Events of Late

In recent news, my parents are finally home!  As you can see in the photo below, meeting Dad at LAX was truly a family affair!  Mom arrived back a few days later after spending additional time with her cousin Carol in Richmond, VA.  I fully support grand adventures, but am very glad that everyone is back in CA.

We also had a a fantastic time celebrating the 4th of July, despite its awkward position in the middle of the week.  Lisa and Tim hosted a relaxing family BBQ where we enjoyed beer, swimming and Tim and Lisa's little nephews.  Tim and Lisa, Mike and Sarah, and John and I also took in a very patriotic display at a nearby park.  Take my word for it...4th of July is simply better with a serviceman by your side ;-).

Memorial Day Matrimony and Other Recent Happenings

Greetings!  The last month has been full of activity, including some (ahem) relational developments.  Resorting once again to bullet format, here goes...

• Chris and Ashley Pagel, family friends, were married in Anaheim Hills on May 25.  Congratulations to the happy couple!

• Bridal shower for college friend Jessica in Indio, CA.

• Saw "Chicago" with my friend Debbie at the Pantages. Christie Brinkley and John O'Hurley were in the cast, so it was an extra special treat!

• Started officially dating John about a month ago!  We met at Daughters of the King in February (see previous post :-)) and so far have had tons of fun adventures ranging from Ventura (where he is currently stationed as a Naval officer with the Seabees) to San Diego (his former station).  Our outings have included (but are not limited to) bowling, the San Diego Zoo, hiking, Ojai, hot springs, the shooting range, beaches, movies, a tour of the naval base in Oxnard, rock climbing wall, church softball game, paddleboarding, gun show and a Relay for Life.  Whew!  More fun to come, I'm quite sure :-).

• Visited Laura and her boyfriend in the bay area, and also had the treat of seeing Emily and Jason!

• Many tours of duty as weekend house sitter at Mom and Dad's.  I've enjoyed having the big house to myself, however being away from my own home for the past six weekends has had its challenges as well.  Most importantly, I am so excited to have them back home within the next two weeks! 

Chris and Ashley Pagel, 5/25/2012

Happy bridal shower, Jessica!

"...and all that jazz..."

John is an excellent San Diego tour guide!

Paddleboarding!  (Yes, we're supposed to be standing, but I had just fallen in :-)).

Gun show with Tim and Lisa!  John and Tim salivated over the weapons (Jennifer and Lisa liked the pink ones).

What would an outing with Laura be without a jumping picture (Golden Gate Bridge)?

Jennifer and John walking late-night laps at the Relay for Life at Port Hueneme High School.

Life Ride 2012 Begins!

Today our family celebrated a very unconventional Mothers' Day, as we spent most of the day chasing my dad around.  Mom didn't mind, and I don't think that she or anyone else would have traded the day's activities for anything in the world.  Joining the Crossroads cycling adventure group, Dad pedaled his first day on a cross-country journey that will take him from Los Angeles to Boston over the course of seven weeks.  Proving once again that she is most often thinking of others before herself, Mom is embracing the adventure and driving along as dad's faithful cheerleader and daily blogger.

The day began bright and early with a Pacific Ocean "wheel dip" at Manhattan Beach, where very few of the hard-core riders actually let any of the corrosive salt water touch their bikes.  Next followed the buzzing of group photos and fond farewells as the group prepared to embark on what will no doubt be a life-changing journey.  Appropriately, the readings at Mass yesterday were about love, and Fr. Dave delivered a poignant homily in which he asserted that real love is "showing up" (it was far more eloquent when he said it).  His point truly hit home as two of Dad's co-workers came all the way to Manhattan Beach to see him off, even delivering a stack of cards and notes from others at his office.  Following a similar theme, after years of Dad being at ALL of our events (color guard shows, etc. for me and cross country races, etc. for Lisa) it was fun to cheer him on as he follows his dream of a trans-USA bike ride for the pro-life cause.  So, full of love and excitement, off we were to follow his route!  Coincidentally the riders traveled within 5 miles of my parents' house, so we were able to use our inside knowledge of the area to see him riding at several spots throughout the day.

After an 80-mile haul of riding through heat and smog (it is LA, right?), Dad and the group reached the first overnight stopping point in Riverside, CA.  Sadly this is where Tim, Lisa and I had to say our "goodbyes" and head home to our new house sitting responsibilities.  Although our farewell was bittersweet, the day was absolutely incredible and inspiring!

Bon voyage, Mom and Dad!  Talk to you soon, and we'll be following you on the blog!

The Whirlwind Continues...

I think I may have to resort to bullet format since there's been so much going on these days...

• More bike rides with the family on which I've logged over 200 miles so far for 2012 
• Big Bear weekend with a local young adult group where I met a great new friend, Abbea
• Vegas weekend with my sister where we celebrated both of our belated birthdays, saw La Reve and one of us rode a mechanical bull ;-)
• Lady Antebellum concert with my mom, opened by Darius Rucker and Thompson Square
• 10-mile Bridge to Nowhere hike with a friend where I faced my fear by swimming in cold water and jumping off a rock into the river
• Saw abortion survivor Gianna Jessen speak on Good Friday
• Easter
• Reading Hunger Games, saw movie with my friend Maria
• Best friend Laura moved to San Francisco (deep sadness, random crying continues)
• Planned visit to San Francisco for June :-) (see bullet above)
• Work responsibilities changed again, now working on a bigger and more complex bond fund

Whew! Clearly such a schedule doesn't leave much time for blogging, but I'll try to be better going forward :-)!!!

Daughters of the King

It didn't take much convincing for my friends and I to decide to head south for a San Diego young adult event entitled Daughters of the King. It is a fabulous and unique event at which the men cook dinner for the women, and then host a dance. It was pure magic for a girl who loves eating, dancing and Catholic men ;-). The guys held a Foxtrot lesson, and then constantly asked girls to dance during the open music. They also put together a lovely video about modesty and how appreciative they are of our femininity and beauty as daughters of God. In a world that scoffs at conservative values, it was nice to feel appreciated for those very beliefs. Needless to say, I think we'll be attending again, and many thanks goes out to the wonderful guys who made the evening a success!

The End of an Era

After 3 years of solo living, I decided to put my guest room to work for me financially by getting a roommate. I was incredibly fortunate to meet Erin, leader of the young adult group at the San Juan Capistrano Mission, who wanted to move in! Well today was move-in day and so far so good. Hopefully I'll have more stories of roomie fun coming down the pipeline :-).

January Happenings

January was full of fun! The family celebrated my 26th birthday by venturing out on a "Day in L.A." and seeing some of the tourist attractions that are close to home but often overlooked by locals. Our first stop was the Walt Disney Concert Hall where we embarked on a very interesting free tour. Next, we walked to Olvera Street and soaked up some Mexican culture. Not feeling like Mexican food, we continued on to Felipe's for their famous French dip sandwiches. Before heading home, we stopped by the Los Angeles cathedral, which is absolutely beautiful. Overall we had an excellent family outing. Later in the month Tim, Lisa and I had a great time taking our Christmas gift tennis lesson! With a lot more practice, maybe we can challenge Mom and Dad to a match :-). Game on!