Little gym party!

So last Saturday was Anders 2nd birthday. He had it at the Little Gym in Paradise Valley and Jacob loved it! They had all kinds of gymnastic equipment to play on and activities to keep the kids busy. Then they all had pizza and cupcakes. Even though Jacob hadn't had a nap before the big party, he was in great spirits. He still talks about Little Gym and pizza everyday since. Guess we'll have to look into getting him into gymnastic classes.

Here are some pics from the party



Enjoying their pizza and lemonade
Anders is in the chair with the balloons

Half Moon Bay

Our final stop was half Moon Bay before heading back to AZ. It was an interesting drive from Olema to HMB, to say the least. I guess the road was a little too curvey, because Jacob got carsick twice! So after the second time we decided to turn his carseat forward for the remainder of the trip. Jacob loved it! He couldn't stop jabbering about all that he could see from his new vantage point. Now that were back in AZ, where the roads are very straight, he's back to facing backward. But I'm sure that within the year he'll be big enough to flip around for good.

We had a great time in HMB, camped right on the coast, just a few feet from the ocean. Our good friend Keeney drove out from Stanford to visit with us for the day. We drove down to Ano Nuevo state park to see the elephant seals. I've never seen these creatures before, and they are amazing. We only took video, so we don't have anything for the blog right now, but I definitely recommend checking them out if anyone is ever in the area. They make the most odd noise, kind of like a cigarette boat idling.



so happy to be facing forward
no more carsickness from here on thankfully!

Keeney and a not so happy Jacob

Roasting Marshmallows in Olema

We finally got some firewood for a campfire in Olema. Daddy had been wanting one for at least a week. So Jacob got to roast his first marshmallow.



Papa and a tired Sparky resting

already a pro

getting a little assistance from daddy

uh, am i supposed to eat this??
Jacob seemed to have more fun dragging his marshmallow through the dirt.

Point Reyes National Seashore

Our next leg of the vacation was spent in Olema, visiting the Point Reyes National Seashore. This is a huge national park, so we only saw a little bit, but it sure was beautiful. We brought along the bikes and Jacob's trailer, so we took an 8 mile bike/hike trek to the ocean. The first 3 miles were uphill (very steep in some segments), but we made it thankfully. Jacob was a big help behind mama saying "move mama move." Of course we were all exhausted when we got back to the RV, except for Jacob who napped most of the bike ride back.

Here are some pictures from the bike trip:



Daddy & Jacob in the meadow at the initial uphill section, boy were we glad to be done with that!

Grandma and Jacob on Arch Rock overlooking the ocean. Jacob was pretty disappointed that there was no beach access from this trail.

Half way done!

Happy Birthday Daddy!!

We celebrated Daddy's birthday in Anchor Bay as well. Jacob learned to sing "Happy Birthday" shortly after his 2nd birthday, and so practiced many times before the big day.

Jacob, Daddy, and the yummy mud pie cake

Jacob & Mama on the beach just before leaving Anchor Bay

in the ridiculously cold pacific ocean - seriously, it hurt!

Run Daddy run!!



So long Anchor Bay!!

Anchor Bay

Our next stop after San Jose was Anchor Bay, a very small town about 90 miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge. They describe it as "when the redwoods meet the ocean" and it is absolutely beautiful. The beach was just a 30 second walk and giant redwoods loomed over the RV. We could not have found a more perfect camping spot! We stayed there for a little over a week, going to the beach every morning and afternoon. Jacob's favorite thing to do was running up and down the beach for hours, so we all got lots of exercise :)

Here are some pictures from Anchor Bay:



Let's camp!

Off to the beach with his wagon full of sand toys - gotta make him pull his own weight :)

The big pit - don't worry, we found it.

The trek back to the RV with wagon in tow.




Spray nozzle trance - the only thing that could get Jacob to come back to the RV from the beach each day


Papa reading Danny & the Dinosaur - one of Jacob's favorites!


Look mama, Grandma painted a sailboat on my tummy!


Jacob walking Sparky or Sparky walking Jacob ??


This way Sparky!!

Camping in California!

To escape the summer heat of AZ, we headed off to CA again to go camping with Grandma Tilla and Papa Chuck in the RV. We decided not to go all the way to Oregon this year (as Jacob is not the best car trip kid), so spent the first two weeks of July at various campsites along the coast of Northern CA. The weather was beautiful & Jacob loved being near the ocean.

Our first stop was San Jose to visit with our good friends the Raggios. It was our first time meeting Ashley & James little guy Joey. We stayed over for a night, hung out at a local park, and had yummy veggie burgers at a nearby restaurant. Joey is such a cutie, we were so glad to finally meet him! And of course we had to make time to go to our favorite vegan chinese restaurant "Garden Fresh" in Mountain View.

Here are some pics from the San Jose leg of the trip:



James & Joey outside The Counter

Jacob's favorite, vanilla ice cream cone - to him there is no other flavor!

Jacob & Joey at the sandwich shop

Jacob trying to give Joey a hug