Livin' the Dream.

Oh, yes. This is exactly what it looks like. I am sorting the black Jelly Belly beans out of the Jelly Belly container with a spoon. For a director. Only in Hollywood. And, yes. I will miss this.

I and Love and You

It seems like a year has gone by since Tuesday when we decided to move to Austin. My head is spinning with coordinating this move and finishing my last week at work and actually coming to terms with what this move really means in the big picture of my life. It is a bittersweet transition that I haven't even begun the process of processing. And to risk sounding like Molly Shannon's Superstar character, Mary Katherine Gallagher, who can only describe how she feels through song lyrics and iconic movie monologues...

The Avett Brothers seem to have said it best,

"Load the car and write the note.

Grab your bag and grab your coat.

Tell the ones that need to know.

We are headed north east.

One foot in and one foot back.

But it don’t pay to live like that.

So I cut the ties and I jumped the track.

For never to return.

Ahh Brooklyn Austin, Brooklyn Austin take me in.

Are you aware the shape I’m in?

My hands they shake, my head it spins.

Ahh Brooklyn Austin, Brooklyn Austin take me in."

Meeting Baby L!

Aunt Kimberly & Uncle Brian meeting Baby L!

This weekend, the Santa Monica Luskeys met our precious niece, Baby L! We will henceforth be referring to this little love nugget as Baby L to protect her privacy. She is so sweet and snuggly, here are some pictures from our 24 hour visit with the newest Luskey:

Uncle Brian holding Baby L for the first time!

Aunt Kim and Baby L, holding hands at lunch.

Baby L, her proud parents, Dallas & the Santa Monica Luskeys

Snuggle time...

Whose pout is bigger?

Dreamy.

Saying goodbye to Baby L...

We loved meeting Baby L and getting that special time with her while she's still so tiny. It breaks our hearts knowing we are moving away from her and inevitably will miss out on her early milestones. We hope to be the Aunt & Uncle that love her from afar and spoil her rotten when we do get time together. Thank goodness we have the Southwest Companion Pass!

Shabbat Shalom

Well, we're three Shabbats into the new year (and three opportunities toward my New Year's resolution) and so far we're three for three! Tonight, we celebrated Shabbat with friends at Fromin's. Nothin' says Shabbat like close friends, diet Dr. Brown's cream soda and the egg salad/chopped liver sandwich combo. Shabbat Shalom, indeed!

We're Movin' to Austin!!

The Santa Monica Luskeys are thrilled to announce...

WE'RE MOVING TO AUSTIN!!

Yes, it's true, we will be packing our bags and leaving Santa Monica: where it all began. Below are some FAQ and our most honest answers:

Q: Why are you moving to Austin?

A: Excellent question. Brian was offered a fantastic job at a "social commerce" company in Austin. This particular job at this particular company was a perfect fit and combined with his passion for online deal-hunting, well, it was just too good to be true. So, Austin, here we come!

Q: When are you moving?

A: Funny you should ask. This entire process has been a whirlwind adventure at lightning speed! Brian's first interview was on January 4, his second interview was on January 18 (he was offered the job precisely 14 minutes after leaving the building) and his first day of work will be February 28.

Q: Where will you live?

A: Another hilarious question! Neither one of us knows Austin particularly well (translation: at all) but we do plan to travel to Austin at some point in February to scope out neighborhoods and pick a place to hang our hats. It's one of our family goals to be homeowners, so we'll try to find as short of a lease as possible to expedite that process!

Q: But, Kimberly, what will you do?

A: The truth is, I don't know. I am thrilled and scared and excited and in shock and thankful that I have the luxury of time to figure it out. My Mom always reminds me that my list of dreams is a mile long so I'll have to take the time to figure out which dream I want to attempt next. Yes, this feels like a chapter ending for me in terms of my acting career. I will most likely not be starring on a hit sitcom based in Austin, but I'm excited to see which door opens as this one appears to close. I don't know what it is that I'll do, but I know it'll be fabulous and I know I'll share my journey in figuring it out along the way.

Q: Will we still be The Santa Monica Luskeys?

A: For now, one major life change at a time is about all we can handle. We will remain the Santa Monica Luskeys and, in time, if it's appropriate, our family blog might get a new name.

2011 has already been overwhelmingly full of new and exciting changes. We're keeping our fingers crossed that our good luck doesn't run out anytime soon. We thank you for your love and support and promise to do our best to keep Austin weird.

Hook 'Em,

The Santa Monica Luskeys

"BABY L" IS HERE!

The Santa Monica Luskeys are proud to announce

the birth of our first niece!

"BABY L" LUSKEY

9:48pm on Tuesday, January 11, 2011 (1/11/11)

8 lbs., 13 oz.

