Monday, June 30, 2014

Camping with dad and Monterey for our Anniversary

 Rick took Mia camping right after school got out to Duck Creek, Utah.
She REALLY wanted to tent camp so that's what they did. I guess it was pretty cold still.
They did some fishing but didn't have any luck.


 Dustin happened to be up there with his trailer so they got to ride the Razor for an
afternoon.
 she got to go in the fun ice caves there.


 camp set up...

 cutie! They had an awesome time eating burgers and going exploring and
just hanging out with her dad. He didn't get a picture of him though. She loved every minute of it!
 Rick and I went to Monterey Bay, CA for our 8th Anniversary.
Both grandmas took turns watching the kids so we were lucky enough to go
and it's nice to be able to not put it all on one grandma so we are pretty lucky they were both able to 
watch them. It was my first time away from Kellan with Rick so I was a little nervous but I was ok after the first day. We just fell in love with this beautiful place. We promised to take the kids next time because Mia
is so obsessed with wild life that she would have a blast. 
 tons of seals, they had whale watching too but we wanted to save that for the kids and the
world famous aquarium. The land here is very protected and the water is so clear that you can
see everything under the water. It reminded us of Washington State near Seattle but even more beautiful.
Forest plus ocean, you just can't get any better. We will definitely have to figure out a way to spend some time here when we retire even thought it is definitely chilly- I figure when I'm older I will have gone through
menapause and not get so cold haha so I could stand to live here part of the time. 

 this is the beach at Carmel... sooooo pretty and not busy at all!
We just couldn't believe how quiet such a pretty place was!


 in front of one of many mansions.
 Carmel Beach... LOOK at how quiet and it's a public beach??
I don't get it.. AND dogs are allowed.. huh?
 After Carmel and walking around the shops downtown,
we decided to drive to Big Sur National Park since it was only 40 minutes away and
world known for its Redwood trees against the ocean. I was in flip flops but I hiked anyway :) 
 this hike was beautiful, it went across bridges and tunnels down to the ocean.







 Big Sur is gorgeous isn't it?? We met this cute couple who had been married for over 50 years
and had a house there. They were fun to talk to. 
 Every night we went down to Fisherman's Wharf and walked along the stores and saw
all the otters. They have a contest with the clam chowder amongst all the restaurants so you can literally
just walk and sample until you are stuffed!





 they even had raccoons by the wharf one night.
 view from our room right on Monterey Bay: the hotels are super pricy here which is a bummer
 We went to Pebble Peach : famous golf course and had lunch. We actually saw the retired Director
of the CIA at the golf course and Rick was so bummed that he didn't get to go shake his hand.








 these are all pictures at Pebble Beach Golf course. The ocean was 
BEAUTIFUL! While we were eating lunch, somebody pointed out a guy in all white and said it was
Josh Groban
 There was even a jacuzzi at the top of the hotel so that was pretty fun! They also brought breakfast in bed each morning included in the room filled with fresh fruit, juices, muffins, and eggs. 
 We pretty much ate seafood the whole time, walked a ton, ran each morning, went sight seeing and just had fun together. It was a great trip!
oh ya and we rented a convertible black Chevy Camaro so that
was awesome except we both got super sunburned on the top of our heads. It was a great time!
The kids were really happy to see us. Mia is so intuitive and says, "Why do you guys look like you are very sad to be back here and not still at t Monterey?" haha 

Friday, June 20, 2014

Mia's Dance, New Niece, and cutie pie Kellan Bug

 nothing is cuter than a baby in the morning in pjs and one ready for bed at night in pjs


 oh do I love this little face! He's so funny, now along with NOOOO ok ok?
He is saying wow oh my my oh my my it's adorable, and he absolutely loves the 
pool, I just wish he loved some floaties because he jumps from my arms and I can barely control him.
 I think I kiss those cheeks over 100 times a day
 he found this backpack while I was shopping of the Disney Planes 
movie and just loves it. He spent all morning walking around with it on, eating breakfast, and then 
he even wanted it on in the car. So cute!

 this kid is even more obsessed with his bears than Mia is and the problem is that there are
two to keep track of! The other day, I had a $20 bill sitting on the counter and he pointed at the
president and said, Oh pampa, oh pampa, it was so funny, I'm thinking Grandpa M since he is in his 70's, 
I decided not to tell my dad since he's still in the 50's for now. 
 Mia and I ran up to St. George to see my new niece Laya!
She's a little doll and reminds me a lot of Mia with all that hair! She's just perfect.




 and Mia got to hold her and thought she was just beautiful
 Mia's dance pics arrived, super cute!



 my favorite









she's definitely growing up!!