Caught in a whirlwind

So... it's been a lil more than two weeks since our last post.  Whoops!  Life is always wonderfully crazy and busy, but there has been a LOT going on lately and it's like we got caught up in a whirlwind.  Here's just a peek into what has been happening since our trip to NYC:

• Megan went up to Big Bear and stayed at a cabin with friends to celebrate one of her BFF's 30th birthday.  Happy Birthday, Kelly B!
• I ran from our apartment to the Rose Bowl, around the Bowl and back up a hill to our place.  9 miles in total and I felt alive and healthy and amazing afterward!
• I drove to San Diego to celebrate my cousin Jessie's graduation from Cal State San Marcos.  She's the youngest cousin on my Dad's side, she is beautiful, creative, quiet (or quieter than the rest of us cackling hens), and a true joy to be around.
• My BFF Candace's daughter Madison is turning 9 (today actually, Happy Birthday Maddie!), and we celebrated by going to Disneyland!  It's a treat seeing Disneyland through a child's eyes, that place is truly magical and so much fun.
• My BFF Jamie married the love of her life, Tony!  It was almost a week long string of events, and deserves some sub-bullet points...
• BBQ at J&T's house to meet what I called, "Tony's Yeehaw," his older brothers Jackie and Brian, and his best friends Brad and Coy aka TJ.  I walked into a house full of testosterone and beer and thick Texas accents, and I somehow felt right at home.
• Rehearsal at the venue (tears started already) and rehearsal dinner at the infamous Buckhorn Lodge up in Mount Baldy.  Mrs. Unruh performed for us, along with the fantastic band.  The Lodge was set up beautifully and we had a fantastic time.  I also found out that Brad (the best man) sure knows how to twirl a girl around while two-stepping to some country tunes.
• Girl time: getting our nails done, lunch at a delicious Mexican restaurant - Los Jarritos in Pomona, and then dancing and reminiscing at the Brandin' Iron in San Bernardino.  Jamie even rode the bull!  We stayed at Rose's place in Colton so the boys could take over the house for Tony's bachelor party.
• Lots of last minute errands, topped off by a nice Cuban dinner and then sleep over at Jamie's the night before the wedding.  The boys were banished to a local hotel so there was no co mingling during the couple's last night as singles.
• The big day!  Primping and laughing with mimosas, getting dressed up in our gorgeous dresses, and arriving at the venue - the beautiful and historic Lindley-Scott House in Azusa.  An awesome gal that we know from high school, Meghan (Leff) Wiesman of Meghan Wiesman Photography, was the photographer and along with her assistant they did an amazing job!  The ceremony was gorgeous, we had fun taking photos outside in the garden, and the reception was SO much fun.  I made it through my speech with just a little bit of nervous shaking (my champagne flute was shaking but I didn't spill!), and then we danced allll night long.  I didn't take a lot of photos because I was making sure Jamie had the best week and day of her life, but there will be photos in another post to come, once I get them all...
• Brunch and opening presents at Chateau Sherwood, the newlyweds spent their first night together at a lovely local hotel, and we celebrated and relaxed together the day after.  We also bid farewell to the Texas contingency as they headed home.
• We woke up bright and EARLY Tuesday morning, and I drove the happy couple to the airport so they could catch a flight to Miami, FL and then on to St. Lucia in the Caribbean for a week of sun and tropical drinks.  Followed up by a couple weeks at family reunions in Texas/Oklahoma with Tony's family, and they'll be back in Cali eventually.
• A couple phone interviews as I continue to look for a job in NYC - probably not in the finance industry.  I love helping businesses solve problems and grow, but I don't know if I want to discuss lending rates or fees ever again.  We'll see.
• Baby shower for our cousin Randy and his wife Cheri as they celebrate their second child, a baby boy!
• Megan and I ran in our first half marathon - the San Diego Rock 'n' Roll Half Marathon - and we completed it!  Our official time is 02:43:19, which is pretty dang good considering neither of us had run any sort of distance even a year ago.  Our cousin-in-law Will also ran with us, and he had a great race too, coming in at 01:48:47!  Our Mom drove down the night before and was there on the sidelines cheering us on and then at the finish line too.  It was great to see her smiling face there, along with our aunt Elaine, uncle Terry, cousin Robin, and her two bambinos Molly and Thomas.  My BFF Tiffany and her good friend Julianne came down and surprised me at the finish line!  Tiff and I had come down to San Diego years ago to cheer on another of the BFF crew, Stephanie, as Steph ran her first half marathon.  So Tiff just had to continue the tradition, and Steph was there running with me in my heart and cheering me on in spirit!  Meg and I crossed the finish line together, and it was truly a momentous occasion.

Kelly in purple and Megan in yellow - we crossed the start and finish line holding hands!

 

 

We've been crazy busy, as you can see... and in the meantime Meg's been working, I've been looking for jobs and posting information about our apartment and furniture that we're trying to get rid of, and we've been going through our stuff.  We have a lot that we will donate to the Goodwill/Salvation Army and then a lot of stuff that hopefully we can give to friends/family, like plants and pots and craft stuff.

 

Now that all of the events of the past few weeks are done with, it's full steam ahead for the move to NYC!  Roomie Matt is officially in "Bespin," what we're calling the new place in Brooklyn.  It's on the 12th floor so it's like we're in cloud city!  He has been great, getting all of the utilities and whatnot set up.  Matt's furniture arrives on Friday, so he'll be able to settle in and get situated before us Hartman girls arrive in early July.

 

There's a lot to do, and it can be very overwhelming, but if Megan and I take it step by step and keep communicating well, we can accomplish anything!  If we ever doubt that, we just have to look at the photo above to remember...