California Christmas 2009

The car was packed. The oil was changed. The tires were rotated. And the tank was full. It was Christmas time again. Every year since we were married, Cheryl and I have embarked on a legendary road trip along California's greatest roadways to visit friends and family during the holidays. This year would be no different. First stop, Fresno. Lets do this!


Oh yeah, boys and girls - that's what we call "A whole lot o' mileage".

1st rule of road tripping - Always wear comfortable clothes.

As always, a trip to Fresno wouldn't be complete without a quick trip up to the beautiful foothills for some much needed R and R and my families cabin. A great way to start our winter break.

Any time our family gets together for the holidays is a reason for celebration.

A no holds smorgasbord, minus the Swedish open-faced sandwiches. My mom really outdid herself.

So, once the food coma began setting in, we all headed into the living room to exchange presents. Look how colorful everyone was dressed. Christmas time at its finest.

Tammy chose the spot right next to the fireplace to warm-up as much as she could before heading back to frigid New York at the beginning of January.

Auntie Liz and Uncle Harry enjoying the sights and sounds of Christmas at the Shamlian house.

Adrina and my Grandma Gina showing off a beautiful set of crystal centerpieces for her dining room table.

The going trend regarding gifts for my father is centered around his love of the outdoors and in particular, his little slice of heaven in the foothills. Cheryl and I gave him an indoor/outdoor digital thermometer for the cabin. Both the thermometer and the garden figurine were a big hit.

Call us old fashion, but Cheryl and I love the color red, especially for the holidays. My Aunt Vickie was wearing her new white outfit that she got for her birthday earlier in the year so all was forgiven.

Cheryl just has a way of putting a smile on Uncle Harry's face. Sometimes I think he comes over just to see her.

The Christmas eve celebration at our Church in Fresno. Every year, the service ends with a candle lighting ceremony and the singing of Silent Night. After church, we headed back to finish off the last of the presents and get ready to hit the road in the morning.

As soon as we got into town, the family started hanging out and playing like we'd never been gone. Here Alise shows us her superior dunking skills. Watch out, she'll shatter the backboard.

Opening presents on Christmas eve is second only to presents on Christmas day. Just ask Tayden....

and Alise... and, Um, Grandpa?

Karen and Travis were the first to pose in front of the Christmas Tree. This started a chain reaction.

The original Wess girls.

Mom and Dad. What a cute couple.

Chris and Marcie shortly before the big announcement that they are pregnant! Congratulations you two and May God Bless and protect your little one.

Aunt Jan was the brains behind the wonderful idea of having all of us come together as a family once a year to celebrate and just have a good time. It didn't hurt that it all happened at Logan's Roadhouse. Mmmmmmm.


Lucky Guy.

Aunt Helen and the girls. So full of life and love - what a blessing it is to spend time with this special lady.

It figures that this is where you'd find me. Hanging out with the kids at the front of the restaurant watching the chef cook our food. If we waited long enough, he would squirt some oil on the flames and send up a huge fireball... AWESOME!

All smiles here! Thanks for the addition Marcie :)

Tayden decided to wear the Christmas gift we got him. Doesn't he look good?

Apparently this is a thing between Tom and Alise. I think she'll grow up into a strong minded woman, what do you think? Pun definitely intended. After dinner we headed over to Tyler and Althea's to spend the night and play with the kids.

HUNGRY HUNGRY HIPPOS! The world's LOUDEST board game!

Pizza anyone? By the end of the trip, I must have consumed an entire restaurant's pizza inventory.

My gift to the Wess family: Sharing my love of Mario with the next generation of youth. Isn't it beautiful.

Ambushed at 8 am. Yeah I slept with a pink blanket, what of it?!

If the wooden pizza toy from Uncle Travis was Tayden's favorite, then Alise's favorite Toy would be this stuffed kitty from Aunt Marcie.

I think I was a close second.

After we said bye to the family, we headed up to Paradise, CA for a little walk down memory lane. As a child, Cheryl would spend weeks with her grandparents up here and and wanted to show me where she had made so many good memories. Our fist stop was at Joy Lyn's. A locally owned candy and confections shop known for their delicious chocolates and other sweets. As I am writing this I am eating some of their delicious Sierra Nevada Pale Ale (which is brewed in Chico) beer brittle.

Another important landmark in Cheryl's life is the Fosters Freeze where she would go with her grandparents and family. Growing up in Fresno, there was a Fosters Freeze across the street from my dad's old dental office were we would sometimes enjoy lunch, just father and son. Its amazing how both Cheryl and I have such fond memories of this establishment and can come together and reminisce separately, while enjoying lunch together.

Oh, BTW, did I mention that there is ANOTHER Grand Canyon. This one is located in Northern California. Seriously- look at this!

The whole family was coming over to celebrate New Years so Cheryl and Susan decided to surprise Travis and Karen for their 5th wedding anniversary by making them a beautiful cake. And yes, I helped. (The fondant plaque and balls were my responsibility)

A little more Wii action. What can i say, the kids loved it.

Alise needed a little help and Uncle Travis was more that willing to help.

A pretty good shot of me acting like a goofball. Tayden got a hold of our camera and started firing away. I think he's got some potential. Right?!

Well, now that the new year has arrived it is again time for some resolutions. Love more, stress less... how about lose some weight? Apparently Alise wanted to hit the ground running. We turned around and she had flipped to the fitness channel, took her onesie off and start doing some crunches. You go girl. Happy New Everyone!