My dad and half-brother, Keith, came to visit this past weekend. My first guests since I moved to the Bay Area (two years ago this month!). They flew up from Houston, Texas and stayed a couple of days, from Friday to Tuesday.

Friday we just hung out in San Mateo. I showed them how close we are to the bay (about three blocks) and how awesome the view is. That night we ate the best sushi ever at Yuzu (dad and Keith agreed).

On Saturday we attempted to go to the beach (south of Half Moon Bay), but it was foggy and freezing. The beaches here aren’t sunny and warm like most people imagine. Sometimes it’s nice, but that’s rare in my experience. That night we hung out in North Beach and ate some yummy Italian food at Caffe Sport. Keith said it was the best he’d ever had outside of his grandmother’s cooking. That neighborhood was packed with people celebrating St. Patrick’s day so we headed over to the Thirsty Bear for drinks after dinner.

Sunday we spent the day touring three wineries in Napa. We started off with an awesome small winery called Goosecross. The pourers were sassy and gave us lots of shit, which is just what we wanted. And the wine was wonderful - I think we took home 3 different bottles. We went up in scale from there, going to Miner and then Trinchero (which is located where Folie à Deux used to be). We finished up the trip with dinner at the Rutherford Grill where I had a delicious Hawaiian Rib Eye - it was so good, I wouldn’t mind eating that every night from now on!

Then on Monday we sent dad and Keith off for a tour of Alcatraz (Steve and I had already been twice, and that’s more than enough). While they were exploring prison life Steve and I hung out in North Beach with Joe and ate lunch at Caffe Delucchi (very good stuff). After that we all indulged in some cheese and wine at the Ferry Building, then headed home where Steve cooked yummy etouffe.

Tuesday they headed home on a flight that was late. Seems like every flight I’ve encountered recently is late. I think we all had a good time, at least they said so anyway. One of the nice things about having visitors is that it’s like a mini-vacation. I get to see friends or family and explore the goodies that San Francisco has to offer. Can’t beat that!

I just got back from another trip to Texas, my half-brother Ricky got married in Galveston. My dad rented a beach house there for two nights. While there I found a much better way of collecting sea shells - here they are in my Flickr photoset. The water was very strange, on Friday there were no waves in the Gulf, it was super calm. Dad’s friend Donnie said he had never seen it so flat. Saturday it picked up some and by Sunday morning it sounded nice and soothing.

The wedding was nice, about 250 people. The ceremony was short and the reception followed right after. It was in this oversized, enclosed gazebo - quite beautiful. The bride’s father gave a kick-ass speech (apparently he does it for a living). And, my favorite part, desert was fabulous. Fondue and butterscotch flavored cake - yum.

While we were gone I boarded Joe with my new vet. He was extremely happy to see Steve and I. He ran around the house like a crazy man and then slept the rest of the evening. He was probably exhausted from the stress of worrying about us. Everyone there had to say goodbye to Joe because they all fell in love with him.

I finally began uploading some photos to my Flickr account. I decided to start with some well over due photos of my trip to Niagara Falls back in February with my dad, his girlfriend, Felicia, and my half brother Ricky.

The three of them flew up to Ohio from Texas and stayed with me (I was in Shaker Hts at the time). Dad rented a car and we drove up to Niagara. There was A LOT of snow on the ground, everything was frozen over. Especially around the falls. A layer of ice formed on top because of the mist. We started skating on this one patch of ice/snow. We�d start on top of this gradual hill and slide down on our feet. A bunch of people began to follow. Later on when we were in the tower, we could still see people skating. It was a blast!

I got an email from a woman who also found her father, and she allowed me to share it with you:

I read your touching story on your web site. Thanks for sharing such a private moment with the public. I found it in a search.

I am 36 and decided last year (when I turned 35) to venture out and finally contact my biological father. He has turned out to be a wonderful friend. We really hit it off– I felt the same way you did— never realizing I had a void in my life, until I actually contacted him. It definitely changed me.

I too was absolutely excited when he responded back to my initial letter. It has now been a year since we first met. My story is a little more complicated than yours. I was curious, did your Dad tell his other children that he had another daughter out there before you contacted him? That is where my story gets complicated. My Dad did not…(Although his wife knew about the secret.) I have two sisters— 22 and 24 that have no idea they have a 36 year old sister… I was born out of wedlock— my Mom did not want to marry him— they went their separate ways. About 6 years after I was born he married his current wife (still married)— years later they had children together, my two sisters. He always wanted to tell them… but since we were not in contact, and I was later adopted (with his consent) by my Mom’s husband, my adoptive Father— he felt it was best to live the subject alone. Now he has this big skeleton in the closet. He really wants to tell them but is so afraid of what they will think of him. His wife is nice, but a little reserved with the situation. She really offers no opinion on the subject. She is probably more of a negative force in the situation. I have reassured him that we are in the 21st Century— they will be more upset with him if he continues to have a relationship with me in secret— continuing his lie. He needs to tell them. I am a true believer in the old phrase, “The truth will set you free.” Anyway, I was just wondering if you had any insight on my little situation.

Again, I love him— he has been wonderful to me. I just hate being a secret. I have extended family that I cannot meet until he comes clean. My Uncles. One thing is certain, he realizes what a big mistake he made leaving his daughter— he made no excuses. We both look at our situation as we cannot change the past, let’s embrace the future. To me embracing the future includes being honest with everyone.

Thanks for reading.

Laura in Phoenix, AZ

Thursday, May 27

Five of us flew to Colorado from Cleveland: me, Grandma, Aunt Diane, Aunt Tammy and her daughter, Kayleigh (16). My dad flew in from Texas. Uncle Mike, his wife, Jenny, and their two sons, Michael (5), and Nicholas (5 mos.), flew in from Hawaii. We were all coming together for Abby’s high school graduation - Abby (18), Laurie (20), and Heather (21) are Uncle Mike’s daughters from his first marriage.

Us Cleveland fliers had a stop in Chicago, where we missed our connecting flight because the first flight was delayed. After waiting an extra hour and having a few laughs (Grandma accidentally sat on her sandwich, and when she got up it had indentations from her butt!), we were finally on our way. I slept most of the time because I get motion sickness and take Dramamine, which makes me very sleepy.

Uncle Mike and Heather met us all at the airport. My dad’s flight had landed before us, so he was waiting there, too. It was really nice to see him again and to meet some more new relatives.

We got our car rentals, then went to the hotel, where I met some more family. After settling in, we all went out to eat before heading to Sears for our photo shoot - it was the first time that Uncle Mike had all five of his children together, and it had been five years since my dad and his three siblings had all been together. Following the long 2-1/2 hour shoot, we headed back to the hotel to hang out, catch up and have a few laughs.

Friday, May 28

Those of us who were old enough (me, my dad, Diane, Tammy, Mike, Jenny, and Heather) went gambling up in the mountains Friday morning. On the way there we stopped to take some pictures of the mountains and saw some wild buffalo.

Most of us had a few free drinks because the casinos give them to you if you’re gambling. Only two of us came out ahead - Aunt Diane won $375 and Heather won $45. Everyone else broke even or spent quite a bit.

While we were gambling, Grandma and Kayleigh went to lunch with Abby and some of Abby’s relatives. That evening, we all went to dinner at the Emerald Isle. On the way home, Diane, Tammy and Kayleigh stopped at Walgreens. See, Kayleigh hadn’t pooped since we got to Denver and needed a “poop pill.” So Diane and Tammy had the cashier page “Customer Poopy O’Brien to the front, please, customer Poopy O’Brien to the front.” They were laughing their butts off when they told us about it. Hilarious!!!

Some of us went to Applebee’s later that night for some drinks, where we had many laughs. Our group kept growing - Laurie’s friends were coming up to join us, so we moved another table over, right against ours. Well, we made Laurie sit at the extra table and we were all going to pretend we didn’t know her when her friends walked in and we were going to ask if they could please move their table over. We laughed so hard none of us could get the words out when they arrived. Some of us laughed so hard we cried, while others peed their pants - twice!

My dad and I weren’t ready to sleep yet, so we went to a bar called Big Fat Rocky’s. Laurie and her three friends joined us, and two of them played pool. There was a really drunk guy who sat down at the table with us and insisted on having to know our names. Laurie’s friend (Dy) said his name was Guns ‘n Roses, my dad said that our names were Jimmy (Laurie), Crack (me) and Corn (Dad). It was pretty funny. Then my dad and I whooped Laurie and Dy’s butts at pool.

Saturday, May 29

It took awhile, but we all finally figured out who was doing what. Uncle Mike, Aunt Tammy and I got a ride to Abby’s commencement ceremony from Heather. My dad and Grandma went to a business meeting (one that my dad had scheduled). And everyone else went shopping.

The graduation was really different - they had singers before, after and between the 680 students that were called up for diplomas. At one point there was a girl dancing, which was a little freaky. They had an eagle there because it was Eaglecrest High School.

We all met up back at the hotel and got ready to go to the party at Abby’s mom’s house. Her name is Kim and her husband is Dave, and they have a daughter named Emily. We drank, ate, and had a blast. Later that night we went to karaoke, and Kim and Dave joined us. Most of us sang a couple times; there were many people in the rotation. My dad sang a song on a cell phone to his wife, Mary, who couldn’t join us on the trip.

After karaoke, some of us went on to Denny’s for a late night breakfast, where we enjoyed continued laughter. We harassed the poor waitress, telling her there was something in the water (ketchup, hashbrowns, sugar, cream, and other nasty stuff!!).

Sunday, May 30

It took awhile with packing and checking out, but eventually we all made it to the diner outside the hotel for breakfast. Table for 12, please! With full bellies, we said our good-byes. Then me, Dad, Grandma, Diane, Tammy and Kayleigh headed off to the airport. There we parted ways with my dad. I was sad to say good-bye; felt like I didn’t get to see him enough.

Our flights to Chicago and Cleveland were cancelled due to storms, but they were replaced by flights with just about the same departure times. However, in Chicago our new flight was cancelled again! When we finally boarded our new alternate flight, we ended up sitting on the plane for over TWO hours waiting to take off. We didn’t get home until 1:00 a.m. - three hours later than the originally scheduled time! I was VERY happy to be home, even though I had a really good time and wished it could have lasted just a little bit longer.

* Denver Photo Set *

Last weekend my dad came up for a quick little visit. He stayed with me and Dan and the four dogs, whom he really liked. It was a short weekend, so it was packed full of little get-togethers, which means lots of eating.

He arrived late Thursday night. Friday we had lunch with grandma. Then dinner with his sisters, their husbands and some friends. That night we went to karaoke and had fun singing.

Saturday Dan cooked a yummy lunch for us, grandma came over too. Sunday morning we met his sisters again for brunch and then headed back to my house to hang out for a bit.

The weekend went by really quickly, but it was still very nice

Sunday
We arrived around 4:00pm. Dan got to meet my dad and the rest of the family for the first time. To my suprise, dad had a new puppy, Juliet. Sweet little pitt bull mix. Brittany was nice enough to give us her room so we settled in. In the evening we hung out in the back yard, played pool and drank some beer.

Monday
The only day my dad had to work. He gave us the Chevy Suburban to meet him and Keith for lunch. Afterwards Dan and I went to the mall to watch all the crazy people frantically buying last minute gifts. I love people watching. One woman saw the ants tattooed on Dan’s leg and literally jumped back, then laughed at herself. It was pretty funny.

Monday night Dad, Dan and I went to see Lord of the Rings, which I thought was really good except that it had a few too many endings. After that we went to Hooters for a light meal and came up with the idea of “Pecks” or “Wankers” - the male equivalent to Hooters. Wieners would be the hot item on the menu.

Tuesday
Dad, Alexis, Dan and I went to the Houston Space Center. It was pretty neat. We saw just how small of a space the astronaut’s live in - I could never do it, I’m too claustrophobic.

Wednesday

Christmas Eve - Alexis, Dan and I made cookies for most of the morning. Then Dan and I helped Mary prepare some food. Around 6:00 Mary’s family arrived. We had introductions, then ate and finally the gift exchange. First all the children opened their presents. Then the adults did a “Chinese Gift Exchange“, where everyone buys one present for $15. Everyone draws a number and gets to open a present in that order. So you can open a new present or take someone else’s gift, then they have to open a new present. A present can only be taken twice, then it is dead and that person gets to keep it. At the end the first person gets one last take. It was pretty fun to see everyone trying to get what they wanted and planning on swapping afterwards.

After most of the guests left a few of us played a couple rounds of Taboo. It’s always fun to see people play that game.

Thursday
Ah, Christmas Day - We had to wait for Ricky, Keith and Danielle to arrive around 11:00 before we could start opening presents. There were soooo many gifts under the tree! I think that everyone had a great time opening the gifts and for the most part liked them all. The rest of the day was pretty relaxing. We watched The Grinch later that evening.

Friday
I gave my dad his other present - a tattoo. Then in the evening Dan and I went to see my dad’s band play at the Turtle Club, which is located on a boat. I was a little worried that I’d get sick, especially while drinking, but it was fine and I didn’t even notice. The band was great and the crowd just loved them.

Saturday
In the afternoon Dad took us on a little tour of downtown Houston. He showed us his friend Bernie’s house - which is actually a warehouse that he and his wife turned into a home. The entire place is about 5,600 square feet. It’s still in the works, but it’s awesome. We also saw these huge sculpted heads of the presidents and where Mary works. When we got home I gave Mary a tattoo.

That night Dad had a gig at a 16-year-old’s birthday party, so most of us loaded up and headed out to see them. I think we brought as many people as she had for her party. Again, the band sounded awesome.

Sunday

Ah the sad day, we packed up our things and left for home. My mom and aunt picked us up from the airport, and when we got home we discovered that we didn’t have a key to get in. We tried calling the dog sitter, but he wasn’t home. So I crawled in through the kitchen window - thank goodness I hadn’t locked it! Once my mom and aunt left we felt a little weird - coming from a house full of people to an empty house of two. Yeah the dogs were there, but it’s just not the same.

Xmas Picture Gallery

Thursday, Thanksgiving Day

My first “new” family holiday. My half brother, Keith, and half sister, Danielle, came to stay with me for Thanksgiving weekend. They flew in Thanksgiving day.

I picked them up from the airport around 3:00 while my ex-husband busily cooked dinner on one leg (he injured the other playing soccer). Our grandma and grandpa also joined us for dinner that day.

Grandma and grandpa hadn’t seen Keith and Danielle in quite some time, so it was a nice litte reunion for us all. My brother and sister are very quiet just like me, so the conversation at dinner time consisted of smiling and looking around the room mostly. My ex-husband and his friend John filled the air with talk of work.

Friday

On Friday Keith, Danielle, and myself mostly just hung out. We drove around, went to Borders for coffee and discovered how quiet we can really be.

Saturday

We spent most of Saturday at our aunt Tammy’s house. We celebrated the November birthdays - Danielle, our cousin Mickey and myself. We played pool and some other games and had a pretty good time.

By the end of the day we were a bit more talkative, getting used to each other and a little more “warmed” up.

Sunday

On Sunday we decided to go to the Nightmare Before Xmas concert, put on by Xtreme radio. We saw Korn, Offspring, Adema, Ill Nino and Crystal Method. I think Offspring was the only band that played well in a live environment, the rest of them didn’t seem to be quite so together. But we all enjoyed it.

Monday

Then Monday Keith and Danielle left for home. I can’t wait to go down for Christmas and see them again, along with the rest of the gang!

My Roses

The Concert

The Beach House

Around Houston

Tuesday
We headed home from the beach house. I got caught up on some email and we all took some much needed naps. That night Keith came over and he, Dad and I went for movies and ice cream. It was a pretty laid back relaxed day. I also met my sibling�s mom and grandma. They were both very nice people.

Wednesday
Dad, Danielle and I took a little tour of downtown Houston. We went to a few galleries, ate some Cajun food for lunch, and saw our Dad�s work. Then we stopped in on Keith who works with Dad�s best friend Donnie and Tiffany�s boyfriend Ryan. After all that we headed home. I watched the guys play video games and helped my Dad with some computer stuff. Later that night Dad, Mary and I watched Chicago, which I liked � but I don�t think they did. I took a bunch of pictures, and when I get back I�ll do a little photo gallery of my trip. I feel very comfortable with everyone now. Once again, I�m going to be really sad to leave tomorrow.