Our California Adventure

The drive to California last week happened just as planned (most of the time) and I loved getting to see the geography and landscape change every few hours. God is so creative...I could never come up with such beautiful places.

The moon was absolutely gorgeous as we drove through California's emptiness.

I must have seen thousands of rolling, dry hills like these.

We ran out of gas in the middle of nowhere...and the guys pushed the van up the hill...we coasted down the hill...and when facing the next hill we decided to wait for AAA.

Upon entering our hotel room, I learned that one should NEVER hang a hanger on the sprinkler head.

Can you tell I was travelling with a few coffee lovers? 

We got to see dear friends become husband and wife! Aaron and Lily, we are SO happy for you!!!

They had a beautiful wedding. Do you see their joy?

We visited Vasquez Rocks - where an episode of Star Trek was filmed.

Oh, look at us wearing summery clothes!

Cool shot by John.

We also ran into a few High Performance Off Road Vehicles - AKA: remote control cars

They looked so real!

I should add that I went to Chipotle twice while in California! They are WAY more generous with their portions in that part of the country.  I can't complain.

We drove back to Washington at night and the drive felt soooo long. I could not wait to take a shower and fall asleep in a bed.

Visiting the Sun

The three of us (it is still so weird to think of us as a family of three) will be heading way south for a friend's wedding this week. Here are a few things I am excited about:

• Seeing friends become husband and wife - I love weddings!
• Reading a lot in our 22 hour drive (each way).
• Feeling the sun's warmth!!! I don't even know what to pack because I don't remember what 76 degrees feels like anymore.
• Spending time with friends we don't get to see all the time.
• Wearing a new dress dress. Yes, it is a new dress, but I am mostly excited about wearing a dress and not being cold...so really, the dress is not the really exciting part.

I am looking forward to sharing a few photos from this week's adventure with you all when I get back! Meanwhile, I hope you are doing well where ever you are.

A City of Many Buildings

This past weekend I got to explore Vancouver B.C. - the city of many buildings!

The exploring happened with friends and bikes.

Although I had not ridden a bike since middle school, I had a great time as I biked around on a very sunny day.

Check out these stacked rocks!

I can't believe they were balancing on each other even with a bit or wind.

Also, I secretly wanted to knock one over to make sure they were not glued together.

Can you tell I had fun?

Now, take a look at my crooked helmet. I look a little bit like a 10 year old here.

Our Vacation...

...to farming land

is made up of fields of apples

apple trucks

apple picking

and more apple picking.

But we pick grapes too!

We run into sunflowers

and more sun flowers.

We smell the roses

and take pictures of dandelions.

We fly homemade kites

and store bought kites.

We play bocci ball

and bananagrams.

That is pretty much what we do!

Back from Camping

I am not sure I still have any viewers...

But just in case someone out there is still reading, I will go ahead and attempt to get back into the groove of posting.

I was gone camping this weekend and although I wanted to get back to my blog right when I got back, I was occupied doing the laundry, cleaning the bathrooms, vacuuming the floors, emptying the dishwasher and loading the dishwasher, going through piles of emails...

Now that my home is in order I can sit down and relax a bit. That is how I function. If my surrounding is a mess, my brain is also a mess.

Anyways, this past weekend was filled with sunshine, hikes, campfires, mosquito bites, long conversations, laughter and fun. I feel blessed to have friends that make the time to stay connected.

First we went on a walk

to pick blackberries

and we found this pretty flower on our way.

We headed over to the beach

to skip rocks

climb rocks

and pick up some rocks.

We played kubb

and built a fire.

We went on a hike

and watched the tides come in.

We enjoyed our time together and will forever cherish these memories!

Highlights from the Last Week

John and I got back from Colorado late last night and although it was wonderful to be with family, we are also happy to be home.

I had never been to Colorado before and so we took some time to explore our surroundings. We visited Garden of the Gods - and I in love with the red rocks that are randomly scattered everywhere.

Although the mountains were gorgeous, what made this trip super exciting was the wedding of Angela Nobile and Curtis Schweitzer. Most of our time in Colorado was spent with family - and everyone had one task or ten to accomplish before the big day. The final result was stunning and this wedding was a tremendous success! We are SO excited for the bride and groom :)

Finally, I have to share with you all some photographs of the Colorado weather. We usually started the day with clear, sunny sky. Eventually it would get cloudy with some rain or hail and the night did not end without a show of lightning. John captured these pictures while we were out in a field enjoying the scenery.

Well, we are back home and it is time to get back to our regular routine.