Tramway

Living as close as we have to Palm Springs for pretty much my whole life, we had never done the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway before. So this summer we decided to check it out. 

Besides the wretched drive through the desert of hell, it was actually a really fun experience. 

Taking the little shuttle 

Fortunately I didn't get sick at all, but I could definitely see how some people could. The whole tram is spinning while you are ascending. 

 It was really beautiful once we got to the top. The weather was perfect. The view was not the greatest but it was still fun to see.

Giant stump

Yah, we're dorks

The best way to hike

Moonlight Heat

Our last Sunday in California with the family, we all took a trip out to Moonlight Beach. Mom suggested this beach because grandpa used to go there when they were little. We thought it was a fantastic idea, because Derek and I also have a few special memories at this beach. 

We picked up Noah, Tyler, Tash, and her boyfriend, Johnny on the way. It was really nice to be all together again. I hadn't been to the beach with Noah since we were like 10 years old. We're still the same ;)

Mom brought so many goodies, as usual. Giant bucket of Stater Bros Chicken, two delicious deli sandwiches, Brisk iced tea, chips & bean dip, red vines, Hawaiian rolls, etc....

Needless to say we munched all day long!

They're a colorful couple!

Mom would be super mad at me if she saw this. Thankfully, I know for a fact she never ever looks at my blog. I just thought the two of them looked cute together. 

Me and all the boys spent most of the time body surfing and getting thrashed by the waves. It was so much fun! I napped in the sun while the dudes played Frisbee for hours. We all got fried, and I am now peeling all over. I thought for sure I had it made, since it's about two weeks past, but apparently my skin just couldn't hold out any longer. This was one of the hottest days I've felt at the beach in a long time.

Little Loves!

The joy of stealing photos off someone else's camera. Bet she totally forgot she took this picture

Fatty Derek

Mom waiting for us while we swim the cave

Climbing back up

Our victory shot! Mom being jealous ;)

Apparently they let you on seal beach again. Some of the baby seals are super friendly. 

Derek re-enacting his former tragedy for us. I won't go into detail for the sake of his feelings, but I will say it involves a much larger version of this ball at Disneyland while meeting my family for the first time. 

Walking around La Jolla Cove 

Tash and Johnny took my mom's car home early, leaving us with an extra human. I was designated to sit on Derek's lap for the two hours home. 

Becoming Cheese Connoisseurs

Stories of us and our Cheese.
Hopefully one day we will not have to spend hours and hours in the fancy cheese isle trying to figure out which ones we like, which ones we think we might like, which ones we have already tried, or which ones we hated that one time that one person brought some.
Documenting our journey to becoming cheese connoisseurs.

Australian Sharp Cheddar -  Not our favorite at first, but it grew on us. Much better with other food, not by itself.
Cave Aged Gruyere - So good! We loved it! 8/22/12

New Zealand Cheddar - We really liked this! Actually one of our favorites.  5/14/12 

Smoked Gouda - Honestly, this wasn't the exact cheese we had. I just know it was some sort of Smoked Gouda that looked similar to this. All we have to say is... Yuck! 10/1/12

Dubliner Cheese: Aged Cheese with  a distinctive taste and a natural hint of sweetness.
Imported from Ireland.
I wrote what was on the package because it doesn't actually say what kind of cheese it is. We really like this one. Its kind of a strong mixture of Swiss and Guyere. 11/12/12

Havarti: Herbs and Spices - We freaking love this cheese. We love it plain, we love it crumbled in our salad, we love it melted on eggs..... it's good with everything. Strong flavor, and a perfectly dense texture. 11/29/12

Mom, Pops, Sibs, Grams, and Pups

Just a random span of pictures from our time spent with the family in California. I will post about a couple little side trips very shortly. And yes, I am aware of the large amount of puppy photos shared. I apologize, I just couldn't help myself. If you only knew how many I actually did not post. Ha ha, I have a problem. 

This is what Tundra does every time Derek gets out of the car. And then he makes a huge fuss getting back in the back.  It makes me laugh so I just let it happen.

Tundra is the best road trip buddy. He pretty much sleeps through 85 percent of it, in the funniest positions, (more to come on that later) and then every so often he will shove his fat body up in the front with us. 

We stopped by to see the Grams in Victorville. She met Tundra for the first time.  He wanted to eat the tennis balls off her walker. Ha ha!

Love her so much!

Rocky! The amazing creature that greeted us at the door to my mom's place. I'm obsessed with him. 

The playground that my mom and Bear helped the town build. It's pretty cute. 

Dad and Derek hiked Suicide Rock while my mom and I had our spa day. 

My mom spotted this giant, horrible, disgusting, monster on the side of the road up to Idyllwild. 

Shoved all the pups in the car to go hike with them on some secret trails that Ran knows. Beautiful, sunny day!

Started pouring down rain and hailing while we were out. Derek had to run and get the car, while the girls and pups hid under trees on the side of the road. Poor Rocky was crying and shivering. We must have looked so pathetic. No one stopped but people did point and stare.  

Ridin' in the Bimmer with dad

Oh, I love this dog. One day I will have an Abby.

No comment necessary....

Robin, Josiah, and Hezekiah came up to visit. I took some family photos of the cute, new parents. 

Derek looks so comfortable holding a baby.... 

Just playing in the coolest fort ever! 

Waiting at the door for someone. That's what they do.

Poor Abby has been obsessed with this trailer full of wood for months. She saw something crawl in there once, and now she just sits there for hours at a time. 

Tundra thinks Abby is so cool! He copies everything she does. 

Cuties

Brought this awesome BBQ sauce from Utah and my mom made ribs with it. Yummy. 

That's a dead Abby. After a normal walk, this is what she looks like for an hour. Poor girl is gettin' old. 

And Rocky's legs are so short that he is basically sprinting on all of our walks. He's dead too. 

On our drive home we stopped by to see Tundra's family. 

He loves his sister. They played to whole time.

 His mom was totally reprimanding him the whole time. 

It was super neat to see them all interact and watch their culture.