Puppies!

Shyla had puppies.  We bred her with a handsome mini golden doodle sire.

She had 6 puppies, whom I fall in love with on a daily basis.

The girls are delighted with the puppies.

SoCal Surf Trip

Ellen and I went for 4 days to Southern Cali to get some surfing in!

I had a life changing epiphany while there...

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Ready for it?

Neoprene wet suit booties!

I simply didn't realize I could swim in the California ocean AND feel my feet at the same time.  Seriously!  I realize now that California waves and I have a lifelong relationship ahead of us!

I had a wonderful time.  Can't wait to go back!

We stayed overnight in Prim and got to see this Bonny and Clide car/dummies thing. Notice the mysterious hand?

 

 Our camp site at San Mateo was gorgeous and full of flowers and bunnies. There's nothing like drifting to sleep to the sound of the ocean and 18 wheelers zooming down the freeway. ;)

Campsite views

  

We surfed at San Onofre for 2 days. On day 1 the current was so strong it swept us south FAST! We couldn't even get outside the breaking waves. But day 2 was really great!

 

We have the same curly blond hair, and the same profession.

 My Nicaragua amiga Sima came to surf with us!

Here's to curly blondes!

   

I missed my girls...

 

 

And my bestie.

   

We spent as much time as possible enjoying the beach.

 

 

The next morning we woke up at 4:30 AM and got in line for San Onofre! It was freezing. After we parked I napped for 2 hours in the car while Ellen bundled up and kept our spot secure. It would have been impossible to do this with 2 young kids.

 

That morning the tide was really low so we explored the exposed rocky sea floor.

 

 

Look what we found!!

 

I surfed 3 times that day. At the end of the day I could hardly hold my head up to paddle out! We spent the evening along the pier.

 

   

 The next day we drove south, checking out Swami's and other beaches.

 

We met up with another Nicaragua Amiga Clo, who lounged at Tourmaline with us.

Clo has straight dark hair, but I love her anyway ;)

Tourmaline

Then we did some kayaking/SUPing to the La Jolla caves! I stole this picture from Google since I didn't take my phone with me. 

 

After the caves we SUP and kayak surfed, which made me laugh so hard! When I caught waves in the kayak I would lose control and fly sideways down the wave till it overtook me and knocked me into the water or rolled under me to my utter shock and delight. SUP surfing was harder than I thought- I fell off unless I stayed on my knees.

 Clo let us stay in her beautiful home that night. It was a 5 star stay for sure!

 The drive home was a bit rough with snow and rain.

 I LOVED this trip. Can't wait to go back!!!

Happy 11 Year Anniversary

We usually take a trip for our anniversary, and this year we headed to Zion, where the spark of love started between Todd and me.  12 years ago in Zion we slept on his crash pad under the stars and stayed up till sunrise drunk on sleepiness, talking about everything and nothing.

Well, I accidentally skipped the "booking" part of our hotel in Zion, so we made last minute reservations in St. George.  We love St. George too, plus the hotel had a pool so the kids loved that part!

 

 After a remarkable melt down on the public bus, Lydia fell asleep in Todd's arms and continued her nap in the visitor center parking lot.

 

 

 The girls loved zipping along the trails on their bikes.

   

Lydia did a lot of this (as usual)

   

 Todd did a quick jaunt up to Angel's landing. You know, the fast easy hike?

 

 

The spectacular sunset at Pioneer Park: 

 

We biked along the river in St. George.

 

Climbing lesson by Daddy:

 

Avery is definitely a climber.  Lydia seems very interested in it too and tries very hard to keep up with her sister.

Targhee 2017

Casey, Becca, Megan, Ellen, and I went to Targhee again for another hot tub, er I mean, ski weekend.  We mostly hot tubbed. ;)

Cheers! 

 We love you Targhee!

Tattoo Time

I got a tattoo!  I've wanted one for 14 years and finally allowed myself to do it.

It's pretty new and still healing in this photo.

I chose one that represents the love I have for the sea and for world travel.  It only took about 7 minutes.  But it hurt so much that I don't think I'll ever get another one!