A few weeks ago I was home in California for a week with the fam. Well, most of them--Allison and her family stayed in North Carolina since she recently had a baby and they just moved into a new house. But the rest of us were lucky enough to spend a few days hanging out, overeating, watching the Olympics, and celebrating my dad's 60th birthday.
My first day there, we drove to Santa Cruz for a morning at the beach, followed by lunch at Sarah and Joel's favorite Brazilian place.
On the way there, David made friends with Lily, Becca and Austin's new puppy.
We quickly discovered that Lily likes to dig in the sand:
This sand is makin' me thirsty.
The rest of us had an okay time. Although maybe I ended up with some semi-permanent red socks as a result of rolled-up jeans and a sunburn. I don't want to talk about it.
Brazilian lunch with my peeps.
That night we were joined by Krissy for some cut-throat go-karting and mini-golfing.
I'm not going to lie to you, it got a little intense.
On Saturday morning we drove into San Francisco to have breakfast with Jeff and Jess at the farmer's market at the Ferry Building. The day was pretty gorgeous even without the aid of Instagram filters.
The Bay Bridge.
Outside the Ferry Building.
We took a quick look back at the city from Treasure Island.
Then it was time to get back home for the main event--my dad's party. While we got food and decorations ready to go, Lily and Posey (Jess and Jeff's French bulldog) wrestled pretty much non-stop.
This picture is my new happy place.
The party went off without a hitch, complete with great food and dozens of friends and family members who came to pay their respects. The best part was knowing that even at 60, my dad (and mom, for that matter) can put me to shame at the gym and can most certainly leave me in the dust on a bike. I'm okay with it.
Mom toasting the birthday boy.
Gemma, helping the old man extinguish his birthday candles.
Gemma had the right idea.
The girls. We'll just Photoshop Allison in there, okay? Okay.
I also got to spend a little long-overdue time with Marisa, her husband Rob, and their adorable daughter Fara. Sometimes I forget that we're grown-ups. Like, who is this child and isn't her real mom wondering where she is?
We also spent many hours watching the Olympics, naturally. I especially loved how some fringe sport would come on and at first we'd be like, "Ugh, not synchronized swimming," and then we'd end up getting seriously into it. Don't you think Spain was robbed? I really think they were robbed. How about that BMX biking? We definitely watched that. Canoe sprint? Check.
Sarah, Joel, and the kids were the first to leave, and when Sarah came out of their room to say her goodbyes and was already crying, Becca shouted, "OH GREAT" and immediately burst into tears. You'd think we like each other or something. I guess it's a good thing we'll all be getting back together (everyone, this time) in a little over a month.
Have you ever waited in line just to give someone a hug? I mean, sure, maybe Santa Claus when you were a kid, but other than that? It's not uncommon whenever we kids are all together to see my sisters and me line up for the opportunity to embrace my dad. It usually starts with one of us going over to hug him, at which point we all catch on and sort of swarm and dance around impatiently until it's our turn. I think the high demand says it all--we know where to go to feel safe and loved, and we know that he'll let us be silly weirdos in the process.
Happy Father's Day, Pappy. I wish I could hug you in person today, but you can bet that when I'm home next I'll be making up for lost time.
I think we can all agree that this is one bodacious woman, right?
Several weeks ago I was having trouble making a decision. (To be honest, I have trouble making decisions on a daily basis, which is why I can frequently be found in the aisles of Duane Reade staring at a different face wash in each hand for the better part of 10 minutes. But this one was a little more significant.) I'd talked to my sister and a few friends about it and they all gave the same excited input, but for whatever reason I was still unsure. I wanted another perspective and I knew who I needed to talk to to get it. When I called my mom and explained the situation, she laughed, "So you called me because I'm a stick-in-the-mud?"
She proceeded to do what she does best; her advice was rational, supportive, measured and loving. As much as I had appreciated the enthusiasm I'd gotten from others, the discussion with my mom gave me the courage to make a decision. And even though the situation didn't turn out as I'd hoped, it did turn out for the best, and I know I did the right thing.
Mom, thanks for being the person I know I can count on to keep me on track. Thanks for setting an example that challenges me to be better with your tireless love of learning, your compassion and service, and your energy to travel and exercise and throw dinner parties, all while aging like a fox. You may think you're a stick-in-the-mud, but I just consider you my anchor.
Birthday brunches, complete with Sarah blowing out the candle on the traditional birthday pancake (and then devouring the traditional birthday breakfast burrito).
