San Simeon and her Castle

Chris and my adventure up the coast (sans baby)...

:The reason that even gypsies can't leave California...

Hearst's little ranch atop the hill

This is the cottage that Chris and I stay in when Mr. Hearst has us for holiday.

...like he owns the place.

A lady and a lamp post

that is what we can call an ocean view!

The basking lions of the sea

A curious friend

The chin scratcher

love

And on the way home a stop at The Madonna Inn for a quick cup of joe and very extravagant cake to return home with.

Brothers and Sisters and Schooners

In the afternoon of Christmas day, the wind blew in the whole rest of the family.  And within 30 seconds, the house was full; full of voices and kisses and coats and boots. We all cuddled up and ate chili, told stories and played a round of Cranium.  My parents so graciously offered to watch over our sleeping babe, and the "kids" (6 original cousins, a husband, a fiance, and an Uncle Scott) snuck off to O'Shucks Bar for some off campus fun.  We drank very large beers, played shuffle board and billiards and even our fair share of drinking games. Christmas night brought much spirit and laughs.

Merry and Bright

Merry Christmas from Park City

Growth

What a gift it is to have gone on this same trip and sat on this same tree exactly one year later.  I have learned more... grown more... this year than any other.  Chris and I talk all the time about how before we became parents, there were so many threats about how our life will change and how "hard" it will become and how little time we will have for each other and ourselves.  These things couldn't be further from the truth in our experience.  Our life has only evolved and grown. Change is not the word that I would use.  For change and growth are both so very important, but they imply very different things.  Being a parent has not changed us.  We do all of the things we did before only now we get to share them more fully and we believe all of the same truths that we did before and now they just seem even more deep and important.  Trees grow taller and wider and the roots grow deeper, but they don't change.  And time has just become more rich, more complete.  Being a mother has been having time for myself - because I am more myself than I ever have been.  Time for each other and time for ourselves have never been more real and plentiful.  Time is exactly what we have and it is filled to the brim and just grows each year*.


we all truly have grown
even the trees.

*That is not to say that time doesn't fly so fast that I can barely catch it by the tail before it is gone into memory-land...

Sequoia, welcome us back!

Last October, we traveled North, and the Fishers traveled South and we met in the middle in Sequoia National Forest.  Cheyenne was just under 3 months and the wilderness and crisp air next to a campfire was something that we are so happy that we exposed her to so young.  The cabins we stayed in were perfect.  They gave us safety and comfort while still allowing us to feel some of the rustic adventure of camping.  So naturally we decided if something is good - more is better.  So we are going to do our best to make it an annual trip and this year, grandparents and a brand new cousin will be joining all of us.  Our hope is that each year as the leaves start to change and the Fall season sets in, we all start to get jitters of excitement of what new adventures we will have that year in Sequoia.
We saw 3 bears last year and walked through trees that were wider than our house and taller than we could see.  We leave in a few hours and I feel like a little kid that can hear the ice cream truck a couple of blocks away.  What wildlife will we see this year?  Will Cheyenne be able to appreciate the deliciousness of s'mores? Will Tyson spot all of the raccoons again?  A report to come!

Sequoia National Forest
October, 2011

Park City with a Summer Backdrop

We went to Park City over a month ago and when we returned, life just kicked in swiftly and in a blink, school started and summer ended.  Of all our countless trips to PC, there have only been a couple that have been in the Summertime, one being our Honeymoon 2 years ago!

It really was a wonderful trip filled with many moments that I think back to and keep me motivated some days.  Thanks Mom and Dad and Mama (Great-Great as we now call her) for letting us relax in the "lodge."  Can't wait until Christmas which will be filled with many more memories, and this time with a sparkly white backdrop.

Strider and Mobee

Trolly Ride on Main Street

Fun at Mirror Lake - picnic and  exploring.

Birthday Number One!
Cake, cupcakes, presents, party hats
and even a bubble machine!

Chris and I even got to take a little adventure ourselves to celebrate our anniversary.  We escaped for a day and a half to Midway and Sundance.  We stayed in a quaint resort that made wonderful homemade fudge and went nightswimming in a natural crater that is heated by the Earth's core.  We woke up early and drove to the Sundance Resort and went on a beautiful hike to Stewart Falls and made it down the mountain just in time for our massages.  Relaxed and refreshed we had a leisurely dinner at Robert Redford's rustic restaurant and then finished the night with a "Full Moon lift ride" to the top of the mountain in the light of the huge moon.  Then back to the Park City lodge where our girl and Strider had many stories to tell us about their adventures with their Grandparents.

Pictures from our anniversary trip below:

City By the Bay

By Way 

of pictures...

