Before flying out, we stopped to get some cash and we were on our way. The girls did great on the plane! Hallie got some "Littlest Pet Shop" toys when she was good, and Sydnee was entertained with Daddy's hat most of the time...whatever works! Her form of entertainment changed every five minutes, but she was so well behaved. Of course it helped sitting in front of Grandma and Grandpa Drake and Aunt Stacey who flew out with us!Day 2 in L.A....
The day after we arrived, we visited our good friends, the Ostler's, who recently moved to L.A. from Ohio. It was so fun to see them and their kids again! We spent the day at Santa Monica Pier with them and then went to the beach which Hallie had been dying to see since we left.
We had Aunt Stacey tag along with us while everyone else was doing wedding preparation all day; the kids loved having her there though. Megan's boys kept fighting over who got to hold her hand while we walked, I think that made Stacey's day!
We visited the Santa Monica Pier aquarium where we were able to touch starfish and other sea urchents!! They felt so weird! We also got to see sharks up close.
It was a cold day at the beach, but that didn't stop Hallie. She and Daddy walked the seashore together to find seashells...goosebumps and all.
After the beach, Megan fed us yummy lasagna for dinner and then we had to head back to the hotel. We were so sad to say goodbye to the Ostler's, but it was so fun seeing them! Thank you for such a fun day in Santa Monica! We'll miss you Ostler's! On the way out to the car, Hallie had to pose for a picture since, "It's a little pole tree just like me!" She loved the "pole" trees. (yes, she means palm trees)That Night...
We went with Justin and his fiance Brittany and a few of her friends to Universal City's Citywalk which has a bunch of outdoor specialty stores that you can walk at night and it ends in front of Universal Studios, Hollywood. It was fun seeing different street performers, weird stores like the Popcorn Store which has hundreds of different popcorn flavors, and we saw some sky divers in the "Ifly" tank which is a tube of air that makes you fly as if you were skydiving. Pretty cool.
Brittany, Justin, Cam, and I pose in front of the Universal Studios ball in Hollywood, CA.Day 3 in L.A...
On Friday, the guys went golfing while the girls went to the Egg Plantation for breakfast with Brittany and her family and later, all the bridesmaids got our nails done.
That night, we had a rehearsal dinner at Brittany's parents house. This is the Drake side (my side) of the family who was able to attend the wedding. Yes, that is a poster of my brother, Ryan, who is on his mission. He was Justin's best man, and by request via Justin, he wanted Ryan to be there in life-size poster form. If you know Justin at all, you know this is something he would totally do! Thank goodness Brittany has a sense of humor about it!
While we were at Brittany's house for the dinner, on the next street over from their's, they were filming a scene from ABC's new show Flash Forward that premiers next month!! So of course, we went and watched them set up for a Halloween scene they were shooting. They decorated all the houses in Halloween festivities too. HOW COOL IS THAT??? Brittany and her family didn't seem as amazed as we were since they live in L.A., and see this sort of thing happening a lot. I found out that in Brittany's neighborhood, they film there a lot for Heroes and other movies. And, if that's not enough, Brittany is related to Larry King, and they were scheduled to take their wedding photos at his house nonetheless!! At this point, since we've been in L.A. we've been pretty starstruck!Day 4 in L.A... Wedding Day
Justin and Brittany got married in the Los Angeles Temple. It was a beautiful day... very hot... but perfect weather! Hallie was Brittany's flower girl and Cam and I were in the line as a bridesmaid and groom. Hallie kept calling Brittany a princess, and wanting to touch her dress and hold her hand, it was so cute how awed she was by her.
The reception that night was held at Brittany's parents's friend's mansion which overlooked the valley. The view was breathtaking. The dinner was catered by a Thai restaurant, the whole atmosphere was so romantic. At the reception, Brittany showed Hallie the flip flops she was wearing, and Hallie asked her, "You're wearing those cause your princess shoes hurt?" It was so dang cute! Cam and Hallie danced on the dance floor, and I had the pleasure of the last dance with Cam. It brought back so many memories of our own wedding.
Day 5 in L.A...
Since we were in L.A., we visited Hollywood Blvd., which is the dirtiest and scariest place I've ever seen! While we walked the Walk of Fame on Hollywood Blvd., to the Chinese Theatre, there was a guy who got arrested right across the street from us! Besides being worried about the car still being there when we got back, it was fun to see the Kodak theatre and Chinese Theatre, including some characters from movies like Cinderella, Little Mermaid, and Elvis! Hallie is posing in front of Donald Duck's footprints, and the girls and I are standing by Halle Berry's star on the Walk of Fame... I thought that was appropriate since that's where we got Hallie's name from.Day 6 in L.A...
We visited Universal Studios our last day there. We were all worn out and it was so hot, but the girls were such troopers! I think I complained more than they did! We toured the universal studios backlots, where a lot of shows and films are filmed. We saw the building in Nacho Libre and Three Amigo's, the Desperate Houswives homes' on Wisteria Lane, Jaws' Amity Island, War of the Worlds crash site, Whoville from The Grinch, and we saw the play "Waterworld" which stars some actors and actresses from shows like CSI: NY.
Hallie was in heaven when she saw Dora, Alex the Lion, and Curious George in real life. She couldn't believe how they got there from TV.
It was so incredibly hot the day we toured Universal Studios, so I found a water area so Syd and Hallie could cool off while Daddy and Stacey went on the Mummy ride.
After the day was said and done, we HAD to stop and get a Jamba Juice... something we've missed for three years!!! They really need to open one where we live!
It was such a fun trip, but needless to say, we are all pooped! This is Hallie collapsed on the airport floor with her Hollywood shades on. I'd say she's done vacationing, what do you think!?
