Thursday, April 3, 2008

Family Ties






My parents and my 9 year old niece came out to visit. It was Haley's spring break and she and I were co-conspirators in making this trip happen. Even tho Aaron & I would be excited to have ANY friends and family visit us, for some reason my nieces above everyone else are who I really want to see out here. They left yesterday, and needless to say I really really really miss my family. SO, I decided to post a blog about our time together, not only to share a synopsis, but to lure our other loved ones to come out and share in the beauty. It was so AWESOME to be the ones to introduce Haley to the ocean for the first time. And she met the wondrous sea with enthusiasm. Tho it was only 47 degrees in the water, she convinced my dad and Aaron both to get wet. I took my shoes and socks off, but there was no way I was going deeper. Mom cheered us all on.
I put a lot of thought into how to construct our week together and I gotta say, it was all executed with good cheer and fun. From hikes in 2 of our favorite state parks to a boat ride around the Bay and under the Golden Gate bridge to a vegan meal at a secret cafe in Berkeley, I feel like our time was really solid. I gotta just say that Aaron makes such a stellar uncle. He painted a little mural on the ceiling for the sleep-outs in the Chinook, and helped Haley win 29 plastic jumping frogs at the arcade on the Santa Cruz boardwalk.
We feel so lucky to have had this time together...never before have I gotten to explore tidal pools with my parents, eat picnics in the redwood forest and on the beach, stop by roadside farm stands and buy artichokes and strawberries, stay in a great roadhouse inn within spitting distance of the ocean and all around have a truly memorable time. I feel grateful.

2 comments:

leslie said...

Whoa, we're riding the same wave, Kendra! Sounds like your niece has quite the stellar aunt, too.

Dad said...

We had a great time with Aaron and Kendra in CA.
Next time Mary will run screaming into the ocean looking for Haley's lost mood ring and the lost triangle from the Sesame Street song. We loved all the adventures we shared together. What a combo-ocean and redwoods.

Dad