A Riddle Easter

Our good friends Mara and Aron Riddle came to see us for the weekend. (Thursday evening until this morning.) We met them in Utah a couple years ago and have become closer and closer. They got married in January of this year. Theirs was the wedding I stayed in Utah an extra couple of weeks for during our move to CA. And they moved to Reno a couple days after their honeymoon, so the 4 of us relate well when it comes to change and things happening (too) quickly.

It was a fantastic trip from the minute we saw them. I haven't had this much fun in months. Last night as Paul and I were going to bed, (at 2:30AM after we all played games and laughed until it hurt,) I was about to say to Paul, "I've laughed more this weekend than I have the whole time we've lived here." but he beat me to it and said, "I don't think I've laughed this much in my whole life."

It's always interesting to spend several days with friends who, in the past, has mostly been meeting for lunch, going out to dinner, or spending an evening with them and a group of other friends, etc. Needless to say, the Riddles and the Whites can have a great time for 3 and a half days straight! And we probably could have gone on for a few more. It was sad to say good-bye. And we are so looking forward to seeing them in Reno for 5 days in July.

We made breakfasts, ate out, went to an antique street fair, watched a vintage dog costume contest, the guys went golfing and the girls ate lunch on the golf course patio, went to church, had Easter lunch at my in-laws house, went to the beach, had dinner overlooking the ocean, ate the best mexican food in LA. Although its the best, you don't need to make reservations. ;) Made Easter cupcakes and bird nests, and played cards for hours and hours and hours. I don't think any of us made it to bed before 2AM all weekend. (Except Garrett, he beat us to bed every night by about 4 or 5 hours.)

Lunch at the golf course.Waiting to eat some carnitas. I wish I could explain how amazingly funny this night was, but I just cant.Antique street fair and dog show.A beautiful afternoon at the beach.Some Easter treats that Mara and I made.My charming little man being a good sport for some pictures of him all decked out.Bunny faces.'Mister Charming' in his new onesie and fedora from Aunt Mara and Uncle Aron.Such happy memories we'll have of this time together and we look forward to many more visits back and forth, and vacations together.

I hope you all had a wonderful and happy Easter as well.

games

I love playing games. My family is a game playing family. When we go on vacation we spend a lot of time playing games. And on Sunday evenings after dinner at my parents house that's what we always do. My grandparents, who live less than a mile from my parents love games too, and whenever we visit them it usually ends with games. My mom and I always buy new games at Christmas time, but we always seem to go back to our favorite 3 or 4 games, and they are all card games.

Playing games is something I didn't realize how much I'd miss. When my brother and his wife came to visit, we played games almost every night. I loved it.

I hope Paul and I, in the years to come, have a game playing family. It's a very inexpensive way to have fun and spend time together.

But what sparked this post was a friend of a friends blog. She was writing about their families monthly game night with neighbors and about how the adults play 'Settlers of Catan' the whole evening. Have you ever played that game??

I HATE IT!

I've been unfortunate enough to have a boyfriend, a group of friends, and a couple we had dinner with a couple times in Utah who LOVE this game.

It's so boring, and long, and confusing, and boring. And people who like this game REALLY like it and are so into building homes and roads, and having land and growing stuff, or whatever. I couldn't even begin to explain it. I have to re-learn it every time I play. But every time I've played, which is probably 7 or 8 times, I ALWAYS win. I don't even care about strategies. I watch the other players who are so into it and focus so hard on the smartest move. (Maybe that's why I hate it, no one talks or has fun because they are so serious and focused on their next move.) I always do what looks easiest, or the most colorful place to move, or grow or build. Or I try to make designs with the roads without a bit of care about what it earns me or where it gets me, and I take 1st place every. single. time. It blows peoples minds.

Now that I've written this, I'm making a public vow to never play again. Mainly because I hate it. But also because I'd probably lose now that I've talked about always winning.

This is a picture of the game. It looks boring, right?