Lake Buena Vista...a Meet the Family Kinda Trip!!!

Wayne and Amy came to town and Wayne decided to tune up the boat so we could take it out for a day trip to Lake Buena Vista.  It was destined to be a full boatload with Mom, Wayne, Amy, Sherry, Matt, Carter, Me, and I invited Paul to come too!  I had warned Paul that if he came he'd be meeting pretty much my whole family, ambush style, but he seemed fine with it!  Matt offered to hook up the boat to his truck instead of Mom's old car.  Which worked out, because we had to drive two cars either way!  Overall, it was a fun day with great weather and even the boat ran well the whole time!

Bryan & Melissa's Wedding...Porterville, CA

   My cousin Bryan Searle married Melissa on September 10th, 2011 at 5pm.  It was set in the backyard of a really pretty farm house.  It had a pond, big trees, and lush green grasses.  The weather was breezy but comfortable.  Near the end of the wedding there were clouds and lightning looming in the distance, but luckily it never made it to the wedding!  The wedding and reception was held in the same area and they had really yummy barbeque accompanied with beans, salad and rolls.  After the food and cake, there was a lot of visiting and dancing, that Carter and Grandma and Grandpa really got into!   

Congratulations, Bryan and Melissa!!!

I brought a pack of "Toy Story" stickers to keep Carter entertained!

Wayne rarely takes a "normal" picture!

Carter stole the big glass...leaving Matt with the mini one!

Don't worry, it's just sparkling apple cider!

They played nice...at first, anyway!

Gives new meaning to a sweeeeet kiss!

Paul...Date # 2 = Monster Mini Golf

It's our second date.  Paul had bought a 2 for 1 coupon for Monster Mini Golf off of Groupon.  He thought it would be a fun twist on the standard mini-golf date.  I'd never even heard of the place (possibly because it was way on the other side of town @ White Lane and Stine) but it sounded like fun!  You walk in and the whole place is DARK, only lit with black lights so everything GLOWS!  It had neat paintings on the walls and props all around that were in bright neon glow in the dark type colors.  At the very end of the course, there was this big green ogre and I mean BIG! He had to be over 10 feet tall and 5 or so feet wide and he talked and moved (like with hydraulics)!!!  Long story short, it was fun to be a kid for a while in a cool environment with a nice person!  After mini-golf we went across the parking lot to the Mexican restaurant for a margarita and some food!  We closed out the night by stopping in at the Southwest Lanes Bowling Alley to say hello to some of his friends that were there.  Date two went well...bring on date three!    

Dating Round 4...1st Date with Paul

Dinner at the Blue Elephant with Paul for our 1st date and our 1st time meeting in person.  Paul picked the location after I said that I was comfortable with any kind of food except Indian.  I panicked a little when he said Thai food because I'd never had it before.  However, I pride myself on being open to try new things and being flexible enough to find something to order any place I go, so I started doing my research!  I talked to everyone at work that day, asking who'd eaten Thai food and what they'd recommend to a novice that has a slightly weak palate for spicy foods.  It was pretty unanimous, ordering the Pad Thai was at the top of the suggestion list!  I double checked that Pad Thai was in fact listed on the menu (thank goodness for the internet) and of-course it was much to my relief!  I met Paul that evening at the restaurant and we had a wonderful dinner with fluid conversation.  We were both enjoying the evening enough so that we decided to stay with the Elephant theme and continue our conversation over a drink at the Elephant Bar and we continued talking until the restaurant closed!  Date one down and looking forward to date two!  :-)   

Dating...Round 4, this time using Plenty of Fish.com....

A couple of friends pushed me to branch out from Match.com and create a profile on "Plenty Of Fish."  I was told that you have to be more careful on this site because it's a free site (so it doesn't weed out the gross guys just looking for a fling) and they weren't kidding!   I set all my preferences to try and ward off people that weren't dating seriously in hopes of finding a grown-up relationship!  So this is dating, round 4...meet, Paul Gordon (AKA: Pauley-P-Pump of Pumpkin Center, CA...which is on the southern end of Bakersfield, nearing Taft).  He is in marketing and public relations with a non-profit organization as a graphic design artist at Valley Achievement Center and the Marcom Group.  He is 29 years old (almost 30--October 4th is his birthday) and six feet tall with a stocky build.  He drove a little white Toyota Prius (which looked soooo small compared to his build), had a Pug named Jack, and lived in a house with two roommates.   

His "About Me" profile says: 
I enjoy art and history as well as a good time just having fun. I hope to someday be a successful writer, business owner and artist. I am a big fan of the underdog. I like helping those in need however I do not have a bleeding heart for those that are not willing to put the effort in to help themselves. I am the president of a non-profit charity group that helps underprivileged children. I enjoy spending most of my philanthropic time helping kids for I truly believe that they are the future of our country. I feel that a life served for others is a life well lived. Aside from my serious side I like to let loose and have a good time. I think if you can't laugh at yourself and the world you can't appreciate life. I think if a friend would describe me they would say that I my best characteristic is my humor. I enjoy rock and country music and I love a night out singing karaoke. If you do not like laughing don't waste either of our time, otherwise I would love to hear from you.  
His Perfect First Date :Getting to know each other and seeing if our personalities make a good match. If you can make me laugh, you will have a special place in my heart.