Flip Flop Follies National Park Edition coming up…
Have flip flops, will travel!
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As always on the way up, we stop in Bako @ Sonic for a quick lunch and my all-time fave…
{Don’t bother me, I’m enjoying my Blended Root Beer Float!}
Note to self: Don’t bother me, I’m covering my grays!
Temptation:
We made it to “Camp Duke” just in time for Happy Hour on the deck.
Followed by good ol’ Camp Duke fare….Grilled Chicken, corn and salad:
S’mores for dessert!
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Good morning, Wawona!
Grilled veggie frittata:
Our annual stagecoach ride with Beryl:
Hiking to the swimming hole:
Waterlogged:
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It was a treat to witness two of the four baby bluejays leaving the nest!
Mama bird was squawking up a storm ~ I’m sure she was half yelling at us to get away from her babies and half scolding them for leaving the nest!
Sweet baby bluejay.
We cordoned off the deck so the pooches wouldn’t “harm” the baby bird!
This is the third little sweetheart that didn’t get the courage to leave the nest just yet. There is one more sibling in the nest behind him/her:
These were the most spoiled babies! They have grown up on peanuts, almonds and bread crusts thus far. The kids had fun putting the food out for Mama bird to swoop down and grab. She would go up in the trees above the deck, get the peanuts out of the shell and then fly off to feed her brood.
So fun to watch.
{She’ll eat your peanuts all day long, but DON’T get too close to her babies!}
We also caught the rear of a deer at the neighbor’s house:
The kiddos thought this was the bee’s knees.
We saw squirrels that tried to eat our lunch leftovers at the swimming hole!
Grunc saw a 10-point (5 “points” on each side) buck while walking home from the barn dance.
Yikes!
Nature is so busy with all our little animal friends.
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Next on the agenda, tri-tip dinner, more sweet corn, fresh green beans and salad:
More s’mores for dessert with the sweet neighbors, The Lowry’s!
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The next morning we took a short hike to some local waterfalls.
Holdy and I were on the “leisurely hike” plan!
He walked the whole way, though ~ bless his heart.
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Later that evening we went to our usual Summer BBQ at the gorgeous Wawona Hotel.
Holden demonstrates how to eat watermelon on a stick:
Elliott LOVES her some ribs:
Miss Elliott was also the most loved by the ‘squitos this year, unfortunately.
They LOVED her forehead!
Poor sweetie…
A true mountain girl!
After the BBQ, we always go listen to live piano music in the parlor of the hotel and sip:
…THEN, we go down to the barn dance and do a little do si do!
…and sit outside by the campfire:
Nothin’ like sittin’ in front of the horse stables at a campfire in your flip flops!
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I LOVE that we can kick up some dirt in the mountains, frolic in the sand & surf, enjoy the art at The Getty or spend an afternoon in bustling LA or Hollywood.
But we also love quiet time at home.
So great to live in Southern California and have all this at our fingertips.
After a few days away from real life, I am reminded of our family’s mission statement:
Strive for SIMPLICITY.
SEEK beauty in “the everyday”.
SAVOR these special moments.
Thank you, Unc for {again} being the host with the most with all the delicious, healthy Camp Duke fare and providing your tour guide services and cozy cabin.
Thank you, Gramma, for getting us there and back by filling up the car along the way and filling us with snacks, meals and Starbucks while on the road.
Dust and mosquito bites aside, it was another wonderful trip to Wawona!
10. Paint a ceramic at Color Me Mine {Check! 8.1.10}
Simple. Summer. Fun.
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We are also taking a trip to beautiful Yosemite for a few days to visit my Uncle. This is something that I remember doing as a child and am enjoying passing along this tradition to Elliott & Holden.
Swimming in the creek. Stagecoach rides. Barn dances. Live piano music at the Wawona Hotel. Mosquitos. S’mores. Pine cones. Pancake breakfasts on the deck. Fresh, warm mountain air. Mini hikes. Strolling through the shady covered bridge.
Can’t wait!
What are your plans for achieving an endless summer?
