Heaven and Hill

When you say you are from California most people assume that means southern, which therefore means you are a surfer or hang out at the beach a lot. California is great, but I don't love it for the beaches. Michigan actually wins in that category (CA-2,439; MI-1). That is just my opinion, and granted, I don't have a whole lot of beach exposure. I'm a mountain lover myself. Which is why it was so therapeutic to spend over a week near the Sierra Nevadas. Matt's parents may be beach lovers, but they live in heaven as far as I'm concerned. Here is their backyard:

It would be hard to not visit them if they were the typical annoying, nosy in-laws because I'd want to be at their house. However, they couldn't be more understanding, supportive, non-nosy, and just fun, so staying up there in the hills with them was a week of bliss. I even slept on the floor and I'm still saying that.

We did go swimming 2 whole times while there. We squeezed both of them in right before we had to head back to MI because that was the only time it was warm enough. So we sort of took a lot of pictures because it was momentous.

Grandpa Rich was there for entertainment purposes. He's very good at that job. I think parts of his brain are still 6 years old. No wonder the kids adore him.

This is rare: Keturah acting cute and innocent.

Oh good, she's back to cute and loony.

Hmmm...I should have put on my arm floaties to match the others.

Maybe it is just me but we look like we are overloaded with children.

The big event of the week was Aunt Jenny's and Uncle Eric's wedding. It was so fun to go to a sealing in the Sacramento temple. The advice that was given was invaluable, the love in the room immeasurable, Jenny's glow and beauty incomparable.
This is a bad picture (my fault), but this is where my leg decided to betray me for a good week and start swelling and aching for no reason whatsoever, so I wasn't very focused on getting good pictures.

Here is a great picture of mosquito bites. Keturah woke up one morning with 4 or 5 of them all right between her eyes. It's like the 4 of them just set up a picnic there and sucked those lines dry. She sort of resembled a cling-on, not that I watch Star Trek, mind you.

Gee, Bekah really stands out here.

I just like this one.

Matt's Grandpa cannot even be serious in a wedding picture. He has to hold a paper over his son's head. I love it.

So besides that good stuff, we went on numerous trips to visit Matt's mom for lunch. We also spent a rainy afternoon wandering around Costco. Unfortunately, so was half the county, so it wasn't very relaxing. It was beneficial in a way, because you get go back at least 10 times for the same sample without the lady noticing because there were just too many people that they couldn't remember who had already come up. They had a whole table with fancy cheeses that I hovered around for some time. Anyway, we made a trip to Cattlemen's for some steak and we had a big Pirates of the Caribbean party at the movie theater, not to mention watching several movies back at the house. We had fun just hanging around the house.

Painting toenails with Aunt Jenny

Wrestling with Grandpa

Playing cards with Great Grandma and Grandpa

Wrestling with Uncle Eric

Sacking out next to Grandpa

We also had a day to ourselves because some people still have to work, so we went up to Bridal Veil for a hike. It can't get much prettier that this.

The falls

Michael exploring

A snack by the river

An awesome trail that ended abruptly because the river was too high. Still fun though.

But, as long as you get to throw rocks in the water, that is all that matters.

Parks and Recreation

I always wished I had had more cousins when I was a kid. Of the few I have, I only saw them like once every 5 years, if that. Cousins are great because you don't have to live with them, but they are family so they are automatic friends. Fortunately I grew up with a lot of brothers and sisters that are automatic friends, but I did have to live with them and their.....um, quirks. I'm the middle child so I'm the normal one, trust me. However, so far they all have great kids and therefore my kids have great cousins. We got to see my mom and my irreplaceable and lovable siblings, along with their kids, for about a week.

The Park

Michael is wearing a sweater here. The high was around 60 degrees this whole week in (not) sunny California. This same week it was 80's in Michigan. We're always so lucky like that.

Keturah and Aunt Heather

Jaden and Mike

Grandma's House

The kid dinner table

The adult dinner table.
Nathan there in the red shirt evidently belongs at the kid one.

Alex and Jasmin are the oldest children in their families. They got annoyed with all those pesky younger siblings and hid out in this room to play together.

Lily and Bekah could be sisters.

