Oh, how we love family!

We had the opportunity to go see my cousin and her husband in early August and, you know, I took a few photos...

Bill became a human jungle gym...New toys were "toyed" with (ha ha)...The nailpolish was embellished with special stickers and colors thanks to my cousin, Julie. It was heaven for Lynnea, my little diva.
A well-needed couch break for Julie and Lynnea.
And Lynnea needed one with Bill too.
And here's my kid's playmate for the weekend - the adorable and incredibly social - Ryan!We met up on Saturday night with several family members and went to the staple restaurant of my cousin and her husband. Believe me, if I lived up here, it would be mine too. Samurai Sushi!! The sushi there was amazing. I ate way more than I should have. After indulging in 2 boats of sushi, we went to the parking lot and hung out a little more. All of the cousins posed for a moment...Caitlynn and Lynnea hit it off well...Aunt Elise and Tyler had fun too...
Even Mikayla got in on the action (was there any question that she wouldn't?)..
But the one thing that my kids loved about this vacation more than anything...were the frogs. Yes, you read it right, the WILD frogs that hopped around Julie and Bill's yard like it was a reptile pet store. They were the cutest, fattest toads and, by the end of the weekend, I'm sure the frogs had put up their own "caution; beware of children" sign all around the property to warn of other frog's demise.

Tyler was almost in heaven holding and playing with the little guys.
Lynnea loved them too.
These poor amphibians endured hour upon hour of holding, squeezing, loving, and petting. I felt sorry for them but I wasn't about to step in and rescue them. Are you kidding me? My kids spent HOURS outside finding, "rescuing" and collecting these little things and it left all of us adults with a nice chunk of "I-don't-have-to-watch-the-kids" time.

So, with that, I say "thank you" to the 3 frogs who gave their lives and to all the rest who lived to tell.
There were also tree frogs, aka "sticky-toe frogs" that came out at night. They were really cute but could get out of any bucket you put them in due to their, yes, sticky feet! See, there was a reason they got that name. =)
This is pretty much the view we had the entire weekend. Bucket, heads over said bucket, frogs being "loved" inside bucket.
Before we left, I had to get a picture of me and my cousins. Janelle, Julie and me in the blinding sunlight. Sorry, Julie! I think this was the millisecond of time that her eyes were open. I love these girls and we always have so much fun together! Until next time...

Sacramento Trip

Our family decided to take a last minute trip to the Sacramento area to visit my cousin, Julie and her family. Since we hadn't taken any trips this summer, I wanted to pack in as much as I possibly could on the 5 days we'd be gone. So pack I did. Cambria was the first destination. I love Cambria. However, I don't love the fact that it took almost 5 hours to get there.

There's only so much you can do with 3 kids in the car and we did them all. We stopped for snacks, read books, watched a movie, and just plain sat there, bored. Finally, we arrived at the destination...and spent all of an hour running through a few shops and throwing some rocks into the ocean. In all of half an hour, I got these shots of the kids on the beach...

Mikayla and a cool driftwood log,
The kids playing in the water.
The kids still playing in the water. Notice how they had to carry their shoes? No, mommy is not a carry-all.
Lynnea tried to pass off her shoes...
Right before we headed back to the car, I got a cute shot of the kids on this huge piece of driftwood.
All in all, we rushed out of the car, rushed through shops, rushed through the beach, and ran back to the car...thoroughly enjoying every second. In a way I wished we would have gone straight there but I think the kids liked seeing the beach. Not sure if it was worth the 4 hour side trip but it was fun.

Once I get the memory card out of the other camera (my battery died at Cambria...just my luck) I'll post some pics of Sacramento. I know, I'm so far behind in this blog. Camping will be posted soon too. Be patient with me...=)