22 Years Later

Brian did it!!!

 This is my first truck. It was a 78 Chevy Scottsdale, had a 350 in it with dual chrome exhaust that was so awesomely loud, and dad had it converted into a 3 speed...so it wasn't supposed to go much over 60, and it had the long shifter that came up from the floor in the middle of the front seat floorboard, no power brakes or power steering....and it has always, always been my favorite vehicle I ever owned. I loved this truck so much!!

 Below, it still has the original bumper on it, so I believe this may have been when we first got it. It is sitting here at our mechanics house. He put a lot of work into this thing seeing as it came originally with the engine sitting in the bed of the truck.

If my memory serves me right, I got my first Chevy before my license and was in the 15/16 years old range.....

Which makes this next picture a 22 years later picture-

 

 I still cant believe it!!!! Its a 2006 Chevy Silverado K1500 4x4 with 93k miles on it. Leather interior with rubber floor mats. 6 seater when the middle front seat is up and not used as a center console (which we've already had a kid ride up there). Has a nice bed liner.

It's a serious, serious upgrade from my first truck.

 We had tried shopping in town, and couldn't get taken seriously that we wanted a truck, not a pickup. No joke. It was really frustrating. So, we did some research on line and decided to drive out to Sacramento and Roseville to shop....where the real trucks live. It ended up working! My first stop was a Walmart to get a Travis Tritt's greatest hits CD for the ride home....the most awesome ride home I've ever driven!

 We scooped up the kids, and took the truck to meet it's home away from home...

 Truck (I haven't named it yet, so it's just "Truck" for now), meet Mt. Diablo. Diablo, meet Truck.

I can't thank my husband enough for making this happen. Yes, there are more conventional family vehicles, but none that would bring me this much joy, and allow me to be a mom, and still be me!! 

I Drive Fast

Or so I'm told. I don't get tickets, though. Except for once in Arkansas, but that's it's own post...moving on....

When Brian and I were down in SoCal we drove around Long Beach a bit. It just happened to be a day after the Long Beach Grand Prix.That's an Indy car race through the streets of Long Beach, and other fun activities.

 The course was just re-opening to traffic, but the fences and bleachers were still up. The advertisements were still all up along the sides of the course, the roads were covered in tire marks, and the corners were still marked with red and white paint, as well as barriers.....and we got to drive right down it!!!! It was super cool, and I was thinking about my mom the whole time. I knew she would have gotten such a kick out of it.

 

Then we went for breakfast at this Drive-Ins, Diners, and Dives place. It was a Dive.

After breakfast, we headed here.....

Brandon and Jamyla's Wedding, April 25, 2015

On April 25, 2015, Brian's cousin Brandon married Jamyla on a deck in Malibu overlooking the beach.

It was limited to 100 guests, and we considered it a privilege to have been invited to share in their special day. When Brian and I were married almost 18 years ago, Brandon would have been right around 12 years old. He's been in southern Cal for a number of years now, and it was very strange to see him all grown up and getting married! He has grown into a pretty cool guy, and although we do not know Jamyla, she seems like such a sweet gal! Not to mention she was a triple major at Pepperdine. Wowzers. Both Brandon and Jamyla are in the film industry.

Here's a few pictures from the day-

 Above, Brian and I heading to the wedding. Below, Brian's mom, Nancy, and me at the wedding.

 Brian's parents figuring out this whole "selfie" thing.

 Cousin Brandon

 Jamyla and her pops.

 This could have been a great pic, but alas....the pole.  You get the idea...beautiful wedding, beautiful background, lots and lots of wind.

 My contribution to myself (so I thought)...I was happy to share with the mother of the groom and I have no idea who else, but it made its way around the room.

 It was super windy and my hair was attracted to Brian's face (in both below pictures)

 The wedding was at the Malibu West Beach Club. For anyone besides me who finds this interesting, it's on Broad Beach Rd....same road as Bruce Jenner's house.  This was also the day after Bruce's interview aired.

 This was welcoming the wedding party back to the party after they did some pictures on the beach.

 Brandon and Jamyla

 Brandon, his Grandmother (Kathy's mom), and Jamyla. I'd love to know what was just said : )

 Jamyla's dad giving a speech about both of them, it was really, really good!

 Cousin Kyle giving a really nice speech about his older brother Brandon and Jamyla.

 Brandon and his mom, Aunt Kathy

 Brian's mom, Nancy, and her brother Phil, who was the father of the groom.

 Bouquet toss. First attempt was a bust as it hit a beam and fell straight down. If you look hard you can see it in flight straight back from Jamyla's backside.

Such a special day! 

We had such a great time and really appreciate being included!

Brandon and Jamyla, we wish the two of you a lifetime of happiness and adventures together!

For Your Info

Just a quick post for any family who are wondering or want to make a note of it - 

Sophie's 5th Grade Graduation is June 10th.

A Collection of Random Photos For You!

Not a lot of blogging around here lately, but there's been a lot of livin' life! I'm leaving these original size, feel free to click on them if you want to get a better look.

 Brazen Wings go to the butterfly house at Six Flags.

 Grandpa on a swing.....

 Grandpa on a bike.....

 Brian and my hotel in San Pedro this weekend (thank you, dad)

 Cousin's wedding at the Malibu Beach Club.

 I don't drink wine or beer, but I know how to bring my own whiskey, and found out I do enjoy champagne! (Thank you, cousin Kyle for the pink bubbly stuff!!)

 Wedding dance.....

 Brian's parents having some fun......

 A blurry pic of Cousin Kyle giving a speech about his brother Brandon (the groom).

 Uncle Phil w/Brian's mama, Nancy. (They are bro and sis, he's father of the groom)

 Drove 1000 miles in 3 days.

 Grew some coral......

 Painted my nails in a hotel while drinking coffee w/no kids within 500 miles : )

 A hotel room that was amazing.....

 Some awesome shoes my mother-in-law got me.....

 Dealt with a kid with a random, terrible toe infection.....

 Grew some beautiful flowers......

 Potted a few plants....

 Endured cotton wood season (can you see all the cotton balls in the air??) Side note, yes, this is our very, very green front yard. We need to get permission from the rental company to stop watering as our rental agreement gives the owner total control of watering in the front of the house, although we pay for the water.  We are only supposed to water 2 days a week, or face a new $10,000 a day fine....he currently has it set watering nightly. Not to mention the 25% surcharge on all water use, and having to cut use by another 25%.

 Got my hair skills on.....

And lots, lots, lots more!!! These pictures are all off my phone, there's so much more in the camera. I'm trying hard to get caught up, but life just keeps on rolling!

Look at That Countdown ticker!!!

Do you guys see it, over on the left of this page??? I believe we started with like 189 days??? And now it's a 1!!!! We are so excited to be getting way away for a weekend. The kids are being left in very capable hands, so we will have nothing to worry about. We are heading down to Malibu for Brian's cousins wedding. It's a quick trip, but we are so looking forward to it!!!