Tahoe

We decided since we didn't make it to Tahoe for Thanksgiving that we would visit when we went off track at the end of April.  We scheduled the time with Carole and Russ and were looking forward to the vacation.  We picked Ellie up Friday after school (she was taking forever to scooter home because one of the girls we carpool with got hurt and they called her Mom--fortunately I just sent Steve to get her after waiting for 30 minutes then we took off.  I was really nervous about spending 9 hours in the car with Andrew, but he did pretty good.  He was a little fussy and the movie was not holding his interest (I miss the days when we could listen to books on tape together as a family, but that was not happening with the little man).  I found two straws that were different sizes and entertained him both ways for a bit pushing one in and out of the other.  He may have ruined the tire gauge I gave him, but it was a sacrifice we were willing to make. He colored a bit, ate snacks, and called Mimi once.  He did sleep for one hour each way, but that was it.

Steve is always a wonderful driver and we made it in good time arriving at 9pm Cali time.  We unloaded the car and visited for a bit then I went to bed with the kids.  And we awoke to 5 inches of snow Saturday morning.  

I always pack thinking it is colder in Tahoe than I think, but I was not prepared for this. We stayed inside all day Saturday by the fire reading and playing games--Steve bought the game of life to play with the girls and they all loved it and played a few times. Carole made a delicious turkey dinner we enjoyed that evening after which we looked through some pictures Carole and Russ brought and it was fun to hear more stories about Steve and his family life growing up.

Ellie insisted on eating a drumstick off the turkey.

Sunday we went to sacrament meeting where I ended up playing the piano--they were desperate and you could tell I needed to practice, but the spirit was there and it was wonderful.  They offered to transfer my records there anytime. ;)

Afterward we ate some leftover turkey and then drove to Steve's sister Debbie's house in Granite Bay to spend the afternoon with them.  As soon as we arrived the girls found the kittens they were fostering and played with them for a while.  Then we went outside and the Ellie immediately fell in love with the zip line.  We finally talked Lila into trying it and she enjoyed it and did it twice.  Ellie must have done it a couple of dozen times.  They fed us a great dinner and introduced us to this delicious gold barbecue sauce from Trader Joe's.  It was nice to catch-up with them (unfortunately I got a migraine about half-way through I think the curvey roads, lack of sleep and temperature change just got to me so I felt bad that I was kind of out of it).  They are an amazing family and I wish we could see more of them.  Oh Steve and I drove their Tesla which was a once in a life time experience.

Andrew loved their big dog, Shadow.

Monday, Andrew took an early nap and we all relaxed and juts visited.  Then we went for a hike.  We did the Eagle Lake hike.  The first part was a lot of rock stairs, then we hit a snow covered section and we did have to go around and through a few trees, but we had a great time. The girls are excellent hikers and Andrew doesn't mind being strapped in the backpack--hello he loves being outside any way he can.

The falls came fast and were at the beginning of the hike which I think made the rest of the hike up seem a bit long.

Taking a rest on the way up.

Feeding the duck who came right to us as soon as we arrived at the lake.

 

Then a goose decided to get in on the action. We let the girls take their shoes off and get wet a bit.

He was so excited to climb around and sit on rocks at the lake.

 

He tried to get the camera from me and I got this cute picture I couldn't resist posting.

View of Lake Tahoe and Emorald Bay we didn't notice until hiking down.

Tuesday morning Andrew found this hat Russ had been trying to get him to wear all week and he picked it up and ran around the cabin saying, "gwampa. gwampa."  It was so cute!  Then we let him take a nap again then we packed up at headed to the lake for beach time.

Remember Andrew's hesitation at beaches, well I had put him in a chair while we finished setting up and when I looked at him he had climbed down and made himself at home digging with his hands in the sand. :)

The lake was so low the kids could walk out quite a ways without getting too wet. We had to set a limit on how far out they could go.

Ellie loves playing frisbee with Dad.

At the beach the girls realized we were leaving the next day and began to beg to stay longer.  They asked when we could come back etc.  So I think we will make it a regular event to visit Tahoe with Carole and Russ.  It was a great trip!!