Mammoth Lakes Adventure!

Last weekend, for the long 4th of July holiday, we made plans to meet the Cables in Mammoth Lakes.  We had a fantastic time, picking up on kid/parenting stories and gossip without missing a beat.

It's been almost a year since we've seen the family (our Hawaii trip was the last time our two families got together!) and they've had a BABY since then!  Trent is about 4.5 mths old, about the same age that Callum was when we traveled to Hawaii together (which is hard to remember/imagine).  :)

The Cables left super early on Saturday morning to beat some traffic and to allow their kids to sleep most of the drive - very smart (although butt-crack-of-dawn painful) - as it was a successful drive for them.  They got into Mammoth about noon or so.  We barely left the house around 11am!  Our drive was gorgeous (through Yosemite, anyway), but long and full of traffic, ~7.5 hours.  Logan was content watching one movie after another on the iPad.  Callum took a morning nap right when we took off, but was pretty grumpy when he woke up, wanting to get out and stretch.  We made a few stops for lunch and potty breaks, but it was definitely longer than we had planned to be crammed in the car.  :)

It also didn't help that there was still snow throughout Yosemite - and once Logan saw that, he kept asking if we could stop so he could get out and play in the snow.  :)

Thankfully, the Cables had already grabbed groceries and started on dinner when we arrived.  We had delicious homemade spaghetti and garlic bread made by none other than Master Chef Eric!  :)

The house was absolutely perfect - there was one guest bedroom downstairs and three bedrooms upstairs.  Eric and Jill decided they wanted Amelia and Trent to stay in their room, which left the other two rooms upstairs for us to take over.  The "kids" room had a bunk bed with a pull out trundle underneath the bottom bunk, so we decided to give it a try and have Logan sleep on the bottom bed with Callum on the pull out trundle.  Callum LOVED the trundle and the fact that he could get in and out with ease, but unfortunately he kept rolling off (and waking up) throughout the night, which made for a very rough and sleepless first night for Jon and I.  We moved him to a crib for the rest of the naps/nights.  :)

One of the things we all wanted to do was get out and do some hiking, since Mammoth is such a gorgeous place (and we had our dogs!).  We all had brought backpack carriers for the kids, so after a scrumptious homemade french toast breakfast (again, made by none other than Master Chef Eric!), we packed up and headed out to the shuttle pick-up to see Devil's Postpile National Monument, a touristy but lovely spot for hikes and visits.  Sadly, everyone else in Mammoth Lakes and the surrounding areas had the same idea, and we couldn't find any reasonable parking nearby.  There was also a rule about keeping the dogs on muzzle for the shuttle ride, which we weren't keen on (we would have had to purchase muzzles since we don't have any, which was just one more non-selling point).

We did a quick search for other hiking spots and settled on nearby Convict Lake instead.  We drove out, loaded the kids up and took off on our adventure!  The day was VERY HOT, and each of us had a kid on us (I had Callum and Jon took Logan), plus snacks, water and diapers, etc. which all didn't help.  The kids, on the other hand, LOVED it.  They were all sitting high, with overhead sunshades and great views, living the good life!  :)  We were certainly a sight with all of our big packs, kids and dogs.

Even though it was a workout, it was so beautiful and nice to get outside!  We hiked for about 2.5 hours overall I think, but stopped mid-way to give the parents a rest and let the kids run around and play in the water.  We found a nice unclaimed shady spot with a small creek that was perfect for our break.

After our hike, we spent the rest of the evening lounging around the house and hanging out playing games and watching movies.  Sadly, the adults were all too tired to stay up much later than the kids to hang out, so we all ended up turning in fairly early.  :)

Monday was the 4th of July, so Jon and Logan joined the Cables for the local town parade in the morning while I stayed at the house while Callum napped (I thought he would have loved it too but he conked out about an hour before it was time to leave for the parade and then slept all the way through it!).  It seemed like all the kids really enjoyed the firetrucks, bubbles, balloons and overall festivities.  We spent the afternoon hanging out at the house and taking it easy.  We did a couple "sessions" of bubbles on the back patio which all the kids loved (Callum picked up the word "bubble" very quickly and easily!).

Our vacation home sat on the 18th hole of a local golf course, so Jon and Eric signed up for a very quick round of "5 [holes] at 5".  Eric had forgotten to pack a collared shirt, so he was forced to buy the club's bright red one.  Don't they look geeky! :)

Jill has some family friends that once lived in Mammoth and gave us a recommendation to park at a swimming club's parking lot, where we could still see the local firework show, but be far enough away to avoid all the crowds.  We picked up take-out burgers and fries and settled into a nice little spot about 2 hours before the show began.  The kids loved running around exploring in the dirt, weeds and rocks, while the dogs enjoyed sniffing and peeing on everything.  ;-)  As it got later, more and more folks showed up, which created additional excitement for Logan (not sure the other kids were aware of what was going on), in anticipation of the firework show.

Just before the show began, a rain shower blew through, so we all huddled in the back of the truck, waiting for the rain to clear up.  Luckily it did, just before the fireworks began!  Amelia and Trent were a little too tired to stay the entire time, so the Cables left shortly after the fireworks began, to put their kids to bed.  Our boys stayed up the entire time, amazed by the show along the lake in the distance.  The show was a little farther than I would have liked (I think it also would have been that much more fantastic to the kids if we were closer), but it was still fun and Logan continues to talk about it today.  :)

Tuesday was our check out day.  We packed up the house and headed to a favorite local breakfast joint we always go to, when we visit in the winter time.  The food was as yummy as we had remembered!  We said our goodbyes after breakfast and hit the road for our long journey back home.

Driving through Yosemite this time through was just as beautiful, but thankfully, much faster.  At one point, Logan claimed he needed to pee really badly, so we stopped along the side of the road to let him go.  What we didn't know, was that we had the bad luck of stopping at a place infested with mosquitoes which proceeded to bite us AND get trapped inside the car.  NOT COOL.  The minute we realized there were mosquitoes everywhere, and that Logan couldn't pee quickly on demand :) we scooped him up and got back on the road, stopping a little later at an actual rest stop with working plumbing.  ;-)

Since the kids were pretty quiet and slept for most of the drive, we plowed through, only stopping the once in Yosemite.  They both napped toward the tail end of the drive and woke about an hour from home.  The last half hour was pretty long, as we listened to them whine and complain about wanting to stop, but us refusing to do so.  :)  We got home in about 6 hours - so much better!

We picked up a small dinner and I immediately started with laundry and chores.  Jon helped manage the kids and put them to bed while I unpacked, and then re-packed (for Jon's London trip)!  Because he took off right after we got home, it already feels like ages ago that we had our weekend away with the Cables Family.  But, so many good times and memories as always.  We're looking forward to the next trip with them again soon.  :)

For a peek at all pictures from the trip, visit the full album.

Happy 4th!

My cousin Ellen, and her fiance Matt, finally tied the knot last Friday. It was a very small private ceremony for the parents, siblings and grandparents only. However, they had a celebration party over drinks and hors d'oeuvres on Saturday, which we attended. We wish the new couple all the best!! :)

We had a great time seeing my mom's side of the family. My grandparents (Clock and Nana) are also out here visiting, to be a part of Ellen's wedding and to meet Callum, so Callum and I have made a couple trips over to my parent's house last week to spend time with them. And, because all my family was in town this weekend, we got together for a nice dinner at Buca di Beppo on Sunday night. It was great to spend time with the family, but I think the extra attention was wearing on Logan, as he couldn't sit still for very long. Thankfully, we had a room to ourselves, but it was clear as we were approaching his bedtime that he wouldn't have enough energy to go out and see fireworks (which I was REALLY wanting to do this year since I know he would have loved it). What a bummer. :(

So instead, we bid our farewells and headed home to watch fireworks on the TV for a bit before bedtime. It definitely isn't the same as sitting smack under the real thing, but he liked it alright. I think what he liked more was the fact that we let him stay up later than usual because of it. ;-)

Since yesterday was a holiday, we had an extra day to hang out and enjoy the beautiful weather. We connected with the Jodoins for lunch and then went back to their place to let the boys play all day long. They (and we) had a great time together, as always. Thanks guys!


(will post a collection of pics from my grandparent's visit later this week after they return home....)

The Fruits of Our Labor

After berry picking Friday morning, Logan took a really long nap (who knew berries and sticks would exhaust a boy?!) before the two of us headed downtown with my parents and brother Kai (visiting from LA for the weekend) for a really nice (late) lunch at Mezcal. After that, we decided to walk off some of the huge meal we just ate and see if Logan was interested in playing in the water fountain at the César Chávez park.


Logan was verrrrrry cautious about touching the water and playing near the other kids. It took a good 45 minutes to just get him to stand near the water and touch it himself. My mom was super patient, taking her time with Logan to introduce him to the fountain slowly and at his own pace (I caught a couple cool moments on video but will have to upload them later in the week).


After getting soaking wet from standing near the fountain, we stopped off at Arena Green, Guadalupe River Park & Gardens since my parents have been wanting to take him on the carousel there. It didn't seem like Logan enjoyed the ride too much - he had a tight grip on the bars at all times and didn't really smile or laugh like you'd expect. Yet, every time the ride was over, he kept asking for more. And, when we finally ran out of tickets and decided to move along (to the playground next door), he got very upset. :( I guess we'll need to make another trip back soon!


We ended the day playing a lively round of Settlers of Catan (our latest favorite board game) with my parents, who have never played before. Surprisingly, my mom was in the lead for the first half of the game but my dad pulled a fast one on us all and beat everyone, out of nowhere! It was loads of fun.


Saturday morning, we met up with my parents and Kai for an early morning breakfast at our favorite joint, Stacks. Amazingly, there wasn't a wait (note to self, apparently no one eats breakfast on 4th of July, probably because they're getting their grills ready!) which was really nice. We all stuffed ourselves silly before my dad and Kai took off to a Giants game.


Jon and I left Logan with my mom for a few hours while the two of us did a little shopping - CAR shopping! We bought a new car, which we are totally excited about and can't wait to start driving. Since we were looking for a specific color with certain options, we have to wait forthe dealership to drive it in from another local dealership in the Bay Area. So, we won't have the car until tomorrow, but we're excited nonetheless. :)

Peekaboo!

The rest of our 4th was spent doing a last minute bike ride (which turned sour when Jon got a flat!) and then visiting with the Hicksons for some water play and BBQ in their backyard. Once the kids went down for the night, the four adults played Settlers of Catan until late at night (did I mention it's our latest fave game?).

Today has been a lazy Sunday - mostly because it feels like we've been running non-stop the last couple of days and work is around the corner. Other than another short visit with Uncles Zane, Kai and my parents, we had nothing else planned. So, I decided to take a stab at making some jam from the berries we picked on Friday. Because we didn't have enough hand-picked berries that the recipe called for, I did cheat a little and supplement with store-bought berries. :) For a first attempt, I think it came out pretty well. The hardest part I struggled with was sealing the jars! Half didn't seem to seal properly. :( I'll be giving those away to family and close friends who (hopefully) won't mind and will help us eat it up right away. ;-)


It was a pretty fun exercise for me, and once I had all the equipment ready, it actually wasn't too hard. Now, with jam galore, you can bet we three will be eating PB&J sandwiches for the next few months. I know Logan, at least, won't mind.