The Reagans visit

So our friends came to visit over 4th of July ( I am aware that I am very very behind - sorry). We had such a good time. During fourth of July weekend we have an annual small car race called the Nob Hill 500. It was one of the most hysterical things I have ever seen! First there was a race for all the little car's the kids decorated and then the adults had a go. All the cars had names and Brian was the announcer which he really got in to. There were prizes and even trophies for different categories of decorations. Molly won for most enchanted car (hers was draped over the whole thing by a bright pink feather boa). She was very happy to have a trophy.

The rest of the week we did all sorts of fun stuff. Lots of hikes and a day rafting down the Merced. We also enjoyed some of the most delicious food ever cooked by Suzanne!!! (Thanks Suzanne, you rock!!)

We were very sad to see them go and so was everyone else. The Reagans were a hit in Yosemite! Miss you guys! Come back soon!

Fire and Power update

Hello all, Just thought I would give you all an update as to how we are doing out here with the big fire. We have had no power since Sat and today is Friday. We got some yesterday due to a generator installed on our street but they now need it to power guest hotel rooms...so we are out of luck again. The kids and I had the wonderful experience of heading to a friends cabin about two hours from here where we spent the the last two days fishing and hiking and doing all the gazillion loads of laundry that had piled up not having power. We also got to take lovely hot showers which I will never take for granted again :-) Most of our food is alright so that is good, we have been doing lots of big grill outs and fire pit nights with the whole meadow - that has been a hoot!!! The other day Brian made yummy scrambled eggs and sausage and bagels on the grill and this weekend we are having a fondue party, so things are fun! I will update the blog again when we are back with power. Until then I hope you are all well and please keep the valley and all the dear people who lost their homes in your prayers! Love to you all!!!

Jackson's 7th Birthday Party

Happy Birthday Jack!!!

Jack turned 7 on June 23. We had a bunch of his friends over and had a water party, which was a hoot! They played water balloon games and played in a bounce house and the sprinkler. All in all I think a large time was had by all. Though I was definitely missing our dearest Beedi and her party skills. Instead of a cake this year, I made Rice Krispie Treats and piled them on a plater like a cake and everyone ate those...there were no leftovers and no messy cake business in the yard that the bears could find!!!

Nana and Papa visit

So two weeks ago ( I know, I know, I am a bit behind) my parents came to visit and we had a great time. We went for many bike rides and hikes and played in the river! We hiked the Mist Trail which takes you to the top of Vernal Falls and it is absolutely beautiful - one of my favorite hikes. My dad did a great hike by himself up the 4 mile trail to Glacier Point then down the Panoramic trail. He loved it. My mom has decided to stay off the hiking trails and stick with biking and horseback riding.


While at the river one day, Jack thought it would be great fun to throw cups of water at Molly while I took a picture, and much to his surprise, she gave back a good dose of water from her cup. Ended up being a great picture!


We also had a great time one morning when Molly insisted that we play her Cinderella game from Aunt Sissy. So we played and to the amusement of us all, my dad won (oh the things you will do for a granddaughter)!! It was quite funny.

Palm Desert Vacation

Well about two weeks ago we had a lovely family vacation to Palm Desert. It was very pretty, but so so hot (112 during the day). We spent our days at the pool until we could take the heat no longer and then we did fun inside stuff. One day we went to see the new Narnia movie that the kids were very excited to see, yeah, ok, we were just as excited :-) We decided we were very happy having moved to the nice cool mountains and left behind the sweltering heat of Florida. We hadn't realized before that we really did not miss the heat.

The last day we were there, we got to see Elmo and Telly and the Count. Kids were most definitely thrilled (well Molly was at the end anyway).

All in all we had a lovely and relaxing albeit very sweaty time in the desert, but what do you expect.

This last picture is Jack and Brian trying to get Molly over to talk to Elmo. It took her some time - she preferred the cardboard cutout of Zoe. A girl after her Aunt Sissy's heart I am sure!

