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Tuesday, August 19, 2014

California Adventure - Lake Tahoe

For months I was SO excited about our California vacation, then it came AND WENT in a flash! One reason for my excitement was that it would give me something wonderful to share here on my blog. I LOVE traveling and family. I knew pictures would tell our story without boring everyone to tears.  Now, I must remember that even though it is over, we made a lot of wonderful memories and I have photo evidence to support that claim.

I came home with over 1200 pictures and I had to reduce them to a good representation of the trip's awesomeness for a photo book I created on shutterfly.com. It is the longest photo book I've ever created. Thank goodness for coupons! I've shared before about making our photo books for special occasions, if you missed it you can find the post here




We were in California for 10 days and saw new and interesting things every day. I'll break up the posts so you can enjoy the trip.

This trip was epic because it was a "Congratulations on your Graduation" trip for my baby girl.  She had just graduated from beauty college and when we returned she passed her state licensing exam on the first try. applause  She already had a job lined up, so she went right into training and is now working full time for the first time EVER!  She took a few selfies along the way.  Here's one that includes me that I'm not embarrassed to share.



We arrived in the Sacramento area where my aunt, uncle, and cousins live in time for dinner on Wednesday.  We picked up our Mustang convertible (for cruising the PCH) and drove straight to my aunt and uncle's house where we were joined by my cousins with kids, grandkids and dogs in tow. My aunt was anxious to prepare her delicious Filipino cuisine for us and we were even more anxious to eat her wonderful home cooked meal. It was a great start to a wonderful trip, family and food! We had 15 for dinner that night, we were only missing a couple family members from that area.

On Thursday morning, we headed to Lake Tahoe for lunch and sailing. Lake Tahoe is one of the most beautiful places I've ever visited and I couldn't wait to get there.  The morning started with cool wet weather in the mountains so my clothing schedule was shuffled from day one because based on the forecast I needed to wear long pants, a t-shirt and a sweater.  Yes, I planned my clothes for each day.  No, it did not work out.

As usual, on our trips to visit family not everyone can go on all our outings but we had a good turn out on this day that included three generations.



We arrived for lunch at The Beacon Restaurant at Camp Richardson and even though the weather was clearing it was too cool and breezy to eat on the deck. That was a little disappointing but it was still fun, the windows are large and the views amazing.  I ordered fish tacos and they were delicious!


After lunch we walked out onto the pier and all around the historic buildings to the north of the restaurant.  I can just imagine the families gathered here decades ago enjoying their summers in grand style!  There were separate buildings behind this grand home for the cooks, groundskeepers, nannies, laundry, etc. There was even a separate building for the children's play room. Must have been a rough life summering here with all that staff to do the work!



I loved the view from the deep porch and would have been happy to sit here and rock for a while.




The porch of the children's recreation room had a lovely view as well.


Next, we drove to Zephyr Cove to board our sailboat.  I sailed with my siblings and cousins on the lake the last time I visited Lake Tahoe, but SuperDave and my baby girl weren't with me so I was excited for them to get out onto the water.



Due to windy conditions they weren't able to raise the sails and the weather was chilly! But we motored along the shoreline and spent some time below deck where there were also big windows to enjoy the view without the cold wind.  The mountain weather was beautiful, lovely, enjoyable (not hot). This was a real treat for for southern folks in June. No complaints here, only smiles!



My daughter is a gal after my own heart, it was her favorite place we visited on our entire trip.




We spent such a long time in the mountains that we stopped and ate again on the way back to my cousin's house. She and her husband were the best hosts and I'll share some pictures from their lovely home on another post.

Much love and laughter,


Laura


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2 comments:

Sherry @ No Minimalist Here said...

It sounds like the beginnings of a wonderful trip! I look forward to reading more and seeing your pictures.
xx,
Sherry

Debbie said...

I have never been to California or anywhere on the west coast. These photos are wonderful, and I think I would enjoy it so much. (If I could just get there without flying...)