Bekah and Keturah are sisters, as hard as that is to believe.

Michael is just cute.

We made good use of the rain and went to jump in puddles. It was fun for a while, but it was time to come in when that wool hat on Heather's head started smelling like a dead yak.


Keturah and Bekah hanging out with Aunt Mary.

Nine kids nine and under.

Funderland

This Wizard of Oz thing needs to be switched around a bit. Alex really fits better in the Lion's face, considering how he reacts to small amounts of pain. Keturah is pretty heartless with how she treats Michael, so she could pass for the Tin Man. Bekah is a cute Dorothy, but she really should be the Scarecrow with how much she jumps around (and falls down). Michael screams like a girl and seems to like music so I guess he'd be Big D. But even so, it is still a cute picture.

Aunt Mary sharing a horse ride with Kate.

I love this. Here is my mom with two of her grandsons. Happy.
Then the ride starts...

...and here she is trying to keep her lunch in. Not so happy.
Don't worry--she succeeded.

Keturah needed consoling after that last ride.

Uncle Matt with all the kiddies--except Michael.

Here was Michael's only ride for the day. Poor kid.

The Jelly Belly Factory

We got a tour, some samples, and some sweet new head gear.

Noah and Heather sporting the hats.

Mary's and my kudos to the jelly bean Ronald Reagan. Almost as cool as the real RR.

Uncle Matt and Aunt Kacey's House

Keturah totally latched on to Aunt Kacey. A.K. taught her how to shoot people in the face with a squirt gun and she gave her rides on a wheeled office chair. Who needs Funderland when you have an Aunt Kacey?

Brycen, Bekah, and Alex wrestling; Michael and Noah were busy playing in the toilet...

...then they will all grow up and spend their time standing around talking with their hands in their pockets. Adults are so boring. Don't they know there are things like office chairs and toilets around?

7 + 1 = ate

Alex was able to draw out his 7th birthday celebrations for about a whole month, lucky guy. Matt and I got him a scooter before we left for California so that he would have a chance to try it out. It did not make the packing list, but the hair clippers did. We are that cheap and that boring. Boo-yah.

See the happy kid.

And here on his actual birthday at his Grandma Jill's house. Happy again.

A week after that, more gifts from Grandpa Robin and Grandma Linda. Happy and spoiled.

And there is even one more gift session in there from Grandpa Rich and Grandma Sallie, but a photo is missing. You'll have to trust me that he was still happy and even more spoiled. That concludes the month of gifts for this kid.
However, he did only get one birthday breakfast and one cake, both of which he had to share with his brother, whose birthday is the day after. But this is still the Alex half.
Grandma Jill dished up his favorite meal ever. His pancake is supposed to be in the shape of a train. You need an imagination to see it, so if you are lacking, just keep your mouth shut.

Their cousin Brycen came for the day and grandma took everyone to Fairytale Town and Funderland.
Check out the weirdo in the green shirt. Is that a new dance move? I don't think it'll catch on.

And here is the totally awesome volcano cake with a dinosaur coming up the side. Okay so the dino, plants, and gray rocks are toys, but the rest is handmade.

Happy Birthday, squirt.

And here is the other owner of the cake. Michael's first birthday.

Here we gave him pancakes and he hardly ate anything. Earlier that week he found a piece of raw chicken on the floor and ate it. He doesn't have salmonella, but he may have a taste bud dysfunction. A couple days after this picture he snagged some dog food and then happily went for seconds. I would've let him have more if I'd have known what he went for the next week. We caught the little bugger taste-testing canine feces. And for making me clean up the mess, when he's 16, I'm telling all his girlfriends he ate dog poop so they'd better think twice before kissing him.

Anyway...maybe I'm being too hard on him. He did get a little gypped in the birthday department. He had to share a cake, he didn't get sung to, and he had to ride in the car for 6 hours on his day. But he did take his first steps along with some other happy moments...

Presents!

This is a good face, in case you were wondering.

More presents!

McDonalds!

Grandma!
She is the reason for the 6 hours of driving--and a very good one, too.
Michael was thoughtful and gave me a present--ruining my shirt so that I have to wear Matt's. Happy Birthday, poopster Mike.