Apple Picking 2023

It's apple picking time!

Becky's family dressed in fall clothing only to discover it was 80 degrees in Oak Glen!

Why not get in some family portraits.

Kinga's first apple picking experience!

Picnic lunch at the orchard.

We love this fun tradition!

 

Labor Day Weekend 2023

 I planned a trip to Channel Islands National Park for Labor Day weekend. There wasn't a lot to do there.

We got the spiel from the ranger before starting out for the day.

The island scrub jay is only found on the Channel Islands.

At one time, this island was a working ranch.

I just love this tree.

This fox also can only be found on the Channel Islands.

We hiked the islands, and saw some beautiful views,.

More evidence of the previous use of this land.

Another national park crossed off the list!

Random August Stuff 2023

 I took the girls to see Barbie! We all enjoyed it.

Dan bought the girls matching My Hero Academia shirts.

First day of school!

While the girls are at school, Dan and I either hike or play golf every Friday.

We were quite surprised to find that there are red rocks in Orange County.

Melissa made a summer Thanksgiving dinner for us all.

These teenagers went to the Back-to-School Dance and had a blast.

Kinga is very close to crawling. We love watching her on Thursdays and try to get her to go to the glasses.

And lastly, another beautiful hike in Orange County.

Mount Ranier 2023

To end July we went on our annual trip to Seattle! 

The first night was Mexican night and I had some sort of reaction to the food or drink. 

I felt some pressure on my chest at dinner but then it went away. 

When we stepped outside Greg noticed my face was bright red. 

I didn't even notice my lips were swollen until I saw this picture. 

The next day, all of us, except Greg who had to work, headed to the Mount Ranier Gondola.

We stopped at this food truck to get some lunch for a picnic.

After lunch we headed to the gondola.

Of course we had to get a dramatic picture on a bridge before getting in line to board.

This is not the top of the mountain in the picture. It goes way beyond this.

But nothing can prepare you for the sight you see when you step off the gondola.

There was a wedding getting ready to start at the top. 

The attendees were heading up on the gondola as we were heading back down.

After checking into our airbnb, and having dinner, we played Pictionary. Greg drove up to join us.

The next day was hiking day.

We reached the waterfall!

Mia took some time to sketch.

Back at the airbnb, Anna, Paige and Chase cooked dinner!

The next day we headed back to Seattle, but first stopped at Northwest Trek.

The bald eagle was in a cage, but still impressive.

For our last night, we went to teppanyaki!

Another National Park checked off, but more importantly some special time with the Martins!