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.

6 Months

So, yesterday, Ryan and I walked to a costume store by our apartment in search of a good Halloween costume. The shop ended up being a dud, so we continued on in hunt of a Sunday newspaper (we are all about the coupons these days). We found a newspaper stand outside of Yum Yum Donuts where Ryan spotted an ad for “puffies”, delicious looking, little cream puffs. After we went in search of quarters for the stand and ended up finding a newspaper elsewhere, I made him walk back to Yum Yum’s to get those puffies. Sadly, they were out for the day.

This morning I got out of the shower and walked into our room where I discovered a Yum Yum Donuts bag with a card. My adorable husband wrote the sweetest note to commemorate that today is our 6 month wedding anniversary and he went to Yum Yum’s to buy me puffies along with fresh squeezed o.j. on his way back from working out. Let me tell you-the way to this girl’s heart is through her stomach! But more than that, I really appreciated the thought behind it. The only way he knew I wanted those puffies is because he had spent quality time with me going on a walk the day before (quality time is my love language). I love thoughtful & meaningful presents, especially heartfelt cards! I thought that was so sweet. I took a picture of my puffies & o.j. with my phone so I could blog about it later cause they made me so happy.

THEN, I got a call at my desk (later at work) saying that there were flowers for me in the lobby. He had a beautiful bouquet delivered to my work with another sweet note! I love fresh flowers. They especially cheer up my desk at work and make me happy throughout the day.

So, THANK YOU my wonderful husband for making our 6 month anniversary special. You made me feel especially loved and extraordinary like you do every day. I am the lucky one.

New furniture!!

For those of you who have seen our apartment, we have been sans coffee and side table for 6 months. We looked around at some and were surprised to see how expensive they both are, even at places like Target! We decided that they weren't really necessary for now. THEN we got an Ikea catalog in the mail (I don't know why) and they were advertising super inexpensive coffee and side tables in classic, simple styles, so we decided to go for it.
As you can see, my adorable husband put them together (because I was working on another project, not because it was a "man's task" or something). Don't they look great (besides the fact that nothing really matches in our apartment-we're aware, thanks)?!I have to admit that I was starting to get tired of not having any tables in the living room. It makes it a bit more dangerous to eat or drink anything while sitting on the couch. I am very excited!

Los Angeles Wildfires

Hi All -- the wildfires in CA, especially the ones in LA are only getting worse, unfortunately. Please don't worry--Ryan and I live so far into the city, that we are not in any danger although it is raining ash where Ryan works (and large parts of the city). In case you are wondering what you can do to help the people who have been directly affected, I've put together some resources below. At this point, organizations are saying the greatest need is monetary in order to sustain supply lines of food and to maintain counseling and relocation services.

Red Cross

To make a financial contribution, call 310-445-2685 or go online at:http://american.redcross.org/site/PageServer?pagename=COGP_CA_LosAngls_main.

To volunteer, call 310-943-5268 or visit: http://redcrossla.org/volunteers/american-red-cross-volunteer-info-for-station-fire.

Numerous blood drives have been canceled due to fires and the blood supply is dipping. To make an appointment to donate blood, call (800) GIVE-LIFE or visitwww.GiveLife.org.

Goodwill

Donors of clothing and household goods at Goodwill stores in Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Riverside counties can ask that their gifts be used to help provide shopping vouchers to fire victims under an arrangement with the Red Cross. Goodwill Southern California has 100 stores and donation centers, which can be found by calling (888) 446-6394 or going online to www.goodwillsocal.org.

Salvation Army
To donate or volunteer, call (800) 725-2769 or visit: www.salvationarmy-socal.org.

A Perfectly San Diego Weekend

Last weekend was Miss Meghan Ann Sheehan’s 24th birthday!!! Happy birthday Megaroni!! So, Ryan and I headed down to San Diego to celebrate. We spent Saturday at the San Diego Bay soaking up the sun on the Sheehans’ sailboat and a friend’s motor boat. We had so much fun! Everyone knows it doesn’t take much convincing to get me to the beach and out on the water. I’ve only every been sailing with Megs (well, I guess also with some random guys in Brazil) but I really love it. It is just SO calming and takes you away from the craziness of this world. Of course the Sheehans made delicious chicken & shrimp tacos for lunch.
It just so happened that when I called Summer to ask if we could crash at her place for the weekend that she was planning a big Brew-B-Q that Saturday night. So, naturally we invited ourselves and headed back there after our day at the bay. It was nice to meet a few of their friends and neighbors that we hadn’t previously met and hang out with old friends as well (newlyweds Cory & Kirstin!!).
THEN, on Sunday, Summer, Ryan and I went over to one of my best friend Claire and Aaron’s new apartment on Coronado Island for lunch. She moved to San Diego to live with her hubby when I moved in with my hubby (we were roommates for like 4 years before that). Anyways, they have a nice apartment right on the beach and I am SUPER jealous. The irony is that Claire would rather live in LA. She’s nuts. We walked a few blocks to a yummy brewery for lunch (thanks Aunt Barbara!), then strolled along the water and by the park that Ryan and I got married at! I must say, it was not looking as great as it did during our nuptials. Too many summer tourists and lots of brown grass. I am so thankful we had our ceremony when we did cause it was BEAUTIFUL.

