Kinda love this

Getting ready for prom was extra special this year.  With it being Christiana's last prom, she wanted to go all out, and I agreed.  When we say going all out, it does not mean that we spent a lot of money, but it does mean she got all the special extras to feel her best.  We were so lucky that Christiana and her cousin Alyssa went prom shopping while we were visiting Georgia and found this gorgeous red dress.  I loved that she picked a red dress.  It is a color she rarely wears.  She normally goes for a soft blue or green, but for her Senior prom, I love that she is going for something a little more bold.  It's fun to try something a little different than your norm.  It worked out amazing because it was the right price, the right fit, and perfectly modest for Mormon Prom.  It's also a plus that prom dresses these days are more chiffon and flowy, easy to fold up and pack in a suitcase.  They aren't puffy and full like they used to be so that helped a lot in getting the dress back to California.  

Christiana had her updo styled at the nearby beauty school and her makeup by our neighbor who works at the Macy's Benefit counter.  She had her nails and toenails done at the best little nail salon we found only 5 minutes from our house and they do an excellent job.

She looked absolutely beautiful and the best part is, she is even more beautiful on the inside.  She has grown so much as a person and has shown me her strength and goodness in countless ways.  

California Life

We have been living in Northern California for 6 months now and it has been quite the adventure.  It's certainly not easy to move after you have lived somewhere your entire life, but the experiences we have had and the lessons we have learned have been good for us whether we realize it or not.  First of all, we have learned that we can survive without a basement and many of our posessions.  We don't need everything we have collected in one house for 14 years, but I am not going to lie and say we haven't missed a few things that we didn't bring, that didn't make the cut, that didn't fit in the truck, and it would have been nice to have them.  We do enjoy our little Spanish villa in the heart of our community in California and are quite comfortable.  We have 3 bedrooms upstairs with a loft and an open floor plan of a family room, kitchen and dining area with a guest bedroom and bathroom on the main.  One of our favorite features is the back patio with outdoor furniture, that we purchased when we got here, and a nice warm gas fireplace.  We love to sit out there, feel the warm fire, and roast marshmallows.

When the family was here for Spencer and Monique's wedding (Grandma and Grandpa and Christiana)

Our new house in Cali

Secondly, we have learned that we can host a pre-wedding family dinner in a much smaller space and still have room to eat, move around, and be comfortable. And with a little creative shuffling, we were able to have the bride and groom (Spencer and Monique), Grandma and Grandpa Krogh, and Gabrielle and Corey all stay with us during the wedding and the festivities surrounding it. Here are a few pictures of the dinner.

Monique and her father Finepolo

Kinley and Randy

Gramy and Gabrielle

Lauri, Grandpa and Grandma

Uncle Rick

Spencer and his best friend since they were in nursery, Michael Womack

Monique's mom, Kelly and her dad, Monique's grandpa

We had their beautiful wedding the next day on Sept. 3, 2016 in the Sacramento Temple. Introducing Spencer and Monique Krogh!  More details on their wedding to come in a later post.

We have also learned that we can meet many new friends and get accustomed to a new school and ward even though it can be difficult at times.  The girls have done very well and have met some very nice people.  They started their first day of school on August 17th, well after their Georgia friends, so they were able to have a little longer summer.  No complaints coming from these two!

First day of Senior year

Dad and daughter

Walking to school

First day of 8th grade

Carpool with London and Taylor

Last but not least, we found that we can drive to Utah and be home in a long weekend if needed for which we did twice for my sister and brother's weddings!   Once for Lindsay and Alfonso's wedding in August then for Chris and Cheree's wedding in September.

Lindsay and Alfonso were married August 6, 2016.

Chris and Cheree were married September 30, 2016

This is just the beginning, there is so much more to share and so much more to come!  I am just grateful for all the the great experiences thus far.

Interesting Surprise

This actually happened in April over Spring Break.  The girls and I joined Randy in his new home of California.  We were super excited to fly out and get a taste of where we will be living.  We enjoyed reuniting with Dad and checking out a few cool spots.  This is actually my favorite picture of the trip.  These girls couldn't be cuter.  I love them so much!

So everyone told us how great Sacramento is because we are only two hours away from the mountains and two hours away from the beach.  We were so excited to be able to do both.  So, we decided to go to Muir Beach one of our days, which was in San Francisco.  We drove through the city, walked on the Pier and had lunch and then headed to Muir Woods, and then to the beach.  We brought our swimsuits and towels and this is what we discovered!

A windy, chilly beach with brown sand and a lot of rocks!  Yes, we were a bit surprised.  Not the beaches we were used to in beautiful Florida and the southeast with white sand, blue water and sunny skies.  We were just a tad disappointed, but made the best of it.  We actually just had to laugh.  It was quite comical that we thought we would be soaking in the sun and getting a tan. Haha!!!  So, we call these our awkward beach pictures.

