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Saturday, August 6, 2011

The Travelers are Home! (Part 1)

Hello and big hugs to all!  We're back!  Yay!
I can't wait to catch up with you again!
I've missed you all dearly! How have you been?

It's amazing how quickly a month goes by...
...and yet, it is incredible how much can be squeezed into it!

I think it best to break this post up into 2 parts.  I have over 40 pictures to share with you...and I'd like you to still be awake at the end of them...haha!
Let's begin, shall we?


We started our trip in beautiful Santa Barbara.  Nothing like the feeling of the first days of vacation....all the worry of travel arrangements and packing, bills and mundane life behind you....all the thrill of adventure and promise of relaxation ahead...
I love to not only look around me, but up, as well...to soak in every bit of delightfulness.  I remember snapping this picture, taking in a deep breath....and being filled with such contentment :)

Maggie is the main focus of our journeys, so we try to plan lots of things that she'll enjoy...


The Santa Barbara Zoo had this great hill for the kids to slide down...


I love taking photos of animals and nature...so catching the gorgeous eye of this Hornbill was really neat for me...

We also visited a few Aquariums on our trip.  These were taken at the Monterrey Bay Aquarium near San Francisco.


Our little Wildlife Defender...haha!


We spent some of our time in the camp doing some crafts...


I was so impressed by Maggie's concentration!  Look at these stitches!


5 years old....and she only stuck herself once :)


The critters in this campground were very bold...coming extremely close searching the grounds for scraps.  We were ultra careful to keep everything locked away....


But even the car wasn't safe at this campground!  That was an unopened package of Nutter Butter cookies that some little creature nibbled.  We still don't know how the rascal got in and out of the car...


Maggie had made a cornhusk doll at a children's museum and decided to leave it in the nook of a tree right by our campsite for some other little girl to find... A curious Banana Slug came by to check out his new neighbor.

....and you just can't take a coastal trip without visiting lots of beaches!  Here's the start of a Sandcastle Fort in Santa Cruz...

We continued up the coast to visit a spot I've been excited to get back to!  Glass Beach in Fort Bragg...


This is where I collect all the sea glass I use for my handmade hair accessories.


Maggie played with seaweed and splashed around while Jim and I scoured the sand for treasure...


Here's what wet glass shimmering in the sun looks like close up....


As you can see, most of what you'll find are clear/white pieces, with brown being 2nd...greens are a distant 3rd with soft blue-green being scarcer.

Pink and blue glass (the blue you see in this pic is mussel shell) are the rarest of all here, and I actually managed to find a few pieces :)  Intermingled with these are broken pottery, the occasional milk glass or jadeite glass pieces and shiny shells.  I've started a few new hair clips, I promise to show you soon!


When we were back at camp, we'd take walks and explore the woods around us....
I'd look for places with what I like to call "fairy holes" in the trees....where fairies (and children) might like to play...

....and appreciate the beauty we found everywhere....


Flora and Fauna alike....



We stopped at a little town called Ferndale.... a favorite place to see charming houses...


...and be awed by one of the most beautiful cemetaries I've ever seen....


Maggie had never been to one and asked us if we could go in.  She wanted us to read the names as we passed each marker....  I think we all felt a little closer, a little humbler while walking hand in hand through this serene place to the top of the hill...


...and as we took in the view from the top, we held eachother a little tighter....


Life is truly a journey...and an amazing gift...

I'm so lucky to be here with a family that I love beyond measure....and to be able to share a part of my life here with you...
Kindred spirits....

I'll leave you now to absorb....
Then pounce on you again with more pictures...heehee...haahaa!

So glad to be back,
Cam












17 comments:

WrightStuff said...

How lovely to share your holiday postcard my friend! What a wonderful time you had. We did miss you as it happens.

Marfi-topia said...

wow!
glad youre back, what an adventure.
your pictures are great ...love the rusted spiderweb, and what a little sweetheart maggie is leaving a gift like that!!!!
happy you had fun and i'm looking forward to seeing more pictures!

JessiVille said...

