Motherhood during summertime has always been a blessing and a curse. Long days without a schedule but then long days without a schedule- know what I mean? I’ve had 21 summers as a mother. Some better summers than others. Yesterday, 3 of the 4 kids asked me to go to Lacma– the museum that’s here in LA. I feel like I’m always asking them to go and they turn me down so you could imagine my giddiness when they suggested it!! Not only would we be doing something they wanted to do- Cam was going to drive us! (Nerve wrecking but amazing that I didn’t have to be the one driving on LA freeways!)
We did it right by hitting up the food trucks across the street for lunch before entering the museum- you know, avoiding meltdowns because we’re hangry. Which means more perusing later with full bellies.
We did the usual- walking, talking, admiring, lots of photos. But it wasn’t til we were driving home that it it hit me. About 12 years ago, I had only 3 kids and they were about 8, 5 and 3. I was on a kick to beat boredom during that summer with young children. I wanted to take them on adventures that didn’t cost a lot of money. So came the idea of visiting a new park each day in LA. We did this religiously for an entire summer. Some were hits, some were misses. But the overall memory stuck with us. And this tedious task for me, sitting at a park all day long- this is pre-iphone period, so usually reading a book/magazine, playing with the kids, refereeing stranger’s kids, all of that in the LA heat- hours upon hours of doing that… made my heart hurt. I longed for that time on the park. The time where my babies were just babies and the days and months of summer were long but so full. Yesterday was pretty amazing. Being able to still be together and going on an adventure. I honestly love this stage where my children are now, 21, 17, 15 and 10. I wish I could pause it and soak it up. I know now that the summers are long but fleeting. How time has changed… park sitting all day to me dropping the day’s to-do list to hang with them at the museum. Always the right choice.
goodbye summer 2015
With everyone's busy schedules this summer, we opted to stay somewhat close to home and escape the heat of Southern California. We stayed at an airbnb and drove between San Luis Obispo and Big Sur. 
Here we managed to spot some whales along the coast. We wish we were closer but we felt fortunate to see them at all! Such a treat. 
The beaches in Northern Cal are different than the ones we are used to in So Cal and Hawaii. But we did get a chance to see some seals, dolphins, whales and the boys went kayaking. 
We were spoiled by some amazing sunsets!
View from the Nepenthe Restaurant in Big Sur. We were there early so the fog hadn't burned off, seemed a bit more magical that way, though. Also had the best pizzas of our lives at Big Sur Bakery later that day. Must go back! 
Sometimes traveling with 6 opinions, thoughts, expectations and feelings can be a bit tough. It seems like there's always someone who had something else in mind, a different agenda, a different meal. It's hard to please everyone. I've accepted that not everyone will be happy all the time which helps alleviate the pressure for me. This time together is rare and precious. I realize it won't be long til family trips with all 6 may dwindle to perhaps 4 or 5 of us. I tried to just take it one day at a time, storing little pockets of happiness in my heart, as I knew summer would quickly be coming to an end, and the routine of school and life would be knocking at our door. 
Thank you for the memories, Big Sur.
crafty packing to go!
When I found out we were staying at a little cabin, I knew I wanted to be able to take a little pack of crafty supplies! This mini book class from Tina was just starting so I gathered a bunch of supplies that were close by and threw them in a basket. 
Though I didn't really delve into my book as much as I would have liked, I did jot down this little page of memories. I didn't even make that watercolor background though, I snagged it from Elsie's leftover scrap of paper. She was using it as her paper to wipe off her colors so essentially it was going to be trash, but of course, it looked so beautiful to me! 
Glad I got those little tidbits down :)
I’ve been missing my DSLR
This is going to be a photo heavy post. I haven't taken my big girl camera on a personal outing in a very long time. I have been getting by with my phone for convenience. Sometimes I get good enough phone prints and I'm glad. This last big round of photos I ordered I was heavily disappointed. Disappointed in the quality and just bummed that I missed out on really having a good print of that moment. This trip, I knew I was going to take my big camera, and I am soooo glad. I got so many little gems I am sure I would have missed. 
Ate a delicious dinner at Industrial Eats. 
So proud of our little fire :) 
Top of our 6 mile hike overlooking gorgeous Santa Barbara County. 
Caleb got this one. Sigh! 
One last day at El Capitan Beach. 