Hike to Mirror Lake

Last weekend we hiked up to Mirror Lake with the kids. It was an absolutely beautiful day. Mirror Lake is a cool lake because it is only a lake in the spring. It is a snow melt lake and so once the snow has all meted and drained off the mountains, it drys up. In fact last summer when my parents came to visit we hiked up there and walked back through the lake bed. It was cool.

We ate our lunch at the lake and watched all the beautiful things up there. The river is flowing like crazy now (also dried up the rest of the year). We took Izzy on our hike and she had a great time. She loved fetching sticks that we threw into the river.

On the walk back we went past the stables to say hi to friends that work there and Jack got a ride. He quite enjoyed himself.

Earth Day

Happy Belated Earth Day

As you can imagine Earth Day is quite a big deal here in our beautiful valley. The weekend before we had a bunch of earth friendly vendors come and set up in front of the visitor's center. They gave out samples and we got to try all sorts of fun organic and earthy things. There was a children's tent and Jack and Molly made masks and got their faces painted. It was a really fun day. There were also many nature hikes and other such things to introduce people to the beauty of the park.

That night we walked up the base of the lower falls around 9pm hoping to see the moon bow coming off the falls. We saw a bit of it, but it was cold and so we left after about a half hour. Next year we have to be ready to stay later so we can really see the bow - supposed to be amazing!! On the walk up someone had made a whole bunch of rock ducks and it looked so cool. I tried to take a picture, but it was dark (you can kind of see some of them).

Cinco de Mayo

I know, I know long time, no blog. It has been nuts here. First of all we are gearing up for summer and the hordes of family and friends that are coming to visit (we are really excited)!!! Next we are coming up on our moving weekend and so I have been diligently packing - throwing things into boxes Prissy style. Then Jack had Cinco de Mayo to get ready for and the fact that they only have a month left in school is all very exciting!

So this Monday past was Cinco de Mayo and we had a cool celebration/fundraiser for school. The kids of the school performed for park guests in front of the visitor's center and we had yummy lunch while we watched. Jack's class sang a song called De Colores. It went over very well and he, of course, loved getting to sing to an audience.

Later that night we had the taco truck come to the valley and everyone was there. In fact the line was so long that a bunch of us decided to go have a cook-out on the meadow. It was fun!

Hike to the Top

Pictures of our Hike
Yesterday Brian took the day off, we put the kids in school and we headed on a hike to the top of Yosemite Falls (the longest waterfall in North America). It was a perfect day, the sun was shinning, not a cloud to be seen anywhere in the sky and the temperature was lovely. We had our trusty hiking shoes on, layers in our backpacks (just in case) and plenty of water. It is 3.5 miles from the trailhead to the top. The first hour we trekked along nicely with a few snack stops. The next 2 and half hours were a little more slow going because we kept stopping to take pictures. It was just so beautiful on the walk up we couldn't help it. Once we reached the top the sight was breathtaking. I mean it is like you are on top of the world, just gorgeous. We took pictures of the meadow that our house is on and one of Jack's playground at school. The kids thought that was pretty cool. I stayed safely away from the edge, but Brian ventured out a bit closer and saw the edge of the falls, which he said was really cool (I will take his word on that). We ate the lunch that we dragged all the way up there and had a lovely time. We also called Beedi from the top and took a picture, so it was like she as there with us without actually having to climb it (sounds good to me). So then we had to head back down. It took us three and half hours to get to the top and two hours to get back. Crazy. All in all a really really fun adventure. I feel very blessed that we get to live here and from the new house (a few houses down the meadow) we will be able to see Yosemite Falls from our bedroom window. How wonderful!!!

Hockey Night

Saturday night we headed into Fresno for a Falcons game! We went with one of Jack's friends from school and his family. We had a great time! Along with enjoying the game, we also had some yummy cotton candy and some silly faces!!!


Early in the game we thought Molly might fall asleep, but there is nothing like a bit of cotton candy to pep a girl up!

Sadly we only stayed to the end of the second period b/c we had to drive all the way home (2.5 hours) and it was late and we were all quite tired. And of course poor Izzy was at home and needed to go out. So back we headed to our little valley.