Spring Break

The first night back from our vacation to Yosemite and Orange County to see Mike’s family we all slept like babies.  It was so nice to be back in my own bed, as much fun as we had the last 10 days, there is nothing like sleeping in your own bed.  

We spent our first four days in Yosemite; I’d never been, so it was on the top of my “to-do list” before leaving California.  It was absolutely amazing!  It’s called the “Land of a Thousand Falls,” and with good reason.  In total, we hiked about 30 miles.  Noah was such a trooper, and I carried Amelia on my back.  Our favorite hike was to upper Yosemite Falls . . . we got so close you could feel the mist from the water on you.  In order to get Amelia to nap in the carrier on my back, we would sing -- by the second day she started to clap along.

The front view from our tent cabin was North Dome, to the side was Half Dome and in the back was Glacier Point.  When they call it a tent cabin, they mean tent cabin!  It was a wood frame with canvas walls; we had two single beds (cots, if you ask me) and a double.  After three nights of sleeping on the “beds” (me with Amelia and Mike and Noah on the singles), I was thankful for a mattress when we got to Mike’s parents’ house. 

Highlights:

 Yosemite Falls

Mirror Lake

Mist Trail and Vernal Falls

El Capitan - See if you can find Noah and I

 

We spent the rest of the week at Mike’s parents’ house and had a great time!  We got to see most all of his extended family, and Noah got to play with three of his cousins.  Mike’s dad, Ray, was able to be home the whole time we were there, which Noah especially enjoyed and Grandpa took him for a ride in his Ford Ranchero that he restored.   

 

 

Noah and Amelia had fun playing in the spa!  Noah would dive for coins and Amelia would splash while lounging in her baby pool floater.  We ended the trip with a wonderful Easter meal with all his family!

Amelia got a baby doll for Easter and was very excited about it!

"More"

I started doing baby sign language with Amelia when she was about six months old, the same time we introduced solid foods.  I mainly do a few signs that involve her daily routines like eating, bath time and bedtime.  Well, tonight after she had eaten her meal but was still in her high chair, we gave her a few puffs (tiny crackers that dissolve easily), and she did the sign for “more” after she finished the ones on her tray.  It seems like a really little thing, but it was so cool to see her communicate with us in this way!
 

This past weekend we went on a beautiful hike up on the ridge behind our apartment.   From the top, you can see both the Pacifica Ocean and the whole bay.  It was a perfect day for a hike, no clouds and a cool breeze.  We leave for Yosemite this weekend for a few days, so we wanted to get our hiking boots broken in again since we hadn’t gone for a while.  I carried Amelia on my back and, according to Mike, she was all smiles for the whole two hours.   I have to say that one thing I am really going to miss about living here is all the amazing hiking.   After our hike, Mike went and bought a new grill from Home Depot, we didn't think we could make it three-months with out grilling out.  He compensated for our two-hour hike with a gigantic hamburger stuffed with Gorgonzola, it was delicious!

A few weeks ago Amelia started to really get into peek-a-boo. She started putting her blanket over her face when she was in her stroller on a walk and would pull it down once we would say “Where’s Amelia?” Now that’s her favorite game to play in the car with Noah.

Noah is really enjoying T ball and I am so proud of him for hustling and trying his hardest.  It's been fun watching and cheering for him and his team!

Monterey

Mike had another conference this past weekend and this time we were able to tag along.  We stayed at the Hyatt in Monterey since that was where the conference was.  Noah really enjoyed it because they had a pool and an outdoor ping-pong table.  They also had an over-sized chess set which Noah especially loved since there was one in the first Harry Potter movie we just watched.  Unfortunately, I forgot my camera so I had to take all my pictures using my phone…so that’s why the quality isn’t as good.  Amelia is so close to walking, and I was afraid she would take her first steps when I didn’t have my camera to catch it on video. 

Mike was able to spend the first day with us, so we explored Monterey a little then played and laid by the pool.  It was Amelia’s first time in the pool and she LOVED it!  She splashed so hard she kept getting water in her face but didn’t seem to mind.  A friend loaned me her water bjorn and it was so nice to use it because it freed my hand for her to hold.  Noah is just like his Nana (my mom); he can makes friends with ANYONE!  Whether it is a fellow six-year-old, a group of guys on a bachelor party or a 50-year-old woman, he always had a playmate at the pool.

My snuggle bugs!

The next two days it was just the kids and me, but we had lots of fun!  There was a park right next to the hotel called The Dennis the Menace Park and it was AWESOME!  Noah and I agreed it was the coolest park we’ve ever been to!  Surrounding the park was a lake with bridges where you could rent bicycle boats.  We did a lot walking along the coastal trails both in Monterey and Carmel.  Thanks to yelp.com (reviews from customers), every meal we had was awesome!