Well, I'm finally back from the Central Valley. 1st, it was a loooooot of driving and 2ND, it was totally worth it! The boys and I were able to spend a little time with my dad, sisters, their mom, my two beautiful nieces and everyone that came to Modesto to celebrate Karlene's impending nuptials. Preston, Ethan and I left San Diego on Friday night at about 7pm when I got off of work and finally made it to Fresno at about 1am Saturday morning. They of course wanted to play with Papa for a while so we didn't get to bed until about 2:30am and then we were up at 6:30am just like normal. (This was the beginning of the lack of sleep for me). It was HOT outside but that didn't stop the kids from heading outside and playing baseball with their Grandpa.
Preston was REALLY excited to help his Papa pick some veggies out of the garden. Of course he wouldn't eat any of then, but he was a good picker! I've already enjoyed my fair share of tomatoes. I had a heaping bowl of bruschetta last night for dinner! By the way...like that big cheesy smile? He's totally my kid :)
I know a lot of people may find it corny, but I think it is just soooo stinkin' cute to dress the boys alike. In fact, i did it everyday!
After some playing, baths, and a run to the grocery store, we hit the road for the next leg of our drive to Modesto. I was so impressed by how well Ethan took to the new environment. (The suckers and brownies may have helped). He and Sydney spend the next few hours playing while Ashlee ran some errands and Preston was out with Papa. I can't believe how long they were entertained by simply looking out the windows at the dogs.
Preston finally joined us, and all the kids sat down for some pizza. It's amazing to me how hard it is to get kids to eat! You would think with how hard they play, and how fast they are growing, that they would be stuffing their faces! But NOPE, Ashlee and I had to beg, bribe and plead with the kids to eat their food. "Come on kiddos, it's pizza, get munching!!"
Also, this weekend I finally got to meet my newest little niece Nora Grace Brown! She is already 6 weeks old and has almost doubled in weight from birth! I l-o-v-e-d her! Nora is already smiling and doing little laughs! I couldn't get enough of her, but now i have to wait another 3 weeks before i get to see her and little Miss Sydney Lyn again :(
Sydney really did not want her picture taken with "Aunt Bacon" and was a little distracted by Ethan taking off with her wheel barrel, but this was the only picture I was able to get of the three of us.
Preston was DYING to get into the pool, but we had a little floaty trouble. One broke completely and the other had a hole in one side of it. Despite the lack of floatation devices, he still insisted on getting in the water. He was told to stay on the edge of the pool because he still hasn't learned to swim yet, but seems to think he knows how. Jax and Hoss (the dogs) wanted to swim with him which made it a little more difficult for him to stay were i told him to stay. After two drowning experiences and a lot of tears and not listening, Aunt Ashlee and I decided enough was enough and I had to drag Preston back into the house kicking and screaming. You'd think going under several times would make a kid scared of the water, but NOPE, not this stubborn little man. UGH...
After a long Saturday of getting things cooked and decorated and another short night of sleep, it was time to PARTY!! My camera was on its last leg of battery power and I was not able to find my charger, so i spent the day turning it on and off really fast trying to snap a few shots. When all was said and done, I realized I didn't get pictures with guests or even of me and the bride :( Hopefully I'll be able to steal some pics from Ashlee. Anyway...Here are a few highlights of the day:
One of the flower arrangements Ashlee made along with the Bridal Ring Game (which nobody really got into :( I think Karlene is the biggest fan of this particular game and without her as a player, I think others lost the their competitiveness)...
The guest book. The idea was to take a self pic and put it into the book along with a personal message or a bit of relationship advice. The problem was 1: I didn't stand there and explain it to everyone and 2: I had bought a Polaroid camera to set out but the film never came and Polaroid stopped selling the film to retailers a few years ago. We put a digital camera out but i think without an example already done in the book, it was confusing. Oh well...
Here are all the tables and center pieces (minus the cake pops, Ashlee was still making them when i took the picture)...
The flower arrangements Ashlee made. I made about 3 but let's just say I don't have a future in the floral industry. So I left it up to her. I think she did GREAT!...
The hor d'oeuvres table. Thank you "O" Magazine for the yummy Blood Orange,pomegranate and avacado salsa recipe and Butter Toffee and Sea Salt nut mix recipe. Also, I had started off the day really wanting a mojito, but after making 5 pitchers (over 20 drinks worth which required an entire Costco bag of limes, 2 bottles of rum and a ton of mint muddling) I think it is going to be a very long time until I can handle the smell of them again...
Lunch is served! Fruit salad,rolls,greek chicken,bruschetta,corn tomatoe and avacado salad, asparagus salad and a few more summery salads I didn;t have the time to get around to munching on...
Here is a close of of some of the food....
The cake!! Karlene and Richard are not going to have a traditional wedding cake on their big day, so Ashlee had one made for the shower so that they could keep the top tier for their 1st anniversary. She sent the cake lady one of the shower invitations and had the design around the cake made to resemble the invitation. It turned out AMAZING!...
The top layer is a lemon creme, the second layer was a white cake with some type of nut crushed up in the frosting and the bottom layer (my favorite) was chocolate cake the raspberries in the frosting. Preston ate 2 slices and I know of at least 2 slices that Ethan ate, but i saw him walking from table to table, climbing up onto chairs and eating the deserted remains :)
All the guests eating...
Our Aunt Kelley brought a game for Karlene. The idea was she and Richard were about to go out for a fance dinner on their honeymoon but the power goes out, so she has to get ready in the dark (which is why she is blind folded)...
She has a few layers on...
The end "date night" result!...Richard is one lucky man! ...
Presents!...
While the shower was going on, our dad and Tim (Ashlee's father in law) took the kids out for some pizza. Sydney Lyn was just so stinkin cute in the picture, I HAD to post it! I can't get over those strawberry blond curls!
Yet again the boys are matching (and looking for candy)...
Preston and Ava were good little helpers and handed Karlene all her gifts...
She got some pretty awesome stuff...
At about 4:30pm the boys and I climbed back into the car to start the final 500 mile treck back home. Within about 5 minutes of us getting onto the freeway they were passed out!
Here is me driving (probably not the best time to take a self pic) at the beginning of my 8 hour drive :(
Finally at about 12:30 am we pulled into the driveway. I don't think i have ever been so happy to see our home! Preston, Ethan and I walked straight in the door and to our beds, no unloading, no changing into pj's, NOTHING. We were D-O-N-E!! Thank you to everyone for a great weekend! We can't wait to see u again in less than 3 weeks up in Santa Cruz for Karlene and Richard's BIG DAY!!
Lots of Love and Bunches of Hugs
XOXO Brogan Lee