In summary: delicious, free food + treasured family & friends = a very successful & blessed weekend!!

LaLa Land

Two weekends ago Ryan and I decided to mark a few things off our “LA To Do List” and went to the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) and the La Brea Tar Pits for the first time (they are right next to each other). Please comment whether you actually did or did not know that there are tar pits in the middle of Los Angeles! In fact, the tar pits were discovered when a construction crew was putting in a parking garage for the LACMA.

The tar pits are FULL of animal & plant remains. Animals that died a slow, painful and confusing death. All over the grounds there are little areas where tar is bubbling up from the earth. There is a museum on site with many of the bones they have found, as well as excavation sites and a laboratory where you can watch experts and volunteers cleaning tar off bones. It was actually really cool!

A few thoughts to take away:

• Tar smells REALLY terrible!
  

• There is a statue of a mother elephant sinking in the large tar pit in front of the museum, crying out in agony as she sinks. Yes, it’s great that they are showing what really happened so often over the years. But then they put a baby elephant statue on the bank with her trunk extended calling out to her mother with this horrific fear in her eyes. I found it disturbing.
  

• The most common bone found in the La Brea tar pits is the Dire Wolf. This is because they would hunt in packs and attempt to feed on animals that had separated from it's herd and/or looked weak. AKA animals that were trapped in the tar. Hence, the Dire Wolves became trapped themselves.

The LACMA, unfortunately, did not have many exhibits open that Ryan and I were too excited about (the photography one was closed!). Plus we were tired from walking all over the tar pits. We did take pictures outside where they have tons of street lights in rows that are pretty cool.

I know I say I hate LA (which I do) but I am not so hateful to say that it doesn’t have cool things to do. Hence our list.

IOWA!!!

Over the 4th of July, Ryan, Summer and I traveled halfway across the country to Sioux City, Iowa, the beautiful city that I spent 8 years of my childhood. It was awesome! I have always been thankful for the time that I spent there, for the snow filled winters, firefly filled summers and good ‘ole Midwest values. Even though I had not been back for over 7 years, Iowa is and has always been a huge part of who I am. I like to say I am a unique combination of Sioux City & San Diego.

Anyways, Ryan and I stayed with my cousin Kristin and her family (I wish I had taken a picture of her beautiful guest room) and Summer stayed with our Aunt Marly. We had such a wonderful time! We were able to get to know our adorable second cousins: Trey, Bryce, Shelbee & Aubree, which was a ton of fun. We BBQ'd at Brian and Mel's and celebrated the 4th at Marly & David's. We also spent several visits with our 92-year-old grandpa who still lives on his own-can you believe it?! It was so special to spend time with our Iowa family. They were wonderful hosts & made us feel very welcome.

We were also thrilled to spend the day (her birthday!) with one of my best friends, Lindsay Domke, her beautiful daughter (and my niece!) Olivia, and her sister Laura. Olivia was the flower girl in my wedding. It was such a treat to see them so soon after their trip to California. Lindsay and I were in the same preschool in Sioux City and then became best friends in the 4th grade and have somehow managed to stay in touch through the years. She and Olivia live in Minnesota now. I am so blessed to have incredible relationships like this one!

Ryan was lucky enough to get the Joiner Family/Sioux City tour, complete with every house we lived in, every park we loved, every great friend's house we had, (and yes, Dana, even where Summer, Lindsay D. and I were chased by a bear AND cow), etc. He has been to San Diego numerous times and gotten to know my life there well, so having him experience the other part of what makes me "me" was special for us. He really enjoyed the trip, Sioux City, and meeting my family and friends. While the South and the Mid-West are very different, they also have plenty of wholesome similarities.

To check out more pictures from the trip (have I mentioned that my talented hubby is also an excellent photographer?!) click here: Dappygolucky.com

One last thing-we caught fireflys and did our own fireworks- two things I love to do!!

Galaxy Game VIP Style

My most favorite sister Summer came up to LA yesterday (YAY!!). She, Ryan and I went to our first Galaxy game at the Home Depot Center. The Galaxy is the LA soccer team, for those of you who don't know. The main reason you would have heard of them is because David Beckham recently joined the team.

