Christmas in California

Michelle and I had the good fortune to spend the Christmas holiday season with friends and family in beautiful Orange County, California. This was the first time I had been back to where I grew up since right before Michelle and I got engaged about four and half years ago. One thing that hadn't changed a bit was the year-round amazing weather. This was something we enjoyed from the moment we got off the plane til the moment we got back on one when it was time to go home. As nice as the weather was, the best part was of course getting to spend a week and a half with my parents, my brother, and some of my uncles and cousins that I hadn't seen in a long time.

We did so many fun things, here are just a few of the highlites:

Christmas Morning!

One of Michelle's favorite presents was a simple one: this key chain from my mom that said 'Mom' on it:

Long Beach: we ate dinner at a Mexican food restaurant named Pancho's that I remember from when I was a little kid (and by the way it hasn't changed a bit); also my cousin showed us around some of the coolest decorated neighborhoods (Canal Street to be specific) that we had ever seen.

Fabulous Hollywood: my uncle drove us around Hollywood and we got to see all the iconic sights. We even drove up pretty close to the famous 'Hollywood' sign even though the locals hate it when tourists do it.

In & Out!!!

My dog Grommie (named after the show Wallace and Grommit of course) who we have had since she was just a puppy that could sit in the palm of my hand. She has slowed down a lot since then; she is something like 84 in doggy years.

Going on long runs in the California Desert: