Post Rim Fire 2013

My dad works in Tuolumne County and routinely travels highways 108 and 120.  Today, on his way through, he took all these pictures with his iPhone.

In his words: 

The first three photos were taken along Evergreen Rd going into Evergreen Lodge and outside of Yosemite National Park. The thing to think about is that if any trees are to be logged they have to come out before this winter because with the bark burned off of them the wood will not be any good after it freezes (because the bark insulates the wood.) 

 All the white on the ground is not snow, it's ash.

 The second group of pictures were taken on HWY 120

He showed me these photos and I had such an overwhelming feeling of devastation. In the post just prior to this, I posted pics of Sugar Pine community. The thick trees and foliage is what all of this area looked like just weeks ago. Now it looks liked the Nevada desert. The air is still smoky in the morning, and there are still firemen in the area finishing up with the back burns and the original fire. One fireman said it would be months before the smoke is completely gone from the air. And what will happen when the rains start and wash away all the top soil? Landslides, rivers and creeks will clog with all the debris...and what about all the flame retardant? I know nothing about about it? Is it environmentally safe?
One of the stores my dad travels to said a bear walked through the grocery store parking lot, all his fur burned off, his mussel burned, and his paws must have been burned because he would stop and lick his paws every few steps. Heartbreaking. If the bear survives the initial burns, how will he survive the winter with no coat? How will he hunt for food right now with injured paws? What about all the birds? The deer? All the other wildlife? I know it's a part of the cycle of life, but I hate being faced with the reality of it.
Thankfully, so many homes were saved. So many ranchers were able to save their horses and cattle. So many community members pulled together to support one another in this horrific disaster. The mountain community is strong- it will always be strong. It's events like these that really put things in perspective for every one- I know I stopped to count my blessings and give thanks for all that could have gone wrong that didn't for my family and friends. Thank you, firemen for all that you risked to save so much for so many people.

Mountain Weekend

After the Fourth of July in Turlock we packed up and headed to the cabin. Auntie Sara took us to a super secret lake that was the perfect size for our kids- it had a roped off wading area and a deeper swimming area with two floating docks (that I'm sure we'll grow into!) We had the place to ourselves for a good hour before people started trickling in...one of the many benefits to having early-rising children :)

Adaline and Grandma and Grandpa walked halfway across the lake to wave at us from the other side.

 We only stayed for a few hours, had a picnic lunch, then headed back to the cabin to take a nap so we could save up our energy for the concert in the pines.

We stayed until everyone got a little tired...

...especially this one. Once he starts crying, the party is over :(

 Adaline tried her best to make him feel better, but he was done, so we headed home.

The next morning we went for a "nature hike" around the property.

Of course Adaline found the most treasures, but Spencer was fine with that because he found a cool stick to put in his purse :P
It was one of many great trips to the cabin that we were able to take this summer. It is so nice to be 1.5 hours away from a beautiful relaxing place. We are so thankful for every moment we get to spend there- even more so, now that it is directly in the path of the Rim Fire. We're all praying like crazy that the fire is contained or redirected before it crests the last hill that stands between it and the entire community surrounding our parents' cabins.

Spencer/Travis

This picture is from last spring, but I just found Travis's baby picture and had to post it...

Some fashions never go out of style :)

Happy Fourth of July!

My posting has finally made it to July! Only a month an a half behind, but hey, we were busy this summer!

We started off the day with a photo shoot at Hayley's house...

Do you know how hard it is to take a picture of four kids? I do... 

Then we headed downtown for the Turlock Parade. It was so much better than last year- more floats, more people watching, more booths at the street fair. Even though it was really hot, it was fun. We ran into so many people I went to high school with that I hadn't talked to in years. Nothing like a small town parade to make you feel like a member of the community!
It was incredibly hot that day so we hunkered down in our air-conditioned house after the parade. we all took a great nap and then played the rest of the afternoon away. We didn't buy any fireworks and didn't have plans to go watch any firework shows because our kids go to bed so early. Even though Travis and I went to bed around 10, we sat up and listened to the neighborhood until around midnight. Thankfully it didn't wake up the kids. Hopefully we'll be able to watch some fireworks next year!

San Francisco Tasting Tour

Two years ago my parents gave me a gift certificate for an excursion company focusing on the walking tours of the bay area. Since I was pregnant at the time, we put it aside- not knowing if I would enjoy it with all the back problems I was having.

We finally booked our trip in June and took the opportunity to have a night away. I chose the tasting tour of North Beach/Little Italy. Turns out the walking was very easy, but we didn't sit down much so I'm glad we waited :) 

We arrived a little early to the meeting place (which just happened to be next door to a Rogue bar/restaurant) so we had a drink (and Travis asked the bartender a million questions.)

Then the tour began...there were six of us and one very kooky guide. She took us to a coffee shop, a bakery, an italian restaurant, a candy store, an olive oil store, and a pizzeria. The food was great and the scenery was amazing, but I swear she spent as much time pointing out the places that she or her "friends" have lived or owned as she did telling us about the history of the places we visited. The other two couples were from out of state, so I know we had a greater base of knowledge than they did, but still, some of her facts were a little too hard to believe. Oh well, the food was great, and the weather was amazing. It was 75 and humid. It rained in the morning and then the clouds parted and we had a beautiful afternoon!
Here are some pictures of one of the oldest bakeries in SF (according to Ms. Kooky)

Each oven can hold up to 300 loaves of bread!

Beautiful Coit Tower

Saints Peter and Paul Church- the one Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio did not get married in.

The next morning, it was still humid and hot, but the storm clouds were gone and we enjoyed some time in the Haight-Ashbury area. It was my first time there and "oddly welcoming" as Travis put it. I've only ever heard of how the area is dirty, run down, and filled with drugs and homeless people. But after our trip, I think all those people moved on down to Market Street. I'm pretty sure I got a contact high just from walking through THAT area. The Haight-Ashbury area was clean and really retro...filled with restored and refurbished homes and businesses. It was beautiful!

We walked right into a farmer's market while we were there (I love going to them in whatever town we're in) It was HUGE! Puts our little Turlock Farmer's Market to shame. Of course we found our favorite Turlock/Hughson fruit stand, Cipponeri's, booth there just like last time- even though it was a completely different farmer's market :)

I love taking a quick trip to SF. I feel like we discover something new each time.

Spencer's First Haircut

Yes, I know he's 15 months old. We can't help it if he doesn't have much hair!! I didn't get a shot of his hair before the cut, but he had such a Dennis the Menace duck tail that I was getting comments on it from everyone that saw him. So...my mom took a little off the top. Really, there was no where else that needed to be cleaned up- his hair is so sparse.

Isn't he cute?!

Time for bike riding

Travis and I were given bike funds for Christmas this year and it took us all the way until June to purchase them! I've said this in almost almost every post, but I feel like I can't say it enough. Time is passing so quickly and I feel like we're so busy all the time.
We found a great pair of bikes at Costco last month and decided to apply our funds towards them. Travis's bike has been wonderful, my bike immediately started making clicking noises so which Travis said was the result of a problem with the crank (?) So we took it back (love Costco!) and tried another one from them. Unfortunately, we had the same problem, so we took the second one back, too.  But in the meantime, Travis was given a bike trailer for his birthday and the kids love it!

Spencer doesn't love his helmet so much, but he seems to like riding in the trailer so he (loudly) puts up with the helmet. Put him on Adaline's old bike, and he forgets all about the helmet :)

I see many, many bike rides in our future.