California August 2025 - Los Altos and Los Angeles Part II

 When I left off we were about to fly to LA.....

L to R: Lee, Scott, Susan, me, Amy, Mark, Barbie, Jim, Michael

Saturday

Our flight to LA was quick and easy, about 40 minutes. We retrieved our bag without a problem (after almost leaving our garment bag with Lee’s tux and my dress on the plane!!!).Then we tried to find the Lyft pickup area. What a nightmare! There are signs that point the way to the Ride Share area, supposedly, but no driver is allowed to stop at those areas. We finally asked someone but their explanation didn’t help much. “Walk that way 5 minutes”. Walk where and why? Finally a bus that said “to Ride Share Area” stopped at one of the signs. We started to get on the bus but the driver told us that if we got on the bus it was a 30 minute drive to the Ride Share parking lot, but if we walked FIVE MINUTES THAT WAY we would be there. Oh! Once we figured out their system we were fine but a little clear signage would have been very helpful. That was the worst Ride Share system I’ve seen yet. Hand it to LAX to screw up something that should be pretty straightforward.

Fortunately our driver was very patient. He said it happens every day. I bet it does.

The drive from the airport to the hotel took about 50 minutes. Rush hour on a Friday in LA. Fortunately our driver could use the express lane so it wasn’t too bad. Our hotel is in Koreatown. It’s kind of a rundown area of LA, that is slowly gentrifying. 

The hotel is fine, just kind of odd. The walls in the halls and the rooms are covered with distressed concrete. I’m sure it’s supposed to look cool but it mainly looks like it’s under construction. The room was designed to be arty, but only barely functional. Absolutely no place to hang a towel. No drawers to use to unpack. No place to put a suitcase (so we put ours on top of the desk, lol). And instead of a coffee table in the small sitting area there was a somewhat dangerous piece of art that looked like a bunch of blocks. I told Lee to be sure to steer clear of it if he got up in the middle of the night!

We had time to change clothes before it was time to head to dinner at a Korean bbq place. Supposedly the “good” ones don’t take reservations and you have to get in line for them at 5, but we made reservations at one for 7, and it turned out to be great. We ordered a combo meal which was way way way too much food, but we got 3 different kinds of meat, veggies, lots of sides, and salad. I can’t possibly list all the sides, but my favorites were the kimchi (of course), the kimchi rice, the corn with cheese, the pickled daikon. There were sweet potato noodles, rice paper, oxtail soup (dislike) and bolgogy (which I never even tried). I’m sure there were other things too but I forget. Hanu K BBQ.

It was fun and delicious. We had so much left over but oh well.

From there we went straight to the welcome party at All Seasons Brewery. It was in a nicer part of town. They had a section of the brewery cordoned off for us and we got pink wristbands for the open bar. Nice! There was food too but we were not hungry!

It was great to see my cousins. Amy, Mark, their kids, Barbie (the MOG), Susan and Scott Holt, Michael and Jim. We sat at a high top and screamed at each other for a while because it was INSANELY loud in there!

Lee and I left a little after nine and when we got outside I told Lee I felt like I had just been to a rock concert! 

I woke up early, unfortunately, especially since there wasn’t any coffee available until 6:30! I got a coffee and a blueberry scone and a coffee and a croissant for Lee at the coffee shop in the lobby, although he slept until after 8!

I used Strava to figure out a running route. I ran along Wilshire toward the nicer area and then back along a residential street. I think tomorrow I’ll just run on the residential streets, out and back. It felt good to run, but the first mile was a little sketchy.

We ate brunch at a restaurant across the street from the hotel. Now we’re just sitting in the hotel lobby, mostly waiting for our room to be cleaned and for it to warm up a little. then we’ll go sit by the pool instead.

Sunday.

The pool was very nice, hot in the sun, very comfortable in the shade. My cousin Susan and her husband Scott were there and after a while other cousins showed up as well. We had a nice time sitting around chatting. I put my feet in the water to cool off but didn’t bother to swim. I didn’t want to take another shower!

Around 3:30 it was time to head up to the room to get ready for the wedding. Amy and I were both complaining about the terrible lighting in the bathrooms making it hard for us makeup challenged ladies to apply our faces. She took her makeup mirror over to the window. I don’t carry a makeup mirror since MOST nice hotels supply one (but not this one!). I took the book lamp into the bathroom and that helped.

I really liked the dress I rented from Nuuly this time. It was a lovely bright pink in satiny material with a subtle flower design. It fit me perfectly! When we went down to the lobby Susan and Scott were already there. Guess what? Susan’s dress was pink as well! And when Mark and Amy came down Amy’s dress was, guess what? Pink! We got a picture of all three of us together. What are the odds!

Off to the venue, The Ebell of Los Angeles. They let us inside around 5:15. The ceremony was outside in a garden. Some of the chairs were on a grassy slope, some on a balcony, some on a patio. It was a little unusual. Fortunately the weather was still perfect, low 70’s with a little breeze.