Hi! So glad you are back after having a wonderful vacation! Your photos are awesome. My fav is the rusty gate/fence with cobwebs but I loved them all! I've heard of Ferndale but have not been there. I would have been crazy for sea glass beach too! I really loved that your Maggie put her dollie in the tree trunk house as a surprise for another little girl to find! And her sewing? Fantastic! Thank you for sharing a wonderful post.

Hugs, Jessi xox

Marty said...

What beautiful pictures! Wow, Glass beach is amazing...no wonder you it's hard for you to leave! I'd want to do the same thing, and pick up one more piece of glass or pebble...then one more...

I'm very impressed by Maggie's stitches! Such a good job! I love that you're teaching her how to sew and craft :D I need to do such things with Addie more!

The cemetery and the town its nestled in are lovely. I love to visit old ones and marvel at the headstones.

Glad you had a beautiful, wonderful trip and so thankful especially for certain parts of it ;)

Can't wait to see more!

Allison said...

Those are some beautiful photos and it looks like you had a wonderful time!! She sews AWESOME, I stick myself more than that on a daily basis lol!! I can't wait to see more photos and I am so glad you are back!!!

Micki Wilde said...

Jeez that month went fast!!
looks like you had a wonderful time, that sea glass on the beach is fantastic!!

Glad you are back in blogland x

Geri said...

Looks like lovely trip! I love the sea glass too (I may want to visit there soon)

You created some wonderful memories for Maggie.

Treehugger_31 said...

Welcome Back! You've been missed! :) Sweet Maggie...I love that she left her doll as a surprise. That's so cute.

I adore that glass. I've never seen anything like it, myself! Did you collect a lot of it?

mermaiden said...

what a wonderful glimpse into your trip. you came quite close to me here in the bay area! love that ft bragg beach glass =)

Diane said...

YOu must have great memories of this vacation--what a wonderful long time to just get away with family and camping no less!! And then topping it off with a very beautiful part of our country! Great photos!

Joyce van der Lely said...

Oh Cam, welcome back and thanks for sharing your holiday with us all ! I love reading that you are a hunter-gatherer / beachcomber family too (haha) We can never go anywhere and not come home with some kind of collectables ♥ Will PM you as well with my news :)
xoxo Joyce

Šolanje na domu-Waldorf said...

Looks like you had loads of fun. :) I love the photos. The turtle is my face. And I love how your little girl is posing with the pinguin. :)

miruspeg said...

Cameron, this trip has created some wonderful memories for Maggie and you and your husband.
The photos and your commentary are delightful as I knew they would be.

I feel we are kindred spirits full of gratitude for life's joy.

Wishing you a week ahead full of peace, love, blessing and gratitude.

Hugs
Peggy xxxx

Raven Moon Magic said...

The proof of absent time, love it. So why all the glass in one beach??/ Is it a beach for alcoholics or is it washing in for else where, yes thats me with all the trivial questions?? but I love it, so fun to find one piece let alone what Im sure turned out to be a box!
Awesome that Maggie loved the cemetery, they are the greatest places for story telling, 100s of lives summed up in one sentence, date and name...ohhh and the names, I love reading peoples names.
Im loving Maggies giving gene she has obviously received from you, the doll would be an amazing surprise, that is if the rascally critters dont steal her first, sorry but living in a Non-Critter Zone...CUTE!!! how could you be angry at a face like that, althought the cookies did look yum, I know in my house we would have just snapped off the corner! eekk haha

ok off for round Two
bring it on,, Im thinking 40 isnt enough!! hint hint!

xxx
sheree

Treehugger_31 said...

Hi Cameron! Sorry about the delay in my response (I haven't been online since the weekend). Your comments made it through...I would adore some of the glass! Thank you for the sweet offer!
Have a great day!

Carmen said...

Just read both your holiday posts. Amazing. Just amazing. Loved seeing where you get your glass treasures.

Jenny said...

Those are cool photos that you got! The cemetery pictures really got my interest. Thank you for sharing your wonderful experiences with us.

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