Camping in Idyllwild

Kenneth's schedule at work is awesome! He got to pick him own schedule, so we opted on a 9-40 schedule so that every other week Kenneth has a Friday off. His schedule went through last weekend, so we took advantage of the 3 day weekend to go camping! (For the record, we are ashamed to say that this is Danny's first time camping - we realize it is shamefully overdue.)

Ever since getting to Utah, I have noticed how much I miss the mountains (instead of hills) and trees. Kenneth said we should go camping up in the small town of Idyllwild to remind me of the mountains. It was a great idea!! It was absolutely beautiful and we had a wonderful time camping and rock-climbing (naturally).

This is where we climbed - Suicide Rock

It was a steep 30 minute hike, which wouldn't be bad if I didn't have to carry Danny & a backpack, and if Kenneth didn't have to carry a 70-80lbs pack consisting of climbing gear and Danny's pack-n-play. Let's just say that we definitely got a good workout doing the hike 4 times in 2 days!





Danny looking a little out of it on our climb up

A Mojave Rattlesnake Kenneth saw while watering a tree

Trying to get Danny to fall asleep

Climbing slab - I LOVE slab!

A cool tree stump that we found

Danny got his own personal suite while camping

I love this picture of Danny playing under the picnic table

...and playing the drums on the picnic table

Danny had a blast playing in the dirt - as is evident by his dirt-covered face

The conclude, this is the next rock formation we need to climb in Idyllwild. This is the formation Tahquitz - it looks incredible!

Danny's First Birthday!

As you know we've been playing catch-up with our blog, and we couldn't forget to blog about Danny's FIRST birthday!! I can't believe how quickly this first year has gone by. We were sad that we couldn't be in Utah with more family members for the big event, but luckily my brother Michael, his wife Kim, and Danny's cousin Jonathan were in town for the occasion.

Danny practicing his walking skills (he's too afraid to stand on his own still)

The birthday crew - Michael (with Jonathan), Kim, Danny, Kenneth & me

Danny in his highchair - naked (for the most part)...we figured he would get really messy with his cupcake...

...he wasn't too interested in the cupcake. Who would have thought! He hardly ever gets sweets, so we thought he would devour it...apparently teething took him out of the cupcake frosting mood.

Michael & Jonathan (I bet you didn't know that Danny has a pirate for an uncle!)

Danny's favorite "toy" - the balloons. He chased after them for days!

Our family photo. Cute story - Kenneth went to the store to buy candles for the cupcake, and when he came home he had these wonderful birthday hats too. He slipped up...he showed me his adorable side! ;)

Danny playing with the balloons in his crib (don't worry...they didn't stay there)

I've been asked by many for a video of Danny. Here is a great one from his birthday. Enjoy!!

Happy Birthday Danny! I love you more every day.

The 4th of July Extravaganza

Kenneth & I spent the 4th of July with my brother Michael, his wife Kim, and their baby Jonathan. We were so excited to have them come visit! We are always excited when we get to visit with family members. They arrived in the evening on the 2rd and on the 3rd we woke up and headed to San Clemente Beach and afterward went to the pool.

At the beach...


Kim & Cousin Jonathan (Yes...Kim & I have the same swimsuit top)



Danny - watching me - watching the boys

The men striking a pose

And last but not least - the BEST photo sequence of the afternoon:








We had a great time!

Once we got to the pool...
Here's Danny floating in their...floating device. He loved it, but I was afraid he would just throw his face into the water. He loves swimming!

Michael & Jonathan (I LOVE his little Ducky towel)

Splash, splash, splash!

Kim helping Danny learn to float

They spent the night that evening, and then on the 4th we attended church and then headed down to San Diego in the evening for a BBQ and fireworks on the beach with Kim's good friend Nicomi and her family. The food was amazing, the people, wonderful and the fireworks...well, they would have been great if they hadn't exploded in the large smoke cloud. Oh, and did I mention the marshmallow war on the beach directly after the fireworks? Yeah, that was awesome - though it was best on the walk home when we saw the news reporter and his camera man sitting on top of a van being pelted with marshmellows. The camera man looked like he was having a blast. The reporter...not so much. He called the cops! Where did you think you were going? (The Marshmellow War is a tradition at this beach). It was hysterical!





I think Danny was a little out of it after the fireworks...

The reporter who was so irked by being pelted by marshmallows. For some reason he must have thought he was the only one being hit!

Well, Happy 4th everyone (a couple of weeks late of course). I'll be posting photos and video of Danny's 1st Birthday next!

Fun in the Sun - Southern Cali Style

Since moving to Corona, we have taken advantage of the water - both the pool and the beach. We also found the local climbing spot (of course) and have been several times. These three things basically make up our lives here. Here are some photos from our many outings:







This is Danny's "hang-out" spot while we climb.



I'm leading (finally)

Kenneth finally figured out how to make it up this climb. It took about 3 outings for him to complete it.



This is usually Danny's first reaction when we put him on the sand. About 3 minutes later he'll start crawling around like crazy.

Our family photo after burying Danny. We thought it was funny, but have later learned that many family members now fear for our son's safety. We say EVERYONE likes to be buried in sand - including Danny!



One of my favorite beach pictures!