EXTREME Grandma

No not because Grandma is into extreme sports or anything but because she is moving from Bullhead City Arizona, one of the HOTTEST places in the world to Brooklyn Center Minnesota, one of the coldest places in the world. I don't think this was a bucket list item either, grandma moved to be closer to family. She found a cute little apartment on a lake in Minnesota 2 doors down from my uncles Ken and Erik and the best part is that she will spend the winters here in California with us. She will stay with Mom mostly but with Andrew planning on moving out soon we may have a guest room she can stay in too. The girls think they will have a chance at Andrews room but there is no way in hell I am letting any of my teenage daughters have a room with a private entrance. I was planning on making it into a Man cave and maybe grandma won't mind looking at all my high school accolades but the neon beer sign might keep her up at night. I am really excited for this new chapter in my grandmas life and am proud of her for taking such a big leap of faith. I know it was hard for her to leave her home of so many years but as we kept reminding her as we moved, her memories will always be with her and all the pictures and even this blog will always be there for her to reminisce. It also doesn't hurt that my brother Eric bought her house to have a house at the river so she could always go back and visit if she misses the blistering heat or the fast paced lifestyle of Bullhead City (That's sarcasm in case you didn't catch it)

Selfie in front of grandmas house after we finished loading the truck for Minnesota

 

 Andrew looking as sharp as ever before his interview. I don't know why mommy cropped herself out of the photo, she is the reason he is so handsome. I wish I could take credit for his stunning looks, even his beard is better than mine. I did let him borrow that tie though, I think I tied it for him too.

 

On the way home the girls and I stopped at the cemetery to see papa. It was so fun telling stories about papa almost the entire ride home. Papa would have absolutely adored my family and would have constantly bragged to anyone who would listen about them. He would brag about how beautiful Isella is and what an excellent cook and wonderful mom and wife she is. He would tell people how brave his great granddaughter Sarah is and how she is always looking for an adventure. He would be so proud that Andrew became a Graham and that would be the real reason he is so handsome. He would say how Michelle is gorgeous and sings like an angel. He would be so proud of Sophia in Air Force JROTC and would break out his old uniform to take pictures with her and he would tell everyone how Mia will be the first female president of the United States. I miss you so much papa and hope I've made you proud by trying to be the dad and papa you were.

 

We have so many more pictures to go through but how cute is papa dressing up in his suit for grandparents day in uncle Dan's class. And how cute is uncle Dan sipping his milk!

 

I love it when she calls me BIG PAPA! Part 2

My heart just melted a few days ago when Sarah sent me the video below of Lexi finally saying "PAPA". I've been trying to get it out of her for a while now and finally it came! She's looking at Isella's phone with a picture of me when Sarah asks her "Who is that" and the video says the rest.

 

 

 

Papa loves you Lexi!

" I'm a Sucker for YOU "

So the Jonas Brothers were in town this weekend and Mia got an early birthday present.....2 tickets to the Jo Bros at the Honda Center. Knowing how big a Jo Bros fan I am Mia invited me to go with her. Ok so that was part of the deal all along since there are so many crazies out there and I didn't want my baby there without me. We had an amazing time! We went to the Lazy Dog café for dinner then daddy found parking right next to the Honda center for only $10 which was just another highlight of the night. We didn't have the best seats but daddy did pay a little extra to make sure I had an aisle seat and not have to climb over a bunch of screaming teenage girls to get to my seat. Turns out that was the best money I ever spent because those seats are super tiny and even though I've lost weight I was still wedged in between the armrests. That part didn't really matter once the bros went on because we were on our feet for the remainder of the night. I didn't want to embarrass Mia so I had to hold back on dancing but my foot was tapping, hips were shaking and though I couldn't sing along with the 20,000 other fans (98% girls from 13-25) I screamed and whistled in between songs. There were a couple of times I clapped out of sync and I think I whistled thinking it was the end of the song but it was just a pause. Mia started helping me out by giving me signals when to start and stop clapping which helped. On the way out we got Mia a concert t shirt then we stopped to get an ice cream. I've been to a bunch of concerts as a fan and have worked hundreds of concerts doing security but The Jonas Brothers was the best concert I have ever been to. I wish I could have got better seats and back stage passes for you baby but I hope you had as much fun as I did. Happy Birthday Baby! I love you 

Selfie in our seats

 

 Selfie facing the stage. We had matching shirts BTW. How cute is that!

 

Selfie trying to get the Big A in the background

 

This video is the JoBros on the second stage that was on our side of the arena and the platform they were on went like 20 feet in the air. They were so close I could almost reach out grab them!

