Happy 4th!

This year for the 4th of July we headed up to my parent's.  Then we drove to the cabin and spent a couple of days there before Joey left for Ohio to finish up his last classes.  We spent the day at the beach on the lake and I didn't have any camera with me and I only took a few others while we were there.  Sometimes, you just want to enjoy things without taking pictures, you know?  We are headed back up soon to spend a week with my family.  We can't wait to have more family time and especially cousin time.

Working in the Yard

We had a patio cover built this summer.  We have been talking about getting it put in ever since we moved in 4 years ago.  Finally...it's up.  We love it and it adds some much needed shade for these sweltering summer days. 

Santa Barbara Zoo

Just some pictures from the zoo.

A day...or two, at the beach

While we were adventuring in Disneyland, Joey was home alone taking his online class all afternoon.  He must have been needing a break because he booked us a hotel at the beach we love to go to.  So we got home for a few days and then packed up for a couple of days at the beach.  This trip was so relaxing.  I could just live at the beach.  I feel so calm and refreshed when I am there.  The weather was so beautiful and it was great to spend longer than an afternoon.  We usually leave in the later morning hours, get to the beach for lunch, hang out, clean up, get dinner, then head home. 
But this was so nice to just take a little longer and enjoy our time.  After playing on the beach we went back to the hotel, swam, showered and then went back to the sand to watch the sunset.  One of the most beautiful ones I have seen. 
The next morning we went to the Santa Barbara Zoo and spent much longer there than we had planned.  We loved it though and it was fun to do something different.  We headed back to the beach for some more sand and water.  I really can't say enough how perfect the weather was.  We loved being together and I still have sand in my suitcase.

What Exactly Have We Been Up to This Summer?

I haven't posted anything in a month.  Probably because we have been so busy that when we are home I am trying to catch up before we run off again.  After our first visit to my parent's we were home for about a week swimming and doing laundry and unpacking.  Then we packed up again for a 3 day trip to Disneyland plus a couple days doe driving. My mom came down and then we headed down together. We had so much fun on our girls' trip. We even made a pit stop at the American Girl store.

We haven't been to Disneyland in nearly 5 years.  So much has happened and changed since then.  We couldn't have had a better time.  It was so worth it and I hope that it won't be another 5 years before we go again.  My kids are at such a great age to really enjoy it.  We made many memories and we were talking about it for days afterwards.  We still talk about it. 
We pretty much did everything we wanted to do and made the kids do a few things they didn't want to do.  I think Thunder Mountain was everyone's favorite.  It was the first faster ride we went on and Abby was beyond excited when it was done.  She was screaming with her hands in the air.  I love watching my kids have a good time.  Kids make life magical.  It was a trip we will always remember and have wonderful memories of.  It was fun to hang out with my mom and be together.  We were sad to leave.  But it was a sort of happy sad.  We just had such a great time that we didn't want it to end.