Other California Fun

The wedding was fun, and we also enjoyed the other days we were in California, hanging out with friends and family.

First:  Getting there
Jason flew out a few days earlier, then the girls and I joined him.

California, here we come!

On a 5 1/2 hour non-stop flight from east coast to west coast,
all I can say is "THANK YOU" for personal entertainment
systems!

Second:  Having some fun!

We love bubbles!

Crazy, cool, indestructible bubbles
from Grandma Dolores!

Chasing bubbles is a fun game!

Dancing ribbons were also a big hit at Dolores's...

Just a pretty girl in the garden :)

All the flowers in the garden inspired
us to put some in the girls' hair...

High five, Kayden!

The girls loved entertaining this little guy!

This flower looks a lot like a trumpet, don't you think?  The girls
kept trying to make them into musical instruments of some kind.

Elise, Jason, Dolores, and Reva, Jason's grandma.

It was very hot in Chico, over 100 degrees every day, so getting sprayed
with water felt pretty good to Kayden.

I think they are enjoying each other's company!

The pool felt especially good in this hot weather!

Elise was pretty proud that she could
get up to Snowball, Dolores's shy cat.

We loved spending time with these Sellers cousins!

Neither Elise nor Anja are shy, and the ladies at this store in Chico
embraced their curiosity by having them help with things around the
store while we shopped.  The girls retrieved extra bags and supplies
from the store room and helped ring up and wrap our purchases.
We love this Made in Chico store and the folks who run it!

Headed home!  We had a busy 5 days!

The California Wedding

Two distance weddings, the first two weekends in June.  The first one was Jason's brother, Brennan's, wedding to Nicole in Chico, California.  We spent five days there and I have a bunch of pictures, but will share pictures from the wedding first!  Jason was the best man and Elise and Anja were flower girls.  It was a beautiful, outdoor wedding.

The morning of the wedding, Elise and Anja got a little princess treatment to get ready for the big event.

Toward the end, the stylist said "you have so much
hair I don't know what to do with it all!"  Obviously
she figured it out, because it turned out beautifully!

Anja always impresses stylists with how quietly she
sits and will let them do anything.

Gorgeous!

The three flower girls:  Elise, Paige, and Anja.

Elise and Paige were the same age and really
hit it off.  They played together the whole night.

Anja and Jason kept an eye on things
before the wedding.

Putting on some finishing touches.  High-five, Kayden!

The Best Man waits patiently :)

They kind of look like they are watching a sports event.

Woo hoo!  Wedding is over, let the party begin!

Brennan, Dolores and Jason...nice looking family!

Let's get this party started!

Another beach beauty!

The wedding venue had koi, providing lots
of entertainment for these nature-loving girls!

Mmmm, the cupcakes are delicious!

Dancing princesses

Paige and Elise had a ball!

It is very hard to get a good group picture with a toddler, but this
one isn't too bad!

Jason took one look at this picture and said "can you tell which
kid lives in California?"   Yes, we are liberal users of sunscreen :)

I'm Here!

I haven't put anything up here in a while.  Have I just been slacking?  NO!!!  We have been busy!  Over about two weeks, we:

Were in California for 5 days for a wedding
Were in New York for 3 days for a wedding
Had a choir concert
Had Kindergarten graduation
Had some major events at work
Bought a house
Moved

It's been busy!

Also, we don't have Internet at the house, so that has slowed down the blog posts.  The good news is that we have had some really fun things going on, so fun pictures are on their way!

You Know You're in the South When...

You attend a potluck where five people have brought fried chicken and three people have brought pans of homemade macaroni and cheese.  Three whole pans.  Of homemade (from scratch!) macaroni and cheese.  Also, there were a ton of other dishes and I have to say (sorry Minnesotans), this was the best potluck I have ever attended.  The food was so good, and (chicken and macaroni and cheese aside) there was such a great variety of main dishes, I don't know how it could have been any better.  On the potluck front, the southerners have scored some points with me!  What else?  Not a Jello dessert in sight!  Nothing on that table had Jello in the ingredients!  Where I come from, a Jello dish (or Jello "salad" as they are sometimes called) is a requirement for potlucks! 

We found a house!

We celebrated the night our offer was
accepted.  It was worth the wait!

In February we started house hunting, hoping to find something and move by fall.  We had a couple of disappointments, where we put in an offer but it didn't work out.  And we're glad it didn't because we have found a dream house!  It is in the neighborhood that was our top choice, has a large yard that backs up to woods, has been well cared for, and is beautiful!  We close in June!

You Know You're in the South When...

There is a Confederate Cemetery in town and on Memorial Day you can find a field of Confederate flags honoring the Civil War soldiers buried there.



It was a disconcerting feeling going into this cemetery
with all of these Confederate flags flying, a symbol I
associate with racism and bigotry.  As Jason and I
walked into the cemetery a woman was leaving and
she said "look at all those flags, isn't it just beautiful."
Beautiful is definitely not the word I would have used.
Frightening is the word I would have used.
 

I have often driven past the Confederate Cemetery in town, and have wanted to go wander around, but it is usually locked when I've been past.  However, this weekend, for Memorial Day, it was open and Memorial Day was being observed there in a way I have never experienced, with Confederate flags marking many graves.

I learned something on this trip through the Confederate Cemetery (thanks to Google on a smart phone :) ).  I had thought the "Stars and Bars" was the name of the flag for the Confederate government, and was this flag:

Not true!  This flag was never the official flag of the Confederate government, it was the battle flag of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, and was square, like this:

The "Stars and Bars" was the name of the official flag of the Confederate government, but it looked like this: