"Sing it if you know it..."

I purposely timed my parents visit last week with Hanson's tour schedule, so that my mom and I would be able to go to a concert together.  Yeah I did!  My mom and I have been going to Hanson concerts together since 1997.  That's 16 years.  I'd call it something special we've got going on between us, for sure.  This particular show in Anaheim last week marked my 30th Hanson concert.

And what's a Hanson concert without a little walk first!

 And later that night, our 30th Hanson concert.

And it was AMAZING.

And since we weren't too far away,

we squeezed in another walk the next day on Sunset Blvd in Hollywood =)

I am so happy I got to have this West Coast Hanson experience with my Mom.

I love this band.

Mom & Dad Visit Southern California!

Well, we dropped my parents off at the airport on Sunday morning.  Womp womp.  We had the BEST time with them visiting this past week.  Our time together flew by way too fast and I miss them already.  We had such a good time showing them around California and definitely did a ton of FUN stuff!

While my parents were here, we...

 Walked along the beach at Crystal Cove in Laguna

Checked out Downtown Disney & the awesome Lego store

 Took the walk with Hanson =)

Went to the Hanson concert at House of Blues Anaheim!
(Dad & Brett did not partake in this part...haha)

Checked out the Griffith Observatory and awesome views

 Saw the Hollywood sign

Introduced Mom & Dad to the amazing In-N-Out

Walked down Hollywood Blvd
(My Mom's nickname is "Fred" haha)

And my Dad got interviewed for Jimmy Kimmel Live!
(and he was ON that night!)

Took another walk with Hanson on Sunset Blvd =)

Made some delicious homemade pizza

Went biking along the beach

Took them to the Top of the World!

Went to Downtown Disney again for dinner at the Rainforest Cafe

Explored Tablerock Beach

And walked along Thousand Steps Beach

Found the Elephant Parade at Dana Point

Witnessed a beautiful San Clemente sunset

And hung out on the pier before dinner at Fisherman's Wharf for their last night

We had such an amazing time together.  Seeing my parents made us miss home even more.  We can't wait until we can get back to Pittsburgh and see everyone!  What a wonderful week we had together.

Counting down the days until we can see them again!

Oklahoma {Our Great Adventure}

Oklahoma!

We didn't stop overnight in Oklahoma at all.  We spent a day driving across the entire state.  And the entire time, I was completely giddy.  Why was I giddy?  If you know me at all, you know that my most favorite band has been, is, and always will be HANSON.  And Hanson is from Oklahoma.  Tulsa, Oklahoma.  I have always dreamed of going to one of the Hanson Day events in Tulsa, but haven't made it out there yet.  One day, one day.  But for now, just driving through the state and seeing the Tulsa sign made me happy.  I even drank a Dr. Pepper in Hanson's honor while passing through the state.  (Why do I still remember what their favorite drink was from 1997?!)  I may or may not have continually kept trying to get Brett to detour and head towards Tulsa.  But that, of course, didn't work very well... ;)  Oh!  And also, Oklahoma was were I had my first Sonic experience.  Oreo milkshake.  Delicious.

It's All Happening...

"They don't even know what it is to be a fan.

To truly love some silly little piece of music, or some band,

so much that it hurts."

Words cannot really describe how amazing Wednesday night was.  Being at this Hanson concert, surrounded by the whole Hanson atmosphere just brought me straight back to the days when we would follow their tour, going city to city, seeing show after show, and loving every minute of it.  Those were some of the best days of my life and memories I will hold close forever.  It's amazing that after 15 years of following this band, they still make me feel the same way as they did at the very beginning of it all.  It's a special thing that long-time Hanson fans have.  No one else really understands it.  And we can't really explain it.  But all I know is that no matter how long we go between shows, and even if we can't follow the full tours anymore, every single time we come back, we fall right back into place and... "it's all happening" ...all over again. 

Thank you Hanson for the AMAZING show on Wednesday night.  And for confirming to me all over again the reasons why you have been my favorite band for the past 15 years and will continue to stay my favorite band for many, many years to come.

"It's more than a feeling,
it's something that can't be explained."


{All photos by myself & my sister - FRONT ROW BABY!!!}