California

Audrey and I took a quick trip out to California for my brother Steven's wedding. We left the morning of August 12th and were back home by August 17th. It was too quick of a trip! It was nice to see family, but it would have been nice if we could have stayed a bit longer. The flight was 10.5 hours long and Audrey did really well. She only slept about 1.5 hours of the whole flight, but luckily all those hours she was awake she was in good humor. She really enjoyed playing in her bassinet on the plane, so I didn't have to have her on my lap the whole flight. It made it a bit easier to eat meals that way! :)

We landed in San Francisco Wednesday afternoon and Ken was there to pick us up. Ken and Jenny were kind enough to be my chauffeurs and even put me up for a night in their apartment. On Wednesday we drove down to Gilroy and Jenny had everything set up for us. Audrey got a much needed nap in a crib while Kenny went back to work and Jenny and I got to chat. That evening they humored me by taking me to In-N-Out Burger for dinner and then to the grocery store to stock up on some food products to bring back to the Netherlands. By 9 PM that night we all crashed. I had been up for 24 hours straight, so I didn't have any problem sleeping.

On Thursday Ken had to work, so Jenny and I hit the Gilroy Outlets and Target. I spent way too much money, but I saved us a lot of money as well! :) We then had lunch at Panera Bread. It was so much fun to go shopping with Jenny. After Ken got off work we drove to Fresno and got there right around dinnertime. Thursday night my parents, Jeff, Ken, Jenny, Rachel, Audrey, and I all headed over to the Everett's for dinner. Maureen and her family were in town, so we got to meet her two little ones. It was fun spending some time with the Everett's. We spent a lot of time together growing up - it was almost like they were family. Good memories! While we were eating dinner at the Everett's Audrey was sitting on Jeff's lap and she feel right asleep. She's never done that before! I wish I had had my camera with me...

Friday morning we had a somewhat lazy morning at the hotel. Here's Audrey so exhausted that she doesn't even want to sit up to drink from her sippy cup:

It's too bad she decided to wake up at 5 AM on Friday and wouldn't go back to sleep until 9 AM. Oh well, the poor girl was a bit mixed up. My parents treated Steven, Rachel, Ken, Jenny, Jeff, and I to massages later that morning. It was so nice! My dad even joined in on the fun and got his first full body massage. He was a good sport and I think he even enjoyed it! After massages we had to get some chicken teriyaki bowls - a definite Fresno favorite. Then in the afternoon Jenny, my mom, Audrey, and I did some shopping. While Audrey took an afternoon nap, Jeff took Jenny, Ken, and I on a tour of his house that is being built. We're all excited for it to be finished so we have a place to stay for future Fresno visits! :) Right before dinner Paul, Cristy, Aaron, and Ashlyn arrived. I can't believe how much those two (meaning the little ones!) have grown since March. Friday night the girls all went to a bridal shower for Rachel and had some fun playing games.

The big day was Saturday, August 15th. Steven and Rachel were married in the Fresno Temple. It was a nice ceremony and it was good to be there with family. Here's the bride and groom as they came out of the temple:I snagged Steven for a minute and got a picture with him: Audrey playing with Papa's watch - a definite classic toy:The whole family (minus Steven's Rachel, my Rachel, and Andy) - I think the bride was busy getting her picture taken: My beautiful mother and I: The original 7 - aren't we a good-looking bunch? After taking pictures outside the temple we all met up for a luncheon. I tried to get a picture of Ken and Audrey without them realizing it. Unfortunately since I had to zoom in, it's a bit blurry. Typical Steven - can't even put away the little electronic devices on his wedding day - love you Steve! :) After the luncheon we all crashed at the hotel and took naps. We then got ourselves together for the reception. The reception was beautiful and well-attended. It was the fanciest reception I have ever been to. Rachel did a wonderful job planning the reception! Here's a few pictures of my parents: I have realized that I really need Andy there to take pictures. I didn't take very many pictures and I wish I had taken more. For some more wonderful pictures of the bride and groom you can go to the following website: http://jmasterphotoblog.com/?p=794. Their photographer did a wonderful job. I'm excited to see how the rest of the pictures turned out. Rachel and Steven looked so happy that day. I was glad that I was able to be there to be a part of their special day!

Sunday morning Rachel and Steve were good sports and met up with all of us at the hotel for breakfast. We chatted and didn't want to say good-bye. Finally around 10 AM we packed up my things into Ken and Jenny's car and we were off. I arrived with one suitcase inside of another suitcase and I left with two very full suitcases! Ken and Jenny drove me up to SFO and hung out with us through the horrendous security line. When I finally got through security it was 2:30 and my 747 was taking off at 3:00. So, I got right on the plane and we took off shortly after that. Audrey slept about 4 hours on the plane ride home - so she did a bit better.

Monday morning Andy and Rachel were at the airport to greet me. Andy was so good to let me go and to take care of Rachel while I was away. I had several friends comment on how impressed they were with Andy (he did Rachel's hair every day)! :) My wonderful friend Ruth watched Rachel a few days for us as well, which was very helpful. It made it a lot easier only traveling with Audrey for so short of a trip. Although it would have been perfect if all of us could have gone. :) Hopefully next time...