Let's go fly a kite

We ate dinner outside today, and Joshua was really worried about the breeze blowing the tablecloth. He kept saying "it blow away, dad!" We kept trying to reassure him, explaining that it's just like flying a kite. Naturally, afterwards, we decided to go to the park with our kite.

When we came back, Joshua wanted to play with me and do chalk drawings. The blue one is a "boat on the water," and the yellow one is a race car ("Race car VRRRM VRRRM!") Maybe it's just me, but I thought they actually kind of look like it. You judge:

So normally we have a very pretty fluffy kitty named Figaro. She gets really, really thick fluffy fur in the cold Vermont Winter, and then sheds it all Summer long. While we were gone she was in the house with our neighbor watching her. We came home to house covered in long fur. The carpet had another carpet of fur on it, the lamp shades, couches...everything had fur hanging from it. It took a couple hours of very thorough vacuuming. I was so sicked out and upset with the fur that I took her outside and tried to brush it out. I brushed and brushed her and filled a full grocery bag of fur and it was still coming!! So I said forget it she is getting a shave. So I got the clippers but her fur was too thick and would clog them, so I thought well I will just have to use scissors. I tried to get it even like if I were cutting normal hair. Cat hair doesn't seem to work that way... long story short Caleb says we now have the ugliest patchiest cat in the neighborhood. My sister and Dad, who love Figaro, really wanted to see the poor disgraced kitty so I had to post some pictures.

Home at Last

Well we are home from our long Summer adventures. It is a bitter sweet return. On one hand I am so happy to be in my house, bed, routine and friends. On the other hand I really miss being with my sister and her boys, and basically doing everything together.

Here are the pictures from our last part of the trip. Caleb had the last six days in California off. So we were able to have a little actual family vacation time, probably our last for a while. Saturday, our last in California, my whole family came to Hope Ranch Beach for a farewell BBQ and get together. It was a perfect warm day, and we had so much fun. The cousins all played and boogie boarded. The three youngest babies dug in the sand together all day. I took about twenty pictures of them trying to get them all together and looking...this is the best I could get. No Ezra is not going to hit Joshua in the head with the shovel, all though they have both whacked each other once or twice. There is some definite love hate relationships amongst toddlers.

Braddock was getting really excited about all of us singing and shouting trying to get all the babies looking. As you can see he was the only obedient one, he is smiling and looking cute in everyone of my pictures.

Joshua got the prized "big" shovel for a while and went around "dig dig digging".

Tuesday ended up being our last day in downtown Santa Barbara. My brother in law Scott has Tuesdays off so we all went together to have a fun "touristy" day. We rented a big surrey bike for us and rode along the beach front path. It wasn't enough for us to just take a gentle ride we decided to do the whole ten mile stretch with big hills and all. My rear was so sore, but it was worth it.

After the surrey we walked out on the Santa Barbara break water around the harbor.

Elijah and Isaac walking out to the point. Everyday we have been home Joshua wakes up and says "Mom, where Elijah, Issac, and Ezra? We go to Aunt Pizzy's house?" (that is what he calls my sister) He loved hanging out with those boys.

Daddy and Joshua on the "secret beach" with Santa Barbara behind them. I love Santa Babara it is so beautiful and fun.

Caleb and Joshua balancing their way back from the point.

It was a great trip but it is nice to be home. We are all cleaned up and un-packed. Everything is back to normal and we are not planning on going anywhere until at least January. So we are back to normal for a while. Well almost normal...new baby coming in October and Caleb off interviewing for residencies who knows when or where :). So we will still be busy just living life.

California

We have been in California for almost four weeks now. Caleb has been down in LA at Southern California University doing an ER rotation. While Joshua and I have been staying up in Santa Barbara with my family. Luckily, we have been able to see eachother about once a week despite the 2.5 hour drive. Caleb has been very busy with his rotation, and has lots of interesting experiences working in LA county Hospital's ER. He says there is a 12 - 16 hour wait for most of the walk in patients. It is pretty active. Joshua and I have been just hanging out with my family. We have been going swimming or to the beach about 3-4 times a week, and lots of other things. I have been trying to keep things as normal as possible for Joshua. He loves being with his cousins, and always has something to do.

We have been going to the Beach every Monday with my sister and her kids and my sister-in-law and her kids. Joshua loves to just dig and dig in the sand, and unfortunately jump on his older cousins sand castles. I have had to try to teach him that he can't do that...he is still learning.

The boys love to make trains and when the older boys get involves the tracks become pretty elabrate. Joshua loves it.

My sister has a pass to the Santa Barabara zoo so one day we took a picnic there. The little boys of course loved the zoo train, which we couldn't afford so they had to settle for sitting on the little coin train. They both just watched and pointed at the real one go by.

Here is Elizabeth's boys and Joshua, he loves hanging out with these boys and we have been with them basically everyday.

The other day Joshua and I drove down to see daddy and go to the LA temple. I love the LA Temple. It was the Temple that we were married in, but besides that it is by far my favorite temple I have ever been to. It is so neat to drive down the busy 405 and get off and see the Temple so boldly placed on the highest hill above everything around. Then you drive on the peaceful grounds. There is such a sharp contrast between were you have been that it instantly reminds you of what a sacred special place the temple is. On the temple grounds is the huge beautiful tree that I remember as a kid. I had to stick Joshua in and get a picture.

After the Temple we went down to Santa Monica beach and pier. Caleb was amazed I had never been there. Growing up a few miles from quite beautiful beaches in Santa Barbara always made LA not seem very desirous. Growing up we avoided LA at all costs. Anyway, we had fun time. We walked along the bikeway and...

Caleb took Joshua on the giant swings.

We walked out on the pier and went on the merry go round, and looked around Pacific Park.
Joshua's favorite was to watch the roller coaster which he called a choo-choo train.

We walked all around the pier and chased pigeons. Joshua thought they were hilarious.

We had a really great day together. The best part was being able to be together on our own. One day of being our normal little nuclear family. It has been about 6 weeks and it was extremely refreshing and very needed. Caleb's last day in LA is tommorow. We have one week on a real vacation before we go home. I am so excited to just be together and have no more driving or going to LA.