Mammoth Lakes 2017

We got home late yesterday afternoon from a weekend camping trip to Mammoth Lakes with friends and after the girls were in bed I ignored all of the stuff that needed to be put away and just developed pictures of something other than food.  When Paul saw what I was doing he immediately and gleefully squealed "are you finally doing a blog post on our family blog?!?!"  Okay, it wasn't really a squeal, but I know he checks that blog hoping for me to post and I haven't in oh, um, 2 MONTHS.  I'm the worst.  So much for that New Year's Resolution about posting 1x/week.  

But seriously, this summer is kind of killing me and I cannot believe we only have two weeks left until school starts.  We have a bucketlist of summer activities that we need to check off and not enough time to do it!

In fairness, we have a short summer break compared to what I remember growing up, and most of it was spent at the pool every day with swim team stuff, or visiting family.  This Mammoth trip was our 3rd camping trip of the summer.  So we've been doing lots of fun things.  I just haven't had time to blog about any of it!

Anyway, I will be trying to catch up (maybe) but thought I would quickly post about this most recent trip.

We planned a camping trip with our friends, the Ball family, months ago so we could reserve sites in Mammoth.  We stayed at the Sherwin Lakes campground in sites 11 & 12, which just happened to be the only two sites in the campground that had zero trees since they had all been felled by bark beetles a couple of years ago.  Only we didn't realize that until we got there.  So it was pretty hot and dusty with very little shade, but we didn't spend a lot of time there during the day so it wasn't too bad.  

We loved that it was right next to a good-sized creek though and the kids literally spent hours there playing.  Clara made dozens of teepees, boats to float down the creek, and braided the long grasses into bracelets, necklaces, crowns and rings which she gifted to me and Paul and then checked on us regularly to make sure we were still wearing them.  Even when the other kids got bored playing by the creek, Clara stayed, totally happy and focused with her work.  

We took turns making meals using the Ball's dutch ovens and I definitely want to get some now!  I made a bbq chicken and sausage thing, which wasn't so great, and these cheesy garlic rolls, which were delicious.

On Friday after dinner, we drove to Convict Lake to go for a little hike/walk and just take in the scenery.  It's such a beautiful spot but it was very windy.

The kids did what they do best and threw rocks into the lake for a good half an hour before it started getting too late and we decided we needed to get back to camp in order to do a 9:30 p.m. bedtime.  I took portraits for my portrait project (which I've been awful about) while everybody was skipping rocks because the lighting was so pretty.

Rose, who is our early riser, made sure we were up and at 'em with the sun each morning before 6.  But at least she was happy about it and other than a couple little things the second night of camping, the girls did awesome sleeping in the tent.  After a summer with quite a bit of camping, they are getting to be pretty good at it.  Both girls were super bummed when our time camping was over and Clara demanded that we camp for 10 days next time instead of 2.  We were all pretty filthy after 2 days of camping, so I'm pretty certain we won't be doing 10 days any time soon, but I'm glad that both girls love it so much.

On Saturday morning, we headed to Devil's Postpile to hike.  It's such a National Monument (so basically a national park except created by the President instead of by Congress) and a very interesting spot.  And it's a good hike for the kids distance and difficulty wise.  We didn't realize that there were campsites down in by Devil's Postpile that are first come first serve, but next time we go here I think we want to try and camp in the park, if possible, since there is a lot of hiking down around Devil's Postpile that we have never done.

On the bus ride down into the Devil's Postpile Trailhead, Paul pulled up my blog post from our first (and only other) trip to Mammoth two years ago when Clara was 4 and Rose was 1.  I can't believe how much they've grown!

The kids were told to pretend to be stone columns.  Really we were trying to get them to stand up straight in a row, but they all put their hands over their heads like this.

There is a loop around Devil's Postpile so you get to see it from all angles - bottom, sides, and top.  I thought this perspective of columns jutting out at an angle was so fascinating.

This may be my new favorite pic of us as a family.  We are TERRIBLE about getting pictures of all four of us together and really need to be better about that.  It was nice having our friends with us because we could trade off cameras.