Spring Break 2015. :)Though I got some really good photos with my phone (see post below) and I will continue to use my phone for picture taking, I'm going to try and be mindful of grabbing my 5d more often. I never regret it!
el capitan canyon
We went glamping last week for Spring Break. Kira was still in school so she wasn't able to join us. Which I think was okay as she's not really a camper 🙂 Neither am I, but this was about as close as I can get to camping, which makes it the perfect compromise as Chris loves camping! 🙂 We didn't stay in a yurt but I had to get a pic of it! 
I Iove the idea of the yurt but unlike the cabin we stayed in, you don't get your own bathroom. That's a little too rough for me! 🙂 There was a queen bed and then the 3 kids were in the loft above. 
Some of the cabins were in more populated areas, we weren't in this specific area but off to a side that was more secluded. I liked that a bit more. This seemed a little too much out of that period in the LOST TV series where there was that creepy community existed in the middle of nowhere. 
El Capitan Beach just around the corner. 
Hills on the other side of us. 
Family bike ride. They had the adult bikes there for use and we just brought Elsie's bike with us. 
So proud of her riding down this downhill! 
Very Miyazaki to me. Love it. 
Dinner out in town. The market offered barbecue kits that came with everything you needed to cook what sounded like a tasty meal! But I just didn't have faith in our "meat being cooked enough in the dark" skills so we didn't risk it. We did make smores though. Yay us! 
Very Sound of Music to me. Love it. 
Top of the 6 mile hike! That view! 
Hike hair. 
Walking to the canyon market to you know, get coffee and cinnamon rolls. Roughin it. 
Last morning of the trip. Thanks for the memories, El Capitan! These were all taken on my iphone. I have a whole other post on pics with my Canon 5d and why I chose to bring it along and why I am so happy I did!
creative handbook
Yesterday was a holiday and after a weekend of not doing a whole lot around the house, I decided we should go to the beach! We live in a warm area, not too far from the ocean, why don't we go there more often?! We got lucky. Not a lot of people and perfect weather! I brought along a little stash of goodies to play with on the beach.
Have you seen the new Amy Tangerine website? Go check it out and while you're there, grab your free, downloadable, printable copy of the Creative Handbook! Amy and I teamed together to make this guide to help you break out of creative ruts. It's been really fun to see how people around the world are using it. Hashtag #amytangerinehandbook on Instagram, we'd love to check your pages out too! 🙂
few more from the Getty
typepad app must fix the only 5 uploads at one time feature.
we came early to the Getty and left when the line was crazy long. good thing, we don't do well with crowds. there were some DiY art tables and els was all over that of course.
Getty landscaping- so gorge!
here we gooo again!
last night we pored over this dear ol blog and we reminisced. so much has changed within the last few years, no way can I catch up. I discovered I can blog from my phone…being that I primarily use my phone for pix this makes it ultra convenient. I'm practicing today at the Getty. 🙂 since I have over 1500 pix on my Instagram account and I fear it might get deleted one day out of nowhere, maybe I will attempt to post here more. I have tried to close this blog many times, I've tried to turn it into a book, unsuccessfully doing either. so here we go again….giving it another shot via my phone.
I guess I can only post 5 pix at a time thru the app and the dimensions are all wacky. gotta figure that out but it will do for now. any typepadder's that blog via the app, tips?
ojai/santa barbara mini trip
we like little night/day trips somewhat close to home. santa barbara is always at the top of our list as it's always a little cooler there and of course, there's so much sentimentality that goes along with it- as that's the place we first lived together and grew our little family! santa barbara by day via instagram on my phone:
waking them up super early, partly to make the most of our day, partly because chris is so excited 🙂 
after the day in santa barbara, we decided to stay in ojai- a little town inland. we've never been before and we are for sure gonna go back again! kids on the golf cart on the way to our rooms: 
i wish i took more pics of the hotel and ojai in general than the ones from my phone 😦 you can click on their website and see just how lovely and amazing our hotel is! totally going back!!! ojai resort. 
this is the building we were in, heaven!!! 
good times. we've got a few more little summer mini trips before the crazy early school season begins! love the long days, no schedules, sleep in life we're having right now 🙂
little desert flower
a morning walk in palm springs:
she noticed she matched the flowers. 🙂
flair for the dramatic 🙂
at starbucks, our breakfast destination. so glad that when i aimed the camera at us, this is what i got back 🙂
then chris got these of us:
my lovebug. i could get all mushy about how she's five and how we spend our days together… but i won't. i think anyone who reads this blog knows my love for my family. just wanted to share this series of pics of us because they make me so happy 🙂 total happiness and warm comfort captured here! 🙂
watersix 