On Friday Jay and I took the kiddos to see Toy Story 3.
A small fortune…
3 tickets to TS3 3D: $40 (apparently 3 year olds are FREE…thank goodness!)
1 Large Popcorn and 2 Large Diet Cokes: $18.50
Cute movie, but don’t waste your money on the extra 3D charge….
{Super cute grainy cell phone pic}
Later that evening 3/4 of the Sullivan gang joined us for dinner ~ Teriyaki Burgers, dogs for the kids, BBQ Potato Salad (which I added chopped jalapeños to!) & grilled sweet white corn.
For the burgers I just added some Montreal Steak seasoning and teriyaki sauce to the meat before making the patties. Jay basted the burgers with the same sauce while on the grill. We also grilled some pineapple slices to go on top! King’s Hawaiian buns ~ YUM!
Grilled peaches (with brown sugar & cinnamon) and vanilla bean ice cream for dessert!
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On Saturday we headed to Venice Beach and Santa Monica for the day.
I was immediately reminded 2 minutes after arriving why I haven’t been to Venice in over 15 years….
But at least we visited and can check that off the list now.
Being entertained by the plethora of hilarious t-shirts for sale:
Waiting for Holdy to zip up his sweatshirt “by myself!”:
I think this is my “let’s get out of here” face:
By the time we got to Santa Monica the sun was out and it was gorgeous.
Jay was craving wings, so where did we go for lunch?
Think orange shorts. Super short orange shorts!
It was actually nice…we sat out in the patio along the street and people watched, sipped ice cold beer, dipped fried pickles into spicy horseradish sauce and shared HOT (as in 9-1-1 hot) boneless chicken wings dunked in Blue Cheese and Ranch.
{The fried pickles here are the best!}
The street entertainers were out in full force so we strolled up and down, listened, watched and dropped dollars in their buckets.
My fave for the day was a twentysomething girl who sang Andrea Bocelli’s “Time To Say Goodbye” half in English, half in Italian and Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” from Titanic. Cheesy, I know, but I just enjoyed listening to her and we even followed her after she shifted her spot to the other end of the promenade.
Jay ducked into Sur La Table to pick up this, and I took the kids next door to Yummy Cupcakes for a couple minis. I finally sampled the Coconut one….new fave!
The 4th of July was greeted with some Krispy Kremes:
Later that afternoon we joined Emma and her family for some pool time, chips & salsa, margaritas, and a BBQ before heading out to catch the fireworks with The Sullivans.
As American as apple pie:
We parked our chairs across the street from the mall and waited for the show to start.
Spotting one:
It was a great show once it got started!
Enjoying some ‘mallows:
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Yesterday it was a small dose of reality.
Jay and the kids dropped U-Rod at the airport. I stayed home and straightened up. We lounged around and kept it classy watching episodes of “Operation Repo” on True TV!
To close the weekend, we made Pink Lemonade Ice Cream and visited with some old friends from Gilroy…Gina, William & Matthew visiting family here in Valencia.
{Emilie, Elliott, William, Dominic, Matthew & Holden}
They played out in front for a bit after the street lights came on.
Summer at it’s finest!
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Back to the old grind today.
Counting points.
Doing loads of laundry.
Heading to the gym this evening to start working off the the yumminess of the last 4 days.
Hope your entering the week with wonderful memories of another 4th!
If things didn’t change from last week, it was going to be a LONG, and not in a good way, summer!
Today we packed a quick picnic of ‘wiches, cantaloupe and graham crackers and headed to the pool.
The 1.5 foot deep baby pool was wide open and we staked our claim.
Heaven.
I pulled my lounge chair into partial shade, kicked my feet up and chatted with Hollie while the kiddos splashed, dove and played with the noodle.
It was perfect.
They were safe & happy.
I was relaxed & happy.
A wonderful combination for both parties I must say.
We’ve GOT to do that more often.
I’ve always been nervous to take two non-swimmers to the pool, but if we stay in the kiddie pool, it’s all good in the ‘hood.
They get worn out and I get a break along with a little color.
