Pebble Beach with Cousin Linda.

A few weekends ago, I had the incredible opportunity to drive up north to Pebble Beach, CA.  My cousin, Linda, lives there and was ready for our company so she invited us up.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Pebble Beach, it is a private residential area where the US Open Golf Tournament is held every year.  You can pay a fee to enter the beach and do what's called 17 Mile Drive.  There are fantastic houses, golf courses (that cost bucco bucks to play on), the beach, and even deer!  And Monterey, CA is about 15 minutes away!

So, my oldest sister, Traci and her husband, Chris, came and picked me up and we made the 7 hour drive.  First we decided to stop and eat lunch in Carmel.  Carmel is a cute little area with tons of little shops and restaurants.  I ended up getting a couple of really cute magnets.  One says, "I'm pretty certain that given a cape and a tiara I could save the world."  How adorable is that?

Anyway, we made it to cousin Linda's  and I have to admit that she is THEE greatest hostess I've EVER had!  Better than any fancy hotel I've ever stayed in!  Plus, she's adorable and SO much fun!  I had my own room and bathroom and so did my traveling companions.  She even taxi drove us to the Monterey Aquarium and picked us up because she didn't want us to get lost.  Just adorable!

(Thee biggest donut we've ever seen!)

The Monterey Aquarium was fantastic!  Oh, did I mention that we got in free because her brother, sister in law and their friend had passes they let us use?  Yeah.  Awesome.  The Aquarium was a lot of fun!  And it's the first place I've ever seen a couple of 7 Gilled Sharks in real life!  It was plenty of fun!

(First 7 Gilled Shark in real life!)

(One of the many Leopard Sharks in the Kelp Forest Habitat)

Cousin Linda then picked us up and made us dinner -- delicious enchiladas and salad with yummy cilantro ranch dressing!  (We got the recipe for that one.)  Great conversations and lots of hugging.

The next day, we went to Big Sur.  On the way there, we stopped at a national park and did a little hiking, taking some pictures of the gorgeous beaches.  Afterward, we had lunch at this fantastic Moroccan-ish place, called Nepenthe.  It was so good and had a beautiful view, since it was literally on a cliff above the ocean.  And of course, we had to scope out the gift shop where Traci got some awesome cards.  My favorites include:

"Since you're older, can you pay?"

and

"I cannot wait for the endless conversations about your new baby."

Hahaha!  Awesome.

(Cousin Linda, Tra and me)

(One of the views at the National Park)

Later that night, we decided to make dinner for Cousin Linda, her brother, Don and his wife, Susie.  traci and I were more like "the help" while Chris made Morton's Steakhouse's Chicken Christopher and lava cakes!  It was soooo yummy!  And again, lots of fun conversations and hugs!

(Having the time of our lives! Linda, me, Don, Susie, Chris and Traci)

It was such a good time going back there after having not been there for several years!  I told Cousin Linda I'd come visit more often.  I can't wait for the next time!!

Paranormal Porterville.

On Memorial Day Weekend I took my friend Stephanie on a road trip with me.  Now this wasn't just any road trip, no.  This was a road trip all about the paranormal.  Yes, ghosts.  And not just any paranormal filled weekend, but one that included Amy Bruni, Britt Griffith (both from Syfy's Ghost Hunters) and Rex (from Destination Truth).

The trip entailed a 3 1/2 hour car ride to Porterville, CA, which is just past Bakersfield off the 99 (which is off of the 5 past the Grapevine for any of you wondering).  On the way there, after sitting for what seemed like hours in traffic up The Grapevine, we pulled into a Sonics since they are so far away and we never get to consume their delicious tots.  After a meal of cheeseburgers, tots and cherry limeades, we continued our drive to our destination:  The Holiday Inn Express, Porterville.  We basically went to bed as soon as we got into our room.  After all, we both worked before the road trip.

The next morning we decided to check the place out.  Because we'd never been to this small town, we wanted to see it all!  We were actually looking for a McDonald's for a quick breakfast.  We ended up in Denny's, right next door to our hotel.  We ate our delicious, fattening (and gluten filled) meal, we picked up my friend April from the hotel (who'd driven separately) and headed to The Barn Theater.

We walked into the theater to heck in and I had a little conversation with Britt's wife, Holly.  April spoke with Britt since it turns out they live in neighboring cities.  I found Amy at the end of the check in table and asked to take a picture with her.  She obliged and was so sweet and shy!

(Remember when Amy Bruni and I were BFF's?)

We then went to the 5 hour lecture (which included a break almost every hour) and learned a lot about the equipment they use, etc.  It was really interesting actually!  They showed a few clips too, not on the show and we were very entertained!  It was really funny too because at one point during a break, Steph, April and I were talking about our O.P.I. nail polish.  Mine was called 'Vodka and Caviar.'  April was trying to recall the name of hers and said 'Sex' about 3 times before Britt finally turned to us and asked us if we said 'sex?'  He then proclaimed he wanted to be on our team!  Haha!

