Hiking with Grandma and Grandpa Hagerty

Bruce's parents came out in June for two wonderful weeks and I'm just now getting some photos up. While they were here we spent a lot of time just hanging out at home, working on the yard, and drinking ice tea on the porch. However, on two different mornings, we did do some hiking. It was so great to see how much Rachel Evan loved being outdoors and hiking around. She's a great little hiker and I can't wait to do some longer hikes with her. Enjoy the photos!

Lucia Falls Lucia Falls is about 30 minutes from our home. It's got a short mile loop hike, which we did, and a longer hike to Moulton Falls which we did not attempt.

Moulton Falls

Bruce's Weekend Away

Mosaic had a men's retreat this weekend and I went with my buddies Pat and Sam. We met a bunch of cool guys and got to make fire, ride bikes, kayak, poop in pits, wash dishes with dirt and eat lots of great food. I also got a chance to outfit the golden rod (my 1999 Honda Accord) with tons of gear: 3 bikes, a cargo bin loaded with stuff and a Kayak. I almost made it to Bend and back on one tank of gas. I am going to be sad to let her go. Karen (my GPS/mistress) got a little confused the closer we got to this remote campground but her on board maps proved invaluable. We used them to "fine tune" her suggestions.

One thing I noticed was that on Friday night and all day saturday the outhouse had a wretched stench. However, on Sunday it was not nearly as bad. I figured out what happened. You see on Saturday evening I took on the stench of all the outhouses in the campground and set it free inside my tent around 12:00 AM. Sam and I are lucky to still be alive.

There is something very special about a men's retreat.

McDougall Plug

I am sure that not all of you check out the blogs I link to, but I recommend that you check out the bald eagle in this post from the McDougall blog. Fast forward through the slideshow. There are two of them. Phenomenal!

Back Home

So since our last post we said goodbye to Bubbe, Abueluli, Grandpa, Lita, Aunt Razzi, Lonnie, Aunt Rachel, Baby Ryan, Uncle Barry, all the Gourdjis and the doctor at Urgent Care. That's right, while leaving the room for the final time, Rachel got her thumb caught in heavy room door on the side by the hinges. Oh boy did I jump when I saw that. I usually avoid trips to the doc but I didn't see how her finger could have avoided being broken. Three hours later she had championed her way through her first X-Ray while sitting on Daddy's lap. I think she was intimidated by my sexy lead vest, but she made it through. As it turns out, R-11 is made of rubber and hadn't broken her thumb. All she needed was ice and Motrin. That and a stop at In N Out Burger. Razzi has a pic of the freshly swollen thumb so I will post that as soon as I can get her to send it to me.

The final stop was a visit with my Aunt Linda and Christy. We had a blast there. Rachel particularly enjoyed playing with the choo choo train, filling Linda's waterfall with rocks, picking avacados and swimming. It was a great visit and a nice way to end our vacation.

All pics are up to date in the "San Diego Trip" slideshow.

Rides and Slides

Today we checked out the USS Midway that is decomissioned and is now a museum. I am always amazed at the size of an aircraft carrier and Rachel loved being on the "big boat". Daddy took her to go pee pee on the potty and was unaware that the the phrase "hold it" expires the minute the pants hit the ankles. Most of it made it into the potty but there was definitely a wet spot on her pants. I didn't make that mistake later in the day. I added an extra hold it as the pants went down and things worked like a charm. My crowning achievement for the day was adding the words bomb and missle to Rachel's vocabulary as we checked out the planes. I also think she fully gets the concept of the airplane elevator that takes the planes from the mainentance deck to the main deck.

The Midway was followed by a trip to some place in San Diego with food, ice cream and a carousel. I was nervous that Rachel would not like the carousel but she LOVED it! Nicole stayed off and took pictures and every time we passed her Rachel would yell, "Hi Mommy!" Towards the end she even went one handed so she could wave to her. It was a blast!

After a nap we played in the pool. Rachel is now in love with the "Little Water Slide". But Daddy has to go with her. We climb to the top, she rolls her ball down, and then down we go. She is great on the slide. All in all it was a great day. Tomorrow is the zoo! As usual today's photos have been added to the photos from this post.

San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park

Today we went to the San Diego Zoo's Wild Animal Park. We were expecting a drive thru safari type thing but it ended up being a walk through situtation pretty similar to a zoo. It was definitely focussed on African animals. Rachel is learning her letters and today she learned G for Giraffe and Gorilla and E for Elephant. It was very hot and a lot of fun. How big furry lions can lay around and cuddle in heat like this is beyond me! For pictures check the second half of the slideshow on the last post.