Colorado with Family

It was nice to see everyone out in Colorado while we were there. We enjoyed staying up at the cabin, going out for dinner with family, and hanging out with Linda & Jake. Abby got a chance to reconnect with cousins she only sees once a year or so, and we got a chance to have some family time.

Saratoga Springs, Fault Line, Redwoods

Saratoga Springs Campground - a rushing stream running by your camper, the sounds of squirrels collecting nuts, nature all around, what could be better? Our last campground left a lot to be desired, and it is nice to have moved on. We are right on the San Andreas Fault Line, (http://geology.com/articles/san-andreas-fault.shtml) so it's been a great homeschool lesson for Abby, Zoe & Ayden to learn about earthquakes. We all decided to hike up to see the actual fault, but unfortunately we never made it as the earth had shifted too much and had created mountains where the trail once existed.



We did however get to see the Redwoods at a nearby State Park and learn all about the wildlife there.

Salt Lake City, Utah

I've never seen a mirage before, but on the way out to Utah we saw the of craziest sights. As we were driving along it seriously looked like there was a huge lake on each side of the road, with islands and everything, but when we got out, it was just sand.


Abby got a chance to learn alittle about the Mormon religion when we went to visit the Mormon Tabernacle.


And we our friends Bryce & Steve and took the kids to the Children's Museum where the kids all put on a puppet show, climbed the rock wall, explored the lego and building area, got to go inside a helicopter, and lots of other fun stuff.



Afterwards we met some new FOTR friends, Billy & Tara and their family. They just bought a bus and are remodeling it and getting ready to hit the road soon. They have been keeping a blog of their preparations in hopes of making a reality show.

San Francisco area with friends

San Francisco is a fun area to explore, and even better to do it with friends. We had met Bobbi & Eric at the FOTR Rally and knew they would be in the area, so we decided to hook up with them for a couple weeks and explore. I was also surprised to find an old high school friend who lived near San Jose on Facebook and enjoy a homemade pizza dinner at their house one night.



The Winchester Mystery House was built by the owner's of the Winchester Rifle & Gun Company, and when the husband died, the wife went crazy. Insisting that the spirits of the dead who had been killed by Winchester guns were haunting the house, she was "told" that they could be kept at bay if she just kept building. So she did. Stairways that go nowhere, doors exiting off the second floor with no way out, secret rooms, half finished rooms, etc (notice the door on the second floor in the picture above)



The Santa Cruz Boardwalk was a cool experience. The Harbor Seals slept and played in the framework of the docks, while starfish of all different colors made their home there too.





We also got to go to the Redwood Forest...


learn about the Golden Gate and Suspension Bridges....


have shrimp at Bubba Gump's on Pier One....


see how Boudin's Bakery makes their amazingly cool bread animals.....


and step back in time at Haight & Ashbury

Solvang, California - A Dutch Village in the U.S.

Did we take a wrong turn somewhere and accidentally end up in the Netherlands?? If you can't afford the trip overseas, what better way to get a first hand education of a working Dutch Village than to visit Solvang. This small town is filled with authentic Dutch architecture, food and shops.

Pacific Coast Highway

Sights along the Pacific Coast Highway

Lemon Picking, Dude Ranch, Harbor Seals on the Beach

We left our friends in Hollywood and continued up the California Coast. Our first stop was a sweet little state beach just North of L.A. While we were there we decided to take a drive up some back roads. At the end of the first road that we came to, we ended up at a Dude Ranch sitting in the middle of nowhere. This place was really cool, with authentic cowboys, trail rides, a big great room with a huge fireplace, swimming pool, and cabins throughout. Exactly the type of place that you see on the TV shows! The owner of the ranch showed us around and had the cowboys teach Abby about horses. On the way back from the Dude Ranch, we passed by groves of ripe lemon trees, and stopped to pick some lemons for homemade lemonade that night.



See the trails in the sand in front of Abby? That's where just a few minutes before a lone Harbor Seal had been. Unfortunately, we didn't have the camera and by the time we ran back to get it, he had run off.

I think out of all the amazing things I have seen this was by far the most touching. When we first saw the little guy I thought he was dead up on the beach. I gently touched his hind quarters with my foot and was surprised when he woke up and kind of hissed at me with his mouth opened wide in an act of aggression. I was kind of scared, and not knowing what he would do, I thought maybe we should give him a wide berth and let him be. But then I looked into his eyes and saw that he was just scared, not aggressive at all. I started talking to him like you would talk to a dog or cat, calmly and reassuring, until he began to respond. After a while he not only let me stay close to him, but actually let me pet him and nuzzled his head up against my hand whenever I touched his head. He was so soft, his eyes were so intelligent and kind, and being this close to something so wild, yet so tame, left me filled with wonder and appreciation.

Hollywood

Well we didn't make it into the movies, but we did get to see all the glitz of Hollywood. Our friends Bryce & Steve, Kati & Vern, Joleen & Dave, and Pete & Rita all met downtown. Some of the kids went to the Jonas Brother's premier movie, others went thru Ripley's Believe it Or Not Museum, we saw the footprints of the stars, and just generally wandered around. All in all I wasn't too impressed and I'm sure none of the REAL stars would ever be caught dead around all the tourist traps that overshadowed everything. We did miss the big event that night though, when Kati, Vern, Pete & Rita (and the KIDS!!) all somehow managed to get on the A-list and get into one of the hot nightclubs and meet the owners.