Just some family updates ...

By MAGGIE WANG

After a lot of searching, we think we've found a winner to help us in our housekeeping. Her name is Ivon. I was a little skeptical at first (and I'm still concerned she won't be with us long term). She used to be a store manager and quit because of the stress. I'm sure cleaning our house twice a week isn't her long-term goal, but I am hopeful she'll stay on with us even when she finds a permanent job.

It has been two weeks. The first week, you could tell she was finding her way around things. This week, it has been awesome! She take care of business, stays out of our way and I LOVE LOVE LOVE having a clean house. We don't have to take out the trash, worry about our floors (with all my hair falling out), sweep the driveway or patios. It is heaven!

Sedona is super cute these days. She loves talking on the phone and can pretty much carry a full conversation. It's pretty impressive.

It's really sweet that Whitney's daughter, Riley (one of Sedona's BFF's) tells Whitney before she goes out, "Mommy, you're so pretty," whereas today when I tried on a dress, Sedona said, "Mommy, I don't like." People think Sedona is an angel. Angels don't say that! *wink*

Maven is sitting up really well unassisted but hasn't started any crawling. I have a feeling she'll be a little later than normal given how 'healthy' she is. But Maven is on time for teething. So far she is handling it all very well. I've been mighty impressed; no need to use any medication yet.

Kevin and I are doing well. The Lakers' training camp has started up, so we are working on getting into the groove of things. The OC Register is putting an even greater emphasis on the Lakers, so this season there are two additional writers covering the beat with him. The other change is that Kevin is getting to write only columns this season. It's a fun and well-received challenge for Kevin.