Great Grandpa and Great Grandma McCracken
Redding, CA
August 2010
We were met with a delicious dinner, delightful smiles, and crafts galore from grandma and grandpa. They were so excited for us to arrive, and we were so excited to finally be there. This was the first face-to-face meeting between the ninos and these particular greats. We will cherish this long awaited memory for a really long time.
Mt. Shasta
Such a pretty drive from Portland to Redding. It doesn’t get much prettier!
Farewell, lovely beach house. You served us well.I will not miss your four flights of stairs. I will not miss your drunken neighbors. I will not miss the sand in my clothes and shoes and hair.
But I WILL miss:
*Double Boggle! (the word game we made up during our trip…mind-blowing nerdy word snob game of champions, totally addicting)
*Walks on the beach!
*Adam totally unplugged for a week! (well, mostly)
*Bonfires galore!
*Games until 1:00 a.m.!
*Midnight runs for ice cream!
*Funland!
*The Outlet Mall!
*Family and cousins and all around fun!
Here’s what the kids think about our trip:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13BvCasO-uQ
Day hike to Cape Falcon.
Super troopers, all the way to the end. And check out that view!!!
I will always be in love with the Oregon Coast. There is nothing like it. The kids also did a lot of biking with their daddy while on vacation.
While staying in Seaside, we took a day trip to Tillamook, OR for the “cheese tour.”
The drive had spectacular views:
There were cows and cheese aplenty:
And the ice cream was to die for:
Actually, Tillamook ice cream is my most favorite ice cream on the planet.
And the cheese is my family’s favorite–although I (the cheese hater) would know nothing about that.
Here’s the caravan of cars, bike racks and all, as we headed to Seaside, OR.
Our beach house was only steps from the water.
Adam and Papa Penning broke out the kites within an hour of arriving.
I think there was a total of 10 kites up at one time, all from our band of littles.
A great beginning to a great week at the beach.
FAMILY VACATION 2010
Highlights:
1st annual talent show
complete with video crew, spotlight guy, and MC
Hiking
Yummy Food
Lots of Cool Messes
And good all around fun
We love our tradition we have created for our family. We look forward to many more Zion trips in our future. Here are more pics!
Denver, Finally!!! This friend trip seemed extra-long in the making (due to my canceling the summer). Here are our lovely hosts:
(yeah, we keep him around; great entertainment value!)
A mountain retreat with girlfriends is exactly what this girl needed after the holidays. The massive amount of talking, drinking (purely diet coke), and scrapping was enough to push any husband over the edge–good thing the boys didn’t come along this time. I only finished six scrapbook layouts, but I napped, ate, and lounged in between each layout. It was perfect. I think Jes’s numbers were in the 20’s and Amy’s were in the 30’s. They kick my trash every time–and I am totally okay with that.We also hottubbed in the snow, ate loads of sweet chewy Chex Mix, and walked around Breckenridge. A huge thanks to Grandma Carlson for letting us use the Mountain House.
Other highlights
Amy’s local day spa–I haven’t had a massage in so long. Thanks for the treat, Ames.
Downtown dinner and walking with Steffan–The chicken fajitas were also a treat.
Shopping for scrap supplies–Archivers and Hobby Lobby.
Talking until midnight in the basement–wish we could do it more often.
Spending time with Mya and Peyton–I miss them already. They are growing faster than any auntie would want.
Resolutions Made
Join Weight Watchers
Scrap more often
Drink less diet coke
Plan next girlfriend getaway
And could my friends be any cuter? I think our thirties suit us well. :)
Six more days and I am on a plane to Denver. It is Amy’s turn to host our third annual bff trip, which I am soooo excited about. My back injury this past summer foiled our original vacation. We had planned a summer vacay with our three families. I know the girls, including myself, were super disappointed.
On the bright side, we get a girls weekend all to ourselves. Massages, scrapping in the mountains, and lots of talking on our short list. I am sure we will throw in a McDonald’s breakfast and a couple of diet coke runs just for good measure. Ladies, I can’t wait to see both of you!!!
Tio Brian and I took Danny, Ezzy, and Brooklynn up to White Pass on our Christmas vacation. It was the first time for the whole McFamily. It was Brooky’s 2nd time and about the 10,000th time for Brian :) We had a blast. Danny was a natural – he went with Brian and Brooky on a longer, higher run, while Ezzy and I got lots of practice on the lower slope.
Brian got some pictures also that can be seen on the Hirschi’s blog. Stay tuned for more Christmas adventures!
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ebWNCYhmtI
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03CXBcRK_nM