We all waited patiently. They were a little late getting started but before too long it began. First came their dog, haha. Then Tarek with his mom and dad, Barbie my cousin and her ex, Wahel. Then the bridesmaids and groomsmen. There was no room for them to stand around the alter so they all sat down. The flower girls were adorable in their little pink dresses. Their dad had to help them walk down the aisle (their mom was one of the bridesmaids, Alex’s big sister). The little girls were twins and they did a great job scattering their flowers.

Then we turned around and Alex appeared at the top of a staircase with her mother and father. She was absolutely a vision in loveliness. I think the entire wedding party gasped and sighed in admiration. We soon had tears in our eyes. I basically cried throughout the ceremony, and so did Lee. Their vows were incredibly moving and their officiant was very good. He even had us all close our eyes and breathe for a bit after the vows because we were all feeling so emotional.

After the ceremony there was a cocktail hour, both inside and out. Good drinks, great snacks and hor deoveres.  They had this very interesting thing that was a part of Vietnamese culture where you could pick some spices, put them in a large jug of water, and write on a card why you chose the ones you did. I chose a star anise because it’s pretty and versatile. Supposedly they will drink this concoction on their first anniversary! Sounds kind of gross to me! Then they herded us into the area where we had dinner. 

We sat at a table with all my cousins. I sat next to Scott. He's been married to my cousin Susan for years and years but I had never really talked to him much before. He asked me lots of questions about all sorts of things. It was an interesting conversation.

The dinner was pretty meh, but I’d had lots of snacks beforehand so I didn’t care. The toasts were fun. I loved Alex’s parent’s toasts, once again very moving. And I loved her sister’s toast! Her sister is 8 years older and the toast was all about her relationship with her baby sister and how they became the best of friends. All the toasts were great.

I hardly knew Tarek at all. He is over 10 years younger than my kids, and we’ve never lived anywhere close to Barbie and her family since they left St. Louis. I first met Alex earlier this year when my Aunt Ray passed away. But after this wedding I feel like I know both of them much better.

After dinner there were desserts, coffee and dancing. I snagged some desserts (okay a LOT of desserts, they were great) and we snuck out soon after. It was after 10 and we were tired.

I slept until 6:45 this morning, yay! I went to the gym and rode a bike for a little while then came back to the room and packed. We’ll go to the farewell brunch in a little bit, check out, and head to the airport.

We had a great time at this wedding. I have lots and lots of cousins, and I'm the oldest one, so all their kids are gradually getting old enough to get married. We're going to another wedding in October! I love weddings!

RV Camping with Leo and Kirby August 2025

 Well oops! I forgot to post about this year's RV camping trip before I started posting about California! So you'll have to wait a little bit before you can read about LA and the wedding we went to.

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L to R: Owen 10 yo, Leo 7 yo, Kirby 5 yo, Lula 5 yo, Jack 5 yo, Grace 7 yo. Not pictured: Henry 12 yo.

This year we decided to try a different state park. The boys are older and they have done this before so we were ready for a new adventure. Minnesota has really great, well maintained state parks. We decided to try Whitewater, in southern Minnesota. It is close to where Cathy and JA live so they have joined us, with 5 of their grandkids.

We left on Friday. It’s over 2 hours to Whitewater from our house. I’ve been working on a baby blanket to sell at the Arboretum Auxiliary sales and I got a lot done while we drove. The boys were very good in the car, even though they got bored, of course. At some point I showed them on the google maps display where it showed us how many minutes we had left to drive. “20 minutes!” “10 minutes” “5 minutes!” We got a play by play for the rest of the drive.

It is very warm and humid this weekend, unfortunately. Thank God for RV’s and air conditioning! Cathy and JA only have a little Scamp RV, no room for 5 kids, so their kids slept in a tent. I hope they had a fan last night.

We found our campsite and fortunately for us we have good shade in the afternoon. While Lee got us set up, Cathy showed up and the boys and I walked with her to the beach. We brought Sophie too but left Harper in the aircon.

It was only about .6 miles to the beach on a trail through the woods, but it seemed a lot longer because we didn’t know where we were going, also it was beastly hot. Finally there it was, a wide sandy spot along the river. The water was brown, but cool. I waded in but not too far since I didn’t have my bathing suit on. The other kids were there with JA. At first everyone was kind of shy with each other; it had been a year since they had seen Leo and Kirby, but that didn’t last long.

The walk back to the campsite didn’t take nearly as long. We just hung out at the campsite, eating snacks and eventually dinner. Those kids were hungry! They ate almost 2 hotdogs apiece, a half of a watermelon, lots and lots of chips and veggies. The adults had bbq’d pulled pork sandwiches, slaw, watermelon, veggies and a beer (or two). We were all tired. Kids have so much energy, though! Besides the long drive, and hiking back and forth to the beach, they also played impromptu games of soccer and baseball.