We then broke up into 4 groups (of about 20, unfortunately) and went to our designated places to investigate.  We checked out The Zalud House, The Santa Fe Train Depot (now a senior center), The Porterville Museum and The Barn Theater.  We had a few fun experiences, but for the most part I was just annoyed with all of the other people.  This one couple had a digital camera and without warning anyone, flashed a bajillion pictures.  By the way, we were in dark...

(Ghost Hunters sandwich with Amy Bruni and Britt Griffith.)

While we were with Britt and Rex in the train depot, we were all sitting at tables in one room with the lights out.  There was a shadow that moved across a platform a couple times!  We decided to do an EVP session (electronic voice phenomenon, where you have a digital recorder and record your team asking questions.  When you review it, sometimes you can catch a voice that wasn't there the time you were recording it).  There was a noise, which I thought was the ice machine (Britt later corrected me) and when a couple people went down the hall, a door closed on its own.  No joke!  There was no breeze and no A/C!  Pretty cool huh?

(The Zalud House.)

(Porterville Museum welcome sign.)

(Santa Fe Train Depot.)

While we were in The Barn Theater, we were sitting in a circle on the stage doing an EVP session and Steph, April and I started getting really cold while our backs were facing stage left.  Raven, the gal leading the session, busted out her thermometer and said the room went from 76 degrees to 73.1 degrees!  They had previously checked for any drafts and A/C, etc.  Pretty interesting stuff!

At 2:30am, we finally got back to our hotel completely spent.  Bedtime.

The next morning we went around the town and took pictures of the town as well as the places we investigated.  Then it was time to drive to the outlets in Tulare!  Mandatory Banana Republic visit!

It was such a fun weekend!  I learned a lot and met some new people.  Not to mention I met another one of my girl crushes!  Yay!!

The Unplanned Adventures of Sisters... (Part Three)

(Mount Shasta. And yes, that is crap on the windshield..)

And so we were on our way back to California. Destination, San Jose.

The trip back to California went by pretty quick thanks to awesome music on the iPods and beautiful scenery. We were sure to wave to my brother as we drove past his exit. there were tons of deer on at the shoulders of the freeways just chilling in the shade or chewing on some plants. I don't think I've ever seen so many of them at the side of the highway (alive that is)...

We arrived in San Jose a little after 11pm. I drove up to the Winchester Mystery House since this was our plan for the morning. Ashley has never been so I wanted to be sure she experienced the construction plans of Sarah Winchester. (More on that in a second.) We ended up staying in a motel that proved to be shady and very creepy. When we got our key, it was an actual key with the plastic keychain with the room number on it. It made both of us think of the John Cusack movie Identity... We opened the door to be pummeled by the smell of cigarette smoke. Ugh.. After we grabbed our stuff, including our bedding for we refused to sleep in their blankets and sheets, we were met by an army of bugs. Then Ashley came out of the bathroom and told me how it looked like someone had just taken a shower in there. In short, it was disgusting and creepy. We ended up barricading the front door with one of the big armchairs. then Ashley said "I've seen tis movie. Can we please put the other chair in front of the closet door?" I was more than happy to.

Needless to say, we made it through the night.

the Winchester Mystery House was so worth the $26! We did our usual thing of being the last people on the tour so we could take heaps of pictures. Let me give you a background on this mansion...

Sarah Winchester was the wife of the man who made Winchester rifles, etc. He died along with their child. After this, Sarah Winchester was told by a psychic that she needed to keep on building and adding on to the mansion to confuse the spirits that killed her husband and child, for they were the same spirits of those killed by the Winchester guns. The construction of the mansion lasted 30ish years, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, until she died.

(The stairway to nowhere)

(The door to nowhere)

In this house, there are stairs that lead to a ceiling, a door to nowhere on the 2nd floor, doors opening to walls, etc. We were very amused. She even had a seance room where she "met" with the spirits to tell her where to build next. This is also where she spied on her servants.

It was great fun and Ashley and I thoroughly enjoyed it! Oh, by the way, yes. Ghost Hunters did investigate there but could find no proof of a haunting. :)

(The supposedly haunted ballroom)

(Our tour guide, Ash -- and some Orbs!!!)

We continued on our way back home. As we rode, I read my "Haunting In California" book that I had bought from the gift shop. It just so happened the highway we were driving on had some paranormal activity! Pretty cool to read it as we drove on it. Of course, we are skeptics and nothing happened to us. We drove through Mount Shasta and The Grapevine and got caught in traffic in LA. We were finally home!! :D

(More pix from the great unplanned roadtrip Part Two-Seattle)

(The blog for these Seattle pix is posted below.)

(Me and Nya ready to Ghost Hunt in Seattle's Underground!)

(Sometimes you just can't help modeling when there's a wind. Ash and I thought so...)

(My bf at Pike's Market. Not the guy yelling, but the dude with the hat.)

(I totally wanted to put coins in this pig! I thought it was a big piggy bank!)

(We're on a troll trick!)

The Unplanned Adventures of Sisters... (Part One)

On June 3, my niece Anne Cosette was born to my sister in law Trudie and brother VJ. I had to go meet her. After all, I've met my other nieces and nephew soon after they were born and Cozy was no different. Plus, I'm unemployed and I have never taken a roadtrip up the west coast!

