Spring Break

We took a family vacation to the coast during spring break this year. We left Saturday after work and came back on Wednesday, it was a lot of fun. Here are some highlights.

Our campsite at Sunset State Beach was next to the strawberry fields of Watsonville. I had my own little tent, it was so cute.

The boys got fishing poles for Evan's birthday and had fun practicing in camp. Cookie bars for dessert the first night. The stairs to the beach; there were a lot and most of us had sore calves the next day. The boys love the beach. Sisters. Cartwheels on the beach. Group picture. Splitting a stump that Jonah found at the deserted campsite next door. Natalie waking up from her nap. There were grubs in the stump! Dad said he's give Isaac $20 to eat it, he says he was thinking about it, but Micah smashed the grub first. Stopping for fried artichokes at the Giant Artichoke. Picnic lunch by the ocean after arriving in Monterey. It was overcast, but still pretty. Michelle and me. A chocolate store close by the condo where the Nickells were staying. We went to the aquarium Tuesday. Touch pools. Micah with a starfish. It was really hard to get good pictures of the sharks because it was dark and they were swimming too fast. These guys were more photogenic. Lunch break! Jellyfish are always a favorite. We got to see the new seahorse exhibit. Stop at Ghiradelli for ice cream after the aquarium. Micah got the cherry on top. Back in our hotel room. One last trip to the ocean. The waves were huge!

Birthday

I turned 27 today and wasn't expecting it to be much of a party since I had to go to school and work; however, I was pleasantly surprised. Mom and I had cinnamon rolls for breakfast at the Nickell's and they were tasty. Evan is my birthday buddy because his birthday is on the 16th, just 4 days after mine. Then everyone came to Fresno with me which made the drive much more enjoyable. I still had to go to class and hand out surveys today, but then we all had lunch together. Michelle and Jonah met us back at the Nickell's to say happy birthday and visit, then it was off to work for me. But it was a good night. Everyone was in a good mood and I got to bake cheesecakes, including a mint one with a chocolate shamrock in the middle, and frost a cake that turned out looking great. Everyone wished me happy birthday and a table of regulars sang to me.

Spring Fever

We have had a beautiful week with periods of rain and sunshine. It is wonderful to have warm sunny days again.

After the Rain

After lots of rain last night and this morning, the sun came out this afternoon and I couldn't resist the opportunity.

President's Day Weekend

After Katie's wedding on Saturday, I left from Torrance to drive to Las Vegas and meet Jaime's dad, Gary, his wife, Connie, and his sister, Diane, for a visit with Jaime. Sunday we all met up and went to explore the strip. Connie and I were interested in seeing the Venetian, so we found it and went inside. They had it decorated for year of the tiger. The inside is decorated like Venice, with the canals and buildings and it was cool. We wandered around there and had dinner at an Italian restaurant, which was in a plaza with people singing opera nearby.

Here's the group: Gary, Jaime, Connie, and Diane. The canals of the Venetian, complete with gondola rides.

We had parked by the Bellagio and as we headed through the casino to catch the fountain show, we ran into a parade with tigers and a dragon. They also had these glass flowers that were beautiful. We had to wait awhile for the fountain show to start, but it was cool and worth the wait. Jaime and I bought chocolate covered fruit, which we indulged in once we got back to her room; mmmm, it was so good. The next day, Jaime's family left and we hung out mostly on the base, I got to see a little more of where she is living. Then she drove home with me because she had a couple more days off. We had a nice drive and some of it was really pretty. Believe it or not, I took this picture through the open window as we were driving on the freeway. Tuesday we got to bake together, which was especially fun now that both of us are bakers at work. Jaime came to school with me today and we hung out during my long afternoon break, then she headed back to Vegas.

Katie's Wedding

Saturday we took a trip to Torrance for Katie Cox's wedding. The Coxes are long time family friends, so Katie and I have been friends since we were born and it was exciting to get to go to her wedding. Since it was the day before Valentine's Day, Dad bought conversation hearts for his three girls and we had made conversations on the drive down, being sure to eat the ones that were unreadable. We got to Torrance early and stopped for a late lunch at Leo's. This is our favorite Mexican restaurant with the best cheese chips ever. We also went by the Rockler store and admired all the wood. The wedding was at our old church and it was fun to go back since I hadn't been there for years. Then we headed to the reception. In true Southern California style, In'n'Out catered hamburgers for dinner, so the tables were dismissed a few at a time to go out and order from the truck. We got a picture with the bride and groom: Michelle, me, Jeremy, Katie, and Heather.