Our Last Camping Trip of the Summer

We WERE supposed to go camping ONE MORE time this weekend.  We had to get packed and on the road in a short amount of time!  But we did it and we were on our way, but as we got up the mountain, closer to Truckee...the visibility got TERRIBLE, our eyes were watering and throats got itchy.  It was JUST TOO smoky for us to want to stay overnight OUTSIDE in a tent!

So we stopped for dinner.  The boys were at first devastated, crying and saying they still wanted to camp. But as soon as we opened the doors to the car, their song changed, it WAS SO smoky!  So we had dinner and headed home.  What a BUMMER!

SO today we just stayed home, we, or Tom made a yummy breakfast we went to the farmers market, and then we were just home...It was SO nice.  Tom set up the hammock and then had to try it out:-)

Tonight we are having dinner and a campfire with our neighbors and Tom's family, can't actually complain too much about this weekend! 

Camping : Donner Lake Edition

I only took pictures one day on this trip, so sorry, maybe someone else from the trip (Ahem Susan) can send me their photos:-)

Anyway, we headed up to Donner Lake for a quick camping trip with a group of friends before school starts.  We ventured up Saturday, had a YUMMY dinner of BYOBBQ and side salads.  The next day was slated a beach day, so we headed down to the lake:-)

I am SO thankful my boys have these friends, they are really special!  Pete was resident lake tour guide taking various trips with various riders out in the raft...

Jumping to swim to shore was a highlight of such trips.

Uncle D obliged in the Kayak, taking out one at a time for many trips!

Pete designed and made a found object boat, I think Holden "helped"

It didn't sail so well:-)

The crew...

Nothing sweeter than boys on the lake:-)

The next day we went tubing down the river, it was such a fun and relaxing trip!  I love trips like this, true getaways, and even better when shared with great friends!

CBS : Day 1

This summer we ventured to Campus By The Sea on Catalina Island, for their Family Camp.  Tom had been to CBS, for a spring break camp a few times in college, and I had vacationed on Catalina, many summers:-)  AND we had talked and we were looking for a vacation with a purpose, which this was sure to be.  Our friends who hail from UCSD alum, and who have attended family camp before invited us, long before they became our neighbors:-)

I had been in the desert with my family for a week, and Tom had joined us, so we headed to Long Beach from there.  I was totally ready for a week completely unplugged, and full of worship, family, new friends, and bible study!

It was quite sunny and windy on the trip over:-)

These were our accommodations for the week:-)  After camp staff schlepped our luggage up the hill we settled in a little bit until orientation and dinner.  The food was SO good for camp food!

Tahoe Trip | DAY THREE

This morning I woke up to THIS outside my window!  I was EXCITED!  BUT we needed to make it home today, and the storm was expected to get worse and worse throughout the day, so up and at 'em we got.

This guy was up early reading:-)  That's what he does...it's pretty AWESOME!  I love it, he DEVOURS books.

Everytime I opened the door to take pics, the carpet got covered in snow:-)

This is what it looked like as we were, I mean as Tom was packing the car:-)  Have I mentioned I was born in the desert??? What is this white stuff?

On the way to the car, WHERE did my feet go???

Which one is ours?  At this point they all look the same, WHITE and covered:-)  I was getting NERVOUS, were we REALLY going to drive home in this?  Over the pass and down the mountain?

THIS is BEAUTIFUL, if only we didn't have to drive home!

In my mind THIS road looks DICEY!  I wanted to find another hotel to stay at and just stay in the snow, go home when the storm stopped...the problem...it's Dec. 22 AND the storm was going to rage UNTIL Christmas day I believe! 

Ahhh finally on I-80...only to find it STOPPED...The road news said expect 3hour delays, quick!  Where do we get off?  Oh wait, NONE of the off ramps are plowed???  Oy!  I KNEW I should have made Tom stop for a restroom break!  EEK!

Don't worry we all made it to the first plowed offramp we saw, but it was AWHILE, I was thinking of alternative devices that we might have in the car, and I may NEVER travel without some sort of receptacle again!  OK enough of that talk!

6.5 hours later we pulled up to Grandmere's still 40 or so minutes from home, but safe and sound, we let the boys get out and RUN around with the cousins for awhile!  THEY NEEDED it!  We did too!

So a 2 hour trip became 7+, but we made it!  AND trust me the time away, and the breather from "real" life was TOTALLY worth it!  Thank you friends who offered us this time!

Tahoe Trip | Day TWO

This is what I woke up to this morning:-)  I took a few pics with my phone, and then I had to get my "real" camera.  SO amazing!

After "sleeping" in, we finally got dressed and headed out.  We had found this breakfast spot on our last getaway here...It did not disappoint again!  I would recommend getting there by 10, because after that it got PACKED!

"I believe we ordered the LARGE hot chocolates?  HELLO!"

They didn't complain obviously:-)

Seriously if you are in the area check it out!

On our way back to the timeshare, I made Tom stop the car, so I could take some pictures, I love the blue and white, SO beautiful!

Then of course HOLDEN HAD to get out!  He couldn't wait to throw some snowballs:-)

By this time it was getting a bit stormy, it was COLD and windy!  We headed up to a nearby resort, and the boys and Tom investigated while I stayed in the car:-/  They found this "gondola" we could ride for free from the resort to a ski lift area.  The boys had GREAT fun going for a ride in this "car"

After that it was time for much needed naps!  Cold and snow play makes for VERY tired boys:-)  Once they woke up they were ready to head out!  Daniel was ready in his snow gear:-)

This guy woke up refreshed an ready as well:-)

After some more snow play we decided to head to PIZZA for dinner, back down to Heavenly Village we went, we wanted to check out BaseCamp Pizza...

LOOK how much snow had fallen:-)  It was still coming down, SO fun!  I was glad I WASN'T driving though!

I'm a sucker for natural patterns:-)

Ice and light patterns:-)

Just a light dusting on the car...remember people I AM FROM THE DESERT!!!!!  I don't know ANYTHING about snow except for romanticized notions about White Christmases and Cozy Fires...you snow spinning around as snow lightly falls and letting it land on your tongue, yeah, no reality.

Again with the BIG drinks!  He was HAPPY...He wouldn't eat the cherry:-)  Was fascinated by it, but was convinced it had a pit, I didn't make him eat it, those things scare me!

The Pizza, might have been the best BBQ chicken pizza I've ever had!  And they had a dark beer on tap!  GREAT place!

After we got the kids to bed we sat by the fire and I finished patching these jeans for a friend!  Now she doesn't have to fret about holey jeans!  AND we actually watched a movie, that I STAYED awake for!  Yay for vacation!  YAY for escaping holiday madness and being with my loves with nothing to do but play, eat and be:-)