So my baby sister Ashley and I embarked on our journey. We left at 1:00 in the afternoon and planned on arriving for the last tour at the Winchester Mystery House. The Godfather (aka, our dad) presented the Tom Tom and showed us how to use it. "Francois" as he came to be known thanks to a previous trip, was quite helpful!

We were on our way. We had the typical roadtrip food of peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, beef jerkey, granola bars, waters and diet coke. We were on our way!

We got to San Jose an hour after the last tour for the Winchester Mystery House. We decided to do it on the way home instead. (Plus we missed the exit entirely so we headed to San Francisco looking for a Del Taco.) Ashley has never driven in San Francisco so it was quite entertaining :) Somehow, we ended up on Lombard St. (one of the crookedest streets in the world!) as Del Taco mocked us. By now it was after 9pm and we weren't sure where to go from here. That's when we decided, hey, why don't we just camp? There's tons of campgrounds up here, let's find a Target! And that we did! So, we bought a two man tent and some emergency blankets. We already had our own bedding, food, flashlight, etc. As we started to continue north, we decided to stop by our cousin Lindy and Leonard's house in Santa Rosa. They were more than happy to see us on our surprise visit! We stayed about an hour and they insisted we stay the night, but we had our hearts set on camping after purchasing that tent! so we bid them adieu and were on our way! Francois gave us plenty of options of campgrounds and Ashley was set on Mt. Cucumber (which, was actually called Mt. Cumber, but she blames this mistake on the fact that she was driving).

(Ash, Lindy, Leonard and I in Santa Rosa. I can't tell you how many times we were offered wine. Such hospital family, I love them!)

After Lindy and Leonard's it was my turn to drive. Now as most of you know, I am a part-time insomniac and sleeping in the car is pretty much impossible for me. So, Ashley gave me one of her fat burners to help me out. The camp site was only 3 hours away. I could make it!

At 5:30am, after the sun had come up and I decided it would be best to just drive as far as we could, since I was wired, I pulled over into a rest stop. We pulled the sleeping pads that Lindy and Leonard offered us over the windows and slept. For about 4 hours. I couldn't sleep anymore so we headed to my brother's.

We finally arrived just before 1:00 in the afternoon. We were greeted by my niece Jackie (JK) and nephew Owen (O), as well as my brother making us some Boca burgers for lunch. Trudie came home from the grocery store and we were able to meet Cozy (or Annie Pie as O likes to call her). Nothing less than adorable! She is a tiny little thing and looks more like a cross between JK and O than anything. She's precious!

(Anne Cosette having "tubby time")

After we talked and rested a bit (well, Ashley did, I had no intention of sleeping till bedtime) we decided to take the kids to the pool, leaving Tru and Cozy behind to nap. The pool in Portland is at the high school and MAN, this is the COOLEST pool I've ever seen! It has a little frog slide in the wading pool, a diving board, a big waterslide like at the water parks, a whirlpool with another whirlpool inside of it that goes faster. Not a jacuzzi, but an actual whirlpool, like a lazy river! Ashley and I swam with JK and had a blast! O was with VJ and we met up later on. then we headed to the diving board where JK showed us how far she could jump off. It was a blast!

(JK, Ash and I underwater at the coolest pool I've ever seen)

Later in the evening, VJ took Ash and I to downtown Portland. We went to his favorite book store in the world, Powells. This place is HUGE. Now when I see a bookstore, it's like seeing something shiny -- I can't help myself. Luckily, I was too tired to look for more than one book, so I escaped with only one. Then we headed out for some gelato and then dinner at PF Changs. By the end of the night, 11:30pm when we left the restaurant, we crashed hard.

The next morning we were pleased as we were able to sleep in till 9am thanks to VJ and Trudie restraining their kids. :) Then we were off to church. Ashley and I chose to walk back to the house and take in the fresh air and the beauty that is Lake Oswego. When VJ returned, he took us on a little field trip to The View Point Inn, which coincidentally, is where they filmed the prom scene for Twilight! How adorable is our brother?? JK and O walked around with us checking the place out marveling at the view. Then we were off to the waterfalls! We did a small hike and enjoyed the waterfall and river. We made a couple other stops then headed back to the house.

It was such a blast playing with JK and O and meeting Cozy! She is such a good baby! I couldn't help but laugh when my little sister attempted to hold her. As soon as she was in her arms, she began to cry. That's when Ashley let me know of her fear of newborns, ha ha! VJ handed Cozy to Ashley one more time and I quickly shot a picture.

The next day, we were awoken at 7:30 (well, I was as Owen came in to check on me). This was totally permitted because I wanted to spend as much time with them before we headed to Seattle that evening. This time, we went to the park, leaving VJ at home to work. The kids road bikes and we walked over to the nearest park. It was hilarious because Owen decided to keep his bike helmet on while he was playing on the playground. He was the special kid on the slide, ha ha! Good thing he had it on though because he fell a couple of times. Hey, he's only 2 1/2... We had a picnic there and watched the kids play then headed back home.

After our goodbye's (and a bit more playing) we were off to Seattle!