I love rollerblading!

For those of you who don't know, I love rollerblading!! It is super fun and great exercise. Pretty much I love doing active things besides running, preferably with speed. My favorite is rollerblading on any boardwalk at the beach. Currently, my closest beach is Venice, which is a very entertaining and luxurious place to rollerblade. The last couple of times I've been out, however, have been a bit further inland, much further south... and closer to my roots- SANTEE. We have gone to San Diego frequently in the last month- for Halloween, my best friend Jason's wedding, etc. The tragedy is that I bought new rollerblades (my $5 thrift store ones finally broke) back in September and had barely had time to try them out. So, I convinced my best friend Claire to meet me at Santee Lakes in between our hectic SD schedule. We've done this twice now and I feel a new tradition coming on. It was super fun to go to the lakes (my dad, sister and I used to ride our bikes there from our old house), catch up with Claire, and get some speed on my rollerblades.

ALSO, my adorable husband decided to give rollerblading another go after he swears he almost died attempting rollerskating in his childhood. He is doing FABULOUS and soon we will be a mean, lean, rollerblading machine cruising through Venice Beach together!! I can't wait!

Kanye West & Taylor Swift

What actually happened at the VMAs:

What should have happened:

So………. clearly Ryan and I embraced pop culture this Halloween and went as Kanye West and Taylor Swift. Pretty good fit, right?! Our extremely talented friend Ixie was so generous as to shave Ryan’s hair exactly how Kanye had his- didn’t it look amazing?! Summer safety pinned my silvery dress together like a pro and I rocked that red lipstick!

Anyways, we drove down to San Diego to spend the holiday with Sums and Jes. We first went over to their friends Roger and Karen’s house for some famous elk chili and passing out candy to trick-or-treaters. Then we headed to Mulvaney’s (our hometown country bar) to line dance and win their costume contest! I am happy to report that my favorite sister won “sexiest costume” for her 80's rocker and my adorable tough husband won “scariest costume” for being Kanye West in a country bar. ;) We had lots of fun. Thanks for having us Summer and Jesse!

Yes, Jesse was a mormon. Look at him trying to show that hot rocker the Book of Mormon.

My Sister is the Best Teacher Ever

For those of you who do not know, my sister is a 5th grade teacher and she is phenomenal!! Besides working so hard to teach her kids the required subjects, Summer goes above and beyond everyday to expand her kids' worldviews and teach them how to be contributing members of their communities. For example, she allows her kids to decorate paper bags which are then used by a great organization called Project Angel Food to hold nutritious meals that are delivered to people with life threatening diseases. A decorated bag is much more cheerful for these clients than a plain bag! To see the shout out to Mrs. Tracy's 5th graders from Project Angel Food, click here: http://www.facebook.com/projectangelfood 

We are SO Hollywood

For those of you who are unaware, my husband is a man of many talents. He is an exceptional writer, photographer, cameraman, editor, cook and overall vessel of vast knowledge. He is also now a famous actor: http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3609014/!!! Well, ok, maybe not so famous, but an actor with an imdb credit nonetheless.

THE PEANUT BUTTER THEORY was a project that many of Ryan’s co-workers were involved in and asked Ryan to step in when an actor flaked out. He thought the stage makeup was super cool.

It’s Pumpkin Pickin’ time!

Every year without fail, the Joiners head to the closest pumpkin patch (NOT the nearest grocery store) to pick our own pumpkins. This year we decided to go the first weekend in October, which just happened to be the weekend that one of my best friends Alysha and her husband Clifford were coming to town. So…..they came along!! J This is not the first Joiner family tradition that Lysh has been a part of. She has spent at least one Easter in the Inland Empire during college, so she is definitely part of the family.

I think we all walked away pretty pleased with our selections. I know my pumpkin is adorable and currently making our balcony very festive! As you can see, we not only found our pumpkins, but also went through the corn maze, picked out some gourds and managed to convince Dad to bring home half a bale of hay for Mom to get her fall decoration on.

My Girls

All my bridesmaids (minus my matron of honor) all in one place and “no one was wearing a white dress” as Valoria put it. We all got together last weekend at the Jones’ house for a BBQ- it was so fun to hang out! Valoria & Brian have a beautiful home that was full of delicious food. It makes my heart happy to have all my girls with me and this time (for the first time ever) all the hubbies were there too! Too bad Aaron Wolf has serious issues smiling…

Fun fact: Claire, Valoria, Alysha and I ALL had wedding ceremonies within one year of each other (08-09). How CRAZY is that?! I say wedding ceremonies, cause Alysha and Clifford got married the summer after our freshman year (those crazy kids) but just had their full wedding last summer. Claire, Lor and I all got married within 8 months of each other. I swear it wasn’t planned……well, maybe Claire’s and mine. We like to do everything together. Just kidding…mostly. ;)

A Trip to the 'Bu

This weekend one of my best friends (and bridesmaids) Valoria came to visit us with her brand new hubby Brian. We had a blast!

We went hiking at Solstice Canyon in Malibu, where there is a house that was built in 1950 but burned down in 1982. Cement, stone and bricks are left for hikers to imagine what the sprawling ranch house once looked like in it’s glory (and, thanks to Lor’s discovery, a new plaque with a picture of the house). We decided to keep exploring up the waterfall and ended up rock climbing for a ways back in the mountains.

I LOVE to be outside, especially in green nature getting exercise, so I was very content with the day. We were definitely covered from head to toe in dirt by the end, but I am positive we all thought it completely worth it and wouldn’t change a thing! Good times with good friends make me happy. Thanks for coming Lor & Brian!

p.s. Yes, in answer to the threatening picture below- we are hardcore.