. Ed has accepted a position with Oliver Peoples as the VP of Finance. Oliver Peoples has got a great brand worn by many famous Hollywood celebs. He will expand his responsibilities to include Finance, Accounting, Operations and HR. Oliver Peoples was purchased in 2006 by Oakley. They are in the process of relocating the office to Sunset Plaza-smack dab in the middle of Hollywood. He begins his new job on February 2nd.

And I have accepted the position of Global Training Manager for Oakley. I'm heading up the centralization of all brand and product education for Oakley worldwide. I started as a trainer for the Customer Service department and expanded to Retail. We formalized the training process and slowly made our work known. I'm thrilled for this new opportunity to bring my passion for education to a grander level. I officially started my new role January 7th. So now everything is out in the open and official. I purposely stayed away from posting because there was too much to reveal.

We are both so excited to be a part of two very exciting companies that have supported us through our various growth. I will be sad to drive into work alone when February comes. That has been the highlight in our relationship for the past seven years. For seven years, Ed and I have carpooled to work. Not too many couples have this opportunity. We shared a lot of laughs and frustrations in the car. It was easy for us to relate as we knew the environment (and people) that were part of our laughs or frustrations. I will truly miss those moments. Boo hoo hoo.

But...on to more great news. We purchased a house this weekend in Hollywood Hills. The home is currently owned by an actor. I really wanted something different and very Hollywood. While it isn't a 1920s style home, but a Mediterranean style (similar to ours) it offers a truly unique layout. It is an upside down plan built into the hill. It starts on the top and goes down three floors. It is deceivingly huge. You wouldn't know it walking through the house, but it goes on and on. We actually have a fully furnished gym (of course, to which we are paying for). When we arrived to the house I was surprised to find the owner home. At first he shied away into another room and resurfaced minutes later. We spent two hours in his home. He was nice and opened up to us.


Are you anxious to know who it is? The home is currently owned by Jesse Metcalfe. He plays the gardener on Desperate Housewives and starred in John Tucker Must Die. He is even cuter in person. Gorgeous eyes and a cute boyish smile. We have views of other Hollywood homes and are very, very close to the Hollywood sign. We're told that two homes below ours from our view belong to Heather Graham and Johnny Knoxville. How surreal is all this?

It will be fun to glam it up and live closer to Merah and Jack. We'll actually be closer to all my family. I will rough it by taking the train daily. I don't mind the 90 minute commute knowing that I can catch up on work or a nice snooze rather than sitting in ugly traffic. So hopefully by the end of the year Ed and I will be looking good from all the hard work in our new gym. I think that is my favorite part. LOL. I want those rock hard abs.

Where in the World... Part One

Where in the world are the Kremers? Well first off let me say...

Merry Christmas and Happy New Years!

That's about how long it has been. We have so much to tell. Life in the Kremer household has been turned upside down this holiday.

First my best friend Christine flew in from Philadelphia just to spend Christmas with us...just kidding. She also made it her usual "see everyone" trip. She got Isabella the cutest sleeveless hooded jacket and a very cute outfit. Of course, she had to put it on her right away.




We had a blended Christmas this year. Ed's extended family, the Tewfiks, from New Jersey spent Christmas with my family. It was one full house. Even Ed's cousin Madeline from Northern Cal came over on Christmas Eve. Ed was so happy to see all his cousins in one house together. Jack had so much fun with Ed's cousins Alex, Daniel and his girlfriend, Kelly.




Poor Anna hadn't quite adjusted to the time change. (please don't kill me for posting this.)




Christmas morning and the opening of our presents made for a tough challenge so we each opened our presents at the same time. It went so quickly, I hardly remembered who's present I was opening.




Isabella got the cutest outfits. We had to put them on her right away. This cute stripe knit dress was from Auntie Ann. I love it. Isabella also got her first doll. She calls it "baby" and has learned how to feed her food and a bottle. I got an awesome All-Clad Slow Cooker. This is the mac daddy of all slow cookers. I haven't taken it out for a spin yet, but am planning the meal carefully. I also got a waffle maker and used it the very next day. I froze the left overs which were eaten the day after. I'm such a gadget girl. Ed got a cool wine chiller that chills the any wine to the perfect temperature. And I got him a silly paper shredder...he (we) really needed one.



Before dinner there was a friendly game of Pictionary. Glad I didn't play. It looked tough. Instead Merah, Ann and I were cooking up a storm. This year I did a repeat. I made Rosemary-Thyme encrusted Rib Roast. I made it several years ago and received a standing ovation from my dad. So I figured why stress it? Merah gave me this fantastically easy chicken recipe, Foolproof Grilled Chicken. Simple recipe that includes brining the chicken overnight. It was moist and tender. So yummy I want some now.




We had a chill New Year's Eve at the house. Pretty uneventful. Especially considering Ed, Wadeed, and Anna took "naps" before the countdown. On New Year's Day we went to the Salt Creek Beach and the Ritz Carlton. The sunset was amazing. Gorgeous red streaks in the sky.