Three hundred photos

Wow! I know it's been almost two weeks since I posted and boy have we been busy! I took over three hundred photos in the last two weeks and most of them on Monday thru Wednesday while the kids and I were away with my mom, Mima, at Santa Cruz! For the sake of brevity I've posted as few as I can. . . We had a wonderful time away and only forgot my camera on Monday night when we drove into Monteray to visit the aqaurium -- yes, I have kicked myself multiple times over that! We had some wonderful surprises while there -- a river otter awoke, to play, swim and poop for us; and the giant octopus awoke for us and "walked" on the glass -- it was amazing! We also enjoyed the "toys" they have placed all over for kids to interact with and the jelly fish. Spending time at the beach in Santa Cruz was so fantastic because the fog stayed in and kept the beach comfortably cool each morning till about noon. On Tuesday we rode some rides and walked the pier. We saw sea lions playing and pelicans resting. We went for a swim at the hotel later on. On Wednesday we drove over to Capitola and played on the foggy beach all morning. Aurelia found the first sand flea of the day and when it got warm, swim suits were donned and the ocean duly pranced in.

The drive home was uneventful but that evening was our last to see Liz and the kids for maybe two years so we drove over to Dusty and Carrie's to say goodbye - we had to wait till 9PM to do so, but the wait was worth the cries of delight (different from the cries of exhaustion we were listening to 5 minutes before they arrived) and the smiles of joy and the hugs of love that we experienced.

What else? My Granna and Poppa came over Sunday and they finally got to meet Oliver (after four months!! Due to sickness and trips we just couldn't get together sooner!!) It was a wonderful time and we had an "unbirthday" party complete with pizza and ice-cream cake! Yum!

Last, I'm posting my favorite pictures of Aurelia and Ezra's "dress-up-fancy-tea-party." Lots of good times!