Barber / Tran Wedding - California

I'm actually quite upset with myself for letting so much time pass since my last post.  So much has happened since Jenn and Brent's wedding.  One weekend we were in Houston, celebrating the union of one of my best girl friends, and the very next weekend we were heading West to Huntington Beach for yet another blessed union.  This time it was Chad's good friend Mitch's turn to tie the knot.  Two weddings back to back in January!  Luckily for both of them, the weather cooperated (despite having an UNUSUALLY FRIGID winter in Texas).  Not long after we arrived home from California, we got blasted with one of the craziest winter storms the entire U.S. had seen in a looooong time!  So crazy in fact, the corporate kiddies at our office thought we should stay home for awhile.  A long while actually, the ENTIRE WEEK in fact....but thats another blog post entirely.  Back to the task at hand....Mitch and Lan's wedding during one of our shortest trips out to California so far.  (Insert double sad face here because we only got teased with glorious weather for the two days we were there.)  Arriving Friday, and leaving Sunday afternoon, we did what we could to make the most of our time there...hanging out with Chad's family late Friday, early Saturday...then spending time with his friends during and after the wedding on Saturday evening.  Here are a few snaps of the wedding before the drinks came along and we stopped caring about picture taking... lol.  Kidding.  :)

In a little chapel by the sea...

Lan and Mitch exchange their vows..

Introducing for the first time....

Mr. & Mrs. Mitchell Barber :)

All checked into our hotel room, right before the reception :)

Hyatt Regency, Huntington Beach.  It was GLORIOUS!

View from our room

Making our way to the reception

Not too shabby... Overlooking the ocean

Perfect afternoon for a January wedding in California :)

Cocktail hour. :)

Mrs??  Crazy!!  :)  Still getting used to it.  :)

Wardrobe change :)

Doheny Beach, San Juan Capistrano & Family Fun

On our last REAL day in California, we decided to spend the morning checking out the nearby beach in Dana Point where Chad's aunt, uncle and mom were staying temporarily.  Doheny State Beach was just walking distance away and it proved to be a fabulous way to take in the sun on this glorious Sunday morning.  :)

Hundreds of sea gulls...

Taking flight.. 

Only a few people could be seen for what seemed like miles.. 

The water was a bit chilly but felt invigorating on our feet... :)

The sun felt warm and inviting... Ahhhh... I love California :)

Here comes that tiny little wave of water... ;)

Chad trying out our Christmas gift from his mom... 

A super cool portable video camera :)  Thanks Diane, it's awesome!

Heading back to the house...

And finding a BUNCH of these little guys... 

Aren't lady bugs a sign of good luck?!

I swear they were EVERYWHERE on this bridge.. crazy.  

So the itinerary for the rest of the day wasn't set in stone but we did have brunch plans to meet up with Chad's cousin Jeff, chef at a near by country club, his wife Angela and their adorable son Hayden.  Although Jeff was in fact working that day, we took time to enjoy the patio and the gorgeous golf course scenery....oh and of course watch Hayden enjoy his dessert.. lol.  :)  What a ham.  :) :)

Apparently.. it was THAT good!  ;)

I don't even remember what it was that he ate...

but that chocolate sure was a treat!

Lol... :)

After brunch, we took a little detour to visit the Mission of San Juan Capistrano.  It was perfect weather to enjoy the garden, museum and chapel set inside the mission walls.  :)

Ruins set amongst a gorgeous lush garden...

Tiny little doors thoughout.. 

Where people at the mission slept back in the day.. 

museum relics

Not sure the original mission had a fountain of koi fish...

but beautiful none the less.  ;)

Gorgeous

Statue dedicated to Fray Junipero Serra, 

founder of the Mission of San Juan Capistrano

Tiny scale model of what this part of the mission might have looked like

Us, being silly... :)

Awww... ;)

I'm not sure how I feel about this being called the "Poor Box" :/

Loving the architecture

crazy lady popped into my shot... then wouldn't MOVE! lol..

remnants of the original roof.. made of bamboo sticks??

See...tiny, tiny doors everywhere... lol

Apparently there wasn't anyone over 6' back in the day.. 

Entry into the Chapel

HUGE fountain of holy water

still being used today.. 

With my dad's upcoming heart surgery, 

Chad and I took a moment to light a candle in his honor.. 

Love you Dad

So intricate and beautiful...it was hard to focus on just ONE thing

After our tour was over, we headed back to the house to begin preparations for one last get together with Christy, Ryan and the kiddos before our early morning departure the next day.  

More "seek and find" fun, this time with Grandma :)

Chop, chop, choppin' away at those veggies.. 

Grrrrrr.... 

lol... kinda scary Love.. lol.. 

(he was only kidding by the way :)

While I spent some quality time with the kids...

I think by this time I had convinced both Kenzie and Logan to come and live with us in Dallas (I'm sure it was just the excitement of a plane ride that had them saying yes..lol)... Either way, it's a good thing Southwest doesn't charge for extra baggage... lol.  ;)

After dinner it was time to pile onto the couch and watch Christmas Vacation!  Woo Hoo!!

Kenzie... snuggling with Uncle Bob.. 

Then with Grandma and Logan... 

Then finally with Uncle Bob and us on the couch... lol.. 

One big happy family!  

Thanks for a wonderful trip to California guys.. we can't wait to see ya'll again!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!