San Francisco Aug 24-27

On the afternoon of August 24th, we arrived in San Francisco for a Stiehl Family vacation.  Kerri and Jason (& kids) met us at the rental.  Yes, we rented a house for the long weekend.  It was a 4 bedroom 2 bath home within walking distance to the beach.  Carl found a great family oriented spot.  The house was fabulous for the kids.

 Our first stop was Muir Woods...the redwoods.  This was by far my favorite part of the trip.  I just love being surrounded by the redwoods, the smell, the air....I could get used to living closer to these magnificent trees.

 Henry, Maggie and Elena learning about the forest.

 Who doesn't need a good run after a long day of traveling?  

Elena and Maggie were fast friends.  All the cousins loved being together.

 What a cutie!!

 As big as they seem to us, the Steihl boys are dwarfs compared to the redwood trees!

 Our attempt at a photo was timed too closely to dinner.  I took several pics and the kids tried to pull it together but everyone was hungry.

Jason, Kerri, Henry, Maggie and James in a redwood tree!

 Lucky shot...I think there was a group behind the camera entertaining Elena.  Sometimes it does take a village!

 Imagine, Elena could stand in this tree...it wasn't even that big!!

 The next day the Stiehls invaded the beach.

 Everyone had a nice time in the sand.  Maggie even made Elena a cupcake.  Elena's response was that it was only sand....such a funny girl!

 We ate out a few times.  Aren't they cute?

 A stop to see Yoda at Lucas Film Studios.  It was more of a drive by, jump out snap pics and zoom away.  Nonetheless, still awesome!

 The Golden Gate Bridge looking back at San Francisco.

 We stopped on our way to Sausalito/Tiburon for an impromptu picture.  Here are Pop and Lorraine with their grandkids, missing Corin.

I took nearly 600 photos in the three and half days we were in San Francisco.  It was a great time had by all and reminds me of how far we live from each other.  I wish we all lived closer as our visits are not frequent enough.

Elephant Seals and Onward

Today is December 9th.  It has been way too long since my last post.  The fall was a busy time for us...but I'm back and hope you enjoy the updates.  I'll be keeping the posts dated with the activity date so when looking back at the blog we have continuity throughout the blog.

 One last snapshot of Morro Rock....and then we were off to Piedras Blancas to view the Elephant Seals!

 This morning we stopped to visit the Elephant Seals.  Amazing creatures.  To see much better photos and read up on the seals, please check out Friends of the Elephant Seals: http://www.elephantseal.org/

 Somebody was a wee bit cranky :)

 "They're stinky!"

Now, onward toward Big Sur for the second leg of the drive to San Francisco.  The roads are windy, unpopulated and aside from the man-made road structures absolutely beautiful!  Our trip was covered in coastal fog but still breathtaking...and maybe a little nauseating.

Morro Bay, California

Well, it's been a busy week--birthday party Saturday night and Tuesday night.  Now Thursday morning our car is loaded up and ready for a road trip.  We're driving up to San Francisco to visit with family.

 Central California coast is beautiful.  It is full of rolling hills which are golden during the summer and fall.  We saw a lot of free range, happy, non-stinky cattle.  Above is a picture as we were driving.

 Elena is a good traveler.  It doesn't always feel like we travel a lot, however talking with other parents in Elena's school they tend to travel once a year at most.  I guess that puts us in the "travel frequently" category.  I'm sure glad she travels well!

 On the way up to San Francisco, we split our trip into 2 days stopping over in Morro Bay.  These photos are from the beach near the Morro Bay rock.  The rock is an island, remnants of volcanic activity long ago.

Ahhhh!  Elena taking a deep breath, enjoying the ocean breeze and freedom to stretch.

 Loving sand between her toes...

 ...and running on the beach.

 She also had fun running in and out of the surf.  The water was much colder than in San Diego but it did not phase her, she was soaked.

 

 Ah, so much room to run and loving it!

Birthday at the Bay

 After work tonight, Elena and I drove down to Mission Bay for a birthday party.  This was by far the best idea for a party.  The party was set up on the public beach outside the Catamaran Hotel's Luau.  We were able to enjoy the music while hanging out on the beach watching the kids trek in and out of the bay.  Above Ryan and Elena marching in the bay.

Not only were we set up near the luau but the ferry doc was nearby too.  I am happy to have learned of another great and free activity to do in San Diego.  As we were leaving we watched fire dancers--amazing!  The luaus are only during the summer; next summer we will be going down to this spot to enjoy an evening together!  Above Emma and Elena testing the waters.

Green Smoothies - Yum!

In an effort to consume more green leafy veggies, I used my birthday money to upgrade our blender.  This blender is not only easy to use, can create a smoothie consistency just like Jamba, it is also a breeze to clean.  Elena and I are loving the green smoothies.  See for yourself:

 ...gulping...and hiding from the camera.

 Yummy!

 Getting every last drop...

 ...before asking for seconds!  "More smoobie please!"  (yes, Elena asks for smoobies)

We've been making them every day.  Elena prefers the green smoothie over the all fruit smoothies.  Her favorite "green" smoothies are green and purple...then she asked me to make her a brown smoothie.  I asked her how to make a brown smoothie and she responded with "just mix the green and purple smoothies".  She is always surprising us with her knowledge and understanding.