"The Coldest Winter I Ever Spent....

Was a Summer in San Francisco" is a quote supposedly said by Mark Twain, but according to snopes.com that is false.  San Fran was not the coldest I have ever experienced; however, it was a chilly change from the beaches of St. Martin.  A few months back, I found an incredible deal on airfare to San Francisco and immediately asked my cousin, Mike, if he wanted some guests over Memorial Day weekend.  He said yes and we booked our trip.  Mike and his wife, Carolina, and daughter, Krista, currently live in Pacific Grove, CA (Monterey) on Ocean Dr. (fancy!) with one of the most beautiful views to wake up to.  Mike was like a brother to me while I was growing up and during this last trip I reminded him of several of my childhood memories with him....walking home from school, all of us kids watching Home Alone at the movie theater, going camping, etc.  He has always watched out for me....well, for all of us because he was the oldest of the "eight of us."  I could write a novel about memories from my childhood, but not today.....

So, Buck and I flew out to San Fran, rented a car and drove to Pacific Grove to spend a couple of days in Pacific Grove/Monterey/Carmel.  Mike and family were wonderful hosts showing us all of the sights.  It was so nice to have our own personal tour guide on vacation!  To Mike and Carolina we are very grateful.  Krista, you made our hearts smile and miss our own little guy at the same time.  Next time we will bring him along! 


The View from Their Home- Beautiful!

We attended Sunday Mass at the Carmel Mission

Surfing Competition in Carmel

Krista walked her puppy around Fisherman's Wharf with us.  Adorable!

Seals hanging out at Fisherman's Wharf

Stunning View in Carmel

The Lone Cypress - A Landmark on the 17 Mile Drive

Us and the Lone Cypress -
Fun Fact: Pebble Beach has trademarked the image of the Lone Cypress.  Seriously!

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Monday we visited Point Lobos State Natural Reserve and did some exploring.

I am King of the World!

Awww :)

A spectacular beach we hiked down to see.

Me playing with the camera - this is a view down into a canyon framed by pretty flowers.

We sadly left Mike, Carolina and Krista and headed back to San Fran for a couple of days.  We drove over the Golden Gate Bridge to Muir Woods. 

Muir Woods is the only old-growth coastal redwood forest in the Bay Area and one of the last on the planet. It is estimated that nearly 2 million acres of forest just like Muir Woods once covered a narrow strip along the coasts of California and Oregon.  The tallest coastal redwood at Muir Woods is about 258 feet, approximately the height of a six-foot person stacked head to toe 45 times. The average age of the coastal redwoods at Muir Woods is between 600 to 800 years, with the oldest being at least 1200 years old. 

Tree Hugger - not really, but I did start the recycling program at one of my jobs (another fun fact).

TALL

Kent Tree - Fallen

They said some of the redwoods could reach up to 20 ft. in diameter.

He saw the chance to climb a fallen tree.

We saw tons of wildlife as we were leaving the woods- deer, quail, turkey

Muir Beach

Muir Woods was my favorite part of San Francisco.  The woods were peaceful and beautiful.  Someone made the comment that Muir Woods was like going into a church and I have to agree.  We enjoyed a nice two mile hike that was quite steep at times.  Because we took our time, we didn't get to our hotel room until very late Monday night, but it was worth it!  Our hotel was near Union Square in San Fran, so we did our fair share of walking for the next couple of days.  It was rainy both mornings, but we didn't let it stop us!  The weather did clear up for our tour of Alcatraz, The Rock, where we really enjoyed the audio tour.

The Rock

A View of San Fran from the Boat

Cell at Alcatraz

Three Stories

The Recreation Yard

The Golden Gate Bridge

The rain didn't allow us to bike the Golden Gate Bridge, so I guess we will have to return one day....with Brock next time.  Until then...

Back to Reality...

Long time, no write and that's because we have been enjoying a little rest and relaxation.  We took a family vacation (with my parents and brothers) to the island of St. Martin.  First, a HUGE thank you to Stephen for coordinating all of the airfare.  There were some "sticky" moments getting there, but nothing a few tears to the gate agent couldn't fix ;)  Brock did well on his first airplane rides considering the long day of travel.  We woke up to news that our first flight had been canceled, so off to Birmingham, AL we went.  My tears were put to work in Birmingham to get us to Miami and from there we took a flight to St. Martin.  Buck and John did a wonderful job of navigating the streets of the small island at night and in the rain.  We settled into our accomodations and woke up the next morning excited for the beach, which was just steps outside our townhouse.  And....Brock was so excited he ran into the ocean.  He absolutely LOVED it!  Yay!  I am not sure what Buck and I would do with a kiddo that didn't like the beach.

Here, Brock meets the Caribbean.  Let me just say, Buck and I realize we are doing this all wrong.  When I was a young girl, my parents introduced me to the ocean at Galveston Bay and we slowly worked our way "up" to the beaches of Padre Island, Florida, Mexico, Dominican Republic and finally the Caribbean.  Brock is starting out at the top!  As you can see, he couldn't even wait for Mommy and Daddy to get their swimsuit cover ups off before testing out the water!   We can only imagine what was running through his head, "Look at this huge bath tub.....It is all mine to play in.....Where is my rubber ducky?" 

We relaxed on the beach, explored some of the island, sampled the local restaurants and rum, snorkeled, kayaked, played catch, threw a frisbee and even took a ferry to the island of Anguilla.  We were on the French side of St. Martin (the other half is Dutch-St. Maarten), while Anguilla is British.  Uh-hum, there is a huge difference in beach etiquette between the two.  Let's just say Anguilla was more conservative and leave it at that.  We had a wonderful time on the islands and could have definitely spent more days relaxing at the beach with the fam.  This trip was our first family trip in a while and much needed since Stephen is leaving good ole Texas to attend graduate school at Duke in the Fall.  Congrats bro and thanks again for the work you did getting us on the right airplanes for this trip!!!!

I want the beach!

Gigi we have a lot of work to do...

Throwing the football at Orient Bay Beach



Frisbee

Bubbles!

Lolo anyone?

He was too "cool" to look at the camera!

My Boys!

Brother John, what are you thinking about?

Sunset

Marigot Bay to catch ferry to Anguilla

Anguilla

Snorkeling

Dad bought an underwater camera we had to try out!

Chillin'

We left the beautiful beaches of St. Martin and boarded a flight to Miami.  We played on Miami Beach for the afternoon and then Buck and I explored South Beach that evening. 

We were finally headed home the next day.  It helped Brock to break up the flights over two days.  He is already a world traveler!!!

 

I owe you a couple of more posts....stay tuned!

  

Happy Mother's Day!

We have had a nice weeked with some of the special Moms in our lives.  Happy Mother's Day to all of the wonderful Moms out there!

Lunch with Grandma, Grandpa, Great Grandma and Great Papaw

Church and Dinner with Gigi and Grandpa

I wanted to go to the zoo for Mother's Day.  Uncle John and Uncle Stephen are on a safari in Africa, so we decided to take our own safari at the Fort Worth Zoo.  So fun!   We went early in the day to beat the crowds and the heat.

Watching the meerkats.



Meerkats doing what they do...

Giraffes!

Big Elephants

But Yes the Hippopotamus...but not the armadillo.  If you have
read Sandra Boynton's Hippo book you know what I am talking about!

Turtles!

The bears and tigers were sleeping when we walked by at the zoo; however, the jaguar was putting on a show.  He even gave a few loud roars that Brock was trying to imitate.  So cute!!!!