We got Alicia all Married Up

Yep. Quite a weekend is in the books. We got Don and Alicia married and on a plane to Hawaii. Darla and I were able to see Dan and Becky and visit with scores of family and friends. We met Don's family for dinner on Thursday night and were off to Silverado for the annual retreat for the IBA Sacramento board on Friday.

The weekend started with a dinner hosted by Don and Alicia at their home in Folsom where the Westra family was able to meet the Hochenadal family for the first time. Don's dad (Don Sr.) is a card and was full of jokes and even serenaded Darla's Mom in song. His jokes are a little crude, but harmless (What's the German word for brassiere: "keepsemfromfloppin", the German word for Virgin: "gudentight", etc.). We met three of his brothers and the other two on Saturday at the wedding.

The board retreat this year could not have come at a better time as we had to be in Napa Saturday and were able to tie the board retreat in with the wedding. Darla and I were put up in the Silverado Country Club condos this year and the rooms were huge. We had a full living room, kitchen and a large bedroom with a patio. Darla got a full massage. They had set her up for a 30 minute massage and then a foot and hand manicure, but Darla called and changed it to a one hour massage. The guys played golf and I improved over my 87 last year, but it didn't start out so well. My driver was all over the place the first six holes and I shot an 8 over par 43 on the par 35 front nine. Golf is a mysterious sport and I just as quickly became a "down the middle" driver on the back side and shot a one over 38 for an 81 on the par 72 course. The board this year doesn't have as many true golfers on it and there was an 85, an 88 and several scores in the high 90s and over 100. The weather was great and the rectangular hamburgers served in a hot dog bun were a hit again this year at Silverado. The dinner with the board was great and we enjoyed quite a repast of Kobe beef stir fry for me and jumbo prawns for Darla.

We were up early Saturday morning as we had to be at the hotel at 9 AM so Darla could put her makeup on and style her hair with the girls. I dropped her off and went on a search for real breakfast food in Napa. This was tougher than you'd think as the town is quite pretentious and considers an omelette to consist of egg whites, brie and avocado with nine grain toast and a guava jelly on the side. I found a place called Mama Emma's Cafe and had some eggs, bacon and pancakes.

The wedding was very nice, but started late as the pastor wanted to let the Napa Valley Wine train pass by before they started. The wedding was at Brix restaurant in Napa and went very well. We had a nice social time as pictures were being taken and the servers had tempura green beans and brick oven pizza to pass out as well as wines from the Turnbull winery. Lunch was excellent with a choice of chicken in a light broth with capers and mushrooms or a pasta dish that Darla really enjoyed. Alicia's brother, Steve, flew in from Hawaii and was there with his wife Kirsten and they were able to catch up with his girls, Shea and Taylor. Taylor is through with her active duty in Cuba where she worked arresting drunken marines at Guantanemo Bay. She hopes to leave this week for a mission to Haiti where she will help out with police duties in the ravaged country. After that and during the early Summer she will take off on her second tour this time a mission to Dubai. It was nice visiting with the girls and seeing how they are growing up. We got some family pictures and you see a picture of me bringing Alicia to the courtyard where our pictures were taken. She was busy socializing with her guests and I had to go retrieve her.

That night we all gathered at the bar at the Marriott and visited until about nine o'clock. Several of the wedding party stayed over. We had Dan and Becky stay with us in our room. It was tight quarters, but not bad for one night. I fell asleep about 10:30 and Darla stayed up late talking to Daniel and Becky. Daniel slept on the floor at the foot of Becky's bed in a sleeping bag. We met the gang this morning for breakfast at the concierge lounge for eggs, toast, cereal and coffee. Steve joined us and we saw the happy couple off to their drive to the airport. It was a fun weekend, but a lot of time with family. Saturday was 12 hours and another 3 hours this morning. I was ready to get home by the time we left.

I watched the first half of the Dallas playoff game and thought we'd turned the clock back three years to an inept and shaken Tony Romo. The Vikings played well, but Dallas looked flat and uncertain of themselves. They moved the ball at will in the first half, but kept shooting themselves in the foot. Brett Favre continued to confound father time with another great game, although I think his luck will end in a defeat at the hands of the Saints this coming weekend. It was a tough way to end the season, but Dallas always seems to end the season with more questions than answers.

The rain came in last night and we have four storms set up off the coast ready to pound California over the next five days. We definitely need the rain, but it was slick travelling on the way home with a driving rain as we drove home from Napa. Alicia and Don were lucky. The sun actually came out for their wedding on Saturday although it got strangely cold right after the ceremony. The storm was rolling in, but the best man, Rob, and I kidded that it was hell freezing over when Don got married.

There was a very odd event that happened to me at the end of the wedding celebration. I was standing against the wall waiting for Darla to finish her goodbyes to family and friends and just relaxing when a woman of about 40 approached me. She had been drinking and wasn't too stable on her feet. She said to me" I've been watching you and you are quite the observant one, aren't you?" I was a little taken aback and said, "Yea, I guess I watch people." Her response was, "Well, I came here with my husband and have no control over where I go, so I guess I'm going home with him." Okay good to know I guess. She stopped me from walking away and said to look her in the eye. She told me that I shouldn't drink the rest of the night and I knew it, right. I told her she was freaking me out and started to walk away. She pushed me up against the wall and told me. "This is no joke and I'm not f***ing around!" Just then (finally) Darla walked up and I looked like I'd swallowed a bug. The girl walked away and told me that she'd be seeing me soon. It turns out this is one of Don's friends' wife and she doesn't handle her alcohol well. I can imagine her husband (a prison guard) has had to fight his way out of bars with his wife along. Don said she's done steroids for weight training and it messed her up. whatever.

Well, Darla is waiting on the couch and I am ready to relax. It has been a busy weekend. I look forward to getting back to church this weekend, especially after the run in with the voodoo woman. I added a couple of pictures that Jennifer texted to me. I hope you are all well. Ciao.