Lake Tahoe, November 2012

I have labeled this post with the year because it is my full intention of making this the first of many trips we take as a family to Lake Tahoe. It is absolutely what I would call heaven on earth. If you've ever been there then you know what I'm talking about.

Waylen took me last week for my birthday as a special getaway trip with just he and I while my wonderful mother-in-law took care of Scarlet and Will. It's the first time I've been away from Will for such a long period, so I dread it all the way until the time we dropped them off; but once we were on the ground in Tahoe and had talked to them I was able to relax and really enjoy this time away from work and life for a bit.

We left on Sunday, the 4th at 9am and got in at 10:30am. We rented a car, which was the best decision we made, and drove from Reno to Tahoe. It was about an hour and a half, which was further than we had expected, but it gave us so much sightseeing time, it was wonderful. Seeing the mountains was a highlight for me. That could have made the trip for me in and of itself; but coming around the mountain and seeing the lake out in front of us was more than I had bargained for. It was simply breathtaking.

The water was like the Caribbean waters - crystal clear and turquoise blue. You could see every rock or grain of sand all the way around it's shores.

I feel like I simply can't do the place any justice with words, so here are a few photos I captured instead:

Our first glimpse.

We got out of the car at a rest stop for these pics. 

I couldn't stop smiling. I was really happy to be there.

I'm hoping here that you can see how clear the water is. Look closely at the water's color and just beyond those rocks that are out of the water, you can see the rocks almost as clearly that are under the water. I was fascinated.

One of those "fog on the water" shots.

This was a really interesting and beautiful place we visited on a four-hour drive around the lake. It's called Emerald Bay and the little island you can see out in the distance is called Fannette. There is a 16' x 16' single-room "castle" that was built by a little old lady years ago. She would take her friends there for tea. The story really just cracked me up. It's amazing.

A little bit closer...

And really close up. I love my zoom lens. I also love that the water reflects the pine trees in such an amazing way in this one.

I had to take a pic of the plaque about the island. I wanted to be sure to remember its name.

This was on the other side of the Bay, on a walking path. You see, Waylen and I had this really bright idea that since it was such a beautiful morning, we should hike down the path we had seen so many others go down before us (with hiking shoes, poles and backpacks, mind you. I had on high heel boots (but they were super cute)). So, we started walking. The photography opportunities were amazing.

This is the path. Downhill = good.

I LOVED all the golden in the trees.

This was almost all the way at the bottom. We were just looking up at rock that shot straight up out of the ground. It was really beautiful.

And this was the oasis awaiting us at the bottom. Well worth the walk. I still can't get over the water.

I could eat here.

If I had to guess, the trees were probably 60-75 feet. They were like giants towering above us. I loved how small they made me feel. Felt like God was walking with us.

Again with the Gold. These were Cypress trees, which I think are my favorites. I caught the sun peeking through. This was just before I passed out during the hike back up. I'm joking of course, but altitude is not a fun thing when you're hiking two miles, in boots, unprepared, overdressed, and without the right equipment ;-(

If you know us, you know we couldn't be near a lake, any lake, but especially Tahoe, and not going fishing. So, we took a charter with Tahoe Sports Fishing. Our boat was called the Hopper III. Our Captain's name was Billy. The pic above was at 8am, leaving the South Shore.

My fisherman.

Again with the water, but I'm astounded. We could see to the bottom until we were probably 30 to 40 feet deep. Then it turned a beautiful dark blue and then navy. When we caught fish, we could see them coming up to the boat from about 50 feet down. In case you're wondering, Lake Tahoe is 1,646 feet deep at its deepest point. The average depth is around 990 feet. 

It was beautiful, we were going fishing, and I was thrilled.

This is the spot we fished, just off the North Shore. We fished at a depth between 200 and 300 feet...which is absolutely insane. The fish, unfortunately, are dead when you get them to the boat because they don't often survive the pull back up to the top of the water.

I caught the first fish. Captain Billy said it was the biggest he'd seen in a few days (or maybe weeks). It doesn't look very big, but it was 23" and about 5 lbs. He was also very pretty. He is a Mackinaw Lake Trout.

These are my catch for the day...there's a 2-fish limit. We took our fish over to an Irish pub called MacDuff's Public House where they cooked it up for us for dinner. It was easily the best fish I have ever had.

All in all? Amazing trip. I cannot wait to take the kids back. Next time, we ski!

Little Ghouls and Boys...

