#16. The Westside Rentals Guy

One thing we know for sure we won't be seeing in Minneapolis: the Westside Rentals Guy. This guy, clad in his Westside Rentals "uniform," has a never-ending supply of energy as he pumps his fists to some kind of internal soundtrack. He can single-handedly make any Wilshire Boulevard traffic bearable. We'll miss you Westside Rentals Guy!

P.S. Obviously, this isn't one of the more meaningful of the things we'll miss about L.A., but we're running out of days to get to #1.

#17. Sushi

Our selection for # 17 in our in-no-particular-order Top 20 things we'll miss about L.A. list is none other than one of our favorite foods: SUSHI.

Sadly, our go-to sushi place of choice - primarily because it was just around the corner - Asakuma - closed a few months ago so we haven't been able to go, but we have satisfied our craving with more frequent trips to Taiko and Katsuya (amen for "sushi crack"!). We've also enjoyed our times at Bar Hayama, and only wish we had spent more time at their outdoor fire pit. Karen wants to give a shout out to K-Zo in Culver City, too.


We're assuming Minneapolis has sushi (?), but we know it won't be the same. We will attempt to keep our sushi appetites at bay until our next visit.

#18. The Team of Doctors

The great Dr. Jorge Lazareff

#18 on our "what we'll miss about l.a." list (which is in no particular order, by the way) is our doctors. Over the last 16 months, we have been blessed with the greatest team of doctors (from UCLA) anyone could ask for to watch over Lucas.

So, THANK YOU Dr. Lazareff (neurosurgeon), Dr. Zionts (orthopedic surgeon), Dr. Singer (urologist) and Drs. Krohn and Sachs (pediatricians).

This is Dr. Krohn. Who would have believed our good friends Evan and Rachel would end up with him as a pediatrician for Malia, too?

What can we say about Dr. Zionts? He was there for the casting and he performed the tenotomy. We spent more hours in his office than we care to remember. Through it all, though, Dr. Zionts always made us feel calm and welcome.

Meet Dr. Singer, our urologist. These were some of our tougher appointments, but Dr. Singer always delivered the news honestly and delicately.

Here's Dr. Sachs, our first pediatrician. He's been in the game almost as long as Karen and I have been alive. It was fun to see all of his "old school" methods.

All of these doctors have left some big shoes to fill for their counterparts in the Twin Cities. THANKS!

#19. Mountain Hikes

Jay and Lucas with a horse friend at Will Rogers.

Whether it's to get up close to the Hollywood sign or simply a Sunday morning family hike, the mountains have served as our playground during our time here. We will miss our times together, sitting on a bench at Will Rogers State Park admiring the Pacific Palisades houses we'll never own, and looking at the mountains as a backdrop for our many trips up the PCH.

Top 20 Things We'll Miss: #20: The Beach

"Jay and Karen at the Beach". Photo credit: Lynne Giammalvo.

Having spent most of our 10 years out here on the West Side, we have accumulated many fond memories of the beach. Recently, we have been taking Lucas down there to use the swings, build sandcastles and watch the surfers and waves, but the Santa Monica/Venice beach has been a part of our lives well before he came along. We remember: jogging together from pier to pier, Willows Pier Parties, one of our first dates at Shutters, boardwalk bike rides, Jay's apartment on Pacific, and going there pretty much any time someone came to visit from out of town.

We'll miss you Beach. We'll miss you Pacific Ocean. Thanks.

Here we are in 2005 (?) during a visit from Brian and Kristy.

Mother's Day and More...

Since we are in our final days in SoCal, Jay and I have been trying to capitalize on all possible fun! We have been out as a couple the last three Saturday nights! I think we could both get used to this...Grandma and Grandpa Rolig...can we calendar you in???

We enjoyed a beautiful Malibu mountain wedding for our friends Chelsea and Parker...a seriously picturesque setting with the backdrop being the Santa Monica Mountains, and this weekend we celebrated my Larry Bird birthday(GO CELTICS) on Abbot Kinney at a recommended restaurant Gjelina. For those of you who are in the area or visitors from out of town, this is a MUST DO for lunch or dinner! We were also lucky enough to be invited to Dara's parents house for a beautiful Mother's Day brunch. I think the celebration had a different feel since Lucas and Remy were in the mix, and that Dara and Toni were celebrating their new roles as Mom and Grandma!

Three really talented and gifted moms! (Lucas was napping during photos...)

...Although he didn't miss a beat after he woke up. He was showing off new tricks to Remy, most impressive to all was his farting noises on mommy's arm! Lucas got a LOT of positive reinforcement for this behavior and happily continued entertaining the crowd!

INTRODUCING...

The Blake School's new Assistant Middle School Director: Mr. Jay Dean

After months of grooming himself for The Blake School, we are thrilled to announce that the Dean family will be moving home to Minnesota at the end of June, EMPLOYED! Jay couldn't have given anymore time and energy to the networking and interviewing process for this job. He seized every opportunity to talk with numbers of people associated with the Blake school and really made a name for himself. Of course I had no doubt they'd be impressed with him in person and I'm sure the suit didn't hurt! Thank you Nordstroms and thank you Toni Erlich for helping to outfit this fine educator!

All of this good news came on April 27, while Dara was also welcoming her daughter!

Remy Camille Marble...we love you!

Dara might kill me for this picture, but I thought it was better than facebook! She looks like a beautiful new mom! A natural!