Beach Races

Isn't it great when you come up with a random way to entertain yourself and someone else actually joins in?



P.S. We do not know these kids - but enjoyed watching them play while we laid on the beach!

Random Activities

Since I haven't had a long update recently, here are a few highlights of what we've done in California in the past month...

We celebrated Kierstin's birthday with a fondue party.

Jon organized the Small Groups Celebration at Glenkirk.

We saw dolphins at the beach!

I went with our neighbor, Allegra, to the Pasadena Chalk Festival.

G-Dawg's B-Day

Jon and I frequently are able to meet for lunch during our work day. So it wasn’t out of the ordinary when he picked me up on Thursday to eat lunch in the nearby park. As we approached a picnic table, however, I noticed a familiar redhead… Erin LaMourie! She had flown out from Texas that morning to surprise me on my birthday weekend! Jon and Erin had been communicating about her visit since March, and despite a couple close calls, I’d never caught on… I was so excited to have her stay with us till Wednesday!

On Thursday evening we loaded up the Taurus with our neighbors and saw the advanced screening (i.e. FREE) of Evan Almighty in Burbank. My review: If I was 10 years old, it would be a favorite movie – it was PG, funny, and entertaining, and it had a good (if predictable) resolution, and lots of animals. As a (now!) 26-year old, it was just entertaining and a little cheesy – and it had lots of animals. :)

Jon had the foresight (a.k.a. knowledge about Erin’s visit) to suggest I take off a little time before or after my birthday weekend, so I only worked until noon on Friday. That evening, Jon suggested we pack up some food, go to a park, and play some Frisbee. It was a beautiful, sunny day, so I agreed. Erin and I followed Jon as he “scouted” out a place to eat at a park he’d “found” online that afternoon. As we got nearer to the picnic pavilion, I began recognizing people from Fuller and our church… They turned around and yelled, “Surprise! Happy Birthday, Grete!” There was a spread of food (thanks everyone), a grill (thanks to the Carrs) with burgers, and even a cake (thanks, Krissy)! When Jon and Erin showed me what they packed in the cooler we brought as our “dinner”, it was just random items from our cabinets, so I wouldn’t get suspicious that we weren’t bringing food to the park.
“Yay!” to everyone who was there – the surprise definitely worked, and I’m so grateful that you were a part of it!

We spent Saturday at Universal Studios! You can see more pics here.

Sunday was the perfect weather for going to the beach, so we drove over to Malibu for a sandy afternoon of chatting and people-watching.

On Monday (my actual birthday), I reheated some pancakes Jon had made me the previous morning and begrudgingly went to work. I’d wished I had also taken my birthday off… Around noon, one of the coordinators called me into the conference room because he was having trouble getting the video conference equipment to work (this is not unusual). When I stepped in, not only was the equipment working, but the entire admin staffs from the other offices were also on the screen singing “Happy Birthday” to me! They gave me a card – full of signatures – that had been FedExed over that morning and even had a mini cake for me. I was really touched.

After work, Jon, Erin and I went to Ontario Mills (a HUGE, indoor outlet mall) for some shoppin’. I had a few gift cards to use, but I wish I could’ve spent a whole day there! Jon was a VERY good sport while Erin and I dug through the racks at countless women’s clothing stores. It was a great birthday!

Thank you everyone who has sent me an email or voicemail message with birthday wishes! It has all made me feel very special and loved.

Nicknames

In 9th and 10th grade, it was a group of guys who – whenever they passed me in the halls or class – sang my name to the melody of “Get a Job” (Gre-te Brown, Gre-te Bro-wn, Gret, Gre-te Bro-wn).

In 11th and 12th grade it was two guys who called me “Fatty” (because I wasn’t) in the mornings and my girlfriends who called me “Greet” or “Chica” the rest of the time.

In college I was again “Greet”, “GG”, "G-Love", “Grete is Bettah”, or “g” - depending on who was addressing me.

And now, as the newest nickname, my admin co-workers have started referring to me as “G-dawg”.

Does something about my name or personality prompt people to call me these things? It’s not that I’m bothered by them, but rather, I’m just curious how they arise in the first place… (Especially in regards to my current nickname – I feel like I should wear chains and leather to be considered a “G–dawg”.) :)