Hollie kept an eye on Holden while I took the girls into the big pool. Elliott and I practiced her swimming and I am so pleased that she is becoming stronger and stronger and will be on her own by summer’s end, I’m sure.
The icing on the cake was that they exited the pool, dried off, changed and walked to the car without fuss.
Shangri-La, I tell you.
The rest of this week and next week is full so I am certain that we are truly turning the corner and on our way to a HAPPY summer.
Such an inexpensive & creative idea…especially since they shared their first date over a stack of pancakes!
So sweet and dripping with maple syrupy goodness.
Love it. Breakfast At Sunset.
Thinking outside the box.
Pure genius.
I want to recreate this oasis in my back patio and eat all our summer meals there! I love the whole “bringing the inside out” look. May just look for an old kitchen table and mismatched chairs at the next community garage sale!
And that old, shabby chic bench…………..
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I was going to have Taco Tuesday tonight with some homemade Taco Bell inspired tacos with seasoned ground beef and crispy corn shells……but, I didn’t feel like running to the store and chancing taking the wind out of my Tuesday sails, so we had hamburger hot dogs and cantaloupe instead.
I just took about a pound of ground beef, mixed it with half a grated red onion, an egg white and this seasoning mix.
We had one hamburger bun and 4 hot dog buns, so I formed the “patties” accordingly:
{I know…this pic is a little disturbing. No jokes, please!}
Just fire up your barbie or pull out your grill pan and cook these babies up. Place on the corresponding bun and garnish with your favorite hot dog/burger toppings. We used ketchup, mustard, minced onion and jalapeños. They would be delish as chili cheese hot dog burgers, as well!
Anyway, it’s fun to switch it up a bit and save yourself a trip to the store at the same time!
Plus, there are plenty more summer Tuesdays for tacos.
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Flip Flop Fitness Update ~ 2.22.10
2 cups coffee with 4 tbsp. creamer: 4 points
3/4 cup Kashi cereal with 1/2 cup organic lowfat milk: 3.5 points
2 cups cantaloupe: 2 pts.
turkey and light cheddar with mustard on sandwich thin: 4 points
1 small bag mini Oreos: 3 points
2 graham crackers: 3 points {Snacky Snackerson today! ;-( }
We shared a sushi roll while we decided on something else.
Jay got beef kabob (which I was glad because he’s been talking about kabob for awhile) with hummus, pita and some middle eastern take on potato salad with mint which was delish.
The kids got pepperoni pizza, of course.
I finally decided that I wanted some spicy Jambalaya from The Gumbo Pot. The line was long…
We also tried the hushpuppies…
…and the beignets for dessert!
Trying to cool theirs off:
Powdered sugar everywhere.
Yum!
We were successful and got out of there without buying anything other than our lunch.
NOT EASY!
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I wanted to fix dinner, of course, but Jay wanted to do Sticky Brown Sugar Glazed Babybacks on the grill. I went to the store and grabbed a slab and a half along with the fixin’s for some Bacon Blue Cheese Potato Salad and Peanut Butter Cup Ice Cream. I prepared the dry rub (cayenne, salt & pepper) and made the glaze (brown sugar, beer, cider vinegar, red pepper flakes and mustard powder) and he did the grilling. Thanks, babe!
Bacon Blue Cheese Potato Salad:
Sweet, sticky ribs:
This was our first time doing ribs. I was a little nervous, but they turned out fantastic. Next time Jay said he will not have as many coals going so they can cook “lower and slower” so to speak, but they were outstanding.
The tater salad was a new find, too and it was perfect with the ribs.
We made our second batch of ice cream…
Peanut Butter Cup ~ Jay’s fave!
In the end, it doesn’t matter if you’re indecisive or have the perfect plan in your head.
All that matters is that we spent the day together as a family and reminded ourselves what an honor (most days!) it is to be parents to E & H.
From the moment the Clear Blue Easy stick told me Jay was going to be a daddy, I knew he was going to be a wonderful one.
That was almost 6 years ago!
These two HAVE decided that they have the best daddy in the whole wide world!
