Yosemite- We love you!

We loved our week in Yosemite! Our camera arrived today. We are so grateful it was returned! We have prayed for our camera for weeks and our prayers were answered. The miracle of the camera. Thank you to those who helped return it to us!!!! Yosemite is the most beautiful place on earth. The water rushing, the views, the steep hikes, clear water... I just feel myself relax and soak in the simple elements. We loved the Mariposa Sequoia Grove and challenging hike through the Mist Trail and on up to Nevada Falls. My favorite spot is at the bottom of Nevada falls. The kids are fabulous hikers and campers. Shawn is like McGyver which is great. He is the guy to be with. We will go back, we can't stay away!

Day 1: Sat. Leave home early am. Drive to Fish Camp, CA to Summerdale Campground. We had fabulous site 28 is amazing with an ampitheater and creek. Bear visited nearby campsite and got into a cooler. Here you leave your cooler in your car. Creek stocked with fish. Met people from all over the world!

Day 2: Sun. Down to the Valley. Loved tunnel view overlook, hike to Yosemite Falls. Road bikes all over even up to Mirror Lake. Mmmm camping cookies, pepperoni and cheese on Ritz.

Day 3: Mon. Checked out Tenaya Lodge in Fish Camp. Rode bikes to a waterfall and up some trails. Played in the creek at our campsite.

Day 4: Tues. Moved from outside the park into Wawona Campground. Took shuttle to Mariposa Grove Giant Sequoias. Hiked there. Prepared for big hike next morning. Went to Ranger Talk about Bears. We are experts on bears. Ask us anything!

Day 5: Weds. Left early for hike on Mist Trail to Vernal and then Nevada Falls. Kids did awesome. Huge hike, really steep and strenuous. Took John Muir Trail back. Love it, very tired. Ate out at pizza place in Curry Village. Lost camera. Soaked our feet in the Merced River by Curry Village.

Day 6: Thurs. Short walk to Bridalveil Falls. Drove out to Glacier Point. Saw amazing forest fire. Loved another lookout on the way there. We want to hike from Glacier Point some day. Went to historic Wawona Hotel. Ate ice cream and drank soda while lounging in white adairondak chairs. It was heaven! Roasted smores and thought about needing another day.

Day 7. Fri. Shawn got up early and went to secure another campsite in Wawona. Kids and I went to Hot Cocoa with a Ranger in the morning. Moved our trailer and celebrated we didn't have to leave. Hiked to the bottom of Chilnualna Falls. Gorgeous!!!! Played in river by campsite. Kids floated in tubes and swung from rope swing. Soaked in the beauty!

Day 8: Sat. Drove home stopping at various shops. Loved Traver Truck Stop. Will be adding to our treehouse to make it like the 5 story one there!

Z Day at the Bay

My Zeugschmidt grandparents have been married 66 years as of tomorrow Aug. 1. We had a wonderful family celebration at Mission Bay on Sat. It was great to reconnect with my cousin Shauna! She has a wonderful family and it was great to get to know each other as adults. Z Day was a blast and we talked about it being an annual tradition! Ryan and Shelia brought paddle boards and a jet ski. It was wonderful to see Julia! I paddled boarded for the 1st time and had a blast. My legs are sore today and I loved my new adventure. There is a story with the ice cream cart. My mom did awesome decor- Route 66 theme for the 66th anniversary. So cousins...let's do this again!!

Wanna See Them Wipe Out?

Waka Waka Dance

Addy has learned this cool dance at school. She is a great dancer!

Tyler's Wipeout at the Wave

It was in the mid 90's today so we headed to the Wave Waterpark in the afternoon. I rocked the fake wave. No tricks but I stayed in it forever. Tyler did an awesome wipe out. All three kids got up on their knees in the wave. it was a lot of fun. When we got home we had a crazy thunder storm with lots of rain and lightning. Super cool!

Addy flipped her tube

We camped with the Bennett family at the San Luis Rey River this last weekend. This video of Addy is so funny!

Happy Birthday America!

It was our 2nd year spending the day in Coronado for the 4th. We'd love to have you join us next year! It is better than Christmas. Shawn carefully packs our loot into a wagon for the trek to the perfect spot. The Parsons have been doing this for decades and we're so glad they've included us in this perfect secret. Cole, Corbin, and Chandler spent the day working on a laptop that had washed up. Tyler played football on the golf course with friends and strangers. Addy loved having Ashley paint her face. Addy won a beach chair from the radio station near by. Ashley and Kevin were awesome to take us out on their boat for rides on the raft. The Coronado Golf Course is opened up to the public for America's birthday. A barge rolls in with the fireworks just before dusk. The Coronado fireworks are directly in front of us while 3 other fireworks shows are in the distance. KYXY radio station broadcasts next to us with patriotic music. The kids are covered in glow in the dark bracelets and necklaces. To our left is the Coronado Bridge and to our right is the Hotel Del (which I call the Hotel Adelle). We eat and eat and eat and life is great!