The Catalina Wine Mixer

Well we didn't go to Catalina for the wine mixer but we did take a trip over on my vacation and we had a great time. We were the first in line to get on the boat and got the best seats on the top level of the boat. We saw a lot of dolphins on the way out to sea and it was a little overcast but that burned off as soon as we got there. It was a beautiful day but the water was really choppy so we had to hold on. When we got to the dock we saw one of the crew trying to tie down the boat and a big swell came in and $&!#whipped the poor guy so bad they had to call the paramedics. After that excitement we took a look at the guided tours available and I about $&!# my pants when I heard the price so we decided to rent a golf cart and take our own guided tour. After the tour we had lunch at a cute little Mexican restaurant then headed to the beach. After my photo shoot for mommy in my new trunks that are 2 sizes too small (They were on the wrong hanger in the store and mommy already cut out the stupid mesh panties they put in trunks so I couldn't return them) Mia and I jumped in the water. I always thought that since Catalina was so close that the water would be as ugly as it is at the beach here but I was greatly mistaken. The water was so beautiful and clear that I opened my eyes under water forgetting that it was indeed sea water and it burned like hell.
After the Catalina adventure we set out on another adventure that we have been wanting to do since we moved to Riverside and that is to climb Mt. Rubidoux. It was actually a lot easier than I was expecting, though the picture of my sweat soaked shirt might say other wise. It was a little less clear than I was hoping but it was beautiful and we could almost see our house from the top.
Continuing on this action packed vacation we went to Laughlin to hang out with my cousins Kim and Forrest and pick up Great Grandma to bring her back home with us to catch a flight to Uncle Kens house in Minnesota. It was Grandmas birthday so we took her to dinner at the finest restaurant in Bullhead City.....Hibachi Grill. It was actually a terrible Chinese buffet (Because I know my Chinese buffets) but grandma loved it anyway. On the way out of town we stopped in Needles and had breakfast at the Giggling Cactus which was pretty good so that hopefully made up for the Chinese buffet. I really don't even like going to the river because it's freaking hot, I don't gamble and I'm not into water toys but the rest of my family is so we go just to spend time with them. I was a little worried about this year because we were just going with Kim and Forrest and they only have a boat that we usually have to swim out to and climb aboard. Isella wasn't too worried about it but I was not looking forward to looking like a sea lion trying to climb aboard while holding on to my trunks and sliding around because of all the sunscreen you have to wear when it is 113 degrees. Anyhow, it worked out great because Forrest is the man and was kind enough to pick us up on the dock in the marina then he found a nice cove that had sand instead of rocks so he was able to drive the boat right up on the shore and I could step right off the boat. So the crisis was averted and my trunks were not an issue after all (See the first paragraph, those trunks were going nowhere 😂)
Sounds like a lot of action for a short vacation but we actually went to Universal Studios, drive in movies and aside from the adventures I actually got a few projects done around the house. It was definitely too short but I'm thankful for every minute I get to spend with the family that God blessed me with. Sadly, Michelle had work and school so she wasn't able to go with us which was a bummer but I am glad that Andrew was home to keep an eye on her 😉. 
I hope we are able to squeeze in a few more adventures before the girls go back to school and with Sophie and Mia in high school now the time of them going on their own adventure without me is rapidly approaching 😢

Graham Clan in Catalina



Us taking our tour of the island

 

DAMN! mommy looks HOT! (Sorry girls but it could be worse....I could have posted my photo shoot in my speedos)

  

Graham Clan conquering Mt Rubidoux

 

Sophie's too old to hold daddy's hand anymore (Sad face emoji)

 

You still owe me $5 for losing this bet Mia

Hang in there Dad and Bear

Got word a few weeks ago that my dad has cancer. I can't pronounce the type but I know he has it in his bladder and pancreas. Dad is definitely a man of few words so when I talked to him he didn't seem to know much more than I did so auntie Veronica has been giving the family updates. Dad is also a man of few emotions, although Veronica did tell me that he cried when they towed his old work truck away to the junk yard 😊 Dad didn't seem to be too worried about it and we actually shared a good laugh when he told me the story of what made him go to the Dr. in the first place because he had an accident at work and he was just happy that being a parking attendant at Anaheim Stadium that he has to wear a brim hat that perfectly covered everything up. I'm glad that dad has a good attitude about the diagnosis and I know that will help him fight the good fight.


Also got word a few weeks ago that our longtime equipment man at Anaheim HS was just diagnosed with prostate cancer. Barry, who we all call "Bear" was the equipment man when my uncle played football at Anaheim in the early 80's, when I played there in the 90's and as long as I coached there. Barry's sons were the ball boys for the teams I played for and after they came back from college I coached with his oldest son Andy for 10 years. Barry just retired a couple years ago so I really hope he beats it and can enjoy his retirement, he deserves it!

This is me and Bear at coach Torres' retirement party a couple years ago and I look like I'm 8 months pregnant. Sadly, I don't have a single picture of me and dad. Apparently he is a man of few pictures too. 😊

Joe is the Man!

Check out this view from the top floor suite my friend Joe got for me and mommy to celebrate our anniversary. Joe's girl is a VIP at Pechanga and she was able to get us a suite and even though mommy and I are not big gamblers we had a blast playing a few slots, watching a comedy show and eating at the buffet. We were planning on going low key this year but Joe really hooked it up. Thanks Joe and Sherrie!

Congrats Sissy!

My niece Taylor graduated from high school a few weeks ago and I couldn't be prouder. It was a perfect cool day and I got lucky parking right across the street from the stadium on some guys yard for $5. Taylor always got good grades and is a tremendous athlete and I can't wait to see what she will do in life. I'm not sure what she is planning on doing in college but I hope she still competes in track. Until then she is working 2 jobs at 2 of daddy's favorites joints, Porky's pizza and Panda Express. Sissy only weighs about 90lbs but probably not for long if she keeps working there.
Love you Sis!

Me, Taylor and Grandma