This Halloween was SO much fun! Scarlet understands dressing up and going trick-or-treating now, so this was something we've been looking forward to for some time. I decided this year that I was going to make their costumes, and we chose Peter Pan and Tinkerbell - a perfect choice for these little ones. The designs were pretty easy and very fun. (made me wish they could wear them more though!)

We started the festivities off at their preschool. They always have a parade day where parents and grandparents come up and hand out candy as they parade through the courtyard. This was Will's first year while Scarlet seemed to be an old-pro.

Their classrooms are right next door to each other, so Scarlet usually helps me get Will into his class before going to her own. You can see he is already trying to take off the hat ;-)

She is super excited about this day and he's just not really happy that I look like I'm about to leave.

This is Scarlet's precious little class. Are they the cutest things you've ever seen or what? 

Kids are so funny.

This is the courtyard where all the parents met for the parade. There are tons of parents, I just couldn't get a good shot of the wide angle.

This is Will as he made his start out on the far side of the courtyard from us. 

One of his teachers has his hand.

And here he comes - rounding the bend! He had already been shouting "momma!" and "Gumball!" from the second he set a foot outside.

Getting some candy from his Gumball.

Scarlet's class was next. She needed no help walking down the line to get her candy.

Rounding the bend as well, hit by sudden sunlight.

Trick-or-treat, sweet baby!

On Halloween evening we made the very brave decision to try real trick-or-treating with the kiddos. Every year my in-laws go to a nearby Country Club neighborhood called Mountain Valley. It's that type of neighborhood upon which everyone and their dog converges. I had never seen anything like it in my life. We met in a school parking lot just across the street and then all walked over together. 

The kids were so funny. Will was GUNG-HO about it. He held his aunt Krista's hand the whole time, practically pulling her down the street, shouting "Run!" and "Candy!" It was a hoot.

And then there was my little, delicate Scarlet ;-)

Her feet hurt and she had a tummy ache. We made it all the way up and down one street before she said, "You hold me, carry my bag, say trick or treat, and then I'll eat the candy." 

The kid's a clever opportunist.

Peter Pan & Tinkerbell 2012

Our Trick-or-Treating Clan

A Day at Mainstay 2012

If you know me, then you know how much I love the pumpkin patch. I start watching the calendar and checking the online line-up for Mainstay Farms at the end of August. I've also reminded everyone I know about it at least ten times since then.

It's just a great time. It is an enormous family farm about 10 minutes from our house that grows and sells pumpkins as well as Christmas trees. They have turned their land into a playground for all ages, with a petting zoo, hay bale jumping area, tractor-pulled train for kids, huge hayrides, live bands and entertainment, and an enormous treehouse and playground. Not to mention the food...oh! the food! They have kettle corn, the best funnel cakes you've ever had, pumpkin ice cream, and homemade pumpkin pie. We love it.

This year did NOT disappoint. We went with Waylen's sister's family (Krista, Rene, Alex, Payton, and Addison) and his brother, Clayton, and his daughter, Kendall. Gumball (Cindy) of course also came along.

One of my personal favorite things to do is dress the kids in fall colors and take some photos in the pumpkins. It was chilly and there was a loud and very fun-looking train wisking by at this very time, so they aren't as great as I had hoped. In fact, looking through them the first time made me realize that there wasn't a single good one in the bunch! Oh well!!

A wonderful photo with Gumball

Miss Scarlet in her fall colors

The best photo of the two of them. Yes, the best.

Waylen and I did pretty good at the picture-taking thing, I thought ;-)

Cousins, Scarlet and Kendall sitting on the hay bales.

Everyone was running and jumping on the bales. 

It looks like Will is crying, but he was screaming with delight.

Being adventurous - climbing out all by herself.

The boy has eyed the funnel cake. Nothing else matters.

Isn't this hilarious? Kendall, Alex, Will, Payton, Scarlet, and Addison

Kendall and Scarlet feeding a goat from their hands. This was Scarlet's favorite part.

Will, on the other hand, just liked to watch the feed fall from the dispenser...

My boys. They make my heart smile.

This was super cool. They had painted this old car with chalkboard paint, gave the kids chalk and set them loose. It was a big hit.

It was hard to drag Will away.

The start of the hayride. Clayton and Kendall.

Scarlet is always covering her ears around loud noises. She didn't like how loud the tractor was that pulled the wagon. But she got used to it very quickly.

They both laughed and yelled almost the entire time. It kept us smiling, too.

Then there were more animals to feed once the hayride was over. This time, it was chickens and the kids got such a huge kick out of them. They had "furry ankles."

This is the tractor-pulled kiddie train. It was the first year for this ride and the kids had a blast. So did I!

See you next year, Mainstay!!