Take us back sooner than November, please!

 Not really sure if we are going to be able to get back to the beach until the annual trip in November for Thanksgiving.  Already missing the place.  The slough, out the back door.  

 We love you Rena!  

 You are damn right Chels, all is ok.  

 The house and ol glory in the background and a mean, hotly contested game of bocce ball happening.  

 Zoe, babysitting Dash.  

 We did a bunch of road riding while down there.  Per usual, the riding in SB is so outstanding.  Tons of hills, perfect weather, deserted roads.  Random Amtrak's every now and again.  

 Anna and Dash, chillaxing.  

 My fav's.  Nice look Dash.  

 And meanwhile, Bocce still happening.  

Being at the beach house tends to make one jump for joy. 

Meeting everyone....

 Dash got to meet all kinds of awesome people during our travels.  Becky, my cousin Clai's wife was all about hanging with the lil man.  It was awesome having Clai and Becky up from San Diego for the weekend.  You guys better come every year now!  

 Shannon, mad momma skills.  

 Umm..., yea, so, maybe, just maybe, all of our lives have changed a bit in the past couple of years.  Still having a ton of fun, just at a less aggressive pace!  The biker gang taking off.  

 Some things never, ever get old.  Watching the sun go down over the mountains in Carp is perfect, every time.  

 Ben Jones, back from Nepal, hanging with Dash too.  Dash and Ben got on like a house of fire! Must be Dash's budding mohawk?  

Meet Zoe, Ms. Awesome....One darn Happy lil gal. 

"Carp" being amazing....

 Carpinteria, CA might just be my favorite town not in the mountains in this country of ours!  I have spent a lot of time over the past 36 years there and developed an immense love for the place, people, etc.  Chels totally digs it too, and, well, it seems Dash didn't mind the place either.  It was great having friends at the beach with us to hang.  

Meagan and Audra, playing in a sand pit.  

 Classic night in front of the house watching the sun go down, enjoying a surf session, and a cold beverage.  

 Shade structures for the little ones were made.  Dash loving his beach attire.  

 Dash was getting up a bit earlier than "normal" while at the beach, so......., he and I would go on beach walks at 545 am every morn until he would fall asleep in my arms while walking.  It just might have been one of the best parts of the trip!  

 The fam....

 Great Uncle Tim and his awesome girlfriend Tally.  Woa, dash looks really long all of a sudden when stretched out.  

 Zoe and Shannon, what the beach is all about.  Carefree goodness.  Not to worry Zoe, soon enough Dash will get big too and be able to play in the sand with you.  

 Mom's walking on the beach.

 Dash with his collared shirt, happy to be at the beach.  

Jesse and Audra playing in the waves. 

Breaking things up....

 The anatomy of a chill morning in Lone Pine, CA prior to heading south from the mountains to the beach.  

 Late check out and hanging poolside.  Yes please  

Wind happens when in the Mojave desert! 

Heading South.

 The internet kinda rules sometimes!  I would never of known that one of my favorite passions in life, road biking, err..., more specifically climbing up on a road bike, is outstanding in the Eastern Sierra's.  It was called by multiple online sources as the mecca of hill climbing in the country.  So, of course I had to go check it out to see what all the noise was about.  

Well, it's more than true.  I did two of the three rides in the Owens Valley that are rated in the top 10 road bike climbs in the country.  They were outstanding.  Buffed roads (because they are not plowed in the winter), minimal traffic (see above!), huge vertical, and outstanding views.  All you could ask for and then some.  Chels and Dash were troopers and awesome moral support.  Above is Horseshoe Meadows Road, near Lone Pine, CA.  It's a beast!  

 Looking at Horseshoe Meadows Road climb from the lower part of it.  What you cant tell is that is only about half of it, the rest of it is around the corner.  16 mile climb.  

 Easily the most sustained, long, and steep switchbacks on a paved road I have ever seen.  Super cool.  

 Climbing up the Mt. Whitney Portal road with the highest point in the lower 48 in the distance.  I could have spent a couple of weeks on the road bike in and around the small lil towns of the Eastern Sierra.  Next time!  

 We decided to break up the drive from Tahoe to SB by stopping along the way in Mammoth.  It had been years since we had been there and had almost forgotten what an amazing place it is.  We stopped off at one of the many natural hotsprings to take a dip.  It was close to snowing, cold, and a decent walk from the dirt road to the soaking area, but Dash was all about it.  

 Ohh yea, one more pic from the top of the #3 rated climb in the US, Onion Valley Road outta Independence, CA.  I thought Horseshoe Meadows was tougher, but Onion Valley is steeper.  It gained over 5,000ft in 11 miles.  

 My very own lil private tub.  

 Dash, hanging poolside, or something like that!  

 Chels, being the awesome mom that she is.  

 Dash wanted to get in, but we had to keep telling him that "next time" because it was too hot for him.  

Chels, solitude, happy. 

Hello Tahoe!

 Tahoe visits are always awesome, never long enough, and leave us with a feeling of wonderment as to why Jackson and Tahoe need to be so far away.  So much of this extended trip was to introduce Dash to friends and fam.  Tahoe is always going to be a strong, if distant geographically speaking presence in his life.  His first trip to Tahoe was great, he met friends and family, and soaked up the crummy weather.  

Chels and Meagan, with Dash, and Audra.  Amazing that Chels and Megan have been buds since they were both in diapers together too!  

 And of course, no visit to Tahoe could be complete without seeing Katherine!  Dash loved staying at the Tansue's at Squaw.  Thanks guys for the warm hospitality as always.  We missed you at the beach.  

 Dash meeting Jean Lange and getting his first baseball hat as a gift.  He seems to love it!  

Thanks again Jean.  

 And........Dash finally got to meet his Grandpa "Pops" Sullivan.  They were buds right from the get go.  So awesome to see the pure happiness.  

 Dash, toughen up buttercup.  You will be spending plenty of days out in the elements doing fun stuff with this crew!  So much love for Marco and Anna.  

 Aunt and Uncle, being cool.  The lake did not look that appetizing for a swim.  Better when we are back in July.  

 Dash and Chels, at Skylandia Pier.  It was a bummer to see just how low the lake is with the extended drought.  

 Dinner with the Sullivan crew.  

 Dash just might be a string bean when he gets older.  He has some pretty serious long and lean genes on both sides.  

We love you Dash. 

Growing, Vacationing, and returning home...

I am strung out from a couple of days of driving to return home from So Cal.  We had an amazing three week trip.  Saw all kinds of family, friends, new and familiar places, and a lot of laughs.  Buckle up, the next week plus will undoubtedly be update shots from the trip.  For now, I am beat, and getting some shut eye.  Ewwwwww, work tomorrow damn it.  

Rena and her lil man, in his new Giants t shirt.  

 Dash weathered the 9 hour drive to Tahoe really well after a stop off in SLC with Uncle Marco and Aunt Anna for the night.  

 Dash, learning to craft at a young age, sewing.  

 It's pretty wild to see how much he grew just on this three week trip of ours.  

I stopped on a road ride near Genoa, NV to snap this shot because I thought it was cool looking.  

More later!!