We arrived and immediately picked up Grayson and he took us to Tartine's for lunch.  It was incredibly delicious and Cheyenne loved watching the many dogs and pigeons pass by

                                        Grayson snagged in some good Gruncle/Chy time before we had to drop him off at rehearsal

After dropping Gray off at rehearsal downtown, we went down to the Warf to frog around a bit.  We got out of the car and it was so cold for us SoCal spoiled crew, we had to all buy new sweatshirts to keep the crispness from our bones.  The Warf and pier was everything I remembered - the street performers, the misty air, smell of churros and fish and breadbowls full of chowder everywhere you turn.

Chy got to share in Mommy's favorite thing - The Wind!

And in Daddy's favorite thing - Historical Landmarks!
Here we have a real WWII  ship and Alcatraz in the background

Classic San Francisco's blanket of fog covering the bay but clear enough for a great shot of Alcatraz.

The hills and cable car tracks and victorian buildings were quite a Welcome Back to the bay for us.

After our little adventure on the water, we met a huge loving group for dinner.  Over thirty people gathered downtown to see my dear brother perform and so the dinner before was of course filled with anticipation, love and pride.  Chris, Chy and I walked them all to the theater and said goodnight as we were seeing it later in the weekend (for the third time- proud to be a groupie).  So we headed to a hotel around the corner.  Chy was asleep the minute she laid down and Chris and I shared a bottle of wine and watched the last night of Shark Week.

Not before Daddy taught Cheyenne about hotel beds and pillows...

The next morning we headed down to Atherton to meet up with the family once again.  We ate good food and swam in their gorgeous pool, played ping pong and drank beers.  Family and Summer at its best.

Saturday morning Chris and I were back to the city for our turn with War Horse and met the Goulds at the theater.  We all shared in the awe of the theater and of this great production.  Then, a Back Stage tour and dinner with the star himself.

San Francisco War Horse - Where will we see it next?

Then Sunday home again
back to Strider and the sun
and to routine and our regular rhythm

And back to our own bed -you know it was a good vacation when it leaves you needing rest.

Park City Bound

Headed to Park City 

for the week.

What a welcome for our sweet girl!

Element Balance in Monterey

While we were in Monterey, we stayed on Asilomar Beach in Pacific Grove. (http://www.visitasilomar.com/)

It was the perfect mini vacation.  Each room felt like you were in a little cabin, even though technically it was just a hotel room.  The lobby and cafe very much felt like a ski lodge - everyone getting ready to "get out in it" and start an adventure.  They were so friendly and relaxed.  So in feeling like we were bundled up in a forest cabin, to turn around and see the expansive ocean was quite the feeling of completeness and balance.

perfect.

A Monterey Morning with my girl

Chris had conference calls all morning, so Cheyenne went for a walk and ate breakfast with a view.

A Monterey Evening with my love

After Cheyenne fell asleep, Chris and I bundled up on the patio and had beers
and ate carmel apples (with chocolate and marshmallows!) 

Jelly Fish

The Jelly Fish exhibit at the aquarium was breathtaking.

Aquarium Wonder

A couple of weekends ago, we visited the Monterey Bay Aquarium.  We weren't sure if it was going to be something that Cheyenne slept through or something that ignited her wonder and awe.  Turned out the latter was true.  She couldn't get enough.  Her eyes were wide and her pointing finger was very active.  All three of us were so impressed.   

I will probably leak out more pictures slowly but this one explains a lot...

Personal New York

Our Very Own 

New York Host

This is outside Grayson's Brooklyn apartment.  He is about to depart for a gallop around the country, but it served as a great home during his first (of probably many) stays in New York.

Home is where the horse is...

(at least for the next year or so)

Tribes

Tribes is an off Broadway show that borrows your heart for two and a half hours and then hands it back vulnerable and aching and yet in better shape than it was before.  Also, featuring our dear friend Will.

A Sailboat Cruise on the Hudson

The City from the Water

Amazing to have such quiet in the midst of so much chaos.  

The sails went up and the wine and beer was served. Then as the sun set, and we passed Lady Liberty, the blankets came out and the wind chilled and we laughed and loved and watched the city lights brighten the darkened sky.

Tourist New York

Ground Zero

Brooklyn Bridge

Lady Liberty & Ellis Island

Take Sunrise to Jane Street - A New York Arrival

We took the red eye and arrived at JFK at the squeaky early hour of 7 and grabbed a cab to our hotel.  The cab ride brought a fuzzy sleeplessness and a pang for the warm and bitter taste of coffee.  It felt like we were up early for an adventure in a new land - and that we were.

We twisted around the old streets of West Village where Bob Dylan and Paul Simon and Woody Allen sat in cafes soaking in the inspiration that only bricks this old could give.

The taxi took streets that I have only imagined from song lyrics - Bleeker, Christopher Street, Greenwich and (positively) 4th,

then up the cobblestones of Jane Street 

The Jane hotel welcomed us with its old charm and history.  (The Titanic survivors stayed there!)  It had a great cafe and a lounge bar, both which we frequented several times during our stay.  We dropped our luggage and had some needed coffee and breakfast and planned our day, starting with trying to understand the subway map.

sparkle shoes and cobblestones

More New York to come - Gotta do it in pieces...