vacation happenings...

We went camping in the Sierras, as we always do during the summer, and we had a blast! Here are some of the things that happened on our trip.

A River Swim
We went swimming in the Merced River in Yosemite. We had to cross the river to get to the small but busy beach we wanted to sit on. Benjamin didn't like the idea of into the water with his sandals on and fought us about it. There were lots of little rocks and they could cut his tender feet! He crossed the river and went swimming in the chilly water! Hannah loved to swing into the water while one of us (Corey or I) held onto her. We brought some balls with us and Benjamin learned about throwing them upstream and they would return to him with the water current. It was nice to be in the river after a long hot day in the car!

Fishing
Benjamin and Corey went fishing in the lake. Boy can he cast his fishing pole! At first he practiced outside the cabin for a little while and reeled in the little plastic fish that came with the pole, then he went out to the lake. After a few tries he had it down pat. He enjoyed this so much! He had been hearing about his Daddy going fishing and trying to catch fish, but when he actually got out to do it himself...that was the best!! When we asked him if he caught any fish today he'd say "No I didn't catch any today, maybe next time." Nice attitude for a 2 1/2 year old!!

Hiking
We have been hiking with the kids since they were babies and this was the first year that they can both walk alone, so we decided to try some short hikes. In Yosemite we tried hiking to Mirror Lake...we ran into a huge group of people on horseback on our way, they distracted us so we turned back (it was getting late and we were tired). Then while we were at Lundy we went to the end of the road and hiked to a little waterfall and explored the area...so much fun! The last day (after Marissa left) we went to find a bridge that would take us to the other side of the river. When we found the bridge we just kept walking until we couldn't find the trail anymore-we could see it, but it would've be so hard for the little ones...lots of rocks and boulders! That was a fun hike too! And not a complaint or a request to be held!!

Jumping (off rocks)
One place that we always try to go is the Mobil station-yes it is a gas station-but they have a nice place to eat inside called Tioga Toomeys...yummy food!! On Granny and Grandad's last day and before Clarisa left us for work, we went to eat there. The place is crazy with people...very busy... and they had a band playing music. The outside table area has big rocks to sit on or-kids think they are for them-to jump off of. Benjamin and Marissa jumped and jumped and jumped and jumped off the rocks. Hannah got into it too!

Hannah...
Being in the wilderness isn't like being in the city (duh!). Especially when it comes to the spots we walk. Hannah is just 16 months and she is trying to get better at walking (has been since she was 11 months old). Going into the rocky uneven terrain of the mountains was a challenge for her! It took her some getting used to but she finally mastered running around the campground, walking downhill and uphill without too much tripping and falling on her nose.

Pancakes
One of the best parts of our camping trip was having Marissa join us. The second morning that we were all there we invited Marissa over to our cabin for pancakes. I made them dollar size for their little fingers. I felt like a short order cook-to put on yet another hat! All three kids ate so much that morning!! I couldn't get the pancakes out fast enough! Afterwards they busied themselves about the cabin and laughed and played.

Reading
Our two children love books! They read books throughout the day and we read them stories at night. They love all different kinds of books...musical books, picture books, board books, magazines... Before arriving at Lundy Lake we were in El Portal visiting with Clarisa. When it came to reading books before bedtime, Clarisa was roped into doing it (by Benjamin) and she did a great job too! Benjamin didn't want either one of us to read to him that night...

Sticks and Rocks...
Everywhere we went Benjamin picked up sticks. He found long skinny sticks, short ones, fat ones, twiggy ones, smooth ones...you get the idea. He found some and used them as baseball bats to use with his basketball. Hannah followed him around and picked up her share of sticks too, although her favorite thing to pick up was rocks...she found a large array of sizes, shapes and textures for her rocks. We found rocks and sticks all over the cabin and car.

Jackets...
Every morning when we woke up we got our snuggly warm fleece jackets on because it was so chilly! The children loved having their jackets on. They didn't want to leave them at the cabin if we were leaving to go in the car or to the lake. They loved them!! Hannah preferred having her hood on all the time and when she put it on then Benjamin wanted his hood on too. If one of them had their jacket on the other had to put theirs on. The zipper had to be zipped and their hoods on!

naked boy...

Benjamin's newest thing these days is to run around the back yard in the buff. It is so hot outside and he always wants to get wet to cool off, so we get the hose out and spray each other until we're drenched. He can't move anymore with his clothes on so he peels them off... down to his bare butt. He's free and he loves it. So much fun to be a kid!!!

bucket...

Hannah tends to watch Benjamin most of the time. When I really see her true colors is when he takes a nap. She goes around to all the toys/activities that are out and plays with them just as Benjamin would. But she puts her little spin on things. Today she wanted to play in a bucket of water (something that we have been doing a lot because it is so darn hot). She wanted to take all her clothes off and get into the bucket-sit in it. She did and realized that her diaper was still on so she says "di-per? di-per?" and I took it mean that she wanted it off-just as her big brother does when he plays in the big bucket of water. With diaper off and a big bucket of water, Hannah was happy as a clam! She splashed around and jumped in, then out, she played with a spoon and scooped water out and ... boy she was having a blast!

sea lions...

We went to Sea World today. It was the kids first trip. We went to see the penguins first. Benjamin was kinda scared as we first walked in because it was very dark but he was really excited to see the penguins when we got into the exhibit. It was really cool to watch them splash around and swim in the water. We went and saw the sea lions and seals...they were barking at the people to feed them and they would jump up the wall towards them to catch the fish. It amazed the kids. They were awe-struck! It was hard for us to leave. We also saw the bat rays in their shallow pool. Hannah reached her hand in and tickled one on the fin! Benjamin was a little more weary about touching them and didn't want to. We can't wait to go again. Next time they want to see the dolphins, the otters, the sea stars...

family...

Hannah. She is so shy and delicate one minute but then the next she is off banging her head on the couch with her brother-to a song that he is singing. She is very outgoing at home and sometimes while we cruise around stores she says hi and waves to everyone around. Most of the time Hannah shies away and "hides" her face in my legs or my chest. She looks away when someone speaks to her. She usually gets over this stage pretty quickly and starts to interact with the new person within a few minutes. She has no shyness when it comes to other kids though. She goes right up to them and starts playing.