California adventure part 2

This morning was our first day in Yosemite.  

Here's a view of our villa (there were four apartments in this one building). After a quick breakfast, Robbie and Michael went on a hike to Hetch Hetchy this morning while I stayed at the lodge with the other boys. 

So beautiful! They had a really nice hike together despite the 100-degree heat. 

At devotional in the car on the way home tonight, I asked the kids where they thought Heavenly Father would go if He wanted to meet us (we were talking about Isaiah 2:2-3, the mountain of the Lord being the temple), and after a long pause, he responded from the back of the Suburban, "Hetch Hetchy." 

Henry had gotten a cold and his asthma really was acting up due to the wildfire smoke blowing toward us in our part of the forest. So we stayed and played and rested and Clayton finally got a good nap (yay!). Other visitors at the lodge were impressed at Henry's and Benjy's fearlessness when it came to the ziplines here at the playground. After playing in the pool and having a quiet time, we headed into Yosemite Park proper.

This spot is called Tunnel View because you look through the corridor of the park to see El Capitan on the left and Half Dome on the right far in the distance. Pictures just can't capture the majesty of these mountains. Can you believe we celebrated twenty years of marriage last week?! I am so thankful for him.

El Capitan.

We stopped and got some groceries from Yosemite Village so we didn't continue paying an arm and a leg at the lodge for dinner and picnicked on the side of the Merced River.

Playing in the river.

Picnic time--fun minus the bees!

After we got home, we walked down to the lodge for s'mores. Benjy was just such a sweetheart, running down the path and so happy to be on his way to roast s'mores. Despite the craziness, he has been a good traveler. Today at the river as he stuffed his pockets with rocks he told me, "I'm going to keep these rocks and I'm going to take care of them. I'm going to wash them, and I'm going to dry them in the shower. . . Is that okay, Mommy?" He was also proud of himself for going #2 in the woods today, haha.

S'more time!

Clayton loved his first s'more and even let me steal a bite or two. Gosh what a cutie this boy is!

Travel Tip of the Day: Try super hard to ignore your kids fighting in the back of the car. When you're despairing and feel like they're becoming total reprobates, they can surprise you with a thoughtful and spiritual insight. 

California Adventure part 1

Last December, we found some relatively inexpensive nonstop flights to San Francisco and decided to make a trip of it this September. Clara didn't want to come, so despite my anxiety, we left her with a fabulous babysitter and friend, Madison Copeland, and flew the five hours to SF for a family adventure (note this is not a family "vacation" ;-)). The boys were so excited about the trip with Benjy counting down  and announcing each morning, "Only three more sleeps!" "Only two more sleeps!" and "I'm so excited to go to California!" The plane trip was the first adventure, and we were grateful that despite some difficulties with Clayton's ticket itinerary being separated from the rest of ours and some waiting with getting the rental Suburban (so enormous!), it was mostly uneventful. The boys enjoyed watching shows on the flight, chowing down on snacks we brought, and Clayton (for whom we wisely had purchased his own seat) slept for some of the time, which was awesome. It seems that gone are the days that you'll get a complimentary meal when you're flying over mealtime. Waahh!

We arrived at the Residence Inn and hit the hay around 2am EST (11pm PST) and tried to get on PST time as quickly as possible. The kids have been champs dealing with the time changes (Michael and I keep getting up early, although this is just the third day of the trip so maybe we'll figure it out right before we leave, haha).

We first got groceries for the week and then headed to Mill Valley, a charming town near Muir Woods where the same coastal redwoods are grown (but without the hassle of parking and crowds that Muir Woods boasts).

Matt and Melody were so great to drive down to meet up with us! Melody is expecting a baby boy in December. They were so great with the kids.

Cuties!

And Joseph and Jenna also drove two hours to meet up with us, too! The park was shady and beautiful with so many tall trees. The kids loved playing in the super dusty dirt which coated their shoes, legs, arms, faces, and even necks. I had the boys wash in the bathroom before we left but by the time we walked to the car again it was basically pointless, haha.

Some members of our family were not thrilled to be in this picture.

Then we drove to Battery Spencer (along with hundreds of other people as we crawled to get to the view) for a spectacular shot of the Golden Gate Bridge. It was so cool driving over this iconic architectural masterpiece.

Two cuties.