Anyways, we were gifted box seats which were pretty cool, although, sadly, no free food came with the seats, which is the way to this girl's heart. We are happy to report that the Galaxy won (unquestionably due to our attendance) and we can now say we've all been to a professional soccer game in the US.

It was to be expected, but the game did not even come close to my professional soccer experience in Buenos Aires, Argentina. That was probably one of the most dangerous things I did in BA (and boy did we do some sketch things) just because soccer is SUCH a big deal down there and the fans are so hardcore. I've never heard so many Spanish curse words yelled in chants before or since...

My Girls

I just came across this AWESOME picture and decided to share it with the world. These are three of my best friends.

Alysha (3rd from the left) and I were randomly assigned to the same suite freshman year of college at Pepperdine (a suite consisted of 4 rooms with 2 people per room & 1 joint living area). After one semester we became rommates and have never looked back. She is my country, chill, loyal, responsible, married for 5 years already, up for anything best friend. I am VERY upset to say that she lives in Colorado and therefore miles away from where she should be-with me.

Valoria (1st on the left) and I were in the same freshman seminar class at Pepperdine-the social action and justice colloquial. Not too far into the class a bunch of people were talking about partying and I discovered that she also didn't drink. She seemed nice and chill. I, of course, walked right up to her and told her that we should be friends. And so we were. :) She is my deep conversation, honest, she'll ask anything at any time, hardworking, passionate best friend. She got married 2 months after I did, so we now have to share each other with our husbands....so far it's working out but we'll see.

Claire (furthest to the right) and I fell in love in Argentina (it's so exotically romantic!) our sophomore year while studying abroad through Pepperdine's international program (Alysha & Valoria both stayed in Malibu that year). She is my responsible, artistic, keeps me in line, likes to have a good time as long as there are rules, no nonsense best friend. She and I are currently living out each other's location dreams-I in LA and her in SD. We were roommates for almost 4 years before we left each other for our hubbies.

(all three were bridesmaids at my wedding)

I love these girls. They each represent a part of who I am. They each have incredible and unique attributes and talents that they offer their husbands, families, friends and the world at large. I am so blessed to have them in my life, to learn from and to grow with. I know they will all impact this world in a wonderfully gigantic way and I am excited to be a witness.

Why does my husband keep breaking?!

Ryan smashed his big toe. Not stubbed, not bruised, not slightly cut. Smashed. He and one of his co-workers were carrying a heavy piece of furniture at work and his co-worker lost control and dropped the furniture on Ryan's foot. Lots of blood ensued. Thankfully, it is not broken, but (stop reading now if you are squirmish) the doc had to burn a hole in his nail to relieve pressure and drain blood. Ryan is supposed to wear an open-toe boot and use crutches so it can heal. Plus keep it elevated as often as possible (see above photo).

The poor guy is hobbling around in lots of pain. The average person definitely does not think about how functional her big toe is on a daily basis but Ryan is now. The Dapremont Family Reunion is this weekend in New Orleans so he is super excited about traveling with crutches and hobbling around the French Quarter in pain...that was sarcasm. Hopefully it will be much better by Friday night!

Taylor & Gwen Williams: Pretty in Pink

My single friends are dropping like flies. SERIOUSLY. But that's a whole other blog post.

This past weekend Ryan was in his previous roommate Taylor's wedding as a groomsman...and I manned the guestbook with my trusty partner Claire. She and Aaron came up and stayed with us on Saturday, which was fun (especially since they made us pancakes Sunday morning!). Taylor & Gwen started dating the same summer that Ryan and I started dating. Boy, did Taylor pursue that girl! After that summer, she went to Europe to study abroad for 8 months. He sent love letters, flowers, care packages, etc. Determination pays off!

They had a beautiful, bright wedding in Stauffer Chapel at Pepperdine, which is where I would have been married if we had tied the knot in LA. In front of the chapel is my favorite place on campus (it looks out across the ocean). Taylor and Gwen are in Hawaii on their honeymoon and then off to Dallas to start their new life together. We hope they find nothing but happiness in the Lone Star State.

Cory & Kirstin Peters

Last weekend Ryan and I went to my friend Cory’s wedding. Well, Cory is more a part of the Joiner family than a friend. We lived just down the street from each other for 7 years and even after we moved, he would come to my parent’s house in Hemet for some holidays. And let me tell you, he’s as annoying of a brother as they come!!

Anyways, by the grace of God, Cory met Kirstin and convinced her to marry him. She is awesome and Summer and I are so happy to welcome her to the family, too. Their wedding was beautiful (same colors as ours!) and lots of fun. The best part was seeing how happy the bride and groom were. Cory and I give each other a hard time (my mom would say we fight like a cat and dog) but it makes my heart SO happy to see him this happy (not to mention my relief that he has Kirstin to guide him through life). I pray for years and years of happiness and laughter for them.