Camping Trip

I've finally made the time to post a few pictures of our family camping trip a couple weeks ago. Between work and the girls starting school last week it was hard to find some quiet time to sit down and go over the hundreds of pictures I took. But here are a few that I really liked and wanted to share.

I know I'm picky!

Obviously I can't seem to make up my mind with which background I want to go with. I like florals but I don't want it to look too "busy" if you know what I mean. I also love the water or anything that has that paradise or tropical theme. I think I like Hot Bliggity Blog more than The Cutest Blog on the Block. Their designs are much prettier.

Missing Mom

Mom has been vacationing in Miami for almost 3 weeks now. The kids miss her, I miss her. She arrives sometime this Saturday afternoon. Unfortunately we'll only have a short time to spend with her to hear all about her trip before we leave for camping the next morning.


My parents and Gonzalo are considering relocating to Miami. The weather really agrees with my mom and as my brother puts it "her later years should be spent with her family". I have several cousins who live there and almost every year my aunts and uncles go there to visit. She's lucky if she gets to see her siblings once every two years. I notice she gets lonely for them. I'd love for my mom to be around her family more but the selfish side of me can't stomach the possibility of her moving away. Unfortunately we can't relocate because we feel our jobs are stable at the moment and the last thing we'd want to do is rock the boat. Other reasons are the kids school and a few other factors that come to play. Mom and dad would have to sell their home and get rid of all the junk my dad has accumulated. I'd say about 40 years worth. I know thats a task that weighs heavily on his shoulders as we are always on his case about cleaning out the garage. I bet he can Ebay a bunch of stuff and make a small fortune. He just has a hard time letting go of his "stuff". I know it drives my mom nuts . Silly man. We'll have to see what happens.

From Refugio Beach to Solvang

I remember around mid-Summer Ernie expressed regret that we couldn't do more with the kids because of work committments. Work has been so busy for him and there have been a lot of changes going on in my job making it difficult to take more time off during the kid's Summer break. But I think the kids have had one of the best breaks ever. Last month we took the kids to Legoland and Aliso Beach for the weekend and today we took them to Refugio State Beach near Santa Barbara and then to Solvang. Next week we'll be camping for a week up in the Sequioas. Can't wait. Here are some pictures from our trip today. The beach was beautiful but it was a little cold and breezy which made the water less attractive. The kids didn't mind. Junior, my 6 year old nephew wasted no time in jumping in. His sister Karen and the girls were a little slow in approaching the water but eventually made contact. Lindsey caught a slight cold but didn't let that stop her from enjoying herself. After a few hours at the beach we took a drive to Solvang a little Danish-themed city in the Santa Barbara area. Did some wine-tasting with my brother-in-law Kelvin and did some window shopping with my mother-in-law. Everywhere you turned there were bakeries, wineries and candy stores. Lots of yummies and goodies. I'd love to go back again and stay the weekend. Here are some pictures I took.

Meet Nathan Caleb

Ernie's cousin Freddy and his wife Gladys presented their 3-month old baby boy Nathan Caleb at their church today. Isn't he cute?

Sister Yanitza

Gladys and Nathan

Nathan's presentation

Freddy with Kimmy

With his kids

Mother-Daughter Time

I worked only two and half hours today then took the rest of the day off. The kids wanted to go to El Dorado Park so off we went. We picked up some sandwiches from our favorite deli and had a little picnic just the three of us. Just as we spread out the blanket Nikki says "hey mommy, this is our mother-daughter time, ha?" my little cutie.

Have headache, can't sleep....

This week went by fast. Work has been extremely busy and my days just fly by which I guess is a good thing. Mom left for Miami on Sunday so there goes my babysitter for the next couple weeks. Thankfully my cousin offered to watch the kids for a couple days since she happened to be on vacation this week. That was a big help. My father in-law and step-mother in-law live with us so we were able to coordinate a schedule so that one of them is able to babysit while the other is at work. The kids don't know it but I'm only working 2 1/2 hours tomorrow then taking the rest of the day off. Haven't decided yet where I'll take them. I think they'll be happy to go anywhere just as long as they get out of the house.

It's 10:40 at night and I have a headache and can't seem to go to sleep. It's not a matter of not being able to fall asleep, it's more of a matter of not being able to tear myself away from the computer. What's my deal? We're going camping in a couple weeks and Ernie suggested we take the laptop. I said "no way". That's the whole point of getting away, to relax and to leave everything electronic behind. No TV, no internet, no Wii, and no Nintendos. But I do have to admit having the Nintendo does come in handy for those long trips when the kids get antsy and bored and start to whine. Ahhh... can't wait for our little vacation away from everything. Just our little familia up in the mountains near the water...heaven!