Beach Days

Ahh, the Pacific Coast. Aside from family, it's the biggest thing I miss about living in California. Sigh. Anyway, like always, we spent several days at the beach while visiting the West Coast this summer. Ainsley has been dying to learn how to surf and spent countless hours on a long board. Uncle John was a great teacher. The waves always look so much bigger when you're out there, but once you see the pictures they don't look quite so big. They were pretty big though. And powerful. And kinda weird. A couple of days while we were out there one of us would catch a wave and then another wave would form to create a double wave. Those things bounce you all over the place.

Kaylee had fun on a boogie board, and Landon stayed close to shore. He wasn't interested in a wet suit this year.

We love the beach!

Landon is 8!

Landon celebrated his 8th birthday while we were in California. He has been wanting to go panning for gold for several years, so we decided to take him to Colombia, California. Colombia is a historic gold rush town. I remember touring Colombia several times as a kid, so it was fun to take my own kids there to explore.

The day before Landon's birthday we checked the weather in Colombia and realized how hot it was going to be. It looked like a Texas forecast! We started getting a little nervous about going (it's pretty much all outside) and decided that the Monterey Bay Aquarium might be a better option. Landon LOVES fish, so we thought it would be easy to change his mind. He could not be swayed, and since it was his birthday celebration we decided to let his opinion be the final decision. Colombia it was!

On the morning of Landon's birthday we started the day off with candles in his doughnut breakfast. Next came presents which included: a bunch of comic books from us, his Cub Scout uniform from Grandma and Grandpa Gadd (he's so excited about Cub Scouts), and a skateboard from Grandma and Grandpa Yarbrough (they gave him a mini skateboard and some cash to buy the real skateboard when we get back to Texas).

And then we were off to Colombia! The heat actually wasn't too bad when we got there. It was hot, but it was a dry heat. Much better than a humid heat. We had a great time! Landon got the royal treatment with a gold panning lesson (and guaranteed gold), a front row seat on a stage coach ride, and all the Sarsaparilla a boy could drink. He was also given a cash amount by Uncle John that he could spend while he was there as a birthday present. He bought candy and some rocks to add to his collection. He actually didn't spend that much, so John also bought him an A's hat at a baseball game the boys went to a few days later. 

Colombia was a great way for a boy to celebrate his 8th birthday! Happy birthday Landon! We think you're the greatest not quite so little guy a family could ask for!