We squeezed in a brief visit to Fisherman's Wharf and Ghirardelli Square.

These three characters were busy busy busy.

Check out Lombard Street, known as the windiest street in America. It's hard to appreciate the crazy turns from this view. We were going to drive down it but opted not to given the long, slow line of cars (and the fatigue of our party). 

After an eventful night's sleep (see end of blog), we made it to church the following morning. The San Francisco ward where we visited was so wonderfully friend, and after Michael chose to bear his testimony (after introducing himself saying, "I always appreciate it when a random stranger comes and bears their testimony. Kind of mixes things up"), others also referenced his testimony as "Brother Stranger" and everyone was super welcoming. The kids enjoyed Primary despite initial weeping and wailing, and I was proud of their change of attitude.

We then drove to the Oakland temple on our way to Yosemite for the next leg of our trip. Despite killer high temps, we loved walking on the grounds and enjoyed the rooftop gardens. So beautiful and peaceful. 

Hurrah for the temple! 

We loved the Visitor's Center as well, where a very kind senior missionary, Elder Brunt, spent time with our family and the kids explored the different exhibits. It was very peaceful and felt good to be there with the boys. (We missed you, Clara!!)

Travel Tip of the Day:

Make sure you don't accidentally deadbolt the hotel room when your husband is out on a run at night. He might get locked out and try to pound on the door, but you could be dead asleep since you're still adjusting to the time zone. And your phone might be charging away from you so you don't hear his call. Then he might have to buy another hotel room right below you just so he can get a good night's sleep. (insert face palm) 

August and Back to School

 August was an in-between month, which was both hard and good. Hard because down time equals more quarreling among the kids sometimes. Good because we no longer had swim meets and practices to attend. Hard with the anticipation of school and its ups and downs. Good because school started and that means more predictable routines and earlier bedtimes. 

Hilton Head Island 2022

We have had a good week here at Hilton Head Island. Michael and I hadn't been here since 2016.

Look this cool drop tower Robbie made.

This trip fulfilled one of my dreams--riding bikes as a family. I meant to teach Benjy how to ride a bike before we left Virginia, but I didn't get to it and actually I am glad we just got the tag-along because it would have been hard for his little legs to bike so much and try to keep up. He liked feeling like he was one of the big kids, Clara was up for riding this trike, which was so awesome. I was super proud of her. Michael and the older boys rode to the beach most days, and I came later with Clara and Clayton after Clayton's nap. 

I love the flat beaches at Hilton Head--it's perfect for younger kids, although I can see it not being quite as exciting as the boys get older. Robbie really enjoyed the high tide at night when the waves were bigger.

Clayton liked riding on the bike. I was nervous riding with Clayton and the trailer back and forth to the beach from our condo, which was about a ten-minute bike ride, but we made it.

Digging a deep hole--Clayton wanted in on the action.

Nice, Henry!

Buried alive.

One evening we went out to Giuseppi's for pizza and enjoyed giant ice cream cones at Kilwin's which promptly melted into puddles as we ate in the blistering heat outside. 

Towheads.

Another morning we took a break from the beach and headed to the Coastal Discovery Museum, where they had different animals we were allowed to hold.

Holding a chicken--I was impressed how calm it was.

Check out this cool baby alligator.

Holding a corn snake.

I don't like snakes, but I had to try holding it. It was kind of cool, I have to admit.

Benjy celebrated his fourth birthday while we were at HHI. He has been so excited for his birthday for months.

One evening we took the older three on a bike ride around the golf course. It was so peaceful and I loved seeing the oaks with Spanish moss hanging down over the well-manicured grass. 

Clara was a big help carrying Clayton back and forth to the beach.

She wasn't a fan of the trip in general, but she survived. I think she did have some moments of fun out in the ocean. Even though riding the trike was scary for her (she'd never ridden that far on anything), she was brave and persevered, and I know she was proud of herself for doing it.

Michael and I had fun playing on the beach together and talking about our marriage. 

Clayton loved the little waves, sitting in the tidal pools, and even seemed to enjoy eating the sand.

Lessons learned:

- bring toys to the rental in case they don't have any

- three to four days at the beach is a good amount

- bikes were fun

- get a place with its own pool if possible

- don't get double scoops from Kilwin's in the heat of summer