Andy's Boat

My cousin Andy LIVES his dream on a 27 foot sailboat in the San Diego Bay. While in San Diego, we stopped by to visit him and he took us on a wonderful ride around the harbor.

Clay and Em listen to Aunt Amanda tell stories.
Sunset over the bay

And, no sunset would be complete without...

Bubbles! Grandpa Dave makes yet another magical moment. :)

Sea World and the Zoo

While my family was here, we traveled to San Diego for two days. The shows at Sea World were amazing, and the aquariums very educational. This walrus kept swimming right up to the glass. We were mesmorized as we watched him swim laps over and over.
We met Big Bird and Elmo in the Sesame Street Bay area. Dream come true... :)
This picture makes me laugh. Mom is clapping and probably screaming, "Wheeee." Jeff is tickling Clay, and Emma isn't sure what to think of the whole ride. To top it off, Dad is blowing bubbles. We called him "Bubble Man" on this trip, because whenever it was a "happy moment" Dad would pull out a little jar of bubbles and make the moment magical.

The next day was a visit to the San Diego Zoo. It was the best zoo I've ever been to. The landscaping was amazing and the exhibits were very nice.

These monkeys had such personality.
This panda bear hardly looked real.

Salmon at Sunset

We had such a fun time with my parents and sister Amanda when they came to visit us this past week. One of our days was spent at Leo Carillo Beach in Malibu. We jumped waves, made sand castles, watched surfers, and walked along the beach.

Jeff grilled salmon steaks, zucchini, and baked potatoes for dinner. Mmmm. The evening got a little chilly so we put on our hoodies.

Aunt Amanda made silly glasses for Clay.

We love having guests come to town!

Every 15 seconds

That's how often a child dies from water-related diseases.

In our church this month, we're learning about the struggle for water in so many places in the world, so the church is giving money to do something about it. When we walk in, there are about 8 posters with pictures hanging up. Each one has a statistic about how much water we waste, etc.

"1.1 billion people don't have access to safe water. That's 1/6 of the world's population."

"In the past ten years, diarrhea caused by unclean water has killed more children than all the people lost in armed conflict since WW II."

This challenge from our pastor, Francis Chan, cut me to the core:

"If we're not careful,

our standard of living can become more important

than others living."

Two children have died since you started reading this. How can we help?

There is an amazing ministry called the African Oasis Project. They build wells in poor villages, supply the people with clean water, and use it as an opportunity to share with them the Living Water that will never run dry. We're praying about how we can get involved. Want to join us?

Surfin' USA

Yesterday our friend Bryant taught Jeff how to surf. This was one thing on Jeff's list of "Things to do in California." I could always easily spot Jeff because out of all the surfers in the water (probably 30), he was the ONLY one NOT in a wet suit!
He was soon up like a pro with all the other guys in wet suits watching him enviously.... :)
Here Clay learns to surf. I love how he is watching the surfer in the distance.

A Hairy Situation

Today while I read to Clay on the couch, Emma had plans of her own.

My first clue that trouble was brewing should have been when she asked, "Mommy, where are my scissors?"

"Em, no scissors. Not right now. Go play." Silence followed for a few minutes, as Clay and I read on.

Soon she bounced out to us and announced, "I cut my hair with a scissors." Uh-oh. I followed a trail of hair to Clayton's desk in the corner of the bedroom, where I found this pile.


Here's the dialogue that followed:

Me: (dumbfounded, trying to remain composed) "Why did you do this?"

Emma: (matter-of-factly) "Because I want to look like Clay" (who just had a big haircut this week).

Clay: "But Emma, no one would recognize you!"

Fortunately, her hair was in a pony tail, so she kind of layered and thinned it. Amazingly, when it's all down you can hardly tell, except for some new "whispies" on the side of her face.

Doesn't every mom have a story like this one? AAGGGHHHHH! What's your latest hairy situation?

A pretty place

Big Sur, CA is one of our family's favorite spots to visit. The beauty of the mountains and the ocean come together in such a majestic way. We camped there for two nights at the end of our Labor Day weekend.
Here's our little tent nestled in a redwood grove, next to a trickling stream. It was soothing to hear the water at night as we fell asleep. That little stream leads to the ocean, where...
Jeff and Clay played a game by standing on this rock and trying to stay away from the waves. On several occasions, the water splashed up and got them soaked.
The kids were adventurous rock climbers with Daddy as their spotter.
We passed Gorda, CA--Home of the most expensive gas in the USA. Fortunately, we still had a full tank, so we didn't have to fill up at $6.20/gallon.
I couldn't get enough of the views on our drive home on the scenic Pacific Coast Highway 1. As we drove, we listened to this song by Bebo Norman:

I will lift my eyes to the Maker

of the mountains I can't climb

I will lift my eyes to the Calmer

of the oceans raging wild

I will lift my eyes to the Healer

of the hurts I hold inside

I will lift my eyes...to You

Carmel-by-the-sea

On our way home from San Francisco, we stopped at this charming town along the coast. This is an actual tea room, but doesn't it look like something from a fairy tale?
This home was appropriately titled "Hansel and Gretel."
I loved the architecture and attention to small details in these homes.
There were roses made of books in the Anthropologie store window. How creative!
While we were out walking, someone handed us coupons for kids to make a free pizza at a little Italian restaurant. We decided to check it out for dinner that night. Since the place was pretty empty, Jeff and Emma had a date at one table, and Clay was with me at another.

The Best of San Francisco

Over Labor Day weekend, we visited our friends in Menlo Park, a suburb of San Francisco. We met the Candys at Fuller and were sad to see them move this summer, but we were thankful to get to visit them so soon at their new home. They took us on a tour of the city, starting with the "Painted Ladies" Victorian row houses.
We played in the sand by the Golden Gate Bridge.
I spotted a trolley car in our rearview mirror.
The kids enjoyed watching the playful sea lions at Pier 39.
We celebrated Josh's 6th birthday and soaked up the surroundings at a gorgeous state park nearby.

We love you, Candy Fam! Thanks for your sweet hospitality to us.