At the Lake

Last year with a new baby, high gas prices, and busy schedules we didn't make it out on the lake one time! This year we were determined to fix that!

Four days of camping with my family was a blast. The constant teasing between my brothers and I, the good food, the 4 person tube, the hot weather, the love Aubriella had for the water...it all added up to the best lake trip ever! I seriously haven't had that much fun in a long time!


I intentionally didn't pack any toys thinking Aubri would find enough to keep her entertained. I was right! She had a blast running around the campsite, getting dirty, finding sticks and rocks, going on bike rides, playing in her pool, on the swingset...way to much fun! She even had her first overnight stays with Nana and Papa, sleeping with them in the RV every night while we camped out in the tent.

My parents bought a new 4 person tube that all us "kids" could ride at once. One day we rode it for over 2 hours straight (minus the short breaks when someone flew off!), and the following day I was so sore and covered in bruises that it hurt to move.

Aubriella absolutely loved the boating life. She would promptly fall asleep as soon as the boat began moving, and after a nice nap she'd wake up ready to play.

Poor thing couldn't understand why she didn't get a turn wakeboarding and wakeskating! She loved going on the tube. She definitely keeps us on our toes because she has no fear of water.

Can't wait for our next trip!

4th of July!

We had a great 4th of July! We were camping at Lake San Antonio with my family (tons more pictures of this trip to share!). Surprisingly even though it was a holiday, the place emptied out and it seemed like we had the lake to ourselves! We spent one last day out on the water and playing on the shore.

In the early afternoon we packed up camp and headed to Oceano. It was Jose's aunt Cuca's 50th birthday party!

His family had an amazing beach house right on the sand. We had a great time with ALL the cousins! It is rare that with a family this big for all of them to be in one place at one time. In fact it is the first time in over 4 years that it has happened (and 4 years ago there was at least 9 fewer kids!), so of course it needed to be documented in picture form!

Unfortunately my memory card was full from the camping trip and Sea World trips we had just been on. For every picture I wanted to take, I had to delete another! There weren't many pictures I was willing to get rid of, so we didn't get pictures of all the cousins playing together in the sand.

We ended the night watching lots of illegal fireworks lighting up the sky!

I love 4th of July and the freedom it represents!

Flowers

Hydrangeas are my favorite flower. This summer we got 5 new hydrangea plants lining our walkway! Aubri and I love going out to look at them.

Yummy!

Aubriella finally got to lick the cake batter of the beaters (I'd be lying if I said the only reason I'd held off was fear of salmonella...it is mostly 'cuz I don't want to share!).

Obviously she loved it

....until I took them away!

Summer highlight

Our summer has been great so far! So many pictures to share and posts to write, but to make it easy I'll start with one of our summer highlights!

Aubri and her Grammy have been watching Shamu on youtube for awhile now. Aubri loves to cheer "Shamu! Shamu! Shamu!" like they do on the youtube clip. Grammy Silvia thought it was time that Aubriella got to experience Shamu in person, and- well lets just say you don't have to ask us twice!




I was so impressed with Sea World's park. It has been years since I last went, and I was amazed to see how toddler friendly it was. Aubri absolutely LOVED everything about it! Even though she will never remember this trip, she was able to really enjoy it. They have an entire Sesame Street area which happens to be her favorite. She went on her first ride, and still reminds us everyday about "Elmo ride up dada wee" (Translation "I went on the Elmo ride, that went up, with Dada and I said 'weee' ").


Can you see her little hands lifted? She was saying "wee!" in anticipation.


She had a blast climbing the jungle gym thingy and was sad to come down! Jose was yelling my name from up top to get my attention, so since then Aubri often yells "Marleeeeene!"




It was so nice having Grammy Silvia with us because she is a frequent Sea World visitor and could tell us the fastest ways around the park and offered the best suggestions. Aubriella especially enjoyed her Grammy because she got all kinds of fun souvenirs, snacks, and food!

On our quick trip to San Diego, we were able to stop in and see my "Mom #2". We missed seeing my former roommate and best friend Amanda (who is doing missions work and serving in Mexico with her husband for the entire summer), but got to spend the night with her parents and sister.

We also called Daniel and Katie last minute and arranged to meet them for lunch and say goodbye one more time. Kami and Aubri had so much fun playing together! Even though I am so proud of them for moving to Thailand to teach and do missions, I will miss them so much!

And one final stop on our way home...Biola! Aubriella loves it already. She has already decided she wants to attend there in 2028!