Yosemite.

A month ago, we headed to Yosemite for a retreat on behalf of the CPMA board. We stayed at the Tenaya Lodge in Fish Camp. It was beautiful. A few months before Cici was born, we had to decide whether or not we would be attending. When it came down to deciding, we figured we wouldn't be able to have an all expense paid vacation for awhile, so we might as well take advantage. I'm so glad we did. Though we were only there for the weekend, it was worth it.

Because it was a retreat, all family members were invited. Everyone thought I was crazy for having a 3 week old baby and a toddler, but they ate it up. All the women (and some men) were dying to hold Cici and I gladly handed her over. Cici enjoyed it just the same as she slept in everyone's arms.

While Papa J attended his meetings, they had planned activities for the family members. We went on a short nature hike one afternoon and Z was a trooper. She was tired at the end, but walked the entire way by herself. I kept telling her Papa would take her swimming when we finished. Luckily it worked. She really enjoyed picking up all the sticks and leaves and especially playing in the dirt.
Below is a picture of all the board member's children that were in attendance. There was one boy (who's hiding in the back) who didn't want his picture taken with the girls. Isn't interesting how Podiatrists seem to have a lot of girls? Weird. The twin girls really took to Z. She enjoyed following them and it was nice to have a babysitter along the way.
This is the closest we came to Half Dome. We decided while we had a little break, we'd drive into the park and explore a little. We (as well as a hundred other people) stopped to take pictures at the view. It was breathtaking. Some friends of ours just hiked Half Dome a couple of weeks ago. It is on our to do list. We are hoping maybe next summer when Cici will be older and we can leave her longer.
I thought it was funny they had this tourist tractor. Z really wanted a ride. She was devastated when we told her she couldn't. Luckily we had to drive through a tunnel on the way back to the lodge. That made her a happy camper once more. For some reason, she is fascinated with tunnels. Don't ask me why, but we do live around a few so we pass through them often.
One evening was dedicated to a family campfire dinner. We ate scrumptious food and listened to relaxing acoustic guitar classics such as the Beetles. (It reminded me of my father-in-law. No matter where we go, his guitar is in hand.) After the main course, they had everything needed to make smores. The kids were ecstatic. Z loved roasting her marshmallows and playing pudgy bunny all by herself. :)


At the end of the days, we crashed. One evening in particular, Papa J treated me to a massage at the hotel spa. Coincidentally, they were having a special and I received my massage at a 20% discount. It was much needed and it helped me relax at the end of the night. Thank you Papa J, I love you.

This is a cute picture of Papa holding our two sleeping girls. They absolutely love their daddy.