I can't believe I don't have any photos from our afternoon, but we stopped in Mammoth Lakes for lunch at Schat's Bakery, then did a really fun hike around Horseshoe Lake.  The kids weren't super jazzed about that hike at the beginning.  Our girls were really tired and hot, but once we got them going there were probably 10 bridges to cross over streams and Paul and the girls all dunked their heads in the snow run off (Paul held the girls upside down and dunked the tips of the heads in and they thought it was hilarious).

Really though, I think the kids just wanted to be back at camp with freedom to roam around and explore.  So after our Horseshoe Lake Trail hike we went back and they played their little hearts out while we prepped dinner, then cleaned up, and we still ended up with another 9:00 p.m. bedtime even though we had said we would try for earlier.

Rose and Owen had quite the conversation over by one of the coolers during dinner prep.  I love that all the kids got along so well.

Clara decorated a piece of bark with wildflowers that she tied on with a long piece of grass, then sailed it down the stream.  Over and over again.

Then on Sunday morning we made a big breakfast and packed up to head for home.  Except our car wouldn't start.  We were able to get it jumped, but when we stopped for gas it wouldn't start again and then it was really hard to jump it a second time.  Once it was finally running again, we didn't turn the car off until we got home, even filling the van with it running.  At home, we unloaded quickly, without turning the van off, then drove it down to the dealership to drop it off so it can be looked at today and we could all go home in the little car.  Sure enough, as soon as we turned it off at the repair place, it wouldn't turn back on.  So that's kind of a bummer.

But all in all, it was a wonderful camping trip and probably the last of this summer, unless we can squeeze in one more sometime in September.

Half Moon Bay, More Reflections & Hot Chocolate, and Day-to-Day 365 stuff

We have been having such a busy, fun January!  One of my favorites on record actually, and I think it's because we have decided to beat the January blues by doing lots and lots of fun things.  The other week we decided to take the girls to Half Moon Bay to watch the winter surf, which is always amazing and powerful.  It was chilly and blustery as most of our January days have been, but still beautiful.  We had lunch at Sam's Chowder House afterwards.

Rose was scaring us with how adamant she was about climbing all over these huge rocks by herself.  She kept scaring herself too, though, and would call out for help one second while pushing away the next.

Her cheesy pose & smile for dad.

The girls shared some fish & chips and Paul and I each got a big bowl of clam chowder.  Which okay, okay, is not Whole30 compliant but we decided not to be ridiculously fastidious towards the end of our Whole30.  I would say we finished out at about 95% compliance (which I know according to the Whole30 "rules" would equal a fail and require a restart).  We justified it based on having already finished a real one and knowing we didn't have food allergies or issues to deal with - more just the sugar cravings and dysfunctional food relationships and we kept those under control (i.e., we didn't order desserts, stayed away from dairy & grain with small exceptions like this chowder, etc.) during this round.  Because everybody reading this needed to know all that...

After Half Moon Bay, we drove up through the Santa Cruz mountains.  We stopped for a little hike down to see this swollen creek, admire the giant fallen trees, and hunt for banana slugs.

I keep looking at 365 prompts but then doing my own thing based on what inspires me that day.  Like when I caught Rose after church one Sunday, hiding underneath our bed covers, dressed in a leotard and Cinderella skirt, eating stolen fruit snacks that she found while pawing through my blue church bag, scattering its contents everywhere.  I grabbed Paul so he could witness her naughtiness but not before I grabbed my camera first.

She was pretty pleased with herself.

Clara still loves gymnastics.  Rose loves sitting and watching the iPad while Clara practices.

Oh the messes these girls make!  I swear they pull out every single toy when they are playing and for the life of me I can't get the idea across that they need to put one toy away before getting another out.  At least Clara usually has a pretty good attitude about helping me clean up the mess at the end of the day.  Rose, not so much.  But we're working on it.