Walks in the sunshine with mini-me.
Spectating in the shade with the puppy.
Being the best babysitter of all time (I messaged this picture to Sarah while they were out to dinner).
Dress-ups.
Roastin' peeps.
Some honorable mentions (not pictured): going running at Red Rocks and not suffering a pulmonary embolism, a James McAvoy appreciation session with a good friend, dear sweet cousins forgiving me for not visiting (right?), and the long-awaited return of Sherlock. It was a fantastic weekend! And really, anytime you can say, "I feel outstanding about everything I've eaten today," you've pretty much won at life.
Based on my posting frequency of late, I've decided that from now on I might as well just blog once every four years. So happy Leap Day, everyone!
A couple weekends ago I booked a somewhat last-minute flight to visit Allison and her family in North Carolina. I had Monday off for President's Day and I'd been feeling like I wanted to get out of town. The winter blues always hit around this time of year, so I texted Allison, "What are you up to next weekend?" She enthusiastically agreed to let me come crash their party.
Once I arrived, Allison kept apologizing that she didn't have any fun activities planned. I pointed out that a) I had invited myself to come visit last minute, and b) I don't come to sight-see. I come to hang out with blonde babies and relax. And to eat at Cookout and Bojangles. Mission accomplished! I was especially excited to see Annabelle since since it had been 9 months since I'd last seen her and she's changed so much. Plus, she is just really cute, am I right?
Emaline continues to be awesome and is now super into cats, which I find hilarious. Above is a PSA she created that now hangs on their refrigerator. It's a warning we would all do well to heed. The girls both have headbands with cat ears on them that they wear all day, every day, and anytime Em draws anything it involves cats. (We had a contest to see who could draw the scariest animal and her giant cat that shot sharks out of a laser gun totally destroyed my bear.)
Allison still looks skinnier than me even though she's pregnant. She is a jerk.
A couple days before I arrived, I got a text from Allison that said, "We will have chocolate delight for our second course of Downton Abbey finale. First course is, of course, popcorn." One thing I like about my family is that they have really good ideas.
They are also good at making weird faces.
We had a great time playing outside in the sunshine, reading books, eating lots (and doing a 20-minute workout video!), playing Blokus, and checking out cute neighborhoods for their future house. I also bought two boxes of churro cereal at Wal-Mart to take back with me. And then on the way home, my topknot got a patdown by the TSA! All in all, a successful weekend.
When my parents come to visit, it always means delicious food and Broadway shows. (And hugs. Lots of hugs.) They rolled into town this past weekend after an East Coast extravaganza of visiting Allison in North Carolina followed by a cruise to New England and Canada. My aunt Nancy met up with us as well and even though they were here less than three full days, we packed it in.
On Saturday, after wandering midtown for a while, we caught a matinee showing of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. The show was delightful, and (mostly) independent of my love for Harry Potter, I have to say that Daniel Radcliffe does a fantastic job. His voice is decent, but I was most impressed with his dancing and his general commitment--you could tell he was just going for it the whole time and having fun. And he and John Larroquette were fantastic together. Of course, the whole time I was wishing that Becca and Krissy could have been there. (And of course, my mom texted Becca during intermission to tell her how cute Daniel Radcliffe was. Ha ha THANKS MOM.) If you haven't seen the performance of "Brotherhood of Man" from the Tony Awards, it's worth a watch:
After the show we had a fancy-pants dinner at L'Ecole, the restaurant for the French Culinary Institute (though I did, in actual fact, wear normal pants). And for good measure, we rounded out the night by seeing Ides of March. (I had referred it as "The Ryan Gosling Movie" in conversation with my dad and he pretended to be confused--"Oh, you mean the George Clooney movie?") It was really good. And I probably would have thought so even if it wasn't full of eye candy! Maybe.
On Sunday after church we had a delicious outdoor lunch at the Harlem Tavern down the street from my apartment, followed by an unsuccessful attempt to catch even a glimpse of the 9/11 memorial downtown. Then we headed back up to midtown for our extremely appropriate Sunday evening activity: The Book of Mormon musical. Currently, the only way to get tickets is to pay triple the face value or to attempt the ticket lottery with hundreds of other hopefuls (something my friend Jenny has tried 16 times, to no avail). Thankfully, my dad had the foresight to get our tickets months ago, before Tony mania set in.