We actually met some really nice people there and had fun taking pictures, but we were seriously freezing, so we headed back to the car and drove back through some insane San Francisco traffic and back to Lincoln, where we were staying.

Getting to know California!  The things you learn....

Everyone is home!

It was a miracle!  Everyone was home at the same time!  Wasn't sure this would happen before we moved, but it did. :)  Corey and a few family members chipped in on a ticket for Gabrielle's birthday, Spencer and Monique ended up staying here and working, Corey didn't want to miss out on the fun, so he decided to come for a few days, and it all just happened at the same time Randy was scheduled to come home.  My sweet friend Alison came by the house to take a quick family photo before we went for La Parrilla and bowling.  Most of us had clothes on that already coordinated pretty well, so with just a few suggestions, it turned out perfect.  I was happy there was no clashing!  We even got little Mitzie in the picture, so this just made my day!

Gabrielle and Corey celebrated their one year anniversary, while they were here.  It worked out so well that they could celebrate in Atlanta, where they were married.  Gabrielle amazes me more and more with her creative talents.  If she wants to make something, she finds a way.  She made the t-shirt quilt for Corey with a lot of his high school sport teams and memories.  She did an incredible job with some help from her awesome friends. Corey got her a family room set for their apartment.  I don't know about what most people do, but that was definitely generous on both their parts!

These cuties went out on the town and then came back and sliced up their wedding cake that was frozen in our downstairs freezer.  Good thing they were here to eat it.  I don't know how I would have sent that to Logan, Utah!!!!

The night we all spent together, since we were all going in different directions was the best!  Here we are at Stars and Strikes.  There was a lot of skilled bowling going on the night we had our family night.  We had unlimited games, so the die hards just kept going. 

  We got the whole crew to bowl.  That was not an easy task, but we all ended up having a good time. Spencer was the best big brother teaching me and his sisters how to bowl a little better.  Believe me, we needed the help!

I hate to bring it up, but I think this will be the last time, for a long time, maybe ever that we will all be together in Powder Springs, Ga.  I am so happy we were able to enjoy some time together here.

Randy's 49th Birthday

This birthday celebration was a little different this year, but just as special nonetheless.  Randy has been gone working in California since Dec. 1st.  He only comes home every 3 or 4 weeks which means we miss celebrating a lot of holidays and birthdays with him, even his own!  So, his next visit home was well past his birthday, but we made an event of it anyway!  Ted's is one of our favorite restaurants, so after Eliza and I had been to Jazz on Tap that day, we met them right after, driving straight to the restaurant.  It was good timing cause we were hungry!  We met Randy, Christiana, Spencer and Monique and had a great meal.  Randy was happy they had raisin oatmeal cookies, his favorite.

 Spencer and Monique are here with us for a month as they transition to a new job this summer.  It has been such a pleasure.  We are enjoying every minute we have with them.

Randy is happy to be with his girls.  Eliza is a little worn out from the dance weekend.

We didn't open presents or have a big cake; I had already sent him a birthday package in the mail.  It was just nice to be together and enjoy each other's company. 

 Sometimes the little things are the big things.

Happy 49th year Randy!

Master Classes at JOT

Classes were held at the Marietta Hilton Resort and Hotel the next day.  The nice thing was that it was only 20 minutes away and in a beautiful hotel.  All the classes were close together in a square in the lower level.  The girls could sign up for whatever classes they wanted and the times they wanted, so we didn't have to be there until noon which was nice after a busy day and night, the day before.  Eliza met up with many of her friends.  They all had the same idea.

Eliza, Lizzie Niswonger, Kristina McGlaughn, Alana Keck, and Nicole Snyder

 Eliza started with a Contemporary class.  The teacher gave a lot of tips and motivation and then they worked on a short combination.  The girls were hoping to dance a lot more, but I hope they still learned something through her experience and what she taught them.

After contemporary was Jazz.  This was classic Jazz, very high energy and upbeat.  He also motivated his dancers to always put out their best effort every time.

 

Eliza's last class was her very favorite which was Performance.  They worked on a silly, high energy comedy dance.  Right up Eliza's alley.  She and her friends absolutely LOVED it!  The Booty Dance! The teacher was a choreographer for a professional company that performed this dance the night before.  They were so excited when they found out they were going to learn some of it!!!!  I think our girls got into it the most.  Can you tell?

Eliza loved the Jazz on Tap tshirt!  She wore it to dinner after classes, then she may have even worn it to bed, (shhhh) and then to school the next morning.  This will be a great memory for her.  The back of the shirt lists all the dance studios that attended.  I found out later that they had a Friday night show, and 3 shows on Saturday to accomadate all the studios that came.  What a great event.