California Dreamin’ (our magical trip to LA)

Well dear reader, we FINALLY did it! After 15 years, Spider and I took a vacation.
Let me give a little back story……..

We rescued every pet in our house. At one time, we had a grand total of 8 dogs and 3 cats. Over the years, we’ve lost all our dogs to either cancer or old age. We lost our last 2 dogs and our 2 eldest cats within 3 months in 2021. We now have 4 cats ( by 2017 we had 6 cats and 3 dogs but those stories are for separate blogs) Given these circumstances, we never felt right about traveling because that is just a lot to ask any pet sitter.

So fast forward to last Autumn…….

Our amazing friend, Tom Pelphrey was in town working on a project. We petsit his gorgeous dog Blue, a super awesome German Shepherd. (again, another story for another blog). He invited us over one day to meet his mom, Laurie, who is so fabulous and sweet! We had been chatting with her on Insta for a few years, but this was the first time we met her in person. We absolutely adore her! He also introduced us to his girlfriend, Kaley Cuoco. She was so amazing! So down to earth and just real. She and Spider hit it off right away (they’re both Sagittarius) and bonded over their mutual passion of rescuing animals. When we left, Kaley said she felt like she’d known us forever and please send her our email address.

Well, the announcement came that she and Tom were expecting a baby! We were sent an e-vite to their baby shower in January in LA.

OK we HAVE to take a vacation now!!! (Thank you so much Tom and Kaley for making us get off our asses and finally do something for ourselves)

So we hired one of our pet sitter friends (we have ridiculously high standards, as we are also pet sitters) bought some blink cameras (so we could check in on the kids……to ease our separation anxiety) bought our carry on bags and generally got ourselves ready for LA.

The trip out of ATL

This is the first time we’ve gone on a trip together, first time to LA and first time flying since pre 9.11 (for Spider, 2004 for me) so you could say we were just a tad anxious! We had an Uber pick us up and take us to the airport.  The TSA line was super short and we got through pretty quickly, so at least that stress was gone. We board the plane and all is well. It just so happened that UGA was playing in LA that Monday in the National Championships so our plane was full of Bulldog fans. The whole trip out went so well and we were so thankful! Our first flight in forever and it was pretty perfect.

We had a car reserved at Sixt, so we had to get the shuttle to the car. It felt like a mile walk to get there! We get to the rental car and the staff there were amazing. They gave us the most beautiful car ever, a new BMW 4 series coupe. I mean, it’s our first vacation in 15 years! Of course we do it in style! (If you ever need a great car rental, we highly recommend Sixt.)

our BMW 4 Series Coupe from Sixt Car Rental (photo by SpiderRain)

Once we figured out how to start the car (ha ha ha) we made our way to PCH. Wow! What an insanely gorgeous drive! We pulled over and stood on the rocks at Malibu Beach. It was breathtaking!

our view on the side of the Pacific Coast Highway (photo by SpiderRain)

We could have stayed right there forever, but we had to continue our drive to Thousand Oaks and check into our hotel. We stayed at the Hyatt Regency (thanks to our hosts) in Westlake Village. The staff there were so nice! Again, we highly recommend staying there if you need accommodations in Thousand Oaks.  Our room was really nice and the bed was super comfy. After we got settled, we hung out at the fire pit and enjoyed the amazing weather. January there is nothing like January in Atlanta!

the fire pit at our hotel (photo by SpiderRain)

Event day!

The next day we got to leisurely get ready for the party. The drive to the ranch was stunning! Winding roads through hills and valleys, it was truly breathtaking.

the hills & valleys on our drive (photo by SpiderRain)

We get to the ranch, and weren’t sure where to go, so we looked for where the cars were parked. We drove down this hill, looking for a space and realized we were where all the catering and event staff were! Obviously we are not used to going to events where a valet parks you! We go inside and wow! What a beautiful space! The cocktail hour was in the stables and the animals were all there in attendance. There were horses, sheep, goats, bunnies and chickens. There were miniature cows and ponies. All of these beautiful animals were rescued.

one of many rescused horses at Big Bay City, Kaley’s ranch (photo by family friend)

The hors d’oeuvres served at cocktails were delicious! They had gluten free and vegan options too. We really loved that in addition to serving flutes of champagne, they also had mocktails and flutes of sparkling Martinelli’s apple cider! (Spider and I don’t do alcohol, so this was super cool)

Onward to dinner!

There must have been at least 50 tables that sat 10 guests each. We had a buffet style dinner that was fabulous. The dessert tables were mind-blowingly beautiful with the most amazing cake in the center. Here too, were gluten free and vegan options. There was live music and dancing and then at the end we were served more hors d’oeuvres that were a little heavier than the pre dinner round (and every bit as delicious).

Somewhere between dinner and dancing, Tom and Kaley directed us all outside for a surprise. It turned out to be a 400 drone light show! If you saw any of the press about it, let me assure you dear reader, it was better than any video you may have seen.

By the end of the night we were exhausted and exhilarated. We made the winding drive back to our hotel and slept like babies.

The next morning after we had breakfast and packed, we went to Tom and Kaleys for brunch and to hang with the fam. After visiting a while we had to start heading out to see a few things before flying back to Atlanta. We ran out of time for most of what we wanted to do, but we did get to drive past the Santa Monica Pier, stop off on the side of the PCH again, see the surfers at Malibu and drive through Venice Beach.

Rain, Tom, Spider & Kaley (photo by family friend)

Time to say so long for now……

I must say dear reader, SoCal is a magical place! Seriously, every person we interacted with on any level was genuinely nice. Nobody cares what you look like, how you present yourself or who you are. The level that people coexist there is truly mind blowing and beautiful! There is such a chill, happy vibe that emits from everyone. People were even nice to us in traffic! We felt so comfortable there, like we belonged.

Sadly, it was time to leave, but fear not! We have more travel plans ahead, and the next time we go to LA, we’re staying for a whole week!

the beach off the side of the PCH (photo by SpiderRain)

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