I have to admit that my feelings about this show had gone from outrage to morbid curiosity to cautious interest, and when my dad asked if I would want to see it, I wasn't sure. Based on early reviews, though (including a couple from friends), I was intrigued enough to go and I'm glad I did. Fair warning: this show is not for everyone. It has strong language and some very offensive and shocking things in it (there was a Parental Advisory warning, so I guess it's good I went with my parents?). It is also clever and hilarious and quite touching at times. I will say, though, that what did offend me didn't do so because I'm Mormon, but because it was offensive in general. I realize that's a lot of rationalization, so to each his own. Obviously it's not exactly an credible source for information about the Church (it is satire, after all), but I didn't feel it was malicious toward my religion in any way. In fact, I found the Church-related humor to be pretty hilarious and they really nailed some of the missionary jokes in particular. The music itself is fantastic. Aside from a couple songs I could do without, I've listened to the soundtrack a few times this week alone. I dare you to listen to this song and not have it stuck in your head for the next week. It's the opening number and it's great--I swear the missionary actors looked exactly like some of the dudes I knew at BYU.
On Monday we had brunch at Sarabeth's and went to the Tenement Museum down on the Lower East Side. I'd never been there, but it's pretty great--you choose from a few different tours about different immigrants/families and spend an hour going through the preserved tenement housing and listening to their stories. I've been to Ellis Island, so it was sort of a cool follow-up to see how the immigrants lived after making it to New York and some of the conditions they were subjected to.
After our tour, we had time for a quick stop at the Doughnut Plant and a walk through Chinatown and Little Italy before it was time to say goodbye. It's pretty exhausting to be a tourist, but worth it when you've got good company, conversation, food, and entertainment to keep you going.
Also, do I win for most parentheses used in a blog post ever?
Tomorrow morning, Becca and Krissy fly in for a long weekend of playing in NYC. We decided it was only fitting to celebrate/mourn our final HP midnight movie experience with one last Potterpalooza (although of course, nothing could top our last one). I honestly don't know if I'm more sad that the series we love so much is ending, or that we won't get to have this tradition anymore, but either way there is a 100% chance that I will cry.
Still, I could not be more excited for my BFFs to get here and for a weekend full of the kind of silliness you can only have with people you've known for 20+ years. We're going to have some fun.
At the end of May, the whole fam convened for a week-long extravaganza of eating, laughing, and general awesomeness. The main event was my brother Jeff's wedding, and everyone had a fantastic time. I generally love weddings anyway, but fill the guest list with my favorite people in the world, throw in some beautiful weather, great food, and hours of dancing, and there's pretty much nothing better.
The bride was stunning (am I right or am I right?).
The kids were entertained.
And, if I may say so, my peeps looked pretty awesome.
We gathered for pictures in the afternoon at Murietta's Well winery. The place was beautiful and rustic, and with the sun slowly setting over the vineyard it was just gorgeous.
Then it was time for the ceremony. Donovan was the dapper ringbearer, and Ainsleigh, Emaline, and Gemma were enlisted as flower girls. Gemma, apparently deciding that she had far too much style to merely walk in the procession, opted to do arabesques down the aisle.
When Jess appeared on her dad's arm, Sarah tapped me on the shoulder and whispered, "Look at Jeff." His face said it all--happy, peaceful, perfect.
After a lovely ceremony and a cocktail hour, we headed inside for the party. The food was delicious, and when it was time for Jess's dance with her dad, Gemma came over to sit on my lap for a closer look and whispered, "Oh, it's the princess and her father!"
And then, we danced:
After cake-cutting (including the Funfetti groom's cake my mom made that turned out to be wildly popular), it was back to dancing. My older sisters weren't sure how long their kids would last and thought they might have to take them home early. Turns out they were the life of the party and were on the dance floor til almost 11pm.
Unbeknownst to us, Dono is a breakdancer extraordinaire. He also danced with all of the bridesmaids and most of the female guests.
Partway through the night, Gemma was getting tired and went to sit down at her table. Then "Just Dance" by Lady Gaga came on and she ran back onto the floor shouting "JUST DANCE IT'LL BE OKAY!" Later, as the clock ticked past 10pm, she plopped face-down on the dance floor on top of her Ducky. About 10 seconds later, she jumped back up and got right back to dancing. These kids have stamina.
By the end of the night we were all tired and my feet hurt like crazy, but it was so much fun. A great night of partying with my favorite people, and I get a fantastic new sister out of it? Win-win-win.