We went to the Oakland Zoo last Friday and I forgot my big camera.  It's the first day of my 365 project that I only have an iPhone picture, which is better than I thought I would be doing by now!  The otters and baboons were our favorites this time.  They were so playful and active!  But the elephants, lions, tigers, bears, alligators, macaws, chimpanzees and squirrel monkeys were all really active and moving around too, which was fun because so often they are all just sleeping when we go.

My P52 group's photo prompt for the week was "selfless selfie" where you take a picture of something that says something about you without actually including yourself in the image.  I actually ended up with something I like better but my first thought was to stack all of our travel books in a big pile.  I love browsing travel books and magazines and haven't done it in a long time.  Those little "Top 10" guides are actually some of my favorites and have come in handy for past trips.  I have been feeling antsy for a big trip again lately and flipping through some of these pages and feeling inspired by the images gets me excited about the possibilities of where we might go next (most likely Costa Rica this November over Thanksgiving).

This is my favorite reflection shot I took in January, when I was paying attention to opportunities to take pictures with reflections in them.  I saw somebody else take a picture and flip it on its head so the reflection stood out more as the subject, so it's not like I'm super creative in this.  But I am in love with her perfect pose, the dynamic sky behind her, and the centered composition.

Some other favorites from the same day...  We have an hour to kill on the playground every Monday while Clara is in Spanish class so Rose had plenty of time to play in the puddles and have the school equipment all to herself.

After Clara got done with class, I told her we could hang out for a little bit longer, thinking she would want to play on the equipment like the swings.  But instead, she just wanted to run around the track at school.  Run Club is every other Friday and it's probably Clara's favorite thing about Kindergarten.  

When we got home, I offered to make hot chocolate for the girls.  We haven't done this in a while and they absolutely loved it.  I made it barely warm and both girls guzzled it down with smacking lips and little groans of satisfaction.  They have been asking for it again most days since then, which is funny since they have never been huge hot chocolate drinkers until now.

I posted this on instagram, but when I was taking these photos, my heart was just melting over the little dimples in Rose's knuckles.  It reminds me of how little she still is with her baby-pudge hands, even though she seems so big most days in a lot of other respects.

Rose in her Valentine's Day dress.  We went to take some pictures and this is one of the outtakes.  It's also probably the best shot I got with dramatic lighting, even though I have some that I like even more of both girls when they were having fun playing.  It's so hard when you can't get your kids to play in the exact light you want them to, lol.  She loves her new dress from Grandma Cece and has been begging me to wear it ever since it arrived in the mail.  Now that we have taken pictures, I'm letting the girls wear their new outfits (we're close enough to Feb. 14th, right?) and they couldn't be happier about it.

My 365 picture from Inauguration Day.  Like pretty much everybody else, it seems, my heart is troubled over the state of our country lately.  It's not just our new president, but also the American people and the way everybody is acting and reacting that concerns me.  I'm basically trying to avoid social media as much as possible, not out of a desire to be an ostrich with my head stuck in the sand, but more to just avoid the negativity that is overrunning my feeds.

And lastly, a picture of laundry.  Actually, this is my other attempt at a "selfless selfie" and it's of three of my favorite cardigans.  I have had these for far too long and they are all showing a bit of wear.  They don't hold their shape like they used to and are a bit worse for the wear.  But they were still bright lying there in the sunshine and they are still so comfortable and enjoyable to wear.  They made me think of myself at this stage of life and feeling worn out and maybe a bit faded from what I once was, though still bright and colorful and hopefully reliable.  Anyone who knows me knows I wear a cardigan almost every day, even many days during the summer (CA summers are cool in the mornings and evenings so I can get away with it), so I just felt like this shot was appropriate and I love that it was unplanned, unlike the one I took with the travel books.  I just happened to notice them and the idea of the selfless selfie popped in my head.

And just like that, here we are at the last day of January!  I'm amazed that tomorrow is February 1st.  I have one more post about a trip to Tahoe that we did this past weekend, but I haven't had a chance to go through those pictures yet and this post is long enough already.