spontaneity.

 

april twenty fourteen.

This was one of our most needed vacations. 

Just moved to a different state.

And we needed to get away. And fast. 

It was the end of the semester. 

We were both starting new jobs. 

We decided that very day that we'd rent a car, and drive to California.

we're spontaneous. i know.

the drive.

We packed our bags, and headed to the rental place. The car guy was very friendly, and handed the keys right over. I found out that spouses drove for free. even better. I was used to him in the driver's seat as I sat along for the drive on the passenger's side. i don't drive stick. This beautiful car was automatic. Did I want to drive? Yes. Well it had been a while--so I thought. He started out driving, being the man in the relationship... he insisted. 

The first portion of the trip was mainly hills. Car after car continued passing us on the freeway. These hills were killing us. At some points he would complain the car couldn't go any faster. Oh silly, you just don't know how to drive an automatic. Let your wife show you how it's done. After finally switching seats, I thought I'd show him that it wasn't the car. He just didn't know how to keep momentum up on the hills. After 6 hours, I finally concluded, he was right. Something was wrong with our car. 

We honestly could only go 45 on the freeway. The car was very inconsistent, even with the pedal to the floor. Well, we were already in the middle of nowhere. We had just passed Vegas... and nothing is passed Vegas. So we pulled over where we could find some reception and called the service hotline. The guy told us to drive back to Vegas and switch our car... 

Excuse me sir, I don't know if our car will make it. We have no gas. 

Somehow we made it to Vegas. I have no idea how. But we dropped off our car, and the lady told us.. get this.. It's a good thing you came when you did. Your car has no oil. The car could have blown up at any given time. Thank you. Thank you for telling me I almost died. Give me a better car at no extra cost. So they did. And let me tell you. It made the rest of the trip so much better. 

And we didn't get blown up. 

c a l i f o r n i a .

We arrived in California after 12 long hours of music blaring, loads of laughter, and a little passenger side sleeping. We pulled up to his sister's apartment just out of Los Angeles. Amy, his sister, has the cutest kids, and an awesome husband too. But man, those kids... the cutest chunky cheeks and most adorning eyes. We just wanted to stay home all day with those little ones, even if they did have a runny nose. Amy and Ryan were the greatest hosts. They showed us around town and advised us of the many activities we could participate in. 

stop number one: Our first stop was the Santa Monica Pier. We went with Amy and her two little ones. After playing in the sand at the park and walking along the water shore, we went out to the edge of the pier and just breathed. It was nice to have fresh air, by an ocean none the less, instead of being in a cramped up little car. There were fisherman everywhere. Lots of cute little shops, and of course "pier performers."

isn't he dashing...

stop number two: Our next stop was America's Got Talent. That's right ladies and gentleman. We were gonna be on TV. How much better could it get? none. What could go wrong? nothing.

We rummaged through our tiny suitcase to see if there was anything that fit the dress code for the occasion. You plan on a week at the beach, so no, he didn't pack a suit and tie, nor did I pack a dress. Let alone anything dark. They wanted to make sure the audience was well dressed, because they'd be on TV. We decided we'd be "okay" in jeans and a nice shirt. Even though they were not "permitted." 

After way too much time in traffic and waiting in a forever long line, we handed our ticket to the ticket checker.

We handed him our printed paper, and he gave us nicer looking ones. I don't know why. But, after looking us up and down, he said, Ask for Mike when you get in.

Why do I want to ask for Mike? Who is Mike? How is anyone in this entire place supposed to know who Mike is? Unless... ya know, he's a cool guy. Then everyone knows who Mike is...

We ignored his suggestion and waited in another enormous line.... however, along the way we saw some cool signs (poor lighting mind you)... letting us know how awesome it was to be as close to the cast and performers as we were. Maybe we'd even see the judges...

As we finally approached the doors by the seats, we finally found out what was taking soooo long. There is one man, at one door, looking at each person as they come in. He looks at you and then tells you where to sit... crazy. I did not recognize that they put so much effort into placing people in certain seats. We finally got to the door and we looked us up and down, once again, and then directed us to the second row, center section, right behind the judges. No complaints. This is awesome. 

About five minutes later, we heard the name Mike. Mike approached us, looked at us, and then decided to place us first row, right behind the judges. There is no better seat in the house. Not one. 

I'll take that as a compliment. 

As the show began, the judges came out and we all cheered. Great start. However, what they don't tell you when you are part of filming things live, is that there are a lot of breaks. a lot. Like so many breaks that the one hour show you see, is a six hour time commitment for us. AND we have to smile and clap as they want us to... Makes it less fun. But, among all the technicalities and breaks, we were able to have real conversations with all the judges... Mel B, Howie, and Howard. Cool. 

Oh, and of course, Heidi Klum... who was cold, so guess whose vest got offered as a sacrifice? mine. He offered her my vest. Did she take it? no. But he thought he was funny.

note: non of these are zoomed in. not even a little. i even had to back up. haha. oh, and you may want to turn your sound down.. there was a rather loud "ahhhh" in the row behind us due to excitement. 

Even though were were there wayyyy too long, it was still cool being able to see ourselves on TV when it finally aired. Would I do it again? Probably not. But you totally should!

stop number three: magic mountain. He had told me about this place forever. This place is full of magic, that he thinks is better than any other park out there... I naturally disagreed, growing up with Busch Gardens in Virginia. I don't know if you'll be able to handle the roller coasters, shay. They're kinda intense, and I don't think you're prepared for this. oh please. I've been on plenty. Granted, it had been a while. 

We got to ride their newest roller coaster. and even got cool little stubs for it too!

Coaster after coaster, I began to understand what he meant. Not only did we have to run from one to the next, but we couldn't take any breaks. I knew how to ride a roller coaster, just not Jensen style. And to be honest, I wasn't that good at it. I was so terrible, that I blacked out on Tatsu. Yeah, I guess hanging upside down and being tossed back and forth just wasn't my jam. 

So, he rode the rest by himself... 

and I was perfectly content with that.

stop number four five, six, and every other stop possible: the beach. This should explain how crazy my sweet husband is. No matter the weather, temperature of the water, or questionable substances that might be lurking, if he sees water--he will swim in it. 

California in April, isn't the warmest. And the water isn't either... nor is it very clear. So for those two reasons alone I didn't want to get in. And, after watching a lot about sharks, I wasn't exactly excited about murky water and bull sharks attacks, especially if it was only he in I in the water. Seeing as no one else would be crazy enough to swim in it either.

a highlight at the beach consisted of these two cute little chunkers throwing cheetos at the seagulls. 

Wrong. yes. But also funny. Especially because they would throw it as they jumped, and it was the most adorable sight to witness. Cute little kiddos. 

Despite the overcast on most days, there was one beautiful sunny day that we were able to spend there. All I needed was one. 

The weather was just perfect, so perfect, I didn't even need my jacket for the bike ride along the coast. Most likely one of my favorite parts of the trip.

Even though the car almost blew up, we had to sit and smile for six hours straight hours, I passed out on a roller coaster, and my shoulders got burned, it was still such a great trip. It's always fun making memories with family and friends. Especially when it's in California.