travel fun: carmel, california

lots of photos. i can't narrow down which ones i love more. so i included all of them

this is why california is known as the golden state. 

my travel partner is tired of all this driving! lets get to the beach!!

 nothing that a stop for some shopping in gilroy can't fix

we're helping the lady check our mama out at the store

the welcome chocolate chip cookie from the portola hotel

 our hotel at the portola in monterey. they gave us some dog treats that we are waiting patiently to eat

 the coast in monterey

we made it to our favorite beach!!  CARMEL BEACH!!

 my sweet boys definitely humor me when i am taking pics of them instead of letting them play at the beach. they are so patient with me

 family photo shoot outtakes. you try to keep the attention of 2 yellow labs at the beach! practically impossible

 outtakes

can't fault me for trying!

 #outtakes

 i love how howie watches me. i lovingly refer to him as my babysitter. he is so precious

it works. love my sweet family

 my boys love the water

 footprints in the sand. my boys.

running and playing. having the time of our lives. i would do absolutely anything to make my boys happy. making them happy makes me happy. i adore them.

 footprints in the sand of the whole fam damly. this precious family of mine makes my heart melt.

 my sweet howie. he is so incredibly precious. he is the happiest dog. he always has a smile on his face and his whole body wags when he meets a new friend. he is simply the best.

my sweet howie's paw

 that smile

 impatiently waiting for the ball

 panoramic of carmel beach

my boys checking out the action!

 my boys and the ocean,  my two favorite things on the earth

 running to mama

 waiting for mama to throw the ball

 jack won't slow down long enough for a photo. he loves to play fetch on the beach or dig in the sand. meanwhile, howie is content to hang with mama

my precious baby

what a great day!  can't wait to come back!

Snowshoeing Adventures!

My nephew Carter, Jack, and I went snowshoeing.  It was so incredibly much fun!  We had a complete blast!  It was a gorgeous day and we had a good time getting some much needed exercise

Jack absolutely loves the snow! It makes him so happy

Funny action shot of the boy

It was lightly snowing, but sooo beautiful up here in Eden

Jack found some deer that he was desperate to chase.  Thank heavens he is very obedient or else we may have had a dog vs deer fight on our hands

I love it here

Fishing with Jack and his Grandpa!

 My dad took Jack and I fishing up in Wyoming today.  This is our first view of Fontanelle reservoir.  It was a balmy 19 degrees up here this morning.

Jack was so excited to find out where we were going today!

This is my dad's secret fishing spot. 

Jack took off playing the moment we got there and did not stop until we left!  He was having a blast!

Jack's Grandpa is getting the fishing poles set up

Who cares if it is only 22 degrees out here.  It is beautiful and we are having a blast!

Grandpa casts out a line

Jack found a rock to play with!

Jack is in there playing!

Cutest rock playing boy ever!

Dad is proudly showing off my first catch.  A 21inch rainbow trout!

We are still having a blast as we relax and enjoy the fish therapy.  It is so nice up here!

The river is frozen!  No, it's not cold here.

I thought this was a funny pic with Jack standing behind me

Gorgeous scenery up here!  I can't get over how beautiful it is.

Jack's cousin Chevy showed up several hours later and they had a blast playing together

Carter and Reid getting ready to hunt geese.

Reid and my dad

Jack is licking his chops! Not really sure what he got, but something tasted good!

My cutest boy ever!

Gee mom, today has been an absolute blast!  I am too tired to play more so I will just sit here with my rock.  My dad and I had a complete blast fishing.  We only got two fish, and I caught them both!  As we were going to leave, my dad went to get the fish out of the water that were chained and the bigger of the two fish started flipping in the water and pulled the rock loose and they both got away!  That is no fish tale!  My two fish swam away at the end of the day with the chain attached to them!

Jack was acting funny on the way home and I could not figure out why!  He climbed in the back seat and was moaning and groaning.

Couldn't really figure out why Jack was in the front seat when I came out of the restaurant!

Oh, now I know!  Jack threw up every blasted thing he ate all day!!  Poor little guy is sick!