Makin' Whoopie (Pies!)

My little whoopies ready to go to work!

My lovely sister-in-law, Jackie, gave me a whoopie pie cookbook for Chanukah and a special whoopie pie pan that was on backorder and just arrived this week. Of course, I had to test out some of the creative recipes as soon as humanly possible. I decided on the graham cracker whoopie (in hopes to produce a s'mores whoopie pie), but unfortunately couldn't find any graham flour. I had already made the classic marshmallow filling and the whipped chocolate ganache so instead of tasting like the intended s'mores, they taste more like generic-not-overly-sweet biscuits with chocolate and marshmallow filling. Could be worse!

The whoopie pies, looking more like scones in this picture...

One side whipped chocolate ganache,

the other side marshmallow topping!

Side view: Delish.

That smile says it all.

Yes, I probably should have picked another flavor whoopie when I realized I didn't have the key ingredient that would make them taste like their intended flavor. Yes, a tick more research before using my whoopie pie pan might have yielded prettier whoopie pies. But, I had fun, made a huge mess and Brian said he thought they tasted great. Isn't that all that really matters?

Obsessive Calendar Filler Outer

Whenever I feel overwhelmed and/or excited about my current situation and/or impending change, I find myself drawing (oh, yes, with a ruler and a pen) calendars, filling them out, starting over and re-filling them out. (Reminder: This post's title is Obsessive Calendar Filler Outer.) Now, I am fully aware that this neither makes sense nor helps any situation, but for some reason staring at a calendar and counting my chickens before they hatch (and hypothetical-izing different possible combinations of said hatchings) somehow calms the old neurotic brain. Maybe it's the act of drawing the lines that I find soothing or memorizing the dates and events so that I am somehow in charge of them as their all-knowing master. Either way, I do it. It works.

CONFESSION CORNER: The unfortunate part of having a blog is the desire to shareeverything combined with the reality that some things are private and not meant to be blasted into the blogosphere the moment they occur. Spoiler alert: 2011 is going to be OUR year!

Shabbat Shalom

One of my New Year's Resolutions is to celebrate Shabbat every week. Sometimes, that will mean making an entire meal and a challah from scratch and inviting friends over to enjoy the fruits of my labor while other times that simply means lighting the candles three hours after sunset just to say the prayers before crashing after a long week. I wasn't specific in my resolution, just pledged that I will, in some way - my own way - celebrate that I survived another week. So far, I'm off to a great start! Shabbat Shalom, indeed.

LOVE.

While we were in Houston, we had dinner with my maternal first cousins. It's such a rarity when the seven of us (eight including Brian) are all in the same room, we had to capitalize on the moment by snapping this lovely picture. And in true Harberg/Robinson fashion, we had to take the below picture as well...

Position 18

I'm not sure how or why, but Aunt Tracy called out "Position 18" and more than half the group assumed the above position. What on earth?! Gotta love family.

Happy New Year!

The Santa Monica Luskeys spent the past 12 days between Houston and the Ranch and although most people would say spending 288 non-stop hours with your family (or in Brian's case, with your in-laws) would be a bit exhausting and/or overwhelming, all I can think of is how I wish we were still there. Since our second year of dating, we have spent Christmas/New Years with the Harbergs. The first 5 years were spent on action packed real sea cruises and the past 3 have been what we lovingly refer to as "land cruises" - a staycation filled with "sea days" and excursions alike. Just like a real cruise, the days we deem "sea days" are full of relaxing, movie watching, puzzling, eating, taking an ungodly amount of time to get ready for dinner simply because you can and, oh yeah, eating. On the contrary, on the days we "dock" for excursions we are up and at 'em and take full advantage of the many exciting (and drivable) tourist destinations the greater-Houston area has to offer.

Harberg Family Land Cruise Excursions:

Messina Hoff Winery Tour & Dinner (Bryan)

Blue Bell Ice Cream Factory Tour (Brenham)

Moody Gardens Aquarium (Galveston)

Texas State Penitentiary Museum (Huntsville)

Texas Bowl @ Reliant Stadium (Houston)

Harberg Family Portrait (Houston)

George H. Bush Presidential Library Tour (College Station)

Chef's Table Dinner at Le Mistral (Houston)

Picture highlights from The 3rd Annual Harberg Family Land Cruise coming soon!

I find it only fitting that my first blog post for 2011 be a day late. Among my many resolutions for 2011 (more to come on this subject later...) is to relax and enjoy the moments as they happen - to really take in the detail and relish in all the good. Unfortunately, my beloved reader, that means there might longer gaps between posts. I promise not to make a habit of it, but know if it's been a while since my last update I am simply seizing the day. Or, attempting to, at least!