Pig & Lump

Yesterday we went to Oktoberfest in Tempe.  Oktoberfest, with all the beer and giant smoked turkey legs, is usually a good enough time to warrant it's own visit. However with our obvious roadblock to the normal Oktoberfest activities, the main attraction for us this year was... the Wiener Dog Races!!  Oscar did not join us in the spectating, but next year he will definitely be involved.  If not racing, definitely cheering on his favorite!

Last week I was lured to an event with the sales pitch of "Free drinks at the Biltmore Resort".  In spite of such a wonderful offer I was reluctant to attend based on the real reason for the meet up.  Doga.  That's right, DOGA... as in DOG YOGA.  Sheesh.  I think my wife is officially as crazy as my mother (and I mean that in the most loving way) when it comes to her dog(s).  Unfortunately, there was a bit of false advertising at this shindig and there were in fact, no free cocktails.  But we were there so we stayed and Oscar got his doga on.  Whitney was thrilled and assured me we would be returning every two weeks to stretch our little doggy out.  I certainly hope they start coming through with these free drinks...

After our jaunt out to Mountain High we decided to take a trip up north to check out Santa Barbara.  Whit has some friends that went to college here, but I had never been.  Santa Barbara is a great little town on the Pacific, just north of LA and just to the south of some serious wine country.  We took our time driving up the coast from Santa Monica through Malibu.  This is a beautiful drive until you hit the city of Oxnard where you might as well get on the 101 for the rest of the short duration.  We did not follow this advice and got stuck in the less than scenic town for far too long. 

Anyway, once we got to Santa Barbara we checked in to the Harbor View Inn which we reserved through Hotwire.  If you have any experience with Hotwire, you know that it can be a bit of a gamble and it has produced less than desirable results for us before.  However, this time the hotel was wonderful and the price was right.  We took a stroll over to the harbor and had some seafood looking out over the ocean.  Afterward, we wandered up and down State street for a while.  State street is like a gigantic outdoor mall but with the feel of an old town main street.  Super cool with tons of great stores and there is a trolley that will take you up and down the street for fifty cents. 

The next day we had an awesome breakfast of croissants at a local bakery and finished our tour of State St.  We went for a beer tasting at a local brewery and then headed up to lunch at a place called Cold Spring Tavern.  This place is about 25 miles up in the mountains and used to be a stage coach stop in the late 1800s.  It was cold and windy up here and the wood burning fireplace and cozy feel were quite a difference from the laid back beach area where we had been staying. 

Our stay in Santa Barbara was short and I would love to go back again to check it out a little more.  Next time I think we'd also have to go a little farther northwest and hit some of the wineries.  If you've never been, I highly encourage you to check out this really cool town. 

Here are some photos from the trip...

The day after Christmas we decided to take a little trip to go snowboarding.  We drove about an hour and a half east of Orange County to Riverside and proceeded on up to Mountain High.  The conditions were beautiful and aside from a bit of a wait for our lift tickets, we had a perfect day.  There are two sections to Mountain High- one side with a snowboard park full of jumps, rails, boxes, etc.- and the other side without any of this nonsense.  Since all the younger hip kids flock to the park to show off their skills and attempt to one up each other with their snowboard tricks and slang alike, it leaves the other side of the mountain blissfully empty.  (I know I sound like an old man, but all those youngsters are just too annoying, plus it hurts too much these days when the showboating goes awry.)  Anyway, it was a fun day to get out and sharpen the skills and we were back in the hot tub in OC by 7.

We had a wonderful Christmas in Orange County with Whit's family.  Thursday and Friday were filled with holiday parties at the home's of friends and family.  The extended family is quite large, so it is always fun to get everyone together and hear the latest news and happenings and inevitably see the newest babies.  It was great to see Garrett & Kyle again and we decided that a visit to San Francisco is definitely on the horizons. 

Although this is my first Christmas with my wife's family, the entire morning seemed to go the exact same as it always has with my own family.  The elf passing out the gifts, everyone opening their presents in turn, followed by a wonderful breakfast and a relaxing day enjoying each others company. 

Oscar got to make the trip to California to experience his second Christmas in his short little life.  I think he has definitely enjoyed his time at the grandparents and I have a sneaky suspicion the feelings were mutual.  :)

Thanks to Dave & Val for hosting such a wonderful holiday! 

Now that the Christmas holiday is over, I think we are going to try to take a few days to see some of California by way of a mini road trip.  More to come...

Since we will be spending Christmas in Orange County this year, my parents came out from Texas this past weekend to celebrate an early Christmas with us!  It was a beautiful weekend with weather in the 70's allowing us to get out and enjoy the weather.  We did a little shopping, when to the luminary festival, enjoyed some great food, and of course had our Christmas morning on Sunday!  Thanks to my parents and sister for a wonderful weekend. 

Now we are looking forward to Orange County next week!

Last year we were looking for a new car for Whit since the lease was up on her previous vehicle.  Looking for something fun that was a bit cheaper than the norm, we decided on a jeep.  Arizona is a perfect place to own a jeep because with the exception of the three scorching summer months and a few in the winter, the weather is beautiful and is a wonderful place to own a convertible.  We have also taken advantage of the benefits of a jeep and used it to explore some of Arizona's "off the beaten path" scenic areas.

Last weekend we went out to the west side of Phoenix and took a guided tour on one of the Indian reservations.  We saw a beautiful sunrise and got to experience a part of the desert that most people don't get to see. (This was the first time they let common folk on the reservation with their own vehicles.)  The trip culminated at the "Get Your Pig On" BBQ competition where we wandered around and tasted a few of the samplings.  If my father were there I think he would probably have decided to retire early, buy another RV, and start up one of these traveling BBQ teams.  I'm sure my mom is glad he wasn't present.

I know it's a bit late, but my blog updates have never been exactly punctual.  Anyway, we went to Texas for our first Thanksgiving as a married couple.  I know it was a little difficult for Whitney to be away from her family for a holiday, but I think she felt right at home in big D.  There's nothing like getting away from your own little world to completely unwind and get recharged.

We had a wonderful time relaxing and spending time with family as most people do on T Day.  The food was wonderful, the wiener dogs were plentiful and we even started to get in to the Christmas spirit.  Thanks to mom and dad for hosting a such a wonderful holiday!

I posted about our plan to build an arbor around the BBQ a while ago.  Well in spite of my natural talent for pushing things off and dragging my feet, it actually got built.  I think the clincher was the guy telling me that once the wood was delivered I had a week to get it built or everything would start warping.  Not wanting to throw away $200 worth of timber inspired me to "git 'er done".  So here are some photos of the construction.

I say "almost" finished because we still need to plant our climbing vines on both sides and then trellis the two ends.  However, we waiting until we figure out how to keep our backyard plants alive... but that's another story.