Grandma and Grandpa Nielson

Bryan's parents came for a visit over the holiday weekend. It was fun to have them here. The kids loved having extra attention and rough housing with grandpa. They spoiled us and came with literally boxes of peaches, apples, cantaloupes, tomatoes, zucchini…so delicious (and they didn't get busted at the California border)!!! One night, Steve made peach cobbler and it was extremely tasty. The next night, they followed it up with white chocolate chip lemon cookies. I was getting quite use to them being around!

The highlights of our weekend included target practice with nerf guns, backyard baseball, rat trap sandwiches, The California Railroad Museum, a train ride and catching a glimpse of Old Sacramento. We ran out of time in Old Sacramento, but would love to return soon and see all that it has to offer.

Photo credit: Luke

Emma did really well for the first half of the train ride, but once she was informed that she could not place her hands outside the window, it was a deal breaker. I broke my phone out. Everyone was happy.

This little angel was experiencing some "hanger" after the train ride. Grandma and Grandpa treated us to lunch and cured Emma of her "hanger." I'm guessing her genetic predisposition came from Emma's maternal side of the family. :)

They have about 10 'Thomas the Train' and 'Chuggington' train tables.

Old Sacramento

It was slightly chaotic on the holiday.

Emma worked her charm to the best of her abilities to try to convince them to stay longer. We'll keep our fingers crossed for another visit that's not too far down the road. 

Burney Falls

It seems unfair to post this right after Hidden Falls, because there is no comparison between these two. The falls were called "the Eighth Wonder of the World" by Theodore Roosevelt. I was worried that I might be underwhelmed seeing them in person after viewing pictures online, but it was breath taking. I only wish the water came from a hot spring, instead the water is a very chilly 40-something degrees. We will leave our swimsuits home, thank you.

I dare you to take a drink from this water fountain.

Someone was getting a little tuckered out. We continued the short hike around the falls and made our way back to the campsite.

Can you see the deer???

I promise, it's there.

How about now?

Love the spring in Luke's step, even going uphill.

Car camping at its finest-roller suitcase.

The boys woke up earlier than the ladies, so they headed back to the waterfall for more pictures.

Luke started off excited...

After the 100th pic, his face began to reflect more of, "Are you kidding me?"

This one and….

this one are my favorites.

Enjoying breakfast, which may have included bananas and s'mores before hitting the road.

Saw "Big Roy" on our way to Lassen Volcanic National Park.

Pulled over at a lake to grill our delicious hot dogs and feed ignore the wildlife in the park.

Lassen Volcanic National Park

We watched a 20 minute video that gave the history of the park. Luke found it really interesting. He was disappointed when the volcanoes didn't make any smoke while we were there.

 Preschool starts next week for Luke and I think our "up and go" will be more limited. It's been fun to squeeze in these trips and explore around us.

Hidden Falls

Saturday Evening we packed a picnic and headed 30 minutes away to Hidden Falls hiking trail. Our timing was good in that most people were packing out so we could take up more than our fair share of the trail. Bryan and I love being outside and decided we would like to force similar feelings in our children by starting them out young. So far, so good.

Playing dare devils with their dad.

Our fearless leader.

Blurry selfie-the best kind for me.

Emma LOVES this backpack.

Luke is becoming a California boy. Do you see those flip flops? They are his absolute favorite. Another perk about living here is that he'll be able to wear them most of the year…if they last that long.

Muir Woods

After we hiked out of Point Reyes and reached our car we decided to keep the good times rolling. Muir Woods was roughly 45 minutes away so we fired up the GPS and headed down California State Highway 1---I think it is one of the most curvy/motion sickness inducing roads I've driven. It is gorgeous. It follows along, I mean it follows the EDGE, of the California Coast. I thought I was being a cautious driver, but when Bryan flinched, desperately grabbed the door and exclaimed, "You're making me nervous!" on one of the sharper turns, I realized I wasn't being as cautious as I thought! It was hilarious and he still gives me a hard time, which really makes me laugh-I was channeling my inner Nascar driver.

Side note-we drove through Stinson Beach. It was an adorable beach town. I would love to go back and check it out on another trip.

We arrived at Muir Woods along with thousands of our closest friends. To say it was busy, would be a serious understatement. We lucked out and scored a great parking spot (after a slight "discussion" with another driver). We unloaded the kids and made our way to the entrance.

It was odd to me, but it felt like we had to keep the kids quiet. There were so many people, but it was so quiet that we were definitely the attention getters. 

We didn't linger too long, but it was impressive. 

The kids thought the big trees were "neat," but after seeing 10 big trees, they were over it.

I'm glad we stopped and loved seeing things I've never seen before.