By eight pm we were all ready to turn in. While Lee took the boys to the showers I took a sponge bath in the RV and got the dogs ready for bed. We made the table into a bed, and just like last year, asked the boys if they thought they could sleep together and not bother each other, otherwise we would have to split them up. They promised they would be quiet and surprise! They actually fell right asleep. They WERE tired!

In the morning I slept until almost 6, yay! I tried to be quiet when I got up but the boys were awake soon after me. I had a cup of coffee in bed and once the boys were up we made their bed back into a table and ate lots of banana bread, nectarines and bananas. Eventually the other kids came over; they wanted breakfast too. We had a lot of frozen pancakes and bacon, with strawberries and whipped cream too. Easy to make in the microwave. Leo and Kirby both had second breakfasts!

While we were hanging out after breakfast it started to rain. Not a surprise, we knew there was a chance today. It didn’t last long and we have the awning up and the food tent over the picnic table as well. It’s kind of gloomy out right now. Lee and the boys and Sophie have gone up to the Visitor’s Center to check the weather because we don’t have any connectivity at the campsite. I’ll have to do that later so I don’t break my Wordle streak!

We have a couple of possibilities for today. The boys want to go fishing, of course. JA and Henry want to go climb the fire tower. I’d like to go do that too, but my knees have been bothering me on stairs so I don’t know if I can. I might go with them and see how far I get.

Well the lull in the rain didn’t last long. Without internet we had no idea that a HUGE band of thunderstorms was headed our way. It started to rain again, hard. In fact it poured, off and on, for about 3 hours. There was so much rain that the RV awning would start to buckle and we’d have to roll it up for a while.

I thought the boys would be bored but they did a great job of entertaining themselves. They played cards, mostly crazy eights. We started killing flies and they really got into it. They worked on murdering flies for a couple hours. I taught them how to play concentration and they thought that was really fun.

Eventually the rain let up. Everyone except Cathy and I went fishing. I took Sophie for a short walk and then Cathy and I hung out together for a while, knitting and crocheting, respectively.

Fishing didn’t last too long. The river was flooded and muddy and the fish were nowhere to be found. After lunch and snacks Lee and I decided to take Sophie for another walk. Leo and Kirby stayed behind with Cathy, JA and the rest of the kids.

We mostly walked around the different campsite loops. Lee went back but Sophie and I walked some more. I’m not used to sitting around so much! As Sophie and I start heading back we see a little boy sitting by the side of the road. It’s Kirby, all by himself! I’m pretty shocked, and confused too. I can’t get two words out of him about how he ended up there. I make him take my hand and we start heading back to the RV. Before very long we run into Cathy and Lula, going the other way, on their way to the beach. Now I’m even more confused, and Cathy is upset because she thought Kirby was with JA and the rest of the kids. Neither of us can understand how Kirby got left behind without anyone noticing and he’s still not talking.

Cathy takes Kirby and they go on to the beach and Sophie and I head back to the RV. I’m getting more and more upset. How did Kirby get separated from the others? What could have happened?

Cathy is back before too long and she has an explanation. Apparently as Cathy, Kirby and Lula were walking here comes JA and the rest of the kids, looking for Kirby. JA is visibly relieved to see Kirby. “There you are!” he exclaimed. What happened was they were walking to the beach and Kirby took off running ahead of everyone and didn’t stop even though everyone was yelling at him. The road curves to the right and Kirby was soon out of sight. The trail to the beach heads off the road to the left at the curve. They didn’t know if Kirby had run ahead on the trail or continued on the road.

To Kirby’s credit once he had realized that he had lost everyone else he stopped and waited. And this is why I couldn’t get an explanation out of him. He knew he had made a bad decision and he didn’t want to own up to it! The scary part is that he was past the turnoff on to the trail to the beach so it might have taken them a little while to find him. But now that we know what happened Lee and I need to have a talk with the boy. Oh Kirby, I love you so, and sometimes you really scare me.

Cathy made chili mac for dinner. It was delicious! The rest of the evening was uneventful. The kids played some complicated game that seemed to be a combination of tag and hide and go seek and involved a lot of running and laughing. We made a fire and the grownups sat around chatting and occasionally yelling at a kid or two.

I went to the showers before bed. Lee said they were nice but I thought they were kind of marginal. The water came in 5 minute intervals and the first 5 minutes it was cold. I braved it because what else could I do? The second 5 minutes it warmed up, thank goodness. 

The boys fell asleep while Lee was reading to them. I slept until 6:30 and Lee slept until after 7! I guess we were tired!

In the morning Cathy brought over breakfast - cinnamon raisin bread, yogurt, granola, bananas. We had strawberries and the peaches were ready too. Great breakfast! After that it was time for us to get ready to go home, and it started to rain again too. We managed to get everything taken apart and stored in between bursts of rain and before too long we were on our way.

It was a great camping trip. I’m so glad Cathy, JA and their grandkids were able to come. It was fun to watch them all play together. I’m not even sure I minded the rain very much. It was awfully hot that first day, and the rain cooled everything off.

We might as well enjoy these trips while we can. Before we know it the boys will be too busy with their own activities, and we’ll be too old.